Aunt Nellie's Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage Review & My Hamburger Veggie Rice Creation Recipe

How many of you have created a meal around a side dish???

I am so guilty of doing this!  My family loves Aunt Nellie's Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage. 

Yes I said my family - I am amazed to see how much my boys love this side dish.  I say said side dish, but you can create delicious recipes with this cabbage also.  I have never tried to incorporate it in a recipe because my boys just want to eat it straight out of the jar.

The predicament we have now found ourselves in - is a terrible situation!!!  No one in our area carries Aunt Nellie's Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage anymore.  I facebooked Aunt Nellie's and told them about our HUGE problem.  They were so kind to see if they could find anyone in our area that carried the red cabbage.  I am sad to report at this time no one does, but they were nice enough to send us a few jars to meet our cravings.  THANK YOU AUNT NELLIE'S!!!

I may have to give in and order a case directly from Aunt Nellie's because they have that as a feature on their website (What a great idea!)

Let me describe their Sweet and Sour Red Cabbage in my own words.  It is perfectly balanced between the strong sourness of the vinegar and the touch of sweetness that hits the back of your tongue.  It will leave your mouth watering and asking for more.  Aunt Nellie's describes it as "What perfection this is! We start with our delectable red cabbage, raised on nearby farms. Then we inspect it to pass the most rigid quality standards. Served up pungent, sweet and delicious, it's a savory treat!"

So back to my meal planning... I actually came up with a new recipe a few weekends ago so we could enjoy an entire jar of the Sweet and Sour Cabbage as a side dish. 

I have named my new creation "Hamburger Veggie Rice Creation"!  I looked around my pantry and started adding things together and it has turned out to be family keeper.

***Remember I am feeding a small army so this recipe can easily be scaled back***



Ingredients:

2 pounds lean hamburger

4 carrots, sliced thin

Celery (or Celery salt) - to your taste and liking

2 onions, chopped

2 envelopes of Lipton Onion Soup Mix

6 cups water

4 cups uncooked instant rice

Directions:

Brown the hamburger and drain. 

Stir in the the carrots, celery, soup mix and water.

Bring the mixture to a boil then reduce the heat.  Cover and simmer for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are tender.

Return to a boil and add the rice.  Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes so the rice is tender.

Enjoy.  We liked sprinkling a little Soy Sauce over the top before eating.

Thank you Aunt Nellie's for making such quality products!!!

Huge Giveaway 50 Dollars of Bakers Chocolate Meltaways (5 lbs) Our Family Favorite Made in Nebraska

After meeting my  husband may years ago, we would go back to the Omaha, Nebraska area to visit family and friends.  As everyone already knows I love candy.  Every trip we would make I would have to get my Bakers Candies fix.  I had never had a Meltaway like this before (and still haven't had).  They have such an incredible selection to please any palete.  They even have introduced two more meltaway flavors...Dark Chocolate Cherry and Coconut.  All these items are avaiable for purchase on line through Bakers Candies.

Baker's Candies Meltaway is their signature piece and it designates a chocolate of such quality that it is best enjoyed by simply letting it "melt-a-way" in your mouth.

While enjoying these chocolate confections notice the smoothness of the crumb....the subtle flavor notes in addition to the full-bodied primary flavor.....and of course the depth and richness of the overall chocolate impression. Baker's meltaways combine two distinct layers of chocolate: An outer layer of ultra smooth, creamy, low viscosity chocolate covering a high viscosity, richly flavored center.

There are very few American chocolate manufacturers still committed to the manufacturing and processes required to complete this solid chocolate confection- Baker's are proud to be one of them! And best of all there are made in NEBRASKA!!!  GO BIG RED!!

Bakers was nice enough to send me some of there tasty treats to sample and fullfill my sweet tooth (and my family).  I had never tried the chocolate covered carmels before...they are amazingly creamy and rich with the perfect amount of chocolate coating.  All I can say is "I am in Heaven!" with the Dark Chocolate Meltaways...it is like eating a chococlate covered cherry with out the mess and it lasts a lot longer.  The coconut Meltaways make me think of Summer and it can't arrive soon enough :) The Caramel Pecan Clusters - puts any turtle treat to shame.  They are perfect!!!

I love having the chance to promote local companies and small companies.  I think it is important to buy from small business, USA businesses --- we all can help our ecomony!  We all can make a difference. 

Now on to the Giveaway--------


ONE Qualified person will win their own 5 Pound Gift Basket of Bakers Candies Signature Assorted Meltaways.... A $50.00 value.

Giveaway is Open to US residents only age 18 or over. You must complete the Mandatory Entry to be eligible. This giveaway will close on April 10, 2011 at 11:59pm MST Time. Please leave a separate comment with email for each entry that you complete.


Mandatory Entry - Please go over to Bakers Candies website and look around. Come back here to Fishful Thinking and let me know what product/flavor you would love to try or have tried!

Bonus Entries:

Follow Fishful Thinking Blog on Google Connect (one the right side of my blog).

Follow Bakers Candies on Facebook.

Leave on Message on Facebook that Fishful Thinking Blog sent you and which product you would like to try.

Follow Fishful Thinking on Twitter.

Visit Bakers Candies website and Leave a separate comment telling me a color of wrapper for one of the Meltaways and which flavor it corospondes to.

Write up your own post about this giveaway along with live links to Fishful Thinking Blog and to Bakers Candies and post it on your blog (leave link).

Tweet about the Giveaway: You can copy and paste the following Tweet over on Twitter once per day.

Copy and Paste Tweet:

 U can #win 5 lbs Bakers Candies Meltaway Chocolates $50 Value on @busch0218 blog! http://t.co/fbO7fU7 04-10 11:59MST #giveaway #enter

Please leave a separate comment with email for each entry that you complete -PLEASE!

Thank you so much Bakers Candies for making such excellent chocolates in the State of Nebraska!  And Thank you again for sponsoring such a tasty giveaway for all my followers.

I am proud to be an American and a Nebraskan.

Spring Swap Package Has Arrived

I am excited to report my Spring Swap Package arrived over the weekend.  I was so excited to participate in happiness is a journey for janna, Spring Swap.

I was matched with an excellent partner Ramblings of a Cool Chick.  I had so much fun picking out all of her items and getting them all pretty and ready to ship....almost as much fun as I had waiting for my package to arrive :)  It was great it arrived the day before my Birthday.

Well here is it..... and by the way I love it all..and so do my boys.

Winners Selected Via Random.org for the Immaculate Baking Co. Giveaway

I am pleased to announce the winners have been selected via Random.org of the Immaculate Baking Co Giveaway.

I first want to thank the Immaculate Baking Co for sharing these coupons so I could pass them along to other followers to show them what a great product they make.

The first winner is

Diana who follows me on twitter.

And the second winner is....

Brent who tweeted about the giveaway.

Congrats to all the winners and don't miss out....There are going to be TONS of high dollar Giveaways posted soon - Including a $50 Gift Basket of Baker's Chocolates and wonderful Big Fat's Hot Sauces!

What a Great Way to Start by Birthday Morning - Handmade Gifts from my Boys and Breakfast Thanks to Duncan Hines & Wilton

Well my Birthday morning has started out perfect.  I decided to make an easy, but yummy breakfast...Thanks to Duncan Hines 100% Whole Grain Blueberry Streusel w/ Crumb Topping Muffins.  I used Pretty Spring Cupcake wrappers from Wilton to make it a little more special :) They are so easy to mix up and not much clean up, which is detail for my lazy day.

The best part was while I was mixing up the muffins, my boys were busy creative homemade birthday wishes for me.  I think these are the best kind of all.  So I wanted to share with everyone what they made and the stories behind them.  I am already smiling.

I walked in our front room to all the excitement.  They couldn't wait to show me their Birthday creations.

It my Birthday Table decoration..read below captions for an explanations.

 

This are the Birthday Cannon's (yes I have all boys) that shoot out fruit, which in turn explode to spell MOM.



This is the Birthday Girl - I feel so pretty.

This is my perfect Birthday Cake with Candles on top.

 

One of the yellow Bananas that shoot out of the Birthday Cannons.



My Birthday card from my middle son - there will be more details to follow.



My 7 year old's Birthday wishes.

 

Here are the details.  My middle son and I are stealing the Leprechaun's Gold for my Birthday.



The envelopes were even personalized.



My boys know me WAY to well...Check out these truthful stickers.

And of course I need to share more about how easy the Duncan Hines Muffins were to make... (I have already eaten three - Hey!  It's my Birthday so I can :)



This tiny blueberries make these Muffins the best!





All you need is one bowl to hand mix the ingredients.  So no mix attachments to clean up!

Easy pre-made crumb topping to make this muffins, over the top.

Any my Very Cute Spring Wilton Baking Cups to make my Birthday Muffins, extra Special.


  

  What what else my Birthday has in store???

Marge's Easy Homemade "Crunchy" Baked Mac and Cheese Recipe

It's time for another family recipe from my Husband's mom, Marge (Never Forgotten).  This recipe is so simple and easy.  It is excellent any time of the year, but very handy during Lent on Fridays (sometimes I serve it with salmon patties).

It only involves 3 ingredients, which most of us have on hand all the time.

This recipe was a tradition in my husband's house growing up.  They would have this Mac and Cheese on Christmas Eve (which we have carried on).  I love traditions!

The name as changed as our boys call it "Crunchy" Mac & Cheese, as they love and look forward to the crunchy, baked cheese on top of the noodles.

Well here is this super easy recipe.

Ingredients:

1 pound Elbow Noodles
6 cups Sharp Shredded Cheddar Cheese
3/4 cup skim milk
(salt and pepper to taste)

Directions:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a 9 X 13 glass pan.

Boil the pasta until it is al dente (almost cooked all the way).

Drain and place 1/2 the pasta in the lightly greased pan.

Top the pasta with 3 cups of the cheese.

Place the other 1/2 of the pasta on top of the cheese.

Add the rest of the cheese on top.

Pour milk over the top and salt and pepper to taste.

Bake for 30 to 45 minutes, until top is as "crunchy" as you like.

My favorite way to enjoy a piece is with a dash or two or three....of Trappey's Red Devil Cayenne Pepper Sauce!  This sauce has the perfect balance of peppers with out being overly spicy.  I love it so much, I could drink it.