Natural Homemade Living

Who knew that all of those recipe books were hiding in my buffet? Only me! It was simply another one of those projects that I kept thinking I'll work on it later. And everyone knows "later" never works out well. A couple of years ago, I did a massive sort with my cookbooks and I was able to sell many of them on a garage sale. Since I love to cook and bake, I felt some sort of attachment to my cookbooks! (I know, it's weird). Many of them are old, family members have written cute little notes in them and I didn't want to part with them. But when I took them out and saw my cookbook disaster, I quickly changed my mind.     I started this project by giving myself limits. I used the top shelf in the buffet for my favorite cookbooks that I actually use. The bottom shelf is for our blog information and family recipes. My first rule in throwing away was to throw away any loose papers, you know the internet recipes, magazine, newspaper recipes or those free recipe b

  For some reason, I have never really been a meatloaf lover..I think it might be a texture thing...or a flavor thing. My sister doesn't like it either. I don't remember being forced to eat it as a child or anything..actually I don't remember eating it at all as a child...must've blocked it out! (just kidding). Even the picture I took, doesn't make it look too appetizing! I took several and this is the best I could make it look. (I even added the drizzled ketchup, it still didn't make it look much better, you don't have to do that...unless you want to!) Anyway, the other night for no particular reason, I got hungry for meatloaf. My family and I almost ate the whole thing and they said it was my best meatloaf recipe ever! So I had to blog it before I forgot how I made it. I usually don't get too technical when I cook, I just eyeball it. So feel free to make it yours and add or not add what you like. Here's what you need: 1 pound ground beef,

I was trying to think of something for dessert last night and homemade bread pudding was my choice. Our Dad was not a dessert lover but bread pudding was one of his favorites. Our grandma made the best bread pudding, hope you like it! Ingredients : 5 cups slightly dried out bread, any kind. I used Italian bread.  1/4 cup raisins (optional) 2 cups milk 1/4 cup butter 1/2 cup white sugar 2 eggs 1 T vanilla 1/4 tsp nutmeg 1/2 tsp cinnamon Caramel Sauce Ingredients 1/2 cup butter 1/2 cup white sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup heavy cream 1 tsp vanilla Directions : Cut the bread in cubes. I cut some of the crust off (on about half of the bread). Place bread into a greased casserole dish or an 11x9 inch pan. Add raisins.  Microwave milk and butter about 4 minutes on 60% power or heat in a saucepan over medium heat on the stove. In a separate bowl, whisk eggs, sugar, vanilla, nutmeg and cinnamon. Slowly add the mixture to the egg and milk and butter

I love snacks! I'm pretty sure I could snack my way through every day. One of our favorite snacks when we want something sweet is sunflower, sesame and flax seed brittle. It only takes a few minutes to mix the ingredients, a few minutes cooking on the stove and some cooling time. I use organic ingredients and raw seeds but use what you like. Ingredients: 3/4 c sugar (I use organic cane sugar but white sugar will work) 1/4 c honey 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg 1 T water 1/2 c sesame seeds 1/2 c sunflower seeds 1/4 c flax seeds 1 tsp vanilla extract 2 T butter 1/4 tsp baking soda Use a medium-small saucepan over medium heat, mix sugar, honey, nutmeg and water, and stir until mixture is fairly smooth.  Add seeds and stir. Continue to cook over medium heat about 10-12 minutes. I used a candy thermometer and waited for the mixture to reach 302F. Remove from heat. Stir in the vanilla extract and butter, keep stirring until the butter has melted.  Stir in the baking soda. It w

  I'm always trying out new cookie recipes. My favorite has always been the chocolate chip cookie, but for a recent bake sale, I really wanted to try something new. This recipe was adapted from the Nestle Toll House white chip bag. The original recipe seemed a little time consuming and had refrigeration involved... (you know I don't have patience for that, so I simplified it a little!)  Here's what you need: 1 c butter 2/3 c sugar 1/4 c grated lemon peel (I didn't use this much, I added a little zest and some lemon extract) 1/2 tsp vanilla extract (I used lemon instead) 2 c flour 1/4 tsp salt 2 c Premier White Morsels a.k.a white chocolate chips 1 tsp oil or shortening  In a large bowl, beat butter, sugar, lemon peel and extract until fluffy. Gradually add flour, salt and 1 cup chips. Drop cookies on cookie sheet and bake 350 degrees for 11-13 minutes. You don't want these to brown, so take them out when they look just a little brown around the e

Most of the time I really like making things myself and not using processed food, especially when it comes to anything I can bake or cook. However, there are the times when it's just cheaper and quicker to buy the cake mix in a box and call it a day!  My daughter picked out a Fun-Fetti cake mix with frosting for Valentines Day (I thought "how sweet she's baking a cake for the family!" after all, she is 18...as she reminds us almost daily :) Unfortunately she had plans on Valentines Day, so guess who ended up making the cake... I made the cake but I was also doing 3 other things and forgot to check on it until the timer went off and by that time it was a little over baked ...I hate dry, over baked cake...so there was only one thing to do...make cake pops!  Luckily my son was here to help me roll, dip and sprinkle.  These aren't hard to make but they are just a little time consuming. So this is the impatient, easily side tracked person way to do it. Here's w

  If you have infants or toddlers, you know it can be a little tricky to make gifts, or craft projects that they can actually "do themselves". In my daycare, I have a 2 yr old and a 1 yr old. Here are a couple projects that they can pretty much make on their own..with a little supervision, of course. The first one is golf ball painting. I put a piece of construction paper into a box (you can cut it into a shape or leave it the size it is, you will want a box with high sides). Then add a little paint and a couple golf balls, you can also use marbles if you have them. Then have them tip and shake the box to roll the ball around to spread the paint on the paper.  When it's done, you have a cute gift or decoration that they made "all by themselves!"                                                                   The second project I did with the 1 year old. I cut out a heart shape and taped it to the middle of a larger piece of paper. Then let them s

It's been a tradition in our family that we all make our "specialty" goodies for Christmas. One of my sister's treats that we all love are her Christmas tree wreaths made from corn flakes and marshmallows. Well, this year she brought the ingredients to my house so we could "whip them up" when we had a minute. To make a  long and dreadful story short, this did not happen. We both came down with the awful influenza that has hit the country and we laid around for 3 days. We thought it might be one of those things that's funny to reflect back on and laugh someday ...but that day has not arrived yet!  So anyway.... recently I noticed that I still had the ingredients for the wreaths in my cupboard and decided I would use them to make heart treats for Valentine's Day. I'm not really into using food coloring so I left them white, but you could a couple of drops of red food coloring if you want. (These can also be gluten free, check your labels).

  A few weeks ago I found these shadow boxes on sale for 75% off at Michael's Craft Store; they were only $5.99 so I bought 3 of them for various heirlooms and keepsakes. I put things that I had from our Grandma in this one. She liked to sew, I had a few of her spools and a thread box. I also had some pieces from the game Keyword, that we would play together when I would go and stay. It's a nice way to display and keep a few things, instead of boxes full of things stuck in a closet or basement.  If you have things that you have kept as an heirloom or feel like you just can't get rid of, make sure you have them somewhere that you can use and appreciate them. I also like the idea of taking pictures of kids projects and artwork and making the pictures into a book instead of keeping all the paper and projects that don't usually hold their shape and stay intact over the years.  As organizer Peter Walsh says,  "This is harsh, when you tell me, 'Everything

Chicken, gravy and mashed potatoes is another family favorite! This is what we call fried chicken in our family because we don't eat traditional fried chicken. This is simply baked chicken with a nice crunchy crust. You can use this to create an awesome gluten free meal or maybe you just want to enjoy a healthier option than frying chicken. Ingredients : 1/3 c plain yogurt (Greek or homemade works best because it's thicker) 1 egg 1/4 c milk (I use coconut milk but almond milk or white milk is fine too) 2 cups corn flakes, crushed 4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts Whisk yogurt, egg, and milk on a large plate. The mixture shouldn't be too thin or it won't stick to the chicken. Add a little more yogurt if it's too thin.  Rinse the chicken breasts and remove the excess water with a paper towel.  Pour corn flakes into a large plastic baggie, seal it and using a rolling pin, roll over the top of the baggie until the corn flakes are crushed and look like cr

  A while ago, I posted some wall decor ideas using wrapping paper in a frame. You can also use fabric or scrapbook paper that you like. I had some old black and white family photos that I made copies of and arranged them on the wrapping paper.   Shoebox lids covered in fabric arranged on a wall look like expensive artwork. Photos are another great way to personalize your space, and often places like Walgreen's, Shutterfly or Costco have coupons or specials for printing large sizes or printing on canvas.  Our mom had these pictures of our Grandpa enlarged and framed. It's also a great gift idea! I have also used quotes or funny sayings and printed them in a font I like and framed them.  These are a few  inexpensive ideas to decorate your space.  Let us know how you like to personalize your space on a budget.  ~ Simply Angie                                                                                                                                    

Apple muffins on a cold morning got a thumbs up today! They are easy to make and your taste testers will love them. I used organic ingredients but use your what you have at your house. Muffin Ingredients : 1 egg 3/4 c yogurt, I use  Homemade Yogurt (you can use Greek yogurt) 3/4 c coconut milk, not canned (or your favorite milk) if you use regular milk only use 1/2 cup because it is usually thinner than coconut milk 1/4 c coconut or canola oil 2 c  flour 1/2 c sugar 1 1/2 tsp baking powder 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp cinnamon 1/2 tsp sea salt 1 c diced, peeled apples (I used organic Braeburn apples) Mix the liquid ingredients by hand with a whisk. Add the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon or spatula. Don't mix them too much, you only need to blend all ingredients. Stir in the diced apples. I used a medium scoop to put the dough in paper lined muffin tins, fill about 3/4 full. Makes about 20-22 muffins. Topping : 1/3 c flour 1/3 c brown sugar 1/4 c cold