1st Years Gardening Part II

This was our vegetable patch at one point along the way. Kids can dig up all the weeds and roots while playing. Perfect!

I was very excited about my garden. I had BIG dreams about being very self sufficient, providing my family with tons of vegetables. I had BIG ideas! With everything going on at home, being big, heavy and pregnant, and having a hard enough time keeping up the basics at home, maybe gardening could've waited another calendar year. However, I am no quitter! Even if I did not give my 100% and did what should've been required, I still got - and am getting - something out of my garden experiment!

My broccoli plants grew really big but they produced small florets that I just couldn't see my family having to fight over during dinner time. Eventually, we dug them out, fed them our pet Guinea Pigs and made room for other plants, which I had sown into decomposable pots ready to plant.

The broccoli is on the left. They are still small in this picture. I never did take a picture of how big they grew. Lets put it this way, I could not see the soil around them. They stretched beyond the two planks along side them.

My lettuce was a hit. However, it may have been too much of a hassle outside and I could've easily had the plants inside. The lettuce grew fast and provided me the greens I needed for my famous smoothies. It was just the damn slugs that got to me. Endless slugs! Not a big fan of slimy slugs. I googled how to get rid of slugs without using overly harsh chemicals and how to make home-made, non-toxic pestacide. I will blog those recipes.

My spinach prematurely bolted, since June was a bit too cold. I planted new plants in July and we got a good freezer bag full of leaves. I gave the rest to the Guinea Pigs and removed the roots from my patch. I have big plans for my gardens empty space, oh yah! Just wait and see!

My spring onions did fine, grew well and were delish!! Yum YUM! I planted more!

I had planted my chard and dill right under our dryers 'fume pipe' which put me off. Our Guinea Pigs seem to benefit most from our garden.

1st years Gardening Part I

 

This is what was I was facing with all my little seedlings needing to be planted a.s.a.p! I had my work cut out for me and I was heavily pregnant too. Thank God for a loving, caring and strong husband. It took several days to clear this vegetable patch out. Several new gardening tools too, which we were luckily able to borrow.

I really like this picture above. It reminds me of the verse in Genesis!

 Genesis 3:16-19

¹⁶ To the woman he said,

“I will make your pains in childbearing very severe;
    with painful labour you will give birth to children.
Your desire will be for your husband,
    and he will rule over you. ”

¹⁷ To Adam he said, “Because you listened to your wife and ate fruit from the tree about which I commanded you, ‘You must not eat from it,’

“Cursed is the ground because of you;
    through painful toil you will eat food from it
    all the days of your life.
¹⁸ It will produce thorns and thistles for you,
    and you will eat the plants of the field.
¹⁹ By the sweat of your brow
    you will eat your food
until you return to the ground,
    since from it you were taken;
for dust you are
    and to dust you will return.”

I got them planted all in a rows. I placed planks in between the rows for easy access to the plants and also so I didn't have to stand on the soil.

I planted peas, broccoli, spinach, spring onions, tomatoes, dill and Swiss chard. Little did I know that half of these weren't going to work out as I had planned, for one reason or another. I will explain more in part II and III.

 My aunt had brought me herb pots for my yard.

The little beginnings of our pumpkins, squash, zucchini.

DIY Laundry Whitener

I am so happy to discover a non-toxic, non-smelly laundry whitener! After some research and tries of my own, I have come to the conclusion that these ( below) are the best ways that work for us! 

The Complete Guide to Imperfect Homemaking http://www.imperfecthomemaking.com/2011/05/laundry-tip-whiter-whites-naturally.html

DIY Tooth Paste

I've been wanting to post about DIY Tooth Paste for so long now but, I had to go through some trials and errors before I could.

I found a recipe online for DIY T-P and ordered the ingredients online. After about 2 weeks, I finally received the last potion for my toothpaste I could now give it a try. Well, to my dissapointment the toothpaste was horrid! I couldn't finish my teethbrushing and with the few first strokes I nearly vomited! It was BAD (for me).

I then did some research and came up with a *cathy version* yet a healthy version!

Ingredients

• 2 T Coconut Oil
• 2 T Baking Soda
• 1 T Magnesium-Calcium Powder (emptied approx. 8 capsules)
• 1/4 C fruit flavoured TUMS (grinded) -it's calcium! (optional)
• 2 T xylitol powder
• 10 g stevia powder
• 20 drops of peppermint oil (other minty oils are available)
• 10 drops of trace minerals  

verdict: Good enough. :)

Anti-Bloat Detox Drink

Anti-Bloat Detox Drink (directly copied and pasted from Saila Savolainen's Blog Post)

A while back, I came across this Jillian Michaels drink recipe for getting rid of excess water weight.  She recommends using it for seven days in a row and that should flush out all the liquids you're retaining.  When I tried it myself, I didn't lose any weight, but I felt really refreshed and light while drinking it and afterwards.  So I definitely recommend this drink if you're feeling a bit heavy and bloated.  You can also just drink it for one day or do the whole detox.  Here's everything that you need:

INGREDIENTS:
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
-1 tablespoon cranberry juice (no sugar added)
-dandelion infusion tea
-60 oz. (about 1.5 liters) water

STEPS:
1. Brew a cup of dandelion tea (I use Clipper's Dandelion & Burdock tea).
2. Mix the brewed tea with all the other ingredients.
3. Keep in the fridge and enjoy throughout the day (I like to give it a little stir before pouring a new glass). 

It's that simple!  Some people say it makes you feel a little light-headed, but I haven't really had that problem

-Saila

Cathy's Live Super Power Trail-Mix Fiber Bars

These are amazingly healthy power bars! They are a good source of fiber for your digestive system and not too harsh on your colon as some grains might be. They are beneficial to your health in great ways; they are pact with protein, antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, good omegas and give you the energy you need! 

These are truly Super Power Bars!

Ingredients

(soaked for over night)

1 1/2 C raw almonds

1 C       raisins

1/2 C    raw sesame seeds

1/2 C    dried cranberries

1/2 C    sunflower seeds

1/4 C    chia seeds soaked for 15minutes

1 apple, peeled, cored and shredded

(dry ingredients)

2/3 C    ground golden flax 

1/4 C    hemp protein

1/4 C    mesquite pod meal

1/4 C    cacao nibs

1/2 C    oats

10g       powdered stevia

1 tbsp   extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp   raw coconut oil

1/2 C   apple juice

Optional: add 1 tbsp of lemon juice and a dash of salt. 

Drain the soaked ingredients and place them in a food processor. Grind them coarsly. Add the shredded apple, chia seeds, oils and apple juice. Stir in the dry ingredients and mix well.

 (look at the amazing fiber already!)

Dehydrator instructions: Spread onto paraflexx/teflexx sheets about 1cm thickness and score.

Set temperature to 135*F for 2h and then flip over, peel off sheets and set temperature at 115*F for another 4-6h untill dry.

Oven instructions: Spread onto parchment sheets on oven trays about 1cm thickness and score. Set the oven on the lowest temperature (50*C?) and leave oven door slightly open. After 3-5 hours flip over and remove sheet and dry untill dry. Usually over night.

Give it a try!

Want to know the difference with LIVE and RAW food?

 Click HERE! and HERE! and HERE!

Home Made Coconut Oil Baby Wipes

Here is another recipe for home made baby wipes. Instead of using baby oil, I used coconut oil which is waaaaaaay better for your skin! And it smells so delish!

• Combine 2 cups of water, 1 tablespoon of rubbing alcohol, and 2 tablespoons of COCONUT OIL in a mixing bowl. Mix the alcohol and the oil together first, then add the warm water!
• Fold half of a good quality kitchen paper roll into a babywipe container.
• Drizzle the liquid mixture over the paper towels. 
• Let is soak up for 30 minutes.
• To prevent the wipes from drying out, keep the lid on at all times. 

Home Made Laundry Deteregent

I have been making our own laundry detergent for some time now. 1, it saves us lots of money, 2 it's ecofriendly, 3 non-toxic.... etc 

I made the dry laundry soap version for some time, and now I have gradually moved onto the liquid version. I prefer the liquid version better since it's more effective and for some strange reason, I feel better when I see suds during the cycle :-)

This is from the Duggar Family Recipes. They are such a neat family! 

Ingredients:

4  Cups - hot tap water
1  Fels-Naptha soap bar (or any good soap)
1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda*
½ Cup Borax


- Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir continually over medium-low heat until soap dissolves and is melted.
-Fill a 5 gallon bucket half full of hot tap water. Add melted soap, washing soda and Borax. Stir well until all powder is dissolved. Fill bucket to top with more hot water. Stir, cover and let sit overnight to thicken.
-Stir and fill a used, clean, laundry soap dispenser half full with soap and then fill rest of way with water. Shake before each use. (will gel)
-Optional: You can add 10-15 drops of essential oil per 2 gallons. Add once soap has cooled. Ideas: lavender, rosemary, tea tree oil.
-Yield: Liquid soap recipe makes 10 gallons.
-Top Load Machine- 5/8 Cup per load (Approx. 180 loads)
-Front Load Machines- ¼ Cup per load (Approx. 640 loads)
*Arm & Hammer "Super Washing Soda" - in some stores or may be purchased online here (at Meijer.com). Baking Soda will not work, nor will Arm & Hammer Detergent - It must be sodium carbonate!!

Grape, Flax and Mango Fruit Leather

Step 1 
Puree the grapes, mango and ground golden flax in a blender,

Step 2
Spread onto a parchment paper or onto a dehydrator sheet,

Step 3

Dehydrate in a dehydrator at 115*F or in the oven below 50*C (door slightly open) untill slightly tacky. Roll up with parchement paper or clin film and cut into 1" pieces. Store in zip lock bags. Y

YUMMY!

Home Made Crushed Tomatoes

What to do with tomatoes which you need to use right now?! I got two bags of 'amost off' tomatoes from the food bank today, and I chucked them into the blender with 5 cloves of garlic. Poured the puree into zip lock bags and into the freezer they went! I use crushed tomatoes all the time in my cooking, so this was ideal!

DIY Citrus Cleaner

A few weeks ago my friend Heidi (blogger of House Wife University) gave me this link for DIY Citrus Cleaner. I am a big fan of non-toxic homecare, and not only does it save our pennies but it saves the planet too. Come to think of it, if my kids happened to drink it, I wouldn't have to call 911. Chemical based cleaning products today are extremely toxic and cause all sorts of illnesses from asthma to migraines.

It's tough on grime, tough on scum, antibacterial and has a pleasent smell. Very easy to make! 

Ingredients

a mason jar or container with tight fitting lid

orange or any citrus peel

quart of white vinegar

spray bottle (for later use)

water

After eating a few oranges, save the peels and place them into the jar/container with the vinegar. Close it tightly and leave to sit for 2 weeks. Two weeks later, discard the peels and fill a spray bottle with half of the vinegar solution and half water.

Excellent! Give it a go!

I am going to try this with lavender, lime, mint, cinnamon sticks, and whatever I can come up with that is antibacterial and has a pleasent smell.

Semi-Healthy Oat and Seed Treats I

I got this idea from the original Rice Crispie Treats recipe. I'm just experimenting with different methods and ingredients. I don't think that this will be 'it' since it is not completely healthy. I am aiming for recipes that are only good for you.

Ingredients

(Click on the highlighted ingredients to find out more about why they are good for you)

1/2 C raisins
3/4 C oats
1/4 C chia seeds
"     C sesame seeds
"     C golden flax seeds grounded
4    T  butter/coconut oil (coconut oil is waaaaay better for you!)
4    T  sugar free peanut butter
approx. 200g mini marshmellows
1    t    hemp protein
"     t    mesquite pod meal
1/2 t    cinnamon
1    t    cacao nibs

makes about 20 pieces each being approx. 125 calories.

On medium heat, melt butter/oil, peanut butter and marshmellows. In a seperate bowl mix in the raisins and dry ingredients. Turn off the heat and mix in the dry ingredients and spread onto a greased dish or onto a cookie tray with parchment paper. Score into 20 equal size pieces (if you are calorie counting) and let cool in the fridge.

They were yummy! My son said he would like me to make these for his birthday party. My kids couldn't get enough of them.

Growing Vegetables (in small spaces) part I

This year I have decided to grow our own food on our upper balcony. I ordered a book on Amazon on how to grow vegetables in small spaces, because I do not have my own allotment or even a backyard. The book is so clear and really thorough. It's a great step by step guide and gives you loads of good tips. I like it because it teaches me that we can plant vegetables and herbs in anything! Boy, you should see what we are using! From bread tins to plastic recycling boxes (for now)!

 (The yellow post-its are marks for the vegg and herbs I'm planting)

There are many reasons why we decided to grow our own. It's completely local, good for the enviroment, it's organic, it saves money and it's theraupetic. It's important to learn a skill that should be known anyway. It is a great learning experience for all of us.

We bought seeds for veggies and herbs that we eat regularly, and little by little we have sown the seeds and potted them into bigger pots, getting them prepared to go outside onto the balcony. So far we have dill, cilantro, spring onion, swiss chard, spinach, broccoli, lettuce, peas, tomatoes, squash, pumpkin, sunflower(seeds), and strawberries.

I'm glad my whole family is in this with me. My kids have really enjoyed helping out, sowing seeds and getting dirty with the potting soil :)

My husband is building tables and layers for the vegetables. Do note, we have two balconies, the smaller one is for our garden. The other balcony is for the kids.

I still want to buy a few more veggies and herbs, but for now we are on a budget and I still have time. I know that this will take time, for we are a bit short on cash, but this is an investment, this will save us hundreds! 

The weather is quite warm during the days, so now the plants are going through the 'hardening stage' where the plants are outside during the day and we bring them in for the night. Once they grow a bit bigger and we get some 'donated' pots and compost, we will be replanting them in their final pots.

Raw Apple Crisps

Grab a bunch of organic apples. Wash, core and thinly slice them. Dip them into a bowl of half lemon juice and half water. Remove them onto dehydrator mesh sheets or onto parchment paper if using an oven. 

Dehydrate at 115*F until dry (overnight) or in the oven at the lowest temperature with the door slightly open.

My kids love these as snacks and they are a really good subsitute for regular crisps. I will be experimenting by making veggy crisps and jerkies. Posts coming up soon!

Raw Almond Dip

2 C almonds (soaked for 12h)
2 T lemon juice
1 clove of garlic (roasted)
1 t salt
1 t pepper
1-3 C water, depending on the thickness


You can add, chives, dill, paprika- anything you like! It's a good subsitute for sour cream, but it doesn't taste like sour cream. It's mega healthy!!!

In a blender, process all ingredients untill smooth. Serve chilled!

Raw Almond--Mesquite-Hemp Crackers

1        batch of Almond Dip (recipe here)
1/2 C Mesquite meal
1/2 C Hemp protein
1    C Water
1    C Golden Flax (grinded)

(Click on the ingredients to know more about them and why they are super good for you!)

Step 1, mix in the ingredients to the Almond Dip batch.

Step 2,  spread onto a parchment paper or teflexx* sheet, 2/3cm thickness and score. Dehydrate in a food dehydrator at 145*F for 2 hours, then flip over, remove paper and dehydrate at 115*F until dry.

In the oven: lowest heat possible (50*C?) , with the oven door slightly open, dehydrate until semi dry, flip over and continue dehydrating until dry.

 

I Love, love these with peanut butter/ almond butter and home made chocolate!!! YUMMY!
You can use them as savory crackers as well as sweet crackers by leaving out the roasted
garlic from the almond dip.

Mango Coconut Berry Smoothie

2 C   of Mango juice, either store bought or home made (thicker the better)
1 T    virgin Cold Pressed Coconut Oil
1 C    frozen Berries
1/2 C Baby Spinach, tightly packed
1        medium Banana
3        capsules of multi-billion Probiotics, emptied in

YUMMY!

Raw Almond Sesame Seed and Apricot Bars

1 C Almonds Soaked
1 C Sesame seeds soaked and blended with 1 C of water
1 C Apricots
dash of salt
1-2 C water to mix it into a thick dough
1/2 of Oats
1 t flax seeds
1 t stevia

Chop the apricots, nuts and seeds in a food processor and mix in the remaining ingredients. Pour onto sheets and spread out thinly. Score with a spatula. I put Coco Bean Nibs onto one side for the adults. Just incase it is too bitter for the kid.

Dehydrate at 135*F for 2-3 hours. Flip over,remove the sheet and dehydrate at 115*F untill dry (4-6h). I recommend drizzling melted chocolate on them!

In the oven: lowest heat possible (50*C?) with the oven door slightly open, dehydrate untill semi-dry, flip over and continue dehydrating till dry.

All I can say is YUMMY!

Protein Banana Bread

Protein Banana Bread Recipe (altered by Cathy)

Raw Chocolate Recipe here

Preheat oven to 350°

¼ cup honey
¾ cups vanilla or chocolate protein powder
3 tablespoons olive oil/coconut oil, softened
4 mashed bananas
1/4 cup skim milk
1/4 cup plain non-fat yogurt
2 large egg whites
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Cooking spray or parchment paper

Combine sugar, protein powder, and butter in a bowl; beat at medium speed with electric mixer. Add banana, milk, yogurt, and egg whites; beat well, and set aside.Combine flour, baking soda, and salt; stir well. Add dry ingredients to protein mixture, beating until blended. Spoon batter into a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray; bake at 350º for 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean.

Raw Chocolate Chips

Raw Chocolate Chips, adapted from Angela at Oh She Glows by Cathy

2 tablespoon coconut oil

1 cup cocoa powder (I grinded raw Cocoa Nibs in a coffee grinder)

3 tablespoons honey

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon almond extract

Mix all chocolate chip ingredients together in a food processor. Spread the dough out onto parchment paper and place in the freezer for about 30 minutes after 15 minutes. Flip the chocolate sheet over for even freezing.  When chocolate is frozen, cut into chips. Store in a plastic bag in the freezer.

YUMMY!

Beet and Swede Soup

I only happened to have these vegg in my fridge. The kids loved the colour of the soup and they had seconds. Serve it with Rosattis (link)

Cut up equal amount of

Beet
Potato
Swede

approx. 1-2 C of each

Put to boil in 0.5-1L of water, so it is covered. Add an OXO cube, bay leaf (remove later), 1T dried basil, parsley, 1t dried thyme, 1/2 T dried chives, dash of salt and pepper, 1 t oregano

While it's boiling, fry up an onion, 3 garlic cloves in olive oil until the onions have turned golden, at which point remove it from the heat.

Once beets have soften up, pour the soup and fried onions into a blender, blend till smooth, adding 1/2 C cooking cream as it blends.

  Garnish with cilantro

Raw Chia Seed and Date Crackers

2/3 C  Dates (soaked)
1         Shredded Carrot
1    C  Raw Almond or Peanut Butter
2/3 C  Goji Berries (soaked)
1/2 C  Chia Seeds soaked in 1.5 C of water (Chia seeds will soak it up)
2         Slices of sun dried tomatoes in oil
2 T      of the Sun Dried Tomato oil
dash of salt

Drain the dates, Tomatoes, and Goji berries, place in a food processor with 'S' blade, chop till fine, and add Chia seed pulp, Almond butter, shredded carrot, oil and salt, mix well.

Spread thinly onto a Teflexx sheet or parchment paper, score with a spatula and dehydrate at 135*F for 2-3 hours. Flip over, remove sheet and continue to dehydrate at 115*F untill dry. Store in sealed container. Will keep for 1-2weeks.

You can dehydrate in the oven too. Just make sure you are using the lowest temperature possible with the door slightly open.

Yummy with Peanut Butter/ Almond Butter/ sliced strawberries/ and or home made jam. Great lunchbox snack for the kids.

"Rosatti" Flat Bread

Well, I can't say enough about how much we love Indian and African food. More accurately, the wonderful types of bread that are served up with each meal. As a family we decided to create our own. African chapatti are somewhat oily and Indian Roti too dry, so we opted for somewhere in the middle. Our little experiment soon became known as the 'Rosatti'. I hope I don't need to explain the name? Anyway, ROti, chapATTI, and family name ROSE. Pretty clever, eh! 

They are just fantastic with Indian curries, African stews, as tortillas for Quesadilla, or just with peanut butter and jelly.

Ingredients:

3 1/2    decilitre Water
6-8      decilitre Flour
1/2 t     salt
3 T       olive oil

First mix the wet ingredients together and then add in the dry ingredients little by little until you have slighty tacky dough.

Divide the dough into 16 equal sized dough balls and place them under a towel, so they don't dry out.

On a floured surface begin to roll out each dough ball, adding a sprinkle of flour to aid the rolling process when required. Roll the dough until you have nicely sized, thin Rosatti.

Place the uncooked Rosatti onto a preheated (medium heat) skillet. Once the dough has gained some beige colour spots, flip it over and repeat. Flip the Rosatti again, which often results in the bubbling effect of the bread. Simply take the cooked Rosatti out, place it onto a plate nearby and place a towel over. Then repeat the whole process for the remaining dough balls.

Coming Up With Meals, -NOW!

I have found this particular site very helpful in those times where I feel that my brain is mush and I cannot come up with a basic, simple meal to make for me and my family. A few years ago, I stumbled across THIS site which helped me tremendously during those rough times, where I felt overwhelmed with having to come up with what to eat, especially when my pantry was pretty empty!? Having a newborn and a toddler running around, the idea of getting dressed up (mid winter for example) to walk to the shop to buy something was not appealing in the slightest!

This site is awesome! All I did was type in the ingredients I already had and it would give me several recipes and options I could make, from desserts to main entrees! From all around the world. Today I am making a Maleysian rice meal. Since my main ingredients (in my pantry) are onions and rice... :)

I am pretty good at improvising and throwing in a few extra items to make it more "ME"

Have a play! Makes my life a bit easier from time to time.