Frugal Tip Friday: Sun Tea

When the weather gets warm and the days get longer, I love to use the power of the sun to make sun tea. Get out a glass jar of any sort. It can be a canning jar, a pickle jar, an actual sun tea pitcher, or what ever else you happen to have on hand. Place in however many tea bags you usually use (we use 7 for a gallon of tea), cover the bags with cool water, and set in a sunny place. This can be outdoors or indoors. Make sure that the top is covered with something. A lid, a plate, a wash cloth, just something to keep the bugs out. Allow to sit in the sun for a few hours. When the liquid inside is dark brown, bring it in a make your tea as usual. We do the 7 tea bags to one cup of sugar and 1 gallon of water. Refridgerate till cold.

This is a frugal option in that you are using no "man-made" energy to steep the tea. It is all done by the sun. And it tastes lovely!

Thankful Thrusday: Week #16

~ Cookouts with family

~ A church full of praising voices

~ Busy days

~ Running water

~ The library and all it's resources

~ Documentaries

~ Fans on hot days when I refuse to turn on the A/C

Frugal Tip Friday: Freeze your cheese!

Next time you happen to spot shredded cheese on sale, buy it up!

We use shredded cheese a lot in this house! What can I say? We like it! So I tend to keep quite a bit on hand. But I was still having the problem of it going bad before I could use it all. Until I learned that you can freeze it.

It is actually very simple! Just throw the bag of cheese, direct from the grocery store, into the freezer. When you want to use it, pull out the flavor/kind that you want, break it up a little and use just like you would if not frozen. If you are going to use the full amount in the bag, then you can allow it to completely thaw in the fridge for a few hours before making dinner. If using from frozen, it will take a little longer to melt. So if you are using it on say a baked potato, you may have to give it a few minutes or throw it in the microwave or warm oven to help it along. I use the frozen cheese in salads I send to work with my husband. By the time he gets his lunch at work, the cheese is thawed! And we never have to deal with moldy cheese again!

Thankful Thursday: Week #15

~ Purny baby feet after a bath

~ Meals that bring back fond memories of lost loved ones. (Swedish meatballs and butterscotch pie this week. I miss you Grandma!)

~ Going to a yard sale and buying a cast iron skillet for a dollar

~ Kombucha that turns out perfectly (google it!) :o)

~ Heirloom tomato plants (got all of ours planted!)

~ Baby teeth! ("L" got her first two teeth in 3 days! And she hasn't been super grumpy!)

~Productive mornings

Quick Tip Tuesday: Easier bread slicing

It is hard to get fresh baked bread sliced thin enough for our liking. If we are planning to eat it warm, slathered in butter or jelly, it's not a big deal. But when it comes to sandwiches, we like it to be as thin or thinner than store bought. So I have discovered how to do just that.

Allow the fresh loaf of bread to cool completely on a wire rack. When it is totally cooled, place into a zip top baggie and the put it into the fridge over night. This "firms" up the bread. Then slice it into your thin slices. The bread is firm enough to slice yet still soft and yummy!

Weekly Meal Plan: 05/15-05/21

I am late getting this done this week. I've had a couple "feeling pooy" days and just didn't get it done. Have to go to the grocery store tomorrow afternoon to do the shopping for the week. Not my idea of a nice way to spend a Sunday afternoon. Lesson learned?

Saturday dinner: BIG pizza. I happened to find one of those huge pizzas you can get at the grocery store on sale (it was "out of date" the next day) for $3.00! They are originally like $10. BBQ chicken. Yum!

Prep for Sunday: thaw ground turkey

Sunday lunch: Left over pizza? I am not kidding, this thing is huge! :o) Or maybe a freezer meal?

Sunday dinner: Swedish meatballs (making a double batch to freeze 1/2 for later use), mashed potatoes, cooked carrots and fresh bread. May come up with a special dessert. I need to get back into the habit of that. If all else fails, cookies and ice cream!

Prep for Monday: cook hard boiled eggs, thaw chicken breasts/thighs

Monday lunch: Tuna salad in homemade pita pockets, potato salad and hard boiled eggs

Monday dinner: Chicken tetrazini (making a single batch but freezing half for later use, one batch makes two 8x8 inch pans), peas, "daddy" potatoes and buttered bread.

Prep for Tuesday: soak beans, thaw chicken breasts

Tuesday lunch: Chicken fingers, mac and cheese, and Lima beans

Tuesday dinner: crock pot pizza beans

Prep for Wednesday: Check to see if first batch of kombucha is done!

Wednesday lunch: left over chicken fingers in pita pockets with lettuce, tomato, and honey mustard

Wednesday dinner, all meals for Thursday and Friday: Leftovers!

White chocolate chip cookies

These are just yummy! They are great warm, cold, with a glass of milk or broken up in a bowl of vanilla ice cream. A simple cookie with a great flavor! Chewy on the inside, crunchy on the outside. (This one's for you Christine! Hope you enjoy it!)

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened



• 2 cups white sugar



• 2 eggs



• 2 tsp. vanilla extract



• 2 cups all-purpose flour



• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa (the powdered kind)



• 1 tsp. baking soda



• 1/2 tsp. salt



• 1 2/3 cups white chocolate

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.



2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.



3. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.



4. Add dry mix into the wet mix a little at a time till all dry is used and the dough is well mixed. Fold in the white chocolate chips.



5. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto an ungreased cookie sheet, allowing for room to spread.



6. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until cookies are set. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

The dough from the cookies freezes really well! I have some thawing on the counter right now to enjoy with some yummy raw goats milk! Mmm.