Traditional Homemaking Fall/Spring 2009! - Page 3

[Leta]

I love these threads. Thanks, Maggie. :

I'm not too shabby at the whole traditional homemaking skills, if I do say so myself. I'm a great scratch cook, and I make a very high percentage of our personal care items.

But I am HOPELESS at fiber arts. I am like put together backward when it comes to knitting or crocheting. I am slooowly getting better at sewing (made 8 dipe covers so far for DS! ) but growing impatient with my own ineptitude.

Can anyone point me toward good resources for self teaching?

[Gremco]

And I would love a minestrone soup recipe.

Minestrone Soup (I'll post my recipe as I have it, and then tell you how to convert it to fresh ingredients)

2 Tbsp olive oil
1 chopped squash (I prefer yellow)
1 can flat green beans
1/2 med. white or yellow onion (I'll do one small as well, I like onion)
1 can kidney beans - drained
1 can white beans - drained (navy, great northern, ect)
1 can diced tomato
2 cans veggie broth
2 cups water
1 can spinach - drained
1/2 cup pasta
Italian seasonings to taste
salt and pepper to taste

Saute in olive oil in large pot: squash, green beans, and onion

When onion is tender

Add and bring to boil: kidney beans, white beans, tomato, broth, water

When squash is tender

Add: spinach, pasta, seasonings

Cook until pasta is tender

Conversions:
1 can = roughly 1 1/2 cups fresh, you can add or subtract according to taste
1/2 cup dried beans = roughly 1 1/2 cups cooked

[vermontmomma]

soup is sounding really good right now, i've got some chicken stock simmering right now.
as to fiber arts tips trial and error has been my plan so far. there's alot of good videos on you tube but my internet connection can't handle it. googling has been a big help, or find a cute little yarn shop with a nice older lady and ask questions.
right now i'm teaching myself to spin with a drop spindle and *love* it sooo- easy once you get a flow going.

[Leta]

See, this sounds great, but I am just so clueless. What do I Google? What do I look for on YouTube? Where do you find a spindle? Where do you find... wool? Raw fibers? I don't even know.

[1jooj]

Leta, there's a wool store down here in Neenah. Don't know if you ever come down this way.

[1jooj]

I managed 14 qts pears and 4 qts tomato-veg pasta sauce, and a big jar of pickled peppers yesterday, and another dehydrator load of pears, too. I will do one more round in the dehydrator tonight or tomorrow. Took a forced day off today. Tomorrow I am going to make dh and kids do some housecleaning, and I'll be doing more tomatoes. Don't know whether I'll do juice or just all chunks.

I'm not really sure what to tackle next. I want to do something non-food related, but I don't have any sorts of textile-related supplies, and the budget's really, really tight right now. Hrm.

[Leta]

That's a thought. Four hours is pretty close, compared to where I am for lots of stuff.

I made 2 gallons of soymilk this morning and hung 4 loads of laundry. Now I just need to get it folded...

[Katico]

Originally Posted by marimara

Oil for colds/flus~basically a homemade natural version of Vicks VapoRub~a mix of carriers oils w/rosemary, lavender, peppermint

I love this idea, I am definitely remembering it as a non-yuck alternative for little ones!

Originally Posted by 1jooj

I have pears in the dryer. I also have about 8gal pears waiting. I think I am going to try canning some. I want to take pears and pickles to the nice neighbors who kindly shared.

Ooooh, I like to spice both peaches and pears when I can them - cinnamon sticks in with peaches and whole star anise in with pears! Super good.:

Originally Posted by artparent

my grandmother, so the story goes, would heat up some whole grains in a pot with water, i don't know what else, then put it in the bed under down comforters all day, and they'd eat the porridge at night. or else, put it in the bed at night, and they'd eat it in the morning. i have no idea, but the second one makes more sense to me.

*

This reminds me of Girl Guide camp cooking - some recipes call for heating a pot of something (i.e. stew) to boiling and then packing it in sleeping bags or hay. The blankets insulate the pot and it keeps cooking all day or night. Sounds like she was warming her babe's toes at the same time. That is awesome.

Originally Posted by vermontmomma

i always love reading any recipes anyone want to post. here's a wicked easy peanut butter cookie recipe that's good for the gluten intolerant.

1 cup natural pb
1 cup sugar
1 egg

that's it! :350 degrees for 10 minutes like just about every other cookie recipe.

I have made that recipe and they are REALLY good cookies, everyone should try them!

Originally Posted by AFWife

Re: Rice packs

My mom makes some of those and uses bird seed instead...just make sure and get the kind without corn.

Bird seed! Smart!

Hearing everything you all are doing or want to do reminds me of how I feel in the library sometimes - a little overwhelmed because there are so many books to read and life is so short!

There is SO much I want to do and learn about and I hope I can put a dent in it

[hippie_mommy]

Originally Posted by Katico

This reminds me of Girl Guide camp cooking - some recipes call for heating a pot of something (i.e. stew) to boiling and then packing it in sleeping bags or hay. The blankets insulate the pot and it keeps cooking all day or night. Sounds like she was warming her babe's toes at the same time. That is awesome.

We love using retained heat cooking. Its great for beans, rice, or anything like that. It uses so little energy too!

http://solarcooking.wikia.com/wiki/H...ention_cooking

[whitekole]

:

[natural_mama89]

Originally Posted by vermontmomma

soup is sounding really good right now, i've got some chicken stock simmering right now.
as to fiber arts tips trial and error has been my plan so far. there's alot of good videos on you tube but my internet connection can't handle it. googling has been a big help, or find a cute little yarn shop with a nice older lady and ask questions.
right now i'm teaching myself to spin with a drop spindle and *love* it sooo- easy once you get a flow going.

I am doing this too! It is so fun. I got a really cool book about how to make really crazy eclectic yarns, and it really is very hard to mess up yarn enough that it does not look awesome. As long as it holds together you can do lots of things!

[gothnurse3]

Originally Posted by marimara

I used to make salves a long time ago. I've made soaps and candles too, back then. Nowadays, I get most of that stuff for so cheap from small shops or stores that it's not worth it for me to have the supplies on hand.

Though I do keep essential oils on hand and this is what I make with them:

Oil for colds/flus~basically a homemade natural version of Vicks VapoRub~a mix of carriers oils w/rosemary, lavender, peppermint

I scent my own facial spritz

I make some natural scented perfume oils for myself~my personal favorite so far is Rosemary Mint Aveda knockoff

Sometimes I buy unscented body lotion and scent a small portion of it with EOs.

I make foaming hand/body soap w/Dr. Bronners and some EOs

I put EOs on a handtowel and throw in the dryer w/laundry (when I use the dryer) for a special touch since I don't use dryer sheets. Lately I've been using the dryer more than normal since it's been raining lots.

I mix in EOs with homemade vinegar/water all purpose cleaner, though I haven't done this in a while. Lately I haven't really used all purpose cleaner all that much. I've been cheating and buying toilet cleaner and using lysol wipes on the counters and toilets : **Note: this is a goal for me for 2010 to get back to my natural cleaners. We had a run of illnesses in this house and it made me go back to the heavy duty stuff and I never returned to the natural cleaners out of laziness. Plus my combo of baking soda and vinegar doesn't seem to keep the toilets clean as long as Lysol Toilet Cleaner.


I've made deodorant spray in the past w/EOs and rubbing alcohol and witch hazel but can only use that in the fall/winter around her since I live in hell (it's really hot here for a lot of the year)
That's all I can think of right now!

ETA: I just realized what a wild and varied resource this thread is! We have recipes for food, home stuff, patterns, daily schedules, you name it, we cover it!

Oh, would you PLEASE share the vic salve and aveda recipe? I use vic's everyday on my child and I LOVE rosemary mint!! TIA!

[Katico]

Originally Posted by hippie_mommy

We love using retained heat cooking. Its great for beans, rice, or anything like that. It uses so little energy too!

http://solarcooking.wikia.com/wiki/H...ention_cooking

That is a great link - why did I never think of applying this to my everyday cooking?!?!

SO simple and so green!

[artparent]

katico, i love the idea of little heat packs for pockets!! i'm always freezing : at the playground in the damp cold, it would be lovely to have these! i also want to find a good, safe, wide-mouth thermal food container so i can bring *hot* food to the playground for our lunch. i have a great stainless steel mug and can keep going an extra hour with tea i'm thinking about finding an old wool blanket to felt and cut as a poncho, i just get SO COLD : : : maybe some woolie long underthings too.

i ended up unable to find rose water, so i have just put some rose otto drops into filtered water, i love it! a little spray of it makes me feel so happy i'm going to get a couple more spritzer bottles and put the sweet dreams mix in one, and 'cologne' for my partner in another. i'm not sure what to give him though...he loves neroli. anyone have experience or a link for me? or shall i just experiment? i also have frankincense, bergamot, geranium.

does anyone use cider vinegar on their hair? i wondered if i could infuse it with some herbs to make it smell nicer? and the baking soda too?

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[Katico]

Originally Posted by artparent

does anyone use cider vinegar on their hair? i wondered if i could infuse it with some herbs to make it smell nicer? and the baking soda too?

*

I've been reading up on this and have read that you can use EO in the vinegar and I bet dried herbs in the BS or infusing the vinegar would work as well.

[AFWife]

Stock Question for the experienced mamas!!!

I made chicken stock for the first time yesterday (go me!) I boiled it down fairly concentrated (I guess...it fits in a 32oz jar and I had a LOT of stuff in it) and put it in the fridge. (I plan on using it this week) I checked on it today and it's solid...Is this normal? And how do I go about using it? Do I use it like bouillon and spoon some into water and heat it?

[Katico]

Originally Posted by AFWife

Stock Question for the experienced mamas!!!

I made chicken stock for the first time yesterday (go me!) I boiled it down fairly concentrated (I guess...it fits in a 32oz jar and I had a LOT of stuff in it) and put it in the fridge. (I plan on using it this week) I checked on it today and it's solid...Is this normal? And how do I go about using it? Do I use it like bouillon and spoon some into water and heat it?

Yep - normal. Boiling bones=gelatine and when it<s concentrated enough it will actually gel.

Did you want to use it as a broth to drink? If you heat some it will liquify again and then you can add water to dilute to taste

[AFWife]

Originally Posted by Katico

Did you want to use it as a broth to drink? If you heat some it will liquify again and then you can add water to dilute to taste

Not to drink directly...in recipes

[1jooj]

AFWife, you should be able to just add straight to recipes. It will add nice body and richness. Inspired by this and the frugal thread, I saved the carcass of today's rotisserie chicken, and when I have another in the freezer, I will make stock.

I wanted to say that I, too, thought the little pocket rice packs are an awesome idea. A cool bigger one could include ties or some other kind of strap to secure on, oh, maybe a bad low back or neck and shoulder area...

I cooked a guinea into soup today, and cooked down a big pile of tomatoes and a few other veggies into another round of sauce. Heating the canner now. I also made yet another zucchini cake, and the last of the pears are in the dehydrator. Except then dh showed up with more pears. He stopped in at a farm where they were letting the pears go and asked if he could pick some. Three gallons of cherry tomatoes went to the freezer, too. The rest of the cherries I'll dehydrate and spice. They make delicious savory snacks when dried to crunchy, with italian or spicy seasonings.

I've thought about some of the other things I'd like to try--knitting, sewing, etc.--and decided that I'll wait for the bug to hit. I have plenty to do with my hands for now. Maybe when November rolls around, between raking and shoveling snow.

[artparent]

seriously : i need to eat at your house this winter.

all i did today was go to the beach with tons of friends and family, and swim in the ocean

yes, the heat packs would be great for aches.

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