Nancy on the Home Front

Irish Yellow Broth – Comforting Soup

We’re back from our big cross country adventure and nothing is more satisfying than enjoying a bowl of warm soup on a cold winter day. I enjoy Irish Yellow Broth for lunch or dinner. If you have some extra spinach in the fridge this is a quick and easy soup that goes together well. The recipe calls for steel cut oats, I think this is the only soup recipe I have that uses steel cut oats!

Irish Yellow Broth

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp butter
1 onion, minced
1 celery stalk, minced
1 carrot, finely chopped
2 Tbsp flour
3 ¼ cup chicken stock
¼ cup steel cut oats
1 ½ cup chopped spinach
2 Tbsp cream
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Melt the butter in a saucepan and add onion, celery and carrots, cook the vegetables about 2 minutes or until the onions are soft.

Stir in the flour and cook slowly for another minute, stirring constantly. Pour in the chicken broth and the oats and bring to a boil, lower the heat and cover. Simmer for 30 minutes or until the vegetables are tender.

Stir in the chopped spinach and cook for 15 minutes.

Stir in cream and season to taste.

When I make this I sometimes omit the cream, it is delicious either way. The original recipe instructed you to add the oats with the spinach. I have always added them with the broth so they have longer to cook, this gives the soup a nice creamy texture.

Irish soup. homemade — Irish Yellow Broth

Healthy Snacks For The Road

On our drive across country in October we did our best to have healthy snacks for the road trip. We had homemade granola to enjoy for breakfast along with small containers of yogurt. There were plenty of baby carrots and apples to snack on it the car as well. After a few days on the road we came up with some other ideas that we wanted to try for the ride home.

First we had to do something about our cooler, it did a poor job of keeping the food cold and relying on hotel ice was not a good idea. It seemed to melt in just a few hours! So we invested in a Yeti cooler and several frozen packs. This cooler claims to keep food cold for many hours. The claims were correct, this not only kept our food cold for our long 7-10 hour days but even the bag of ice would still be frozen! We could then put the ice packs in the freezer in the hotel each night and be ready to go again in the morning!

We also purchased a thermos to keep soup hot. I decided I would make a batch of soup before we hit the road. We would heat up the soup each morning in the microwave of the hotel or friend’s house we were staying in and that would make a tasty lunch! It didn’t last us for the entire trip but at least it provided a warm lunch for a few days. Just imagine this soup served in our plastic traveling bowls! This was a great success, nothing like stopping midday to enjoy some hot homemade soup!On the drive out in October I had purchased bread, ham and cheese to be able to make sandwiches on the road. It worked well and we did that on our trip home as well!

It’s the time of year where you find clementine’s in the grocery store, They travel well and are easy to peel so I stocked up on some of those for our return trip.

Energy bars are another good option for a long car ride. I try to find bars with a combo of at least 5 grams of fiber and 7 grams of protein and fewer than 170 calories. The last thing we want to be doing is eating energy bars that are loaded with sugar!

Another good idea for future road trips would be some low fat muffins. Make a batch of Morning Glory Muffins. They are full of healthy ingredients like carrots, nuts and sunflower seeds!

Having carrots, zucchini, peppers and grape tomatoes that I can prepare each morning was also helpful and a healthy snack!Another good snack option is homemade trail mix. Include in the mix sunflower seeds, nuts, dried fruit and popcorn. You can also add shredded coconut and low fat granola. This is something I can make ahead of time and it lasted us the whole drive!

We also had our daily Shakeology, the “healthiest meal of the day”! Not only is it delicious but it also helps you from snacking! We’ve worked hard to stay in shape and wouldn’t want to go back to square one just because of a long road trip!

By having reliable ice packs to keep the food cold, hand sanitizer to clean our hands and reusable containers and cutlery we were able to keep things safe, clean and litter less as we drove cross-country!

Cherry Tomatoes Stuffed with Feta

I love appetizers that can be made ahead and just pulled out as the company arrives. This simple recipe makes 4-6 servings depending on appetites!

Ingredients:

1 (7-8 oz) package of feta cheese cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp minced shallot
½ tsp chopped fresh oregano
1 pound of large cherry tomatoes
12 pitted Kalamata olives, halved lengthwise.

Toss the cubed Feta, oil, shallot and oregano in a small bowl.

Cut 12 tomatoes in half crosswise. Scoop out the tomato pulp. Place tomatoes; cut side up on your serving platter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Stuff hollowed cherry tomatoes with marinated Feta. Slide an olive half alongside the cheese. Drizzle with additional olive oil. Do ahead, cover and let chill.

Lessons Learned While Traveling

Our adventure was a success and I’ve learned so many things while being away from home. One of the major lessons learned is that it is possible to live with only a suitcase full of clothes for three months. It was hard to pack, as when we left Vermont October first the weather was still quite mild. We ended up packing some clothes that we wore the first month and then didn’t need them anymore. Then when the weather became colder I only had one warm sweater to wear!

It is also possible to enjoy life and not even think about all the “stuff” I left at home! Being a stay at home mom I have many gadgets in my kitchen to make my life easier. Much as I enjoy these things I never even thought of them while we were away! Instead I made do with what was on hand. The townhouse we stayed in was fairly well equipped and had everything we needed for our stay.

I did not read nearly all the books I thought I would while we were away. For some reason I figured that since I wouldn’t have the house to take care of I would be able to spend more time reading! Instead we were way to busy hiking the Black Hills of South Dakota and exploring Portland, Oregon to do much reading! We did listen to numerous audio books however!

One of the best lessons learned was that when you travel you meet unforgettable people! From the moment we arrived in Keystone, South Dakota we meet new people. While in Keystone we were surrounded by people from all over the world. We met people from Liberia, Nigeria, India, Tanzania, Cameroon, Egypt, Delhi, Saudi Arabia, Nepal as well as many Native Americans. There were also other folks from the US. Meeting them and hearing their stories was fascinating. We also met numerous people once we arrived in Portland. I have to say that folks in Portland are very friendly. It is not unusual to strike up a conversation with someone while waiting to cross the street! Many of these people we may never see again but they were a pleasure to meet and spend time with. However if we ever end up in the same place again we will be sure to reconnect!

You also learn to try new things when traveling. Whether you are sharing a meal at someone’s house or eating meals in a large dining hall with 100 other people you eat what is given to you. We had one meal where we were served Prong Horn Antelope! Something I never even thought about eating, but I have to say the stew that was created from the meat was delicious!

I also became more comfortable with driving in the city and living in an area where there are many more people than live in the entire state of Vermont!

You learn to take one day at a time. Especially when traveling in the winter! You can plan all you want regarding how far you will drive in a day, but in reality you have to keep an eye on the weather and plan accordingly.

The best thing about driving across the United States is that we live in a beautiful, diverse country. We also live in a very large country, until you drive across the country you have no idea just how huge the United States is! Most of the country is very rural and filled with small towns and beautiful countryside.

Most everyone we met was very helpful and friendly.

I would drive across the country again. It’s less stressful than flying, unless you are driving through Chicago! You have time to think, time to listen to audio books and just enjoy the day. Have you driven across the country? What was your take away?

Homeward Bound

It was with heavy hearts that we left Portland with on Friday, January first. It has been wonderful to be so close to our four children and two grandchildren for the last two months. We sure are going to miss them all!

However the weather looked good and the roads were clear so we were on the road by 8am Friday morning. It was an uneventful and beautiful drive. Along the Columbia River and eventually crossing the Columbia and driving through Eastern Washington. I am constantly amazed at just how beautiful our country is. Such diversity, from the river valley to the high plains, the landscape would change so quickly. Our destination was Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.

We drove about seven hours on Friday and as we drove into Idaho it was just beautiful. They recently had a snowfall and every branch was coated with snow. It looked like a winter wonderland.

Saturday was a more exciting day as we had three passes in the Rockies to cross including the continental divide! We were once again blessed with beautiful sunny skies and clear roads. The first pass was rather icy but the other two were clear and offered beautiful vistas. Our destination on Saturday was Billings, Montana.

Sunday we had a shorter day as we were returning to Keystone, South Dakota to spend a little time with our friends at the Keystone Project. We enjoyed a third beautiful day with sightings of eagles, antelope and deer along the way. Our time in Keystone will be shorter then we would like, but we’re keeping an eye on the weather and as long as the days look clear we are going to keep on driving! Hoping to arrive back in Vermont by Thursday or Friday.

I think the key to enjoying a cross country trip is to drive 6-7 hours a day and then stop so you can have a relaxing evening and get a good nights rest. I’ve been packing our lunch’s everyday and even have a thermos of hot soup for us to enjoy at lunchtime! Hopefully the good weather will continue until we are safe in our own driveway!

Top Frugal Tip:Restoring a Shrunken Sweater

I have to say the most popular post I ever wrote was a post I wrote in 2013 on how to restore a shrunken sweater! I first shared this tip again in January of 2015. This post is still getting comments, several of them asking me why I was washing my son’s sweater (which I shrunk) and not having my son wash it! What kind of mother was I to raise children that don’t know how to wash their own sweaters! Too funny, as they totally missed the point of the post. I was just sharing a tip on how to restore a sweater that you may have shrunk my mistake!

In case you missed the post I am going to share it again. It really works! If you’ve had a sweater that got put in the dryer try this trick you’ll be glad you did! Be sure to pas the tip along to your children in case they ever have this problem! Just click on the link to find out how to restore a shrunken sweater!

Restoring a Shrunken Sweater

Celebrating Christmas Away From Home

This will be our first Christmas away from home in many years. As you know we have been spending the last two months in the Pacific Northwest. All four of our grown children live between Seattle and Portland and it was easier for us to come to them then to have them all make the trip to Vermont.

I realize that I have many traditions associated with the Christmas season. Every year we attend the Wassail Weekend in Woodstock, Vermont. Woodstock is a picturesque town and the Wassail Parade is beautiful. Horses and riders all decked out in their Christmas costumes march in a parade around the town green. Everyone is shouting “Merry Christmas” to each other. At the end of the parade everyone gathers on the green for a bonfire and carol singing. For me it is always the start of the Christmas season.

Our tree is usually decorated the weekend after Thanksgiving and I take such pleasure in hanging each ornament on the tree; so many treasures. I have ornaments that have been passed down from my grandmother to my mother to me. There are many handmade ornaments made by either my children or dear friends. It was very strange to not have our own tree this year. Instead we had fun helping my daughter decorate her tree.

This week we are spending the week with my other daughter in Washington. She has a beautiful tree. Over the years I would give each child an ornament. When our daughter’s married and moved on I packed up all the ornaments I had given them and passed them along. Now as I look at my daughter’s beautiful tree I see the ornaments I had given her.

I do miss our own Christmas tree and the memories I enjoy as I decorate the tree but celebrating Christmas with those I love is so much more important. We will be gathering with all of our children, their spouses and our grandchildren soon to celebrate Christmas together. We will be celebrating in a rental house where we will all be staying and I’m not sure there will even be any decorations! Instead we will enjoy each other’s company and create new memories of our first Christmas in the Pacific Northwest!

I hope wherever you are this Christmas season you have a wonderful holiday.

Top 10 Recipes of 2015

I always enjoy going back over the recipes I’ve shared and seeing which ones were the most popular over the year. Here is a link to the top recipes of 2014. Below are the top 10 recipes of 2015. Enjoy!

Perfect Pancakes:

Oatmeal Pancakes:

Baked Eggs with Roasted Vegetables:

Lentil Salad:

My Favorite Corn Chowder:

Shrimp and Corn Chowder:

Sesame Sweet Chicken:

Mom’s Crock Pot Beef Stew:

Asparagus, Shrimp and Orange Stir Fry:

Peach Raspberry Crisp:

Exploring Astoria, Oregon

Our second trip to the Oregon coast was to the town of Astoria. The morning was clear and cold with mist rising up from the Columbia River. It was a beautiful drive and in no time at all we were in Astoria. Astoria is a small town located at the mouth of the Columbia River. It was named after the American investor John Jacob Aster and was incorporated in 1876. The bridge that crosses over the Columbia River from Astoria to Washington (Astoria – Megler Bridge) is the longest continuous bridge in North America (4,1 miles long)!

There is a fun trolley ride along the scenic three-mile waterfront. The trolley has been running for over one hundred years! For only $1.00 you can ride the trolley one way. We walked along the waterfront in one direction and rode the trolley back. It was definitely the highlight for our grandchildren!Astoria is definitely one of those places that we need to visit again. We only explored the waterfront and never even got into the town itself. I would love to visit the Martine Museum, which is located right along the waterfront. They even have a Lightship that you can explore! There is a fascinating history of just how treacherous the Columbia River mouth is. There was also a huge anchor out front.