Author Archives: Texas Homesteader

About Texas Homesteader

Our Homestead is located in Northeast Texas. This blog reflects our desire to live gently on the land - gardening, home cooking, food preservation, solar cooking, saving money, etc.

Quick Meal: Simple Southwest-Style Quesadillas

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by Texas Homesteader~ 
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Sometimes you need to get a meal on the table quickly. Maybe it’s just been an incredibly busy day. Or perhaps unexpected company stops by.

My go-to arsenal for a quick and easy meal is to whip up quesadillas. They’re fast, they’re delicious and by golly they’re always a crowd pleaser.

If it’s early spring, Spinach Quesadillas are always delicious. And I’ve been known to use leftover meatloaf to make a Quick & Meaty Quesadilla.

But another option we absolutely love that’s also totally guest-worthy is Southwest Quesadillas. They’re filled with cheese, tender-crisp veggies, corn & black beans.

A quick yet company-worthy meal is Southwest Quesadillas. Freshly grilled veggies, corn & black beans with cheese tucked into a flour tortilla. #TexasHomesteader

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Don’t Throw It Away! The Surprising Benefit Of Leaves

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by Texas Homesteader~

This time of year, many are dealing with all those falling leaves. It seems they’re EVERYWHERE!

Those leaves can actually be a fun autumn tradition. We used to enjoy raking up huge piles of leaves and laughing as the kids ran through them again & again. Aaaahhhhh sweet memories.

But oftentimes when leaves are raked into a pile they’re simply stuffed into huge plastic trash bags & sent off to the landfill.

But those plastic-entombed leaves sitting in a landfill do no good there. Maybe there’s a better use? Something that could actually benefit me in some way?

As a matter of fact – yes. Leaves can offer many benefits in the garden, including healthier plants, cooler summertime soil temps, better moisture retention, and/or less weeding.

That all adds up to a healthier garden with less work. What’s not to love??!

I use leaves for mulch instead of raking and bagging them and sending them to the landfill. There are lots of ways the garden benefits. #TexasHomesteader

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Sour Cream Substitute Made Healthier With Yogurt

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by Texas Homesteader~ 

Sour cream is something I enjoy from time to time, although RancherMan’s never been a fan. I prefer sour cream on my baked potatoes instead of butter. And I enjoy sour cream topping quesadillas. There are actually lots of ways I enjoy it.

But since it’s not consumed regularly it seems a waste to buy a tub of it just to throw most of it away. And c’mon, sour cream’s a little less than healthy #amiright?

So instead I use my own homemade yogurt for a healthy substitute for sour cream.

I quickly make a healthier sour cream substitute using unflavored yogurt, lemon juice and a few seasonings. #TexasHomesteader

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How To Perfectly Smoke A Turkey With Pecan Wood

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by Texas Homesteader~ 
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I’ve heard of cooking a chicken ‘spatchcock’ style. That’s simply where you cut away the backbone to open the whole chicken and spread it out flat. It cooks much faster that way.

But we were wondering if we could do the same thing with a larger bird. Perhaps our holiday Turkey? So we sat out to experiment.

We had two turkeys to experiment with. This should be fun.

Spatchcock smoked turkey cooks much faster than a whole bird traditionally roasted in the oven. The flavor is deep and delicious. #TexasHomesteader

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Throwback Thursday

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by Texas Homesteader~ 

Some people love to cook. They get their creative juices flowing when they’re in the kitchen creating a culinary masterpiece. It’s a source of creativity and pride for them.

Others are like me – cooking only from necessity to keep their family fed.

Personally, I don’t enjoy cooking. I want to get in, cook something delicious (and FAST) then get the heck out of the kitchen. And I have several tools in my kitchen arsenal that help me to do just that.

Whether you’re in the first or second group of cooking enthusiasts, today I’m celebrating Throwback Thursday by sharing 12 must-have tools for any home cook. Come see!

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Our Favorite Ways To Change Up The Flavor Of Rice

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by Texas Homesteader~ 

Rice is an inexpensive pantry staple here. So I prepare it as a side with our meals often.

The beautiful thing about rice is that it’s easy to mix up the seasonings for completely different rice flavors.

I’ll serve rice often as a side dish, whether we’re enjoying Mexican dishes or grilled chicken. It’s very versatile and easy to change up the rice flavors to pair with whatever meal you’re enjoying on any given night.

Today I’m sharing a few of my favorite (yet super EASY) rice flavors to serve:

There are many super-easy ways to dress up the flavor of plain rice. Cheap, fast, delicious! #TexasHomesteader

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5 Frugal Things This Week: Appliance Repair, Weather, Ebay & More

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by Texas Homesteader~ 

Whew! The weather’s changing in Texas. One day it’s cold, blustery & rainy, the next we have gorgeous blue skies, sunshine and temps in the 70’s! How’s the weather where you are?

Today I’m sharing 5 Frugal Things we did this week to save money. It’s easy to do and there’s been no sacrifice at all.

Looking for inspiration to save a few dollars too? Well check this out.

5 Frugal Things from appliance repair, to keeping warm on cold days, to comforting foods and eliminating food waste & more! #TexasHomesteader

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