by Texas Homesteader ~
The clover is blooming! Now our bees love it of course, but these days I’m collecting those fragrant blooms and using it to make a sweet treat. Clover-Blossom Jelly. Really??!! Yeah, really. And it’s so easy too. To celebrate Throwback Thursday I’ll share the easy instructions with you. You’re welcome!
by Texas Homesteader ~
Many of us remember our grandmothers keeping a small grease can on the back of her stove. Grandma knew that grease could serve a valuable purpose in her kitchen. Maybe some of you still have your own grease cans. I can certainly tell ya that bacon grease is a precious commodity in my kitchen.
To celebrate Throwback Thursday, I’m falling back into the archives & bringing back a super-popular post. I’m sharing 4 easy ways we reuse bacon grease in the Taylor household. Check it out, y’all.
by Texas Homesteader ~
I think January is one of the coldest months of the year. Here in NE Texas we don’t really get cold in November. And the first part of December it’s not unusual to be wearing shorts. By the end of December we get what we consider cold weather, but oh January! Now I don’t know about you, but when those cold winds blow I like to be inside with a warm fire going, a nice warm lap blanket and schnoodled up on the couch watching movies. RancherMan & I enjoy a hot steaming cup of hot cocoa too. Now the powdered stuff tastes good enough I guess, but it’s no comparison to the homemade version. And it’s quick & easy too. Just make a chocolate syrup using cocoa, sugar & cold coffee, add the milk and voila!
by Texas Homesteader ~
OMGosh y’all, I’m stuffed! Did you enjoy your Thanksgiving as much as RancherMan & I did?? I love the holidays, we like to fill them with all the warm-fuzzies the holiday offers and encircle ourselves with the love of family. But now Thanksgiving is over & it’s time to set our sights on Christmas #canyoubelieveit?
I know, I know, it’s easy to get overwhelmed during the Christmas holiday. Today I’m sharing my Christmas-Idea roundup. Not only thoughts for dealing with gifts but also holiday decorations, wrapping and even how to deal with the stress of it all. Grab a cup of coffee & come check it out, y’all! I promise you’ll find something that speaks to you.
by Texas Homesteader ~
TGIF y’all! To celebrate the weekend I’m offering a Throwback Thursday post for you. I’ll Fall-Back into the archives & bring to the surface a post that’s proven very popular with our readers. But first a little back story: My aunt tries to eat only healthy foods & is careful about what she eats. But when she came for a visit I still wanted to bake up a sweet treat for her. She loves chocolate too (I think that MUST run in the family) so I whipped up a batch of double chocolate banana chunk cookies. It uses the natural sugars in the bananas and a touch of honey to sweeten them. They’re delicious!
by Texas Homesteader ~
Cooler weather is sneaking up on many areas of the US. But it’s still hot, humid & sticky here in NE Texas. How’s the weather where you are – are y’all enjoying cooler weather yet?? And we finally made it to the weekend too – TGIF y’all! To celebrate the day I’ll share a Throwback Thursday post with ya. I’ll fall back into the archives and bring back to the surface a post that’s proved very popular with our readers in the past. Today’s post is aaaaaaall about PIZZA NIGHT!
RancherMan & I like homemade pizza of course. But we also like it’s quicker pizza cousin – the tortilla pizza. And what better shortcut than to have on hand dehydrated Italian-flavored tomato leather to speed up those pizzas? Pull out tortilla, place tomato leather & just start piling on the toppings. The tomato leather rehydrates while the pizza is cooking. Now that’s homemade convenience food at its finest! Come see how I made tomato leather from leftover pasta sauce.
by Texas Homesteader ~
This time of year is so busy for us. We’re currently weaning calves, preparing pastures for winter pasture planting and preparing for a fall garden. But since I suffer with severe ragweed allergies that means RancherMan’s outside tending to the fences, pastures & cattle. I’m currently tucked inside preserving fresh fruit. I mean there’s so much fresh produce available! My aunt always shares massive quantities of amazing fresh apples from her tree. This year she shared TEN bushels with me! TEN!! Oh don’t worry, I shared some of the apples with family & friends and then I got to canning. I wanted to make sure none of those delicious apples went to waste.
I typically also can pears that a sweet neighbor shares with us this time of year. And all this fruit preservation happens at one time. Oh sometimes it’s really a comedy of errors too. I turn into Crazy Canning Lady!
by Texas Homesteader ~
*contains affiliate link
Well TGIF y’all!! It seems the days are getting shorter and cooler too. I’ve always loved hanging our laundry out on our *Retractable Clothesline instead of using our dryer. RancherMan recently installed a natural cedar-branch laundry pole for a little more natural look in our yard. So after the laundry’s dry I simply retract the lines & bring the clothesline inside and Boom! Everything’s uncluttered again. Love it!
But laundry’s even more pleasant lately with the cooler temps we’re enjoying. Our clothes are air-dried no matter what time of the year it is. I line-dry even in the cold months, although if it’s wet outside I’ll bring out the *folding racks & dry laundry inside. Oh we have a higher-end dryer in the utility room and we’ll certainly use it if an emergency pops up. But it hasn’t been turned on in years.
Not only is line-drying an environmentally-friendly choice and better for your clothing, but I love the scent of sunshine on our clean laundry. But you know, sometimes you want a little extra scent on your guest towels or cloth napkins. No worries, I whip up an easy laundry-scent booster in minutes for just such occasions! And today I’ll fall-back into the archives and bring that post to the surface for you today. Enjoy!
