A Bushel Of Apples and How I Used Them

     As you know I was able to get organic apples at Sprouts for $.49 a pound.  I decided it was a great deal so I bought a case that was marked a bushel.  It worked out to just over 38 pounds.  Once your home with something like this you kind of have to step back and evaluate all the wonderful possibilities. 

     I decided to start with applesauce since it's such a versatile food, and the truth is, I think probably the easiest.     
  

 There are two things you can do with the applesauce once you make it.  You can preserve it in a jar for your pantry or freeze it.  Whoops, make that three, you can eat it.  Since I still have some in my freezer I will be canning them this time.  Frozen in small containers and then put into a large zip lock bag makes it handy to use for lunches, meat dishes, marinades, and baking. 

  I gather up what I will be needing but for me this can take a day or two since I still had a lot of my jars in boxes in the garage, still needed to buy lids for the jars, and just the usual day to day chaos living. 
   Jars, pint or quart, lids, rings, pot to boil jars in, pot to cook apples, potato masher utensil, apple peeler, jar lifting tongs, jar funnel, apple slicer which is optional.   

Wash, peel and core and then cut all apples up.  Put the apples in a large pot almost to the top and add a cup of water.  If needed add a bit more water.  Cook on a medium to low heat until they are soft enough to mash.  Keep a close eye on them, stirring to make sure they aren't sticking.  I mash them and stir them, then come back to it in a bit and mash some more.  I like to cook some of the liquid out to get the consistency that I like which is a bit thicker than store bought.  For a really smooth texture you could use your stick blender or food processor, but I think it just makes for more of a mess and hot splattering foods can hurt. 

   Once it is cooked and mashed you then pour it into your jars.  I keep my jars in a pot of boiling water with the lids and rings.  Once it is poured into the jars, about a 1/2 inch from the top, put the lid and ring on.  Put into the boiling water, and if it's not boiling all the way, start timing it from when the boiling starts.  I then boil the jars for 25 minutes.  Lift the jars out of the boiling water, set them on a towel in a place where they won't be bothered for a while.  The next day I check to make sure all the lids have sealed down by looking at the tops of the lids. 

     This is an easy first project for those wanting to learn to can,
wanting to fill the pantry with healthy foods that are budget
friendly.  It has a lot of different options, such as adding
cinnamon or mixing with other fruits. 
Some recipes recommend using a tiny bit, 1/2 tsp. or so of citric acid.  I've made it without that, but sometimes will use a small amount of lemon juice.  Since I don't measure I would say around one tablespoon but a bit less will work just fine.  Some recipes add sugar, but I prefer the natural sweetness of the apples.  Do try to use apples that you like, some types are a bit tart such as granny smith, although some people love those.   

Some Helpful Links:

Making and Canning Applesauce With Kids

National Center for Home Food Preservation

Next Post: What I Did With the Remaining Apples

 

Snafu on Blogger or Maybe It Was Me.....

        If you notice anything strange, so do I.  The post I put out Monday disappeared today.  So, if you get the post twice I'm sorry.  It might have gone out twice, but so far as of this very moment in time appears only once on the actual web blog.

   I have a small idea of why, but don't really understand why.  It had something to do with saving changes, editing and all that fun stuff that goes into these posts. 

   I'm sure if there is a blogger for dummies it would be way over my head.  Maybe blogger for beginners, or blogger for kindergartners would be a bit more manageable. 

      You know how kids have a way of making us look kind of  dumb?  Yeah, well this morning while "fighting" with my printer to acknowledge the right cartridge, I walked out in frustration to take a one minute anger management moment, when all of a sudden I hear my printer printing.  I couldn't even assimilate that, quickly ran back and there was my 2 1/2 year old grandson sitting in front of the printer totally jubilant that he somehow got it to work.  So, my next thought is, how did he do that?  But that was a dead end, he can usually only tell me things that deal with his world, like, potty, bue (blue) cup, twain (train) and that sort of thing. 

I still have no idea what he did, and I'll probably never know.  Which has nothing much to do with this post, except I'm sure when he's another year or two older he can tell me what he did, or at least help me out with this stuff.  But then, this kind of stuff will probably be outdated and the kids will be laughing at how "old fashioned" it all is.  Yep, we all did it, asking our mom's what it was like in the "olden days". 

   So, back to what I was saying, pardon the possibility that you did get two of the same post. 

Do I Save Money Doing It Myself? Is It Worth It?

 Is it worth all the work we do to save money?  For me I would say most of the time.  Although I have to say, when these deals pop up, I have to jump on them, and ask why now? 

   Why now?  I'm in the middle of this water leak repair, and so far have had someone at my house every single day.  I'm not usually comfortable with people coming, walking around my house while I'm doing something else.  After a couple days though it seemed like it didn't matter.  I really don't know why.  I was kind of glad that today the same guy showed up, since he knew that I was capable of being dressed.  Yep, he showed up and I had jeans and my pj top on.  If he noticed, he sure didn't show it, since he spent most of his time doing his job and playing with the little guy here. 
  

     So, what kind of deal cropped up?  Apples, a lot of apples.  All I know is that I couldn't pick up the box.  Who could pass up such a deal on organic apples?  My daughter had bought herself a case also, and when I visited her she was canning them in jars, cold pack and the boiling water bath method.  With mine, I'm not sure if I have enough actually for everything I'd like to do with them, but I'll let you know what I end up doing.  I'm not the most experienced person with preserving and I have to look up a lot of different methods and compare them to understand the science of my projects.  I do like very clear concise recipes and methods, and I love the pictures.  By following these recipes I gain a better understanding of the steps that have to be done, or whether they don't matter one way or the other.

   I'll be posting what I've done with all these apples along with some pictures.  And what of my title of is this worth it?  I think so when all is said and done.  It gets the family involved, hopefully and we are all working toward a common goal of putting food on the pantry. 
   Knowing where my food came from and how it was cooked and processed also is great.  It puts me in control of what we are eating.  At least some of it anyway.  I'm just hoping the next good deal on food or produce doesn't come up too soon.  Just can't pass up a chance to save money on organic produce and fill my shelves with food I prepared myself.

Vegetables for Juicing

   

      Okay, okay.  I've totally wanted to skip this part.  Which vegetables are the best for juicing.  The thing is I don't think there is a best that can be pointed out.  Every single person is different in their nutritional needs and of course, what they like.  Now, I'm not going to expect every veggie concoction to be wonderful.  In fact, I'm assuming that some of it may be an acquired taste, which is why starting out slowly could be a good thing. 

   One of the first things I noticed is that apple juice is almost always suggested to make things taste just a bit better, or less bitter.  I did find a very extensive list, and it would take a lot of time to investigate each and every vegetable.  Some of these vegetables, maybe since I'm not a die hard juicer yet, seem a bit odd.  For example, artichokes.  They seem to be a bit pricey, so I really would rather eat it than waste the taste on juicing it.  Or alfalfa sprouts.  If I do find time to sprout them, I'd rather throw them in a salad or a sandwich.  So, check out this list and see what you think.  List of juicing vegetables

     Another thing is the beets.  A few websites state to never drink beet juice by itself or it can paralyze your vocal chords.  Yet I see that very thing in Henry's Market and other places.  I didn't see any warnings on the package.  I've seen pro and con on that.  But really, I would wonder just how many beets would you really want in a glass of juice anyway. 

The list is a good starting point, with a lot of information on the nutrients and what each vegetable could help you with.  If there is one in particular that catches your eye I encourage you to do further research on that individual vegetable. 

   As for myself I'm going to just start with what I like.  Okay, so I'd rather have fruit in my juice.  One of my favorite smoothies is Strawberry Banana.  It uses one whole banana, about five strawberries, crushed pineapple with a tad of the juice, (if you do it the unhealthy way like me and get it from a can) and if I have protein powder I'll use a scoop of that.  Oh yeah, don't forget an ounce or two of apple juice.  This I throw in the blender and it makes a nice sweet treat.  Now from there, I can add things that I will never notice.  I like to add a spoonful of flax meal, and a few leaves of some fresh spinach.  Since I know I like this concoction, always have since I was a kid (a very long time ago) so I will just start with those and add in from there.  A tweak here and a tweak there.  For starters, I'm going to add in a carrot.  So now I've got my fruits with two veggies.  It's a start anyway and will have to do until I find a juicer to do all the work.

Does Food Matter To You?

   Does food matter to me?  Yes, yes it does!  The fact is, the way our bodies are designed, it matters alot in order for us to function at optimal levels, to feel good and ward off illness and disease.

   

     I watched the movie Food Matters on Netflix and it was very informative.  It was also very persuasive on the topic of vitamins.  In fact, it did such a good job that my husband was ready to run out and buy vitamins.  If you met my husband, you would know that's amazing, since getting him to take anything by mouth in the form of a pill or vitamin is near impossible.  But on the other hand, he can be persuaded at times more easily than me, ( I hate door to door salespeople) 
   I do believe we need to increase our daily veggie intake.  Also we cannot forget  other nutrients such as trace minerals, enzymes and a host of other things our bodies need.  This movie will get you thinking about it. 
 

     I am not a vegetarian or vegan since I believe we do need to have some of the nutrients that meat delivers to us.  Each persons needs are different.  I may need about 12 ounces of meat, someone else may only need 8 ounces.  I bet most of us pretty much know just based on how we feel.  This website actually had this post this morning which seemed timely to me watching this movie.  CLICK HERE to see this post. 

   

This all seems to come again at an odd time, it wasn't planned at all, with me examining juicing machines.  I'll have to say, it all is starting to make me want that juicer now, today. I'll force myself to continue shopping for a brand with a decent price and good reviews with the features that I want. 

  

Why Would I Want a Juicer?

      Okay, so we all know that I really, really want a juicer.  I haven't entirely decided what brand but I'm leaning towards a Breville.  Yikes, I know, why couldn't I want a different brand.  If I find one on bookoo.com for a good price, then I guess that will be the brand that I get.  I of course will check the reviews before I would make my purchase.

   Really now, why would I want to contemplate another appliance in my kitchen?  I would if I think it would improve my health and make me feel better.  I really think it will do that, and that's because I would be putting more fruits and vegetables into my diet in an easier way.  I do like easier. 

   Eating most vegetables in their raw state is very healthy, but then, they don't always taste very good so we saute them in butter and salt them or pour cheese over them, or mix them into a casserole.  With juicing we can now add a bit of fruit and it will make it, again, easier, to eat drink our veggies.
  Depending on what you put into your juicer will depend on what benefits.  Although I think most of us would be glad just to be getting any veggies into our bodies, it does help to learn which ones do what for us.
   While looking up different things about juicing, I did notice that this can be very extreme for some people, much like the movie I watched.  A total juice diet, but then they all felt a bit ill the first few days.  Yes, their bodies were detoxing big time.  I don't feel that is a necessary thing, and I don't feel that this should be an extreme activity.  A glass or two a day would be fine, along with my normal amount of meals.       Our bodies are constantly detoxing anyway, so this will just be an added detoxifier, along with more vitamins and minerals and increased energy.  I also saw pro and con on many vegetables and why or why not they should be eaten.  You do have to understand, when you eat a vegetable it can take many hours to digest and the nutrients are slowly moving into our bodies.  Where with a juicer, it's almost instantaneous, the juicer already digested the first part.  We also have to remember, our bodies are not used to this many nutrients, this fast, or even this many.  Now I'm not saying this to scare anyone off, but like any "herb" we introduce into our bodies, we should not go overboard, and make sure we start slow.
  Some people think recipes for juicing are stupid, but now that I've learned a bit about juicing and understand the nutrients and how their absorbed, I'm thinking I much prefer recipes.  Plus, last time I tried to make a juice in my blender, I used celery, which is highly recommended, but I hated it.  I'm sure some will not be to my liking, and I'm sure I'll have to get used to some of them.  I'm also sure that I may never like a few of them, and I'll never get used to them.  I'm thinking maybe celery is one of those things.  I might just try it again sometime, but in a smaller ratio.  Which is where a recipe could come in handy.

   There is a ton of information out there, and differing opinions.  I choose to play it on the safer side.  If you go to this website, I think his strategy is the one I like.  Click Here to see that.  I will probably change a few things.  I've already used spinach in my smoothies, and I grow and eat cilantro.  I know those won't bother me.  Of course I'll use small amounts at a time.  The basic idea, start with stuff you already eat and like anyway.  Then move on from there. 

  I plan to investigate a bit on each individual vegetable.  I would have included that here, but I have to get back to my indoor water feature problem.  Plus, too much information can make all of us start having that glazed eye look, or the blank stare.

Getting Sidetracked-These Little Disasters In Our Lives

   

    Yeah, well, as you can see from the title that I didn't write about the virtues of juicing and the health benefits. I guess that will have to come later. 

     Here are some pictures of my living room and why I'm not sitting here typing up about how beets detox your liver and carrots are so good for your overall health and the wonderful benefits that each fruit and vegetable has for us. 

     We sprung springed sprang a leak in the wall last night, but, that is not the end of the story.  We didn't know we had sprung a leak.  So, it leaked and leaked and leaked, all night long.  Dang it, I knew I should have got up in the middle of the night for a snack.  Seems that unhealthy habit might have saved a bit of my wall.

    So, this morning, before I could take my first sip of coffee, I had to hear about this.  Really?  Who's house are we talking about, aah, too bad.  It's my house your talking about? 

     It was kind of a hard thing to assimilate without my coffee.  Don't you sometimes wish you can keep the world out of your life before your ready to deal with it? 

     To make matter worse I called Farmers, and well, if that's your company, run don't walk to a better company.  They want to do everything at "my expense" until they get a chance in a week to check it out.
And then, if it's not approved, I will not be reimbursed.  It seems that being a faithful customer for over 25 years without one claim filed didn't do me a bit of good.  They did send a plumber to detect the leak, at their expense.  But any repairs would need to be paid for  He actually was reasonably priced and if I had money I'd take him up on his offer.  He is from Master Plumbing and he was a nice guy, marked the pipe for me, found the leak in my attic.  Oh wow, my own personal waterfall feature inside my home.

     Yeah, well, life goes on doesn't it?  I still need to try to get the snot out of the toddlers nose, feed him, and teach him how to flush a toilet when there is no water in the house.     

   In the meantime, I think I'll make a small pot of coffee, and try to capture that first morning quiet feeling before life comes jumping in to annoy us.  It will be a bit of work, listening to Thomas the Train playing in the background, but I'm sure I can do it.

     How about you?  Do you ever wake up and find out life is just creeping in a bit too early?

Do You Have a Juicer?

   A juicer has been on my list for ages.  I just haven't found one at a price I want to pay.  Oh, I have a citrus juicer, and it's been used way more times than I could ever count and I couldn't even tell you how many years I've had it.  It's definitely been a handy appliance in my home.  Especially since we have a couple of citrus trees.
 
    

      What I want is a regular fruit juicer, so I can make raw wholesome fruit juices.  Oh yeah, so there are a lot of juices in the store, but even the organic juices have been processed into a bottle.  Plus, the more natural the juice, the bigger the price tag.
   

     While cruising through Netflix I came across this movie.  Now, it certainly doesn't answer all the questions about juicing, and all the benefits.  I do think it was worth watching, and you know, it really made me want to buy a juicer right away. So here's the link for the web page and it has links to find the movie online.  If you have Netflix then that would be the easiest way to watch it.  Here's the link  fat sick and nearly dead movie

     Think about it though, do you really even eat the government recommended amount of fruits and vegetables per day in your diet?   According to the food pyramid, which I don't totally agree with by the way, we should have 3-5 servings of vegetables and 2-4 of fruit.  I don't know about you, but that's a difficult thing for me to do.  I really think the juicer would help.

     What I do know is that with a juicer you will be able to "drink" a lot of fruits and vegetables that you probably wouldn't eat.  I mean, a lot of us stay in our comfort zone, or we pick something easy to cook for dinner.  Although I have been working on not being so close minded.  My tortilla wraps with the sauteed beets have actually tasted great and I love them.  That is not something I would have thought to cook before.  We head to the produce department and go for what we know, hardly ever venturing out to look at other types of produce. 

 I was going to tell you of all the benefits of "juicing" and how healthy it is for you.  I mean, common sense tells us, how bad can fruits and vegetables be right?  Can we ever eat too many of these?  Well, maybe too much fruit might not be good because of the level of fructose.  If you watch the movie you will see a few of the benefits, but I really think it requires it's own posting.    

So if anyone has a juicer just sitting around in their kitchen, start using it, find out more about it.  I will be writing about the health benefits that I have learned, and why I want a juicer. 

What We Do For Free Things, Sometimes!

 

      I've found all kinds of ways to get free or cheap meals and I'm always looking around for more.  There is Restaurant.com, Groupon,  and Living Social to get a few good meals.  Then there are the coupons you get in the mail.  This was the first time I've had to dress in a costume for food, unless you count getting candy at Halloween.

     So, I know I must have seen some of you at Chick-Fil-A yesterday early evening.  If you weren't there you missed out on a chance for a free meal.  I think it was well worth it,  although I say that now since I didn't see anyone I knew, and hopefully no one I knew saw me.   
   
    We were just going to wear the nose and ears that Chick-Fil-A provides online.  Then I found out that you had to dress head to hoof for a free meal, otherwise you only get a sandwich.  I dug through my closet, but I had only one white skirt.  So, I found an old sheet to make an emergency fast food costume, a pair of pants, using some jogging pants for my pattern.  I didn't even bother with elastic, instead using a large safety pin.  Just to be on the safe side since I've had my pants fall down before,  I wore shorts and a tank underneath.  I mean, it's not like I wanted anyone to see me in that either, but I thought it was better than one of my other undergarments.  I glued scraps of cloth on since pinning didn't work very well. 

   My daughter opted for a white skirt, t shirt and the nose and ears.  She still received the entire meal.  For Aiden he wore an outgrown white dress shirt and some hand me down pants about ten sizes too big.  With some rolling on the pant legs, it all worked fine.  He got the six piece kids meal, plus they handed out cupcakes.

Yep, we all did look a bit silly, and driving across town really worried me.  What if we got into an accident? 


  

     The cow waited in the front for everyone to do their picture opportunities.  Okay, so we did it too.  I mean, I was wearing the
dorkiest outfit, could it get any worse?  I felt sorry for the poor cow, found out it was a girl and she was wearing an ice pack on her back.  She should be paid double time at least for doing that. 
    There were quite a few families that were dressed up and it was fun to see so many different costume ideas.  I had no idea so many people put so much effort into these costumes.  There is also an online costume contest. 
 
      Will I do it again?  Probably, since it wasn't all that much to do the costume and it saved us about $20 dollars.  Plus Aiden had enough of his chicken nugget meal for lunch the next day, and I had most of my order of fries for a snack. 
 

      What about you?  Did you get the free meal?  Will you ever do this to get a free meal?
What are some of the things you do to find free or cheap meals?  Share your ideas!

A Wonderful Thing-Not Only Does It Not Save Money, It Costs Money! Worth Every Cent!

             Well, exciting news "arrived" today via a phone call.  Yep, another grand baby is on it's way.
  I'm very excited and wanted to tell anyone who wants to listen to me rant on and on.

     We are really tipping the scale right now with three boys and one girl.  Seems to happen that way in some families.  With my worst morning sickness pregnancy I had a girl.  Not sure of all the old myths and whether they really work.  Don't think so. 

 

   So here's advice that everyone hates.  Right?  Didn't you hate it when you got a ton of advice and you didn't really want it or know what to do with it?  How about when nobody liked the name you picked.  Every relative, even those you barely knew wanted to tell you who to name the baby after.

 
   For morning sickness, yep, try everything in the book, fennel, mint tea, lavender sachets, crackers, high protein diet, ginger and all the rest.  Bottom line, I have no recollection what worked for me.  I think I was busy being too tired to remember.

   For the babies name, I only ask one thing.  Make sure it's something I can spell and say and if it's a foreign country make sure that it's one of our allies.

For the type of birth, don't listen to anyone, go online and do your own research and come to your own conclusions.  And that includes advice from the doctor, who is most likely a man, and really has no idea what it's like to be pregnant and give birth.

 If you want to save money, and do something healthy, breast feed.  It's a real pain to have to get up in the middle of the night to make a bottle when all you had to do was "whip it out" so to speak.  So, despite it being a healthy option, I really think I did it myself to avoid having to get up in the middle of the night.
Same answer for co sleeping, again, who wants to keep getting up? 

As ugly as they are, get a recliner that rocks and turns and of course, reclines.  That was our best friend for the first few months.  There are less obtrusive models, check it out.

Remember this, the baby is going to be technologically smarter than you, accept that fact. 

For equipment, remember, babies really only need you, and you need something to catch the babies poo.  Just about everything else is extra.  The baby doesn't care if the room has a theme, or if his undershirt was used before.  They don't care if you bathe them in the kitchen sink, or a fancy baby tub.  Toys that are handy are those that keep the baby busy long enough for you to shower or use the toilet.  Just about anything and any toy is "educational" for a baby.  They've never seen anything before, so they are happy even with measuring spoons.

Remember,  on the toughest of "nights" with your baby, you can't send the baby back, postage paid or overnight delivery.  The stork does not do pick-ups.

Don't forget, you know that your baby is the cutest, sweetest, most clever, and of course the smartest baby in the world.  It's not something most parents announce.  We don't want to hurt other peoples feelings.  Let them think the same thing about their own baby.

Congratulations to the new parents to be, and may the pregnancy, birth,
and the baby all be a healthy and happy experience.  I know you will make
wonderful parents. 




If evolution really works, how come mothers only have two hands? ~Milton Berle

Try Using Cloth Napkins

  


Hate these polyester napkins

 When you hear the word "cloth napkins", what images come to mind?  Is it a picture of being in a restaurant?  Or maybe a special holiday and your having company.  Most people have different ideas when they think about cloth napkins. 

What I'm going to tell you is this.   "Wipe" all those images and ideas out of your head, and think of cloth napkins, and cloth in general in a whole new light.    

    
When you sit down to dinner, do you grab a stack of paper napkins? 

When you make lunch, do you grab a paper towel?  How about a spill? 

A spider?  A cover on your plate in the microwave?

It's such an easy thing to do, it's a habit that most all of us have been doing our whole life.  It's a fairly easy habit to break though.
We switched to cloth a couple of years ago.  It seems so normal that now it seems weird to use paper.   It wasn't quite that way in the very beginning.  We started out slow, just a basket of napkins on the counter.  Once the paper towels and napkins ran out, that was it, we didn't run out and buy more. 




Okay, gotta admit, these are
really ugly!

Using cloth doesn't have to be fancy unless you want it to be.  You can even start out with some nice clean rags, or old dishcloths or towels. You can buy a $5 batch of washcloths.  I've found a few sets in a thrift store that were brand new.  What you are doing is changing your habit.  Every time you go to grab a napkin, grab some cloth instead.

   I already had quite a few napkins saved up over the years.  They were just taking space for no apparent reason.  Why do we keep them around taking up space if we hardly ever use them?  I still keep a few that aren't for everyday use.

 
   


These white cotton washcloths
are used exclusively for the little one.


     I use smaller ones for the baby, he doesn't think twice about using them, it's all he's known.  Although it can be a bit embarrassing in a restaurant, when he looks at the paper napkins like they're some foreign object, and then proceeds to shred it up. 

   


 Add it up, how many paper products do you buy to wipe your hands, mouth or floor?  Cloth napkins don't take up much space in the washer.  I throw mine in with the dish towels and dish cloths.  

   Start a little at a time.  You will find a few things that defy the logic of using cloth.  Like draining fried foods such as bacon.  I used to drain them on paper towels but it is okay to use lint free cloth for such things.  I very rarely cook those items, so I did find a easy cheap solution.  It was sitting right in my kitchen drawer, again, taking up space.  Coffee filters, I had two packages of those, and I don't use them for coffee.  You can find them at a dollar store, and there are so many uses. 

This is just a very easy way to save a little bit, and it can be fun if you like to sew or you find great deals on pretty napkins. 

  

    

To learn how to fold napkins, Click Here 

 I very rarely do these, but it is nice to know how once in a while.  I mostly use a basket or a regular napkin holder.