Attracting Winged Beauties Into Your Garden

Dry Elbow Home Remedies

Sugar Scrub:

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/8 cup olive oil

• Mix ingredients in a bowl. Massage the scrub into elbows, knees, ankles & any other dry spots. Wash off after 30 minutes.

Crisco (or any other lard)

• Before bed rub Crisco into the dry elbow patches then slide on a pair of clean cut socks (to use as elbow protectors). Do this every night until dry patches disappear.

Lemon Salt Scrub

• Squeeze the juice out of two quarter wedges of a lemon, add salt then scrub into your elbows gently, trying to sluff away the dead skin. Then take the lemon wedges and lean your elbows on them (one elbow on each). Rest like this for 10 minutes. Do this daily until the dark patches disappear.

Lemon Soft Scrub

• Mix fresh lemon juice and baking soda to make a thick paste, apply to dry elbows. Gently rub in to exfoliate the skin and leave to sit for about 15 minutes. Wash off and apply a moisturizer or Vaseline.

Rehydrating Soak

• Exfoliate elbows with a favorite scrub or loofah, then soak elbows in warm water for 10 minutes. Apply Vaseline. If you apply Vaseline to the dry areas right after a hot bath or shower, this will have the same effect.

Basic Maintenance Treatment: Exfoliate or scrub elbows daily then apply honey, Vaseline or a rich moisturizer to elbows. If using honey, leave on for 30 minutes before washing off.

Tip: Use a clean sock, cut off to have two open ends, and slide on over your elbows when applying moisturizing treatments to try to protect the moisturizer from rubbing off (especially good for overnight treatments). You could also wrap your elbows in plastic wrap.

If your elbow patches are thick and quite dark, this will take several regular treatments to clear up.

Amish Onion Pie

4 thick slices of bacon, diced
2 cups chopped onions
1 cup sour cream
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 Tbsp flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
9'' pie shell, unbaked, (or you can use your own recipe too.)
caraway seeds optional

Saute bacon in a large skillet until evenly browned. Drain, but reserve 2 Tbsp drippings. Crumble bacon and set aside.
Saute onions in reserved bacon drippings until clear.
Return crumbled bacon to skillet.
Stir in sour cream, eggs, flour, salt and pepper. Mix well.
Pour filling into pie crust
Sprinkle with caraway seeds, if you wish.
Bake at 425 degrees for 1 hour, or until onions are golden brown.
Makes 6-8 servings

Chocolate Chunk Shortbread

3/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
3 squares (1 ounce each) semisweet chocolate,
coarsely chopped
Additional confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 300 F. In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar. Gradually add the flour and cornstarch. Stir in the chocolate. Shape into 1 inch balls. Place 1 inch apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Flatten with a glass dipped in additional confectioners sugar. Bake for 30-33 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool.
Yield: about 3 1/2 dozen

Taste Of Home - recipe by Brenda Mumma

Buttery Crescents

1 pkg (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water (110-115 F)
1/2 cup warm milk (110-115 F)
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup sugar
1 egg
3/4 tsp salt
4 to 4 1/2 cups flour
additional butter, melted

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast in warm water. Add the milk, butter, sugar, egg, salt, and 2 cups of flour. Beat on medium speed for 2 minutes. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. Turn onto a flour surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. Punch the dough down. Turn onto a floured surface. Divide in half. Roll each portion into a 12 inch circle. Cut each circle into 12 wedges. Roll up the wedges from the wide end and place pointed end down 2 inches apart on a greased baking sheets. Curve ends to form crescents. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 30 minutes. Bake at 375 F. for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with melted butter. Remove from the pans to wire racks to cool.
Yield: 2 dozen

Taste Of Home - recipe by Kevin Weeks

The 48th Homesteading Carnival: April Showers brings May Flowers

Be sure and check out this weeks Homestead Carnival.

I opened up the hive today for the first time since installing my bees on April 10. thay have been very busy and are producing very well.

I am burning up in this suit! Way to hot for our weather!!

Flautas is Spanish for flutes. Chicken flautas are traditionally served with rice and beans. You can also use beef or black beans as fillings for flautas.

• 12 corn tortillas
• 2 cups Tomatillo Sauce
• grated cheddar cheese
• 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken
• cooking oil for frying
• shredded lettuce
• Crema or sour cream
• Guacamole

Combine the chicken with the tomatillo sauce, heat, and keep warm.

Heat a cast iron skillet or griddle to medium-hot. Lay a tortilla on the hot surface for a few seconds, then turn and heat the other side. This will make the tortilla pliable enough to roll in a tight flute. (See Note, below.) The fresher the tortilla, the better.

Spread 1 heaping tablespoon of the chicken/tomatillo sauce mixture along one side of the tortilla, and roll the tortilla into a flute -- as tightly as possible without tearing the tortilla. Lay the tortilla flute flap down, and continue filling and rolling the rest of the tortillas.

Heat about an inch of cooking oil in the skillet. The oil should be hot enough to make a few drops of water sizzle when sprinkled into it, or 375°F. Carefully lay the flautas, three at a time, in the hot oil, flap side down, and cook until they are golden and crisp. Drain and keep warm until all flautas are cooked.

Makes four servings of three flautas each. Garnish with crema or sour cream. On the plate include lettuce, chilled, ripe tomato wedges, and a scoop of guacamole.

As a side, serve Mexican Red Rice.

Note: The best flautas are made with homemade corn tortillas because you can press them thinner than those from the store, not to mention the fact that they taste so much better. See our article on How to Make Corn Tortillas.

An alternative method for softening the tortillas is to dip each one into hot oil (use tongs) just until it becomes limp. Remove at once, drain, and repeat with the remaining tortillas. Don't forget to turn off the heat under the skillet while you fill the tortillas.

http://www.texascooking.com/recipes/chickenflautas.htm

Coffee Creamer Recipes

French Vanilla

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 1 Tbsp. vanilla

Almond Orange Cappuccino

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 1/2 tsp. orange extract

Amaretto

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 tsp. almond extract

Almond Cappuccino

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 1 tsp. almond extract
• 1/2 tsp. orange extract

Chocolate Almond

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 1 to 2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. almond extract

Chocolate Truffle Mint

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
• 3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. peppermint extract

Directions

Mix all ingredients in a glass container. It is best stored in glass mason jar. Remember to shake before pouring, as the condensed milk will settle to the bottom. This will keep for 2 weeks in the refrigerator.

Tip: substitute low fat sweetened condensed milk for regular for a healthier alternative.

Liquid coffee creamer base can also be made by mixing 1 cup of dry coffee creamer with 1 cup of hot water. Mix until dissolved. Add 1 cup of cold water. Store in a mason jar in the refrigerator.

Try creating a powder from your favorite candy. Candy canes now come in many flavors. By adding bits of candy to your food processor and processing until the candy bits are a powder, you can add new flavors to your coffee creamer with a fraction of the cost of commercial flavored creamers. Simply add the powdered candy bits to your liquid coffee creamer and shake well to dissolve.

Source: Sent to me by a friend

Cake Mix Peach Cobbler

Ingredients

• 1 full-sized box of spice cake mix
• 2 cans peach pie filling
• 1/2 cup quick cooking oats
• 1/4 cup melted butter
• 12 ounces lemon lime soda (Sprite, Seven-Up, etc.)

Directions

Spray a 13x9x2 inch cake pan with Pam. Spread the pie filling in the pan. Dump the dry cake mix over the pie filling. Sprinkle the oatmeal over the cake mix. Pour the butter all over the top of the oatmeal. Pour the soda over the butter. Bake at 375 degrees F preheated oven for 45 minutes. Cool and eat with ice cream.

Summer Peach Mousse

This is so good, especially if you love peaches!

Ingredients

• 3 oz. package peach flavor Jello
• 1 cup boiling water
• 2 cups sliced peeled, ripe peaches*
• 2 Tbsp. honey
• 1/4 tsp. almond extract
• 1 cup whipping cream,whipped
• Fresh peach slices
• fresh blueberries or raspberries

Directions

In large bowl, dissolve Jello in boiling water. In blender or food processor bowl, with metal blade, combine peaches, honey and almond extract. Blend until smooth. Stir peach mixture into Jello. Cover, refrigerate until thickened but not set (1-1 1/2 hours). Beat gelatin mixture at high speed until doubled in volume, about 5 minutes. Fold in whipped cream. Pour into 1 1/2 qt bowl. Cover and refrigerate about 4 hours.

One way to serve is to place serving of mousse in center of individual small plates. Arrange fresh fruit around mousse.

Refrigerator Pops

With summer almost here (YEA!), I found some really good but healthy Refrigerator Pops for the kids.

Strawberry-Banana Cream Pops

Ingredients

• 2 (8 oz.) cartons of strawberry yogurt
• 1 cup sliced fresh strawberries
• 1 ripe banana
• 1 Tbsp. honey
• 8 (3 oz.) cold drink cups
• 8 wooden sticks

Directions

In your blender or food processor bowl with metal blade, combine yogurt, strawberries, banana and honey; blend till smooth. Fill each cup with about 1/3 cup yogurt mixture. Place cups in freezer until partially frozen, (about 1 hour). Insert sticks, freeze until firm (about 2 hours). Remove drink cups and serve.

MMMM, now I want one! I am not trying to be funny but I am thinking summer and having one of these!

Pineapple Orange Pops

Ingredients

• 8 oz. carton plain yogurt
• 8 oz. can crushed pineapple, undrained
• 6 oz. can frozen pineapple-orange juice concentrate, thawed
• 8 (3 oz.) cold drink cups
• 8 wooden sticks

Directions

In blender or food processor in bowl with metal blade, combine yogurt, pineapple and pineapple-orange juice concentrate, blend until smooth. Fill each cup with about 1/3 cup pineapple mixture. Place cups in freezer until partially frozen, (about 1 hr). Insert sticks then freeze till firm, about 2 hours. Remove cups and serve.

Icy Watermelon Pops

Cut watermelon into slices about 1 1/4 inches thick. Cut each slice into pie shaped wedges of desired size. Using a sharp knife, pierce rind, insert wooden stick. Place on waxed paper lined pan or tray, freeze till firm. Wrap individually in foil or plastic wrap. Store in freezer.