JCK88

The radish soup is made from the greens part..... I don't know if that would have the same effect. Here is a recipe that I have not tried yet.

RADISH SOUP 2 bunches red radishes, washed

1 sm. onion, minced

1 tbsp. butter

3/4 c. yogurt, plain

1 1/2 c. chicken stock (broth)Separate the radishes from the greens, reserving both. Cook the onion in the butter until translucent, then add the radish greens. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until wilted. Puree in a blender or food processor along with half the yogurt and half the chicken stock. In a separate pan sautee the sliced radishes, then puree in a blender with the other half of the yogurt and stock. Heat each until heated through. Pour the green soup into the bowl. Take the pink soup and add some to it, then swirl it for a pretty effect.

(If I made this I'd have to use soy yogurt and turkey broth due to allergies)

I read that radishes lower blood sugar. I am diabetic but in control with diet and meds. So , I decided to see just how much radishes lower your blood sugar by testing my blood sugar before and after eating them.

After eating three radishes, my blood sugar was lowered 10 points in half an hour and 15 points in an hour.

The next day, after eating four large radishes, blood sugar went down 20 points within half an hour.

I'm going to try making radish soup and see if that does the same things.

I'm lucky I love radishes, LOL

I'm thinking of dehydrating radishes and see if that works. In winter, radishes are good with roasted vegetables or sliced and baked with a little butter spray. But I thought that others with high blood sugar might like to know radishes really do work.

I did a little search on how to make stevia extract and came up with these instructions.

1. Harvest your stevia in the morning when the essential oils peak. You must use stevia grown without pesticides, as the extract-making process concentrates undesirable chemicals. Wash the leaves and stems and remove any brown plant parts.
2. Step 2 Chop the leaves and stems coarsely. You must prepare enough fresh stevia to fill two lightly packed measuring cups.
3. Step 3 Combine the stevia with one cup of clear grain alcohol or vodka. You can use flavor-infused vodkas for variety, such as pear or citrus.
4. Step 4 Leave the stevia mixture steeping overnight in a covered container, but not more than 48 hours. Excessive steeping increases bitterness. Stir or gently shake the mixture several times while it steeps.
5. Step 5 Strain the alcohol and stevia mixture through cheesecloth or coffee filter to remove the plant matter. The mixture should appear greenish.
6. Step 6 Bring the stevia extract to a simmer over medium-low heat for 30 minutes. This evaporates the alcohol and concentrates the extract.
7. Step 7 Store the extract in the refrigerator up to three months. You must dilute the extract to taste before using with water.

I read that using extract is very sweet...much sweeter than just the green leaves dried and powdered. I'm thinking this is what you want...but don't know for sure.

I make them, stick them in the fridge right away, then use within a couple days. We make them usually for an event, and often I don't bother sticking the lid on because we are usually going to cut them up and put them on a party platter..... This same recipe can be baked in tube pans or in tin cans, by the way. You don't have to use canning jars.

This is why I was hesitant to post the recipes. Because I don't want people thinking they are safe to use like they are "canned." I was horrified to learn later from Violet that these were not safe because a few years back when these were all the rage, we made these for teacher gifts. Everyone loved them....but thank goodness they ate them right away. Yikes. I have edited the recipe above to take out references to using lids to seal the jars.

Thanks for telling us about the lids!!!!!! I won't do THAT anymore. We do like the cakes and we will simply bake and use immediately.

::::::::Thwacking self on head::::::::for not saving the message I sent to Cat.....didn't realize y'all would want it...so typing it out again....LOL Just do not store it like canned food. USE RIGHT AWAY

BASIC Cake in a Jar

Makes 6 to 7 cakes

2 2/3 cup sugar

1 cup butter

4 eggs

1/2 cup water

2 tsp vanilla

3 1/2 cups flour'

1 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

Cream sugar and butter. Add eggs and mix well. Ad water and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. Pour one cup batteri n each pint jar. (use the straight sided, wide mouth type) Bake at 325 for 55 to 60 minutes. (When you bake them put the jars on a baking sheet, make sure they don't touch each other. I put mine on a heavy broiler pan so I can lift them all out of the oven at once easily.) Be sure that you don't drip batter onto the top of the jars, if you do, wipe it. I use the canning funnel to avoid this. DO NOT SEAL THE JARS. Cool, cut up, put on platters. Or, store in the fridge. You can use those plastic canning jar lids to keep them fresh once they are cooled. These are not airtight. And, you could give these as a gift that way, but make sure people know to eat the cake right away.

Chocolate Amaretto variation:

Omit water and vanilla from basic recipe.

Add:

1/2 cup almond flavored liqueur

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup chopped almonds

Mix and bake same as basic cake mix

Rum Raisin variation:

Omit water and add 1/2 cup dark rum

1 cup raisins

Mix and bake same as basic cake

Orange or Lemon Poppy seed variation:

Omit water and add

1/2 cup of orange OR lemon juice

1 cup white chocolate chips

1/4 cup poppy seeds

1 Tablespoon of grated orange OR lemon peel

Mix and bake same as basic mix...

And the Banana nut version:

To the basic recipe add:

2 cups mashed bananas

1 tsp cinnamon

2/3 cup chopped pecans

mix and bake as above...

Also, for a nice polka dot cake, add cup of the mini M&Ms candies to the basic mix.

These recipes are from an old book called "Jazzy Jars" Glorious gift ideas by Marie Browning. It came out before the canning guidelines were updated.

I have edited this to take out references to sealing the jars with canning lids while they are hot. THIS SHOULD NOT BE DONE.

Yikes.. I will hunt it up and pm you with it, k? LOL

Hey Anewme don't feel bad about posting this. I also was canning cakes in jars with recipes from a book I bought until Violet here let me know that although I'd been canning for 25 years, things had changed in that time, LOL! Now, I get all the updated info at the USDA sites, the newest Ball book, etc....

I have a great recipe for amaretto cake in a jar that can't be baked any other way so I do make that, but it only makes about six of them and they are small. I make them for Christmas, remove from the jar, and slice them onto a platter for a lovely party tray. But, I don't give them as gifts because I don't trust that people would actually eat them right away OR that they might decide to store it longer thinking because it was sealed it was safe.

Thanks Violet for keeping us all alive around here!

Vinegar + Hydrogen Peroxide does nothing to kill a virus. It is meant as a surface disinfectant against bacteria both for food and hard surfaces. . Do not mix them in the same spray bottle, keep each separate and the order in which they're applied doesn't matter.

Remember that the pharmaceutical grade hydrogen peroxide used by drug companies or hospitals as disinfectants is NOT the same at the 3 percent one sold in drug stores for home use.

If you are sanitizing your kitchen to protect against bacteria, use the vinegar and hydrogen peroxide. If you are disinfecting to protect against flu virus use Lysol, Pinesol or bleach.

DO NOT BE FOOLED into thinking ALL you need is vinegar and peroxide to fight the flu virus.

I talked my daughter out of spending $298 on a prom dress she had her heart set on. I showed her a pattern quite similar to it which I can get for $1.99 when JoAnn's has their pattern sale and I found fabric for $5 a yard that looks almost like the one on the dress she liked. I reminded her about the gorgeous dress I made for her that cost eight dollars, even with a beaded bodice and she conceded that maybe I could pull this off, too.

I told her quite frankly that we could do the dress for around $50 or less and she agreed that would leave money for nice accessories and shoes. I also showed her some dresses on ebay that were even less than that.

She is paying for her prom dress herself...so you'd think she'd be frugal!!! Geesh. I told her if I sewed her one, I'd pay for it. LOL

Well, we aren't as good at making meals an event as you are Stephanie--with just three of us, it's hard to be eventful at mealtime! However, during the power outage, I found that finding ways to bake things made a huge difference. You're right about some kind of sweet treat making the difference between feeling deprived and feeling like we pulled one off big time despite current conditions.

We have also served dinner on the floor on a blanket and declared indoor picnic night on occasion. For this, we toast our hot dogs in the fireplace, have smores stuff on hand for dessert, and serve up home-canned salsa and chips. We also played board games DURING dinner one night during the outage. We can get away with that sort of thing with just a small group--it might be a huge mess with a larger and younger group. This is fun in the middle of winter when there's a foot of snow on the ground and more falling out of the sky.

Check these links that Violet posted earlier in other threads

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/uga/uga_can_breads.pdf

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/questions/FAQ_canning.html#30

http://extension.usu.edu/files/publication..._008_(2007).pdf

The reason you shouldn't can breads and cakes is that their density is such that heat doesn't penetrate to their core. This allows botulism to survive. if you DO make cakes or breads in a jar, keep them in the fridge, treat them like perishables and eat them right away. I used to make these until Violet updated me.

Leah!!! What a sweetheart you are!!

Somebody asked me for a recipe for these and I didn't have one...only..now I forgot who it was. But I'm also delighted with these. I might mess in them one of these times. I just hadn't gotten around to doing a search on this. What a great gift you just gave me. (I'm SO tired, having a Sjogren's flare up ...your post made my day!)

Oh...I just saw that ArmyOfFive4God of asked about the lemons.!!

Thanks for the bump Angela! I'm so sorry! I realize she posted this during my inlaw's visit when I just did not come on here. Since I always use "posted in last 24 hours for active topics, well,...some things fall through the posting cracks!

Anyway...

I dried the lemons in the convection oven until they were dry. Then I put them in the blender and pulverized them. Then, I sifted them because pulverizing in the blender doesn't reduce it to a powder--it makes a powder AND granules. The granules should be set aside for use as dried lemon peel. The rest of the stuff then can be made into a finer powder by using a mortar and pestle. This powder can be used to flavor anything from cookies to "instant lemonade" that you make by adding a teaspoon or two to a large glass of water along with sugar to taste. It does not dissolve into the water completely because some of the peels are teensy bits that just don't dissolve, but it doesn't mar the nice taste of the drink. I don't know if these instructions make sense--but that's just about all the entire mysterious process, LOL

(check your food dehydrator book for a good temperature to dry at. I haven't found the optimal one as mine didn't mention lemons. Still, I have done this twice and it worked fine.)

LOL Krissy...yes we can too start a fire without those !!! (we just don't wanna!)

I melted a bunch of old candle ends and used them to make firestarters with a bunch of dryer lint and egg cartons.

I have been going to the bakery markdown rack and the deli markdown "ends" shelf in the grocery store for breads and lunch items like cheese and lunch meats. I got a pile of really nice salami for sixty-seven cents today, and really good sourdough bread for fifty cents. (cheaper than I can make it) I like making a little forage run through the store to see what I can get for a couple of dollars that will stretch the food budget. In a way, it's like a little game. But then I guess I need to get out more, haha!

During the good times, I stashed away craft projects for times like now, when I don't want to spend. I'm attacking my sewing like it's a canning project and the produce is going to spoil, LOL! With winter coming on, the projects are all practical things--PJ's for the family, house slippers, and from the remnants, catnip mice for my kitties and a draft stopper for the front door.

I was going to attend a rug braiding class but didn't. Instead, I have gotten books and will be working on a rug from those directions.

I've also taken an inventory of everything in the freezers and have made a list of canning projects. I thawed a pile of ground beef, mixed it with beef TVP and made batches of meat loaves, meatballs, cooked them, and froze those for future meals. Canned a bunch of ground beef.

If you find one thing each day that will save you money and keep you busy doing something productive, you're doing preps because you aren't wasting time or money, I figure.

Anyway, counting the blessings of hard work is not a bad idea, either.

Oh..for families with computers, you can do what we did for a family Christmas gift. You can make a slide show of all the old family photos you scan into the computer then put them on a thumb drive. We did this and packaged them in small bags which we decorated with mini prints of some of the old photos, and with scrap booking charms that said "Family" and "love." These gifts were a huge hit because they didn't take up any room! The cost is just the cost of the thumb drive and the packaging..and quicker to do than a whole scrap book. The little bags I put them in looked so nice we hung them on the Christmas tree and then after gifts were all opened, I was able to take them down and hand them out to the surprised recipients.

I am keeping busy making things, crafting, sewing. Also walking. Knitting is a great stress reliever, also. I am donating hats to the local SHARE program as they are quick, easy to make, and I can do them without directions.

Well..since this was bumped up...I'm sewing aprons this year for a few friends, and then woodburning a design on a set of dollar store wooden spoons, wrapping them in the apron, and presto..a nice gift for cheap if you use remnant fabric. We have a store here that sells bags of trim and bias tape for a dollar. I use the bias tape they sell for apron stgrings, look for remnants that go with it. These can be stuffed into a large storage jar for a fancier gift.

I am also sewing fleece berets for my daughter and her friends.

My family is getting home-sewn flannel PJ's, fleece socks, and fleece slippers. I am using the 40 percent off coupons from JoAnn's for the fabric and got the patterns today at their dollar Simplicity pattern sale.

I also took a good look at some expensive ipod accessories today, then looked at cheaper versions in Wal Mart. My daughter has a bunch of friends on the track team. We have designed an armband with velcro and a clear pocket front that they can use to play their ipods while they run. These will be made with black sport fabric I got last month with the 40 percent coupon and a bunch of velcro I have in stock. The ipod brand of these sport arm bands sell for $35 each. The cheap generic version in WalMart sells for $10. We can make these for a couple of dollars each and will likely make about six of them, five for friends and one for daughter. This was her idea. I think it's a good one. I pass along this idea for those who need a home-made gift for a teen.

I'm also giving pizza coupons this year. The coupon entitles owner to a pizza with their choice of toppings made and delivered by me. (they have to give me 24 hour notice on this) I am giving these to a neighbor who helped my daughter with track training and a neighbor who gave us a ton of mulch for free when he had his trees chopped down and they chipped up all the branches. To the mulch people, I am also giving half a dozen jars of apple sauce I made. I chose this kind of gift for people who live nearby and for folks who already think my pizza is wonderful.

It is hard to think of inexpensive ideas -- so keep the posts going!!

not here in New England. I have been buying lemons by the bagful at Costco, dehydrating them, and turning them into lemon powder for instant lemon drinks (that don't contain corn syrup or artifical sweetners) ALso lemon juice is available everywhere. I usually buy the big bottles at Costco. At canning time, I use a lot of it.

http://couponmeister.com/blog/DuctTapeProm.jpg

And let's not forget the duct tape prom dresses....Check out the link! LOL (I think the Duct Tape people run a contest every year on this) http://www.ducktapeclub.com/contests/prom/entries.asp

We use a lot of the bottled lemon juice and I get it at Costco in the large size at canning time.

Thanks for the heads up!

There is a revival of earthy looking wooden beads and so-called "ethnic" beads of bone, stone, and clay going on right now. I've been seeing tons of these kinds of beads available in Michaels and AC Moore.

Funny, I was just looking at a used book I got--Reader's Digest Encylopedia of Needlework and Crafts--it's an old one. But there's a section on macrame in there and I was remembering the very cool plant hangers I made. I even made a macrame purse back in the day--and wall hangings. My favorite was a leaf pattern I did of half hitch knots. I still have it....hidden behind the door in my office, LOL

Macrame somehow isn't one of those crafts that is still popular. It's rather tedious and does require a lot of material AND you can get all tangled in it trying to make a large piece. But it is really beautiful. I was skinny in the 70's and confess to having a fondness for the color green then. I made the most marvelous satiny green macrame belt with a white elephant buckle..LOL LOL (but I thought it was SO groovy!)

If you can find vintage books like I just did, you will find a wealth of info on macrame and tons of patterns.

I was thinking that I might revive the craft around here and make a combination plant hanger/window screen for half of my sliding door. This would disquise the porch behind it and let the light in as well as allow room for some small trailing plants.

I don't use patterns as a rule. To make such a screen, I would have to incorporate some large rings to support the plants and allow for spaces for them. I'd work it as the spirit moved, which was how I mainly did all my macrame stuff. It's more fun that way, but you have to know all the knots so you can create your patterns as you go.

For me, the best designs were simple ones: areas of twisted spiral knots contrasted with flat areas or even some empty areas. I'd put beads on the ends of all the strands I was using so that when it seemed I needed one, I'd have them there to use.

I'm showing my age here, I know it, LOL But I just had to post because not ten minutes ago I was looking at that book and thinking of doing a macrame project! Maybe WE can revive the craft, eh?