She provides food for her family while she opens her arms to the poor and extends her hands to the needy. Proverbs 31:15, 20.

May 11, 2012
by Jackie Brown
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Summer Reading {Programs, Prizes, Books}

Let’s sit down with a cup of tea and a pumpkin muffin and talk books, shall we? These are seriously scrumptious to bake and freeze for future breakfasts, snacks and treats. School is coming to an end and it’s time to earn some prizes for summer reading.

Saving Dollar and Sense has some great programs to share.

There are a LOT of great programs that your children can take advantage of to earn FREE books, prizes, and cash!

Book Adventure - Sylvan offers this FREE reading incentive program. Basically your child reads books and then takes a simple comprehension quiz to make sure they understood what they read.  The quiz is usually about 10 questions long.  They earn points based on how much they remember from reading the book.

There are hundreds of books to choose from in all reading levels.  These are common books that can be found at your local library.  Once they have earned enough points they can trade them in for some really neat prizes!

Half Price Books – They are offering kids ages 14 and under a chance to earn a $5 Gift Card for reading just 15 each day throughout the summer!

National Amusements Theaters Bookworm Wednesdays - Your child can earn a FREE movie ticket from National Amusements Theaters when they read a book and complete a book report.

PBS Kids Summer Reading Challenge – This challenge kicks off on June 6th and includes a FREE six week reading program and the chance for your kids to win daily prizes for their participation.

Barnes & Noble Imagination Destination - This summer reading program through Barnes & Noble gives your child the ability to earn a FREE book after reading 8 books and keeping track of them in a reading log.

Local Public Library - Don’t forget to check out your local libraries to find out which programs they’ll be offering this summer.  My kids have participated in several Summer reading Programs through the library and it always includes FREE books & prizes.

TD Bank Summer Reading Program – Read and keep track of 10 books this summer and your child will get $10 added to their Young Saver Account FREE!

Chuck E. Cheese – Earn 10 FREE tokens every time your child reads for 2 weeks in a row.  Just fill out the form and bring it in to claim your free token.

Scholastic Summer Challenge - Log in your reading minutes to the Scholastic site and your child will be able to participate in a World Record challenge as well as earn digital prizes!

I’ve read two great books I want to share:

Busy Mom’s Guide to Parenting Teens, by Paul C. Reisser, M.D, provided by Tyndale.

I’ve enjoyed the easy reading style of this book that I can pick and choose as my tween approaches topics like body maturity, tech support, tobacco, alcohol and drug awareness, self-concept and more. This book is a Focus on the Family Resource, which gives it greater credibility and timely tips. I like the pro-active measures it points out as well as the “what-if” it’s already happened measures.

It’s very easy to understand and reference with bold-face topics and a handy topical index in the back. I give it two thumbs up for it’s well written content and informative writing style.

Are any of you parenting tweens or teens? This could be a helpful resource.

The Beauty Book by Nancy Rue, provided by BookSneeze

Like all Nancy Rue books, this is such a cute easy read for tweens to understand their changing bodies. The book is full of cute illustrations and easy bullet points for tweens to clearly understand how God created them. It even has experiments, self-examinations, questions, activities and fill-in-the-blanks to keep girls busy over the summer. I was impressed with the the variety of topics covered from braces, nails, hair, shaving, skin care and even tatoos and how it’s correlated with God’s Word. Nancy did a wonderful job preparing girls for their upcoming changes on the inside and outside.

Are you looking for activities to bring you closer to your daughter? This could be an excellent tool bringing you both closer to God.

Have you read any great books lately or have a summer reading program to share? Please leave a comment telling us so because we’re a community of moms!

 

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May 10, 2012
by Jackie Brown
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Six Whole Grain Pie Crusts {Freezer Friendly}

Perhaps you’ve thought about making your own pie crust, but it intimidates you. I’ve finally found a recipe from Tammy’s Recipes which yields six pie crusts at a time. It’s just in time for a luncheon when I was making a total of six spinach quiche pies and I wanted to make homemade crust without the hassle of multiplying quantities. I tried this incredibly easy recipe which I used my Kitchen Aid mixer and voila’ it was easy as pie, no pun needed;) Tammy’s Recipe yields six crusts or three double crusts for those of us who make double crust pot pies or fruit pies. This is an amazing flaky pie crust without hydrogenated fats and rolls out easily like a Pillsbury pie crust. It’s freezer friendly if you’re not a bulk baker. You can always have a convenience crust on hand without the preservatives. It’s the perfect time to freeze extra crust for summer fruit pies.

Adapted from Tammy’s Recipes

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Six Whole Grain Pie Crusts

Ingredients

  • 4 cups Ultra Grain Flour or 2 cups unbleached all-purpose plus 2 cups white whole wheat flour
  • 1 3/4 cup butter, 3 1/2 sticks cubed
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 tablespoon vinegar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup cold water

Instructions

  1. In a mixing bowl, mix flour, salt and sugar. Cut in butter with paddle attachment until pea-sized lumps. You may have to use your hands during the last part to evenly disperse butter.
  2. In a separate bowl, beat vinegar, egg, and water. Add to flour/butter mixture and mix on stir mode just enough to make a dough. Mixture will be sticky. Do not over mix. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to an hour.
  3. Roll on floured surface and fill with desired fillings.
  4. Or divide dough in six equal portions and flatten into a disk. Freeze in quart size bags squeezing the air out. Thaw in refrigerator 24 hours prior to use.
  5. Roll and bake as desired.
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Do you make your own homemade pie crusts?

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May 9, 2012
by Jackie Brown
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How to Reheat Cream Base Soups/Potatoes

 

Got potato soup leftovers? Or mashed potatoes or tomato soup with a cream base? How about my cheese tortellini soup? I’ll admit I used to keep them out of my freezer because of the poor reheating results. Until now. I’ve practiced different reheating methods and I want to share my two most successful ways.

Doubler Boiler

Grab a small stock pot with a pot that fits underneath the heating pot. Place your soup, potatoes or whatever you’re reheating into the top pot. In my case, I’m reheating potato soup, thawed for 24 hours, which is partially frozen.

This is the quickest method which reheats the soup at a constant temperature or you can adjust as necessary. Give the soup a stir and check it frequently when the temperature is above medium. Also, check your water level since it is not visible. The soup remains hot set on low until you’re ready to eat.

Small Stock Pot or Pyrex inside of a crockpot filled with water

This is another method I’ve practiced when I’m away from home or we’re not eating for several hours. It heats slowly just like the normal crock pot time 2-4 hours, but the milk/cream won’t scorch since it’s not on a directing heating surface. The hot water bath helps regulate the heat causing a slower reheat.

This method is slower than stove-top, but raises the temperature hot enough for the cream/milk to re-mix, but not scorch, which is key.

Q and A

Does the microwave work?

Yes and no, it does reheat small servings, but I recommend larger portions reheated via stove or crock pot. The microwave leaves cold spots which causes the potatoes to taste grainier and less appealing.

Are the potatoes soggy after freezing?

I don’t think so, I try cut smaller pieces of potato for my baked potato soup recipe here, which I freeze leftovers. If you think so, perhaps you can try freezing a different variety of potato.

Does the type of potato make a difference? 
I most often use what’s on sale, which is russet, although red skinned potatoes and yukon gold are a softer potato which freezes exceptionally well. They cook softer, mash easier and taste delightful.

Have you frozen cream soups or mashed potatoes made with milk or cream? What’s been your experience?

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May 8, 2012
by Jackie Brown
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How to Make Your Own Whey and Uses

What is liquid whey and where do you get it? Yogurt. Perhaps you’re like me and you’ve been making crock pot homemade yogurt for some time, but don’t know what to do with the whey. Or perhaps you love Greek yogurt, but hate the price tag.

I read this post recently, from King Arthur’s blog and it suggested making your own inexpensive Greek yogurt by draining regular yogurt for 24 hours. Here’s the way I strain my yogurt here. Then you’re left with the liquid whey.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Instead of pouring it down the drain, here are some wonderful whey uses I’ve never thought of:

  • Use whey in pancakes and waffles

  • Use whey in place of water in yeast recipes
  • Use whey as substitute in place of buttermilk

I must try in my healthier buttermilk biscuits this week; does that make it whey biscuits?

  • Use whey in muffin recipes
  • Use whey in smoothies (I did think of this one)

Since whey is thinner, the authors suggests reducing the liquid amount by about 1/4 cup. And whey keeps in the fridge up to three weeks. Give it a smell to determine if it’s good or not (simple measures, I know).

I discovered whey is freezer friendly, which made my day ;) I’ll be freezing some in ice cube trays to pop into our summer smoothies.

Be sure to check out our recipe index for our freezer friendly recipes for pancakes, waffles, muffins, biscuits, smoothies and such to use your whey. If you use whey in your recipes, let us know how they turn out. We’d love to be a mom community sharing tips, tricks and recipes.

Do you make homemade yogurt or strain non-fat yogurt with plenty of whey leftover?

 

 

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May 7, 2012
by Jackie Brown
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Weekly Menu 5/7-5/14

Can you guess what we’re doing this week?

Nearly every meal I prepare consists of foods I have cooked or baked in bulk and frozen. I thaw items in a plastic shoe box to prevent condensation dripping onto my shelves (I’ve learned from experience). Then I shop my freezer from my freezer inventory,  to see what goodies I can thaw and serve to my family and others. I write these items down on a seven-day menu plan and post it on my refrigerator as a reminder to thaw my food 24 hours ahead of time. Typically right after the dishes are done, I check my menu plan and put new items into my thawing box and slash them off my freezer inventory. Here’s what I’m thawing this week…

We rotate the same breakfast items each week:

We rotate leftovers, wraps, sandwiches and salads for lunch.
As you can tell below, I’m stocking my freezer as I cook daily. Some times I double/triple a couple of items in a power cooking session. Most days I’d rather double my what I’m already cooking anyway and freeze extra. It’s the way I cook and freeze without having to spend six hours or an entire day freezer cooking for a month. This system works best for my busy lifestyle. What’s your method of freezer cooking?
What’s on your menu this week? How do you like to freezer cook?
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