English Muffin Individual Pizzas

Ingredients
1 English muffin, cut in half
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon red pesto – (I’ll use paste)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 small red onion, sliced
2 to 3 button mushrooms, sliced
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 slice ham cut into pieces, optional
1/2 cup ready-grated mozzarella or grated cheddar cheese

Directions
Toast the muffin until golden and leave to cool. Preheat the broiler. Mix the tomato paste and red pesto and spread over the muffin halves. Heat the olive oil in a frying pan and cook the onion, mushrooms until softened and golden.
Add the seasoning and then divide the vegetables between the muffin halves and scatter the ham and mozzarella or Cheddar over the top. Place under the broiler and cook for 4 minutes or until golden and bubbling.

In the wintertime, I enjoy having breakfast foods for supper.  Here’s an interesting looking recipe from Bon Appetit that I’m looking forward to making!

Ham and Cheese Waffles
1 3/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large egg whites
3 large egg yolks
1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup soda water
Non-stick vegetable oil spray
1 cup thinly-cut strips of ham
3/4 cup shredded sharp white cheddar
Maple syrup

Preparation
Preheat oven to 300°. Heat waffle iron until very hot. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and kosher salt in a large bowl. Using an electric mixer, beat egg whites in a medium bowl until medium-soft peaks form. Whisk egg yolks, melted butter, buttermilk, and soda water in a medium bowl; gradually whisk into dry ingredients. Fold in egg whites.
Coat waffle iron with non-stick vegetable oil spray. Pour batter onto iron, spreading it into corners (amount of batter needed will vary according to machine). Scatter 1 rounded Tbsp. ham and 1 Tbsp. white cheddar over each waffle. Cook until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a baking sheet; keep waffles warm in oven between batches. Serve with butter and warm maple syrup.

What do you do with leftover ham? I’d love your ideas!

From my parsonage kitchen,

Happy Friday! Whitney here…

One of the most obvious ways to freshen up your home is with new decorations. I am freshening up a new (to me) house bit by bit with new things from Hobby Lobby (love) and Target!

You can always find something on sale at Hob Lob, and if you download their iPhone app, you’ll always have a coupon to use on regular price items. But back to Target…

When I go to Target, I always look on the ends of the aisles for their clearance end caps. I recently learned a trick to reading Target’s clearance tags, and I’ll share that in a second. But first, check out some incredible bargains I’ve scored…

• Top Left: 2 matching lamps, “online items” meaning they are only sold online, but were returned to the store. Since they don’t belong in the store, Target marks online items WAY down. I got those lamps for $5 each (see tag on the top right).
• Bottom Left: A set of suede-ish turquoise accent pillows for my navy couch, $8 (Photobomb by my sister’s oh-so-cute kitty).
• Bottom Right: Super cute gray and yellow twin sheet set, 50% off at $7.98.

Here’s the secret I learned from reading a blog post about Target’s clearance process: the little number in the top right hand corner will tell you how much the item has been discounted. For as long as the item stays on the shelf, it will be marked down every two weeks. The discounting goes from 15%, then 30%, then 50%….then 70%….and even to 90%! I’m thrilled if I find something marked down 50%, like the gray and yellow sheets. That’s a significant savings!

This item has been marked 75% off…see the little number up there?

Target marks down several departments in their store each day, so the clearance is always changing. This is a great excuse to run into Target whenever you have a chance! =)

Happy Shopping!

Whitney 

1. Lord, please take her home today.
2. Would you take her while Whitney is here this evening, Lord?
3. Could we please be beside her when she crosses to glory?

To be with a child of God as they pass from this life into glory, is an experience to be treasured.  His grace is sufficient.  His peace is overwhelming.  His love is abundant.  He is all we need.

Thank you, dear readers, for letting me share this journey with you.  I pray it has changed me forever.  

Rejoicing through tears,

I remember when I was in college and I was ready for the semester to end just so I could go home!  I had been homesick more days than I cared to admit.  I’d lie in my bunk and look at the pictures of home and family that I had tacked to the wall by my bed, and I would imagine myself there.  I couldn’t wait to go!  Everything was packed so when my ride arrived I’d be ready to hit the door.

Last night I remembered those feelings of wanting to go home as I watched my mother-in-law’s breathing slowing down, and the awareness of her surroundings become obscure.  She, too, is ready to go home.  She’s thought a lot about it in these months.  She’s wondered out loud to me what it will be like to be in heaven.  Who will she see?  What will she do?  She even said, “Once I get there, I wish I could come back and tell you what it’s like.”  I told her to please warn me first!  =)

But seriously, we don’t need someone to come back from heaven to give us a report.  God’s Word is full of descriptions that make me homesick for heaven!

And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. Rev. 21:4

 He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces; Isaiah 25:8

It was the middle of the night and the sounds from the monitor told me that Mom C. was having trouble sleeping due to her incessant coughing.  Throwing back the covers, I slipped into my robe and made my way to the kitchen where I poured two teaspoons of Robitussin into the cup that accompanied the syrup.  As I stood beside Mom’s bed, she looked at me and asked, “What’s that?!”  She knew what it was – the worst tasting medicine she takes.   I told her it was her cough medicine.

“That stuff tastes HORRIBLE!”
“I know, but it’s the only thing that will help your cough.  You need this.  It will be good for you.”
“I hate that stuff!”
“I’m sorry, Mom, I’m not trying to hurt you.  I’m trying to help you.”

She took the medicine, albeit with a scowl on her face.  Her coughing quieted and I returned to my bed where sleep eventually came.  It was the next morning when I was recalling the previous night’s events that the Lord used that picture to teach me a lesson I needed to learn.  His voice in my heart spoke these words,

What I’m doing in your life right now doesn’t taste good, but I’m not doing this to hurt you.  You need this.  It will help you, just like the cough medicine helped RuthAnn.  Stop scowling.  Don’t argue with me.  Take it from my loving hand.  I know what is best for you.

Matthew 7:11 says, If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

Women are caregivers – whether it’s little children, our parents, or even a pet, we know how to take care of others and nurture them; to give them “good things.”  We often fail, however, at being the recipient of care from our Father’s hand.  We balk,  We shake our heads.  We scowl.  But we need to be reminded that our God is not doing whatever ill-tasting thing is going on in our life to hurt us.  He knows we need it.  He knows what is best for us.  He takes better care of us than we could ever think about doing for someone else.  Indeed, He cares for you. I Peter 5:7

What “medicine” has the Lord put into your cup?  Look into His face and remember that He loves you.  He knows what He’s doing, and it will be good for you – if not immediately, in the future.

Drink it – and then tell Him “thank you.”

With love,