Leek Confit ~ With Thyme

My "date night" plans went "ka-poot."  Right out the window on Friday night.  Our date was planned for Saturday, but Hubby was called to work a 12 hour shift.

By the time he would be home, it would be way too late for this gal to go out, and way too cold, so I took to the kitchen.

We needed some extra heat in the house anyway.  The warmest hour was about feeling like 0°F.

Homemade Shallot Powder ~ Dehydrating Shallots

I love shallots.  They have such a good flavor for sauces and such.  They kind of have an onion flavor with hints of garlic in it.


Some days I want to flavor my greens (other other dishes) with shallots and I don't have them on hand.

Rosemary Infused Wine ~ Tonic Wines

Somewhere, in all those library books I have been borrowing, I got the idea to infuse red wine with rosemary.

Mountain rose herbs has a few more recipes on their site too.  I have no idea why I chose rosemary, but it intrigued me.

Herbed Butter ~ A Day in the Kitchen

I have been searching the organic section of our grocer for fresh thyme (sadly I did not put a pot of it in my kitchen last fall).  They seem to be out of it often.

I decided to use my dried thyme and use less of it  (dried is more potent).  Most recipes that use 1 stick of organic butter, require about 3 Tablespoons of fresh herbs, plus garlic.

I did not want garlic in my herbed butter for breakfast toast.  I wanted simply thyme.  Thyme has so many healthy qualities and I love the taste of it on toast with a few eggs.

Snow ~ Library Trip

Quite honestly, it was a relief to see the snow start falling here.  I was getting concerned that the robins were already out, my bulbs were trying to sprout, and the amount of blackbirds I've seen in the trees.  I even saw flies. 

It was sort of a peaceful type of snowfall. They kind that made you smile, hunker down and curl up with a few puppies and a good book. 

Homemade Bubble Bath Update ~ Another "Frugal" DIY Book

A short while ago, I mixed up a recipe for homemade bubble bath.  Just you so know, there are so many different recipes out there to try.  

I got bubbles, but I have well water too.  The water turned a milky white due to the ingredients too. The bubbles were not real big, but the clove oil really stood out.  I think any good essential oil will work. It just depends on what you want. 

Homestead Happenings ~ Rag Rug Using Old Sheets

Saturday we has a long list of chores - inside and out.  Wood needed restocked, bathrooms cleaned top to bottom (dusting included), recycling taken out, a trip to donate items to the thrift, and much more. 

I wanted some "fun" time on Sunday, so I put a limit on my deep cleaning, but 9 sconces (light fixtures) were taken down and scrubbed clean.  I have 8 more on ceiling fans, and then I move to the kitchen light fixtures.  It's such a relief to get that sort of cleaning done.