Category: Hacking This Life

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Summer Winds Down

For some reason, even though it has been hot, I have been in the kitchen and I have several recipes to share with you (it might be my air conditioning) . I also have some uses for vinegar that are timely, a new hobby, a product review, and things for our furry friends. So once again a mixed bag of hacks for you!

Recipes

Lemon Blueberry Bread with Lemon Glaze (Karen Beth, this is for you) *livewellbakeoften.com

  • 2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup (120 ml) oil coconut, vegetable, or canola
  • 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
  • 1 cup (230 grams) sour cream or plain Greek yogurt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) fresh lemon juice
  • Zest of 1 lemon
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 cup (150 grams) blueberries + 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour

Lemon Glaze:

  • 1 cup (120 grams) confectioners sugar
  • 2 tablespoons (30 ml) fresh lemon juice use more or less as needed
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9×5 loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  • In a separate bowl, mix together the oil, sugar, sour cream, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest, and vanilla extract until fully combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until just combined.
  • In a separate bowl, toss the blueberries with the 2 teaspoons of flour. Then, fold the blueberries into the batter.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If needed, cover loosely with foil for the last 10-15 minutes of baking to prevent excess browning.
  • Remove from the oven and allow to cool for about 20 minutes in the loaf pan. Carefully remove from the loaf pan and transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To make the glaze:

  • Once the bread has cooled, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and lemon juice. Start with two tablespoons of lemon juice and whisk well. If your mixture is too thick, slowly add up to one more tablespoon of lemon juice. You want the glaze to be thin enough to drizzle, but thick enough to set up on the bread. If the glaze is too thin, add more powdered sugar as needed.
  • Using a spoon, drizzle the glaze on top of the bread and spread it around. The glaze should harden up a little more after about 15-20 minutes.

I used parchment paper to line the baking pan and it worked wonderfully. To call this a bread gives it very little credit. It is almost a dessert. I relish it with a cup of hot Earl Grey tea!

Mediterranean Red Lentil Soup *connoiseurusveg.com

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tablespoon ground cumin
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1 1/2 cups dried red lentils
  • 5 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 (14 ounce) can diced tomatoes
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice, or to taste
  • Harissa paste, to taste (optional)
  • Fresh chopped cilantro or parsley, for serving
  1. Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, about 5 minutes.
  2. Add the garlic, cumin and coriander, and sauté for another minute, until the garlic becomes very fragrant.
  3. Stir in the lentils, broth and tomatoes. 
  4. Bring the liquid to a boil, lower the heat to a simmer, and allow to continue simmering, uncovered, until lentils are soft, about 20 minutes. Thin the soup with some water if it becomes too thick while simmering.
  5. Stir in the lemon juice and harissa (if using). Season the soup with salt and pepper to taste.
  6. Ladle into bowls and top with parsley and/or cilantro.

This soup is deliciouso! It was better the second and third reheating than the first. You should definitely try this one!

Crunchy Broccoli Salad *mamamanagement.blogspot.com

2 pkg uncooked ramen noodles
2.5 oz sliced almonds (or just a big handful)
3/4 c. sunflower seeds
1/2 c. finely chopped onion (whatever kind you have)
1 bag broccoli slaw
2 ramen noodle seasoning packets
3/4 c. oil (use what you like; I used canola oil)
1/2 c. white vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
optional chopped grilled chicken

Combine the first 5 ingredients in large bowl. In separate bowl, combine the next 4 ingredients, mixing well with a whisk until sugar completely dissolves. (Note: I went a little light on the oil and sugar measurements; also note: you could use a little sesame oil as part of your total oil measurement.) Pour over noodle mix. Top with chicken, if desired (I kept mine all veggie). Mix to combine. Refrigerate 1-4 hours depending on how crunchy vs. soft you like the noodles. Mix again before serving. Enjoy!

When I made my salad I did not put the almonds or sunflower seeds in since I don’t like that sort of thing in my salads. It was never the less delicious and I had requests for the recipe at the pot luck dinner I took it to. I also didn’t add chicken as there were some vegetarians in attendance at dinner and I wanted it to be an option for them. I chilled the salad for about an hour before serving. It was crunchy and tasty. The next day since I had a little left over I had it for lunch. It was also just as tasty but with a different mouth feel. End result is that I liked it both ways. You want it more crunchy chill it less before serving.

Quick Pickle

I had some green beans that I bought at the Farmer’s Market and I wanted to try something different so I pickled them. They turned out great and I would recommend you giving it a try. You can pickle anything using this recipe.

Fill a pint jar with 1/2 pound green beans, 4 sprigs of dill and 1 Tbsp of black peppercorns.

In a small saucepan place the following ingredients;

3/4 c. distilled white vinegar 1/2 c. water 1 Tbsp kosher salt 1 Tbsp sugar 1 1/2 tsp mustard seeds 1 1/2 tsp coriander seeds 1 glove of garlic thinly sliced

Bring the contents of the pan to a boil. Lower the heat and gently simmer for about 5 minutes. While still hot pour over the green beans and seansonings you placed in the jar. Let cool for at least 10 minutes and place in the refrigerator.

New Hobby

I recently discovered book folding. It is a lot of fun. The end results make nice decor and great gifts. Once you get started on a pattern it is hard to stop because you want to see the project completed.

Book folding, for those who have never heard of it, is following a pattern to create images or words in a book by folding the pages. The patterns are usually in centimeters so you need a ruler that has centimeters to complete the project. The patterns tell you how many pages in a book you need and what the measurements on each page are. For each page you make two measurements and two folds at right angles to those measurements.

My first project was a free pattern for a heart. When it was completed I covered the book with red tissue paper and used red ribbon to further enhance it.

For my next project I chose to do a starfish. I purchased the pattern on Etsy for a little over $4. I have finished folding and I delicately brushed some light brown eye-shadow on the folded pages with a brush. I am going to pick up some sandpaper to cover the book with and I have a couple of small shells to further embellish the project with. Below is a picture of it so far.

Product Review

I am including this for my fellow back sleepers. The last few years I have found sleeping on my back to be the most comfortable. Usually, (like always) I have put pillows under my knees. This is a pain since the pillows shift and ruin my sleeping mojo! I began doing some research on knee pillows. Many of them are for side sleepers so for those of you who sleep on your side they are out there. I did find one for back sleepers and it is wonderful! I found it on Amazon for less than $40. I had two $10 gift cards for Amazon that I earned through using the Honey app for shopping ( https://www.joinhoney.com/feed ). So, basically, I stole the knee pillow for under $20! Love that! It is super comfortable, never slips or slides and I would highly recommend it to others. https://www.amazon.com/Ebung-The-Best/dp/B07KFPQTM8/ref=sr_1_6?crid=3K4WNLGJAWB2W&keywords=knee+pillow+for+back+pain&qid=1565964555&s=gateway&sprefix=knee+pillow%2Caps%2C353&sr=8-6

Hacks

*Vinegar is a handy thing to have around your house. I have a difficult time with some weeds growing between the blocks of sidewalk in front of my steps. I pull them but can’t get all of it. I really don’t want to use pesticides. Some white vinegar takes care of them really well. I might have to do it twice a summer but it is so easy and effective. Just pour some in the weedy area and wait a day or so………………gone!

*Vinegar is also good for getting rid of fruit flies. Just put some apple cider vinegar in a dish. Mix a drop of dish soap with it and cover with plastic wrap. Use a utensil to poke holes in the plastic wrap. The fruit flies are attracted to the vinegar and then can’t get out of the trap!

*I recently found pads that can be washed to use in your crisper tray. They make your fruit and vegetables last longer and keep the tray cleaner. I have liked them so far. I bought a pack of 4 at TJMaxx for under $5.

Dog Things

*If you own a dog and want to travel with your pet there’s an app for that! The bringfido app tells you the pet friendly establishments where you will be traveling. A friend used this on her last trip and found it very helpful!

*I recently read about and then made a great chew toy for my puppy. She absolutely loves it! You simply take an empty water bottle (soda bottles won’t work because they are thicker and don’t make that crinkly sound) and a sock. Put the empty water bottle in the sock and tie it shut. Right there is hours of entertainment for your pooch.

*If you walk your dog and like to stop here and there I would recommend putting a caribiner on your leash handle. If you need to stop to tie your shoe or for any reason you can use the caribiner to hook the leash (and the dog) to something so your hands are free and Fido is safe.

*If you have a puppy or kitten that likes to chew or bite things then vinegar is your friend here too. If you mix 2 cups of cider vinegar and one cup of white vinegar in a spray bottle you can spray electrical cords or whatever you need with this. It is a deterrent for them since they don’t like the taste or smell.

*Just as a last little note for pets………….remember to put your hand on the sidewalks on these hot days. If it is very hot to your hand it is hot for Fido too. Then you can walk them on the grass instead.

Enjoy the rest of your summer. I hope it is great! I already have a list started for life hacking in my next post. See you in September!!!!

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It Is The Fair Week

My building is all set up and looks stupendous, even if I do say so myself. Many little fires were put out over entry and judging weekend and even into opening day. However, the fact they were able to be put out and issues were resolved is wonderful. I have a few moments to make my new post for July so here we go……………….

Projects

Thanks to my friend, Sue Y. , I found a chest of drawers to complete a project that I have had in mind for quite awhile. It was missing one drawer but that was not essential for what I had in mind. I bought two cans of a summery coral spray paint some plants and 4 window box planters.

  1. spray paint the chest and drawers
  2. have son move chest to porch (that was hardest part. I know you moms feel me on this)
  3. move drawers to porch
  4. put drainage in the flower boxes
  5. put soil and plants in to flower boxes
  6. insert boxes into draws
  7. decorate appropriately

A side-note, I had to replant the bottom draw with light pink petunias since the flowers I had there apparently needed more sun than they were getting on the porch.

Thanks to another friend, Karen, I am supplied with burlap coffee bean sacks. I have made a couple of tote bags but then got distracted making table runners. Below are a couple of samples of them.

First I cut the bags open on both sides. If I wanted a long table runner, as in pictures 2 and 3, I would use the whole length of the cut bag. If I needed a short table runner, as in picture 1, I just used the front half of the burlap bag. The next step is to fray the edges. I frayed them more on each end and just a little on the sides. Finally, to keep them from fraying more with use, I stitched around the complete circumference of the piece.

If you have something made of burlap here are the washing instructions;

https://www.wikihow.com/Wash-Burlap

Product Alert

I just have to share a product I have recently discovered. It is a anti-chafing stick. Any parts that may rub together (insert thighs here) will not become irritated when you use this item. Of course, it won’t be useful to everyone but there are those of us that it will be of great benefit. They even make a version for men. There are other brands too. My favorite name is Chub Rub (lol).

Let’s Hack That

Let’s discuss a few uses for a household staple………………butter.

Rub a little on the top of your cat’s paws to keep him or her occupied if you need them to stay away from a visitor or whatever.

Is your ring stuck on your finger? Rub a little on your finger and it will slide right off!

If you have a hard time swallowing pills you can put a light coating of butter on your pill and it will easily go down!

Butter will also dislodge gum from hair.

Of course, one of the most popular uses is to put a light coating on your fingers when working with dough or the like. My favorite is to use it when making Rice Krispie treats.

Recipes

My grandmother who passed away in 1967 would make this fudge and my own mother passed the recipe on to me. It holds great memories for me and it a really great recipe.

Peanut Butter Fudge

1 and 1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup white sugar

1 cup milk

2 dabs of butter the size of a walnut (don’t you love the old fashioned directions)

heaping tablespoon of peanut butter

Cook all ingredients except peanut butter to a boil in a saucepan. Stir continuously while the fudge boils to keep from burning it. Keep a small bowl of cold water near you and drip a bit of the fudge in it to test for done-ness. If it is able to be rolled into a ball then it is done. I would check after boiling for 3 minutes or so and see how it is (my grandmother didn’t use a candy thermometer). You will probably have to cook a little longer but you don’t want it too done. When you are able to form a ball in the water then remove from the stove. Add the peanut butter and beat with a spoon until thick then spread onto a buttered plate and spread out. Allow to cool and cut to serve.

I will see you next month! Here’s hoping you found something of value for you. Let me know if you try the fudge. I think I am going to do just that tonight! Happy July to you all!

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“Whatsamacallit” Posting

This past month has been a weird, long and crooked trail. I don’t have my usual post for you but I do have some hacks and interesting things to share. Hope you find something new and useful.

The creamer containers like Coffeemate or International Delight are very useful. You can use them as snack for the little ones in the car/stroller or dog treat containers when you’re on the go or even at home. They are super handy. You can just sort of shake out the amount you want and the items stay fresh in the sealed container.

I recently read about and then found, in the Google Play Store, an app to identify plants. (itunes will have it as well.) If you’re like me, you sometimes see a plant, tree, bush and wonder what it is.

I have lived in my house for nearly 37 years and wondered what the fragrant bushes in my yard were (2 have died due to runners from a butternut tree which is not mine, GRRRR). Thankfully, Garden Tags, was able to help me. I now know it is jasmine and I am thrilled to know it! I always like colognes and other products with jasmine so it stands to reason I have always loved this smell.

To use Garden Tags you just sign in using Google, Facebook or create your own username and password. Then snap a picture of the item you want to identify and Garden Tags will search its encyclopedia and give you the results. You will LOVE this!

It probably won’t surprise any of you that I collect things. Many things! One of my collections is vintage sewing items. I am always looking for unique ways to display my collections. My vignettes or displays are ever changing as I have too much to have all of it out at once. I snapped a picture of my most recent switch up for you to see. It makes me smile as I pass by.

When I was a kid, sewing Barbie clothes was a thing! My Aunt Edith used to do it and I treasure the vintage Barbie pattern I found at a sale.

Have you ever heard of the Meyer Briggs Personality Test? I had but also had long forgotten about it. My son, Josh, brought it to my attention recently and I answered the questions. They take about 10 to 15 minutes and it really is very interesting. My results were ESFJ. So if you check it out, you can also find out all about me. I felt it was basically accurate. My son thought it nailed me completely. It is just kind of a hoot to check it out. I am sharing a link to a site to take the assessment for free.

https://www.16personalities.com/free-personality-test

Starting with Memorial Day and going through to the 4th of July I decorate here and there with flags and red, white and blue. My mailbox got the treatment for the holidays. I used deco mesh that was 6 inches wide. I should have probably used the 10 inch wide and it would have taken less time to complete. I used a wire tree form that I had hanging around and 2 rolls of each color deco mesh to accomplish this craft.

First I cut the deco mesh into 12 inch pieces using my new rotary cutter and a cutting mat I found a long time ago at a sale but had never used. It works so well that I will always use these tools. It is so much easier to get the job done!

After cutting the pieces I attached them to the form using zip ties. (I love zip ties!!!) I have also seen where you can use pipe cleaners but I find them difficult to use. That might not be the case for you.

Here is the finished project and my new favorite cutting set up.

For many years when I had to replace a screen I have struggled getting the it done while using a screw driver or butter knife to do the job. As always, having the proper tools is everything. I bought a new tool to use and it worked so slick that I was embarrassed that I never had one before. It was akin to when the cavemen rubbed two sticks together and made fire! Mind blown. Below is a link that I watched so I would know exactly how to use my new tool. YouTube is a wonderful thing!

Since I lasted posted I went to a second hand store called Savers. I always go for the dishes, small furniture items, etc. During my last visit I found a little chest with drawers that was homemade (have I ever told you how I love drawers?!) and couldn’t leave without it. It was priced $6.99 and it was a sale day so the end price was near $4. It was painted a rustic red color but I wanted to use it in my bedroom which has more Florida colors. I bought chalk paint in Lagoon and below you can see the before and after pictures.

Before.
I use it for my cosmetics. There is a drawer for each type: brow liners, eyeliners, mascara, blush, foundation, primer and concealer and finally tools.
No judging! I told you that I am a collector!

Experts say that the best day to gas up at the gas station is a Monday. The energy trading markets that determine gas prices are closed over the weekend, so stations don’t typically hike prices until the middle or end of the week. Good to know!

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I Think Winter Has Said Goodbye

Yes, it’s true. I think Winter has left us. I know this for sure because my only grand daughter put the first brush out by the curb for pick up. The yard looks clean again. As I am typing the sun is out and people are busy all around me doing yard work.

It has been awhile since my last post. Life has a way of getting in the WAY! Also, I have to collect enough tips, hacks, recipes, etc. to write a decent post. As always, I hope you find something of interest and please leave comments. I absolutely love them! By the way, you can leave hacks in the comments that you would like to share. That would be very cool!

Project:

My cousin and I got together to make a spring decoration for our mailboxes. It was a lot of fun and the project turned out great. We watched a video on YouTube that guided us through. Here is the link to the video we followed. We changed the colors to go with a Spring theme but otherwise it is the same.
https://misskopykat.blogspot.com/2014/12/curly-deco-mesh-mailbox-topper.html

I used a bungee cord to hold the mailbox topper secure and hid the cord with the ribbon. My mail-woman was very impressed!

One of the things I have picked back up after many years is my grocery list template. I created a new one to suit my needs at this time. In my mind I went through each room in the house and wrote down every item that I need to purchase regularly, semi-regularly or occasionally. I ran several copies so that I would have them on hand. When I run out of an item at home I just circle or highlight it on the list and viola(!) I have my shopping list for the store! Below is a screen shot of most of my list.

Here are some hacks to check out:

  • When brushing your teeth, turn off the water. Only run it to wet your brush and to rinse your mouth. It saves up to five gallons a day.
  • Need a quick neck pillow or heating pad to ease tension and or soreness? Fill a long sock with 2 cups of rice and microwave for 30 seconds. When I was visiting my son once my shoulder was so sore and we made one of these and it was fast, easy and best of all really helped. If you have some essential oil on hand you could add a few drops to the rice for a soothing aroma.
  • If you need a dry Swiffer pad and are out of them, you can always use and old sock to whisk up the dust from the floor. As a matter of fact, I save old socks for this and for regular dusting. They work great!
  • If you have coats you are no longer using and want to donate them there’s a website for that. The website will tell you where, near you (by entering your zip-code) there is a location that will accept and distribute donated coats. Just go to onewarmcoat.org
  • Did you know that if you use PayPal to pay for something online that you can enjoy free return shipping courtesy of PayPal? Yep! Just select PayPal at checkout if it is offered.
  • If you’re like me your mind races at bedtime with things that you need to do tomorrow. Start a ritual at bedtime of writing down all the things you have to do the next day so that you can relax and sleep without worrying. I have done this for years and it really helps!
  • Here are a couple of ideas for soup cans (or any tin can). You can decorate an unopened can with paint, lace, patterned paper, or virtually anything you want that you can make adhere to the can. Then pop your cake, pie or appetizer plate on top. There you have a display for your delicious treat! You can also make a tiny cake with an empty, clean, BPA-free tin can. Spray with cooking spray and dust with flour. Pour in you batter (about 2/3 of the can) and bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes. This works for bread too.

Recipes:

Cast Iron Skillet Cookie

This was a recipe from http://hipfoodiemom.com

It says to use a 9 to 10 inch skillet. I have made it twice and once with an 8 inch skillet and once with a 10. The 8 inch one definitely turned out the best and came out of the pan very easily. The 10 inch cookie wouldn’t come out of the pan easily and was too thin. It might have been my error but I am sticking with the smaller pan anyway. I have switched it up and used the variety pack of chips which has peanut butter, vanilla and semi-sweet in the bag and it was awesome. My one grandson said this is what he wants for his birthday treat this year because he was so impressed!

Before going in the oven.
Immediately after removing from the oven.

Pizza Lasagna

I made lasagna with a pizza twist! It was received well at dinner that night. I still used the ricotta and mozzarella cheeses but instead of the traditional meat filling I used pepperoni. I also substituted pizza sauce for the marinara. It was really great for a change. You could do a Mexican spin on it with tortillas, maybe enchilada sauce and some cheddar cheese. Live on the edge people!

I hope that you enjoyed reading this and thank you for waiting patiently while I slayed some dragons and stormed a couple of castles in my life. I will see you soon!

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Spring Forward

Yes, this is the weekend we set our clocks one hour forward. It is a sure sign Spring is coming! Well, unless you look outside and see the snow or glance at your outdoor thermometer. Then you might have some doubts. However, let’s remain ever hopeful that we will get there.

I haven’t posted over 6 weeks and have amassed some gems to pass along to you. Hopefully some will be of use or inspire you to take things in your own direction.

In January we celebrated 4 birthdays at once. My daughter, Melanie, has a birthday on the third. My twin sons’ birthday is the 25 and my dear friend Linda celebrates on the 26th. We all got together on the 26th and each person had their own special treat.

Linda always chooses Rice Krispie treats and I think we all know how to make them. Melanie chooses angel food cakes. Yes, plural. I made 2 (but she wanted 3 so she would have plenty of leftovers). I use a mix for the cakes but she likes her Grandma’s cooked icing to top them. I always have trouble with the icing. It is either lumpy or too runny or something. It always tastes good but I find it hard to get the texture right.

Josh chose a baked New York style cheese cake and I tried a new recipe this year that I was very happy with. Jacob chose an oreo pie and I was pleased with that as well. I will share both recipes with you and the cooked icing recipe that I have pretty much gotten the way I want it to be.

I also make a meatloaf with an Italian flair for dinner one evening and that was a crowd pleaser that I will definitely make again. It is always fun to try something new and have it work out.

I will admit though to some failures. Yesterday I had some extra apples I needed to use up so I looked up a recipe for Apple Pan Dowdy and gave it a whirl. AWFUL! I am not sure what I did wrong. You make a syrup to pour over the apples and biscuit dough. It has 1 teaspoon of white vinegar in it. I am not sure what I did wrong but all I could taste was that vinegar when I tried the dessert. It looked beautiful but…………………………. All I can figure out is that I may not have cooked the syrup long entough to kind of cook out the vinegar. I’m not sure but maybe someday I will try it again to see if I will have a better result.

Recipes

Oreo Pie
(Kittencalrecipezazz)

  1. Crush Oreo cookies; set 1/4 cup aside for topping.
  2. Mix the remaining crushed cookies with the melted butter.
  3. Press into the bottom of a greased 13 x 9-in baking pan.
  4. In a bowl, beat the cream cheese with the confectioners sugar on medium speed.
  5. Fold in half of the Cool Whip topping.
  6. Spread over cookie crumb layer.
  7. Refrigerate 1/2 hour.
  8. In the meantime, combine milk with instant pudding mix; beat well, until smooth.
  9. Pour over chilled mixture in the pan.
  10. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
  11. Spread remainder of Cool Whip topping on top of pudding layer.
  12. Sprinkle with remaining reserved cookie crumbs.
  13. Store cake in the refrigerator, covered tightly.

I used a pre-made cookie crust to save time since I was making 4 different desserts for the party. Since this is enough for a 13 x 9 pan it made a sky high pie which was great!

Cheesecake

(from Life, Love and Sugar)

CRUST:

  • 1 1/4 cups nilla wafers
  • 5 tbsp butter
  • 5 tbsp sugar

FILLING:

  • 3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 tbsp all purpose flour
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

CRUST:

1. Heat oven to 325 degrees.2. In a small bowl, combine crust ingredients and mix well. Remove any large pieces of nilla wafer. They will make it hard to press crust into pan.3. Press mixture into the bottom and up the sides of a 9-inch springform pan.4. Bake crust for 10 minutes then remove and set aside.

FILLING:

1. Reduce oven to 300 degrees.2. In a large bowl, blend the cream cheese, sugar and flour with an electric mixer (Use low speed to keep less air from getting into the batter, which can cause cracks).3. Add the sour cream, eggs and vanilla extract. Beat until well combined.4. Pour the filling into the pan with the crust. Drop onto the counter a few times to release any air bubbles.5. Bake for 1 hour. Turn off heat and leave in oven with door closed for 30 minutes or until set.6. Remove from oven and chill.

I couldn’t have asked for a better cheesecake. It turned out perfectly! This is definitely in the dessert rotation for my celebrations!

Cooked Icing(The Pioneer Woman)

1 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup butter (at room temperature) 1 cup granulated sugar (not powdered)

  1. In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. It took me around 5 minutes. Be careful not to burn it. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. You can place the saucepan over ice in the sink for about 10 minutes or so until the mixture cools if you are in a hurry. Stir in vanilla. This mixture must be completely cooled in order for the frosting to work.
  2. While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Then add the cooled milk/flour/vanilla mixture and beat until it all combines and resembles whipped cream. Make sure you scrape down the sides every so often so that it all gets incorporated and whipped. If it’s not looking like whipped cream, keep on whipping. This frosting is great for piping. Best served the same day.

Italian Meatloaf

Rather than a strict recipe this was an adaptation of an ordinary meatloaf where you use ground beef, eggs, bread or cracker crumbs, seasonings and a catsup or tomato based topping.

For this version I used the usual ground beef and eggs but switched the bread crumbs to Italian seasoned crumbs and used mozzarella cheese as well. In addition to the salt and pepper that I would normally used I added Italian seasoning. Finally, for the topping I used marinara and sprinkled mozzarella on top as well.

Since I made this I was thinking that you could do a Mexican take on a meatloaf too using a taco blend of cheeses and use a food processor to get Doritos or tortilla chips to the right consistency for use instead of bread crumbs. The topping could be a salsa type with more of the cheese. This is next up for me!

Recent Projects

My cousin, Linda, and I have been getting together to do some crafting. In addition to it being a lot of fun to make something with someone you enjoy and to visit (ok and laugh) we also end up with some nice creations. Our Winter creation was a styling snowman.

We needed two foam wreath forms. We used a 8 inch and a 12 inch. In addition we had white ribbon, ribbon of another color to create the stripes on your snowman, black felt, a liter pop bottle, posterboard, bling for your hat, an item of your choice to use as a scarf ( I used burlap ribbon) and fishing line.

The first step is to completely cover the wreath forms with the white ribbon. We used 3 rolls of ribbon that we bought from the discount bin at Joann Fabrics. Once the forms are covered you create the stripes on the snowman with the second color of ribbon. We used hot glue to secure the ribbon sporadically so that we didn’t have an untangling! Once both wreath forms were done we attached the two using clear fishing line.

Next it was time to create the hat. We used a one liter soda bottle that we cut the top and bottom off of. Using the hot glue we covered it with the black felt. Using a piece of posterboard we cut a circle large enough to fit over the end of the plastic bottle and then covered it with black felt as well. To complete the hat you just need to add your bling. We then hot glued the hat to the smaller wreath at a jaunty angle. He is a dapper little guy!

Using the fishing line we made a loop to hang our snowman and then finally created a scarf which we tied between the two wreath forms. This covered the fishing line which holds the two together.

Picture Frame Lantern

You will need 4 frames in the size of your choice. I bought 5″ x 7″ frames from Dollar Tree where everything really is $1. Hot glue is required as well.

I took the backs off the frames and broke of the little tabs that keep the backs anchored. I then used the hot glue gun to glue the four frames together forming a square. Viola!

I bought a mirror candle tray at Walmart for $2.97 to sit the lantern on which is not pictured with the lantern. All together the project cost $6.97 plus tax.

This and That

I have 3 vintage menus from local restaurants that have memories for me. These were found at household sales. I have been trying to figure out how and where to display them. I finally decided to put them on clipboards and hang them in my stairway. I feel like it worked out well.

Tip

This tip comes courtesy of a longtime friend, Carrie. If you want to get the wrinkles out of an item of clothing you can just pop it in the dryer with a couple of ice cubes and you have unwrinkled clothing. I have always used a damp washcloth to un-wrinkle clothing but I like the ice cube method. Mind blown!

I will see you next month. I already have a few ideas for my next post! Set your clocks ahead and enjoy the longer daylight hours!

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Snowed In

I’m BACK! I hope you missed me.

It has been a busy few weeks. Of course, we had the holidays with all the decorating, wrapping, baking and undecorating, and then I had a family birthday (with two more yet to come this month). However, the biggy was I had knew floors installed in my living room and dining room. The whole operation took a week plus a day. The dogs and I were relegated to the upstairs (luckily where the bathroom is). Also, luckily, my stairway goes into the kitchen and into the foyer so I was able to cook (kind of) and get out to walk the dogs and escape the noise and smell (frequently).

My house is sort of back together. I still have pictures and assorted odds and ends to put up on the walls. While putting it back together I did a little redecorating and moving of things. That part is fun and it is nice to look at things in a different way.

As my title would suggest we are having some snow and it is a perfect opportunity to stay in my nightgown (I never miss a chance at that) and putz around the house and blab some to you! The last few weeks have given me some material to share with you.

Tips and Tricks

  • I read that you can freeze eggs if you have an overabundance and use them later in recipes and for scrambling. Quite often the grocery stores will run specials on eggs and I stock up. My usual way to make sure they don’t go bad before I can use them is to make egg salad with some. I just had to test this to see if it worked and I really does! As you can see in the pictures below, I cracked them into an ice cube tray. When they were completely frozen I popped them out of the tray and put them in a freezer bag. A handy tip is to spray the ice cube tray with cooking spray prior to putting the eggs in. This way they will pop out of the tray easily.

The magazines are always filled with organizing tips and ways to weed out things from your home in the month of January. One of the easiest things I have seen stated simply to get rid of 5 things a month. By get rid of they meant to throw away, donate, give away, any which way to have 5 things exit your home. I think any of us can amass things in our home and once in awhile it is good to assess what we have and decide if we really want or need it. It can get tricky because sometimes they are just things that by their very existence give us joy but we really don’t use them per say. That being said, I think all of us could find 5 things, either big or small, that we no longer need around the house. As a matter of fact, I decided I could get rid of 5 things a week and have even joked that I probably could relieve myself of 5 things a day if I needed to. There is some joy in clearing out. There is no need to get rid of things that do give you pleasure though.

A couple of years ago I dedicated one of the drawers in my kitchen as a spice drawer. I did this because my spices had not been in a place where I could easily see what I had. At the time I ordered metal containers with see through lids for the spices and then labelled them. Over time some of the spices corroded the metal. I figured this couldn’t be good for the spices and started searching for some other type of container. I found plastic screw top containers that were a good size and ordered them. Below you will see the difference. The spices are much more easily gotten into now and will stay fresher (yes, spices do have a shelf life).

Before

After
  • Out of baking powder? Make some if you have what it takes. For one tablespoon of baking powder you need 1 teaspoon of baking soda and 2 teaspoons of cream of tartar. Mix well. You need more; just increase the recipe.
  • Before the holidays I was in Joann Fabrics to purchase some items for a project. There was a sign at the counter that if you downloaded the Joann app on your smartphone you could save 25% on your purchase. There was one lady checking out ahead of me so I decided to try and see if I could complete the download by the time it was my turn. I did and saved over $7 on my purchase which included merchandise that was on sale. So, the moral of the story is, always notice these deals and check them out to see if it will help you!
  • I had heard of an app for your phone called Instacart and had decided to finally check it out. You can order through the app at store is near you that participate. For a fee they will shop for you and deliver your merchandise to your home. Tops and Aldi which are local to me are listed on the app when I put in my zipcode. I have checked prices and most items are a tad more expensive through the app. For instance at Aldi’s their spaghetti sauce is 85 cents at the store. On the app it is 95 cents. Delivery is $7.99 unless you belong to Instacart Express which costs $149 yearly and then orders of $35 or more are free. You can try Express free for 14 days. There is also a place to add a driver tip of $2. My ultimate decision was not to order. Aldi’s is only 8 miles from me and there is no reason not to go there myself. That being said, if you were stuck at home and really needed certain items you might be able to justify it. It just wasn’t for me.

I recently made a small wedding cake for a wedding celebration. I tried a new spatula decorating technique that turned out very nice. I thought I would share it with you. As with all cakes I started with a crumb coat which is just a very thin but still spreadable version of your cake icing. This dries and seals in the crumbs so that your final coat of icing is primo! To do any spatula icing technique you put on a little bit thicker coating of your icing and then use the icing spatula to put your design in. The first picture shows the crumb coat and the second picture is the finished cake.

Recipes

Yellow Split Pea Soup

*Feral Kitchen

  • 2 cups dried yellow split peas
  • 2 quarts vegetable stock
  • 1 cup chopped onion
  • 1 cup chopped celery
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp ground turmeric
  • 1 tsp garlic paste
  • 1/4 tsp white pepper
  • 1 bay leaf
  • salt to taste
  • fresh snipped chives and pinches of paprika for garnish (optional)

Add all ingredients (except salt and garnishes) to large pot with lid.  Cook on medium low, stirring occasionally for about an hour or until the split peas are tender.  Remove bay leaf from soup and blend soup with a hand-blender until smooth.  Taste and correct your salt level.  Ladle up and garnish with fresh snipped chives and paprika.  Makes about 6-8 servings.

This soup turned out so good I would have liked to drink a gallon of it! If you haven’t tried yellow split peas you simply must!!!! The spices are so good for you too. Tumeric is a nice anti-inflammatory.

Dried Beef Gravy

This is my oldest daughter’s favorite meal and she always requests it for her birthday dinner. She likes to eat it on toast which is great but if you prefer you can eat it on mashed potatoes. For an interesting read on the history of this dish click on this link, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chipped_beef

1 jar of dried beef

1/2 gallon milk

1/4 cup margarine or butter cut into chunks

salt and pepper to taste

roux for gravy

Pour milk in saucepan and add cut or torn pieces of dried beef along with margarine or butter. Season with your salt and pepper. Heat over medium heat until just boiling. After mixing your roux of flour and water whisk it into the milk mixture. Reduce heat and simmer until flour is cooked and gravy is thickened. Stir frequently to prevent burning.

Hopefully, you found something of interest in this post. Enjoy your days and be sure to share any tricks, tips, recipes or anything else you would like. I will see you next month!

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Jingle All The Way

Preparing for the Christmas holiday season is always exciting and also worry producing! Baking, decorating, gift shopping, holiday cards (if you still do them) and planning your family get together.

On the topic of baking I can say that I have changed a great deal. When my children and grand children were little I would let them each pick a favorite baked good or candy that I would make. My brother and mother each picked one as well. If they didn’t pick one of my personal favorites then I would make that too! The end result was at a bare minimum 12 to 13 different items.  In recent years I have cut back considerably. People today, in general, are just not eating the sweets that they used to. My family certainly isn’t. When my children were little, my oldest always wanted cut-outs. My oldest son always wanted jello cookies of which I always made a red and a green variety. Other favorites were my peanut butter chocolate ripple fudge, chocolate oatmeal no bakes, and snicker-doodles with green and red sprinkles. Things have progressed to the point where this year I am making one type of cookie and the fudge. Each of my daughters are making a type of cookie as well. We are down to 3 kinds of cookies and the fudge. There will still be leftovers, I’m sure.

Now, decorating, that’s a topic! I absolutely adore decorating! I have more holiday items than any one human should have. However, I love them, each and everyone! Some years I don’t put everything out for one reason or another and over the years I have refined my decorating taste. One item that is usually out is the collection of nutcrackers that my Mom had. She started collecting them when she visited me in Germany (nutcracker central!). Each year one of my kids or another family member would add to it from state-side venues. Since my mother passed I inherited her collection and it has been added to over the last 15 years. I must say it is quite impressive! My taste for decorating runs in the vintage realm and I love to honor the Christmas I remember as a child.

This year I .am having some work done on my floors right after Christmas so the decorating will be limited this year. The tree for sure and some of my favorite ctchotch·kes. Since the nutcracker collection is so large now, sadly it will wait until next year.

The most worrisome part of this whole season is the gift thing! I am sadly behind this year. As your children and grandchildren get older it is more difficult to find just that right central gift. The struggle is real, folks! Somehow or other it will all come together. I have 3 weeks to go and ready or not I will be done.

Our family gets together to celebrate the holiday on Christmas Eve. We eat homemade lasagna, laugh, talk and open gifts. There are the above mentioned candy and cookies and of course, more than we need to eat!

Finally, the cards. I am sending or passing out nearly 60 cards. That really isn’t very much compared to what some people do. Many people will get a family photo in their card. This picture we take at Thanksgiving when we are all together. Our family has grown so that we need two pictures. We take one my children and spouses, my brother, brother-in-law and I. The second picture is the grandchildren and includes just this year, my precious little great-grand daughter! I really enjoy the cards, both sending and receiving them. It is a tradition that grounds the holidays for me and reminds me of the people who are important to me and my family.

In the above paragraph I mentioned the Thanksgiving get together. We were all together at my oldest son’s house where we have more room to spread out. As I was nearing completion of the cooking, I looked around for the beaters I had brought for my hand-held mixer to mash the potatoes. Where the heck were they? Well, they were at home in the sink! My son didn’t have a masher. There was a moment of panic! Then I started to think of what I could use. In the end I used the bottom of a coffee mug to mash the potatoes. It worked very well and mashed potatoes were on the table.

There is always a bump or two in the road. I have had a couple lately. My toilet has been difficult to say the least. Today it is finally in tip-top shape again. While trying to iron out the difficulty myself I used a couple of old techniques that work well. The first is using Dawn dish detergent and hot water. You put about a half of a cup of Dawn in the toilet bowl and let it sit for 20 to 30 minutes. The dish soap is heavier than water and will sink to the bottom. After it has set for the required time, fill a pitcher with hot water (not boiling) and pour it into the toilet bowl. Allow this to sit. You may have to do this process twice. It should clear the clog.

The other method I tried is with vinegar and baking soda. Does that sound familiar from the kids’ volcano science projects? Anyway, you put a cup of baking soda in the toilet bowl. It again is heavier than the water and will sink to the bottom. Next put a cup of vinegar in. It will bubble and froth. Put the lid down and let it sit for 30 minutes. This works very well!

In my case neither worked because it wasn’t your normal clog. When the toilet was finally cleared it turned out to be a piece of wax. Wax, of course, would not dissolve with either of the methods written above. However, they are worth keeping in your knowledge banks if you should ever need them.

Have you ever been in the car heading out somewhere and check your car mirror and see a stray hair somewhere or many? Perhaps you have one in the mustache area or on your chin or even a stray one in the brow area. Why is it always in the car, in the clear light of day while hurrying off that you see such intruders?! Other people may not ever notice when you get to your destination. You will know though, and it will bother you. I have one recommendation that has saved me countless times. In your purse, bag or car console you have to carry a pair of tweezers!!! Word to the wise.

Recipes

This is what to do with leftover sweet potato casserole.

Sweet Potato Casserole Muffins
*magnoliadays.com
2 Eggs
1 1/2 cups All-purpose flour
2 tsp Baking powder
3/4 tsp Cinnamon, ground
3/4 cup Granulated sugar
1/4 tsp Nutmeg, ground
1/4 tsp Salt
1 1/4 cups Sweet potato casserole filling
1/2 cup Pecans
1/2 cup Butter, unsalted
5 tbsp Milk

 

Topping                                                                                                                                                         1/4 tsp cinnamon                                                                                                                                 1  1/3 Tbsp Turbinado sugar

Allow the eggs and milk to reach room temperature.                                                        Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time. Then add the milk and sweet potato casserole until well combined. In another bowl mix all of the dry ingredients except the cinnamon. Add them to the first mixture until well combined and then stir in the pecans. Scoop the batter into greased muffin tins or use cupcake papers. Mix together the Turbinado sugar and cinnamon and generously sprinkle on the muffins. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes. Use a toothpick to test for doneness. Allow to cool a few minutes and then remove from the muffin tins to a rack to cool fully.

*You may use mashed sweet potatoes instead of the casserole. You will just need to increase the cinnamon.

*I did not have Turbinado sugar on hand when I went to make the muffins and used regular granulated sugar instead.

Hassleback Potatoes

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

I used large baking potatoes. I cut off any imperfections. Then I placed each potato between two small wooden spoons. This was done so that I could cut the potatoes as required for this style without cutting completely through the potato. The wooden spoons stopped the knife from going too far.

Then I used a mixture of olive oil, melted butter, salt and pepper to brush each potato between the slices and all over the top. I placed the potatoes on a baking sheet lined with foil.

I placed the potatoes in the oven and baked for 45 minutes.

They were delicious. My son said that in a way they reminded him of the way potatoes are in scalloped potatoes.

I could see adding onion and/or garlic powder to the oil and butter mixture. You could also sprinkle chives on top or perhaps stuff the slices with any great mixture of cheese or meat. Time to get creative!

Crockpot Ham and Bean Soup

This recipe is great for a winter lunch or supper.

1 lb. white beans

ham bone and/or diced ham (as much as desired)

3 or 4 carrots peeled and sliced

6 cups of chicken or vegetable broth or stock

1 onion diced

2 or 3 stalks of celery sliced

1/4 to 1/2 cup of brown sugar

1 bay leaf

salt and pepper to taste

First you need to soak the beans in water for at least 3 hours or overnight. Make sure they have enough water to remain covered as they swell.

Drain the beans and add all ingredients into your slow cooker. If there is not enough liquid to cover the rest of the ingredients add water until this is achieved.

Cook on high for the first hour and then on low for 3 to 4 hours. The beans should be mushy. Remove the bay leaf and serve. I served with crusty bread such as Italian or French.

I would love it if you would leave a comment about your family’s holiday traditions and favorite recipes! Let’s share.

Happy Holidays to All!

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Mums, Pumpkins, and Multi-Colored Leaves, Oh My!

Two days until Halloween! It is hard to fathom that October has flown by so fast. It won’t be long and Thanksgiving will be upon us.

The first thing I want to share is a recipe that was given to me nearly 40 years ago. It was 1979 and I was living in West Germany. (Yes, it was still divided then!) I lived in a little town called Kleingerau. It was right next door to a larger town called Grossgerau. (Klein means small in German and gross means big. I always thought that was sort of cute.)

One morning when I was taking my kids to the school bus stop, down the street and around the corner from my apartment, I met Deana. She had grown up in Oregon and I in Western New York. We became fast friends and in a way, our little overseas family.

We each had a different set of recipes that we were equipped with to face married life. In her kitchen I tried artichokes for the first time. (I really can’t figure out why I hadn’t had them before. My Dad was a produce man and we had tried every veggie known to man, at least I thought.) One of my favorite recipes that she gave me is a super easy peach cobbler. I made it not long ago and loved it as much as I did the first time. I texted her right away and told her I had just made it. We both wished we lived closer so we could share some with a cup of coffee!

Peach Cobbler

2 cups canned, sliced peaches (drained)

1 1/4 cup sugar

1 stick margarine

3/4 cup flour

2 tsp. baking powder

3/4 cup milk

pinch of salt

Mix peaches with 1/4 cup sugar. Put the margarine in a deep cake pan and set in 350 degree oven to melt. Stir the batter consisting of 1 cup sugar, flour, baking powder, pinch of salt and the milk. Pour in cake pan over melted butter. Do not stir. Put peaches on top and again, don’t stir.  Put into oven and bake for 1 hour or until top is golden brown. The batter rises to the top during baking and so does the butter which produces the golden brown crust.

*This recipe was given to me before the invention of microwave ovens. I melt the butter in a casserole dish in the microwave now instead of using the oven to do it. Either method works just fine.

The above picture shows how it looks when you put it in the oven.

This is a piece of the cobbler after baking. Notice the wonderfully golden brown crust.

Recently, we celebrated my twin grandchildren’s birthday. They are 19! Can someone please tell me how that happened?!! My granddaughter, Sierra, wanted an ice cream cake. She is my only granddaughter so naturally she gets what she wants. I have a super easy way to make one!

Ice Cream Sandwich Cake

1 jar of caramel sundae topping

16 ounce container of whipped topping

small bag of your favorite candy (I used peanut butter cups)

24 ice cream sandwiches

Using a 9″ X 13″ pan, unwrap half of the ice cream sandwiches and make a single layer on the bottom of the pan. You might need to cut one of the sandwiches to make the layer. Next, spread half of the whipped topping on top of the sandwiches. Then you liberally drizzle some of the sundae topping on top. Cut up some of your candy in smallish chunks and sprinkle on top. You will repeat the layers once more to make the cake. Put in freezer for a few hours or overnight. Make sure you cover it with foil so that it doesn’t absorb any odors. (For instance, I have green pepper frozen in my freezer and when I open the door that is all I can smell. You don’t want your ice cream to taste and smell like green peppers!)

As you can see I was beginning the process of making the second set of layers.

Voila! The finished product. Sierra loved it!

I was doing some research into foods that have an anti-inflammatory effect on our bodies. One of the recipes I found was a vegetable soup that sounded delicious! I tried it and it was sooooooooo good!

Vegetable Soup *savingdinner.com

8 large green onions, chopped fine, including stalk

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 green peppers, seeded, cut into bite sized pieces

4 cloves roasted garlic, smashed

4 carrots, cleaned, cut into bite sized pieces

10 ounces mushrooms, cut into thick pieces

1 bunch celery, cut into bite sized pieces

1/2 head of cabbage, clean, and chop into bite sized pieces

2 cans diced tomatoes, with juice

48 ounces chicken or veggie broth

Salt and pepper to taste

Curry, to taste (optional)

In a large soup pot, put 2 tablespoons olive oil, add green onion and garlic, saute about 4 to 6 minutes until onion is clear. Add in the rest of the ingredients to the pot all at once. Add water until everything is covered with liquid, if needed. Cover and cook on low heat for about two hours. Season to taste.

As you can see, there are a lot of good-for- you veggies in this recipe. The one thing I did to change it up was to saute the green onion and garlic in a saute pan and then put them in my slow cooker with the other ingredients. I put it on low and let it cook away all day until the veggies were nicely cooked.  The next time I make it I might add another can of tomatoes to the recipe. I really like the tomato flavor highlighted in my foods.

Hacks and All That Jazz!

  • I have had acrylic nails put on for many years. I decided about 3 weeks ago to stop, at least for a while. My nails have always been thing and now that the acrylic is off they are dry and peeling. I was doing some investigation online and found a way to fix it. You put some olive oil in a dish that you will be able to dip your finger tips into. Then warm it for 35 to 45 seconds in the microwave. It is recommended that you soak your finger tips for 15 to 30 minutes. I really have a hard time sitting still so I am doing 15 minutes for each hand once a week while I watch tv. It has helped tremendously. If I had the patience I would do it twice a week until I get on track. If you have dry and peeling nails I would highly recommend this treatment.
  • If you are baking something that requires chocolate chips or any other flavor you should toss them in flour which will keep them from sinking to the bottom.
  • If you have leftover cake you should put a slice of bread at cut end and it will keep the cake fresh.
  • In an effort to keep my chest freezer organized I developed a method using those reusable shopping bags. In one bag I put all of my poultry. Another holds all of my beef and so on. It really is helpful for me so that I can easily find what I need and also tell what I am running low on.
  • Did you know that sticking with the same doctor for many years may increase the length of your life? Linked with this is greater patient satisfaction, fewer ER visits and better adherence to medication. In other words, if you see a doctor who has the big picture of you and your health and then a  specialist when needed your health and ultimately your length of life is better.
  • Along the same vein, keeping your teeth healthy has a lot of benefits linked to it. These are a stronger heart, lower cancer risk, lower blood sugar, clearer lungs and a sharper brain. So the moral of this is find a good dentist and brush your teeth (and your tongue) twice a day for at least 2 minutes.

Hopefully there was a thing or two in this post that is helpful to each of you. I encourage you to leave a comment. They always make me smile!

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Favorite Fall

I actually find appealing things about all four seasons but I have decided that the things about Fall that I love outweigh the others. There is the warm days, the cool nights, the coziness of early evenings, soups and chili, warm spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, baking pumpkin bread, beautiful colors and the fun of decorating for Fall. I know there are more things I love about Fall but those are just the things that come to mind first.

What is your favorite season? Leave a comment and let me know which season and why.

Of course, I have been busy decorating since that is one of my favorite things to do. The front of my house is covered with mums and different color and shapes of pumpkins. Now that we are in October I am going to bust out the Halloween items. Generally, I refrain from jack-o-lanterns and such until October. However, now we are full-on skeleton and spooky!

I got together recently with my cousin, Linda, and we had a crafting afternoon. We had seen a wreath in a craft store that was very high in price and we thought we could make it much more cheaply and it wouldn’t be hard to create.

We set a date and each purchased our own supplies. After a nice lunch of chili and cornbread muffins we went to work!

For the wreaths we each purchased a wreath form, black and white yarn, black, white and orange felt. Armed with our hot glue guns we set to work. (Linda had purchased thicker yarn than I did feeling that it would require less wrapping around the wreath form. She was probably right but both wreaths looked good in the end.)

We wrapped the yarn around the wreath form, alternating black and white at regular intervals. To keep from having to stop and measure with a measuring tape we each just pulled the yarn out to our maximum wing span and cut it. That was a time saver! As we did each section we used our hot glue guns to secure the end of one piece of yarn and the beginning piece of yarn.

Next we created our felt flowers to accent the wreath. Linda had done some research on Pinterest to see how they were done. She found you cut the felt in a spiral and then roll up the resulting felt. I checked online and found that you could use a cd as a pattern to cut a circle and then proceed to cut your spiral.

When we had cut all our spirals and wrapped them to create the flowers we hot glued them on the yarn wrapped wreath. Below is the result.

We were both very pleased! Mine is on my front door as I write this.

The one that we saw in the craft store was about $50. I figured out my supply cost and it was approximately $13. Sweet, right?

Tips

  1. I found out a little trick while making my cornbread muffins for the above mentioned lunch. After mixing the batter you should let it rest for 3 to 4 minutes and then give it a quick stir before placing in the muffin pan. This creates a higher, really nice looking crown on your muffins.
  2. The holiday season, which we are approaching, can be filled with stress. If you need a little stress relief there is something to help. It is a musical piece called Weightless by Marconi Union. It lowers the heart rate and has a calming effect. You can find it on YouTube. Below is the link.                                                                           https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfcAVejslrU
  3. In the cold months I always struggle a little with dry and/or cracked heels. I have found a home remedy that really works. You need a tub to soak your feet in. The foot soak is a mixture of 2 cups of hydrogen peroxide and 2 cups of water as hot as you can handle. Soak your feet for 30 minutes. After you remove your feet from the tub dry them and use a pumice to gently slough off the dead skin. Then put a nice moisturizing cream on your heals and put some socks on. Give it a try!
  4. Speaking of hydrogen peroxide, there are just a lot of different ways to use it around the house. To name just a few; removes stains and odors in clothing, kills mold, whitens grout, finger nails, and teeth, aids acne in healing faster, disinfects wounds,  sponges, lunch boxes, shower curtains, cutting boards, counter tops, toilets and the toilet cleaning brushes, aids in healing canker sores. That is just a few.
  5. I am not sure about you but I always wash and  save containers from foods I buy that would make good leftover containers. This works great when sending food home with others. They don’t have to worry about getting containers back to you and you don’t have to worry about them bringing them back. The down side is that all these different shaped and sized containers really junked up my cupboard. In a moment of clarity I took all of them out of my cupboard and placed them in a garbage bag with a drawstring and hung them up in my pantry. Now, whenever I need a container to send something home with a guest I go to the bag and grab a container. No more messy cupboard for me!
  6. As you know from a previous post, I make Ice Box Pickles. They always taste better to me when stored in the refrigerator in a glass jar. I don’t can so I was considering buying some glass canning jars for that purpose. Then I noticed a salsa jar I just had emptied. I washed it thoroughly and saved it for my next batch of pickles. After that I noticed spaghetti sauce jars and jelly jars were a good size and would work too. It is nice not spending extra money.

Recipes

It is zucchini season and I wanted to try a different way of using it.

Zucchini Crisps

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. I used parchment paper to line my baking sheet.

2 medium zucchini sliced 1/4 inch thick

2 Tablespoons of olive oil

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs (you can season your own if you don’t have them pre-seasoned)

salt and pepper to taste

Put the olive oil in a medium bowl with a lid. Add the zucchini slices to the bowl, cover and shake gently to coat. In a second bowl place all the other ingredients and mix thoroughly. Then dip each crisp in the dry mixture. Place the covered slices on the baking sheet. bake for 18 to 22 minutes.

Caprese Skewers

I used mozzarella, basil leaves and cherry tomatoes to make these skewers as an appetizer for my daughter’s wedding. I used 4 inch skewers to create them. When finished I arranged them on a tray and drizzled dipping oil lightly on them. You could also use a balsamic reduction.

I hope you have a fantabulous October!! Make the most of whatever it is you personally enjoy about this month. Kick some serious Fall action and take prisoners!

Let me know in the comments your thoughts on anything in the blog.

 

Posted on

I Survived!

Hello! I and actually everyone else, survived our recent wedding. Everything came together and all of us and our guests had a blast! I am relieved that the cake, cupcakes and bouquets came off without a hitch. Whew!

This post I am going to start off with some hacks that I hope you will enjoy reading about and possibly put into action! There should be a tidbit for everyone here.

Hacks

  • Have you ever heard of Informed Delivery from the United States Postal Service? If you haven’t you’re not alone. My daughter, you know the recently married one, told me about it. The very helpful lady at our post office told her. You just sign up for it at the USPS website and everyday they send you an email with, in most cases, actual pictures of the mail that you’re getting that day. Sometimes there is a note that if you sign in to your dashboard (because with informed delivery you have to create an account so therefore you have a dashboard) you will get more complete details. I always want to be “in the know” so I have really enjoyed this. It is really ideal for those people like me who hate to miss anything or if you are waiting for a certain item. If you would like to sign up the link is below.                                                                                                          https://informeddelivery.usps.com/box/pages/intro/start.action 

 

  • Twice in the last couple of weeks people have asked me how to season cast iron cookware. I thought it might be good to do a little refresher on that topic.
  1. Scrub skillet well in hot soapy water.
  2. Dry thoroughly.
  3. Spread a thin layer of melted shortening or vegetable oil over the skillet.
  4. Place it upside down on a middle oven rack at 375°. (Place foil on a lower rack to catch drips.)
  5. Bake 1 hour; let cool in the oven.
  • Recently a friend told me that tilapia isn’t a good fish. I was under the impression it was since it seems to have had a surge in popularity in recent years. She said it wasn’t a bottom feeder or anything like that but wasn’t really a good fish to eat. You must know by now that I had to do some research and find out why. What I found was alarming. So alarming, in fact, that I threw away a bag of frozen tilapia that I had. It seems that most of these fish are farmed. A lot of it comes from China. In China they most often feed the fish feces from other animals as food. You might be good with farm raised tilapia from other areas and you would be good with fresh caught. I am placing a link below so that you can read up on it too if you wish.                                                                                     https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322493.php   

 

  • I wanted to share something I have done for years that seems to keep me organized and makes life a little easier (did I just give a definition of life hack?). Near my door I keep a container of some sort. Over the years it has been different things but right now it is a vintage gym locker basket. Anything that needs to go “OUT” I place in the basket. It might be a library book, something for one of my kids or a friend, clothing to donate, you name it. It is there near the door and I always take a glance at it when leaving to see if I can drop off, deliver,  or return something that is in there along the way on my current destination. It has worked well. Maybe you need an “OUT” box or basket too!

 

  • Mildew had formed on a new tablecloth that I bought for this summer with pretty lobsters all over it. I tried hydrogen peroxide on it but that didn’t do the trick so I checked online for a home remedy to get rid of it. I found a couple of sites that recommended a lemon juice and salt mixture (the consistency of a paste) and then placing it in the sun to take out mildew. That didn’t work. It did fade it some what but it wasn’t enough to make me happy. I ended up spraying Clorox Clean Up on it. I was careful not to get it on or near the colorful designs on the tablecloth. Also, I immediately rinsed it out once I saw the mildew disappear. The heck with the home remedy! Sometimes you just need “a bigger hammer” as my Dad would say. 

 

  • As I mentioned in my last post, we have a new little one in our family and when I saw a little blurb online about signing up at Little Wanderer’s for a free pair of shoes, I couldn’t resist. They have arrived! As a reminder, you use the PENNY1 code at checkout for the free pair. I chose little pink sneakers that are adorable. You do have to pay shipping which was $13.99 but the shoes are $29.99 so it still is a savings.

 

  • I am not sure if anyone looks back at their day like I do and kind of assesses it. I imagine some of you do. The tendency is to think you didn’t get much done or be a productive as you would like. That is mainly because of the list you made in your head or actually on paper of what you needed to accomplish that day. Almost always, my complete list doesn’t get done. I mean, life happens and you have to go back to the drawing board. I have learned to not look at it that way. Instead, if you are prone to assess your day as I do, look at what you got done. It is amazing when you actually list what you did! There are always things that you get done that weren’t on your list (remember the “life happens” thing here) but none the less you did them. It is just a matter of re-framing the way you look at it in a more positive and honest way.

 

Recipes

Ranch Oyster Snack Cracker

1/2 tsp Dill weed
1/4 tsp Garlic powder
1/4 tsp Lemon pepper
1 package Ranch dressing mix
3/4 cup Salad oil
12 oz Oyster crackers
Mix all ingredients but the crackers in a large bowl. Once thoroughly mixed add the crackers and stir to coat completely. Bake on a baking sheet at 350 degrees for about 20 minutes until crackers are slightly brown and crispy.
  
Zucchini Taco Boats
 from kirbiecravings.com
 1 lb Ground beef
1 tsp Garlic powder
1/4 cup Onion
1 tsp Onion powder
1/2 tsp Oregano
2 Scallions
4 Zucchini, medium
1/2 cup Salsa
1 tsp Chili powder
1 tsp Paprika, smoked
1/2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Cumin, ground
3/4 cup Cheddar cheese
 2 scallions finely chopped
Preheat oven to 400°F. Wash and dry zucchini and cut off ends. Slice zucchini in half, lengthwise. Use a spoon to hollow out zucchini, leaving a 1/4 inch inch shell (1/4 inch around the edges and the bottom). You can save the hollowed out zucchini chunks for another recipe or add some into your taco meat mixture. Place zucchini into a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
In a small bowl, add cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, chili powder, salt, and oregano. Mix together.
In a large skillet, add ground beef and onions. Bring to medium high heat and cook until meat is nearly done. Sprinkle with seasoning mix. Continue to cook until meat is no longer pink. Stir in the salsa.

Fill zucchini with taco meat mixture. Place into oven and bake for about 10 minutes or until zucchini is just cooked. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F. Sprinkle cheese over zucchini. Place back into oven and cook an additional 5 minutes, so cheese is melted over the zucchini boats. Sprinkle scallions over zucchini before serving.

*I made these for dinner this week and we loved them!!! They were so delicious. I made sautéed green beans to go with them and we also had Grandma’s Ice Box Pickles. I will share these recipes also, below.

Parmesan Sautéed Green Beans

1 lb. green beans                                                                                                                                1/2 teaspoon minced garlic                                                                                                              1 Tablespoon of olive oil                                                                                                                   Grated Parmesan to taste

Heat the oil and garlic in a saute pan. Add the green beans tossing occasionally for 6 minutes or so. You still want a little bit of bite to them. While still warm shake Parmesan on them.

Grandma’s Ice Box Pickles

7 cups of sliced cucumbers, 1 sliced green pepper and 2 sliced medium onions. You will need to slice all vegetables thinly.  Put in a large glass bowl mixed with 1 Tablespoon of salt. Allow to stand for 2 hours. In another bowl mix 1 cup white vinegar, 2 cups sugar and 1 Tablespoon of celery salt. When 2 hours have passed pour the liquid mixture over the vegetables. Refrigerate in a covered glass jar or bowl.

I hope you are enjoying the tale end of summer. Get ready for my favorite season of the year, FALL!!  Awe, great things from the gardens, wonderfully fragrant things to cook, great crafts, warm sunny days, slightly chilly nights! Who could ask for more.

 

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