Plum Jam

“When they came to a plum thicket they set down their big pails. They filled their little pails with plums and emptied them into the big pails till they were full.”

On the Banks of Plum Creek

While we do not have a plum thicket, we do have "wild plum" trees in our neighborhood. Trees planted MANY years ago by farmers, whose homes and farms are long gone. They produce tiny little plums, but Abigail and I filled a bucket and made some "wild plum jam".  

Wonder where she gets it ;)

 Last week we were googling to try and identify an unusual mushroom that popped up in our lawn, and my daughter saw an idea. Today she executed that idea all on her own.

 Boiled eggs, Roma tomatoes, lettuce and a little ranch dressing

Growing Oyster Mushrooms

I have been wanting to grow mushrooms for a couple years, but had never made it past the research stage. My sweet husband bought me this kit awhile back, and now I am hooked! 

The kit did not work for me according to the directions on the box, or the website. After a month of spraying multiple times a day in the plastic, and nothing happening, I removed the block from the package and stuck it in a bowl of filtered water, and stuck it in the cabinet under my sink.  Finally, a little more than a week later I had babies! 

Then the next day, they were bigger!

and then bigger! 

and bigger

and even bigger

 

And then they were ready to eat!
After all the hard work and babying them, I almost didn't want to eat them. But we did, and they were delicious.

We had never had oyster mushrooms before,  and while they are not our favorite mushroom, we will continue to enjoy them. 

 I forgot to get a photo after they were cooked, but I can't wait to attempt another crop!

Summer is around the corner...

Homemade Lemonade Concentrate

1 ½ cups sugar

1 ½ cups water

1 ½ cups fresh lemon juice

Zest from one lemon

 

Combine sugar and water in a medium saucepan. 

Heat until sugar completely melts into water to make a syrup.  

Add lemon juice and zest and pour into a mason jar. 

Store in refrigerator until ready to drink lemonade. 

For the Lemonade

For each glass of lemonade, add 1/4 cup of concentrate and 3/4 cups of cold water.
Serve over ice.

 

Making Butter

The first time we read Little House in the Big Woods , we tried our hand at butter making. We didn't do it quite the same way as Ma, but it was fun and helped them "live" the story a little better.  It was so easy, they have asked often since then to do it again. 

 All you need is a mason jar with lid, cream (heavy or whipping both work) and a marble.

 Fill the jar about 2/3 full, then drop on the marble. Screw the lid on tightly and starting with the youngest, let child shake to heart's content.

 Once the little ones are tired, hand it to an older sibling or adult.

After shaking awhile, you will feel the consistency change, and usually  hear it too.
Abigail likes to spread it out and let it harden, then cut her butter  into shapes.

Easy Imitation Crab Dip

4 oz. Chive and Onion cream cheese

1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 cup kosher imitation crab

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Blend well (I use my KitchenAid Mixer) and serve with crackers. 

Minestone Soup

1 tablespoons olive oil 

1 pound ground beef 

1 teaspoon oregano

½ teaspoon garlic

½ teaspoon salt 

¼ teaspoons black pepper 

2 cans  diced tomatoes  with their liquid 

4 cups beef broth 

1 package (16 ounces) frozen mixed vegetables 

2 small zucchinis (diced)

1 cup ditalini pasta

Brown beef in oil, add seasonings. Pour in oil and vegetables and bring to a boil. Add pasta and let simmer until tender.

The Most Delicious Lamb

I kept seeing Rogan Josh seasoning on Pinterest, and decided Passover was the perfect time to finally  try it out, (since it is the only day of the year we typically eat lamb). 

 I took a few recipes and adapted them to what I had in my pantry and tried it on our lamb steaks.

 It was so delicious!  Usually we only eat the lamb because it is Passover, but I would absolutely eat this other times of the year because it was so delicious!

Rogan Josh Seasoning:

  2 tablespoons paprika
  1 1/2 tablespoons cumin
  1 1/2 tablespoons coriander
  2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1  teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon ginger powder

1/4 teaspoon cardamom

Pony Party Food

We served all of a pony's favorite foods:

Grain { finger sandwiches with marshmallow creme or strawberry jam}

Bales of Hay {Frosted Mini Wheats}

Carrots {Every pony needs a little ranch}

Apples {and caramel dip}

And then the birthday girl wanted more PINK food, so she also had 

Pink Marshmallows and Pink Wafer Cookies

   And at the "Watering Hole"
she wanted milk, in her party  colors.

 

See the rest of the party here

Vinegar Pie just like Little House on the Prairie

I saw Vinegar Pie on Money Saving Mom and  was intrigued!
Simple, inexpensive ingredients, and  it was just like "Ma" used to make in Little House on the Prairie. My middle child  couldn't wait to try this recipe.

It turned out surprisingly well!

We took it a step farther, and also made a Vinegar Pie Crust. I used butter instead of shortening, and next time I will add some sugar to the crust,but I have never made a more successful pie crust,and it was so easy my 5 year old did most of it herself!

Vinegar and Egg Crust

Youvetsi (Greek Beef With Orzo)

Take a 2.5 lbs roast and season well with fresh crushed garlic (8 cloves),  and plenty of salt, pepper and oregano on both sides.

Place in an 11x13 pan and pour 1 can tomato sauce and 4 cups of water around (not on) the meat. 

Seal with foil and bake at 400 degrees until meat falls apart (1-4 hours). 

Check often until done, replacing any water that has evaporated.

 When the meat is done take it out and shred it. Return liquid to oven at 500 degrees after adding 1 ½-2 cups of orzo. Cook 10 minutes until done. You may need to add more water. 

When orzo is finished, stir shredded meat back in and serve!

Old Fashioned Gingersnaps

source

I tried a LOT of new cookie recipes this month. Many were disappointing to me, but one was a new family favorite!  I'd love to share it with you!

Old Fashioned Gingersnaps
2 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 cup molasses
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1 Tablespoon freshly grated ginger
1 egg

sugar to roll in

Cream together butter, molasses, brown sugar, granulated sugar, grated ginger, and egg. Mix in the rest of the ingredients. Roll  a ball of dough between your palms into a ball 1 inch in diameter. Roll the ball in the sugar, coating the top. Arrange  2 inches apart on a baking stone. Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes. 

Homemade Grenadine

 

My husband and I grew up drinking " Shirley Temples" as a treat.

It is a child's drink made of sprite with a little grenadine poured in.
The HFCS and red dye in store bought grenadine make me cringe though, so we haven't bought it in years.  

My husband happened to find out that grenadine is made of pomegranate juice (we had always assumed it was cherry) and we made our own this weekend. 
3 simple ingredients and the end product tasted perfect!

 

 We used 

1 bottle of Pomegranate juice (2 cups)

2 cups of sugar

5" piece of orange peel. (not pictured) I used a potato peeler to get 1 big strip off.

We put all the ingredients in a saucepan and boiled it for 15 minutes. 

We let it cool and poured it into a jar.

We added some syrup to a cup and filled the rest with Sprite. (There is a little too much in the photo below). Add a maraschino cherry to be extra fancy and enjoy!

Pumpkin Granola

My kids have gone crazy over this pumpkin granola! It's their favorite granola so far.

First mix your dry ingredients:
5 cups rolled oats
1 cup sucanat (I suppose brown sugar would work also)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt


Then add to your dry ingredients:
3 Tablespoons of melted coconut oil
1 cup of pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 Tablespoons real maple syrup


Mix well to get everything well coated.

I poured this into two 9x13 Pyrex baking dishes, and baked at 325 for about an hour, stirring every 15 minutes, until it was nice and crisp.

Let it completely cool and stir in whatever extra goodies you have on hand.
I used
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 a cup of white chocolate chips (Mine wasn't cool and they melted, so they are in there but you cant see them lol)
Store in airtight container.

Branching Out with Jam

 Abigail wearing her "strawberry jam"dress, holding strawberry vanilla jam.

I have been making jam for a few years now. I started with raspberry freezer jam. We found we didn't like freezer jam much, and we also weren't huge fans of raspberry in general. So the next year I tried canning strawberry and blackberry jam.  That went really well so I stuck with what I knew for a couple years. Then I branched out to peach jam and plum jelly.

 This year I decided to try adding 1 tablespoon of pure vanilla extract at the end of cooking in both strawberry and peach jams and they were both HUGE hits.
The strawberry vanilla is AMAZING on ice cream, and the vanilla peach tastes just like peach cobbler according to my children! 

 I also mixed peaches and strawberries and made Strawberry Peach jam. This was my new favorite!

Freezer Apple Pie

Last year, I was sick of making applesauce, and decided I wanted to try saving some of the apples we had picked for pie. 

 I did an experiment. I sliced and peeled some apples and mixed them with my pie filling ingredients and froze them. 

Throughout last year I pulled out my 6 sample pie packs and they each turned into a delicious apple pie!
So now that I know it works, I want to share my idea with you!

To make the apple pie filling:

2 1/2 lbs apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced (a variety is best)

1 cup sour cream

1/4 cup white sugar

½ teaspoon pie spice

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Put all the ingredients in a gallon sized ziplock bag. Squish it all to make sure it is well mixed, and seal well. Freeze in flat layers.

The night before I want to make a pie, I  pull a bag out of the freezer, and put it into the fridge. The next day when I am ready to make my pie, I put a bottom layer of crust into my pan, pour in teh contents of the bag, then place the top pie crust over it. 

Bake at 375 until the top is beautifully browned.