This is the last full week of the Christmas season, and next week will be the last of it entirely.

As for last week's menu, we had a surprising fail. The burghul breakfast cake was all sorts of things we eat and like, but it didn't taste right. Amira said that it tasted like something that we should eat with chicken rather than as a breakfast cake. We kind of forced it down for that breakfast, but had enough of it left that I didn't want it to just go to the poultry, so we sliced it and fried in butter, which did improve it (and, surprisingly, made it taste sweeter) enough for us to finish it at lunch. There was a funny save, too. On Friday, as I made our Lenten muffins, we were on the fourth night of not really enough sleep, and I made them without a speck of sugar in them. So, I ended up having Jerome make a simple syrup, and we poked the muffins all over and soaked them with that. They were a little soggy, but tasted fine.

Nejat had a little Christmas party here for a few of her friends on Saturday, so we shifted our dinner plans to something a little simpler and more accessible to a gaggle of girls. I had also forgotten about an engagement we had on Friday when I planned the meal for that night, so we ate leftovers that night and will have it this week. We're still trying to cook down our freezers and pantries a bit. Rich had to go excavating in our chest freezer for a large chunk of beef for our dinner after church, and had Amira come and help him re-inventory it, so at least if he had to take everything out, we would know what was in there.

My experience with Misfits Markets was not as good as it should have been. Part of that was not their fault (except that they chose to use FedEx instead of UPS). FedEx delivered it to a neighbor's house, marked it as delivered at our door, and I had to go searching for it. The only reason we got our package that day (three and a half hours after it had been delivered, and was sitting on our neighbor's back step, with fish and shrimp in the package, starting to thaw) is because Rich has an inside connection with the local FedEx office through his work at the airport. I was given the option of going to get it from the neighbor myself, or waiting another five to seven hours, for the driver to finish his route and come retrieve it for me. With fish and shrimp in the box. Then, after I went to go get it, they simply marked it delivered again, as though everything was just fine. I filed a complaint about the shipping issue and also asked for a refund on the shrimp, which had begun to thaw, and shipping costs. This was Thursday around 1:00 pm. The company is based in UT, which is only an hour ahead of us. I did not receive anything but an automated reply all of the rest of Thursday and all of Friday. They also did not preserve my skipping of the next shipment for this week (because I was planning on ordering the following week), so if I had not checked today and cancelled it again (we'll see), I would have been charged automatically, and sent a shipment of their own selection. If I do not receive an answer from them tomorrow, with an offer to make the situation right, and/or if I am charged for this week's shipment (after cancelling it twice), I will be calling our credit card company to reverse charges and cancelling all my ties with their company. The shipping mistake was not their error, but how they have failed to respond most definitely is. At this point, I cannot recommend their company. I will update with how they answer or correct this situation.

With the price of eggs around here, and the fact that the cold and lack of daylight has slowed our chickens' production and we are only just starting to see eggs from the ducks again, I am again amazed at how God provides for us. One of our grocery stores in town has a particularly good used section for mark down items, and had three quarts of the pasteurized egg white marked down to $1.50. They aren't great on their own, but baked in other things they are perfectly fine. So, I bought them, and we are using them in breakfast casseroles and other such dishes, mixing them about 6:4 with our own eggs to improve their flavor and color. God is so good to our family. Those three quarts are the equivalent of the volume of 45 eggs, all for $4.50. So, my breakfasts this week reflect that purchase. Almost all of my grocery shopping last week was supplied by great sales and mark down items. In fact, even our two bags of clover sprouts were marked down by the produce man when I was having trouble finding them because they had been moved to a different area, as when he found them, he found that they were on the sell by date. We knew we would eat them before they degraded, so when he offered to mark them down, I accepted. I expected to see maybe a dollar off each bag, but he marked them a dollar each. I encourage you to look for the ways that God is providing for your family, and thank Him for it.

• Sunday
  Breakfast: Nacho Breakfast, Lefover Cranberry Pumpkin Bread, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Croatian Beef with Caper Salsa, Soparnik, Croatian Potatoes, Croatian Style Marinated Cucumbers, Bobići
• Monday
  Breakfast: Farmer Breakfast Casserole, Fruit Plate, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Fajitas, "Mexican" Rice Pilaf, Ranchero Beans, Pineapple Cups
• Tuesday - Feast of Saint Timothy
  Breakfast: 'Ijja, Bread, Fruit, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Croatian Dill Soup, Croutons, Kiflice
• Wednesday - Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul
  Breakfast: Apple Coconut Breakfast Bowls with Peanut Butter Drizzle, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Ta’ameya Plate with Yellow Rice, Sah'awiq, Taratoor, Salad, Dates
• Thursday
  Breakfast: Cheese and Vegetable Strata, Fruit Plate, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Puff Pastry Pepperoni and Pepper Pizza, Salad, Fruit Plate
• Friday
  Breakfast: Peanut Butter Toast, Sliced Apples, Tea with Honey
  Dinner: Shrimp with Summer Squash, Onion and Garlic, Rice Pilaf, Salad
• Saturday
  Breakfast: Cream Cheese Swirled Cherry and Mixed Berry Coffee Cake, Bacon, Milk and Coffee
  Dinner: Baked Shells with Ricotta and Best Meat Sauce Ever, Salad, Triple Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Cookies

What is on your menu this week? If you want a recipe, ask and I will provide it as soon as I can. If there are any starred recipes, I will follow up separately with a weekly recipe round up on Saturday.

Labels: Church Year, Family, Fed Ex, Governor Inslee Needs a Frozen Fish to the Forehead, Homemaking, Menu Plans, Tales from the Kitchen