Where Does The Time Go? + Onions, Bananas, & Soup

I cannot believe that it has been well over a month since I last blogged.  The time has just flown by. You know "LIFE" it sometimes has a way of throwing us a few curve balls along with the normal everyday workings.

We are preparing for our daughters Senior Prom and Graduation. It is so hard to believe that my baby girl is graduating high school. She has surely grown up to be a beautiful young lady. I am so proud of here.

On another note....Spring is right around the corner...One of my favorite seasons of the year. With the coming Spring time comes the flowers in bloom. We have daffodils already in bursting forth and showing they beauty. Soon the Iris, Daylilies and Dogwood will be bursting forth.

Veggie Soup

Then comes the garden...fresh fruit and veggies. Woo who...I can't wait. Even though I can all year round, I just love the burst of adrenaline that comes with a garden for the " stocking of the larder" as the veggies and fruit ripen.

Speaking of canning, this afternoon I made a huge pot of veggie soup consisting of: spinach, mushrooms, tomatoes, cabbage, onions, homemade chicken broth, and spices. I cooked it until it was about 3/4 of the way done, then ladled it up into hot sterile quart jars and pressured canned. Now I have lots of wonderful home canned soup ready to 'heat -n- serve'.

Onions in Freezer

I also had a whole lot of bananas, so I made 16 dozen Banana Oatmeal Cookies. I would have made more but ran out of oatmeal. Will have to get more from the store tomorrow. Of course, we ate some, then we froze some for later. I still had bananas that needed processing, so I made up a batch of 'Banana Nut Bread Jam'.  But, still had bananas....I guess more jam and cookies are in my future for tomorrow. (Jam Recipe Below)

I also chopped up about 10 pounds of onions. Sorted into freezer bags and placed in the freezer. I haven't found a good way to can them, except to caramelize them. Caramelizing them takes a lot of time, butter, and onions. The end product is excellent, but reduces to about 1/8 of what you started with. So, I just peel, chop, and freeze.

Banana Nut Bread Jam

Banana Nut Bread Jam

3 Cup of pureed bananas (I like mine a little chunky)
2 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 1/2 cups walnuts, minced (some like the nuts toasted)
1 package powered pectin
1 Teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon nutmeg
4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar

Mix bananas, nuts, lemon juice, spices and powered pectin in large heavy bottomed pot. Stir constantly while bringing to a full boil. (Watch carefully as mixture is thick and will scorch on bottom if not stirring) Add sugars all at once. Stirring continuously. Heat until brought back to a full boil. boil hard for 1 minute. Ladle jam into jars leaving a 1/4 inch headspace. Process in a BWB for 10 minutes. Adjusting time for altitude. Makes 6 half pints or 3 pints.

So what have you all been doing lately in the kitchen? Canning, Baking, Freezing?
In the craft room? Sewing, quilting, crocheting, etc.?
In the garden? Prepping, pruning, or planting?

Tuesday Tip: Cinnamon and Honey

   I received an email this week from someone that gave all kinds of wonderful benefits of consuming the combination of Honey and Cinnamon. I thought I would share them with you all here on this Tuesday Tip.

   I did do a little research and it seems that this is nothing new. Most of the sites that I found were of foreign countries that have been using this combination for centuries. 

   I do say that if something this natural and healthy has this many benefits than we should be using it more often. I would however recommend that you use the honey in its purest form. Meaning don't buy it pasteurized. Get RAW honey and preferably get it where is comes from your general area, not half way around the county. Doing this also has its own benefits, by helping with allergies and pollen within your region.

   I will forewarn you that this is a long post, but I do hope that you will find it beneficial. I have resorted to start consuming more honey and cinnamon. I think I will make the "tea". Enjoy.

Honey
Honey is the only food on the planet that will not spoil or rot. It will do what some call turning to sugar. In reality honey is always honey. However, when left in a cool dark place for a long time it will do what I rather call "crystallizing".   When this happens loosen the lid, boil some water, and sit the honey container in the hot water, after turning off the heat and let it liquefy. It is then as good as it ever was. Never boil honey or put it in a microwave. To do so will kill the enzymes in the honey.

Cinnamon and Honey
Bet the drug companies won't like this one getting around.  Facts on Honey and Cinnamon:  It is found that a mixture of Honey and Cinnamon cures most diseases. Honey is produced in most of the countries of the world. Scientists of today also accept honey as a 'Ram Ban' (very effective) medicine for all kinds of diseases.  Honey can be used without any side effects for any kind of diseases.

Today's science says that even though honey is sweet, if taken in the right dosage as a medicine, it does not harm diabetic patients. Weekly World News, a magazine in Canada , in its issue dated 17 January,1995 has given the following list of diseases that can be cured by honey and cinnamon as researched by western scientists:

HEART DISEASES:
Make a paste of honey and cinnamon powder, apply on bread, instead of jelly and jam, and eat it regularly for breakfast. It reduces the cholesterol in the arteries and saves the patient from heart attack.  Also, those who have already had an attack, if they do this process daily, they are kept miles away from the next attack. Regular use of the above process relieves loss of breath and strengthens the heart beat.  In America and Canada , various nursing homes have treated patients successfully and have found that as you age, the arteries and veins lose their flexibility and get clogged; honey and cinnamon revitalize the arteries and veins.

ARTHRITIS:
Arthritis patients may take daily, morning and night, one cup of hot water with two spoons of honey and one small teaspoon of cinnamon powder. If taken regularly even chronic arthritis can be cured. In a recent research conducted at the Copenhagen University, it was found that when the
doctors treated their patients with a mixture of one tablespoon Honey and half teaspoon Cinnamon powder before breakfast, they found that within a week, out of the 200 people so treated, practically 73 patients were totally relieved of pain, and within a month, mostly all the patients who could not walk or move around because of arthritis started walking without pain.

BLADDER INFECTIONS:
Take two tablespoons of cinnamon powder and one teaspoon of honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink it. It destroys the germs in the bladder.

CHOLESTEROL:
Two tablespoons of honey and three teaspoons of Cinnamon Powder mixed in 16 ounces of tea water, given to a cholesterol patient, was found to reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood by 10 percent within two hours.   As mentioned for arthritic patients, if taken three
times a day, any chronic cholesterol is cured. According to information received in the said Journal, pure honey taken with food daily relieves complaints of cholesterol.

COLDS:
Those suffering from common or severe colds should take one tablespoon lukewarm honey with 1/4 spoon cinnamon powder daily for three days. This process will cure most chronic cough, cold, and clear the sinuses.

UPSET STOMACH:
Honey taken with cinnamon powder cures stomach ache and also clears stomach ulcers from the root..

GAS:
According to the studies done in India and Japan , it is revealed that if Honey is taken with cinnamon powder the stomach is relieved of gas.

IMMUNE SYSTEM:
Daily use of honey and cinnamon powder strengthens the immune system and protects the body from bacteria and viral attacks. Scientists have found that honey has various vitamins and iron in large amounts. Constant use of Honey strengthens the white blood corpuscles to fight bacterial and viral diseases.

INDIGESTION:
Cinnamon powder sprinkled on two tablespoons of honey taken before food relieves acidity and digests the heaviest of meals.

INFLUENZA:
A scientist in Spain has proved that honey contains a natural ' Ingredient' which kills the influenza germs and saves the patient from flu.

LONGEVITY:
Tea made with honey and cinnamon powder, when taken regularly, arrests the ravages of old age.. Take four spoons of honey, one spoon of cinnamon powder, and three cups of water and boil to make like tea. Drink 1/4 cup, three to four times a day. It keeps the skin fresh and soft and arrests old age. Life spans also increase and even a 100 year old, starts performing the chores of a 20-year-old.

PIMPLES:
Three tablespoons of honey and one teaspoon of cinnamon powder paste. Apply this paste on the pimples before sleeping and wash it next morning with warm water. If done daily for two weeks, it removes pimples from the root.

SKIN INFECTIONS:
Applying honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts on the affected parts cures eczema, ringworm and all types of skin infections.

WEIGHT LOSS:
Daily in the morning one half hour before breakfast on an empty stomach, and at night before sleeping, drink honey and cinnamon powder boiled in one cup of water. If taken regularly, it reduces the weight of even the most obese person. Also, drinking this mixture regularly does not allow the fat to accumulate in the body even though the person may eat a high calorie diet.

CANCER:
Recent research in Japan and Australia has revealed that advanced cancer of the stomach and bones have been cured successfully. Patients suffering from these kinds of cancer should daily take one tablespoon of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder for one month three times a day.

FATIGUE:
Recent studies have shown that the sugar content of honey is more helpful rather than being detrimental to the strength of the body. Senior citizens, who take honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts, are more alert and flexible. Dr.. Milton, who has done research, says that a half tablespoon of honey taken in a glass of water and
sprinkled with cinnamon powder, taken daily after brushing and in the afternoon at about 3:00 P.M. when the vitality of the body starts to decrease, increases the vitality of the body within a week.

BAD BREATH:
People of South America , first thing in the morning, gargle with one teaspoon of honey and cinnamon powder mixed in hot water, so their breath stays fresh throughout the day.

HEARING LOSS:
Daily morning and night honey and cinnamon powder, taken in equal parts restores hearing. Remember when we were kids? We had toast with real butter and cinnamon sprinkled on it!


Who Knew That This Combo Could Do So Much For The Body?

Normalcy, PLEASE Return!!!!

     It has been a very long time since I have seen snow and ice last this long, six days, here in Arkansas. I am talking 30 + years. And the weatherman is telling us that more is coming in the next couple of days.
     Being from the South, if it snows one day it is usually pretty much melted and gone the next. I do believe that Arkansas has switched places with Alaska this last week. At least, it feels and looks as if it has.
     Our roads out where we live are still covered in all the ice and snow. And as some of it is s-l-o-w-l-y melting during the day, when the temp drops in the evening it all turns back to ice. Slick and dangerous, ice.
     Being snow bound is not the "norm" for us Arkansas folks. After nearly a week of being confined at home, everyone is getting antsy. People are trying to venture out to the store or restaurant, because they feel so cooped up or they didn't prepare well and are running out of supplies. This in and of itself is causing more vehicle accidents now than when is was really bad those first few days. Since Arkansas generally doesn't get this type of really bad weather much, it causes havok. Especially, since people have a hard time adjusting to: road conditions, being home more, spending time with family, or just slowing down in general (cause you can't move fast in this stuff or you will wish you hadn't).
     Even at my own home I see my own family "biting at the bits" to get out of the house. I keep telling them that there are plenty of things that they can do; clean a closet, organize a book shelf, catch up on laundry, or 'spring' clean the kitchen. But no one seems to want to take me up on any of the offers.
     If I would have had all this time off from work, I think I would have been able to accomplish some of our family resolutions. One being to "rid ourselves of stuff". I would have loved the opportunity to get into the "black hole" of a closet and purge some stuff. But I did not and could not, as I work from home (for the most part). Thus, I had no excuses as to not get to work. Especially, since my compute was from one room to the next. I did get a lot accomplished this week though in the administrative area of my job, but it sure put a damper on being able to get out to do the rest of it.
     Though I have enjoyed the time at home with my family, I find myself out of the normal routine of things, which gets everything out of whack. I will be glad when everything gets back to "NORMAL". Whatever that is.

Canning Inexpensively

I home can foods a lot. There is no denying it. If you were to see my pantry, it is mostly jars of food not cans of food. I enjoy canning and have been doing it for quite a few years now. But what if you want to learn or start canning more often, how do you get started?

I would recommend that you start s-l-o-w-l-y and do only one simple item/recipe at a time. Start with canning tomatoes or jam. These are easy, meaning; they don't require a lot of equipment or processing, the jars can be sealed using "Boil Bath Method", and you will have successful products. Which is important, because you want to like what you preserve and have gratification and satisfaction in an accomplishment well done.

Now canning is not as expensive as it might seem, if you plan, watch, be organized, and follow a few simple things.

1. If you start with canning "high acid" items that can be sealed using the Boil bath Method, then you can use a deep stock pot that you already have. As long as, there is at least 2 to 3 inches of room above the jars to the rim of the rim of the pot. This is so that you will have enough room for at least 1 inch of water above the jars and space for the water to boil without spilling over.

2. Watch for canning jars at thrift stores, yard sales, tag sales, flea markets, craigs list, local newspaper, etc. I am always picking up a jar here and there. Before you know it you will have several dozen. I have target prices that I try to limit myself too for different jar sizes. Quart size .75 cents or less each and pint and half-pint sizes .50 cents or less each. Just make sure and check that there are no nicks on the top of the jar or the lids will not seal.

3. Each year, early Summer and late Fall, the Sunday newspaper will usually have a coupon for $x.xx amount off 2 cases of Ball/Kerr canning jars. This is a great deal, since it brings your cost down to right around my target price for used jars and you get the band and a lid.

4. Check out your local discount stores for jars, lids, and bands. Some stores that I frequent are Fred's, Dollar General, and Wal-Mart. I recently found standard lids at Fred's for $1.00 box/12. Wal-marts price is about $1.50+ a box. So, I brought home 20 boxes, They are an off brand, but I have had no trouble with them not sealing.

5. Plan to continue canning. This is an investment, not just a passing fling. You will get the most for you money if you use and reuse your jars and equipment. One of my pressure canners was my grandmothers. So there was no investment in it by me, except to have pressure gauge checked periodically. I also have jars that are 20+ years old still in use. You have to be careful with how you store them when they are empty, so as not to chip the rim. Other than that, good jars will last a long time.

I do hope this gives you some ways to begin or expand you home canning endeavor. Just remember, start slow and simple, otherwise you might give up to soon. Keep you thoughts to how wonderful home canned food tastes. It is so much tastier than store tinned. And the benefits of having food items without all the added preservatives and chemicals, especially if you use organic fruits and veggies.

Happy Canning!

SERINA