Cherry Tomatoes Packed in Oil

My cherry tomatoes, in fact all of my tomatoes, did very poorly this year.  If you had better luck you're probably up to your ears in the little buggers by now.  Try this method to preserve a whole bunch of them easily and quickly!

Cherry Tomatoes
Small onions (baby or maybe pearl) or shallots
Cider vinegar or lemon juice (1-2 tablespoons per 16 oz jar)
Fresh basil, tarragon, oregano etc to taste
Coarse salt
Olive oil
Canning jars and lids

Tomatoes must be firm and ripe. If you're using another type, select the smallest ones (no bigger than a tangerine).

Wash and dry the tomatoes. Peel several of the onions or shallots.

Prepare scalded or sterilized 16 ounce jars. Fill them with tomatoes, alternating with a few onions and herbs. When the jars are filled to about one and a half inches from the rim, sprinkle with a pinch of coarse salt. Add one or two tablespoons or cider vinegar or lemon juice, and cover with olive oil.

Close the jars with a very clean lid, and store them in a rather cool place (50 to 59 degrees F) (think fridge). The tomatoes will be ready to eat in two to three months and will keep for up to a year. They go well served with grains or with meat.

Ann Duran, St. Front France

From Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning

Homemade Ice Cream without an Ice Cream Maker?

Doing the August Daring Bakers' Challenge here in East Tennessee with most of my kitchen gadgets packed away forced me to work a little harder.  Making ice cream without any sort of ice cream maker was new to me and was surprisingly successful.  If you don't have an ice cream maker you might like to give this a try.  The result was every bit as creamy and smooth as any ice cream I ever made in my appliance.  I may never unpack it again!

I used David Lebovitz's Basic Vanilla, which follows, for inclusion in my Baked Alaska.  Feel free to use it or any custard-based ice cream recipe.

Vanilla Ice Cream

About 1 quart (1l)

Adapted from The Perfect Scoop (Ten Speed Press)

For a richer custard, you can add up to 3 more egg yolks. For a less-rich custard, substitute half-and-half for the heavy cream, realizing that the final texture won’t be as rich or as smooth as if using cream.

1 cup (250ml) whole milk

A pinch of salt

3/4 cup (150g) sugar

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

2 cups (500ml) heavy cream

5 large egg yolks

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Heat the milk, salt, and sugar in a saucepan. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the milk with a paring knife, then add the bean pod to the milk. Cover, remove from heat, and infuse for one hour.

2. To make the ice cream, set up an ice bath by placing a 2-quart (2l) bowl in a larger bowl partially filled with ice and water. Set a strainer over the top of the smaller bowl and pour the cream into the bowl.

3. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks. Rewarm the milk then gradually pour some of the milk into the yolks, whisking constantly as you pour. Scrape the warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan.

4. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom with a heat-resistant spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.

5. Strain the custard into the heavy cream. Stir over the ice until cool, add the vanilla extract, then refrigerate to chill thoroughly. Preferably overnight. You can also chill your custard in an ice bath, which will move things along more quickly.

6. Pour your cooled custard into a stainless steel bowl or something equally durable and stick it in the freezer.

7. Here's the important part - every 30 minutes VIGOROUSLY whisk your custard.  That's right - VIGOROUSLY!  It's hard to make yourself do this because you won't want to break up the freezing ice cream, especially since you (or your kids) probably have your bowl and spoon ready!  Do it anyway.  This is what makes the ice cream smooth and creamy.  All those ice crystals need to be broken apart.  Set your timer and whisk your custard every 30 minutes or 45 minutes for the first three or four hours.  Make your kids do this part and it's even easier!

8.  After 3 or 4 hours your ice cream will be at the soft serve stage and can be eaten.  If you don't want to eat it yet, at this point you can stop whisking it and let it freeze hard.

Delicious and oh so easy!

Don't forget to rinse your pieces of vanilla bean and stick them in a cup or two of sugar to make delicious vanilla sugar!

Devil's Food Cupcakes with Espresso Meringue

Serve these delicious little grownup cupcakes at your next dinner party.  They look beautiful on a buffet!

Use your mini-muffin tins.  You can find the little silver wrappers where cake decorating supplies are sold.

     Ingredients

CUPCAKES

    Vegetable oil spray

    4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped

    1/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder, plus more for sprinkling

    1 1/4 cups boiling water

    1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

    1 teaspoon baking soda

    1/4 teaspoon salt

    2 sticks unsalted butter ( 1/2 pound), softened

    1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar

    3 large eggs

    1/2 cup buttermilk

    1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

     

ESPRESSO MERINGUE

    3 large egg white

    1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

    1 teaspoon instant espresso, plus more for sprinkling

     

directions

1.     MAKE THE CUPCAKES: Preheat the oven to 325°. Line 24 muffin cups with paper liners. Lightly spray the paper liners with vegetable oil spray. In a small bowl, mix the chocolate and 1/4 cup of cocoa. Add the boiling water and let melt, then whisk until smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Beat in the eggs, buttermilk and vanilla, then slowly beat in the dry ingredients and the chocolate mixture in 3 alternating batches.

2.     Fill the muffin cups three-fourths full with the batter. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, shifting the pans halfway through, until the cupcakes are springy and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cupcakes cool in the pans for 15 minutes, then unmold them and transfer to a rack to cool completely.

3.     MEANWHILE, MAKE THE ESPRESSO MERINGUE: Mix the egg whites, confectioners’ sugar and 1 teaspoon of espresso in a medium stainless steel bowl. Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and heat the whites, whisking constantly, until hot to the touch (165°). Transfer the mixture to the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with a whisk and beat at high speed until the meringue is stiff and glossy, about 5 minutes; if using a handheld mixer, beat for about 8 minutes.

4.     Scoop half of the espresso meringue into a pastry bag fitted with a large (3/4-inch) plain tip and pipe the meringue onto half of the cupcakes. Repeat with the remaining espresso meringue and cupcakes. Lightly sprinkle the meringue with cocoa and espresso powder and serve.

MAKE AHEAD The frosted devil’s food cupcakes can be kept in an airtight container overnight.

Espresso Chocolate Jam Birthday Cupcakes

Hubby’s birthday was last week! Sadly he was on the road an unable to be here on his big day but we celebrated over the past weekend. Hubby loves peanut butter cups. Something about the combination of chocolate and peanut butter puts him in a heavenly place. For the past several years I’ve tried to incorporate his love of peanut butter and chocolate into his birthday cake. Last year’s attempt was very good but the cake was so heavy and rich. I had to swig down a whole glass of milk to cut the richness of just a small slice. Maybe it was a little too rich! This year I wanted a lighter airier version!

Time with hubby is precious since we only spend a few days together every two weeks so I cheated! I used a box mix and store bought frosting to jump start the baking process but I added my own twist. You can easily use a few of my tricks to add a little extra umph to your baked goodies regardless if you use store bought mix or if you make it from scratch!

• Duncan Hines Dark Chocolate cake mix
• Betty Crocker Whipped Cream Cheese frosting
• Strawberry jam or preserves

Prepare cupcakes per package directions EXCEPT substitute water for super concentrated brewed coffee (cooled) or simply dissolve 2 tablespoons of instant coffee into the water. All the cupcakes to cool completely!

Using a knife or small circular cookie cutter, cut a circle shape in the top of the cupcakes. Using a fork, gently insert into the side of a circle and pop out the middle section of the cupcake and set aside. Drop at least a teaspoon of jam or preserves in the middle of each cupcake replacing the the cupcake centers on top of the jam.

Pipe whipped cream cheese frosting on top allow to set and serve. You can also mix 1 part of creamy peanut butter with 2 or 3 parts whipped cream cheese frosting and pipe onto cupcakes. (Tip: I used a simple plastic sandwich bag with the corner snipped off to pipe the frosting.)

The coffee flavor offers a nice subtle complimentary flavor to the chocolate cake. Of course, if you wanted a stronger coffee taste to the cake, you can always make the coffee stronger before adding it to your cake mix. Ultimately, the cupcakes were a hit. I made several with jam filled centers, some with just plain cream cheese frosting, and others with a peanut butter cream cheese frosting. This is on the “definitely to repeat” list!

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. She loves to cook, craft and blog. Soon she’ll be going back to school for a new adventure in Graphic Design. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

Vanilla Sugar

This is a simple one but oh so good and frugal too!

Have you ever splurged and bought those expensive vanilla beans?  Sometimes your dessert is so special that it seems worth it.  Once you're done with that fancy dessert you're left with an expensive vanilla bean to throw in the trash.  It seems so wasteful but what else are you going to do with it?  That's easy, make vanilla sugar!

Make sure the vanilla bean is clean and dry.  Break it into several pieces of about 1" long.  Find a cute little container (or a small plastic bowl) and fill it with a cup or two of granulated sugar.  Insert the bits of vanilla beans, mix and put the lid on.  In two or three weeks open the lid and take a whiff.  If you like vanilla, you won't smell anything better!

Use your vanilla sugar to enhance the flavor of other foods.  Sprinkle it across sugar cookies or french toast or use it to make sugared nuts.  Have fun with it!  You'll feel better knowing that you extended the life of an expensive ingredient and created something delicious!

In a decorative jar the vanilla sugar makes a great gift!

Easy Apple Raisin Crisp

I’m going to be honest, I stole tried this recipe from Food Network’s Sunny Anderson when I had the four fellas here this summer. We had an abundance of apples and this made for a fantastically easy and fast dessert! Just about any firm apple works even though she recommends Fuji or McIntosh apples. The kids loved (LOVED) ‘em and i can’t believe it was so simple to make.

I wonder if it would be too indulgent to enjoy for breakfast one day???

Ingredients

• 2 apples (recommended: Fuji or McIntosh)
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup strawberry jam, jelly or preserves
• 2 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons butter, cold and diced
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 cup oats, uncooked
• 1/4 cup raisins
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• Pinch salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Cut each apple in half along its equator. Using a melon baller or spoon, cut out the core, creating a rounded hole. Rub apple with lemon juice to prevent browning. Place 1 tablespoon of jam into each hole and top with a few raisins.

Topping: in a small bowl mix together dry ingredients plus the cold butter. It’s faster and easier if you do this with your hands. Press the mixture on the top of each apple. Be careful not to press too hard or the jam will squirt out. Place in a baking dish filled with about a 1/4-inch of water. Bake until top is golden brown and apple is tender, about 35 to 40 minutes.

Here is a link to Sunny’s original baked apple recipe.

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

*Be sure to check out how you can win a $25 Sam’s Club Gift card – it ends Wednesday!

Fennel, Avocado and Mint Salad with Pistachio Caper Dressing

Are you trapped in the heatwave that is the southeast this summer?  Or is it this hot everywhere?  It's brutal here and all I can think of is salad!  Try this crunchy, zesty one for a complete change of taste!

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sun-dried tomatoes
• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon lemon juice (about 1 1/2 lemons)
• Zest of 1 lemon, finely grated
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• Heaping 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup drained capers in brine, minced
• 1/2 cup pistachio oil, or other nutty oil such as pumpkinseed
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 cup minced red onion (about 1/2 small onion)
• 1 medium fennel bulb, halved lengthwise, cored, and very thinly sliced (about 1 1/2 cups)
• 3 medium ripe Hass avocados
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh Italian parsley leaves, chopped

Instructions

1. Place sun-dried tomatoes in a small bowl. Bring a small pot of water to a boil and pour over the tomatoes so that they are completely submerged. Allow to soak for 1 hour, then drain and slice into 1/8-inch-thick strips.
2. To make the pistachio-caper vinaigrette, combine the lemon juice, lemon zest, salt, pepper, and capers in a small bowl. Slowly add the pistachio oil and olive oil, pouring them in a thin stream while whisking constantly to emulsify them. Stir in the onion.
3. Combine the sliced fennel and sun-dried tomato slices in a mixing bowl, and toss with the pistachio-caper vinaigrette.
4. Halve the avocados lengthwise and remove the pits. Peel each half and place it cut-side down on the cutting board. Slice the avocados into very thin, lengthwise strips.
5. If you’re pressed for time, you can toss all the ingredients together and serve in a salad bowl. For a prettier presentation, layer the avocado slices in a medium bowl, followed by a layer of the fennel salad mixture, and finally some of the fresh herbs. Repeat until all ingredients are stacked in the bowl, ending with a layer of fennel and herbs, about 4 layers of each ingredient total.
6. Let salad sit for half an hour at room temperature to allow the flavors to combine, then scoop onto plates.

Carnival #179 - Banana "Ice Cream"

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

A few weeks ago I found myself with an excess of bananas. Normally if I have too many bananas I will freeze a few to use for baking at a later date. The trouble this time is I already had quite a few frozen for baking, andI had a lot of bananas that need to be used. Luckily, my sister-in-law had a wonderful idea.

She told me that you could make an ice cream like treat from frozen bananas. I'm always up for ice cream. So she peeled a couple dozen bananas, stuck them in a freezer bag, and put them in the freezer.

Awhile later I pulled them out, broke them into pieces, and let the food processor do all the work. I did add a little bit of milk because the bananas were so thick my food processor was having a hard time mixing it.

The result? Creamy, cold, and delicious. And any leftovers keep well in a container in the freezer. For some ideas for variations of this simple and delicious dessert, check out the comments section in Step-by-Step Instructions for One Ingredient Ice Cream.



LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!
Carnival Guidelines:

Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.

Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Olive Oil Poaching

 Olive oil poaching may seem like a complicated preparation fit for expensive entrees at fancy restaurants.  In fact it’s an easy way to compliment the delicate flavor of fresh seafood.  It does use a lot of olive oil but the oil can be strained and re-used.   Use regular olive oil, not extra virgin!

The main consideration in olive oil poaching is the temperature of the oil.  If you’re not careful you’ll go from poaching to deep fat frying in the blink of an eye.  I always use a candy thermometer to check my oil temp.  If it gets too hot before you’re ready to add the fish, take your pan off the heat and wait until it cools down.

You can poach in a frying pan or a saucepan.  Choose a pan with a surface area similar in size to what you’re trying to poach.  Deeper sides and a smaller base will require less oil.  Measure the depth of your piece of fish at its thickest point and add that much oil to your pan.  Don’t worry, when you add your filet it will displace enough oil to submerge the fish.

Heat the oil gently on medium-low heat until it registers 150 – 200 degrees on your thermometer.  Add your fish.  It should not sputter, pop or sizzle.  If it does, you’re frying not poaching!  Immediately pull your fish out, remove your pan from the heat and let it cool before trying again.

The amount of time it takes to poach your fish will depend on the thickness of the filet.  Your fish should be firm, moist and flake easily when it is done.  The piece in the above picture took less than five minutes to poach through.  Better to undercook it than overcook it.  Pull it out and check it.  If it’s not done you can always slip it back into the oil.  If you overcook it there’s not much you can do except make fish patties!

I used this method recently when I received some halibut from my homeowners.  They’d caught it offshore Homer, Alaska, and had it express mailed to Tennessee to put in their freezer.  The filets had been individually packaged and frozen and they generously urged me to help myself to a package.  I was thrilled to be eating it the day after it had been caught so far away!

Olive oil poaching is the perfect way to pay homage to a beautiful piece of fresh-caught fish.  The halibut came out with just the lightest taste of olive oil and was arguably the best tasting thing I’ve made in a long time.  I topped it with some fresh basil, garlic, feta pesto and a side of sauted, herbed winter squash.  Fresh fish, olive oil and herbs from the garden; a perfect triumvirate of flavors!

Add olive oil poaching to your arsenal of culinary techniques.  It’s easier than you think!

Carnival #178 - Summer Garden Chicken

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

 
 My garden is at a point right now where everything is producing, but nothing is producing quite enough to can or freeze. This leaves me with a refrigerator full of a variety of fresh vegetables, and calls for a little creativity to be sure that none of that fresh from the garden goodness goes to waste. Stir fry is a good way to use up a variety of vegetables. So are soups and casseroles, but those really aren't all that appealing to me in the humid 90+ degree heat we've been having.

Inspired by the Campfire Chicken at Cracker Barrel, I decided to try what I'm calling Summer Garden Chicken. Truly, it is only a chicken, a bunch of vegetables, and a little spice. It is my favorite kind of "recipe" (if you can call what I'm about to give you a recipe,) one that is very flexible to suit your tastes, and uses up what you have on hand.

Summer Garden Chicken
A whole chicken
Vegetables, cleaned and cut into pieces
Salt, pepper, red pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Rinse chicken and  place in the middle of a 9x13 pan. Put vegetables in around the chicken. sprinkle everything with salt and peppers. Cover tightly and bake for one hour or until the chicken is done. 

To save heating up the house, this dish could easily be done in the crockpot. It would also work well on the grill. My grill has temperature control issues right now, so I've only tried this in the oven. I used garlic, onion, green pepper, tomato, potato, carrot, eggplant, corn, and green beans in the meal pictured above.

What are some of your favorite ways to use up odds and ends vegetables?


Stephanie is a mom, homeschooler, homesteader in the hills of West Virginia. Find more of her adventures at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood.  



LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!


Carnival Guidelines:

Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.


Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Stuffed Pattypan Squash

I've been getting a lot of pattypans from my farm share lately and have been trying to figure out a way to use them. You could stuff just about anything in these but here's what I did. Try this and see what you think.

• 6 pattypan squash, stem and blossom removed
• olive oil
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 3 cloves garlic, diced
• 1 cup sprouted mung beans
• 3 sun dried tomatoes, diced
• 1 Tablespoon capers, chopped
• 1 cup diced mushrooms
• 1 1/2 cups prepared bulgher wheat
• salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Bring one inch of water to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add squash, cover, and cook for 10 minutes, or until a fork can pierce the stem with little resistance. Drain, and slice off the top stem of the squash. Use a melon baller to carefully scoop out the centers of the squash. Reserve all of the bits of squash.
3. Saute onion in olive oil. Add garlic, saute for 1 minute or until fragrant, add mung beans and sun dried tomatoes.  Saute for a few minutes, add mushrooms, saute until they give up their water, add capers and heat through.  Add bulgher wheat and heat through.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stuff each squash to overflowing with the mixture, and place them in a baking dish. Cover the dish loosely with aluminum foil.
5. Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until squash are heated through.

This recipe is easy to scale up or down. If you're cooking for one, try one or two of these in the toaster oven.

Do you have a good use for pattypan squash? I'd love to know about it!

Yummy Tuna Cups – Easy Kid-Friendly Party Food

Trying to feed the four fellas nutritious meals isn’t tough. The tough part is keeping things interesting both visually and in flavor. Most kids love tuna fish sandwiches but how boring! It’s just two slices of bread with some tuna smeared in the middle. We eat with our eyes, kids more so than adults. If you have a kiddo that’s not crazy about tuna, egg salad, or pimento cheese or any other sandwich filler you might try presenting it in a toasted cup. 

Making a toasted cup takes ZERO culinary skills but offers high visual impact. Perfect when your trying to win over a little one with a new creation. It’s also the perfect handy food for summer picnics and parties!

Simply cut the crust off your favorite sliced bread and roll flat with a rolling pin (or the heal of your hand). Cram form the flattened bread into the cup of a cupcake tin by pressing the bread carefully but firmly to conform to the tin. Bake them on the middle rack of a 350 degree oven for approximately 10 minutes or until the edges are toasted brown and the base of the cup is no longer soft.

I filled these little delights with tuna. I drained two cans of chunk light tuna and gently folded in about 1/2 cup of mayo, a heavy squirt of mustard, 1 clove of garlic finely minced, a heavy pinch of salt, a tablespoon of lemon juice and about a dozen diced bread n’ butter pickles. Garnish with a sliced pickle and serve with a fresh fruit salad for a fabulously tasty and healthy lunch. (This made 10 cups.)

 

BTW-These tuna cups converted the only one of the four fellas who “didn’t eat” tuna. Now he loves it!

How do you get the kiddos to eat something they usually “don’t eat”???

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. She loves to cook, craft and blog. Soon she’ll be going back to school for a new adventure in Graphic Design. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

Carnival #177 - Hot Pepper Jam

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

I remember the first time I encountered hot pepper jam. It was at a Tastefully Simple party, and the whole notion of hot peppers in a jam seemed completely foreign to me. Yet, when they served some of this jam over a block of cream cheese with crackers, I knew I had to try it. It was a surprisingly delightful experience. I have been a fan of pepper jam ever since.

So, when I began growing my own hot peppers, I knew just what I wanted to make with them. This recipe is adapted from the hot pepper relish recipe included in the Sure-Jell package.

1 package Sure-Jell
5 C sugar
1 C cider vinegar
4 C finely chopped peppers. (The recipe called for a mix green, red and jalapeño. I used only hot peppers. About 3 C jalapeño and 1 C banana peppers.)

Mix peppers, cider and Sure-Jell in a saucepan. Measure sugar out into a separate bowl. Bring pepper mixture to a full boil on high heat. Stir in sugar. Bring back to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Stir constantly. Ladle into hot jars. Boiling water process for ten minutes. Yield: 4 pints.

Some tips: Wear plastic gloves when working with the hot peppers. Seed and remove the membranes of the peppers if you don't like a lot of heat. The jam made with all the seeds and membranes removed has a wonderful flavor, but hardly any heat. Leave a few seeds to kick it up a bit.

Uses: Pepper jam is great poured over a block of softened cream cheese and served with crackers. It can be used on sandwiches like relish, or as a dipping sauce. I think it would be delicious over chicken too.

Stephanie is a mom, homeschooler, homesteader in the hills of West Virginia. Find more of her adventures at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood.

LINK UP YOUR PROJECTS!


Carnival Guidelines:


Link up your recipes, crafts, garden projects, yarn creations, home improvement, or other d-i-y posts. Posts about making something, or helpful resources and tips for making things are what we are all about.


Please link directly to the post, not to home page of your blog. Kindly link back to the carnival with twitter, stumble and/or from your blog.

Saucy Ginger Orange Turkey Tenders

I found a turkey breast on sale at the grocery store for a heck of a deal last month. Feeding the four fellas can easily break the bank so I look for deals EVERYWHERE on a variety of products. I don’t normally make turkey since I often associate it with the holidays. Since it’s not the “right season” for turkey I was in the mood for something light and tasty. After some pondering I came up with a great way to prepare the turkey completely different from my traditional basting/baking method.

First I carefully removed the turkey breast from the breast bone. This left me with two large breasts. I put one in the fridge and the other was sliced into turkey tenders.

In a separate bowl I poured a cup of orange juice (I had a little left in the fridge) and mixed in a squeeze of lemon juice, a pinch of salt, a tablespoon of ground ginger and a palm full of garlic powder. I allow the turkey tenders to marinate in the orange saucy goodness for at least 30 minutes.

Over medium heat, pour about a tablespoon of EVOO into a sauté pan and pan fry the turkey tenders a few minutes on each side. Reduce the heat to medium low. Pour the gingered OJ into the pan with all the turkey tenders and allow the sauce to reduce while ensuring the turkey tenders are cooked through.

When the sauce is thick and bubbly, remove from heat and allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Serve and enjoy! The kiddos loved it and half a turkey breast fed the five of us!!! Not a bad deal!

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. She loves to cook, craft and blog. Soon she’ll be going back to school for a new adventure in Graphic Design. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

Spaghetti for Dinner? Kid Friendly Remixes

With the Four Fellas always hungry, sometimes I find it difficult to keep meal time healthy and interesting both visually and with taste. Spaghetti is always popular in our house and there’s plenty of variations to keep mealtime lively. I use whole wheat pasta and the kids haven’t noticed any difference. I’ve also noticed they are full on smaller quantities so I spend less on pasta at the grocery ~ double whammy win!

…But what to do with the leftovers? Personally, I’m not big on spaghetti leftovers. It’s one of those things from my childhood, I suppose. My mom’s spaghetti was fine the first time around but terribly DRY the second time!!!! I HATE dry sketi so I go the extra mile to make sure my sketi is just as tasty the second time as it was the first time.

Spaghetti Nachos/Tacos

  Occasionally it’s the simplest of combinations that make for an exciting dinner. I took my inspiration from iCarly with our creation of Spaghetti Tacos and Spaghetti Nachos. I had extra nachos and taco shells from Mexi-night but didn’t have any more Mexi-ingredients. I didn’t want either to go bad so I combined them for a fun dinner night that saved money and fed the masses! lol

Tip: Wrap your spaghetti taco like a burrito to keep the noodly goodness from falling out of the bottom!!! ;D

Spaghetti Sandwiches

Simply toast some bread, preferably whole wheat, add a slice of cheese and top with cooked spaghetti mixed already mixed with sauce. Add a top piece of toasted bread and pop either in the oven or the microwave long enough to melt the cheese. Cut your spaghetti-wich in a diagonal and serve with some healthy grapes for a nutritious lunch.

Next time we have left over spaghetti, I want to try making spaghetti pie! From what I remember about the recipe I saw, simply spray a pie pan with nonstick spray, toss in some left over sketti, pack it down with a spoon and bake till the edges get crispy. I’ll have to find the exact recipe to make sure that’s all there is to it but if anyone has one, I’d love to try it.

What are your favorite recipe remixes???

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. She loves to cook, craft and blog. Soon she’ll be going back to school for a new adventure in Graphic Design. You can find recipes, crafts, parenting strategies, budget tips, product reviews and fabulous giveaways on her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

Carnival #175 - Freezer Cucumbers

Welcome to the carnival! The Make it from Scratch carnival is your chance to share your projects. I hope you join us by linking up at the bottom of this post.

Mmmm cucumbers, fresh, cool, delicious, and at this time of year, abundant. If you planted cucumbers this year, you are likely harvesting them by the dozen. If you don't garden, your local farmers market is the place to go to enjoy the bounty of the season.

Cucumbers are wonderful in so many ways, but there is a limit to how many you can eat fresh. While these beauties are in abundance, it is time to preserve some of them to enjoy through the rest of the year. One of my favorite ways to do that is by making Freezer Cucumbers.

I was a little leery of this recipe when it was first given to me. I adore a good garlic dill pickle, but normally am not too fond of other pickle flavors, and the whole idea of a frozen cucumber seemed odd to me. That summer though, I was literally swimming in cucumbers, and willing to give almost anything a try. I am so glad that I did.

This recipe produces a light tasty side dish that I enjoy year around. The cucumbers are not super sweet, and they retain more of that summer cool crisp than a pickled cucumber. I often take these to potlucks, and almost always return home with an empty bowl.

Freezer Cucumbers
2 quart sliced cucumbers
2 TB salt
3 medium onions sliced
Mix and let stand 2 hours. Then rinse thoroughly.
1 1/2 C Sugar
1/2 C vinegar
Heat enough to dissolve sugar. Add 1 tsp. celery seed. Cool, pour over cucumber mixture and freeze.


Stephanie is a mom, homeschooler, homesteader in the hills of West Virginia. Find more of her adventures at Adventures in the 100 Acre Wood.

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