Fun Product Reviews

A few years ago someone linked me to the The Mountain Three Wolf Moon Short Sleeve Tee reviews on Amazon. Had to read them to my family and we died laughing.  I almost ordered all the men in my family the shirt for Christmas just because of the reviews.

Now others have share the following links with me.  Loved the Ice Cubes one. Hope you like them too.

Ice Cubes recipe

Uranium ore

Tuscan Whole Milk

Wheelmate Laptop Steering Wheel Desk

How To Avoid Huge Ships

Playmobil Security Check Point

lemon-Zucchini Loaf

I found the recipe for Lemon-Zucchini Loaf with this pin.

Lately I've had a hug craving for lemon. Maybe not lately, but for at least the last couple of years. When I saw the Lemon Zucchini Loaf I knew it was one I would want to make.

I pulled out my hand dandy lemon zester for this. I love my Williams-Sonoma Microplane Ultimate Citrus Tool. It's not the first tool I've had for zesting lemons. Some just didn't work well. Some fell apart. When I saw this one I thought it was spendy, but just might work so I got it. And it does!

Then I thought I had run into a problem. No buttermilk! Normally I would use a little vinegar and regular milk to make a buttermilk substitution, but I was really trying to stick to the recipe. Then I remembered I had buttermilk powder, similar to powdered milk. So I used that. Just for your info - you can also freeze small amounts of buttermilk if you find you can never use all of it at once.

The first loaf was pretty brown at 40 minutes and the center was no where close to done. I covered the top with tin goil and cooked some more. And some more.  I ended up cooking it for about an hour and 5 minutes

The second loaf I turned down the heat to 325 degrees and things worked much better. This time the top browned when it should. Strangely it took the same amount of time to cook. You can blame that on user error I'm sure.

Then came the glaze. I was a little concerned with it. It just seemed to have too little liquid. Nope. It was just right to make a glaze. After the first loaf though I wanted more glaze so with the second loaf I made 1 1/2 recipes of glaze. That was too much. Next time I'll do 1 1/4.

Rex and I both liked it. The kids were ho hum about it. Citrus really isn't a kid's favorite though.

Verdict: Would make this again, but make sure the heat is down and add a little more glaze

Verdict on my own variation: The original recipe was better. Using the applesauce made this a little cloying so I wouldn't use that. I would use the whole wheat - but then I like a heavier bread.

Cheesy Zucchini Rice

Today's pin  is Cheesy Zucchini Rice from http://bunsinmyoven.com.

I'd been eyeing this recipe for awhile.  It just sounded tasty to me. And easy. And well, you know how much I like quick and easy to prepare foods.  I liked this as well because it combines some protein with a starch and veggie all in one pan.

Things went alright till I needed to add the zucchini.  Have I told you how much I wish recipes would give me the cups or pounds amount and not what size zucchini to use?  Well, yes I have, but I'm doing it again. So I used 1 medium zucchini and that was approximately 3 1/2 cups and I'm wondering a little bit if that was too much. I don't think that you should really say that there are too many veggies, but I had a few problems with the amount...I think.

After you cook the rice you are supposed to remove it from heat and then add the zucchini and cheese etc. Then you cover it and let sit. Now I didn't expect to have very soft zucchini after this point, but it just didn't seemed cooked enough and I wonder if it is because my zucchini was too big of a medium and that made it so it didn't cook well enough. So I put the pot on the heat for a bit longer and cooked till the zucchini was more tender.

After trying it, I also felt there wasn't enough cheese compared to the zucchini and rice so I added about a cup more.  Everyone agreed with the addition, well everyone who doesn't claim to dislike cheese even though he likes cheese sandwiches, pizza, quesadillas...

I generally don't put salt in dishes like this.  I prefer everyone to salt it like they want.  I notice we useless salt this way in general. We all salted ours and then Rex remembered that we had just bought some specialty salt - smoked salt. When we were done eating our first serving we each got a small serving more and added the smoked salt.  Yowsa! This upped the flavor by a long shot and we instantly thought of bacon. We all liked the rice (3 thumbs up and 2 OKs) , but with the addition of this salt we really liked it.

Verdict: the recipe really needs a more specific zucchini amount. If I did have the right amount of zucchini it needed to be cooked softer - for this recipe.  It would be a good side dish to grilled chicken.

Zucchini Brownies

 Zucchini Brownies from http://mommyimhungry.blogspot.com was the pin for this post.

Tonight was Family Home Evening. We gather every Monday night (or another night as needed) as a family and have prayers, songs, lessons, and calendar planning.  We each take turns giving the lesson, leading the music etc.  It gives everyone the opportunity to grow in each area. It is important to us so we don't let a lot of things take priority over it.

For the kids one of the best parts is the treats served afterwards. As you can imagine the treat job is coveted. I'm not especially fond of chocolate, but the other 4 members of my family are so 4 out of 5 weeks we usually have something chocolate.

It was Gavin's turn this week. When he said he wanted brownies I knew just what zucchini recipe I would be doing today. Zucchini brownies. Gavin, of course didn't like the idea at all.  So I told him if the brownies didn't measure up then he could make cookies afterwards.

If you are doing the treat that means you also get to make it. He greased and floured the pan on his own.

Then in a large bowl you are supposed to add the oil, sugar etc.  When I turned around he had added the oil to the pan.  I really didn't want to clean out the pan and start over so we carefully poured it into the mixing bowl. It was a pretty good oil slick in that pan, but we got out as much as we could and this time didn't bother to re-flour it.

I was grateful for the added warning that the "batter" will be "dry and crumbly".  As we mixed it I could see that it wasn't going to get much like batter at all. 

Both of us were a little bit worried looking at it in the pan. Gavin even asked me about it and I let him know that this is what it is supposed to look like and we both hoped that was so.

The good news is I love pecans. Two family members are not so fond of them.  It was easy to sprinkle some pecans at one end of the pan and then just kind of spoon them over into the mix.

If I set the timer on my stove for the longest time on a recipe things usually come out just right. This time it wasn't done yet.  It took another 7-8 minutes. It was hard to tell if it was done as it looked as crumbly afterward as it did before. I was a little worried, but I didn't not say anything as I didn't want to be making cookies just because my big open mouth gave Gavin the idea these weren't good enough.

We found there wasn't enough powdered sugar in the frosting. It was very runny and wasn't sweet enough to our taste so while mixing it we added another cup of powdered sugar.  It still poured very easily over the top of the brownies.

Now, we were ready to see if these were going to be fall apart crumbles or a good brownie that sticks together.  We found them to be sort of in between.  They did stick together, but weren't the thick brownie you sometimes see. I should have pressed the crumbles down a little more I think. So...they were pretty much perfect for us.

There were no thumbs down or just OKs on this brownie recipe.  We had a firm 4 1/2 thumbs up (Gavin's thumb was at a diagonal). He kept reaching into the pan and getting more pieces though so we said it really was a thumbs up for all of us.  Until that is, Brady discovered that if Gavin didn't like them we would also make cookies. Then he immediately changed to a thumbs down and tried to get Gavin to do the same. It was too late though. Even I, the confessed not so much for chocolate person, really liked them. We even had several saying the frosting was especially good.

Verdict: Almost perfect recipe. Our only change would be added the powdered sugar to the frosting. I suspect though, my dark chocolate lover husband would have preferred it without the added sugar.

Zucchini and Chcken Salad

Tonight my pin was Chicken and Zucchini Salad from marthastewart.com.

As I was looking at Pinterest for recipes tonight my eye caught this one because I thought it would be quick, easy and minimal cooking.  And apparently I need to go shopping because I was missing an ingredient or 2 or 3 or 4 from every recipe I was finding and these ingredients and steps would work into the plan I was working on at the last minute.

I wanted it quick because I realized that Gavin had piano lessons at the same time Brady had a break from marching band camp. This wouldn't be a problem if I was a planner, but I'm not. Add to that Gavin's friend is over so I can't go to the grocery store right now.

So my spur of the moment plan was:

1. Prepare the zucchini.  The zucchini was to be cut into thin slices. I chose to slice it with a vegetable peeler.  Things went pretty quickly.   I debated on how much salt to use.  I finally used 1/4 teaspoon of salt.  No idea if that's anywhere close to right, but I didn't find it too salty in the end.

Loved that the recipe gave the amount of zucchini in pounds.  So many times I am left wondering, "Is this a medium zucchini or a large zucchini? So with my handy dandy scale there was no guessing.

2. Prepare the chicken. Pretty straight forward here.  Except that I noticed Martha's chicken looked much more fancy cut into slices instead of little chunks like mine. That's OK. I find it annoying when I get fancy salads from places and then have to cut the chicken in smaller pieces.



3. Take Gavin's friend home.

4. Go to piano with Gavin

5. Pick up Brady

6. Pick up the last items at the grocery store.  This is where something went wrong.  I knew this would be pushing it, but now I'm informed that Brady has to be back at band camp 15 minutes early.  I let him know that I would be quick (you should be proud - I brought the recipe with me and even circled the needed items, spinach, mint, red onion, cheese so I could be quick!)

7. Throw the ingredients all together.  I was done in no time flat.  Except...that zucchini is really hard to toss when it is that thin with the oil etc sticking it together.  I had to toss this salad longer than most salads and I spent some time pulling apart the zucchini. And I forgot the onion! I'm thinking for our family that is OK though as we are not big on raw onions.

Rex and Gavin gave it a thumbs up.  I gave it a so so. I didn't bother asking Brady since he was a little (lot) anxious about getting back in time.


Verdict:  I think it could be better with with a a higher ratio of lemon juice to oil.  It just seemed a little too slick and not fresh enough. I'd also add a tablespoon or 2 of honey to the oil and juice. I'd also give it more pepper than I did. I'm not big so I added some and then thought I probably should add some more thinking it might be too much, but it in the end it was lost.  So either go heavier on the pepper or plan on maybe adding some as you eat it.

Grilled Zucchini Pizza Slices

Today's pin is Grilled Zucchini Pizza Slices from Kaylyn's Kitchen.

Friday is pizza night at our house.  Sometimes we make pizza at home. Sometimes we do take out or delivery.  Sometimes we eat it in a restaurant.

We started it a few months ago and it has become a popular tradition. I've been surprised just how popular. We've had kids disappointed when a friend's birthday party falls on Friday night. Yesterday, Brady was completely set on bringing sack lunches and dinner to marching band camp - I think he really loves the socializing and down time, but also worries about being on time (all good things). Then he realized it was pizza night. So when I asked him what he wanted to do he told me he either wanted to come home or have us bring pizza to him.

I started doing these zucchini recipes more than a week ago so I could be a little more prepared. It's a good thing for me, but it worked very well this week for him as well, because no matter how good Grilled Zucchini Pizza Slices are they will still not compare with a normal pizza in a teenage boys mind.

So the recipe...

First, the recipe calls for pizza sauce. I never buy pizza sauce.  It's just too easy to make it and it's less expensive. Almost always I use some canned tomato sauce. Sometimes I add fresh or  frozen tomatoes from my parent's garden. Sometimes I throw in diced tomatoes. Add pizza seasoning, simmer for awhile and I'm done! So I put that on to simmer.

Next you cut the zucchini in 3/4 inch slices.  Well, I'm sitting there thinking if the zucchini is too large there may be a bunch of big seeds you will want to come out and then you have a hole in the middle of the slice. When I looked at the pictures on the blog it looked like fairly big slices given the number of pepperoni slices on each. Maybe this is a different type of zucchini with smaller seeds? Maybe she doesn't care about the seeds?  I don't know, but with the size of our seeds it didn't seem pleasant to eat them.

So I cut a few small zucchini up while explaining my thoughts to Rex.  He suggested we also try slicing the zucchini lengthwise to get slices. So we tried that next.

Ha! And now as I am reading the recipe over to help me make this post I see that she covered how to deal with the large seeds and how to cut it. Guess I missed that. Maybe that's why I'm not a better cook.

We debated on whether we should really cut them 3/4 inches thick. While we like zucchini we don't love them. So some of the slices we cut 1/2 inch and for the sake of doing this recipe properly we cut most of them 3/4 inch thick. After brushing them with the oil we grilled them like called for.

They reminded me of grilled pineapple which I definitely recommend trying!

I have no idea why the picture is sideways!  I've tried several times and it leaves my computer right side up!

They looked good when they were done. These pictures just don't do them justice.

Rex, Brady and I loved them and gave them a thumbs up. I was surprised just how much like regular pizza they are. Krista was not fond of them. Gavin seemed neutral on them though he is against the idea they were made with zucchini. He says, "If they didn't have zucchini on them they would be good."

Verdict: definitely a winner as written.  Cutting them in 3/4 slices was perfect as the smaller slices became too mushy. You want to make sure you grill them just to tender or tender crisp, no further. Keep in mind that you will need to grill it a second time.

Zucchini Soup

My first pin is from Lil' Luna.  Zucchini Soup. It looked good and simple.  Something right up my alley.

I feel like an allrecipes.com reviewer with this.  When I started making it (yes I don't read before making usually) I realized it used  more oil than I would.  I cut down the oil to 3 T, though normally I would have done only 1 or 2, especially with the high water content of zucchini & onions. 

Kristyn doesn't like onions so she used onion salt. She said if you wanted to you could cook onions with the meat or zucchini.  I cooked a diced medium onion with the sausage.

When I got it together I was excited to try it.  I found it kind of bland.  So I added some garlic.  Still wasn't enough for me.  Maybe I'm getting old and losing my taste buds! I know the oil would have added some flavor had I used more, but not the flavor I felt it was missing. So I tossed in some pizza seasoning and then I really liked it.

With the seasoning the soup got mixed reviews.  Gavin (11) didn't like it. Well, he said he didn't like it, but his actions showed he was neutral and I think he has something against zucchini. Krista (14) and Brady (17) were so so on it.  Rex and I liked it.

Verdict: I'd make it again, but it HAS to have extra seasoning.

Zucchini

By the title you might think that zucchini makes me smile.  Nope. Zucchini itself doesn't make me smile.

A few years ago I taught classes to my church about using food you can store for long periods of time.  Things like wheat, powdered milk, beans etc.  I want to be prepared for emergencies, but I don't want the food just rotting so I learned how to use these foods. I enjoyed experimenting with them and teaching people to use them in every day cooking.

Well, one of the foods that I came across was diced, dried carrots. For quite awhile I had this challenge in my head of being able to teach a whole class using them in a way that people would actually like it.  I wanted to give a wicked little cackle every time I thought about it.  I don't know. I'm just weird like that sometimes.

I never did teach the class. It never felt right. There were more pressing needs.

Then this summer our garden started to flourish! OK, well the zucchini did. We have about 10 plants.

You might be thinking, "Are you crazy! Do you know how much zucchini you will get from that?"

And last year I would have to had said, "No" because we have not had luck with zucchini.  The first year we planted about 3 or 4 plants and we got 1 or 2 zucchini squashes.  The next year we planted more and got about the same.  We thought something must be wrong with us. People were actually sneaking zucchini and our porch and I was sad that I didn't know who did it because I would have begged for more.  We use a lot of zucchini throughout the year.

So now we are getting about 2 medium sized zucchini a day.  The stack was piling up and I was thinking that I needed to start grating and slicing and throwing it in the freezer.  Then I started seeing the zucchini recipes on Pinterest and another wicked idea formed in my head.  And it makes me smile.  Big.

So for the next little while I will be posting Zucchini a Day recipes that I got from Pinterest and letting y'all know what I think of them.  It isn't dried, diced carrots, but maybe someday I'll do something with that as well..