Do you have more peppers in your garden than you know what to do with? Maybe you’re sick of fajitas, stuffed peppers, and stir-fry and you’ve dried enough peppers to season your food for the rest of your life, but you can’t bear to let your peppers go to waste either. So why not pickle them and enjoy them even after the season is over? Not only is pickling a great way to preserve your harvest, but when you ferment your food, you are actually improving nutritional value of that harvest. The process that ferments
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Snack time is an important time around the house. Your kids are itching for something tasty and you want to give them something that is natural and healthful. Dehydrated snacks are a great compromise. They are delicious, and if you make them yourself, you have the control over how much sugar goes into them. With
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Goat has its own unique flavor and cooking quirks. When you are trying to put more goat on the table or get your family used to eating meat that you’ve produced yourself, these quirks become a front and center issue. Unaccustomed to the taste of lean, grass-fed meat, you may hear “goat is yucky” from
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I don’t know about you, but when I come to a family or church dinner, I don’t always like to have the traditional items. Yes, my mother’s banana pudding recipe is to die for, but lots of other people come to get-togethers with banana pudding in tow. I like having a few unusual (but tasty) items to spice things up a bit. Two of my favorites are Mountain Dew cake and blueberry pizza. Mountain Dew Cake 1 box lemon cake mix 1 (3.4 oz) lemon-flavored instant pudding 1 (12 oz) can Mountain Dew ¾ cup
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With my birthday this week, cakes have definitely come to mind. My mom never bought cakes– she always let me pick a delicious and amazing cake from her recipe book, and then she made it for me with her own two hands. They made for some sweet memories! Plum Cake 1 cup oil 2 cups sugar 3 eggs 2½ cups self-rising flour 1 teaspoon cinnamon ½ teaspoon ground cloves 2 small jars plum baby food 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup chopped pecans Your choice of icing (vanilla or buttercream is recommended) Mix the oil and
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As I go through my recipes, I can’t help but think of my grandmother. We called her Mormor (Danish for grandmother), and between her Danish roots and the variety of places she lived, she had an array of unusual recipes. Some were a little too unusual for my tastes, but others have become classics in our family. The two I’ve chosen to share are her homemade spaghetti sauce and her delicious pound cake. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. Homemade Spaghetti Sauce 2 lbs. hamburger meat 3 stalks green onion, chopped
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All holidays have their traditions, and New Years is no exception.  This next recipe has its roots in the African/Caribbean heritage and is primarily a Southern tradition. It is said that Carolina slaves popularized the rice and bean dish that is flavored with ham hocks or a bit of bacon.  Cow peas or black-eyed peas are traditional for this dish, as the peas represent coins and are symbolic for wealth. Pork is traditionally used because pigs push forward when they root in the ground.  Chicken is not used because chickens scratch backwards and could lead to set
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Each of these recipes is a simple gift you can share with friends and family, perfect if you are a little behind on your Christmas shopping, are out of gift ideas, or suddenly realized that you forgot a gift for someone. The idea is that you layer the ingredients for brownies, cookies, or soup in
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This is a wonderful meal for entertaining or when you just want some good comfort food. Pair the roast chicken, latkas, and applesauce with a fresh salad, and you’ve got an amazing and complete meal. Simple Roast Chicken 3 – 4 pound roasting chicken, cut into pieces 1/4 cup olive oil 2 teaspoons paprika 2
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Wild salmon is a bit pricy, but it is a wonderful source of Omega fatty acids and other great nutrients.  I bartered last year for a whole salmon brought from Alaska by a friend’s parents who lived there.  It was our Christmas dinner and several more dinners after that. Baked Salmon and Wild Rice 1 salmon (or a
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