Fondue

New Year's Eve Fondue.

Parmesan Cream Cheese Fondue
1 Tbsp.butter
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups milk
2 - 8 ounce bricks cream cheese, softened
1/2 cups grated, dry, parmesan (not fresh)
   Melt the butter in the fondue pot.  Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.  Add the milk, cream cheese, and parmesan and stir together.  Cook on low to medium heat until slightly bubbly and warm.  Turn to low.  We like to dip french bread cubes into this fondue.

Cheddar Cheese Fondue
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 tsp. garlic, minced
2 cups extra sharp cheddar cheese, grated
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. ground mustard (powder)
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
   Pour the chicken broth into the fondue pot on medium heat.  Add the mustard powder and pepper and whisk them together.  Add the garlic.  Stir it in.  Add the cheddar into the mix in small amounts.  Continue to stir until well blended.  Fold in the Worcestershire sauce.  Turn to low.  This fondue is for lightly steamed broccoli and cauliflower dipping.

 
Hot Oil
chicken breast, cubed
pork, cubed
steak, cubed
shrimp
mushrooms
cream cheese wontons
Mozzarella cubes
Vegetable oil
   To prepare the meats I like to freeze them for about 2 hours before cutting them.  The frozen meat is easier to cut in to uniform cubes. 

   Heat the oil on high in the fondue pots. Each of the meats takes different amounts of time for cooking.  The shrimp cooks the fastest, followed by the steak.  The chicken and pork need the longest in the oil.  Do not eat under cooked chicken or pork.

   The mushrooms are easy and quick cooking.  The cream cheese wontons are easy to put together.  Put a little bit of cream cheese in a wonton wrapper and fold the corners up, pinching them in the middle.  For the Mozzarella cubes, cut the Mozzarella into cubes.  In a small bowl beat 2-3 eggs.  In another bowl add Italian bread crumbs.  Dip each cheese cube into the egg and them into the bread crumbs and then repeat for a second coating. 

The sauces.  For the meats we like to dip the cooked chicken and pork in Peanut Sauce, or bbq sauce.  The shrimp is really good with cocktail sauce or drawn garlic butter.  The steak we like to also dip in the butter or just sprinkle with garlic salt.  For the Mozzarella cubes we use a simple jar of marinara sauce.  The wontons we dip in a homemade Sweet and Sour Sauce.

 
Sweet and Sour Sauce
1/2 cup pineapple juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cornstarch
2 Tbsp. oil
1/4 cup ketchup
   In a small bowl combine the pineapple juice, sugar, salt,and cornstarch. Set aside.  In a small saucepan add the oil and ketchup. Stir together and heat over high heat until bubbly.  Add the pineapple juice mixture and stir together over high heat until the sauce thickens.  Remove from heat.  It will continue to thicken slightly as it cools.

Peanut Sauce
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
2 tsp. soy sauce
1 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 Tbsp. lime juice
1/4 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup water
1 clove crushed garlic
1 pinch of red pepper flakes (to taste)
   Mix all the ingredients together and heat over medium high heat until thickened.

Chocolate Fudge Fondue
8 - 1.55 ounce Hershey's milk chocolate bars, broken into squares
1/4 cup milk
10 large marshmallows
1/4 - 1/2 cup heavy cream
   Place the broken chocolate bars and milk into the fondue pot on medium heat.  Stirring constantly add the marshmallows until melted.  Gradually add the heavy cream until desired consistency.  ( I like it a little on the thinner side.)
We like to dip bananas, strawberries, brownie bites, rice krispie squares, angel food cake cubes, and mini cream puffs in the chocolate fondue.

Caramel Fondue
40 unwrapped caramels
1/2 block cream cheese, softened
3-5 Tbsp. milk
   Combine the caramels, cream cheese, and 3 Tbsp. of the milk in a fondue pot.  Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until melted.  Add the other 2 Tbsp. of milk if desired for the consistency.
Apples are the favorite for the caramel fondue.

December Sunday School: Building the Kingdom of God in the Latter Days - How can I share my testimony that Jesus Christ is the Son of God?

This is a silent Christmas lesson.  It includes pages to hold up for the class to read and videos to watch and listen to. The first video has subtitles, the second has a vocal song accompaniment, the third has some background music and the last one has speaking in it. The idea is for the class members to remain silent throughout the lesson.  The parts below that are in quotations are from Elder Henry B. Eyring's talk, "The Perfect Gift".
Other lines and scriptures were taken from the lesson outline and a few of them I wrote to add to the message and help link thoughts together.

(Each line is printed onto one sheet of paper.  Hold the papers up, one at a time, and allow time for class members to read.  Show the videos in between when listed.)

This is a silent Christmas lesson.  "Listen" and feel..
Christmas is a time to remember the birth of the Savior and renew our appreciation for
the great gift of His perfect life and atoning sacrifice.
"We celebrate our Heavenly Father’s perfect gift of His Beloved Son,
Jesus Christ, the Savior of the world. In token of this greatest of gifts,
the Christmas season becomes for most of us a time of finding joy in giving to others."

He is the Gift
2 minutes, 6 seconds

Luke 2: 1. And it came to pass in those days, that there went out
a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
3. And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.

4. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, 

into Judæa, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; 

(because he was of the house and lineage of David:)

5. To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.

6. And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished
that she should be delivered.

7. And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, 

and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

Breath of Heaven
7 minutes, 18 seconds

In the scripture accounts of His birth, we find patterns of discipleship—
from Samuel the Lamanite, who courageously prophesied of His coming,
to the Nephites who looked steadfastly for the sign of His birth,
to the shepherds who shared the message that the Son of God had been born,
to the wise men who discerned the fulfillment of prophecy
and traveled a great distance to see the King of the Jews.

The Wise Men Seek Him 
5 minutes, 41 seconds

"You know from your experiences during Christmas seasons
that such shared joy can come from
creating and offering even simple gifts of love.
For instance, many of you have helped a child to take plates of cookies to those who
feel especially alone at Christmas. To the person receiving this modest gift
from a child, it can appear as precious as frankincense. And a child bringing such a gift
can remind them of the Magi bringing gifts from the East to the Savior.
Both giver and recipient can remember Christ and feel love and gratitude."
Simple gifts of love...

They Gave Up Their Christmas
4 minutes, 45 seconds

Their gift to the Savior was the gift of time.
Their testimonies of Him were born through their sacrifice.
Like these faithful Saints and those of old, we should feel the desire
to share with others our testimony of Jesus Christ
and the “good tidings of great joy” that we have found in His restored gospel.
This Christmas let US give the Savior a gift.
The gift of our testimony of Him shared with others
both by spoken word and by the way we live.

Biscotti, Cranberry Pistachio and Chocolate Chip Pecan

Biscotti
6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup extra ingredients (1/2 cup craisins plus 1/2 cup pistachios or 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips plus 1/2 cup pecans or whatever you want to add!)
melting chocolate, optional

  In a large mixing bowl cream together the butter and sugar.  Add the eggs and vanilla and mix together.  Slowly add the flour and baking powder and mix until well combined.  Fold in the extra ingredients.  Spray a cookie sheet with nonstick spray or use parchment paper.  Shape a rectangle about 12 inches by 5 inches and 1/2-1 inch thick with a slight rise in the middle.  Flour your hands if the dough is sticking to them.  I also recommend shaping the dough near the edge of the pan for easier slicing later when the pan is hot.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Remove from the oven and using a serrated knife, slice the biscotti into 1 inch wide slices.  Lay them on their side and bake for another 10 minutes.  Turn the slices over to the other side and bake an additional 10 minutes.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before dipping edges into melted chocolate.

Caramel Apple Pie

The credit for the original recipe belongs to The Pioneer Woman: here
The one change I made was to the apples.  I used three different apples. 2 Rome, 2 Granny Smith and 2 Honeycrisp. I loved that they all had different flavors and qualities to add to the pie and made each bite just a little different.

Caramel Apple Pie
1 Pie Crust  my recipe is here: Easy Pie Crust

Pie Filling:

6 to 7 cups peeled and sliced apples
1/2 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Crumb Topping:

1 1/2 sticks (12 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup quick oats
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 jar (or more) caramel topping (I used Mrs. Richardson's Buttercotch Caramel)

   Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roll out your pie crust and place it in a pie pan, crimping the edges.  Peel, core, and slice the apples.  In a large bowl combine the apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour and salt.  Set aside.  In another bowl mix together the crumb topping ingredients: Start by adding the flour to the bowl and the butter, sliced.  Use a pastry blender to mix the butter into the flour.  Next add the brown sugar, oats, and salt.  Stir together.  Set the crumb topping aside. Pour the apples into the pie crust.  Pile them high in the center.

  Sprinkle the crumb topping mix over the apples.

Bake at 375 for 1 hour.  If the edges of the crust begin to brown too quickly, cover them with foil.

After one hour sprinkle the chopped pecans over the top and bake for another 5 minutes.  Remove the pie from the oven and pour the caramel sauce over the top.

December Sunday School:Building the Kingdom of God in the Latter Days - How can I be a better leader?

I am going to start the lesson with an object lesson, team building activity, to let the class see in action some leadership styles and their effectiveness.

I am using this marble pipeline set from my preschool.  The object of the activity is to get the marble from one side of the hallway to the other side and into the orange bucket.  The rules are that everyone must participate and no one can touch the marble with their hands.  The marble is to only come in contact with the plastic pipe pieces. The instructions for building the pipe structure are included ONLY for confusion purposes.  The team is not supposed to build the marble pipeline shown in the picture (Haha!  What a sneaky teacher I am!) The method I envision being successful is for each person to hold a piece of pipe with both hands and let the marble roll from one side to the other into the next person's pipe.  They will need to stand side to side. They will also have to take more than one turn to get it the whole length which means running from one end to the other to get back in line for their next turn.   I have written up 4 different instruction sheets to go along with 4 different leadership styles.  I have chosen 4 class members to read each one and act out the leader's style.  It should be fun and funny! :)

1. The "Incomplete Instructions" Leader.
Place the bucket and box of pipeline with the marble in front of your team (the class).
Set the timer for 1 minute.
Say, "You have 1 minute... Go!"
Start timer.

2.  The "Lazy" Leader.
Sit down on a chair.
Point to the bucket and box of pipeline with the marble.
Tell your team that the bucket goes at the end of the hall.
Tell them that object is to get the marble into the bucket.
Don't touch the marble.
Everyone must participate.
Set the timer for 1 minute, start it and say, "Go!"

3.  The "Commander."
Set the timer for 1 minute and start it. (Start giving orders and stop wherever you are on the list when the timer goes off.)
Bark at someone to move the bucket down to the end of the hall.
Bark at someone else to open the box of pipeline.
Demand that everyone pick a piece out of the box.
Tell someone to pick up the marble.
Yell at the team to start passing the marble to each other.
Bark at them to get it down the hall quickly and without touching it.
Be critical of mistakes.

4.  The "True" Leader.
Have the class gather together in a circle.
Explain the object of the activity: To get the marble into the bucket at the end of the hall using the pipes with everyone participating.
Inventory the equipment.
Ask the team members if they have any suggestions.
Discuss all suggestions.
Together form a plan of action.
Help organize team to set up plan.
Set timer for 1 minute, start it and say, "Let's go! We can do it!"
Work with your team and help where you can.
Be encouraging!
Praise efforts and congratulate success.

After the activity have the class return to the classroom and discuss the different leadership styles.
How did the different styles work?
Which type of leader do you want to be?
Can you think of any examples in the scriptures of leaders who were effective?
Why was King Benjamin such a great leader?
Why were his people so willing to listen to his counsel and follow it?

Read Mosiah 2:11-19

 11 But I am like as yourselves, subject to all manner of infirmities in body and mind; yet I have been chosen by this people, and consecrated by my father, and was suffered by the hand of the Lord that I should be a ruler and a king over this people; and have been kept and preserved by his matchless power, to serve you with all the might, mind and strength which the Lord hath granted unto me.

 12 I say unto you that as I have been suffered to spend my days in your service, even up to this time, and have not sought gold nor silver nor any manner of riches of you;

 13 Neither have I suffered that ye should be confined in dungeons, nor that ye should make slaves one of another, nor that ye should murder, or plunder, or steal, or commit adultery; nor even have I suffered that ye should commit any manner of wickedness, and have taught you that ye should keep the commandments of the Lord, in all things which he hath commanded you—

 14 And even I, myself, have labored with mine own hands that I might serve you, and that ye should not be laden with taxes, and that there should nothing come upon you which was grievous to be borne—and of all these things which I have spoken, ye yourselves are witnesses this day.

 15 Yet, my brethren, I have not done these things that I might boast, neither do I tell these things that thereby I might accuse you; but I tell you these things that ye may know that I can answer a clear conscience before God this day.

 16 Behold, I say unto you that because I said unto you that I had spent my days in your service, I do not desire to boast, for I have only been in the service of God.

 17 And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

 18 Behold, ye have called me your king; and if I, whom ye call your king, do labor to serve you, then ought not ye to labor to serve one another?

 19 And behold also, if I, whom ye call your king, who has spent his days in your service, and yet has been in the service of God, do merit any thanks from you, O how you ought to thank your heavenly King!

There is another example of leadership we have not discussed yet.  The "Do It All" Leader.
How does a "Do It All" leader lead?
Is this an effective style of leadership?
Does it sound hard or easy?

I have backpack I am going to ask the class members to take turns putting on and feeling the weight of.  Just for example purposes it is labeled, "Bishop."  Inside the backpack are blocks with labels for all of the ultimate responsibilities of the bishop of our ward.  After feeling the weight of the backpack I'll have the class discuss the different responsibilities and how difficult it would be if the bishop tried to take care of everything himself.

What are some of the responsibilities of a bishop?
(Pull out the blocks with the labels and name them.)
As the leader of our ward, how does the bishop take care of everything?
How does he know who to call for callings?
How and when does he lead and teach those whom he calls?
How can we help the bishop?
(Hand everyone a block.)
If as ward members we all help carry some of the load, how does it affect the wright of the bishop's backpack?
(Try the backpack on again with several of the blocks being held by class members.)

For the youth of the ward, or my class, I think one of the ways they can support the bishop is to show him their appreciation for him and his service.  To let him know that they love him.  As of last week my class earned their 3rd pizza party ticket.  Today we will schedule the date for the party.  The activity we will be doing while at the party is making a Christmas gift for the bishop.  Our bishop is a runner so I have put together a small box with the theme, "Thank you for going the extra mile!"  The class members are going to write a letter/note to the bishop thanking him for a specific time that he has helped or influenced them.  We will deliver it to him at the end of our party.

To end the lesson I want to emphasize that the Savior is greatest example of a leader.
Jesus Christ is the perfect example of righteous leadership. Leaders in His Church follow His example by loving and serving those they lead. By first striving to be faithful disciples, we can then help others develop strong testimonies and draw nearer to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

Blackberry Ice Cream

This goes great with my Fresh Peach Pie!

Blackberry Ice Cream 
2 cups whole milk
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup half and half
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups heavy cream
2 1/2 cups fresh blackberries   

    Heat the milk in a medium saucepan over medium heat until bubbles form around the edge. Remove from the stove. Stir in the sugar until dissolved. Then stir in the half-and-half, vanilla, heavy cream and blackberries. Stir well. Cover and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled, at least 1-2 hours.  Churn in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s directions.  Serve “soft” or place in the freezer for a firmer set.

Fresh Peach Pie

Fresh Peach Pie (originally from: here )
2 - 9 inch pie crusts my Easy Pie Crust recipe

1 egg, beaten

5 cups, sliced, peeled, fresh peaches

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1/4 cup cornstarch

3/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. salt

2 Tablespoons cold butter

     

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degree

 

 

2.  In a large bowl combine the sliced peaches and lemon juice, gently toss together.  Place the sliced peaches in a colander to drain. Don’t skip this step, this eliminates some of the juice so your pie won’t be soupy after it’s cut.  When I drained my peaches I collected almost a 1/4 cup of juice.  Drain peaches about 10 – 15 minutes.  Place drained peaches in a large bowl.

 

3.  Place one pie crust in the bottom of a 9 inch pie pan.  Brush the pie crust (bottom and sides) with a little of the beaten egg.  (This keeps the crust from getting soggy.)  Keep the rest of the beaten egg to brush on the top crust.

 

4.  In a medium size bowl combine the flour, cornstarch, sugars, cinnamon and salt. Stir to combine.   Pour the flour mixture over the drained peaches and gently fold them together.

 

5.  Pour the peaches into the bottom pie crust and dot with butter.  Place the top crust over the peaches and flute edges.   Brush with the rest of the beaten egg and cut 4 slits in the top crust to vent steam (I cut mine into strips to lattice on top).  Place pie on a baking sheet, I always do this so there’s no chance of spills in the oven.

 

6.  Bake the pie at 450 degrees for 10 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees.  Bake an additional 30-35 minutes until crust is brown and juices bubble up through the slits.  If your pie edges brown to quickly, cover the edges with strips of  aluminum foil and continue baking.

Tip – Blanch your peaches in boiling water 45-60 seconds for easier peeling.

 

 

Amish White Bread

Amish White Bread
2 cups warm water (110-120 degrees)
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. yeast
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp. salt
6 cups flour
      In your mixing bowl combine the water and sugar.  Sprinkle the yeast on top and let sit in a warm place for 15 minutes to bloom.
      Add the oil, salt and 3 cups of the flour to the bloomed yeast.  Using the paddle attachment on your mixer let it mix until combined.  Pour in the remaining flour and mix it in.  Change to the dough hook and knead the dough for 3 minutes.
      Gather the ball of dough together.  Pour 1 tsp of oil into the bowl.  Put the dough ball into the bowl and turn it to coat it with the oil.  Leave it in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Set it in a warm place to rise for one hour or until doubled in size.
      Take the dough out of the bowl and place it on a plastic pastry rolling sheet or a clean surface. Divide the ball in half.  Roll out one half into a 10 inch rectangle.  Roll the rectangle into a log and pinch the ends closed.  Place into a greased bread pan and cover with plastic wrap.  Set in a warm place to ride until the top peaks over the edge of the pan sides.  Repeat with the second half.
      Bake in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.  Remove from the oven and brush the top with melted butter.  Allow the bread to sit in the pan for 10 minutes before removing to a cooling rack.

Pancake Squares

Another breakfast idea that can be pre-made and then frozen.  That is if you can manage to cut them up and bag them and get them into the freezer before they are all eaten!  These little squares are so good they don't make it into my freezer very often.  I followed the recipe from here:http://www.bigredkitchen.com/2008/08/pancake-squares/

Pancake Squares

3/4 cup milk
2 Tbsp. melted butter
1 large egg
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 cup flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease or spray and 8x8 galss baking dish.  Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl and set aside.  In a large mixing bowlbeat together the milk, butter and egg.  Add the sugar and mix.  Then gradually add the flour, baking powder, salt mix and stir until combined.  Pour batter into the baking dish and bake for 20-25 minutes.  This recipe can be easily doubled and baked in a 9x13 pan.  In my house it gets quadrupled and baked in 2 separate 9x13's with no leftovers!

November Sunday School: Spiritual and Temporal Self Reliance - How can I learn to make my own decisions.

This is a great lesson for today's youth! As a preschool teacher/childcare provider I have spent many hours with young children and have taken many courses on their brain development and behavior and have learned as well from the experiences I have had with my own 7 children regarding the important skill of decision making.  When children are young if they are constantly told exactly what to do with no thought process on their part, what they learn is to listen to an external voice.  They will continue to listen to and seek out an external voice to tell them what to do throughout their growing years, but the source will change.  They may start out listening to parents and teachers but usually the voice they listen to changes, as they age, to their friends and to the media they are exposed to. How scary!  Children who are given choices, within reasonable limits, and who are taught to think through choices from a very early age learn that they can think for themselves and make choices on their own.  If they have been given the opportunity to suffer consequences from small, harmless "bad" choices, such as staying up too late one night and being very tired the next day, they are given a chance to develop the skills needed for internalizing cause and effect and have a greater appreciation for making good decisions.  In my home, by the time a child reaches teenage years I expect them to make many of their day to day choices by themselves.  I always give guidance and counsel and I do have house rules, but I want them to make their own choices so they can make small mistakes and learn from them now, instead of the mistakes being big and costly later when they are on their own.  I love this lesson for Sunday School!  Here is what I have planned:

How can I learn to make my own decisions?

An important part of being self-reliant is learning how to make decisions for ourselves. Heavenly Father is willing to guide us, but He does not always tell us exactly what to do. He has given us agency and expects us to use our knowledge, experience, and faith to guide our own decisions. We can then ask Him to confirm to us whether our decision is correct.

Read together Doctrine and Covenants 58:26–29. Why does the Lord not want to “command [us] in all things”? Ask the youth to list on the board the important decisions that they might make over the next 10 years. Invite them to think about how the things they learn during this lesson can help them make these decisions.

In Alma 37:37 we read...
  37 Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day.
What does it mean to counsel with the Lord?

D&C 9:7-9 says...

 7 Behold, you have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me.

 8 But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.

 9 But if it be not right you shall have no such feelings, but you shall have a stupor of thought that shall cause you to forget the thing which is wrong; therefore, you cannot write that which is sacred save it be given you from me.

What does it mean to "study it out in your mind?"

  

Good, Better, Best  Conference talk by Dallin H. Oaks

 "We should begin by recognizing the reality that just because something is good is not a sufficient reason for doing it. The number of good things we can do far exceeds the time available to accomplish them. Some things are better than good, and these are the things that should command priority attention in our lives.

 As we consider various choices, we should remember that it is not enough that something is good. Other choices are better, and still others are best. Even though a particular choice is more costly, its far greater value may make it the best choice of all."

For this part of the lesson I thought it would be fun to do an activity. I am going to teach the kids a lesson about value. I love Elder Oaks' story about the catalog and shoes and I want to do a hands on value lesson with the kids.  I am going to have them do a brand evaluation on potato chips.  I have 3 bags of chips which I will show them unopened first.  I am going to ask them based on sight, cost and past experience which one they would purchase right now. They will each be given an evaluation form for each brand, which will be numbered 1, 2, and 3, to keep it a blind taste test. They will be tasting and evaluating on the following criteria using a 1-10 scale:

1. Color appeal. 

2. Shape and size.

3. Smell.

4. Texture. (greasiness).

5. Taste (flavor, saltiness).

Overall score, taking all criteria into consideration:

Total points: 

(The following information will be given after the 3 taste tests are completed.)

Brand name:

Cost:

After all the taste tests are completed we will discuss their results and talk about which one is of the most "value" to them. Did the taste test change their mind at all?  Sometimes the more expensive is the better value because the quality or appeal is better, not always though. The point of the exercise is to teach them to evaluate and study out their decisions.  Also, to make decisions themselves instead of going with what is "popular" or most advertised.  Sometimes that is the best choice, but they need to learn to make that choice for themselves and not just follow the crowd or trust the brand because they have the most money to advertise.

Next I want to show them a visual aid for reading the scriptures.  I learned this many years ago. It has helped me when I think about studying the scriptures.  It is called "Water Skiing, Snorkeling, or Scuba Diving through the Scriptures."

Water Skiing:  Water skiing is just skimming the surface of the water.  For reading scriptures this is when you read the scriptures just for the goal of reading. You read and don't really get much out of what you are reading. It is "good" to be in the habit of reading daily and some days reading a set number of chapters or verses and saying, "I did it" is all we can do. 

Snorkeling:   Snorkeling in water means going just under the surface.  When you snorkel in the scriptures you read to understand what the verses are saying about the people in the time they were written.  You study to understand how they apply to them and to understand the stories and lessons. It requires a little more effort and is "better" than the water skiing method.

Scuba Diving:   Scuba diving is really going deep in the water.  It requires effort and concentration and focus.  Really going deep into the scriptures you are studying means learning what they mean for you and your life.  Studying and cross referencing and really searching them to understand how they apply to you and what you can use from them right now and in the future.  This is the "best" way to read and study the scriptures.

Now that we have discussed how to make decisions, what can we do to seek out Heavenly Father's will for us in our decisions?

Using the Supernal Gift of Prayer Conference talk by Richard G. Scott

How Should You Pray?

  "We pray to our Heavenly Father in the sacred name of His Beloved Son, Jesus Christ. Prayer is most effective when we strive to be clean and obedient, with worthy motives, and are willing to do what He asks. Humble, trusting prayer brings direction and peace.

  A key to improved prayer is to learn to ask the right questions. Consider changing from asking for the things you want to honestly seeking what He wants for you. Then as you learn His will, pray that you will be led to have the strength to fulfill it."

How Are Prayers Answered?

  (We are going to read the following parts of this talk and discuss the highlighted portions.  This talk has some really great truths and insights into prayers and answers to prayers.  I love the whole talk, but time won't allow for the while thing so I have chosen from this section that I feel will be most helpful to my class.)

"Some truths regarding how prayers are answered may help you.

  Often when we pray for help with a significant matter, Heavenly Father will give us gentle promptings that require us to think, exercise faith, work, at times struggle, then act. It is a step-by-step process that enables us to discern inspired answers.

  I have discovered that what sometimes seems an impenetrable barrier to communication is a giant step to be taken in trust. Seldom will you receive a complete response all at once. It will come a piece at a time, in packets, so that you will grow in capacity. As each piece is followed in faith, you will be led to other portions until you have the whole answer. That pattern requires you to exercise faith in our Father’s capacity to respond. While sometimes it’s very hard, it results in significant personal growth.

  President David O. McKay testified, “It is true that the answers to our prayers may not always come as direct and at the time, nor in the manner, we anticipate; but they do come, and at a time and in a manner best for the interests of him who offers the supplication.” ³ Be thankful that sometimes God lets you struggle for a long time before that answer comes. Your character will grow; your faith will increase. There is a relationship between those two: the greater your faith, the stronger your character; and increased character enhances your ability to exercise even greater faith.

  Some misunderstandings about prayer can be clarified by realizing that the scriptures define principles for effective prayer, but they do not assure when a response will be given. Actually, He will reply in one of three ways. First, you can feel the peace, comfort, and assurance that confirm that your decision is right. Or second, you can sense that unsettled feeling, the stupor of thought, indicating that your choice is wrong. Or third—and this is the difficult one—you can feel no response.

  What do you do when you have prepared carefully, have prayed fervently, waited a reasonable time for a response, and still do not feel an answer? You may want to express thanks when that occurs, for it is an evidence of His trust. When you are living worthily and your choice is consistent with the Savior’s teachings and you need to act, proceed with trust. As you are sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit, one of two things will certainly occur at the appropriate time: either the stupor of thought will come, indicating an improper choice, or the peace or the burning in the bosom will be felt, confirming that your choice was correct. When you are living righteously and are acting with trust, God will not let you proceed too far without a warning impression if you have made the wrong decision."

I sent home a copy of the last page of the lesson, the section on prayer, with each class member.  They will earn their second pizza party ticket after they share and teach this part to their families, either at dinner tonight or as part of FHE tomorrow night.

When preparing a lesson I try to always have enough material to fill the time, but I also do not become invested in the whole lesson I prepare! This has been my model for any class I teach to any age. If we are on one particular part of the lesson and the class is really engaged and learning and feeling the Spirit, I will stay with it, even if it takes up the entire lesson time!  These youth are so smart and have so much to share, if I can just coax them into sharing, that I do not need to prepare super lengthy material.  I am sure this lesson will have more than enough to work with! :)

Mongolian Beef (PF Chang/PeiWei copycat)

Mongolian Beef
4 teaspoons vegetable oil, divided
1 1/2 cups cremini mushrooms, quartered
1 tsp. ginger, minced
2 Tbsp. garlic, chopped
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup brown sugar
Vegetable oil, for frying
1-1/2 lb flank steak
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 cups of two-inch lengths green onions
3 cups cooked rice or rice noodles

   Slice the beef, across the grain and at a 45 degree angle to get the thinnest slices possible.  I put my flank steak in the freezer for 1-2 hours so that it is almost, but not quite, frozen and easier to slice cleanly.

  Put the beef in a bowl or pan and add the cornstarch, tossing to coat each piece.  Let the beef sit for 10 minutes to allow the cornstarch to stick.  I kept the pieces big for this step and cut them into 2 inch bite sized pieces before frying.

  In a wok on medium-high heat add 2 tsp. of oil and the mushrooms. Quickly brown the outside of the mushrooms and then remove them from the wok and set aside.  Add the other 2 tsp. of oil and the garlic and ginger.  Stir and heat for 1 minute then add the soy sauce, water, and brown sugar.  Stir until the brown sugar is dissolved and the sauce thickens slightly, about 3 minutes.  Remove the sauce from the wok and set it aside. 

 With a paper towel wipe out the wok.  Return it to the heat and add 1 cup of oil for frying the beef.
Quickly fry the beef in small batches and remove to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the extra oil.  The meat doesn't have to completely cook, you just want to brown and crisp it up around the edges.

  Pour out the excess oil and wipe out the wok.  Return it to the heat and add the meat and the sauce.  Stir to coat and then add the mushrooms and the green onions.  Cook for just under a minute.  Serve over rice or noodles.  

Crockpot White Hot Chocolate

Crockpot White Hot Chocolate
2 1/2 cups vanilla melting drops or 1 bag Ghiradelli white chips
3 cups heavy cream
5 cups 2 % milk
2 tsp. vanilla
    Pour everything into a crockpot and heat on high for 2 hours or low for 3-4 hours, stirring occasionally.

English Muffin Bread

This is the EASIEST bread to make.  If you like English muffins, you will love this bread! The original recipe is here.

English Muffin Bread
4 teaspoons yeast
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon salt
5 cups flour
1 1/2 cups warm milk
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
     Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl with your mixer or by hand.  It will be a sticky, gooey dough.  Pour/scrape into two loaf pans which have been sprayed with a non-stick spray.  Cover with a wet paper towel or sprayed plastic wrap and set in a warm area to raise for an hour.  (I turn my oven on to 350 degrees for two minutes, then turn it off and place the pans in there.)
    Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Bake for 20-25 minutes or until top is golden brown.

Sunday School- November: Spiritual and Temporal Self-Reliance - How can I prepare to be financially self-reliant?

How can I prepare to be financially self-reliant?

The Lord has blessed us with resources, and He expects us to be wise stewards over these resources. He wants us to be financially self-reliant so that we can provide for ourselves and serve others. To do this, we should pay tithes and offerings, avoid unnecessary debt, use a budget, and live within our means.

 Ask the youth to explain how certain tools can be both helpful and harmful, depending on how they are used (such as a mousetrap, hammer, or book of matches; you may want to bring one of these items as a visual aid, I am going to have several). Show the youth some money and ask them to explain the positive and negative uses of money. How can it be used to bless others and further the Lord’s work?

For the next part of the lesson I want to do some hands on learning about banking.  I found this website which has these awesome worksheets.  They come with answer keys too!  I will be teaching this lesson on Fast Sunday, so I will not be bringing treats, however, because I know we will not have time to finish all 3 activity sheets, I will offer the kids a reward during the week if they will complete them and bring them to me.  This is what I will bribe them with...

Caramel Apples

Yes, I think I will get a few of them to bring me the completed activity sheets. :)

PracticalMoneySkills Activity Sheets
Here are some screen shots of the first activity:

 And the answer keys:

 
Click on the link and check these out!  They are awesome!  My class has 14, 15, and 16 year olds.  This is a perfect age to teach these skills.  Three of my teenage daughters are in this class.  All three started working at a local ice cream store at the age of 14 and all three have their own bank accounts.  They need to learn these skills.  They know a little, so this will be a good reminder for them as well as a test to see if they remember what I have tried to teach them at home as "mom", not Sunday School teacher.
The first one is: Keeping a Running Balance.  I am going to hand out the activity sheets to the kids and ask them to try and do them.  I have a feeling that they will be a little overwhelmed at first, but I want to see how far they can get on their own.  At whatever point that is, I will help walk them through it.  When they have all completed the paper, we will go over it and correct it.  Then, depending on time, we may go on to the second set of activity sheets which are: Reading a Bank Statement. The third set is: Reconciling an Account.  (I am skipping the paper that says, "Create a Check Register")  I don't want to spend the whole class time on this activity because I want to bring it back to the great talks and quotes from our leaders on this subject.


Next I am going to give each class member a copy of the pamphlet, "All Is Safely Gathered In: Family Finances."  (Most bishops have a drawer full of these pamphlets, or you can get them from the distribution center online for free, or you can print them from the highlighted link in the next paragraph.)
Ask the youth what they think the First Presidency would say about managing our finances. Write their ideas on the board. Give each class member a copy of the pamphlet All Is Safely Gathered In: Family Finances. Read together the message from the First Presidency. What counsel does the First Presidency give regarding finances? What blessings do they promise?

We are going to play a game with this pamphlet.  I am going to ask a fill in the blank question.  The first person/team to find the answer within the pamphlet will receive a point.  At the end of the game the person/team with the most points will win a prize!  (Actually, I am a big softie and some kids read faster than others so everyone will get a prize but I can't tell them that up front!  ;) )  The prize will be a tithing envelope.  Haha!  Inside the envelope will be a "ticket" for a pizza party at my house. (Homemade pizza, of course!) They each have to earn 3 tickets in order to schedule the party.  Today they will earn 1 of the 3.  I will have activities for the next 2 times I teach to earn more tickets so we should be able to have the party in early December.

All Is Safely Gathered In Game:
1."Involve them in creating a ___________ and ________________________."
(budget, setting family financial goals )  TEACH FAMILY MEMBERS

2. "Successful family finances begin with _____________________________
______________." (the payment of an honest tithe and a generous fast offering)
PAY TITHES AND OFFERINGS

3."_______________________________ is essential to your financial security."
(Spending less than you make) AVOID DEBT

4. "__________ build a ___________ and ____________________________."
(Gradually, reserve, use it for emergencies only) BUILD A RESERVE

5. "Discipline yourself ______________________." (to live within your means)
USE A BUDGET

6. "________________ of your expenditures. (Keep a record) USE A BUDGET

7. "Save money __________________________." (to purchase what you need)
AVOID DEBT

Finally, I want to end with the following questions from the lesson outline:
Ask the youth to share what they learned today. Do they understand the importance of financial self-reliance well enough to explain it to others? Do they have any additional questions? Would it be worthwhile to spend more time on this topic?