Debber

about me

Christian wife & mother of seven (four adopted foster children grown up now & three biologicals still at home!), plus 4 grandkids; been married 29 years now to the same wonderful man. Love cooking and being the happy little home-maker. Homeschooling our youngest children has been the joy of my life, am sad to see those days flitting by very quickly now. Enjoy quilting, writing, flower-gardening, and home-organizing. Live in a charming old farmhouse (read: "needs work") on 5 acres in very rural Wisconsin, surrounded by fields of corn, soybeans and hay...with a very charming view out every window (coulees in the unglaciated part of Wisconsin).





I entered my Finger-Lickin' Knuckle-Suckin' Chin-Drippin' Good BBQ Sauce recipe in this contest, and LOOK ~ ! I tied for first place in the Family Friendly category. Wouldn't MIL be proud---it's actually HER recipe! Whoohoo!!!

I hosted a thread called "Kids in the Kitchen" sharing ideas with Zaarsters for getting children into the act of cooking!



The gem I found was French Tart's Sticky Maple Pecan Baked Apples With Toffee Fudge Sauce--yummy!


Australia & NZ Recipe



Swap #13: "The Meter Maids"....Teamed with Rhonda in Texas(Grilled Potatoes), Sarah_Jayne (Mandarin and Apricot Smoothie)....March 2008

Swap #9: Teamed with cookiedog from California (Chicken With Wild Mushrooms and Balsamic Cream Sauce), katew from Melbourne, Aus (Quick Cheese and Chive Rolls), and Mandy from Oz from Victoria, Aus (Danish Fritters). ...October 2007

Swap #8: Teamed up with diner524 from Tampa FL (Elegant Chicken Tetrazzini), Jewelies from Queensland, AUS (Ham and Egg Pies), mummamills also from Queensland (Oxtail Casserole). ...September 2007

Swap #7: Teamed up with Gingernut from Australia (Prawn and Bacon Fried Rice), Stardustannie also from Australia (Chocolate Chippers (Cookies)), justcallmetoni from New York City (L'harsha), and French Tart in France (Rosy Rosé Berries: Strawberries and Raspberries in Wine). ...August 2007



My floozeriffic team-mates included captain Auntie Jan (Iowa), Kim D. (Texas), Sharon123 (No. Carolina), Dienia B. (Nebraska), Tina Chef Gone, Mulligan (Colorado), Toni in Colorado (Colorado), Heydarl (Australia), and Leanne Chef at Heart (Canada). ...June/July 2007

My themes were
*Picnic & Lunch Box Snacks* (Wow This is the Best BLT Dip I Have Ever Had, Fiesta Dip, Lunch Box Fillers - Carrot Stix) and
*Canning Up Summer's Bounty* (Antipasto, Apricot Honey Butter, Kiwi Strawberry Daiquiri Jam) ...June 2007


PAC Spring 08.....I sort of had a theme when I selected my little darlings: to pick chefs who share my birthday month or year OR who are/were from my adopted state of Washington (where we lived from 1991 until 1998). So, my children are WaCookinFool, GrammyK2897, Lorilyn Tenney, Mrs Bricker, Cook-a-holic & CrazyJezebel and from the preemie nursery I picked up Waffles and I'm a Cookin' Fool. Such sweeeeet little "babies" (even if some of them are OLD babes!).


Charlotte J was my little mother!

PAC Fall 07....my children are Xiola Blue from KY, sassafrasnanc from NC, Rae England from TX...and from the newborn nursery @DRiENNE from the state of Washington, and Lantana from Lantana, Texas--but I picked her 'cuz I like the flower!; and my littlest one is idol_ko_si_rachael_ray all the way from the Philippines!

And I was adopted by Aaliyah&Aaron's mum over in Norway! She took the MOST beautiful pictures of my recipes!!!

My children included MarthaStewartWanabe, msGigi, gran, ~kdp, Anda from the Newborn Nursery, Rockin Robyn, KJK #5, Kate's Kitchen, CountryMama, and F-16 momma. ...May 2007

I was adopted by VickyJ ...May 2007

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On-going participant in the following recipe swaps:

Favorite Foods:

Kneading bread, fussing with stir-fries or lasagna, special sauces; presenting the meal--no matter what it is!--I love doing it out of love for my family.

Canning or preserving our own food (after it's done is when I REALLY enjoy it!), making my own home-made mixes, preparing large batches or doubling recipes for the pantry or freezer (my own version of Once-A-Month-Cooking)...I was doing it before Taste of Home, Gooseberry Patch, and Martha Stewart started calling it "good things!"

Hubby and The Peanut Gallery are my willing taste-testers. As much as possible I make everything from scratch. "Love" is the secret ingredient in every meal! And I really do have a little jar of it!!

Favorite restaurant? My own dining room table. A close second would be Panera Bread, Olive Garden, and Red Lobster.


~~~~~Missing an Ingredient?~~~~~

Here's a handy conversion chart (thanks to Better Homes & Gardens ad)...

1 tsp Baking Powder = 1/2 tsp cream of tartar + 1/4 tsp baking soda

1 T Balsamic Vinegar = 1 T. cider/red wine vinegar + 1/2 tsp sugar

1 C. Buttermilk = 1 T. lemon juice (or vinegar) + enough milk to equal 1 cup (let stand 5 minutes) OR 1 C. plain yogurt

1 C. Self-Rising Flour = 1 C. flour + 1 tsp baking powder + 1/2 tsp salt + 1/4 tsp baking soda

1 C. Light Cream or Half-n-Half = 1 T. melted butter + enough milk to make 1 cup

1/2 C. Chopped Onion = 2 T. minced, dried onoin or 1/2 tsp onion powder

2 C. Tomato Sauce = 3/4 C tomato paste + 1 C. water

~~~~~PERFECT WEIGHTS & MEASURES~~~~~

Dry Measures:

3 tsp = 1 Tablespoon
4 T = 1/4 Cup
5 1/3 T = 1/3 Cup
8 T = 1/2 Cup
10 2/3 T = 2/3 Cup
12 T = 3/4 Cup
16 T = 1 Cup

Liquid Measures:

1 T = 1/2 fluid ounce
1 C = 1/2 pint = 8 fluid ounces
2 C = 1 pint = 16 fluid ounces
4 C = 2 pints/1 quart = 32 fluid ounces
16 C = 4 quarts/1 gallon = 128 fluid ounces

~~~~~SWITCHEROO SUBSTITIONS~~~~~

SPICE...................SUBSTITION
Allspice, ground........cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves
Chili powder............hot pepper sauce, oregano, cumin
Cloves..................allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg
Cumin...................chili powder
Dry mustard.............yellow mustard
Paprika.................dash hot pepper
Cayenne pepper..........bottled hot pepper sauce

~~~~~MAKE YOUR OWN SEASONINGS~~~~~

Apple pie spice (1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/8 tsp allspice, dash ginger)

Pumpkin pie spice (1/2 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp ginger, 1/4 tsp allspice, 1/8 tsp nutmeg)

Cajun seasoning (1/2 tsp white pepper, 1/2 tsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp onion powder, 1/2 tsp ground red pepper, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp, black pepper)

Poultry seasoning (3/4 tsp dried sage, 1/4 tsp dried thyme)




~~~~~~~~ FAVORITE QUOTES (from the Holy Bible, revered matrons & maids, authors and poets) ~~~~~~~~~


"Happiness is wanting what you have, not having what you want." ~ Mark Twain

"Balance the act of pursuing with the act of savoring." ~ Liz Perle

"Learn to pause...or nothing worthwhile will catch up to you." ~ Doug King

"I want my home to be a place where friends and family can relax without worrying about messing up the pillows on the couch." ~ Me!


~~~~~WEBSITES TO CHECK OUT~~~~~~

http://www.farmersorganicfoods.com (this is where I work my fingers to the bone!)

midwestliving.com/cookies and /menus

http://www.localharvest.org/farms/M4982