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    • Essential Oil DIY Recipes and Ideas
    • Essential Oil Academy >
      • Essential Oils 101
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Muffins 3 Ways! A No Fail Muffin Recipe.

8/1/2018

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I wanted a great basic muffin recipe that I could use as a base for adding many different flavors and with ingredients I usually have on hand! 
Ingredients:

Cream together:
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter with 3/4 cup sugar

Mix in:
2 eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup applesauce
Optional 6 drops Vitality Essential Oil (Lime, Orange, Lemon, etc..) 
Mix in dry ingredients until just combined:
1 & 2/3 cup flour (white, wheat, einkorn, whatever)
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder

​Add in any other ingredients (dried fruit, nuts, etc..)

Bake at 350* until done (~25 minutes)
​​
I love this recipe because it adapts to anything I want to make. Just a simple, basic muffin recipe that never fails. I've made peach muffins, key lime, lemon poppyseed, orange pecan cranberry, and I'm sure there will be more. 
Tested and Approved! The 3 flavors below are YUMMY.
Get Vitality Oils Here
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Key Lime

ADD IN:
  • 6 drops Lime Vitality Essential Oil
  • top with whipped cream and buttered graham cracker crumbs!
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Lemon Poppyseed

ADD IN:
  • 6 Drops Lemon Vitality Essential Oil
  • 1/4 cup poppyseeds (These are my FAVE and we make them all the time.)
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Orange Cranberry

ADD IN:
  • 6 Drops Orange Vitality Essential Oil
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1/2 cup dried cranberries

You May Also Enjoy:

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Sourcing Local Food

8/31/2015

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There are a million reasons why you should eat food grown in your own yard, but gardening has its own set of troubles and requirements. So, if for some reason you can't grow your own garden, FIND SOMEONE WHO CAN. Go to the farmer's market and eat all the locally grown foods you can find there! The bonus is, it's probably even cheaper than the grocery store, and twice as delicious. Or, if you don't have much space, consider planter boxes on the porch, deck, terrace, or windowsill filled with cherry tomatoes and cucumbers. Go to your friend or family member with a huge garden and ask if you can plant a corner there, or barter for veggies. There's a time in August when every person with a garden in Kentucky is giving away zucchini because they can't eat any more. Ask around! Someone has homegrown food that you can access. This week we picked up our meat from a local, sustainable farm instead of picking it up at the grocery when we went. The quality is outstanding, and the price was only moderately more. I was so pleased! We got 10lbs of ground beef, one whole chicken, a beef roast, and 2 lbs of sausage for $104. That amount would have probably cost us around $85 at the grocery store, and this has infinitely better quality, is from my hometown where I have seen how it was raised, and I get to support a friend in the process. I know we are supremely fortunate to have access to such great quality meat right here in our hometown, but I would venture to guess that whatever it is you are wanting find locally that you can probably find it if you just look around a little bit. 

Tips for Finding Locally Grown Food

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  • Do you live near an Amish or Mennonite community? Go explore! There are usually little grocery stores and bulk stores within those communities where you can find fresh and local produce, meat, and dairy, not to mention yummy baked goods.
  • Ask around. Ask the people at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's if they have found a good source for local eggs. I know where I live there are even handwritten signs on the side of the road advertising eggs for sale. Call one of those numbers.
  • Buy direct. Find a farmer you can buy directly from. Oftentimes you can work with a farmer to deliver your cow (or pig, or chickens) to the local processor where you can pick up a years worth of meat for a fraction of store costs. If you're having trouble finding a local farmer, talk to a meat processor. Farmers aren't always listed, but meat processors will be. 
  • Search for a local CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) where you can sign up to receive a box of produce weekly from a local farm. It's a great way to get a bunch of produce for a reasonable price, and it's like picking up a gift every week.
  • Re-consider raising your own. Have you ever heard of a micro-farm? You can do so much farming with very little space! Check out The Urban Homestead and see what they do with a super small space!
  • If you absolutely can't find a local producer of meat or vegetables, guess what? You need to start a business. The market is there. People want good food. 

Central Kentucky Local Food Sources

Pike Valley Farm
Terrapin Hill Farm
Marksbury Farm/Pasture
Yoder's Processing
The Nutrition Center
Your Farmer's Market
Good Foods
Whole Foods/Trader Joe's

The Bluebird
If you know of any other local and sustainable food sources in central Kentucky, please share them with me and I will add them to the list!

Bonus Tip!

Next time you eat at an ethnic restaurant, look to see if there is a store nearby! Next door to our favorite indian restaurant there is a store that sells Indian foods and goods. While not all things there will be local, they will usually be of good quality and "local" to that ethnicity. Plus you'll find great deals on bulk spices and ingredients. specific to that type of food. We always make sure to check out the Japanese markets, Mexican tiendas. and Indian stores because we love to eat culturally diverse foods and that's where you'll find the most authentic foods for each culture. 
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The Complete Guide to Steel Cut Oats

8/28/2015

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I don't claim to be an expert at most things. But this? I know steel cut oats. And I definitely know the cookies that come after the oats. 
Steel cut oats take a long time to prepare, usually 45 minutes to and hour. I do NOT like standing at the stove for an hour stirring and waiting and stirring and waiting. Follow this tip to change your steel cut oat game. I don't remember where I heard it many years ago when I first started cooking oats (Maybe in the book Nourishing Traditions?) but I'll never forget this simple solution. 
  1. You know you're going to want oats in the morning. 
  2. Do THIS the night before: Mix together your oats and water, and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute.
  3. VERY IMPORTANT: Your ratio is 2:5. Two parts oats to five parts water. Trust me, this knowledge came from much trial and error. There were several less-than-desirable bowls of oatmeal before we found this sweet spot. I use 5 cups of water to 2 cups of steel cut oats. This will make the perfect thickness of oats for our preference. We don't like runny oats. This is also the perfect consistency for the cookie recipe that should follow every batch of these oats. 
  4. In the morning, add a little cream or milk (around a quarter cup), and heat oats through while stirring. All the hard work was done while you slept the night away. 
  5. Dish it out and add your toppings of choice. For us that usually means maple syrup, or brown sugar and cinnamon. 
  6. Save the leftovers for cookies. I use all the leftovers in my cookies, even though that amount varies. The following recipe is very forgiving as long as your oatmeal is the right consistency.

The Leftover Oatmeal Cookie Guide



These cookies are so good I paint pictures about them. Download your free art printable and recipe PDF with my original watercolor "The Last Cookie". >>>>>>>>>RIGHT>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>OVER>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>>>>>THERE>>>>>>
the_last_cookie_pdf_printable.pdf
File Size: 936 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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Like the photo says, These are the ingredients:
  • 2 Cups Whole wheat Flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup of honey OR 1 cup sucanat (or white sugar if those aren't an option, but they are not as good with white sugar!)
  • 1 stick of butter, softened (I always use butter, but I'd bet coconut oil would work for vegans)
  • 2 eggs (can use 1 egg if low on eggs, or a flax egg if vegan or out of eggs)
  • 1.5 cups of leftover oatmeal (I never measure and simply use whatever is left, somewhere between 1 and 3 cups)
  • Chocolate Chips and walnuts, or any assorted dried fruits, nuts, or other add-inns
These are super simple! Just mix them up, scoop them out and bake at 375 degrees for 12-15 minutes. My first batch usually takes 15 minutes, but if I reuse the warm pan to bake more it takes around 12 minutes the second round. 

Video Guides

I'm excited to include these video instructions as well, because sometimes, you just need a visual! These were all broadcast live on Periscope, so you may see some interaction with viewers thrown into the instruction, but all the good info is still in there.


 Steel cut oats are good for you, inexpensive, and even if you don't love oatmeal, the cookies that follow the oats are the bomb.  I love making something that all my kids love. They all love oatmeal, and they love these cookies. They are an excellent option for an after school snack, a quick breakfast, or a late night snack made from whole ingredients instead of junk. 
It's really the best part of YouTube videos, getting to see the weird faces that pop up on your thumbnail. I guess 1 out of 5 isn't too bad ;)
If you made it all the way through to the end, I'm super mega impressed! Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by Hearth and Caravan to learn about making oats. Please leave your questions or comments here or find me @hearth_caravan on Twitter, Instagram, and Periscope and here on Facebook.  I would love to hear if you make steel cut oats regularly, or if this post has inspired you to start doing so!
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The First Step Toward Your Homestead Dream

8/14/2015

6 Comments

 
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We're all at different places in our journey to a simpler life, in different parts of the country, with different finances. But one thing we can all do to move toward a simpler lifestyle is make our own bread. (Even if you don't eat bread, stick around, this applies to you too!) For those of you who do eat bread, go get the ingredients, mix them up, knead your dough and bake your own loaf of bread. 
The reason for this is threefold:
  • If you forego buying bread at the store, you will have made a healthier choice firstly, by choosing to eat bread without added chemicals, sweeteners and hydrogenated oils. 
  • Secondly, you will have created something with your hands to consume. Into your body. Yes. That is good stuff.
  • And thirdly, You will literally not believe how freaking delicious homemade bread is if you have never made it before.  (And I'm not one to overuse the word literally.)

I believe that we homesteaders (that includes homestead wannabes!) are creators and generally want to be conscious of the foods we put into our bodies. Even so, I don't know how many times we have fallen back on store bought bread for a meal of sandwiches or toast. BUT, if you schedule in the time to make homemade bread once or twice a week, I really believe that some part of your homesteader's soul will be satisfied. Even if you're not able to grow a garden this year. Even if you live in the middle of a booming metropolis. Even if no other part of your life is centered around this ideal. Then, when you do fall back on sandwiches, or toast with cream cheese for a meal, it won't feel like a fall-back at all.
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My favorite bread recipes are usually a half wheat, half white mix with honey or molasses and butter or coconut oil. 
  • This recipe from Betty Crocker is our staple. I buy our yeast in bulk, so I use 2 tablespoons of yeast instead of 2 packets.
  • We use Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day when we need bread throughout the week with little effort. There are all different flavors of bread in this book, but our favorites are the basic recipe, and the cornmeal one (which is similar to what we use for barquitos
Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking
If you are low-carbing it, doing paleo, gluten free, or otherwise have dietary restrictions, it may not be bread for you. It may be corn tortillas you are making from scratch, or  cream cheese pancakes, or anything that would be a good option for you to have on-hand and consume with more confidence, knowing exactly what's in them, and putting your own hand into the making of them. 

So, this week, make some bread! Share with me in the comments or on Twitter using #hearthandcaravan . Share the recipe you used and if you felt like it made a difference in your life. 

P.S. Don't forget to check me out on Periscope (@hearth_caravan) too, where I'll be sharing bits my life with you including aspects of homesteading, travel, and living off the beaten path. 

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The Beginner's Guide to Modern Homesteading

8/7/2015

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It's funny how being intentional in our living usually begins with the foods we eat and the ways we get those foods into our bodies. I call this The Beginner's Guide to Modern Homesteading, because these next several blog posts are the exact ways we began homesteading ourselves around ten years ago. 
Tweet: ... being intentional in our living usually begins with the foods we eat. #homesteading #hearthandcaravan
We have fluctuated in how heartily we have pursued the homesteading lifestyle, but we always come back around to it. It makes us feel better . We feel better about the foods that are going into our bodies when we eat more sustainably because we know where our food comes from, and the way it was prepared, by us, and without a ton of preservatives and non-food additives. The closer we get to our food's source, the better our bodies feel. 
Tweet: The closer we get to our food's source, the better our bodies feel. #homesteading #hearthandcaravan
Keep a lookout on the sidebar for the Beginner's Guide to Modern Homesteading page, where you can find all those posts categorized neatly and ready for you to access. Our hope is that you'll take this information and run with it! Take it, expand it, make it your own version of every recipe, do it your own way, find your own source, and share your homestead successes with us, both small and large. Did you can tomatoes for the first time? Did you make your own bread, or start raising chickens? Did you choose meat from a local farmer instead of a chain store? Did you make pizza instead of ordering out?! Share it all with us and we'll celebrate those successes with you. Homesteading starts because you begin to make decisions about your health and life according to what makes sense to you and what makes you feel better. Screw the FDA and their messed up pyramid. You're someone who doesn't want others telling you what to do, what to eat, and where to get it--It means you choose to take authority of your own life, starting with this bite.
Tweet: ... choose to take authority of your own life, starting with this bite. #homesteading #hearthandcaravan
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