I have a ton of kitchen towels.  I’m a bit of a germ-a-phobe when it comes to raw meat and general gross kitchen yuck. 

So I have a lot of kitchen towels and dishcloths and I change them often.  It is not unusual for me to go through 3-5 in a day.  And then there’s my Sadie that keeps me rolling through the dishtowels.

I’m not a fan of piling them up on the kitchen counter or in the corner of the floor until it is time to take the to the laundry room.

So I use this:

This little trashcan sits underneath my kitchen sink.  Whenever I deem a towel to wet/dirty/gross to continue in the mix, I put it out of the way in my laundry trashcan.

I typically empty it every other day at the very least.  If I forget about it and let it sit longer than that, then I have mildew-y, smelly towels.  So I try really hard to remember to not go down the Smelly Towel Road.

I love my little laundry hamper for my kitchen towels, especially on Freezer Cooking Daze!  I seem to go through 10+ towels on those marathon cooking sprees.

This definitely works for me!

(I am not a Southern girl that puts on airs – well, only on the very rare occasion – so forgive  me for not cleaning out under my sink before snapping this picture.)

I am pleased to link this post to WFMW over at We are THAT Family.  Go visit for a ridiculous amount of good ideas.

Well, sort of.

I mentioned in my OAMC To-Do List post that I was pretty sure I was being overly ambitious in my Freezer Cooking Day this month.  And I was right.

We did end up having quite a bit of snow (and ice) so we were stuck in the house all weekend.  That gave me a great opportunity to get quite a bit done.  Well…I’m not sure I’d say quite a bit.  More like some done.

But there are a few more items in our freezer that would not have been there otherwise.  I’m sure it will save us from take-out/drive-thru at least a few times in the month of February!

So here is what I accomplished:

•  Make a double batch of Homemade Biscuit Mix
• Roast 2 Whole Chickens in the Oven – bag a large majority of it

Actually I ended up roasting FOUR!  I made almost 2 whole 8-lb. chickens into chicken salad and several freezer meals to take to a new mama and a mama with a very sick new baby.  I kept the other two for our freezer.

• Make 2 enormous batches of homemade chicken stock

One is still in the crockpot and I’m waiting for it to finish.  The other is in the freezer.

• Brown ground beef and bag for casseroles

Three 2 1/2 cup portions in the freezer

• Double Batch of Meatballs
• Chicken/Broccoli/Rice Casserole x 2
• Chicken Ring x 2

I wasn’t able to get to the Chicken/Broccoli/Rice Casserole or the Chicken Ring.  I have all of the ingredients already in the fridge, I just need to get them put together.  So that is high on my to-do list for today!

I’ll post the recipe for the Chicken Ring (oh so yummy!) later today since someone asked for it.  And hopefully I’ll get the recipe for the Homemade Biscuit Mix posted because it makes the best pancakes I’ve literally ever eaten.

How did your freezer cooking go? 

I had a hard time getting everything accomplished this month.  I have to keep reminding myself what a huge blessing it is to go shop in my freezer for supper.  Gosh, I love it.  And that makes all of the hard work well worth it!

Did I mention my kitchen looked like this last night? 

It’s better this morning, but not better enough to take ‘after’ pictures!

I’m joining FishMama at Life as MOM and Crystal at Money Saving Mom for Freezer Cooking Day(s) again.

Yes, I realize that OAMC has very little to do with laundry.  But I’ve been Freezer Cooking off and on for about 5 years now and it really works for my family.

By biggest OAMC tip?

Wash every single kitchen towel and dishcloth you own.  You’ll use them all. I promise.

I am going to Blissdom next week, and that involves a ridiculous amount of preparation.  Packing, packing, planning and packing.  So I am afraid this list will be a little ambitious.  I have trouble with being overly ambitious.

However.

Greg Fishel has predicted 5-7” of snow this weekend!  Woo Hoo!  So maybe my hubby will be home a little early for some much needed child entertaining while I scurry in the kitchen.

A girl can dream.

So this is my OAMC To-Do List:

• Make a double batch of Homemade Biscuit Mix
• Roast 2 Whole Chickens in the Oven – bag a large majority of it
• Make 2 enormous batches of homemade chicken stock
• Brown ground beef and bag for casseroles
• Double Batch of Meatballs
• Chicken/Broccoli/Rice Casserole x 2
• Chicken Ring x 2

We’ll see how much I can cross off before Saturday night!

Yeast and I are not on the best of terms.  For some reason, I just can’t get the hang of it.  Every time I try to bake with yeast, I get a flop.  It’s frustrating.

However, I decided to bite the bullet and try yet again to befriend yeast.

Imagine my surprise when my my cinnamon rolls turned out like this!

I was thrilled!

This is the recipe I used, although I didn’t use quite as much butter.

As my husband would say: You know what would make this really good?

Cream Cheese Glaze.

I’ll definitely use the same Roll recipe next time, but I might try to find a different glaze.

But don’t get me wrong – it was completely delicious the way the recipe recommends.  These cinnamon rolls with this milk (we call it ‘crack milk’ because it is just that good) makes for a delightful little treat.

And these are my fantastic little helpers who did a really good job!

I think we all made a great memory…

This post is also listed on Tempt my Tummy Tuesday.  Head over there for more great ideas!

Well, I had very good intentions in joining in the Freezer Cooking Day with FishMama and Crystal.

Sadly, I only got one item made for my freezer!  You can take a look here.  Life was a little too busy this week to tackle a large to-do list.

I kept a few of the sausage balls in the fridge in case we wanted to eat a few for breakfast – but they didn’t make it that far!

We had them tonight with tomato soup and they were delicious!  They were a great side kick.

Next Stain Removal: 101  Post?  How to get greasy stains out of clothes.  Stay tuned…

Disclaimer #1:  There are no pictures to go along with this post and for that, I am terribly sorry.  And sad as I really like pictures.

Disclaimer #2: I hate mayonnaise.  I will only eat it in three dishes, and they are three dishes that I make so I can control the amount that goes in.  So suffice it to say this broccoli salad definitely does not taste mayonnaise-y.  If you taste mayo at all, you’ve put too much.

I first fell in love with broccoli salad when my husband and I were just married.  I’ve perfected it in the past 7 years of marriage.  Here is the final result:

Mama’s Broccoli Salad:

4 cups of fresh broccoli, chopped in bite-size pieces

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup red onion, chopped finely

1/2 cup golden raisins (make sure to use golden – they’re so much better in this recipe)

3/4 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup white sugar

7 tablespoons red wine vinegar

In a large bowl, toss together broccoli, onion, sunflower seeds and raisins.

In a small bowl, whisk together mayonnaise, sugar and red wine.

Pour mayo mixture over broccoli mixture and toss to coat thoroughly.

Cover and chill in fridge.  It tastes best when allowed to chill overnight and then serve.

While in fridge, stir a few times to blend flavors well.

Enjoy!

Head over to The Happy Housewife for more fantastic side dishes!

This morning was super busy for me, so I knew I wasn’t going to have a ton of time to participate in the Bloggy Progressive Dinner and Freezer Cooking Day.  And I was right.  It’s been crazy land here with me and my three little people.

So I brainstormed about what I could make that was an appetizer that could be frozen also.

Sausage Balls.

I was thrilled with myself that I’d thought of this fabulous idea and shared it with my husband.

His response: “Those aren’t appetizers.  They’re hors d’oeuvres.”

Oh really?  Hmmm…

I had to do some research on that claim, so I quickly scanned my recipe books.  I’m thrilled to report that Paula calls them appetizers in her cook book.  So we’ll take her word for it!

So here they are:

This is a super simple recipe, as it only uses three ingredients.  There are many variations of the recipe, but I almost always choose simple.

• 1 pound fresh sausage – I obviously prefer Jimmy Dean.
• 8-oz. of Sharp Cheddar Cheese – It melts better if you grate it yourself.  The pre-shredded kind has additives so it doesn’t clump.
• 3 cups of biscuit mix – I make my own.  If anyone is interested I can post the recipe, which I’ve used for years.  So it’s reliable.

Place all ingredients in a bowl.  I’m not sure I could cook without the one pictured.  It makes OAMC so much easier!

Mix the ingredients together with your hands.  It is too hard to mix with a spoon, so definitely use your hands.  If the mixture seems too dry, add a little water but only a tablespoon at the time.  You don’t want to add too much and the mixture be too loose.

After the ingredients are incorporated, roll the mixture into 1-inch balls.  You may place them close together on a baking sheet since they don’t spread as a cookie would.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or so.

When fully cooked, drain sausage balls on a paper towel.

If eating now, place on a serving tray and share with your family and friends!

To freeze: Place cooked sausage balls on a baking sheet and place in the freezer.  Flash freeze them (freeze for an hour or two until hard) and then remove and place in a ziploc bag.  To serve, place thawed sausage balls on a baking sheet and reheat in a 300 degree oven for about 5-10 minutes or until warmed through.

These are great for an appetizer, but they are also wonderful to have in the freezer to pull out for a quick breakfast.  Pull a couple from the freezer and cook on 250-300 degrees in the toaster oven.  They truly taste like you just made them!

Make plans to follow along the Second Annual Bloggy Progressive Dinner hosted by Amy at Amy’s Finer Things.  There will be fabulous recipes posted each day this week.  You won’t want to miss them!

Today JessieLeigh over at Parenting the Tiniest of Miracles is serving us drinks!

While I realize the more exciting holiday drinks are wassail, little spiced concoctions and the like, I am posting a recipe for sweet tea.

Because I make it really well.

And I want you to be able to enjoy it’s divine goodness also!

It’s not a before- or after-dinner drink, but a during-dinner drink.  And you’ll be oh so happy you’ve taken the time to make it.

I am a girl born and raised in the South, and well…we do sweet tea right.  And we drink sweet tea at most of our meals, so that includes at a Bloggy Progressive Dinner!

(And yes, I realize the actual phrase is ‘Sweetened Tea’ but no one ever says it that way.  But honestly?  I didn’t know it was ‘Sweetened Tea’ until I went to college!  Shameful, I know…)

So here is my prized recipe for Sweet Tea:

First assemble your items:

1-gallon pitcher – I use this one

1-cup measuring cup

sugar

3-4 Family-size Lipton Tea Bags – I’m a little partial to Lipton

Long-handled spoon

2-qt. pot with lid (or whatever size you have on hand)

Directions:

Fill your pot with water, until it is about an inch from the top. Place the lid on it and set it on your burner on the stove.

Turn your burner on high until the water comes to a rapid, rolling boil.

Set your pot off of the burner.  Put your tea bags inside the pot with the strings hanging down the sides and put the lid back on your pot.

Let the pot set (ie: steep) for about 10 minutes or so.

While the tea is steeping, get your 1-gallon pitcher ready:

Set the pitcher in your sink.  Add 1 cup of sugar, then add about another 3/4 cups of sugar.  So you should have a total of about 1 3/4 cups.  I don’t measure precisely each time.  You can add 2 cups, but that is a little too sweet for my taste.

Now when your tea has steeped, hold the tea bags by the strings and pour the hot tea on top of your sugar in the pitcher.

Run cold water over the bags in the pot, and swirl them around a little.  Pour this water into the pitcher also.

Stir quickly, trying to incorporate as much of the sugar as you can.

Then fill the rest of the pitcher with cold water and stir again until all of the sugar is dissolved.

Refrigerate and enjoy!!

I love the Christmas Season.

While this is of course my favorite aspect of the Christmas Season, baking is one of my favorite things to do during the holidays!  What wonderful memories I have of the way my childhood home smelled during Christmas.  I work hard so my own children will have great memories too.

So in the blog world, there are a couple of fantastic events this week related to cooking, baking and well…eating!

Even though this is mostly a laundry blog, I am a Mama after all.  And with that I enjoy cooking dinners and making delectable little treats for my fam.

So I am thrilled to participate in my first online event.  And I was so excited about it, I thought I’d participate in two!

Mark your calendars!

The first is Freezer Cooking Daze on December 1 and 2 hosted by the fabulous FishMama over at Life as MOM and Crystal at Money Saving Mom.  You can follow along on Twitter using the hashtag #oamc.  Or on the Facebook Event page here.

If you are new to Once-A-Month Cooking, or just curious about how it all works, this is a great place to start.  You’ll see different methods and get ideas about what might work for you.

I can’t even describe the feeling of relief when it is 3:30, and I haven’t even thought about dinner plans.  And then it dawns on me: I have something in the freezer I can pull out!  Ah, the joy.

You’ve got to try it!

The second is the Second Annual Bloggy Progressive Dinner hosted by Amy at Amy’s Finer Things.  It runs every single day next week: November 30 – December 4.

If you have parties and events to attend this Christmas Season and have no idea what dish to bring, then this is the place to be!  There will be more mouth-watering ideas than you’ll know what to do with…or have time to bake!

Pop over to Amy’s for the schedule of dinner courses.  It makes me hungry just thinking about it.  Oh I can’t wait!

Because stains are inevitable while baking and eating during the Christmas Season, I’ll highlight several this week.  I’ll provide a step-by-step tutorial on how to remove them.

It’s going to be a busy week…stay tuned!