Tinkerbell costume - great little girl gift!

Kellie is a mom, wife, tree-hugger and crafter. She blogs regularly at Greenhab and the Green Phone Booth.

Now that Macy is in Kindergarten we are starting to get a lot of birthday party invitations. Little girl birthday parties are so much fun, aren't they? But birthday parties in general can get out of hand when you're spending $20 each and going to one every few weeks.

The last party Macy was invited to had a Tinkerbell theme and I just *happened* to see some very Tinkerbellesque tulle type fabric at JoAnn's the week before the party. Did I mention it was on sale from $9.95 down to $3.99 per yard, plus the lady gave me a 20% off coupon? Love love LOVE a bargain!

And I love a quick and easy project! Here's what I did:

1. Unfold the fabric, then refold it lengthwise. I made the top layer about 2 inches shorter than the bottom layer for a frilly-fairy-leaf effect. Iron with a barely warm iron if needed.

2. Fold the top down about an inch and pin, sew a hem across to make casing for your elastic waste.

3. Using a safety pin, thread your elastic through the waste band you just made.

4. Lay flat and cut petal leaves...unless you're making something other than a Tinkerbell skirt of course. You could sew some ribbon on like binding in a contrasting color!

5. Fold with right sides together, pin down the side, sew all the way down. This will change it from one big long piece of fabric into a skirt. Turn it right side out and you are halfway to Tinkerbell.

For the crown, you're going to basically follow the directions I gave for last week's headband, except you wear it like a crown instead of a headband. For the crown part, I cut two pieces of felt, then ironed on an interfacing. You can decorate this any way you'd like. I used some of the scrap pieces of the skirt in the crown. You'll sew the front and back together, leaving each end open to insert the elastic that holds in on your head.

Now you have the cutest little outfit ever for a little girly girl. My daughter has already requested on for Christmas!

Canning and Using Stew Meat

I know this jar of meat doesn't look all that appealing, but I promise you that inside this jar is the tastiest quick meal starter ever.

Let's face it. Even those of us who thoroughly enjoy cooking and are committed to making food from scratch for our families, need a few quick and easy meals every now and then. The way I see it, we have two choices. We can buy heavily processed convenience foods filled with who knows what, or we can create some convenience foods of our own. I'd rather make my own. My favorite "convenience" food is canned stew meat.

Canning meat is a little time consuming, but the process is easy and the time involved is mostly passive while the pressure cooker is running.

First you need meat. Canning is perfect for the tougher cuts of meat. I can the leg meat and other small pieces from venison, but this process works for other red meats like beef, lamb or pork. This is a great way to preserve meat when you come across a fabulous sale.

Trim as much fat as possible, and cut the meat into cubes or chunks.

Pack raw meat into clean, hot jars. Loose pack and leave one inch head space. Put lids and rings on.

Process at 11 pounds pressure; 75 minutes for pints, and 90 minutes for quarts.

As the meat cooks under pressure it becomes extremely tender. Far more tender than I've ever been able to cook stew meat on the stove or in the oven. It also creates its own broth. The meat and broth together make a delicious quick start to a meal.

So, how do you use canned stewed meat? Here are some ideas:

Soups or Stews.
It is great for chili, vegetable soup, beef stew or any other stew or soup you like to make that calls for meat. Just add some water, tomato juice or more broth, vegetables, and spices.

Pot Pies
You may need to drain the meat a little for this use. Reserve the broth for later use. Mix in vegetables throw it in a crust and bake.

Beef and Noodles
Cook the noodles in broth. Add the stew meat and spices, and thicken with sour cream or corn starch.

Gravy
Sautee mushrooms and onions. Add some flour and then slowly add in the meat with the broth to create a gravy. Serve over mashed potatoes, toast or both, hot roast beef sandwich style.

Barbecue
Drain the meat. Add barbecue sauce. Heat and eat.

Beef and Rice
Cook rice in broth and water with spices and vegetables. Add in the meat.

I love having this ready cooked meat on hand to use when I've failed to plan or the plan has failed. It is cheaper, tastier, and likely more nutritious than any convenience food I could pick up at the store.

Carnival #142

This week the carnival is at Frugal Changes. Oh my goodness! There are so many wonderful entries this week. Here are a few that I really enjoyed.

Making Fabulous Paper Flowers with Tissue Paper
An easy and fun craft that could be done with the kids. I thing these will be great to do in the dead of winter to add a little spring to the house!

Soft Homemade Pretzels
I haven't had a big soft pretzel in a long time. These look so good!

T-shirt Scarves
An interesting way to repuprose a T-shirt. I like it!

Thanks for joining us for the carnival this week! And while you are checking out carnivals be sure to check The Festival of Frugality this week!

Spiced Apple Pie Cocktail

I shared this on Frugal Front Porch yesterday. I thought I'd share it here too since the holidays are quickly approaching and some of you may be looking for a new cocktail to serve at a dinner or party.

This is the perfect drink to keep you warm during this cold holiday season. Spiced Apple Pie Cocktail. Yummy and delicious. It is best served warm but you could chill it or even kiddie-proof it by adding a bit of ginger ale! You can even turn this into tea if that's more your style.

Ingredients
1 red apple - cored and chopped or pureed
1 green apple - cored and chopped or pureed
1 nub ginger root - sliced thin
3/4 c white granulated sugar
2 tbs brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
dash nutmeg
4 c water
Southern Comfort or other preferred rum - optional

Directions
Cook top 8 ingredients in a saucepan on medium heat till all the sugars are melted, the apples have softened and the mixture is nice and bubbly. Approximately 10 minutes. Turn off heat and allow mixture to steep and additional 5 to 10 minutes. Turn this into a tea by adding another two cups of hot water and an orange pekoe tea bag at this time. Pour mixture through strainer or cheese cloth to remove apples and ginger and serve with a shot of rum or whiskey.

Makes approximately four 1 cup servings.

*Click here for printer friendly version of this recipe.

So what's your favorite holiday drink?

I also have two giveaways for you to enter: Jean Chatzky's "Plan It" debt rescue book with a set of Franklin Covey's Jean Chatzky Collection of organizing material ALONG WITH the Delightful Spa Gift Basket both end Wednesday, 11/18 @ 6pm CST. Good Luck!

Making and Canning Broth

Soups and stews are staples in our fall and winter menus. I find them so warm and satisfying on a chilly day. It also helps that they are frugal menu choices, in most cases, and can be made from what you have on hand. That is my kind of cooking!

A good soup starts with a good broth. Making your own broth is a healthy and economical alternative to purchasing canned broth for your recipes. It also is very easy.

It is hunting season around here, and frequently you will find a pot of venison bones simmering on my stove. Those "leftovers" from the meat processing will become the base of many body warming soups over the winter months.

You don't have to have a hunter in the family though, to make your own broth. Making broth is easy, and can be done with any meat. I most often make venison broth, but often I make chicken broth. To make chicken broth, I roast a chicken one night for dinner, and the next day use the carcass to make broth.

Place the bones in a large stockpot. Cover them with water. Cover the pot and simmer until the broth is to your liking. Larger pieces, like venison, will take longer. Those will need to simmer for three to four hours. Smaller pieces, like chicken, only need an hour or less. Remove the bones. It is not essential, but I often will also strain the broth at this point. Meat that remains on the bones, or that is caught in the strainer, can be picked off and added back into the broth. Allow the broth to cool. When the broth has cooled skim off the fat.

Many cooks will add spices and vegetables to the simmering pot to enhance the flavor of the broth. I do not. I make a simple broth, and then add spices and flavorings when I use the broth later.

If you have made a large batch of broth, it is easily preserved. It can be frozen in freezer containers, or it can be canned. I prefer canning for the ease of use later. Broth should be pressured canned at 11 pounds pressure. Pints need 20 minutes, while quarts need 25 minutes.

Making your own broth is a very easy procedure. The time involved is almost entirely for simmering, and the end result is so much better than buying broth in a can. I encourage you to give it a try!

Many soups in my home start with this basic broth, but my favorite jump start to soup is starting it with canned stew meat. Check here next Thursday for more on that!

Carnival #141

This week the carnival can be found at Gotta Little Space. Thanks to Rina for hosting this week! Here are a few of my favorites:

The Wonder of Green Smoothies
Fruits and veggies all blended together in a yummy drink, or so Sarah claims. Interesting....

Homemade Applesauce Muffins
I have quite a bit of applesauce from this season. These muffins sound like a delicious way to use my sauce.

Spicy Chicken Noodle Soup
This sounds like a delicious variation of an old favorite.

Thank you for joining us this week!

Home Roasted Peanuts - MMM good!

Roasted peanuts of any flavor are usually more expensive than their plain unsalted non-roasted counterparts. For this reason I choose to roast my own peanuts at home. I get the gourmet flavor without the gourmet price tag which comes in really handy during the holiday party season!

Honey Roasted Peanuts

• 2 c unsalted non roasted peanuts - already shelled will make it easier but if you're determined to do it super cheap and are really motivated then shell away ;)
• 2 tbs honey - just eyeball it
• salt - to taste

Preheat oven to 375. Line baking pan with parchment paper and set aside. Mix honey, salt, and peanuts in a bowl with a wooden spoon until the honey and salt evenly coat the peanuts. Spread peanuts in a single layer on the parchment lined baking pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes until golden stirring every 5 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to completely cool. Stir with wooden spoon to break peanuts apart. Store in airtight container.

Tips

• You can sprinkle with salt after removing from the oven. It turns out well either way.
• Be sure you use PARCHMENT paper not WAX paper. Parchment paper does not burn in the oven and is non stick while wax melts and can burn if placed in a hot oven.
• Give it a gourmet flair with a sprinkle or paprika, ground red pepper flakes, garlic powder, ground Italian spices, cinnamon, allspice, or other spices.
  

Jenn also blogs about crafts, recipes and other home projects at Frugal Front Porch.