Saving soup stock/broth

So Husband made a couple of turkeys the other night, so we put the bones and legs and such in the refrigerator, then yesterday while I was at work he put them on the stove in my big stock pot with water, 1 onion and spices. Last night we put the cool pot in the refrigerator, then this morning, I strained out the meat/bones-

I will use the meat for soup tonight- and froze the stock for later use.

I like to use these little flavor cubes for flavoring other meals, making gravies, etc.

I also do the same thing with those 10# cans of nacho cheese. That way my son can make casadillas any time he wants--am fairly certain that kid could live on them :)

8th night of Hanukkah

Handsome Hubby made two large turkey in the turkey frier....

We fried up Latkes...

....And the kids got to open their Hanukkah presents from Memere and Papa,

and Uncle Rick and Aunt Dana! 

  

~THEN Little Pumpkin colored on the carpet with crayon and tried to hide it with her new slippers!~

Restaurant Style Buffalo Wings!

Oh. My. Gosh! These are SO incredibly awesome!

I used regular chicken legs, instead of wings. Again, got the recipe from AllRecipes.com.

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

10 chicken wings

oil for deep frying

1/4 cup butter

1/4 cup hot sauce I used Franks-I got 6 of them free last summer with coupons.

1 dash ground black pepper

1 dash garlic powder

Directions

1. In a small bowl mix together the flour, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt. Place chicken wings in a large nonporous glass dish or bowl and sprinkle flour mixture over them until they are evenly coated. Cover dish or bowl and refrigerate for 60 to 90 minutes. Make sure you let them sit-this makes the coating stick.
2. Heat oil in a deep fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). The oil should be just enough to cover wings entirely, an inch or so deep. Combine the butter, hot sauce, pepper and garlic powder in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir together and heat until butter is melted and mixture is well blended. Remove from heat and reserve for serving. I cooked mine in the oven at 350 for about 1 hour since I used chicken legs. I put some butter in the baking dish-using a paper towel and turned them half way through. I used F

1. Fry coated wings in hot oil for 10 to 15 minutes, or until parts of wings begin to turn brown. Remove from heat, place wings in serving bowl, add hot sauce mixture and stir together. Serve.

I think next time I will cut up some chicken breasts for "boneless wings." They taste just like the expensive restaurant wings! Enjoy!


Forgot to take a pic of the finished product.....sorry!

Home Made Donuts

So for Hanukkah I wanted to make some home made jelly filled donuts, so I went online to AllRecipes.com and found a recipe and tried it.

We used the jelly we made this summer: raspberry, peach, chokecherry and cherry pomegranate! Way better than store bought jelly!

I mixed up the dough with my Kitchen Aid:

1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

1/3 cup water

1 egg, beaten

3 tablespoons margarine, melted

3/4 cup white sugar

4 1/2 cups bread flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg

1 tablespoon active dry yeast

The nutmeg makes it look so beautiful.

I then rolled out the dough to 1/4 inch thickness and used canning rings to make circles.

Handsome Husband put 1/2 tsp. of our home made jelly and matched up the circles with water for glue.

I then let them rise for 45 minutes and fried in my french fryer for 2-3 minutes on 375 (I think next time I will turn it down some, as these turned out a little 'doughy') making sure I turned them halfway through.

I then put them on a towel to drain and HH sprinkled powdered sugar on some and a cinnamon/sugar mixture on the rest.

My daughter "the artist" took the left over dough and rolled some donut holes, I did those last and they got sprinkled too!

It was our first time making homemade donuts and they turned out pretty tasty! I think next time I will make a glaze and drizzle some on them.

"The Artist"

 My oldest daughter "The Artist" made these pictures. She used some pieces of wood and made a mixed media work of art.

She is always making something in her art room, she LOVES to create. She sews, uses clay, paints, pretty much anything she can get her hands on....I will post more of her works of art.  She is only 12 by the way! Amazing talent!

A Quick Water Bowl for Dog Walkers

Pick up an inexpensive plastic shower cap (or save a free one from a hotel) to use as a portable pet water dish. Stick it in your pocket when walking your dog, and when needed, pull it out and fill it from a water bottle or the nearest faucet or water fountain.

Happy Hanukkah!

Hanukkah (also known as The Festival of Lights and The Feast of Dedication) is an eight day annual festival honoring the restoration of divine worship in the Holy Temple after it had been defiled. It starts on the twenty-fifth of Kislev-usually around early to mid December. The story of Hanukkah is found in the Talmud and the Book of Maccabees.

Around 164 B.C., the Maccabees, led by Judah Maccabee took back Judea from the rule of the Seleucids-Syrian rulers. Hanukkah commemorates the recapture of Jerusalem and the re-establishment of the temple. The temple had been defiled by Antiochus IV Epiphanes, the King of Syria.

The Jews cleaned out the temple idols, but only found a small amount of oil....there was only enough oil to light the temple Menorah for one day. They decided to use the small amount of oil to light the Menorah and to everyone's amazement a miracle occurred and the Menorah burned for eight days until they were able to get new oil!

So each year we celebrate Hanukkah by lighting one candle each night on our Hanukkiah. We also play the traditional Dreidel game and this year we have new Dreidels made by our friend from Sukkot! Each of them are hand crafted by a young girl we know-she does a wonderful job!

This one is mine....reminds me of the earth....and I love the color blue!

This one belongs to my oldest daughter "the artist." She loves all the details and little bees on this beehive Dreidel.

This one belongs to my youngest daughter "little pumpkin" she learned about cakes this year and loved this little cupcake.

This camo one is for my "thoughtful son" he loves hunting.

This one is for the "handsome husband." 

We use wrapped candy:


HAY:.....you get half the pot
GIMEL:.....you get all the pot
NUNE:.....you get nothing
SHIN:.....you must put in 1


Whoever has the most at the end wins!

Washer Disinfectant

Just because your washer uses a lot of soap and water doesn't mean it doesn't get dirty. Use this simple recipe to disinfect it twice a year. This rinse also removes some of the built-up soap scum from your washer's hoses, so it may even spare you a visit from your local repairman.
2 cups white vinegar
2 cups bleach

1.  Let the tub fill with water, then add the vinegar. Let is soak for 1 hour, then restart and let it run through a complete cycle.

2.  Repeat porcess using the bleach.

I would imagine you could use the same process for your dishwasher as well!

Substitute For Unsweetened and Sweetened Chocolate

Unsweetened Chocolate:  If a recipe calls for 1 square (1 ounce) of unsweetened chocolate and you don't have any, combine 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder with 1 tablespoon butter, margerine, or vegetable shortening.

Semisweet Chocolate:  If 1 ounce of semisweet chocolate is called for, combine 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder with 1 tablespoon of butter, margerine or vegetable shortening and 1 tablespoon of sugar.

*Note to self: add more cocoa powder to staples in baking cupboard!

Ducks in the snow

Here is a picture of Hank and Bonnie, our two ducks outside in the snow.

Proverbs 18:10

The name of YHWH is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.

Hiccup Reliever

You can't even find a remedy for hiccups in the drugstore, but you can make one yourself.

Ingredients:  2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon sugar or dry drink mix (Cocoa or Ovaltine)

Swallow the dry sugar or drink mix, which isn't easy. Trying to get it down will short-circuit the hiccups.

Just a spoonfull of sugar.... :)

apple and orange juice 'secret ingredient'

So all the news headlines are reporting on those expensive not from cencentrate orange juices standing in tanks for up to a year, loosing their flavor and 'flavor packs' being added to them! I wonder how the concentrate juices stack up? Yuck!!! We have all been duped. To top it off they are full of arsenic and lead! What are they doing to us?

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/orange-juice-moms-secret-ingredient-worries/story?id=15154617

Guess we should stick with water and home made juice....

Herbs in Hair Rinses

Here is a list of popular herbs found in hair rinses:

Catnip:  Believed to promote hair growth
Chamomile:  Keeps scalp and hair follicles healthy
Comfy:  Soothes and heals scalp irritations
Elder Berries: Traditionally used to add color to gray hair
Lemongrass:  Tones the scalp
Nettle: An astringent that helps relieve skin irritations and itching
Parsley:  Helps relieve skin irritations
Rosemary:  Believed to enhance color of dark hair and help control dandruff
Sage:  An astringent for oily hair and benefit for damaged or fragile hair
Thyme:  Has antiseptic, tonic, and astringent properties
Yarrow:  Acts as a tonic for hair

Fast and Easy Drain Freshener

Here's an easy way to eliminate drain odors while maintaining the proper pH and health of your septic system. Run warm tap water for several seconds, then pour 1 cup baking soda into the drain. Wait an hour and flush with a teapot of boiling water. For results, repeat once every two weeks.

Making Bread for Shabbat

Love making bread with my Kitchen Aid :)  Makes kneading all that bread WAYYY easier!

One-Minute Substitute for Antacid

Quick Antacid From Your Spice Shelf

Some common kitchen spice seeds contain oils that soothe spasms in your stomach and relieve nausea-without costing too much. Just chew 1 tablespoon of aniseed, dill, or caraway seeds for a minute, then spit them out without swallowing any. Repeat three times a day.

*from Readers Digest Healthy Home Remedies