Category Archives: Homemaking

How Do You Clean?

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Do you clean all like things together or do it room by room?

From an efficiency point of view I suspect that it makes sense to do all of the sweeping or clean all of the light fittings.  On the other hand , I like knowing that I have completed one room.  An example is the bedroom – I may strip the bed then remove any cobwebs, wipe the windowsills, clean the lightshade, clean mirror, dust and polish furniture, vacuum the carpet, remake the bed with fresh linen – and it is all done.

Anyone who has been reading this blog for a while will be aware that the office is the unofficial dumping ground here and getting it the way I want it is a struggle.  Since the weather has been miserable today I have stayed indoors and continued to work on this area.

I am very pleased with my achievements so far.  Here is the desk.

2012-03-04 01Another view of the room.

2012-03-04 02Finally, the pile of stuff that I have yet to sort and find where it is going to live – either in this house or elsewhere.

2012-03-04 03Wish me luck!

Frugal Food

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I know that food prices are constantly rising and there is a lot of angst about the price of fruit and vegetables.  We recently discovered a fruit barn not too far from us and we are very happy with the prices and quality.

I went and bought some fruit and vegetables this afternoon.  Here is what I selected.

1kg carrots
7 nectarines
6 potatoes
5 bananas
1 head of broccoli
1 knob of Australian garlic
6 apples
1 lebanese cucumber

This cost me $11.40.  I would like to know if anyone could honestly construe that as expensive.

On the way home I stopped to fill the car with fuel.  While I was waiting in the queue to pay I noticed the sign above the ice-cream freezer cabinet.  “Magnum Temptation $4.00”  My bag of fruit and vegetables was cheaper than 3 of these fancy ice-creams!  I know which I would rather have.

How do you manage your food budget?

Book Review – Down to Earth

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Since I have begun to look seriously at the stuff we own I consider every purchase we make carefully.  Books are no exception and this has been particularly so since I bought my Kindle about a year ago.

However, last week I bought a new book.  It is ‘Down to Earth’ by Rhonda Hetzel.  Rhonda writes the blog of the same name and you can check it out here.  When I first started reading Rhonda’s blog about a year ago, she made reference to the book she was writing and I dismissed any thoughts of buying it as the blog had heaps of information.  How could there be anything new? Besides, I really didn’t not want another book to take up space in my house.

006After seeing a copy of the book, I was convinced it was worthwhile and would make an excellent reference book.  This was not a knee-jerk reaction and after due consideration I purchased it at Rosetta Books in Maleny.  This is our local bookshop and it is where Rhonda will be a guest for the Queensland book launch on Wednesday 14th March.

The book is 325 pages of wisdom bound into a linen-look, hardcover volume measuring 18.5cm x 23.5cm.  It is an easy-to-handle size resource which I will use frequently.  The information is presented in a logical format with a comprehensive table of contents.

007Rhonda has written a well-rounded guide to simple living suitable for all ages and stages.  The title of one section is ‘Ages and Stages’ which explains, with outstanding clarity, the relevance of simple living during various decades of our adult life.

This is not a glossy coffee table book, it is a gentle, honest guide to the benefits and value of simple living through one woman’s eyes.

008I would commend this book to anyone who is interested in simplifying their life.  Whether you are well along the way or merely contemplating embarking on the journey, there is value in this book.  As Rhonda says on the first page,

“I was pulled into simple living before I knew what it was.  It crept up on me using the smallest of steps and didn’t reveal its true beauty and real power until I was totally hooked.  I was searching for a way to live well while spending very little money.  What I found was a way of life that also gave me independence, opportunity and freedom.”

Come and be hooked, too.

Friday Favourites – Trifle & Lemon Delicious

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This week I have 2 desserts for you to try.  They would possibly be regarded by many as ‘old-fashioned’ but that is not necessarily a bad thing – they have stood the test of time.  These recipes come from a time when dessert was created from basic ingredients from the pantry and leftovers, along with seasonal produce from the garden.

LEMON DELICIOUS

1 tablespoon butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons plain flour
Juice and rind of 1 lemon
2 eggs
1 cup milk

Cream the butter and sugar.  Add flour, juice and rind.  Mix well.  Separate the eggs, add yolks and milk to mixture.  Place the whites in a separate bowl and beat until stiff.  Fold the beaten egg white into the mixture.  Pour into an ovenproof dish.  Stand the dish in a tray of water (about 2-3cm deep) and place in a moderate oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is firm to touch and golden.

The finished product is like a lemon self-saucing pudding.  This can be served warm or cold with ice-cream, cream or custard.Now for the trifle.  I am writing the specifically in response to a question from Jeni.  I make trifle about once each year and do not use a recipe.  It is the result of my memories of eating trifle when I was a child.  So, here goes:

TRIFLE

Sponge cake (a little stale is better)
Jelly (red or green)
Custard (cold  and thick pouring consistency)
Coconut
Tinned peaches
Jam
Orange juice/peach juice/sherry

You do need to plan ahead and make the jelly the day before.  Use only 375ml water instead of 500ml to make the jelly a bit stiffer.  Pour into a shallow dish to set.

Slice cake into thin slabs, spread with jam (strawberry is my preference) and sandwich together.  Cut cake into small pieces and set aside.

Cut jelly into cubes (bite-sized pieces).

Cut the peach slices into bite-sized pieces.

Assemble the trifle in a glass bowl starting with a layer of cake pieces.  Drizzle with a little of the juice or sherry.  Sprinkle with coconut and pour a small amount of custard over the cake layer.  Add jelly, then peaches with a little coconut and custard between each layer.

Repeat the process until all ingredients are used up.  Finish with a generous sprinkle of coconut.

HINTS & TIPS

The coconut can be toasted or slivered almonds may be used as well.  I used some sliced glace cherries to garnish the trifle this time.  Many trifles includes cream but I do not eat cream and prefer to serve it as an optional garnish.

Trifle originally evolved as a way of using up leftovers.  If you want to know more about the history you can read it here.

There is nothing definitive about making trifle.  Just do as you please and enjoy!

Filling The Freezer

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I spent yesterday afternoon in the kitchen and here are some of the results.

A batch of pastry used to make 12 mini meat pies

and 3 meal-sized pies (pastry tops only)

Trifle – using leftover sponge from when I made a Dorothy the Dinosaur cake 6 months ago.

Zucchini and carrot quiche – to use up some of the eggs we have in abundance.

Banana cake – more eggs

Lemon Delicious – eggs and lemons

It makes good economic sense do do a batch of baking while the oven is turned on.

I also made refried beans in the slow-cooker, lasagne sheets (more eggs),  spreadable butter, chopped up chillies to dehydrate them and picked 2 kg of cherry tomatoes from the neighbour’s garden.  They are now frozen waiting for me to have time to make tomato sauce.

The freezers are full and we have plenty of food for the days when I don’t have the time or energy to cook a meal from scratch.  Do you do a big cook-up in one go?

Pantry Overhaul

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Even though my pantry was reasonably organised, I decided to give it an overhaul today.  I had noticed that there were a few things stashed in containers at the front of the shelf that needed to be used or relocated.

This is what it looked like before I started.

2012-02-12 01The photo does not show the top shelf which has 2 tubs of glass jars – ones with pop-top lids in one tub and those without in the other.  I sorted all of the jars, made sure they all had lids, labels had been removed and were ready to be used when I need them.

I took a lot of the stuff out and re-arranged the jar storage system so inevitably things looked a lot worse before they got better.  Here is a view of the kitchen earlier this afternoon.

2012-02-12 02And more….

2012-02-12 03To add some interest to my day, The Duke announced at lunchtime that there were 3 branches that needed trimming of the lime tree but they were laden with fruit.  He was prepared to leave them for the time being but since the tree is never completely dormant I decided now was as good a time as any.  I picked a 10 litre bucket full of limes and cut the offending branches off.  So, in the midst of the pantry project I juiced the limes and have frozen them – some in ice-cube trays and some in 400ml blocks.

I moved a couple of things from the pantry to the sideboard so we cast a critical eye over the contents of the sideboard.  The Duke and I agreed that a few things could go.  A true minimalist would probably get rid of almost the entire contents but that is not my style.  However, it is good to refresh your memory of what is actually stored and I have resolved to use some of my ‘good’ things more regularly.

My op shop bag is now full and ready to go when I am next going to town.  I also have a bag of a few items for Belle.  I always offer anything which I think may be useful to my daughters before I consider sending it to the op shop or Freecycle.  However, they understand that there is no compulsion for them to accept it and I will not be mortally wounded if they say no.

I have finally finished revamping the pantry and this is the result.

2012-02-12 04Bottom shelves

2012-02-12 05I threw out a couple of bits of foodstuff – a few crumbs of powdered mustard in a tin that must be at least 10 years old, some jam that had gone mouldy and a handful of glace cherries that  were over 12 months old and were all dried and shrivelled.  I had about 3 bottles with a tiny bit of oil in each so that was all decanted into the current bottle.

I now know that everything in the pantry is useful, in working order  or fit to be eaten.  I also know exactly what is there and can work on using up some of the odd items which are not part of my regular basic stores.

Friday Favourites – Date & Ginger Loaf

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This is my variation on a gingerbread recipe I have had for years.  It is a soft, cake-like gingerbread, not hard, biscuit-style gingerbread.  The recipe came from my mother but I do not know any more about the origin of it.

GINGERBREAD

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 egg
1 cup treacle
1 cup hot water
2 and 1/2 cups plain flour
1/2 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1 teaspoon powdered ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped dates

Cream the butter and sugar, add egg and beat well.  Combine water and treacle.  Combine all of the remaining ingredients except the dates.  Add the treacle mixture alternately with the dry ingredients.  Finally, mix in the dates.  Pour into a greased, lined tin.  Bake at 170 degrees for 45 – 55 minutes.

2012-02-10 02The original recipe did not have the dates in it.  This is a versatile cake as it can be served as a dessert  with custard, sweet white sauce or caramel sauce.  It is also makes a nice cake for morning tea.  I usually slice it and add to our packed lunches.

2012-02-10 03

Remember Lazy Brownie?

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Early in January, I wrote a post about my Christmas plans for 2012.  It is here.

As I suspected I did not get everything done on 25th January as planned but I am making progress.  Here is what I had on the list.

January

  • Sort and file Christmas cards and letters – DONE
  • Make sure any contact details are updated in address book – DONE
  • Update Christmas card list – DONE
  • Set up complete contact list for 2012 e-cards – NEEDS A BIT MORE WORK

In conjunction with updating the contact details in my address book I embarked on another project which took me a couple of weeks.  I have made sure that I have current contact details for all of my friends and relatives in my physical address book as well as my email contacts address book and my mobile phone address book.  The Duke checked that he had the relevant ones in his mobile phone and we also have some that we need at our fingertips in the home phone speed dial.  Now all I have to do is make sure that I update all locations when I am given new contact details for anyone.  I really hope that I keep on top of this issue as I do not want to have to do the sorting and cross-referencing of the past couple of weeks.  The memory of that should be enough to keep me on track.

2012-02-09 01I have also been doing some sewing today and have finished making the first 2 of my Christmas gift bags.  They are not for anything or anyone in particular but my aim is to have a collection in a variety of sizes so that I will have one suitable for whatever the gift happens to be.

2012-02-09 02

Take One Pair of Trousers

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I have a pair of ¾ length lightweight travel pants that I bought about 8 or 9 years ago.  I have been wearing them for some time with a patch just below one knee, however, the fabric around the patch has given way, too.  I love these trousers as they are really comfortable and have several deep pockets.

I decided to salvage what I could from them.  The latest buzzword seems to ‘upcycling’ but you could call it ‘refashioning’, ‘making do’ or just plain ‘thrift’.  I cut the lower legs off and was left with a pair of knee-length shorts which just needed hemming.  Since they are an existing garment I know that the fit and function of them will be perfect.

002The bottom of the legs had drawstrings so I removed them and they will be used for the drawstrings in two of the Christmas gift bags I am making as they match the material rather well.

003There were a couple of button tabs on the lower legs so I removed the buttons to add to my collection.

008All I had left was the lower leg pieces.

005So I cut them into strips to use for tying up plants in the garden.

006Here are my ‘new’ shorts and nothing else has been wasted.  I hope to get a few more years wear from them.

007I would love to hear your thrifty/upcycling stories.

Squirrel It Away

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I have had a very productive weekend.  Following on from yesterday’s post about the Tabasco sauce I wanted to show you my other achievements in the kitchen.

The bell chillies were dried and the 4 trays of sliced chillies ended up reducing to this.

2012-02-05 01I then ground them in the spice grinder attachment for my food processor.

2012-02-05 02This is what I ended up with.  45g of powdered chilli – grown about 20 metres from the back door with no chemical sprays.  The smaller jar is the residue after I had sieved it mixed with some avocado oil.  I will use the chilli oil to add a little bit of flavour when cooking.

2012-02-05 03Today we went to the Caboolture Markets.  I bought the fruit and vegetables that I needed as well as 9kg of tomatoes.  These were being sold for 99c/kg so I filled my Ecosilk bag.

2012-02-05 04I decided to make tomato pasta sauce that I will be able to use in a variety of ways.  The ingredients are tomatoes, onions, basil, tomato paste and red wine.  The onions were from our crop last winter which were diced and frozen, the basil from the garden, tomato paste and red wine from the cupboard.

I forgot to take any photos as I was working flat out to get this done this afternoon but here is the end result.

2012-02-05 05The sauce in the plastic containers will be frozen and the jars of sauce were processed in a hot water bath so they will be stored in the cupboard.  This was my first attempt at processing anything in a hot water bath.  I am confident that it has worked well as the pop-tops have all been vacuum sealed.

I am definitely going to do some more research and learn more about this method.  It means that I can preserve food without using the freezer and being reliant on a consistent supply of electricity.  There is also a small matter of available space in the freezer, too.

Any tips or recommendations of resources on preserving would be appreciated.