Hi Everyone,
NOTES:
** I’ve made a few DIY herbal concoctions lately.
I saw this one yesterday and want to try it.
DIY Ibuprofen
This appealed to me because I cannot take actual Ibuprofen. I thought I’d try this one.
1 TB dried rosemary
1 TB dried dandelion root
1 c. organic apple cider vinegar
This will fill a small 1/2 pint “jelly” jar. Mix everything and put in a cool dark place for 2 weeks. Shake every other day or so. Then strain. Dosage is 5-6 drops. OR 1-2 TB. I’ll LYK how it turns out.
I have a flu-prevention concoction that I love.
It has several herbs known for anti-bacterial and anti-viral capabilities. It’s made with vodka. Alcohol extracts the medicinal chemicals from the plants much better than water. You only take a small amount, about 1/2 tsp in the morning and maybe at night. At first taste, you’ll pucker up for sure. But by the fourth or fifth day, you’ll be licking the spoon.
(25) I Love Lucy | Lucy’s Vitameatavegimen Commercial (S1, E30) | Paramount+ – YouTube
Herbs: Echinacea Angustifolia, Echinacea Purpurea, Eleuthero root, Pau d-Arco, cat’s claw, cinnamon, vodka, and organic grade maple syrup.
GARDEN HAPPENINGS:
I’ve been weeding and pruning my blackberry bushes. I’m still a novice at this. I cut off any dead canes. I also cut any small plants that are in the “aisle” instead of under the wire trellises. I thin the plants to 2 main canes from each root “hill”. I generally leave the canes long and tie them up to the wires. I clean up the fallen leaves (although they make good mulch), and then feed the bushes with a good organic “fruit and flower” fertilizer. This is a five-day job for me, and I have three days to go. Also, this Saturday is my “plant-the-celery-inside” day. Oddly enough, I have a container of potatoes that look really good!! I think they accidentally started growing last September? We’ll see how they turn out in a few months.
Lettuce is going strong and looks great!
THIS WEEK’S PURCHASE: Oats – 1 48 oz. container of oats for 2 people each month. Try to get 2 or 3.
Oats are rich in minerals including manganese, phosphorus, magnesium, copper, zinc, iron, potassium and calcium. Oats are high in antioxidants.
There are many types of oats to choose from:
raw oats, whole oat groats, steel cut oats, scottish oatmeal, regular old-fashioned rolled oats, quick cooking rolled oats, instant oatmeal, oat bran, oat flour.
I like to store both regular oats (for breakfast) and quick cooking oats (for cookies).
You can prepare oats over a fire (stove top), or in a rice cooker, instant pot, thermal cooker, sun oven, or even a thermos. I tried this out last year and it worked great. I just put the boiling water and oats in the night before and have had hot oatmeal in the morning. Pretty cool.
I do NOT repackage my oats for long term storage. However, I do NOT have a rodent problem, so that’s not a worry. I purchased #10 cans of oats from the Home Storage Center, but I think they have a “smell” from the metal cans. I’ve heard that you can “air them out”, but mostly I don’t rotate them. Now I just store my oats in the container from the store and rotate as needed. They will easily store for 5 years.
You can also buy oats in bulk and store them in a 20-lb bucket. One bucket will yield 216 servings or about 9 months of daily oatmeal.
MISC. PURCHASE: Pancake Mix
Can you make pancakes from scratch??? Of course, but most recipes use eggs and oil. Which is fine, if you are storing those items. But you can’t beat the convenience of an add-water-only mix. My favorite is Krusteaz. The drawback, is that these types of convenience mixes have leavening and will only last about a year. You CAN add baking powder after that, but eventually your pancakes will look and taste like sawdust. I may have some experience there so take my word for it.
I date EVERY package and can with the purchase date (month/year) when I bring it home. I can keep an eye on these mixes and know when they will expire.
Gluten free? Make up a batch of pancake mix with alternate flours. You’ll want to add dehydrated eggs, so stock up on that as well.
FOOD STORAGE RECIPES:
Neiman Marcus Cookies
I like this recipe a lot, and will use it when I want oatmeal in the dough.
1 c. butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
Cream together
2 eggs – Add and mix
1 TB vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
Add and mix
2 c. flour – Add and mix just until blended
1 1/2 c. oatmeal
1 bag chocolate chips
4 oz. (1/2 bar) of Hershey chocolate grated
(mostly I leave this out unless I just happen to have one hanging around)
1 1/2 c. walnuts
Bake 365˚ for 11 minutes – depending on my oven and the day and whether the sun is shining. LOL I ALWAYS do a test batch of 2-3 cookies to get this part right.
Have you ever bought a powdered-oatmeal bath additive for dry skin?
Did you look at the ingredients? 100% oatmeal.
Make your own by putting oatmeal in your bullet blender or coffee grinder. BTW – this stuff is great!!
Amish Hamburger With Fall Vegetables Bake
I like this one because I can use my “canned” ground beef.
1 TB olive oil
1 lb. ground beef – Add to oil and brown, then remove and drain.
1 medium onion, chopped – Add to the same pan, saute
2 cloves garlic, minced – add to onion and saute 1-2 min more
3 c. diced potatoes
2 c. diced carrots
1 c. diced celery – add veggies and saute with onion and garlic about 5 min to lightly brown the vegetables
1 c. corn (fresh or frozen)
1 can diced tomatoes undrained
1 c. beef broth
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp rosemary
Add and mix well to combine
Transfer to a greased 9 X 13 baking dish. Cover tightly with foil. Bake at 375˚ for 30 min or until the vegetables are tender.
1 c. cheese – Remove the foil and sprinkle the cheese evenly. Return to the oven and bake an additional 10-15 min. Allow the casserole to rest 5 min before serving. Add beans or squash for additional fall vegetables.
Marti Shelley
