NEW YEAR'S RESOLUTIONS

2015: out with the old, in with the new!! It's a new year and for many that means new goals, new resolutions, new beginnings. Whether that means resolving to lose 10 lbs, save more for retirement, land that promotion, be a better parent, go on a mission trip, or whatever your goal may be, it's time for a fresh start! And we are excited about the new semester of 'Tis So Sweet. We have LOTS of great projects planned out for this semester, so be sure to check the blog for updates.

But before we dive in to 2015, let's take a look back at 2014 and see what all God blessed us with:

We gathered items for and assembled Ziploc "goody bags", which includes a personal encouraging note and plan of salvation, to keep in our cars and pass out to the needy when we come to an intersection and see that man holding the cardboard sign.

We assembled door prizes for the Move Your Feet Move the World 5K which helped raise over $6,000 for missions!

We prepared 200 snack bags for the Haiti team to take to the orphanage.

We partnered with Mrs. Carl Ann and the Joy Club ministry on a couple of occasions. For their fall Joy Club lunch, we provided "to-go gifts" which were jars of "Friendship Soup".

On a separate occasion, we ministered to our seniors by baking them sweet treats!

We also wanted to show our appreciation to the pastoral staff, so we gifted them with each of their "favorite things"

We held a church-wide canned food drive competition among the life groups. Overall, the church did really stepped up and did a fabulous job to help stock the shelves of The Grace Place's food pantry and help those in need during the Thanksgiving and Christmas season.

Brother Bob's class ended up winning the canned food drive competition and as a thank you for their hard work, we held a special dinner for them.

We took to the streets of downtown Birmingham and provided hot dog dinners to 200 homeless people, which included a hot dog with any desired toppings, a bag of chips, cookies, and a drink.

We saw the Lord work mightily in our church, growing the number of families who have come, yearning to serve. Off the top of my head I think of the Mears' (pictured above), the Wilson's, the Caffee's, the Gober's, the Gibson's, and many more!!

We added a couple new members to the 'Tis So Sweet clan and our church family this year!! Brody Cockrell (pictured above), Bristol Williams, Blake Pilkington, Mason Gober, and Lincoln McCartney

We also have had a lot of fun incorporating our new THEME NIGHTS into our cooking. We started out with "football food" (pictured above...too many Alabama fans...)

Had fun with HALLOWEEN NIGHT

And Mexican night, just to name a few...

Overall, I would definitely call 2014 a success. We have seen such growth in our life group, both in numbers and spiritually, and I am so thankful for the Lord's provision and guidance over this group of ladies. We are very much excited about and looking forward to 2015 and what the Lord has in store!!

So, to start out our 2015 semester, our first theme night was "New Year's Resolution" so we did health foods...or at least modified versions of our favorite foods.

Before we get to the food, though, I want to touch on the outreach project that we did for our first meeting. Three members of our church's original Haiti team were called upon to go back for a 9-day stint and finish the "cataloging" work that was started on the first trip back in the fall of 2014. You see, just because a child is considered an orphan, doesn't mean that he or she has the chance to be adopted, or cared for through a sponsorship system. There has to be a system in place and they have to be entered into such system. 

One objective that a ministry partner of the church's called The Haiti Collective (www.thehaiticollective.com) has is to collect and record personal, medical, and other information about these 200-300 orphans in Haiti so that they can have the chance to be sponsored. During the first Haiti trip, we only had enough time and resources to collect information on a small portion of the orphans while we were there. Mrs. Patty McCartney, and Ryan and Casey Bly, answered this call without hesitation when they were asked to return and finish the job. Check out more info on their trip here: http://www.flinthill.net/grow/a-heart-for-haiti/

We wanted to help in any way possible, so we equipped the team with snacks for the 200 children once again:

The ladies getting to work in preparing snack mix (consisting of wheat chex cereal, cheez it's, pretzels, and granola) in 200 snack bags for the children

L to R: Belinda, Alison, Brandi, Holly, and Lindsey

L to R: Michelle, Casey, and Julie

Laura & Shelly

Special thanks to all these pretty ladies for helping meet the needs of the Haiti team

L to R: Julie, Michelle, Lori, Audra, Lindsey, Holly, Brandi, Laura (hiding behind Brandi's head...sorry!!), Shelly, Alison, Belinda

Does all that work make you hungry? Me too! Let's check out the healthy, yet delicious, recipes of the week!!

ENCHILADA CASSEROLE

Contributed by: Alison

1 lb ground turkey (or beef)
1 medium onion, diced
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tbsp chili powder
1 8-oz can tomato sauce
4 flour tortillas
2 tbsp light spreadable butter
1 4-oz can sliced olives, drained
1 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
1/2 cup water

Preheat oven to 400F. Brown turkey and onion in a large saucepan. Drain any grease and add pepper, chili powder and tomato sauce. Lightly spread tortillas with the spreadable butter and cut into fourths. Spray a casserole dish with cooking spray. Alternate laying tortillas (butter side down) in the casserole dish, then a layer of meat sauce, then a layer of olives and then finally a layer of cheese. Repeat the layers three times. Slice up and serve with sour cream, lettuce, cilantro, tomato, etc. Enjoy!

VEGETABLE STIR-FRY OVER RICE

Contributed by: Shelly

1 pkg wild rice
2 tbsp olive oil
1 red bell pepper, sliced into 1 in. pieces
1 green bell pepper, sliced into 1 in. pieces
1 onion, sliced into 1 in. pieces
1 cup broccoli, chopped
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
Sesame oil to taste (approx. 1 tbsp total)

Cook rice according to package. While rice is cooking, heat olive oil in saute pan on medium to medium-high heat. Add peppers, onion, broccoli and mushrooms to saute pan along with a few drops of sesame oil and cook for approx. 5-7 minutes then set aside. Drain rice when done cooking, add 1 tbsp olive oil and 2-3 drops sesame oil and saute for approx. 5 minutes. Place in a large bowl and serve with sauteed vegetables on top.

CROCKPOT SWEET POTATO & CARROT SOUP WITH GOAT CHEESE CROSTINIS

Contributed by: Mallory

SOUP:
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes

2 cups baby carrots (almost 1 lb)

1 small onion, chopped

3/4 tsp curry powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground ginger

4 cups chicken broth

1 tbsp maple syrup

3/4 cup cream

Place potatoes, carrots, onion, curry powder, salt, pepper, cinnamon and ginger in a greased crock pot. Add chicken broth and stir. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Puree soup in a blender or food processor a few cups at a time or use an immersion blender. Stir in maple syrup and cream. Serve warm.

CROSTINIS:

1 baguette, sliced into 16 rounds
12 oz goat cheese
2 tbsp whipped cream cheese
1 head of roasted garlic
4 ears of grilled corn, cut from the cob (I used canned and it was just fine...)
1 pint of grape tomatoes, quartered
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp olive oil
Dash of balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped

Preheat oven to 375F. Place bread slices on a baking sheet and bake until golden, about 10-12 mins. Remove and let cool slightly. While bread is baking, add goat cheese, cream cheese and garlic to the bowl of your food processor and blend until creamy. Toss tomatoes, corn, and basil with salt, pepper, olive oil, and balsamic. To prep crostini, spread each slice with goat cheese mixture then to pwith a handful of tomatoes, corn and basil.

APPLE BREAD

Contributed by: Audra's sweet mama

[RECIPE TO COME... STAY TUNED]


APPLE COOKIES

Contributed by: Lindsey

Apples
Peanut butter
Semi sweet chocolate chips
Granola
Chopped walnuts

Core and slice apples (using a mandolin is easiest way to get even slices). Spread peanut butter on top of apple slices and sprinkle remaining ingredients on top.


BREAKFAST MUFFINS
Contributed by: Lori

Hungry Jack biscuit mix (PLUS additional ingredients required on box to make biscuit recipe)

1 egg per "muffin"

Sharp cheddar cheese to taste

Turkey bacon, cooked and chopped into pieces

Preheat oven to 375F. Make biscuit batter according to package directions. Incorporate bacon pieces and cheese into the batter. Fill muffin tins 3/4 full with batter, then crack 1 egg on top of each muffin. Bake at 375F for 20 minutes or until egg is cooked and muffins are golden brown.

STRAWBERRIES AND CREAM
Contributed by: Belinda

[RECIPE TO COME... STAY TUNED]


DIET SUNKIST CAKE
Contributed by: Holly

1 box yellow cake mix
2 egg whites
12 oz Diet Sunkist
Orange food coloring (optional)
8 oz Lite Cool Whip, thawed

Preheat oven to 350F. Whisk together cake mix, egg whites, Diet Sunkist and a couple of drops of orange food coloring. Pour cake into a greased 9x13" pan, and bake for 30 minutes. Cool cake completely and top with Cool Whip.


CHICKEN SALAD
Contributed by: Brandi

2 - 10 oz cans chicken chunks, drained (or fresh... great way to use leftover chicken pieces!)
1 cup seedless red grapes, halved
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup finely chopped celery
1/3 cup dried cranberries (craisins)
3/4 cup mayonnaise
Juice from 1/2 lemon
Dash of garlic salt
Crackers

Mix together all ingredients and serve chilled with crackers.

BRAN FLAX MUFFINS

Contributed by: Michelle

NOTE: recipe makes 15 muffins. Adjust measurements accordingly.

1 1/2 cups unbleached white flour

3/4 cup Flaxseed meal

3/4 cup oat bran

1 cup brown sugar

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 cup skim milk

2 eggs, beaten

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups shredded carrots

2 apples, peeled, shredded

1/2 cup raisins

1 cup chopped nuts of your choice

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease muffin pan or line with paper muffin liners. In a large bowl, mix together flour, flax seed, oat bran, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Add the milk, eggs, and vanilla; mix until just blended. Stir in the carrots, apples, raisins and nuts. Fill prepared muffin cups 3/4 full with batter. Bake at 350F for 15-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.

QUINOA SALAD

Contributed by: Julie

1 cup cooked quinoa

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1 cucumber, chopped

1/2 cup feta

1/2 cup olives

1 tbsp olive oil

2-3 tbsp lemon juice to taste

Mix all ingredients together and serve chilled.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tonight, I leave you with two things:

1. This awesome picture of my parents who recently celebrated 42 years of marriage!

2. The Word of God

"Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." Psalm 37:4

Father, thank you for your Holy Spirit that lives within me. Help me to delight in you. To find true peace and fulfillment in you and you alone, and not in the things of this world. Lord, I long to find my satisfaction and worth in Christ alone as your word commands. So help me to fix my eyes you instead of temporary things. In Your Name, Amen.