Vintage Cookery - The Poke Cake

 

To some of us it may seem unbelievable that this recipe qualifies as a vintage recipe, but it sure does.  The Poke Cake was introduced to us in print advertisements and recipe booklets by Kraft for Jell-O in 1976.  As a kid I loved this cake although I don’t recall having it very often.  Several years ago I re-introduced it to my little family and it became a fast favorite, so much so that my youngest requested this cake for her birthday every year afterward.

 

I love the ease and versatility of this cake because you can change it up depending on your choice of cake mix flavor and gelatin flavor.  It is so easy that I used it as an educational recipe when I was teaching my girls to bake.

 

By simply baking a yellow or white cake mix according to package directions and letting it cool you are halfway there.  Once the cake is cooled simply dissolve a small box of gelatin, any flavor, in a cup of boiling water, then add a half cup of cold water and stir.  Prick the cake all over with a fork.  Slowly spoon the gelatin over the cake allowing each spoonful to absorb into the cake.  Then place it in the refrigerator for at least four hours to set.  “Frost” the top of the cake with a tub of thawed Cool Whip and it is ready to serve. 

In 1981 Kraft introduced the pudding poke cake.  You simply poke the cake with the handle of a wooden spoon or dowel and then pour prepared instant pudding over the top of the cake and chill.  Then slice and serve with a dollop of Cool Whip.  I’m actually planning to make this with a lemon cake mix and lemon pudding in the not too distant future.

Again, a refreshing and delicious dessert!  Perfect on a hot summer day, but really, who wouldn’t like this any time of year?  Am I right?  Perhaps this will make it onto your Labor Day menu?  Or next celebration?

My Tireless Retirement – Week 123

 

It has been a week of harvesting the fruits of my labor.  I picked a bunch of pears from my tree and so far have been averaging one egg and two or three nice roma tomatoes per day which is perfect for me, just enough to be manageable without becoming too overwhelming.  I have pears ripening so I can get them into jars and canned soon.  After several years of less than stellar fruit seasons this is exciting!

 

My pear tree is loaded with fruit this year, despite the efforts of the squirrels.  In years past they have stripped that tree bare and left me with only a few, not to mention I’ve had to battle the moth larvae and leaf miners.  I just about gave up, but this year I found the right pesticide and got a handle on all but the squirrels.  The apple tree is loaded as well, but the fruit is rather small.  We’ll see how that all looks in September.

 

Monday I dashed into Winco real quick for a few items I wanted for my everyday meal plans.  This month my main focus is stocking up for winter and I have plenty of food on hand so all I really needed was a handful of supplemental items to pull everything altogether.

 

Wednesday was definitely a fun one for me as I took a bus load of seniors on a church tour in downtown Boise, Idaho.  I love the architecture of older buildings and after spending time learning about one of our older Catholic churches and then one of the “newer” Presbyterian churches and how they came to be I was feeling particularly blessed, especially because I was also doing so with a great group of individuals.  The stained glass, although very different in each church, was spectacular.

 

Thursday I started making lists and preparations for my next upcoming canning projects.  I’m super excited to get those new jars of loveliness put up on my shelves and of course I will share with you all that I manage to get done.  It will be a busy kitchen for the next few weeks and I’m definitely up for the task.  I truly do love this time of year.

 

Curry chicken 😋

Green salad & a freezer burrito

It has been extremely smoky here in the past week.  Fortunately our temperatures are starting to go back down and we are out of the triple digits.  I hope everyone is doing well and you had a great week.  Let me know what you have been up to lately.  In the meantime take care and enjoy life!

 

A Working Pantry For One

 

When I retired on April 1, 2022 (yes, on April Fool’s Day) I had a pantry stuffed beyond capacity, not to mention my long term storage which I keep separately.  It gave me great peace of mind to know that, if nothing else, I wouldn’t go hungry.  Much has changed since then and as a result so has my working pantry.

 

In the past two and a half years I’ve eaten, shared and donated most of what I had originally stockpiled in my pantry.  In the process I’ve been able to figure out what I truly do use and want to keep stocked while I’ve rotated and replaced items from the LTFS.  I’ve fed myself and a lot of other people quite well so far.  Now I have a well stocked working pantry that is both functional and much more manageable.  And also less than half the size of what it used to be.

 

You may be thinking I’ve culled it back a bit too far and perhaps this is due to my extreme grocery budget this year, however rest assured that is not the case.  While I’ve been working on streamlining the pantry and using up the older items that have been hanging around too long I’ve also been focusing on adding to and keeping the LTFS, including my deep freezer, well stocked.

 

So far this year I’ve used up forty eight jars of home canned goods and added back twenty four jars already.  I have plans to add twenty four more jars of home canned meats and beans soon and then I’ll reassess and decide what I’ll be canning next, but I’m planning to add back a little bit more than I’ve consumed this year once all is said and done.

 

I’m using the extra space in the pantry to store appliances like my bread machine, electric skillets and the toaster oven with all the mini baking pans I now have.  More importantly I’ve designated the two lower shelves to storing my extra papercrafting supplies.  It sure makes it handy to have good places to store all that stuff.

 

Even though I have less than half the food in the pantry I used to have (I still have too many condiments) I know I still have plenty of food with no concerns for whatever the future may have in store for me.  Plus!  Now I can see those pretty green walls I painted in there.

 

Systems In Place Give Me Peace Of Mind

 

Over the years I’ve come up with a variety of schedules, routines and processes for running my household and my life.  It has been a lot of trial and error.  Now that I’m retired from the full time workforce and have subsequently become an empty nester I’ve spent the last two years readjusting, deleting and tweaking my systems.  Why?  Because I want my Golden Years to be, well… Golden.

 

My first priority when it came to planning my retirement was to be as financially secure as possible.  My current financial portfolio may not be all that impressive to some, but it impresses the heck out of me.  Part of that system I’ve put into place is to remain debt free, keep and maintain my savings account and an emergency fund, grow my retirement accounts and live very well within my means.

 

I work every day to keep and maintain my home and safeguard my assets.  I try not to keep anything that I don’t find useful or enjoyable which meant I did a major decluttering of my entire home, inside and out.  I’ve steadily worked on landscaping and maintenance.  I make repairs as needed and have planned out future upgrades and replacements.

 

Do you have enough?? 😄

One thing the pandemic taught me was that a stockpile is essential.  Since then I’ve been working on and maintaining my long term food storage as well as a solid supply of household items and pet supplies.  I have a winter stock up schedule I’ve been using for years that helps me make sure I’ve got my bases covered before the extreme weather and higher power bills hit during December, January and February.

 

Having a backup plan is also essential.  Having alternate transportation sources was one of those things I wanted to make sure I had available to me during retirement.  I am blessed that I am able to walk and ride a bicycle.  I added an E bike to my garage and I’ve started using the public bus to get me where I need to go most of the time so I am now able to rely less on my vehicles and am less affected by rising and unpredictable gas prices.

 

Even the way I clean my house and cook my meals on a regular basis is now a system I’ve put in place.  By being more efficient my home is clean and tidy, but more importantly it is manageable.  Even if I’m ill or tired I can still adequately take care of my home and do my laundry without becoming overwhelmed.  I still meal plan and shop ahead.  I prepare my food so that I’m cooking my meals and also meal prepping future meals at the same time.  Housekeeping and cooking no longer seem like chores to me anymore and are quite enjoyable with the added luxury that if I want to take a break from it I can.

 

Simplifying and streamlining my home and my processes has so many added benefits.  My home and the contents inside of it do not own me.  I am able to quickly and easily take care of things without devoting a lot of time and energy to any one thing.  I work less and play more.  I made the decision to keep my wants and needs so simple that I’m not financially stressed.  At no time do I feel like I can’t afford to do or buy anything, within reason, of course.  Because of this I’m able to enjoy myself and pursue what interests me most.  That is how retired life is supposed to be.

 

Investment Cooking - Meatloaf & Meatballs

 

One of my favorite things to make and put up in the freezer whenever I get a good deal on ground meat is meatloaf.  Next to that would be meatballs.  It is super convenient to already have a meatloaf of two all mixed up and in the freezer, the same for a bag of already prepared meatballs to make pulling dinner together fast and easy.

  

Basic Meatloaf 

1 ½ lb. lean ground beef

1 - 1 ½ lb. ground pork or turkey

½ cup quick cooking oats

2 eggs

1 medium onion, finely chopped

2 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

2 tsp dried parsley

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup ketchup, BBQ sauce or tomato sauce

Salt & pepper 

In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients until well combined.  Divide in half to make two small meatloaves or use all of it to make one very large loaf.  Bake at 400° for one hour.

 

This mixture is perfect to use to make meatballs.  A nice variation if you use meatballs in pasta sauce is to substitute dried basil for the parsley.

 

These are the perfect size for feeding 1 or 2 people
with just the right amount of leftovers 😊

I will often make up this recipe and add chopped bell pepper or grated cheese just for a variety.  Once mixed up I shape it into two meatloaves and freeze them individually in a quart size freezer bag or shape into meatballs onto a baking sheet and freeze for a few hours.  Then transfer to a freezer bag.  Once I’m ready to bake a meatloaf I thaw it in the refrigerator, remove from the bag and shape it into a loaf and place it into my slow cooker to “bake” on high for 4 hours or low for 6 until it is nicely done.  A small sheet of aluminum foil lining the bottom of the crock makes for easier clean up.

 

A nice glaze for your meatloaf is to mix about a quarter cup of ketchup, a good sized dollop of horseradish and some Worcestershire (woosta-sheer) sauce together and pour over the top of your meatloaf and then bake.  So good!

 

My Tireless Retirement – Week 122

 

We finally got a break in the weather with much, much cooler temperatures last Friday, enough that I was able to open windows and the back door, set the fan at the door and let in a lot of cool fresh air while I gave the A/C a much needed break.  I paid my power bill and it is the highest summer bill I’ve ever had, but my A/C units did keep the house nice and comfortable so I guess that makes it a fair trade.  The cooling spell was short lived and by Thursday we were embarking on yet another wave of triple digit temperatures.

 

Wildfire season is upon us

The Oregon wildfire that crossed over into Idaho as well as several fires of our own has kept our skies rather hazy.  We had one day the previous week that the air was so thick I swear you could taste the smoke.  That was bad and our air quality has been pretty awful, however it did break up here and there at times so we were able to get a break from it from time to time.  Are any of you dealing with wildfires in your area?

 

The break in the weather allowed me to get busy in the kitchen and do some canning.  I was gifted two rather large, but not too large, beautiful zucchinis and I instantly knew what I wanted to do with them.  I had made a small batch of my favorite sweet relish last summer and I was done to my last three jars and since my zucchini plants got eaten up by something (twice!) I didn’t think I’d have the opportunity to make any.  I was absolutely thrilled when my dear friend handed me these.

 

I also removed my very full scrap bag from the freezer to make bone broth and filled up my largest slow cooker with two chicken carcasses and a bunch of veggie scraps including the scraps from the onions and the juices after I had ground up all the vegetables I used in the relish.  I also added garlic and a sprig of rosemary from my garden.  After filling up the pot I let it cook for a good twenty four hours before straining and ladling the broth into pint jars and canning it for my LTFS.

 

This chicken stock is gorgeous!

I water bath canned the relish and pressure canned the chicken stock.  I had a bottle of lime juice in the fridge that I poured half of into an ice tray and froze so I could put the lime juice cubes into a bag to keep in the freezer and prevent it from going bad in the meantime.  It will be good to add to drinks, recipes or use when I can tomatoes in the not too distant future although I do prefer to use lemon juice with my tomatoes.

 

First harvest! 😊

Speaking of, my tomatoes are coming on and I’ve already had my first harvest of romas.  My plan this year is to stew them and can them for the LTFS shelves.  I tend to go through a lot of canned tomatoes in my cooking and I still have quite a bit of marinara and tomato sauce left from last summer’s tomatoes.

 

Meals I Prepared: 

The first couple days of the week I finished up leftovers from the week before.  I still had a few items left in the bin from my pantry challenge to use up so I made up the final box of Hamburger Helper using a can of roast beef from the LTFS as the meat.  It was so gross I couldn’t eat it and it did end up as food waste in the trash.  That’s okay because I won’t be buying either one of those items again in the future.

 

I had a pint jar of turkey soup and an open package of Chinese noodles that I used to make some homemade ramen.  It was okay, not the best soup I’ve ever made and again, I probably won’t be making that one again.  I did make a really could asian style cabbage salad to go alongside and that was quite enjoyable. 

Last, but definitely no least, I made up another small batch of my great-grandmother’s macaroni salad to use up a partial jar of cute little seashell macaroni I had in the pantry.  I needed a win and that salad is just so good.

 

I concluded the July pantry challenge on Wednesday and I’m very glad I did it.  Last week I turned a pint jar of applesauce into two beautiful loaves of applesauce loaf which I made with some whole wheat flour and then added raisins and chopped walnuts.  One loaf is in the freezer and I’m still working on the other one.  Two lone cans of Progresso clam chowder were still in my pantry so I took them into the senior center and placed them on the “Free” table.  They went home with someone leaving the bin now empty except for that large can of green enchilada sauce with I still have hopes will meet up with a nice pork roast someday soon.

 

This challenge did allow me to reallocate my grocery funds toward my winter stock up plans last month and I ticked a lot of items off the list.  It also allowed me to use up the last of the stragglers that had been taking up valuable real estate in my kitchen and make room for the newcomers.  With the exception of that one mea (HH stroganoff)l I was able to keep my food waste quite minimal and that makes me happy.  Now I am ready for some fresh produce as well as new meals to plan and prepare.  What was a favorite meal you prepared recently?

 

What I've Been Cleaning Lately

 

At the beginning of July it was time to pull out a fresh copy of my quarterly housekeeping checklist.  This is the list I use to do some deeper cleaning than my regular weekly routine.  I have to be honest though, as I was looking over the previous list to review my progress I had only checked off about half of the items because I was playing and enjoying myself last quarter.  That’s completely okay though because my housekeeping lists and routines are very forgiving.  All I have to do is begin again and in no time I’ll be able to get caught up with not a lot of effort.

 

It's a miracle!  I can see! 😂

The very first thing I wanted to do more than anything was to clean my living room window inside and out.  With all of the crazy weather we’d been having this past spring it had gone beyond dirt to mud, I swear.  I took a bucket of soapy water and a rag out there and washed off the window and then hit it with a clean rag and some Sprayway.  Now I can clearly look outside and watch my hummingbirds at the feeder without seeing that filthy window.  Total time spent – 5 minutes.

 

Clean & shiny!

I didn’t clean my oven last quarter, but I had done it the time before so it was a quick and simple process to spray it down with some Mean Green degreaser and scrub it up.  I pulled all of the pots and pans out of the bottom drawer and cleaned that too tossing the padded liner I had made many years ago into the washer for a much needed cleaning.  Once it had made it through the wash and dry cycles I was able to put it back along with my pots and pans.  I even polished the Revere Ware.  Total time spent on this project (not including laundry time) less than 30 minutes.

 

Old fridge the night before

New fridge - Clean & shiny!

The replacement of my refrigerator made it super easy to tackle this chore as all I had to do was organize the new refrigerator which had arrived spotlessly clean and shiny.  I’ve since added some containers to help me keep things organized as well as neat and tidy inside.  The day before the refrigerator was delivered I had pulled out the old one and wiped down the walls and cleaned the floor.  I do this chore every quarter without fail so it never gets gross under there.  Total time spent – 5 minutes.

 

Clean & shiny!

Under the kitchen sink got a thorough cleaning as well.  Again, I didn’t do this chore last quarter, but I had done it the time before so I pulled everything out and wiped down the inside of the cabinet and the washed the bin I keep my cleaning supplies in.  Then everything went back inside and I was good to go.  Total time spent on this chore – 5 minutes.

 

Clean & shiny! 😄

The beauty of having a housekeeping system in place is that I do these things on such a regular basis that even if I miss it once, or even twice, nothing is allowed to accumulate to the point that things become filthy or get out of hand.  I can quickly move through the list and get myself all caught up again over the next three month period and I’m right back on track.  Best of all, no spring cleaning and plenty of time to play!  Yay!