What's for Dinner Wednesday---Lots of Lasagna

Here's a recipe blog that I typed up several weeks, when I was planning to make Lasagna, so I could TAKE PICTURES............ well it didn't get made that week, the sausage got put in the freezer, hopefully I will get my head above water soon and get to make it for my family, maybe then I will come back and add the pictures, and of course repost so you all who follow can SEE what I am rambling on about below.

Hopefully also someday soon, I will get the chance to add some more posts, so much to say, no time to do so! Really thinking that a portable device that I can use EVERYWHERE is more of a necessity all the time. Busy at the farm, planting done, haying in full swing, and we add fair/show season to the mix in about 3 days!

Enough about all that, here's the recipe!


I used to be so proud that I could make this recipe and get about 4 meals out of it. Of course that was back when I had two LITTLE boys...........fast forward a few years and in my house, this recipe is usually only about two meals and that's if its paired with bread and salad (for those who eat it at my house) This is one of those recipes that I try to do when I have the time and put one pan in the freezer to fix later or use when I need to take a meal to another family, as even though I have two big strapping almost 200 pound over 6 foot teenagers and two other kiddos, its a big recipe.

Here's what you'll need: 4 pounds of ground beef, 1 pound regular sausage, 1 pound Italian sausage, all browned and drained. 2 large jars of spaghetti sauce= first layer. Ricotta cheese, cottage cheese, mozzarella, and parmesan cheese equal to approximately 8 cups in whatever proportions you like. I also add an egg or two to this mixture as well, this is your second layer. The third layer is the noodles. Use whatever version you like, no-cook or the ones you cook, I have used both types with good results.

When I make this and I am going to be freezing one or both pans, I line my pans with aluminum foil.

Then I layer, meat, cheese, noodles. I do this three times into 2 9x13 pans. I try to leave a little meat and cheese to sprinkle on the tops. Then regardless of its destination, I cover it with more foil and seal it up well. If its headed to the freezer, I label it and set it in the freezer, pan and all. Once its well frozen, a few days later, whenever I need a pan and remember its in the freezer, I go and retrieve my pan, then I usually place the frozen casserole into a 2 gallon ziplock bag. I think it helps protect it, although I don't think we have ever left a lasagna in the freezer long enough for freezer burn to ever be an issue. :)

If its going to get baked, I bake it at 350 for 40 minutes, I uncover the top and let it bake that way the last 15-20 minutes. If I am starting from frozen, which I try not to do, I place it back into a pan (which hopefully I have labelled which pan I originally used, see you thought maybe I put the date on the casserole, ha ha, fooled ya!) I start out at 325 and add about 30 more minutes to the over all cooking time and turn it up to 350 half-way through the cooking time.

One of the benefits of using the aluminum foil inside the pans is besides 'packaging' the frozen casserole, it makes clean up a lot less involved, as you can peel that foil out and throw it away and MOST of the clean up is eliminated.

I generally serve this with my Bread Machine bread. If the family is super lucky, there's salad, for those who like it and a dessert, but I think we all know that's not very often the case, besides I wouldn't want them to get too used to that! LOL

Okay waiting for hay boss to return from taking non-driving hay haulers home but he's about taken too long this momma is headed to bed,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

P.S. Here's one picture...........

Farm~Faith~Family~Friends
This is the picture, my 200th follower will receive next week.

Thankfulness Thursday---USA

As is my usual post on Thursdays, I am here being thankful. I am thankful for many things and its barely lunch time. So far this morning, I have been thankful for the beautiful wheat fields that are ripening and being harvested this week in our area. Look at that, isn't it gorgeous?!?!?!

Love those Amber Waves of Grain

I am thankful to have supported a neighboring farm family and go with my two youngest children to pick blueberries. We will enjoy them today. We only picked a gallon, so guessing the way my family enjoys them, today and maybe tomorrow is all the longer they will last.

MMMMMM, the luscious goodness!!!!!!

After we picked blueberries, of course we went and bought some fireworks. Then since, I was basically in town, I drove by one of my favorite tourist attractions in Centralia, MO. The Avenue of Flags. Today there's not much breeze, so they aren't as wonderful as many other pictures I have seen, but here's the view as I drove by.

Avenue of Flags memorializes local veterans.

Now we are home, cooking some lunch to take to my Farmer who is planting soybeans after the wheat that was harvested  here a couple of days ago. This afternoon my bigs will clip the show cattle. This evening, we will likely grill something and shoot the fireworks off, then drive into town and watch the local aerial display. A pretty laid back day. Very blessed and thankful for those who made this day possible.

Shared a couple of videos of some great patriotic country songs that for me says it all. Happy Independence Day friends.

Feeling Thankful and Blessed to be an America today,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

Thankful Thursday---Summer, Black Cows and Our Own Schedule

Have I mentioned lately how much I LOVE SUMMERTIME!?!?!?!?!? I love that my kids are mostly here everyday. We eat many more meals together, granted the setting might change daily, be it the kitchen table or the tailgate of the truck. While yes there are 4H meetings, summer conditioning for my soon to be freshman football player/wrestler and gobs of family gatherings----------------mostly we can do what we want to do. I am thankful that mostly what we want to do is be together.

Its a 'cattle show' every afternoon in the lot behind the barn.

Thankful Dad is there to show 'em how its done!

As I sat there watching my family work with calves, I had to wonder how many families have activities that they all work together doing? Sure our kids play sports---------we drop them at practice, sit in stands and watch them. They are in activities, again I am not sure that there's a lot of interaction. But I know this to be true, exhibiting livestock is an 'all hands on deck' activity. Getting the calves ready at home, breaking them to lead, washing them, clipping their hair really requires everyone to be on the same page. When its show day, we work together to get there, making sure all that is needed is packed to go, food and drinks, show clothes, lawn chairs and oh yeah----LOAD THOSE CALVES!

A long time ago, I quit wishing away my life. But I have really made an effort to savor EVERY moment, particularly so in this last year. It blows my mind to think how fast 18, almost 19 years have went. I have come to realize as of late just how quickly that oldest guy is slipping through my hands. Two months from Saturday, we move him into the dorm at college. I remember the lump in my throat as I left him in Laura Warbritton's Kindergarten classroom..............guess this next lump will surpass that one.

Enjoying listening to the birds sing through our open windows and wondering if we are the last holdouts for turning on the AC for summer,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

Tune in Tuesday--Peterson Brothers

Well, they did it again. Young farm agvocates and brothers from Kansas have created what looks to be their third hit in a series of Farm Parody Songs. This one called a Fresh Breath of Farm Air is a off-take of Will Smith's Fresh Prince of Belair from the early 90's (about the time these guys were born!)

These boys are doing a great job of sharing the story of farming, faith and family is such an entertaining fashion that millions are watching their videos!

Tune in Tuesday a few hours early but this one couldn't wait,

From Tulip via Kansas~

KH

:)

Happy Birthday Grandma Angle

Today would have my Grandma Angle's 86th Birthday, a little over 23 years ago, she started celebrating those in Heaven. When I think about that I was only lucky enough to have her for not quite 19 years, it seems sort of sad. But I will say that in those years, my Grandmother was a big influence in my life.

I think about her when I am listening to my beloved St. Louis Cardinals on the radio. I think about her when I am making sweet tea. When I am watching kids play sports and MIGHT be one of the louder ones hollering for them. :) I think about her when my kids are playing ball in the yard. When I am going up and down stairs doing laundry. When I am making gravy. When we sing In the Garden at church and about million other times.

My Grandmother had 5 kids, my dad was the second oldest. There are 9 of us first cousins. I was the only Grand-daughter. 5 of the 9 us lived with Grandma (or she did us, however you want to say that) at different points in our lives.

She and my cousins Stephen and Jeff lived with us one summer, I look back and think that if she hadn't ran such a tight ship, I can't imagine how things would have gotten done. 7 people under one roof! With one full-sized bathroom. I remember she shuffled us kids through the showers throughout the day...........did umpteen loads of laundry in the basement. We vacuumed the carpeted stairs twice I week I think. All four of us kids played ball. Can you imagine what a busy place our house was that summer? Actually I can, at least sort of since until 2 yrs ago, we only had one bathroom with 6 people...............all of my kids are in activities, thankfully the only activity that they are ALL in at the same time is cattle showing and they all go the same place together for that!

We had a big garden and memories of canning lots of stuff is a vivid one from that summer, but in hindsight, feeding 4 kids, two of them teenage boys...........I am sure that the garden helped the grocery bill. We cooked, we cleaned, we listened to Cardinal Baseball. Grandma loved to listen to Jack Buck call the game. One thing we didn't agree on was TV.............I watched Days of our Lives on NBC................she watched CBS soaps, it was a problem, LOL Actually my best friend, who's grandmother lived next door also watched another channel, but we could get our channel to come in with a black and white tv that had 'rabbit ears' on it in her grandpa's shop, so I survived! :)

I am lucky enough to have some things that were my Grandmother's. Among them are her china, some of her pans from when she ran a restaurant, some Angels that she sat out at Christmas, plus many other items who's only value is purely sentimental and a lifetime of memories. For that today, I am thankful.

Running my busy household and thinking of those who went before me who did the same thing and appreciating their influence in my life on this Thankful Thursday,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

Welcome to my Dining Room----A look into what the Farmscape of H&K Farms looks like.

As a farm family, we probably eat more meals together than a lot of families. Truly one of the biggest blessings of being at home with my kids and having a self employed husband. Today The Farmer and the oldest sons are doing a big push to finish planting corn, which includes putting in a test plot and hopefully if I am lucky planting my sweet corn patch. There are only so many tractor drivers needed, so the way that I helped them today was to take lunch to the field.

Meals on Wheels--Tulip Style!

I fixed a pretty normal lunch. This was the menu, pork chops, mashed potatoes, gravy, mixed veggies, and watermelon with sweet tea to drink. Typing that last line reminds me of this show..........

Hee Haw's 'What's for dinner Grandpa?' GREAT CLASSIC SKIT, from a great classic tv show!

We got to the field and served our meal, we means the littles and momma as The Farmer and the big boys were working. We didn't have lunch with the oldest as he took his lunch break to run to town buy a replacement part.
As I got the food out here was my view...............

The Farmer's RIDE, who else has a work vehicle like that one?

Trees along edge of the field provide great shade!

This big bruiser, still wounded (smoke stack) but hard at it!

We ate off the back of my Expedition and sat on the tailgate of the truck............

Maybe not an ideal spot to all, but we didn't complain! 

I have come to think of seed bags as great seat cushions.

A quick siesta by The Farmer, and some texting to a female friend by middle son while the shorties and I went for a walk.............

Apparently flattened out fescue is suitable for napping!

See those BIG FEET? That would be middle son.............

As Seth and Jenna finished their last slices of watermelon, we went for a short walk. The field they are planting at the moment is about 50 acres, about an average sized field on our farm. I love that standing in the middle of it I can still see farmsteads of four neighbors, acres and acres of crop ground and lots of trees. There is a creek that is never farther than about three miles from me no matter where I am on any of our farms, that adds a little rolling-ness (is that a word?) to the land and adds lots of lush green everywhere. There is no horizon line anywhere on our farms, that doesn't include trees. What a blessing!

Who doesn't like a toothy smile mid-bite on some watermelon?

The Sass is also a melon lover! ;)

Neighboring farmhouse. 

Notice how EVERY SINGLE horizon line includes TREES?

Extra credit, who knows what made those lines and why?

Is this how crop circles begin? Nope, just the farmer's turn row!

My walking buddies showing you how tall the fescue is. 

Heading back to the car. 

Guess mom walks too slow! 

I think sometimes I forget how blessed my life is. Thankfully today I was reminded of this as I did something I have done time and time again, just a plain ol' everyday blessing. I think those are my favorite kind!

Blessed to be farming,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

Silent Saturday/Sunday

Busy day at H&K Farms, here's a glimpse....................

The Farmer kept the planter rolling all day long.

I think he got over about 100 acres

The boys started 'refilling' the near empty loft.

Our last group of heifers to be bred Monday AM

That elevator is a big help!

Dustin unloaded this load.

With some 'muscle' to help him! 

Those heifers are here to clean up what blew off the trailer.

That's it, that ALL I've got!

Now waiting for those hard working guys to come eat all this food I've cooked,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

A break in our regularly scheduled blogging............

A few months ago, I gave myself writing prompts thinking at the time that they would be the back up plan. They would give me an idea of where to start, if I didn't already have an idea. They have evolved into the subject I write about on the given day that the blog post is entered. Not sure if that is good or bad. The plus I know of is that when I have time I might write up four or five recipes ahead and then plan to take pics the next time I make whichever foods I have written about, so I can add them to the post before publishing, etc...........kind of the meal planning of the 'blog' world. During the school year when I was subbing, it was something to do on my breaks. Blogger is an allowed website on the school networks. The minuses I see are that for me as I scroll down through recent posts, they look a little boring. So I am going to make the goal that for summer, I am going to write at least half the posts about whatever I was thinking about, had happened that day, etc.............which is kinda what I used to do. I still like the What's for Dinner Wednesdays and Silent Saturdays or Sundays, etc.......... as they are easy to add interesting content regularly.

So with that thought in mind, here's what's going on here:

1. Planting has started back again! YAY! Happy Farmer, or at least too tired to be grumpy, jury is still out on that one!
2. Hay hauling will begin today, I 'get' to feed my hay hauling boys after they haul about 1100 bales today, love this time of year, love seeing those kids, love paying them for a job well done, am totally entertained by their banter as they sit around our picnic table and eat after they get done. 
3. Sam started summer weight lifting for FOOTBALL! Never in a million years thought I would be THAT excited about football! 
4. 3 of 4 kids made their annual trek to 4H camp last week, Seth for the first time, Cody for the last time and it was Sam's first year to be a counselor. 
5. Vacation Bible School at Tulip starts tomorrow night. I am the 'snack lady' I filled the freezer at church last night with perennial kid food favorites, mini corn dogs, pizza rolls, chicken nuggets, etc. We've decorated the church like one big luau. This next week is always a fun one.
6. I have written my first quilting pattern. I have some good friends testing it right now. I am hoping to get it published and start selling, so excited about that!  
7. Next week we take Cody to SOAR @ NWMSU, and get that guy signed up for college. I am  excited about it, just pretty sure that there will likely be more than a few weepy momma moments along with it!

Okay that's all for now, need to get things ready around here for busy-ness of life on the farm. Thinking tomorrow will be a 'Silent Sunday' filled with hay hauling and tractors planting, etc...........

Looking forward to all that summer has to offer and praying it will be a productive one on our farm this year,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

Thankfulness Thursday--Growing up in a small town and school sports

Today I am not blogging about our farm, or even the town I now call home, at least not mainly...........Today I am going to share with you what was a big part of my growing up years and that was playing school sports. I grew up in a town of 1,000 people, our school was a small one. We had enough kids to make up a Varsity and JV soft/baseball team and basketball teams, but no where near the size to play the game my boys love, football and for track, the only time we ran on an actual track was at meets, somewhere else, but you know I never felt deprived, not once.

I was a Sturgeon Bulldog!

I played Basketball throughout Jr. High (that's what we called middle school) and High School. I wasn't a super star, but I didn't care, I was on the team and got to play. And that's what mattered. I loved softball from the time I was big enough to swing at pitches my Uncle Hank tossed to me through the growing up years and past high school when I played on slow pitch adult teams. This was a close as I could get to my true love baseball, that love was fostered by a Grandmother who missed very few Cardinal games, did we go you ask? Nope, we listened to Jack Buck on KMOX call the games. That is a constant in practically every summer memory I have of my Grandma Angle.

I proudly wore that blue jersey!

I still love to watch my own kids play ball in the yard and join them when I can. My kiddos don't play summer league soft/baseball, as they have another summer love, which is showing cattle. When I think back to summers growing up, I can remember many a game that was played at the ball field in town. It didn't matter if there were 2 or 3 kids there, or 15, boys or girls, again didn't matter. We played till everyone got tired or had to get home. Such a different world than the ones my kids know.

I sit back and think of moments in games, and then try to remember, who won that game, most of the time I can't remember that, mostly I remember the fun and friendships carved with people I would know and interact with a varying levels the rest of my life. I learned that team means everyone. I learned to work hard and try your best.

When our own kids were getting big enough to start consider letting them be involved with organized sports, for me it wasn't even a question. They have been, maybe not the sports I personally played. But they have enjoyed being part of a team. They are wrestlers, football players, and golfers. Jenna looks forward to a time when she can try out volleyball.

They are making great memories with kids who will be their lifelong friends, learning great lessons from other adults and enjoying the ride. For that I am very thankful. It's something you never forget. When seasons end and teammates change there's a bittersweet moment. But the memories of that special time will live in your heart forever.

Recently, actually YESTERDAY, the baseball boys from my home town won 3rd in State. Did I go to the game or follow them throughout the season? No, not in person. I enjoyed every single picture that my friends posted on facebook. See those are the people I grew up and they remain my friends today. They proudly shared their sons' accomplishments and it gave me a chance to relive the 'Glory Days' a little and offer them some praise myself. A friend posted on one of the players walls, 'you boys make every person, past and present, who wore the blue and white jerseys, very proud' He was totally right, I am sure am proud of those boys!

Once a Bulldog, always a Bulldog, way to go boys, we are all so proud of you,

From Tulip~

KH

:)

What's for Dinner Wednesdays--Gooey Butter Cookies AKA Cake Mix Cookies

I guess when I am sharing a cookie recipe, I should probably call this What's for Dessert Wednesday? LOL The recipe I am going to share today is definitely a "6 Star" recipe. Everyone in my household LOVES these cookies. In fact I am not sure I have ever served/shared them with anyone who does not like them. This is the recipe that my boys both requested (along with homemade ice cream) for the dessert at their graduation party INSTEAD of a cake.

While this recipe is wildly popular, that's not even the reason I like to make these cookies. I like to make these cookies because its one of the simplest recipes I have, with the fewest ingredients, that are all likely ones I have on hand at all times.

Here are the ingredients: A cake mix, a brick of cream cheese, a stick of butter, an egg, and a little vanilla. Plus you will need some powdered sugar to roll the cookies in before baking.

Let the cream cheese and butter soften. Add them to the cake mix, egg and vanilla. I generally use a pastry cutter to mix these up. I have been known to throw the ingredients into a gallon zip lock bag and hand to a kid to mix up. Once the ingredients are well combined. Refrigerate to cool the dough, I have done this as short of a time as 30 minutes or as long as 2 or 3 days. Make sure you've covered the dough while its in the fridge, so it doesn't dry out.

Roll chilled dough into balls, or use a cookie scoop or however you 'make' cookies. Roll in powdered sugar. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes. I use a parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

This recipe, using my medium Pampered Chef cookie scoop consistently makes 30 cookies.

Variations: I think when I originally saw this recipe, it called for a yellow cake mix. But I have made it with Red Velvet, Chocolate, Funfetti (Cody and Sam's favorite) and Lemon cake mixes. I don't think you can go wrong with any mix as long as the flavor is a favorite of your family.

These cookies are moist and simply wonderful. Try them soon.

You tell schools out and we are getting into our summer groove---will try to get back here more regularly than weekly--YIKES,

From Tulip~

KH

:)