Sweet Pepper Relish

I was gifted a box of sweet peppers from a family friend. Can't let a gift like that go to waste so I made sweet pepper relish. This will be good in potato and macaroni salads.

I found the recipe by googling Ball Sweet Pepper Relish. I always use the word Ball or USDA in front of my canning recipe searches to make sure I am using a tested safe recipe. This is what I found and the recipe I used.

National Center for home canning

• 5 cups ground green bell peppers 
• 5 cups ground red bell peppers 
• 1-½ cups ground onion
• 2-½ cups cider or white distilled vinegar (5%)
• 2 cups sugar
• 4 teaspoons pickling salt
• 4 teaspoons mustard seed

I washed and cut the tops off of the Sweet Peppers. Because Mine was an assortment of colored peppers I didn't pay attention to color. I just cut the tops off and put them in my blender. I pulsed them until they were finely chopped and measured them out until I had a total of 10 cups. I did the same with the onion. I put them in a large pot and added the rest of the ingredients. Brought it to a boil for 30 mins. While it was boiling I prepared my jars and my water bath canner. Once the 30 minutes were up I filled my hot pint jars with the hot relish leaving a 1/2 inch head-space and debubbled. Put my lids and rings on and put them in the canner. Brought the canner back up to a boil and processed them for 15 min. 

If you want to try this I highly recommend it. Please click on the link and read the recipe and instructions provided. 

Here's the relish boiling away.

 And the finished product. I made 2 of this recipe and ended up 16 1/2 pints.

Healthy Homemade Pancake/waffle mix

This is a pantry staple at my house. I make it about once a month. On mornings when my family wants pancakes its ready to go. It's convenient, healthy, and most importantly homemade so I know whats in it...no funky chemicals, preservatives or colorings.  I make a huge amount but I will post a smaller recipe and then you can double as needed.


Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups All purpose flour
1 cups powdered milk or powdered butter milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Directions:

mix all ingredients in a large bowl and then transfer to a seal-able container. Store in your pantry. 
To make pancakes
mix 2 c. pancake mix , 1 1/2 cup water,  1 egg and,  2 tbsp. oil or melted butter.  for waffles reduce the amount of water to 1 c.

 

 

 

Pickled Jalapinos with yellow peppers

My Davina loves spicy food, the hotter the better. I planted a bunch of jalapenos in my garden this year so that I could can a bunch of pickled Jalapenos for her. She eats them with her sandwiches, soups pretty much any meal. But unfortunately with my pollination and poor soil issues this year I haven't had much of a crop yet. Saturday my sister went to Market on the Move and brought me a big bag of Jalapenos and I was thrilled. I had so hoped to be able to can some up for Davina. So today I went for my big shopping trip and yellow chilies were on sale for 3lbs for .99 WOOT! I bought 3 lbs and came home to can some chilies.

 Ingredients

30-40 large jalapinos
30-40 large yellow chilies
4 cups water
7 c. white vinegar
4 tsp. canning salt
2 tsp. ground cumin
6 cloves whole garlic, peeled

First of all wash 6 quart jars with hot soapy water and rinse well. boil them in a large pot for 10 min. to sterilize. remove them and place them on a clean towel. In a smaller pot place your canning lids in simmering water.

In a stainless steel pan mix the water, vinegar, salt and cumin and bring to a boil, once boiling lower to a simmer. Cut all of your chilies into rounds about the same size. Fill your jars, packing the chilies in and add a clove are garlic on top. Fill with the hot pickling liquid and use your canning tool or a chop stick to slide down the edge of your jars to release air bubbles. Wipe your jar rims clean and put on you lids. Hot water bath can for 15 mins.

Keeping a full pantry for a large family on a budget

I used to be a big weekly menu planner. I spent hours scanning the adds, making list, and scouring recipes. It was time consuming and locked me into set meals on set days. I no longer do that, instead I build up my pantry and fill up my freezer. Then I make a list of meals I have the ingredients for the month. This is much easier now that we are not eating as many processed foods but it could be done by anyone.

I started by paying attention to the types of food I bought regularly and the meals my family enjoyed most. Then I would keep track of how much we eat of a particular food in a month. For instance, I make all of our bread, biscuits, pancakes, tortillas and the like from scratch, we are a family of 9 so I go through approximately 35 lbs. of flour a month. We eat a lot of Mexican food so we go through approximately 13 lbs of beans a month. When my pantry and freezer are full of the staples I can make meals according to my energy level and needs for each day.  This also allows me to do one major shopping trip a month and saves me a ton of money because there is no impulse buying. If we run out of something before my next shopping trip WE DON'T EAT IT! That is the biggest money saver. If we run out of sugar we use honey or brown sugar. No flour means no baked goods.  This rarely happens anymore, but it does happen. I can decide to whip up a cake or cinnamon rolls and I know I more than likely have the ingredients on hand. I no longer shop for our weekly needs or even our monthly needs, I shop to refill my pantry and freezer staples. Any produce that is on sale for cheap I can, turn into jam, or freeze.

The best way I have found to do this is to check the adds. When something your family eats regularly goes on sale buy a lot of it. For instance when pasta went on sale recently for .49 I bought 40 or so packages. I will not be buying pasta again until it hits a rock bottom price and then a will restock. Also buying in bulk. My flour, beans, rice, sugar, oats etc. are all purchased in bulk and stored in food grade buckets with gamma lids like these




Here is a sample of my freezer and pantry staples.

 This list does not include everything in my pantry and freezer. I have 4 or 5 gallon sized bags each of green chilies, assorted bell peppers, and tomatoes in my freezer right now because of a trip to Market on the Move which is a local program to reduce food waste. I have a large bag of Jalapenos on my counter waiting to be pickled. Along with many jars of canned beans, jellies, jams, and tomato products. I also have many jars of dehydrated fruits and vegetables. Once you learn to think beyond next weeks meals and your menu and start thinking about food storage and extended pantry items, you start to look for opportunities to add to your staples. You start thinking about what's in season, what can I freeze, what can I can, what can I dehydrate, how can I put what I have to good use? Sugar was on sale last time I went shopping and because I wasn't trying to buy according to a menu and I had staple items at home already I was able to take advantage of that sale and stock up on sugar. That is something I won't need to buy for many months if not a year freeing up money to put towards another item that might be on sale.



Now onto my my list:

• All Purpose flour
• Whole Wheat Flour
• Baking Powder
• Baking Soda
• Corn starch
• Brown sugar
• Powdered Sugar
• Pumpkin spice
• Cinnamon
• sage
• Sugar
• Honey
• Coconut
• Powdered milk
• Olive oil
• Italian seasoning
• Chili powder
• New Mexican chili powder
• Chili flakes
• Oregano
• Cumin
• Garlic powder
• Dehydrated onion flakes
• Basil
• Bay leaves
• Salt
• Pepper
• Achote
• Popcorn
• Oatmeal
• Bran
• Flax seed
• Chocolate chips
• Dried cranberries
• Peanut butter
• Butter
• Eggs
• Raisins
• Prunes
• Frozen blueberries
• Frozen straw berries
• Frozen mixed veggies
• Milk
• Coffee
• Tea bags
• White rice
• Brown rice
• Canned tomatoes
• Tomato paste
• Tomato sauce
• Assorted pasta
• Italian sausage
• Whole chickens
• Frozen green beans
• Frozen broccoli
• Onions
• Garlic
• In season fruits and vegetables
• Assorted nuts
• Sour cream
• Mustard
• Ketchup
• Mayonnaise
• Cocoa powder
• Clear gelatin
• pectin
• lemon juice

Magnesium, why it's important and how to get more of it.

Magnesium is a mineral found mostly in leafy green vegetables and nuts. It is the fourth most important mineral in the body and 50% of your body's Magnesium is found in our bones and is responsible for over 300 reactions in the body. So it is a very important mineral and one we should all be trying to include in our diets. In fact it is estimated that over half of Americans don't get enough Magnesium. There are also some studies suggesting that Magnesium deficiency my be a huge factor in the increase of heart attacks.

Here is a list of  the symptoms and complications caused by  Magnesium deficiency.

1. Calcium deficiency
2. Irregular heart rhythms
3. Weakness
4. Muscle cramps
5. Tremors
6. Nausea
7. Anxiety
8. High blood pressure
9. Respiratory issues
10. Dizziness
11. Fatigue
12. Potassium deficiency
13. Difficulty swallowing
14. Poor memory
15. Confusion
16. Loss of appetite
17. Hyperglycemia
18. ADHD
19. Epilepsy
20. Parkinson’s disease
21. Sleep problems
22. Migraine
23. Cluster headaches
24. Osteoporosis
25. Premenstrual syndrome
26. Chest pain (angina)
27. Cardiac arrhythmias
28. Coronary artery disease and atherosclerosis
29. Hypertension
30. Type II diabetes
31. Asthma

So how can we add Magnesium to our diets and how much do we need? It is really hard to say because we are all so very different and are needs are too. Taking up to 350 mg of Magnesium a day is safe for most adults but I think the safest way is the natural way. The body doesn't absorb Magnesium supplements as well as it does from eating Magnesium rich foods. I personally do take a Magnesium supplement and so does my husband who has seen huge improvements in his asthma but we also include many Magnesium rich foods in our diets. Foods like Almonds,Cashews, Molasses, Buckwheat, Brazil nuts, Millet Pecans, Dark leafy greens, some beans, peas, seeds, and whole, unrefined grains.

My favorite way to get more Magnesium in my system and the best way for your body to absorb it is to take a long warm Epsom salt bath.
So grow some greens and juice them and make salads with them. Eat more nuts, beans and peas. Finally grab a good book and take a soothing Epsom salt bubble bath, for your health. 

What is canola oil and is it healthy?

Canola is a hybrid plant developed in Canada in the 1960's. Canola oil is made with Rapeseed. Rapeseed is a bright yellow flowering member of the family Brassicaceae, the same family as Mustard.  There are some studies that show that Rapeseed has cumulative effects causing:
tremors and shaking
Disturbed Cordination when walking
slurred speech
deterioration of memory and thinking processes
fuzzy or low audio levels
difficulty urinating/incontinence
breathing problems
Shortness of breath
nervous breakdown
numbness and tingling in extremities
heart problems/arrhythmia 
Rapeseeds are heat processed with the chemical solvent Hexane, this produces a grey lumpy substance that doesn't smell very good. This substance must then be degummed, neutralized, dried, bleached, deodorized and then additives are added. At this point it is deemed "safe for human consumption". At this point I personally feel it has been molested to the point I wouldn't even call it food. 
93% of canola oil in the United States is Genetically Engineered. That  is even a better reason why Canola oil won't be found in my house ever again.  
You can do searches and find sources that say Canola oil is healthy and sources that say is is poison. You can decide for yourself what is safe for your family to eat. I am going to stick with the rule.....If my Grandma couldn't get it, I don't want it in my cupboards.