From Plain Mayonaise to Jazzed Mayo, I Give You: Seasoned Mayo Sandwich Spread

I'm not a big Mayo person.  I'll have a little on one side of my sandwich.  I'm more of a dijon mustard kind of person.  HOWEVER, I was intrigued when I started seeing specialty mayonaise on the shelves.  I've been seasoning my mayo for over a year now, and I don't think I'll ever stop.  There are so many options for seasonings, as well as options for where to spread it!

This works with any type of mayonaise, whether it's regular or a non-dairy variety.  I personally love Veganaise.  Not too sure how it would turn out for Miracle Whip, but hey!  If you're curious, give it a try, or use a different variety of seasonings.  Maybe more of a ranch flavor?

And just in case you're wondering, the spices don't make this spread too spicy hot.  It's just a spread, so you absolutely notice the flavor and a tiny kick, but it's not going to have you sweating or rosy-cheeked.

My favorite sandwich on which I enjoy this spread would be cucumber, bell pepper, black beans and lettuce, but my husband likes it with rotisserie chicken, cheddar, and lettuce.  So!  It's really your choice.  Bake or buy some yummy bread, grab some sandwich stuffers, and go for it!

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Mayonaise

3/4 tsp Chili Powder

Heaping 1/4 tsp Paprika

1/4 tsp Granulated Garlic Powder

1/4 tsp Granulated Onion Powder

In a small bowl, measure out the mayonaise.  Add the spices, then stir until thoroughly mixed together.  Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator.

Note:  Keep in a tupperware container for easy storage and later use.

How to Make a Pencil Holder. OR How to Make a Tool/Nails/Screws Holder

About a week ago, I set aside a 28 oz tin can that we'd eaten the food out of.  I'd been working in my garage in my husband's tools and noticed that he had a lot of things on his work bench that could use a container.  I knew I could do some manly decorating of it and he'd be happy.  A few days later, he came home from work and told me that he needed a pencil holder because he had a drawer full of pens and pencils and wanted it empty.  Ha! It's a good thing I saved that tin can, huh?  Looks like I'll be saving a few more.

With Christmas coming up, I actually thought it could be a fun gift for those that could use a little organization in their lives.  I know many people enjoy or need to make as many gifts as possible this year, and this could be just thing for those hard-to-create-for-males.  

You could use two to three different sizes of tins and nestle them together.  Maybe a little candy or a new tool or pen to go in the smallest can.  I used some hemp-type rope, but it could be really fun to use some Paracord to give it a funky look.  I don't know.  Let your imaginations run wild!

Here's what you need to get started:

Hot Glue Gun and Glue sticks

Tin Can(s)

Hemp or other material to wrap around the can.

1.  First, let's make sure this can is safe.  Luckily, my can opener had done a great job, and I had zero issues with the cut.  If your can didn't make so clean a cut, try covering it with a little duck or electrical tape, fabric, or something else simple and not noticeable.  OR try using some pliers to bend it back in, or some scissors or wire cutters to cut it off.

2.  Warm up that glue gun and make sure you have plenty of glue sticks available.  This 28 oz can used about 5-6 mini glue sticks for my mini, low-heat glue gun. 

3.  To start the hemp, begin by making a strip of glue along the top of the can.  Put the hemp directly on the glue, and continue around the can, gluing and then laying down the hemp, until you reach the point at which you started.  To give it a clean look, glue along the top of the beginning of your hemp for about 1 inch to cover your starting point.

4.  Once you've covered your starting point, make a nice glue line off of the top, and NEXT to your circle of hemp.  Continue gluing and laying down the hemp next to the hemp you've glued down until you spiral all the way down the can.

5.  Watch that bottom of the can for a good point at which to cut the hemp off.  Trim, then glue it down neatly and try to make it discreet and clean.  You don't want anybody to see your start or finish secrets!

Have fun getting a little more organized!

Ways I Saved

A few months ago, I found The Prudent Homemaker blog. My favorite post is a weekly post called Last Week's Frugal Accomplishments. It's so inspiring and makes me so very much more aware of the way we spend.

This week was a good week in many ways! But it was an especially good week for living within our budget.
First off, we finalized our budget. I always draw up a draft budget with what I think we'll need in the various categories, at which point my husband and I give it a look through. We make any necessary adjustments and give it a final stamp of approval. This is a wonderful way to discuss our financial goals, stay open about finances and it keeps us on track.

I prepared lunches for my husband to take to work. I usually do this, but I found that I packed some inexpensive goodies, leftovers, and notes a little more this week to make it more special, but thrifty.

We went to story time at the library.

I made rice two times this week. I've been wanting to make it more often because it's very inexpensive, filling, and the two recipes I use most are very versatile. I made my Spanish Rice (recipe to come), and I made my Simple Yellow Rice. We used the Simple Yellow Rice for two full meals and a snack.

I sorted through the green tomatoes ripening on my counter to dig out the red ones. I pulled out almost a full gallon bag of red ones. I'm going to wait for about another week, at which point I'll pick out more ripe tomatoes and then I'll make more Basil-Garlic Tomato Sauce.

I went through my craft boxes to make some pretend play objects for the kiddos. I used some hemp and large craft sticks to make fishing poles, which they have been playing with for three days now!

I planted lettuce, radish, spinach, carrot, and leek seeds this week in the garden and greenhouse. I also planted some more Garlic Cloves.

My husband found some free materials to build me a garden bed!! I love the unique box(es) and it is quite deep. It's my very first raised garden bed that I have ever owned, and I can't wait to see what we can get to grow in it. I plan on coaxing some fall and winter gardening out of it.

We used compost that has been building up in our backyard. It it is actually really rich, which was exciting as we jut inherited it when we moved in.  We've been adding our scraps to it all week, quite diligently.

A friend, HER friend, and I started a little home school group. We're just going to meet once a week for science/music/craft type activities as we are all using a different core curriculum. It was very nice to meet up and feel supported and share ideas!

I was able to create a terrarium this week, something I've been learning about and wanted to do for awhile. I purchased the actual terrarium on a steep discount (talk about right place, right time for the exact and unique container that I wanted), purchased a small bag of charcoal vs. a big one, gathered small rocks for gravel from my backyard instead of purchasing a bag, and I was selective about the plants I used. I spent more on one of the plants that I really wanted, then chose a few others that I liked, but was willing to sacrifice for savings. I also made some terrarium accessories instead of buying them. It was way more fun, and I used items I had at home to create the items. I love how it turned out, and I'm excited to watch it mature and cheer up our home. It's a unique decoration/plant!

My garden is quite bare at the moment, however, I did use some parsley out of it this week.  I'm hoping the things I planted will grow quickly.

I made laundry detergent.

I was very aware of electricity usage and tried to flip lights off when not in use.

How did you save this week?

Daily Challenge

As part of our homeschool curriculum, I've implemented what I call, the Daily Challenge. It's a simple task that they can accomplish on their own, but it's usually one that has a difficulty that must be overcome. A Challenge, if you will.

The first thing that they usually say is "I don't think I can", and it gives me an opportunity to cheer them on, tell them I think they can, tell them to think hard or be creative, and then I get to say, "See? You did it! You CAN do it!" once the task is completed.

Some of our Daily Challenge activities have been:
-Color in an entire piece of paper (they BOTH color in their art projects much better now)
-Tape 3X5 cards up from the floor of a door frame, to the top of the door frame (they had to figure out how to reach the top which was pretty high for them)
-Collect all items from a nature scavenger hunt (they love being out in nature, but this made them more thorough and picky about the leaves and other things that they gathered)

We were having incidents of "I can't" far too often. I have been pleasantly surprised with the amount of positive behavior the Daily Challenge has promoted. It's given my daughter more confidence, and it gives my son a place to put his problem-solving mind to use. It may sound cheesy, but it really gives them more self-confidence. It gives them one more opportunity to feel good about themselves.

Wednesday's Daily Challenge was very simple.  I grabbed a puzzle that they don't pull out very often.  I believe this is because it is more difficult and takes them more time than some of their other puzzles.  I set them up, told them that they needed to work together on it, and then I told them that I would time them doing it and they needed to go as fast as they could.  They did a great job, accomplished the task together, and I was able to give them a "You did it!" cheer.  The next time we use it for our Daily Challenge, we'll see if they can beat their time.

Of course, my Little Gal understands some of the concepts a little easier than my Little Lad, but they both understand the feeling of accomplishment.

Do you have any Daily Challenge ideas?  Do you have activities that encourage self confidence?

Story Time at your Local Library

Does your library offer Story Time for young children?  Ours does, and it's a fantastic program.  They offer two different sessions, so if this whole library story time is news to you, make sure you ask about ALL of the libraries near you and at what times the program is offered.  Also, I'm reminding you because libraries often offer reading programs in the summer instead of the story time, so we're just back in session at this library.  You might want to ask about that when you go to the library as well.

We've never had a library that didn't offer Story Time, but this particular library happens to be wonderful with children.  Try it out!

*****

The book above is the book we read last week at Story Time.  I have not received anything and will not receive anything for displaying it.  I just thought it was a very cute and sweet book!

Simple Yellow Rice

I adore Yellow Rice.  It's unique as it has seasonings--unlike white rice, yet can be used with so many different dishes.  For instance, I like to serve yellow rice at the bottom of a bowl of Chili.  Sort of like a surprise to dip into.  Or on the side of potatoes, salad, or steamed broccoli.  Oooh!  Or tucked into a burrito or quesadilla.

The thing that I do not adore about Yellow Rice would be the cost.  It's about $1.50 a box which gets you about 1.5 cups of cooked rice.  After searching and searching, I finally decided to take the ingredients of what sort of looked right to me from several online recipes, and give it my own flare.  In the end, I created my own recipe.  This recipe costs me about $.50, and I get over 3 cups of rice.  PLUS, I know that the ingredients are fresh.

I use my pressure cooker for its lightning fast abilities, however, if you don't have one, just follow the steps until the lid is locked on the pressure cooker and simmer until the water is absorbed and rice is tender in a large saucepan instead.

So, here is my recipe for Yellow Rice.  Simple, quick, and an affordable price.

1 1/2 TBS vegetable oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped (about 3/4 C)
2 cloves fresh, minced garlic (I use the kind in the jar)
1 1/2 C white rice
3/4 tsp turmeric
3/4 tsp salt
1 extra large vegetable bouillon cube
2 1/4 C water

1. Pour the oil into a pressure cooker (or large saucepan) with the lid off.  Saute the onion and garlic on medium heat until translucent--2-3 minutes.

2.  Break the bouillon cube into smaller pieces, and drop into the water in a measuring cup.  Set aside to allow it to dissolve and soften a little.

3.  Add the rice to the pot.  Stir to coat.  Cook until the rice begins to brown slightly--about 4-5 minutes.  Add the salt and turmeric, and stir to coat.

4.  Add the water and bouillon cube, stirring about 1 minute to allow the cube to dissolve even more.

5.  Place the lid on the pressure cooker and lock, turn the heat up to high to bring cooker to high pressure.  Maintain high pressure for 3 minutes.  I have an electric stove, and a "jiggle top" pressure cooker.  Once it reaches high pressure, I have to lower the heat considerably, and I find that a pretty gentle rocking cooks the rice perfectly.  Easy does it on my stove!

6.  Remove from heat, allow the pressure cooker to come down for natural pressure release.  Once the pressure releases fully, carefully unlock and remove the lid (tipping away from yourself), fluff rice or scoop into a bowl and serve warm.

NOTE:  If using a saucepan, add the lid in step 5, and allow rice to simmer until the water is absorbed and rice is tender in a large saucepan.  Fluff and serve.

Ways I Saved

A few months ago, I found The Prudent Homemaker blog. My favorite post is a weekly post called Last Week's Frugal Accomplishments. It's so inspiring and makes me so very much more aware of the way we spend.

This week, we were all sick, so I honestly didn't save or actively live terribly frugally last week.  We did SOME things, just not as much as usual.  The good things:

We lived out of the freezer quite a bit this past week.  I'm grateful I had a few things stored away.  I had a container of Potato Soup (this is what my recipe started from.  Now it's more my own!) and two loaves of French Bread in the freezer, along with beans, etc.  The first day that I was feeling under the weather, I made myself a pot of veggie soup that lasted us 2 days.  It was very inexpensive and from items I had on hand.

When we were healthy enough, we went on walks and bike rides.  We also went on lots of rain walks--aka, we let the kids splash in lots of puddles.

We got a Walk-In Green House.  They were on a super steep clearance at Fred Meyer, so we decided to get one.  I'm going to be planting lots of greens through the winter, and then I'll use it to get my seeds started early next spring.  I'm very excited!  I think it will help us to save quite a bit.  I'm hoping I'll be able to grow greens year-round now.  Fingers crossed.

I cleared out my tomato and squash plants and we'll be using the space to build a raised cinder block bed.  I'm hoping to overwinter some carrots here, as well as plant some garlic, lettuce, and other greens.  It's a perfect place to add a cover if necessary.

We attended our local library story time.  Our library is amazing.  The gal does a fantastic job, but they always have an on-theme craft as well as a snack.  My kiddos usually love it.

Thing 1 (my little gal) and Thing 2 (my little lad) are in the picture above.  We popped popcorn for snacks twice this week.  After popping it and putting it in bowls, they wanted to sit in their little chairs at the piano bench, which would normally be a huge no-no.  They were so sweetly eating, I decided to let them!  Popcorn is such a great snack, and awesome for food storage.  We don't add any more fat that 1 TBS veggie oil at the bottom of the pot with 1/2 C kernels, so it is very inexpensive, a whole grain, and actually pretty healthy.

I worked on our budget for the coming month.  I usually re-evaluate our budget several times a month, and then my husband and I go over it together.  It works well for our family, and keeps us on track...for the most part!

My kids sold some things at a garage sale, so when they wanted some new craft items (Thing 1) and a new toy (Thing 2), I gave them the option to get something with their own money that they had earned.  They chose to use their own money and they made pretty wise purchases.

How did you save this week?  Have you had the nasty first-month-of-school cold yet?