Being the summer time, we had several friends offer their teenage children’s services for hire.  Surprisingly, one of the highlights of my summer and our move was working with these kids.  In the past, our time spent together has always been social and with many other people around.  This gave me the opportunity to work beside them, talk with them and learn about them.  What an awesome group!  This gives me hope for the future!  Here is a little about them:

Davis – Davis has been a friend of ours for a few years.  He has always been hardworking, never complains and very pleasant to be around.  He did demo work, painting, cleaning, you name it–he worked hard.  He recently began his freshman year at Indiana University majoring in Astrophysics and Astronomy.  Bright guy!  He had a tough choice deciding which college to go to between IU and University of Colorado in Boulder.  We are big fans of IU and always wanted to see him go there.  In May, our family went to Boulder for the Title Nine Mother’s Day run and we saw first hand why Davis likes Boulder so much!  We wish Davis luck at school and he is always welcome to come back here and work in the summers.

Jack – Jack and I had several conversations around his interest in soup base and how it is made.  He will be shadowing our food scientist at some point for a high school class.  I was impressed with his grasp of what we were discussing.  We discussed the manufacturing of base, the development of the product and a little about how it is used.  Other than soup base, his main interest is in gaming because as he told me “that’s how I roll”.  I got a real kick out of that.   Jack had no trouble carrying on a conversation with me and I was really impressed by that since we haven’t spent that much one-on-one time together.  He is using the money he earned to contribute towards attending camp in Oregon.

Joseph – Joseph spent a lot of time with us this summer.  His biggest interest at the beginning of the summer was to earn enough money to buy a new television for his gaming system.  His parents just got a new TV and he was really impressed with the quality so he wanted one for the basement and his gaming.  Joseph did a LOT of different things this summer.  He moved a lot of product in the warehouse in preparation for our move to the new building, he was in on the demo of the office space for the new renovation, he painted, he shredded old documents, but most notably…he built our new lockers!  By the end of the summer, Joseph had been talked out of buying the new TV and saving his money for college –at least part of the money.  It remains to be seen what he decides to splurge the rest on for himself.  

Kody – Kody has been an acquaintance of ours since he was very young.  We had seen him on occasion, but not that often.  He has always gotten along well with our daughter Kiera and this summer they really solidified their friendship.  Although Kody did many jobs for us this summer, I will most remember him chatting away with Kiera, while shredding old documents.  The glimpses we all caught of their conversations made us all smile.  Just friends, chatting up a storm about anything and everything.  I have thought since Kody was younger, that he would become a Pastor as an adult.  I’m certain of that now after spending so much time with him.

Aidan – Our daughter who just started her sophomore year at Indiana University.  She is majoring in business and is trying to narrow down what field of business.  She discovered that she really liked doing the accounting work associated with our website sales.  This made Brian (my husband and the CFO) very happy since he doesn’t particularly like to do that job.  Aidan also took our various excel spreadsheets that we all had and combined them to work together.  She commented on more than one occasion that we could be a case study at IU since our hodge-podge of spreadsheets is exactly what they were taught that they might encounter.

Kiera – Our high school daughter.  Kiera got to do more of the hands on work at the plant.  Her favorite part of the work was the demolition.  She particularly enjoyed tearing out the ceiling panels in the office area.  Kiera also spent a few (or more) quality time Saturdays with Brian and I doing various jobs like painting an 18” border around the warehouse, washing light fixtures, painting offices, etc.  The renovation of the building was a bit sad for Kiera since she preferred the space to remain as it was.  She was able to rollerblade and bike ride in the warehouse.  She even hosted a murder-mystery birthday party in the building last October before construction began.

I am very thankful to have had the opportunity to get to know these great teenagers a little better this summer.  Brian and I will always share this special experience of building this plant together with some wonderful people.

Chicken Vegetable Soup with Noodles using Cook’s Delight Organic Vegetable Base.

Ingredients
1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning Blend
8 cups Water
2 Tbsp. Cook’s Delight Organic Vegetable Base
1/2 cup or 2 stalks Celery, Chopped
1 Medium Onion, Chopped
2 Cloves Garlic, Minced
1/2 cup – 1 cup Cooked Diced Chicken Meat
2 cups Wide Egg Noodles
1 Cup Frozen Vegetables (Carrots, Corn, Peas)
1-2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil
Pepper to taste

Directions
Heat soup pot and add oil.
Add garlic, onion and celery. Saute until onion is clear.
Add water and heat to boiling.
Add chicken, Italian seasoning and Cook’s Delight Organic Vegetable Base.
Reduce heat and simmer approximately 20 minutes.
Increase heat to boiling and add frozen vegetables and noodles.
Cook 8-10 minutes until noodles are tender.
Season with pepper to taste.

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We primarily use Mac products at work and I couldn’t have done this extended stay any other way.  The use of the iDisk, iChat, iPhone and all other things “i” has made this transition run much more smoothly.  We actually have people in three locations now working and all able to communicate fairly effectively.

I have been staying at the Homewood Suites and give it my highest recommendation if you are looking for an extended stay place in St. Louis.  The staff here has been truly amazing.  Today is my daughter’s birthday and they are planning a surprise for her — can you beat that?

In a week or two we will be heading home.  I wonder how the transition will be going back to the office for work?

Today I am adding a recipe for making Beef Stock from scratch.  I’ll add Vegetable and Fish from scratch recipes soon.  Please note that 1 tsp. of Cook’s Delight Beef Base mixed with 8 ounces of water makes 8 ounces of stock.  One pound of Cook’s Delight Beef Base yields 5 1/2 gallons of stock.

Recipe
2 lb large beef bones (cracked)
1 – 4 oz can tomato paste
3 tbsp oil (olive, vegetable, canola)
1 large onion with skin, quartered
2 large stalks celery with tops cut in 1″ pieces
2 large carrots in 1″ pieces
1 bouquet garni (a bundle of herbs and spices added during stock reduction – see recipe below)
3 quarts cold water
1 large oven pan lied with heavy-duty foil

Recipe Bouquet Garni Wrap in small cheese cloth and tie with string.
1 bay leaf
1 tsp thyme
6 peppercorns
2 cloves
2 tsp parsley

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rub tomato paste generously over bones; roast for about 30 minutes or until nicely browned.

In a large stockpot over medium heat, add oil and saute vegetables about 5 minutes (slightly brown on the edges). Add remaining ingredients (including bones) and bring to a boil.

Skim off any foam that rises. Reduce heat and simmer gently, uncovered, for 2 to 3 hours. Add a few cups of water if necessary to keep ingredients submerged.

Strain and discard solids, strain again with fine strainer (3 layers of cheesecloth in a colander.

Return to smaller pot, skim fat, return to heat and simmer another hour or so, until reduced by half.

OR

Combine 1 tsp Cook’s Delight Natural Beef Base with 8 ounces of water and heat.

We deal with many restaurants and commissaries as well as the general public.  The biggest benefits of using base vs. stock from scratch are time, consistency and cost.   The food business generally has high turnover.  If you have someone new making stocks you run the risk of having an inconsistent end product.  Making stock from scratch also requires much more time than using bases, as well as money.

Following is a recipe for Chicken Stock from scratch.  I’ll add other recipes soon.  Please note that 1 tsp. of Cook’s Delight Chicken Base mixed with 8 ounces of water makes 8 ounces of stock.  One pound of Cook’s Delight Chicken Base yields 5 1/2 gallons of stock.

Recipe
1 carcass from whole turkey or chicken or 2-3 pounds left-over bones
1 tbsp oil (olive, vegetable or canola)
1 large onion quartered
2 large stalks celery in 1″ pieces
2 large carrots in 1″ pieces
1 bouquet garni (a bundle of herbs and spices added during stock reduction – see recipe below)
3 quarts cold water

Recipe Bouquet Garni Wrap in small cheese cloth and tie with string.
1 bay leaf
1 tsp thyme
6 peppercorns
2 cloves
2 tsp parsley

Directions
In a large stockpot over medium heat, add oil and saute vegetables about 5 minutes (slightly brown on the edges). Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil.

Skim off any foam that rises. Reduce heat and simmer gently, uncovered, for 2 to 3 hours. Add a few cups of water if necessary to keep ingredients submerged.

Strain and discard solids, strain again with fine strainer (3 layers of cheesecloth in a colander.

Return to smaller pot, skim fat, return to heat and simmer another hour or so, until reduced by half.

OR

Combine 1 tsp Cook’s Delight Natural Chicken Base with 8 ounces of water and heat.

I told the girls about a story I heard during the Winter Olympic interviews with Shaun White.  They interviewed him at his private training area in the mountains where his commute was by helicopter.  We dubbed the snow-capped mountain we saw “Shaun White Mountain”.  We took our pictures with Shaun White Mountain in the background.  We laughed as we passed a sign to stay out of a creek with the warning “Certain Death if Entered”.

It sure looked calm when we ran by, but it must be very deceptive.  The volunteers, mostly dads and other family members were awesome and did an incredible job.  Between mile 5 and 6 we were treated with chocolate.  At this point, I was behind the girls a bit and the generous volunteers gave them an entire chocolate bar to bring to me for an added boost!

Our fan was waiting for us at the end with a sign he had made which was a fantastic way to end the run.  I am very proud of my girls.  They came out to Colorado with me for Mother’s Day when I asked them to join me in this race.  They made the whole experience one I will remember forever.  What a great family I have.

I made them pot roast and the first thing Juli said was that Gina (her sister-in-law and my cousin) told her to confirm the age of the meat with me prior to eating!  (see post January 15).  I was glad to know that Gina is an avid reader of my blog and assured Juli that I had cooked her the “good stuff” and it was meat from 2010.

Unfortunately for Juli, and I’ll feel terrible about this forever, I put onions in the pot roast and onions give her heart burn with the chemo.  She told me that she loves the flavor of the onions with the roast and would just push them to the side.  She even called me later and vowed to me that my pot roast didn’t make her sick.   Imagine that, Juli calling me to make me feel better with all she is dealing with daily–amazed me again!