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.  

 

 

Chocolate Syrup

Just like Hershey's, but without the high fructose corn syrup.

1 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Add all ingredients except vanilla to a medium sauce pan. 
Bring to a low boil and boil for 4-5 minutes, whisking the whole time, until the sauce begins to thicken.
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.
Be sure to store your chocolate syrup in the fridge.

French Dressing

Growing up, this was the salad dressing we always had. My mom always kept a Tupperware container of it in the fridge. It's easy and really yummy.

1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup catsup

Combine all ingredients in a bottle. Shake well. Store in the fridge.

Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings

I make a lot of healthy, wholesome recipes.

This is not one of them.

It is, however, simple and truly awesome. Try it. You'll be surprised by this one. There is a really cool kind of alchemy that takes place between the sugary, buttery sauce and the Mountain Dew.

This recipe makes 16 Dumplings. Usually half a recipe is sufficient unless you're having a party or watching a LOST marathon.


Ingredients:

2 large apples, cored and peeled.  Granny Smith work the best.
2 cans Refrigerated Crescent Rolls
2 sticks Butter
1 1/2 cups Sugar plus more for dusting
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
3/4 cups Mountain Dew
Pumpkin Pie Spice

Preparation Instructions:

Cut each apple into 8 slices
Lightly Sprinkle apple slices with pumpkin pie spice and a dusting of sugar
Roll each slice up in a crescent roll. 
Place rolls side by side in a buttered casserole dish
Stir vanilla and sugar into melted butter
Pour butter mixture over the apple rolls
Pour Mountain Dew around the apples, but not on top or you won't get a nice crust
Sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice
Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes
Serve with vanilla ice cream



Nutrition Information for one dumpling, no ice cream:

Are you sure you really want to see this? You don't have to look, you know.


Calories 460
Fat 17g
Carb 69g
Fiber 2g
Protein 10g

Broccoli Cheese Soup

Even if you don't normally like broccoli I guarantee you'll like this soup. This is awesome, yummy, filling comfort food that's even kind of healthy.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Medium Onion, Diced
1 cup diced carrots
1 pound broccoli florets
5 cups vegetable stock
2 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp Flour
1 cup Half-and-half
2 cups Shredded Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Plus Extra For Garnish
½ cups Heavy Cream (optional)
½ tsp Salt
¼ tsp Fresh Ground Pepper


Preparation Instructions

Roughly chop broccoli florets into 1 inch pieces.  Heat olive oil in large pot.  Add broccoli, carrots, onion, salt and pepper.  Cover and saute until carrots are soft and onion is translucent. Remove cover and add four cups of vegetable stock.  Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and cover. Simmer 20-30 minutes, or until veggies are mushy. Remove from heat and allow to cool while making the cheese sauce. 
While veggies are cooling, melt butter in a separate pan.  Whisk in flour and allow to cook slightly to make a roux. Whisk entire time. Slowly whisk in half-and-half and remaining cup of vegetable stock. Whisk until slightly thickened. Add cheese and stir until melted.
Using an immersion blender, purée the veggie/stock mixture until almost smooth. (this can also be done in small batches in a conventional blender or food processor) 
Add cheese sauce to pureed veggies.  Stir in cream, if desired, and season to taste. Makes 6 really big bowls.


Nutrition info

Calories 395
Fat 31g
Carbs 14g
Fiber 3g
Protein 18g

Simple Lotion

This is a super easy and really nice lotion.  I use it on my face, body, hair, baby...it's a bit more oily than most commercial lotions, but it works really well and, best of all, you can control every single ingredient.  I recommend doing some research on different kinds of oils, floral waters/hydrosols and essential oils to learn the properties of each.  This way you can further customize your lotion for your own needs.  Have fun!


Ingredients:


    1/8 tsp Borax powder

    1/4 cup water- you can also use rose water or orange flower water or any hydrosol

    1/2 cup oil- I have used many different kinds here. My favorites are jojoba or almond

    1 T grated beeswax or soy wax

    Essential Oils (optional)


Instructions:


    Dissolve the borax in water. Melt the wax and oil together in a double boiler. Stir occasionally to speed up the melting. Once it is completely melted remove it from the heat and slowly add the borax-water mixture to it, whisking the entire time. Keep whisking while the lotion cools. This can take some time, but it's necessary to keep the mixture from separating once it has cooled. Once it has cooled add any essential oil that you like. Put your lotion in a jar, squeeze bottle or pump bottle.  Shake before using.