Simple Bliss... » in the kitchen

Fried Potatoes

Vanessa — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 01:39:15 +0000

With autumn setting in, this seems like the perfect breakfast recipe…

Fried breakfast potatoes are so yummy and so simple to prepare.

First, bake several red potatoes and then dice into bite size pieces.

Second, heat some oil in a skillet (cast iron works great) and drop the potatoes in. Let them fry a bit, be careful that the oil does not spatter and burn you.

Third, add some salt and pepper to the potatoes as they finish frying. Serve up and enjoy!

Homemade Vegetable Juice

Vanessa — Wed, 14 Sep 2011 23:40:56 +0000

Vegetables are so healthy – and I like eating very few of them. I love V-8 Juice, but do not like the high cost or the high sodium content.

However, my blendtec has solved the problem – I can throw a whole bunch of whole vegetables into the blender and make it run the “whole juice” cycle. What’s left is not always a deliciously tasty drink (depending on what was put in the blender it can have a flavor I love or one I just tolerate) but in one glass I get all of the wonderfulness of vegetables including vitamins, minerals, and the fiber.

It is a great solution – super easy to make and to drink!

Bread Machine Recipes we Love

Vanessa — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 23:48:17 +0000

We purchased a bread machine over the summer. We have been loving some of the recipes that we have tried in it. Some of our favorites (from Money Saving Mom) have been:

Wheat Bread

Cinnamon Rolls

Cinnamon Swirl Bread

Home Dyed Cloth Napkins

Vanessa — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 01:35:14 +0000

I had a large stack of white cloth napkins sitting around our house – I wanted to dye them, but was scared about how they would turn out.

Maybe I didn’t need to be – run some water with the RIT dye and let the napkins sit in the dye until dark. Run them through the washing machine and you are done!

It’s so easy to do and the results are beautiful!

Preserving Apples

Vanessa — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 16:23:19 +0000

Apples are a wonderfully yummy snack – especially for on the go!

The process is quite simple. Peel apples if desired and cut into small bite size pieces. Place in the dehydrator and run until dehydrated.

Afterwards, these can be stored away for a quick on the go treat – it’s an especially tasty mid-morning pick me up snack!

Preserving Onions

Vanessa — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 21:45:10 +0000

We don’t eat onions very fast around here. Cole is not a huge fan at all. However, we love the flavor of onions and use onion powder a lot in our cooking.

An easy way to preserve onions is to slice them into small slivers and dehydrate them. After they are completely dry, crumble them up to make chopped onion for use in recipes or grind them up to make onion powder.

It’s super easy and a very simple way to preserve onions for use even when no fresh onions are in the home.

The same thing can be done with green onions – cut them into small pieces and dehydrate them for future use. If you grow them yourself, this is a super frugal way to have green onions!

Preserving Herbs

Vanessa — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 01:31:08 +0000

I LOVE preserving herbs!

Some we grow on the back porch & some we purchase when they are in season. We use what we can and then dehydrate the rest.

We take the leaves off of a fresh herb (above is Cilantro) and place in a dehydrator. When the herbs are completely dried, they simply need crumbled and placed in a ball jar for storage. Then, we are blessed with fresh dried herbs throughout the year!

It’s simple, easy, and frugal!

Eat from the Pantry Challenge Check In #1

Vanessa — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 01:21:04 +0000

It’s been almost a month since we began working to eat our stockpile and buy very few new groceries. We are now definitely moving in a little bit less than one month – so we are very motivated to purchase as little food as possible!

We’ve made great progress!

Menu Plan Monday :: August 22-28

Vanessa — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 02:05:29 +0000

Monday – spaghetti and garlic bread Tuesday – grilled cheese prep – soak dough for pizza pockets Wednesday – soaked pizza pockets Thursday – grill out Friday – fettuccini alfredo prep: make hamburger buns for grilling Saturday – grill out … Continue reading →

Kale Chips

Vanessa — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 11:13:29 +0000

These are super easy to make and a great way to get some super healthy greens in your system! Kale is high in vitamin K, A, and C. It’s also a good source of fiber.

To make Kale chips, cut the Kale of of the hard stems and arrange the pieces on a cookie sheet. Spray lightly with olive oil and sprinkle even more lightly with sea salt.

Stick in the dehydrator, or a low temp oven (though they are less crispy in the oven), for about 30 minutes until crispy.

Enjoy those delicious chips!