Make Your Own Mix (the easy way)

Lately, oat-sesame crackers and whole-wheat biscuits have become staples of my diet, so that I'm making crackers once a week and biscuits twice a week. Best snack foods ever.

I wanted to speed up the time it took for me to make them. I thought about doing the measuring to make a large mix, except that's a lot of math calculations, especially to know how much to measure out for each batch (so that I know how much of the wet ingredients to use). (Yes, I know I can do it, but it was really complex.)

Finally I decided to do it the easy way. I got out a large ziploc bag, and all the dry ingredients I put into the biscuit-bowl also went into the plastic bag. (1 cup of flour in the bowl, 1 cup in the bag. 1 tablespoon of baking powder in the bowl, 1 tablespoon in the bag, and so forth.) Now the plastic bag has all the dry ingredients measured into it, and it's easy to mix. Close the bag (but leave some air in it) and shake vigorously. I made up the biscuit mix in the bowl and put the bag in the pantry.

Today I want more biscuits. All I have to do is take my plastic bag, put contents into a bowl, add margarine and milk/lemon juice, and I have biscuit dough.

And once I get the electric skillet (in which kamut is cooking) off my counter-space, I can actually roll out the biscuits. Then I can put away the rolling pin and get out the oven...

Some things don't change.

Crockpot Mac & Cheese (with real cheese)

I don't have a picture for this one. I assembled it yesterday morning, let it cook during church, and by the time the potluck was over, the mac and cheese was gone. Which is why I'm posting the recipe.

It's from a healthy cookbook, but they made this recipe healthy by using fat-free cheese. I refuse to use fat-free cheese. What on earth is it made out of, anyway? My guess is that it tastes like cardboard. However, I was able to lighten this recipe in other ways. I lessened the amount of cheese and doubled the amount of pasta (the original wanted 4 cups of cheese for 1/2 pound pasta, which is insane).

My mom tells me that macaroni and cheese has to have at least some Velveeta in it to make it creamy. I think Velveeta is really gross (and she does too, even if she does use a tiny bit). I was glad this recipe didn't call for any, because I didn't want to pay way too much money for just a tiny amount of it. (Yes, I know they sell slices of it. I also know that one package of slices costs the same as a 2-pound block, and even if it does keep for eight weeks--ick!--how on earth would I use the rest of it?)

Here's a helpful hint. When testing to see if pasta is done, use a slotted spoon. Dip out a couple pieces of pasta, bring the spoon to the sink, and run cold water on the pasta before you taste them. I am so glad I can do this now that I have a slotted spoon! I've been looking at thrift stores for a slotted spoon with no luck (nothing that looked decent enough to buy), but I saw a good one in the $1 bin at Walgreens the other day, and I was delighted to have it. On Saturday night, after I cooked the pasta, I accidentally dropped a fork on my toe, tines down (ouch!), and I remember thinking, "Well, at least I have a slotted spoon."

By the way, why on earth do manufacturers keep making plastic cooking utensils with metal on the handle? They're always in the really-cheap bin, because the metal will burn your hand if you use it near the stove. I learned my lesson five years ago, but apparently the manufacturers haven't learned theirs yet. You would think they'd have figured it out by now...


Crockpot Mac & Cheese (with real cheese)
adapted from the Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly cookbook

1 pound of elbow macaroni (or other small shapes), cooked al dente
1 can fat-free evaporated milk
1 cup skim milk
2 eggs, slightly beaten
3 cups grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese
1/4 t. salt
1/8 t. pepper
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1. Spray slow cooker with cooking spray (do not omit this step).
2. In the slow cooker, mix together everything except the parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup of the cheddar cheese.
3. Top with parmesan cheese and 1/2 cup cheddar cheese.
4. Cook on low 3 hours.