Shopping Issues and Wins ~ Canning Question

 

The price of organic butter has skyrocketed.  Sheesh!  As for produce, I still cannot buy organic broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, and beets.  I should have planted at least broccoli this year.  Smacking myself for that.  Anyway, I'll be substituting butter with home canned applesauce when I can.

I went to restock canned organic fire roasted tomatoes. There was nothing on the shelf.  In fact, most of anything tomato was almost gone.

I went to Wal-mart to restock my red #3 crochet thread.  Nothing on the shelf.  Meijer stopped carrying thread (nearest store anyway).  I went online and my favorite supplier has it, but on back order (hopefully I will get it next week).

Canning supplies completely gone at our nearest Wal-mart.  not surprised.

Went to the dollar store and found tissues for $1 a box.  Win on that visit.  I also picked up gift bags, bows and boxes to restock.  I also bought a $1 notebook to keep all my medicinal tea recipes in.

I also picked this magazine up for $1.00.  Some recipes are repeats but some are keepers.

I went to purchase a new hair dryer at our Meijer store and there was hardly anything on the shelf.  Literally 3 styles of them left.  

Walking through the baking aisle to pick up powdered sugar, I noticed one bag of regular sugar left, and even though I don't buy boxed cake mixes, I saw that shelf almost empty.  

Are people still hoarding?  Or are the supplies just not available due to all the shutdowns they did?

So I lost my instructions for canning applesauce (unsweetened).  Then while googling other recipes I found it in my scanned recipes.  However, I noticed my instructions do not include lemon juice, others do.  Should I be adding it?  I do mine in 6# batches.  Thanks in advance.  Today I am organizing my binders so I don't lose stuff again.

Happy Homemaker Monday

It's been very chilly here, so I whipped up a new batch of homemade hot cocoa.

Over the weekend?  Well, I planted 32 more cloves of garlic, just in time before the rain arrived again.

My ladies are laying so well, that my mind was made up to use up some eggs.  Although small yet, they made dinner a hit.

Meals over the weekend.  I enjoyed a grilled cheese with cowboy candy on it, and I made breakfast for dinner, which was greatly enjoyed.

We finally made a trip to the hardware store to pick out a new shower, toilet and paint for the bathroom remodel.  Flooring too.  Next up will be kitchen flooring.  I am so excited to get started on this.  We picked put paint and brought that home, but have to do more measuring for the all of the rest.  We are picking out new flooring for our master bedroom and hallway as well.

Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.

The weather outside is . . .

61°high today, but woke up to 37°F.  We will warm up to the mid 70's this week.

How I am feeling this morning . . .

Tired and excited at the same time.  I couldn't sleep, but come this weekend, and we start on the bathroom remodel.

On my mind . . .

I'm hosting an online Pampered chef party.  I hope to get enough sales to earn free stuff for the girls for Christmas.  I love my pampered chef stuff.  I use it daily.  However, their prices on biscuit cutters are a bit high, and I have not found them in stores around here (oddly).  I am working on putting together some baking items to go with the recipe boxes this Christmas.

Saturday, the other car took a poo.  It's being picked up today to be diagnosed.  My car was to get towed tomorrow for an engine, but depending on the other car, one of them will be going to our guy to get fixed.  Dollar signs are flashing past us right now.  We just can't get a break with vehicles this year.

I packed two lunches and one breakfast today.  Daughter can't leave work to get food so I fixed her up as well as my husband.  She got a ride today, but she's working in the opposite direction in another store in another "big city."  Not sure what she'll do tomorrow and as of the time of posting this, the guy hasn't stopped over to look at the car.

On the breakfast plate . . .

Taco Breakfast Casserole. I used leftover taco meat, the last of our cherry tomatoes, some garden green peppers and herb garden green onions. 

On my reading pile . . .

On the TV . . .

The Good Witch

On the menu this week . . .

-Stuffed Bell Pepper Soup, homemade bread

-Slow cooker baked ziti

-Crockpot Bourbon Chicken over wild rice and roasted carrots

-Leftovers

From the camera . . .

Last week you could look up at the moon and see Mars not far.  Pretty neat if you ask me.

Looking around the house . . .

I will need to re-arrange some things to make room to pull everything from the kitchen bathroom.  I also have to revise my to do list as well, so I still have time to get some canning done, and work in the garden.  I will need to make a list for Hubby as well, as we need to move a pellet stove out and another smaller one in, cut wood etc.

I bought 4 of these for my utility room cupboards that haven't had knobs since we moved in.  I love them.

New Recipe I tried or want to try last week . . .

A new green tomato cake recipe.  In place of the butter it required, I used home canned applesauce and it was delicious.  

I used Food Networks recipe for the cream cheese frosting recipe to top it with.  My family raved about this one.  Way less butter than Paula Dean's recipe that I have used over the years.  The cake recipe is from AllRecipes.  I used all organic ingredients, my home grown green tomatoes (seeds removed, but not peelings and diced very small).

To relax this week I will . . .

Work on daughter's Christmas present (crochet), make more crocheted parts for "f" bombs, and a few more jar grippers.

On my prayer list . . .

Our youngest daughter, everyone living in our state, for this plan-demic to end, and any special requests.

 

Planner Giveaway (sharing) ~ 2020 Reading Challenge

 I won a planner for this year and Rebecca at Rebecca's Heart and Home is giving another one away for 2021.  Be sure to go to her blog and enter if you wish  I absolutely love mine.

I ordered this from Thrift Books. Giving this "book" series a try.  I have never read a book from this author, so I'll let you know if it's good or not.  I sure hope I get reading time and get into the mood to read.

More Tomato Sauce Canned ~ Last Green Bell Pepper Picking

 

Friday morning the clouds were low and looked like mountains.  I sliced up 23# of tomatoes and got my sauce maker back out.

I am thrilled to get more tomato sauce canned.  I have more green tomatoes in the kitchen though.

Our Friday weather was brr! cold!  Low 50's with a possible frost this morning (38°F), so I did my last picking of the green bell peppers.  We got 110 not including all those little ones in the strainer.  A wonderful harvest this year.

Rory ~ Hummingbird and other tidbits

 

I planted 4 mums in one of my flower beds and found our barn cat sleeping in my flowers.  She loves my flower beds.

The hummingbird came to give me a visit.  It loves the purple flowers every fall.  It is so hard to get a good photo or even a video.

Recipe I use is online with Eating Well - Slow Cooker Vegetarian Sweet Potato and Black Bean Chili (using fire roasted tomatoes).

Meals this week have been switched around from my original plan.  I have little energy at the end of the day.  I recently made us a crock pot full of sweet potato/black bean chili with a side of homemade confetti muffins (contains carrots and green bell pepper). Recipe for the muffins is online (Taste of Home), but I used buttermilk vs. milk.

Instead of breakfast for dinner (which is a lot of work), I put it in the freezer and used turkey sausage to make a crock pot of Four beans and sausage.  I use my home canned ketchup in the recipe and it is so good, as well a garden grown green bell peppers.  Sorry, forgot to take a photo last night.

My ladies were not happy yesterday.  I couldn't let them out in the fenced area due to this out looking for it's next meal.  I heard it several times while in the garden, but watched over the ladies and then put them in when I came in.  It hasn't left the area yet.

...from the handiwork journal

...got these ornaments back out to put clear coat on.

...got these back out the paint and clear coat.  Totally forgot about them.

...finished a XL hot pad

...made more jar openers.  I have another order for 4 more.

. . . got this project back out and worked on it a bit.  I am getting bits and pieces ready to start on more "f" bombs.

. . . working on one daughter's Christmas present

Seasons Changing and other Ramblings

The leaves are not only changing colors here, but falling to the ground already.  I'm not ready for it, but fall is a beautiful change, and it's when things slow down.  Well, expect for the fact we need to start splitting wood.

The deer are on the move the last few days.  The top two were trying to cross the highway, and the buck was already across the road heading into some woods.  And.....as I sat on the porch sipping coffee a darn raccoon decided to cross over into our property and into the ditch tree line.

. . . and they're out!  All 100-some of them.  Tomato tally for the year - (paste) 220.68#.  Of course I brought in more green ones, but those can wait for now.

I've been terrible about getting around to everyone's blog.  I hope to do that this week.