Thursday 30 December 2010

Rice Pudding

My Husband LOVES rice pudding. He's British, its a British classic. I have created a recipe which our family loves by compiling a few good recipes together. I thought I would share! Let me know how it turns out for you!

Rice Pudding:

Ingredients:

1 cup pudding (short grain) rice
1 can 14 1/2 oz Evaporated milk
2 cups Whole or 2% Milk (not skim!)
1/2 cup Sugar
1 teas vanilla
1Tbsp Karo or Golden Syrup
1/2 Tbsp Nutmeg

Directions

Pre heat oven to 300F, 150C or Gas Mark 2. Mix Rice and sugar in a deep round baking dish. In a medium bowl mix: exaporated milk, Whole or 2% milk, vanilla and Karo or Golden Syrup. Pour over rice. Stri lightly. Sprinkle Nutmeg over the top. Place in oven to bake for 30 minutes. Remove from oven stir lightly again. Place back in oven for a further hour. Remove from oven. This will likely be very runny at this point but as it cools down it will thicken up very nicely. Delish. Its a favorite on cold winter nights in our home.... Who am I kidding its a favorite any time ;)

Monday 27 December 2010

Creamy Turkey Soup Recipe


Just about now you are looking at the left over Turkey in the fridge and thinking maybe its to dry for sandwiches. Or if anyone else in the world is like me the thought of leftover poultry just makes me want to be sick. There is something about the taste of left over poultry, whether chicken, turkey, duck whatever which makes me a little sick. BUT..... This recipe is absolutely A-MAZE-ING!! No seriously. You don't get that weird leftover poultry taste with this and it doesn't matter if your turkey is a bit dry because when it is mixed into this creamy soup it moistens right up! I have adapted this recipe from a couple of different recipes and added a few of my own things so that now I think it is perfect. ENJOY!!

Ingredients:

1 large onion, chopped
3 celery ribs with leaves, chopped up, I used my Pampered Chef Food Chopped
6 tablespoons butter
7 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon each dried thyme, savory and parsley flakes
1-1/2 evaporated Milk plus extra semi skim milk to thin out a bit if necessary
4 cups cubed cooked turkey
5 medium carrots, cut into pieces (I use my Pampered Chef chopped to coarsely chop)
2 cups turkey or Chicken Broth
1 package (10 ounces) frozen peas


Directions:

In a large pot, saute onion and celery in butter until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in flour and seasonings; gradually add evaporated milk, because it is evaporated milk it will form a paste. Slowly add the broth all the while whisking next add milk until your soup meets the desired thickness.It will continue to thicken as it cooks don't be afraid to add more milk if necessary. Add turkey and carrots. Simmer for 15 minutes stirring often.

Add peas; Simmer for 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender making sure to stir often so soup doesn't burn. Now enjoy!

Family Home Evening - Our Favorite Things....

First off Merry Christmas Everyone. I hope that you have had a Fantastic Holiday Season.

Tonights Fsmily Home Evening in our home is going to be very simple. We are all ill (I spent Christmas and yesterday in bed with a temp of 102, the baby was in the hospitsl twice last week and everyone else has sore throats, sniffles, you know the drill)

So I have decided that we will just have a family chat about the last year. I will ask the children what their favorite parts of the year were. What their least favorite parts of the year were and what they would like to change next year. It will be very casual.

For our activity we will watch a movie together with hot chocolate and popcorn. I hope that each of you have had a great year and that the upcoming year is the best one yet.

Thank you for all your support with my blog I look forward to sharing new ideas with you in the New Year!!

Alisha xx

Monday 20 December 2010

Family Home Evening - Christmas Time

This week for Family Home Evening is kind of a traditional week in our home. So the lesson is simple as is the activity. See today the kids and I will do loads of baking, Christmas baking. Then Family Home Evening will go as follows.

Opening Song: A Christmas one

Opening Prayer:

Lesson: Mommy

We will tonight read the Christmas story from Luke 2 and discuss it with the children. We will ask them questions like.

Why is the birth of the Savior so important?

How does it make you feel knowing Heavenly Father sent Jesus Christ so that you can live with him again?

What sort of things can you do to show Heavenly Father and Jesus you love them?

And we will ask questions based on their answers too.

We will then explain how Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ gave us a great gift by Jesus coming to earth. Jesus Christ gave up his life for us.

What kind of gift can we give to Jesus this next year to show him how much we love him and all that he has done for us?

We then write down on a piece of paper a gift to the Savior, ie. say personal prayers every day, have personal scripture study. we then put them in a Christmas Stocking labeled Jesus. This is our gift to him for the next year.

After this we will watch the 1st Presidency Christmas Devotional which can be found here

Can I just take this time to wish each of you a Very Merry Christmas. May the Lord bless each of you and your families in the upcoming year. And may you find happiness and peace for many years to come.

Love,
Alisha xx

Monday 13 December 2010

Christmas Gift Tags

I thought rather than buying gift tags this year I would just make some of my own. I wanted to share them with you all incase you didnt want to spend the money to buy gift tags this year, you can print these out and use them as well.




Sunday 12 December 2010

Family Home Evening - Jesus Christ is the Greatest Gift

Opening Song: Picture Christmas

Opening Prayer:

Lesson: Mommy

Before FHE wrap the following Picture up in a small box. Write John 3:16 on a gift tag and attach it to the top of the present.




Tell them there is something inside the package that represents a wonderful gift from someone who loves us very much. Pass the present around and let each child hold the gift and try to guess what is inside.

Tell the children that the tag is a clue and have a family member read the scripture aloud. Ask the children if they know what the gift is and who it is from?

Let one of them unwrap the present and hold up the picture so everyone can see it.

What is the gift?

Who is the gift from?

Why is the birth of Jesus Christ such a wonderful gift?

Explain in your own words that one reason the birth of Christ is such a great gift is that Jesus Christ came to teach us the right way to live. He taught us that loving and helping others will make us happy. By sending Jesus to earth, Heavenly Father gave us a gift that will help us find happiness not just at Christmastime but always.

Show a picture of the wise men.



Ask if anyone knows the story of the wise men. Maybe you can assign daddy to tell the story of the wise men.

Read Mathew 2:11

What gifts did the Wise Men bring to Jesus?

Explain that frankincense and myrrh were sweet-smelling perfumes used in religious ceremonies. All three gifts were valuable and difficult to get. The Wise Men wanted to bring Jesus the nicest gifts they could find. UAdd a Note

Why did the Wise Men bring these gifts to Jesus? (To show they loved and honored him.)

Why did the Wise Men bow down and worship Jesus when they saw him? (They knew he was the Savior, the Son of Heavenly Father.)

Explain that just as the Wise Men brought gifts to Jesus to show their love for him, we can give gifts to others to show our love for them.

Tell the following story about a young boy named S. Dilworth Young, who later became a General Authority:

The Christmas that S. Dilworth Young was five years old, he saw a jigsaw puzzle displayed in the window of a store. The puzzle had a picture of an old horse-drawn fire truck on it. Dilworth wanted that puzzle for Christmas more than he wanted anything else.

Elder Young later explained what happened with the puzzle on Christmas Day:

“When Christmas morning finally came, I found hung on my chair a stocking full of good things. But right off I spotted my puzzle. It was wrapped in bright paper, but I could tell by the shape what it was. I quickly opened the box and was soon lost in the pleasure of putting the puzzle together.

“Before long my father came into the room and explained to my younger brother, older sister, and me that the Jensen family down the street had recently come from Denmark. He said the father had no job and no money, and then he suggested that we take our Christmas dinner to them. He also asked each of us to select our most loved toy and give it to a child in the Jensen family. …


“Before we left for the Jensen’s, I spent three happy hours playing with and enjoying my puzzle. I thought about giving something else, but I knew deep down that there was only one gift to give.

“At eleven forty-five we all started out. Father carried the turkey on a platter. Mother and my sister Emily followed with potatoes, gravy, dressing, cranberries, and dessert. And under my arm, carefully rewrapped, was my fire engine puzzle.

“When we entered the Jensen home, Father placed the turkey on the small bare table in the corner, and the others followed.

“Each one of us in turn then gave his present. Emily gave her beautiful doll to the girl. I stepped forward and looked at the boy about my age. ‘Here,’ I said as I pushed the puzzle at him. He took it from me and smiled. Next my brother gave his offering to the smallest child. And then we returned home.

“It was strange, but somehow as I walked the block between our house and the Jensen’s, it seemed as if my feet didn’t touch the ground. I felt as though I were floating on clouds of good feeling, for I knew I had made someone else happy.


“Even our Christmas dinner of canned beans, bread, butter, and bottled fruit had a special and unforgettable meaning on that special Christmas Day!”

What did Dilworth do that made him happy?

Why was he happy after giving away his favorite toy?

Have you ever given something to someone else that made him or her happy?

Let the children talk about times when they have made others happy by giving them gifts

Explain that when we give gifts to others, we show that we love them. While it can make us happy to receive a gift, it can also make us happy to give gifts.

Bear your testimony that Jesus Christ is our Savior. Tell the children how you feel when you think about how much Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love each of us. Also tell the children how you feel when you give gifts to others

ACTIVITY: Give each child a piece of paper have them make a card for a family member on the inside have them write a service to one other family member. Help them write
I will at the top of the card and for you at the bottom of the card. If they cant write they can draw a picture of what they want to do for someone else in the family.

Friday 10 December 2010

Very Merry Cookie Wreath

At one point early this morning whilst up with my sick 3 month old baby. I started thinking about how it is time to do our Christmas Caroling. See every year we make goodies for friends and go out Christmas Caroling. We always did this when I was growing up with my family. In fact we did it every year until I was married. So naturally I would want to carry this tradition on with my little family.

Well I got online to try and find something unique that we could hand out this year rather than the normal Handmade candies, Christmas Cookies, and Popcorn Balls. And I found this Very Merry Cookie Wreath on the Nestle verybestbaking.com website. Ding Dong we found a winner. So I am now going to make a trip to Costco this weekend to get frozen cookie dough and will be making these on Monday so that we can do some Carloing for FHE in the evening. Anyway here is the directions. If you make one I would love to know how yours turns out!




Ingredients
•1 package (16.5 oz.) NESTLÉ TOLL HOUSE Refrigerated Mini Chocolate Chip Cookie Bar Dough

•1 container (16 oz.) prepared vanilla frosting

•Green food coloring

•14- x 17-inch piece of cardboard for base, covered in foil or parchment paper or large flat platter

•NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Morsels (such as Semi-Sweet Chocolate, Milk Chocolate, Premier White)

•Assorted NESTLÉ® TOLL HOUSE® Holiday Candies (WONKA® Gobstoppers Snowballs, NERDS® OR SPREE®)

•Decorator sprinkles, candies and sugars

•20-inch strip of strawberry fruit-flavored snack in 3-foot rolls

Directions
PREPARE cookies following package directions. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.

COMBINE frosting and food coloring in small bowl to shade of green desired.

SPREAD heaping teaspoons of frosting on flat sides of cookies.

ARRANGE 15 cookies on the base or platter in a 12-inch circle to form outer ring of wreath.

ARRANGE 12 cookies inside the outer ring of cookies, forming inside ring of wreath. Adhered cookies can be moved to create more space.

ARRANGE remaining 13 cookies on base ring for a second layer.

DECORATE with remaining frosting, morsels, candies, sprinkles and sugars as desired. Attach bow to top of wreath.

TO MAKE BOW:
CUT four 5-inch strips from fruit snack roll. Peel off paper baking. Cut a small “V” on end of two strips. Form loops with remaining two strips; pinch ends together. Place loops on top of strips. Pinch all together to make bow!

Sunday 5 December 2010

Family Home Evening - Jesus Once Was A Little Child

Yay for the Month a December. I thought as we talk so muh about Christ this month what a great time to teach the children that he was once a child too.

Opening Song: Jesus Once Was A Little Child

Opening Prayer:

Lesson: Mommy

Before the lesson try to get a hold of some baby items. If you cant get the items some pictures of baby items will work. Items such as Diapers, Bottles, Blankets, etc. Show these items to the children. Ask what they are used for. Then ask the children if they think that jesus would have ever used these items?

Show this picture:



Ask Children who they think this baby is. What is the difference between this baby and other babies?


Jesus Had a Home. Show the following picture:

Tell the children that this is the kind of home that the people of Nazareth lived in. Nazareth is the town where Jesus grew up (see Matthew 2:23), and Jesus may have lived in a home like this one.

To help your family understand this picture better as the following questions:

Where do you think the family slept? (Point out the mat the woman is putting away and the closet behind her that seems to hold other rolled mats. Explain that the roofs of the houses were flat, and steps on the outside of each house led up to the roof. Perhaps the children sometimes slept on the roof.)

Where did the baby in this home sleep? (Point out the cradle. Explain that Joseph was a carpenter and might have made a cradle like this one for the baby Jesus.)

What do you think the big jars were used for? (Some held water. All the water the family used was carried from the well in the village because there was no running water in the homes. A well is a deep hole in the ground with clean water in it.)

What is the woman who is sitting on the floor doing? (Grinding grain to make into bread.)

Since there was no electricity, how could they light this home? (They used oil lamps. Point out the lamp on the stool behind the woman grinding grain. Perhaps some of the jars held oil for the lamps.)

Show the next picture:



Who are the people in this picture? (Jesus and Joseph.)

What are they doing?

Explain that just like the children help you around the house Jesus helped his mommy and daddy. Just like your childrens daddy has to work so did Jesus daddy. Jesus daddy was a carpenter and his father probably taught him to be a carpenter too.

In Jesus home he was told stories about the prophets, like the stories we read in the Bible. He was also taught to pray and to choose to do the right just as we are taught by our parents. Mary and Joseph believed in Heavenly Father just as we do.

Ask the children these questions:

How do you think your childhood is different from Jesus’ childhood?

How do you think your childhood is similar to Jesus’ childhood?

Have the children discuss things they do that Jesus Christ may have done as a boy. For example, they may run errands, help their parents, go to school, take care of a baby, sing songs, play games, run races, or ride horses. Suggest that Jesus probably did these or similar things (for example, Jesus may never have ridden a horse, but he probably rode a donkey).

Bare your testimony of Jesus Christ. I will tell my children that Just like I want the best for them I know that Joseph and Mary wanted the best for Jesus.

Activity: Colour Picture of Baby Jesus: