We Like Making Our Own Stuff

Do you know what is in that bottle of all-purpose cleaner you bought at the grocery store? Alcohol ethoxylate? Benzalkonium chloride? What is that? Our family has been using homemade cleaners for a couple years now. They are cheaper, smell better, and best of all are non-toxic. The base ingredient in most of our homemade cleaners is the wonderful substance we all know as vinegar. Either white or apple-cider vinegar can be used, but keep in mind that apple-cider vinegar could stain light colored fabrics and carpets. This particular recipe is my favorite. It smells nice, and is versatile. We use it on counters, tables, walls, floors, carpets, and fabrics. So, the next time you make lemonade or juice some limes for a meat marinade, don't compost those peels just yet! Lemon-Lime Vinegar All-Purpose Cleaner Ingredients: Lemon and/or Lime Peels Enough Vinegar to Cover A Large Jar or Crock A Heavy-duty Spray Bottle Process:    1. Jar it up. I took my lemon and lime ...

I enjoy cooking, and have for many years. So why hadn't I ever tried making my own chicken stock before? I use it in so many recipes--from soup to casseroles--that I figured I should count it as a kitchen staple. So, I went to the grocery store, bought a whole chicken, and went to work! My stock-making process took me a few days since I cooked the chicken one day, actually made the stock the next day, and then skimmed the fat and put it in containers on the third day. I'm sure it could all be done in one day, but I just don't have enough time after work to get it all done at once. Please keep in mind that your stock will need to simmer for at least three hours, so make it when you will have the extra time. If you have access to the "creepy" parts of the chicken, make sure you use them.  The neck, feet, heart, gizzard, and kidneys will add incredible flavor and thickness to your stock.  Save the liver for something else though, as it tends to add an unpleasant ...