I just LOVE Smore's!!  Here's a recipe I saw on TV the other day, I'm quite anxious to try it.

Spread a thin layer of peanut butter on a flour tortilla.
Sprinkle with chocolate chips and mini marshmallows.
Roll up like a chimichanga, wrap in foil, and place on the coals til warm.

Country Blessings,
Jamie

Ever want to try your hand at cheesemaking, but you don't have a goat or cow?  I found this easy recipe at www.hobbyfarms.com for making cheese with Yogurt or Kefir.

Kefir is a fermented-milk beverage, purported to have beneficial effects on health, beauty and weight-loss. Some of the most popular commercial brands are available in the healthy foods area or dairy section of many supermarkets.

Using store-bought plain yogurt or plain kefir, the process is the same:

• Line a plastic or stainless-steel colander with two layers of cheesecloth (finely woven butter muslin works, too).
• Put the colander in a large bowl.
• Pour or spoon the yogurt into the lined colander.
• Place the colander and the bowl in the fridge for three to eight hours. The longer it drains, the drier the resulting cheese will be.

A Few Pointers

Kefir Differs
Making kefir cheese with store-bought kefir takes longer and produces a more soupy cheese than homemade kefir. Store-bought kefir is smoother than homemade.

With homemade kefir, four hours of draining produces cheese the texture of fromage blanc, because the liquid whey flows right through the cheese cloth.

In contrast, after 12 hours of draining store-bought kefir, the resulting cheese is like thick sour cream. After 16 hours of draining, the store-bought kefir cheese is thicker than sour cream and thinner than fromage blanc. With chives and powdered garlic mixed in, it makes a substantial dip, and it’s great as a milk substitute in mashed potatoes.

Adding Flavors
If you plan to blend chives, dill or other herbs into the cheese for a spread, don’t drain the whey for very long.

I have always put tomatoes in the fridge, I just assumed that you were supposed to.  Here is what I have just learned.

There are a few foods that should not be kept in the refrigerator:
Tomatoes lose flavor when chilled below 50 F because an important flavor chemical dissipates.
Potatoes get unpleasantly sweet because some of their starch turns to sugar.

Some other interesting info: Did you ever think about why the meat compartment is at the very bottom of the refrigerator?  I learned that it is because cold air sinks (just as warm air rises), and the meats need to be kept as cold as possible.

The door of the fridge is the warmest spot in the fridge.  Every time you open the door, a blast of warm air hits that area first.  So you should keep things in the door that are not sensitive to increased temps, such as dressings, etc.  You should not keep eggs there, as they need to maintain a more even temperature (this is something I didn't know, I will have to move my eggs).

Country Blessings,
Jamie

I got this recipe from the last issue of Weight Watchers Magazine.  If I weren't counting points, I'd have eaten lots more, it's the absolute best stew I've ever eaten.  I've modified it slightly from the magazine.

• 1 lb stew meat
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 4 large carrots, cut into 1" pieces
• 3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, chopped
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
• 1 cup frozen corn

Sprinkle beef with salt and pepper.  Spray a dutch oven with cooking spray.  Sear the beef over medium-high heat until browned, about 3 minutes.  Transfer to a plate.

Add the next 5 ingredients and cook until golden.  Stir in beef and tomatoes.  Bring to a boil, simmer, covered until beef is tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

Add the corn and cook for another 10 minutes.

Serve and enjoy!  I enjoyed mine with some jiffy mix cornbread.

Serving Size: 2 1/2 cups
Points: 7 (if using lean boneless bottom round roast)

Country Blessings,
Jamie