Using Cash

I decided to put the credit cards in a drawer and just use cash in preparation for my January "austerity" measures when I will try to really keep track of my spending and budget closely.  Tonight, due to some craziness with the girls recital schedule, I took them to Subway for a quick dinner.  And, guess what, I didn't have enough money.  So, I guess the first rule of just carrying cash is to actually have more than $8 in your wallet.  Here's where the joys of small town living come in.  The manager told me to just sit down and eat and come back and pay later.  I did...after I got over being mortified. 

Clothing Exchange

Last week, I went to a women's clothing exchange.  A few of us brought clothes that we did not want anymore and spread them all over an empty room in a friend's basement.  Then, we picked through and picked out clothes for ourselves.  It was fun and free.  I got new cargo pants in exchange for some Size 2 jeans that fit me once every 6 months or so when my weight is low enough for them.  I can fit my long johns under my new cargo pants too which seems to be very important this winter.  I picked up a few other things -- a sweater, long sleeved shirt and a cute little yellow camisole.  I still love having something new to wear, but it is great to do it this way -- no impact, no money, nothing to the landfill.
I hope someone out there is looking great in those Size 2s.

Living 12 by 12

Just read this inspiring book on living "12 by 12" meaning the house, not the size of your master bath...
Here's the author, William Power's blog:  
http://williampowersbooks.com/blog/
Enjoy.

Continuing with my Thanksgiving week long feast

Today I got my pumpkin quota filled.  I had a pumpkin apple soup.  It also had butternut squash and veggie broth.  Unfortunately, I can't take credit for it myself or provide the recipe, because I just bought a cup at my local food co-op.  I think it still counts though.  For Thanksgiving we are just planning on mashed potatoes, stuffing with lentils, and slow cooker applesauce.  Simone also wants cranberry chutney so we may make that too and have some Thanksgiving and make some Indian food later that weekend to have it a second time.  Oh, and pecan pie for dessert.  I guess I'm still missing turkey, but I'm not a big turkey fan anyway.  I may forgo that altogether.
Hmmm, what else are we missing?

Spreading Out The Thanksgiving Feast

I love Thanksgiving.  Well, I love to eat in general.  But, I like all the Thanksgiving dishes, side dishes, and desserts.  Unfortunately, I seem to have been the only one in my family that loves it enough to actually cook it.  So, over the years I have worked really hard to produce a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner.  The girls pick at it.  We have tons of leftovers and well to be honest I end up kind of pissed.  So, it is time to get over it.  Newly single, I don't even have my spouse to at least appreciate the food. 
So, I am spreading out some of my favorite parts of Thanksgiving over the next week or so.  Last night, we had sweet potato coconut curry.  It satisfied my sweet potato requirement for Thanksgiving and it was easy to make.  Here's the recipe:
2 sweet potatoes cubed
1 can light coconut milk
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup vegetable broth
1 Tablespoon green curry paste
1 Tablespoon oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Saute sweet potatoes in oil for a few minutes, add vegetable broth and cook until almost tender.  Add peas, coconut milk, curry paste and salt.  Heat through.  Serve over rice, rice noodles or as a soup.
A great way to get my sweet potato fix early, eliminate that dish from the Thanksgiving repetoire, take advantage of sweet potatoes on sale and get rid of that whole nasty, whipped sweet potatoes with marshmallow thing. 

Thanksgiving Fun for Kids

This is one of my favorite Thanksgiving activities -- an orange pomander.

I remember making one for my Great Aunt Doris, keeper of the turkey, when I was a kid.  Last year we made a few and just kept them around the house to make it smell like yummy winter holidays.  Pomanders are fragrant mixtures of spices and fruit.  Historically, pomanders were fragrant spices kept inside a metal or ceramic ball.  These were worn on a chain around the neck or waist to ward off bad smells and disease.  The most common in the U.S. today, the orange pomander, is very simple and smells absolutely delicious for weeks.  Though, I would not recommend wearing it and would not suggest it would ward off disease (but who knows).  However, it is cheery and easy to make with kids of different ages!  

To make your orange pomander, you will need:

·        An orange

·        ½ cup of whole cloves

·        24 inches of ribbon

·        a poker (a nail, a skewer, a pencil, etcetera)

·        a thimble (optional)

Directions:

·        Wash your orange to remove any fruit wax

·        Mark a line around your orange as if to cut it into quarters

·        Poke holes about ¼ inch deep into the orange either randomly or in a pattern

o   Do small sections at a time.

o   Keep the holes close enough together so that the cloves will almost touch when inserted stem side down into the holes.

o   Do not poke holes into the lines you made – this area is for the ribbon.

o   If you have very young children, you can do the poking for them.  Older children, of course, can design their own and make the holes themselves.

·        Push cloves into the holes stem side down

o   This leaves the sharper parts out so you may want to use a thimble to keep your fingers from getting sore.

o   Any child old enough not to consume or stick cloves up their nose can push the cloves into the orange.

·        Wrap the ribbon around the orange both ways, tie in a knot at the top then make a loop and tie a second knot if you’d like to hang your pomander, or a bow if you’re going to set it on the table.

Orange pomanders take time to dry so if you’re going to try to give one of these away for an upcoming holiday make it a couple of weeks earlier than the holiday itself.  The orange will turn brown and kind of appear to be rotting – it is NOT rotting.  The oil from the cloves spreads throughout the peel making it brownish orange.  The entire orange will eventually dry and become very light weight.

Selling at UI Womensworks

Hello to all my local friends...
Yesterday I debuted my food microbusiness at Womensworks and I had a great time and got great feedback.  I also nearly sold out of soup mixes and seriously lowered my stock of baking mixes.  I will be back today at the UI Student Union Building ballroom for another day of selling.  If you would like to try my sustainable-local-organic mixes stop by.  I'll be sampling out Comfort Cornbread, Turkish Mocha Brownies and Red Lentil Curry today.  Yum. Yum.  And, in keeping with the blog -- the prices are reasonable, I think, at $5 per mix. 

Below is a blurb about the new business.

At Fast Foodie, LLC in Moscow, Idaho, I strive to use the best and most sustainable ingredients to prepare mixes like no other.  Organic and local contributions to these mixes are common.  In a region rich with wheat varieties, lentils, and local small-scale organic agriculture as well as wild-crafted ingredients from the Inland Northwest, it is a pleasure to bring out the best in these ingredients through delicious, wholesome and quickly prepared soups and baked good mixes.  10% of my profits are donated to the following charitable organizations: Safe Passage in Guatemala City, Sojourner’s Alliance in Moscow, Idaho and Village Bicycle Project in Boise, Idaho. 

 See you there!