Ideals To Life

Many fruits and vegetables lose their fresh appeal after sitting on the counter for several days. Then they enter that awkward, slightly-over-ripe stage. If you are like me, you find yourself ignoring its presence until it reaches a point when you can justify throwing it away.

Look for ways to re-purpose the produce during that in-between stage. While it may no longer be optimal for eating fresh, it may be at a prime time to be made into another yummy treat.

Fruits can be used in smoothies, cobblers, muffins, breads, or in a simple fruit salad. Many fruits can even be frozen with a minimal amount of effort. Strawberries, blueberries (and other berries), peaches, mangos, and even bananas (for later use in baked goods) freeze really well.

Vegetables also have many ways that they can be re-purposed. They can be cooked and eaten as a side dish, added to a stir-fry or soup, used as green salad toppings, or frozen. Fresh green beans, broccoli, onions, and peppers are examples of some vegetables that freeze well for later use and cooking.

So the next time you recognize that the produce on your counters is teetering on over-ripeness, capitalize on the qualities that they still have to offer. It will save you money and maybe even provide you with fresh flavors that you wouldn’t have otherwise experienced.

Mashed Potatoes are a holiday staple. Who can imagine a Thanksgiving table without a bowl overflowing with the fluffy goodness??

Making mashed potatoes, though, is an involved and messy process. Scrubbing, peeling, chopping, boiling, mashing….and then all of the dirty dishes that follow! By adopting a slightly different cooking technique, you can efficiently remove the messiest and most time consuming steps.

Bake your potatoes (either in the microwave or oven) instead of chopping and boiling. After they have cooled slightly, scoop out the potato flesh with a spoon or gently pull back the peel with a knife. Mash the potatoes like normal, just add slightly more milk (This is because the potatoes do not absorb water during the baking process like they do when boiled). You will actually find the potatoes to be smoother and creamier than when made through boiling!

*Note – Making mashed potatoes this way also affords you some extra flexibility in timing! While you normally have to mash the potatoes immediately after boiling, it is much easier to keep baked potatoes warm until you are ready to mash and serve them.

Don’t you hate the Expiration Date Debate? You know, the one where you stand in front of the fridge and look at the deli meat or leftover chili, knowing it is on the brink of not being fresh, but you are unable to make a commitment one way or the other. So you choose to eat something else and repeat the same debate the next day. This continues until you are absolutely sure that the food is past its prime or it has become a science experiment in the making and you can confidently throw it away.

Remove the guesswork from your leftovers in one simple step. Purchase a package of small white labels, kind of like the ones you would use at a garage sale. When you first open an item or put away the food from dinner, predetermine the expiration date that you are comfortable with, write it on the sticker and stick it on the package or container. Then when you open your refrigerator, you will immediately know what is edible, what needs to be eaten today or never, and what is destined for the trash.

Most of us spend quite a bit of time in our cars. And inevitably, time spent there often ends up being much longer than anticipated. We hit traffic, errands take longer than planned, or you find yourself waiting for somebody. Whatever the circumstances, it is miserable for everybody when the kids are bored and tired of being in the car.

Be prepared for those unexpected travel time extensions by keeping a small to moderately sized basket of toys in your car or van. You can include coloring books, travel games, small toys, and hand-held activities. The basket gives the toys a contained home when they are not being used and the toys will hold added interest because they are outside of the kids’ normal toy rotation. That thoughtful selection of toys will be your saving grace when your trip takes an unexpected turn.

*Tip#1 – If you have a smaller car or more passengers, making space an issue, keep your small basket of toys in the trunk. Usually when there are long delays, you usually have an opportunity to get out of the car to access the trunk. This keeps the toys handy but out from underfoot. Another solution is to purchase a bag that attaches to the back of a car seat, leaving you with the needed foot room.

*Tip #2 – There are frequently places we go that do not have ready entertainment for kids. Instead of packing a bag of toys every time or when you come to one of these situations unexpectedly, the toy basket is mobile and ever-ready to entertain!

You may not put much thought yet into what you will cook for holiday meals or include on your Christmas cookie plates, but a little bit of planning can save you a lot of money in the long run.

Sales on baking supplies and ingredients are already happening. With your menu in hand, you can begin to keep an eye out for great sales and coupons on items that you would otherwise overpay for in a last minute rush. This also gives you the opportunity to gradually accumulate the needed ingredients and holiday foods, making it much gentler on the budget.

Holidays cost enough as it is. By simply doing a little bit of planning, this is one area where you can minimize holiday expense.

When we try to avoid being exposed to too many germs, we often think about places like shopping carts, ATM machines, gas pumps, and public restroom doors. But if you have touched any combination of those places, your car’s steering wheel is probably just as bad.

Take a minute and give your steering wheel a good wipe down.

Crepes are often viewed as a delicate gourmet dish, but they are actually no more difficult to make than pancakes. They are simply bigger and are made from a thinner batter. Crepes make a fabulous breakfast, brunch, or even dinner. You can fill them with berries, bananas, cream cheese, applesauce, or even just butter and cinnamon sugar or a dab of melted chocolate. However or whenever you serve them, they are a fresh and light dish.

Crepes

3 T butter, melted
2 c milk
6 eggs
1 c flour or GF Flour mix*

Directions:

Melt butter. Add milk and eggs. Beat with a whisk until mixed. Add flour and beat until smooth.

Pour one ladle full of batter onto a lightly buttered skillet over medium heat. Cook until the top side is mostly dry or the bottom side is lightly browned. Flip and cook the opposite side until it is also lightly browned.

Remove from the skillet and fill with desired fillings. Top with confectioner’s sugar or cinnamon sugar if desired.

*Gluten free flour mix: 6 c. brown rice flour, 2 c. potato starch, 1 c. tapioca starch

Centerpieces bring life to a room. If you look at Pottery Barn or other home decor magazines, you’ll find that two things ultimately give a room that much coveted pop: the lack of clutter and the accent or centerpieces. But you don’t have to be an interior designer or have a big budget to create that look in your home.

Using items from around your house, you can easily create striking centerpieces. Here are a few tips to get you started:

1. Start with an anchor piece such as a tray, place mat, or an open napkin.

2.Draw inspiration from the room itself. By incorporating elements that are commonly used in that room, you instantly create a homey feel by making the room real and relatable.  For example, if you are making a centerpiece for a kitchen or dining room, use food related items such as bowls, pitchers, fruit, vegetables, baking tools, mugs/glasses, cookie cutters, chopsticks, wooden utensils, or vintage food tins. In a living room or study, you can use books, magazines, eyeglasses, jars of small office supplies (paperclips, rubber bands, thumbtacks, crayons, etc.), a small puzzle, or a set of coffee mugs. And bathrooms can easily be brought to life with bars of soap, cotton balls or cotton swabs, washcloths, lotions/shampoos or bath beads.

3. Add a couple of warm, homey elements; preferably some type of candle and also a form of plant life. Flowers provide a great opportunity for a pop of color, but a simple form of greenery can also provide warmth and a neutral palate to allow you to work in color through other elements. Candles are another opportunity to add a soft touch to your centerpiece. Whether you use a couple of bigger candles to add height, a few votive candles for warmth, or a set of bundled candles for a traditional touch, it is hard to go wrong with candles.

4. Design your centerpiece with variation in height. After you decide on your anchor piece (as described in #1), base the rest of your design around your tallest piece. Gradually bring down the height with 1-3 medium sized pieces, and then use your small items as filler.

5. Color. If you need to add a pop of color to your room, centerpieces can provide you with a great opportunity. You can get away with color there that you can’t in other parts of the room. Don’t be afraid to add a couple of bold elements!

6. Holidays can also be a great inspiration for centerpieces and provide an easy way to decorate your home for the season.

*Tip – Designate a box or cabinet to storing small home decor pieces that are not currently in use. When you get the urge to make a change, you will have your accent pieces ready to mix-and-match into a fabulous new focal point.

We make a lot more purchases than normal during the holiday season and, after awhile, they can all blend together into a mess of expenditures. As you make your gift purchases, here are a few ideas on how to keep costs down and your purchases intentional:

1. Set a Christmas budget on a large scale as well as an approximate amount to be spent on each person.

2. Keep a running total of how much has been spent on each person.

3. Set up a separate checking account to manage Christmas purchases. I guarantee that you will spend less money on your holiday purchases when you have a limited and defined amount of money to spend.

4. Purchase kids’ toys earlier rather an later. Especially when ordering from places like Ebay, prices tend to rise as the number of people shopping increases. Make your purchases before the rush.

5.  Most stores are already running great sales to attract early holiday shopping. For stores that you know you will be making purchase from, sign up for their promotional emails. You can often get additional discount coupons or certificates.

6. Plan out your purchases at each store. If you are ordering online, this can save you on shipping. For in-store and online purchases, there are often promotional discounts that you can get for spending larger amounts of money (compared to multiple smaller purchases).

7. Keep all of your Christmas receipts in a designated envelope. That way if you need to make a return or find a better deal, you know right where they are.

Happy shopping!

Clutter comes in all shapes and sizes. It is often the small odds-and-ends, however, that accumulate the most rapidly into piles of clutter.

The kitchen pantry is one place where clutter can completely take over. Open chip bags, pieces of candy, granola bars, and boxes of pudding fill the shelves without order or containment. While some of the smaller items clutter the shelves, the messy packaging on other items can create the feel of clutter even after some level organization. For true, sustainable organization to occur, these items need to be contained while also remaining easily accessible. Yet the accessibility factor usully makes storage boxes an inefficient solution.

Dishpans are a cheap (I purchased mine at a local dollar store) and practical organization tool for the pantry. Use them to contain chips, pastas, dessert items, and snacks. My personal favorite is the “Kids Snack Bin”. In mine, I’ve put all of the kids’ favorite snack items: crackers, raisins, bars, canned fruits, popcorn, etc. This gives them a predictable place to look for approved snack items and encourages their developing independence. The dishpans can be easily removed from the pantry and the open tops make the contents readily accessible.

So if you find yourself feeling frustrated by clutter every time you open your pantry door, ask yourself what items can be grouped together and contained. The solution might be as simple as a dishpan.