Turkey Noodle Soup: A great way to use those Thanksgiving Turkey Leftovers

My Savvy Stoker Sister Judy made two kinds of Turkey Noodle Soup for the whole Stoker clan last night. They were both yummy. To suit everyone's taste she made a creamy kind and also a broth kind They are similar to Grandma's Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup and our Healthy Chicken Noodle Soup.

Her creamy Turkey Noodle soup was the same as Grandma's Creamy Chicken Noodle Soup, except you add the turkey instead of chicken.

The broth soup was different:

For Judy's Broth Turkey Noodle Soup she boiled the bones of the turkey with some onion, carrots, celery, 1 tsp. of thyme, salt and pepper, and 1 Tb. of parsley for 4 hours.

Then she removed the bones and strained the broth through a cheese cloth.

Add equal amounts of beef and chicken to the broth and more salt and pepper if needed. Then add cooked carrots, onion, celery, noodles, and turkey. Enjoy!

What a wonderful way to end Black Friday Shopping and a delicious meal to eat on a cold winter's night. She also paired the soups with some tasty "Monkey Bread" which she will have to do a post on someday, because they are so good!

Thanks, Judy!

Packing Tips

One of the sisters asked me to post about packing. I just moved for the second time in 2 years so it's nice and fresh in my mind. (Meaning I have nightmares about it still)

• GETTING STARTED    If you're selling your home take down all your family and personal items. I know your family is beautiful, but strangers have a hard time imagining themselves in your home when all of your personal things are out. 
• AFTER IT SELLS    As soon as you really know you're moving, whether it's selling your home or giving your notice on a rental, it's time to start taking decorations down. Take everything off the walls first so you can patch and paint all the holes. WHY? Because you're a decent person and it's the right thing to do. Also, you don't need your decorations to function as a human being and you really do have a month's worth of packing ahead of you. WASTE NO TIME BECAUSE INEVITABLY SOMETHING WILL COME UP THAT PUTS YOU BEHIND. You want to give yourself some cushion so that when that weekend with the family shows up unexpectedly you don't feel like you're a crazy person when you get back to packing. 
• YOU NEED A TAPE GUN Whether you buy one or borrow it from a neighbor, packing is so much easier with a tape gun. We are a family of 6 and we went through 5 rolls of tape.
  
• DON'T BUY BOXES  Utilize ksl or craigslist and see if anyone is giving their moving boxes away. Also, go down to your local stores at re-stocking time and get some of theirs. I've found that calling and asking them to save them isn't as effective. There are a lot of people who work in that store and the message might not make it to everyone. If you buy moving boxes it will cost you more than you have budgeted for such a thing, I promise. A wardrobe box runs around $13 brand new. (YIKES) For my family of 6 we used around 100 boxes. 
• YOU NEED LESS THAN YOU THINK  You really don't need all those extra dishes or half of your clothes during your transition. Pack it all up. Label everything in mild detail so that it will be easier to sort into the new house. Don't leave a ton for boxes when the neighbors come to help you move. Be organized and efficient. Moving is so hard and so stressful, but you can make it easier on you and everyone else by being ahead of the game. Make sure that the last 2 days are paper plate days so that helpers aren't packing your breakables. They are not something to be hastily packed and you want to do it yourself.
• HAVE A BUDGET FOR EATING OUT  There are a few days there where you will be unable to cook (or too tired to do so). Make sure you put aside some money for grabbing pizza or Cafe Rio for your family. 

Moving is hard and expensive! Make sure you ask for help when you need it and you have a few hundred dollars saved up beforehand for those unexpected expenses. We are in transition right now and hoping to be in our new home soon. Hopefully for longer than 2 years this time. ;) We go where the work is though.  Hope this helps.

Lots of Love,

Nicole

Mom's Mouthwatering Roast, Mashed Potatoes, and Gravy (Lindsay's Version)

Maybe my whole family has a huge iron deficiency, or maybe my mom is just a really good roast maker. Every time I hear we are having roast at my mom's house, I leap for joy. Its the best comfort food in the world! I know my family feels the same way. Its the most requested birthday dinner for sure!

And its really not that hard to make! I think we all make it a little differently from each other since a lot of the directions my mom gave me say "to taste". But what I made tonight came pretty darn close to my mom's yummy creations!

Ingredients:

For the Roast:

Rump Roast

sorry this is sideways!

Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil
Water (I used 3 cups)



For Gravy:

Water from cooking the roast
3 Tb. of Cornstarch mixed with a little bit of water
3 Beef Bullion Cubes
Salt and Pepper



For Mashed Potatoes

5 Russet Potatoes
4 Tb. of Butter (half a stick) softened and cut into chunks
1 cup of milk
1/2 cup sour cream
Salt

Directions:

Roast:

First cut all the gross fat off of your roast. Yuck!

Next rub salt and pepper all over your roast. I put some on a plate and just rub the roast around on it.

In a large heavy pot warm up a small amount of olive oil to medium high. Then brown the outside of your roast forming a pretty brown crust.

Now pour in some water making sure it covers about a third of your roast. I used 3 cups.

Then I got the water to bubble before putting the lid on and turning the heat down to low. Then just let it simmer for 5 hours! Your house will smell delicious.

For the Mashed Potatoes:

Peel your potatoes and then cut up into equal sized chunks-about 2 inches big.

Put them in a large pot and cover them with COLD water. Have just enough water to cover them. Add in 2 Tb. of salt and stir around.

Cover and bring to a boil. Then uncover and let simmer for about 15 minutes or until potatoes get tender. Don't overcook them! Test with a knife periodically.

When the potatoes are done, drain the water out and then you are ready to add your other ingredients and mash! Add in your chunks of room temperature butter first, and stir around coating your potatoes. Then add your milk or cream (up to a cup). I like to have my milk or cream be warmed up too,  and your sour cream (optional). I've even thrown in some cream cheese before! Yum!  Mash your potatoes however you choose. Stop and taste to see if it needs salt. If the texture is too thick you can add more milk, etc. Kind of play around with it until it is perfect for you.

butter

Gravy:

When the roast is done cooking take it out of the pot and set on a plate and cover with tinfoil to keep warm.

Bring the water the roast was in to a boil. Add in some bullion cubes (I used 3) and some salt and pepper. Mix up 3 Tb. of cornstarch with a little bit of water and mix in with the gravy. Stir and get it to the flavor you like. Reduce heat back to low once the bullion cubes are dissolved and the cornstarch is all mixed in.

cornstarch and water

beautiful and so yummy!

Now you are done and you can enjoy your delicious meal!

You have to make a gravy volcano in your potatoes :)

My taste buds were thrilled! I love mixing it all together.

Thanks for reading!

Want. Need. Wear. Read.

Several years ago I learned of an idea to simplify Christmas and make it more meaningful. It is simply giving your children only four gifts:

1- Something they Want
2-Something they Need
3-Something to Wear
4- Something to Read

I don't know about you but we have a lot of stuff!  This concept has not only cut down on Christmas clutter but it has helped my girls appreciate and remember their gifts.  It also helps them focus more on others instead of themselves.

I have heard of many others starting this tradition and loved these quotes from them:

"A simple Christmas is my favorite. It keeps the focus on the together time and the birth of Christ."

"Love this! Great way to focus on what really matters during the holiday."

"The Christmas List: 4-Things. I'm not sure how many of you feel the same way I do...but Christmas seems like too much wrapping paper and not enough of the important stuff. So this is how we roll in our house, it has worked great for the past few years and now the kids really look forward to making their list. They start by putting everything that they can think of wanting on their list, then they whittle it down to four things."

An amazing extension on the "Want, need, wear, read" Christmas gift idea, taking it a step further to help children give a little of their own at Christmas. Beautiful.

Healthy Chicken Noodle Soup

I love chicken noodle soup! This recipe is a little more low calorie than my Grandma's Hearty Chicken Noodle Soup I posted before. This one is very simple to make. My mother-in-law makes her Chicken Noodle Soup very similarly. She doesn't use a recipe or anything, however. I adapted this recipe from my cooking class I took like 5 years ago. We love it! We love it so much we double it. So this recipe makes about 12 servings. If you want less just cut the recipe in half.

Ingredients:

16 Cups of Chicken Broth or 2 48 oz. boxes
4 Celery Stalks diced up small
4 Regular Carrots halved and diced or about 25 baby carrots diced up
2 yellow onions finely diced
1 Rotisserie Chicken Breast Chopped Up into bite sized chunks
4 oz. of dried wide egg noodles
3 Tb. of Fresh Parsley or 3 tsp. of dried parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

Directions:

Chop up all your veggies. I like to dice the onions in my little cuisniart to save my make-up :).

Get your chicken broth simmering. Add the veggies in and stir and simmer getting them tender.

Add in your noodles and cook according to the directions and until they are tender.

Add in your chopped up chicken.

Add in 2 tsp. of dried parsley or 2 Tb. of fresh parsley.

Add Salt and Pepper to taste

Serve in individual bowls topping with a bit more parsley.

Yum!

Enjoy!

Rice Bags Rock

We LOVE rice bags!  We make them in all shapes and sizes. Heat them in the microwave for 2 to 3 minutes and take them to bed with you for aches or to keep you warm:)
I made one that fits perfectly into the front pocket of my daughters hoodie and she loves to use it for cramps.

You can use any kind of fabric but my favorite is flannel.  This rice bag was made from a pair of old pjs. I have made them out of cotton and fleece and a mix of one side cotton and one said fleece.

Cut the fabric the size you want it be.  I usually make them about 4 inches by 10 inches. 

 They are great if they are smaller or larger  It's just a personal preference.

Put your fabric right sides together and sew around three sides 

the width of the foot on the machine, leaving one side open for filling with rice.

After sewing three sides, clip the corners diagonally to

 help it look nice after you turn it back right side out. 

Fill it with as much rice as you'd like

turn the top open edge inside and pin it for easier stitching

stitch the opening closed the width of the machine foot again

Clip the threads and your rice bag is complete:) They make cute gifts.

  I just made 3 for my neighbor for her birthday because they only had one

 and her daughter took it to college with her:)  

One night I caughter my 11 year old using 3 rice bags in bed at the same time!

You can also freeze them to use as a cold comfort too.

*when in a pinch, fill a long sock with rice and tie it off with a knot,

I'm a little comfort bag-

just keep me by your chair

two or three minutes in the microwave

and I'll warm you everywhere

or freeze me for a little while

and fix that boo boo up in style

instead of a compress made of ice 

you'll find this pillow extra nice.