simple. that is my word for the year. Life gets so complicated, and busy that we loose focus on whats really important. I wonder if it is a human tenancy, or if it is just a north american thing? any comments so far?

Instead of making a whole bunch of resolutions I knew I couldn't keep (like last year), I decided I decided that I was gonna chose a word in stead. after thinking about it for a little bit I decided on the word "simple". I have been interested in the minimalist lifestyle for a while now, and I figured that "simple" summed up the direction I wanted/felt led of God I should go.

We live in a bigger house right now, and I have discovered that the more you have the more you have to take care of. It takes away from the time you have, to do the things you really want to do and spend time with family, and distracts you from spending time with the Lord. Life and relationships can get so complicated you might as well simplify what you can!


Well that's it for now. 

Cheerio!

Karen E.

Hello once again. yes it has been a long time. I have missed you too. so much has happened since I was away from you. We moved back to Ontario, lived in an rv, bought a house, went on a budget. Yup lots!

We moved back to Ontario. Sometimes I have to remind myself why we did, but we are confident that it was Gods leading in our lives at that time. J was offered his old job back, and with the bills piling up, and debt that needed to be paid, we knew we should go. The other reason was, we thought girls should grow up around an know their Grandparents, something we didn't really get growing up.

We miss it out there.

We bought our selves a 32 ft. RV and decided to live in it for the summer till we could buy ourselves a house. Crazy eh? We did it. For 3 months we lived in that RV. Friends of ours let us park it on their property for those three months which we are very grateful for! RV campgrounds can be Expensive!

That RV was cozy! small sometimes, but it was amazing what you can live with and what you can live without!

Life is so strange. God takes you on so many twists and turns. You never really know where you are going to end up next. Its definitely an adventure. We are finally settled down for now, but I wonder for how long? Do you ever feel like you are on the brink of something big, exciting, unknown, different? That's how I have been feeling lately. Who knows!

 I tend to get nervous, fearful and worry when I can't control a situation. But then I have to realize that God is ultimately in control, I just need to trust. Just trust.

Well, I have to go. Princess and Goosy are demanding my attention!

Blessings!
Karen E.

Sugar and Spice and Pastry Dough Advice!

i feel that my weeks schedule has derailed!



 it has felt that way for a number of weeks now. My schedule in the past weeks have included being with people instead of just at home all the time like it used to. I am trying to find a balance between the two.

I used to be at home all the time and the schedule worked great! But as i have been learning, people, not schedules, make life richer.

I have been working with pie dough for years. My Mother has a great recipe for pie dough that she has taught me when I was a girl. Its really simple and i will share it with you!

Pie Dough

5 cups flour
1 tsp. salt
2 cups lard

crumble these three ingredients, do not mush it!
once cumbled, add

1 cup COLD water

mix together.

(makes one large covered pie in a cookie sheet, and one small crust ready for a pudding filling.)



Here are some of the tricks of the trade I have learned to make this good pie dough, into great pie dough!

1. When mixing your water with the crumble mixture, fold your dough.
when you just mix the dough together by squishing it all together you ruin the little pockets of lard that melt and create the flaky texture we associate with pastry dough. Folding the dough creates these amazing layers within the pastry dough.

2. refrigerate dough for around 30 minutes for best results.
When your dough is all ready, place it in the fridge to cool off and  harden the lard so it doesn't get too soft.

3. brush the surface of your pie crust with an egg white wash.
My mom always brushed hers with milk , but the other day when I was making pie, I discovered I was out of milk! But an idea came to me. In other baking recipes, they often call for an egg white wash, to give a nice finish to what ever you are baking. What I did was take one egg white and mix it with around 1 tbsp. of water and brush it on top. when it came out of the oven it had this amazing glaze like crust covering the surface!

these are the three things I do to ensure a great crust! Now i actually enjoy eating the crusty end of the pie, and I hope you will too!

Well today is my laundry day, so I better get start on it so it doesn't get a late start.

Blessings!
Karen E.

Ok, so I said I wanted to blog once a week ,but I did skip last week. I wasn't quite sure what I should share. I feel bad, kind of, ok, not really.

I have a series I am working on to share with you all and I am so excited! I was hoping to start this week, but It is not quite ready yet.

 so for this week I will tell you about my new love and appreciation for Bulk Barn! oh my, I love that store! if anyone wants to know what I want guess not mare. BB's gift card. Besides a good selection of candy, they have an amazing selection of baking ingredients, spices, and much more. Sigh! I could go crazy in there!

I am into specialty flours. I went in to get whole wheat flour and bran, and I only walked out with one other thing. Rye flour. I was so proud of myself! I wanted to go through the whole store!!! I couldn't to browse the whole store because I wanted to hurry a little,and I didn't want to spent more than what I needed.

They have almost every kind of flour imaginable! I love bread, and I love experimenting with new recipes. My DH loves rye bread so I caved in and splurged and bought some rye flour. 

I made the bread and it blew my socks off! crusty outside, soft inside and tastes amazing! I even got my husbands seal of approval.

 Here is the recipe I used.

NOTE: I changed a few things. replaced the bread flour with whole wheat. I only added white flour to kneed the dough closer to the end. I did not add the caraway seed, but I want to get some to add it next time.

Rye Bread

A sponge is a mixture of yeast, liquid and flour – it’s a just base to make bread dough. A sponge will give the final bread a tangier flavour and a slightly denser texture. The caraway seeds are optional in this recipe. They have a slight licorice flavour and are used in many Eastern European cuisines.

Preparation time: 

Cooking time: 

Yield: 8

Sponge

• 1 cup lukewarm water (250 ml)
• 1/2 cup lukewarm whole milk (125 ml)
• 2 tablespoons molasses (30 ml)
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1 1/4 cups bread flour (310 ml)

Bread Dough

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil (30 ml)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt (7 ml)
• 1 1/2 tablespoons lightly toasted caraway seeds (optional) (22 ml)
• 1 cup rye flour (250 ml)
• 1 to 1 ½ cups bread flour (250 to 375 ml)
• 2 tablespoons cornmeal (30 ml)
• 1 egg white
• 1 tablespoon milk (15 ml)

Sponge

1. Whisk the water, milk, molasses, and the yeast in a large bowl. Add 1¼ cups bread flour and stir to combine. Cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. It should have a foamy appearance.

Bread Dough

1. Punch down the sponge. Add the oil, salt, 1 tbsp. of the caraway seeds, and the rye flour. Add some of the remaining bread flour, stirring until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
2. Turn out onto a floured surface. Knead until the remaining flour has been incorporated or until the dough is still a tiny bit sticky (this dough will be a bit stickier than most because of the molasses). Place the dough in an oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
3. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with cornmeal.
4. Punch down the dough. Shape it into a 10-inch loaf. Let it rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 40 minutes.
5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
6. Score the top of the loaf 4 times with a paring knife. Mix the egg white and the milk together in a small bowl and brush the mixture all over the top of the loaf. Sprinkle the loaf with the remaining ½ tbsp. caraway seeds. Bake until golden in colour and gives a hollow sound when the bottom of the loaf is tapped, about 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack. Makes 1 loaf.

this is what my loaf looks like. Sorry I did not take a picture this time around!

Blessings!

Karen E.

One of my Favorite Web Sites!

Ok so I figured I would recommend one of my favorite go-to sites for recipes. Ladies (and maybe gentlemen), I introduce you to…

check it out here

If I wonder about how to make something I go to all recipes.com, if I wanna try a new recipe, I go to allrecipes.com. 

You can create your own virtual recipe box, and you can customize your recipe look before you print it out. One of my favorite parts is being able to read others’ comments, tips, and modifications to the recipe. Create menus, shopping lists, watch how-to videos, and join the buzz! All this for FREE!!! If you want to have more perks you can go pro at a reasonable price.

They even have an app! Go check out dinner spinner (its fun!). go check it out here for your apple device, and here for your android device.

Here is anothet favorite recipe of mine from all recipes.com

Have a great week!
Blessings!
Karen E.

Source: allrecipes.com via Karen on Pinterest

Seven Must Have’s/Nice to Have’s for the Kitchen

Ok so even though seven is the number of completion, I’m sure these may not be in your home or you may not consider these must haves (thus the title, “nice to have’s”). These are some things that I have in my kitchen that I love, and make my life easier, and cupboards fuller so I can store them).

Pressure Cooker

Let me tell you, it is amazing! Some people get freaked out or intimidated by them, but you just have to get passed it all and you will love it. I have two of them in different sizes with what I think is a 10 lb. weight for each. I love cooking chicken in there, I do my beans in there and it only takes about 1-1 ½ hours instead of like 3+ hours. I also love doing my beef chunks in there for about 20 minutes, and then they just fall apart! Mmmmmm! I think the key is to make sure you have enough water on your food, and that you don’t have the stove on too high while you cook. I usually have it on full heat till the pressure build up and the weight starts really dancing around and then I turn it down to about half to three quarters high, just so its bouncing around but not spinning in circles! Lol, man don’t I sound like a real chef with all my weird non profession instructions! Ok, or not! just make sure you have one that has an emergency release valve.

Slow Cooker

This is the total opposite of the first, but just as wonderful! A lot of people have never thought to use one but it really frees you up from stressing what to make for supper in the evening if you are busy during the day. All you do is throw your food in with your seasonings and other ingredients in and turn it on and there you go! Church is like 30 minutes away and when we can’t always afford to go out for lunch I quickly put something in there the night before, or first thing in the morning, and when we get home, its all done! Its good for almost any kind of meat, soups, stews. I found a recipe during the summer for an amazing pasta sauce, My mom has even made enchiladas in her slow cooker!

An Electric Grill

I got mine at an auction for like $11. It is great! It does sandwiches, burgers, chicken, bacon, you name it!

Whistling Kettle

This one just makes me happy! I love a tea kettle that whistles! It can be such a nice way to know that your water is boiling!

Something Red

Or another color that inspires you while you cook. For me that’s red! I don’t have any appliance that is red, just a cheese grater right now, but one day!

Coffee Maker!

Duh! When God said that man should not live by bread alone, I wonder if He knew that coffee would help. I am not addicted actually! I only drink it when I am in the mood, and that is often only once a day. I find that the smell is better than the taste, but the taste is really good too! An amazing experience (and yes it is an experience) is having coffee made from a french press! 

making it in a french press is a nice experience as well! You add your coffee grinds to the small pitcher, pour boiling water in, and stir. Let it sit for up to four minutes to let the grinds soak. You then plunge the coffee, nicely and evenly. I tell you, there is an amazing flavor that is lost in a normal coffee maker. but when you make your coffee with a french press pot to is AMAZING!

I have been trying to make one new thing once a week, in the kitchen. Last week it was Mocha Crinkles!

Mocha Crinkles

1 1/3 cups. Brown Sugar packed

½ cup vegetable oil

¼ cup. Sour cream

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 ¾ cups flour

¾ cup cocoa

2 tsp. instant espresso or coffee granules

1 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1/8 tsp. ground back pepper

½ cup powdered sugar

Beat the brown sugar and oil in a bowl very well. Mix in sour cream, the egg, and vanilla. Set aside. In another bowl, mix the flour, cocoa, instant coffee granules, baking soda, salt and black pepper together. Add the flour mixture to the brown sugar mixture. Refrigerate till firm (about 3-4 hours).                                                         Preheat oven to 350. Make little balls and roll in the powdered sugar. Slightly flatten the cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Do not over bake!

Tis' the Season to be...

...thinking about resolutions!

We are one month into this New Year, but I would like to talk about my thoughts and goals for the new year.

I hate using the word “resolutions”, because for me it implies failure. So many people make new year resolutions and within weeks they are back to where they started. For me I want to use the word “goals”. For me,  that word means “Somewhere I want to be, or achieve, by the end of the year. I will change methods and tactics, in order to get where I want to be”.

For years I have been very interested in interior decorating. I find it very hard to pursue that while renting a house, and despite that, I don’t usually know where to start. My Husband usually sees stuff we can do before I can and does it before I can (boy, does that make me feel like a failure, especially when interior decorating is a field I would like to be good at). I guess he’s just better at seeing stuff like that than I am. I guess I have also been preoccupied with figuring out how to get my household running good in a new house and with two girls, to really focus on it all. Maybe that is not my forte right now. For me, I love cooking and working in the kitchen, and they say, Write what you know. That is what I know, so that is what the focus of my blog focus is going to be for now, because that is what I know!

What are my goals for the new year? So glad you asked!

• Make (cook or bake) one thing each week

This is something I have always loved to do! I love trying new things especially things that you would normally buy at the grocery store. I want to learn more and more how to make, instead of buy them!

• Blog once a week (starting now!)

That is a big commitment for me because once I run out of inspiration it usually stops. I am also a person who, when I see something that needs to be done, I will do it even if I was in the middle of doing something else. I have been learning to stop myself when I realize I am about to leave a project, or a chore, to do something else I see that needs to be done. For example: I am cleaning up the kitchen or the bathroom, I go to put something in the dirty laundry pile (which is in my closet ::Blush::) and then all of the sudden I see my bed needs to be made, or some things need to be picked up. IF I remember,  I  have to stop myself, and go back to what I was doing first. Anywayyyyyy!!! Wow that was a rabbit trail and a half!

• Keep my weekly schedule

Monday: Tidy up the house from the weekend and bake something!

Tuesday: My day to blog, read (maybe), do school with princess A, and keep the house tidy, and watch Food Network (HGTV has nothing that interests right now).

Wednesday: Laundry day.

Thursday: clean my floors           

Friday: clean my house

If I can keep my schedule, I have everything in control, and time to spare. Before , I found things piling up, and I felt overwhelmed at times. It’s so simple, and keeps me from getting overwhelmed. It makes me happy when I get up in the morning to know what I need to do and that it’s only one or two things, and not a pile of things (besides laundry)!

• Spend time with my girls

They are growing so fast! I want to be able to have a good relationship with them, and that starts now. Even at the ages of 3 and 2 ½ months, I think for me it means cuddling my Princess C, doing school with Princess A, reading to her, and looking at her and acknowledging what she’s saying ( that is very important to her!). If I want an open relationship with my children as teenagers, It needs to start being open and interact with them now!

These just some of my goals, others are the ones we usually make. Weight loss (and I’m well on my way!), and spend more time with God, and His word.

What are some of the goals you have made for this year?

How do you make your house a home? This is an idea I want to talk about in the very near future. I want to hear some of your ideas, to feature some of them, and to learn off of you all!

  Blessings!

 Karen E.