Raw Canning - White Chicken Chili

My pressure caner will can 7 quarts or pints, so I always adjust the recipes to fill 7 jars.

For my Canned White Chili, I'm going to suggest you brown 3 pounds chicken (cut into cubes) with 2 onions diced, and 3 teaspoons garlic powder in 2 tablespoon of oil before adding it to your jars.  Just because it tastes so good!  

Add to each jar
1/2 cup dried, rinsed great northern beans
1/2 cup chicken-onion mixture
3 tablespoons diced tomatoes w/green chili

Combine liquid with seasonings and cook in microwave for 3 minutes to combine all the seasonings.  Fill jars to 1" from top of jar.

28 ounces chicken broth
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons oregano
1 teaspoon pepper 
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup milk

Pressure can according to your caner's instructions

Homemade Poultry Seasoning Mix

Why purchase that you can make yourself from the spices that are already in your spice rack?  Keep it simple.

Homemade Poultry Seasoning

Ingredients:

1 Tablespoon dried thyme, packed
1 Tablespoon dried rosemary, packed
1 Tablespoon dried sage leaves, packed
1 teaspoon dried marjoram, packed
1/4 teaspoon peppercorns (or 1/8 teaspoon ground pepper)
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Dried Bean Math

One of my strategies to simplify my life involves, 

stop buying what you can make.  

A few years ago, I decided to stop purchasing canned food products.  What that meant for me was, I would purchase and use dried beans only.

I ran to the store and quickly purchased 1/2 gallon Ball canning jars.  I filled each jar with my organic red kidney beans, navy beans, chick peas, black beans and split peas.  I proudly displayed the beautiful jars of all different colors of beans.  They are simply beautiful.

One day, I took out my favorite chili recipe and went to the cupboard to grab my 2 cans of red kidney beans, then remembered I purchased dried red kidney beans.  I realized I had never really cooked with dried beans before and didn't know where to start.  

Then I found:

DRIED BEAN MATH

1. Dry beans expand to about 2-1/2 times their original size when soaked.
2. A one-pound package of dry beans equals about 2 cups dry, or 5-6 cups cooked.
3. One 15 ounce can (drained) equals about 1-2/3 cups cooked beans.

1 2/3 cups of cooked beans (point 3 above) divided by 2 1/2 (the expansion factor in point 1 above ) equals:

2/3 cup of dry beans cooks up to equal 

1 - 15 oz can of cooked beans

To soak your beans, add your dried beans to a pot then add water 3 times the amount of beans. Bring your water and beans to a rapid boil.  Boil for five minutes, then cover and let sit for 4-5 hours.  They can soak overnight as well. 

Oh yeah, they also make great candle holders when the power goes out in your house!

 

Raw Canning - Pea Soup

And now..

Pea Soup-One Jar Canning style

Add to each pint jar

1/3 cup cubed ham
1/3 cup split peas
1/4 cubed potatoes
1/4 cup sliced carrots
1/4 cup sliced celery
1/4 cup chopped onion

Mix together     

• 8 cups filtered water
• 5 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules
• 1 teaspoon dried marjoram
• 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 teaspoon rubbed sage
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt

Pour seasoning mixture into jars up to the bottom ring on the neck of the jar. Can according to your canner's instructions.  Now that's simply living!

Beeswax Hand & Body Lotion

It's winter here in Michigan and my skin is really dry. 

Today I'm going to make Hand & Body Lotion.  Coconut Oil and Almond Oil are great skin oils.  Beeswax makes everything come together.  Add some Vitamin E healing oil, and you will have a wonderful creamy moisturizing lotion.  

Beeswax Hand & Body Lotion

1/2 cup Almond Oil

1/2 cup Coconut Oil

1/2 cup beeswax

3/4 teaspoon Vitimin E oil

1. Melt beeswax and Coconut Oil in microwave.
2. Add Almond Oil and stir with a plastic fork.  
3. Add Vitimin E Oil after mixture has cooled and stir.  

Pour into jars.

Kool-Aid Playdough

This week was my grandson's and granddaughter's second birthday.  They were born 2 days apart and we are so blessed to have them in our lives.  

I wanted to make something fun for them to play with so I decided to make Kool-Aid Play Dough.  It smells wonderful and is so soft to squish.   Simple, creative fun.

   Happy birthday Trey & Izzy !l 

Kool-Aid Play Dough

1 cup flour

1/2 cup salt

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 cup boiling water

1 tablespoon oil
4 packages of Kool-Aid

1. Mix flour, salt and cream of tartar together.
2. Add oil to mixture and stir
3. Add water to mixture slowly and stir until you have reached the consistency of playdough.
4. Divide into four balls and place ball into plastic bag. 
5. Add a different color kool aid to each bag.
6. Knead until color is thoroughly combined.

No mess on your hands !  Smells wonderful !  Make some for someone you love.

Raw Canning - Bean Soup

Talk about simple.  You have to try one-jar canning method.  You simply place all your ingredients into each jar and...minutes later.. 

you have wonderful homemade jars of soup which will last for a year!  Canning in jars keeps all the flavor right inside the jar.  No mess to clean, just a simple easy meal.  Here's the recipe.

Bean Soup-One Jar Canning
Add to each pint jar:

• 1/3 cup cubed ham
• 1/3 cup dried navy beans (rinsed & sorted)
• 1/3 cup sliced carrots
• 1/4 cup sliced celery
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Mix together:

• 1 (14 1/2 oz) crushed tomatoes
• 2 cups ham (or chicken) broth
• 2 cups filtered water

Pour tomato mixture into each jar up to the bottom ring of the neck of the jar.  Take a plastic knife and run up and down the sides of the jar to remove all air bubbles and to mix the soup.  Clean top of jar and place on lids.

Pressure can according to your cooker's instructions.

Baking Soda Is For Scrubbing

Baking soda is part 2 of a simple life.  It is a natural non-toxic product that is a low abrasion scrubber that can be used to clean porcelain, stainless steel and ceramic.  I use baking soda as a drain cleaner, oven cleaner, bathroom cleaner and kitchen sink cleaner.  You can even use it for tooth paste (my dentist said so!)

Scrubbing Cleanser
1/2 cup baking soda
2 tablespoons dish soap
Water to form paste
eMix all ingredients

1. Use it to clean porcelain, stainless steel, glass stove top, ovens, bathtub and sinks.  

Drain Cleaner

1/2 cup baking soda

1/2 cup vinegar

hot water

1. Pour baking soda down your drain
2. Pour vinegar down your drain
3. Flush with hot water when fizzing stops

Toothpaste
3 tablespoons of baking soda
1/4 teaspoon of Stevia powder
a few drops of pure peppermint extract to taste

1. Combine all ingredients.
2. Use as toothpaste

Vinegar For Cleaning

If you are looking to create a simple lifestyle, vinegar is the place to start.  Vinegar is a non-toxic, grease cutting, anti-bacterial cleaner that you will use in your kitchen, bathroom and laundry.  It's safe for children and it only costs $1.00.

Did you know fabric softener is highly allergenic?  Do you wake up with stuffed up sinuses?  Maybe it's your fabric softener in your sheets and pillow cases.

Stop buying glass cleaner, vegetable soak, laundry softener and drain cleaner.  Simply Live! 

Streak Free Glass Cleaner

1. Add 3 tablespoons of vinegar to an 8 ounce spray bottle
2. Add 1 tablespoon of grain alcohol (vodka)
3. Fill remainder of bottle with filtered water

Kitchen Counter Sanitizer

1. Add 3 tablespoons of vinegar to 8 ounce spray bottle
2. Fill remainder of bottle with filtered water

Vegetable Soak

1. Fill your kitchen sink with cool water
2. Add 1 cup vinegar
3. Soak vegetables for 15 minutes to remove dirt and debris

Laundry Softener

1. Add 1 cup of vinegar to the rinse cycle of your laundry to make it fresh smelling and remove all the accumulated chemicals produced by commercial laundry products and fabric manufacturing.  The smell will dissipate leaving fresh clean clothes.

Drain Cleaner

1. Pour 1/2 cup baking soda into your sink drain
2. Pour 1 cup vinegar into the drain
3. Flush with hot water when fizzing stops

Equivalents

    

  3 teaspoons = 1 tablespoon = 1/2 ounce

  2 tablespoons = 1/8 cup = 1 fluid ounce 

  4 tablespoons = 1 fluid ounce = 2 fluid ounces

  5 1/3 tablespoons = 1/3 cup = 2.6 fluid ounces

  8 tablespoons = 1/2 cup = 4 ounces

  12 tablespoons = 3/4 cup = 6 ounces

  16 tablespoons = 1 cups = 8 ounces

For when you need to know !