Pioneer Woman at Heart

  We have been using local beef tallow for maybe a year now, but it is $5.99/pound.  We have located a better resource for buying it, and at a lower price of $2.49/pound.  Thankfully, we can freeze it, so we are re-stocked for a while.  We only fry fish (perch and walleye), and that is only when we are gifted the fish.  Once a year I make homemade corn dogs with all beef hotdogs.  I have used the beef tallow to grease pans, and that works great too. I have been substituting oil with the tallow, for when I make steel cut oat patties, squash patties, or anything similar needing "oil" to pan "fry" or cook. The same resource also sells local lard, and that can be frozen as well. I have been checking around at prices for vanilla beans, and the online resource (for organic) is still the best price.  In store prices seem to be high.  The above photo was taken at a bulk Amish food store. The daffodils are starting to bloom here.  We have several vari...

  I found a few printed recipes in the back of my binder, when I changed them out to new binders recently.  I found a recipe I had printed back in July of 2021, and gave it a try (without reading any reviews).  Sweet Potato Breakfast Casserole. It's delicious.  However, the next time I make this, I will finely dice the sweet potatoes, roast them, and then layer it all to bake.  I found the shredded sweet potatoes gave it a "mushy" bottom texture.  It is very light, and not a "heavy" breakfast.   The only thing I did different, was that I used real meat instead of the "vegetarian" meat the recipe called for.  Oh, I also added 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground garlic (homemade) for added flavor and some salt and pepper. I found it strange that the recipe did not call for any seasoning at all.  The recipe is still online at allrecipes. Tidbits. . . We woke up to 21°F this morning.  The cold has returned, but thankfully no snow this March (like...

Spring air is such an intoxicating aroma.  The best part of March is being able to open the windows and let in fresh air.  However, this weekend is bringing in stormy weather.   First sign of spring daffodils popping up.  They are coming in much later this spring. Green onions in the herb garden are starting to spring back into delicious-ness. Spring is in the Air  ©  March 2025 by  Kristina  at  Pioneer  Woman at Heart

  There is no method to figure out this winter weather madness. One day it's rain, cold and windy, the next snow and very cold, and the next? We were in the delightful 60's for about 3-4 days.  We actually hit the lower 70's one day. Thunderstorms rolled in next.   I took advantage of the better weather, and put the laundry on the clothesline.  It gets me outside, I get some extra physical movement, and a lower electricity bill.  A win all around. I saw my first Robin.  I actually saw several.  The mornings now start much darker, but as the sun rises, the birds are busy singing good morning to the world.  I took that photo through my window, and I do need to wash some more windows ha ha! I'm enjoying my nettle/oat straw tea infusions.  I serve them iced for us, and yes it tastes earthy, but very healthy at the same time.  The list for benefits of nettle alone is very long, and I am already seeing one benefit - healthier fingernails ...

  Update on the Tex Mex Sweet Potatoes and Onions:  Delicious!  However, I keep forgetting that our jalapenos from last year, were very "hot" in flavor (hence the small amount on my plate).   It ended up very spicy, but next time I will cut the jalapenos to a smaller amount, ha ha!  I cannot find the recipe online, so you'll need to borrow the cookbook from your local library.  We served the side with homemade chicken enchiladas with homemade enchilada sauce . My chicken enchiladas are filled with sauce, then a layer of cooked onion, chicken, chilies, and black beans (salt and pepper), and some cheese. The enchiladas are super easy to make.  I cooked my chicken in the crock pot the day before, and the sauce can be made up to 3 days before (stored in the fridge). On Monday, we had a 65°F day!  Sitting on the porch in February is unheard of in our area, and I took advantage of it. Not once in the day, but twice I got to enjoy our front porch....

  Yesterday I woke up to beautiful weather in the 60's and sunny.  I took advantage of it and washed a white bed cover and bed skirt.  I put more laundry out after that, but just my husband's.   Rain was still in the forecast off and on, but it all dried thankfully.  Next good day I will get more dried outside. Spring Daffodils are up and more starting to bloom.  I wish I didn't have moles, or I'd have a ton of tulips as well.   It's been a trying cycle of, move this to get that done or do that to get this done, and where did I put that or those? It took me a while to find these felt pieces I bought to put under the bedroom dresser and night stands.  I still need to put some square ones under the bed as well. More door trim was primed, and hopefully will be painted today.  I've unpacked the suitcase and we are getting moved back into the bedroom nicely.  The dresser has moved out of the master bath, we can clean in there and st...

  Yesterday started out with a lot of fog.  The weather warmed up to the 60's and felt so great.  Today it's dropping down again with wind and rain.  We are now in the mixed up time of year where we can get snow, rain, fog, nice days, ugly days....just typical for us. I had high hopes to hang laundry on the line, but the wind was pretty nasty out. I needed more wood on the porch, but someone left the garden cart out by the coop (full of dirty straw that needed dumped).  Wasn't me. I finally got my homemade face lotion made.  I use the recipe in Rosemary Gladstar's Medicinal Herbs book (A beginner's guide).  I will need to make more oil this summer for the next batch.  I store the extra lotion in the refrigerator until I need it. Signs of spring are showing up in the flower beds now.  Some areas are a bit over crowded, so I may be digging and splitting them up after they are done blooming.   Update on the general store and consignmen...

My weekly menu is going by the "seat of my pants."  Monday I really didn't want to go out, so I made "Garbage" soup.  Basically, it contained whatever veggies I had left in my freezer, and pantry - green beans, dehydrated mushrooms, celery, tomato sauce, the very last pint of onion soup, a small bag of corn, some zucchini....some last bits of leftover zucchini salsa in the fridge...you get the point.  It was actually very good too, and it helped start the cleaning of the fridge. Monday was a catch up day on laundry, bedding, and what not.  It literally took all day, and in between fetching the last of the firewood pile and taking dogs out, I wrote out my grocery list for the remaining week.  I did absolutely zero handiwork.  I think I just got to a "burned out" point last week. Tuesday, there was plenty of leftover soup, and I made a huge bowl of organic romaine/spinach and lots of other raw veggies.