Muffins Galore. Make ahead mix!

Make ahead muffin mix

8 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup baking powder
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup vegetable shortening

In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients. With a pastry blender, cut shortening into dry ingredients until evenly distributed. Put in a large airtight container. Store in a cool, dry place. use within 3 months. Makes 10 cups of muffin mixMELT IN YOUR MOUTH MUFFINS
2 1/3 cups of muffin mix
1 egg, beaten
1 cup milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Put muffin mix in a medium bowl. Combine egg and milk in a small bowl, add all at once to muffin mix. Stir just until mix is moistened. Batter should be lumpy

Fill greased pans 2/3 full (or use cupcake liners). B ake 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown. Makes 12 large muffins.

JELLY/JAM MUFFINS
Fill each cup 1/3 full with batter. Drop 1 teaspoon jelly or jam on top of batter, fill cups 2/3 full with more batter.

CHEESE MUFFINS
Add 1 cup grated Cheddar cheese to Muffin Mix before adding liquid ingredients

APRICOT MUFFINS
Add 1 cup chopped dried apricots to liquid ingredients before adding liquid.

BANANA MUFFINS
Add 1/4 tsp cinnamon and 1/4 tsp nutmeg to muffin mix. Mash 1 banana and add to liquid ingredients before adding liquid to mix.

BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Add 1 cup well-drained blueberries to liquid ingredients before adding to muffin mix.

PINEAPPLE MUFFINS
Decrease milk to 2/3 cup. Add 1 cup crushed pineapple with juice to liquid ingredients before adding to muffin mix

BUTTERSCOTCH-PECAN MUFFINS
Melt 6 tablespoons butter/margarine. Stir in 6 tablespoons brown sugar. Place 1 tablespoon of brown sugar mixture and 2 -3 pecans in bottom of each muffin cup. Fill cups 2/3 full with batter.

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APPLE MUFFINS
2 1/3 cups muffin mix
1/2 cup chopped nuts
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 cup sweet applesauce
1/4 cup milk
1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Combine muffin mix, nuts and cloves. In another bowl, combine applesauce, milk and egg. Add all at once to dry ingredients. Stir just till moistened. Fill greased pans 2/3 full

Bake 15-20 minutes. Makes 12 large muffins

CRANBERRY CAKES
Sweet, tart & irresistible

1 cup raw whole cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
2 1/3 cups muffin mix
1 cup evaporated mil,
1 tablespoon melted butter or margarine
Hot Butter Sauce

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously grease muffin pans.

Combine cranberries and sugar and let stand a few minutes.

Put muffin mix in a medium bowl. Add evaporated milk and butter to sweetened cranberries. Add cranberry mixture all at once to muffin mix. Stir just until moistened-batter will be lumpy. Fill prepared pans half full. Bake 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Serve hot with warm butter sauce. Makes about 24 cakes.

Hot Butter Sauce
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
1 cup cream or evaporated milk
Dash of nutmeg

Combine butter, sugar and cream or evap milk in small saucepan. Cook over medium heat about 3 to 5 minutes, until butter melts and sugar is dissolved. Do not boil. Remove from heat. Add nutmeg. Serve warm.

Makes about 1 1/4 cups sauce.

What to do with 25lbs of Oats

There is a wonderful website TheFamilyHomestead.com and she had this article I wanted to share.

What to Do with 25lbs of Oats
by Crystal Miller

Buying grains in bulk quantities (25 or 50lb bags) is a great way to save money. Oats are a great food source and low in cost. They are high in vitamins B1 and E and also contain protein and many other valuable minerals that our bodies need. They have the most soluble fiber of any grain. They also help to stabilize blood sugar. What a great economical source of health providing food to feed your family!

Now that you know how great oats are for your health and your budget what are some ways to use this power packed food?

Oats are a great choice for breakfast! Cold breakfast cereals can be very hard on a budget and feeding oatmeal for breakfast is a great alternative.

Our Breakfast Oatmeal
Oatmeal is a breakfast that my children see often, especially in the winter months where a hot breakfast feels so good. It warms the insides and starts the day off right. I always serve oatmeal with toast made from my homemade bread.

Basic recipe, adjust to feed your family

1 cup water
½ cup oats
pinch of salt

Bring water and salt to a boil, add oats. Cook 5 minutes for quick oats and 10 to 15 minutes for regular oats. Serve with real maple syrup or honey to sweeten a bit and milk. Raisins and cinnamon added are optional. My son likes to stir in a big spoonful of peanut butter into his oatmeal.

If you want to improve the nutritional aspect of your oatmeal you can soak it the night before. I do this quite often. Combine water and oats in a cooking pot and add 1T yogurt, kefir, or whey for every cup of water. Let this soak overnight and in the morning add salt and cook oats. Soaking any grain before cooking allows for better absorption of the nutrients.

Besides oatmeal I have a few more favorite breakfast recipes that use oats:

Homemade Instant Oatmeal Mix http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/instantoatmix1.htm
Baked Oatmeal http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/bakedoatmea1.htm
Oatmeal Pancakes http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/oatmealpancakes.htm
Overnight Cinnamon Oatmeal Pancakes http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cinnoatpancakes1.htm
Cinnamon Oat Waffles http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cinnoatwaffles.htm
Raisin Oatmeal Scones http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/raisinoatscones.htm
Granola http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/granola1.htm
Peanut butter Granola http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/peanutbuttergranola.htm
Stir a couple of tablespoons oats into a cup of yogurt


Oats can be added to baked goods. They are great in breads, muffins and cookies. Here are some of my favorite recipes:

Oat Dinner Rolls http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/wwoatdinnerrolls.htm

I really love this recipe. The rolls also make great hamburger buns. If I want to use them for hamburger buns I make 18 rolls instead of the 24 the recipe calls for in dinner roll form. I also will often use this recipe to make cinnamon rolls.

Leftover Oatmeal Make too much oatmeal for breakfast? No problem!

Leftover Oatmeal Muffins http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/leftoveroatmealmuffins.htm
Leftover Oatmeal Cake http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/leftoveroatmealcake.htm

Cookies and Cakes Oats are wonderful addition to cookies and cakes. Here are my favorites:

Oatmeal Cookies http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/oatmealcookies.htm
Big Batch Oatmeal Raisin Cookies http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/oatmealraisincookies.htm
Peanut butter Oatmeal Cookies http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/peanutbutteroatcookies.htm
Cowboy Cookies http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/cowboycookies.htm
Oatmeal Spice Cake http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/oatmealspicecake.htm

Other Ways to use oats:

~You can use oats in place of cracker crumbs or bread in foods like meatloaf and meatballs.

~You can use oats to thicken stews and soups

~In baking you can replace up to 1/3 of the flour called for in a recipe with oats

~Add a 2 to 4 Tablespoons of oats to your next smoothie

~Ice Cream Sandwiches: Make a batch of oatmeal cookies and let them cool. Take vanilla ice cream and spread thickly on one cookie and top with a second cookie, freeze.

There are a few uses of oats that are not food related, but health related. Oats help to smooth and soften skin. They can also be helpful with eczema as well as itchy skin. Take an oatmeal bath! Put oats into a muslin bag or even an old nylon that has been washed and cleaned and tie this to the spout of your tub. As the water fills the tub it will run through the oats. Or you can boil a cup of oats in 2 quarts of water for a few minutes, stain out the oats and add the water to your bath.

A Few More Tidbits of Info on Oats

You can buy regular or quick cooking oats and typically use them interchangeably in recipes. The only difference between the two types is how thin they have been rolled. There are other varieties of oats such as “Scottish” oats which are very thick cut and may not work well in baking. Steel cut oats are the oat groat (the oat grain) that are cut in small pieces. They are great for a breakfast cereal but do not work well in other applications such as baking and cooking.

In the mid 1880’s here in the US, a German grocer in Ohio began hulling and selling oats to his fellow immigrants. At the time the main staple for breakfast in the Midwest was typically meat, eggs and potatoes, fruit. For most immigrants this was beyond what they could produce. Oats were mainly considered horse food, not people food when this Ohio grocer began selling it. He was ridiculed and made fun of for selling them! And today, oats are looked at as a very important part of a healthy diet.

Incidentally in a town that was not far from the first milling of oats a group of 3 men began doing the same thing as the German grocer. But instead of selling their steel cut oats in bulk they put them in a nice box, added cooking directions and called their product “Quaker Oats”.

So as you can see oats are a healthy and delicious way to help you stretch your grocery budget and provide good quality food for your family.

Bulk Taco Seasoning Mix

Bulk Taco Seasoning Mix

We are having taco salad for dinner tonight. I always cook up my hamburger and add taco seasonings to it before adding it to my salad. I realized this morning I was out of taco seasoning and it was time to make more. This is another product that I make myself now. We are not real big fans of the taste of the taco seasonings I at the store. A recent article I read said that if a product lists “spices” in their ingredient list and they purchase bulk mixed spices from a supplier that adds MSG to their spice mix then the company that uses the spice mix does not have to claim that it contains MSG. So basically something can say it is MSG free but still may contain MSG if they have the word "spices" listed in the ingredients. If you have MSG sensitivities like my hubby does or you just want to avoid it for health reasons … read your labels carefully!

Taco mix is so easy to make. It takes less than 15 minutes to make up a batch, the recipe doubles easily. I usually make a double batch but today I did not have enough dried onion, so I settled for a single batch.

Bulk Taco Seasoning Mix

¾ c dried onions
½ c chili powder
¼ c salt
3T garlic powder
3T cornstarch
3T ground cumin
1T to 3T cayenne pepper (depending on how hot you like it)

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Store in plastic or glass container with a lid.

It takes approx. 3T of this mix to equal one packet that you would buy in the store.

This recipe makes about 2 cups. I store it in a canning jar in my cupboard.

Bulk Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

Whole Wheat Pancake Mix

25 cups whole wheat pastry flour

1 ¼ cups baking powder

¼ cup salt

6 2/3 cups powdered milk

Combine all ingredients very well in a large bowl. Transfer to zip type freezer bags, label. Store in freezer to keep flour fresh.

To make one batch:

3 cups mix

2 eggs

¼ cup olive oil

2 cups water

Combine mix, eggs and olive oil. Add half the water, stir and only add enough of the remaining water to achieve the consistency you desire. Bake on a hot skillet. Serve with butter and real maple syrup! Yum!!

Variations:

Banana Pancakes:

Add:

1 cup mashed bananas (approx. 2 large bananas) to one batch of pancake batter.

Blueberry Pancakes:

Add:

1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries to one cup of pancake batter.

Chocolate Chip Pancakes:

Add:

½ to 1 cup chocolate chips to one batch of pancake batter.

Pumpkin Pancakes:

Add:

1t cinnamon

½ t ginger

To dry mix.

Add:

1 cup pureed pumpkin to one batch of pancake batter.

Trim the Budget: Breakfast Bargain

Trim the Budget: Breakfast Bargain

Breakfast is a great meal to incorporate those low cost basic foods.. Grains make a nutritious and filling meal. I am always looking to simplify my weekday breakfast routine in my home. I like to get breakfast done and over with quickly so we can move onto the important issues of the day. One food my children like me to have on hand is Instant Oatmeal. I like to have it because I know they will get a good and filling breakfast quickly while making a minimal amount of mess in the kitchen while they are at it!

Today’s post will be on how to make your own instant oatmeal and a cost comparison of making your own to buying the little packets of Quaker Instant Oatmeal.

Bulk Instant Oatmeal (the recipe can be found HERE ): Here is how you make it....

Gather together your ingredients

Take half the oats (10 cups) and run a few cups at a time through your food process or blender to make smaller

Combine them with the other 10 cups of oats and add the powdered milk, cinnamon and salt

Stir well and put in a gallon size jar

To make a serving combine ½ cup of the mix with 1 cup boiling water

Put something over the top of the bowl (I use a small plate) and let is sit for a few minutes

When it is done, stir and it is ready to serve

You can add your sweetener of choice and a little milk for a yummy, quick, hot breakfast

Now for the cost:

I came up with these numbers:

$1.33 Powdered Milk
$2.09 Quick Oats (this was the price for the non organic oats)

The cost was $3.42

I did not calculate the cost of the cinnamon and salt but I don't believe it makes a significant change in the total amount.

At $3.42 I calculated this to cost 4 cents per ounce.

Compared to buying a box of 10 instant oatmeal packets (Quaker Oats brand, regular, no flavoring or sugar added, total weight for one box was 11.8 oz) at: $3.84 per box (generic brands could be cheaper) brings the cost to 32.5 cents an ounce. Even if you could find them cheaper the cost would still be very high compared to making it yourself.

One last note of interest, the store bought instant oatmeal also has MSG added to it. It is the second ingredient after oats. The sweetened types also have sugar added, the second ingredient after oats with the MSG following in 3rd place.

Homemade is not only way less expensive but much healthier as well!

Also If you are dehydrating your fruit my kids love to add dried apricots, or peaches, or stawberries, or cherries. The list is endless!!!!

Trim the Budget: Black Bean Sloppy Joes!

Trim the Budget: Black Bean Sloppy Joes!

Here is another meal that makes a large serving, tastes great, utilizes a low cost basic food (beans), and is delicious!!

Black Bean Sloppy Joes

Usually sloppy joes are made with all hamburger. That can be a lot of expense in meat. The last time I looked at Costco hamburger was $2.79 a pound. One way to still enjoy sloppy joes and save some money is to make Black Bean Sloppy Joes. The black beans stretch the hamburger while giving you a delicious and nutritious meal! You can find the recipe here: http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/blackbeansloppyjoes.htm

Make sure to get your beans cooking in the morning so all you have to do come evening is assemble the rest of the recipe. This will also give you the afternoon to make the rolls to serve the sloppy joes on.

Making your own high quality bread products is also a good way to cut costs. White bread will always be dirt cheap, but with no nutritional value and not worth the cost.. no matter how cheap. Making homemade bread is one way to ensure better quality bread products in your home for a very reasonable price.

This was a new recipe I tried out for the dinner rolls. They were delicious!! I wanted a sub sandwich type bread that was soft and would make great sandwiches or could be used for recipes like sloppy joes. I was very happy with this one!

Sub Sandwich Rolls

1½ cups water
½ cup honey
6T butter
½ cup oats
2t salt
1T yeast
2 eggs
5½ to 7 cups whole wheat flour

In a small sauce pan combine water, honey, butter and oats and heat over medium high until hot and butter has melted, do not boil. Pour this mixture into your Bosch or Kitchen Aid mixing bowl. Allow the mixture to cool for 15 to 20 minutes. When it is very warm, but not hot to the touch add the salt, yeast and eggs. Now begin adding flour. Add 5 ½ cups and then add a half cup at a time until the dough is no longer sticky, but still is a soft dough. Knead 4 to 5 minutes in a Bosch or 7 to 10 in a Kitchen Aid or 12 to 15 minutes if you are doing this by hand.

Let the dough rise for one hour. Punch down and knead again for a few minutes to remove air bubbles.

Divide dough into 10 pieces. Roll each piece into an 8 inch log. Spray a large cookie sheet or jelly roll pan with non stick spray. Lay the bread dough pieces on the cookie sheet and cover with a towel. Let rise until double in size, about 30 to 45 minutes.

Bake at 375 for 25 minutes.

To use for the Black Bean Sloppy Joe recipe I cut the rolls in half (lengthwise) and then sliced them in center (like you would if you were going to make a sandwich out of them). You can toast the bread first before topping with the sloppy joe mix. Serve the sloppy joes over the bread.

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This meal is filling! It is big enough to easily serve 8 to 10 people. So if your family is smaller, you can freeze half of this for another night.

I feed 5 people and I will have left overs. I will serve the last of the sloppy joes to the family that is home today for lunch This meal gave me a lot of mileage for my money!

Now for the budget cost breakdown.. I don’t calculate the costs of things like salt or a ½ of an onion.

Here is what I figured for last night’s meal:

Black Bean Sloppy Joes:
Hamburger: $2.79
Black Beans: .95
Ketchup: $1.08
6oz tomato paste: .90

Approx. cost: $5.72 or rounded up to $6.00

Dinner Rolls:
Honey: .91
Whole Wheat (I grind my own wheat so this is the cost of the actual wheat berries, not the cost of flour): .80
Oats: .05
Butter: .33
Eggs: .25

Approx. cost of rolls: $2.34 or rounded to $2.50

In the end, $8.50 fed my family a delicious, nutritious dinner plus I have leftovers. If I had wanted to stretch this meal out for two full dinner meals for my family I could have added another cup or two of cooked beans and a little of the bean broth to give it the right consistency. That would have increased the cost by just a few cents, and I may do that the next time I make this meal.

Pumpkin and other squashes

http://dehydrate2store.com/videos/?id=66

This is so cool and it works so awesome. I did some big banana squash that Paul Robinson gave us and and it is so great! Try it!