Health - Humorous Homemaking

Grinding Flour In Our Nutrimill

We’ve owned our Nutrimill for a decade and it has served us well. It is one of the best kitchen tool investments we’ve ever made. What is it? Simply put – the Nutrimill grinds actual grain (wheat, corn, etc.) into flour. I did tons of research before I bought this baby. I read everything I could find and I picked my friend Stephanie’s mind. I’m sure that she’s wishing Stacy would just go away. I’m like a boomerang that keeps coming back. We decided on the Nutrimill instead of the other various mills on the market because it was supposed to be the quietest, have the biggest storage container, and you can turn it off while it’s grinding (unlike some of the other models).

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Fruity Baked Steel Cut Oatmeal

I’ve been making this recipe for fruity baked steel cut oatmeal for several years now…and it’s become one of my go-to breakfasts. For us, it ranks right up there with Baked Oatmeal and Sweet Potato Oatmeal. We all LOVE it! It’s so easy to customize to your desire and it works with whatever is in season. I found the general idea online and made my own version. 😉

Steel cut oats can be a little tricky…if you don’t cook them just right, they’re crunchy. I’m not sure about you, but crunchy oatmeal is just not cool – not cool at all. If you expect them to taste like regular oatmeal, you’re going to be sadly disappointed. They do have a bit of a bite to them, but they should not be crunchy when cooked. For us, we had to learn to like them – and buddy, do we like them!

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Why We Keep Activated Charcoal

I’m going to keep this post pretty short and sweet. Mainly because I’m not a doctor and I hate having to write all those disclaimers to this effect:

Please note: I am not a doctor and will never be one. I only went to college for 4 years and majored in Youth Ministry. All opinions are my own and I cannot tell you how to safely wipe your nose. If you must wipe your nose or use herbs, please consult a doctor first, who went to school for a lot longer than me and really knows his stuff. Do not take medical advice from a stay-at-home youth ministry major who uses hankies instead of disposable tissues. Make sure to cough into your elbow pit and look both ways before crossing the street – but ask a doctor first.

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Kefir Resources

So, I’ve been using kefir now for about two years. My love for it has only grown – I’ve shared my love with friends and family members…I’m trying to get everyone on the kefir train! Stacy jumped off the kefir bridge, and I’m trying to get you to jump with me. Everybody’s doing it.

Okay, so not everyone is doing it. And you’ll likely get some strange looks if you start telling people you ferment milk. Kefir is essentially fermented, cultured milk. It’s FULL of probiotics and all sorts of good stuff. It’s very healthy and I try to keep it on my menu regularly since it contributes to a healthy immune system. [Read more…]

Peanut Butter Fruit Dip

I like to dip my food. I always have. I always will. There is just something super fun about dipping food into something and then trying to get it into my mouth without dribbling it all over myself…and for the record, I always get it all over myself.

I eat peanut butter every day. Every. Day. Seriously – I cannot tell you the last time I had a day without it…I even asked for it on my food tray at the hospital with Andy. I like it with my bananas, I like it with my pancakes, and sometimes you’ll even find me putting it on a biscuit.

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Keeping Costs Down in a Real Food Kitchen

I hear all to often that eating “healthy” is too expensive. When I was a coupon queen, I would have agreed 100% with you. But now I’m on the other side of things – I’ve been eating this way for two years now and I can honestly say that eating healthy is NOT too expensive. In fact, we can’t afford NOT to eat healthy. Otherwise, in years to come we’ll be paying out the wazoo for health care.

I’m over at Keeper of the Home today talking about how to keep costs down in a real food kitchen. It is very possible to eat a healthy diet on a budget – and I know that for a fact because my budget and I are not soon parted.

Some other things I’ve written in the past might also be of interest to you:

How We Eat Healthy on a Budget

Stacy’s Grocery Price List

So, if you’d like to have more tips about how to eat healthy without going to the poor house – and if you’d like to see just how we make it work – just hop on over to Keeper of the Home.

What do you think? Is eating a healthy diet worth the money?

Pecan Crusted Tilapia

I’m not a huge fish fan. I used to be before I got pregnant with Annie – but after that, my love of seafood tanked. Now I can tolerate salmon, tuna, and tilapia. Other than that, it doesn’t come into this house. Yuck! And all those pictures I see on Pinterest of those soups with actual seafood shells in them? No thank you – I don’t want to have to dig my dinner out of a shell before I can eat it. Unless it’s a peanut…that’s different.

As part of Cooking Through Stacy’s Stash, I made this lovely Pecan Crusted Tilapia…and we all chowed down on it! Even Annie – The Skeptical One. That’s high praise in my book.

When I saw that tilapia was on sale at Ingles, I knew I would buy some and try this recipe – and now I’m passing it along to you…no shells included. [Read more…]

I use REAL Salt

Salt gets a bad rep. Doctors and everyone else will tell you to cut back on your salt. But ya know what I say? I say to myself, “Self, pass the salt.” And self does.

Really. I have a love affair with salt. And I always felt bad about our relationship. I was a closet salt user. I think food tastes rather bland without it. And when I was pregnant, I ate so much that I should have swollen up like a big bloated balloon.

But I kicked my guilt to the curb when our family started using Redmond Real Salt last year…now I proudly tout my daily use of salt. Please pass the salt. Booya. [Read more…]

Crock Pot Lentil Vegetable Soup

I love lentils. I love soup. Therefore, I love lentils in soup. I also love lentils buttered. But then again, I love anything buttered. Bread. Muffins. Veggies. Dirt. Babies. Etc. Butter makes things better. And as Pioneer Woman says, “If some is good, more is better.” Amen.

Anyway, this is a good, cheap meal. Lentils are excellent for replacing the meat in recipes. They’re high in fiber and they still give you the protein you need to be full. They also give you something else…buy Beano. Ahem. [Read more…]

Homemade Cream-Of Soup Mix

Let’s be honest…there are times when I’m just lazy. I might run out of Homemade Cream of Chicken Soup and be too busy to make more…or too lazy. I try to always keep some in the freezer, but sometimes I run out. I know it’s quick and easy to whip up a batch, but I’ll be honest again. If I see a recipe that calls for it and I know I have to make some because I’m out – I pretty much nix that recipe. Can I get a witness?!

While I just love cooking, and don’t mind making the homemade cream of soup, sometimes I just can’t get around to it…and for those times, there is this lovely stand-in made with dried ingredients. Having this in the cabinet makes me feel like I can conquer any cream-of recipe! It also makes me feel like I need a casserole – casseroles are where it’s at. [Read more…]