Baby Wipes

Baby Wipes  (And a little on diapers)

Wet some paper towels.  Ring them out and store them in a container so they stay moist.  Simple enough.  Well, I like good wipes that don't tear.  So to make good home made wipes I wanted good paper towels which ended up being more money.

Then the paper towels were too large, so they needed cut, more time.  Then there is the fact that they don't come out one after the other all nice like the store bought baby wipes.  The time and effort and money just weren't worth it to me when I could by wipes that come out to a little over 2 cents a wipe.  (I always shop sales)

I don't do generic on wipes, this is one area I am willing to pay for quality.  Personally, Pampers are my favorite, but Luvs (which is made by the same company) is my choice when factoring value for your dollar.  Luvs is also my diaper of choice for during the day- cheaper than others and works well, plus my little one is not allergic to them as was the case with cheaper brands.  SEE UPDATE!!!

I will post later on my opinion of diapers.


Amendment:  While I do not like these as baby wipes they are GREAT for hand and face wipes.  Going on a trip? Make a few ahead of time.  It's an easy way to wipe food off kids faces and little hands.  I put mine in a reusable baby wipe container- they do go dry after a day or two, so another container may be better.



WIPES UPDATE:    
Did not want you to miss this.  While I don't like making disposable wipes, I love cloth wipes.  I wrote this post about nine months ago and laugh now.  I do not pay anything for wipes! Okay, let me rephrase that I pay $.0023 or less per a wipe. They are 10 times better than Pampers and are ten times cheaper.  I love cloth wipes, as does my toddler.  Cloth wipes post to come soon!

Marshmallows

Marshmallows

  There are recipes out their for grommet marshmallows.   I only use them for rice krispe treats and s'mores.  You can get the generic or store brands (I am all for generic labels) for really cheap.  So in all, it is not worth the effort or time to make something I can get for about a $1 on sale and that we end up melting down anyway.

Homemade Syrup

My Mom's Homemade Syrup

My husband say this taste like Kneaders syrup.  All I know is it is really good.

1-1 1/2 Cube butter
1 C sugar
1/2 C buttermilk
1 Tbsp Corn Syrup
1/2 tsp Baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Combine all ingredients except vanilla in a large sauce pan.  Boil 5 mins.  Remove from heat.  Add vanilla.  Yum!

Will bubble a lot when baking soda is added

Cooking it longer makes it thicker, like caramel sauce.  I cook it a little less as we like thinner syrup.  Adding more milk also makes it thinner.

Gets its color once vanilla is added

Buttermilk Subsitute

Homemade Buttermilk

1 C milk
1 Tbsp lemon juice


That was easy!

Ice-cream Cones (Bowls)

Homemade Ice-cream deserves a homemade bowl.  They are easy and very yummy.

Whisk together

2 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

Add

1/4 C melted butter

3 Tbsp milk

1/2 tsp Vanilla

1/3 C flour

Batter should be very runny.  If not add more milk

Over medium heat spoon 1/4 cup mixture into a slightly oiled skillet and spread thin by slowly rotating the heated skillet around until it fills the area. 

Brown on both sides.  If steam is still rising from it, it is not done.  It should be a golden brown.

Remove and shape promptly.

Cones are fun, but your fingers may get burned while rolling.  If you choose to do

 a cone, pinch the bottom and sides to seal it.  I threw a few chocolate chip in the bottom to melt too.  They serve as a extra seal and a yummy surprise.

I prefer bowls, easier and less painful (from burns).  Take your crepe like cone and place it in a bowl.  Push middle down and allow it to cool and harden.

Warning:  If mixture not cooked long enough the cone won't set.  Still makes a great ice-cream topper though.

Cheap Disinfectant and Cleaner

Vinegar is a disinfectant, and it makes a very good cleaner.

Mix 1 part water to 1 part vinegar in a spray bottle.

Happy cleaning! (My favorite shower cleaner)
No harsh chemicals!

My Moms Bread

Don't got lecithin or have more time?  Here is my mom's bread recipe for half and half wheat/white bread.  This one tends to be fluffier.

In a bread maker place these ingredients in this order (that's important)

1 2/3 cup water
4 1/4 cups flour
2 tsp salt
1/3 cup brown sugar
3 Tbsp dry milk
2 Tbsp Shortening
1 Tbsp Yeast

Set it on bread dough setting.  Once finished, place in two greased bread pans and rise for 25 minutes.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.

Baking in the oven instead of the bread mixture makes it fluffier.



Will post pictures when I make it again

Basic Bread Dough

Got an hour?  You can make bread!

5 1/2 cups flour   (I use half wheat)
1/4  cup sugar
1/2 Tbsp Salt
2 Tbsp Instant yeast
2 inch wide circles of liquid lecithin
2 cups really warm water- plus a little extra to the side if the dough is too dry


Mix the dry stuff in a bowl.  Add the liquid.  Mix until it makes dough.  It will be sticky.
Knead for about 5 minutes.

Place in two greased bread pans.  Rise for 25 mins.
Bake  at 350 degrees for 25 mins.









                      BREAD!!!

I have also used the recipe to make hamburger buns and rolls.

Basic Pancake and Waffle Recipes

Simple Pancakes*

2 cups flour
3 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 egg
1 Tbsp baking powder

Mix.  Add milk to desired consistency.  Cook on hot grill.

Can be used for waffles, just make it thinner.

Waffles*

2 cups milk
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/3 c oil
 2 eggs

Mix. Add:

2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp soda
1/2 tsp salt

Mix. Cook.

Batter looks like this

* Recipes from Blue Mountain Home Cook'n

Blue Mountain Home Cook'n

When we were married, my husband's grandma gave us what has become my most used wedding gifts.  It is the Blue Mountain Home Cook'n recipe book.  When citing recipes from it I will refer to the book only although many women contributed.  And although she will never look at this blog, thanks Grandma for the recipes.

Very Banana Banana Bread

My Mom's Banana Bread (Makes 1 loaf)



1 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter   (I have halved this before)

Cream

Add
2 eggs
3 smashed, over ripe, bananas
1 tsp Vanilla

Mix

Add
1 tsp Baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups flour

Mix

In a greased bread pan bake at 350 for 1 hour.  Cool and enjoy.

Baking Chocolate

3 Tbsp Coca
+
1 Tbsp Oil or Shortening

mixed

= 1 oz baking Chocolate

Ant Bait

With Spring here the ants I tried to deter from my home last year have returned with vengeance.

I tried vinegar,  peppermint oil, and cayenne pepper.  All of which had a temporary positive effect.  The ants disappeared only while the smell was there and returned once it was cleaned up.  I heard baking soda would keep them in one spot.  Not true.  I attempted to contain them in the bathroom; the ants crawled over it.

Baby powder seemed to work better for this.


I tried to get rid of them without killing them, and then resorted to soapy water for the one I could see,but when I found one on my baby's blanket the mama bear in me came out and I knew I needed to take more drastic measures.

I had heard baking soda mix equally with powdered sugar worked.  I had also heard 1 cup sugar, 1 tablespoon borax, and 1/2 cup water mixed into a sticky syrup worked well.  The scientist in me decided to experiment which one would work best.  My  two questions: which one attracted the ants first and which one killed them the best.

Here are my two dishes set just outside an ant hole- in a corner behind the toilet

Within five minutes an ant found the borax and sugar. (There are three-sorry the pictures are blurry)

Within an hour the ants were feasting.

Within a day all the ones at the borax were dead (oops made the mixture too strong) and the baking soda had been deserted.

Made up the borax syrup again, actually measuring ingredients this time.  The ants showed little interest.

My husband suggested I use peanut butter instead (protein and sugar, plus a strong smell).  I put a tablespoon borax with about 1/2 cup sugar and mixed well.  I placed the bait outside an ant hole in the bathroom. (Yes they dug tunnels right into the walls!)  Within seconds the ants had found it and within 5 minutes it looked like this.

And it got worse.

I did this at night because (1) ants are more active at night (2) people are less likely to be going to the bathroom (3) I didn't have to see the masses of ant that will congregate at a bait like this.  Think of it as an extinction burst.

By morning the peanut butter was almost gone but the ants were still out. I offered more food to my little pets and let them feast away.  I heard it can take 24-48 hours for the ants to die and up to a week or two for the whole colony to die.  It is suggested you leave out the bait until after the ants have left (just to catch stragglers I suppose)  Also, while the ants feast leave them undisturbed.  You want them to take the food, I mean poison, back to their queen without fear.

I will give an update in a couple of weeks whether this really works or if I have just cause the ants to get a winters worth of food storage in one night.


UPDATE: The ants had most of that gone by morning, so I gave them more.  It has been about 48 hours; I still have ants but a lot less.  We want that to be zero and will more to other methods by the end of the week.


UPDATE:  The ants in that corner are gone- took about three or four days.  Still have ants on the other wall.  Not sure if it's a different colony (It's a basement they are at least 4 feet under ground!)  These traps have not worked too well.  Store bought stuff is next.

UPDATE: Bought the store bought stuff and not one single ant found the traps.  Actually, very few ants even wander our walls at all anymore.  I guess the homemade stuff did work, if not just temporarily.  It took about 3 weeks...

And then we moved.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

When we were young my siblings, Mom, and I would see how fast we could get a batch of chocolate chip cookie dough made and in the oven.  We could have it made, cookies in the oven and ingredients put away in less than five minutes.


My Mom's Awesome Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 c. butter/margarine

1 c. brown sugar

½ c. white sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp. Vanilla

Cream

Add:

2 ½ c Flour (I add a little more)

1 ½ tsp Salt

1 tsp Baking Soda

Mix

Add:

12 oz package of chocolate chips (I usually add a little less)

Bake at 375 for 12-15* mins

*I usually bake mine for 9-12 minutes to make them gooier

Enjoy!

UPDATE!

My mom made her delicious cookie for a family get together and they were even better!  I asked what she did to them.  My friend Natalie taught her a trick to make them softer and more tastly

Replace 1/4 - 1/2 C sugar with 1/4 cup dry vanilla pudding.  Yummy!!!

From Scratch?

With my husband in college and I at home with our daughter, our income was very limited.  I made simple meals from scratch and shopped at sales.

Then there was the dreaded semester where my husband would have no job.  I  began early to look for more ways to save money, including more things I could make at home.  That is when I discovered "cooking for scratch" could get even more "from scratch".

One day I excitedly asked my mom, "Did you know you can make brown sugar?"
"Sure," she replied like it was common knowledge, "All it is is sugar and molasses."

Seriously?  Molasses wasn't even a common item in our pantry growing up, yet she knew.  I wonder what other money saving secrets she had been keeping.  There is a lot of ways to save.  Here we go....