Never Buy Chocolate Syrup Again!

I haven't bought chocolate syrup in over a year. Yes, I need extra chocolate on my ice cream and I love chocolate raw milk. It's like a treat. My boys get chocolate milk when Grandma and Papa visit. And no, I didn't stock up or stretch one bottle this long. I make it. I especially love that I can control what's in it. This is so easy, and you probably already have the ingredients.

Chocolate Syrup:
1/2 cup powdered cocoa
1 cup water
2 cups sugar (I only use 1 1/2)
1/8 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. vanilla

Combine cocoa and water in saucepan on medium heat until dissolved.
Add sugar and bring to a boil for 3 minutes. *Be careful not to boil over! This happens to me as soon as I turn around.
Take off heat and add salt and vanilla.
Allow to cool and store in glass container.

Use within two months. If you have children, this usually isn't an issue.

Yum!

Yummy Taco Soup

Mmmm... This was great.
I measured out my soaked beans from earlier, piled in the rest of the ingredients, cooked it for a little while, and voila!
Every one of us loved it! My skinny, 5th percentile-in-weight, 11-month old boy had two bowls! Two. This kid eats more than me. I don't know why he's still so skinny. Anyways....

The first time we had this, I prepared it as a freezer meal. No matter which way you prepare it, it's just all thrown together. My kind of cookin'.

• 2 lbs. cooked ground meat - I actually only use about a pound. I use venison.
• 1 chopped onion
• 1 can of pinto beans
• 1 can of black beans
• 1 can of small red beans - I soaked all my own beans for this and measured out about 6-5 cups worth
• 2 cups fresh/frozen corn
• 1 can of diced tomatoes with green chiles
• 16 oz. tomato sauce
• 7 tsp. (or one packet) homemade taco seasoning
• 1 tbsp. minced onion
• 2 tsp. parsley flakes
• 4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. garlic powder
• 1 tsp. onion powder

I put it all into a pot on the stove over medium heat until it was all cooked. Once it's cooked, set the heat lower until you're ready for dinner! It's okay to leave it on for an hour or two. It's meant for a crockpot recipe if you start it earlier. If you use your crockpot, set it on high for 3-5 hours. If you want to freeze it, just cook it after you thaw it. 

Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese, tortilla chips, and any other fun condiments you like! 

Warning: It's really filling.

The {Best} Chili {Ever}

In my husband's words, "This is the best chili I can remember ever tasting!"

He decided the beans helped it taste so good. 

I like not measuring while I'm cooking, but I guess it doesn't help when I try sharing the recipe. 

2-3 cups of soaked beans

1 lb ground meat. {again, we used venison}

1 cup frozen corn

1 jar spaghetti sauce

1 tsp each:

minced onion, garlic powder, chili powder, salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Mushrooms are optional. My husband loves them. I just pick mine out and add them to his bowl. 

Add all ingredients into slow cooker and cook on low for about 4 hours. 

Again, I'm never strict about those measurements. I just usually throw them in there. 

Yesterday I had my two-year-old helper. i just gave him an almost empty salt shaker and a spoon to stir. He was happy as a clam. 

Top with cheese if desired. 

Chili marked the beginning of BEAN WEEK. {Woo hoo!}

Tonight we're having hay stacks. Left over chili with nachos, lettuce, tomatoes, cheese, and whatever else sounds good. 

Our systems will definitely be cleaned out after this week!

We're attempting this bean week because beans are cheap and healthy. If this works out, I'd like to try this every month. Hopefully I can come up with more "bean" meals. I suppose that's what Pinterest is for!

Happy Beans!

Hamburger Gravy Over Mashed Potatoes

So I had a whole month's worth of meals planned out. 

Then, in typical Gabi fashion, I lost it a few days ago. ;)

Luckily I found it today. 

 Tonight I made hamburger gravy over potatoes. Yum!

I think I made this once or twice  few years ago. I couldn't remember exactly how to make it, and didn't have a recipe written anywhere. 

I just kind of had to wing it. 

I had a little helper who needed his own spoon. He actually does a good job.

First off, I browned my ground venison. Now, my husband has told me many times that when you use venison, it needs to be seasoned well.

I added some garlic powder, minced onion, salt, pepper, and some basil for the fun of it. 

I only had unsweetened coconut milk, sweetened almond, and vanilla almond milk. So, my choice of milk was obvious. {I used the coconut milk.} - add about a cup, maybe another 1/2 if it looks like it needs it.

I mixed a good amount, about 1 1/2 tablespoons, of rice flour in about 2 tablespoons of warm/hot water, and stirred it into my mixture. 

It was brought to a boil, and simmered for about 5 minutes, until it thickened.

Serve over mashed potatoes. 

Depending on how you prepare your mashed potatoes, this could be dairy-free. 

This was my 2-year old's bowl. He didn't finish it, by the way. My 11-month old ate more than this. :P

This is a great "cheap" meal. I didn't have to buy anything for this meal. Everything was on hand. I love those kinds of meals. It tasted great, too. 

Homemade Marshmallow Frosting

Alright, you can't really have cake without frosting. At least I can't.

Here is what makes the cake. 

First, get a cup's worth of marshmallows. 

I don't measure. I'm too lazy. 

I haven't made this in a while, so these are the leftover marshmallows, and they were a little hard. 

Anyways..

Heat the marshmallows so they mix easily. Usually about 30 seconds is enough. But mine were hard, so it took a minute. 

Add a tablespoon of milk. Regular milk, raw milk, whatever kind you want. I used coconut milk. Stir until it looks like this. Mine was a little lumpy because, again, they were harder than normal.

In a separate bowl, mix 3 cups of powdered sugar with 1/3 cup of cocoa.

Put about a cup of coconut oil in another bowl, and cream it with a mixer. 

{Again, I didn't measure. I'm too lazy.}

Next is the really messy part. It's not usually this messy. Of course, it's because I was taking pictures. 

You're supposed to mix the coconut oil in the powdered mix. Um, if it's as messy as mine, just go ahead and add the marshmallow mix, too. 

Use the mixer... unless you're really strong.

Using a bigger bowl would probably help with the mess.

Add 2 teaspoons of vanilla. 

Set aside a 1/4 cup of milk. 

Add a tablespoon at a time, mixing in between. 

You don't need to add the whole 1/4 cup of milk. Keep adding until you reach desired consistency. The less you add, the thicker it will be. 

Frost your cake, and enjoy! 

 

The kind of coconut oil you use will determine your outcome. This time I used a better quality oil, and you could definitely taste it. Keep that in mind. Also, you could use butter instead of coconut oil. 

This frosting could also be dairy-free if that's your preference. 

Just be careful of what size bowl you use. Lol.

{Yummy} Dairy-free Egg-free Chocolate Cake!

This cake is so good!

 It's called Wacky Cake or Depression Cake. 

It is so easy! And it's from scratch!

Wacky, I know.

First, set your oven to 350. 

Next, you're supposed to grease an 8x8, but I never do. 

Then, you mix all the dry ingredients right in the pan!! So cool that there's no extra dishes!

Dry ingredients: 1 1/2 cup flour

3 Tbsp cocoa

1 cup sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

After you stir it all together it should look like that picture. ^^

Then make three indentations in your mixture. Two small and one big. I like to make a face out of them because I'm easily amused. Today I made a grumpy face. 

Fill one small dent with vinegar and one with vanilla. The bigger one is supposed to be vegetable oil, but I don't ever have vegetable oil, so I use olive oil. {I thought it was cool how they all started with "v".} See? It doesn't take much to amuse me. 

Then pour one cup of water over the top and stir. 

I don't know if you actually have to make the dents and do it all exact, but that's the was I learned, and I've always done it that way. 

Anyways, stir until it's pretty consistent. Like cake batter. 

Stick it in the oven for 35 minutes.

 

This is what should come out! Yum!

Allow to cool and frost with your favorite frosting. 

If I'm feeling adventurous tonight I'll post the frosting recipe I use. 

It is pretty ridiculous tasting.

~

I made this a lot during the summer because I was nursing R and he can't have dairy. I made it at least 3 times a week. So, I had it memorized.

One time I accidentally put 3 tablespoons of baking soda instead of cocoa. I realized it right away and tried to scoop as much out as I could. I thought I did a pretty good job. I continued on with my cake. 

After it cooled, my husband and I each took a bit at the same time, and boy! It burned your mouth. 

I'm pretty sure I spit mine out.

Not just because it tasted bad. 

But my husband is quite dramatic. So, he made me laugh. 

Let's just say that's not the first time chocolate has come out my nose...

Anyways... all that to say, well.. not sure why I said that... 

Enjoy your cake!