We Like Making Our Own Stuff

Few things can top the taste of homemade Fettuccine Alfredo, made with fresh noodles.  It is one of my family's staple meals.  But we eat all kinds of fresh pasta here, from spaghetti and meatballs, to lasagna, so pasta is something we make frequently. Why make pasta when you can just buy it? Good question.  It takes more time than picking up a box of it at the grocery store, doesn't it?  My reasons include: 1.  Fresh pasta tastes better. 2.  We like thick noodles.  Thick and chewy, slathered in a sauce of some kind. 3.  We can use healthier flours (whole grain, sprouted, freshly ground) and avoid unhealthy additives (synthetic vitamins, like niacin, iron, and folic acid). 4.  We just like making our own stuff. Whatever your reasons are, I'm sure that you will find pasta easy enough to make.

There are three shelves in my kitchen overflowing with cookbooks. Many of these cookbooks are what I call "old church cookbooks." They are generally found at garage sales and thrift stores, and most of them that I find are from the 1950s-1960s (though I have many from as early as the 1920s, and plenty from the 70s and 80s).    These cookbooks are real gems, and whenever I see one, I make sure to snatch it up.  Religion has nothing to do with it, so it doesn't matter your faith or lack of; these cookbooks made by the church's "Recipe Committees" are full of vintage wonderfulness.  They are a real snapshot of American housewives in the mid-century 1900s.  Often times, the previous owner of the cookbook has made notes in it, or has saved other recipes clipped from magazines and newspapers and tucked them inside (as seen in the black cookbook above).  There are always a few surprises to be found.

This post is written especially for my homesteader friends--maybe you are raising pigs, or going in on a pig with someone--make sure you get that lard, and render it!  Not only is it great for cooking, but it also makes a nice bar of soap. Properly rendered lard should be white and fairly odorless.

Father's Day is this weekend!  Did you find the perfect gift for that special Dad in your life yet?  If the Dad in question has a sense of humor and likes to smell good, then I have a great idea for you: Smelly Balls Sounds gross, right?  Don't worry, it's not what you think!  These balls are made out of clay, and they actually smell good. You can infuse these balls with your favorite essential oils, and then use them to freshen any space.  They work great for dresser drawers, closets, cars, lockers, bathrooms, or even in shoes.  They are so fast and easy to make, and your favorite dad will likely get a good chuckle from the silly name.  They can also be personalized for the recipient; when I made these for my husband, I had each of our children dip a finger into some cinnamon, and then press it into the clay, so that each ball would have a child's fingerprint on it.

Whoopie pies, made popular by the Amish, are a dessert sandwich made by enclosing a vanilla frosting between to chocolate cake-like cookies.  This recipe has been modified somewhat from it's original Amish version however, mainly to substitute a healthier fat for the shortening that was initially called for.

Graham crackers have been on my "To-Do List" for quite some time, so I finally decided to tackle the project.  Fortunately, it wasn't even much of a project; graham crackers are surprisingly easy to make. By making your own graham crackers, you can avoid some of the less desirable ingredients used in most grocery store shelf, boxed products--namely the high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated vegetable oils.  You also have the ability to adjust : The type and amount of sweetener used .  For example, you can use all honey if you'd like, or substitute molasses, which is a sweetener that would complement a graham cracker well. If you decide to try a different sweetener, keep in mind that you may need to adjust the amount of flour.  The type of fat used.   You could try coconut oil, lard, or tallow in place of the butter.  Perhaps you'd like to try olive oil?  Or even substituting half the fat with a fruit puree, like bananas or applesauce? ...

I purposely made extra meatloaf so that I could try this recipe out, it sounded so delicious.  It combines two of my favorites:  meatloaf and fried breading. The recipe should be useable for any meatloaf, as long as it holds its shape once chilled, so that it can be sliced and breaded.  The recipe we use is my husband's, and it came from his Betty Crocker cookbook .  He has modified it over the years, perfecting it for our family's tastes (the most important modification is the topping--ketchup, bbq sauce, and honey). So, the next day, when your leftover meatloaf has chilled into a firm lump, you can slice it up, bread it, and fry according to the recipe.  I served the meatloaf with a basic beef stock gravy, but I would imagine that a white country gravy would be just as tasty.  It also would be delicious served on homemade buns for sandwiches.  The recipe can be halved, double, tripled--whatever you need to do to get the right proportions for the ...