At Home My Way

RECIPES AT THE TOP:  CHIT-CHAT AT THE BOTTOM . (But read the step-by-step instructions completely if you are a canning beginner. Surejell requires a certain order to things for it to work.) STRAWBERRY JAM USING SUREJELL POWDER PECTIN 5 cups mashed  (stems removed) fresh strawberries (approximately 3 pounds whole strawberries made 5 cups for me; measure them mashed) 7 cups granulated sugar 1/2 Tablespoon butter/margarine (optional) (helps a little with foaming) 1 box powdered original Surejell pectin  10 (8 oz) canning jars w/ lids & rings (new lids/rings) Instructions: *Step-by-Step instructions listed in the chit-chat below - WITH LOTS OF PICTURES! Place mashed strawberries in a large pot (like for cooking chili).  Sprinkle w/ powdered pectin (only Surejell works for me.)  Stir to blend.   Measure 7 cups granulated sugar into a separate container (bowl) and have ready to go.  Don't add it yet to the strawberrie...

Recently I saw a post on Facebook where a young mom asked for tips on saving money on meals.  At first, I resisted to comment, knowing that some posts are intended for an inner circle of friends and not from old moms of childhood friends LOL. Later, I changed my mind.  I am passionate about saving money on meals.  I have walked this path myself when my own children were young and I am a blogger - so have lots of resources all in one place. I asked this young mom to let me know if she was interested in some frugal blog links. I told her that for me, the places to start were cooking once to eat twice and cooking from scratch.  Those two things make a huge difference rather than buying prepackaged/shortcut meals which really drain the bank account fast.  My young friend told me she works on trying to cook more scratch meals.  It occurred to me that she may think I mean she should make "from scratch" things like baking bread, rolling noodles, or ca...

Early this spring, I decided I wanted to have a little garden again.  It's been a while for me in the garden, but this year I thought I would give it another try.   I really wanted Doug to till a garden spot in our yard - or build me an amazing raised bed, but he had so many things on his honey-do list that I finally broke down and tried a container garden.  I wasn't sure how it would work.   I follow Square Foot Gardening on Facebook and a few other gardening sites.  They really inspired me to give it a try and to start where I am!   Someone told me recently that you really have to treat your plants like little babies.  That made sense and has stuck with me!  They need attention often and should be watched closely for anything they might need.  They can't talk to you so all you can do is keep a close eye on them and do your best to give them what they need to grow. One blogger said she starts seeds in little trays ...

Surprise Muffins   (Easy - Uses Pantry Ingredients) 2 cups all purpose flour 1/3 cup sugar 3 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup milk 1 egg 1/2 cup vegetable oil *Jam/jelly of your choice (optional) *Colored sugars for sprinkling (optional) Directions: PREHEAT:  Oven to 350 degrees COMBINE:  In a mixing bowl all of the dry ingredients. Stir well. COMBINE:  In a separate dish from the dry ingredients- the egg, oil, and milk.  Stir so egg is thoroughly blended with other wet ingredients. COMBINE: Wet and dry ingredients  and STIR, just until blended . PLACE: Muffin papers in 12 muffin cups/tin.  (I really prefer papers for these muffins.) SCOOP:  Approximately one heaping Tablespoon of batter into the bottom of each muffin cup. NEXT PLACE:  About 1 teaspoon of your favorite jam or jelly on top of that batter. TOP: With another spoon of muffin batter. SPRINKLE: With colo...

Fresh Homemade Tortillas *These are the best ever! 3 cups all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking POWDER 1 teaspoon table salt 1/3 cup oil 1 cup warm water Instructions: Combine flour, baking powder, and table salt in a mixing bowl and stir well. Combine oil and water in a separate dish and stir well to combine. Pour oil/water mixture over flour/baking powder, salt mixture and stir well to combine. Form dough into a disc and let rest about 10 minutes while getting ready to roll/cook. Get skillet out and spray w/ cooking spray if not using a non-stick surface.  I used an iron skillet since I don't use non-stick skillets. Cut the dough disc into half, each half in half, each half in half until you have 16 equal pieces.  Form each piece into a round piece of dough. Roll each piece on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin into a thin taco-sized tortilla.  You could probably pat them out if you don't have a rolling pin....