Stuff Is Going On Around Here

Pardon my absence lately.  We've had some stuff going on around here that has required my undivided attention.  As part of her orthodontic treatment my youngest had a couple teeth removed on Tuesday.  That first day was a bit rough, but she has been doing great ever since.  A real Super Trooper!

My oldest has been gone the first half of the week on a college visitation trip.  She was able to tour four different universities in two states.  It was a wonderful opportunity for her.  Then right back home for regional robotics competition which began yesterday and rolls through Saturday.  Busy, busy, busy.

As if that weren't enough to keep me occupied I've got a few other things going on as well, one of which rates up there on the HUGE project scale.  Yeah, totally unexpected and it has my head swimming a bit, but what the heck?  Still in the early stages but if it comes to fruition you will know about it.  Wish me luck.

Hopefully by Monday it will be business as usual, but it also may not, so hang in there with me.  Sometimes life gets a little crazy.  Fortunately, it's a good kind of crazy.  I think.....  I hope.

Lemon Blueberry Scones

I am seriously on a scone kick these days!  After the success of the Orange Cranberry Scones I was excited to try a variation of that recipe using two flavors that I love together.  Lemons and blueberries.

Lemon Blueberry Scones

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 Tbs. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

Zest of one lemon

1/4 cup all vegetable shortening

1 cup of frozen blueberries (or 1/4 cup dried blueberries)

Juice of one lemon, plus water to make 1 cup

1 tsp. vanilla

Whisk first six ingredients together really well, then thoroughly work in the shortening.  Toss the frozen blueberries in the flour mixture to coat them.

Juice the lemon and add enough water to equal one cup of liquid.  Stir in vanilla and add to dry ingredients.  Mix to combine.  Dough will be fairly wet.

We ate the scones before I got them photographed, but here is the dough 😏

On a well floured surface carefully work in enough flour to easily pat out the dough into a circle approximately 3/4" thick.  Don't overwork the dough or else the blueberries will make the dough turn purple.  Cut out scones with a biscuit cutter and place on a lightly oiled baking sheet making sure they don't touch.  Bake in a preheated 400° oven for 15 to 18 mins.

Glaze

3 Tbs. powdered sugar

1 tsp. water or lemon juice

Mix up glaze.  Remove baked scones from oven and drizzle across the top of each one.

Makes 12 scones

The glaze is completely optional and you could leave it off, but it is really good.  Once again I really like that these scones are moist and fluffy so no need to add a smear of butter or jam.  so, if you are looking to cut some fat and calories from your diet without sacrificing flavor this scone recipe is a good one for that too.

I can't decide which recipe is better.  I really like them both!

I've Got Itchy Feet

It has been a long winter.  I know this because I've been so antsy to hit the road.  I mean really hit it.  For a looooooooong time.  If only working for a living didn't interfere so much (sigh).

I am constantly looking at RVs (I really miss my Scamp).  I watch tons of videos on Youtube about everything to do with travel, RVing and nomadic lifestyles.  And I talk about it.....  a lot.  I send my friends clips and links and pictures and, and, and....  And now I've got them sending me stuff!

My latest heartthrob

How about this itty bitty thing?

My Amazon wish list is loaded!  Camping equipment galore!  I've checked out solar set ups and generators.  "What if I do this?  What if I do that?"  I've even been building composting toilets in my head.  I've probably even dreamed about them.  Good grief!

Yes folks, I've got it bad.  I've been bitten by the bug out bug and I predict it may be a long recovery.  A looooooooong recovery.

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

Last week was pretty low key and quiet for us, which was kind of nice for a change.  Not a whole lot happened around our place.

We prepared our meals using things we already had on hand in the freezer, refrigerator and pantry. We had quite a bit of produce accumulated too.  I did not do any grocery shopping, or any other shopping for that matter.

I used a rubber spatula to clean every last bit of mayonnaise out of the jar which yielded enough for two and half sandwiches.  I then washed out the jar to save and reuse for food storage for camping.

I will not miss the melted vent on the old light
22 years is long enough to put up with this!

The best thing to happen last week was our friend came back by and put in the new light/fan/heater in the upstairs bathroom.  We fondly bid farewell to the last piece of 1979 that remained in our house.  Looks so nice and works great too.  I am so incredibly happy about it.

The new one looks so much  better!
Works better too!

I used up every last bit of hand lotion I had in a bottle I had set upside down.

We used our fireplace as needed to take the chill off the house, but for the most part we really didn't need any heat.

Before

After

We gave our kitchen scraps to our happy little flock of chickens.  I composted coffee grounds and egg shells.

I worked a little overtime, about an hour and a half.

Kind of crazy, but that was pretty much it.  How was our thrifty week?

Christmas Prep 2017 - 9 Months To Go!

Can you believe I am even doing this post right now?!  Again?!

Well, it wasn't my most productive month, but I did manage to do a lot of planning, especially with regard to my gift list.  I also added a bottle of shower gel to my stocking stuffer stash that I picked up for free at Bath & Body Works with a coupon I received in the mail.  So, so far, no money spent on Christmas prep in the past month.

I did design our Christmas cards for next year and I'm super excited about that.  They turned out soooo cute!  When it gets closer I'll print them out and start putting them together, but for now they'll remain on my computer.  I've got all of the envelopes and card stock I need too so no new purchases for Christmas card supplies will be necessary.

In that same vein I went ahead and updated my Christmas card mailing list and got the labels and return address labels ready to print as well.  I used one of the graphics from the card in the return address labels to tie the card and envelope together.  Fun!  I also have plenty of label stock on hand.

That is pretty much it for me.  What about you?  Did you do anything to get ready for Christmas this year?

Eating For Health - Other Proteins

When you decide to lower your meat consumption it is always good to add other protein sources to your diet.  The average man needs 56 grams of protein per day and the average women needs 46 grams.  Even more if you are physically active.

One of the best proteins to add is the very versatile legume.  My favorite legume is black beans and I eat them quite a bit.  I use them in soups and chili as well as other dishes like stuffed bell peppers, burritos and tacos, salads, rice bowls, etc.  Recently I made black bean burgers and much to my surprise and amazement they were delicious!  One cup of beans equals 14 grams of protein or more.

Eggs are another source of protein we eat quite a bit.  We are very fortunate to have our own supply of healthy and nutritious farm fresh eggs in our own backyard.  And quite honestly there is no comparison to the quality of a farm fresh egg over a commercially produced one.  I use eggs a lot in baked goods, but also omelets and quiches as well as breakfast burritos and fried rice dishes.  Hard boiled eggs make it into sandwiches and salads or get eaten as snacks.  Another very versatile source of protein.  One large egg has 6 grams of protein.

I'm not a tofu or soy eater, but once again another versatile source of protein.  Soy milk has 8 grams of protein in a one cup serving.  A lot of Asian foods, especially soups use tofu which has a whopping 20 grams of protein per cup.

Nuts and seeds are another delicious way to add protein to your diet.  A one ounce serving of nuts or seeds averages about 6 grams of protein.  Not too shabby and they make for a healthy and nutritious snack.  Add some to salads or baked goods to boost the nutrition factor up a notch.

Plant proteins are one source you may have never really thought of but yes, plants do have protein.  Rice for instance packs 6 grams of protein in a one ounce serving.  Lentils have 9 grams!  Oatmeal has 5 grams.  Vegetables such as potatoes, spinach, avocados, broccoli and brussel sprouts are also good sources of protein.

Protein powders.  There are a lot of them out there and I personally don't know enough about them right now to say whether or not they are a good idea.  Right now I choose to get my protein from the foods I consume.  But if anyone knows of any pros or cons about protein powders please share in the comments.

Meat remains the largest source of dietary protein, but if you are looking to cut back on your meat consumption, for whatever reason, you have plenty of other options out there.  Do your homework and check out these options for yourself.  Good foods that are really good for you!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

This recipe turned out better than I could've imagined.  Even the girls loved it and they are my toughest critics.  My oldest isn't much on vegetables but she sure likes these.  I hope you do too!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

3 whole bell peppers

1 cup rice

1 cup black beans, cooked

1 stalk celery, diced

1 carrot, diced

1/2 onion, diced

2 tomatoes, diced

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1 tsp. dried basil

1/2 tsp. dried oregano

1 Tbs. oil

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella, optional

Lightly oil a 9" X 13" baking pan.  Wash peppers, cut in half from top to bottom and remove seeds.  Lay peppers out in baking pan.

Tomatoes give off just the right amount of liquid

Cook rice until almost done, but not quite.  In a medium pan heat oil and sauté celery, carrot and onion.  Add tomatoes, garlic, basil and oregano.  Continue cooking until just tender.  Remove from heat, stir in rice and beans.  Spoon filling into pepper halves.

Cover baking dish with aluminum foil and bake in preheated 350° oven for 45 minutes.  Remove from oven and top with mozzarella if desired.  Serves 6.

For vegetarian or vegan you can leave off the cheese or use a vegan cheese.  Low fat, low sodium and delicious.  We love the flavor of red, orange or yellow peppers the most, but green ones are really good too.

Last Week's Thrifty Moves

The rain and snow finally quit and the sun came out!  Temperatures have been in the sixties prompting me to turn off the heat and throw open doors and windows to let the fresh air in and the stagnant winter air out.  Hallelujah!

Sunday morning I baked up a lovely batch of lemon blueberry scones for our mid morning brunch.  Thanks to daylight savings time beginning our brunch arrived much earlier.  I also made another vegan chocolate cake which made my girls very happy.

I reused the lemon I had zested and juiced for the scones by sticking it into a half gallon pitcher and filling it up with filtered water - yum!  I refilled the pitcher a few times throughout the week before the lemon ended up in the compost bin.

Warmer weather and loads of sunshine have spurned me further with my spring cleaning.  I gave my sewing area the once over and reorganized the garage a bit to make it a more functional space.  I also moved some completed retirement house projects into bank boxes and put them in the storage space underneath the stairs.  It is turning out to be the perfect place to hold these things.

I "shopped" the chest freezer in the garage for ground beef for tacos, a package of sliced turkey for school lunches and a corned beef for the girls to fix on St Patty's Day.  I had purchased the vacuumed packed corned beef last year when they were on sale.

I finally had the opportunity to burn the huge bag of junk mail and shreddables I've been collecting in the garage all winter.  Once the ashes cool they'll be composted.

After work on Friday I had to make a quick trip to the bank.  As I left I stopped at the fruit stand across the street and picked up some produce.  They just opened up for the season a couple weeks ago and had some pretty good prices advertised.

I picked up a dozen old fashioned donuts for the girls on markdown $1.29

Saturday I did my morning grocery run.  I stopped first at Albertsons to drop off a winters worth of glass in the big recycling bin they have in their parking lot.  Since I was there I went inside and picked up four cans of diced tomatoes on sale for 39¢ each.  Good price!

Cup of noodles was my Friday freebie at Fred Meyer

Then off to Trader Joes for produce and a jar of minced garlic.  Fred Meyer after that for a few other things on my list.  I picked up more mushrooms and green beans on markdown as well as soy milk in vanilla and chocolate for the girls to try, also on markdown for $1.39 each.

A friend of mine gave me a veggie tray she didn't think she could finish up.  It had a full container of Ranch dressing with it, my youngest's favorite.

I trimmed my bangs.

I gave our new strawberry plants some spent coffee grounds.

I made another vegan chocolate cake

I had enough dryer lint saved in a toilet paper tube to make another fire starter.  I actually used one of them of them to start the fire in our chiminea when I burned the bag of shreddables.

We gave our kitchen scraps to the chickens.  All four girls are now laying.  Our Easter Egg chicken has started to lay which is a sure sign that spring is on its way.  I shared a dozen eggs with a friend of mine.

I composted coffee filters, tea bags, crunched up egg shells, onion skins, plus avocado, orange and banana peels.

How was your thrifty week?

Eating For Health - Meat

I admire people who can lead a vegan or vegetarian lifestyle and are committed to that way of life and all that it entails.  I, myself, am an omnivore.  I like meat.  I really like red meat.  A nice juicy rib eye steak is my all time favorite cut.  It is also the least healthiest piece of meat I could put in my body.  But, I love it.

Currently I am trying to focus most of my meals on plants and whole grains, but meat is still a part of that, just in much smaller quantities.  According to the Lupus website I follow the best diet is one high in plant and grain based meals with lean sources of fish, poultry and beef in moderation.  To be honest, it is probably the best meal plan for most of us who want to lead a healthy lifestyle.

So while I personally have to steer clear of pork and shellfish (dang it!) as well as soy products and alfalfa sprouts (not a fan of those much anyway) good quality lean meats and fish are still on the menu.

In January I was fortunate enough to purchase on sale a large quantity (40 pounds) of all natural boneless, skinless chicken breasts in bulk as well as lean ground beef.  I've also acquired several packages of lean sirloin steaks.  Plus, I purchased frozen wild salmon and cod fillets (wild fish is preferred over farm raised) and shrimp (my oldest will be eating that).

All meats contain saturated fats and that is what you have to watch the most when it comes to heart health so the leaner the better.  Even still there are things you can do to remove even more of those fats before consuming.  Here are a few things I do:

Trim away any excess fat you can see before cooking steaks, fish or poultry

Cook ground meats, then place in a sieve and rinse with hot water

Rinse out the pan you cooked it in too before you return

the meat and continue cooking your recipe

Grind your own meat

Lean chicken or turkey breast, lean beef roasts are easy to put

through a grinder and you have better control over the fat content

You also avoid any fillers or preservatives added to those meats, water too

Buy the best quality you can afford

All natural grass fed beef, organic chicken, wild caught fish

Additionally, I eat smaller portions, less often and modify my cooking methods to make meat a healthier part of my meals.  A little extra care when selecting and preparing meats will go a long way in my journey for better and sustained health.

Orange Cranberry Scones

These scones turned out great and I was so pleased.  It is so exciting for me to come up with a recipe and have it turn out reasonably well, but with this I knocked it right out of the park.  The girls absolutely loved them and you would never know they are healthy and full of good stuff that is good for you!  😋

Orange Cranberry Scones

2 cups whole wheat flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 Tbs. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 cup dried cranberries

Zest of one orange

1/4 cup all vegetable shortening

Juice of one orange, plus water to make 1 cup

1 tsp. vanilla

Whisk first six ingredients together really well, then thoroughly work in the shortening.  Juice the orange and add enough water to equal one cup of liquid.  Stir in vanilla and add to dry ingredients.  Mix to combine.  Dough will be fairly wet.

On a well floured surface work in enough flour to easily pat out the dough into a circle approximate 3/4" thick.  Cut out biscuits with a cutter and place on a lightly oiled baking sheet making sure they don't touch.  Bake in a preheated 400° oven for 15 to 18 mins.

Glaze

3 Tbs. powdered sugar

1 tsp. water, orange or lemon juice

Mix up glaze.  Remove baked scones from oven and drizzle across the top of each one.

Makes 12 scones

The glaze is completely optional and you could leave it off, but it is really good.  I was going for full on flavor and since I was making a fruit salad and using a can of pineapple chunks I used the pineapple juice to top off the orange juice instead of water.

What I really like about these scones is that they are moist and fluffy so no need to add a smear of butter or jam.  If you are looking to cut some fat and calories from your diet without sacrificing flavor this scone recipe is a good one for that.