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Thoughts, ideas about cooking and baking, helpful hints, answers to your questions, reviews of products I endorse (or advise against), and what's new in Homemade Goodness.

July 14, 2013

Homemade Goodness goes live online! So far there are only a few recipes, but keep checking back....lots more are on the way. Questions or comments? Have a recipe you'd like to see here? Drop me a line and let me know. I'll do my best to help.

July 21, 2013

Canning jars......I've had a long-time love affair with canning jars. They're so versatile, sturdy, safe, and they allow the lovely food stored in them to shine through. I use them for canning and preserving of course, but also for other kinds of storage.

Homemade mayonnaise and salad dressings keep very well in a pint sized canning jar in my fridge. I use them for all sorts of leftovers. You don't have to open one and peek inside to guess what's there, and the air-tight lids ensure your hard-earned money isn't wasted on leftovers-gone-bad.

Open my pantry and you'll find big and small sparkling clear canning jars filled with flavored olive oils, flavored vinegars, dried beans, rice, dried fruit, loose teas (I'm on a blood orange tea kick right now....so good!), pastas, and even herbs. The little jars are stackable, you don't need a label, what more could you want? Oh, you do want more hmm? Got it.

In the bathroom canning jars can be used to store things like beauty supplies. The little jelly jars come in many shapes, and are really very delicate-looking and lovely. I use canning jars to store bath salt, body scrub, bath crystals, and bath oils (all homemade, of course).

You'll find canning jars in my art studio, too. Paint brushes, pencils, and turpentine each have their own jar. I've seen garage workbenches with niches for canning jars filled with nails, screws, and other various DIY items.

I find jars all over; rarely do I buy new ones. Estate sales, yard sales, flea markets, and thrift stores are all great spots to pick up a nice, big box of canning jars at a tiny price. I'm even lucky enough to have great friends who know how into canning jars I am and pick them up for me. If well cared-for, a canning jar will last 50 years or more. And they never go out of style. So they are an economical (and therefore s-m-a-r-t) method of storage, too.

Canning jar tips:

Not all jars are born equal. Discount stores (Dollar General, etc.) sell jars which are approved by the FDA, but they are not as thick as the ones sold elsewhere.
Before you use a canning jar, make sure it's not damaged. Run your finger (carefully and lightly) along the rim to check for nicks. Hold the jar up to the light and look for cracks. Safety trumps economy, so don't try to be frugal by using a less-than-perfect jar.
Never EVER re-use a canning lid once it's been processed in a canner to preserve food. I do re-use lids for non-perishable food storage. I've heard many an "old school" cook say they've re-used lids from one year of canning to the next with no issues, but.....I've also read about cases of botulism from re-processing lids. That rubber ring on the underside is what creates the air-tight seal. Processing degrades the rubber, causing it to not seal as well as it should.

Aug 1, 2013

I'm often asked how it is that I seem to be happy all of the time. I used to think perhaps I was born with a surplus of dopamine in my brain or something but, as I've gotten *ahem* older *ahem*, I've come to believe it's really just a matter of choice. I simply choose to be happy.

Now that doesn't mean I turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to the sorrow, hardship, and injustice I see in this world. No. I help where I can; I do what I believe helps those whom I can help. But then I turn my attention to my own life circle. I count my blessings. And then I find my bliss.

I'm not rich, nor famous, nor do all my wishes come true; but I'm happy just the same. Like most everyone, I've had heartaches and sadness. But I just plain and simple don't like how it feels. So I go searching for my happiness. I don't have to look far, I dwell on the things I know make me feel at peace: baking, cooking, drawing, painting, gardening. I spend time with the special people in my life: my beautiful daughter, my 2 incredible grandsons, and my dear friends. It isn't long before the sadness abates and I begin to feel happier. Before I know it, I find my bliss - or maybe....it finds me.

So you see, it really is a choice. There are so few things in this world which we truly have control over; and our state of mind is one of them. So take control of your well-being. Find your bliss. Search hard for it. Take it, it's yours. Fight for it, if need be. It may be hiding, but then again it might be right under your nose.

Aug 3, 2013

What the heck is in your food? If you're buying processed food from the grocery store you may be surprised. The cooks of generations ago had the right idea: prepare fresh food. It's less expensive, tastes better, and is much more healthy. My grandmother was one of those who fed her family from her garden and pasture; she did it out of necessity. During the Great Depression, there was no money for store bought clothes, books, toys, and usually food.

Chemicals, stabilizers, and preservatives added to foods at industrial canneries disguise or even hide their natural flavor. The food found in the supermarket is so heavily processed it tastes nothing like it did from the farmer‘s field. Helen Johnson Keyes*, a columnist who lived during my grandmother‘s time, instructed homemakers to stop relying on foods from the canneries and instead to grow and preserve the meals their families required: “Our present civilization is so blindly urban that there is a tendency to ignore the fact that the earth underlies all our boulevards, basements and towering architecture; that we are fed by the earth, not by tin containers, grocers' shelves and market counters”.

Amazing that it still holds true 93 years later.

*Keyes, Helen Johnson. “The Rebirth of the Farm Home.” The North American Review June (1920): 783-792.

Aug 19, 2013

I've just returned from another amazing trip to New York. 10 days in The Big Apple has left me filled with memories of art, culture, cuisine, and diversity. I'm still geeking out about all the restaurants (both expensive and el-cheapo) I had the pleasure of dining in. Of course, I visited The Bronx and spent much time in the Arthur Avenue Retail Market. If you've never had the pleasure - it's an experience you will never forget. Arthur Avenue epitomizes the ethnic New York of the movies: small, immaculate shops owned by proud shopkeepers who share their ethnic heritage by way of the wares they display, create, and sell. The middle picture on the left features an Italian deli (those big white blocks are CHEESE!). And have a gander at the gorgeous coiled sausages in the bottom pic. You'll also stroll past wooden barrels filled with a huge assortment of olives, mushrooms, capers, sun-dried tomatoes, and dried fruits. Every sort of produce which can be grown locally is offered. The favorites on this trip were beef feet (I know!!), mega-flaky pastries called "lobster tails" because that's what they looked like, and imported Italian garden seeds.

It was surprising to me - at first - to discover that the prices are no more (and often actually less) than my local supermarket. I won't tell you how much I spent on cheese, olive oil, and imported pasta, but I could open an Italian restaurant in my kitchen today with what I've brought home!

The shopkeepers and restaurant staff I talk to (and I talk to everyone) are welcoming, warm, friendly, and eager to show and serve their wares. You can sense the dignity in these folks as they talk about their journeys and ways of life. It's truly an American Experience to walk down the sidewalk and hear English, Spanish, Greek, Italian, Polish, Russian, Mandarin, and so many other voices harmonizing in that little corner of NYC.

I'm putting together plenty of NYC-inspired recipes to post here, so check back soon for more Homemade Goodness.