Tuesday, August 23, 2016

Cinnamon Buns for the Bread Machine


Image found here.


These cinnamon buns are the best I've tasted!  You've got to try this recipe!  I like to make them for Christmas morning, but really, they're good just about any time of the year!  Thie recipe does use the bread machine, but if you don't have one, you can always mix them up by hand or using the dough hook on your mixer.  I think the bread machine's perfect temperature and humidity really do help to perfect the rising of this dough, though. 

I got the recipe form southernfood.about.com many years ago and it's my go-to recipe for this sticky treat.  Try them out and I know you'll be pleased.


Cinnamon Buns for the Bread Machine
aka - BEST Cinnamon Buns

Dough Ingredients:

3/4 cup water
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 cups flour
6 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup softened butter
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons dry milk (I omit)
1 1/2 teaspoons yeast

Filling ingredients:

1/4 cup butter melted
1/3 cup brown sugar, mixed with 1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans or rasins (I NEVER do this.  According to my husband, nuts are baking sin!)

Icicng Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 tablespoons hot water
2 cups confectioners sugar

To find out how to mix these up check out this page for the directions.   You are going to love these buns!



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Tuesday, August 9, 2016

Easy Pizza Sauce

Image found here.



I didn't realize I hadn't posted this recipe to my blog.  It's so easy that you can make it in the microwave.  The original recipe is from my mom, but I've tweaked it to our family's taste.  You can easily adjust it to your family's taste.  Try adding basil instead of Italian seasoning, or add fresh garlic.  Try less sugar.  Try more water if you like a thinner sauce, less water for a thicker sauce.

Easy Pizza Sauce

Ingredients:

1 small can tomato paste
1 tomato paste can of water
1-1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Stir.  Cover and microwave 3-5 minutes.  Remove from microwave and stir.  Spread on pizza dough.  Make pizza as you normally would and enjoy!  This recipe makes enough for two pizzas with a little extra, depending on how thick you like your sauce.

This is an easy and frugal recipe that anyone can make.  Sometimes I like to double or triple it and freeze the extra for later.


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Sunday, August 7, 2016

Calling all Cooks!

Image found here.


I have some recipe roundups that I am going to do soon, but I need more recipes!  If you have any well-loved frugal, breakfast or slow cooker recipes that you want to share, leave a reply in the comment section below or email me at avonjillrobbins@yahoo.com.  I'd love to feature your  recipe on my blog.  If you have a website, I'll link to it so people can see your recipe there.  If you don't, I'll write the recipe here and give you full credit.

Contact:

avonjillrobbins@yahoo.com

Just send your recipe with at least one picture and a short description of why you like it.  Put Frugal Recipe Roundup, Breakfast Recipe Roundup, or Slow Cooker Recipe Roundup in the subject line.

or 

click the Facebook link on the side and send me a message that way.

Can't wait to hear from everyone!

Thursday, August 4, 2016

9 Practical Uses for Vinegar

Image found here.


If you don't have a gallon of good old cheap white vinegar at home, go out an buy yourself a jug!  It is super cheap and has so many uses.  I'll list just a few down here.  Also very useful is apple cider vinegar, which is not too expensive either!  I paid around $2.50 at Walmart for a gallon of white vinegar and a little more than $4 for a gallon of apple cider vinegar.  Raw apple cider vinegar, which is more expensive, will cost around $4 for a quart at most Walmarts and grocery stores.

1.  Salad Dressing - add either to your favorite dressings according to recipe.  My favorite is the Good Season's brand, but you can find a homemade version of it here.  This is one I've been meaning to try and I love Budget 101!

2.  Weeds - spray full strength on weeds and vines such as poison ivy.  They will shrivel up in die in a few days.  Be careful not to get it on any plants you want to keep, however.  They will also shrivel up and die.  And be forewarned, your yard will smell like a pickle for a short time.  It's worth not using the chemicals in my opinion, though.

3.  Cleaner - Fill a spray bottle with half water and half vinegar and use as a surface cleaner.  You can also add a few drops of dish detergent for extra degreasing power.  For a better smell, try adding a few drops of your favorite essential oil.  I like pine needle oil.

4.  Drain Cleaner - Along with baking soda, vinegar can clear clogged drains.  Just put some baking soda in your drain and pour a good amount of vinegar on top of it.  Watch it bubble.  Wait a half hour and then run water.  If your drain is still clogged, repeat.  For maximum effectiveness, it is important to clear any visible hair or other objects from the drain first.

5.  Mold Killer - If you need to kill mold or mildew, you can spray vinegar full strength onto a surface and let it dry.  I've done this with old furniture.  I have also used other natural mold-killing recipes, but by itself, vinegar is claimed to kill up to 82% of mold species.

6.  Fabric Softener - In our house, a couple of us have sensitive skin, so we can't use all the scented products available.  In my search for natural fabric softeners, I came across using white vinegar.  All you do is add a half cup to the softener dispenser in your washer.  It really does work.  If you want more softening action with a nice smell, check out this recipe for fabric softener made with hair conditioner.  To keep it all natural, just use an all natural conditioner!

7.  Anti-Fungal Athlete's Foot Spray - Fill a spray bottle with half vinegar and half water and spray on feet as needed.  For this one I use apple cider vinegar, but I have read white vinegar is just as beneficial, having the same anti-fungal qualities.

8.  Sunburn relief - When I was in high school somehow I managed to get a second degree sunburn.  It was horrible.  My skin is fair and I have never been one to tan, just freckle.  Here's how it happened.  A woman I used to babysit for asked my friend and I to come to the beach with her.  It was a nice day and not too hot.  I decided to wear a sundress and, actually, I never even went swimming.  I thought I was covered up enough and the cloud cover was quite thick.  That coupled with an ocean breeze led me to believe that the sunscreen I had applied would certainly be enough.  Well, I must not have applied enough to my back because when I got home I was in searing pain.  And, unfortunately for me, my birthday party was the next day.  Up to that time, if I ever got a sunburn it was mild enough to feel better when I woke in the morning.  Not this burn.  My mom had a remedy, though.  She filled a bottle with vinegar and water and we sprayed it on my back to ease the burning.  For my party, we were all planning on sleeping outside in my backyard in our huge 3 room tent.  Well, all night, as the pain came, I sprayed vinegar on my back.  It really did help with the pain, but I'm not sure how my friends dealt with the smell.  It was like a pickle factory!  All this to say, vinegar can ease sunburn pain but use with care so you don't stink your friends out!

9.  Beverage - Yes, I drink vinegar.  It is actually an age-old remedy for arthritis and health in general.  For beverages, I use apple cider vinegar.  I would not recommend white vinegar.  The recipe comes from Trim Healthy Mama, and even if you don't follow that way of eating, daily apple cider vinegar is recommended for general health.  What I do is put 1 tablespoon of raw apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon of ground ginger and stevia to taste in a 1 quart pitcher.  Then to drink, I pour over ice.  It sounds like it might taste funny but it doesn't at all.  I've tried to consume vinegar in the past with other recipes that have failed me.  This recipe, though, is a keeper and I enjoy it even if I'm not following the THM plan.  It's something I drink regularly.



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