Natural Homemade Living

If you are looking for an inexpensive gift to give this season, this is a recipe we have had around for years, it's another one from our Aunt Joanne. It's always a great gift for those on your list that you don't know what to buy. I have tried several recipes for hot chocolate mixes but this one is a favorite. It makes a cute gift in a jar or even a single serving given in a cute bag. I found these little glass spice jars at our Bed Bath and Beyond Store, they came in a pack of 4 for under $5. Give it with a bag of our Simply Homemade Marshmallows to make it even more special! What you need: This will make about 2 quart jars of powder, enough for several servings (or gifts!) 10 cups of powdered milk 6 oz container of powdered coffee creamer, I used the store brand french vanilla 1 lb. container of Nestle or Hershey Cocoa Powder 1-2 cups powdered sugar Pour all ingredients into a large bowl and mix together. Then put into separate containers or jars for gifts. ...

On our recent vacation to my sister's home, I discovered her awesome spice drawer! I loved seeing all of the spices at once instead of digging through different container sizes in my kitchen cabinet. My first project after vacation was to purchase small canning jars that would fit into my drawer. I used chalkboard vinyl paper and wrote each spice name with a chalkboard marker. I had a few jars left so I stored the spices I use less frequently in my cabinet. She also stores her measuring spoons in the spice drawer...I copied that idea too! 😀 Happy organizing! Love and peace, Tammi

I'm always amazed at kids toys and how expensive they can be, then you buy them and they end up playing with the box it came in-or it ends up in the bottom of a toy box soon after.  I have been making toys out of everyday items for quite a while now and these are a couple that seem to keep getting pulled out of the box and played with over and over. They were easy and cheap to make.  You can use plastic water bottles, soda bottles or something like it.  Then find all the little shiny, fluffy and interesting things you have in the junk drawer and put them in the bottle.  You will want to put some type of strong glue or hot glue around the inside of the cap to make sure it stays on and check it often to make sure it hasn't loosened.  These are good for infants, toddlers and even preschoolers. The little ones like to look at it, roll it and shake it, and for preschoolers it makes a fun "I Spy" game. I filled that bottle with rice, a rubberband, some little...

I love strawberries and in the summer I like to go pick them when I can.  I usually end up with more than I can eat before they start getting overly ripe. I found this for freezer jam on the Ball jar box and have been enjoying it all winter. I have also used this recipe with frozen strawberries that I have thawed, when they aren't in season.  I like to put strawberries in my yogurt and in desserts, so I pureed some to freeze and made freezer jam out of the rest.  For the Jam you will need: 4 Cups crushed strawberries 1 1/2 C sugar, I used about 2/3/ c (or to taste) sometimes I use Agave instead of the sugar 5 T Instant Pectin  (optional- for thicker jam more like jelly) Makes 5 (8 oz) jars Stir sugar and Instant Pectin in a bowl. Add strawberries. Stir 3 minutes. Ladle into clean jars. (I like the plastic Ball jars, but the glass jars can be used as long as they are freezer safe). Let stand until thickened, about 30 minutes.  Serve, refrigerate or fre...

Maple Walnut Granola If you're looking for a lower sugar granola recipe, this is a great recipe adapted from Dr. Travis Stork.   This recipe makes 10 cups. Ingredients:  8 c. rolled oats 2 c. walnuts, rough chopped 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp allspice 1/4 tsp salt 3/4 c. canola oil (or melted virgin coconut oil) 2/3 c. maple syrup or honey 1 T pure vanilla extract Combine the oats, nuts, spices and salt together with your fingers. Mix the liquid ingredients together in a separate bowl and pour over the dry ingredients. Stir together until everything is coated. Using 2 parchment paper lined baking sheets, pour half of the mixture on each sheet. Bake at 300 degrees for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Let cool and store in an airtight container. This recipe also freezes well. Love and peace, Tammi and Angie

Dad's Ham and Bean Soup Add this delicious soup recipe to your meal plans. This is one of our favorite soups. It's especially great if you have leftovers from a bone-in ham otherwise you can also use cubed ham. You can freeze your leftovers. This recipe makes 8-10 servings. Directions 4 cups chicken stock 4 cups water 1 ham bone and 2 cups cooked ham 2 cups sliced carrots 1/2 medium onion, diced 1 jar great northern beans with liquid 1 tsp celery seed Salt and pepper to taste If you are starting with a ham bone, add it to the stock and water in a large pot over medium high heat. Bring it to a boil then reduce heat and simmer for 1-2 hours. Remove the ham bone from the liquid, cut off the ham from the bone and add it back to the soup. Add more ham chunks if you'd like. (If you are using cut ham pieces you can cook all of the ingredients at the same time). Add the rest of the ingredients, stir occasionally and simmer for at least an hour. I like to simmer m...

These adorable cupcakes are perfect for birthday parties. I let the kiddos pick out the little candies and the flavors and colors for the cupcakes. One of my favorite things about kids is that the little things bring the biggest smiles. This includes piñata cupcakes. Directions: Make the cupcakes by using your favorite cake mix or make the cupcakes from scratch.  After the cupcakes have cooled, using a sharp knife, cut a round section (about an inch) out of the top of each cupcake and cut about halfway into the cupcake. Use the knife tip to gently lift out the small circle of cake.  Save your cake circles and trim some of the cake off the bottom of each circle. You can add more candy that way! Mix your little candies together in a bowl and spoon about a tablespoon of candies into each cupcake hole.  The kiddos chose sprinkles, mini M&Ms and nerds for their candies. Place a cake circle on top of each cupcake once they are filled with candy. Frost yo...