Adoption Day!!

March 1 is a very important day in our home. It is the day 6 years ago that Isaac officially became an Etter. Needless to say there will be a lot feasting over the next few days. Tonight will be his favorite meal. His request was steak, mac-n-cheese and greens(yes, you read right,I said greens). His sister and I are making a chocolate cake. It is funny to me how he has precise plans of ways to celebrate this day. Tonight is just for us. But, he is not dumb. He realizes there is a lot of "center of attention on Isaac" room here. So, it was donuts to his class at school, dinner out with his favorite adult that spoils him tomorrow and bowling with family fiends on Saturday.What does this have to do with Sabbath feasting. Nothing really! Except that it is great to see he has learned the value and joy of celebrating with family. Last night he could not wait until tonight. This has not always been the case. I am just really happy today and wanted to share. So, Happy Adoption Day, Isaac!!

Sante Fe Soup

I have said before one way to make things a little easier to feast, is to do simpler meals during the week. This allows more time, money and energy for Sabbath feasting. Soups are great for this. You can through it in the crock pot and not think of it again. I usually double my soup recipes and have lunch the next day and freeze the left-overs. I did this one the other night for guests. Everyone raved over it.

1 can pinto beans
1 can black beans
1 can kidney beans
2 cans white corn drained
1 small can diced tomatoes
1large can diced tomatoes with chilies
1 chopped onion
1 1/2 lb browned ground beef
2 pkg taco seasoning mix
1 pkg Ranch dressing mix
2 c. water

Mix together and simmer. I put it all in the crock pot.

Garnish:
Chopped green onions
Sour Cream
Cheddar Cheese
Tortilla chips

I served it with corn bread and it made a very filling meal. I have heard that Abondante Living sells a Tortilla Soup mix that is really good and VERY quick to through together.

Recipes

Here are the recipes from our Sabbath dinner.

Asian sauce for Salmon

2TBS Dijon mustard
3TBS soy sauce
6TBS olive oil
1/2 tsp minced garlic

Mix all ingredients and spread over salmon. Cook the salmon your favorite way. In the winter I broil it, in the summer i use the grill.
I would actually double the recipe, and have enough to pour over the salmon after placing it on the serving platter. This is a great sauce if you are looking for something light that will not over power the fish.



Spinach Salad

Spinach and other greens
Green onions
1/2 lb of cooked, crumbled bacon
3 eggs boiled and crumbled


Dressing
1c. white vinegar
2TBS bacon grease
2 raw eggs
3/4 c. of sugar
1tsp dry mustard
1/2tsp flour
1/2tsp salt
1/2tsp mayo

Cook all ingregients until it begins to thicken. Remove from heat and let cool.

This dressing was sweet enough that the kids loved it. They did not even realize they were eating spinach.

Bread with dipping oil is always a HUGE hit with my kids. I use a french bauguette and we dip it in oilive oil and seasonings. YOu can buy the seasonings or make your own. They seems costly to buy, but I bought a bottle months ago, we have used it often, and entertained with it. There is still a ton.


Enjoy!

How Much can we Possibly Spill?

WE have had chaotic Sabbath dinners before, but last night took the cake. It started with a spill as soon as we sat down to the table. To make matters worse everyone sat completely still because daddy was doing catechism and you cannot interrupt that! Once that was cleaned up, we attempted to start over. Immediately another spill!! This time Isaac spills Sarah's water into her dip for the bread. Clean up and get new oil. Take two. Zachary's portion of salad makes it to the table beside his plate! Clean up. Take three. Bruce asks would I like to make the toast. I think this was his way of seeing how polite and profound I could be while being at the point of boiling over. By the time we actually ate, the food was cold. By the end of the dinner we had at least two more spills. So, what's the moral to this story? No matter how much you prepare, sometimes you have to abandon your aspirations of a highly liturgical Sabbath feast, and realize even if everyone is wet from spills, we can still celebrate the Sabbath. Do not be discouraged, there is always next week. By the way, the food was actually really good. I will post recipes tomorrow.