April's Foodie Holidays

Had you heard that April brings a lot more than  showers and spring flowers?

According to my friends at Midwest Dairy and the Kansas Farm Food Connection,

we've got  5 Foodie Holidays to enjoy in April!

April 2--National PB and J Day

   April 11--National Cheese Fondue Day

 April 12--National Grilled Cheese Day

 April 20--National Cheddar Fries Day

     April 30--National Oatmeal Cookie Day

It's no April Fool's joke...

each special holiday is made for enjoying dairy foods!

                               
                                          I'm pledging to celebrate these special  dairy holidays.
                                                                     How about you?

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

It wouldn't seem like Christmas without a cow on our Christmas tree!

I love all of our ornaments but I must say this cow is my favorite

 because she was a gift from my mother-in-law many years ago.

A great reminder  that 

 dairy traditions run deep!

During this Christmas season down on the dairy farm, 

I'm thankful for the cows on the tree and in the field,

 the cookies and milk,

and 

for making more dairy traditions and memories 

with my cookie eating Hattie Claire!

Dairymom's Thankful Thursday

Getting ready for Christmas down on the dairy farm includes

 making sure we have plenty of feed for our calves and cows.

I'm thankful for the feed truck driver that works long hours

 before holidays to make sure feed is available for our animals

and 

                                                           for the unexpected delivery
                                                                          of a
                                                             herd of Christmas cheer!                                                                

Cookies for Santa's Milk

I can't imagine Santa refusing any kind of cookie but  I decided to have a trial run  just to make sure before Christmas Eve arrives!

One of my hobbies through the years has been saving recipes  from  magazines that appeal to me or that I think my family might like. To tell the truth,  I could probably try a new recipe everyday for the rest of my life.  Deluxe Chocolate Marshmallow Bars was a recipe clipped from an issue of Country Woman magazine several years ago.  

Deluxe Chocolate Marshmallow Bars

3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons baking cocoa
12 cup chopped nuts,optional
4 cups miniature marshmallows
Topping:
1 1/3 cups (8oz) chocolate chips
3 tablespoons butter
1 cup peanut butter
2 cups crisp rice cereal

In a mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla; beat until fluffy. Combine flour, baking powder, salt and cocoa; add to creamed mixture. Stir in nuts if desired. Spread in a greased jelly roll pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes.
 Sprinkle marshmallows evenly over cake; return to oven for 2-3 minutes. Using a knife dipped in water, spread the melted marshmallows evenly over cake. Cool.
 For topping, combine chocolate chips, butter and peanut butter in a small saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until melted and well blended. Remove from heat; stir in cereal. Spread over bars. Chill.
Yield: about 3 dozen.

                                     These cookies   will be a perfect match for Santa's milk!

Celebrate World Smile Day

Did you ever wonder who created the smiley face?  Smiley face was created by Harvey Ball in 1963 and has become an international symbol of good will and good cheer. October 5th is World Smile Day--"do an act of kindness and help one person smile". 

I think a batch of easy Fudge Oatmeal Cookies  could bring a smile to my family!

Fudge Oatmeal Cookies

2 cups sugar
1/2 cup evaporated milk
2 tablespoons cocoa
1/2 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 1/2 cups oats,quick-cooking or regular,uncooked

Combine sugar,milk,cocoa, and butter in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes,stirring constantly to prevent sticking. Remove from heat. Add vanilla extract and peanut butter and mix well. Add oats and blend thoroughly.(Don't use instant oatmeal). Drop by teaspoonsful onto waxed paper. Do not bake; these are ready to eat. Yield: 4 dozen.




                                                Milk and cookies are sure to bring a smile!

                                                    

 

                                               How will you celebrate World Smile Day?

What Do You Learn from Selling Girl Scout Cookies?

The announcement on the radio about the arrival of Girl Scout Cookies  in our community brought a smile on my face and a flood of memories of my own Girl Scout experience. Troop 150 formed when we were in the second grade.  Our Troop leaders mentored us from the second grade until we graduated in 1973. I cherish the memories of our Girl Scout years and I'm grateful for the many lessons we were taught about making our world a better place by caring for each other and our community.  Here are the Girl Scout Laws as we knew them in 1963:

1. A Girl Scout's honor is to be trusted.
2. A Girl Scout is loyal.
3. A Girl Scout's duty is to be useful and to help others.
4. A Girl Scout is a friend to all and a sister to every other Girl Scout.
5. A Girl Scout is courteous.
6. A Girl Scout is a friend to animals.
7. A Girl Scout obeys orders.
8. A Girl Scout is cheerful.
9. A Girl Scout is thrifty.
10. A Girl Scout is clean in thought,word, and deed.

Money made from cookie sales is used to support troop activiites. Even though it's been forty years since I sold my last box of Girl Scout cookies, the skills that I learned are still part of my daily life on the dairy farm--goal setting,decision making,money management, people skills, and business ethics.
You can find more information about Girl Scouts at http://www.girlscouts.org/.

I hope you'll join me in supporting the Girl Scouts this year by buying cookies. I'll be having milk with my cookies.  How about you?