Natural Homemade Living

Running out of ideas for the nights you need to make a quick meal? This is a simple go-to recipe that is quick, easy, and a taste-tester favorite! Use your favorite ingredients or what you have left in your refrigerator before your next grocery shopping event. I'll give you some ideas but the secret is to put it  together using your own favorites! Putting it together : 1 loaf of french, ciabatta, or Italian bread 1-2 cups pizza sauce, your favorite kind 1 pound ground beef, vegan meat crumbles, pepperoni, Canadian bacon or sausage. (Use any combination or no meat if you want vegetable pizza). 1-2 tsp Italian seasoning Olives, green peppers, mushrooms, onions, any toppings you like 1-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese I started by browning my ground beef in a pan over medium heat. Add Italian seasoning and let it simmer for about 10 minutes. Slice your bread loaf in half lengthwise and spoon the pizza sauce on both halves. I used approximately 2 cups of pizza sauce. Layer you...

This recipe is adapted from the momsaware.org website to make your own soft scrub. I love it! It makes my sinks and tubs sparkle, cleans up my outdoor furniture and my greasy, grimy, stove and burners! You may have to adjust ingredients according to what size container you use.  It should have a similar consistency to the real "soft scrub." 1/4-1/2c liquid castile soap-we like Dr. Bronner's 1/2-1 c baking soda optional: 5 drops of Tea Tree oil (a natural disinfectant/antifungal) or essential oil of your choice Add enough water to make a thick paste I found my bottles at the Dollar store but have seen them in the grocery store also. Add liquid soap first then add soda, add enough water to make a thick paste and shake well to mix.  You will need to shake well before each use. Use directly on surface or put on wet sponge first to clean. ~Simply Angie

I recently found some recipes on Pinterest for lotion bars.  I found several sites with similar recipes. I made this batch with coconut oil. I love the smell, but it is a little greasy. I hate to waste ingredients so I decided to remelt them and add more beeswax, they were a little less greasy...but still greasy.  I wouldn't recommend using them on your hands during the day because of the "greasiness factor" but I gotta say, they are really working great on my feet. I don't want to sound like an infomercial but after a couple nights of putting this on my dry cracked feet when I go to bed (I'll spare you the before and after photos)-this really has been helping! It would be great for feet, elbows or dry skin patches, my niece said it even works when her babies have diaper rash. Here's the recipe, I used equal parts-of course I just eyeball it, I didn't have a way to measure the beeswax because it was a block that I just chipped away at. equal parts co...

It's time to decorate for fall! I went shopping yesterday looking for the perfect fall decorations and came home with one white pumpkin. I haven't shopped for fall decorations lately and after a couple of hours I knew I needed to go home and start my DIY project. Do people really spend $35 for a fake pumpkin? I love white pumpkins and decided to use different shades of white and textures for my project. I used items from my mantel that I already had and found an old resin pumpkin in my fall decoration box. I also found a cute glass pumpkin that I used for candy and decided I would use that for something. I didn't really know what I was going to do with it yet but a quick call to my sister always helps! After tossing around several ideas, we finally decided I should Mod Podge doilies around it. I grabbed an old cake plate from the donation pile and I was ready to start my decorating project! Let's Get Started : 1 white real pumpkin 1 glass pumpkin 1 resin pumpkin An...

I recently made this recipe for my son's Confirmation. It has been used for multiple occasions and celebrations in our family. Everyone loves them and we've had several requests for the recipe.  These can be made ahead of time because they freeze well. You will need to use silicone or rubber molds. (They are not the same as the plastic molds for the candy melts). These are usually found at a kitchen or candy  supply store or they can be ordered online.  You might want to call in your "helpers" with these little sweeties, they are fun to make but they do take some time. Here's the recipe: 1  3 oz. package cream cheese 2 1/2 c powdered sugar 1/8 - 1/4 tsp flavoring (depending on how strong you want it, if you make the whole thing one flavor it is closer to 1/4 tsp but I usually split the dough into 3 and use about 1/8 tsp for each section) If you use oil, such as peppermint, you only need a few drops. Food coloring - a few drops (I split the dough into 3 par...

If you are looking for a simple meal idea that tastes awesome, try this sandwich! If you make shredded chicken you can save some chicken for this sandwich or use slices of cooked chicken if you prefer. Ingredients : 1 loaf ciabatta bread, sliced lengthwise 10-14 ounces cooked, shredded chicken (I use boneless, skinless chicken thighs) 6-8 slices of fresh mozzarella cheese 2 fresh large tomatoes, sliced 1/2 c pesto sauce (mix 1/2 cup mayonnaise, 2 tsp Italian seasoning, 1 tsp basil, 1 tsp olive oil - you may have some extra. Slice bread in half lengthwise. Spread pesto sauce on both sides of the bread. Add as much shredded chicken as you like to the bread. Slice cheese and place over chicken. Add sliced tomatoes and close top over bread. Place entire bread loaf wrapped in foil in 325F degree oven. Heat in oven for 10-15 minutes, just until warm. Remove from oven, slice into 6 servings. Love and peace, ~ Simply Tammi

Fall is the perfect time to make you own vanilla extract. You can use it for gifts for the holidays or for your holiday baking. I heard the other day that the price of Vanilla Beans will be going up so if you haven't made your own vanilla extract before, now is the time!  It's easy and also makes a great gift. What you need: Clean glass jar and lid 16 ounces rum 4-6 vanilla beans Place whole vanilla beans (or you can split down the middle) in the jar and pour in the rum. Cover with tight fitting lid and shake the jar a few times. Place it cool dark place for 8 weeks. It will get darker over time. Remove your beans and pour into decorative bottles if giving as a gift. This has a slightly different taste than vanilla extract made with vodka. You can use Angie's recipe for traditional vanilla extract Homemade Vanilla Extract . Love and peace, - Simply Tammi Done! Day 1

I've had some requests lately for ideas and any tips for getting that nasty, musty smell out of front loading washing machines.  Even if you don't leave laundry sitting in your washer and you leave the door open, you will eventually still have "the smell." When your clothes smell worse coming out than going in...it's time to do a deep clean!  Tammi and I have noticed that our front loaders have been going a little longer between cleanings since we started making our own laundry detergent.  If you are buying laundry detergent make sure it says it is for "he" washers. I will have a new liquid recipe coming soon. I think it's a winner but have a little more testing washing to do! Here are a few tips that we have: Pull back the rubber seal Always check your manual for the best way to clean your specific front loader, these are just general tips that we use, my manual says to wear eye protection and rubber gloves...that's up to you. Always le...

It seems there a million ways to freeze corn and I have tried at least half of them. When we lived on the farm where there was an abundance of sweet corn (thank you neighbors), I would spend a whole day freezing sweet corn. And who wants to spend a whole day on the weekend freezing corn? After a couple years of this time consuming activity, I mastered a process that works great for me. It's relatively messy free (well you know it is corn so it is a little messy), less time consuming, and I don't necessarily need any helpers, although it's so much more fun to have family or friends helping! This is how it works for me: My first rule is clean, clean, clean. Everything must be clean! I use one of my kitchen sinks to cool the corn after it has cooked, so you must clean, disinfectant, and rinse your sink. I start with hot water and baking soda and scrub, scrub, scrub! Then I spray vinegar and tea tree oil, leave it on for a few minutes, then rinse with hot, hot water. Ok -...

I don't know about you, but at my house refrigerator organizing can be challenging! I'm pretty sure my husband can open the door and stand there, right in front of everything and still can't find what he's looking for! It has taken me quite a few years to figure out a system that actually works for us. I thought I would share my tips and maybe some of them will work for you. I limit my groceries for what I will be cooking or eating that week. I like to freeze meals ahead so my freezer is full and I don't have to waste time on what I am going to cook every night. I usually buy organic produce which doesn't keep too long and I hate to throw food away, so my refrigerator might look a little bare, but that's how I like it! Many of the items I make myself such as chicken and beef stock, yogurt, peanut butter, salsa, jelly, applesauce, syrup, dressings, and iced coffee. Most of my jars are labeled so my husband knows what is in them, and some I date with a sha...

This is a recipe we got from our dad. It is one of my "go-to" recipes when I need something quick and that everyone likes.  I don't really measure everything exactly, I just keep tasting along the way. You can adapt it to what you and your family like. Here's what you need: 1 Packet of Knorr brand Vegetable recipe mix or Spring Vegetable mix 2-3 chicken breasts, thighs or whatever you like, I slice mine into smaller pieces to cook faster, but you can use them whole 2-3 c chicken broth or stock fresh veggies that you like, I use stringless snap peas, broccoli,  okra, or whatever I have that needs to be eaten pasta I use a small box of Angel Hair, but again.. use what you like Start your pasta water boiling and cook the pasta. In a skillet, cook chicken until it's not pink anymore then add stock and Knorr mix, add veggies and put the lid on. Cook until veggies are cooked/steamed but still crisp. Drain pasta, save a little pasta water to add to the chicke...