Puzzle Fun for All Ages - Part 1

Several years ago I came up with an idea to put magnets on the back of puzzles so you can do them and then store them when not in use half done. The first one I did, I took a child's puzzle to experiment with as it has large pieces and not many jig-saw pieces.

My oldest daughter collected "Wizard of Oz" stuff so I got one of her puzzles. I bought some sheet magnet paper which is sticky on one side. You have to put each piece of the puzzle on individually because if you stick the done puzzle on, there is no way to cut the magnet around the pieces. So, put the puzzle pieces on the sticky magnet paper as close together as you can but still able to get a pair of scissors between. Then, put in a good movie, get a small detailed pair of scissors with a sharp tip and get to cutting.

I tried using a razor/scalpel but it didn't do the round pieces well. As you can see from the back of the puzzle piece, it doesn't have to be perfect. As long as most of the back is covered, the piece will be even with the rest, not raising up or dipping down on one side.

The magnetic sheets can be purchased at a craft store but a few times I have found them at the local dollar store in the craft section. When I see them there, I stock up. I have used them for many things. With the sticky side, it makes it very easy to use. If you can't find one with sticky on one side, purchase double sided tape and use that to stick the pieces on to the magnet sheet. If you have some old magnet calenders or adds from companies, you can peel off their add and use glue to glue your pieces on and save some money that way.

Once you cut all your pieces, you can keep them in the original box. However, since it is a kids puzzle, I put them in a Ziploc bag and keep them in the bottom drawer in my kitchen so when I am babysitting, I pull it out and let the kids play. It is funny, when my older kids come home and the pieces are still on the fridge, they will do the puzzle. It is fun for all ages.

A puzzle a day........

Creative Wrapping Paper

For many years now, I have gone to second hand stores or clearance sales to get my wrapping paper. I use old wall paper. Most of the papers are thicker than actual wrapping paper and don't rip so easily like wrapping papers do. I travel to most wedding, birthdays and Christmas parties about 3 hours each way so many times if I use traditional paper, by the time I arrive, it has several rips or tears in the paper. If I use a gift bag, it is squished in with all the luggage and usually ends up wrinkled and torn by the time we arrive. I don't always have time to wrap it when I get to our destination so this solution has been a blessing.

I usually pay between $0.25 and $1.00 a roll. They are usually larger rolls than regular wrapping paper and they are fun and come in themes. You can go into a wallpaper store and ask them for their old display books and you have hundreds of coordinated papers for smaller gifts. They have sports, Licensed papers, and baby through wedding papers. Usually you can get them for free but sometimes you have to pay a few dollars for them but it is worth it if you give many gifts. I have a very large family and a large church congregation so I am giving several gifts every few weeks so for me, it has been a blessing.

I wrap the gift as normal and I have many options for ribbon. I have many colors of curling ribbons, wedding congrats ribbons, satin or decorative ribbons, tulle, fiber decorative yarn, thicker string, raffia, hemp, twine and many other fun things. For this particular package, since it is for a wedding, I decided on tulle, sparkle decorative yarn fiber, and gold thread. I chose that route because the gift is a photo album and scrapbook supplies.

The last wedding shower I attended a few weeks ago, I used white wall paper, and her colors were apple green and dark plum purple, I used those two colors curling ribbon and fibers. It was very cute.

You can also get butcher paper or a roll of news print paper and have your kids do hand prints, stamps, marker art, body tracing tissue art etc. Here is homemade paper my daughter used last Christmas to wrap my present. I loved the personal touch. Note the amazing artwork! She must take after me! :-) I spent an hour looking for the picture of the whole paper. She did some beautiful art. I couldn't find it. Here is the front anyway.

There are so many possibilities.....

Suckers, Lollipops, and Flavorful Treats - Part 2

The recipe:

Suckers or hard candy treats:

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup light corn syrup

1/2 cup water

food coloring

several drops flavoring

Put the first three ingredients into the stainless pan and start stirring. While it is heating up when you don't need to watch it so carefully, pull out a cookie sheet. Grease it. I use butter, you can also use Crisco or margarine. Then, you take the sucker molds, grease the inside of the mold making sure to get into the tiny areas where the sucker might stick.

Next, take a stick and place it in the mold and use a clip to secure the stick and mold. Place it on the cookie sheet making sure that all parts of the mold are flat on the cookie sheet or you will have some of the sucker come out on the bottom of the mold making sharp edges and overages seen on this ghost sucker. If this happens, I usually just tap the sucker on the edge of the cookie sheet breaking those extra pieces off before bagging.

Get your flavorings and your food coloring ready and then stir the mixture boiling for about 5 minutes. The boiling mixture will soon become silvery and not so clear. Have a clear cup of cool water near and drip some of the mixture into the cup. If you hear a "crack" and the mixture becomes string like in the water and is hard to the touch in the water, it is ready. If it falls to the bottom of the glass in a glob and stays soft when you feel it, it needs more cooking time.

You can see the strings in the water here if you look closely. The candy will get hard and be stringy in the water when it is ready.

Once it is ready, you take it off the heat and wait about 20 seconds. If you put the flavoring right in, it will boil off. Waiting a few seconds allows it to cool a bit. Put the food coloring in and step back as it will be boiling and sometimes will splash out. Stir in the flavoring and mix quickly. The mixture cools fast and needs to be poured into molds before it hardens.

Start pouring into the molds. It will still be boiling and the mold will look full because it has air bubbles. If you stop then, it will then fall and leave ridges that can be sharp. So, over fill them just before they would overflow and when the bubbles work their way out, the sucker will fill the mold. Pour quickly and don't worry about drops or strings that follow you from the pan, they can be collected at the end and put in a bag and used for ice cream topping.

Let the suckers cool in the molds until they are very cool to the touch. They will fold, melt, ripple and lose their shape if taken out early. Her is one taken out early and you can see the ripples in it and the head isn't "sharp" and crisp as the others. It is worth the wait to have them look smooth and "cute."

Once cooled, remove the mold, slide the sucker into a bag. Tie it off or close the zip. You can write the flavor on the stick or on the bag. However, Sharpie rubs off if the bag has any grease or gets warm from the sucker so I suggest writing the flavor on the stick. Collect the broken bits off the bottom of the pan and place in a bag for use as ice cream toppings.

You can double the batch but I find that the mix starts to harden before I can get all the suckers poured. Another thing is the kids like several different flavors. This mix makes between 12 and 20 suckers depending on the mold sizes you use. Unless you only want one flavor, it is easier to mix flavors with the smaller batch. Same goes for color.

Once all the suckers are poured, there is usually some left on the sides of the pan. I scrape the sides with the wooden spoon and run it under cold water making it a sucker spoon and let one of the kids suck it off. Usually whomever picked the flavor of the batch gets the spoon. I rinse the pan in the hottest water available to get off the mix before it hardens. It is really hard to get clean after it gets hard.

Each girl that came to our party picked out two suckers of each flavor. I had them make a bouquet with one sucker from each flavor. I gave them each a "thank you" note and had them write someone they wanted to show gratitude. We tied the bouquet with a bow and curled the ends and then went to deliver them. The girls got to keep the second bouquet. The girls all had fun and thanked me many times for having them over. I can see we will be doing this again. My other girls are already planning their "sucker" parties.

Here is to a flavorful day!

Suckers, Lollipops and Flavorful Treats - Part 1

For weeks now one of my daughters has been asking to have friends over and make homemade suckers. We make suckers several times a year. We then make them into "bouquets" and deliver them with "thank you" notes to people who have supported us, taught us, or have been kind to us.

The girls had a day off school today so we thought it would be a good day. There is so much information, I will make it a two day post. Today, I will focus on the items needed.

First you need Sugar, corn syrup, water and flavorings. I like a stainless steel pan and a wooden spoon. Stainless keeps the sugar from scorching and the wooden spoon keeps your hands cool. A metal spoon would get hot.

I bought most of my sucker molds at yard sales, second hand stores or when friends know I make them, they give me some. I have gotten some new with store credits but I now have at least one set of every sucker mold set available to my knowledge. We have one for each holiday and many all occasion sets.

Sometimes the sets have come with some clips missing, I made clips out of thick copper wire. They work fine.

Next, you need sticks. I can buy them in my town locally but there are marked up quite a bit from the bulk cooking supply stores. The same goes for flavorings. I suggest you look online at molds and supplies. The sticks are just over $1 for 100 at the bulk stores. Local stores may be more. They have several sizes and types. There are plastic sticks, paper sticks and short vs. long. Most sucker molds use the shorter paper type.

Flavorings can be acquired at many places. Sometimes I wait until the holidays are over and stores (pharmacy's usually have them) are trying to clearance them so you can get them a bit cheaper. I have gotten more popular and common flavors at the grocery store. Most berries, mint, coconut etc can be purchased in the baking section. The large cooking supply stores have the bigger bottles and many more flavors. Since we make them often, and I wanted to have them on hand for emergency preparedness, I bought one of each flavor we were missing last year as a Christmas gift for the girls. I typed up a list of what we had as it was frustrating pulling out each bottle every time to let them know what flavors we had available. It has come in handy.

If you have a food handlers permit, you can make and sell the suckers. I thought if times were tough, people cut down on buying treats but with all these flavors and stocks of the ingredients, it is a nice gift and could be an inexpensive treat that people would buy. I didn't use a full jar of corn syrup and only used 7 cups of sugar and we made over 100 suckers. The sticks were about $1.00 and the bags were about $1. A bottle of flavoring lasts a long time so once you have the molds, (which would be the biggest expense) it is a fairly inexpensive treat.

The bags to put the suckers in can be different. I bought several sizes at the local supply store. Sometimes the suckers are a tight fit. The bottom of the bag is open and you have to tie ribbon or put tape on the bottom to keep it sealed and sometimes they slip off or the sucker is a bit big and it is hard to get a ribbon around it. They are usually $1 for 100. They have three sizes, the larger cost a bit more.

Shopping around, I found zip bags in the craft section at Wal-Mart 100 for around $1. They have two sizes which are perfect for suckers. I like that I can seal them around the stick and sometimes you can fit the sucker and stick inside and seal it all inside the bag.

Now you are ready for the fun to begin!

An Apple a Day - Drying Apples

I have been dehydrating food for 20 years. One of my favorite things dried is apples. I have several wonderful apple trees. NOTHING goes to waste that grows on my trees. I never spray the apples. I don't want to worry about pesticides. About half of my apples have worm holes.

Worm holes have never been an issue for me. I have gone through several apple/corer/peelers over the years. They are sooooooo handy. Once you have used one, you will never go back. I have several hand cutters for eating apples with peanut butter but when you want a quick snack with no work, this is the method for you.

Just line up the core on the three prongs sticking out of the winder. Start turning. The apple then starts to be peeled and cored. I have a bucket that we keep under the sink for our mulch. One dehydrator batch and the bucket is full.

Once the apple has been cored and peeled, I take it in my hand and run a knife down the right and left of any worm holes cutting out the rotten part of the apple. I then wash the apple and place them in rings on the dehydration trays to dry. Apples usually take about 24 hours to dry. Sometimes less depending on your dehydrator.

One year I kept the peels and cores separate from the bug stuff and made apples sauce using the peels and cores. It tasted fine but for the work, I would rather stick with my dried fruit. I used to bottle and freeze much of my fruit. I have found over the years, that my family would eat buckets full of dried fruit and I would be embarrassed to tell you how old some of the jars of fruit are that I still have. We just prefer the taste, texture and food value of dried over bottled or frozen any day. Dried fruit can be used in more ways than frozen fruit as once frozen it goes very mushy. The same goes for bottled fruit.

I get people asking me yearly for my dried apples for Christmas, birthdays etc. You can sprinkle them with Cinnamon or a glaze but I think they are best and sweetest without anything on them. My kids will eat many apples a day if I leave the corer on the counter. If I just leave a bowl of apples, they usually don't eat any. If you want to get your picky kids to eat apples, let them use the corer. My 11 year old still thinks it is "cool" to use.

Happy Harvest!

Coriander - Easy to Grow and Use

I wrote a post yesterday about the pesto I make. It is a good detox. We make it because it tastes good. A few months ago I felt like I should look into Coriander. At that time, I bought some from the cooking isle. I made it into a tea with barley. I boiled them both in a pot and drank the tea throughout the day.

At the time I was feeling really sluggish and my lymph's were sore. I haven't been taking it like I felt I should but sometimes will just chew on a few of the seeds when I forget to make the tea.

I bought some cilantro and planted it. Cilantro when it goes to seed, creates Coriander. I harvested the coriander today. You just let the cilantro go to seed and let the stalks and leaves dry up.

When they are dry, as in top photo above, you pull off the seeds with your hands. Blow off the leaves and you have coriander. I paid over $5 for the bottle in the photo. I harvested about that much for nothing as we used the cilantro in cooking and the coriander is just a wonderful addition. I will let it dry for a few days just to make sure it is dry and then bottle it for use this winter in my tea.

Barley boiled is a great source of calcium for those who are allergic to dairy. Drink the tea once you have boiled the barley for a few minutes.

Dry coriander treats diarrhea. Coriander seeds are known to alleviate excessive menstrual flow. Used as an eye-wash, freshly dried coriander is excellent in treating conjunctivitis. It relieves burning and reduces pain and swelling.

Topically, a teaspoon of coriander juice, mixed with a pinch of turmeric powder, is an effective remedy for pimples, blackheads and dry skin. The mixture should be applied to the face, after washing it thoroughly, every night before going to bed.

I also learned, in addition, the drinking of coriander water helps lower blood cholesterol. The leaves act as stimulants and tonics. They strengthen the stomach and promote digestion, increase secretion and discharge of urine and reduce fever. They act as an aphrodisiac, and help in the removal of phlegm. Coriander seeds reduce fever, and offer a feeling of coolness. The juice of coriander is beneficial in producing vitamin A, B1, B2, C and iron.

So, there you have it. It may be something you want in your first aid kit as well as your spice rack.

Homemade Pesto detox

A few years ago, we got some biting mites from a birds nest in the attic or some mulch we got from the fair grounds. Either way, we had lots of pesticides sprayed in our home for the year it took us to finally rid ourselves of the little pests.

I was worried about the effect of the pesticides on my family so I did some research. I found this pesto recipe on a pesticide page of all places. Who would have thought it would become one of our favorites for lunch?

CORIANDER PESTO
4 cloves garlic (I use the already chopped in a jar)
1/3 cup Brazil nuts (selenium)
1/3 cup sunflower seeds (cysteine)
1/3 cup pumpkin seeds (zinc, magnesium)
2 cups packed fresh coriander (cilantro, Chinese parsley) (vitamin A)
2/3 cup flaxseed oil
4 tablespoons lemon juice (vitamin C)
2 teaspoons dulse powder liquid aminos (Bragg's)

Process the coriander and flaxseed oil in a blender until the coriander is chopped. Add the garlic, nuts and seeds, dulse and lemon juice and mix until the mixture is finely blended into a paste. Add a squirt of Bragg's to taste and blend again. Store in dark glass jars if possible. It freezes well, so you can purchase coriander in season and fill enough containers to last through the year.

Coriander has been proven to chelate toxic metals from our bodies in a relatively short period of time. Combined with the benefits of the other ingredients, this recipe is reportedly a powerful tissue cleanser. Two teaspoons of this pesto daily for three weeks is purportedly enough to increase the urinary excretion of mercury, lead and aluminum, thus effectively removing these toxic metals from our bodies. You can consider doing this cleanse for three weeks at least once a year.

My favorite way to eat the pesto is in a wrap. I add whatever veggie I have on hand. I like it best with fresh tomato, avocado (which increases the amount of absorption), and cucumber, all in a tortilla with salt and pepper to taste.

I can even get my kids to eat this. I have used other types of parsley when I can't get Cilantro and it is good but probably doesn't have the same health effect.

I freeze each batch I make in my little Oster kitchen mixer in a Tupperware container and label it for the freezer. It lasts well and I like that I can take it frozen in a cooler for lunch and it will be thawed but still cool even when away from home. It is easy to make a wrap for a picnic, keeping your meals away from home healthy.

Enjoy the taste and the health you get while eating it!