Grain-Free Garlic Rosemary Crackers

I wanted to bake something today, and I didn't feel like making sweets. I happened to have almond meal and this recipe just struck me. It is from the  Food Renegade website.  I found it today, written and put in my recipe binder.  I had actually forgotten where I found it until I looked it up just now.

  

 First I mixed almond meal, salt, garlic powder, rosemary, eggs and butter.  It formed a play-doh like lump.

The original recipe suggested pressing the dough into a pan, but I just flattened circles on my stoneware.  I made sure to make them very thin.

After the first two batches, I just went for it and tried rolling the dough on my counter.  After I rolled it out to a thin patty, I cut it into small squares.  It was pretty sticky, but I think because it had butter, it came off the counter pretty well with a spatula.  

Toasted Italian Bread Crumbs

I decided to make toasted breadcrumbs for a couple of reasons.  I had leftover homemade wheat bread and it was getting stale.  Also, I toasted them because most times that I've used soft breadcrumbs in recipes I've been displeased with the results.  I have only used these on baked chicken so far, but they seemed to go over well in my house.  You can adjust the seasonings to your taste, but I used ingredients on the back of the 4-C whole wheat breadcrumb can as my guide.

First I put cut up pieces of bread into my food processor in batches. I used my Ninja, which I love! 

 Then I put the crumbs in a bowl and added the seasonings and Parmesan cheese and stirred to mix.

Kale Chips

Kale Chips.  They seem to be all the rage, and really, they are delicious!  I love Kale Chips and so does my daughter.  My husband and son are not interested, but that's OK with me!  That just means more for my daughter and I.  These chips are very easy to make.  I just buy a bag of washed and cut kale for about $2.50.  It's a huge bag so it really seems like a great buy. I bought mine at Wal-Mart.

In addition to the kale, you'll need olive oil (extra virgin or regular), salt and a big bowl.

I preheated my oven to 375.  Next, I put about six or seven cups of kale in my large bowl.  You will have to remove the ribs from the kale if you want it to cook evenly.  Then I stirred in just enough olive oil to coat the leaves.

Knox Blox

 My kids really like jello, but I thought I'd give a try at making a healthy version.  On one website I recently saw the idea to make jello using pineapple juice.  So out to the store I went and bought some pineapple juice and Knox Gelatine.

Instead of needing to look up the recipe online, all I had to do was flip the box over to discover their recipe for Knox Blox.  It's their version of Jello Jigglers and I'm assuming it's been around a lot longer.  I've never really worked with plain gelatin so this was a first for me.

 

I started by measuring three cups of juice.  I then put this in the microwave and heated to boiling.

Cake and Roses

This is a cake I recently made for my friend, Meagan, who is having a baby.  Another friend, Amy, showed me how to make roses and since then I've liked to add them to most cakes I make. As I've found, roses cover a host of mistakes in the frosting.

I saw the idea to do a half moon shape on the top with roses on some website after doing a "google" search for ideas on cake decorating.

Oatmeal Cookie Bars

Around the time when fall changes to winter, my local grocery store was getting rid of it's fall stock.  There was a grocery cart filled with clearance items and I just had to take a look. I don't always get the clearance items, but I always have to look. Among the items were some chocolate chips, candy, and other baking goods.  One thing that caught my eye were cinnamon chips.  They looked just like chocolate chips, but were cinnamon flavored.  The price was right so I picked up a bag or two thinking I'd use them in oatmeal cookies.

After I brought them home, I was in the mood to bake, but I really didn't feel like going through the task of making cookies. So, I did what I usually do and "googled" a recipe for oatmeal cookie bars.  I hadn't even put in the cinnamon chip requirement, but lo and behold, I found a recipe containing them. 

Sparkly Eggs

The Saturday before Easter, we traditionally dye our eggs.  This year we made sparkly eggs and even some eggs with faces.
  

I bought the kit last year on clearance, true to my thrifty nature!  I'll be looking this upcoming week for some egg dye kits on sale.

I'm not sure if we'll be eating sparkles later when we go to eat the eggs themselves, but the package assures me that rinsing them off will take care of it.

Deviled Chicks

I originally saw this recipe in a magazine (Deviled Egg Chicks) and also in a link from an email my mom sent me.  I decided that since the kids had their fun dying Easter eggs earlier, it was my turn to have fun making this delicious snack for tomorrow.

After my eggs had been hard boiled and cooled, I cut them in a zig-zag pattern.  Next I scooped out the yolk and put it into a bowl. I found the using my fingers was the easiest way to get the yolk out without damaging the egg. I did have a few casualties anyway.  I then mixed up the yolks with some mustard, seasoned salt and mayo.  I put the mix in a pastry bag with a star tip and put it aside.

  

Getting Started

Image by Pippalunacy

This is my second official blog.  My other blog, Jill's Curious Mind, found at jillscuriousmind.blogspot.com, has been dead for more than a year other than the one recent post I wrote.  The trouble with that blog is the vagueness of the subject matter. I could write about anything, really, but I was so unfocused. So here I'm going to write and show you the things that I do from my home. I love making things from scratch, be it cookies or cleaners or knit hats, but sometimes I cheat (I buy boxed cake mix).

I love reading about health and natural living, but to be honest, the wealth of information out there has caused my head to spin on more than one occasion.  I try to take what I can use and leave behind the stuff that makes me crazy. For example, as I read through Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions, I gained great insight and even a new way of looking at things.  I am no Weston A. Price foundation groupie,