Upcycling: Coupon Ad Paper Ball Cat Toy

Here's a simple cat toy.  Just take a coupon advertisement you don't need from your local Sunday paper.  Wad it up.  Then try to convince your kitty to play "soccer" with it.

The coupon ads make a good crinkling noise.

Upcycling: Kitten Feeding Dish

If you read my previous post about the "makeshift litter pan for kitten", you know she's rather young, but is acting ready to ween and litterbox train.

But since she's too small for most of the bowls and saucers I own, I took the lid from a ricotta cheese container and used it for a feeding dish.  In it, there is some salmon-flavored canned food mixed with kitten replacement milk.  She still hasn't learned to quit stepping in it, but that's okay.  It gives me an excuse to clean off her "hands" and the little "milk chin" she gets from feeding.

Okay, here.  You deserve a look at the sprite:

By the way, she tucked herself in.  I caught her like this after my shower.

Upcycling: Makeshift Litter Pan for Kitten

November 11, 2013, I came home from my usual routine and found a box on my doorstep.  Inside, I found a tiny kitten.  I'd say she was 3 weeks old, max.  Well, she's been growing rather well the past week, and I thought I'd get a litter pan ready for her when it's time to litterbox train her.

What I'm using is a plastic TV dinner tray that I used to use for feeding canned food to the adult cats.  Since it's deeper than most of the plastic trays I've saved, I thought it would be ideal for such a wee sprite of a kitten.  The paper towel was used to wipe her bottom, so to show her that "messes go here," I put it in the litter pan.  I've had the wee one for a week, and she made her first tinkle in the litter pan today.  Just think, training her to go in the litterbox without the traditional "rub nose in accident and show kitty to litterbox" sort of training.

She's a smart kitten.

Cooking: 15 Bean Turkey Soup, in the Slow Cooker

Here's another comfort food favorite.  It's excellent on a cold, wintry day.

What you'll need:
1 bag of 15 bean soup, beans rinsed
1 can of carrots
1 can diced tomatoes
garlic and onion powders, salt, pepper, and marjoram -- to taste
1/2 lb. ground turkey

Place the ground turkey and other ingredients into the slow cooker.  Set it on low for 8 hours.  Putting this on the night before is a good idea.

Note: You can find 15 bean soup at certain Wal-mart stores.  If you've seen it elsewhere, please let us know in the comments.

Cooking: Crunchy Baked Flounder

This one is as simple as it is tasty.

What you'll need:
2 flounder fillets, defrosted, and cut lengthwise
1 cup crushed potato crisps, like Pringles
Black pepper, to taste
Olive oil

Put the crushed potato crisps in a shallow dish with the black pepper. Brush olive oil onto both sides of the flounder "finger" and bread it.  Place the fingers in a baking dish and bake until golden brown at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

I suppose you could serve them with tartar sauce, but they were good just like this.

Gaming: Minecraft 360

For the past couple of weeks, I've been playing the heck out of Minecraft 360, made for the xBox 360 console. It's...  addictive.  The game has all of the stuff I like in a game: collecting and building.  I can farm a bit too, and even fish.

http://www.amazon.com/Minecraft-Xbox-360/dp/B00BU3ZLJQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1384559341&sr=8-1&keywords=minecraft+360

There's a mode that lets you turn off the monster mobs: peaceful.  But you can later load the file with monsters coming out at night.

I think the greatest challenge is in creating your "dream home".  It's sort of like the Sims, except you make the stuff you put in your "dream home"/fortress/ palace/whatever.  I believe the disc I bought is version 1.8.2, which adds some new things to the game, like the ability to make nether bricks out of netherrack.  Basically, you can make more stuff in this version, and use those materials to build your creations.  This version also has the creative mode.

What I love is that even though you can play in multiplayer, this game also lets you play solo or split-screen with someone on another controller on the same console.  It's very flexible.  And like I said, addictive.

One of the things that's fun about this game: creating a new world using different "seeds".  I've tried names of my friends, myself, and even some of the in-game phrases that pop up.  One of the phrases I've tried that made a nice-looking world with good resource groupings: "Flashing Letters!".  And yes, it has to be typed just like that, except for the quotation marks.

One of my friends' names generated a world with a mountain that was very intriguing.  From one side, the mountain looked like a frog or toad.  From the other side, it looked like a cat sitting.  In front of the mystical mountain was a hill, and if you went to the front of the hill, it had three roundish holes in the front.  I'd love to take pictures to show you, but the camera didn't do a good job the last time I tried.

Cooking: Chipotle Lemon Cod

Do you like simple food? This is about as simple as it gets.

What you'll need:
1 cod fillet, frozen
To taste: dill, black pepper, chipotle pepper sauce, lemon juice
Cooking spray

Coat a skillet with cooking spray.  Then place your cod in the pan, season it, and bake it in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven until a nice golden color.

Cooking: Tilapia Chowder

I thought I'd experiment with chowder, and I threw in some tilapia.  It came out pretty tasty.

What you'll need:
1 cup milk
1 can mixed vegetables
1 can white potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 can cream style corn
2 tilapia fillets, frozen
Tarragon, marjoram, dill, and black pepper -- to taste

In a large pot, mix together the ingredients.  Be sure to use the liquid in the canned vegetables too.  Cook on medium heat until tilapia can be broken up into chunks.  If you think it should have more fish, add another fillet to the recipe.

This one was good hot or room temperature.  And it gave me such a feeling of comfort.

Cooking: Baked Sausage and French Toast Sandwich

Here's another variation of the French Toast Sandwich.  This time, the French Toast was baked, along with the sausage patty and the strips of bell pepper.

What you'll need:
2 - 3 strips of each color of bell pepper
1 Turkey sausage patty
1 slice of cheese
Mayonnaise, to taste
French Toast, but baked
Cooking spray

Spray two skillets with cooking spray.  In one, put the French toast.  In the other, put the sausage patty and bell pepper strips inside.  Bake both skillets at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until sausage and toast are both done.

Remove toast from skillet.  On one slice, apply mayonnaise.  On the other slice, place the cheese.  Stack the sausage and bell pepper strips onto the cheese and top with the remaining slice of toast.

Enjoy!

Cooking: Tofu Stir-fry

I was reminded that tofu is supposed to be good in stir-fry, so I decided to whip up some with a bag of stir-fry veggies from Wal-mart.

What you'll need:
1 brick of extra-firm tofu
1 bag of stir-fry vegetables (any kind that you prefer)
1/4 cup Kikkoman's stir-fry sauce
1 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 tsp. Chicken or beef bouillon
Garlic powder, dehydrated onion flakes, and soy sauce -- to taste

Dissolve the bouillon in a little water and then add the other ingredients.  I tore the tofu brick into bite-sized pieces with my hands.  Cook until done.

Cooking: Cornmeal Coated Swai

Swai is one of those kinds of fish that smells a lot like catfish.  Tastes like it too. So I decided to "oven fry" a fillet.

What you'll need:

1 Swai fillet, defrosted

Enough cornmeal to coat the fillet

1 Tbsp. olive oil

Salt, pepper, onion and garlic powders -- to taste

Brush olive oil on both sides of the fillet.

In a shallow dish, blend the cornmeal and seasonings.  Coat both sides of the fillet and place it in a pan.  Bake it at 350 degrees Fahrenheit until golden.

The side dish is simply a box of Uncle Ben's Long Grain and Wild Rice with a can of carrots tossed in.

Cooking: Wake Up in a Cup!

Okay, I was trying to make a knock-off of a Starbucks gingerbread latte, without tasting the new recipe.

As a copycat, it was a fail.  But as a drink that'll knock you awake when you hit the bottom of the cup, it's a success.  So put on your cowboy hats and boots, because this cup bucks.

What you'll need:
4 Tbsp. Coffee grounds (medium roast or stronger)
4 cups Water
1 tsp. Nutmeg
1 tsp. Ground ginger
1/2 tsp. Cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. Molasses
1 Tbsp. Creamer
1/2 cup hot milk

I set up my coffee maker to run the hot water.  It makes prepping this easier.

While the hot water is "brewing," I put the coffee grounds in my French press.  These things give more flavor from the coffee grounds.  When there's enough water, I put it into the French press with the grounds and let them steep for 4 minutes.

In the cup, I measure the spices and also add the creamer and molasses.

Now to heat the milk in a pan.  Once it's ready, the hot milk goes into the cup, and the coffee should be ready.

After pressing, I just pour the coffee into the cup and give it a good stirring.  I'd certainly recommend keeping the stirring stick, spoon, whatever with you while you drink this, because the sediment in the bottom will be quite strong.

Frankly, I think to make a better copycat of a gingerbread latte, it would help to have a sprinkle of nutmeg, instead of the teaspoon.  But I'll admit one thing, it had me alert in no time.

Kitchen Tip: Batter/Breading Trays

You know those expensive sets of trays used for battering or breading food before cooking it?  There's a way to do it on the budget-friendly side, with packaging items you can save.

I saved this plastic tray from the portobello mushrooms I've been using in recipes.  You could also save the plastic trays from TV dinners; some of the pasta dishes are single compartment like this.

If you don't feel like using these for breading or battering food, these trays are also good for serving canned pet food to your pet.

Cooking: Baked Cod with Roasted Vegetables

I was trying to figure out what I could make with some potatoes and onions, so I decided to fix the rest of the cod that I had on hand.  This is the result, and it was rather tasty.

What you'll need:
1 cod fillet, frozen
1 red potato, cut into bite-sized pieces
1/2 onion, cut into bite-sized pieces
Black pepper, onion powder, parsley, sage, rosemary, and thyme -- to taste
Olive oil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Coat fish in olive oil, place it in a baking dish, and season with spices.

In a medium bowl, toss together the olive oil, vegetables, and seasonings until coated.  Cover fish with vegetables and bake until vegetables are tender.

Cooking: Fake Beef Stew -- Slow Cooker

My Dad taught me how to make beef stew (with stew meat) many years ago.  That recipe has also evolved over time, and today, I wanted to try it with tofu.

What you'll need:
1 brick firm tofu, broken up
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
5-6 new potatoes, cut into bite-size, if needed
1/2 bag of mixed vegetables, frozen
1/2 bag of cut okra, frozen
1/2 bag of baby carrots
1 small onion, coarse chopped
2 cans beef broth
Black pepper, Marjoram, Parsley, and Tarragon, to taste

Mix all ingredients into a slow cooker.

Set slow cooker for 6 hours on high.  Stir occasionally.

A preliminary taste suggests that this is going to be quite good when it's done cooking.  It was already tasty when I was just putting it on.

Cooking: Sausage Breakfast Sandwich

This recipe is a variant for a breakfast sandwich recipe I saw in a magazine years ago.  The original recipe didn't cook right the way they had it (it was to be baked like some kind of sandwich casserole), so I modified it.

What you'll need:
2 slices Sweet French Toast
1 Turkey sausage patty
2 slices of cheese

Prepare French Toast per directions.  While that's cooking, make a patty out of turkey sausage large enough to nearly cover your toast.  Get that cooking, and have your cheese singles set aside.

When everything's done, place a slice of cheese on one slice of French Toast.  Add the sausage patty, cover that with a slice of cheese, and then top that with the remaining slice of French Toast.

I found this not only tasty, but comforting on this breezy autumn morning.

You can also use the French Toast to make other types of breakfast sandwiches out of lunch meat.  Turkey and ham both work well, especially with some mustard spread on the toast.

Cooking: Sweet French Toast

My Dad taught me how to make French toast out of regular sandwich bread.  Over the years, I've added a few things to the mix to improve on the flavor.  And this French toast recipe can be used for other things, like breakfast sandwiches.

What you'll need:
1 large egg
1 Tbsp. milk
2 packets Turbanado sugar
2 slices of bread (any kind)
Black pepper, cinnamon, and nutmeg, to taste
Cooking spray

Set two slices of bread aside.

In a cup, beat eggs with milk, sugar, and spices.  Pour egg mix into a shallow dish.

Dip a slice of bread on one side, and then flip over.  Move battered bread to oil-sprayed skillet.  Do the other slice of bread the same way.

Cook slices, carefully turning them until they are a nice golden brown on both sides.  Serve.

With the sugar and seasonings, you shouldn't want syrup with this variety of French toast.

Believe me, one large egg is enough for two slices of bread.  It's unnecessary to saturate the bread until it literally falls apart in your fingers.  And the toast will taste better fried in butter, but if you're trying to watch the bad fats, vegetable oil spray will do.