Sure. I keep saying if I ever get time, I'm going to write a book about my own & the foster care animals I've had. If you have a 150 lb drooling dog that sheds hairballs the size of tumbleweeds, you better have a sense of humor about it. (grin) Linda

I realize this is getting a bit off the beaten track here but I thought it important enough to mention. Powdered cheese comes in real handy when canning isn't an option or for those of you who live off the grid and there are some sources where you can get the real deal without fillers like anti-caking agents. I know there are those who tout the USDA regs on canning dairy products. However, I have known personally several people who do. They do butter, hard cheeses, and soft cheeses like cream cheese and have had great success with no ill effects. Their method was NOT to use a pressure canner. In fact, they use a bath canner with the lid off. However, they make sure that the cans/contents are as hot as the water or close to it just before the tiny bubbles start in the water. Also, they make sure that the bands are snug enough as to allow no moisture to enter the jar. The cans are thoroughly sterilized in a dry hot oven. And last but not least the jars are NOT covered by the water. Concerning the butter, the butter is cooked until all liquid has been removed and nothing is left but the oils and solids. It is then skimmed till no white foam remains. Hard cheeses have a tendency to be a bit rubbery but flavorful. Cream cheese comes out beautifully. Years ago when my gram was a young housewife they would make farm cheese and their own butter and these were kept like the milk was in a cold well or in the ice house where the ice was packed with clean straw YEAR ROUND. Somehow they did it where spoilage was not an issue....and lived to tell the tale as well as raise up five sons and one daughter- my mom. But one must remember that milk was milk back then. Processing milk today over 200 degrees kills all the milk's enzymes. Why did pasteurization come about? It just so happened that a brewery was next to where the milk was delivered { I believe in Chicago way back when} for town/city consumption. Brewery's back then had major rat populations which over-flowed into the dairy "plant". Contamination ensued and because a few people died from that contamination pasteurization became a standard practice. Today we now drink "empty" milk with added vitamin D but the enzymes which allowed stomachs to digest the milk properly are all killed off....hence a lot of lactose intolerant people that the pharmaceutical companies and the government including the USDA take to the bank. It is the same with acid reflux. What AR isn't is an overabundance of acid. It is because the person isn't producing enough acid. Braggs cider vinegar with the mother handles that as well as Nexium but the USDA and pharm companies don't want you knowing that either. So do some heavy research [read Mark Trudeau's books} and use common sense and you may find answers you weren't expecting to find because there are those that don't want you to.

The potato bar worked out very well. I left shopping and prepping of the potatoes and other vegetables mainly to my son and husband so we had about twice as much as we needed for dinner. But that's okay - the leftovers will be used and some is disappearing in the snacking as they play. I started from an apple cider cheddar cheese fondue recipe for the cheese sauce (link below) but made some modifications. I got a hard dry cider for this partly because in my experience with grueyer fondue, the cheese melts better in an acid liquid. I also diced the cheese and tossed it with the flour because that helps keep the cheese from clumping. I added smoked paprika instead of chili powder. Cilantro butter was pretty easy to put together and added a nice touch to the flavor: Cilantro butter 3/4 cups firmly packed cilantro leaves 1 stick (1/4 cup) butter Pinch of salt Pinch of pepper Process in food processor until fully creamed. We had shredded parmesean and cheddar cheeses. Mild and hot salsa (the fresh stuff from the refrigerator section at the market Steamed broccoli and carrots, Diced green pepper and green onions Chana Masala (cilantro butter was really nice with this too) Yogurt and sour cream (separately - not mixed together Taco flavor smart ground Tortilla chips for grazing through the evening with the toppings or in case a potato hater wanted to have nachos instead. Here is a link that might be useful: Cheddar cider fondue

I've done this before. It worked well for me and I just microwaved it when I wanted to eat it. I froze it in individual servings sizes. (I did white sauce, not cheese sauce).