Food Storage Recipe - Fried Apple Pies

Simple little treat!

NEED:

1 package piecrust mix for 2 crust pie (Jiffy)

1 21 oz. can of Apple Pie Filling

1 teapoon ground cinnamon

Cooking Oil

Powdered Sugar

Prepare the piecrust mix as the box states. On a lightly floured surface roll the dough out to about 1/8 inch thick. Cut it into 6 inch circles. Re-roll remaining dough and cut it into 6 inch circles.

In a bowl combine the pie filling and the cinnamon. Place about 1/4 a cup on half of each circle. Fold empty side over the filling and seal the edges with fingers or a fork.

In a heavy skillet heat the oil and fry the pies in it for a few minutes. Until golden brown.

Sprinkle them with powdered sugar after you remove from the oil.

YUMMY

No-Cost Ways To Reduce Your Energy Bills

There are small ways around the home that can be done to help you reduce energy costs. They are easy to do

• You can save quite a bit each year just by washing your laundry in cold water. You can buy special detergents for cold water washing if you want to. I very rarely use hot water to wash any of my laundry anymore. 
• Make sure when you do laundry it is a full load. 
• Air-dry clothes when you can and air-dry dishes.
• If you must use the dryer , always clean out the lint filter. Clean it out after every use. This also helps reduce the risk of fire.
• Dry heavy items separately from lighter-weight items. This helps with efficiency of the dryer.
• Take a shower instead of taking a bath. Uses a lot less water. Get a Low flow showerhead to help even more.
• Fix any leaky faucets or pipes. Even a little drip can waste a lot of water.
• Insulate all of your pipes and water heater. This will really conserve energy and make the water heater work better. It won't have to heat up the water so often because the heat is staying in it better
• Turn off anything when not in use and unplug them if you can.
• Use natural light as often as you can and get used to sitting in the dark. Sometimes you do not need lights on.
• Change the filters in your a/c and heater as often as you can. I was very surprised at how much better our a/c worked this past summer when I changed the filter once a month. 
• Keep the freezer full. It won't work so hard when it is totally full. 

Lots of simple ways to save money!!

Frugal Living & Grow Fruit Indoors Box Set

Frugal Living & Grow Fruit Indoors Box Set: Step by Step Guide on How to Save Money and and Spend Less with Easy to Follow Tips for Growing Tasty Tropical ... fruit indoors books, frugal living tips) was a free book for the kindle or the free kindle reading app at the time of this posting.


 FROM THE DESCRIPTION:

BOOK #1: Frugal Living: Make Life Changing Decisions for Financial Freedom Using This Step by Step Guide on How to Save Money and Spend Less

These days everyone is looking to try and make their money stretch a little further. It seems like as everything we need becomes more expensive our paychecks go a shorter and shorter distance. The easy track might simply be to get a better job but often that can be a difficult route that won't necessarily fix the problem. If you think of your household income how does it make you feel? If you're feeling sad about that number then the tips in this book are ideal for you. Here we will give you some ideas and tips to make that number go further and give you a little more financial freedom without having to get another job.

When we hear the word “frugal” we often think of hard times had by great grandparents and people many years ago. Often this conjures images of tatty houses and dirty people, but by no means does it mean skipping the bath and living in the shed these days. Modern frugal living is all about looking at your budget and tightening up the corners to make it more effective, and it's not necessarily about having to tighten your financial strings but about doing it for good reason. We live in a hugely materialistic society, we are conditioned to want to have more than anyone else and often it's this mindset that leaves us feeling that the amount we earn is what keeps up down. Even if you're working on a truly limited budget there are a variety of ways to make it work and still feel like you have everything you need in life.

Here is what you will learn after reading this book:

• Why you should live frugally
• Setting Frugal Goals and making them work
• Frugal Habits to adopt now
• Steps to making your life Frugal

BOOK #2: Grow Fruit Indoors: Easy to Follow Tips for Growing Tasty Tropical Fruits in Any Home, Anywhere

Tropical fruit is both nutritious and delicious however with the rise in prices tropical fruit can be hard to obtain and expensive. One answer would be to grow your own, however if you live in an area that has a cold climate or in an apartment meaning that you have no space outdoors it is a non starter. Or is it? Do not despair and you can easily grow an abundance of tropical fruits and fruit trees in your home in a container. Provided that you choose the right plant and conditions you too can soon enjoy the fruits of your labor!

I hope that you find the book informative and can soon be able to start preparing, growing and enjoying your tropical fruits.

This book outlines a multitude of specifics required for growing tropical fruit and includes the following:

• Can it be done?
• Location, planting and watering
• Frost, protection, fertilizer and soil
• Climate & awareness
• Common tropical fruit and trees
• Ornamental and edible tropical fruits

Protect Your Money

This time of year there are many ways that you might lose money or be conned. A lot of bad people take advantage of others during the holidays. Here are some ways to easily safe-guard yourself and your money.

• Ignore any junk mail that comes to your home. Just trash it.
• Buy a shredder. Shred any paper that you plan on throwing out. Shred it before you throw it out so no one can get into your trash and find personal information or anything else they could use to steal your identity.
• Don't have checks mailed to your home. Have them directly deposited to your checking account. 
• Get referrals before you have any home repairs. You should be the one looking for a repairman, not them just randomly knocking on your door. This is something that happens a lot when there is a disaster. Con artist repairmen know that people are needy when something bad happens and take advantage. 
• The government, IRS, or utilities will not call your home randomly wanting money. This is a tricky scam. There have been some here lately in our town where the local power company calling people and saying that the person has to pay a huge amount of money to keep their power on. A couple of people have fallen for it and not long after phone call their bank accounts were empty. Sad! So watch out for any phone calls from someone saying you owe a bill. Even when a actual bill collector calls say that you will wait on the paper bill and then pay it that way.
• Stop and think before you act. Never give out credit card info or write a check until you are absolutely sure that it is for the right thing. 

Check out scams on http://www.snopes.com.

Check out businesses on https://www.bbb.org/.

 

DIY Milk Jug Seed Starters

This is a great way to make a low cost, actually free,  cold frame for your  outdoor seeds that winter outside or to do seed starting inside for starting seeds indoors for the spring. We are doing this one. Getting our seeds started very soon indoors so they will be ready for planting outdoors. Or planting indoors in 5 gallon buckets. I have a few items that I want to do indoors. Will be easier for when we get our land to be able to take the plants with us.

But this simple and free milk jug seed starter is a great way to start...

Survival Seeds

• Cut a gallon milk jug in half horizontally. Leave one edge intact so that it will act like a hinge. 
• You can throw away the cap. But, my creative son is wanting to save them to somehow make an outdoor "rug" with. Have them bottom up so that you can use it to scrape mud off shoes.
• Punch several drainage holes into the bottom of the jug.
  
  
  
• Fill the bottom with a few inches of potting soil.
• Moisten it well and plant the seeds.
• Close the top cover and secure with some duct tape.
• Place the jug inside a clear plastic bag and twist tie closed. Since it is in a clear plastic bag it is like its own greenhouse.
• Place in a sunny spot outside out of the way , so it will not be bothered or have to be moved.
• Before transplanting , harden off the seedlings by taking the jug out of the bag and propping it open.

This is a frugal way to start your own garden or to garden indoors. Easy and fun to watch them grow.

Food Storage Recipe - Yummy Quick Meal

The last few weeks the grocery store has had these polish sausage packs on sale for 99 cents. I got as many as I could to stock up. They freeze well. I always keep bags of the 3-pepper blend in the freezer!  They are great for a lot of recipes. I love them for my crock pot chicken fajitas. ( search on this blog for that recipe!)

Take a few potatoes and slice them up. Put them in a big frying pan with some oil. As they are frying slice up the pack of sausage . Add that and some of the 3-pepper mix to the potatoes. Let this all fry up until all of the potatoes are done!

Serve it up!

9 Unique Gift Ideas for Kids

Food Storage Recipe - Peanut Butter Pudding

So simple my 9 year old son makes this!

Need:

1 package instant vanilla pudding mix

Milk

1/4 cup peanut butter

Prepare the pudding according to the directions on the package.

Beat in the peanut butter.

Pour into individual bowls.

Chill and serve!

Take Advantage Of The Sun & Nature

It isn't difficult to utilize the sun to help with easing the cost of your power usage. It will help by using the natural heat and light. You will use less power and be more sufficient. This will save your family money in the long run.

• Orient you buildings to take advantage of the sun and to protect your home from the cold winter winds. You can plant a living "fence" to help with this if you have to. Plant a row of evergreen trees to keep the cold wind away.
• Be sure to have as much insulation in your home as possible. This will also help in the summer by keeping the heat out and in the winter will hold the heat in.
• Think about adding a sunroom to your home. You can vent the heat into the home during the winter and in the summer vent the heat outside.
• Use the natural light during the day. In the winter open the curtains and let that natural light and heat into the house.
• Think about adding brick to the outside of your home. This really helps with controlling the temperature. 
• Use hanging plants and overhangs to cool the home in the summer. 
• Plant your own food garden in your yard to save money on food costs. 

• Have a rain barrel to catch water to use to water your garden and yard. My son also used our rain barrel to wash the cars. Great way to save money on water.

There are many ways to use nature to help you keep your utility bills low.

Real Goods Solar Living Sourcebook: Your Complete Guide to Living beyond the Grid with Renewable Energy Technologies and Sustainable Living

COMMENT BELOW WAYS THAT YOU HAVE USED NATURE TO REDUCE ENERGY COST........

Off Grid Living

Off Grid Living Box Set: 35 Tips on How to Survive Off The Grid Plus Prepper Survival Guide For Food Processing and Preservation, Food Storage And Water ... the grid, food processing and preservation) was a free book for your kindle.A lot of great tips tips to have on hand for if you are ever off-grid or without power for any other reason.