June 2004

Dear Friends,

Each month I’ll share a personal note with you telling you a little about what I am doing and what other FCH groups are doing. I’ll also share household tips, maybe a recipe or two, sewing tips, or some truths the Lord has laid on my heart. So I hope you’ll take a moment to pour yourself a cup of tea and let me share with you some of the wonderful things going on in Future Christian Homemakers.

Recently I made Swiss Steak (recipe below) with my FCH group. I have a multi-age class – and I love it! It’s so much more like a family. This year, the girls I teach range in age from 8 – 13. Okay, the 8 year old was 7 when she started, and she did just fine! This is her first year but her older sister has been in FCH four years now.

Each Spring, the girls and their parents decide if they want to sign up for FCH for the coming school year. They can stay in FCH as many years as they like. You know, we never learn everything there is to know about homemaking! If we made yeast bread one year, then the next year I might do a lesson on whole wheat bread, or yeast rolls, or cinnamon bread or rolls. One year we did bread sculpture in holiday shapes.

So, even if you have “done” a lesson on a topic, consider expanding it the following year. We rarely master skills the first time we do them. We need practice. Build confidence by giving the girls in your group many opportunities to practice a particular skill. They should eventually feel confident enough to teach it themselves; and one day they will do just that when they teach their own children!

Along the same lines, consider asking the girls to volunteer to be “Student Chef for the Day”. Let them demonstrate a simple recipe for your group. Be sure to ask them for the recipe ahead of time so you can purchase ingredients and copy the recipe for everyone.

I also encourage my girls to bring things from home they are sewing or working on. They enjoy showing their work to the group and telling a little about how they did it. And we all learn from each other.

Back to Swiss Steak. It’s easy to prepare and is a great way to introduce girls to the different cuts of beef (you can find a beef cuts chart at www.beef.org). As you mix the seasoned flour, it’s also a great opportunity to introduce girls to some basic herbs and spices.

Here’s the recipe:
Mix the seasoned flour: ½ C flour, ¼ t. onion powder, 1/8 t. garlic powder, ¼ t. thyme, ½ t. Italian seasoning, dash of pepper. Put the seasoned flour on a plate or shallow pan.

Dredge 1-2 pounds of round steak in the flour (cover it well with flour on both sides). Put 2-4T oil in a frying pan. Brown the meat on both sides over medium heat. Turn heat down to low.

Add 1 Cup tomato sauce and 1 Cup of water. You can use your favorite pasta sauce if you prefer. Cover and cook over low heat for 1 ½ hours or until fork tender. Serve with rice.

Brown the meat in a skillet and then cover it. If it is an oven-safe skillet, put it in the oven at 325 degrees for 1 ½ - 2 hours. Otherwise, transfer the browned meat and sauce to a casserole dish, cover, and bake. This is one of our favorite meals! It’s quick, easy and thrifty.

While the girls wait for the meat to cook, have them each write a complete menu with Swiss Steak as the entrée, and then write the grocery list to go with their menu.

I hope you will visit our site often. Next time: tips on using a free sanitizer!


Until next time ~

Yours in Him,

 

Copyright, 2005, Laurie Latour.  www.FutureChristianHomemakers.com

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