The sun finally made an appearance! Boy it was nice. I got out of the house and got a few smallish errands done. The library was first, but I also made a visit to the local orchard. The only thing we needed was local honey, but I picked up some locally made apple cider and some red delicious apples that were on sale. I'm thinking apple oatmeal breakfast bake, pork chops and apples, and more.
Pioneer Woman at Heart
One Flourishing, Frugal and Fun Family!
One family learning to live off the land, cut back on expenses, and to live a simpler and a more self-sufficient lifestyle.
Adopted Motto
"Eat it up,
Wear it out,
Make it do,
Or go without."
~A Pioneer Sampler, by Barbara Greenwood~
Friday, March 8, 2024
Local Eats ~ Book Goals ~ Sweet Energy Treat
Thursday, March 7, 2024
This and That ~ Medjool Dates
The recent days here have been cloudy, cold and dreary. By cold, I mean cold enough for a winter coat again (and too cold to paint doors). Brr! The chickens and I are not exactly happy about it. I guess I will be taking my vitamin D for a little while longer.
It was confirmed that a tornado touched down in a town within an hour of us, when we had those last thunderstorms. I was actually finishing a book out on the porch when the thunder and lightning arrived. I finished the book, but high tailed it back inside.
The tornado did damage to the community area there. It is said, that there was no warning, nor a watch issued, so the people there had no time to prepare. Very scary. It happened between two cities where both my Mom and my Dad grew up, and are now buried.
I'll be visiting that area soon, as I gather flowers together to take to the cemeteries this spring. Spring is a difficult time to go there too, as the weather is so iffy, and I worry about the wind destroying the flowers I leave.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
A tip for those who knit, or are beginners with knitting:
Bind off knitting with a crochet hook!
I cannot believe I did not even think of this myself, after all those years of knitting dishcloths. The worst part for me, was binding off, and not messing it up. It was the first item for me to learn to knit as a beginner.
By the way, I picked up a few bags of different Lily baking chips, at a health store, during our last trip to Amish. I had plans for them this past Christmas holiday, but never got around to using them.
I dipped them using forks and place them on waxed paper on a lined baking dish. I put them in the freezer for a few hours to harden, and stored them in an airtight container.
Do you have a favorite use for medjool dates?
This and That ~ Medjool Dates ~ Update © Mar 2024 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
Tidbits ~ Flourless Pumpkin Bread
Tuesday was our "Monday" this week. We both took Monday "off" and spent the day enjoying it. Tuesday was the day for thunderstorms to roll in late afternoon, so laundry went out on the line early.
I am working my way through my garden freezer goodies, and made us some flourless pumpkin bread with frozen garden pumpkin puree.
It is a very dense, thicker bread, and with less sweetness and flavor, but by adding some extra cinnamon and nutmeg it's pretty good.
The bread is also about half the height of other baked pumpkin breads. I test the bread about 30 minutes into the cooking time, and let it cool almost completely in the pan. I finish the cooling on a wire rack before slicing.
Flourless Pumpkin Bread
In a blender mix all of the ingredients:
2 cups organic old-fashioned oats
15 oz. of frozen, thawed garden pumpkin puree (I measure it, as it will weigh differently depending on the thickness of your pumpkin puree). You can use 1 can of pure pumpkin as well.
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (I have not tried a substitute yet)
2 farm fresh eggs
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. of homemade pumpkin pie spice (or add cinnamon, nutmeg)
Pour into greased loaf pan (I do not flour the pan) and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until done in the center. 350°F.
Personally, I like a bit of of honey on this bread, but if you are watching sugar, I'm thinking a thin layer of cream cheese or your other favorite topping.
Now that I am writing out this post, I am thinking I will make us some homemade cinnamon honey butter for this bread.
I gifted the homemade butter one Christmas, and it was a hit. The recipe is on my blog: Homemade Cinnamon Honey Butter.
Tuesday, March 5, 2024
Participation Plummet and Random Thoughts
There seems to be a blogger participation plummet for whatever reasons. So many blogs I used to follow, with such interesting and useful homesteading content (sometimes humorous), have left the blogging scene. I get it for the most part. It can be time consuming, and in winter the writing content can be very limited. Things change for some as well.
I mean, we used to raise dairy goats (Lamancha), and we stopped doing that years ago, so I do understand change. Life changes constantly.
I'm experiencing the humdrum of blogging. I know spring is around the corner, but maybe like all the other blogs I used to read (and now don't post anymore), I'm sort of falling off the blogging "thing" lately as well.
Maybe I am the one who needs a new change. Although we are still undergoing home repairs, and staying busy, sometimes change is a good thing.
The rain held off, and we had a few very nice 70 degree days here. It may stay in the upper 60's today, but thunderstorms may actually roll in later. The weather causes that itch to clean up gardens, but I know I need to refrain for now. It's still too early.
Here is an update on "what I am crocheting" for the time being. I have to admit though, as the warmer days stay, I'm on hold for this blanket. If we cool back down, I'll be back to work on it some more, and in hopes to finish before the cooler days disappear for the year. The photo doesn't really show the colors very well.
That is a burgundy yarn, leftover from crocheting a cardigan, and the others are heather gray, teal, and soft white. The gray and white are also leftover project yarns. The colors remind me of a cabin. I wanted to use the other pattern, but his one has less ends to sew in.
Blogger is once again having hiccups with posting. I am having trouble with photos loading, and for the font to stay the way I type it. I have to constantly go back and fix the post.
I may also remove the "popular post" widget. I am getting some outrageous view counts on some very old posts, that is not normal. Most of my posts barely get 100 views within a few years, and some showing up in the "popular" post widget are well over that.
I am using the stats and google analytics to watch those this week. Another reason I am contemplating continuing to blog - a lot of work to maintain for all reasons.
By the way blogger "stats" is not working properly. It was working the other day, but now it is not. Anyone else having blogger issues? Also, I tried adding a jump break on a post, and it would not work either. I may try an entirely new blog theme.
Participation Plummet and Random Thoughts © Mar 2024 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart
Monday, March 4, 2024
Happy Homemaker Monday
March rolled in quicker than expected. It brought rain, cloudy skies, followed by some warmer weather. The tree buds are already over winter.
Our green onions are starting to produce new growth with all the recent rain, and the sight is welcoming.
Today I am joining Sandra at Diary of a Stay at Home Mom.
The weather . . .
Well, they say it will be a high of 74°F and sunny today, then we cool back down the rest of the week.
Right now I am . . .
Brewing coffee late, and posting this blog post.
Thinking and pondering . . .
Wondering if we are getting thunderstorms today.
How I am feeling . . .
Good!
On the breakfast plate . . .
I'm thinking I'll make a ham and cheese crust-less quiche, to use ham we froze, and some garden zucchini we froze as well. I'll toss in some of those frozen garden green peppers too.
On the lunch menu . . .
Not sure yet.
On the dinner menu . . .
Not sure yet.
On the menu . . .
(concentrating on what's in the freezer/pantry this week)
-homemade meatballs in home canned tomato sauce (with dollops of ricotta), over frozen and thawed garden spaghetti squash, and roasted frozen garden green beans
-Italian sausage pasta dish (with green lentil pasta), with added frozen asparagus and frozen garden bell peppers, roasted rutabaga
-chicken salad (chicken from the freezer) for lunches, made with home canned sweet pickle and hot pepper relishes
-strawberry bread, using frozen strawberries from last summer
On my reading pile . . .
On my TV . . .
Willie Nelson Movies - Red Headed Stranger
Looking around the house . . .
We got one coat of paint on the interior hallway garage and entry doors done. They'll need a second coat.
On the to-do list . . .
-dishes
-muck coop
Thursday, February 29, 2024
Garden Goodies in Winter
Today is the last day of February for 2024.
Hopefully it's the last day of our winter as well. Although, every day has been up and down weather, and yes, more snow yesterday.
Wednesday, February 28, 2024
Sitting on the Front Porch in February
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. When my husband got home, and after dinner. we enjoyed the front porch until the cooler air set in.
Sitting On the Front Porch in February ~ Update © Feb 2024 by Kristina at Pioneer Woman at Heart