Teapot Girl's Cooking Adventure & Journey to Self Reliance

Winter Comfort Food

2011-02-17T19:14:00.001-06:00

One of the things I love about winter is the comfort food. You know, those dishes your mom or grandma used to make that made everyone just drool at the first smell.

My favorite has to be pot roast with lots of root vegetables and hot bread with melted butter. I have fond memories of my mom making this during the many winters we had in Maryland and Germany. This was one meal that all us kids would fight over to clear the table in order to munch on the last potato or buttered bread.

This is my take on that meal:
1 6-7 lb Beef Roast, cut into 1" cubes
Olive Oil
Steak seasoning
6 Potatoes, cubed
4-6 Carrots, cubed
1 Onion, cubed
2 Garlic Cloves, chopped
Water

Toss the pot roast with the oil and steak seasoning - set aside. Place the rest of the ingredients into a slow cooker and season to taste with steak seasoning. Place the pot roast in the cooker and mix. Put in enough water to cover the ingredients. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. When the meat is fork tender, the dish is done. Serve with hot, buttered bread. Enjoy!

-- Post From My iPhone

Bucket Beef and Vegetable Soup

2011-02-13T15:13:00.001-06:00

Today was a lazy day at the homestead, and for the past couple of days I've been craving beef and vegetable soup. Since I didn't have the canned kind, I decided to make my own.

What's up with name you ask? Well, I combined all the ingredients in the pot before putting it on to boil, and it kind of looked like the slop bucket for the pigs. Hence, Bucket Beef and Vegetable Soup!

Here's the recipe:

Beef roast, cubed
6 Potatoes, chopped
1 Onion, chopped
6 Carrots, chopped
1/2 Green bell pepper, chopped
Garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 jar Salsa
1 can Chopped tomatoes
1 can Cream of Mushroom soup
2 Tbsp Steak seasoning
1 box Beef broth
Water to cover ingredients

Put all the ingredients in large pot. Bring to a boil, then turn down the temperature to simmer. Cook until potatoes are soft. Yum!

-- Post From My iPhone

Schnitzels and Latkes

2010-12-27T22:06:00.000-06:00

I grew up in Germany, and I was very lucky to have teachers and family friends that taught us to enjoy all kinds of different foods. Two of my favorites (that don't necessarily go together) are schnitzel and latkes. Both invoke all kinds of fond memories.

The great thing about schnitzels (which are basically boneless flattened veal chops dipped in a breadcrumb covering and fried) and latkes (potato pancakes using shredded potatoes and a few binding ingredients, also fried) is that they are extremely easy to make, and it doesn't cost a lot to make.

First, the schnitzel:

Now, I don't use veal in my schnitzel - only because it's just too expensive. Instead I use a boneless pork chop that I pound flat like this:

Once I've done that I prepare the rest of my dipping stations so the yumminess will get into the fryer fairly quickly (which, by the way, I've already turned on to heat the oil). It looks something like this:

Now, take your pork chop (or if happen upon a good deal, veal) and dip it into the flour:

Go ahead, and give it a good coat. Now dip it in the beaten eggs (nothing else is in here - just eggs):

And finish the dipping with a nice coating of seasoned breadcrumbs (I use pre-made Italian seasoned breadcrumbs, but you can certainly use homemade with your choice of seasonings):

Now you're ready to fry that puppy!

You want a nice golden color on the schnitzel, but don't overcook it. To keep them warm, place them in a preheated 200 degree Fahrenheit oven on a cooling rack placed in a cookie sheet lined with paper towels.

Next, the latkes, or potato pancakes:

This is one of those recipes that you just eyeball. Grate one potato for every person eating, and place in either cheesecloth or a towel. I personally use a paper towel, and it works great. Then squeeze the bejesus out of it - get all the water out of it that you can.

Add about 1-2 tablespoons of flour and an egg to the potatoes and mix. Carefully fry these in golf ball sized portions that you flatten before placing in the oil. Again, these should be golden brown when they are ready. Serve immediately with the traditional applesauce or sour cream, or ketchup for those picky eaters.

Well, I hope I've given you a little taste of what it was like growing up in Germany and also given you a fairly easy and low cost meal that is sure to make your family say, "We want Schnitzel! We want Schnitzel!"

Enjoy!

Pet Preparedness

2010-11-30T07:48:00.000-06:00

http://ipuppycam.com/blog/tag/emergency/

During Katrina thousands of pets were abandoned by their owners because they weren't prepared to take care of them or couldn't find shelters that would allow them in.

Our pets are part of our family. My little pup is especially dear to me because he helped me during my recovery from a car accident. He's my constant companion, so I can't imagine him not being with us if we had to evacuate.

So, when the hubby and I were going over our preparedness plans we knew we had to include our dogs. But this doesn't just apply to dogs. If you have cats, turtles, birds - whatever, tailor this plan for what your pet would need if you had to bug out (don't forget carriers!).

Pet Bug Out Kit

Item

Notes

Bug out bag

Leash

Collar with rabies & contact info

Dog food & water dishes

72-hours of water

72-hours of emergency food

Dog treats

Heartworm & flea/tick medicines

Slicker brush

Tick scoop

Handy little device for removing ticks

Coat

Paw covers

Poop bags

Dog toy

Blanket

Laminated records

Laminated contact card

Laminated dog CPR card

Dog first aid kit

Dog first aid book

Pet First Aid Kit

Item

Notes

Waterproof Kit Container

Write on the container, in indelible ink, the phone numbers for your vet, the closest emergency animal hospital, and poison control hotlines. Also list your own name, address and phone numbers.

Animal first aid book, such as "The First Aid Companion For Dogs and Cats" or "Dog Owner's Home Veterinary Handbook"

CPR instructions

Essential Vet and Contact Info

Prepare and make copies of a list including: Phone number for your vet, the closest emergency animal hospital, and poison control hotlines, your name, address and phone numbers, your emergency contact person's numbers, in case you are incapacitatedy the name, age, breed, sex, identification (such as microchipping information), and any health problems.

A copy of your pet vaccination records.

Photo of each pet in case it is needed for ID or other purposes.

Scissors

Tweezers

Flat slant tip instead of the rounded variety

Sterile needle

To remove splinters and tick heads

Turkey baster or bulb syringe

For flushing wounds, force feeding

10cc syringe with no needle

For administering medications

Eyedropper

Tongue depressor

To examine mouth

Rubber gloves

Nail clippers

Comb

Rectal thermometer

Normal body temperature of dogs and cats is 100.5 to 102.5 F; take your pet's temperature under normal conditions to get a baseline for comparison in case he gets sick or injured.

Disposable safety razor

For shaving fur from around a wound

Towel

At least 2

Paper towels

Blanket

The compact thermal blanket works well; uses include keeping an injured animal from going into shock.

Bandanna and/or nylon stocking

Many uses, including muzzling or securing a torn earflap.

Strips of cloth

Dog booties or little socks

To cover wounded paws or to protect so you won't need to treat.

Flashlight

Matches

3x3 sterile gauze pads

Rolled gauze

For bandaging, stabilizing joints, making a muzzle

Adhesive first aid tape

In narrow and wide widths

Cotton rolled

Cotton balls

Bandages

Including self-clinging or vet wrap and waterproof types

Anti-bacterial wipes or pads

Q-tips

Hot/cold pack

Ice pack

Hydrogen peroxide 3% USP

To induce vomiting and to use on infected wounds; check the expiration date from time to time and keep only fresh solution in your kit.

Activated charcoal tablets

Effective in absorbing many toxics

Betadine solution

A type of antiseptic iodine medicine for wounds to deter infection.

Antibiotic ointment

Such a Neosporin

Rubbing alcohol

Apply on skin as body cooling agent to aid heat stroke or fever; helps break down oils; acts as a drying agent between toes and skin folds; but do not use on wounds as it can damage skin and is not an appropriate antiseptic.

Bag Balm

Especially useful for treating paw pads

Petroleum jelly

Helpful aid for taking temperature

Sterile saline eye solution

To flush out eye contaminants and wounds

Artificial tear gel

To lubricate eyes after flushing

Eye ointment with no cortisone

Epsom salt

Mix 1 teaspoon in 2 cups of warm water for drawing out infection and bathing itchy paws and skin

Baking soda

Good for soothing skin conditions

Styptic powder

To stop bleeding of torn toenails, etc.

Milk of magnesia

For stomach upset and certain types of poison ingestion.

Pepto Bismol

For stomach upset and some types of poison ingestion.

Benadryl

For bug bites and stings and other allergic reactions. Use plain Benadryl, not the other formulas.

Gentle pet sedative such as Rescue Remedy

Available at health food and some pet supply stores. Rescue Remedy is a Bach flower essence available in most health food stores. This gentle, natural stress reducing liquid can often help both people and animals recover from injury, fright, illness, travel fatigue and irritation. Put a drop in your water bottle and in their water. To help prevent travel sickness, a common dosage is four drops in the mouth about ten hours before the trip, repeating every four hours as needed. For stressed or injured animals, rub a drop on their ear or put a drop on the towel in their crate or carrier. Flower essences can be used along with conventional medicine.

Aspirin

For dogs only, 1 tablet per 60 pounds; do not use acetaminophen or ibuprofen; do not give aspirin to cats; since aspirin and other pain relievers can be toxic to any pet, consult your vet and first aid books.

Can of soft pet food

Can help reduce the effect of a poisoning

Mild grease-cutting dishwashing liquid

To clean contaminated skin or sticky substances

Muzzle

An injured or scared animal may try to bite

Treats containing sugar

In case the animal experiences hypoglycemic or low glucose episode.

Betadine Swab Sticks

Panalog

A healing cream

Nexaban

A type of skin glue to glue a wound closed if necessary

Penlight

To see how the pupils respond to light; in normal animals, pupils decrease in size when exposed to light

5 inch hemostat

A clamp for blood vessels to stop bleeding

Liquid Ice

Offers a good way to treat pet injuries such as sprains, strains, swelling and bruising using cold and compression. The non-dyed, non-adhesive stretch cotton bandage is pre-soaked in a special menthol and alcohol solution. It is lightweight, does not restrict movement, and can be applied easily even to knees. No refrigeration necessary, and cold effects last longer than other cold treatments.

Preparedness

2010-11-28T12:35:00.000-06:00

http://www.fanpop.com/spots/weather/links/250420

We've been having some crazy weather around here - tornado warnings, snow and sleet showers, rain down pours, all of which caused havoc on the traffic patterns in the area. Highways shut down due to flooding and cars hitting one another causing traffic jams galore. It got me thinking about what we would need to do to be prepared if something should happen while we were at work or school.

Now, don't get me wrong - I'm not a survivalist, but I will do everything in my power to get to my children and make sure they are safe. It's just the Mama Bear in me.

In that vain, the hubby and I sat down and came up with a comprehensive Bug Out Bag (or BOB for short) that would prepare us for anything this area throws at us.

This may seem like a lot of stuff, but most of it is small and compact. This is our list, based on our needs. You will have to be the judge about whether or not this is right for you and your family.

Every Day Carry (Two bags/purses both the size of a small lunch bag):

☐ 2 GB Flash Drive with Important Data

☐   Insurance cards
☐   Wallet with IDs
☐   Button compass
☐   Leader knots/hitches instruction sheet
☐   Survival Instructions
☐   AAA card
☐   Ready plan
☐   Water Pur tablets
☐   Snare Wire
☐   Bouillon packet
☐   #6 fish hooks
☐   Splitshots
☐   15lb. test line
☐   Sterile bag
☐   Pill fobs with medicine
☐   Scalpel blades
☐   Dental floss
☐   Two Carmex/SPF lip balm
☐   Antibacterial gel/hand sanitizer
☐   Coat
☐   Sunglasses
☐   Umbrella
☐   Flashlight
☐   Personal Protect Device (gun, asp, mace, etc.) and needed accessories
☐   Survival Matches
☐   Tinder-Quick tabs
☐   Spark-lite fire starter
☐   Signal Mirror
☐   Cell Phone with Bluetooth
☐   Knife
☐   Leatherman-type tool
☐   Wire saw
☐   Pro Survival Kit
☐   Pens
☐   Fox40 Howler whistle
☐   Gas card
☐   Pencil
☐   Waterproof paper
☐   4" zip ties
☐   Sewing needle
☐   Safety pins
☐   Electrical Tape
☐   Aluminum foil
☐   Magnifying lens
☐   Two carabineers (These are to hang the bags on the Bug Out Bag if you need to leave your vehicle)

The Bug Out Bag (In standard hiking back pack)

☐ Directions to Bug Out location (Other than your house in case it is gone/uninhabitable)

☐   Emergency data card
☐   Knot reference card
☐   Map of local area
☐   Compass – Know how to read it
☐   Wilderness survival card
☐   Orange survival bandana
☐   Survival manual
☐   Coast Guard water packets
☐   Aquamira filter straw
☐   Food pack
☐   Honey packets
☐   Light My Fire spork
☐   Military fishing kit
☐   P51 can opener
☐   Paring knife
☐   Spread-it tool
☐   32oz. Naglene water bottles always filled, rotated every six months)
☐   Coast Guard emergency rations bars
☐   water purification tablets
☐   Dental floss
☐   Biohazards bag
☐   Bottle hand sanitizer
☐   Carmex/SPF lip balm
☐   Ear plugs
☐   Eye drops
☐   3 N95 masks
☐   Foot & hand warmers
☐   Hygiene kit (small toothpaste, toothbrush, soap, etc.)
☐   Itch relief spray
☐   Nail clippers
☐   Disinfectant wipes
☐   Sanitary napkins
☐   Small first aid kit with OTC medicines
☐   Sunscreen/bug repellent
☐   Super glue
☐   Toilet paper
☐   Tweezers
☐   Wash cloth
☐   Ball cap
☐   Floppy hat
☐   Extra clothes
☐   High density poly bag (80"x52")
☐   Summer Buff
☐   Sweat shirt/coat
☐   Black trash bag
☐   Emergency Space Blankets
☐   Ponchos
☐   Winter Buff
☐   Umbrella
☐   Boots
☐   Exam gloves
☐   Leather work gloves
☐   Soft & leather gloves
☐   Sunglasses
☐   LED headlight
☐   Red glow light
☐   Extra batteries for all things that need batteries
☐   12-hour chemical lights
☐   Rescue strobe light
☐   120-hour Nuwick candle
☐   Blastmatch firestarter
☐   Magnesium fire rod
☐   Wetfire tabs
☐   Tiny Split Pea Peanut Lighter
☐   Waterproof matches
☐   Signal mirror w/gaffers tape
☐   Jet Scream whistle
☐   Starflash Signal Mirror
☐   4" zip ties
☐   8" zip ties
☐   550 cord
☐   Flat paracord lanyard
☐   Commando wire saw
☐   8" crow bar
☐   Craftsman folding utility/razor blade
☐   EOD breacher bar
☐   Folding shovel
☐   Gerber 6" straight knife
☐   Gerber scissors
☐   Guppy multi-tool
☐   Atwood Nibble pry tool
☐   Leatherman super tool
☐   Mini pry bar
☐   Rescue multi-tool/sheers
☐   Saber saw
☐   Quick-Pik
☐   6" zip ties
☐   Spyderco mini
☐   Assorted safety pins
☐   Carabineer
☐   Condom (Not for protection, for water holding vessel)
☐   Emergency money/jewelry to trade
☐   Gaffers tape
☐   GITD Whistle
☐   Jet Scream whistle
☐   Kevlar thread
☐   Knife sharpener
☐   Leash for pet – if needed
☐   Mechanical pencil
☐   Monocular
☐   Pocket dice game & playing cards
☐   Rite in Rain 4"x6" writing pad
☐   Rite in Rain pen
☐   Several Ziploc bags
☐   Sewing kit
☐   Survey tape (orange)
☐   Sharpie Markers

Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution

2010-04-16T22:18:00.001-05:00

If you haven't seen Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on television, you are missing some great tv!

If you have seen it, then you'll be excited to see this recipe: http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/beef-recipes/beef-and-vegetable-stir-fry.

This is the same recipe the flash mob and the other 1,000 cooks made, and let me tell you - it is amazing! For the price of eating at the great arches, we had HUGE portions of fresh food that filled us up. Definitely a must try!

Eat well!

-- Post From My iPhone

Thanksgiving in the Spring

2010-04-16T20:52:00.008-05:00

Is there one meal that your family just can't forget? I mean in a good way - not like the time you left the plastic bag with all the chicken/turkey innards and proceeded to roast it for three hours. No, not like that.

I mean a really good meal that everyone pats their tummys and says, "Mom (or Dad), that was the best ______ you've ever made!" Well, for my family that usually means Thanksgiving turkey with mashed potatoes and gravy. But when spring comes to Arkansas the weather gets a might too warm to roast a turkey for several hours. So, what's a cook to do?

Freeze it! Back in January I got a great deal on a turkey and roasted it. We ate some of it that night, but put away the rest for later in the deep freeze. Fast forward a few months when hubby and I are cleaning out the freezer and trying to find room in our other two tiny fridge-top freezers for all the frozen items. That's when he found the two bags of frozen poultry and said, "Let's have this for dinner!"

I warmed it up in the oven for 30 minutes, made some quick "rustic" mashed potatoes (or I'm-Too-Lazy-To-Peel-Potatoes mashed potatoes), gravy and mixed vegetables. It was like having Thanksgiving in the spring. The turkey had a yummy roasted flavor, the mashed potatoes and gravy were filling and the mixed vegetables brought it all together. Ahhh ... time to loosen the belts.

What's my point? It's to never be afraid to try leftovers. Either by reheating or repurposing them (like I did with the leftover pork roast that transformed into yummy pulled pork barbecue sandwiches in my earlier post), you can enjoy those homecooked and oven-heating treats from the winter all year round by putting a little away in the freezer for another day.

It also helps with keeping your food costs down (you already have the main component of your dish - everything else is gravy, so to speak), and it can be a lifesaver when you have to prepare a meal on the quick before taking the kids to soccer practice.

So, embrace the leftovers and march with your head high when the family smiles and says, "That was great!"

Eat well!

2010-03-03T05:07:00.003-06:00

I saw this on a Canadian blog I read and thought it would be cool to add to my blog. (Thanks for the idea Homestead Acres!)

1. Do you have magnets on your fridge? A few, but only to hold things on it that I don't want to forget.

2. Do you have a calendar in your kitchen, if so, what’s the theme of it? Yes, it's a dry erase version that's framed in dark wood to accent the yellow paint and white cabinets in my kitchen.

3. What is your favorite kitchen gadget or tool? Ooooh! That has to be Beth's Beauty (aka my custom painted Kitchenaid blender).

4. Are you lucky enough to have a pantry of some kind? Yes, I actually have two - one in my kitchen and one we built in the laundry room using restaurant shelving. I wish I had a basement or root cellar to control temperature changes a little bit better, but that's for the future house.

5.What is your favorite appliance? See question #3.

6. Do you have an eat in kitchen (table in it)? Well, sort of. The dining room and kitchen are all one long area in the house, so yes, but no.

7.Do you have a bread box? No! I can't stand them! Hubby bought one about two years ago despite my protests that the bread goes bad faster than we eat it (I store my bread in the refrigerator). Sure enough that sucker found a new home to trick within a few months of throwing out bread products.

8. Do you have a picture of your kids on the fridge? Do Chuckie Cheese print outs work?

9. Do you ever cook breakfast in your PJs? Ah, yeah.

10. Do you have a favorite cookbook that you use? Hmmm, well, I have several (like the Ball canning cookbook, my grandmother's 1950'sBetter Homes and Garden cookbook - which, by the way, has the most amazing recipe for apple pie in it), but I'd have to say it's a handmade cookbook my mother made all us girls for Christmas a few years back. It has wonderful stories in it and great family recipes.

11. Are you lucky enough to have recipes that were passed down from your mom or grandma? See #10

12. What’s your favorite food? Humuus, Chicken Wings, and Chef Boyardee Spaghetti and Meatballs - ok, it's not culinarily great, but it is a childhood favorite that brings me comfort.

13. What’s your favorite thing to cook? Anything new!

14. Is your coffee pot electric or stove top? Both, but I do have a perculator and gas stove in my camping gear.

15. Do you ever make your own bread? Yes, but not as often as I'd like.

16. Name one thing that you have hanging on your wall in your kitchen. A wine rack with a bottle of Ice Wine and Bacchus white wine from Germany, a 2005 Red Argentina wine from a long-time friend of mine, and a bottle of Flo's Premium Wine - a speciality blush wine produced for the hospital I worked for in 2008-2009.

17. Is there a clock in your kitchen? Of course. I have several as a matter of fact - one on the microwave, one on the stove, one on the coffee pot (that's rarely plugged in except in the morning), one over the pantry, and two timers/clocks on the refrigerator. Hey! I didn't put them all up, but boy do I need all of them when I'm cooking up a storm - because all but the one over the pantry displays something else when it's in use!

18. Do you have a bowl of fruit sitting on your table or counter? Well, it's actually a basket, but yeah.

19. What type of canisters do you have? All different kinds, that's why the majority are out of sight on a regular basis, but the coffee station ones are white.

20. Does your kitchen have a theme? Yes, French/Tuscan - lots of white, blue, dark browns, blacks and wine - really, it works.

21. What’s for supper tonight? Tortillini with Alfredo Sauce and a side salad - oh, I can't wait!

22. Do you have enough cabinet space? Hmmm ... almost. I wish I had just a few more bottom cabinets for all my baking items.

23. Does your family use paper plates? Only when no one wants to load/unload the dishwasher. Boy, we are a spoiled nation, aren't we?

24. Do you have a good set of china? Yes, two actually. One's from the former Checkoslovakia, which typically only comes out around Thanksgiving and Easter - it has to be handwashed, so I only use it for those times of year. Another is my set of Christmas dishes, which come out the day after Thanksgiving and are used throughout the holiday season.

25. Do you wear an apron to work in your kitchen? Occassionally, especially if I'm going to get crazy with the flour. You see, I'm a klutz, and I guarantee every time I use it, I will get a wad of it on my pants - either by a spill or by me forgetting and wiping it on my pants to get it off my hands.

26. Name one thing, if anything, that you would like to change about your kitchen. I'd like to repaint the cabinets (same color, it just needs a freshening up), put in new countertops, fix the cracked tiles on the floor (of which only bother me because the cracks are barely visable) and switch it stainless steel appliances. Oh! And I'd love to have an island - if there were only room.

Until next time, eat and cook well!

Pork Roast Transformation

2010-03-02T20:59:00.004-06:00

The transforming of something into a new culinary masterpiece is the epidomy of being frugal. I'm not talking about taking leftover meat and throwing into a lunchbag for lunch the next day.

No, I'm talking about making a new dish with parts of a previous meal. Take for instance my pork roast dish that transformed into pulled pork sandwiches - classic example.

A recent Sunday I got the taste for a really nice pork roast with roasted potatoes. Yum! One of my favorite comfort dishes. Typically there's only a little meat left over that it's only good enough for me to take to work for lunch. Imagine my surprise when I cut into this gorgeous piece of meat only to find the majority of the 14lb beast was bone-free - SCORE!!!

Now, there are three men in this house and myself. So you know we can polish off a good portion of animal flesh, but this was just too much. When we finished dinner I took the time to trim every piece of meat off the bone, put a little aside for my lunch the next day (with what remained of the roasted potatoes) and then proceeded to shred the rest. When I say shred, I mean it. Pull that sucker apart - remember, you are going to eat this in a bun like a hamburger.

Once I had done that, I mixed in two bottles of barbecue sauce because I had enough for two huge meals. I bagged it up, and put one in the freezer and one in the refrigerator for Tuesday's meal.

Tuesday rolled around, and boy was I tired from work. Luckily, I remembered that I had the pork in the refrigerator and busted out the hamburger buns we always stock in the freezer. I took the pork/barbecue mix and heated it up in a pan until it was warm. The boys drooled as I plopped a big mound of meat on top of one half of a hamburger bun like a lunch lady (without the hairy mole though).

We added pickles and chips, and oh my goodness! It was so yummy and filling. I got the "You should make this again Mom," nod from the teenager, so it must have been good.

It's been about a month or so since we've had this delight, and every time I open the big freezer it calls my name ... Beth, Beth .... Ah, but I will save it for another day when I'm beat from working all day during our busy season at work next month.

So, think about how you can transform your food, and save money to boot.

Food Revolution

2010-01-08T06:58:00.003-06:00

Courtesy of http://www.containergardening.wordpress.com/

I just read an interesting article on the food revolution that is currently going on in the United States (http://survivalist.zzn.com/zlog/writeblog.asp?UserID=12528419&Cat_ID=103054&postID=112942). One of the most surprising facts is the number of importers to the U.S. that are inspected -- 200 out of more than 220,000! That's ridiculous!

Think about last decade's food headlines - spinach, lettuce and chive being pulled from the shelves and restaurants because of e-coli contamination (not to mention the dog foods and meat products issues). It's amazing that even though we have all these checks and balances in place to monitor farms and meat processing businesses in the U.S., we check less than .5% of the import businesses that produce more than 9.5 million foods that arrive every year in the states for us to consume! Let's not even mention that we are currently facing upcoming shortages in produce coming out of Florida and California due to water shortages and weather issues.

So, what can you, the average American, do to make sure that you and your family receive good, nutritious food? Start looking for locally produced items - farmers markets are great for that, but most here in this area of the country shut down for the winter (we shop at a local butcher every month who we know buys his meat from local farmers), learn how to sprout (I recently harvested my first batch, and I was amazed at how easy it was!), and start thinking about that home garden. Think you don't have enough room? Baloney! Did you know that there are residents of New York City (yes, New York City) that grow their own fruits and vegetables? If these people can grow lettuce, beans and dwarf fruit trees on their balconies and rooftops, you can find a spot in your backyard for a few containers to produce at least a salsa garden (in my opinion, one of the easiest gardens to grow in a container).

It is interesting to think about all the excuses I useed to think about when it came to starting a garden - I don't have time, I don't have the area to plant, the dogs will get into it, blah, blah, blah. Well, I finally decided to do something about banishing these excuses once and for all. There is an area beside the house that really didn't feel like part of it - you couldn't really see it unless you came from that direction, it didn't get a lot of sun because of the privacy fence right behind it, and it was open to anyone that wanted to get to it. What a waste! By simply moving the fence out to be flush with the front of the house, we opened the area up to the sun, but closed it off to anyone outside.

Now, thanks to Square Foot Gardening, this spring we will start to see little green things pushing up through a lovely mix of compost, peat moss, and soil. We are planning to grow a few other herbs and tea plants in pots so they can be brought into the house for the winter. I'm scanning through seed catalogs and setting up my seedling trays so that I will have a good crop this fall. I'm going to be part of this revolution.

And with only a few pots of soil, some seeds, a sunny area, and a little loving care, you can be part of the revolution too.

Quick and Easy Lunch Idea

2010-01-01T14:49:00.004-06:00

What do you feed a grown man and a 17-year-old boy while they wait for New Year's dinner to cook? Well, here at the Orlen house I decided pulled pork sandwiches. I needed something easy and fast because I was already cooking other things for later.

I checked out the fridge to see what was there and spied leftover pork roast. I had intended on making a friend of mine pasole for Christmas, but things got lead astray because of sickness, the weather and another friend in need. So since I had the pork already thawed I cooked it for when the hubby got home from the firehouse a couple of days later. It was delicious, but to my surprise TONS of extra meat.

So, on to the recipe (again, if you can call it that)!

Quick and Easy Pulled Pork Sandwiches

1 1/2-2lbs. cooked Pork Roast, pulled apart

1 bottle of Barbecue Sauce

Hamburger Buns

Mix pork and sauce together, and heat until warmed through. Put about one large spoonful on a hamburger bun. Ta da! Now, wasn't that easy?

Thinking about Spring

2009-12-27T13:22:00.006-06:00

Courtesy of Suzanne Forsling

I know, I know, it's not even January and you're thinking about spring?! Well, yes. Now is the time I use to plan my garden. I have wanted a garden on our property for a couple of years now, but it hasn't been feasible until this coming year.

You see, there was an area beside the house that no one could really see and ran next to the storm drain. It's about 30'x10' and didn't get any decent sun because of the original fence the builder put on. Then this summer our neighbors decided to build a taller fence that pushed out to the front of their house (similiar to ours, just on the opposite bank of the storm drain). We asked if they minded us using their old fencing and set about getting a handy man to help with building the extension.

Now that the fence was extended out, that area now gets sun pretty much all day long. There's a faucet hookup on that side as well. It just makes a prime spot to garden. We thought about removing the landscaping rocks and tilling up the soil, but I really don't feel like messing around with figuring out what the soil needs and I'd rather have some order to the area. So, we're going the "Square Foot Gardening" route. I just like the idea of the raised beds and starting with soil I know will be good for the plants.

So far we've planned for nine raised beds - two double raised to house potatoes, carrots, onions and sweet potatoes - and a tiered A-frame to hold tea plants and herbs. And since we have dogs that spend a lot of the day outside, we're building a fence to keep them at bay.

Another thing we might try is rain gutter gardening (see photo above). I saw this article, and it looks pretty neat: http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/072508/nei_309624417.shtml. Our back fence has a gate that goes out to a shored up dyke on our property (the storm drain was washing away our property and plugging up our French drain). Hubby suggested this would be a great place to put this type of gardening since it's out of reach of the dogs and the sun hits this area very well. It would be really cool if I could do both sides of the gate area with salad greens and maybe strawberries, but we'll see. That might be a next spring project.

Another adventure in growing food is finally figuring out how to use the two sprouters I have. I tried it last fall and just didn't pay that much attention to it, but since I am embarking on trying to eat right this is a great way for me to get some fresh vegetables in my diet. I also have an Aerogarden I received Christmas 2007 that after the initial crop has been tempermental (probably my fault). I just need to sit down and get that working again. I loved the herbs it grew, and the taste in our dishes - amazing!

Anyway, my point is that even though we don't live on even a half acre of land (we're lucky if we're on a quarter acre - but one day, one day), we are still trying to use what area we have to help feed our little family. All it takes is a little research and ingenuity to help fight the inflation of food (and provide our family with entertainment and fresh produce that I know is good for them).

Until next time ...

Trying New Things with Turkey

2009-12-26T13:59:00.000-06:00

While I had planned to make beef tenderloin with Yorkshire pudding for Christmas dinner, our plans changed when a friend offered to provide a turkey to us as long as we fed him (and cooked it). Since we weren't home for Thanksgiving, and I really missed my Mom's cornbread dressing I usually make, I agreed.

Hubby had bought me a new kitchen gadget after I raved about the turkey my friend Melissa and her hubby made using a syringe! This puppy is a little scary looking (imagine those old doctor horror flicks), but it makes the most fabulously moist turkey.

I used a marinade I found off the internet, but you could do anything really. Make sure to include oil, herbs, and liquid. The recipe I used had honey, rosemary, olive oil, garlic, bay leaf and a few other ingredients. I boiled it to infuse the flavors together, strained it and then set to poking the turkey!

I finished prepping the turkey by brushing it with melted butter and then cooked the 14 pounder for about 3 1/2-4 hours until the temperature came out to the meat being done.

Oh! It was so juicy that when I cut into it, it oozed moisture! The dark meat was great, but the white meat was fantastic! And the flavoring was throughout the bird.

So, if you haven't gotten one of these gadgets, go - no, run out and get one. It wasn't that much, and it can be used on any kind of meat (can you imagine the flavor you could get into pork chops?!).
Yum!

Frugal Christmas Gifts for a Crowd

2009-12-22T20:37:00.005-06:00

I work in an office with about 20 people, and starting late last week I noticed a disturbing trend - most (about 14) of these folks bring gifts for everyone in the office (well, except those 6 that have religious dictates that prevent them from participating). We were being very careful with our money this year because of my pay cut in April and various bills that have come up throughout the year. The kids are getting fewer, but more meaningful gifts, and all but the children in our family were going to get well wishes.

So, to my dismay (and that Southern need to play the good hostess to all and reciprocate) I was sitting down to figure out how to give a gift to 16 (two other coworkers in a different division that I like) people. I didn't feel like cooking (which is what a lot of people were doing) - to be honest, I've had my fill of sweets this year. When I received a gift of a rice dish mix, I knew that had to be the answer - a mix, but it had to be with ingredients I already had on hand and didn't mind getting rid of. Here's the recipe I mixed together that was received very well by all today:

Bacon-Flavored Dip Mix

In a bag mix 2 Tbsp. Bacon Bits, 1 Tbsp. Dehydrated Onion Bits, 1 tsp. Beef Broth Granules, 1 tsp. Garlic Powder and 1/2 tsp. Season Salt.

Add a label (or a fold over tab like the one I made) with the name and mixing directions:

Add the contents of the baggie to 1 cup of Sour Cream. Chill for one hour.

Variations: Use Cottage Cheese, Yogurt, or 8oz. of softened Cream Cheese in place of Sour Cream.

Enjoy, and Merry Christmas!

It's Christmas Goodie Time!!!

2009-12-13T11:17:00.005-06:00

I LOVE Christmas! It's my favorite time of the year - all the lights, the carols, the special television shows, but especially all the goodies that people make this time of year.
This year I'm making a few staples (like Peanut Butter Chocolate Fudge, Chex Mix, and Sugar and Gingerbread Cookies) and a few new ones like this childhood favorite:

Forgotten Cookies
This isn't an original recipe. My Mom got it from the "1985 Christmas Cookie Exchange Recipes - P.W.O.C., Sembach Air Base" book. It is a collection of recipes that the wives of Airmen stationed at Sembach put together one year and passed out. Enjoy!

2 Egg White (It doesn't sound like a lot, but they fluff up HUGE!)
Pinch of Salt
1/2 tsp. Vanilla
2/3 cup Granulated Sugar
1 6oz package of Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (I used the miniature chips - they just looked better in these cookies)
1 cup Chopped Nuts (Use whatever you like, but I used Walnuts)
Colored Sugar

Beat the egg whites with the salt and vanilla. Gradually add the sugar, while beating, and beat until stiff. Add the chocolate chips and nuts. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto the shiny side of aluminum foil. Sprinkle with sugar. Heat the oven to 350 for five minutes - DON'T preheat or do this for longer! Turn the oven OFF, and place the cookies in. At this point I tape the oven shut (to keep people from accidentally opening it) and leave the cookies in until morning. At this point you can remove the cookies, but I wanted a little brown on the top and edges (more like a light tan). I cooked the cookies at 350 for another 5 minutes without removing them from the oven. Let the cookies cool (VERY important), and then, using a spatula, carefully remove the cookie from the foil. This might be a little difficult, but if you do this without cooling them first the inside will come out and you'll have an empty shell. I have been known to rip the tinfoil and carefully peeled it off by hand. These are well worth the extra bit of trouble.

Easy Peasy Storage Meal

2009-12-13T10:46:00.005-06:00

Ok, this has got to be one of the EASIEST storage food recipes I've put together. Growing up in Germany (did I mention I was also an Air Force brat?) we ate not only a lot of German food, but also a lot of French and Italian food (being as they have these restaurants all over the place - don't get me started on the Chinese food!). My absolute favorite Italian food was tortillini.
So when I saw dehydrated tortillini at the grocery store I flipped! Here's my recipe (if you can really call it that):

Alfredo Tortillini with Ham
1 bag of Dehydrated Tortillini (I believe it's a Barilla product)
1 jar Alfredo Sauce (or make your own if you are ambitious)
1/2 cup Parmesan Cheese
1/2 cup cooked Ham (not lunch meat, but the kind you make around the holidays or ham steaks will do as well - you can also substitute a can of drained Chicken)

Boil the tortillini until done. Meanwhile, combine the rest of the ingredients, and cook until warmed through. Drain the pasta and add to the sauce. That's it! You're done. I also sprinkle it with a little parsley at this point, but it's not necessary.

Cooking with Storage

2009-12-13T09:25:00.009-06:00

First let me apologize for the long delay on posts - the house is just now calming down enough for me to start posting again.

So, let's begin with my newest passion - storage cooking. This past spring/summer/fall's weather and power failures (and the ghosts of Hurricane Katrina) have been on my mind and I decided to start storing food that doesn't require refrigeration. We bought another set of storage shelves and revised and rearranged our existing storage shelves and areas. Then we started filling them in.

Ok, let's stop here and mention that my husband is a little OCD. He noticed that we had an odd number of cans and he put them out on the counter. He looked at me and said, "I challenge you to make one dish out of these." I looked at them and said, "Bring it on!"

So, the challenge began with:

- Red Beans

- Sweet Potatoes

- Kidney Beans

- Cream of Mushroom Soup

- Tomato Sauce

Suddenly I felt like the contestants from that Food Network show "Chopped." What was I going to do with these ingredients!? I researched online for a little bit, but couldn't find anything other than Chili. If I made that then I'd have to figure out what to do with the sweet potatoes and soup. I could make sweet potato biscuits (they sounded yummy), but then I would fail because I still had the soup. So, I started thinking, what if I put them all together for a chili? The soup is mild and the sweet potatoes are fallish, so why not?

I combined all the ingredients, spices and an extra can of Ro-Tel mild (hubby cried foul, but I countered with the fact that he never said I couldn't add any cans), and came up with the following:

Fall's Harvest Chili

1 can Red Beans

1 can Kidney Beans

1 can Sweet Potatoes

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

1 can Diced Tomatoes

1 can Ro-Tel (mild or hot - your choice)

1 lb Ground Beef (add 2 lbs if you like more meat)

1 small Onion, chopped

4 Tbsp. Garlic, chopped (or more if you love the taste)

1/2 cup Green Peppers, diced

1 cup Chicken Broth

2 tsp. Cumin

1 tsp. Oregano

1 tsp. Chili Powder

1/2 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Black Pepper

Enough Water to make it into a chili consistency

2 Tbsp. Oil (I use Canola)

Brown onion and garlic in oil. Add ground beef, and cook until done. Place in Crock Pot with the rest of the ingredients. Make sure not to put too much water in the mixture as it will not boil away as it does in a regular pot. Put just enough in to where it looks like the consistency of chili. Cook for 8 hours on low or 4-5 on high - just long enough to meld the flavors together. Serve with sour cream, cheddar cheese or diced onions and a side of your favorite cornbread recipe.

Yum!

Power Outage & Grilling Pizza

2009-06-14T20:27:00.014-05:00

So, Friday a powerful storm flew through our area and knocked the power out at the house. Since Fridays are our "Pizza Night," I decided to try something that I had wanted to try for a while - Grilled Pizza!

I know, I know - how do you grill a pizza? It's very simple I found out. Let me go through the steps I took.

First, I just took a very simple pizza dough recipe I found in a cookbook I had and added the things we really enjoy on our pizzas - this time it was pepperoni, sauce and mozzarella. You could add anything - pineapple and ham, cooked chicken with barbecue sauce - whatever floats your boat.

I cranked up the grill to high, and preheated it for 15 minutes. Now, don't do what I did and not watch the temperature (I was trying to get the generator started up). I opened up the grill and found my stone in pieces and the temperature in the grill was over 600 degrees (I didn't know it could get that hot)!

Anyway, once it cooled down to about 450 degrees and I placed the pizzas on the bottom grill to give them some of those nice grill marks. Once the dough had a nice brown on it, I moved them up to the top rack to finish "baking." About 15 minutes later, we had these wonderful individual pizzas.

While I don't think I want to grill pizzas while trying to get a generator to start, I will definitely try this again in the future. I was fun, and the results were great. So, go ahead, crank up those grills and get out those pizza fixin's.

Potty Cake

2009-05-03T20:28:00.002-05:00

Ok, this has got to be the funniest cake I ever made. My friend's son finally got potty trained, and she wanted to celebrate it. I did some research on potty celebrations and came up with this potty chair cake surrounded by poo-poo (chocolate frosting) topped cupcakes. Are they a hoot?

Happy Earth Day!

2009-04-21T21:04:00.002-05:00

Cool temperatures brings hot soup

2009-03-29T17:58:00.004-05:00

Mmmm ... nothing tastes better than a good homemade chicken noodle soup when the weather is cold. After the tornado scare last night a cold wind decended on us, the temperature just dropped like a rock. And since I have a TON of chicken in the freezer that I have to eat before we move back into the house, what better dish to make than Chicken Noodle Soup!

I looked in my fridge and cabinets and found the following ingredients:
Chicken Broth
Baby Carrots
Dehydrated Onion Bits
Chicken Grill Seasonings
About 6lbs Frozen Chicken
Egg Noodles

So, I combined the broth, carrots, onion, seasonings and chicken. I set this on the stove on low for about 5 hours. After the chicken was cooked (and smelling YUMMY!) I drained the chicken and carrots and turned the broth up to boil. I pulled all the chicken off the bones, added about 2 cups and the carrots back into to the broth, and set aside the rest for other recipes (I'm thinking a chicken salad maybe).

Once the broth begin to boil, I added in the noodles. After the noodles cooked, it was done, and wow! It was good!!! Can't you smell it?

Ah! Moment

2009-03-25T06:43:00.004-05:00

I finally realized something (ok, no laughing) - it does me no good to do Once A Month Cooking if we won't eat the food! I know, I know - it's common sense, but I just thought since they were published that the recipes would be good. Well, for my family some of them aren't (there's even been a few that even I won't eat and I'll pretty much eat anything - like the time I ate Korean dried squid - long story).

With the economy going bad, me going into a job that pays a lot less than what I make now, and the food budget getting tighter, I need to tackle another round of OAMC, but this time I'm using tried and true recipes we all love.

Pioneer Woman's Marlboro Man's Favorite Sandwich definitely has to be one of those. Check it out here: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/06/marlboro_mans_f/.

Beth's Beauty

2009-03-05T14:11:00.003-06:00

Here it is folks - Beth's Beauty. Isn't it just awesome!? Kelsey did such a fantastic job, I was moved to tears. Round of applause for him (here's a website about Kelsey's other work: http://sketchkult.ning.com/profile/KelseyKRUSTYDum).

Frustrations!

2009-03-05T05:51:00.002-06:00

I received some bad news last week. The brain damage (and ultimately the memory issues and word issues) is permanent. I am just upset thinking that I've worked so hard to get through this and now they say there's nothing they can do. It really makes me mad!! There's got to be something I can do - I can't believe that that's it. I won't believe it. (Sigh) I haven't been doing a lot of cooking lately because of dealing with this, but now that the economy (and my budget) is getting tight, I need to do more. I think it willl be steak tonight, or chicken ... hmmm ... we'll see.

We Need a Little Christmas

2008-12-21T12:47:00.005-06:00

Well, it's been a little crazy since finding out that I was selected for a job in another state. I never thought I'd move to take a job, but it's a great opportunity.

Meanwhile, I've had to learn how to cook for two people again. My little one is so picky that most of the time I have a lot of leftovers. But it works out most of the time because I use a lot of those for lunches at work.

The other day I made schnitzel like Mom makes. It turned out pretty good, but it did make me homesick.

I can't wait until I get back home and see my guys. I'm going to make Chex Mix in a few minutes - my oldest son's favorite. It's a tradition that started when I was a little girl.

KitchenAid Refurbishment

2008-08-28T22:13:00.004-05:00

I'm so excited!! My Kitchen Aid is undergoing a major transformation as we speak. Recently I was flipping through websites when I came across pictures of altered Kitchen Aids - like Alton Brown's baby with the flames.

Anyway, I saw this amazing photo of one person's machine that depicted it being draped with an American flag, and I instantly fell in love with the idea. I checked out several website for Kitchen Aid stickers (I even checked out automotive vinyl stickers). Nothing really caught my eye.

One day I was at the Dollar Tree and saw wall stickers. I figured for a dollar, why not try it? Well, it was nice, but just not what I wanted.

About two weeks later, DH and I were looking around a motorcycle store (he so desperately wants one) when I saw a business card for a guy who does pin stripping - Kelsey Dum. I don't know what made me pick it up, but I stuffed it in my purse and forgot about it.

A few days later I saw it while cleaning out my purse and decided to give him a call. I explained that my request was not his typical request, but I hoped he could help me. Once I finished telling him what I was looking for, we discussed a few ideas and came up with a final design.

"Beth's Beauty" will be airbrushed to look like an old WWII bomber with a blonde pin up girl (I love history, have blonde hair and was in Air Force, so this was perfect). The bomber will fade into the American flag that's wrapped around the base - American pride baby!

Check out the sneak peak I got this weekend:

Isn't it AWESOME!? I talked to Kelsey today, and I should be able to pick it up this weekend after the clear coat has cured. I can't wait to see the rest!

Sourdough Flop

2008-08-02T12:20:00.007-05:00

Well, the sourdough pizza bread didn't turn out like I thought it would. The dough had a strange taste to it - almost like a cornmeal dough taste. We won't be using that recipe again. Yuck!

Tonight my friend Melissa and I are going to make Ms. Ronnie's Mac 'n Cheese. Our sons used to go to the same day care, and Ms. Ronnie is the cook there. Her mac 'n cheese had all the kids and providers asking for more. Melissa works at the center now and finally coaxed the recipe out of her. It is so simple, it's ridiculous!

Here's the basic recipe:

Ms. Ronnie’s Macaroni & Cheese
1 lb. Velveeta cheese
~1 cup Milk (enough to cover bottom of pan to 1” deep)
¼ cup Parmesan
1 lb. Macaroni (or other pasta)

Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. Mix first three ingredients in baking dish. Cover with tinfoil cook until cheese melts a little (about 30 minutes). In the meantime, make macaroni noodles with olive oil and salt to taste. Drain. When cheese mixture comes out of oven, whisk it until creamy. Combine with noodles. Optional: Put back in oven with cheese until melted.

I'm thinking we might modify the overall dish to make it a little more nutritious. Maybe add some sweet bell peppers, onions and hamburger to make it a one-dish meal. We'll see how it works out. I think a little salt and pepper might be needed, but we'll have to play that by taste.

Success in Breadmaking

2008-07-27T12:48:00.006-05:00

Mmmm, bread sweet bread! I finally found a recipe I like. It's a modified version of the Bread Bible's sandwich bread recipe, and it's amazingly soft!

It took me more than 12 hours to complete two loaves of bread, but it was so worth it. The bread is light, airy and has a really good taste.

I was also able to do my first sourdough recipe this morning. I made the starter about two weeks ago and used it to make Amish Sourdough Biscuits. They turned out amazing! Flaky, moist and yummy!

I've got a sourdough pizza dough rising right now for dinner. I hope it turns out as well.

Experiments in Breadmaking

2008-07-26T07:46:00.008-05:00

Is there a soft bread recipe out there? So far I haven't found it. Let me explain.

After years of making bread in my little Pillsbury 1 pound breadmaker, the engine died. I was not a happy camper. But I had just gotten a new KitchenAid and was willing to try making bread.

My first results were encouraging. The recipe was one of KitchenAid's and had a good taste to it. But after a day or so the bread started to turn hard. My teenager was not happy.

So, I broke down and bought a new breadmachine. It's a Emeril brand breadmaker, and after watching the demonstration was highly encouraged that this was the answer.

My first bread was a sweet cinnamon-nutmeg bread. It smelled delicious! Drool was flowing as I cut into the bread and put the butter on it. I took my first bite and ... wait, that was weird tasting. I took another bite - again, not so good. I finally put it aside and chalked it up to the recipe wasn't something we liked. (Not to mention the bread began to harden almost immediately.)

I tried again. This time I went for the sandwich bread recipe. I figured since it was a sandwich bread that it would be softer and taste pretty good.

Imagine my surprise when this lump fell out of the breadmaker pan. It had the shape of a bread loaf but the consistency of a hard roll. I figured that was just the crust. I began to slice it, and was met with some of the most dense bread I have seen outside of a rye or pumpernickel loaf!

We tried toasting it yesterday. LOL!!! That was like eating crackers. Not enjoyable at all.

So, today I will go back to the drawing board and try it again. I've read up on a few articles and think I've found the solution - more bubbles, which means more rising time.

I'll let you know how it goes.

Ta-ta for now!

Pickles, Pickles Everywhere

2008-07-11T19:51:00.006-05:00

Ok, maybe not everywhere. I decided to try and can dill pickles yesterday. After hours of waiting for the water to "vigorously boil" (yes, I said hours), I finally was able to process the pickles.

I packed the suckers in the cans as tight as I could, and I couldn't believe it when I saw the pickles floating around when they were done.

But, I let them cool and soon heard the lovely popping sound. We'll have to wait at least four weeks before I can taste them. I hope they taste alright; we'll see.

No new adventures today. I had a planning meeting for the local Cystic Fibrosis Family Day in September, and then had to pick up a friend's son to watch overnight. By the time I did all that, swung by the pharmacy and got home I was too tired to do anything.

I think tomorrow's adventure will be canning chili and homemade cornbread. The beans have been soaking for a while and should be ready to go in the morning. I think this might go better. Wish me luck!

From Air Force member to SAHM & Student

2008-07-10T22:28:00.003-05:00

This is the first in a series of blogs on my transition from being in the Air Force and learning how to be a stay at home mom.

I have a lot of new kitchen "Power Tools" to play with - a 4.5qt Classic KitchenAid, a Pressure Cooker and a brand new Blender. I absolutely LOVE my new toys!

So, in order to learn how to pinch our food budget and still fill a teenager's and a cystic fibrosis preschooler's stomache (not to mention the firefighter hubby), I have decided to try to learn new techniques and ways to make that pinching a little easier.

Follow me as I learn to make bread, can and pressure cook my way to frugality.