Feb
27th
An Apple a Day
By Melafwife
I love apples; in pies, in cake, in salads, as sauce and the best way: right from the tree.
Apples are all natural, no fat, no cholesterol, no sodium and a great source of fiber (about 5g/large apple)
Research shows that eating apples can
- Help fight cancer and heart disease
- Strengthen bones
Here is a quick guide to some of my favorite apples:
1. McIntosh: juicy with a sweet and tart taste, bruise easily. Not recommended for pies because of the abundance of juice
2. Gala: Firm, juicy, fine textured, yellow white flesh. Sweet slightly tart flavor
3. Golden Delicious: Firm, crisp, juicy, flavorful flesh. Mild sweet distinctive flavor. High quality all purpose. Shrivels in storage. Requires gentle picking, bruises easily.
4.Red Delicious: Most purchased apple variety in the United States. Deep red skin covers a sweeter flavored apple. Poor for baking
5. Cortland: Very white crisp flesh. One of the best salad apples because it doesn't brown quickly
6.Jonagold: juicy, slightly tart, flesh. Good cooking properties. Will store in common refrigerator for 3 months.
7. Red Rome: Named for an apple-growing area in Ohio, not Italy. Slightly tart. Best for baking.
8. Idared: slightly tart flavor and hold their shape well making them an excellent choice for baking and cooking.
9. Honeycrisp: crisp and juicy, with a honey-sweet and tart flavor. Honeycrisps are also good for baking and sauce.
10. Granny Smith: One of the most popular tart apples, Granny Smiths are crisp and quite sour. They're a good all-purpose cooking apple, and their flavor is enhanced when paired with sweeter, spicier apples in pies and crisps.
And since I am a collector of quotes; here are some apple ones:
"When the apple is ripe it will fall." -- Irish proverb
"Good apple pies are a considerable part of our domestic happiness." -- Jane Austen
"I tell you, all politics is apple sauce." -- Will Rogers
"The rotten Apple spoils his Companion”
Benjamin Franklin
And on to some apple facts:
-Washington, New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and California are the top 5 apple-producing states in the U.S. In all, 36 states produce apples commercially.
-The apple is the official state fruit of Washington, New York, Rhode Island, and West Virginia.
-There are more than 7500 varieties of apples grown in the world. About 2500 varieties are grown in the United States.
-Red Delicious is the most popular and most-produced apple in the United States. Golden Delicious is the second most popular.
-The only apple native to North America is the crabapple.
-Half the United States apple crop is turned into apple products like applesauce and apple juice.
-Apple trees don't bear their first fruit until they are four or five years old.
-Archaeologists have evidence of people eating apples as far back as 6500 B.C.
Look out for apple recipes in my Hearth section during the month of March! Starting with homemade applesauce this weekend!
Hugs & Blessings,
Melanie
Jan
30th
Car Seat Cover
By Melafwife
To make your own cover I recommend using one of the following tutorials:
Hippos and Dinosaurs
A Wednesday Afternoon
Make To Do
Have a blessed weekend!
Melanie
Jan
30th
Coupons
By Melafwife
I love coupons!!! I always carry my books with, never leave the house without them, you never know when that one item is on sale and you can buy it for just a few pennies.
I never liked traditional coupon organizers, they would easily tear or were just too small or had too few categories for all my coupons. Needless to say, a lot of coupons expired before I had a chance to use them.
Here is my solution:
50c photo books
Benefits:
-Large windows for viewing coupons
-Many pages to customize
-Holds more coupons than traditional organizers
Now go Clip and $ave!!
Many Blessings,
Melanie
I never liked traditional coupon organizers, they would easily tear or were just too small or had too few categories for all my coupons. Needless to say, a lot of coupons expired before I had a chance to use them.
Here is my solution:
50c photo books
Benefits:
-Large windows for viewing coupons
-Many pages to customize
-Holds more coupons than traditional organizers
Now go Clip and $ave!!
Many Blessings,
Melanie
Jan
6th
Dress up plain boots
By Melafwife
Just cut off the sleeves, trim to fit boots and hem.
I will go to the base thrift store on Thursday to find some pink, bright colored sweaters.
Now she can change the look of the boots.
Many Blessings,
Melanie
Dec
17th
Frugal Living: Cleaning Cloths
By Melafwife
Turn an old tablecloth into cleaning cloths. I bought this tablecloth 2 years ago for $1 at a yard sale, I cannot longer use it for that purpose, but the thick cotton made some excellent cloths for the kitchen or dusting...
Cut an old tablecloth into squares or rectangles (the size is up to you) and sew a simple seam around the fabric.
I have also made placemats, napkins and aprons out of old tablecloths.
Many Blessings,
Melanie
Cut an old tablecloth into squares or rectangles (the size is up to you) and sew a simple seam around the fabric.
I have also made placemats, napkins and aprons out of old tablecloths.
Many Blessings,
Melanie
Dec
17th
Baby Wash Cloths
By Melafwife
Don’t throw away those old towels.
Cut them into small pieces, sew some soft flannel to the back and turn them into baby wash cloths.
Or turn those towels into absorbent burp cloths.
Cut them into small pieces, sew some soft flannel to the back and turn them into baby wash cloths.
Or turn those towels into absorbent burp cloths.
Dec
2nd
Andes Peppermint Crunch Cupcakes
By Patti
Over the Thanksgiving holiday, I decided to try a new recipe. While shopping for chocolate at one of the craft stores, I stumbled upon a package of Andes Peppermint Crunch. Of course, I didn't literally stumble. That would have been a site. ;-)
On the back of the package I noticed the Peppermint Crunch Cupcake recipe. It was a smash hit, so I thought I would share it with you.
Ingedients:
1 package (18.25 oz.) Devil's Food cake mix
(Eggs, oil, and water according to package directions)
1 package (10 oz.) Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips
1 container (16 oz.) white ready to spread frosting
Directions:
Preheat oven according to cake mix package directions.
Prepare cake mix; stir in 1 cup Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips; reserve remaining chips.
Divide batter evenly into cupcake pans lines with foil baking cups.
Bake according to cake mix package directions.
Cool cupcakes in pans for 15 minutes; remove to cooling racks and cool completely.
Frost each cupcake with 1 rounded Tbs. of frosting and sprinkle with 2 tsp. reserved chips.
Yield:
24 Cupcakes
Nov
24th
Return of the Scrunchie
By MelafwifeI am not ashamed to say it: I love scrunchies!
Since scrunchies are not considered fashionable they come mostly in black and little variations.
I am very happy to have found this tutorial to make my own!
http://cally-cruze.blogspot.com/2009/08/scrunchie-tutorial.html
Many Blessings,
Melanie
Since scrunchies are not considered fashionable they come mostly in black and little variations.
I am very happy to have found this tutorial to make my own!
http://cally-cruze.blogspot.com/2009/08/scrunchie-tutorial.html
Many Blessings,
Melanie
Nov
24th
Hello Kitty Ornaments
By MelafwifeEvery year we buy a special family ornament for our
Christmas tree and one for our daughter.
The last couple of years she has been collecting Hello
Kitty ornaments, enough to have her own little tree this
year.
We have an extra small tree she can turn into a pink
Hello Kitty tree with pink garland etc.
Today we made some "filler" ornaments for the back and
bottom part of the tree.
Christmas tree and one for our daughter.
The last couple of years she has been collecting Hello
Kitty ornaments, enough to have her own little tree this
year.
We have an extra small tree she can turn into a pink
Hello Kitty tree with pink garland etc.
Today we made some "filler" ornaments for the back and
bottom part of the tree.
Iron interfacing to wrong side of the fabric
as directed.
as directed.
Fold fabric in half, right sides
together.
together.
Trace ornament shape onto
interfacing.
interfacing.
Cut through both layers, stitch all the way
around, close to the edge.
Insert a ribbon in between the fabric
layers.
around, close to the edge.
Insert a ribbon in between the fabric
layers.
(We will finish these ornaments over the
weekend, we ran out of glitter!!!!!!)
Nov
19th
Grandma's REAL Cranberry Sauce Recipe
By Aprille
1 cup of sugar to 1 bag of cranberrries
and 1 apple
boil the above ingredients til the cranberries split. then strain using a foley food mill. It's soooo yummy! And the apple is the trick because it counters the tartness of the cranberries.
and 1 apple
boil the above ingredients til the cranberries split. then strain using a foley food mill. It's soooo yummy! And the apple is the trick because it counters the tartness of the cranberries.
Viewing 1 - 10 of 22
Subscribe
