Natural Homemade Living

Creamy Macaroni Salad A childhood favorite summer salad for me is creamy macaroni salad. I add my favorite veggies (or what I have available) and even add canned tuna or chicken. It doesn't take long to put it together but the flavors come together when you refrigerate it at least a couple of hours before you serve it. Ingredients: One box elbow macaroni, 16 oz size 1 c Miracle Whip salad dressing  1 T yellow mustard 2 T dill pickle juice 2 T milk 1-2 T white sugar 1 T ketchup 1 c finely chopped celery 1/2 c diced dill pickles 1 medium cucumber, diced 1-2 medium tomatoes, diced Cook macaroni according to directions on package. Cool and drain by running cold water over it. In a large bowl, whisk together the salad dressing, pickle juice, milk, sugar, ketchup and mustard. Add the rest of the ingredients together and stir to combine. Salt and pepper to taste. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours before serving. Prior to serving add a little milk if the salad has soaked up the liquid ingre...

A fun little project you can complete in about an hour is a colorful Easter wreath! They also make great gifts!  What you need: 1 straw wreath (leave the plastic wrap on) or Styrofoam circle, mine is 12"  24-30 plastic eggs  Ribbon for bow or pre-made bow Small stuffed animal   Hot glue gun/glue Decorations of your choice  Floral moss or natural straw  Craft wire Directions: I started with my wreath hanger. Cut a piece of craft wire about 12 inches long. Wrap it around the top of the wreath and twist it several times on the back of the wreath, form a small circle and twist at the bottom of the circle. This will be your wreath hanger. Turn the wreath over keeping the hanger on the top while you're working. You will want to leave a space at the bottom for your bow and stuffed animal. Heat your hot glue and start by placing a generous amount of hot glue on an egg, hold the egg onto the wreath for a few seconds until it sticks. I started plac...

Marshmallow Pops I've been making these marshmallow pops for parties for years and I have figured out a couple of helpful hints to make it an easier process. I'm not a marshmallow fan but I think they look pretty in an arrangement. They are super cute for Valentine's Day and the kiddos say they are awesome! 💕 Ingredients : 1 bag Wilton Candy Melts (12 oz bag) 30 lollipop sticks 30 large marshmallows (I did not use the jumbo size) Sprinkles, coconut, chopped nuts, small candies Food coloring optional Directions: Melt the candy chips using a double boiler on the stove. Fill a medium size pan halfway with water and place a glass bowl on top. Heat over medium heat and make sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl or it'll get too hot. You can also melt the chips in the microwave in 30 second increments. Once the chips are melted, dip an end of the lollipop stick into the chip mixture about 1/2 inch then push it into the end of a marshmallow, al...

  This recipe is everywhere and I finally gave in and made some! It was so simple to make and already popular in our family! Everyone likes the sweet with a little salty taste from the dry roasted peanuts. Check it out! 😊 Ingredients: 24 oz. white chocolate almond bark 12 oz. chocolate almond bark 12 oz. milk chocolate or semi-sweet chocolate chips 5 cups dry roasted peanuts Directions: I started layering the ingredients in the crockpot. Here's the order starting with the peanuts on the bottom, the almond bark (both flavors) and the chocolate chips. Cover and cook on low for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes.  Cover 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper and scoop candy out of crockpot and place on the baking sheets. Add some of your favorite sprinkles.  Once the candies have set, mine took about an hour, store them in an airtight container. I also made a batch without peanuts and used gluten-free mini pretzels. They turned out great! Enjoy! Love and peace, Tammi

My holiday baking marathon has begun! I decided to use a few recipes this year that I haven't made for years and this was the first one I found. I had forgotten about these yummy bars but back in the day, they were a favorite from our family friend Delores. She was our neighbor, an excellent baker and had a heart of gold. During the holiday season maybe take a little time to reminisce about those who are no longer with us. The happy memories are so heart warming and the kiddos love hearing the stories from the past. I smiled when I found this recipe that our Grandma had received from Delores dated 11/15/1978. 😇 The great thing is that you can make them with gluten-free cereal, which means everyone in our family can eat them! And we all like the part that they are easy to put together, no baking! Marshmallow Bars Ingredients: 1 bag milk chocolate chips (11.5 oz.) 1/2 bag butterscotch chips 1 stick butter (1/2 cup) 1 cup creamy peanut butter Melt these ingredients togethe...

I'm making my Christmas goodie list. One thing in my list are chocolate pretzel turtles. These are simple and quick to make. I learned two important lessons; make sure you use soft caramels and high quality chocolate. We really don't need to discuss the details - haha! You can also make them gluten free if you use gluten free pretzels. You can use any chocolate, I made milk chocolate and white chocolate. These are delicious! 😋 Ingredients: 36 pecan halves 36 pretzel twists, mini 36 soft caramels, I used Werther's soft caramels, 2 packages, unwrapped 1 bag chocolate chips, I used Ghirardelli white chocolate chips, melted Directions: Toast the pecans in a 325ºF oven for 5 minutes then set them aside to cool. Place pretzels on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Place one unwrapped caramel on each pretzel. Bake for 5 minutes in 325ºF oven. They should look shiny and soft but not melted. Remove from oven, keep them on...