Easy Kitchen Tips

Here is a quick list of common cooking tips that I have found very helpful. They come from questions my good friends have asked me, questions I have ask my mom and just plain old trial and error. If you have any to add, feel free to comment!!

• Yeast expires. Check the date before you use it to bake.
• Whole wheat flour can go rancid if you don't keep it cool and if you keep it for to long.
• When in doubt follow the directions and use the ingredients listed in the recipe!! I don't know how many friends I have who tell me "they can't cook" but when I investigate futhur I find they don't follow the recipe as it is written because they don't have certain ingredients etc.
• Shake your Worcheshire sauce before using. Don't believe me? Turn the bottle over and look as how much "stuff" is at the bottom of the bottle. Shake it to mix it all back together.
• Look at your baking powder. Some brands will tell you to shake the can before using.

Happy Cooking!

Mango Salsa

I was visiting my friend while she was making this mango salsa. The salsa was SO good, I left her house and immedietly bought the ingredients to make it myself. I took it to work the next morning and by the afternoon it was GONE. It is that good.

Mango Salsa

1 firm mango peeled and diced
4-5 ripe medium size tomatoes diced
1 red onion diced
3 garlic cloves minced
1 pepper, seeded and diced(your choice, I used a poblano but for spicer salsa use a jalapeno or habernaro)
1 lime zested and juiced
cilantro
1/8 tsp sea salt

Mix everything together in a bowl. Serve with chips. It is good right after you make it. Even better the next day.

Courtesy Liz Stammel Photography

Foodie Fridays, Good Eats, Tempt My Tummy, Traditional Tuesdays, Tuesdyas at the Table, Healthy Today Wednesdays,

Hot Florida Days

At this time of year some kids might be playing outside in the fall air enjoying the leaves, pumpkins and all things fall. Then you have those of us that are still living in the oppressing 90 degree heat with so much humidity that beads of sweat form on your face the moment you step outside. The only saving grace this time of year is either the beach or in our neighborhood Lake Pasadena under the oak tree. The kids LOVE to go there and "catch turtles". To hear them talk about it you would think they are running some sort of turtle catching business. The reality is, they are "armed" with a butterfly net and a box of cherrios. The lure the turtles in with the cherrios, lower the butterfly net into the water and catch a turtle. It makes a great learning oppurtunity because the kids can see the turtles up close. We let the turtles go almost immedietly after catching them. The kids have so much fun it is worth the short walk in the heat to hang out under the oak tree and catch turtles.

A Florida Cooter and some minows. The kids think
the larger minows are pregnant.

Even the baby gets in on the fun. He likes
to watch from the stroller.

This post is linked to Barn Hop Monday, Miscellany Mondays

$1.00 worth of fun

I have been trying to come up with fun and economical ways for my daughter to learn. I find it is important for her to have structured activities to keep her mind and hands busy. It keeps her out of trouble and it helps her develop many valuable skills. One idea I came up with was to buy those little colored things (pom poms?)....see the picture below if you know the correct name for these colored things as I refer to them PLEASE tell me!! I went to the dollar store and sure enough I was able to buy a bag of them for $1.00. I set up a tray for Savannah with 3 cups and the little colored things. I had her sort them, touch them and play with them. When she was "done" sorting them she exclaimed "Look mom, it is beautiful." She will play with these for about 15 minutes which is good for a 2 year old. She gets at least a dollars worth of fun out of them each time!!

You can see how hard she is concentrating.
Also, I set her up in the kitchen so I can
get some work done while she is working.


This is linked to Tip Junkie

Number Shapes and Colors OH MY!

Here are the list of ideas I have come up with so far for my homemade learning toy I made for Savannah.

• Have your child sort them by color into a muffin tin or egg crate
• Have your child sort them by shape.
• Have your child sort them by number (all the one's, two's ect.)
• Have your child stack them in numerical order
• For an older child, have them line up each set in order. If this it to hard, you line up one set and have them "copy" with each additional set.

The thing I noticed my Savannah doing was as she played with them she asked while picking up the shape "Mommy, what number is this?" I would tell her and she would place that shape down and ask me "What number is this?" for the next number. When her daddy played with her, he got tired of answering her and started saying back "You tell me what number that is". She looked at it and got the number right every time. That in itself was worth the 15 minutes it took for me to make this learning toy.

How to make a toddler number leaning toy

I recently had to take my Savannah out of her 2 day a week Mom's Morning out play group. We just couldn't afford it anymore and because I am not working as much, it really wasn't needed. I decided I needed to be a little more proactive with teaching her things (with out her realizing she was learning). I noticed that although she can count to a whooping 13, she didn't recognize her numbers yet. We had lots of learning toys that worked on letter recognition but nothing that worked on number recognition. So I came up with a completly free way to help her with number recognition.

Items needed

4 different colors of card stock
4 different shaped large punches
*if you don't have paper punches you can always draw and cut out the shapes
1 marker

Pick out one color and one punch. Punch out 12 of those shapes from that color. Example. Circle punch....punch out 12 yellow circles. Using the marker write one number on each shape. You should have numbers 1 - 12. Repeat with each remaining color and shape. At the end you should have for example 12 yellow ovals, 12 red circles, 12 pink flowers, 12 green squares. Click here for a list of things your toddler can do with this "toy".

This is linked to Tip Junkie, Living Well, Crystal and Comp, Frugal Friday, Works for me Wednesday, Raising Homemakers

Frozen Blueberries

There are lots of wonderful things you can do with your stash of blueberries, canned or frozen. We dipped into ours this weekend when I made my moms yummy blueberry muffins. I also have a good recipe for Apple Blueberry Crisp. What are your favorite blueberry recipes? How long do you wait before you start eating what you have put away for the winter?

This is linked to Homestead Revival: Barn Hop and Two Questions

Blueberry Muffins

What makes my blueberry muffin recipe different from any other blueberry muffin recipe? It has 1/2 the sugar and contains orange juice! My mom has been making these ever since I can remember. I have no idea where she got the recipe from, all I know is they are yummolicious!

Mom's Blueberry Muffins

1/2 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup orange juice
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 cup oil
1 cup blueberries

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a measuring cup combine orange juice and oatmeal. Mix and set aside. Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl. Add egg and oil to orange juice mixture. Combine wet and dry ingredients. Fold in blueberries. Place batter into lined or greased muffin pan. Optional: Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over the top of unbaked muffins. Bake for 20 minutes or until done.

This is linked to Melt in your Mouth Mondays, Good Cheap Eats, Foodie Fridays

9/11 Rays Game

One of the things we love to do as a family is go to baseball games. We had another opportunity to do so on September 11. The city gave a great deal to first responders (like my husband) to go to the Rays vs. Red Sox game on 9/11. I knew it would most likely be the last game we would attend of the season. So I asked a friend of mine if she could make Savannah a Ray's bow for her hair. Apparently, she has a website where you can request and purchase custom bows at very reasonable prices. Just let her know what type of bow you want and she can make it! She e-mailed me a few options and I let her know which one I liked best. I personally thought the bow came out so cute and Savannah looked adorable (if I do say so myself). Please, check out her website and see all the awesome things she has made!


My favorite, her Ray's Bow

This is a goldfish bow she made.

A flower bow



0.95 Cent Kitchen Tip

I have been told by many people that my speghetti sauce is some of the best sauce they have ever tasted. Ironically, I never really make it the same way twice. Sometimes I add a little more of this or that based on what I have on hand. However, one thing NEVER changes! I always add one pork neck bone to my sauce. Now don't stop reading there because that sounds gross. The only use you are getting out of it is flavor. I don't usually use the meat that is on the bone nor do I leave it in the sauce when I go to serve it with the pasta. It is purely there for flavor. The cost of a pork neck bone? Well, this last time I paid a whopping 0.95 cents! Sometimes I pay a little more but that is when they package one or more bones together. I just freeze the other bones for future use. So my tip to you is add a pork neck bone to your homemade sauce (or mine, recipe here) and get ready to be amazed!

This post is linked to Tammy's Kitchen Tips, Tip Junkie and Works for me Wednesday

Chicken Sitting at Sunny SIde

This last week has been a busy one. My good friend over at the Sunny Side Bed and Breakfast went away on a much deserved vacation. She needed someone to look after her chickens while she was away. Luckily, I only live a few minutes away so I volunteered to chicken sit this week. Twice a day me and my kids went over there to take care of the chickens. In the morning I let them out, cleaned up the fertilizer...I mean poop, made sure they had fresh water and food. Savannah had fun playing on the kids 4 wheeler and Atlanta hung out in the swing. Every evening I would make sure the chickens were in their coop, collected the eggs and locked them in for the night. Since my chickens are not laying yet, I asked to keep the eggs as payment. She also bought me a 50lb bag of feed for my girls. I also got to chick sit as my friend is trying to get rid of 25 baby chickens. She brought them to my house and Savannah and I have had fun taking care of them. It is always so cute how children take such pride in taking care of animals. Every morning she asks if it is time to feed the baby chicks. It has been a very rainy week and every time it started to rain hard, Savannah would worry about the baby chicks. She is such a caring girl. Over all we had a wonderful week chicken sitting and it made me long for a life outside of the city.

* if anyone lives in the Tampa Bay area and is interested in buying any of these baby chicks, comment and let me know!!!



This is linked to Homestead Revival Barn Hop

How Much is Enough - Quantifiying Breast Feeding

The most common question I hear asked by new breastfeeding moms is "How do I know my baby is getting enough to eat?". Being that we live in a world where we quantify everything it is understandable that new moms would be concerned with this. New moms are often asked by those who have chosen not to breastfeed, "How much does the baby take?" "How many ounces does the baby want?". While some people look at not being able to quantify how much milk a baby is drinking as the down side to breastfeeding, I look at it as a good thing. It forces mom to learn the natural feeding cues of their baby. It builds a closeness and awareness of the baby.  I ask my patients when they ask me the question, "Is your baby gaining weight?" "Is the baby wetting after each feed?" "Is the baby happy and seemingly satisfied after feeding?". If the answer to all these questions is "YES" then that is how you KNOW your baby is getting enough to eat! So often new moms feel inadequate to make this assumption because those kind hearted good intentioned "helpers" (often times Grandma) are at the house welcoming the new baby. There was a generation or two of American women that missed out on breastfeeding all together. Doctors and the formula industry just assumed for those women that formula was easier and just as good for the baby. Some women weren't even given the chance to breastfeed. There is a big gap in breastfeeding education and understanding by that generation which in turn makes it difficult to understand that a baby can be getting plenty even if mom can't report how many ounces the baby is taking. I have found if mom is armed with this education before baby is born it can boost the confidence of the new mom so that in her sleep deprived state she can stand up to even the toughest mother or mother-in-law who is armed with a bottle and a kind heart and explain to them that breast is best.

Nestle Toll House Coupon

Like Nestle Toll House on Facebook and get a fifty cent coupon for their new dark chocolate morsles!!

Georgia's Pasta Sauce Recipe

Most people wouldn't share their sauce recipe. It is usually a treasured secret kept within the family. I want to share this with you because I want you to realize how cheap and easy it is to make your own homemade pasta sauce! This recipe has been perfected by me over the years and this is the first time I have even typed it out. Hope you enjoy it as much as we do!!

Georgia's Pasta Sauce

2 cans crushed tomatoes (I ONLY use Cento tomatoes, the other brands don't compare)
1 medium onion finely chopped (I use my food processor)
1/2 sweet red bell pepper finely chopped
3-4 garlic cloves peeled and minced
1/4 tsp chili pepper flakes
2 tsp salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp oregano (dried or fresh)
1/2 cup fresh cut basil divided
1 pork bone
1 lb Italian sausage links
Parmesan cheese for garnish

In a large sauce pan (or electric skillet) saute the onion, red pepper, garlic and pepper flakes until translucent and fragrant. Add the crushed tomatoes. Add salt, sugar, oregano, and 1/4 cup fresh basil. Add your pork bone. Take your Italian sausage, take off the casing and chop into 1-2 inch pieces. Add into sauce. I use the Italian sausage instead of meatballs, however you can always add meatballs. Place a tight lid on pan and let simmer for at least 2-3 hours stirring occasionally.  About 15 minutes before serving add the remaining 1/4 cup fresh basil. Be sure to taste and make sure it is seasoned to your liking. Remove pork bone. Serve over hot pasta with some Parmesan cheese for garnish. Can be canned or frozen for future use.

I use the food processor to choppe the onions
and garlic. Once the sauce is cooked, you would
don't see or feel the onion in the sauce.

I like using an electic skillet because my
sauce can cook at an even temp for a long
time.

This is my pork bone. It is a pork neck bone.
I paid $0.95 for it. It makes ALL the difference
in the world. Without this, your sauce will
not taste like mine. You can not omit this.
You can cut the meat off and add it to the
sauce or just throw it away. Up to you!


This is linked to Good Cheap Eats, Works for Me Wednesday, Foodie Fridays

Great Dad

I don't have to say much....this photo says it all. What a Great Dad!!!!

This is linked to ABC Wednesday and Wordless Wednesday

Quick and Easy way to pit cherries

As I have mentioned before, my Savannah LOVES cherries. I try to only feed her fruits and veggies that are in season and cherries must be still running strong because the stores are stocked full of them!! The only problem I have found is if I give her a whole cherry she eats it like an apple and makes a huge mess! I found an easy, less messy way to pit the cherries before she eats them. Check it out!

I used Pampered Chef's Core and More ($11.00) and a knife. I slice the cherry around the pit, twist and then use the scoop end of the Pampered Chef tool to scoop out the pit. It is the perfect size for the cherry not to big or small! It works good to hull strawberries as well.

As a side note, I just happen to be hosting a Pampered Chef party! If you want to order this through my party you can click here. Click on shop online and type in my name as the hostess. Liz Cleckner. Party closes September 17th.



This is linked to Tammy's Kitchen Tips, Works For Me Wednesday, Tip Junkie Tuesday and Ruby Tuesday

Aveeno $2.00 off coupon

Check it!! On Aveeno's Facebook page they have a $2.00 off any sun product coupon.

Look what I Won!!!!

Homestead Revival and Anderson Farms hosted a giveaway about two weeks ago. I entered knowing I wouldn't win. I never ever win anything!!! I almost didn't even look to see who the winners were because I figured I wouldn't be one of them. I looked anyway and much to my surprise I won!!! The item I won came in the mail this weekend. I was SO excited. Check it out!

Thankful for Mom

I am so excited today! Why you ask? Because my mom is flying in today!!!! I am so thankful to have such a wonderful mom and friend. She treats my children so well and is a wonderful Grandma. My Savannah misses her so much. Everyday she talks to her Grandma on the phone and asks her "Grandma, you here? You see me?" My mom felt so bad, she booked these tickets last week to be here this weekend! We got them for $166.00 round trip from Akron to Tampa.  So today, when Savannah asks where Grandma is I can say "She's here!".

What is the best travel deal you've got?

What is the best memory you have of your mom?

My mom and the kids last visit.

This is linked to Two Questions and Thankful Thursday