Archive for 2010

Simple Fudge

Ingredients
3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/4 cup butter
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Directions
Place chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and butter in large microwaveable bowl. Zap in microwave on medium until chips are melted, about 3-5 minute, stirring once or twice during cooking. Stir in nuts, if desired. Pour into well-greased 8x8-inch glass baking dish. Refrigerate until set.  Of course, you can also melt the chips in a pot on the stove with your milk and butter, I usually do it this way, but in a pinch, the microwave is quicker.  Enjoy!

Donuts!

Yummy Fluffy Baked Donut Recipe

  • 4 to 4 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 1/4 cup milk
  • 1 pkg yeast (or 2 1/2 tsps)
  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 2 tbsp butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • sprinkle salt
  1. Warm milk (I heat it to where I could stick my finger in it comfortably. This is how I am successful with yeast. I'm sure you can find some sort of rule out there so you don't kill it but this works for me)
  2. Add yeast to the milk and leave it to dissolve.
  3. To another bowl add 4 cups flour, sugar and salt and give it a stir.
  4. Once your yeast has dissolved, add oil, melted butter and eggs to your milk/yeast mixture
  5. Pour your liquid mixture into your flour mixture and stir. Add up to another 1/2 cup flour if your dough is too soft and sticky.
  6. Let rise in a greased bowl for an hour
  7. Roll dough out to 1/2 inch thick
  8. Cut circles out of your dough (I use an extra large mug), cut out a smaller circle for your middle hole (I use the top of a ziplock drinking container my kids use for school). You can use cookie cutters, really anything. Look through your drawers and cupboards, you don't need anything fancy. Make sure your middle hole is quite large as it will get smaller when the dough rises again, and then again when it cooks. You want your holes to almost look too large as they will get lots smaller.
  9. Let donuts rise for about 90 mins. An hour is fine, but the longer they rise the fluffier and softer they will be.
  10. Cook at 375 degrees for 10-12 mins. Watch them and when they are golden brown on top take out! The time will vary depending on the size of your donuts.

Makes 12-14 large donuts

Super scrumptious as my little one would say!
You can use an icing glaze and sprinkles for a kid friendly look, or you can do what we do and make a mixture of equal parts white sugar and brown sugar with a generous sprinkling of cinnamon thrown in. Brush melted butter on your donuts and dip into the sugar mixture.

 

 

There's only one thing better than these donuts, and that's the donut holes! :)
make some this weekend, you won't regret it!

Puff Pastry Cornucopia

Instructions @ http://cleverlyinspired.blogspot.com

Baked Pumpkin French Toast

Recipe @ www.dana-made-it.com

Homemade Tooth Paste

~~~~



Ingredients for peppermint toothpaste
We made our own toothpaste!!! It was fun, easy, frugal, and tasty! I'm totally hooked.
I have been wanting to make some more natural toothpaste, but all of the recipes I had seen online called for glycerin or other ingredients that I didn't have on hand. When I came across Julie's post about making toothpaste, I was excited!


Here is how I made my homemade toothpaste:
2 tablespoons coconut oil
3 tablespoons baking soda
1/2 small packet of stevia powder
20-25 drops of peppermint oil*

1. Mix all ingredients together in a small bowl, using a fork.

*Add about half of the amount of peppermint oil to start, and test the toothpaste to see how much you want/like. I used NOW brand peppermint oil, and ended up stopping at 25 drops which is still not as strong as I am used to, though it does taste nice and minty! Julie noted in her instructions that using part spearmint oil will make the toothpaste not as "hot" as using all peppermint oil.
Ingredients for cinnamon toothpaste
I also made a cinnamon variation. Instead of using peppermint oil, I added a teaspoon of ground cinnamon and a few drops of clove oil. This did turn out a little bit hot for the children, and I'm not sure if I like the ground cinnamon the paste -- cinnamon oil might be a better choice, but I don't own any. :)

This toothpaste recipe is very easy to experiment with as far as flavoring, and I'm thinking of making up some with cayenne pepper in it, which is supposed to be good for the gums!
This is what the finished toothpaste looks like:
Homemade toothpaste
The peppermint one is snowy-white! It looks and feels (to the fingers) just like store-bought toothpaste. The coconut oil is really a fabulous base for the toothpaste.

It tastes good, too. The stevia gives a sweet taste (which most toothpastes have). The baking soda taste isn't over-powering, but it is there -- and the toothpaste definitely works well! It doesn't foam, of course, but I actually like it that way.

Since coconut oil melts at 76 degrees, the toothpaste becomes liquid when you brush, and coats the teeth well. The oil is very runny, though, and doesn't leave the mouth feeling greasy in the least. It will, however, stick to your bathroom sink if you use cold water to rinse. I definitely recommend using warm water with this toothpaste! (It was only when I used the cinnamon one that I saw where the toothpaste actually ended up/stayed!)
Our bathroom toothpastes: Containers of homemade, and a half-tube of fluoride-free Nature's Gate.

~ One comment i read about this toothpaste is that it is really salty… i don’t know, i haven’t tried it yet. But they did say that it worked really well. Try experimenting yourself with the flavor!

Milky Way Cupcakes

Recipe @ katray.blogspot.com

Yummy Pasta

Ok me and my hubby last night worked together and made a pasta. This by no means is healthy, LOL Here is what we did:

Ingredience:

  • 2 TBLS Butter
  • 2 TBLS Flour
  • 2 C Milk
  • 1/2 Package Cream Cheese
  • Dash of Red Pepper Flakes
  • Dash of Salt and Pepper
  • Dash of Oregano
  • 2 TBLS Olive Oil
  • 1/2 Small Onion (chopped)
  • 2 Cloves Garlic (chopped)
  • 1 1/2 Roma Tomato (chopped)
  • 1 C Frozen Corn
  • 1/2 Pound Bacon
  • 3 C Pasta

In a sauce pan melt 2 TBLS Butter & 2 TBLS Flour together in a sauce pan. Wisk in 2 C Milk & 1/2 Package Cream Cheese together. Add Pepper flakes, salt & pepper.
Fry bacon until quite crispy.
In another sauce pan sauté garlic and onion, add in the tomato, corn and crunched bacon.
Boil pasta, drain, add sauce to noodles and boom! Yumminess!

Homemade Marshmallows

Recipe @ simplydesigning.blogspot.com

Cowboy Caviar - Salsa

Recipe @ littlebirdiesecrets.blogspot.com

Doughnuts

Recipe @ thepioneerwoman.com

Creative way to grow Sprouts

How to @ deliacreates.blogspot.com

Smores Bars

Recipe @ www.bedifferentactnormal.com

Another thought on Pies

Directions @ www.notmartha.org

Twix-a-like

Recipe @ www.kingarthurflour.com

Bread Recipe

Recipe @ deliacreates.blogspot.com

Pizza on a stick

Recipe @ chiccookiekits.blogspot.com

Lollipop Cookies


Recipe @ fromanigloo.blogspot.com

The Absolute Best Playdough Recipe


Instructions @ fromanigloo.blogspot.com

Lemon Sugar Hand Scrub


Step by step instructions @ www.bystephanielynn.com

Soap Balls


Step by step instructions @ www.bystephanielynn.com

Vanilla Brown Sugar Body Scrub {for Mom}


Step by step instructions @ www.bystephanielynn.com

Homemade Hamburger Buns

Hamburger Buns in 30 minutes:

3 1/2 cups warm water
1 cup oil
3/4 cup sugar or 1/2 cup honey
6 T. active dry yeast
1 T. salt
3 eggs, beaten
10 1/2 cups white or wheat flour (For company we usually use 4 cups wheat to 6 bread flour then add bread flour as needed, but this is wonderful with all whole wheat.)

Mix first 4 ingredients and let rest for 15 minutes. It should get sponge and get bubbly. Add remaining ingredients. Mix, then knead for 5 minutes. Preheat oven to 425. Roll out to 1/2″ thick. Shape immediately. I use the ring from a wide mouth canning jar for hamburger buns. You could also make child size buns. Let rise for 10 minutes. Bake for 10 minutes or until done.

Taken from: http://raisingolives.com

Homemade Snickers Candy Bar


Recipe @ http://www.instructables.com/id/Homemade-Snickers-Candy-Bar-Recipe/

Crafter's Blog Finally Up


Check out my new Crafter's Blog!

Apple Facial

Apple Facial
Sonya Dakar's Apple Facial Recipe



Mimi Dakar, co-founder of the Sonya Dakar Facial Clinic in Beverly Hills, California, shares an at-home recipe for a revitalizing apple facial.


Key Facts:
• Apples are rich in antioxidants as well as vitamins A, C and E
• Cooking fruits develops pectin, which contain vitamins and minerals that are beneficial to skin

Ingredients:
• 1 organic green apple
• ½ cup of water
• ¼ cup of witch hazel
• ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar

Directions:
• Cut an organic green apple into small cubes
• Leave the peel on but remove the seeds
• Combine apple with 1/2 cup water in a saucepan and bring to a boil
• Once it boils, remove saucepan from heat and allow it to cool completely
• Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve into a clean bowl
• Stir in 1/4 cup of witch hazel
• Stir in 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar
• Apply the mixture with a clean cotton ball, or pour it into an empty spray bottle and spritz on
• Leave on for 15 minutes, and wash off with a warm cloth
• Repeat once a week!

Link: http://www.thedoctorstv.com/main/show_synopsis/430?section=feature&title=Apple Facial Facial