Category Archives: Baking/Cooking

Canning with Mason jars

A whole new world has opened up for me since I learned to can proteins.  I have fast food on my shelves.  I can have dinner on the table in less than half an hour.

I learned to can by watching great you tube videos by Linda’s Pantry, Sutton’s Daze, I’m still working, Guildbrook Farm, Michigan Snow Pony and so many more.
I spent hours researching and learning the information about canning.  It is a little intimidating at first.  But, so worth it.

One great advantage of canning proteins is you buy meats on sale.  Freezers are great but I know of at least two friends that lost all their food when their freezer died on them.  Not to mention hurricanes and storms taking out the electricity.

I can ground beef, roasts, pork, chicken, bacon, sausage, turkey, corned beef, meatloaf and a lot of potatoes.  I can vegetables, too but the real savings is in meats.  With as crazy as inflation is getting to be, every bit of money you can stretch helps.

Saving (French fry) vegetable oil

I save my oil that I fry my French fries in my letting the oil cool and then pour it back into the container.  I was at my sister’s house and couldn’t find a funnel.
I poured the grease from my frying pan into a 4 cup measuring cup and then used it to pour the oil back into the vegetable oil container.

Becoming a prepper

There are so many reasons to be prepared by stocking up on food.  For example, you could lose your income from job loss or even an accident.  What if you have an ice storm or Hurricane and you can’t get to the store or they are closed due to no electricity? Those are two obvious reasons to stock up on food.

I have always looked at the circulars and stocked up on items I use consistently.  Clipping coupons is not my cup of tea.

I have recently started pressure canning meats (and potatoes) and I have been able to stock up on great bargains and don’t have to worry about freezer space.

The meat is tender and it is like having fast food at your finger tips.  I can have a roast with potatoes on the table in 15 minutes.

Canning the meat means 75 minutes (pints) or 90 minutes (quarts) of my propane gas stove and it makes 7 meals. When I cooked a roast in my oven, it took 6 hours to get it tender enough and I usually got 3 meals out of the roast.  I would make the roast, then French dip sandwiches and then a beef stew.

But the canning means I have beef tonight and then another meat the next night.

So far I have canned roast, beef tips, ground beef, pork, chicken, sausage and bacon.  Oh yeah, butter, too.

I also can dry beans and what a savings that is!  Pintos, great northern, navy, lima and black beans fill my shelves.

My gas stove has been a blessing, too because when we lose electricity, I can still light my burners with a match and cook meals.  Losing electricity did not effect my canned meats either.  One of my relatives had a full freezer and lost almost everything.

If you are interested in learning to can, watch u-tube videos.   That is how I learned.  I found “Michigansnowpony” “Linda’s pantry” “starry hilder” and “guildbrook farm” are great for learning about canning and homesteading.

 

Mama’s Sweet Potato Pie Recipe

The holiday season is just not complete without my mom’s sweet potato pie.  I have actually eaten so much of it that I threw up.  Seriously, I love the taste.  I tease my grown children telling them it is a vegetable pie.  I am not real big on vegetables so it is funny to us.

I make a deep dish pie so this is the recipe for just one pie.  I imagine the filling is enough for two regular sized crust as my pie is always filled to the brim.

First, you need to sit a stick of butter out to get to room temperature.  You are going to slice the butter into pieces when you add it to the mixture.

I drain a 29 ounce can of sweet potatoes and put in large bowl.  Go ahead and mush them up.

It doesn’t really matter what order you put the items in so I am going to just list them.

Drained 29 ounce of sweet potato

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk

2 eggs

1/2 tsp salt

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or to taste)

Bake for 55 minutes if you are baking two regular sized pie crust or 65 minutes if a deep dish pie.  When your pie doesn’t jiggle in the center it is done.

Baking temperature is 350 degrees.

 

Secret to Best Brownies

I am not talking about the best brand either.

I have been told quite often that I make the best brownies and I am asked why mine are so good.  I truly believe the secret is to not overcook the brownies.  I actually take my brownies out of the oven when they are still a little gooey.  If I stick my toothpick in and it comes out a little wet, then I know they are done.  I think they must cook a little bit more when you take them out anyway.

I actually put a little of the vanilla pudding in my brownies this time.  I know it adds so much moisture to my cakes that I am thinking it might be good in brownies, too.  I have also put the vanilla pudding in my pancakes and that works great, too.

Keeping your oven clean

I love to cook roasts in the oven at 200 degrees for at least 6 hours to ensure I have a tender piece of meat.  I add the potatoes, onions and carrots after about 2 hours.  I put about an inch of water in the glass pan and cover with aluminum foil.

So, what kept happening was the condensation rose and ran down the outside of the pan and then dripped onto the bottom of the oven.

To solve that problem, I made a well by running my fingers along the inside of the entire pan edge.  That way, the aluminum was down about a quarter inch or so and made the condensation drip back into the pan.

My smoke detector is very close to my oven and the least bit of smoke would set it off.  The drippings dirtied my oven and set off my alarm.

Moist cakes

Again, I love all that I learn on the u-tube videos.

I am not a person who makes cakes from scratch.  Cake mixes are pretty cheap and so handy.  I always buy when the cake mixes are on sale for under a dollar.  The IGA brand is just as good and they are usually 89 cents.  Even the generic Walmart or Foodlion brands are even better once you doctor them up with the butter and vanilla pudding mix.

So after reviewing many u-tube videos, this is my suggestion to you to make even moister cakes.  Use butter instead of the vegetable oil.  Just substitute the exact measurement of butter for the oil.

My other suggestion is add about an ounce or so of vanilla pudding mix to your batter and beat it longer.  Even if you are using a pudding in the cake mix, still add it.  So, now your batter is thicker and you actually get about 4 more cupcakes (in my case case.)

I seldom make cakes because with two of us, the cake gets dried out before we eat it all.  Plus, you can freeze the cupcakes before you ice them after you let them cool.  Keeps us from eating all 24-28 of them in a day or two.  No dishes or silverware to clean up either when eating a cupcake.

I love the butter cream frosting, too.  Also, not homemade but in the container.  I have plenty of time to experiment and make my own frosting but I really like the taste and I would rather spend  my time canning or dehydrating or vacuum sealing foods.  We all have priorities.

 

Homemade potato chips

I would love to take credit for this fun discovery but I researched it on u-tube.  I never do anything exactly the way I read/see how to do things but my  chips turned out great.  My picky 91 year old mom with dentures even enjoyed them ALOT!

I often have a sandwich for lunch and had been wanting some Lays potato chips for weeks but they weren’t on sale (2 for 4.29) so I didn’t buy any.  I bought a bag for 2.88 at Walmart.

While eating the chips, I was looking at the 10 ounce bag and thinking about that price of 4.29 for 10 ounces versus the 3.99 for my last purchase of a 5 pound bag of potatoes.

So, I peeled the medium sized potato and then thin sliced it with the potato peeler.  You could also use a grater that has the slicer.  I knew there was no way I could thin slice the potato with a knife.

Then you want to wash then really well with cold water to remove the starch.    One guy said to refrigerate for an hour.  Just peel the potato slices into the bowl of cold water and rinse a few times.  It worked just fine.  Make sure you thoroughly dry the potatoes.  Water in grease can splatter.

Let your oil heat up in a frying pan.   I used vegetable oil but another person suggested canola oil.  I used the setting between high and medium.   Drop one thin potato in the oil and if it bubbles up around the potato, drop more in.  I just cooked one thin layer at a time.  I didn’t flip them over but pushed them down a few times.  Once you see the edges turn a little brown, remove the chips.  It took less than 2 minutes, I believe.

Drain on paper towel to remove excess oil.  Salt or add any spice you prefer.

 One medium sized potato made enough chips for at least one person and maybe two, unless you are a big eater.  Lol. They were delicious warm.  

Best Cupcake Icing Ever

You can have professional tasting cupcakes with the Wilton Decorating Icing that is sold in Walmart in the cake decorating section of the craft department.  This icing can be colored with food coloring and it is great.  My sister, Bonnie puts the icing in a pastry bag and using the decorating tips makes little stars all across the top of the cupcake.  So cute.  The best part is the taste.  Yum!

i haven’t figured out her recipe for the cake which is always moist.  I have read on YouTube that putting pudding mix makes a moister cake.  I love all the cooking tips on YouTube, don’t you?

Have fun baking.  And Bonnie, open a bakery.  Your cakes are beautiful and so tasty.