Recipe Collection: My Top 10 Favorites

I’ve posted a lot of recipes on here.  Except for around the holidays or when my babies were born, I’ve posted one every Thursday for the last 3 1/2 years.  That’s 150 recipes or so!

If you’re new here, or at least newer than three and a half years ago (which is most of you), you may have missed some of the older recipes.  Or, you may simply be curious which of the recipes we like the best and use the most.

Wonder no more!  Today I will tell you exactly which we like best, use most, and why.

Our Favorites

Obviously, your tastes may vary and so may your dietary requirements and so on and so forth.  And this list will look different today than it did a year ago or will a year from now.  Things are always changing.  That’s okay.  Hopefully you’ll discover some new favorites though!  Just so you know, they’re in no particular order.  These are just 10 we use often!

English Muffins

I first made these because I needed a recipe that used a sourdough starter that wasn’t super active.  I liked it, but didn’t love it.  I changed it over to a soaked recipe and kept playing until I found these.  I never cared for English muffins from the store, really, but I love these.  They’re a frugal use of wheat and soured raw milk.  They’re quick to cook and they freeze well.

I find myself coming back to them over and over and making large batches to freeze for easy breakfasts.  Serve with butter, apple butter, or whatever you like.

Pitas

These, too, are a freezable favorite.  I got it in my head in early August that I had to make them…immediately.  Did I mention I was 40 weeks pregnant with my third child?  At any rate, I spent a very hot Thursday baking a triple batch of these, and delivered my son the next morning.  They proved to be delicious and easy for many meals in the coming weeks.

I make them every couple of months and keep them around.  I made another large batch before my fourth was born, although I planned ahead and did it a month in advance.  They can be used for a variety of sandwiches, baked into chips, or our favorite, pita pizzas.

Quick Beef and Potatoes

If, despite my meal planning, the answer to “What’s for dinner?” is “I don’t know,” this will probably be the selection.  It’s simple, it’s fast, and everyone likes it.  We vary how we cut up the potatoes (they’re crispier if they’re cubed, which my husband prefers) and what vegetable we serve on the side.  Here, it’s garlic green beans.

Taco Seasoning

This is super versatile because it can be used for so many things.  We usually use it on ground beef to make taco salad.  But, I might cook chicken with it and then shred for chicken taco salad (since we don’t do corn and I don’t make tortillas as often as I’d like, salad is our typical form of tacos). I also use it to easily season taco soup or chicken chili.  I make up a big batch at once and keep it in the pantry.

Cheesy Potatoes

Two family members (including my husband) don’t like this.  The boys and I love it, and so do many visitors.  I used to eat a canned-soup version of this as a kid, but this one is way better.  It was one of my first “reverse engineered” junk food to real food dishes.  I like to make a big pan of it and reheat during the week for lunches.  It’s even better in the summer time as a popular barbecue accompaniment.

Fried Chicken 

Some of form of fried chicken makes it onto our menu every few weeks.  We typically fry in coconut oil, so it’s very healthy.  We make chicken nuggets, strips, sandwiches, chicken parmesan, and more.  It’s always a family favorite.  I also like to do the nuggets and freeze on trays breaded but uncooked.  Once frozen, I scoop them into bags and fry as needed for quick meals.

Soaked Apple Crisp

This is often our go-to breakfast on busy mornings.  Everyone loves it.  I can run to the kitchen, spend five minutes putting it together, and run back upstairs to get a shower and get everyone dressed.  When we’re done, breakfast is ready!  It’s also a very frugal use of seasonal apples and oats.  If we have any, we serve with real whipped cream.

Scrambled Hamburger

Another answer to “I don’t know what’s for dinner” is this.  My grandmother used to make it.  It’s a really filling, frugal meal that’s based around mashed potatoes and ground beef with homemade gravy.  It uses stock, so it’s rich and nourishing.  It’s also really quick to make, coming together in about 20 minutes.  And again, everyone likes it!

Mexican Rice

Yet another “I don’t know what to make” answer!  Because of the brown rice, it takes a bit longer to cook, but needs no babysitting.  It’s simply rice with taco seasoning and a few other additions, plus beef.  People can add salsa, cheese, and other toppings as desired.  Sometimes we add lettuce and other veggies to make it part of our salads.  Very versatile, cheap, and yummy!

Seasoned Fries

Finally, the seasoned fries.  A common side dish for things like burgers (which we have more often in the summer) are these.  They’re oven-baked, so they don’t require much work or tending.  They are delicious, too.  And easy.

What are your favorite meals?

**This post has been entered into Pinterest Party and Features, Show & Tell #27, Catch a Glimpse Party #132, Think Tank Thursday #31, and Thursday’s Temptation #65.

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Raising Locally-Minded Kids

Photo Credit: kali.ma via Compfight cc

Photo Credit: kali.ma via Compfight cc

By Sara Baker, Contributing Writer

Local Trends

There has been a big (and well-deserved) push lately to buy, eat and give locally. Having a heart for local food, issues, and business is tremendously important. We can do so much for our local communities, and benefit from them ourselves! But where do our children fit in to all of this?

They should be right there beside us!

How else will they learn what questions to ask their farmer, how to preserve the harvest, that picking up local spring water and raw milk is a normal lifestyle? They won’t learn it from anyone but us.

Learning From Parents

In the home I grew up in, driving 30 minutes to get spring water once every week or so was completely normal. In fact, I didn’t realize that a lot of what my parents did was “against the grain” until I married my husband (who was raised in the standard American home). When he questioned why in the world we would go to so much trouble (even though it really wasn’t) to get water when we could just turn on the tap to fill a glass, and other questions of that nature, I began to realize how different we were.

I say this because living locally and naturally as possible wasn’t strange to me as a kid. We went with my parents when they got spring water. We helped dry off the 5 gallon jugs and screw lids on. We took drinks of the fresh spring water straight from the source. I saw how excited my Dad was to find local eggs or honey. My parents took us with them to pick up food co-op boxes and bags…we would even help unload the truck! It was a family affair, and to us, it was normal…most times even fun!

This is what we should aim for in our children. Eating and buying locally should be normal for them not because they were taught, but because they were included.

How to Include Your Children

Include your children, even in activities that seem insignificant to you. Small children can tag along for food or dairy pick-ups or go to the farmer’s market, help wash produce, and clean jars for jam. Also, talk with your young children! Do not withhold because you think they will not understand! While working, explain where the food came from and why you are thankful for hardworking hands to grow it for you. Children understand so much more than we give them credit for, and the least they will take out of the conversation is your gratitude for good food.

Older children can do all of these, too, and more. They can make phone calls for you, place orders, and help you manage the kitchen. An older child can even go so far as to help out a farmer for a day, or a short time (if your farmer is so inclined). You may benefit from a little produce or dairy…but what your child learns will be with them for a lifetime. Eating and buying locally is about more than the health benefits, and now is the perfect time to teach them that.

Why Bother?

Why go through the trouble of lugging your kids with you to the farmer’s market when they can just stay home with Daddy? Why bother taking them to the spring when you can go in peace and quiet?

Because eating and buying locally is a lifestyle…and lifestyle is a family affair. The world will teach them that buying a pizza from the chain-hut down the road is fine and dandy for any meal we please, and it is up to us to teach them otherwise.

How do you raise locally-minded kids?

**This post has been entered at Homemaking Link-Up, Encourage One Another Wednesday, Wise Woman Link Up, Welcome Home Wednesday, Whole Foods Wednesday, What We Wore, Read, and Made, What I Learned Wednesday and Frugal Days, Sustainable Ways #73.**

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Wise Choice and Redmond Clay Giveaway Winners!

Wise Choice Market

Today we get to announce the winners for our most recent two giveaways!

Wise Choice Winner

If you haven’t seen my product reviews, check them out here.  At Wise Choice Market, you’ll find real bone broth, soaked nut butters and cereals, coconut ice cream, Honest potato chips, and lot more traditional, healthy food!  (And if you place an order, let me know what you think!)

Our winner is:

  • lilyanns@…

Redmond Clay Winners

Our other giveaway was from Redmond Clay.  I just love this company and all their products.  I just placed an order for Earthpaste and Real Salt last week…and remembered I have some bath salts calling my name someday soon. :)

  • alisamoyer@…
  • cristionaeilis@…

Congratulations to all our winners!

Featured Book

While I have you here, I want to take a minute to tell you about this month’s Featured Book.  If you’re new, every month we have one of our 8 books that is Featured.  Normally our books cost $7.95 – $8.95.  The Featured Book costs just $5 all month long, with no coupon code necessary.

This month’s Featured Book is Against the Grain.  If you’re on a grain-free or gluten-free diet, are looking to reduce the grain in your family’s diet, or are on SCD or GAPS, this book is perfect for you.  You’ll find main-dish meals like chicken in sundried-tomato cream sauce, sausage and peppers with spaghetti squash, garlic-rubbed pork chops, salisbury steak (we have this one a lot!) and more.  Plus sides, soups, and even breads and desserts — all totally grain-free!  Learn to make my white bean chocolate cake, stuffed pepper soup, baked beans, chocolate chip bread, banana pancakes, and lots more!  Only through the end of May…so don’t miss it!

Which giveaway was your favorite?  What giveaways would you like to see in the future?

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Road Trip Through History: 3 Tips for Making History Come Alive

roadtrip

By Jessica Peterman, Contributing Writer

Turn a day trip into a history lesson they won’t forget!

I was never much of a history student. The text books were dry; my teachers were dry. So as I teach this subject to my kids, I feel like I’m learning everything for the first time. And I’ll confess, sometimes it’s still a little dry. Or it feels like they’re not remembering much.

Until we go for a drive with their father. My husband is the history guru in the family. And not just national or global history. Somehow, no matter where we travel here in north central West Virginia, he knows something about the mill that used to be on that river bank, the coal camps in a now deserted little town or the story of how a bridge got its name. It’s become routine for us. We stop to read historic markers and tour just about every little museum we pass.

These are the history lessons my kids don’t even realize they’re learning. It’s hands on, living. They can see and smell and literally walk through the past and discover life in another time. Even I’m enjoying history now!

But what if you don’t know anything about your local history?

No worries. Whether you’ve just started to gain an interest in the subject, or you’re new to an area, it’s not hard to get your whole family started on this adventure.

Monongahela_National_Forest_-_Laurel_Fork_Wilderness_Sign

Image by wikimedia

1. National and State Parks

Just about everyone is within a short drive to either a national or state park. And in many cases, you can find a ranger or park employee that can point you to historic sites within the park. Check out the brochures in the gift shops. (My daughter keeps a collection of these from every place we visit.) And keep your eyes peeled for those historic marker plaques.

Not sure where the parks are in your area? Here’s two good online resources to get you started:

There are also National Historic Parks within the national park system. You can find a whole list here.

valley furnace

2. History in Your Hometown

You might not have to go as far as you think to find interesting history in your area. In my county, we have the birthplace of Stonewall Jackson, historic covered bridges, buildings and homes used in the underground railroad and prohibition, and an Indian cave. All these places are within 30 minutes of my house. And I bet your area is just as rich with history.

If you’re not sure what treasures are hiding in your town or county, contact city hall, your parks and recreation department, or the visitor’s bureau.

For more historic sites in your area, check out the National Register of Historic Places. Just type in the location you’re interested in and this handy site will give you a listing of all the places of interest in your neck of the woods. Or, use this resource to pre-plan a few stops while you’re en route to grandma’s, camping, or any other road trip on the agenda.

Image by The Valley Gazette

3. Festivals and Reenactments

Being that this year marks the 150th anniversary of the Civil War (and the birth of my state) there are bound to be Civil War reenactments and other related events all over the place. To see if there are any in your area, check out CivilWarTraveler.com.

And beyond the Civil War, most states host other historic festivals, like Pioneer Days, railroad festivals, and craft festivals with a look into long forgotten trades like blacksmithing. In most cases, these events have passionate guides, eager to give your family a glimpse of the past. Not a dry teacher among them.

There is great value in remembering the past.

Teach your children the older, simpler ways of life. Let them know about the hard work, dedication and sacrifice of those who came before them. Foster in them an appreciation of the freedoms and privileges that so many take for granted.

This is what the Lord says, “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” –Jeremiah 6:16

What historical treasures are hiding in your backyard? Any tips to make history come alive for your kids?

**This post has been entered into One Project at a Time, Tuesdays Treasures #135, Anti-Procrastination Tuesday, Titus 2sday, Teach Me Tuesday, Take-A-Look Tuesday.**

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Monday Health & Wellness: What Makes a True “Environmentally Friendly” Diet?

Image by sweetonveg

This month, we’re talking “local.”  One part of local is food!  And with food comes the big question…”what is an environmentally friendly diet?”

I get lots of readers who tell me that I ought to only be promoting the “right” diet.  Of course, what the “right” diet is varies depending on which reader is talking to me — it might be paleo, vegan, vegetarian, locavore, gluten-free, and on and on.

In general, we don’t promote one of these diets as being “the” right one.  People are simply too different and their needs are too different for us to tell you what you must eat.  We do promote only real food, though!  We understand and most of us follow the 80/20 rule ourselves, but you’ll never hear us say that factory-made products are healthy and should be used instead of unprocessed, whole foods.  It’s a balancing act and we all need a treat, but we understand that certain choices are just that — treats.

Anyway, since so many people claim that one diet or another is the “best” and one reason for that is that certain diets are “the most environmentally friendly,” I thought I’d look into that.  Is there one diet that’s actually ideal for the environment?

What Does “Environmentally Friendly” Mean?

First we have to know what we mean by “environmentally friendly.”  In this case, it means:

  • Has neutral or beneficial effect on the environment during production
  • Minimizes or eliminates production of methane or carbon dioxide
  • Minimizes waste
  • Minimizes use of synthetic fertilizers or pesticides naturally

We can already see that organic agriculture is going to be better than conventional.  Let’s look further at what really makes up an environmentally friendly diet.

What Is an “Environmentally Friendly” Diet?

Most conventional farming relies heavily on “monocropping,” which is the practice of growing large fields of the same crop alone (usually corn and soy).  But “intercropping,” the practice of growing alternating rows of two different crops, can increase yields by 25% or more, and decrease the need for pesticide or herbicide use, as well as decreasing soil erosion.  It also happens to be better for the farmer, who, in a poor year, could lose one crop, but not all the crops.  Diversifying is beneficial all the way around.  (More on the benefits of polycropping.)

Monocropping has several other drawbacks, including requiring heavy use of pesticides and herbicides, polluting the water, creating famines, less biodiversity in the seeds/crops (including loss of heirloom varieties), destroying rain forests and other important parts of the environment and many more.  In no way does monocropping fit our definition of “environmentally friendly;” quite the opposite!

This study shows that polycropping led to increased yields and were more profitable for farmers.  Another study shows that despite spending $30 billion per year on insecticides, about 43% of the world’s top 8 crops are lost due to insects, disease, or weeds.  Yet another study shows that although 2.5 million pounds of pesticides are used annually, about 40% of total crop production is lost.  This study also shows that when insects become resistant to herbicides, GM crops require increased pesticide use with no greater yields.

We know from all this data that fruits and vegetables raised in a polycropping system are part of an environmentally friendly diet.

Local food is important, too.  When food is transported around the world, it increases the use of fossil fuels to ship it.  In general, local foods will have a smaller environmental impact, unless they were grown with the use of pesticides, in a monocropping style, or inside a greenhouse that required an electrical system (in which case, food that is less local may be a better option).

What About Animals?

Many object to the consumption of animals, stating that raising them is not environmentally friendly.  Others say it’s fine, if production is pastured and not CAFO-style (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation).  What is the truth?

Animals raised in CAFOs produce an estimated 860,000 pounds of manure per day.  This manure is considered toxic and can have significant negative effects on the water and soil in the area.  These animals also require large amounts of monocropped corn and soy for their feed, which is often grown far away and shipped in.  This report concludes that CAFOs are simply unsustainable, long-term.  CAFOs have led to the need for prophylactic antibiotic use (“preventative” in their feed), arsenic in feed, and other chemicals to control disease.  These chemicals, as well as any pesticides in their feed, may be present in the meat.  CAFOs are responsible for about 9% of the total CO2 emissions.

In contrast, animals raised on pasture are healthier.  Their manure is less likely to contain E. Coli or salmonella, and the manure can be used safely to fertilize fields.  In practice, looking at Joel Salatin’s system, raising animals and a variety of crops together creates a so-called “closed system,” where animals eat food scraps and their manure is used to fertilize the fields effectively, which has allowed a large amount of food production on a smaller area of land, along with negating the use of commercial fertilizers.

What we can learn is that we don’t have to give up on animal foods; we simply need to source them from local, pastured-based farms.

Image by summertomato

What If There are No Local Sources?

This gets complicated and everyone will have a different answer.  Some say that ideally, you only eat what is local to you, 90 – 100% of the time.  Others say there are so many great health benefits to foods like seafood, coconut oil, etc. that are simply not local to most people and you should order these.

While ordering foods does increase the carbon footprint, I think it’s okay to order a percentage of your food for the health benefits.  We personally do buy fish about once a week, coconut oil, almond flour, and some other things that are not local to us.  The bulk of what we eat, we try to buy locally (meat, eggs, milk, some produce especially in season, and produce for preserving).  Everyone is going to have a different comfort level about eating locally and seasonally.

The Bottom Line

Our “ideal” environmentally-friendly diet is going to depend on what our needs are, and what is available in our area.  Those living in coastal regions may rely more heavily on fish, while those inland may not have much access.  Sourcing food from local producers that don’t spray, but instead use an integrated farming system and sell locally and freshly-picked is going to be ideal.  The long-range implications of the entire large-scale food industry are astronomical and very poor in nature.

Even better is to raise your own.  Having a backyard flock of chickens and a pig or two, plus a large and diverse garden, is going to be the most environmentally-friendly.

It’s also important, in the kitchen, to use up everything.  Animal bones can be used to make stock.  Veggie scraps can be composted or fed to chickens or pigs.  There is a way to use everything!  I hope to discover this first-hand when we move to a farm in a few months (I hope, I hope).

And you know what?  We don’t need to fight over the “perfect” diet.  There is no perfect diet.  What works for you may not work for another.  Don’t preach that everyone should avoid wheat, or gluten, or meat, or dairy, or anything else.  If that works for you, that’s great.  But don’t mistake it for “the” answer.  Everyone’s needs are different and there are many factors that go into it.  Remember that when you are eager to share what has helped you!

What do you consider an “environmentally friendly” diet?

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