Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes

OK, I had to get this recipe up before Christmas in case anyone wanted to make these. I got the recipe from Stacie at work. I made them last year on Christmas morning, but Stacie told me they're even better when you make them ahead, especially if you get a chance to freeze them. Any holiday preparation I can get done a few days ahead is a HUGE help in this one-woman-family, the buck stops HERE. Everything that's gonna be done has to be done by me. So this year I made 'em on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving & stashed them in my freezer. Per Stacie's instructions I took them out and set them on the counter as soon as I got up Thanksgiving morning and baked them when the Turkey came out of the oven.

She was right, they were good before, but made ahead and frozen they were FABULOUS! We hardly even needed any gravy. They got nice and golden on top with lovely brown edges, so very yummy.

I don't know if I will have any photos to share Because Hubby owns the good camera in our family & after I took Thanksgiving photos he re-claimed it. But trust me these are good potatoes, give 'em a try!

Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes

8 to 10 potatoes
8oz cream cheese
1 cup sour cream
4 to 6 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste

Peel potatoes & cut into uniformly sized pieces.

Put the potatoes in a large pot & add enough cold water to cover the potatoes. NOTE: starting with cold water helps the potatoes cook more evenly, if you add the potatoes to already boiling water the outsides of the potatoes will overcook before the middles are done. Bring the water to a boil, you can add salt to the water now if you want, and cook until a knife inserted into the potato slides in easily with little resistance. Test a few pieces to make sure they're all done to the middle. Drain potatoes.

Note: I like to use a potato ricer instead of mashing for even fluffier potatoes, but my ricer requires strong-man power so when I don't have a man standing around willing to help me out, I use a regular potato masher. Mash potatoes while hot once you get the big lumps out add cream cheese and sour cream. At this point I like to switch to a hand mixer. Beat potatoes until fluffy and smooth add salt and pepper to taste.

Place in a 9" x 13" baking dish dot with butter cover with foil and put in the fridge overnight (an overnight stint in the freezer makes them even better.)

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 min with foil, then uncover and bake 20 more minutes
serves 10 to 12

CookSmart Tip: I often make this recipe using the full bag of potatoes (so it makes a little more) then rather than place in a baking dish, I divide the potatoes into two gallon size freezer bags. I seal the bags, flatten them out and freeze. Then I have mashed potatoes ready made in my freezer for an easy weeknight side dish. I defrost the potatoes, place in a baking dish, and bake until hot. You can re-heat them in a microwave but texture will be nicer if you bake them as intended.

My Silly Critters

Yes I am making little stories & putting words into the mouths of my dog & cat. It amuses me.

"You Can't see me"


No!
I have NOT been eating the Christmas Tree!














Why do you ask?


Well at least I have the dog to match.

Damask Photo Box

Look at this beautiful photo box I found yesterday... The decor in my stamp room is coming along nicely. If I ever get organized enough to get back in there.

I don't think I ever mentioned that I decided to go with blue walls and black & white Damask & a Parisian theme. Hey, were else in a house of boys am I going to get to do that?

You'd be surprised how hard it is to find damask in black & white fabric for curtains.

Cricut Cookies

Leave it to a scrapbooker to figure out how to use papercraft tech on Christmas cookies! I'm going to have to try this with my Cricut and my Nana's prize sugar cookie recipe!

Brilliant idea Erin!
Head on over to Erin's Blog Procrastination Station to see how she did it. http://erinlincoln.blogspot.com/2009/12/sugar-cookie-how-to.html

P.S. This is my first time blogging from the car rider line at school. I love my new DROID phone <3 (of course now that I am home I had to add a picture to really let you know what you're missing over at Procrastination Station.) And thanks to Julie Johnson over at Just Our Story for the heads up!

I Got a DROID - Apps

last updated 10:45 Wed. June 30, 2010


I got one of those new DROID phones and I loved it immediately. I got it on November 7 so I have had it for awhile and the longer I have it the MORE I love it.

I had a Palm Treo previously (It was a 3 year old model) and I hated it - it was the stupidest smart phone ever. It didn't have basic functions that I had on basic phones in the past... but I also didn't get the Internet hooked up to it. So the DROID is my first Internet surfing, emailing - all around phone.

I feel like I have a computer in my pocket, I'd say I spend less than HALF the time I used to on my laptop. Motorola DROID is on Verizon and uses the Android Operating System (developed by Google) I'm not going to be a DROID commercial... but I have wished I could find a resource for recommendations of applications to use on my DROID so in hopes other bloggers will begin to do the same, I am going to list the apps that I like and use....

Apps I Use


Pandora - Internet Radio
A streaming custom radio station - how did I not know about this, before?! I haven't bothered loading any music on my phone because Pandora is so great and so EASY to use! Robert has satellite radio in his car & he gets a little annoyed that I would rather listen to Pandora over the car stereo (linked thru the headphone jack) than his fancy satellite radio. You can also use Pandora on your PC http://www.pandora.com/

update 12/22/09

I like Shazam for helping me identify and tag songs that I hear when I am out and about (or on TV.)

BeyondPod
BeyondPod is an app for listening to podcasts. I set up the podcast subscriptions right on my phone and Beyond Pod can pull direct to my phone right thru the Internet. It's set me free from iTunes sync bondage (and also freed me from having to wear headphones!) I tried a few different apps for this (including Google Listen) before settling on BeyondPod. Ultimately it came down to a few podcasts I listen to which require a user password for access to the feed and Beyond Pod has the ability to handle that in the setup. It also pauses the podcast when I have an incoming call. BeyondPod can also sync with Google Reader, but at present I have only used it for podcasts. This is the only paid app I have right now.There is a free version but I bought the unlock code for the full app on Black Friday when it was half price.

Ustream Viewer Beta
I just loaded this today and it WORKS! Yay now I can take my ustream live shows with me! Search for the show name instead of putting in the website address. It stops the stream (doesn't close the app) if you try to do another task that takes you away from the screen, or if you put the screen to sleep. I'm not sure if its meant to work this way because it needs the resources to run, or if this is because its Beta.

Barcode Scanner
Incredible app uses camera to scan barcode & gives you comparison prices on several websites also can use to search some books will give page # of content you searched for - has been wonderfully handy for Christmas Shopping --while in Target - Ooo! Walmart has this for $5 cheaper!

Update 1/4/10

Seesmic
Today I tried out Seesmic a Twitter app that also has a desktop Twitter Client that is well spoken of. I LOVED it. It has a wonderful interface and I could do things with lists and profiles, and search for users so much better, even better than the desktop Twitter Client I currently use (TweetDeck.) I'm still using Twidroid for day-to-day tweeting because Seesmic does not yet have the ability to remember my place with the last tweet I read... this feature is supposed to be coming soon- when it does I expect to switch over completely. I didn't uninstall Seesmic because I will still use it for lists & the user searches. Here is an article that does a wonderful job of describing all the features complete with screen shots. http://blog.appboy.com/2009/12/seesmic-finally-makes-twitter-usable-on-android/
Would it make you discount my opinions if I say that I'd so much rather look at Seesmic's cute Icon than Twidroid's ugly one?

Update 12/22/09
Twidroid
I'm now using the free version of Twidroid instead of ITweet because it allows me to view lists. It also has a "conversation" option on Tweets which shows me a threaded conversation. This is real handy when sometimes I can not figure out which tweet someone was responding to! I think I prefer this to Tweet Deck because of this feature! I wish they had a desktop version!
http://twidroid.com/features/

ITweet! (see note above about Twidroid & Seesmic)
The twitter app I'm using it works well enough. It allows me to see my full feed, just my tweets, just replies, just sent direct message, just saved direct messages.... I liked this app as I wanted to be sure to see @replies and direct messages as I follow a lot of people

Facebook
came loaded on the phone

Update 12/23/09
Fandango - I think this is a recent release... Fandango showed me which show times of Avatar were playing in 3D and which were on IMAX - the Flixter app below did NOT show me that and we ended up seeing it in a normal (not even 3d theatre.)

Movies by Flixter (see notes above in Fandango)
Find local movie times, read reviews, watch trailers. Also section for Coming Soon & DVD. Trailers are great for entertaining my child in restaurants.

Yelp
for finding restaurants & businesses in your vicinity - I like this better than "Where"

Star Wars Sounds and Ringtones
Like a soundboard, fun to play with - could occupy my 11-year-old all day long

Google Sky Map
Fun to play with hold it up and move it around, screen displays star chart based on phone location so you can identify stars, planets etc... Have also used it to find the moon during the day. Also displays stars you can't see because they are below the Horizon.

The Weather Channel
See current weather conditions option to add several locations - see current, 36 hour and 10 day forecast - I used this to monitor the snow forecasts for flight day and on my trip to Oklahoma City. It was very handy!

Note pad
Would like to find a better one, if screen times out before I back out... it won't save edits - very annoying as I keep grocery list on my phone!

Evernote
I have this one installed but so far it hasn't worked for any of the things I wanted to do from my phone (I couldn't edit my grocery list on my phone to mark off stuff as I shopped. And I couldn't save a web page that I wanted to go back to later.) I'm new to Evernote... so perhaps I'll figure out some things its good for... my Twitter friends rave that its wonderful, just seems like the mobile version can't do any of the things I want it to do.

SuperYatzy
Addicting. You can play 2 player with a friend or play against the phone

WordUp!
A word scramble game

Word Search
Word search game

Tetrads
Tetris type game.

Apps I want to see developed for Android: (so I can use them)

Update 6/30/10 Kindle for Android released today!!!!! I have it loaded, and plan to play with it while I eat breakfast!

Kindle for Android
My greatest wish is for a KINDLE app that will allow me to read my Kindle books on my phone. I really hope that Google's association with the Barnes & Noble Nook is not going to get in the way of Android having an Amazon Kindle app. I own a Kindle, I love it - I'd love to be able to access the Kindle Content I own, from my phone.
Kindle for PC is available Now: http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311

Tweet Deck for Android (no longer wishing for this see Twidroid & Seesmic above)

My 2nd greatest wish is for a better Twitter App. If Tweet Deck would come out with an app for android that would remember which tweets I have already marked as seen and cleared from my desktop - that would be WONDERFUL. I'd settle for an Android Twitter app that would allow me to make columns or groups so that when I'm busy I can just view updates of my best friends... at this point I am sometimes missing them in the crowd.
Tweet Deck for PC Now: http://www.tweetdeck.com/features/index.html

Update 6/30/10 This app is now available in the Android Market. It is $29.99 and I plan to get it! (but due to some home network internet issues, I need to reconfigure my Sling box - as soon as I have it set up again I will be getting this app!)

Slingbox for Android

We have a slingbox. It's hooked up to our home DVR/cable box. Basically a slingbox makes it so that I can watch my home TV content over the Internet. I can watch shows recorded on the DVR, I can watch live TV, I can even watch programs on demand. This makes Robert a rock star when he is watching... say, the NBA finals on his laptop in the airport. It's very cool for a business traveler... and it would be very cool for a Mom stuck in traffic to hand off on her phone to an antsy child in the back seat.

Info About Slingbox: http://www.slingbox.com/go/slingbox

Cricut Creations

There has been a lot of interest lately in Cricut machines, so I'm posting Cricut artwork that hasn't previously been on my blog. Most of these are things I posted to the Cricut Message Board before I had my own blog. I'll give a link to project details on that board when possible.

Click Artwork for Larger view

Harvest Layouts http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=408620

Thanksgiving pages. Made with CTMH True Fit Folios.

Valentine Pillow Box http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=340541

Christmas Tags http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=197746&mpage=1&key=&#197746

Thanks a Latte card - (cuttlebug swirl texture) http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=962366&mpage=1&key=&#962366

Thanks tag http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=175736&mpage=1&key=&#175736

Santa Tag http://www.cricut.com/messageboard/tm.aspx?m=175733&mpage=1&key=&#175733

Recipe Systems - How I handle Magazines & Cookbooks

I love cooking magazines! At present my favorites are EVERYDAY with RACHAEL RAY and Cook's Illustrated.

In the past I have had trouble remembering to try the recipes that looked good in magazines. By the time I thumb thru them and find a recipe to make, my window of grocery shopping opportunity is over. After having this happen repeatedly I've devised a method for working with cooking magazines.

When I am ready to do my first reading of the magazine I sit down at the table with my magazine, a lined post-it tablet, a pen & a cup of tea. As I go thru the magazine I note recipes that I think I might like to try in the future. I write one on each line. I include Page Number then the name of the recipe.

When I have gone thru the magazine I stick the list to the front cover of the magazine, then when I am doing my menu planning & grocery list I can quickly find recipes I'm interested in, without having to read the whole magazine. As I try the recipes I star or highlight recipes I like, and mark out the line of any recipe I didn't like so I don't forget and make it again.

My method for cookbooks is similar except that I use a regular tablet instead of post-it style and I tuck the paper into the pages of the cookbook. I update the list with new recipes because I find new things appeal to me on later readings (and I seldom make my way thru the whole book in one sitting.) After I have made a recipe I star or highlight recipes on the list & in the cookbook index. I also write comments in the book next to the recipe such as "Great, Ethan love this one", "This is nice with Asparagus" or "Ick, Never Again!" When I mark in the book I use my scrapbooking journaling pens, I learned my lesson on this one as I have had ink bleed over the years some of my cookbooks when using regular pens. To my way of thinking, a well marked Cookbook is a well-loved cookbook.

How do you do it... I'd love to hear your methods!

Ethan's Birthday Celebration

We celebrated Ethan's birthday last Saturday. We ate at a local pizza place

opened presents, then went to Laser Tag & played a LOT of Rampage (it's a video where you get to be a giant Ape and destroy a city.)

Then we went home and had birthday cupcakes, then Ethan played his new Wii game, Toy Story Mania.