Homemade Magic Shell

Do you remember that chocolatey liquid stuff you could pour on ice cream and it would harden, creating a delicious little shell?  Kinda like a dipped cone at DQ?  Well, you can make your own at home with just two ingredients!  Here's how:

 

Ingredients:

2T Pure Coconut Oil

1/3C Chocolate Chips (I used mini ones)

In a glass measuring cup, add the chips and coconut oil.

Pop it in the microwave for 2 minutes (I used 90% power), 

stirring every 30 seconds.  It will feel really watery at first.  Mix well.

It will thicken quickly.  Scoop out your favorite ice cream and pour on top.

It will start out shiny.  Wait about one minute and it will start to turn dull-looking.

After it's set, crack your spoon in top and eat!

Notes:  

Clearly, if you are allergic to coconut, do not make this, lol!  If you are not allergic to coconut, but don't care for the taste of coconut, this probably is not for you. It does have a nice coconutty chocolatey taste, but I think less is more with this.  The serving you see above was wayyyy too much 'magic shell'.

How does it work?  Well, coconut oil is solid at room temp, but melts at 76 degrees, I believe.

When you heat it up, it's liquid.  When it hits the cold ice cream, it goes back to solid.  And here

we thought Magic shell was, well, magic!

The bad news, coconut oil is fat.  The good news, it's a good fat as far as fat goes!  You can fry food in it, eat it as a supplement, or use it as an ingredient as above.  You can also use it as body lotion it you want to smell like a coconut all day, lol!  I tried it the other day and was surprised to find that it really didn't smell very good when first applied.  As the day went on, it smelled really good, like a day at the beach.  My son hated the smell and kept telling me to take a shower, lol!  It really made my skin so much softer than normal lotions, too.  I noticed that on my hands, my cuticles softened enough where I could push them back easily with my fingernails and they stayed soft.  My heels softened a lot, too.  The moisture seemed to stay in my skin rather than dissipate as with regular lotion.  Very interesting!

Now, coconut oil IS expensive!  The jar you see above cost about $12.  Yikes!  The good thing is that you use it sparingly and it lasts a long time.  When I put it on my body, I probably used 1/2t per leg!  And I have fat legs with lots of surface area, lol!  The above (approx 1/2c) batch of Magic Shell cost about $1 to make.  I'm assuming that's cheaper than the store-bought stuff, but I don't buy it, so I'm not sure. Either way, it was a fun and tasty experiment!

My little boy scout!

Tommy decided he wanted to do Boy Scouts, so here he is in his new uniform.  Today, the children were to wear their uniforms to school in remembrance of 9/11. Since the 11th is on Sunday, they are wearing them today.  He was so excited this morning!  Let's hope he comes home with all of the expensive little parts and pieces, lol! What does this have to do with saving money?  Well, a friend whose son has been a scout for years suggested that we buy his shirt extra large so he can make it last for the two to three years he's a tiger cub. We did that.  The neckerchief shouldn't make a difference unless it wears out or gets torn.  The hat...well, we bought the largest they had and it fits perfectly right now.  You can't really tell in the picture because he's wearing it like Elmer Fudd, lol!  He has a BIG head with lots and lots of brains in there!  We're hoping we can make it last.  If you've ever seen my husband, you know what a basketball head he is, and this little apple didn't fall far from the tree, LOL!  :)

The gross hair-collecting experiment

Okay, so this is totally gross, but I'm just gonna show ya anyway because that's the way I am....gross, lol!
I have been losing hair over the last three years pretty steadily without any hugely noticeable difference for some reason.  I just assumed my hair must grow really fast.  The gal who used to cut my hair made a comment (last year) that she thought in the time she had been cutting my hair (two plus years) that I had lost about a good 25% of my hair.  Nice, huh?  Depressing!  Anyway, this last year, I have seen a drastic increase in my hair loss.  I decided to conduct an experiment to see just how much.  I used the upstairs bathroom to bathe every day since no one really uses it and it's out of sight from any visitors.  I did not vacuum  the carpet up there for a whole month.  Ewwwww....I know!  I also cleaned out my hair brush before this experiment.  Then I used it for a whole month to see how much accumulated in there.  Well, after 30 days, I scraped my hand across the carpet, gathering as much of the fallen hair as I could.  That's the hairball on the left.  The glob on the right is the hair from my hairbrush.  Gosh...I wonder how much is in the drain!!  That's a 2oz cup to compare.  Is it just me, or is this totally excessive?!

 

I'm starting to see a huge difference in the thickness of my hair now.  You can see my scalp in the front.  This is very disheartening.  I just had some blood tests done a week ago and you guessed it...everything came out perfectly!  Not that I was hoping something would be wrong, but it sure would be nice to have a logical explanation for the extreme hair loss.  At this rate, I should be bald by this time next year, lol.  I'm laughing about it, but I'm not so sure it's not the truth.  My guess is that it's stress.  We've had a lot of drastic things happen this last year.  Here are just a few:

My husband totaled my car.
Our basement flooded.
Our A/C in the house went out.
My husband hit a turkey, yes a TURKEY, and detached his headlight assembly.
My van's a/c went out and had a leaking axle.
My husband's car got hit by baseball sized hail while parked at the airport.
My son fell straight on his head from the monkey bars on the first day of school.
ER visit, X-rays, Orthopedist, Chiropractor Visit...he's finally back to normal.
And there's the ongoing financial struggle from a failed family business.

Luckily, most of the above tragedies have worked out well, so I can't complain.  But I do believe the hair loss is due to constant stress.  Anyway, if you have any good hair remedies, please let me know.  I can't afford the hair club for men, LOL!  But I could use a few prayers if you have any extra to spare!  Dang!  In the old days, I coulda sold this stuff to the local wig maker, lol!

The Lettuce Stump Project Update

UPDATE:  Well, my poor little neglected lettuce stump never did develop into the lovely little romaine heart I had hoped for!  Instead, it's spindley and sad.  My husband said he went to a farm one time where they told him they only harvest lettuce three times, then it's done for.  I guess I got the 3rd cutting.  Either that, or this experiment is a total flop, lol!  Here's the sad little devil.  I still don't have all of my programs in my computer (like my photo editing software), so my pix will be worse than usual, lol!   :)

 When my husband and I first got married, I had a marvelous garden!  It was a dream garden, I swear!  Imagine....Four 6 x 6 one foot above ground boxes, all planted in tiers with tallest items to the North and shortest items to the South so the East to West sun could hit it all day, all in square foot gardening fashion.  Never heard of it?  Google it!  You'll be wondering why you ever wasted so much space doing traditional gardening.  I sure miss that free, organic home grown produce! Since having my son, he's always kept me so busy, I felt I didn't have time for a garden. Well, he's finally calmed down enough that I think I can handle it now.  Too bad it's too late in the season to start.  I have dreams of starting my seeds indoors come this next March!

Anyway, let's get to the real reason for this post.  As I was making a salad to go with my  homemade Hamburger Helper the other day, I got to thinking about my old garden, missing the home grown lettuce that was so mild and tender.  Not at all like the tough and bitter greens you get at the store.  I had purchased a 3-pack of Romaine hearts at Aldi and decided to cut them all up and clean them all at once.  As I was stuffing the stump (root) end of the lettuce back into the bag to throw away, two of them fell out on the floor.  Turns out there was a hole in the bag.  I threw them in the trash and as I grabbed the clean one out of the sink, I thought....wait a minute!  I remember when I had my lettuce in my garden and I was always amazed at when you cut the lettuce off at soil level, a few days later, you could harvest more all over again!  I love that about lettuce.  It's the gift that keeps on giving.

I took the last stump (probably should've grabbed the ones out of the trash, too) and cut off the root end to get a clean cut.  I put it in a small glass of water on the sink, below the window.  I was hoping it might sprout some new leaves like my old garden used to.  I could have sworn I took a picture of the first day, but it turns out, I can't find it.  Anyway, you can imagine that it was cut straight across the top like a lettuce flat top haircut.  Below is a picture of the same lettuce 24 hours later.  It actually grew between 1/4-1/2" in a day!  (See how it's mounded in the center!) I was so excited!  I'm not sure I'll have enough to make anything out of it, but it's a fun experiment!  I'll keep you posted as to how it grows for me. I'm not sure it's necessary, but I've been changing the water each night. Pretty cool, huh?  Man, that sure was a long story for one little picture.  Thanks for indulging me.  (Okay, let's ignore the dead leaves on the sunflower plant that my son brought home from summer school)

2011...The year of nightmares!

UPDATE: Computer is (temporarily) back up and running! I hope to be back and posting soon! Thanks for your patience, oh my loyal five followers. (One of which is probably me, lol!)

I'm sorry I've been incognito lately! I have a ton of stuff to post (okay, maybe 5 or 6), but things have been a bit cuckoo here lately. I won't list them all and bore you, but i will tell you that my home computer totally went caput on me, so I'm writing to you from my Nook. Thank God I at least have that to use! However, without the files/pix from my computer, i cannot post anything except text right now. My husband seems to think I need a new hard drive, which is easy enough. So, fingers crossed, I'll be back to posting soon! I'll be happy to accept any spare prayers you've got hanging around! Maybe when I get my computer back, I'll go into more detail. It's been a year of trials, that's for sure! Have a happy day and I'll be back soon. Please don't forget about me! ;)

Dill Relish the easy way!

Being on an extremely tight budget has made me into an avid hot dog eater.  It's not that I just love hot dogs or anything.  They're affordable if you get them on sale or buy the insanely cheap ones (75c) from Aldi.  That being said, I like mustard, ketchup and relish on my dog.  I opened the fridge yesterday to find...argh!!..about 1/2t of relish left in the container!  This just won't do!

In the picture below, you can see my (cleaned) empty relish container.  I paid $1.99 for this at Bakers.  I remember this vividly because it was the cheapest one available and a lady who was grabbing one at the same time handed me one.  Funny the stupid stuff you recall.  Anyway, I thought....hmmmmmm....certainly jarred pickles could be cheaper, Yes?  No?  Maybe?  My hubby was going to Aldi anyhow, so I had him pick up a 24oz jar of dill spears for $1.49.   Then I put on my lab coat and goggles and conducted my experiment! Ha ha ha ha, said the evil condiment scientist!

The pickle jar has 12 spears in it.  I started by cutting 4 of them into

little chunks and dropping them into my mini food processor.  Interestingly,

I recall where and when I got this as well.  (It was my bridal shower by a gal named C***)

But I can't recall what I had for breakfast.  Old age is funny like that, lol!

I hit Low and away they went!  Turns out 4 wasn't enough, so

I ended up using 8.  I did not add any juice though.  Looks like relish to me!

I then took a funnel and poured the mixture into my cleaned container.

I had to use the handle of my small spatula to smash it in there.

And lookee heeyuh!  We have a brand spankin' new container of 

relish for only $1.00!  Half the price of the original!  Yayyy!  Success!

Funny what you can make (and save) with just a little prep work!

The only drawback?  Yellow fingernails...ewwwwwwww!

Notes:

Since I used 2/3 of a $1.49 jar of pickles, this came to only $1.00!  That makes me happy!  Funny how much we pay for convenience!  I'm sure if you had your own garden (I don't yet) and made your own pickles, you could make this for pennies!  For me, I'm happy to save half right now!  Try it yourself!  What kids of things do you buy that you could easily make?  It's so much more fun shopping at the grocery store when you seldom have to go down any aisles because you say to yourself as you look down each one...hhmmmmm, bread, nope, I can make that.  Uhhhhh, pepperoni?  Nope, I can make that.  Uhhhhhh, tortillas?  Nope, I can make that!  Laundry detergent?  Windex?  Nope and nope!  It's shocking, really.  Of course, this isn't truly homemade, but it is a money saver!

Update:  I had some today on ...you guessed it...a hot dog.  It tasted okay to me, but it seems to be lacking something...perhaps a little pinch of sugar.  I read the back of the container and it appears they add some dehydrated red bell pepper.  I don't have any, nor do I plan on making any, so I'll live with it.  It's not that different.  I just expected it to be exactly the same.  That's what I get for being a know-it-all.  :)

Spicy Pepperoni...you really can make it at home!

Here's what you'll need:

Ingredients:(This is for a whole 2 pound batch.  I made a half)
2Lbs 85% or leaner Ground Beef
2t Liquid Smoke
2t Ground Black Pepper
2t Mustard Seed
1 1/2t Crushed Fennel Seed
1-2t Crushed Red Pepper
1/2t Garlic Powder
1t Paprika
1/2t Sugar
2t (heaping) Tender Quick Curing Salt

Dump your meat in a bowl and throw spices on top.*

See the spice mix at 11 o' clock? That's my fennel and

red pepper.  I put it in my coffee grinder because I found

it really hard to crush.  I sold my mortar and pestle at a garage 

sale a few years ago.  Who knew it'd finally come in handy!?

With very clean hands (and NO rings on**), mix the meat and 

spices very well, kinda like making meat loaf.

Slap a lid on and put it in the fridge for 48 to 72 hours, remixing once per day..  

I'm assuming this allows the flavors to meld and the curing salt to do its magic.

On the day you will be cooking them (start early...it takes 8 hours!),

wrap a small pan with foil and use a rack to cover it.  I originally used

the contraption below, then figured out...duh!  I can use the pan and rack

in my trusty little toaster oven!  That way, my big oven is free for dinner!

After 48 hours (I cheated and it was only about 36 hours), I took out my

pepperoni mix and shaped it into really gross turd looking things, uh logs.

Pop in the (toaster) oven at 200 degrees and bake for 8 hours.

You need to take them out every two hours and turn them a 1/4 turn.

After 8 hours, remove from oven and you have two little pepperonis!

They don't so much as cook down as they seem to be dessicated.

I wrapped one up in foil to throw in the freezer right away.  The other,

I cut open the end to see if it looked red like pepperoni does.  It does!

I decided to pop this one in the fridge for a bit, 

then slice it up and freeze it! Sorry for the bad pix.

Notes:

*You will note that the Tender Quick is not in this picture.  When I first mixed it, I did not have any as of yet.  Earlier in the day, I had gone to the store and looked at the ingredients on the package...salt, sugar, sodium nitrate and sodium nitrite. All for about $4.00 yikes!  I then thought....mehhhh, I can make that!  Yeahhhh, righhhhtttt!  Read on.  You see, I (stupidly) thought I could just use some sea salt, some sugar and some msg or meat tenderizer, LOL! (There may be a fine line between arrogance and frugality, lol!)  JUST AS I was going to plop these on top of the meat, a moment of rationality hit me...hmmmmm, what if this was dangerous somehow?  I stopped what I was doing and headed to the trusty internet.  I figure it's always good to trust your gut...never steered me wrong yet!  

Well, my oh my, did I find some stuff!  You cannot, I repeat CANNOT make your own salt cure safely.  Key word here, people like me who think they can do it all themselves, SAFELY!  Turns out the average home cook/non-scientist type person cannot possibly measure out the miniscule amounts of the nitrate/nitrite mixture.  And even if you could, you couldn't get it to mix properly where the ratios would stay suspended properly in the mixture.  

It also turns out that the nitrates form some kind of gas (Nitris oxide?  Maybe I should have sniffed my meat mixture for a good night's sleep, ha ha ha...just kidding...really.) and that gas turns into nitrites or some silly thing like that, making the meat appear nice and pink like we're used to in cured meats.  There's your fancy, most likely incorrect science lesson, because I'm going off of memory from 2 days ago's internet search.  Turns out, if you don't do things correctly, and I'm assuming this means for people who are doing a dry cure over weeks/months, not the cooked kind like we're doing, you can actually get botulism!  I wasn't taking any chances, even if I was cooking the darn thing!  I ran right to the store and happily paid $3.98 for a bag of Tender Quick.  I did find some people online talking about how they just use their own mix of stuff, but invariably they were barraged with "What?! Are you crazy?  Do you  have a death wish?!" kinds of feedback.  I don't want to be one of those people...or a dead one.  Moving on...

**Okay, I gotta say it!  Everyone who knows me knows I'm a major germaphobe!  No, not the kind who washes their hands 837 times a day....just particular in some ways.  For example, I'll eat something I've dropped on my (usually clean) floor, depending on what it is, but I WILL NOT touch a bathroom door handle with my bare hands to if my life depended on it!  Speaking of creepy things...people with rings on, plunging their germ-infested jewelry into food products.  Not to mention, say the person makes this (pepperoni) product...gets meat lodged in their rings in tiny places you cannot see, it sours, goes rancid, produces toxic little germy things.  Then the person makes something else they plunge their hands into, essentially contaminating the next thing they're making!  Ughhhhh!  {{{Shivers}}} It's just gross.  People, I promise you, if you knew what kinda crud is trapped in your jewelry, you really wouldn't do this.  (Unless you have your rings professionally cleaned each time you make a meal, then forgive my rant.  You're rich, smart and very attractive!)  Save yourself and your family from getting sick.  Take your lovely jewelry off and set it aside (somewhere far away from the sink, lol!)  Your food will be relatively contaminant-free and your family will be alive.  It really is a win-win situation.  Thank you.  I'm done now.

Back to the pepperoni...while the texture was a little drier than I am used to, this is really pretty good.  The pepperoni from the store is just slick with fat.  Mine is not.  I kinda like that slick fat.  It's funny.  When it was in the bowl raw, I thought it smelled just like pepperoni.  After I tasted the cooked product, it was just a little different than I imagined.  Still quite good, still pepperoni-like, but just different. I used a little more red pepper than I probably should have.  It is pretty spicy...hence the name...spicy pepperoni.  If you are not a fan of spice, add just a little, or omit altogether.  I haven't tried it on pizza yet, but I'll let you know what we think of it.

The good news about this is that I made one pound of pepperoni for about $2.50 (15.6 cents per ounce)!  (Had I used the beef I just got at Aldi for $1.39/Lb, it would have come in at about $1.50!!!  But I had to use up some old stuff first.)  I looked online at 5 different places for Hormel (7oz) Pepperoni to compare prices.  The average comes to $3.29 for 7oz (47 cents per ounce...yikes!).  I made over twice that for less money!  I'd say that's a pretty good savings, 66%!

This really was simple to make, so don't let the several day recipe fool you.  Just do it on a day when you'll be home all day and be sure to set your timer for every two hours to turn it.  That's it!  Easy peasy!  If you give it a try, let me know what you think!  Recipe courtesy of Tammy's Recipes.

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