Baking Bread with Kids

Last week I discovered a bread recipe that claimed to be super easy- Amish White Bread.  I happened to have all the ingredients and set out to make a loaf.  I took all the ingredients to work with me.  While the baby took his morning nap, and the oldest was away at school, the three year old and I got our hands dirty.  J loves to "help".  Sometimes I will fill the sink up with soapy water and give him some plastic dishes to "wash".  I love watching him as he feels so accomplished when he is finished helping.  High fives are dished out all around.  Needless to say, he is an awesome bread making helper.  I would measure the ingredients and he would dump them in the bowl.  Yes, flour ends up on the counter and the floor too but it is worth the extra clean up.  J loved kneading the bread with me.  He helped oil the bread pans too.  This is not something we could have done if the baby wasn't sleeping.  I loved watching the dough rise and eventually turn into bread. We immediately sliced the loaf up and tasted it.  Yum!  The recipe made two loaves so I took one home for Hubby and I and left one for Family Z to enjoy.  I will definitely be repeating this recipe as it was easy and delicious. 
  This morning I sliced off a piece and had toast with jam that my mom and grandma made.  Love!

Apple Cider Press

We found this apple cider press on craigslist and snatched it up!  It needed a mesh bag and everywhere I looked online was sold out.  I ended up buying a mesh laundry bag from Target and it worked perfectly.  And it was only $3.  So hubby and I bought some 2nd grade apples from the orchard nearby to test out the press.

We ended up getting carried away and pressed 1.5 bushels of apples.  That turned into 11 quarts of canned apple juice. 

Now that we know the press works we will try and make cider this fall when there is more of a variety of apples available.  I am not sure if our trees will produce this year but if so we will definitely be pressing or canning them!

By The Light of The...Lamp!

We are constantly looking for ways to be more self reliant.  Last year we had a power outage for a few days and we learned just how unprepared we are for a disaster.  I am always looking for items at goodwill that would help us be more prepared in the future.  A couple weeks ago I found an oil lamp for just a few dollars.  I know you can buy these new, but our budget doesn't allow that.  I immediately grabbed the lamp and checked it out.  The dial to turn the wick worked smoothly and I was super pleased.  Now we have two oil lamps and they have been sitting on the table as decorations.  You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find the oil for the lamps in a store.  I contemplated buying oil from Amazon but figured I would hold off for a while.  Last weekend I was in Lancaster, home to the Amish.  I stopped in at a general store and what do you know?  They had the lamp oil!  I bought enough to fill our lamps for the time being.  I want to research and find the cheapest source (or a diy version?) before I stock up.  At least now we are ready for a power outage, and its kinda romantic don't you think? 

Do you have experience with oil lamps?  How would/do you get light during a long power outage?

Garden Love

I believe that gardens can almost have personalities.  They are picky like children.  One year they like one veggie, and they might hate it the next.  Our first year gardening we were giving away squash and zucchini.  Last year we had a surplus of peppers.  This year is too early to tell, but so far our garden loves lettuce (and weeds).  We have been harvesting lettuce for salads, along with spinach.  I made a pizza using spinach, basil and asparagus from our garden.  The asparagus is so fun because one day its not there, and the next day its a foot tall.
  I am always amazed at things we can produce ourselves.  With some dirt, some seeds and a whole lotta love, we can produce food to eat.  Just knowing that the food on the table is because of me gives me so much pleasure.  I always tend to over order seeds, and someday I hope to have a system down for ordering and planting.  But I would rather order too many seeds for my garden than none.  This week we planted pumpkin, zucchini, gourds, squash, cucumbers, peas, tomatoes and probably more I forgot about.  Our garden is not just in garden beds, but in containers on the deck, and anywhere I can squeeze them in.  I planted chamomile to hopefully make tea later, and rosemary for my favorite rosemary chicken.  I planted the requisite basil and parsley. We have oregano, rhubarb, lemon balm and asparagus returning from previous years.  I love my garden!  Someday I hope to produce all the veggies we need for an entire year, but for now I am still figuring out what exactly my garden likes.  How about you?