A Baking Day with Magic Muffins

Today was cold.

 (Okay, you Northerners will disagree with me on this point- but in Texas, 40 degree weather is COLD!)

I bundled up in thermal underwear, two sweaters, AND my coat.

Here is where I sheepishly whisper: I didn't even go outside! That's what I wore INSIDE my house!

Pathetic, I know. 

My Idahoan and Alaskan relatives mock me. That's fine. They can mock all they want as long as I get to stay  away from icy roads, deep drifts of snow, and frozen fingers.

When I lived in Idaho one year we had a colossal snowstorm that dropped a few feet of snow. The wind whipped those snowflakes into drifts so high fences were all completely covered. Property boundaries were effectively erased. With no visual boundary to obey, a lot of dogs because confused and wandered away. It's pretty funny.....but I don't miss it. 

In an attempt to stay warm without turning on the furnace, I opted for a baking day.

I love hanging out near the hot stove on cold days!

When my children came home today, they were welcomed to the warm smell of muffins and fresh bread. 

I baked seven loaves of yummy wheat bread, and sixty Magic Muffins.

What's so magical about these muffins?

I'll tell you the secret-

They are really healthy. Seriously healthy.

I use 50% white whole-wheat flour and 50% unbleached white flour. (That adds heaps of fiber and protein on our 'Healthy Scale'. Don't use %100 whole wheat flour unless it's white wheat- red wheat is too bitter and heavy. You'll have bricks instead of muffins. Not magical.)

I also substitute most of the oil with mashed white beans (the protein scale just tipped over I think). You can't taste the beans at all and they add so many healthy benefits. If you really don't like beans or want a slightly moister muffin, substitute mashed bananas or applesauce instead of beans. 

These muffins are perfect for snacks or quick breakfasts or even school lunches. I give the children a muffin and a banana when there's no time for breakfast on a busy morning. 

When I told them they were allowed to eat more than one muffin (since they are more healthy than junk), Matthew threw his arms around me and said, "Oh thank you, THANK YOU for making such a fun snack! I love this type of healthy food!"

Do you want the recipe? 

Okee-dokee. 

Here you go:

Renae's Magic Muffins 

1 1/4 cups quick-cooking oats

1 1/4 cups milk

1 egg

1/4 cup mashed white beans, bananas OR applesauce

1/4 cup oil

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 tablespoon vanilla

1 cups chopped nuts (we like almonds or pecans)

1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

3/4 cup unbleached white flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1. Combine the oats and milk in a bowl and allow to stand for 15 minutes. While the oats hydrate, line a 12-cup muffin tin. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Assemble the other ingredients.

2. Stir egg, mashed beans/banana/applesauce, oil, 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, chocolate chips, and 1/2 cup of the nuts into the oat and milk mixture.

3. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the oat mixture, stirring until just combined. Fill each cup of the muffin tin 2/3 full. Sprinkle tops with the remaining brown sugar and nuts. 

4. Bake at 400 degrees F (205 degrees C) for 20-25 minutes.

We make a triple-batch and freeze some for a handy breakfast or after-school snack. 

If you're in a hurry, they reheat really well in the microwave when zapped for 10-15 seconds. 

Enjoy!

What to do with 50 pounds of apricots?

Our supply of homemade jam had dwindled to nothing, forcing us to -gasp!- buy Welch's grape jelly at the store. We haven't purchased commercial jam in several years, preferring our own fruity creations for PBJs.

  Things were truly desperate. 

When I saw apricots on sale for $1/pound, I knew these little beauties had a sweet destiny: lined up as jars of sparkling jams on my shelf.

We bought almost 50 pounds of apricots and began our work.

Sarah had never made jams with me before (other than helping prep the fruit) so we spent an entire afternoon together in the kitchen. She learned how to do each step on her own. 

Sarah carefully measures the sugar for each batch of jam

We made several different kinds of apricot jam so we wouldn't get tired of the same flavor during the year. I've written some of our variations below. 

I made them up, but it is really easy to modify jam recipes, 

so I don't think I deserve any creative credit. 

The secret to modifying jam recipes is to keep the fruit to sugar ratio the same. For example, if a recipe calls for 6 cups of apricots, you can substitute 3 cups of apricots with 3 cups of any other fruit you'd like to add (mango, strawberries, etc.) Viola. 

Your possibilities are endless. The only limit is your imagination.

Sarah purees a batch of apricots

Here is the basic Apricot Jam recipe:

1. Wash jars and screw bands in hot soapy water, rinse with warm water. 

Pour boiling water over the flat lids in a saucepan off the heat.

 Let stand in hot water until ready to use. 

2. Prepare fruit according to your desires

 (some people chop fruit by hand, some people scald the fruit

 to peel off the skins....that's too much work for me. 

I just puree it all.

 That is taboo in the jam-making world and I'd never stand a chance entering this stuff in a fair, but I don't care about immaculate presentation. 

I just care about flavor and ease of preparation.

 Honestly, when I have a dozen batches of jam to make, 

I'm not peeling the fruit by hand!)

3. Measure exact amount of prepared fruit into a large stockpot. 

Stir in lemon juice and any other flavor ingredients (see variations below).

4. Measure exact amount of sugar into a separate bowl.

 (Altering the amount of sugar will result in failed jams that won't set. 

Be careful! 

On a happy note, failed jams make FANTASTIC pancake toppings!)

5. Stir in 1 box pectin into the fruit in the saucepan. 

Add 1/2 tsp butter to reduce foaming, if desired. 

6. Bring mixture to a full rolling boil

 (a boil that doesn't stop bubbling when stirred)

on high heat, stirring constantly. 

(Seriously, don't stop stirring...

if you don't stir, it will scorch on the bottom and 

ruin everything.)

7. Stir in sugar quickly.

 Return to a full rolling boil (don't stop stirring!) 

and boil exactly one minute, stirring constantly. 

Remove from heat and skim off any foam. 

(I put the foam on a dish and let the children dip freshly baked bread into it.

 It's yummy!)

8. Ladle quickly into prepared jars, filling to within 1/8 inch of the tops. 

Wipe jar rims and threads with a clean cloth 

(although, if you use a funnel when you fill the jars, 

there should be no spilled jam on the rims). 

Cover jars with two-piece lids and screw the bands tightly down.

 (Make sure they are tight!

 I can tell you, it makes a big mess if they aren't tight! 

You'll see why in a moment...)

9. Flip the jars upside down so the jam touches the lid. 

Let sit in this inverted position for 5 minutes 

(this is easier than processing the jars in a water bath. 

The hot jam sterilizes the jar and lid. 

This is why it's so important to have the lids tightly screwed on. 

I know from sad experience. 

Trust me. 

Jam is not fun to scrub off the counters, 

especially when an entire quart has spilled.)

10. Return jars to their original position and let cool on the counter overnight.

 Label and store in a dark place for a year. 

(They always say store it only for a year,

 but I've opened jams that were forgotten for 3 years

 and they were just as good.)

Spiced Apricot Jam-

5 cups pureed apricots

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

7 cups sugar

1 box of pectin

1 tablespoon finely chopped crystallized ginger

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated ginger root

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground allspice

(This is irresistible! It takes like Christmas in a jar!)

Tropical Apricot Jam-

2 1/2 cups pureed apricots

2 1/2 cups pureed mango

1/4 cup lemon juice

7 cups sugar

1 box pectin

(This one is super delicious and really easy. It's one of our favorites.)

Blueberry Apricot Jam-

3 cups pureed apricots

2 cups pureed blueberries

1/2 cups fresh lemon juice

7 cups sugar

1 box pectin

(Another really easy variation! This one is a beautiful purple.)

After storing away dozens of jars of jam, my friends asked me to help them harvest wild grapes this week. Tonight we are grape-picking for Family Home Evening.

Last time we harvested the wild mustang grapes in Texas, our van was filled with huge tubs of fruit. Mustang grapes make wonderful jelly.

Since we'll be making jellies again all week, if any of you local readers want to come learn how to make it, you are welcome to email me and I'll let you know what time to be here. Bring a picnic lunch and we'll let the kids play while we cook.

Why Homestead?

(This is part of a two-part post. Read HOW I am making a difference in our family's food here.)

Am I crazy?

Some people have asked if I'm crazy in my desires for self-reliance. It's so much work. It can be tedious or boring. Don't I have loftier goals for myself?

It's hard to explain all the reason's why I feel so strongly about the food we eat and where it comes from. There is so much to say. There are entire books on this topic alone. Here are the summarized points I want you to consider (there are a lot of links so you can explore the topics more in depth):

1- What are the ethics behind your food? Did you know America's sugar is almost exclusively made by slaves?  The sugar for your candy is made by modern slaves in the Caribbean, and they are owned by AMERICAN companies. Try finding an ethical source of sugar- I tried and had a very hard time finding it. Learn about the corporate practices behind your food labels. So many of them are ravishing the environments or spewing poisons. Animal products are processed in the most disgusting ways. I don't like the idea of supporting meat companies that are so cruel to animals. Simply put, I don't want my consumer dollar to support any corrupt companies. 

2- What is the health cost behind your food? Many foods are contaminated with harmful or deadly bacteria due to the unclean practices used on the corporate farm. What are you ingesting along with your salad? What pesticides are on it? Did you know the fertilizers are often sewage sludge? (Doesn't that explain why there are so many food recalls from contaminated produce?)What about E coli? Salmonella? Read more about food safety issues from the Union of Concerned Scientists. What is in your milk? Did you know that milk is tainted with steroids, harmful hormones, and antibiotics? (Lactating mothers know they can't breastfeed their babies while on antibiotics because the medicine crosses into the breast milk.....so why are people okay with giving antibiotics and other drugs to dairy cows?) You can find good food in your area by clicking here or here. See why Jersey cow milk is healthier than the store-bought Holstein cow milk here.

3- What do you spend on food? As fuel prices increase, so does the food price. Remember all the oil used to grow the food? Farmers have to increase their produce price to compensate for their increased fuel costs. In the next year alone, the grocery prices will almost double, according to Marjory Wildcraft. Watch her lecture here to see why.

4- Food politics are a nasty thing. I feel like it's SO IMPORTANT to grow my own food or support local farms and avoid inadvertently giving money to Cargill and Monsanto (read or watch just about ANY food documentary and you'll learn about these corporations. It's too corrupt and too in-depth for me to try to share any of the issues here about those companies. You'd probably never come back after reading one of my lengthy tirades against bad food politics...politics like this.)

5- Why are you eating GMOs? Genetically Modified Food, aka Frankenfood. These have so many problems! In America these products aren't labeled, so you don't realize that the Kraft mac and cheese on your table contains GMO ingredients. These foods have been proven to cause health problems, and GMO foods are banned in most developed countries of the world. Japan's stance regarding GMOs is essentially "we'll watch what happens to America's children after eating GMOs for several years before we allow it in our own country. America can be the world's guinea pig". Aren't these red flags to you?

6- Do you realize what would happen if there was an oil embargo or trucking strike?  America would starve. Our food is produced almost exclusively with fossil fuels. Tractors are used to plant, fertilize, pesticide, and harvest the food. Tractors require a LOT of fuel. Then consider all the shipping fuel required to transport the food from the farm to your grocery store. What would happen with a trucking strike? Grocery stores would have empty shelves in less than 2 days. What would you do for your children? Do you really want to leave your food security in the hands of others?

I didn't used to think about my food, beyond the decision of what to make for dinner. I was first exposed to the concept of food origin (and it's accompanying politics, ethics, and health issues) in a book club. Then I learned some more in my own library digging.

In every book club I join I now recommend "Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan. He was several books published about food, but this is a good one to start with.

I opened my mind to moving on a farm only after I read "Animal, Vegetable Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver. (It's the second book I recommend to friends.) Her family ate only what they could produce for themselves (or buy from a farm within a 5 mile radius) for an entire year, just to see if it was too difficult to be a lifestyle choice. It's a fascinating (and entertaining) read. Nathan and I enjoyed reading it aloud together in the evenings. She's a great writer. Her bibliography at the end lists a comprehensive list of books to read regarding the differing aspects of food safety, sustainability, and politics. There are too many for me to list here. Visit her website here.

"Fast Food Nation" is a great one to read particularly regarding meat-processing plants. I thought  most things had changed since the writing of Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle". I'm not as correct as I had thought. There are still so many glaring problems with just the food safety issues at these plants, let alone employee treatment.

I highly recommend you check those books out from your library and peruse them. It's so important to at least be educated about food issues so you can make your choices without ignorance. As the parents of our homes, we are the ones selecting the menus for our children. They trust us to do what's best for them. How can I encourage my loved ones to eat contaminated food?

If we don't know how to produce our own food, we are irretrievably chained to corporations. We lose freedoms. How? We depend on these companies for our own lives, literally our daily bread. Get to know your food. I'm a fiercely independent person and I refuse to be enslaved to company greed. I am not just a number in a statistic for their marketing teams to analyze. I am a free person, and I refuse to partake in the mass consumerism gripping our nation.


The answer for me was to be as self-reliant as possible. Not everyone can do that, but You CAN make a difference.  Learn how here. Learn more about food safety here. Those of you who prefer visual documentaries should watch "Food, Inc." to learn more about food issues.

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.     ~Margaret Mead

If you have learned something new here, share this post online with others. Facebook. Twitter. It's so important that we know where our food comes from!

Not Back to School

We've committed to doing home school this school year again. Here are pictures of our Not-back-to-school prep. First off is the teacher's supply closet full of art supplies, activities for stations, workbooks, text books, art manuals, games, etc.

The next biggest priority is the teacher's pantry, stocked with 2 weeks of groceries so trips to the grocery store are cut down to twice each month.

 I'm hoping to really streamline our time management skills this year, so we have plenty of the basics (such as milk) and plenty of homemade bread in the freezer along with several days worth of homemade freezer meals. Can I just tell you again how much I love freezer meals? My love affair with them is destined to grow stronger this year! Our top favorite meals from the freezer include chicken pot pie, lasagna, Cafe Rio burritos, chicken enchiladas, meatballs, chili and cornbread, and Shepard's pie. The top shelf of the freezer is our year supply of peaches from our backyard peach tree. There's plenty of fruit for hundreds of lunch smoothies. 

We love to make fruit smoothies a few times a week. We have our essential supply of fresh blueberries, all individually frozen and ready to be thrown into the blender.

Peach/blueberry/yogurt shakes have been a great hit! I love whipping up a healthy shake to accompany lunch. It's such a great way to creatively add a variety of fruits to the family diet. I don't add much sugar to our shakes; I find that the natural sweetness of the fruit and vanilla yogurt are usually plenty of flavor. Besides, Daniel has plenty of energy to spare, without fueling it further with added sugars.

One thing I love about home school is the quality of food. I cringed when I saw the public school lunch menu fraught with 'non-foods'. That's what I call items that are more stocked with preservatives, additives, flavors, and what-have-you than they are with wholesome ingredients. A perfect example is Wonder bread. Look at the ingredients. Most of it is fake. Bread only needs yeast, salt, flour, and water.

The school menu even had added flavor and sugar sprinkled on the applesauce. Really. The menu is loaded with fries, pudding, chips, etc. Look at all those empty calories! The smell of the school cafeteria turns my stomach. Compare that with today's 'school lunch' at home: Chicken curry over rice, fresh broccoli with ranch, a blueberry/banana/yogurt smoothie. Wholesome and simply delicious. There were no leftovers. 

Batman in the kitchen

What a happy evening. I was exhausted and emotionally wilted, so my sweet Nathan rescued the family from a night of boredom. 

First he did a fantastic Family Home Evening lesson about feeling reverence and listening to the Holy Ghost. The object lesson was SO fun! He blind folded a child and had them try to navigate a maze by listening to the whisperings of 'the Spirit', a part played by another child. To illustrate the difficulty of hearing the Spirit in noisy and busy atmospheres, the rest of the family sang loudly, yelled, clapped hands, and put up a general ruckus while the blind folded child tried in vain to hear any guidance. After this attempt, they would begin the maze again and this time the family members hummed Primary songs quietly. The child could easily hear the directions called by the family member portraying the  Holy Ghost. Our children really loved this lesson! They really began to understand why it's to important for church to be a reverent setting.

After the lesson Nathan brought the family to the kitchen to make gourmet brownies, courtesy of the Lion House Restaurant Cook Book. Yum!

The boys adore cooking with Nathan. They are eager sous chefs, and Nathan lets them do the majority of the steps while Sarah reads the recipe out loud and does the math for doubling the measurements. I absolutely love watching Nathan cook with the family. He's such a fun chef to work with!

While the batter was baking in the oven, Nathan did a science lesson on leavening agents. He explained the properties of baking soda, yeast, and eggs while the children listened with surprising rapture. Each time he asked a question, their hands shot into the air eagerly with answers. I was honestly shocked. Nathan showed the reaction of adding an acid to baking soda and explained how the batter in a cake would trap the ensuing bubbles and make a fluffy cake.

He asked them to review the recipe we just used and decide if the brownies would be very fluffy, a little fluffy or flat. Sarah pinpointed the sole leavening agent as eggs and decided it would be just a little fluffy. I was so impressed with the lesson. Nathan really has a gift as a teacher. Ever since we were first married, I've admired his skill with teaching. I wish you could watch him. It always makes my heart swell to watch him instruct our children in his special patient way. It's one of my favorite things about him.


This was Matthew's very favorite picture of the day. Batman cooking brownies.

Homemade Pizza

May I just say that I love being married to a cook? Mr. Kingsley makes the most wonderful meals. Look what he whipped up this week for dinner:

Home made pizza crust made with home grown rosemary and oregano: Yum!

Home made sauce with fresh herbs: Yum!

Marinated chicken, provolone cheese, Parmesan cheese, and vegies: Super yum!

I love the way he makes cooking a family affair. Daniel had fun putting on cheese, Sarah loved spreading pizza sauce, and Matthew enjoyed parceling out the meat. The kitchen is so often the center of our family life, and I'm so grateful Mr. Kingsley makes it this way. His cheerfulness is like a magnet, drawing us all to the stove to be with him. His enthusiasm for the culinary process is contagious, making it seem delightful rather than a chore. How I love him!