Montana Girl's Profile

Hmm... my two year old actually helps me cook. We learned what is "HAWT!!!" right away, so I usually don't have too many worries there. He helps me measure things out and dumps them in the bowl, taste tests anything sliced, chopped or diced for quality control, helps me position items just right on pizzas, casseroles and desserts, and helps mix things up in the bowls! There's no getting rid of or distracting him, he wants to be right there. Yes, dinner takes a little longer, but it's worth it to me that he sees the process of cooking food and learns to love it! I made him his own little apron and it's so cute to see him run and get it when it's cooking time!

I have to agree with the idea of not imposing MY view of what something should be on what my child is going to see in something... however... as children will be children and WILL pick up sticks and beat each other with them... Boffer swords are a much safer alternative. For those who don't know... they're 1/2" pvc lengths wrapped with pipe insulation and then completely covered in duct tape. You can space the insulation to allow for a handle. They're heavy duty, and yes, they can cause bruising, but far better a bruise than an eye poked out.

My mom puts up bare branches every year and it's very bare bones but visually striking. I enjoy that look... although I enjoy my Christmas tree as well!

Hot cabbage salad... slice thinly and saute in 1 Tbs ea. of olive oil & balsamic and a chopped garlic clove... saute till pink. Mix with 1 finely chopped apple and top with feta cheese and roasted pecans (toss w/1 tbs oil, salt, pepper, & powdered ginger, roast at 350 for 3-5 minutes). So good!

I've found that the key for good tasting brown rice is using some salt and mixing it with wild rice. I have a rice cooker, so this may not work for you, but I use 1/4 cup wild rice to 3/4 cup brown jasmine (I'm another vote for either the brown jasmine or brown basmati, they taste pretty similar to me) and cook them together. I pre-rinse the wild rice, and put it in the cooker with the total amount of water required for all the rice, add salt (I never measured, but it's a good long shake) and cook that for 15 - 20 minutes. Then I add in the rinsed brown rice and finish cooking. It tastes great with a little bit of butter, or juices from whatever dish you're making that night.

Substituting Stevia for sugar... there's certain things, like making ice cream, where I worry that using stevia won't act the same way as sugar and will ruin the final product. Does using stevia result in the same custard as using sugar would? I've had trouble finding an answer to this online. Typically I substitute stevia for half or three quarters of the sugar in my baked goods, but I'm afraid to try anything else, like cheesecake, ice cream, or puddings.

Splenda... yuck. If you must have a sweet try Stevia. It's a lot easier to cook with and the aftertaste is not nearly as bothersome.

Um, call me crazy, but I'd think it'd be way easier to cut these out if they were chilled. Frozen marshmallows (which I've had in the store bought variety) hold up just fine. And it'd make it much easier to cut. Unless there's something I'm missing?

I've been doing a lot of looking at low and non-voc paints, and in general, what I have seen is a not very wide color range. The Safecoat paints though, seem to buck this trend, so I'll be using them on my walls in just a few days.

I'll be back to let you know how it goes!

This paint will actually be available in Missoula, MT on the 23rd... I know this because I'm currently looking at paints and they told me at my local store.