From Cortland's to Macintosh

This past fall I took advantage of the bumper crop of apples.  In addition to the jars of apple sauce and apple butter I froze numerous pans of apple crisp.  I have to say this dessert is one of my favourites and rivals a hot fudge sundae any day.  However I noticed that certain kinds of apples produced more juice than others and for the former that meant a large quantity of liquid in the bottom of the pan.  My old standby recipe  calls for a thin coating of sugar and cinnamon to be tossed over the apples prior to placing them in the dish.  In addition to this mixture I added a generous tablespoon of cornstarch to produce a thicker sauce.  During cooking the water in the apples mixes with the cornstarch and the final product produced a thick syrup like sauce. 

How wonderful is that?  Now I just end up eating more...great.

Here is the recipe should anyone feel the need to expand their waistline:

Topping:

1 cup of oats

3/4 c flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 c butter (none of that low fat stuff)

Mix and add over the following:

In a pan place sliced up apples coated in 1/2 cup sugar, sprinkle of lemon juice, 1 t. cinnamon and 1 T. cornstarch mixed in 1 T water.

 

Bake at 375 for 23-35 minutes.

 

For more great kitchen tips visit Tammy's recipes

Turkey Tales

Instead of listing my menu for this coming week I thought I would share last weeks menu in hopes of inspiring anyone faced with a truckload of turkey dinner leftovers.

On Monday we sat down to our Griswald like turkey.  Even though it was a little overcooked we still managed to render ourselves immobile after consumption.  I was curious to see how creative I could be with the remaining food and aimed for meals spanning the rest of the week.  This is what was left: Turkey, plenty of mashed potatoes, turnip, 4 cups of cut up carrots, gravy, stuffing and cranberry sauce.  Let the leftover games begin.

On Tuesday I started with some cut up turkey combined with gravy, carrots, a cup of milk, water, flour and spices to create a homemade cream sauce.  I used this over some whole grain rice along with a loaf of homemade whole grain bread.  So far so good.

Wednesday I made use of the mashed potatoes when I placed them in a casserole dish along with the remaining turnip and carrots.  After frying up some hamburger I added 2 cans of tomato soup, a generous topping of cheese and baked this in the oven until hot and bubbly. 

Thursday I cooked some previously prepared meatballs in a quick cranberry sweet and sour sauce.  Along with the leftover cranberry sauce I whisked in some vinegar, brown sugar, ketchup, cornstarch with a small amount of water and some onion powder.  This turned out absolutely delicious with a simple side salad and canned corn.

Finally Friday we had a homemade pizza from my stash of frozen pizza crusts.  I added a twist to the traditional kind by topping the dough with the remaining turkey (by this time it was frozen in chunks) some stuffing and instead of regular pizza sauce I substituted with a can of cream of chicken soup.

With a little creativity you can easily take regular boring leftovers to new levels without breaking the bank. 

For more great menu ideas visit: 

I'm an organizing junkie

Homemade scrubbing bubbles

Even if I was filthy rich I would still resort to the following frugal tip....come to think of it I would probably do most of them because it's fun.  This one would especially follow me into my new mansion (I can dream can't I?) homemade dishwashing detergent.

I admit I was a skeptic.  After reading many tips and recipes on this subject I found mostly negative results and reviews.  Because of this I stuck to my trusty homemade laundry soap and dared not to venture where Borax should not go.  All the while I silently cursed every time I squeezed the final drop of Palmolive and had to run to the store  because my house came to a screeching halt when the dishwasher was silent.  I know what you are thinking, I could always resort to washing by hand but I have done that for many years and I did not want to go back there.

I finally ran across this wonderful article on the "Amazing Dishwasher" by Amy of Mom Advice where she mentioned a recipe that she personally uses and endorses.  Since I had tonnes of Borax and Arm and hammer wash soap I thought I had nothing to lose and went for it.  A total of 5 seconds later I had a batch whipped up and proceeded to run the load through.  Keep in mind this load had been sitting there for nearly 2 days due to my sheer determination to not do them by hand.  Upon completion, I sheepishly opened the door fully expecting there to be a heavy film over everything not to mention part of the meatloaf consumed two nights earlier.  Much to my surprise everything was sparkling clean....wow.  I wanted to test this out a couple of times before signing its praises, so after three more loads without my families knowledge the dishes were radiant. 

Because Borax and Arm and hammer wash soda are septic safe I am assuming they are somewhat environmentally friendly.  I am all for going green but with a family of 6 and a neverending stream of caked on dirty dishes I needed something more than a little earth friendly rose water and a prayer.  I needed the big guns and I think this is a decent compromise. 

So here is the recipe, give it a try and let me know what you think.

1 cup Borax

1 cup washing soda (Arm and Hammer)

1/4 cup salt

I mix all together and fill my dispensers before starting.  She also suggests keeping the rinse agent area filed with vinegar.

 

For more great tips visit www.bliblicalwomanhoodonline.com

I am jumping on the bandwagon. Join me in Thrift Store Thursday's

I am talking Thrift store gold mines. You frugal gals know what I am talking about. You are browsing your local hotspots or garage sales and you see it from afar. What an awesome deal!. You quickly pluck it up, tuck it away in your cart, proceed to pay pennies for it and secretly you feel a rush because it was a great find. The problem arises now that you want to brag to whoever will listen about the brand new bread maker you just snagged for $2. Others who are not so thrifty may think you have officially fallen off the turnip truck. Don't worry your insanity is safe here..

Every Thursday I am going to host...drumroll please "Thrift Store Thursday" original I know, but it does the job. I am going to post about my latest and greatest gem and would love to see what you guys have come across.

I find there are times when I get in a rut and neglect to scout these spots out on a regular basis. I need some inspiration to reaffirm that second hand is not only great on our pocket book, better for the environment but most of all it is retail therapy for us frugal gals and it doesn't matter who you are we all need that sometimes. So bring it on.

magazine addiction

I love magazines.  My favourite is Country home but I also receive a monthly edition of Family Circle (both gifts of course).  Additionally I pick up various books from thrift stores that are pennies per copy.  Sounds great but this results in mountains of magazines that have outgrown my once organized wicker baskets.  To remedy this little addiction I have started culling articles and filing them in my idea binder.  This is one of several binders I have created to keep all of my papers and information in check.  This one is especially helpful as often times I see a great idea that months later I have no idea how to find it...that's if I actually even remember it. 

I have my binder broken up in the following categories: Home,  Holidays (this is further broken down into Christmas, Halloween, Easter, Birthdays, Valentines day) Vacations, Great ideas and gardening.  For example in the Holiday section I record all gifts previously bought, ideas for future gifts, recipes I liked and who and what I gave goodies to. The idea section is filled with great tips for crafts, potty training articles,  little organizing hints or anything that I find interesting but may not use at that exact moment.  My vacation section includes information on previous trips, maps, and future destinations I would love to visit but more than likely will not (not until the kids have moved out anyway).

 

I make this part of my monthly cleaning ritual to cull at least 2 magazines.  For more awesome tips visit Rocks in My dryer

Easter Creme egg wannabe's

After searching the net I found this recipe for homemade Easter cream eggs. I envisioned a fun filled afternoon bonding over balls of sugar and more sugar coupled with mountains of melted chocolate being coated on our beautifully shaped Easter Eggs. Well other than the bonding, the process was more tedious than anticipated. The dough stuck to literally everything including my sons (hopefully clean) hands....funny how that happens. After experimenting a bit I discovered that freezing them in between handling and coating made this a little less nerve raking. Tasty they were, egg shaped they were most certainly not. Tell me how I could make that happen? Afterwards my DH suggested placing them in one of those plastic egg shaped moulds....keyword here, AFTER.

All in all they tasted great, definitely not like the original. I have decided to freeze a good portion of these (the ones my sons did not manhandle) and use them for other special occasions like Christmas. They could rival the famous peanut butter ball on the dessert platter at the next Christmas shindig.

Like anyone reading this will actually try these but if you are feeling adventurous here you go...may the force be with you.


1 cup sweet unsalted butter (softened)
2 teaspoons salt
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 can sweetened condensed milk
10 cups confectioner's sugar
1 Tablespoon brown sugar
1 teaspoon yellow food colouring
1 pound semi-sweet chocolate ( I used the whole body and a head of a 100g Santa that I had stored in the freezer


Instructions:
1. Beat softened butter, salt and vanilla until smooth.
2. Add milk and sugar and blend until stiff. ( I had to use a little more than called for)
3. Form the mixture into a ball.
5. Divide the ball into two pieces. (one small and one large)
6. Put two of the pieces together and set on the side.
7. Add yellow food colouring to the small piece and blend in well until it looks like the colour of egg yolks.
8. Divide the yellow mixture into 24 balls.
9. Divide the white mixture that you have set aside into 24 pieces.
10. Shape the white mixture pieces around the yellow balls to form an egg shape???? (fails to tell you how this happens) with a yellow yolk in the middle.
11. Stick back in freezer until set.
12. Melt chocolate in microwave on medium heat. Dip eggs in chocolate to cover the entire egg and cool at room temperature.
13. Refrigerate until serving.

Good luck and I would love any hints from people who have mastered the art of egg making.

Our furry little intruder

We woke up at the crack of dawn to head out for Easter breakfast at our church. Actually "crack" is an appropriate word as my oldest escaped his bedroom, came bounding in our room and stepped on and broke my glasses. I admit it, I cried. Not only because they are over $500 to replace, but they have been my favorite glasses since getting my first pair practically at birth. Oh well, can't cry over broke frames so I stuck in my contacts and proceeded to enjoy our day.

Upon arriving home we were greeted by tiny footprints that spanned the entire square footage of the home. While we were away Grampy and Grammy had a great time making a path the bunny took while leaving his tooth decay goodies behind. My little guy had a blast following the tracks (cottontail had a bad case of web feet) and piling his basket with treats. Secretly I was removing some and putting it away as he is still young enough to get away with this deceitful trick.

I know it will become increasingly difficult to keep our Easter celebrations innocent and simple but with the help of the whole family I am going to as long as we can.

This week I was returning an item at our local Wally World and was utterly shocked at the amount of toy filled carts streaming by. Since when has Easter rivalled Christmas in terms of gifts and "stuff"?. Growing up we spent the entire morning looking for hidden eggs and often times it took us until early evening to find our basket (my dad thought hiding it in the centre of a massive pipe organ was attainable by an 8 year old). I would not trade these memories for the world. There were no mountains of chocolate, rather the usual bunny, large hallow egg with your name adorning it and numerous small eggs but there were also some trinkets of stickers and bubbles. I continued that theme with our children filling our reusable thrift store baskets with small items of chocolate and the Piece De resistance, "the" bunny. Hopefully continuing this tradition will give Landon and Dane memories that I had, ones of family, simple traditions and OK...some chocolate as well.

Got Milk?

Bookshelves and kids do not mix. It has taken me a good two years to finally accept that. You think after the 180th time I picked up the strewn pile o'books I would have clued in, but this only became apparent after the second child came along. So out went the bookshelf and in came the milk crates. I absolutely love these little red boxes and I have seen them priced for $2 at our local salvage store. They are predominately red but If the colour does not suit your palate you can easily pick up an inexpensive can of spray paint. Luckily our play room had red accents so that step was not required. I placed 4 felt floor pads to protect the hardwood and in a matter of minutes I had a unique book storage cube that could be drug around with ease.

The crates could easily be used for toys, craft supplies, magazines and blankets.

The best part is I can easily toss in the mess of books without worrying about height and whether or not they would remain standing up in the bookshelf.

For more frugal ideas visit http://www.biblicalwomanhood/ online

No more crunchy floors

Ok, I am giving credit to my hubby for this next tip.

Almost as soon as we met my DH (darling hubby) told me I had to store my toaster in a metal dish. I have to admit those crumbs that escape the thing did annoy me and never mention that fact it could catch fire should you forget to clean it... for let's say....ever.

I used a simple metal rectangle casserole dish and proceeded to plunk it in. It fit perfectly and the best part is I can haul it out on the counter with no escapee crumbs littering the counter.

I wonder if I can find one large enough to fit a 35lb toddler.

For more GREAT tips visit Rocks in My Dryer

Bottomless pit of "Je Ne sais quio?"

Keeping my freezer organized is a never ending struggle. It seems like only hours after a marathon sorting session do I have to start over again.

One way I found to keep some of my veggies on the straight and narrow are freezing them in glass canning jars. I do have to be careful as they are easily breakable but I simply use a box with the cardboard dividers to keep them from banging in to each other. The 500 ml size fit 2 cups of assorted shredded items perfect to thaw and toss into your favourite recipe.

During canning season I shred and freeze numerous jars of carrots and zucchini perfect for cakes with cream cheese frosting. Since trying Tammy's fabulous homemade cream of chicken soup I freeze those portions in the jars as well. To locate the needed item I can easily grab the jar as they lid has been labeled with the contents.

Well at least that is a small portion of my freezer that is staying organized. Does anyone have some unique ways to keep this space organized? I would love some ideas.

For more great tips visit http://www.tammysrecipes.com/node

Splinter anyone?

I love primitive country decorating. My last home had rustic elements such as barn boards on the walls, beams adorning the ceiling with dozens of baskets hanging down. I loved that house but it was not conducive to raising young children. We stressed over the idea of explaining to the ER doc how a set of antique sheep pruning shears got stuck in my child (yes that was one of the items hanging off my kitchen island). After numerous splinters from apothecary chests and railings that were below the safety code (with beautiful detail by the way) we knew we had to tone it down. The new farmhouse does have remnants of our primitive past but safer for the youngins to run around, which is now the most important element of a home.

Having said all that I still have a desire to pick pieces that resonate from another era. After hanging on to a picture of my dream harvest table for many years I finally decided to make it a reality. With a growing family and an average of 6 eating each night, our little dining room table was no longer cutting it. We obtained information from a friend about a local artisan who duplicated antique furniture. A 40 minute drive later he quickly drafted up a sketch and in no time quoted us a reasonable price to make, paint and deliver this item. The original picture had 6 drawers adorning the trestle on the bottom but seeing as most of us are over 4ft (those not in a booster seat) we felt this little detail would get in the way of say....sitting close enough to actually eat. We scrapped that and went with a straight trestle bar that did not take away from the authenticity of the piece. The table arrived this weekend and I absolutely love it. These people were efficient, extremely easy and kind to work with and the best part were a joy to do business with.




It was an effort to search for a craftsman, visit their location, look for examples and ultimately decide on a final sketch. Most would like to go out and pick out a ready made item to bring back that day. I on the other hand love the idea that I helped out some wonderfully talented people in our area and the best part the price was probably less than half should I have bought it from town.

Hey!! are those my socks stuck on the back of your shirt?

I help in the output of dirty laundry. I sort the mountains of dirty laundry, eventually I wash it and will go as far as put it away. I draw the line at folding the stuff. Lucky for me my husband actually does not mind this task thus resulting in an ideal situation for the both of us. Because I rarely fold a towel or a pair of sports socks, I never completely understood the need for fabric sheets, he on the other hand most certainly did.

I devised a way around this unnecessary expense. I purchased a simple spray bottle and filled it with fabric softener purchased in bulk for cheap. I use a blue soft face cloth that is specifically used for this purpose and after a liberal spray I toss it in the dryer to work it's magic. Every so often I throw it in with a wash load to clean the build up that has accumulated. We have never had a problem with excessive static cling and even my hubby, the laundry connoisseur has laid his stamp of approval on this one.

For more frugal tips visit Biblical Womanhood

The junk at the bottom of the box

You know those cheap toys you get from cereal boxes, restaurants, kinder eggs and Rotten Ronnie's? Well I keep all of them. I tuck them away (from the baby of course) in a special place and they are never to be seen by my toddler until.......

we have an appointment we must attend or groceries to pick up, this little stash comes in handy. I simply fill a little reusable plastic tote (the zipper ones curtains come in) with several of these toys. Because he has never seen them they are a novelty and usually entertain him when stuck in the car or hanging out in the grocery cart. The best part is if he should either lose one or toss it out the window or worse yet at a fellow diner...no big deal!nothing a new box of froot loops won't fix.

For more great tips visit Rocks in My Dryer

Who says it's only for cake?

I own one of those chest type deep freezers. You know the ones that seemingly suck food in never to be found again. I struggle to keep this puppy organized but have yet to find the perfect system. I did however find one practice that helps to keep certain dishes from succumbing to the same fate as the rest.

I make up large amounts of pizza dough which is pre-baked and ready to go into the oven once garnished. The problem arises when it comes to storing them as they are easily destroyed or broken. I recently bought one of those cheap dollar store cake holders which can handle at least 5 pizza rounds or several frozen pies. These plastic containers keep those delicate items safe and can be labeled for easy access.

So the next time your planned meatloaf goes missing resulting in a last minute pizza night, rest assured it will be in the same condition as you last left it.

For more kitchen tips visit www.tammyrecipes.com

Seemed like a good idea at the time.

I have been hearing from reliable sources that a certain grocery store had their meat marked down half price at 8:00 in the morning. Being as frugal as I am you would think I would have made this a weekly event, but I have a confession to make...I hate crowds. I pictured a bunch of women lined up at the door, carts all revved up in anticipation of those doors opening. I stayed away in fear of being trampled by blood thirsty meat maniacs with their pre planned path to the discount tenderloin all mapped out. Don't get me wrong, I love a good bargain, but not at the expense of losing an eye. For this reason I convinced myself it wasn't true to avoid venturing down. Since both the kids were in daycare for the morning I decided to face my demons and get me some pot roast! Anticipating a stampede rivaling the LA riots I decided to drag my hubby along. I figured if it got too chaotic and I ended up trapped in a mob brandishing my frozen poultry, I could resort to throwing him a hail mary and crawl my way out, hopefully unscathed.



The big day arrived and to my surprise...no angry mob. We got our cart and proceeded to quickly scan the goodies. Making a bee line to the meat department we immediately hit the motherload. Ground beef was half price. Actually it was originally on sale for 99 cents making it approxamately 45 cents a pound. Wahooo, start stock piling. I quickly stuck 4 packs on the cart and scurried off proud as a peacock. As we proceeded to pick up a few items elsewhere I started to wonder if I should have got more. Each cart I passed that was stocked with the stuff my little voice kept repeating "Need more beef". I was able to ignore them until I passed a woman coming up the aisle with so many packs piled in her cart I could barely see the top of her up do. I quickly made a U turn and conned my poor hubby to run back and get some more. Within minutes he was back yielding 6 more.

Pumped with excitement we arrived home and came to the crushing reality that 1. I had zero room in the fridge to store the stuff and 2. I would actually have to do something with it. So for the past two days we have all been up to our elbows in bloody beef. Three meatloaves, 12 mini loaves, 24 hamburgers, 5 dozen meatballs, fajita beef and an incident involving blood leaking down the fridge and all over the floor, we were finally done. I love a good deal and this was by far an amazing one, but as I sit here after FINALLY cleaning my kitchen I am going to admit it was a big job. The upside is for $15 bucks we have enough beef meals to last to Thanksgiving. I did make note that any weekly advertised meats may be on for half price early in the morning. In addition to the meat most of the salads, some bread, certain deli meats and cheeses were as well. I would say this crack of dawn ritual would definitely worth the trip, just do the opposite of what I did, practice moderation.

Meatballs anyone?

One man's junk is another woman's creative junk

Being a stay at home mom is very rewarding but there are times when you just need to get out of the house. I can't complain as I am blessed with the most wonderful parents who allow me to head out every day for a 45 minute run. By the end of the week though, I find this is not even cutting it and I am in desperate need of therapy...the retail kind. Luckily I have found a happy medium between spending money at the mall and staying home....thrift shopping. All you frugal ladies out there know all about this so I thought I would share some of my successful purchases.

In addition to basic thrift stores I love browsing those building salvage stores. You know the ones where contractors bring their gutted goodies and all the proceeds go to charity. I have found the most unique pieces at these places, especially if the home being renovated is older and had great architectural detail. On my latest shopping spree I came across one of those regular tin mailbox's that everybody and their dog owns. I quickly grabbed this little gem up for $2 and proceeded to bring it to the car before my family made fun of me. I picked up a cheap can of bright red metal spray paint and after conning hubby into giving it several coats I have to say I was impressed. My children's playroom is decorated in dark blue and fire engine red so this box went nicely with the decor. Best part is that because it is metal I was able to spell out their name with those annoying fridge letters that end up everywhere but the fridge. Now they stay in the playroom.

I think it turned out pretty cute. Since I have two kids I am now on the hunt for another....Great excuse to go shopping!

For more great tips visit Crystal and Biblical womanhood

It aint a party till someone's sporting a lampshade

We even have the dog partying...looks impressed eh?

This is my first year blogging and wanted to jump into this ultimate blog party that is being hosted by 5 minutes for mom. Stop by and check some sites out as it is a great way to meet new people and get your space noticed at the same time. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you stay awhile.

Little about our crazy life...well, I live on my parents farm with my hubby and 2 children (3 and 9 months) We have 14 horses , one neurotic great dane and an old cat. I am constantly looking for creative ways to spend time with my family, perfect my job as homemaker and most of all finding ways to save some of my hubby's hard earned dollars. I write on my adventures in the kitchen, the garden, some crafting ideas and how to save money and my sanity. Leave me a message because I am always looking for some new sites to get hooked on.

Don't forget to check this awesome site out for more blogs to pass the time http://www.5minutesformom.com/

Linky Love

Thanks to The Wifey Diaries for this linky -love tag! Cut and paste the following starting here. I have randomly selected 5 of you below to be tagged and I hope that you will similarly publish this post in your blog. You will have to tag 5 other bloggers and just keep adding on to the list. (Do not replace, just keep on adding! Yes we hope it will be a long list!)It'ss real easy! Tag others and see your Technorati Authority increase exponentially!The benefits of Viral Linking:- One of the fastest ways to see your technorati authority explode!- Increase your Google PageRank fast- Attract large volume of new traffic to your site- Build your community- Make new friends!

The Strategist Notebook, Link Addiction, Ardour of the Heart, When Life Becomes a Book, The Malaysian Life, Yogatta.com, What goes under the sun,Roshidan’s Cyber Station, Sasha says, Arts of Physics, And the legend lives, My View, My Life, A Simple Life, Juliana RW, The Callalily Space, Petra Summer in Blue, Confessions of an Army Wife Bless’ Sanctuary Happy Life, http://bless519.bravejournal.com/, La Place de Cherie, Chez Francine, Le bric a brac de Cherie, Little Peanut, Pea in a Pod, The Creative In Me, Me and Mine, Pinay Mommy, Expressions from the Heart, TeacherJulie, Sweetbites by Bang, Paul, Toni and Lance - Bridging the Distance, Our Growing Family, The Uncensored life of me, My Untamed World, Something Purple, A Detour, Something Purple, Wifespeaks, Changing Lanes Blog District The Chic Shopaholic Gracie de guzman, The Wifey Diaries

I want to share this tag to Kelli, Sindi, Mark, Mrs. Nespy , My Kids Mom

Soup for you!!

I have tried numerous ways to set up a meal plan that I have lost count. I think I finally came up with a system that works for my family. Near the end of the month I hunker down with my meal list and my freezer inventory and draft up a monthly menu. Wow, real original you are thinking, but it has a twist. I assign each day of the week to a theme. My themes are as follows:

Monday – Casserole or frozen meal
Tuesday – Anything poultry related
Wednesday – Mom’s on strike night so fend for yourself (usually soup or something light)
Thursday – Italian night (spaghetti or lasagna)
Friday – Take out night at home (homemade pizza or do it yourself fish n chips)
Saturday – Breakfast at night (baked French toast or my dad’s famous pancakes)
Sunday – Formal or more elaborate cooking

For each day I assign four associated meals. When the day rolls around we initially have a choice between four dishes. The choice peter off when the end of the month comes but this way we can choose what we feel like and don’t feel we are a slave to the schedule.

For the record this menu does not apply to my three year old. Every night of the week is toast night…any suggestions on that conundrum?

For more great tips visit http://rocksinmydryer.typepad.com/

Hot Hot Hot!!!

Previously I wrote how I use tinfoil to line my cookie sheets. I find this method produces evenly baked cookies without having to buy those fancy tins and mats. Because I use these specific sheets for cookies only and the foil can be reused, I normally just toss the whole thing in the drawer for next time.


This particular afternoon I was hauling out a batch of chocolate chip cookies when my toddler thought he should dust the hardwood floor with the baby. Of course the safety of the little one was my main concern but not wanting the cookies to continue cooking on the hot sheet and not having enough time to remove each one with a spatula I instantly grabbed the ends of the tinfoil and plunked it on the cooling rack. Once the dust settled, I thought "why have I not thought of that before?" Of course the tinfoil does not heat up therefore you can handle it directly making it much easier to remove cookies to cool without having to risk squishing those slightly undercooked ones we like with the metal spatula. This also speeds up the process should you only have one cookie sheet. You only have to remove the finished ones and proceed to pick up a ready laid out piece with the batter all neatly piled.

Sometimes the greatest discoveries are made amongst chaos.....that means I should have enough tips to last a decade.

For more kitchen tips visit http://www.tammysrecipes.com/

Bringing culture into the house

Recently my family thought I "lost it" when I decided to make our own laundry detergent. What will they think when I tell them I made my own yogurt?

I have to admit this was scary territory for me. The fact that you are working with bacteria and micro organisms mean one false step could leave you praying to the porcelain gods in no time. Before attempting this I did plenty of research and finally found this site that gave me step by step instructions. The final nudge I needed to start cooking was finding a brand new yogurt maker at a local thrift store. For a measly $4 this little gem was sitting there, brand new in a box beckoning me to take him home and fill er' up, so I did.

After meticously measuring out the ingredients I finally poured a full batch of the would be yogurt into my new gadget and waited the 4 hours for the good stuff to take shape. With much hesitation I dipped my spoon into the chilled yogurt and to my surprise it actually tasted good. I am not going to lie and say it's better than the Activia stuff that I purchase for the kids, but at $4.39 a carton it was becoming more of a luxury than gourmet ice cream. This stuff however, was far better that the aspartame laden diet brand I normally buy and with the addition of freshly fruit or granola this would be a perfect dessert of snack.

I feel this was a successful attempt at yogurt making and one that I will only perfect with time and practice.

The jury is still out on whether I lost it or not.