September 30th 2008

Editorial

It’s hard to believe that this is the last day of September already. Fall is definitely in the air and as you will find out as you read through the rest of this newsletter, apples have been on my mind lately. I hope you will enjoy some of the recipes in this newsletter.

The response to the “I’m looking for” section has been phenomenal. A big thank you goes out to everyone that took the time to reply.

In other news… Today is the last day to vote for your favorite discount or coupon website. If you haven’t submitted your vote yet, the poll is in the right sidebar. Take a second and let your opinion be heard.

Last, but not least, I’d like to mention that the girls over at Living On A Dime just made their popular Dining on a Dime cookbook available as an ebook. With grocery prices still on the rise, this will help out a lot of folks (including me). For the next few days you can get the ebook for $10 at http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/livingonadime.htm

That’s it for this week. As always, I welcome your comments and suggestions. Feel free to email me at susanne@hillbillyhousewife.com

Warm Regards,

Susanne – The Hillbilly Housewife

Sponsor

Grab yours at www.hillbillyhousewife.com/livingonadime.htm

You can now get the popular Dining on a Dime book as and ebook and for the next few days you can get it for only $10 – what a great deal.

Inspirational Quote

“I am a slow walker, but I never walk backwards.” - Abraham Lincoln

Reader Questions

I read your section on reconstituted milk. I was wondering how long it stays fresh in the fridge? Fat-free and whole. Thank you for your time.
-Margaret

Great question Margaret. I actually get that one a lot. Reconstituted milk will last about a week in the fridge before it starts to go bad. It does not matter if it is whole or fat-free milk.

Featured Article

It seems that anywhere I turn these days, apples are jumping out at me. It may have something to do with the fact that we went apple picking last week and it’s still on my mind. I’m reading a novel about the middle ages and the main characters were able to fill their empty bellies quite a few times with this common fruit. This started me thinking about apples and how they really are the perfect frugal fruit.

I think my friend Jill from Living On A Dime must have been reading my mind, since she sent me an article to share with you and just this topic. You can read all about Apples – The Frugal Fruit here. Jill includes quite a few delicious recipes and I’m going to try a few of them as soon as I get this newsletter out to you.

Frugal Tip -More Frugal Uses For Apples

Since we’re already on the topic, here are a few more frugal uses for apples.

• Place an apple wherever you store your potatoes. It will slow down the budding.
• Apple cider vinegar can be used as an effective sunburn treatment.
• Chop them, freeze them and then use in muffins or oatmeal later.
• Go pick them yourself with the kids … it’s a fun activity and you get a great deal on the apples.
• Make apple jelly or apple syrup.
• Serve waldorf salad for lunch, or add some cooked chicken or turkey and call it dinner.

Frugal Tips From Our Readers

I’m a fairly new subscriber to your newsletter, and I love reading all of the tips you and your readers supply. I’ve got one that maybe you could use.

Our refrigerator gets kind of funky, and I know all about the baking soda box…but I’ve found that activated charcoal works just as well!!

Where do you find activated charcoal, you ask? If you have fish tanks with filters, you can take one of the bags you would usually stick in the filter to clean it, and just pop it in your fridge. If you don’t have fish tanks, any pet store has these filter bags you can buy for a pretty reasonable price.

Depending on the size of the bag of charcoal–and yes it has to be “activated charcoal” to work–and the strength of the stench in your refrigerator, the bag should work for up to 1 1/2 months.

I tried this one when I was a single girl living on my own for the first time..and my fridge went out. I was gone on a holiday however, and I came home to a rather pungent apartment. I tried baking soda, but it just didn’t get rid of ALL of the smell in my fridge. So after some research I found this little trick. It worked great!!!!

No more smell at all after about a day or so. Now that I’m married and a mom, I still resort to this little diddy when I’ve had strong smelling leftovers. So, I hope by sharing my little tidbit, I can make someone’s life a little easier and their refrigerator smelling a little better=0)

Kristin H.

Featured Recipe

I feel sure you were expecting yet another apple recipe right about now. I think we have those pretty well covered, so this week’s featured recipe is something different.

I’ve been cooking a lot more with beans again since it has cooled down enough that I feel comfortable running the stove for more than a few minutes.

One of our favorite fall dishes is black bean soup. Did you know that these little beans are full of fiber that helps absorb and remove bad cholesterol from our bodies? They also contain a lot of anti-oxidants which have been shown to help prevent cancer.

If that’s not reason enough to get you to fix a pot of this soup, it is also just plain delicious. I have two recipes I like to use. The first is a black bean soup that’s made from canned or previously cooked black beans. The second is a black bean soup made from dry beans. Which one I cook usually depends on how close it is to lunch or dinner time. They are both delicious.

Reader Recipe

Leftover Pancakes

My 77 year old Mom does most of the cooking here for the 6 of us. She was raised during a depression in England and has some great ways for never wasting a thing! Here is one of my all time favorites.

Take your leftover mashed potatoes, add what ever veggies, onions, cheese, meat (a favorite here is meatloaf) chop the bigger pieces. mix it well together with your favorites. Ad some oil, or shortening to a pan. Form the mixture into medium sized pancakes and fry them up! Yummy..

Just today she put in some chopped leftover onion rings into the potatoes and it was so darn good!

Hope one of your readers finds this as yummy as our family does!

Danell

I??”m Looking For ?

This section is going to be all about you. If you are looking for a particular recipe or a tip on how to do something, email it to me and I will post it in an upcoming newsletter. I??”ll give you my input and will also post any suggestions other readers of the newsletter come up with. So take a moment to write me your questions and of course if you have a tip or idea for any question posted in this section feel free to send me that as well.

Here’s this week’s requests:

I’m looking for an old salad recipe I’ve had many times. The woman who made it for me called it “Ma Cole’s salad” after her mother, but I am pretty sure she didn’t actually make it up, so if anyone recognizes it I’d be grateful! It’s a chopped salad that has lettuce, tomatoes, green olives, cauliflower and cheddar cheese. It might have some other things too. I think the dressing had pickle brine and parsley in it too, but again I’m not sure.

Megan

I use to make a dip for strawberries that was made from cream cheese and marshmallow cream. I have not made it in years and I forgot how. wonder if you could help with this.

Donna

Does anyone have a simple recipe for cinnamon bread?

Jay

I am looking for recipes that have peaches and cream, strawberry and cream oatmeal for the crockpot. I have been searching on the internet but have not been able to find any thus far.

Tammy

And here are last week’s requests followed by the recipes and ideas submitted since then:

I??”ve got this salt shaker that I??”d like to keep, but it has problems. The salt sticks together inside, so I put rice in it (I think that helps keep salt fresh, or something). This seemed to help the initial problem, but the holes are big enough that you get a little rice when you are using the shaker. The salt also seeps through the porcelain, some how, and sticks to the bottom of the shaker. The only other shaker I??”ve had was wood, so I??”m not sure if there is some trick I should know. There are tons of porcelain shakers on the market , so I figure there must be something I??”m doing wrong. – Debbee

Debbee’s problem with her salt shaker sounds like it could be one or two things: where she’s storing it is subject to steam and heat, or, if the salt is actually soaking through the porcelain like she seemed to say, its not actually porcelain but maybe something like chalkware that she shouldn’t be using in the first place, or its porcelain that’s had its finish scraped off, in which case she also probably shouldn’t be using it.
–Christine

I read the question from the subscriber about the salt shaker dilemna. I live in the south and having salt stick together is a common problem here because of the humidity. I now use a Salt grinder for my table salt. It uses rock salt (ice cream salt) in it. That doesn’t stick together as easily, and is very cheap. I think a large box is only $1.36 around here. As long as you tap the salt shaker over your plate after you grind, there is almost no build up on the shaker.

Sharon A

There was a request from Debbie about what to do when rice falls through large holes in a salt shaker. When I had that problem, I used small white dried beans, or navy beans as they are sometimes called, and they worked great.

Donna M

I’ve used dried beans in saltshakers, it serves the same purpose as rice, but is bigger and won’t go through the holes. I believe the purpose of rice or beans is to absorb any moisture so the salt won’t clump.

Starr, Arizona

I had this problem too and then I saw Alton Brown recommend using unpopped popcorn (like for air poppers) instead of rice… these do not go through the holes.
Hope this helps!
Dawn in MD

I do a lot of canning and am getting tired of buying the commercially packaged pectin for when I make jellies and jams. A 1 3/4 oz box costs $2.69 which comes out to just under $25 per pound. Since I have fruit trees and family with fruit trees, this has become the most expensive part of making jellies and jams. I was hoping that someone might have a recipe for homemade pectin that they would be willing to share. – Michelle T.

I don??”t have a recipe for pectin as Michelle T. requested. However, my Mom and I have gone together and purchased 10lbs of pectin from www.dutchvalleyfoods.com. Including shipping and handling, I weighed the pectin and figured that it costs about .50 per batch of jelly. My Mom likes to use 4T of pectin per batch and cooks it longer for it to be softer. I like to use 5T and use a shorter cooking time, but it??”s not as smooth (she has more patience than I). We follow the Ball pectin recipe for fruit and sugar amounts. We have sold bags of pectin to other friends who like to make jelly for $1 ?? it??”s much less for them than buying at the store and it helps us recoup our costs too. And, cost conscience friends like me love it as a gift ?? they know it??”s value!

(Note: Before you order from www.dutchvalleyfoods.com, you need to email them to request a catalog. They don??”t post their prices online. It??”s not intuitive. They are the only ones I know that don??”t post prices and shipping and handling online.)

Dawn

There was a reader who was trying to find an alternative to buying the boxes of pectin for making jams. The bulk foods store near me sells pectin in “bulk”. It is called Natural Dutch Jell. I can buy 8 oz. for $1.70. The directions say that 1/3 cup is equal to a box of commercial pectin. It looks to me like I could get about 4 or 5 batches out of the 8 oz. package. I hope this helps your reader! I could give her the phone number of the bulk foods store if she wanted to call them.

Becky

I’m also looking for a recipe my mother made in the 60’s a few times. She said it was too rich for us kids but boy did it taste good. It was a refrigerated pinwheel that had a sweet confectionery sugar and I think condense milk base with peanut butter spread on top, then rolled and cut into slices.
Thanks for the help if anyone knows this recipe. – Theresa

Depending on which side of my family, we call this potato candy or peanut butter log. It??”s 2 lbs. confectioners sugar, 1 stick butter or margarine (softened), approx. 1 tsp vanilla and a drop or two of milk. Mix everything together with fingers until doughy and smooth, roll out on wax paper (I do it between two sheets) like a pie crust. Spread creamy peanut butter on the top and roll into a log. Slice it (I do it with thread so it doesn??”t get squished) and put into the fridge until served. I hope this is the one you were looking for and it is very, very rich!—Kandi, Ohio

In response to Theresa’s request for a recipe for the “pinwheels”, it’s amazingly simple; a girlfriend taught me how to make this when I was about 13 (and I’m now 55, so I’m about her mom’s age!).

Simply mix powdered sugar with just enough evaporated milk (NOT sweetened condensed) to make a dough of the sugar. Takes only a few drops to a cup of powdered sugar. Roll out the “dough” on wax paper in a rectangle, spread it with peanut butter, then roll up like a jelly roll. Chill till nice and firm in the fridge, then slice into small pinwheels.

This is VERY rich and VERY sweet! But certainly delectable. Mmmmm… I can taste it now!

Enjoy!

Debbe

Someone was looking for candy that was pinwheel rolled up with peanut butter inside. I believe she is thinking of potato candy. My mom made it for years. The recipe is as follows:

Potato Candy

Boil 1 medium, peeled potato and mash with fork.
Mix hot potato with 1 pound of confectioner’s sugar or more if needed.
Roll flat with rolling pin, spread with peanut butter and roll up jelly roll fashion.
Slice in 1/4 inch slices.
You will be surprised at how much candy 1 potato will make.

Hope this was helpful, Donna Haselbusch , Brenda, Arizona

Theresa asked about a recipe with confectionery sugar and peanut butter. My mom makes this and it is very rich and so good.

Potato Candy
1 boiled potato
2lb. powdered sugar
peanut butter

Mix potato and sugar till it gets to a dough consistency. Roll out on powdered sugar. Keep rolling pin covered in powered sugar or it will stick. Roll to approx. 1/8 inch thick. Spread peanut butter on dough. Roll dough up. Keep in refridgerator. Cut in slices to serve.

Hope this helps.
Heidi L.

You are looking for a potato candy recipe

1 Med potato peeled, cooked,and mashed (left over mashed potatoes are great)
1 box of confectioner sugar
1 jar peanut butter

Mix potatoes with confectioner sugar to form a dough. Roll out and spread with peanut butter. Roll and refridgerate. When cold then slice. This is extremely rich but oh so good. My mom made it for Christmas.

Lisa B.

My grandmother made this same candy. She called it Martha Washington candy, and it is super easy to make. It calls for one box of Confectionary sugar, one stick of Parkay Margarine (do not substitute this!), one teaspoon of vanilla, and peanut butter. What you do is pour the sugar in a large bowl and place the stick of Parkay on top. Let the margarine soften really good. Once it is soften, add a teaspoon of vanilla and cut it into the sugar. You will eventually have to use your hands to mix it into a pliable dough. After it is mixed, divide into two balls. Take each ball and roll out to 1/4″ thick. Spread the peanut butter on top and then roll it up to form a log. Place the two logs into the refrigerator to chill for a couple of hours to make it easier to cut. Then take out, cut the ends off (these were always fought for in my family!) and then slice.

Hope this is what she is looking fo r!

Jeannie

Potato Candy
I medium potato peeled, boiled and mashed.
after it is cooled add 1 tsp vanilla and enough powdered sugar to make a dough
you can roll. divide into several sections depending on how much dough you have.
roll out and spread with peanut butter. Starting at the short side roll up like a jelly roll
wrap in wax paper or saranwrap and refrigerate.
slice in 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces.This is very rich and very good. You can’t taste the potato!
Cathy Z in Ohio

I was wondering if you have a recipe for pumpkin spread? I had some last year a lady in NC made, it’s wonderful with toast & butter. - Cynthia C.

Cynthia is looking for a pumpkin spread. This is a delightful spread to use all year round. Goes on any bread or muffis.

Makes: 3 cups

1 3/4 cups Solid Pack Pumpkin
1 cup Apple Juice
1 cup(about 1 medium) Peeled and grated Apple
1/2 Cup Packed Brown Sugar
3/4 Teaspoon Pumpkin Pie Spice

Combine pumpkin, apple juice, apple, sugar and pumpkin pie spice in
medium saucepan.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to low; simmer for 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
Pour into container. Cover,chill.
May be stored in refrigerator for up to two months.

Lou

Pumpkin Spread

2 cups Pumpkin Puree- canned or fresh
1 cup Brown Sugar
1 Tsp. Ground Cinnamon
1/2 Tsp. Ginger
1/2 Tsp. Nutmeg
1 Package Cream Cheese, softened

Place pumpkin puree and cream cheese into a large bowl and mix together.

Add all other ingredients. Mix ingredients together until smooth and creamy.

Refrigerate at least four hours or overnight.

Serve with Crackers, gingerbread, celery, carrots, etc.

Tips: For a lighter dip, substitute sour cream for cream cheese.

Karen K

= I have used this recipe many times but have always used “low/sugar-free’ ingredients because I am diabetic … it tastes just like Pumpkin Pie!

Pumpkin Pie Spread
Makes 48 tablespoons (3 cups)
1 1/4 cup apple juice (cold)
1 package vanilla pudding mix (instant)
1 cup pumpkin (canned, but have used freshly cooked pumpkin before-just added more liquid to thin)
* Do Not Use Pumpkin Pie Canned Mix for Pies*
3/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice (1/2 to 1 tsp)
* (Pumpkin Pie Spice: 1/4 cup ground cinnamon, 1/8 cup ground ginger, 1 Tablespoon nutmeg, 1 Tablespoon ground cloves – mix all together and store in lidded jar.)
In a mixing bowl, combine apple juice, pumpkin and dry pudding mix. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes. Stir in Pumpkin Pie spice. Let stand for 5 minutes. Serve on toast or Muffin. Store in refrigerator up to 3 days.

Kim B

I was able to purchase bing cherries at a good price. Now I have a load of them in the
freezer and besides just eating them what can I make with them. I would like some recipes
such as cobbler or other desserts, none frozen or gelatin. Thank you. – Mary Jane

When I was young My step German Grandmother use to make a rice dish with choc candy bars white rice and egg whites. and than I am lost. I was little and no one ever got the recipe. Can you help? – Vicki D

My husband is German, neither grand or great-grand ever made white rice, egg white and chocolate candy bar dish. My sister-in-law and her mother are also German and have never heard of such a dish either. We searched the family recipe books, but only found rice pudding recipes. We are wondering if her recipe is just a basic rice pudding, but her grandma added chocolate to make a ‘chocolate rice pudding’ – also, maybe not a ‘candy’ bar, but some of a baker chocolate bitter bar? Here is our ‘created’ recipe, but it may not taste like the memory! Wish we could help more.

Rice Pudding or Souffle (Reisauflauf)
Milk – one pint (whole milk makes a richer dish, but 2% is ok, too)
5 Eggs
3 tbsp Ground Rice (whole rice pieces that have been broken small before cooking)
Caster Sugar, to taste (about 1/3 cup, more or less of regular white sugar)
Lemon Rind – one or two strips
Vanilla (about one cap)
Butter – a piece of the size of a walnut (about 2 – 3 Tablespoons)
* Chocolate – a few squares of baker OR 1/4 to 1/3 cups chocolate chips OR some grated ‘Hershey’ bar

Mix the ground rice with 6 tablespoonfuls of milk quite smoothly.
Put it into a saucepan with the remaining milk and butter – keep stirring over the heat for about 15 minutes or until the mixture thickens. Remove pan from the heat / off the stove.
* Chocolate – this would be the time to add your chocolate choice so melting would occur.
Add the Lemon, Vanilla and Butter at this time, too.

Separate the eggs.
Beat the yolks in a bowl and stir them into the rice with enough sugar to sweeten.
Add the sugar as sparingly as possible, as the less sugar there is used, the lighter it will be.
Whisk the egg whites stiffly and then … gently, but thoroughly mix whites with the other mixture.

Pour into a buttered soufflé dish (2 quart-type casserole dish) and put it immediately into the oven.
Bake for about 30 (to 45 minutes) in a moderate oven (325 to 350 degrees).
The top should be a light golden brown in color.

Serve in the dish it was baked in, either with a napkin pinned round or enclosed in a more ornamental dish. (Presentation was grand’s speciality!)
The excellence of this fashionable dish entirely depends on the proper whisking of the whites of the eggs, the manner of baking and the speed with which it is sent to table.
Soufflés should be served instantly from the oven or they will sink and be nothing more than an ordinary pudding.

Kim B

Inspirational Story

WOMAN AND A FORK

Author Unknown
Thanks to Kimberly C. for sending this my way.

There was a young woman who had been diagnosed with a
terminal illness and had been given three months to live. So
as she was getting her things ‘in order,’ she
contacted her Pastor and had him come to her house to
discuss certain aspects of her final wishes.

She told him which songs she wanted sung at the service,
what scriptures she would like read, and what outfit she
wanted to be buried in.

Everything was in order and the Pastor was preparing to
leave when the young woman suddenly remembered something
very important to her.

‘There’s one more thing,’ she said excitedly.

‘What’s that?’ came the Pastor’s reply.

‘This is very important,’ the young woman
continued. ‘I want to be buried with a fork in my right
hand.’

The Pastor stood looking at the young woman, not knowing
quite what to say.

That surprises you, doesn’t it?’ the young woman
asked.

‘Well, to be honest, I’m puzzled by the
request,’ said the Pastor.

The young woman explained. ‘My grandmother once told
me this story, and from that time on I have always tried to
pass along its message to those I love and those who are in
need of encouragement. In all my years of attending socials
and dinners, I always remember that when the dishes of the
main course were being cleared, someone would inevitably
lean over and say, ‘Keep your fork.’ It was my
favorite part because I knew that something better was
coming…like velvety chocolate cake or deep-dish apple pie.
Something wonderful, and with substance!’

So, I just want people to see me there in that casket with
a fork in my hand and I want them to wonder ‘What’s
with the fork?’ Then I want you to tell them:
‘Keep your fork the best is yet to come’

The Pastor’s eyes welled up with tears of joy as he
hugged the young woman good-bye. He knew this would be one
of the last times he would see her before her death. But he
also knew that the young woman had a better grasp of heaven
than he did. She had a better grasp of what heaven would be
like than many people twice her age, with twice as much
experience and knowledge. She KNEW that something better was
coming.

At the funeral people were walking by the young woman’s
casket and they saw the cloak she was wearing and the fork
placed in her right hand. Over and over, the Pastor heard
the question, ‘What’s with the fork?’ And over
and over he smiled.

During his message, the Pastor told the people of the
conversation he had with the young woman shortly before she
died. He also told them about the fork and about what it
symbolized to her. He told the people how he could not stop
thinking about the fork and told them that they probably
would no t be able to stop thinking about it either.

He was right. So the next time you reach down for your fork
let it remind you, ever so gently, that the best is yet to
come. Friends are a very rare jewel, indeed. They make you
smile and encourage you to succeed . They lend an ear, they
share a word of praise, and they always want to open their
hearts to us .

Show your friends how much you care. Remember to always be
there for them, even when you need them more. For you never
know when it may be their time to ‘Keep your
fork.’

Cherish the time you have, and the memories you share …
being friends with someone is not an opportunity but a sweet
responsibility.

Final Thought

That??”s it for this edition of the Hillbilly Housewife Newsletter. I hope you??”ve had as much fun reading it as I had creating it for you. I also hope that you have found the information helpful and useful.

Do you have a question, a tip, a recipe or a story you??”d like to share with us? Email it to me and I??”ll include it in a future issue. Can??”t wait to see what you have to say.

Warm Wishes,

Susanne – The Hillbilly Housewife

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