The Frugal Kitchen: Beef Stew

Beef stew is so wonderful on a cold day.  Stew meat is affordable and with root vegetables in season beef stew becomes a frugal and delicious one pot meal.

I like to keep my stew vegetables as natural looking as possible.  I want the carrots, turnips and potatoes easily identifiable.  It makes the stew visually attractive and rustic.

INGREDIENTS

Beef cut into one inch cubes (or larger if you prefer)
Beef stock
Carrots
Turnips
Small potatoes
Green beans
Small white onions
Several garlic cloves
Flour
Salt
Whole black pepper corns, 5 or 6
Red wine
1 tsp. Thyme
1 tsp. Rosemary
2 Bay leaves

Place some flour and a teaspoon of salt in a ziplock bag with the stew meat.  Shake to cover the meat with flour.  Add several tablespoons of oil to a hot pot and brown the meat on all sides.

While the meet is browning prepare the vegetables by washing them and peel them only if absolutely necessary.  Do take the paper like skins off of the onions and garlic cloves.

When the meat is browned add the onions and garlic cloves and let them get some color.

Add the other vegetables and the spices.  Add broth and red wine (no more than a cup of wine) to cover the meat and vegetables.  Bring to a boil, then cover the pot and lower the heat to simmer.

Cook for three hours, then add salt to taste.

Serve with a crusty bread.  We were so hungry after smelling this stew cooking all afternoon, we ate it without taking a picture of the finished stew.  Oh well, next time.

God bless,
Pam

Eeek! Clothing Moths (and my desperate attempts to eradicate them)

I have to admit that I haven't been as observant lately as I should have, but when a number of moths started flying about our house, I went on full alert.  Because, even though I live in Florida, I am a wool junkie.  I love working with wool and wool yarns and always have several projects in different stages of completion.

Of course, when I pulled out my yarns and semi finished projects they had obvious moth damage.  Some things were salvageable, but (because moths love dark, undisturbed places) the yarn and wool at the bottoms of my project bags were destroyed.

The first thing I noticed were the clothing moth cocoons.  On yarn that only had cocoons, but no damage, I vacuumed the yarn balls inside and out with my vacuum attachment.

Then I placed any salvageable wool into 2 1/2 gallon zip lock bags and placed them in my freezer for, at least, 72 hours.

After I removed the bags from the freezer I open the bags while they came to room temperature, to prevent condensation.  Make sure that there is no moisture in the bags before you reseal them.

From now on I will be storing my wool in plastic even though I know that this is not the optimal method of storage.  I will also be more diligent about checking through my supplies on a regular basis.

I managed to salvage about 50% of my wool.  I knew better than to take my wool storage for granted, but sometimes life distracts us and we end up paying for it.

 I decided many years ago that I didn't want to own anything that, if it became damaged or ruined, would be heart breaking for me.  We live in hurricane territory and I don't want to worry about things when all my concentration should be on my family.  So the loss of a few projects is disappointing, but not devastating.

God bless,
Pam

The Frugal Kitchen: Beans and Greens

Beans and greens usually refers to white or pinto beans cooked with leafy greens such a collards.  I like to substitute green beans for the collards when fresh collard greens aren't available.

This is a simple dish that is made easier by using canned or frozen beans and greens.  If you are using dried beans soak them in water overnight and be sure to cook them for around seven hours.  I suggest using a slow cooker if you are not going to be home to keep an eye on the pot.

INGREDIENTS

2 cans beans (I used navy and kidney beans)
1 can green beans or a package of frozen greens
1 piece of smoked hog jowl or ham hock
1/2 tsp. of thyme
water or leftover stock
salt to taste
pepper to taste

To a heavy pot add beans after draining them, add drained green beans, smoked meat, and thyme.  Mix well and make sure the meat is tucked down into the beans.  Add liquid to just cover the beans.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer.  Cook for several hours.  A half hour before serving taste the broth for salt (I didn't need to add any), and add pepper to taste.  Shred the meat and discard the bones.

Never add salt to a pot of beans until they are completely cooked and soft.  Salt will prevent the beans from absorbing liquid and you don't want to serve tough, hard beans.

Serve the beans over biscuits, cornbread (my favorite) or rice.

This is a simple, inexpensive and balanced meal.  Enjoy!

God bless,
Pam

Radius Toothbrush

My daughter is very good about brushing her teeth, but I had noticed that she was sometimes missing the gum area of her teeth.  So I went hunting for a very soft bristled toothbrush with a head large enough to always stimulate the gums.

On the advice of a Youtube friend I discovered the Radius toothbrush.  I ordered the regular size for me to try and the childs size for my daughter.

After using this brush our teeth feel like they do after a cleaning at the dentist office.  It gently stimulates the gums and my daughter no longer has any inflammation of her gums.

If you have a small mouth order the childs size.

The frugal side of these brushes is that they are made to last for 9 months without being replaced.  If you feel that the brush needs sanitizing I would soak it in a peroxide and water bath.

I ordered mine from Vitacost, but they are also available through Amazon (link below).

God bless,
Pam

Good Reads: Marked Masters

Marked Masters by Ritter Ames
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Marked Masters is the second book in the Bodies of Art mystery series. It is a very well written and professionally edited full length novel.

Laurel and Jack have stumbled on to something extremely unusual; a forger is copying the work of other forgers. Plus Laurel is slowly uncovering some baffling information about her long dead mother. Jack is secretive, as he always is, and Laurel is finding it hard to trust him.

I am having such fun reading this series. The author is a polished writer and her style is intelligent. These books are fast paced and filled with intrigue on top of intrigue.

Marked Masters ends with a HFN and I look forward to reading more books in this series.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.

Good Reads: Counterfeit Conspiricies

Counterfeit Conspiracies by Ritter Ames
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Counterfeit Conspiricies is the first book in the Bodies of Art mystery/suspense series. It is a very well written and professionally edited full length novel.

The heroine works for a nonprofit foundation liberating (stealing) art works from thieves and unscrupulous collectors, then returning them to their rightful owners. She suddenly finds herself in a caper alongside a mystery man that seems to have a similar skill set and the ability to waylay her at the most inconvenient times.

This is a rollicking start to a fascinating and fun series. The plot is fast paced and the characters well developed and complex. Counterfeit Conspiricies was a hard book to put down.

I highly recommend this novel which ends with a HFN.

ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.

The Frugal Kitchen: Easy Chili

One of my favorite foods for a winter day is a bowl of chili.  This recipe comes from the many times I have thrown a pot full together using foods that I always keep handy in my pantry and freezer.

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. ground beef (I prefer grassfed, organic beef)
1 medium sized yellow onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp. chili powder
2 garlic cloves, diced
1 tsp. salt
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 can diced tomatoes, not drained
1 can pinto beans, drained
1 Tbsp. olive oil

In a heavy pot brown ground beef in the oil until fully cooked, then drain off any unwanted fat.

Note:  fat adds flavor, so don't throw it all out.  Add onions and bell pepper, cook until onion is transparent.

  Add garlic, chili powder, salt, sugar, tomatoes and beans and stir well.

 Bring to a boil, cover the pot and lower heat to a simmer.

Cook for at least an hour.  This recipe can be made in a slow cooker if you brown the meat first on the stove top.  Check the seasoning before you serve.  I ended up adding a 1/2 teaspoon of salt to mine.

We like our chili with saltines or cornbread.  It refrigerates and freezes well.  If I am making chili for the vegetarians in the family I substitute 2 large grated carrots for the ground beef.

Enjoy!

God bless,
Pam