February 9th 2009

Editorial

It’s been another couple of busy weeks, but I finally put my foot down, cleared my schedule and put together another issue of the HBHW newsletter. It’s been way too long since the last one. From here on out we should be back to our regular bi-weekly schedule and you can expect a new issue every other Tuesday.

Since this week is Valentine’s Day, I have a special little booklet for you. It includes 14 Valentine’s Day ideas for the whole family plus some extra romantic ideas for mom and dad. You can download it here:

Valentine’s Day Booklet

I’ve also included some Frugal Valentine’s Day ideas in the newsletter below.

Other than that I’ve been busy working on the Freezer Guide and reorganizing the Hillbilly Housewife Ebook Section since there are going to be quite a few new additions in the weeks to come. Right now you will find the Kitchen Organization and Spring Cleaning ebooks in there as well as a new guide on Eliminating Holiday Debt.

To celebrate Valentine’s Day and the new guide, I set up a special coupon. Valentine’s Day Coupon – use coupon code “VALENTINE15″ to save 15% on your HBHW ebook order. This offer expires 02/14/2009.

Last but not least I wanted to mention that TODAY ONLY you can get the Dining on a Dime Ebook from LivingonaDime.com for only $5. I’ve never seen it this low and I doubt they will be offering it again at that rate. So if you’ve been thinking about getting the Dining On A Dime ebook, today is the day to buy it.

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. On Sale Today Only For $5 (usually $19.95)

Inspirational Quote

“Love is a canvas furnished by Nature and embroidered by imagination.” – Voltaire

Reader Questions

I have a question about your Magic Milk Shake recipeI’m wondering if the taste will be different if I use a different oil than corn oil. If I use Vegetable Oil or Canola Oil, will that matter? This might sound silly, but since you specifically said corn oil, I thought there might have been a reason. – Lee Ann

Featured Article

As you know I’ve been busy working on a freezer guide ebook for the HBHW ebook collection. It’s still not quite done yet, so I thought instead I’d share some ideas for inexpensive homemade freezer meals with you instead. Here’s the article – Frugal Freezer Meal Ideas.

By the way, the freezer guide should be finished later this week and I’ll let you know as soon as it is available.

Frugal Tip – Inexpensive Valentine’s Day Ideas

Since Valentine’s Day is just a few days away, I thought I’d share a couple of ideas with you today. Look for more of them on the HBHW blog over the next few days.

Make A Card – No need to spend money on Valentine’s Day cards this year. Go through your craft box and make one instead. Homemade cards are a lot more meaningful to the recipient and a lot of fun to make. Start with some construction paper. I like to cut a large heart out of red or pink and then decorate it with markers and anything else I can find around the house including fabric and yarn scraps. Take your time coming up with something special to write inside the card. Share a special memory, a thought, a saying or even a poem.

Romantic Dinner – One of our most romantic dinners wasn’t at a fancy restaurant, it was right here at home sitting at the same kitchen table I use to plan and type out this newsletter. Cook up one of your favorite meals, make a simple dessert (we like brownies with chocolate syrup drizzled over them), and set the table. Light a candle and turn on some soft music and your very own romantic dinner is ready. You won’t even need a baby sitter, just put the kids to bed and enjoy.

Frugal Tips From Our Readers

We get Angel Food. This month had the instant oatmeal variety pack. One pkg isn’t enough for an adult serving, so instead of mixing two pkgs, I buy a box of the plain instant oatmeal and mix another serving with it. This lowers the sugar ratio, and personally we think it tastes better anyway.

Norma

Window Washing Liquid (Exactly like Windex)
Into empty gallon jug put 2 Tbsp regular ammonia, 1 tsp liquid dishwashing soap, 1 pint rubbing alcohol, 2 drops blue food color. Carefully fill jug with water (it sudses up if you don’t go slow) and label jug.

Kay

Here’s an idea I came up with this week for using my crockpot but not overcooking the contents.

Due to my commute, the typical 6-8 hours cooking time is shorter then my workday. For sauces it’s not a big deal, but I don’t like overcooked roasts and chicken. Thus the lighting bolt. I pulled the timer I use for my living room lights and move it to my kitchen. Working backwards from when I would be home, I set the timer to start the 6 hours earlier. Presto, I came home to the wonderful smell of pulled pork roast cooked to perfection and dinner was on the table in about 10 minutes.

Eileen S.
Philadelphia, PA

I wanted to tell you about a couple “recycle” things I do that might be of interest to your readers.

I save empty oatmeal containers (the cylindrical kind with plastic lids) and fill them with either oatmeal cookies or oatmeal muffins to give as gifts when needed. Tie raffia around container and it makes a good presentation. Also, I have covered the containers with Christmas wrap, filled with homemade carmel popcorn, and tied with curling ribbon.

For those who only have a few chickens….use plastic gallon milk containers for feeding. I cut a nice size hole in the container front, leaving the top to the carton with handle and spout intact, and the bottom with a 2 1/2″ bowl. I bungee the container to the inside of the chicken wire (using the handle to run the bungee through) high enough so they don’t scratch the food out. Because of the shape the chickens can not sit/perch on the container and poo in the food. I have never had ‘dirty’ food or food waste since I came up with the milk carton feeding dish. You can even leave the cap off and run a hose from outside the chicken wire and into the milk container top and pour food through the hose.

Hope these tips can help someone.
Laura
East Liverpool, Ohio

Featured Recipe

This week I have one of my favorite soup recipes for you. It’s cheap and easy to make and since we’re talking a lot about freezer cooking today, you’ll be glad to know that this soup also freezes well.

It’s a Simple Split Pea Soup Recipe that’s been a family favorite at our house for quite some time. I serve it with some homemade bread or biscuits. I also like to add a little chopped up ham or sausage during the last few minutes of cooking for an even hardier meal.

You can easily make a double batch and freeze the leftovers. I like to freeze them in individual servings. Makes it easy to pull one out and reheat for a quick snack or lunch.

Reader Recipe

Here is a super simple recipe from HBHW reader Kay for your own homemade thousand island salad dressing:

Thousand Island salad dressing
Mix together Miracle Whip, ketchup, sweet relish (Or just add ketchup to homemade tartar sauce)

Kay

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 am hoping someone can help me find a recipe for a fruit and tapioca salad that all the old ladies at my church used to make when I was a little girl. They are all dead now and I never got the chance to ask for the recipe. Its called either Frog eye salad or Fish eye salad or maybe both depending on where you are from? Its made with large pearl tapioca, canned mandarin oranges,and whipped cream. The tapioca was some kind of custard, (the tapioca was really chewy something I can’t seem to duplicate), with the oranges in it and there was whipped cream more oranges and maybe some mini marshmallows on top? I have a recipe that uses Acine de Pepe pasta, but think this one was much better. I’ll take any recipe that is anywhere close to this. – Anna K

My son works in a restaurant as a cook and all his clothes now smell so greasy, I refuse to wash them with anything else! Of course, being a teenager, he doesn’t think anything of wearing his good clothes to work! What is a good product or something I could add to the wash either AS the detergent, or in addition to the detergent to take the grease and the smell out of his clothes? - Lynn D

Years ago I made a fruit salad that had (among other things) vanilla instant pudding and crushed pineapples. I have lost the recipe. Can your readers help? – Amy

We are also still looking for the following…

Years ago my husband and I went on our honeymoon up the east coast to Nova Scotia, in one place we stayed we were served Mincemeat-mallow pie. At the time I wrote the bed and breakfast for the recipe but I never received an answer. I was wondering if any of your readers would have a similar recipe to share, it was exactly as you would think a mincemeat pie with a mallow topping.

Thanks,
Lisa
New Jersey

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

Does anyone have any tips on how to make toad-in-the-hole come out right?

Susan A.

If by ‘toad in the hole’ the reader means fried bread with a hole in the middle filled with egg, here’s how I do it.

Butter both sides of a piece of bread. Cut a hole in the middle with a biscuit cutter, or a knife. Heat a non-stick pan until a pat of butter sizzles in the middle of the pan. (You need the butter in the pan to keep the egg from sticking.) Put in the piece of bread, then crack an egg into the hole in the bread. Cook until the egg is done to your preference, turning half-way through. I’ve discovered that if you prefer the bread browned and the yolk runny, you need the pan relatively hot.

Amy

For the reader who was asking for toad in the hole tips, I make these for my family a lot of mornings, but ours are a bit different. We don’t use meat, just eggs and bread. First, I butter the bread like I’m making a grilled cheese (only both sides instead of one) and then using a juice glass I cut out the center of the bread. Place the square pieces in a nonstick skillet and toast slightly, flip and crack an egg into the center of each. Cook over medium to low heat so the egg will set well before the toast is too dark. Our family likes them flipped so the egg is more done, but this is not necessary. Be sure to toast the rounds you cut out as well, these sit on top of ours so the “toad” is peaking out of the hole.

Jennifer

I was at a potluck recently and tasted two different coleslaws. Both of them had oil and vinegar type dressings but didn’t use any mayonnaise (which is the way I usually fix it). One of them was a bit spicy and had some almonds in it, the other was more of a traditional recipe. Does anyone have a good coleslaw recipe that doesn’t use mayonnaise?

Delsie M.

Delsie M. requested recipes for cole slaw without mayo– I’m sure you’re being slammed with recipes, but I did want to share my favorite. I despise both cabbage and mayo, so traditional slaw isn’t up my alley. A friend of mine fixed this for a dinner party a few years ago, and I’ve used it since in place of regular slaw. During times when money is tighter, I’ve still had good results without the green onions, almonds, or sesame seeds. Enjoy!

Oriental Cole Slaw

1 pkg. coleslaw mix (I like the Broccoli slaw mix)

2 pkg. beef flavor ramen noodles

½ cup chopped green onions (opt.)

slivered almonds (opt.)

sesame seeds (opt.)

½ cup vegetable oil

3 Tbsp. rice vinegar

Open ramen noodles; put seasoning packets aside for dressing. Use only one package of noodles; smash. Mix with coleslaw mix and green onions. Toast almonds and sesame seeds (enough to taste). Mix dressing separately: oil, vinegar, seasoning from ramen packets. Cool almonds and sesame seeds, mix all immediately before serving.

Lee D.

Here is a cole slaw recipe with no mayo. My daughter’s love it. It is good enough to eat by itself!

Cole Slaw with Noodles – Agnes

1 package ramen noodles, saving back the flavor packet
1 package of cole slaw
3 T. minced onions
1/2 cup canola oil
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
3 T. sugar
almonds, slivered and toasted…..as many as you like

Mix slaw and noodles. (Break up noodles). Mix together remaining ingredients. Toss

together and chill. This is awesome if you don’t like a mayo based slaw. You can add

the flavor packet to the wet ingredients if desired. We prefer it plain.

Dixiegrits

Oriental Cole Slaw Salad

1 large bag of Cole Slaw mix
1 cup almond slivers (toasted 10 mins. at 300*)
1/2 cup sunflower kernels
1 bunch green onions use only the green parts
2 pkgs. Ramen noodles (Oriental Flavor)Toast them with the almonds at same
temp and time, break into pieces. In a large bowl mix all together, pour
dressing over and mix well.

Dressing:
1 cup olive oil
1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup sugar
2 pkgs. seasoning mix from Ramen noodles

Mix vinegar, sugar, and seasonings. Warm in microwave until sugar is
dissolved. Add olive oil and pour over dry ingredients. Toss together. Best
if eaten same day

MCG

My favorite coleslaw recipe is the very old traditional way that I can remember.

Shredded cabbage
sugar
oil
salt
vinegar
As far as the quantities, keep tasting and add as you wish. The trick is to mix it with your hands and keep squeezing the cabbage as it becomes softer and all the ingredients incorporate. That’s how I make it and have watched it made. Simple and delicious.

Leanna L.

When i read the request it reminded me of my recipe

1 head cabbage thinnly shredded
1 bunch green onions finely chopped
1 cup cooked finely chopped chichen
1 cup alminds
1 pkg ramen noodles finely broken
you may also add shredded carrots and any other vegetables that blend well with cabbage
mix the above ingredients together

salad dressing
one flavor packet out of the ramen noodles package
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 T sugar
mix together well and our over salad

This is my favorite way to make cabbage salad

Nancy F.

This recipe is for Delsie M. who was looking for a good coleslaw recipe that doesn’t use mayonaise. I have two.

Cranberry- Apple Coleslaw

1 head of cabbage grated
1 or 2 carrots grated
1/2 cup dried cranberries
2-3 Granny Smith apples, cored and cut up in chunks
1/4 cup sunflower seeds (I used roasted unsalted)

Dressing:

1 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. olive oil

Mix all ingredients (except dressing) together. Mix dressing ingredients and mix into coleslaw. Amount of ingredients can be varied depending on the size of the head of cabbage.

I don’t know what the other one is called, but it’s also very good.

Head of cabbage grated
1/2 c. Sunflower seeds
1/2 c. almonds
1 pkg of Ramen noodles soup (Chicken flavor)

Dressing:

1/4 c olive oil
flavor packet from soup

Mix cabbage, sunflower seeds and almonds together. Break up ramen noodles (set aside the flavor packet) and mix with cabbage mix. For dressing combine 1/4 c olive oil with soup flavor packet and mix with cabbage mix.

Enjoy!
Melissa

I grew up with my grandmother and, of course, she was a wonderful cook! She used to make a “Apple Dumpling” which was your basic apple baked in a pastry crust. That part I can reproduce, but she served it with something she called “Hard Sauce”. I know it was made with cinnamon or nutmeg, flour, water, and vinegar, and probably some other good stuff that I can’t remember. Does anyone have a recipe that may be close? I miss that combination of sweet/tart and gooey on the dumpling.

Gayle C

This is one I learned many years ago in home ec class.

1/2 cup soft butter
1-1/2 cups sifted confectioner’s sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla

Cream butter with confectioner’s sugar until fluffy. Stir in vanilla. Makes about eight servings.

Doris E.

Inspirational Story

A GIFT OF LOVE

The passengers on the bus watched sympathetically as the attractive young woman with the white cane made her way carefully up the steps. She paid the driver and, using her hands to feel the location of the seats, walked down the aisle and found the seat he’d told her was empty. Then she settled in, placed her briefcase on her lap and rested her cane against her leg.

It had been a year since Susan, 34, became blind. Due to a medical misdiagnosis she had been rendered sightless, and she was suddenly thrown into a world of darkness, anger, frustration and self-pity. And all she had to cling to was her husband, Mark.

Mark was an Air Force officer and he loved Susan with all his heart. When she first lost her sight, he watched her sink into despair and was determined to help his wife gain the strength and confidence she needed to become independent again.

Finally, Susan felt ready to return to her job, but how would she get there? She used to take the bus, but was now too frightened to get around the city by herself. Mark volunteered to drive her to work each day, even though they worked at opposite ends of the city. At first, this comforted Susan, and fulfilled Mark’s need to protect his sightless wife who was so insecure about performing the slightest task.

Soon, however, Mark realized the arrangement wasn’t working. Susan is going to have to start taking the bus again, he admitted to himself. But she was still so fragile, so angry – how would she react? Just as he predicted, Susan was horrified at the idea of taking the bus again.

“I’m blind!”, she responded bitterly. “How am I supposed to know where I am going? I feel like you’re abandoning me.”

Mark’s heart broke to hear these words, but he knew what had to be done. He promised Susan that each morning and evening he would ride the bus with her, for as long as it took, until she got the hang of it. And that is exactly what happened. For two solid weeks, Mark, military uniform and all, accompanied Susan to and from work each day.

He taught her how to rely on her other senses, specifically her hearing, to determine where she was and how to adapt to her new environment. He helped her befriend the bus drivers who could watch out for her, and save her a seat.

Finally, Susan decided that she was ready to try the trip on her own. Monday morning arrived, and before she left, she threw her arms around Mark, her temporary bus-riding companion, her husband, and her best friend. Her eyes filled with tears of gratitude for his loyalty, his patience, And his love. She said good-bye, and for the first time, they went their separate ways. Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday… Each day on her own went perfectly, and Susan had never felt better. She was doing it! She was going to work all by herself.

On Friday morning, Susan took the bus to work as usual. As she was paying the fare to exit the bus, the driver said, “Boy, I sure do envy you.” Susan wasn’t sure if the driver was speaking to her or not. After all, who on earth would ever envy a blind woman who had struggled just to find the courage to live for the past year? Curious, she asked the driver, “Why do you say that you envy me?”

The driver responded, “It must feel good to be taken care of and protected like you are.” Susan had no idea what the driver was talking about, and again asked, “What do you mean?”

The driver answered, “You know, every morning for the past week, a fine-looking gentleman in a military uniform has been standing across the corner watching you as you get off the bus. He makes sure you cross the street safely and he watches until you enter your office building.

Then he blows you a kiss, gives you a little salute and walks away. You are one lucky lady.” Tears of happiness poured down Susan’s cheeks. For although she couldn’t physically see him, she had always felt Mark’s presence. She was lucky, so lucky, for he had given her a gift more powerful than sight, a gift she didn’t need to see to believe – the gift of love that can bring light where there is darkness.

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. And by all means feel free to forward the newsletter to family and friends or even better, encourage them to subscribe to it.

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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