Baby Wipes

In an effort to avoid all the nasty and potentially harmful chemicals in commercial baby wipes, I started making my own. This is a concentrate. I dilute it before using and one batch lasts about a month.


2 oz Rose Water (any baby-safe floral water will do, or you can use plain water)
2 oz Witch Hazel Extract
2 oz unscented Baby Wash (I like California Baby)
2 oz Jojoba Oil
20 drops of a baby-safe essential oil (I like Gentle Baby from Young Living)

Mix these all together. Every morning I add 1 tsp of this concentrate to an 8 oz peri bottle of water. Then I just squirt the wipe juice on the baby wipes as I need them. By the way, I use cloth baby wipes. You can buy them or cut up old flannel sheets, t-shirts or even receiving blankets to make your own.

You can pre-moisten some wipes and put them in a small sandwich bag and throw them in your bag to freshen up after working out, clean your hands if there is no soap around or as personal hygiene wipes. I've even used them to remove my makeup.

Schwetty Balls (AKA Chocolate Salty Balls)

Yeah, I went there.  This tasty, salty-sweet recipe is inspired by the SNL skit.  Enjoy!


Ingredients:

1/2 cup creamy Peanut Butter
1/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp Powdered Sugar
1 Tbsp room temperature unsalted Butter
1 cup crushed Pretzels
5 ounces melted Milk Chocolate

Stir together Peanut Butter, Powdered Sugar and Butter.
Stir in the crushed Pretzels.
Form into 1 inch balls.  Place on wax paper lined baking sheet.
Freeze for 30 minutes.  
Dip in melted chocolate.  Refrigerate until set.

Old Fashioned Gingerbread

This tastes awesome, and your house will smell so good while it's baking!

Ingredients:

1 Egg
½ cup Sugar
½ cup Dark Molasses
5 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted
⅔ cups Whole Milk
1-½ cup All-purpose Flour (I actually substituted 1/2 cup Whole Wheat Flour for a little fiber and texture)
1 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Salt
¼ tsp Nutmeg
¼ tsp Cloves
2 tsp Ginger
2 tsp Cinnamon


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a loaf pan with butter. (you can make this in an 8″ square pan too, just reduce the baking time a bit)
Mix together the egg, sugar, molasses, butter and milk. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda, salt and spices. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until everything is well combined.
Pour the batter into the pan, and bake for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let the bread cool, and then slice and enjoy!

Bailey's Pumpkin Pie with Gingersnap Crust and Spiked Whipped Cream

My family had Thanksgiving early this year. There were 4 different kinds of Pumpkin Pie to choose from. This one was, by far, the most popular.
 

Crust:
1 3/4 cups Gingersnap Cookie crumbs (Mi-Del brand cookies work great for this)
2 1/2 Tbsp melted Butter
2 Tbsp Sugar

Filling:
1 1/2 cups Pumpkin
3/4 cup packed Brown Sugar
1 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 tsp ground Cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground Nutmeg
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 Eggs, beaten
1 (12 ounce) can Evaporated Milk MINUS 2 Tbsp
2 Tbsp Bailey's Irish Cream (original flavor)


Preheat oven to 325 F.
For crust:
Combine cookie crumbs, sugar, and melted butter in a 9 inch pie pan. Press into sides. Bake for 5 minutes. Cool completely.

For filling:
Combine pumpkin, brown sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, vanilla, eggs, milk and Bailey's. Whisk until combined.
Pour into crust. Bake at 325 F for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool. Serve chilled with Spiked Whipped Cream.

Spiked Whipped Cream:

Whip together 8 oz Heavy Whipping Cream, 2 Tbsp Sugar and 1-2 Tbsp Bailey's Irish Cream (to taste) until soft peaks form. (Try not to eat it all with a spoon)

Cheesy Bacon Green Bean Casserole

I never liked green bean casserole until I tried this. It's so good.


1 (10 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
3 ounces Velveeta, cubed
2 tablespoons real bacon bits
1 (4 ounce) can mushroom stems and pieces, drained
2 (15 ounce) cans cut green beans, drained
1 (2.8 ounce) can French-fried onions

Preheat the oven to 325.
Heat the cream of mushroom soup, Velveeta and bacon in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until cheese is completely melted. Remove from the heat. Stir in the mushrooms and the green beans until evenly coated. Pour the mixture into a casserole dish and top with the fried onions.
Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until heated through and bubbly. Check the last few minutes of cooking to make sure the onions aren't getting too brown.

Apple Spice Air Freshener

People spend a lot of money on synthetic sprays, candles and potpourris trying to make their homes smell warm and inviting.  This is a natural, inexpensive alternative.

Here is what you need:

2 cups Apple Juice or Cider
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 tsp Vanilla Extract or a Vanilla Bean
1 Cinnamin Stick
4 or 5 whole Cloves

Put all ingredients in a small sauce pan and let it simmer on the stove.  In just a couple minutes your entire house will smell warm and inviting.
If you don't have the whole spices you can substitute dried, powdered spices.  Be creative.  Try Orange Juice instead of the Apple Juice, or just use a Vanilla Bean and some Ginger in water.

Pumpkin Seeds

Are you carving pumpkins for Halloween? Don't forget to toast the seeds for a yummy snack!


Rinse the seeds and remove all the pulp. Soak seeds overnight in a solution of 2 cups water and 1/4 cup salt.  The next day, spread the seeds on a cookie sheet to dry.  This should take 8-12 hours. 

Preheat oven to 250 F.  

Toss pumpkin seeds in olive oil.
Sprinkle with salt. Toss to coat. You can also try garlic powder, cayenne, cinnamon...be creative. 
Spread the seeds on a foil lined baking sheet. 

Bake seeds for about 1 hour, until they are golden brown.  Stir them every 15-20 minutes. 

Let the seeds cool before eating.