If you are reading this in Google Reader, I have moved my blog over to Word Press. However I just realized that my feed is still on my old blog on Blogger. I have no idea how to redirect my feed to my new site! If anyone knows how to do this please let me know.
Until I get it figured out I will try to post links over here to my blog posts on Word Press. Please click over and enjoy!
I've been posting a lot the past 6 weeks so there may be a lot to catch up on. Today's post is:
What is it Wednesday: Erythritol
Thanks!! Amy
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
It's Official - New Blog!
Okay so I couldn't wait any longer to redirect my blog. Once I had the new blog all set up, I just didn't want to post over here anymore. Sorry old blog!
I've copied all posts from 2010 over to the new blog, but I will leave anything older here for reference, and may link back to them from time to time. But please visit my new site:
http://www.everythingishomemade.com/
Let me know what you think!
I've copied all posts from 2010 over to the new blog, but I will leave anything older here for reference, and may link back to them from time to time. But please visit my new site:
http://www.everythingishomemade.com/
Let me know what you think!
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
New Blog in the Works
I've been a little MIA these past few days and it's because I am redesigning my blog! I'm migrating a lot of my posts over to Word Press. Go check it out:
www.everythingishomemade.wordpress.com
Tell me what you think of the new design and see what I had for breakfast.
Eventually I will redirect this link to go straight over there. But I wanted to go ahead and share it with you now.
Have a great day!
www.everythingishomemade.wordpress.com
Tell me what you think of the new design and see what I had for breakfast.
Eventually I will redirect this link to go straight over there. But I wanted to go ahead and share it with you now.
Have a great day!
Friday, February 5, 2010
Easy Pesto Pasta & Italian Sausage
I've had a cold this week. Ugh! I tried to rest more than usual and ate lots of oranges to help my body heal faster. Luckily it only lasted a few days and I'm feeling much better now. I had skipped my mid-week run in order to go to bed earlier so I moved my longer weekend run to tonight to get it out of the way. That meant I got home later so I wanted something super easy and fast for dinner. And this was it:
Pesto Pasta & Italian Sausage
Serves 2
8 oz penne pasta
2 Field Roast sausages, Italian style
1/4 cup pesto, from a jar or make your own (but read below)
Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, slice sausages into 1/2 inch rounds. Once pasta is cooked, drain and toss with pesto and sliced sausages. Easy!
I'm a big fan of pesto. It's soooo delicious and so versatile. I make my own from basil from my garden in the summer, and then freeze it to use all winter.
However, now it not a good time of year to make your own pesto. In the winter you are far better off just buying a prepared version in a jar. Classico makes a good brand. Basil is just too expensive right now and would have to travel a very long way to get to your kitchen. Summer is the best time to make pesto, when the basil plants are growing like crazy and there's more than enough growing nearby. Basil is easy to grow right in your backyard, or you can buy it at your local farmers' market.
This recipe also gave me a chance to try another variety of Field Roast sausages, the Italian version. I previously used the apple-sage sausages in Butternut Squash Pasta. I liked the Italian version a lot. It was very good in this dish and would also be good on pizza or in a veggie soup. I think there are a couple more versions I haven't had yet and I'm looking forward to trying them.
Pesto Pasta & Italian Sausage
Serves 2
8 oz penne pasta
2 Field Roast sausages, Italian style
1/4 cup pesto, from a jar or make your own (but read below)
Cook pasta according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, slice sausages into 1/2 inch rounds. Once pasta is cooked, drain and toss with pesto and sliced sausages. Easy!
I'm a big fan of pesto. It's soooo delicious and so versatile. I make my own from basil from my garden in the summer, and then freeze it to use all winter.
However, now it not a good time of year to make your own pesto. In the winter you are far better off just buying a prepared version in a jar. Classico makes a good brand. Basil is just too expensive right now and would have to travel a very long way to get to your kitchen. Summer is the best time to make pesto, when the basil plants are growing like crazy and there's more than enough growing nearby. Basil is easy to grow right in your backyard, or you can buy it at your local farmers' market.
This recipe also gave me a chance to try another variety of Field Roast sausages, the Italian version. I previously used the apple-sage sausages in Butternut Squash Pasta. I liked the Italian version a lot. It was very good in this dish and would also be good on pizza or in a veggie soup. I think there are a couple more versions I haven't had yet and I'm looking forward to trying them.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Regular Uses for White Vinegar
White vinegar is extremely versatile and valuable around the house. I've seen countless lists in magazines and on websites on all the uses of white vinegar. But how many people actually put those uses into action? There are two ways that I use white vinegar around the house regularly. In the laundry and in the dishwasher. I buy white vinegar in gallon jugs for a little over $2.
I keep the big jug in the laundry room and use 1/4 cup as fabric softener with each load of laundry. The clothes do not come out smelling like vinegar, I promise!
I use the big jug to fill up this smaller squeeze bottle to keep in the kitchen:
And I use the small squeeze bottle to fill up the rinse-aid compartment in the dishwasher:
I also use the small bottle in the kitchen whenever I need white vinegar for cooking.
And there you have it. Two very simple ways to use white vinegar around the house. And both ways will save you a bunch of money because white vinegar is way cheaper than fabric softener and rinse-aid. And white vinegar does not contain any chemicals which are bad for the environment.
Check out this website for more information on white vinegar. Read the section on how its made too. I had no idea white vinegar came from corn. There are also tons of tips on using white vinegar around the house.
I keep the big jug in the laundry room and use 1/4 cup as fabric softener with each load of laundry. The clothes do not come out smelling like vinegar, I promise!
I use the big jug to fill up this smaller squeeze bottle to keep in the kitchen:
And I use the small squeeze bottle to fill up the rinse-aid compartment in the dishwasher:
I also use the small bottle in the kitchen whenever I need white vinegar for cooking.
And there you have it. Two very simple ways to use white vinegar around the house. And both ways will save you a bunch of money because white vinegar is way cheaper than fabric softener and rinse-aid. And white vinegar does not contain any chemicals which are bad for the environment.
Check out this website for more information on white vinegar. Read the section on how its made too. I had no idea white vinegar came from corn. There are also tons of tips on using white vinegar around the house.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Sweet Potato Corn Chowder
So I seem to have a bit of an obsession with orange vegetables lately. I feel like I've been posting a lot about pumpkin, butternut squash and sweet potatoes. Maybe it's just the season? Well here we go again. This recipe is from 365 Easy Vegetarian Recipes.
Sweet Potato Corn Chowder
Serves 4
1 big sweet potato
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup soy milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Peel and dice the sweet potato. In a large pot, bring vegetable broth to a boil. Add sweet potatoes and simmer approximately 20 minutes or until tender. Add corn and soy milk. Simmer 6-8 minutes longer or until hot.
With an immersion blender, puree part of the soup in the pot (but not all). If you do not have an immersion blender, transfer a couple ladles of the soup to a food processor or blender and puree. Transfer puree back to soup pot. Stir to combine.
My take on it: I made this recipe exactly as written, except I added the puree part at the end. And honestly when I first picked it out, I wasn't expecting much. There's just not that much to it. But I was actually blown away by how good it was! It was so rich and creamy and velvety. Extremely delicious. I'm not sure if it was the sweet potato or the combination of ingredients or what.
Now I apologize for this crappy picture. My husband had left our camera at his office so I couldn't take a picture the night we made it. We had enough for lunch leftovers the next day so I asked him to take a picture at work:
The amount of soup leftover wasn't quite enough for two people to have lunch the next day. So we cooked up some barley to beef it up and added that to the rest of the soup. It was just as delicious with the barley. My husband said he even liked it better with the barley.
There is one thing I think I would change for next time. I will add half of the corn to the soup, then puree, then add the rest of the corn (or increase the amount of corn). It seemed like most of the corn was pulverized during the pureeing process, so there weren't many corn kernals left. You could still taste the corn but I think I would like a few more whole corn kernals in there.
Bottom Line: I will defintely make this again. It was quick, easy and delicious.
Sweet Potato Corn Chowder
Serves 4
1 big sweet potato
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup soy milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Peel and dice the sweet potato. In a large pot, bring vegetable broth to a boil. Add sweet potatoes and simmer approximately 20 minutes or until tender. Add corn and soy milk. Simmer 6-8 minutes longer or until hot.
With an immersion blender, puree part of the soup in the pot (but not all). If you do not have an immersion blender, transfer a couple ladles of the soup to a food processor or blender and puree. Transfer puree back to soup pot. Stir to combine.
My take on it: I made this recipe exactly as written, except I added the puree part at the end. And honestly when I first picked it out, I wasn't expecting much. There's just not that much to it. But I was actually blown away by how good it was! It was so rich and creamy and velvety. Extremely delicious. I'm not sure if it was the sweet potato or the combination of ingredients or what.
Now I apologize for this crappy picture. My husband had left our camera at his office so I couldn't take a picture the night we made it. We had enough for lunch leftovers the next day so I asked him to take a picture at work:
The amount of soup leftover wasn't quite enough for two people to have lunch the next day. So we cooked up some barley to beef it up and added that to the rest of the soup. It was just as delicious with the barley. My husband said he even liked it better with the barley.
There is one thing I think I would change for next time. I will add half of the corn to the soup, then puree, then add the rest of the corn (or increase the amount of corn). It seemed like most of the corn was pulverized during the pureeing process, so there weren't many corn kernals left. You could still taste the corn but I think I would like a few more whole corn kernals in there.
Bottom Line: I will defintely make this again. It was quick, easy and delicious.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Lentil Chili
I found this recipe AGES ago over at Hillbilly Housewife, a fun website about low cost cooking from scratch. I've had it in my recipe book for a long time and finally got around to making it last week. Click here for the original recipe. Here's the way I made it, with a few modifications:
Lentil Chili
Serves 4
1 & 1/4 c dry lentils (half a pound)
4 c tap water
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp dry onions
3 tsp vegetable Better Than Bouillon
1 quart diced tomatoes from my freezer (or a 15oz can of tomatoes)
2 tsp chili powder
Dash hot pepper flakes
1/4 tsp black pepper
Place the lentils and the water in a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook for 30 minutes. If the lentils begin to get dry, or if their water boils away then add more water. You want the lentils to remain juicy while they cook. After 30 minutes, add all of the remaining ingredients. Simmer the chili for 15 to 20 more minutes.
My take on it: The only real change I made to this recipe was to swap veggie bouillon for beef bouillon. Other than that, I picked red pepper flakes over hot sauce and used diced tomatoes from my freezer (from the garden last summer) rather than canned.
Honestly this chili is not much to look at. But it's not to be looked at, it's to be eaten! And this chili was good. It doesn't taste like regular chili, at least to me, but it's still really good. And it was really easy. The best part about this recipe was NO CHOPPING. It was nice not chopping anything for a change.
It does take about an hour, so we made this on a Sunday night. The leftovers were excellent for lunch on Monday. The chili was super filling, super cheap and super good for you.
Next time I think I will add more chili powder, probably a full tablespoon or more. I will also add some ground cumin. Increasing the chili powder and adding cumin may give it more of that chili flavor that I felt it was lacking.
I served this with Vegan Cornbread from PPK, which I also enjoyed very much.
If you don't want to make vegan cornbread, you can make this cornbread. By the way, cornbread is so easy to make from scratch. Avoid the box! All you need is a container of cornmeal. You probably already have the rest of the ingredients. It does not take much longer to measure out flour and baking powder than it does to open a box. So if you have never made it from scratch please try it. You won't go back to the box.
Bottom Line: I will make lentil chili again.
Lentil Chili
Serves 4
1 & 1/4 c dry lentils (half a pound)
4 c tap water
2 tbsp oil
2 tbsp dry onions
3 tsp vegetable Better Than Bouillon
1 quart diced tomatoes from my freezer (or a 15oz can of tomatoes)
2 tsp chili powder
Dash hot pepper flakes
1/4 tsp black pepper
Place the lentils and the water in a large pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Cook for 30 minutes. If the lentils begin to get dry, or if their water boils away then add more water. You want the lentils to remain juicy while they cook. After 30 minutes, add all of the remaining ingredients. Simmer the chili for 15 to 20 more minutes.
My take on it: The only real change I made to this recipe was to swap veggie bouillon for beef bouillon. Other than that, I picked red pepper flakes over hot sauce and used diced tomatoes from my freezer (from the garden last summer) rather than canned.
Honestly this chili is not much to look at. But it's not to be looked at, it's to be eaten! And this chili was good. It doesn't taste like regular chili, at least to me, but it's still really good. And it was really easy. The best part about this recipe was NO CHOPPING. It was nice not chopping anything for a change.
It does take about an hour, so we made this on a Sunday night. The leftovers were excellent for lunch on Monday. The chili was super filling, super cheap and super good for you.
Next time I think I will add more chili powder, probably a full tablespoon or more. I will also add some ground cumin. Increasing the chili powder and adding cumin may give it more of that chili flavor that I felt it was lacking.
I served this with Vegan Cornbread from PPK, which I also enjoyed very much.
If you don't want to make vegan cornbread, you can make this cornbread. By the way, cornbread is so easy to make from scratch. Avoid the box! All you need is a container of cornmeal. You probably already have the rest of the ingredients. It does not take much longer to measure out flour and baking powder than it does to open a box. So if you have never made it from scratch please try it. You won't go back to the box.
Bottom Line: I will make lentil chili again.
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