Archive for In the Kitchen
A Week of Apples
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I have a grand total of 110 pounds of apples in my kitchen right now. You know what this means don’t you? Yes, it means that by the end of this week my fingers are going to look brown and dirty. And they’ll stay that way for about two weeks until the brown wears off. It’ll be really cute and not at all embarrassing (as long as I keep my hands stuffed into my pockets while out in public).
Oh, and if I don’t wear an apron while I’m working with all of these apples, the front of my shirt will also be covered in brown splatter stains, which will never come out. I learned this the hard way a few years ago when I made applesauce all day, while wearing a cute Disney shirt, before going to a soccer game. I completed the task of making applesauce, ran it through the water bath process to can it and put the jars away in my pantry. I didn’t look down at my shirt until I was at the soccer game that night cheering for my boys. It was then that I noticed that Eeyore was completely covered in ugly brown specks. (Of course, it had to be Eeyore.) I was by far the most pitiful looking mother out at the soccer field that day. Of all days to leave my jacket at home.
So now you know: While you peel, core, slice and chop apples – the juice will spit and splatter everywhere. If you work on 110 pounds of apples, everything around you, including every crevice on your hands, will turn brown for days. There’s not much you can do about this, so just embrace the fact that you’ll look like you’ve been working under the hood of your car. To avoid answering any difficult-to-answer questions from the powers that be, remove all school papers, bills, library books, and photos before proceeding. And for the love of Eeyore, please wear an apron.
My 110 pounds of apples await, and I guess it goes without saying that my apron is ready for action. Here’s what I’m looking at doing this week:
I’ll start by making and canning as many jars of Applesauce as I can make before I get sick of making applesauce. I will probably be using a slightly different method than the one described here, so I’ll give an update on that sometime during the week.
If, in fact, I still have a few pounds of apples left after making applesauce, I hope to then make a few Mini Apple Pies. These are great to have in the freezer for a quick breakfast or dessert.
I may also can a few jars of Apple Pie Filling. This is great to have on hand to when throwing together a quick apple crisp or of course, to make a big apple pie. Here’s my Whole Wheat Pie Crust recipe if you’re interested.
I may also use my Excalibur Food Dehydrator and make Apple Fruit Leather and/or dried apple rings. When you have 110 pounds of apples, you can just keep going with the apple preserving until you’ve got a wide variety of apple goodies, or until you faint onto the floor of your kitchen – whichever comes first. Don’t worry – I plan to get my boys busy helping me with these projects this week. They are great applesauce makers.
We also plan to simply eat a bunch of these apples. I love having so many apples on hand for snacks. If you haven’t tried making Caramel Apple Dip, I highly recommend it. It’s one of my favorite ways to eat apples.
Throughout the week, I’ll be snapping pictures and sharing my apple preserving progress. Prepare to get sticky around here. I might even experiment with Apple Butter like several of you requested last week!
What is your favorite way to eat apples? Ever ruined an Eeyore shirt with apple spatters? This is why aprons were invented.
Homemade Beef Summer Sausage
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My personal Funky Fresh Kitchen “Make it Yourself” Challenge was to make Homemade Beef Pepperoni, using a recipe I found at Tammy’s Recipes. I read through all of her reviews before trying the recipe and many of them suggested that this tastes more like Summer Sausage than Pepperoni. I completely agree – it does taste much more like Summer Sausage. But no matter what you call it, we all really loved the flavor.
I kept having to remind myself while we were eating (one entire log of sausage in one sitting) that we didn’t need to feel guilt or hold back on eating this. We have, on occasion, purchased beef summer sausage from the store to eat on the run. The boys love it, but I’ve always been hesitant because the store-bought sausage is so full of MSG and who knows what. To now have this recipe in my hip pocket to make as a healthy, convenience food for my family is super exciting!
And did I mention that it is crazy easy to make? Yes, practically effortless. I used our healthy Grass Fed Beef and made five pounds of this wonderful meat, which tastes good with cheese and crackers or on sandwiches. I put our leftover meat in the freezer to use later. This is going to be a perfect grab and go snack to take to soccer games this fall!
Making this summer sausage was a three day process (although not time consuming or difficult). On the third day, after we got to smell it cooking on low heat all day, we were thrilled to eat it with cheese and fruits and veggies for dinner. Awesome!
Next, I’d like to try Tammy’s Spicy Pepperoni, which sounds like it has more of a pepperoni flavor. Score! Now we can have healthy summer sausage and healthy pepperoni too!
Does your family like summer sausage and pepperoni? You’ve got to try Tammy’s recipes!
Funky Fresh Kitchen – The “Do You Really Need It?” Challenge
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What is all that stuffed crammed in the back of your utensil drawer? When’s the last time you used that fancy Blitzamachoppit that promised to make your life easier? And how many used twist-ties and drinking straws does it take to change a light bulb?
Oh wait. I think I just mixed two unrelated questions.
But still - I do believe it is time for some of us to take control of what is lurking in our kitchen drawers and cabinets. If you took advantage of the Do the Funky Kitchen ebook sale, you may have already started plucking unused items out of your kitchen and worked at finding them a better home (like in someone else’s kitchen – mwoohaha!!). If not, let me suggest to you that your kitchen will be a lot more fun and a lot more functional (funky!) if you get rid of items you are not using.
Here is a check-list of questions to ask yourself as you clean out cabinets and drawers in your kitchen (taken from the Do the Funky Kitchen ebook):
- Do I use it often?
- How many do I have?
- How many do I need?
- Did someone special give it to me?
- Does it work?
If you don’t use it, get rid of it. If you have too many, the extras need to go. If it doesn’t work, what is it still doing there anyway? And if you don’t even know what it is, you won’t miss it after you say goodbye. Keep only items that you use or items that are special to you.
If you are having a hard time deciding if you should get rid of something, do this: Put the item in a potential “Garage Sale” box for a few weeks, but don’t get rid of it yet. Next Tuesday, if you’re preparing some food and suddenly remember the reason you had the Ultimate Onion Slicer (with built in tissues for inevitable tears, batteries not included) then by all means, go get it out of your box and put it back into your kitchen for future onion slicing and tear wiping needs. But if in fact you see that gadget in your “Garage Sale” box three months later and have to stand on your head while holding a flashlight so that you can try and figure out what in the world it is, I’m pretty sure you never needed it anyway and you can feel free to give it away or try to sell it.
Your Funky Fresh Kitchen Challenge today is to clean out at least ONE cabinet or drawer. Get rid of all items that are not useful to you. You’ll feel so much better, I promise!!
Leave a comment on this post letting us know one thing you can throw out or give away that will lessen any kitchen clutter you may have. Your comment will serve as your entry in the giveaway for one of five $10 gift certificates to our Heavenly Homemakers Shop.
No-Oven Treats for Summer
Posted by: | CommentsWe’re finally experiencing a little break in the heat here in Nebraska – as in – it’s only in the upper 80′s instead of 101° with a heat index of 115°. I know many of you from the south are experiencing drought and intense heat that makes my 115° seem like winter.
Regardless of how it’s cooled off to “only the 80′s”, I still don’t like heating up the house to do much baking if I can help it. Here are a few yummy treats we’ve enjoyed this summer that don’t require the use of an oven:
Add to the list! What healthy, no-oven treats have you enjoyed this summer?!
Meals to Feed to a Large Crowd
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I bought 13 packs, giving us 52 plates for $9.75.
Think of what we’ll save on paper plates! Plus, they are BPA free and dishwasher safe. ;)
- BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches
- Sloppy Joes
- Nacho Bar or Taco Bar
- Baked Potato Bar
- Chili with Fritos and Cheese
- Turkey Dinner
- Beef and/or Chicken Enchiladas
- Sub Sandwich Bar
- Burgers and Dogs on the Grill
- Soup and Homemade Bread
- Pancakes and Easy Breakfast Casserole
- Italian Roast Wraps
- Cheesy Beef and Rice
- Pizza Casserole
- Tammy’s Chicken Pasta Salad
- Lasagna
- Chef Salad Bar
- Chicken Pasta Alfredo
- Oven Baked Chicken
- Italian Pasta Bake
- Beef Roast with Carrots and Potatoes
What to Do About Crystallized Honey
Posted by: | CommentsWhen I shared that I buy a year’s supply of honey at one time, many of you wondered if it crystallized and if so, what I did to solve that. Yes, my honey does crystallize, but it’s very easy to fix that issue.
By the way, have you ever read the words “do not microwave” on the side of your Honey Bear? That really means, “DO NOT MICROWAVE”. Many a Honey Bear has quickly become a sticky, melted mess within just a few seconds of being in the microwave. In fact, I believe you’d even be able to hear your Honey Bear moan, “I’m mellllttttiiiiiinnnggg….” as he turns into a plastic honey pool. Bless his little heart.
So, don’t microwave your honey to solve your crystallized honey issues. (I don’t recommend using a microwave for anything actually, but that’s another post for another day.)
Instead, I put my container of crystallized honey into with a few inches of water and heat it on the stove. If your honey is raw and you’d like to keep it that way, you want to heat the water very slowly and at low heat. It will eventually dissolve the honey.
The following picture is a little bit blurry – that would be because my Honey Bear is in a steamy sauna, and the steam fogged up my camera lens.
If you have a larger jug of honey, simply use a larger pot of water. Then, I find it helpful to pour the runny honey into smaller containers, preferably jars – go figure! :)
A little post update – myhnymybb makes a great point in her comment about not heating anything in plastic. I totally know that – and yet I did it anyway, then took a picture of it. Perhaps this is one of those “Duh Moments” I was talking about. I don’t want plastic leaching chemicals into my honey, which is why I usually store and heat my honey in glass jars. I just so happened to have a honey bear with crystallized honey, so I grabbed it and took a picture for this post. But yeah, plastic isn’t great, especially when it’s heated. So don’t follow my example. Put your honey into glass if possible.
But I still say don’t use a microwave to melt down the honey, no matter if it’s in glass or in a honey bear.
“I’m mellllttttiiiiiinnnggg….”
How do you store your honey? Do you buy bulk amounts of honey? Have you ever melted a Honey Bear in the microwave?
How to Store Leftovers in Jars
Posted by: | CommentsIt is no secret that I love jars. Big jars, little jars, tall jars, short jars…they’re all useful. One of my favorite ways to use jars is to store leftovers.
Many have asked how in the world it works to store leftovers in jars – isn’t it hard to get the food in and out of the jar?? I have two words for you: Wide Mouth. (No-no, I’m not calling you a Wide Mouth. Oh dear. I’m just saying that wide mouth jars are my favorite and the most wonderful for storing leftovers.)
The regular jars are fine and I like to use them for canning produce and such, but give me a wide mouth jar and I can do all kinds of things with it. You can fit your whole hand into a wide mouth jar, making it easy to wash or to put food in and take food out.
The best thing about having leftovers (and other food) in jars is that you can clearly see what is in the jar, unless of course the jar somehow got shoved to the back of the fridge and forgotten, causing it’s contents to change somewhat in appearance. Not that any of us would ever let that happen. But really, I can open my fridge and easily see if I need to make more Ranch Dressing, if we have any homemade sour cream, if we have enough cooked chicken to make dinner and what kinds of leftovers are available for lunch. As you saw in this post, my fridge is full of jars of all shapes and sizes. Let’s talk just a little bit about those jars, because many of you have asked what kind I have and where I get them.
Pint and Half Pint wide mouth jars are wonderful for storing leftover vegetables, small bits of casserole, little portions of leftover meat, etc. I have a nice variety of wide mouth pint and half pint jars that I can grab depending on what I need to store. These wide mouth pint jars are great for my homemade dressings and homemade peanut butter.
Someone gave me this set of Ball Wide Mouth 1/2 Pint Elite Jars for Christmas last year and I LOVE them. They are short and perfect for small amounts of leftovers. They’re also quite cute, not that it matters, but shucks cute jars are fun.
My favorite, favorite, absolute all time favorite kinds of jars for leftovers are the Elite Pint Sized jars. When we were going through my mom’s canning supplies after she died, I found loads of them and brought them home. I love canning with them and using them for leftovers. They are the perfect size for me to use at least 80 different ways in my kitchen. And they are from my mama. Of course I love them best.
I also use Quart Sized Wide Mouth Jars constantly, both for canning and for storing leftovers. I find the quart sized wide mouth jars work great for storing leftover soup, sloppy joe meat, cooked chicken, creamy mac and cheese, etc.
In addition, I have several sets of Wide Mouth 1/2 Gallon Sized Jars, which I use mostly for our milk, but also for chicken broth and large amounts of soup. I buy these Wide Mouth 1/2 Gallon Sized Jars from Azure Standard, but you can also get them from Amazon or sometimes at hardware stores.
Which leads me to: Where is the best place to buy jars? That’s hard to say. You can get several different kinds from Azure Standard if this is accessible to you. The best place to find jars for very little money is yard sales or auctions. I’ve also acquired many jars from people who are simply not canning anymore. It pays to ask around to see who might have jars they’re not using anymore – they are usually happy to get rid of them!
If you’re going to purchase jars, like some of the specialty sizes I mentioned such as the Elite which are harder to find, I’d say you are making a pretty good investment. They’re less expensive than tupperware, and because they are glass, they are safe and will not leach plasticy chemicals into your food. Being able to see your food in the fridge is an invaluable time saver.
By the way, I love having a drawer full of Wide Mouth Plastic Lids, which makes it super simple to fill the jar and throw leftovers in the fridge. I have Regular Mouth Plastic Lids as well, I love having both. They’re so clean and nice!
One last thing: for storing leftovers like lasagna or hamburger patties - foods that would be hard to put into a wide mouth jar, I love having these Pyrex dishes with lids. They are fantastic for storing leftovers and warming them up in the oven or toaster oven right in the dish.
Shew. Well, you just found out way more about my leftovers than you ever wanted to know. Again, let’s just be clear that I was not calling you a Wide Mouth. Although, after reading my post, you would realize that even if I was calling you a Wide Mouth (which I wasn’t), it would have been a compliment.
How do you store your leftovers?
How to Soak Corn Meal for Better Digestion
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I’ve shared how to soak wheat flour or oats to aid in digestion. (I’ve also shared that I’m not a die-hard grain soaker, I just do the best I can.)
I’ve been asked several times recently to share how to soak corn meal for easier digestion. Soaking corn is different from soaking wheat flour or oats. For some reason I’d never looked into it much. What, did I think it would be difficult? FYI – it’s not difficult. I figured it out after about ten minutes of reading my Nourishing Traditions book on the subject of soaking corn. I took a few pictures of the process, but really? They turned out silly. You do not need a full picture tutorial to show you how to pour pickling lime into water. Your five year old could do it.
I said all of that to say, “Sorry I didn’t share this four years ago. It’s not that hard.”
How to Make Lime Water to Soak Cornmeal:
- Pour 1 inch of pickling lime into a half gallon jar.
- Fill the jar with water. Put the lid on the jar because next you need to…
- Shake the jar.
- Let the jar stand overnight until the lime settles.
- The clear liquid at the top is your Lime Water.
- Store in a cool place (but not necessarily the fridge).
To soak your cornmeal using Lime Water, it seems to me that most of the recipes in the Nourishing Traditions book recommend that you stir together 1 cup of cornmeal with 3/4-1 cup of Lime Water and allow it to sit for 7 hours before stirring in the wheat flour and cultured dairy and then continuing to soak for another 12 hours or so.
Now, just so you know, I shared this because I had some requests, and I’m always happy to learn new things in the kitchen. Will I be practicing this soaking of cornmeal thing much? I’m not sure. I wanted to share the idea with you in case you’d like to look into it more, but I don’t see the huge, incredible benefits to make this worth my efforts. If YOU see the huge, incredible benefits of soaking the cornmeal each time I make Cornbread or Taco Corn Fritters, please do pass them on. I’d really love to learn!
What all do you make with cornmeal?
Baking Day (Ugly) Photo Shoot
Posted by: | CommentsWe’ve had some unusually cool days this week, so beginning Thursday, once I realized the temps weren’t actually going to even reach 66°, I decided to take advantage and get some baking done. Once those 90 and 100 degree days come back, I’m going to be very thankful I did this (if there are actually any baked goods left by then!).
I always get a little bit tickled at my baking day pictures. They aren’t the prettiest pictures in the world, you know? Take for instance this picture of my big roasting pan of baked potatoes:
Ugly, isn’t it? Does it inspire you to bake potatoes? Eat potatoes? Cut black spots off of potatoes?
Well, anyway, I took that picture to show you that we (as in the boys) scrubbed 26 potatoes and baked them so we can make Homemade Hashbrowns. I LOVE doing this, but certainly don’t love baking potatoes when it’s hot outside. Now we’ve got a nice stash ready for Hashbrowns!
Moving on to the next (ugly?) picture, we have my bowl of bubbling sourdough starter:
Now, deciding whether a picture of sourdough starter is ugly or not depends on whether or not you get a kick out of making sourdough bubbles. The picture itself looks a little strange, but I happen to really appreciate sourdough, which means that I think those bubbles are beautiful. But what do I know? I think armadillos are cute.
I made a batch of Corn Dog Muffins and snapped the picture while the hot dogs were still exposed. Not the most appetizing picture, but the end result is always yummy!
So how about we quickly follow those pictures up with a picture of a big batch of Chocolate Chip Cookies I made to put in the freezer? I’m always needing cookies to take somewhere, so I decided to bake some and stash away to be prepared for later.
It was almost dark when I took the following picture, so the shot looks a little bit yellow. I made a double batch of Honey Whole Wheat Bread, a batch of Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns and a double batch of Pancake and Sausage Muffins.
That should hold us over for a while (in theory).
One last picture – I’m excited to show you my container of Cocoa Butter that I ordered and just received from Mountain Rose Herbs. I want to use them to try a different variety of Homemade Chocolate Chips, and maybe Homemade White Chocolate Chips. Wouldn’t that be fun?
Is it baking weather at your house, or are you more in the mood to sit in a swimming pool while sipping lemonade?
Buttered Pineapple
Posted by: | CommentsLast week’s checklist while preparing to go on a trip with the family was:
- Wash and fold laundry.
- Have boys pack clothes in backpacks.
- Load van.
- Prepare food for trip.
- Make butter.
Make butter? Why? Because I didn’t have enough to do?
Yeah well. I was trying to clean out the fridge of leftovers before we took off. We were going to be gone for five days after all. While I usually use up my weekly pint of cream that I buy from our local dairy farmers, somehow I had ended up with three pints of cream that needed some love.
And that is why, in the middle of laundry and packing and a slight bit of vacation preparation chaos last Thursday, I made three batches of fresh butter.
And that is also why, in my haste to take the lid off my food processor, I spewed butter-cream mess all over my pineapple.
And my wall.
Which changed my list to:
- Wash and fold laundry.
- Have boys pack clothes in backpacks.
- Load van.
- Prepare food for trip.
- Make butter.
- Give pineapple a bath and get greasy butter slime off the wall.
And here you thought I was going to share a recipe for Buttered Pineapple.
By the way, if you’ve never made butter, you really should try it sometime. Here are simple directions for making homemade butter. And just so you know, the butter-cream all over the pineapple and wall incident had nothing at all to do with my lovely new food processor. It really was a matter of me trying to move too fast, which in essence, caused me more work and a little more vacation preparation chaos.
But it sure did make for a fun story. Just think of the laughs we would have missed out on had I been more careful that day.
