As always, In the kitchen.....

I've have really been in the mood to cook lately! Especially really good homemade hearty meals. Today I decided to made a hearty stew and a potato casserole. Here is the soup base that I simmered for 1 1/2 hours....Ieshia and Emily helped chop up the carrots and celery for the stew... Here is what the stew looked like after adding the veggies..... It simmered for another 40 minutes then I thickened it just a little and it was the most delicious and flavorful stew I've ever made! The meat fell apart when the fork touched it!! I also made a potato casserole. It is a layered casserole with mashed potatos, sour cream, sauteed onions, red peppers, cheese, baked potato slices and crispy bacon!! I dipped a little stew gravy over it and YUM-O ! Now I will add the baked potato slices.....

After baking I put crumbled crispy bacon on it! For desert I made strawberry jello with mandarin oranges and fuit coctail in it and topped it with cool whip. I also made a batch of home peanut butter cookies! Johns favorite! Here is Emily helping with the cookies....

Debbie was in the kitchen helping too. She's always real helpful when I'm cooking.

And as usual, Sharayah just happened to stop by at the right moment to take home the few remaining warm leftovers.While we were in the kitchen cooking up a meal for woodcutters, John was doing just that! John, Jim, Derek, and Brian went and got two truck loads of wood and spent a good share of the afternoon out in the driveway splitting it all.

What a good days work!!!