Saturday, January 29, 2011

Bible in 90 Days

I heard of an interesting challenge about a month ago, and I decided to give it a shot. I haven't been talking about it much, but I wanted to post about it here.

The challenge is called "The Bible in 90 days," and I started it on January 3rd. I heard of it via The Happy Housewife--Amy over at Mom's Toolbox has the challenge going for her reader's currently, and I thought it was something worth a try.

One of my big challenges in life is always getting the "God & I" time in. It's something that I've always struggled with--I want to spend time reading my Bible, to spend time with just God and no other distractions (well, maybe the puppy cuddling at my feet; does that count?).
However, there's always that 'one last thing' I need to get done first...
That other book that is just begging to be read...
The Hubby who would like to hang out with his wifey...
The puppy that wants to play...
Or is just growing and thus always hungry and wants me to give him another treat...
The sleep that I never seem to get enough of...
The list goes on & on.

So, when the Happy Housewife mentioned this challenge, I prayed about it and thought about it, and decided I would do it.

Note that I didn't decide I would try. I decided I would do this. I don't have any kiddos yet (insert sad face here), and that takes away one of the biggest challenges for most ladies to do something like this.

Here we are, about to start the 5th week of the challenge, and I will admit it has been hard! I was behind at times (weekend at my in-laws, mainly!), ahead at times, but I've managed to stay on-track. It has been a great experience so far. This certainly isn't meant to be an in-depth study of the Bible, but a way to see everything close together and kinda connect the dots. ("OH! I remember so-and-so, they did this a couple days ago!" vs "Who's so-and-so?")

Don't get me wrong; it's still reading the Bible, cover-to-cover, in 90 days. It's hard. It can be confusing. But, being almost one month in, I would recommend this to anyone.

I love doing something that makes sure I get my God & I time in. I love studying His Word. While I have read the Bible cover-to-cover other times, I think this is going to be a great way to step back a little and try to see the whole picture.

If you are interested in doing this challenge, I would recommend checking out Mom's Toolbox. The challenge has already started, but this isn't the first time she's done this so I would guess it won't be the last. :) She also had a handy little bookmark on the site (somewhere; probably around the first post for this Bible in 90 days challenge) with a listing of what chapters/verses you need to read what days, to complete on schedule. It has been very useful!

As always, comments are love. See? You are thinking about comments, and I am sending love. :)

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Pastitsio

If you've seen many of my posts, or know me in person, you know I am not a big fan of tomatoes. Or most things tomato based. When I saw this recipe, I was intrigued, but I was also a bit nervous. With my (picky) experiences with tomatoes & pasta, I know that I usually don't like it.

Other than spaghetti & lasagna, for some odd reason.

Anyways, back to today's recipe. I was pleasantly surprised with this--the tomato is not overwhelming! It doesn't turn out too saucy either, which is another problem I've had with pasta & tomato combinations in the past. If anything, it is a little too dry in the end--I am going to try covering it next time, and see if that helps.


Pastitsio
(TOH)

7 Ounce uncooked pasta
1 Pound ground beef
1 Medium onion, chopped
1 Clove garlic, minced
8 Ounce tomato sauce
1 Teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 Teaspoon dried oregano
1/8 Teaspoon pepper
1/4 Teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 Cup grated parmesan, divided
3 Tablespoon butter
3 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 1/2 Cup milk
1 egg, beaten

Instructions:
Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skilled, cook the beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the tomato sauce, 1/2 tsp salt, oregano, pepper, & cinnamon; heat through.
Drain pasta; place half in a greased 9" square baking pan. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup parmesan. Layer with meat mixture and remaining macaroni. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, melt butter; stir in flour and remaining salt until smooth. Gradually add milk. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
Remove from the heat. Stir a small amount fo the hot mixture into egg; return all to the pan, stirring constantly. Bring to a gently boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat; stir in remaining parmesan. Pour sauce over pasta.
Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves: 6
Prep Time: 35
Cook Time: 35
Total Time: 1 hr 10 m


Note:
  • The original did state the the cinnamon is optional. I thought it was a wonderful, and unique, addition.
  • It does NOT reheat well. It goes from being slightly dry to "Oh. This is the leftovers we are having for dinner? Oh."

Overall opinions: I think with some small changes (less dry being the key change), this could be pretty good. Nate was, oddly enough, more fond of it once I told him that the funny taste was the cinnamon. (Which made me smile.)

And, of course, I used some of the venison that I received from my oh-so-lovely brother & sister-in-law, instead of beef. I love venison; I would rather use ground venison than ground beef any day! (Although, I do love the occasional steak.)

As always, comments are love. In fact, if you leave enough comments on my posts & live nearby, I just may invite you to dinner sometime. Or dessert, if that's your preference. ;)