Spicy Fish, Wild Rice and Mushrooms - March 26, 2009

Hi Everyone!

Today at midnight, the Swagbucks offer expires so if you haven't signed up you can still get free points. This is a great way to earn gift cards for places like Amazon. If you haven't already done it, check it out here.

We had a few questions about our new "All About Laundry" e-book. We hope to have it available next week. We cover everything including making homemade soap, how to put up a clothesline, how to hang clothes and even how to iron. (mom's specialty, not mine! :-)

Here are the winners for our basil seed giveaway:

• Shon - sendelback@
  
• Holly - cookiecutter72@
  
• Joni P. - jonipriest@
  
• Karilyn P. gkputt@
  
• Craig -The Dirt Tech- TheSevnthWarrior@
  

If you are one of these winners, please email me with your mailing address and we will pass it on so they can get your seeds out!

Have a great rest of the week!!

-Tawra
www.LivingOnADime.com

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Today's Tips:

• Start using your kitchen shears. Cut green onions, chives and all kinds of herbs with them. Cut chicken breasts into strips and cut thin cuts of beef into cubes for stew. Next time you cut anything with a knife think, "Can I cut this faster with my shears?" and then try it.
  


• When rinsing dairy products or starches (cheese, eggs, milk, rice, pasta, potatoes) from your dishes, use cold water. Hot water sets them and makes them harder to get off. Hot water is best for greasy items.
  


• Soften leftover custard in the microwave for a few seconds and use between the layers of a cake (like a Boston cream pie) or to frost a cake.
  


• Spice Conversions:
  1 Tbsp. fresh herbs = 1 tsp. dried herbs
  1 small onion = 1 Tbsp. instant minced onion, rehydrated
  1 tsp. dry mustard = 1 Tbsp. prepared mustard (the stuff you squeeze out of the bottle)
  

Today's Menu:

Spicy Fish*
Wild Rice and Mushrooms*
Steamed Snow Peas
Wheat Bread and Butter
Spice and Crumb Banana Bars*

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Today's Recipes:

*Spicy Fish

2 (6 oz.) fish fillets
1/4 tsp. garlic pwd.
Salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup salsa
Juice from half a lime

Place fish on greased (or foil lined) baking sheet. Sprinkle with garlic powder, salt and pepper. Pour on salsa, then top with lime juice. Bake at 350° for 15-20 minutes until it flakes with a fork.

You could experiment and use lemon pepper, a pat of butter, other fresh herbs or green onions on it, too.

*Wild Rice and Mushrooms

3 Tbsp. margarine or butter
1 (5 oz.) pkg. fresh mushrooms, sliced
1 cup uncooked wild rice
1/2 cup green onions, sliced
3 cups chicken broth

Saute mushrooms in margarine in a large skillet for 3 minutes. Add rice and cook 10 minutes, stirring. Stir in onions and broth, bring to boil and pour into greased 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish. Bake 350° for 45-60 minutes until rice is tender.

*Spice and Crumb Banana Bars

2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 cup bananas, ripe, thinly sliced
1 tsp. soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 cup sour cream
1 egg

Preheat oven to 350°. Combine first 4 ingredients until crumbly and press 1 1/2 cups of it into an ungreased 9x13 pan. Reserve 1/2 cup of crumb mixture for the top. Add the rest of the ingredients to the remaining crumb mixture and beat for 1 minute at medium speed until well blended. Pour over crust and sprinkle with reserve crumbs. Bake 30-40 minutes until golden brown. Cool before cutting.