Domestic Servitude

Identity Theft and Fraud

2012-01-30T15:50:00.003-07:00

Very recently my better half (Da Boss) was the victim (I hate that term) of credit card theft/fraud. Thankfully I picked up on this rather quickly because I am extremely anal about constantly checking our transaction history on our statements. Thankfully we use mainly one card for most purchases and pay off at the end of each billing cycle. So it makes monitoring this account rather easy and not at all time consuming. That brings us to last week when I noticed a rather large (a few thousand dollars worth) purchase on our joint card. Now while Da Boss doesn't always tell me when he is making a purchase, neither of us spends that type of money without a household conversation happening, if for no other reason than to keep everyone in the loop. So when I saw this unexpected purchase I asked him about it. Thank God I did because turns out he didn't make it. Someone had gotten his credit card information (the police suspect one of the accounts that he does business with frequently had their site hacked and that is how our number was obtained) and was busy going on a shopping spree.

That brings me to this post... ways to prevent identity theft.

1. At least twice per year obtain a copy of your credit report from all 3 of the major reporting agencies.
Transunion
Equifax
Experian
All of these agencies will provide *free of charge* copies of your most recent credit report 2 times per year. Use it. It's important to check all 3 because different things are reported to each agency.

2. Be mindful of where you shop and how you use your card. Keep a record of what purchases are made. (you can do this through computer programs such as Quicken, Quickbooks, or similar programs, or keep a paper journal etc.) If you see a purchase that is out of the ordinary be sure to question it timely.

3. If you have to give information about yourself out to others, be careful about how much information you put out there. Don't give your social security number out unless absolutely necessary. There are in fact very few reasons to ever provide that piece of information to most people.

4. Be sure to check your bank statements often and reconcile them to ensure that the information presented is accurate (many people simply check their online record and assume that banking institutions don't make errors and/or have people who choose to steal money from others). This happens with banks as well as other companies, so reconcile your accounts monthly.

5. Never provide your social security number online unless you are doing so with a government approved secure site. Again there really isn't many reasons why you would ever have to provide that number.

6. Buy a cross cut paper shredder and shred any unwanted documents, bills, etc. It isn't enough to simply rip them in half and throw them into the trash. People choosing to commit identity theft have no problems going through garbage looking for information.

7. Do not leave important documentation laying around or even loosely kept in your home. Either get a safety deposit box at a reputable bank, or have an in home fire proof box and/or safe.

8. Read articles such as the one at this site 9 ways to prevent identity theft online This article had LOTS of useful information.

I am sure you may know of even other ways to help limit your exposure and risk. Please share any good tips you might have in case others don't have it.

Even with doing all of the above, we are prime examples that identity and credit card theft can still happen. But at least it's important to do all you can to minimize your risks.

Friday Favorites

2012-01-27T17:00:00.000-07:00

Thrift Store Shopping - this articles gives some tips for shopping at thrift stores
100 Reasons to Get Rid of Stuff - this a gold mine of information and resources for donating, recycle and how-to throw out things you don't want or need anymore
Speed Cleaning 101 - a quick guide to speed cleaning
Dark Chocolate Oatmeal - Chocolate for breakfast - yes!
Bleach Pen T-Shirts - using bleach pens to create designs in t-shirts.

Chocolate Banana Cake

2012-01-23T13:37:00.003-07:00

Well I always set out with intentions of posting about something other than food, but then I wind up finding something food worthy to post about. Today is no exception. Last week while waiting at the pediatrician's office with my girls I was reading a canadian living magazine (rather odd considering I live in New Jersey). In it was a recipe that caught the attention of not only my four year old but myself. It was for chocolate banana cake. How could you go wrong with that combo I ask? So last week we set out to make the cake. It was YUMMO and I thought I would share the recipe as I definitely plan to make it again in my house.
Chocolate Banana Cake

Cake:
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 1/t tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
3 cups cake flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
4 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas ( I used closer to 2 cups of mashed bananas)

White Chocolate Icing:
3 cups whipping cream
10 oz white chocolate, chopped
1 tsp vanilla

Dark Chocolate Ganache:
1/2 cup whipping cream
4 oz semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

Garnish:
4 bananas, sliced
1 oz melted chocolate

1. For cake: Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then vanilla. Beat in sour cream and banana. Combine flour, baking soda and chocolate. Add in 3 additions to creamed mixture. Mix until wet.

2. Spoon into two greased 8 1/2 inch cake pans. Bake at 350F for 35 to 40 minutes. Let cool on rack for 20 minutes. Remove from pans. Let cool completely.

3. For white chocolate icing: In sauce pan, bring half of cream to a boil, pour over chocolate in bowl, whisking until melted. Add vanilla. Chill until cooled (1 hour, whisking often).

4. Beat chocolate and cream just until ridges hold shape. Beat remaining cream just until soft peaks form. Gently fold cream into chocolate cream.

5. Slice cakes in half horizontally. Spread each layer with about 3/4 cup of white chocolate icing and a layer of sliced bananas. Using a palette knife cover cake with a remaining icing and chill until firm (about 1 1/2 hours).

6. For ganache: bring 1/2 cup cream to a boil, pour over chocolate. Whisk until melted and let cool 20 minutes until room temperature but still pourable. Pour over cake, letting some run down the sides.

7. Drizzle melted chocolate over remaining banana slices and arrange on top of cake.

Friday Favorites

2012-01-20T16:00:00.000-07:00

Fixing Scratches on white plates - there are other things in this post but what I really was focused on was how she fixed the scratches in her white plates - we have those on our plates so I want to try this as nothing I have tried so far has worked
Free Labels - really great labels all different sizes and shapes
Should I keep that Paper? - gives you a graph and then some tips on what to do with the papers
14 Ways to Spruce up Your Bedroom - some very simple things to change up your bedroom
Beef Wellingtons with Gorgonzola and Madeira Wine Sauce - looks like a really good recipe

My First Roast Chicken

2012-01-18T16:40:00.008-07:00

Confession time: I'm nearly 40 years old and have never cooked a whole chicken or turkey. Turkey breasts I've done several times. Never a whole bird. I'm seriously squicked out by the though of sticking my hand, to quote a friend "up a chicken's hiney".

But I figured it is a good idea, will generate left-overs and come on, I need to get over it.

So I bought a small bird for Sir and I and gave it a try. Here's my recipe and the running narrative of things I wasn't expecting.

1 lemon, seeded and chopped (skin and all!)
1 tbsp fresh rosemary or 1 tsp dried
1 3lb whole chicken
1 apple, peeled, cored and chopped
1 medium red onion, chopped
1/2 fennel bulb, chopped
1 tbsp orange peel
1 tbsp fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried
1 cup chicken broth

Mix the lemon and rosemary and rub under chicken skin, all the way down to the thighs
Huh? How do I get under the skin? Hmmm... ok, so if I take a knife and cut a small slit. Hey there we go. But there's this membrane holding it to the bird, better break that first. Ok! Now we're doing good. Woot1 Go me! Crap, I ripped the skin a little, so let's skewer it back together. Damn that doesn't work, better just skewer it down to keep the lemon from falling out

In a saute pan, heat 2 tbsp olive oil over medium heat. Saute onion, apple, fennel, thyme and orange peel. When cool enough to handle stuff the bird.
What's cool enough to handle? Hey what's this packet in here? Oh right, the giblets, better remove that. Hmmm I wonder if I have to stick my hand in or if I can just spoon stuff into there?

Skewer ends of the chicken together (I used toothpicks).

Roast for 90 minutes at 350 degrees, basting every 15 minutes with chicken broth.
Ok! 15 minutes down, better baste the chicken. Hmmm it's browning kind of fast. I think I'll try to cover it with tin foil.

Ok, it's time for the second 15 minute basting, how are we doing? Smells great. Uh oh, the oven is heating it unevenly, I better turn it half way around to keep it cooking evenly!

Halfway there, I better check the internal temp, my oven cooks fast and my chicken wasn't 3 lbs. I'm not crazy about how the skin is turning out. Maybe I should have basted it with softened butter mixed with chicken broth? Internal temp is 150 degrees. I'm about halfway there. I need it to be 170 before it's "done".

30 minutes left, maybe I should take off the tin foil now to brown up the rest of the skin a bit?

15 minutes left, going to turn the bird again! Time to take the temperature again 160 degrees.

Just a note here, to take a chicken or turkey's temperature, stick the thermometer in the thickest part of the meat. This is generally in the thigh area between the drumstick and the body.

Take the temperature when you baste to determine how fast your chicken is roasting. My oven doesn't always follow "recommended" cooking times. I ended up cooking this for just about 5 minutes shy of 90.

Also, have a good thermometer. I recommend an instant heat one!

Also, just because the chicken is bloody when you cut into it, doesn't mean it is underdone.

As an additional note, you may not want to do a different baste on it after all, the chicken gets crispy, but would be probably be bitter to eat because of the lemon right up under it. But if you like that, go ahead!

This recipe turns out moist and juicy and fall apart tender!

And here is the finished product:

Lemon Berry Pancakes

2012-01-16T05:00:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend we had company and I always enjoy cooking up large breakfasts for company. So this morning was no exception. Since there were many mouths to feed in addition to the standard egg dishes, breakfast meats, and fruit, I also made the pancakes below. They were a hit so I thought I would share the recipe with all of you. Hope you enjoy!

Pancake Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose baking flour (you can use whole wheat baking flour but I find it makes the pancakes a lot heavier)
3 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 (8 ounce container) lemon-flavored yogurt
2 eggs
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 cups blue berries

Pancake Topping Ingredients:
1/2 cup red currant jelly (we make our own but you can certainly purchase this at most grocery stores)
3 cups berries ( I used a combo of blueberries, blackberries, and strawberries)

** you can use frozen berries but be sure to thaw them well and drain off any excess water**

Directions:
1. Combine all pancake ingredients in a bowl (except the berries) and mix until smooth.
2. Heat lightly greased griddle or frying pan to 350 degrees or until drops of water sizzle. For each pancake, spoon about 1/4 cup batter onto griddle. Let cook for a few seconds and then add some berries to the pancake. Cook until bubbles form on top and then turn pancakes and finish cooking until cooked through. If they are browning too quickly reduce heat a little bit.
3. Meanwhile, in a sauce pan, melt jelly over medium-low heat. Remove from heat and add berries. Mix until berries are well coated. Serve over warm pancakes.

We like to also either sprinkle with a little bit of confectioners sugar on top or fresh whipped cream.

ENJOY!

Friday Favorites

2012-01-13T15:30:00.000-07:00

50 Tips to Be Frugal - tips to start the year off penny pinching to save money
Quick Guide to Herbs and Spices - a guide to herbs with description
DIY Greeting Card Organizer - how-to on making a greeting card organizer
Homemade Laundry Cream - it looks interesting - and only 1 tablespoon used per load
Everyday Exposure to Toxics - it is a site that helps you identify the things you are exposed to everyday that are toxic.
Chickpea salad with roasted red peppers - looks like a good lunch

Tuesday Tips

2012-01-10T05:32:00.005-07:00

No Spattering

One way to keep frying food from spattering is to invert a metal colander over the pan, allowing steam to escape.

Hurry-Up Baked Potatoes

Boil potatoes in salted water for 10 minutes, then place in a very hot oven.

Easy Topping

A good topping for gingerbread, coffee cake, etc. can easily be made by freezing the syrup from canned fruit and adding 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of lemon juice to 2 cups of syrup. Heat until bubbly, and thicken with 2 tablespoons of flour

Hurry-Up Hamburgers

Poke a hole in the middle of the hamburger patties while shaping them. The burgers will cook faster and the holes will disappear when done.

Shrink-less Links

Boil sausage for about 8 minutes before frying and they will shrink less and not break at all.

Removing Ham Rind

Before placing ham in the roasting pan, slit rind lengthwise on the underside. The rind will peel away as the ham cooks, and can be easily removed.

Mondays are Meatless

2012-01-09T05:00:00.000-07:00

One of the things we are trying in the new year is to incorporate lots of new recipes into our weekly and monthly meal plans. One of the areas we are trying to boost up is the amount of vegetables that we eat. While we do eat vegetables with meals, it isn't the main focus of our meals. So for 2012 I plan to change that for at least one meal a week if not more than one meal a week. This past week I made a really great dinner that was all vegetables to I thought I would share it here. I had tried to take a picture of the end result but sadly it did not photograph well at all, so rather than posting one very ugly looking dish I will leave you with one very tasty recipe.

Spagetti squash with spicy tomato sauce

Ingredients:
1 spagetti squash, halve lengthwise and seeded
2 tablespoons of olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 can of diced tomatoes
1/2 cup of fresh basil chopped
1/2 cup of black olives sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 to 1 tsp. hot pepper flakes

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a baking sheet.

2. Place spaghetti squash cut sides down on the prepared baking sheet, and bake 30 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a sharp knife can be inserted with only a little resistance. Remove squash from oven, and set aside to cool enough to be easily handled.

3. While this is baking in the oven, combine the remaining ingredients to make a spicy tomato sauce to put over your spagetti squash. let it simmer together on the stove in a sauce pan until the squash is done in the oven.

4. Once your squash is out of the oven and able to be handled, scrape out the squash meat (it will resemble spagetti strands as it comes out). Using a fork is best for this task.

5. Spoon spicy sauce over and serve with a tossed salad on the side.

We are trying to not add cheese or bread to our vegetable meals this year, but this would certainly be yummo if you sprinkled some parmesan cheese over it while it's hot, as well as serve with a nice crusty bread and some softened butter.

But even without these additions we found this to be a very satisfying, healthy, low calorie meal. I almost didn't miss having the pasta or meat. I won't say that I didn't completely miss those things as I do love pasta and a good hearty bolognese sauce however this truly was satisfying.

So perhaps in 2012 you will challenge yourself to eat one vegetable meal a week as well. it's a great way to add some healthy stuff back into your meals as well as shed some calories throughout the month in your meals.

enjoy!

All About Eggs

2012-01-08T18:30:00.000-07:00

We have been eating a lot of eggs lately as we got several dozen fairly cheap. Plus we love breakfast for dinner so eggs gives me many meal time options. In eating so many lately, I thought I might share some things about eggs.

How to Make Boiled Eggs

Hard-Cooked Boiled Eggs
Place eggs in saucepan large enough to hold them in single layer. ADD cold water to cover eggs by 1 inch. Heat over high heat just to boiling. Immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs sit in hot water about 12 minutes for large eggs. With a slotted spoon transfer eggs to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Let cool completely. I usually just stick the whole bowl into the refrigerator until I am ready to use/eat. Store in refrigerator unpeeled up to 1 week.

Medium-Cooked Boiled Eggs
Place eggs in saucepan large enough to hold them in single layer. ADD cold water to cover eggs by 1 inch. Heat over high heat just to boiling. Immediately remove from heat. Cover and let eggs sit in hot water about 8 minutes for large eggs. With a slotted spoon transfer eggs to a bowl of ice water to stop cooking. Let cool completely about 5 minutes. Serve immediately.

Soft-Cooked Boiled Eggs
Bring a medium pot filled about with water (enough that will cover the eggs by 1 inch) to a boil over high heat. With a slotted spoon, lower each large egg into the water. Cover pot and immediately remove from heat. Let sit for 5 minutes. Drain and serve immediately.

How to Long is an Egg good & How can you tell if an Egg is still good and fresh

According to the Egg Safety Center raw eggs will be good for about 3 to 5 weeks after the date you bought them. Usually the sell-by or expiration date will come and go during that time but your eggs will be still perfectly safe and good to use and eat as long as they are not cracked or damaged.

To find out if an egg is still good and fresh take a bowl with some depth and fill it with cold water. Place your the egg inside. If the egg sinks to the bottom, it's fresh and good. If the egg sinks to the bottom, but stands on its point, it's still good but probably need to be using those that do this first. If the egg floats to the top, it needs to be discarded as it has gone bad.

How to Freeze Eggs

Whole Eggs
Break one egg at a time into a bowl then pour into a strainer or colander with large holes and through to a second bowl. Don't beat the eggs just use the strainer as this allows the whites and yolks to mix gently without adding air. Gently break the yolks and push them through the strainer.

You can do one at a time into each egg into ice cube tray slot so you have individual eggs. Or do several together and pack in freezer containers such as ziplocks.

How to Use: Take out what you need and thaw slightly before using in a recipe. Three tablespoons of egg mixture equals one whole egg.

Yolks Only
Separate eggs - yolks from whites (setting aside whites to freeze as well). Put yolks in one bowl. Add either 1 teaspoon sugar or 1/2 teaspoon salt per every six yolks (to prevent coagulation). Make sure to mark if you use sugar or salt so you know to use in sweet or savory dishes. Prepare and pack as for whole eggs.

How to Use: Take out what you need and thaw slightly before using in a recipe. One tablespoon of mixture equals one egg yolk.

Whites Only
Separate eggs - yolks from whites (setting aside yolks to freeze as well). Put whites in one bowl. Prepare and pack as for whole eggs.

How to Use: Take out what you need and thaw slightly before using in a recipe. Two tablespoons equals one egg white.

Freeze for up to 12 months.

Review: Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home

2012-01-07T19:30:00.000-07:00

Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home: 52 Quick Meals to Cook for Family and Friends

I admit it, I have thing for books that are divided into seasons and menus. Martha Stewart's Dinner at Home does both. It has 13 menus for each season so 52 meals - one for each week. It is arranged seasonally so that you can take advantage of what produce is in season. These recipes aren't your typical all-American meat and potatoes type of menus. They go beyond but not so much that it is out of reach. Ingredients used are fairly simple and a person should be able to pick them up at the grocery store. Although I do think these recipe aren't exactly everyday meals for the average American family but I think it does give ideas and starting points to maybe think out of the box for your next weeknight meal. I also don't believe them to be all that quick even though the title says "Quick Meals..." Quick always makes me think of Rachel Ray and 30-minute Meals (many that don't look like they could be done well in 30 minutes either) but anyway what I am saying is quick means 30 minutes or less to me. These will take at least an hour - sometimes a little more with prep. These recipes would be good to serve to friends and family that you are having over for dinner or some would be good just to mix up your usual menu.

This book has beautiful photographs and good print on quality paper. It gives you sidebar extra info for each menu along with a preparation schedule. At the end of the of the book, Stewart includes some basics of cooking such as soup stock recipes and hints on cleaning and prep of some foods. The menus are also broken down into categories instead of seasons - so starters, main dish, sides and desserts. But overall I love how the table of contents is set up - because of the seasonal menus. I would go that direction first because being able to find in season produce would be the best.

Sample of menus in the book...

Spring

Spring Salad with Fresh Mozzarella
Turkey and Pancetta Meatballs
Pasta with Mint Pesto and Fava
Coffee Ice Cream Affogato

Strip Steak with Chimichurri
Roasted Potato Wedges
Sauteed Spinach with Vidalia Onions
Torrijas

Fontina and Herb Flatbread
Prosciutto-Wrapped Pork Cutlets
Wilted Escarole
Amaretti-Ricotta Sandwiches

Summer

Pancetta Cheeseburgers
Balsamic Mushrooms
Tomato, Basil and White Bean Salad
Coconut-Topped Cupcakes

Salmon with Creamy Leeks
Dilled Rice Salad
Sugar Snap Peas with Toasted Almonds
Raspberry Mint Gelatin Cups

Cantaloupe Wedges with Feta Cheese
Honey-Glazed Chicken Skewers
Summer Squash and Olive Phyllo Tart
Espresso Cream Crunch

Fall

Warm Swiss Chard and Bacon Dip
Braised Chicken Marsala
Sage Polenta
Sauteed Pears in Honey Syrup

Skillet Rib-Eye Steaks
Broiled Peppers with Melted Cheese
Broccoli with Garlic and Anchovies
Molten Chocolate-Espresso Cakes

Pork Chops with Sauteed Apples and Onion
Shaved Fennel-Celery Salad
Mustard Mashed Potatoes
Maple Custards

Winter

Roast Chicken Breasts in Creamy Tarragon Sauce
Warm Lentils with Spinach
Caramelized Endive
Poached Pears with Chocolate Sauce

Broiled Red Snapper
Citrus- Soy Sweet Potatoes
Sesame Spinach Rolls
Rice Pudding with Candied Kumquats

Butter Lettuce with Brie and Pears
Curried Vegetable Potpie
Spiced Lemon Cookies

It is my suggestion to always check cookbooks out from the library and cook a few recipes before buying.

Friday Favorites

2012-01-06T12:47:00.001-07:00

Declutter Calendar 2012 - I could just link to the calendar. I have signed up for it and got the link but this person wants you to sign up so real easy - email and name. And if you haven't already create an email for things like that you sign up for that you don't necessarily want to spam your regular email account. I have an account that I give whenever a store or restaurant wants an email address to get coupons. I use it for these kind of things too. Anyway - the calendar is great each day it just has one thing like January 10th is "Clear off the top of a nightstand", April 13th is declutter cookbooks and each day has tasks like those.

52 Weeks to an Organized Home - another of the same vain as above. You can sign up to have it delivered to your email but if you scroll beyond that there is the link to the post for each week.

31 Days to a Better Grocery Budget - just as the title says. Posts help you to a better grocery budget.

Creating the Perfect Plans by TinyBuddha - Just a good life lesson on things not always working out and being perfect.

Granola Bars - looks like a good recipe for Granola Bars

Guest Post: Review of ToodleDo

2012-01-05T17:55:00.000-07:00

Organization can make or break you. If you’re anything like me, I have lists, then have more lists and then have list of lists and finally a list to organize the lists … and before long all of that gets thrown into the shredder without thinking twice. What I was lacking was a central place that could store all of my to do lists in a way that made logical sense.

Then I found ToodleDo, a cloud service that allows you to sync up your to do list with your computer, iPad, Android, iPhone, even your Blackberry.

But ToodleDo is the ultimate of ultimate to-do lists. What makes it that way?

It allows you to get as anal with your to-do lists as you care or want. You can categorize them, then prioritize them, assign them, and setup reminders to your heart’s content. You can have it send you daily reminders of the most pressing things on your list and have that wonderful satisfaction of crossing off (okay – clicking a check box) when you gleefully finish an item on the list.

The service is FREE – with some limitations or you can get an annual subscription that has other capabilities including – nested to-do lists. Wait. Nested to-do lists? What are those?

Let’s say you’re going to have a dinner party of guests, but there’s a lot of things to do in addition to the other 10 things you have on your list. For example:

- Clean dining room

- Fix blinds

- Remember Sally’s permission slip

- Get Roast from Piggly Wiggly

- Polish silverwave

- Take car in for tune-up

- Call to have prescription refilled

- Clean the flower garden

- Rake up the leaves

- Clean the kids room

It all gets jumbled until you can nest the to-do list or batch them into better pockets:

- Thursday's chores

o Fix blinds

o Take care in for tune-up

o Rake leaves

- Kids

o Call to have prescription filled

o Clean kids room

o Remember Sally’s permission slip

- Sunday Dinner Party

o Cleaning dining room

o Get roast for Piggly Wiggly
o Polish silverware

Okay – that might be just a minor plus but it can help in some when needing to organize some tasks.

Something else you can do is email the to-do list to whoever else is a collaborator. That’s kind of cool when schedules get bent out of shape everywhere and you need a central place to focus on the things that need to get done.

And if you’re into micromanaging, you can estimate the amount of time it would take to complete a said item. Why would you want to do that? Because if you micromanage things right down to the minute, ToodleDo can then assign you a task to do. Have a 20-30 minute spot between projects or appointments? ToodleDo can tell you to vacuum the living room or get bills ready for next week or whatever 20-30 minute project you have defined.

All told – ToodleDo is a great, comprehensive task, to-do list with a whole host of features and tools that can help better organize your life.

BIO: LordSpooner aka Michael is a sadist, bondage enthusiast, a fetishist, a geek, an all around good guy who everyone thinks would never hurt a fly. (Little do they know.) Having a passion and love for all thing technological, he's found a niche being a tech-geek for those around him. You can learn more about him on his blog or on FetLife

Rice and Sausage Casserole

2012-01-04T13:40:00.000-07:00

This dish looks really pretty when coming out of the oven but also is full of flavor and piping hot on a cold winter night. It would be a good dish to serve when having people over for dinner. Not diffifcult to make and it is warm and comforting to eat. Serve with a salad. Such as a salad with shaved fennel and Parmesan on it. Or a salad with some pears or apples and toasted pine nuts or walnuts would be a good compliment too.

1/2 cup of finely chopped onion
2 bell peppers - stem and seeds removed and cut off 4 to 6 rings and then chop the rest
2 tsp. + 2 tsp. olive oil
1 tsp. Italian seasoning (a blend of dried oregano, marjoram, thyme, and rosemary)
4 or 5 links turkey/chicken Italian sausage (1 lb.)
2 cups cooked rice - brown or white
3/4 cup cheese (low-fat cheeses work too - I used colby-jack mixture)
1 tbsp. butter
3 tbsp. flour
3/4 cup any broth (I use chicken but have used beef too)
1/2 cup milk (I used skim)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 375F/190C. Heat 2 tsp. olive oil in a large heavy frying pan. Add the chopped onion and bell pepper and saute until the vegetables are cooked through, about 3-4 minutes. Remove the cooked vegetables to a bowl.

Add 2 tsp. more oil to the frying pan (or less if you're using a non-stick pan.) Squeeze the Italian sausage out of the casing and saute until it's fully cooked and nicely browned, breaking apart with a turner as it cooks. This will take about 5-6 minutes, but don't rush the browning.

When sausage is done sprinkle with 3 tbsp. flour and add 1 tbsp butter to the pan, stir until well coated/mixed. Add broth and milk. Stir and cook until mixture thickens. After it the mixture thickens add the cooked vegetables, Italian seasonings and rice into the pan and mix with the sausage. Cook this mixture a few minutes, until the rice is warmed through. Put the mixture into a casserole dish that you've sprayed with olive oil or non-stick spray. (I used a dish that was 9 x13 but a slightly smaller size will work.) Sprinkle the cheese over the top. Add bell pepper rings to top. Push them into the casserole slightly.

Put the casserole into the oven and bake until the cheese is melted and lightly browned and the whole thing is piping hot, about 20-25 minutes. Serve hot.

NOTES:
1 can of cream of chicken or mushroom soup can be substituted for butter, flour, broth and milk. You will probably still need a little water or milk to smooth it out some though when mixing it in.

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Tuesday Tips: New Year's Edition

2012-01-03T09:09:00.003-07:00

In lieu of the regular Tuesday Tips post, I wanted to change it up a bit and make it more personal. I came across an article that seemed to fit in with the theme of the New Year when people are prone to making resolutions. This isn't a list of things to do-it's a list of things to stop doing.

30 Things to Stop Doing to Yourself by Marc

Stop spending time with the wrong people. – Life is too short to spend time with people who suck the happiness out of you. If someone wants you in their life, they’ll make room for you. You shouldn’t have to fight for a spot. Never, ever insist yourself to someone who continuously overlooks your worth. And remember, it’s not the people that stand by your side when you’re at your best, but the ones who stand beside you when you’re at your worst that are your true friends.

Stop running from your problems. – Face them head on. No, it won’t be easy. There is no person in the world capable of flawlessly handling every punch thrown at them. We aren’t supposed to be able to instantly solve problems. That’s not how we’re made. In fact, we’re made to get upset, sad, hurt, stumble and fall. Because that’s the whole purpose of living – to face problems, learn, adapt, and solve them over the course of time. This is what ultimately molds us into the person we become.

Stop lying to yourself. – You can lie to anyone else in the world, but you can’t lie to yourself. Our lives improve only when we take chances, and the first and most difficult chance we can take is to be honest with ourselves.

Stop putting your own needs on the back burner. – The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too. Yes, help others; but help yourself too. If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is now.

Stop trying to be someone you’re not. – One of the greatest challenges in life is being yourself in a world that’s trying to make you like everyone else. Someone will always be prettier, someone will always be smarter, someone will always be younger, but they will never be you. Don’t change so people will like you. Be yourself and the right people will love the real you.

Stop trying to hold onto the past. – You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading your last one.

Stop being scared to make a mistake. – Doing something and getting it wrong is at least ten times more productive than doing nothing. Every success has a trail of failures behind it, and every failure is leading towards success. You end up regretting the things you did NOT do far more than the things you did.

Stop berating yourself for old mistakes. – We may love the wrong person and cry about the wrong things, but no matter how things go wrong, one thing is for sure, mistakes help us find the person and things that are right for us. We all make mistakes, have struggles, and even regret things in our past. But you are not your mistakes, you are not your struggles, and you are here NOW with the power to shape your day and your future. Every single thing that has ever happened in your life is preparing you for a moment that is yet to come.

Stop trying to buy happiness. – Many of the things we desire are expensive. But the truth is, the things that really satisfy us are totally free – love, laughter and working on our passions.

Stop exclusively looking to others for happiness. – If you’re not happy with who you are on the inside, you won’t be happy in a long-term relationship with anyone else either. You have to create stability in your own life first before you can share it with someone else.

Stop being idle. – Don’t think too much or you’ll create a problem that wasn’t even there in the first place. Evaluate situations and take decisive action. You cannot change what you refuse to confront. Making progress involves risk. Period! You can’t make it to second base with your foot on first.

Stop thinking you’re not ready. – Nobody ever feels 100% ready when an opportunity arises. Because most great opportunities in life force us to grow beyond our comfort zones, which means we won’t feel totally comfortable at first.

Stop getting involved in relationships for the wrong reasons. – Relationships must be chosen wisely. It’s better to be alone than to be in bad company. There’s no need to rush. If something is meant to be, it will happen – in the right time, with the right person, and for the best reason. Fall in love when you’re ready, not when you’re lonely.

Stop rejecting new relationships just because old ones didn’t work. – In life you’ll realize that there is a purpose for everyone you meet. Some will test you, some will use you and some will teach you. But most importantly, some will bring out the best in you.

Stop trying to compete against everyone else. – Don’t worry about what others doing better than you. Concentrate on beating your own records every day. Success is a battle between YOU and YOURSELF only.

Stop being jealous of others. – Jealousy is the art of counting someone else’s blessings instead of your own. Ask yourself this: “What’s something I have that everyone wants?”

Stop complaining and feeling sorry for yourself. – Life’s curveballs are thrown for a reason – to shift your path in a direction that is meant for you. You may not see or understand everything the moment it happens, and it may be tough. But reflect back on those negative curveballs thrown at you in the past. You’ll often see that eventually they led you to a better place, person, state of mind, or situation. So smile! Let everyone know that today you are a lot stronger than you were yesterday, and you will be.

Stop holding grudges. – Don’t live your life with hate in your heart. You will end up hurting yourself more than the people you hate. Forgiveness is not saying, “What you did to me is okay.” It is saying, “I’m not going to let what you did to me ruin my happiness forever.” Forgiveness is the answer… let go, find peace, liberate yourself! And remember, forgiveness is not just for other people, it’s for you too. If you must, forgive yourself, move on and try to do better next time.

Stop letting others bring you down to their level. – Refuse to lower your standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs.

Stop wasting time explaining yourself to others. – Your friends don’t need it and your enemies won’t believe it anyway. Just do what you know in your heart is right.

Stop doing the same things over and over without taking a break. – The time to take a deep breath is when you don’t have time for it. If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting. Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly.

Stop overlooking the beauty of small moments. – Enjoy the little things, because one day you may look back and discover they were the big things. The best portion of your life will be the small, nameless moments you spend smiling with someone who matters to you.

Stop trying to make things perfect. – The real world doesn’t reward perfectionists, it rewards people who get things done.

Stop following the path of least resistance. – Life is not easy, especially when you plan on achieving something worthwhile. Don’t take the easy way out. Do something extraordinary.

Stop acting like everything is fine if it isn’t. – It’s okay to fall apart for a little while. You don’t always have to pretend to be strong, and there is no need to constantly prove that everything is going well. You shouldn’t be concerned with what other people are thinking either – cry if you need to – it’s healthy to shed your tears. The sooner you do, the sooner you will be able to smile again.

Stop blaming others for your troubles. – The extent to which you can achieve your dreams depends on the extent to which you take responsibility for your life. When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility – you give others power over that part of your life.

Stop trying to be everything to everyone. – Doing so is impossible, and trying will only burn you out. But making one person smile CAN change the world. Maybe not the whole world, but their world. So narrow your focus.

Stop worrying so much. – Worry will not strip tomorrow of its burdens, it will strip today of its joy. One way to check if something is worth mulling over is to ask yourself this question: “Will this matter in one year’s time? Three years? Five years?” If not, then it’s not worth worrying about.

Stop focusing on what you don’t want to happen. – Focus on what you do want to happen. Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story. If you awake every morning with the thought that something wonderful will happen in your life today, and you pay close attention, you’ll often find that you’re right.

Stop being ungrateful. – No matter how good or bad you have it, wake up each day thankful for your life. Someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs. Instead of thinking about what you’re missing, try thinking about what you have that everyone else is missing.

Shared from Marc and Angel Hack Life.

Happy New Year!

Organization in the new year

2012-01-02T06:00:00.001-07:00

It seems that for many the new year is a time for resolutions, changes, and trying to "lose" things from their current way of doing things. This year I have decided not to set about "losing" anything, but to set about positive change. To frame things in the positive in a way that adds to my daily life instead of worrying about having to lose (generally a negative) something. One of the areas I always seem to like to re-work and make even more efficient than it was is organization of our home, our lives etc. Here are some websites that I felt had some very useful and practical information.

While I may not choose to incorporate all of their suggestions, in reading over these I was left with some very positive changes that my family can make to the coming year.

I hope your 2012 is filled with much happiness, good health, and positive energy.

Here are some useful organizational websites and tips:

OrganizedHome is a site that I find has easy to understand useful information for those looking for quick ways to change something on the home front. They seem to have tips for all times of the year.

House Beautiful is not only a site that has some great information on organization, but it has some fun and interesting tips for decorating your home, getting rid of clutter, organizing furniture, and pretty much anything you would want to do with the look of your home, they seem to have some useful information.

Buttoned UP has so much useful information. You can get their newsletter via email, they have daily tips that while short are useful and give you much to think about in ways to change how you do things not only in your home, but with your personal self, your finances, the whole picture. I find it to be a useful site about balance in all areas of your life. So if you are looking to make some easy, small, positive changes to your life, your home, your finances in 2012, take a few moments to look through this site. You may just find something to be of use for you.

Lastly I will lend a few tips that I started to incorporate into my life in 2011 that I plan to continue to in 2012:
1. Do a load or two of laundry daily and you won't get behind.
2. Find a 5 minute routine for the morning and for the evenings. In the mornings I use the 5 minute routine to do a quick wipe down of bathrooms and kitchens. I use the evening routine to pick up the million toys that my little girls leave all over the house so that at night I don't go to sleep with a messy looking house. Perhaps you don't have children, but you could instead use your 5 minute evening routine to make sure your dishwasher is loaded and ready to be run, your "stuff" is picked up etc.
3. Leave a small basket by the door of your house that can hold winter gloves, hats, scarves, and whatever other winter apparel that seems to always find its way to the floor. By having the basket handy things will always be picked up and easy to find in a quick minute.
4. If your floors look clean people tend to think the rest of your house is clean even when you know it may need a better cleaning than you had time for. So always make sure you vacuum or dry mop your floors daily (if you have pets) or every other day if you don't. it only takes a few minutes and makes the whole house look much better.

Please be sure to post any tips you have to a more organized house and life. Happy New Year to you all.

Edible Massage Lotion

2012-01-01T07:29:00.002-07:00

Massage is something I do lot of for Master. Generally I use a non-edible massage oil, but there are times when a little edible version is handy. Over the years, I've purchased commercial versions but they generally come in bottles larger than i can use before they expire. We used some after the expiration date once and it made me a little ill and so i've been gun shy since.

Well I set about making my own version. I looked at several different recipes and in the end did a little combination of several. It works well and doesn't make too much that it'll spoil before you can use it all. Also you can make it any flavor you desire, which is always a bonus.

The ingredients are simple enough and relatively easy to find.

Edible Massage Lotion

1/4 Cup Vegetable Glyerine (very important to find an edible or food grade glycerine)
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon Honey (depending on how sweet you want it)
1/2 teaspoon Flavoring Extract (vanilla, almond, chocolate, coconut, etc.)

Whisk everything together and store in an airtight container. Use like any massage lotion but lick it off when you're done.

Note: I'd be careful with flavors like mint or cinnamon, they might add a tingle that could either be pleasing or uncomfortable depending on a person's skin.

Again, I can't stress how important it is to find edible/food grade glycerine. The bottle should tell you so:

I think this could make a fun wedding / bridal shower gift too.

Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup

2011-12-31T10:17:00.003-07:00

I know Jen just posted a soup recipe with ham but this one was too good, and too easy, not to post as well.

Slow Cooker Ham and Bean Soup

A meaty ham bone or ham hock or about 2 cups diced ham (the ham bone really adds flavor though!)
16oz northern beans
½ large onion diced
2 to 3 stalks celery, sliced
8 cups low sodium chicken broth
2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
2 Tbsp minced garlic
2 Bay leaves
½ tsp thyme

Soak the beans overnight in cold water. In the morning, rinse and place in the bottom of a crock pot. Place the ham bone on top of beans. Dump in the rest of ingredients and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours (depending on your cooker's cooking time. It could take up to 8 to 10, but mine was done in 6) until the beans are tender. Can be thickened with a little cornstarch and water, if you like a more stew-like consistency.

Plugging this into Calorie Counter's recipe analysis, and roughly calculating that my slow cooker made about 12 cups and a serving size was about 2 cups of soup (as the main course of a meal, 2 cups sounded about right?), it gave me these nutrition facts:

Calories: 130
Total Fat: 3.7g
Saturated Fat: 1.1g
Trans Fat: 0.0g
Cholesterol:20mg
Sodium: 621mg
Total Carbohydrates: 15.4g
Dietary Fiber: 2.9g
Protein: 9.4g

Friday Favorites

2011-12-30T19:30:00.000-07:00

Organized Home - Holiday Grand Plan New Year's Week - help with some post holiday organization
DIY Storage Container for Christmas Tree Ornaments - I have seen similar products that you buy but it has to be cheaper to buy cups at dollar tree or some-like place and glue them to cardboard to create a custom container
16 Tips for Easier Christmas Storage - budget friendly storage solutions
37 New Year's Eve Appetizer Recipes
Festive and Fun Holiday Drinks

Freezer Breakfast Muffins

2011-12-29T15:00:00.000-07:00

These are great muffins to have on hand so that a great grab and go type breakfast. They are savory and not sweet.

Makes 12 jumbo muffins or 24 regular muffins

1 lb chorizo sausage or bulk breakfast sausage

2 cups Bisquick - I used heart healthy Bisquick

1 cup cornmeal

3 eggs

1 3/4 cup milk

1/3 cup chopped bell peppers

1/3 cup finely minced onion

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 1/2 cups shredded cheese - I have used cheddar one time and monterey jack another - both were good

Directions:

Line muffin tins with paper liners and set aside.

Crumble, brown sausage. Add in peppers and onion and cook until tender. Drain off grease.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Mix together bisquick, cornmeal, eggs, garlic powder and milk. Add drained sausage mixture and cheese. Mix until all ingredients are incorporated.

Ladle the filling into the prepared muffin tins, filling almost to top.

Bake for 10 to 15 mins. Allow to cool completely.

To Freeze:

Remove all paper liners before placing in freezer. The moisture from the frost and then thawing make the muffins stick to the liner. For easily peeling of the liners - make sure they are completely cooled down before removing. Store in large airtight container or ziplock. Or place one jumbo or 2 regular in sandwich bags and then place in large container or ziplock so that you can just pull out easily for a breakfast.

To Serve and Eat:
Microwave straight from freezer on high for approximately 90 seconds. Each microwave is different so you will have to find that right time for yourself.

Other Uses for Nail Polish Remover

2011-12-28T06:48:00.000-07:00

Recently, I've been finding all kinds of ways to use my nail polish remover. I use a 100% acetone remover and because that stuff is so very strong it has plenty of other applications to like (regular non-acetone remover will likely work as well):

Got some super glue on your fingers? The acetone will remove it and not smell near as bad as gasoline.
Find some jars you want to re-use but they have lettering on them? The acetone is likely to remove it.
Dip a toothbrush in the nail polish remover and use it to clean debris from your keyboard.
It will remove scuff marks from patent leather shoes.
Use it remove stickers or labels from glass jars, windows, and mirrors.

Be sure to test a small hidden spot before using it so that it doesn't remove any paint. Don't spill it on wood that's been stained or painted, you will be sorry.

Storage for Lights

2011-12-27T12:55:00.000-07:00

I know there are lots of fancy products you can buy to storage and wrap your light cords to keep them from not being a big ball of tangled mess, but I just use the box they came in. It works fine and didn't cost extra.

Take one end and tuck it into the box and close it.

Wrap the cord all around and down the box.

Tuck the other end into the box and close it.

Store extra bulbs and fuses inside the boxes.

Tuesday Tips

2011-12-27T07:52:00.002-07:00

Caring for "The Good Crystal"
We’re talking about the tumblers, stemware and serving pieces you only take out for company…special company…and on special occasions. To clean these irreplaceable treasures, fill a basin or the sink with a 3:1 combination of hot water and distilled white vinegar.

Note: For crystal that is really grimy or filmy, use 3 parts hot water to 2 parts distilled white vinegar.

When you wash crystal in the sink, line it with a fluffy towel or a rubber mat in case a piece slips out of your hands.

Once all the crystal is clean, rinse and dry each piece with a lint-free cloth. Your best bet in terms of lint-free is a linen towel, or a cloth made of at least 25% linen.

Will You Pass the Hand-Washing Test?
How much time do you spend washing your hands before you handle food? Go through the motions of your typical hand-washing session, and you might be surprised at how quickly you do it. Maybe for six seconds?

To be sure your hands are bacteria-free, the recommended amount of wash-up time is 20 to 30 seconds using warm, soapy water (and plain soap is often better than antibacterial). If you sing the "Happy Birthday" song or recite your ABCs while washing up, you will spend the right amount of time cleaning your hands. Finish the job by wiping your hands with a clean piece of paper towel.

Cutting Board Cleanup
Do you have cuts in your wood cutting board? Of course! But those cuts can be home to germs. Every now and then, smooth away the cuts with a piece of fine sandpaper.

Give Your Oven Racks a Bath
Run very hot water in the bathtub—enough to completely cover the oven racks. Add 1⁄3 cup of liquid dish detergent and 1 cup of distilled white vinegar. Let the racks soak in the tub for at least one hour. Then scrub if necessary, rinse and wipe dry.
If some stubborn caked-on crud refuses to come off, you can carefully scrape it away with a knife.

How to Dust Hard-to-Reach Places
Clean hard-to-reach high-up, under and behind places with a golf club or hockey stick.

Wrap a cloth or hand towel around the head of a golf club or the blade of a hockey stick, and secure it with string or rubber bands. Both club and stick are perfect for dusting the tops of picture frames, high shelves, the tops of doors, ceiling molding and the tops of bookcases.

Post Holiday Left Overs

2011-12-26T18:17:00.002-07:00

If your house is anything like our house, then you are finding yourself in the post holiday daze, with too many left overs in your refrigerator and and uncertainty on how to use them up creatively. Himself does not like to eat left overs. Our littles aren't fans of left overs either. So while I have a fond spot in my heart for the reheated ham and lasagna (especially in the middle of the night), they simply won't have any parts of it.

So in order not to waste the precious foods of yesterday, I turn to some new recipes (and some tried and true ones) to turn those left overs into new meals.

Here are a few successful dishes for you to try:

If you have ham left over --

You can always go with a ham and cheese omelet, or a western omelet, or the tried and true egg strata. But I also like to change it up a bit and use the following recipe:

Ham and Potato Soup (I originally got this recipe out of an old better homes and gardens magazine and have changed it up a bit over the years)

Ingredients

3 1/2 cups peeled and diced potatoes
1/3 cup diced celery
1/3 cup finely chopped onion
3/4 cup diced cooked ham
3 1/4 cups water
2 tablespoons chicken bouillon granules
1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
1 teaspoon ground white or black pepper, or to taste
5 tablespoons butter
5 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups milk

Directions

Combine the potatoes, celery, onion, ham and water in a stockpot. Bring to a boil, then cook over medium heat until potatoes are tender, about 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the chicken bouillon, salt and pepper.
In a separate saucepan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in flour with a fork, and cook, stirring constantly until thick, about 1 minute. Slowly stir in milk as not to allow lumps to form until all of the milk has been added. Continue stirring over medium-low heat until thick, 4 to 5 minutes.
Stir the milk mixture into the stockpot, and cook soup until heated through. Serve immediately.

If you have turkey left over:

Turkey Pot Pie

Ingredients:
1 recipe pastry for a (10 inch) double crust pie
4 tablespoons butter
1 small onion, minced
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, diced
3 tablespoons dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
2 cubes chicken bouillon
2 cups water
3 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 1/2 cups cooked turkey, cubed
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Roll out bottom pie crust and place in the 10 inch pie pan and set aside.
Place 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet. Add the onion, celery, carrots, parsley, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook and stir until the vegetables are soft. Stir in the bouillon and water. Bring mixture to a boil. Stir in the potatoes, and cook until tender but still firm.
In a medium saucepan, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter. Stir in the turkey and flour. Add the milk, and heat through. Stir the turkey mixture into the vegetable mixture, and cook until thickened. Pour mixture into the unbaked pie shell. Roll out the top crust, and place on top of filling. Flute edges, and make 4 slits in the top crust to let out steam.
Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and continue baking for 20 minutes, or until crust is golden brown.

Or if you are like me, simply slip down to the quiet of the kitchen in the middle of the night, have a glass of wine, and enjoy picking at the left over ham or turkey or perhaps a simple sandwich. But no matter how you enjoy your left overs, simply enjoy the season.

Happy Holidays!

Beer Battered Fried Green Beans

2011-12-25T16:42:00.004-07:00

Merry Christmas to all those that celebrate it!

Today, I bring a quick and easy side dish that my Sir loves and we made tonight!

Beer Battered Green Beans

1 cup beer
1 cup flour
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 lb green beans
peanut oil for frying

Wash and trim the ends of the green beans. Mix flour, beer, salt and pepper in a bowl. Whisk until smooth.

Preheat oil to 375 degrees. If you are heating on the stove in a pot, it will be the right temp when a small drop of the batter fries to a golden brown in 1 minute.

Dip the green beans in batter to coat, let excess batter drip off and drop into the oil, making sure to leave space between the beans so they don't stick together. Fry until golden brown, then remove with tongs or a spider strainer and drain on paper towel. Season with additional salt and pepper to taste.

* Peanut oil is best for frying these, but it can be done in other oil, such as Canola.

* If you are frying on the stove top, you generally want about 1 inch of oil in the pot.

* Much experimentation has shown that lighter beers tend to work better and taste better than dark. The best one we've found so far is Bass Ale.

* You can make these with a lot of batter or a little. You can see that in the batch pictured, there are some lightly coated and some more heavily coated. Sir tends to like his with more batter.

* I find that this recipe barely covers a pound of green beans, so you might want to double it.

* Putting the beans on a cookie sheet in the oven for about 5 minutes at 350 degrees removes additional grease and makes them more crispy.

* These can be reheated, 350 degrees for 10-12 minutes is usually sufficient.

Repurpose Christmas

2011-12-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

If you're anything like me, by the time Christmas is over, you're ready to pack all of those space-sucking decorations away. And if one happens to be broken, or if you're sick of looking at it year after year, getting rid of it sounds wonderful!

Well, stop it. Heh. This year we're going to repurpose. We're going to save money, save the landfill, and be all sorts of crunchy. :)

Even your non-working string of lights can be repurposed! Think about the style of cute, junk jewelry that fills the store at the holidays. Christmas bulb earrings. Christmas bulb necklaces, broaches, bracelets, barrettes.

Old, tired ornaments can be prettied up with some satin and lace. Or jazzed up with sequins and glitter, if that's your style. Grab a hot glue gun and some scraps and design your new ornament with your old ornament as a base. Consider gluing broken ornaments into a beautiful mosaic piece.

Long before I buy new Christmas decorations and pay full price at the store, I walk the holiday aisle at the thrift stores and see what's there. Broken things that just need a spot of glue or a swipe of paint, old wreaths needing some sprucing up, or a whole box full of items that can be taken apart and made into a whole new thing.

Not only do I save a bunch of money, I get to have fun creating. Get the kids involved- what kid can resist paint, glue and sparklies? Not this one. ;-)

Last year I had a snowman Christmas wreath. It was cute enough- singing, animated snowmen and all- but it was beginning to fall apart, plus I felt I'd 'outgrown' the style. In fact, when I was packing up last year I *almost* tossed it.

When I got it out this year, I decided to repurpose. I took it apart, and with just a few cheap purchases at the craft store, I came out with not only a new wreath for the door, but with enough leftover supplies to make a few more decorations.

The only part of this that is original is the wreath itself. There are always piles upon piles of old, ugly wreaths at the thrift store. (hint hint) I like the clean, simple lines of this wreath, and as cheap as it was to throw together, next year I can do a completely different style if I want to and not feel like I've wasted a ton of money.

This is the pile of leftovers I had when I was done. It's a combination of stuff cut from the old wreath and supplies from making the new one. I tossed them all in a basket, threw it on the table and called it a centerpiece. :)

This literally took me about 60 seconds to make, using nothing but leftover supplies.

And those silly motion-activated, singing, dancing snowmen from the original wreath?

I placed them on a table in a high-traffic area just so I could listen to the groans of my cheerful teenagers. With each loudly crooned verse of "Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow" I was entertained with "Moooo-oooooom! That is SO annoying!" I do take pleasure in the strangest of things. ;)

So, as you're packing up this year, slide your box of thrift-store-bound decorations into the closet. Because while the idea of redecorating may not appeal to you right now, bogged down in holiday-overload as we are, by next year when you pull it all out and the Christmas spirit is just beginning to bubble, you might be surprised at how much fun it will be to recreate, repurpose and redecorate!

Some helpful links:

Thriftshop Romantic: Repurposing Christmas Decorations

Mom's Budget: Repurpose Your Christmas Decorations

Ways to repurpose broken Christmas decorations

This one gives ideas for how to use your Christmas decorations all year round:
After Christmas Decorating: Repurpose Your Christmas Tree and Ornament Collection

Friday Favorite

2011-12-23T07:00:00.000-07:00

Top 10 Sites for Do It Yourself Projects - as it says 10 sites for DIY projects
7 Easy DIY Gifts You Can Make in an Hour or Less by Treehugger - gifts that recycle/repurpose
Ginger Thumbprint Cookies with Dulce de Leche - Oh yums! Combining many good flavors!
Cranberry Margaritas - Really pretty and I am sure it is very tasty too
Sweater to Slouchy Hat - recycle/repurpose of a sweater

Turkey Tetrazzini

2011-12-22T07:00:00.000-07:00

Having turkey during the holidays? This is a great way to use leftover turkey. It is a good hot meal on a busy day or a lazy weekend. Although this looks complicated it really does comes together fairly quick. You could put it all together the night before and then take it out of the fridge 30 minutes before baking. I serve with a salad and garlic toast.

Ingredients

3/4 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup chopped bell peppers (I did mixture of yellow, green and red)
2 to 3 tablespoons olive oil, vegetable oil or butter
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 1/2 cups white button mushrooms, ends trimmed, sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 cups low-sodium chicken stock or canned chicken broth
1 3/4 cups half and half
12 ounces spaghetti noodles
1 pound cubed or bite-size shredded roast turkey
1/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 cups potato chips, crushed

Directions

Saute the onions and bell peppers in olive oil in a large skillet or Dutch oven over high heat until soft, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Add the mushrooms, Essence, and thyme and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are soft and have released their liquid, about 6 minutes. Add 3 tablespoons butter. Sprinkle with the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the wine and chicken stock and cook, stirring, until smooth and thick, about 2 minutes. Add the half and half and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is thick and very flavorful, 15 to 20 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil and cook the spaghetti noodles until al dente, about 8-10 minutes. Drain in a colander and set aside.

Spray a 9 by 13-inch casserole or baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.

When the sauce has thickened, add the noodles, turkey, and Parmesan to the skillet and stir until thoroughly combined. Transfer to the prepared casserole and top with the potato chips. Bake uncovered until bubbly and golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve immediately. Serves 8.

Gift idea: Biscotti

2011-12-21T21:44:00.006-07:00

After baking up a ton of sweet stuff this holiday, I was looking for something homemade to gift some foodie friends on my list. Biscotti came to mind- not too terribly sweet, but flavorful and it still gives me the chance to play around with different combinations of ingredients.

I adapted Giada De Laurentiis' holiday biscotti recipe. I opted not to dip them in white chocolate and cover them in sprinkles, and changed out the nuts from pistachios to chopped walnuts. The result was a slightly sweet cookie with a gentle lemon undernote, just the right amount of crumble when dipped in coffee, and a buttery, nutty flavor accented with cranberries.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped
2/3 cup dried cranberries

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line a heavy, large baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl to blend, and set aside.
2. Using an electric mixer, beat the sugar, butter, lemon zest and salt together.
Add eggs in, beating them one at a time.
3. Add the flour mixture and mix until everything is just blended. Stir in dried fruit and nuts.
4. Form the dough into a log, about 3” wide, on the prepared baking sheet. Mine ended up being about a foot long.
5. Bake until light golden – about 40 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. There may be some crumbling when you slice... I made sure to cool completely before moving onto the next step to minimize that.
6. Using a serrated knife, slice through biscotti at a diagonal. Arrange slices onto baking pan, slice-side-down. Bake again at 350 degrees for 15 minutes, or until the tops are light golden brown and the edges are crisp.
7. Cool completely before packaging.

My next batch? Walnuts, dried cherries, dipped halfway in melted dark chocolate.

Tuesday Tips

2011-12-20T09:02:00.000-07:00

Toilet Overflowing? Quick Do This...
If, after you flush, the water is rising higher than it should, quickly turn on the cold water in the sink as well as in the bathtub or shower. The cold water coming through the pipes will cause a vacuum that will suction the water in the toilet down the drain.

Commit this tip to memory. It’s a great thing to know, especially when you go to somebody else’s home.

Surprising Way to Keep Ice Off Your Windshield
If snow is coming, and your car is going to be out on the street all night, pull up your windshield wipers and coat the windshield with sulfuric compounds.

Does that sound complicated? It’s not! Just cut an onion in half and rub the glass with the onion’s cut surface. The coating will prevent the formation of ice on your windshield. Don’t forget to onion-up your side mirrors as well.

Quick Trick Makes Dripless Candles
Keep candles in the freezer for several hours before lighting them. The candles will burn longer and hardly drip, if at all.

Speaking of freezers...

Cheese Please!
Before you cut or grate a block of cheese, put the wedge in the freezer for about 20 minutes. This will prevent it from clinging to the knife or grater.

Perfect Piecrust
When a piecrust recipe calls for 1 tablespoon of ice water, instead use 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar—this will make a crispier crust.

And for a flakier piecrust, substitute the same amount of sour cream or plain yogurt for the liquid called for in a crust recipe.

Speaking of vinegar...

When Something Smells Fishy
Fish-cooking smells can be absorbed—just place a small bowl of distilled white vinegar or fresh coffee grounds near the stove or wherever the fish is being prepared.

(I just used the vinegar trick in my microwave after warming up some fish and finding that the microwave stunk to high heaven the next day. I filled a small bowl with some vinegar, put it in the microwave and shut the door. A few hours later- no smell!)

A little Latke here, and a little latke there...

2011-12-19T06:00:00.002-07:00

In our house we celebrate both Hanukkah and Christmas. And with Hanukkah quickly approaching, there is much discussion on what type of Latkes we will be eating. Everyone has a preference and no fear of expressing what their favorites are. So what happens is that we wind up having almost 8 different types of Latkes. My 4 year old says that's okay because it just means one type for each night. I, on the other hand, would rather not be frying food for my family for 8 nights.

That said, for those of you who may feel so inclined to try out some latke recipes, here are a few of our family favorite recipes and/or variations:

Traditional Potato Latke

Ingredients:
2 cups peeled and shredded potatoes ( I prefer to use red potatoes, but you can use any type of potato that you like)
1 tablespoon grated onion (Himself prefers more onion, so instead of using grated onion, I finely chop a whole onion)
3 eggs, beaten
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (If your mixture is too watery or loose, simply add more flour as needed)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
oil for frying (I prefer peanut oil, but you can use any type of oil you like -- olive oil doesn't work the best however so don't use that)

Directions:
place the potatoes in a cheesecloth and wring, extracting as much moisture as possible.

In a medium bowl stir the potatoes, onion, eggs, flour and salt together.

In a large heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until hot. Place large spoonfuls of the potato mixture into the hot oil, pressing down on them to form 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick patties. Brown on one side, turn and brown on the other. Let drain on paper towels. Serve hot!

**note** we serve ours with both apple sauce and sour cream on the side for those who may want either with their latkes.

Sweet Potato Latkes

Ingredients:
4 large sweet potato, peeled and grated
2 onion, grated
8 eggs
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons and 2 teaspoons oil, or more if needed
2 teaspoons salt
applesauce
plain nonfat yogurt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 200 degrees F (95 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

Fill a bowl with lightly-salted water. Rinse the grated sweet potato in the water, and drain into a sieve. Pat the grated sweet potato dry with a cloth or paper towels, then place into a bowl. Squeeze excess moisture from the grated onion, and place into the bowl with the sweet potato. Stir the eggs and pepper into the mixture until well combined.

Heat the oil in a nonstick skillet over medium heat until it shimmers, and spoon about 1 heaping tablespoon of the potato mixture per patty into the hot oil. Flatten the patties with a fork, and fry until golden brown and crisp on the bottom, 5 to 8 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side, sprinkle with salt, then set the cooked patties aside on the prepared baking sheet in the preheated oven while you finish cooking the latkes.

Stir the potato mixture before cooking each batch of patties.

**Note** we serve these with hot with applesauce and yogurt.

Variations:
Some variations that we like to our traditional potato latkes are to grate in some carrot, and celery.

Another of our variations is to grate in zucchini and yellow squash. If you choose to do this with the squash, you will need to definitely add more flour to keep things together as the squash retains a lot of water.

Another variation is to grate in apple with your sweet potato latke mixture. That gives it a bit of sweet and savory all in one. This is my youngest daughters favorite type to eat. We sometimes make those and serve them for breakfast. I also add some cinnamon to this mixture.

And lastly the latest variation we have tried is to grate potato, zucchini, carrot, onion, and eggplant all together. We season this mixture with garlic, salt, pepper, and some hot sauce into the mixture of egg and flour. These are served with creme fraiche in our house.

No matter what way you do your latkes this holiday season, may you share many memories, and good times. Happy Hanukkah.

Chocolate Peppermint Thumbprint Cookies

2011-12-18T13:39:00.006-07:00

I made these for a gathering last night and they went over so well (all 5 dozen disappeared!) I thought I would share with you!

The original recipe is from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food .

2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
1/4 tsp fine salt
1 1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature (2 1/2 sticks)
1 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 tsp peppermint extract
1/2 cup white sanding sugar (*the magazine merely suggests that you use sanding sugar, but the cookies look so much pretty with the extra sparkle. If you don't have it though, you can use 1/2 cup regular white sugar)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (Martha says, with racks in the upper and lower thirds. My oven is divided into quarters, I did the lowest rack and the 2nd from the top). In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder and salt. In a large bowl, beat 1 cup butter and 1 cup sugar on medium-high until light and fluffy or about 3 minutes. Add egg and vanilla; beat to combine. With mixer on low, gradually add dry mixture to combine.

Place the 1/2 cup sanding sugar in a small bowl. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, then roll in sugar to coat. Place balls on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper about 1 inch apart. Bake 5 minutes, remove from oven and with a small melon baller or the bottom of a small spoon, make an indentation in the center of each cookie. **

Return to the oven and bake 4 minutes longer, until cookies are just set but still look moist, Be careful not to overbake. Cool completely on wire racks.

** Really Martha? They are called thumbprint cookies. I used my clean thumb to make the indentations. And because my oven bakes hot, I made the indentations prior to baking and baked for only 6 minutes total.

In a microwave safe bowl, combine the chocolate chips and remaining 1/4 cup butter and peppermint extract. Microwave in 10 second increments until melted, stirring frequently. Let cool until thick enough to pipe. Spoon into zip-top bag and snip 1/4 inch hole into one corner. Pipe chocolate into indentations. Let dry completely. ***

*** I have zero luck with piping anything from a zip-top bag. I used a teaspoon and did not wait the 5 minutes till the mixture was cool enough to pipe, but chose instead to spoon it immediately while it was still warm and pliable.

Like I said, they came out fantastic and I was left with zero!

Pumpkin Wontons

2011-12-17T07:00:00.000-07:00

I got the original recipe off of Kraft. I think they would be great if you have to go a Christmas or New Years Eve party. They are easy and tasty. I did modify it a bit as I have worked with wontons before and didn't feel there was a need for the egg white that Kraft had in their recipe. I also used more wonton wrappers but kept their number in the recipe too.

12 caramels

1 tsp. water

1/2 cup sour cream

1 tsp. ground cinnamon, divided

4 oz. (1/2 of 8-oz. pkg.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

1 Tbsp. brown sugar

1 tsp. flour

1/4 tsp. orange zest

20-24 won ton wrappers

water

2 cups oil

2 Tbsp. powdered sugar

MICROWAVE caramels and water in medium microwaveable bowl on HIGH 30 sec.; stir. Heat for another 30 sec. Stir until caramels are completely melted.Cool 2 min. Stir in sour cream and 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. Refrigerate until ready to use.

WHISK cream cheese, pumpkin, brown sugar, flour, zest and remaining cinnamon until well blended. Spoon about 2 tsp. onto center of each won ton wrapper. Moisten edges with water; fold diagonally in half. Moisten edges again with water pressing edges together tightly to seal.

HEAT oil in large saucepan on medium-high heat to 350ºF. Add won tons, in batches; cook 2 to 3 min. or until evenly browned. Drain. Cool slightly or to room temperature. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve with caramel sauce

MAKE AHEAD

Cook won tons as directed except don't sprinkle with powdered sugar. Freeze up to 2 months. When ready to reheat, place frozen won tons on baking sheet. (No need to thaw first.) Bake at 350°F for 15 min. or until heated through. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

COOKING KNOW-HOW

* Won ton wrappers quickly dry out, keep them covered with a damp clean kitchen towel until you are ready to use them.

* I found the dip didn't go quite smoothly but it might have been because I didn't use Kraft caramels. When I mixed it into the sour cream, it hardened right away because the sour cream was cool so cooled the caramel. There were clumps of caramel in the dip. So it didn't exactly go as directed. I think next time I would use like caramel you use for ice cream topping. I think it would mix more smoothly after being heated for a few moments.

Friday Favorites: Holiday treats edition

2011-12-16T17:43:00.002-07:00

Right now, my focus is on baking Christmas cookies. And so I've been digging through recipe site after recipe site to find a few that have consistently good feedback and meet our picky Santa's tastes (mmmm. shortbread!)

Here's the ones that made my cut:
Ina Garten's Shortbread
Russian Tea Cakes
Holiday Biscotti
Raspberry and Almond Thumbprints
World's Best Butter Cookies

We also do Caramel Popcorn for the holidays, too.

Handmade Gift: Gratitude Journal

2011-12-15T08:00:00.000-07:00

I am all about little gifts brought together to be made into a package of goodies for people I love. So I like making crafts that are small and easy. This is one of those projects. I made these a few years ago for packages.

I called them Gratitude Journals but I also did Wish, Ideas, and Dream Journals. The idea was to be able to just keep this tiny little book with you so you could capture moments of gratitude (wishes, ideas or dreams).

I used mini-mead journals that I got at the Dollar Tree in 3 packs. They are 3 1/2 inches by 4 inches. I also have used other little notebooks that I will show photos of plain notebooks at the end that can be used.

I just used scrapbook and collage elements to decorate the covers.
Items used:
Pages from old books
Paint chips picked up at Home Depot and Lowes
Words that I printed from using a Word Doc
Labels
Stickers
Rubberstamps
Mini-tags
Magazines - images and patterns cut out from magazines
Vintage Printables I found online (such as:
Punches (stars, hearts, circles, flowers, and puzzle pieces)
Old postage stamps
Scrapbook paper & other scrapbook embellishments - stars, brads, flowers, word rub-ons, chip-board embellishments

These other types of notebooks would work also. The notebook with pen I got at Michael's Craft store for $1. I also got the Matchbook Notepads there in a pack of 2 or 3 (can't remember how many for sure) but I have seen both of these items occasionally at The Dollar Tree too. The 3"x5" Memo notepad usually comes in a 3 pack also at The Dollar Tree. I can't remember for sure on the 6"x4" Memo notepads but think they came in a 2 pack. Any little notepad with a cardstock/cardboard cover will work for embellishing. Just make sure they are small enough to tuck into a purse or bag for people to carry with them or to tuck into a corner of a desk to be there but not take a lot of space up.

Grinding Nuts

2011-12-14T09:56:00.000-07:00

It seems to me that the holiday baking season calls for bunches and bunches of ground nuts. Generally I buy whole or broken nuts and do the grinding myself because it tends to be cheaper. For a long time, I used a hand-crank, old-fashioned model and was pleased with it. It took a long time to do several pounds, however; and the chop wasn't very uniform.

I found a meat grinder attachment for my mixer at a yard sale for $4. I bought it thinking I would occasionally use it to grind meat. Turns out, it's perfect for grinding nuts too. It's much, much faster and the grind is perfectly uniform.

If you have a lot of nuts to grind this holiday season, find a friend who hunts they most likely have a meat grinder and ask to borrow it. Just a few minutes and you can grind several pounds and store the ground nuts in the freezer for future use. I store the ground nuts in clearly marked bags with the amount pre-measured for ease during long baking sessions.

Tuesday Tips: Holiday Party Edition

2011-12-13T04:34:00.005-07:00

Fun Place Cards for Your Holiday Party

Instead of using the usual place cards, buy miniature picture frames and put each guest’s name in a frame—they make great keepsakes. It would be even more fun if you happened to have a photo of each guest to put in the frames.

Cookie-Cutter Napkin Rings

Create your own distinctive collection of napkin rings by using cookie cutters. Each person gets a different shape, with his or her napkin rolled up and slipped through the middle.

Matching Christmas Serving Platters

Don't want to use up your budget on buying holiday themed serving platters? Use vibrant, shiny, thick wrapping paper to line each serving tray or plate. Suddenly, all your platters and plates will match the mood.

Putting an Elegant Spin on an Old Classic

Veggies with dip on a big platter can be ordinary and boring. But take those same ingredients and place them in individual glass votive candle holders that people can pick up and carry while mingling and you've got something special.

Making a Fire in Your Fireplace? Add a Lovely Scent...

First, spread the rinds from an orange or lemon on paper towels, and let them dry out overnight. When the rinds are thoroughly dry, toss them on the fire to create a lovely citrus aroma. If you are not into a citrus scent, you could toss in a few pinecones for a more woodsy fragrance.

Cookie Gift Sleeve

Favors for guests to take with them - cookies packaged in CD envelopes and sealed with festive tags.

A Holiday Pick-Me-Up

Are the holidays running you ragged? The scent of cinnamon stimulates the trigeminal nerve, the area of the brain that governs wakefulness and raises energy levels. Have cinnamon at breakfast-time—sprinkle it on toast, hot oatmeal, cold cereal or even coffee. Or, during the day, put a drop of cinnamon oil on the inside of your wrist and sniff the invigorating scent.

Making a dollar go a long way.

2011-12-12T01:00:00.000-07:00

From September to New Year's in our household there is no shortage of holidays and birthdays celebrated. Between the Jewish holidays that come in the fall, the Christian holidays that come in the fall, and 6 birthday celebrations, and 2 anniversary celebrations, we are always looking for ways to stretch our money. We host most of the above and it seems there are always overnight guests, extra people at the table, and just more mouths to feed, presents to purchase, and things to do, than time or money sometimes want to allow.

So each year I look for ways to cut costs, save a bit here and there, to spend that bit in another spot. In other words rob Peter to pay Paul if you will.

There are two great iPhone apps that I have used to help me keep track of where all the money seems to go and how our family is spending that money. The first app is a free app that can be purchased through iTunes called Mint. Mint is a really handy tool in that it is not only a budget tracker, it interfaces with whichever bank accounts you set it up to interface with and can directly use the information from your bank accounts to track where the money goes without you having to do much beyond initial set up. (I love when my devices work smartly for me). Mint also has some great "alert" features that you can use to keep you up to date on spending limits, areas of concern, or over all information.

The other app that I find very useful is iReconcile. iReconcile is not a free app, but I do prefer it over Mint in that it does "more" and it does it a little bit better. The app itself will cost $19.99 annually (backup features etc.) but I find that $20 to be well worth it when it comes to long term financial planning, tracking, spending tools, and information gathered. It will allow you to drill down to the smallest of details, and also sum up to an annual level. Himself prefers to not know the small details, but wants the bigger picture and wants me to be able to explain things in further detail should he ask. For my purposes I love being able to drill down to the tiniest of details, yet easily roll it up into a neat summary.

But making a dollar go along way isn't just limited to tracking where the spending happens. You can still make wonderful holiday memories without having to break the bank. Think in terms of daily affordable luxury items. Many of us don't even realize just how much money goes out the door each day on that daily latte, or that daily muffin in the morning before work. Or maybe it's the afternoon pick me up at the food truck outside your office space, or perhaps it's the quick pizza on the go for the kids in the evening because you forgot to defrost something to cook for dinner. With a small amount of pre-planning, you can save a bundle. While it is too late to do this for this year, it's not to late to start thinking about next year.

So perhaps make small changes for the new year. Maybe you make a menu plan for the week/month. Perhaps your plan involves using a crockpot a bit more to avoid that last minute pizza, or maybe you do a big cook ahead day twice per month and freeze a few dinner options so that on the days when life is hectic and you don't want to cook you can simply take something out of the freezer, pop it into the oven, add a salad and bread, and you are good to go. Maybe you keep a supply of pizza dough ready to go in your freezer so you can make great tasting homemade pizza at a fraction of the cost of buying one.

Perhaps for the new year you take the "latte challenge". While I would not dream of challenging you to give up your daily latte every day of the week (although that in and of itself is a great challenge) I would challenge you to give it up two days a week and bank the difference. Have a jar, or envelope, or even a spot in your savings account, where you designate the "latte" money to go. If you do this twice a week, that's a $10 savings, $40 monthly, and by next December you have $480 saved that you can now add to the holiday budget to go toward whatever holiday expenses you may have. And you will find you won't even really feel it missing. Imagine then, if you will, if you do that daily instead of just twice a week, at what the savings would be.

And while I am using the term "latte"... i really do mean whatever your affordable luxury is. For some it's a latte, for others its that daily candy bar, for some still it's cigarettes. Whatever your item is, make a life change, even if only once or twice a week, bank the funds, and use it at the end of the year for something better. Your body will thank you, your wallet will thank you, and your happiness in knowing you achieved a goal will be a reward in and of itself. And if all else fails, give yourself a sticker for each day you achieve this, it works for my oldest daughter, she says stickers are *the* best! Perhaps she's right.

And lastly, in making your dollar go along way, think outside the box. Instead of buying expensive wrapping paper, think of fun and creative ways to wrap a present. Have a bottle of wine you need to give, knit a wine cosy, or decoupage a brown bag and put it in that, or simply tie a pretty bow on it and take it as is. After all, people are going to not only appreciate your efforts, but they are appreciating the gift itself more so than what it was wrapped in, boxed in, or otherwise packaged in.

Happy Holidays!

Cinnamon Oatmeal Cut Out Cookie

2011-12-11T19:00:00.000-07:00

I made these cookies last year instead of my cardamon cut-out cookies. But I love cardamon so I couldn't imagine my Christmas without a cookie with cardamon so I made a little change to the original recipe so that I could have cardamom. I have to say I am not sure which I like better these or the Cardamom Cut-Out Cookies. These were a really good cut-out cookie.... flaky and buttery such great flavor. They even have some healthy elements to them.

Cinnamon Oatmeal Cut Out Cookies
adapted from King Arthur Flour's Chewy Oatmeal Decorating Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
3/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (King Arthur's recipe has ginger)
2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour (I only use Unbleached All-Purpose flour now)
1/2 cup whole wheat flour, traditional or white wheat
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
cinnamon sugar

To prepare the dough: In a medium-sized bowl, beat together the butter and sugar, then add the egg, vanilla, salt, baking powder, cinnamon, and cardamom, beating until smooth. Beat in the flours and oats. The original recipe warns that the mixture may look dry at first but then it will come together - I didn't have that problem. It was pretty moist all the way through the mixing process. Divide the dough into two pieces, wrap each piece in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.

To shape the cookies: Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll it into a circle about 14" in diameter. Use your favorite cutters to cut out cookies, re-rolling and cutting the scraps. Place the cutout cookies on lightly greased or parchment-lined cookie sheets; set them fairly close together, as they don’t spread.

To bake the cookies: Bake the cookies for about 9 to 10 minutes: the shorter amount of time will make softer cookies, the longer amount of time, crisper cookies. Remove the cookies from the oven, sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar and transfer to a rack to cool. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Yield: 6 1/2 dozen 2 ½" cookies.

NOTES:
* I wish I had ran the oats through my food processor just a little bit. Maybe just 2 pulses. Because in cutting the cookies out through the oats was difficult at times. And so the stars didn't have clean edges. I think having the oats in smaller pieces would have helped that. But you don't want oat flour you want oats so that is why I say only 2 pulses. Maybe only one. I just feel it would be easier if they were in a little smaller pieces. But they still turned out good and I even if I don't have time or the food processor thing doesn't work - then I would still make these cookies as they are very good.

* These cookies are great for high altitude cooking. The oats and whole wheat flour helps hold them together. They don't spread at all.

* They weren't good to ship at least not loosely in a container. They broke. We shipped some to Master's parents and I think I included some in a package to my sister and brother-in-law. But Master's parents told use that the stars didn't make it. As I said above they were light and flaky. Although they weren't crumbly. I just feel it was to being jostled so much in shipping they broke. But they aren't fragile cookies just in normal conditions (such as sitting in a cookie jar and being eaten because they are so good).

These cookies were really good. I loved that they had whole wheat and oats in them. And I will be making them again this year. I might be trying different spices in them and possibly drizzling them with some dark chocolate.

Sunday Quick Links!

2011-12-11T13:14:00.003-07:00

This week I have gotten a bunch of tasty treat and helpful hint ideas in my email so I thought I would share them!

My favorite has been Real Simple Magazine's 34 Unique Stocking Stuffers For those of you who want to shove more than candy in a stocking this year.

Those of you looking for new appetizing appetizers, I am going to try the Sriracha Veggie Cheese Balls from Betty Crocker.

Also on Betty's website Fudgy Dark Chocolate Tart. I'm sure Santa won't mind this being left for him instead of cookies and milk!

If any one used to get Kraft Food and Family magazine but stopped once the subscription became paid, have no fear, the website has all their yummy recipes including these adorable Melting Snowman Balls and other variations on cookie balls made with Oreos and Nutter Butters!

Lastly, another Real Simple article I have loved this week was some new twists on Christmas Tree decorating in the Festive Christmas Tree Decorating Article.

Have a great week!

Stretching a budget for the holidays...

2011-12-10T17:18:00.002-07:00

This month, we are celebrating the Christmas holidays, as well as three birthdays and hosting family for New Year's Eve. So I've been charged with the task of making sure that the grocery budget stretches as far as we can. Considering the amount of social activities and extra shopping/visitors we'd be hosting this month, I wanted to see how far I could get with smart planning and cooking in bulk.

First, I checked with the Boss about his preferences for the holiday meals and then asked for preferences of those celebrating their birthday. Those would be the cornerstones I had to work around.

Then I raided the pantry to see what we had on hand. With a list of basic ingredients in hand, I planned out meals where I could make once, eat twice... basically, make a double batch and cook one immediately, then freeze one for use at the end of the month. Lasagne, casseroles, soups, chilis all made that list.

Then I looked for similarities in the recipes where I could buy in bulk and split up the items. Italian sausage is a great multitasker: I planned to use it for lasagne, migas, and roasted polanos with sausage. Rotisserie chicken was planned for chicken cheesy nachos, a spicy chicken tortilla soup (turkey leftovers work awesome with this recipe, too), and homemade chicken stock. I have three recipes to use with butternut squash- including a sweet roasted squash, a savory casserole, and a soup with roasted apples.

I don't use tomato based sauces often, so when I used a marinara sauce for a dipping sauce for pepperoni monkey bread, I planned on making the lasagne shortly after so I could use the remainder of the sauce. I made a note of what type of shredded cheeses I'd need to buy in bulk.

I consolidated all the recipes into a master grocery list, looked for coupons and sales, bought in bulk where I could. With the exception of milk, eggs, ice cream for the birthdays and fresh salad greens, I believe we are done for the month and we've only used half the normal budget. When all is said and done, I expect to spend about 70% of what we'd normally spend, despite the various special occasion meals we'll be having this month.

I have casseroles tucked away in the freezer, a loaf of pumpkin bread, several soups and chilis frozen in smaller portions, frozen cookie dough waiting to pop into the oven, ingredients for 2 types of lasagne and scones ready to be prepped this week. I also have ingredients for candy and other holiday treats ready to go.

On top of this, a lot of pressure off me is gone. I don't have to worry about unexpected guests dropping in or spending my time in the kitchen cooking the entire time while we have visitors... I can pull out something I prepped earlier. Best of all, when we go to potlucks or have a work event, I always have homemade cookies I can bake in less than 15 minutes.

Friday Favorites

2011-12-09T07:00:00.000-07:00

Cookie Dough Fudge - someone in this house is obsessed with cookie dough so I thought of him when I saw this recipe. I suppose I should try to make it :)
Basil Banana Pepper Jelly & Banana, Walnut, Carrot Muffins - both of these recipes look so good. But I can't stop thinking about this jelly. I think it would make a great gift too.
Homemade Lotion Bars - I think these not only would be just great to have around the house but great gifts
100 Days of Homemade Christmas Gifts - there are some handmade gifts for kids on this link as well as adults
Kraft Food and Family Holiday Magazine - this is the digital version of the paid paper subscription
12 Days of Christmas Printables - Free Christmas Printables
20 Easy Christmas Decorating Ideas - Babble gather links to some DIY decorating ideas

Easy Tinsel Garland Wreath

2011-12-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

Made this Wreath for Christmas 2010

I got this idea from Creature Comforts. Please check out her directions too as she has other options and some creative add-ons. This was such a simple and inexpensive wreath. I got all my supplies at the dollar store. Cost me I think $5 for everything and I had left over supplies.

1. Take embroidery hoops in various sizes, store-bought tinsel garland (a 6” embroidery hoop uses approximately 12’ of garland), and a pair of scissors.

2. Begin by tucking one end of the garland under the metal latch at the top of your embroidery hoop.

3. Begin wrapping the tinsel garland around the embroidery hoop making sure to keep the garland taught as you go. Every wrap around the hoop you will want to push the wrapped section up so that it fills in nice and full and does not look sparse. Continue wrapping and pushing it up to make it full until the entire embroidery hoop is covered and you've used the full length of garland. If you happen to run out of garland along the way you can easily just continue with another piece of garland and cut it off when your wreath is full. Secure the loose end(s) by tucking between the embroider hoops (which can be tricky) or just pushing it under some already wrapped pieces so it stays tucked under and not falling down and loose.

4. Add bow or a waxed paper flower. Add some ribbon to hang and and enjoy the wreath!

My wreath in the photo - has a fairly large embroidery hoop and a small one. I laid the small one on top of the large one and then hung them together on the door. It created a fuller look to the wreath.

Herbed Sea Salt

2011-12-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

Have a foodie on your gift list? Why not make and give them some homemade herbed salt for their spice racks. If you garden and have your own dried herbs so much the better. If you don't check the bulk section of your grocery and/or health food store for herbs at much better prices than buying them in the spice aisle in individual bottles.

Herbed Sea Salt

1/4 Cup Dried Parsley
2 Tablespoons Dried Basil
1 Tablespoon Dried Oregano
1 teaspoon Paprika
1/2 teaspoon Dried Thyme
1 Cup Sea Salt

Mix all together until well combined. Store in an airtight container. Add a nice tag for gift giving. This recipe should give you plenty for multiple small gifts.

Note: you could switch up the dried herbs a bit if you like - think marjoram, sage, rosemary, etc.

Online Grocery Store Ads

2011-12-06T20:00:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to take a moment to point out this feature that I have found most grocery stores have along with their online weekly circular.

In the online ad, you can often just click on the item you want and add it to a list and often circle it too so you know you have added it.

On the list you can add notes such as I possibly wanted get turkey from the Deli Meat so added that.

This is what it looks like if you are wanting to print it out. It has the notes, quantity, and sale price. It is broken up into section to make it easy when shopping.

Now if I am only getting a couple items out of the ad - I won't print a list but I do find it helpful to go through all the ads and compare prices, circling the things I normally get or feel are a good deal so I can compare things more easily.

Tuesday Tips

2011-12-06T06:27:00.002-07:00

Stock Your Car for Winter Now

There are some things you should have in your car during the winter—for your safety and in case of an emergency...

*Cell phone and cell-phone car charger
*Sand or kitty litter for traction
*Lubricant for frozen locks
*Small container of motor oil
*Funnel—for an emergency infusion of motor oil or water
*Two roadside flares
*Safety matches
*Jumper cables to start a dead/low battery
*Flashlight and fresh batteries
*Thermal blanket(s)
*Bottled water
*Packages of crackers, protein bars and/or nuts
*Small hand shovel
*Spare tire, jack and lug wrench
*Work gloves
*Ice scraper and brush
*Small fire extinguisher
*Tire chains
*Money (keep $20 in the glove compartment)

One thing not listed here is candles. I remember my Dad once telling me that a candle can provide enough warmth in a car to keep a person from freezing so I always keep a couple of candles in the glove box.

Though a lot of those are things you should have in your car all year-round, I'm reminded of how, at least once a winter, and usually more than once, I hear on the news a story of a traffic jam stranding motorists in the snow for upwards of 12+ hours. I always feel for the little kids and wonder if the parents were prepared Have some snacks, some games, some blankets and for the wee ones, extra bottles and formula, if necessary.

Skin Feeling a Little Dry? Kitchen Cupboard Help...

Olive oil is an effective moisturizer. Massage some into your hands and give it time to sink in. (You may also want to put on a pair of rubber or latex gloves to avoid getting oil stains on whatever you touch.) After about 30 minutes, take off the gloves and wipe the oil off your soft, moisturized hands with a dry paper towel.

A Place for Everything...

If you have a closet in your entryway, hang a shoe holder on the inside door. To store accessories that you may need before going outside—such as scarves, gloves, hats, sunglasses—assign compartments of the shoe bag for each of those things.
You can also store pet accessories in the shoe bag, such as your dog’s leash or winter jacket, as well as a small flashlight.

Simple Way to Revive Your Winter Woolens

When you take sweaters and other wool clothing out of storage, throw them in the dryer with a couple of fabric-softener sheets. Dry on very low heat for 20 to 30 minutes. The sheets absorb odors and the dryer action fluffs up fibers. The wool items will come out looking and smelling good.
(The idea of wool in the dryer makes me nervous, though!)

Easy Refrigerator Deodorizer

Dab a few drops of vanilla or lemon extract on a cotton ball and put it in a shot glass inside the fridge. Any unpleasant odor will be replaced with an appetizing scent.

Cookie, cookies everywhere....

2011-12-05T06:00:00.002-07:00

It's beginning to look a lot like cookies!! Cookies cookies everywhere. In our house one of the things that always signifies a holiday is food. As a child there were always different foods that came out at various holidays that might not have been seen at other times of the year. As an adult, I like to keep those same memories alive by continuing along those lines. So with that in the month of December, my daughters and I do a lot of baking. We make many different types of treats. Some to keep and eat, some to have on hand for that last minute holiday guest, and some to give as gifts to others.

No other time of year sounds, tastes, and feels like cookies to me as much as the month of December. By the time Chanukah, Christmas, and the new year roll around we will have baked at least 24 different types of cookies.

But our very favorite that would not be the holidays without is Florentine cookies. These delightful little tasty treats just scream holidays to me. I'm not really sure why other than I remember as a child making them with my grandmothers and my mother. So for the past forty years I have enjoyed these treats with my family and now with my own daughters. It's exciting to me to pass down cookie recipes from generation to generation.

Do you have similar traditions in your family regarding recipes? Do you have a favorite food or treat that signifies the start of the winter holiday season? If not, perhaps this is the year you will start a tradition that can continue on with your family into the future years. Making memories to me is far more important than any present we can share. In fact it is the best present we can share with our loved ones, the making of memories.

In this case, it's in the form of Florentine cookies. I hope you and yours enjoy these delightful cookies as much as my family does.

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups sliced, blanched almonds
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour (I have tried this using wheat flour but don't like how it turns out)
Finely grated zest of 1 orange
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 to 4 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Directions

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.

Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. I always use parchment paper.

Pulse the almonds in a food processor until finely chopped, but not pasty. Stir together the nuts, flour, zest and salt in a large bowl.

Put the sugar, cream, corn syrup and butter in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a rolling boil and sugar is completely dissolved. Continue to boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, then pour mixture into almond mixture and stir just to combine. Set aside until cool enough to handle, 30 minutes.

Scoop rounded teaspoons (for 3-inch cookies) or rounded tablespoons (for 6-inch cookies) of batter and roll into balls. Place on prepared baking sheet, leaving about 3 to 4 inches between each cookie since they spread.

Bake 1 pan at a time, until the cookies are thin and an even golden brown color throughout, rotating pans halfway through baking time, about 10 to 11 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to racks to cool. Repeat with remaining batter.

Put the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. Bring a saucepan filled with 1 inch or so of water to a very low simmer; set the bowl over, but not touching, the water. Stir the chocolate occasionally until melted and smooth. (Alternatively, put the chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Melt at 50 percent power in the microwave until soft, about 1 minute. Stir, and continue heat until completely melted, about 1 to 2 minutes more.)

Drizzle melted chocolate over Florentines as desired. Set aside at room temperature until chocolate is set.

Busy baker's tips: Store baked cookies carefully, separated by parchment or waxed paper, in an air-tight container for up to 3 days. Florentines are best stored separated from moist cookies and cakes.

Washing Delicates

2011-12-04T07:58:00.004-07:00

In today's modern world, you may wonder why you would want to take the time to hand-wash your delicate items, most every washing machine has a delicate cycle, after all. And you can purchase a lingerie bag (a small, mesh bag to place delicate items in and toss into the washing machine) to use for some items.

However, hand-washing your delicate items helps to preserve the life of the item. Plus, there just are some things (such as stockings) that is is not advisable to wash even if you do use the delicate cycle and a lingerie bag.

Now, a lot of you are fortunate enough to have wash tubs, I do not. I do my delicates the old-fashioned way. In the bathroom sink! Here are my supplies:

Stain stick
Woolite

I pre-treat any stains with the stain stick. I find that usually sticks work better than sprays with delicates, but ALWAYS test a small un-noticable corner of the garment first to make sure it won't discolor it.

Fill up the sink with cold water, add Woolite. My bottle has 2 lines, the bottom one being what you use for sink washing. If you aren't using Woolite, then refer to the directions on the back of the bottle. Swish the water around to get some soapy goodness going and then add items to be washed. In this example, I have a pair of tights, some lacy underwear and a negligee. I swish them around again before letting everything soak for about 20 minutes. At that time, I work on the stains, usually using my fingers, to rub, but sometimes a soft cloth.

Wring out the items and remove from the sink. Drain water and with water running, thoroughly rinse the items that have been washed. Wring out gently. You can dry by either hanging, placing on a mesh drying rack (like for sweaters) or rolling into a towel to squeeze out excess water and then letting dry flat on the same.

Here are some links for supplies!

Sweater Drying Rack

Lingerie Bag

Helpful hints for removing stains from The Laundress

Handmade Holiday Gifts

2011-12-04T06:16:00.004-07:00

I have some great ideas for you if you are looking for reasonably priced, handmade, holiday gifties.

First is Handwritten Letters from Santa!

My dear friend and sister-of-my-heart is providing these wonderful letters. Written in gold or silver ink, customized to your child or children and with a North Pole postmark. They come in a plain brown envelope so that little eyes won't see them before you are ready!

Order here and be sure to mention that you got the idea from Rheya!

Also available at the same Etsy store are "Naughty" or "Nice" Certificates! Which one have you been this year?

Whimsical, suitable for framing, so you can prove you've been well behaved! You can see that the author has nice penmanship as well as creativity! I've know The Kitchen Jedi for many many years.

Letters from Santa are kid tested too. She has a list of questions she asks to help make it more personal to your child, you choose what the details are and then watch when big eyes say "How did he know?!"

You can see samples of her letters on her Esty page.

The Kitchen Jedi offering Handwritten letters from Santa and Naughty and Nice Certificates

Little Handmade Gifts

2011-12-03T10:00:00.000-07:00

These are some gifts that have been posted on Domestic Servitude that you can make to give during the holidays.

1. Bath Cookie - I made these in Lavendar and Lemongrass scents. Make sure to mark them for bath only not eatable.

2. Bath Fizzes - I got the Citric Acid for these at natural/health food grocer. It is something used often when canning but I didn't find it in regular grocery stores near canning supplies unfortunately.

3. Sweet & Spicy Bath Salts - all the ingredients in this recipe by katie, you most likely have on hand! It would be good idea for all those little empty bottles of herbs/spices that I save wondering how can I reuse these.

4. Clothes Pin Magnets - very inexpensive - 36 pack of clothes pins at Dollar Tree, 50 cent acrylic paints at Michael's and then just cheap little stamps I have picked up at Michael and Dollar Tree. Make a great stocking stuffer.

Holiday Treats

2011-12-03T07:30:00.000-07:00

Holiday treats that I have posted the past several years on Domestic Servitude.

1. C.C Peppermint Bark Cookies - Chocolate chip cookies with peppermint bark in them too

2. "Gourmet" Popcorn - Chocolate popcorn in the photos but 2 other popcorns in the post - Zesty and Butterscotch

3. Peanut Butter Blossoms - a classic cookie...peanut butter cookie with a Hershey kiss pushed into when they are warm out of the oven

4. Ritz Mints - Ritz crackers dipped into chocolate with peppermint extract and then crushed candy canes on top

5. Maple Fudge - if you love maple flavor you will love this fudge. I have given very detailed instructions as this was my own creation after searching the net and not being happy with any of the maple fudges I found

6. Cardamom Cut-out Cookies - my most requested recipe...they turn out very pretty and have a lot of flavor

7. Chocolate Peppermint Cookies - these cookies always seem to be a hit also. Not much to them just a chocolate cookie with pink peppermint icing

8. Gingerbread Muffins - really good for Christmas morning.

9. Cookies-n-Cream Bark - This is probably the easiest recipe I make at Christmas time, but also something everyone enjoys

Friday Favorites

2011-12-02T07:30:00.000-07:00

150 Stocking Stuffer ideas - of course all vanilla and some for kids too but I am sure the creative minds that come and read here can think of something with chocolate sprinkles to add your adult stockings too.
101 Simple Handmade Gifts - a list of of links to handmade gifts
10 DIY Garlands - it shows these as DIY but some have a cost behind them but they are basically showing them because they can be handmade
2011 Ultimate DIY Gift Guide - links to tutorials and recipes that are good gifts
Everything in a Jar - Handmade Gifts - these are really like mini gift baskets - some cute ideas
50 Stocking Stuffer Ideas for Men - which I think often these lists are geared towards kids or women so one for men is nice

31 Days of Posting

2011-12-01T11:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Holidays

I am happy to announce that for the month of December there will be at least one post everyday. It is our way of giving to all the readers of Domestic Servitude. Thank you for reading, commenting, and sending emails. We appreciate your support!

Easy Fabulous Chicken Potato Puff

2011-12-01T10:18:00.006-07:00

Hi y'all. I know I haven't posted in FOREVER, but being in school and working an internship and being a full-time domestic slave has kept me very busy the last few months! I sometimes feel like I do not have enough hours in the day.

And I know y'all feel like that too, which is why I am posting this very simple, very quick recipe.

Have you ever had last minute company for dinner or needed to pull of something fabulous with no time?

This recipe I found in an old recipe box. I love that it is very 1950s housewife but translates so well into today.

Chicken Potato Puff

Mashed Potato Mix (enough for 4 servings)
1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar
1 cup finely chopped cooked chicken
1 cup shredded carrots (I usually omit these because Sir hates cooked carrot)
2 tsp snipped Chives
pinch of dried Rosemary
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
3 egg whites
1/2 tsp salt

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare potatoes according to directions. Stir in cheese, chicken, carrots, herbs and egg yolk.

Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form; gently fold into potato mixture. Pour into greased 2 quart casserole; place in a pan of hot water 1 inch deep. Cook, uncovered until brown and puffed, about 50-60 minutes.

Feel free to be creative with it! I've made the same dish with Swiss and Canadian Bacon with Green Onion instead of Chives. It turned out great. I think the biggest asset any one of us can have is our creativity, our ability to make things work!

Simply Service is Coming Back!

2011-12-01T07:00:00.000-07:00

I know I have mentioned Simply Service before on Domestic Servitude. It is a newsletter that is full of great service tips, thoughts, ideas, personal experiences, and everything else service. There hasn't been an issue in a while and Bootpig left a little teaser on FetLife about a month ago and then recently posted details. I wrote her to ask if I could share the details here.

So from Bootpig posted on Simply Service FetLife group:

As you know, from the previous little teaser, Simply Service is coming back in the first quarter of 2012, aiming for around Valentine’s Day. Partnering with me to share the workload…err… fun is Master Obsidian’s lovely slave, namaste. We have been friends for years, often joking that we’re twins. In case you didn’t notice, I’m the tall one. And maybe the loud one. She wears a sari better.

The Spring edition – we’re hopeful so we’re calling January, February, March – “Spring” will be focused on New Beginnings, Setting Intentions, Starting New Habits (Resolutions, anyone?), Rebirth. We hope for a positive issue filled with ideas for bringing us all out of winter into a bright new year. Unless you’re coming out of summer and headed into winter, in which case, what are your intentions for that time of year?

How you can participate:

1. Send us your 2012 intentions, resolutions, new skills you’re acquiring, new habits and adventures. You can include a name or leave it off but we’ll have a list of what the goals and ideas for the year are. If it is in writing, you’re already on the way there. Commit to the new intentions. Mine is: Working on friendships with service people and building those relationships to increase my skills, particularly in some homesteading areas like natural healing & canning. I’d like to improve my yoga practice.

2. Send us articles to support this theme. You don’t need to ask if you can submit an article – just do it. Well, you may need to ask your Permission Department, but you don't need our permission. It may or may not be included but may appear in a future issue. Ideas for articles: how you changed a habit, how you helped an Owner change a habit, how-to articles for a new skill someone may be adding in their New Year. Remember, we’re not just about service philosophy, but actually getting the job done. We are particularly interested in skills that focus on holistic methods for integrating and upgrading service, including green/organic/healthy habits.

a. Articles will be due by February 1 – as a note, one of the reasons it was originally ended was that begging/chasing for articles isn’t fun. Please participate and help this be a resource for all of us.

b. Articles should be 500-1500 word unless otherwise discussed and include your short bio.

I can be reached at wmb.bootpig@gmail.com and namaste can be reached at Hisnamaste@aol.com

Happy Holidays from both of us, and our Permission Departments, who have blessed this adventure.

Sweet & Spicy Bath Salts

2011-11-25T14:53:00.001-07:00

I do the holiday (and birthday for that matter) gift making around here. Generally speaking, I do gift baskets with lots of little things tucked inside. This year, I'm including some of these fun bath salts. They're quick, easy, and inexpensive but make a fun gift.

Sweet & Spicy Bath Salts

1 Cup Salt (any kind will work: Table, Sea, Epsom, etc.)
1/2 Cup Baking Soda
1/4 Cup Sugar
2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Ground Ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground Cloves

Whisk everything together and pour into jars or bags for gift giving. Add a nice label and instructions to use 2 Tablespoons per bath.

Dijon Mustard Vinaigrette

2011-11-21T11:30:00.000-07:00

The guest post yesterday for Vegetable Cheese Quiche was made for a lunch when visited. I asked if I could bring something and my friend requested a salad. I thought with quiche a salad of spring mixed greens with thinly sliced/chopped onions, feta cheese and seedless grapes would be good. I would have added a nut such as walnut or pine nuts but Master doesn't like nuts. And the salad was fine without them. Served a dijon mustard vinaigrette on top. I based it off of a recipe on Epicurious.

3/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

1 garlic clove, halved

pinch of black pepper

pinch of sugar

I put all ingredients in a bottle and shake until well mixed. But you can also put in a blender or food processor to mix. It can be made 3 days ahead. Just mix well before adding to the salad.

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Vegetable Cheese Quiche

2011-11-20T18:30:00.000-07:00

Guest post by a good friend, wench. Her and her Sir had Master and I over for lunch and she served this delicious quiche.

Vegetable Cheese Quiche by Wench

One of my passions is cookbooks. I truly believe that you can never have too many. About three years ago, I discover Allrecipes.com. Not only will they send you recipes daily, you can just spend hours online just looking at that their goodies.

This recipe came from my searching for a light lunch to serve some very special guests. But because quiche can be fickle, I didn’t want to experiment on our friends. This is the third quiche that I made in ten days. The first one was awful. The second one was good but just needed a few changes. As you can see, #3 was my lucky number, because there wasn’t much left so it must have been good.

I am very lucky that my Sir will eat just about anything. I do know never to put liver or whole wheat pasta in front of him. My family teases me all the time because we rarely eat the same thing twice unless Sir requests it.

Don’t let the word quiche scare you like it did me. Just follow the steps and enjoy.

Preheat oven to 400*

CRUST

1 - 1/2 cup shreddedcheddar cheese

1 cup flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon dry mustard

1/3 cup melted butter

In a bowl mix the cheddarcheese, flour, salt, and mustard. Mix inthe butter, until evenly moist. Pressinto the bottom and sides of 9” pie pan.

FILLING

1 – 1/2 Tablespoon oleo*

1 – 1/2 cups of broccoli, chopped … steamed

Chopped onion

8 oz fresh mushrooms –sliced

2 – 1/2 Tablespoons flour

1 – 1/3 cup half and half

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

4 eggs – beaten

Melt oleo in skillet overmedium heat, and sauté the onion and mushrooms until tender. Stir in flour, half and half, salt, andnutmeg. Bring to a boil and cook for 1minute.

Remove from heat and addbroccoli.

Gradually stir ineggs. Transfer to pie crust.

Bake 15 minutes in thepreheated oven. Reduce to 375* andcontinue baking 20 minutes, until knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

*oleo is another name for butter or margarine.

All that was left of our lunch

Find wench at FetLife or Livejournal.

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Apps for Domestic Service Part 2

2011-11-17T21:00:00.000-07:00

These are apps I have read about or heard good things about. But I don't have any of them as of yet. That might change over the next few days.

Productivity
Pocket Informant - powerful Calendar, Notes, Contacts, Task functions to your device (iPhone, iPad, blackberry and android). It is capable of creating events, has task grouping, GTD/Franklin Covey style tasks, Google, Toodledo, and Desktop sync.

Saving Money
Mint - It has easy budgeting, timely alerts, helpful graphs, investment tracking, help to achieve goals, bill reminders, and ways to find savings

Grocery Pal - Find sales your local grocery and discount stores.

Apples2Oranges - lets you compare two prices, even when the item sizes are different. Also does calorie count.

Recipes
Spark People - Food and fitness tracker as well as healthy recipes

Betty Crocker Cookbook -  2,500 tried-and-true recipes at your fingertips

Cooks Illustrated - 50 of Cook’s Illustrated's all-time best recipes, along with a collection of popular and practical supermarket ingredient reviews, recipe videos, and kitchen timer and shopping list features

How to Cook Everything/How to Cook Everything Vegetarian - "Thousands of recipes and variations; how-to illustrations; menu ideas; and Mark Bittman’s straightforward cooking advice for simple good food. App-only features include recipe timers, easy-to-use shopping lists, and Favorites folders. Best of all, each app is self-contained, so no network connection is required, making these apps the ultimate on-the-go kitchen companions."

Smoothies - dairy free - 100% vegan smoothie recipes

21 Day Vegan Kick Start - recipes and resources to improve and regain your health and includes step-by-step recipe photos.

FoodGawking - has food porn and then links to the recipe/resource. Go to the bottom of the page and you will see the link for download on iPhone

Fooducate  - You scan the barcode and it will tell you what is actually in the product (basically telling you things you don't understand on the label) and then it will also give you healthier choices.

Green
iGrowit - it is for the USA and UK. Find out what vegetables you can plant right now, follow detailed growing instructions that will take you from preparation and planting all the way through to picking and eating your home-grown vegetables, and recipes to use those vegetables in

Green Genie - Over 100 projects and tips (and growing), sharing strategies and info with others, a breakdown of certified green products, full glossary of green terms, a collection of essential reading, links to the best green websites, an explanation of the different kinds of plastics and their recyclability, alist of green organizations and many other features

Around the House
Remodelista - search files of the sourcebook of products and posts, my Design files bookmarking feature, ability to look at posts in categories.

Dwell - Modern architecture and design

Selecting Wines for Dummies -  Articles on popular wine topics, favorites wine list, sharing wines with your friends, sound clip for pronunciation, food and wine pairing tool and several other features.

DwellGawking - like FoodGawking but for dwellings

CraftGawking - again like FoodGawking but for crafts

Tip Junkie - Great website has a free app that looks good too. You can “Heart” your favorite tutorials from ALL of the Tip Junkie sites to “bookmark” them for easy access later, participate in the Tip Junkie Community

SixThreeFive also left a comment on the last post of her favorite Android apps but I noticed a few of these have links to other devices.

Chore Checklist - helps me have a checklist of daily, weekly, biweekly and monthly chores.

Our groceries - Lets you share and create multiple grocery and other to-buy lists. Just sync your phone and you won't need to call home to see if you need milk.

ShapeUpClub - Logs my excercise and calories.

Easy Money - keeps track of your credit and debit cards, as well as your walled and change. You just have to remember to use it... Has bill reminders, budgets, and other things as well.

House Maintanence Schedule - I don't personally use this, we live in an apartment, but it helps you remember to clean your waterheater, you vents, and other seasonal chores.

Chore Master Pro - Allows family members to gain points for doing chores. We don't use this one, but if we had children old enough, I think I would.

FetLife Domestic Servitude group had a good thread on this subject too so please check it out for some members favorite apps.

Just a few other links you might find some good apps...
From AppGuide - Best Chore Management Apps
50 Best Android Apps from PCWorld
Gizmodo The Best Android Apps

Please share in the comments your favorite apps that help you in your service.

Friday Favorites

2011-11-11T21:00:00.000-07:00

5 Tips for Green Furniture Refinshing
Food Swap - this link highlights a food swap that was going on in Portland but what I am really linking it for is the links at the end for those who would like to organize or now after reading about them will try to find local food swaps
Best Comfort foods for Winter by Treehugger - just some scrumptious looking food/recipes.
3-Tiered Stand - with the holidays coming up and entertaining I can see this being in use a lot
Custom Cabinet Knobs - I just like the look of these knobs and they are much less expensive then having to buy any other kind of knob. As someone who has 46 knobs in the kitchen, I am always trying to find a less expensive way to replace them all.

Apps to Help your Domestic Service

2011-11-10T21:00:00.000-07:00

We are geeks in this household so we utilize our smartphone and iPad to help with day to day life .

All the apps are either linked to their website which has a link to the app or the iTunes store. But please google the name if you want to see it has an app for other devices such as Blackberry or Android. We use a AppAdvice to get most of our apps for free (this is geared to iPhone and iPad but again google for name of app for use on other devices.) Things that normally charge will do free for limited time so please bookmark this site as a resources to find apps. They also have an AppAdvice app - which is how we actually use/read it and I find it is worth price. But view the website not just the above link but the whole website for a while and see what you think.

Productivity
For a to-do list/task list organizer - Toodledo - it is a great tool. It has customizable alarms, you can set priority levels on them and break the projects down into tasks, you can share with others, it has folders, tags, contexts, subtasks and more to organize, search and sort through your tasks. It also syncs with Google calendar and gmail.

Reference
Skygrid - basically really powerful newsfeed. If you are needing to find something out on the web and having problems, put that topic in and it will take some time - usually a day and start pulling in everything it finds on the topic. It is really good to if you don't have time right now but let it pull stuff in and then when you are sitting in a doctors office or have 10 mins you can browse through the things it found on the topic you were needing.

Dropbox - sharing files anywhere. It has been an amazing tool for us for business but we use it when we sit just with a wall between Master and my office because it is so easy to use it for sharing files. You just drop and drag to a folder that is on your computer and it will upload it to be shared with those you specify. There is a little pop-up notification on the toolbox when someone has shared something with me. You then will also be able to access it anywhere because it is saved up in the cloud. So I can save a list of household needs and measurements and when out and about, I can access it.

Evernote - Take a note of anything. I like it because I can save websites, news articles and things I know might not be there at some point but evernote will save it for me forever as long as I want it. I can then access it anywhere. So if I read a great article online about wine, I save to evernote and when shopping for wine pull it up up on evernote.

HowCast - videos on How-To. How to do almost anything.

Free Wi-Fi Finder - just what says

Remember that many magazines will give you issues via their app for free if you have a (paper) subscription to them. I have Martha Stewart's Living and Everyday Food and love the issues on the apps as they have extras like videos or more photos. It is nice to read the recipe right on the iPad instead of trying to keep my magazine open on the counter or ripping it out.

Saving Money
Gasbuddy.com has an app that we use all the time to find the cheapest gas. The other night Master saved 14 cents a gallon not traveling very far down the road to get it either.

The Coupon App- pretty much says it in the title what it is huh? :)

Barcode Scanner - it is for the Andriod but Gizmodo has a list of barcode scanners for other devices too. You can scan barcodes or data matrixs and then the app will find you the lowest price.

Menu Planning/Shopping Lists
PepperPlate.com - Not only a great website but has an app too so you can access everything you have on PepperPlate.com. Pepper Plate has a place to store recipes easily from their recommended sites as well as other sites. You can create shopping lists, menus and it also has a planner. From the home page - it looks like the app allows you to set timers and has a feature so your iPad won't dim when you are using to read a recipe while cooking. I have been only using it for a couple weeks but love everything I have used it for so far - and just love the interface.

GroceryIQ & NutritionIQ - Grocery IQ is a great app for creating shopping lists. You can have multiple stores, add details such as size, price and quantity, organize by aisle, has barcode scanning and predictive searches, print or email coupons and it can share with multiple devices and syncs the lists to them so if maybe you went shopping that day and then later one after work another member of your household stops by grocery store and they will be able to see an updated list. Nutrition IQ isn't as powerful as Grocery IQ but gives you categories of food - nutritious foods and you can click on a category such as fiber and it will list all nutritious foods with fiber. You can then add them to a shopping list and it has the ability to check them off as you shop just as Grocery IQ does.

Around the House
Handyman App - it is from the magazine The Family Handyman. It has some old issues to flip through on it but if you want current issues you have to pay for them. The old issues they have available are full of great information though. You can read the forums and blog on the app too. The forums are full of problems and solutions.

Good Housekeeping @ Home - has stain buster, do-it-all cleaning tips, home decor gallery and news & tips.

ColorSmart by Behr - it has a feature if you use with iPad2 or phones with cameras - where you can take a photo of your room and then upload it so that change the paint so you can see how it would look. ColorSnap is the Sherwin-Williams app that is like Behr. SnapShop is a similar app but for furniture.

Houzz - is basically for inspiration when I want to redecorate or when I start thinking of our dream home and want more ideas. But it is just a gallery of photos that you can save and make notes on each photo for future reference or also upload photos you find inspiring. I think this app is only for iPhone or iPad.

Flashlight - I admit it - I have used the iPad for a flashlight before trying to find my way around in the dark. It casts off more light then the little maglite I have in the junk drawer.

Recipes
I use the Epicurious app quite a bit when needing a recipe or have an ingredient I want to use - I can a search there.

Soup Master - I got this app for free but it has so many recipes that I do feel it is probably worth the $1.99. It will list like 5 chicken noodle recipes but all are a little bit different. But the variety of recipes is beyond what I could ever think of for soup.

Whole Food Recipes - It has categories such as bugget, quick and easy, cooking with kids, you can target special diet needs such as gluten-free, diary-free, lowfat, vegetarian/vegan and so on, and you can also search by ingredient, build a shopping list from the recipes.

All Recipes - they have a free version and a paid/pro version that doesn't have ads and has just a few more features. I use the free version and have liked it just fine. But I can see the paid version might have some benefits if you use All Recipes quite a bit. Because it will access your recipe box, allow you to create shopping lists from the recipes and just a few more features that you can't get with the free version. But the free version allows you access to all the recipes, doing search by 1 ingredient or up to 8, by nutrition or name. It also allows you to bookmark favorites on the app.

Big Oven - can search 170,000+ recipes, add recipes to grocery lists, and automatically synchronize those grocery lists, search by ingredient

Pocket Cocktails and Cocktails HD - It is an app for iPhone/iPad. It has recipes for cocktails. They now have their Christmas cocktail section up right now and during Halloween they had some really good cocktails that were great way to celebrate the holiday. They have a full screen photo for every drink, search by drink name or an ingredient. Also includes a Pocket Sommelier. There is a list of tips and tricks such as how to coat a rim of a glass, how to make layer drinks, zest fruit and so on. Even though I have an iPad I use Pocket Cocktails as Cocktails HD hadn't come out when I first got Pocket Cocktails. They are both 99 cents so not bad for all recipes and information it gives you.

Green
Good Guide - find health, environmental and social performance ratings for 120,000 food, personal care and household products, has barcode scanning built in to retrieve product ratings while you shop, you can personalize by selecting issues you care the most about such as is a product tested on animals if that is a top priority for you - you can select that to make sure it tells you how that product rates in that area. It also allows you to create shopping lists.

Locavore - find local, in-season food, seasonal recipes, nearby farmers' markets & farms that sell the products you enjoy.

iRecycle - tells you how, where and when to recycle just about anything by inputting your location and also shares new with tips and ways to make green changes to your life. Another app that I think is similar is My Recycle List.

Part 2 of this will be apps that I haven't used but heard good things about and a few other resource lists for finding applications.

Homemade Toilet Cleaner

2011-11-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

Everyone likes a clean toilet and nice smelling bathroom, right? I certainly do and this has become one of my favorite ways to achieve both.

Lemon-Pine Toilet Cleaner

1 Cup Boiling Water
1 Cup Borax
1 Cup Vinegar
10 drops Pine Essential Oil
10 drops Lemon Essential Oil

Mix together the boiling water and borax until the borax dissolves. Add the vinegar and essential oils, stirring well. Dump the whole thing into your toilet and let it sit (overnight is fine). Scrub with your brush and flush. It'll leave the bowl clean and if you have hard water the vinegar helps get rid of that calcium build up and the whole bathroom will smell nice but not overly harsh.

You could easily switch up the essential oils to scents you enjoy more. If you used some grapefruit seed oil, it has some antibacterial properties, too.

Just a quick note

2011-11-08T10:57:00.001-07:00

I haven't forgotten about Tuesday's Tips, but due to a lack of tips coming in, I'm taking a bit of time off to accumulate some tips to post!

Cream Cheese Cookies

2011-10-31T10:00:00.000-06:00

These cookies are so easy. I like that you can change the flavor on them easily too. This one I used lemon extract and they turned out really good. But I have also done almond, vanilla and orange extracts. I think adding nutmeg, cardamom and/or cinnamon. These cookie are really good cookies to make in high altitude - they keep their shape really well because it is cooked in a log before cutting.

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. (lemon) extract --- use whatever flavor you like
2-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 cup powdered sugar

PREHEAT oven to 350ºF. Beat cream cheese, butter and granulated sugar in large bowl with electric mixer on medium speed until well blended. Add eggs and extract to cream cheese mixture; mix well. Gradually add combined flour and baking powder, beating until well blended after each addition.

DIVIDE dough into four equal pieces. Roll each piece into 12x1-inch log; place, 2 inches apart, on large ungreased baking sheet.

BAKE 25 to 27 min. or until edges are lightly browned. Transfer to wire racks; cool slightly. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Cut each log into 12 diagonal slices.

click on the title and then the print button

Coffee Cake

2011-10-29T08:00:00.000-06:00

For the cake:
1 stick butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs, separated
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups (16-ounces) sour cream
3 cups flour
1 teapoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

For the middle and top:
1 bag chocolate chips
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 pan with cooking spray.

In a large bowl, combine all of the cake batter ingredients. Mix for 1 minute at low speed; mix 3 minutes at medium speed. Pour 1/2 of batter into greased pan. Generously sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over batter, making sure to get the corners, and then sprinkle with 1/2 bag of chocolate chips. Pour remaining cake batter on top and spread across bottom layer. Repeat with cinnamon and sugar and chocolate chips.

Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with only a few crumbs.

NOTES: Be sure to check this cake around the 30 minute mark as you don't want to over bake it. It was a super moist cake. After putting lid on this cake, the moisture made the crispy cinnamony top become moist. I liked it more crispy so not sure if baking it a little longer would help keep it crispy. But over all this was a good cake. A good cake recipe that was easy to make and great because I have all the ingredients on hand almost all the time so could be made spur of the moment if needed.

click on title of post and then click on print button

Friday Favorites

2011-10-28T20:30:00.000-06:00

Flim Candle Holder - could be very cool especially at Halloween

The Purl Bee - has knitting, sewing and craft projects on it

Recycle Pumpkin Waste - some might be carving pumpkins this weekend and here is a list of things to do with the Pumpkin waste

How to Install a Glass Tile Vanity - step by step with diagrams and photos

Soup Chick - a blog full of soups! I love soup and there are so many good recipes on this blog. Can't wait to try some out.

Tuesday Tips

2011-10-25T06:33:00.002-06:00

Handy Way to Store Sugar

Clean and dry a plastic one-gallon milk jug, and use it to store granulated white sugar. The closed container will not attract bugs, the sugar will not clump up, and the jug’s handle makes it easy to pour.

Easy-Care Houseplants

If you haven’t had much luck with plants due to your unintentional neglect, start over with those that require very little care. Select from devil’s ivy, snake plants, corn plants, Chinese evergreens and begonias. And, this time, don’t forget to water!

Gum Stuck in Your Rug? What to Do...

Start by blow-drying the gum with your hair dryer on the warm (not hot) setting. You want to melt the gum, not the carpet’s fibers. As soon as the gum seems very gooey, put a small plastic bag around it and gently pull off the bag, bringing the gum with it.

Repeat the process until all of the gum is out of the carpet, or there’s just a stubborn little bit left. For that little bit, work in a dab of petroleum jelly, rolling the gum into it. Then wash the spot with a gentle laundry detergent formulated to fight grease. Finally, rinse with water and blot dry.

Caution: Petroleum jelly may stain the carpet, so be sure to do a spot-test first.

From Household Magic Daily Tips

Baked Potato Soup

2011-10-19T15:16:00.004-06:00

1 lb. bacon, diced
1/2 cup onion, diced
1 cup carrots, diced
3 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
3 cups chicken stock
3 tbs. butter
3 tbs. flour
2 cups milk
3/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1/2 tsp. black pepper
Sour cream for garnish, optional

1. In a large stock pot, cook bacon until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to drain and set aside. Drain all but 2 tbs. of bacon grease from the pot. Cook the onions and carrots in the remaining bacon grease for about 5 minutes, until tender.

2. Add potatoes and chicken stock to pot. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium and simmer about 20 minutes, until potatoes are tender. With a slotted spoon, remove a few scoops of potatoes. Mash potatoes with a fork and set aside.

3. In a small sauce pan, melt butter and stir in flour. Cook for 2 minutes. Whisk in milk, bring to a boil and simmer until thickened. Slowly stir in to stock pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer and then stir mashed potatoes back into pot.

4. Add 1/2 c. shredded cheese, three-fourths of the bacon and pepper. Stir to combine. Cook an additional 5 minutes.

5. To serve, ladle soup into individual bowls and top with some shredded cheese, bacon and optional sour cream.

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Tuesday Tips

2011-10-18T04:44:00.003-06:00

Sweet-Smelling Sheets

To enjoy a special sensory treat at bedtime, when you launder your sheets, add a small amount of your favorite bath salts during the rinse cycle.

Feeling Down? Sing a Song!

When you sing out loud, you trigger the release of endorphins—chemicals in the brain that can elevate mood and help kill pain. Find a song that you like to sing and then personalize it with happy and positive lyrics that will lift your spirits.

How to Open an Envelope You’ve Already Sealed

How many times have you sealed an envelope—and then realized that you forgot to enclose something?

Place the sealed envelope in the freezer for about three hours. When you take it out, slip a knife under the flap and you should be able to open it neatly. Then repackage it and reseal it.

Meatballs with a Twist!

Put a new ingredient in an old standard—meatball hors d’oeuvres. When making the meatballs, start with a little chunk of something— sautéed mushroom, pitted olive, cheese, grape tomato or come up with something even more creative—and pack the meat around it, forming the meatball.

Then cook, grill, broil or fry the meatballs as usual. Ahh, but there will be nothing "usual" about them! Guests will love tasting and comparing the fillers.

If you want to stick with the standard meatball, but want them perfectly moist, place a small ice cube in the middle of each before cooking.

Migraine Manager

To prevent migraines, mix 2 teaspoons of unfiltered apple cider vinegar and 2 teaspoons of honey in an 8-ounce glass of water. Drink it once or twice a day.
This remedy works like magic for some (former) migraine sufferers.

From Household Magic Daily Tips

Apple Season

2011-10-16T14:11:00.001-06:00

We have one old, very large apple tree and it is prolific in what it produces. We're heavy into dealing with all that wonderful fruit now. If you're blessed with more apples than you know what to do with here are a few ideas:

If you don't know how to can, you can freeze applesauce and thaw before eating. I've frozen it in small containers and packed in lunch boxes. It's not usually completely thaw by lunch, but it is mighty tasty as a kind of sorbet. You can mix others fruits in the sauce too - consider adding some pears or cranberries as you cook the apples and process or freeze as normal.

If you don't have enough to preserve, there are lots of other ways to use them up in your daily meals and desserts:

What's your favorite way to use apples? I'm always looking for new recipes.

Tuesday Tips

2011-10-11T07:23:00.000-06:00

For Sparkling Glassware...

For squeaky-clean glasses, we fill an empty dish-detergent bottle with one part dish detergent, one part distilled white vinegar and three parts water, and shake it a few times.

We use this solution daily—a little on a sponge—to do the dishes and glasses. It’s a winning combination that leaves everything clean and sparkling.

Simple Squash Slicing

It’s generally hard to cut into a butternut or acorn squash—but it’s easy if you use a serrated knife. Try it yourself and see.

Also, when you slice squash (or any other round, awkwardly shaped food), do it on a nonskid cutting board or plastic mat to reduce the chance that you’ll inadvertently cut yourself.

Natural Help for Itchy Skin

A Japanese study reported that drinking oolong tea reduced itching and inflammation in people suffering from eczema. Drink 34 ounces (about 1 liter) of oolong tea (available at supermarkets and health-food stores) throughout the day—after meals and between lunch and dinner. Its antioxidant properties relieve itching, redness and swelling.

Note: Oolong tea is NOT caffeine-free, so you should not have it close to bedtime if you’re sensitive to caffeine.

A Nutty Treat

Toasting brings out the full flavor of nuts. And it’s easy to do. Start with nuts that are shelled and about the same size. Then decide whether you want to toast them in the oven or in a skillet...

Oven— Spread the nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and cook them at 400°F for 7 to 10 minutes, or until the nuts start to turn golden. Halfway through the toasting, carefully rotate the nuts by shaking the pan.

Skillet— Place nuts in a single layer and put the skillet over medium-high heat. Stir or shake the nuts while they’re toasting for 5 to 7 minutes, or until they start to turn golden.

Always aim for golden. Toasted nuts taste best if they’re not darker than light brown.

A Magical Centerpiece

Whatever your centerpiece—flowers, leaves, fruit, candles—place it on a mirror to create the illusion that you have twice as many flowers, leaves, fruit or candles. Candles will be especially dazzling because of their reflection in the mirror.

From Household Magic Daily Tips

Friday Favorites

2011-10-07T23:22:00.000-06:00

Painted Vinyl Floor - Maybe there isn't enough money in the budget to replace that vinyl floor - this blogger talks about some of her process in painting her's

How-to Score Good Stuff on Craigslist - buying secondhand is always great for the environment so here is some tips on scoring good stuff on Craigslist.

10 Tips for Real Food Newbies - tips on how to take those baby steps to eating from a box or processed foods to eating whole natural foods

Pizza Dip - good recipe to make for a football snack

Tuesday Tips

2011-10-04T20:48:00.003-06:00

Make Your Own Pita Chips!

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Cut a large pita into 16 triangles—first, by cutting the pita in half, then by cutting each half in half, then by cutting each quarter in half. That leaves you with eight double triangles. Now, turn them into 16 single triangles by pulling them apart.

Put them on a tray and bake them at 350°F until they’re crisp…about five minutes. Let them cool, then you can use them for dips. Or spray them lightly with vegetable spray and sprinkle on your favorite seasoning(s). They’re great with a little garlic powder.

Fall Allergy Help

If you have a runny nose, sore throat and/or itchy eyes, you may be suffering from seasonal allergies. These allergies generally occur when your body overreacts to the pollen from trees, weeds, flowers or crops.

When the pollen count is sky-high and you dread going outside, dab the inside of your nostrils with a little sesame oil. It can help stop the irritation and allergic reaction caused by breathing in environmental or seasonal allergens.

Do-It-Yourself Magnifier

When you want to read a price...or look up a phone number...or see what time it is on your watch, but the type is too small to see without your glasses, try this:

Make a fist, leaving a small hole in the middle. Bring your fist up to your eye, look through that small hole and focus on the number you want to read. For some unknown reason, the small channel of light entering your eye clears the vision.

(I've actually done this without wearing my glasses (horrible, horrible vision over here!) and it WORKS. Weirdest thing ever. ~kaya)

Down-Filled Drying

After washing a down-filled item—such as a coat or comforter—put it in the dryer along with three or four tennis balls. The balls will do a good job of fluffing up the down item. (They will also do a good job of waking up anyone who is taking a nap!)

Time to Get Organized

First, invest in a three-ring, loose-leaf binder. Every time you buy something that comes with an owner’s manual or instructions, punch holes in the paperwork and store it in the binder. Also, staple the purchase receipt and any guarantee or warranty (as well as instructions for ordering replacement parts) to the item’s manual.

If you ever need the proof of purchase...or you have a question about using the item...or need a replacement part—you will have all the information organized in the binder without going through a frantic sweat-and-search routine.

Of course, you should keep the binder in a special, within-sight and within-reach place so that you always know where it is.

From Household Magic Daily Tips

Friday Favorites

2011-09-30T18:51:00.000-06:00

Table Runner Window Treatment - I have looked for a window treatment for 2 windows but haven't found them or even affordable fabric I like to make anything. But this I can see might work. Kohl's has really good clearance section and I have seen table runners there that I like and that would work.

Buyer's Guide to 50 Ways to get a Greener Home - It has products and links to those products to buy but I think the tips and ideas for products to keep in mind when buying are good.

Boxes, Bins, Baskets and More Storage - This is a post on where to get the storage containers she has but what I love is the photos of how she organizes because it is amazing and inspiring.

Freezer Meals on the Cheap - She spends $95 and has 46 meals in the freezer. All sorts of good ideas. But what amazes me more is the prices she gets on meat. She has a package of organic ground beef for $1. That same brand here on clearance is $2.89 to $3.89 - again on clearance. Just regular ground beef here you can't get for anything less then $2.20. So I am just amazed at all the meat deals she gets and I want to move to where she lives! Also I didn't know you could freeze baked potatoes - does anyone do this?

Recipes for Powdered Cream of "Something" Soup Mix and Chicken Bacon Casserole - really posting for the cream of something soup mix. I think that they mean bullion granules instead of bullion cubes. Not sure the cubes would work in a mix unless you ground them up.

Quick Fix No Bakes

2011-09-30T06:36:00.000-06:00

We all have moments when we need a little something sweet and preferably chocolate, right? Please tell me I'm not alone in that. In those moments we need something fast, too and something that hopefully we have all the ingredients on hand for. They're great for nights when Master's had a bad day at work too - quick, easy and always pleasing.

These cookies easily fit that bill. They're not always the prettiest thing but they are for sure yummy and there seems to be an endless variety of substitutions to make it your own.

These can also easily be adaptable for those folks with food allergies or gluten intolerance by using gluten-free oats.

Impossible to Mess-Up No Bakes

2 Cups Sugar
1/2 Cocoa Powder or Carob Powder
1/2 Milk (Cow, Goat, Soy, Coconut, Almond, whatever you prefer)
1/2 Cup Butter or Margarine or Lard (yes, lard will work)
1/4 Cup Nut or Seed Butter (Peanut Butter, Almond Butter, etc. even Tahini will work)
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 Cups Rolled or Quick Oats
Dash Salt

In a saucepan combine the sugar, cocoa powder, milk, and butter. Bring to a boil and heat until it reaches 234 degrees on a candy thermometer. Remove from heat and stir in the salt, vanilla, and nut butter until the nut butter melts. Stir in the Oats.

Drop by spoonfuls onto wax paper or silicone baking sheets and allow to cool. The mixture will be super hot so be careful with your hands and I don't know that I'd let small children do this because melted sugar is akin to molten lava in my experience.

Store any leftovers in an cookie jar.

Note: The recipe can easily be halved for when you just need a quick little bite and there aren't many folks around.

Tuesday Tips

2011-09-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

Painting Pointer

After you open a can of paint, but before pouring it into a tray, put tape (masking or transparent) around the entire rim of the can. When you’re finished painting, take off the tape and close the can. The rim of the can will be paint-free and the lid will not get stuck the next time you need to use the can of paint.

Bird Droppings on Your Car? How to Clean It Now!

Bird droppings contain harsh acids that can burn through your car’s paint. The secret to cleaning up—and saving your car’s exterior—is to take action as soon as you spot the plop...
Pour on some seltzer water and let it bubble up. Once the bubbling stops, wipe the area clean with a microfiber (available at supermarkets and hardware stores) or cotton cloth.

Freshen Up Your Child’s Lunchbox

To deodorize a stinky metal or plastic lunchbox, moisten a slice of bread with distilled white vinegar and let it stay in the lunchbox overnight. The next morning, throw away the soggy bread, wash out the lunchbox with warm soapy water, and rinse and dry thoroughly—then load it up with your child’s sandwich and fruit.

A Place to Hang Your Hat—or Watch

If you normally wear a watch, a bracelet, rings or any other jewelry that shouldn’t be worn while cooking or cleaning, it’s good to have a safe, reliable place in the kitchen where you can stash it.

Put up a hook large enough to hang a watchband on (or whatever jewelry you wear on a regular basis). Position it near enough to be convenient when you start to work in the kitchen, but out of harm’s way when the stove, microwave, dishwasher or garbage disposal are in use. Don’t you wish you had thought of this years ago.

Going on a Trip? Don’t Forget to Do This...

A house can smell musty if it’s been closed up for a while. Before you go away on a trip, place small bowls of distilled white vinegar in each room. The vinegar will keep the air fresh, so you’ll breathe easier when you get home.

From Household Magic Daily Tips

Friday Favorites

2011-09-23T13:13:00.000-06:00

How to Cover a Lampshade with Fabric - This is a really good step by step with photos for covering a lampshade with fabric. If you were wanting to change up a room this would be one way to do without buying a new lampshade to match.

Kitchen and Pantry Organization Tips - some clever tips for organization

Homemade Soy Candles - directions for making eco-friendly candles

Food in Jars - a website dedicated to canning

Pumpkin Pie with Cinnamon Crunch and Bourbon Maple Whipped Cream - with the cool weather almost upon us here in Colorado, I am starting to crave these kind of autumn treats

Chicken Pot Pie

2011-09-21T07:01:00.006-06:00

In my part of the country, fall is showing itself. Cooler temperatures, the leaves are changing colors, the wind is picking up. That means one thing in my kitchen: Comfort food. Something warm, filling, and tasty.

Enter Chicken Pot Pie. :-)

Ingredients:

Cooking spray
1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch chunks
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 leeks, bottom 4 inches only, washed well and chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 medium potatoes cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/2 pound green beans, trimmed and chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups low-fat milk
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup frozen peas
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
3 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray 4 individual-sized baking dishes with cooking spray. (I made mine in a large casserole dish, and doubled the recipe)

Season the chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few turns of pepper. In a large nonstick skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil over a medium-high heat. Add the chicken to the pan and cook for 5 minutes, turning once. Transfer the chicken to a plate. (I had a whole chicken that I'd cooked in the crock the day before, then picked the meat off)

Add 2 more teaspoons of the oil, the leeks, and the celery (I was out of celery and used carrots, instead) to the pan and cook until vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the potatoes, green beans, garlic, and remaining salt and pepper and cook for 2 more minutes.

Add the milk to the pan. Stir the flour into the chicken broth until dissolved and add to the pan. Cook, stirring, until the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.

(Doesn't that look yummy? I was already planning some creamy soups at this step)

Stir in the reserved chicken, peas, parsley, and thyme. Spoon the mixture into the prepared baking dishes.

Put the remaining 2 teaspoons olive oil into a small bowl. Unroll the phyllo dough and cut it into quarters. Place a quarter sheet on top of each baking dish and brush with olive oil. Repeat with remaining 3 baking dishes. Tuck the edges of the phyllo into the dish rim. Top each pie with Parmesan.

Place on a baking sheet and bake until the filling is bubbling, about 30 minutes.

I put a couple of sheets of phyllo dough on the bottom of the casserole dish and baked that for about 10 minutes prior to putting the filling.

As a matter of personal preference, the next time I make this, I'll skip the thyme. I don't know how many dishes I ruin for myself by adding thyme. I don't like the taste of it, and every time I think I must be missing something and maybe I'll like it *this* time. I never do. But that's just me.

Also, next time, I'm going to try a different crust. Though the phyllo dough was fine, it was too 'light' for my taste. It was barely noticeable, taste-wise. As a pot pie lover, I like a heavy crust.

But the filling was exceptionally yummy. Very creamy and filling and tasty.

I served it with a side salad and some bread and butter. This is definitely going into the comfort food menu rotation. :)

Recipe courtesy of Fran at Fran's Kitchen.

Tuesday Tips

2011-09-20T05:59:00.001-06:00

Fun Way to Store Extra Towels

If you have counter space in your bathroom—and you want to have extra towels on hand for you or for guests—get a freestanding wine rack (available at household-supply stores). It’s perfect for holding rolled-up towels.

Home Office Help

If your bottle of correction fluid is too gooey to use, add one or two drops of nail polish remover. Shake the bottle vigorously until it sounds like there’s liquid sloshing around, and it will be ready to use again.

Banish Bad Breath

After eating onion, garlic or anything else that stays on your breath, dip your toothbrush in a small amount of distilled white vinegar and brush your teeth as well as your tongue. This should help clean your breath and may even help whiten your teeth.

Perfect Pancakes

Put batter in a clean plastic squeeze bottle or a turkey baster, and you will have an easy time forming perfect pancakes.
While you’re at it, have some fun with it... make odd-shaped pancakes, or pancakes in the shape of big letters for the names of the people who will be eating them.

Fish Fact

To determine the proper cooking time for your fish, lay out the whole fish, fish fillet or fish steak. Pinpoint the thickest part, and then measure it with a ruler. For each inch of thickness, figure on 10 minutes of cooking time.

From Household Magic Daily Tips

Hoisin Turkey Meatballs

2011-09-15T08:07:00.002-06:00

These meatballs are so full of flavor. I make them for dinner but they would make a great appetizer too.

Hoisin Turkey Meatballs

2 tablespoons reduced-sodium Soy Sauce
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
2 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger root
1 teaspoon sriracha sauce or 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 scallions, minced
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder (didn't have any garlic cloves on hand)
1/2 cup drained, finely chopped water chestnuts
1 pound ground turkey
3/4 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup purchased Hoisin Sauce

* Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or tinfoil coated with cooking spray.

* Whisk soy sauce, ginger, garlic powder, 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce, sriracha or crushed red pepper and sugar in a large bowl. Whisk in cornstarch until smooth. Stir in 2 minced scallions and water chestnuts. Stir in turkey and bread crumbs until completely combined.

* Shape the mixture into small-medium sized meatballs. At this point if you don’t want to cook these right now you could put them in the freezer for later.
Place the meatballs on a pan and bake until the meat is cooked through, 15 to 17 minutes.

* Brush the meatballs with the 1/4 cup Hoisin sauce. Cook meatballs an additional 2 to 3 minutes. Serve with stir fry vegetables and rice.

NOTES:
* Make sure you do the reduced sodium soy sauce and your bread crumbs aren't seasoned and don't add any salt because this recipe can go too salty quickly.
* I am sure ground beef would work fine but you might not need as many bread crumbs. I find ground turkey to be wetter ingredients so I needed the bread crumbs to balance it out with the other wet ingredients.
* ground ginger will work too - you will just have to experiment with amount though

Journal Pockets

2011-09-14T11:27:00.000-06:00

I'm a pen-to-paper girl. I'm trying to embrace technology and my smart phone but I'm always going to be the girl who jots down thoughts, notes, to-do lists, etc. in an actual book. I usually pick up the cheap black and white composition books and use those, these books are part journal, part planner and work marvelously for me. Over the summer I picked up some nicer ones at a yard sale super cheap.

I carry these books with me everywhere and generally end up tucking important pieces of paper inside as well. In order to keep track of those papers and not get them lost in the depths of my bag, I've taken to adding pockets to them so that I use them. These pockets store stamps, receipts, whatever else needs a home until it can be filed more properly later on.

It's super easy and cheap to add pockets to any notebook or blank book. All you need is:

A blank book
An envelope that is small enough to fit inside the cover of your book
Glue
Scissors

Cut the flap from your envelope

Finally glue the envelope inside your book, I glue with the opening to the back, but if you wanted to keep that notch for easier retrieval of small items like coupons, glue with the address side down. Decorate if desired, I always decorate.

I usually add the pockets to both front and back covers to give me extra storage space.