Bless My Heart I Married A Yankee

I have been waiting to make candied lemon peels for some time.  I wanted to make them for a couple of reasons, one I love tart desserts and the second reason is I hate waste.  If you juice a lemon you are wasting the peel.   Last night as we were putting together the limoncello I told Scott and his friend Bobby I was going to candy the hard left over alcohol infused peels.  They both thought I was a bit touched because if you know anything about making limoncello the peels are what infuse your vodka with the lemon flavor. Yep. the oil of the peel gives limoncello it's lemon taste.  Of course when we make limoncello we allow the zest and the alcohol to sit for months.  So seriously the lemon peels are pretty much "used" up OR are they?  That was my quest.  Of course, normally you would use fresh peels for the recipe and I highly suggest you do so but if you make limoncello do not throw out your peels.  You to can make candied lemon peels with the peels you would other

Mother's Day is coming up soon and with that thought why not make something handmade and heartfelt?  I remember when my daughter, MacKenzie was about 8 and at Sunday School she made me this pin for Mother's Day.  It was horrible looking.  I mean, let me backtrack, it was not very color coordinated but VERY colorful.  My sweet girl gave me this with so much love in her eyes that today it breaks my heart to remember the moment she handed it to me.  Homemade gifts are heartfelt and made with love.  I wish I knew where it was today.  Yeah, My Bad. So, as Mother's Day approaches I decided to compile a list of things you could make for whoever you wish on this special day.  My thoughts are to find things that are simple, frugal and loving all at the same time. Also, I kept in mind things I would enjoy receiving.  MacKenzie, did you hear that??? Vanilla Sugar Scrub Epsom Salt Scrub Lavender Milk Bath Eggshell Facial  Caramel Coffee Syrup Mini Herb Garden Hangi

Right after I had met Scott, he and I got into a conversation about Limoncello.  Basically, I told him I made it instead of going to the ABC store and buying it.  He pretty much laughed at me because he made it as well.  He really did not believe I made it and I had to prove to him by showing him pictures that I did indeed make it. Since then he and I have been making it together.  It is such a delightful lemony tart liqueur.  It is a nice sipping drink to have on a hot summer day but it is typically used in Italy as an after dinner drink to help your digestion. Here is a fun fact, it is the second most popular liqueur in Italy.  Another fun fact is limoncello is a from Southern Italy.   I got into making it due to a friend giving me some years ago and I loved it so, of course, me being me I did some research on this refreshing drink the next day and found out how easy it is to make yourself.  And as they say, that was that.   It is extremely easy to make but you must h

Have I told you how much I LOVE MY INSTANT POT????  Well, I really love it. I mean I really really love it.  You can do so much in it and it is FUN!!!  Michelle, I hope you have used yours by now and I hope you love yours as much as I love mine.  If not call me and I will help you love it as I love mine. Ever since I got my instant pot I have been toying with the thought of making yogurt but for some unknown reason, I was terrified.  YES, you heard me, I was scared half to death to make yogurt.  Me who loves to cook and has fun doing it was truly scared of making yogurt.   My friend Mari told me that it was easy and I really should try it.  She makes it all the time.  She actually told me and Tammy about it.  Tammy if I can do it you can do it.  Heck if I did it anyone can do it.  Back to Michelle, your pups need you to make yogurt.  It will help their bellies. This recipe is too easy.  I read and re-read the recipe so many times trying to figure out why it looks so

Here are a few things that will be coming soon.  Please continue to stop by. Coffee Bath Scrub Cube Oatmeal Lavender MIlk Bath Eggshells and Apple Cider Vinegar ~ Nature at it's best ~ It Does Your Body Good DIY Face Mask Bath Bombs Caramel Coffee Syrup Limoncello Candied Lemon Peels Apple Cider Vineg ar Instant Pot No Boil Cold Start Yogurt Roasted Garlic in the Instant Pot Rosemary Lemon Flea Spray Just Because I Can A Fish for a Peppe r Sourdough Pizza Crust Instant Pot Cold Start Yogurt Granola I play on updating this on a regular basis.  Please check in to see what is going on weekly. ENJOY!!

A week ago we had Wade and Cheryl over for pizzas on the Big Green Egg.  Wade gave me my  starter  and I was excited but also nervous to make the dough for the pizza crust. I mean Wade can make some awesome pizzas. When we made the pizzas that night I meant to get pictures so I could let you guys know how to make a crust with the discard part of your starter.  I forgot. Imagine that! I think there was a bit too much wine or something that kept us from documenting the pizza crust.  Maybe it was the stimulating conversations. Who knows. I had all these great things planned yesterday but sometimes things do NOT go as planned.  Which meant I fed my starter and had intentions of making bread but it never happened.  Great!  Well, yeah great, since I hate waste, I made pizza crusts.  Honestly, they are so easy.  Plus delicious. I am glad having our friends over got me over my nervousness.   PIZZA CRUST  make 1 thick crust or 2 thin Ingredients 1 1/2 Cups sourdough discard star

I love the smell of fresh bread baking.  There is nothing quite like the smell in your home.  Oh, but when you get the loaf out of the oven and it has cooled enough to cut a slice...Oh snap!!!  I am truly in heaven then.  Slather on some butter and it is to die for yumminess.  BUT you add the fact that your bread is sourdough goodness you just upped that anty.   With that in mind, you too might be interested in making your own so you can have the awesome aroma in your home.  You will love me or you just might hate me for it. A sourdough starter takes 2 ingredients but it includes a bit of patience, some time, and a whole lot of love.  It takes time so you MUST be patient while it does its magic.   Another thing you need to keep in mind is the type of sourdough you wish to make on a regular basis because this will depend on the flour you will use when making your starter.  I mean let us get real peeps you do not want to use a pumpernickel flour if you do not want to make

YES!!!  Our garden is ready to go.  I am so excited.  Where we live it has rained so much that I was unsure if we would ever get it ready.  One of our friends, Lawrence, came over a month or so back and helped us do a lot of yard work.  Well, I say us....haha, I supervised them while Scott and Lawrence worked.  Hey, I provided liquid refreshments.   This time of year always makes me really excited.  I love the anticipation of gardening.  We start most our own seeds and transplant them.  Which is always fun.  This year I cut down the amount I started but somehow I still have about 300 tomato plants.  My pepper plants did not do well.  Well, the ones I planted did ok.  Peppers are a bit hard to work with and take longer to pop up so you really need to start them earlier and for some reason or another ours just did not work this year.  Plus the ones we overwintered died out.  So, sad because we lost a special pepper plant that germinated from a naga viper 3 years ag

My friend Anna shared this recipe with me several years back and I have been using it ever since because I normally have so many peppers that I just do not know what to do with all of them.  While I love to can  Candied Jalapenos  this is another great recipe to use.  I use it with peppers that have a bit of heat such as hot banana peppers or jalapenos you could def use a sweet pepper in this recipe.  The original recipe called for banana peppers and one jalapeno.  I pretty much just use whatever peppers I have on hand because my pepper plants are very prolific.  In the next week, we should be putting in our garden.  I started my tomato plants, jalapenos and bell pepper plants about 8 weeks ago.  We  keep our seeds  each year so we do not have to go buy seeds.  Yes, again the frugal side of me is shining through.  Normally we have more peppers started but those seeds did not work out this year.  They were viable but the reason is a whole different story.   As

Olive, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Italian blend cheese, Italian Seasoning with garlic. I love sourdough bread. Just nothing quite like it.  I love the tangy flavor.  For many years I have dabbled and played with a potato flake starter.  This is a new experience for me.  Our friend Wade gave me a  starter last week, it is made with equal parts distilled water and unbleached flour.  You leave it out and feed it daily until it starts to bubble which means that nature yeast is now blended into your starter, which makes it "ripe". Last Friday, I used the starter to make pizza crusts.  It came out pretty darn good.  We were having friends over and I was unsure how many people would be here so I made enough for 3 pizzas.   Today, I got it out and started playing with it again.  This starter is harder to work and takes a lot of time to get it down pat.  I am keeping it in my fridge which means I do not have to feed it as much.  Maybe once a week but if it is out on the

Mother's Day is coming up soon.  I thought my peeps might want to have some thoughts on DIY gifts for a mother in your life.   Tomorrow I leave for a short vacation with my daughter.  My beautiful girl turns 25 tomorrow!!  I can not believe my child who made me a mother is turning a quarter of a century.  Time sure does fly.  We are going to a spa on Wednesday.  I am looking forward to spending a relaxing day with my child.  I also have a cold and do not feel well so hopefully, this will help me feel better.  With the spa day fast approaching I thought I would post this recipe for a body scrub.    Since I made my  Vanilla Sugar  I have been wanting to make a sugar scrub.  They are rather expensive when purchased in a store.  My frugal heart is all about saving money plus I love to know what I am eating or using.  My skin is extremely sensitive so I must be very careful what types of scents, perfumes, and lotions I use.  Even shampoos, conditioner, and other hair products have