One Hundred Dollars a Month - Page 1724 of 2143 - I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.

How to Grow Your Own Food – 2013 Garden Tally

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 16, 2013 · 33 Comments

This year I’m on a mission to grow 4,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables in my suburban backyard. In 2012 I was able to grow 2,028 pounds, and in 2013 I’m going double or nothing. I have absolutely no idea if I’ll be able to achieve my goal. But, as with any adventure, half the fun is getting there. ~Mavis

{Swiss chard growing in our backyard garden may of 2012}

I’ve decided this is the year for Swiss chard. I am going to plant so much of the stuff, there is going to be an intervention. I still can’t get over how hearty the plant is. Like kale, you couldn’t kill Swiss chard if you tried. In fact, it’s the perfect vegetable for beginners if you ask me, and I’m pretty sure it’s been around since the dinosaurs.

Although I’m not the biggest fan of Swiss chard, our chickens LOVE to munch on it every chance they get. I don’t think I’m going to grow it in our garden boxes this year though, instead, I’m going to try and create some sort of vegetable landscape boarder near the chicken run. This way, I can harvest the leafy greens and toss it over the fence for them to enjoy.

I also plan on growing lot’s of pumpkins, zucchinis and potatoes in an effort to reach my goal of 4,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables in our backyard.

But, if you can think of some other heavy vegetable for me to grow, please leave a comment below. I’d love to hear your ideas.

Here is what I have harvested so far this year:

Beets – 14 ounces

The beets are still chillin’ in the refrigerator, but I did find a cool recipe to try, so I think I’ll make them later this week.

Egg Count – 41 {2.7 per day average}

One of our “baby” chicks that we brought home in early September has begun to lay. It’s kind of exciting too. I have no idea which chicken it is yet, and so far to date she has only laid 3 eggs. I’ll keep you posted.

Sprouts – 6 ounces

I’ve been on a sprouting kick lately. First there were alfalfa sprouts, and now I’m starting up with the bean sprouts again. If you have never tried to grow your own sprouts before, they are super simple and make a great addition to sandwiches and stir fry recipes.

Total Food Harvested in 2013: 1 pound 4 ounces {Only 3,998 pounds 12 ounces to go!}

Total Eggs Collected in 2013: 41

How is YOUR garden planning going so far? Still trying to decided what you are going to plant? Are you going to try anything new this year?

~Mavis

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Baked Macaroni and Cheese

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 15, 2013 · 9 Comments

About 10 years ago I discovered a recipe for baked macaroni and cheese in the Cook’s Illustrated book, Cover & Bake. When I read the ingredients for the recipe, I was in shock. The recipe called for so much milk, butter and cheese, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to try it. At the time I wasn’t a real adventuress cook, and the only mac and cheese I knew, came in a blue box with a dried package of cheese stuff.

But after staring at the open cookbook on the counter for a few days, I finally decided to give the recipe a try.

To sum it up, the Handsome Husband and I ate the entire 9×13 pan of macaroni and cheese ourselves in one sitting. The house smelled like a restaurant and we couldn’t stop talking about it for days. It was awesome, and I can’t imagine every wanting {or liking} the stuff in the blue box again.

Here is my adapted recipe, I hope you like it. We sure do.

Bread Crumb Topping

6 slices sandwich bread or potato rolls, cubed
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Pasta and Cheese

1 lb elbow macaroni or penne noodles
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons dry mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
4 cups milk
6 ounces monterey jack cheese, shredded
6 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions

For the bread crumbs:

In a medium sized bowl toss the cubed bread with melted butter until evenly coated and set aside.

For the Macaroni and cheese:

Bring 4 quarts water to boil in a large pot, cook the pasta until tender, drain and set aside in a colander.

In a large saucepan, melt 5 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add the flour, mustard, and cayenne and whisk until smooth {about 1 minute}. Slowly add in the milk, whisking constantly until the everything is well combined and there are no lumps.

Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and continue to whisk until the sauce is nice and thick {about 3 minutes}.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and slowly stir in shredded cheese until fully melted. Fold in noodles.

Pour noodle mixture into a 9×13 casserole dish and cover with bread topping.

Turn the oven on to broil and toast the buttered bread until just browned. Serve warm.

Dig in!

Cover & Bake

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How to Grow Lavender {Start to Finish}

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 15, 2013 · 14 Comments

This morning planted 2 packets of Lavender. This was the first time I have ever planted lavender, so before I started, I carefully examined the seed packet for any sort of special instructions.

For starters, I learned lavender seeds can take as long as 60 days to germinate. Lavender also needs to go though a process called stratification. Strata what? Stratification is a process of subjecting the seeds to a moist/cold treatment to break dormancy which occurs naturally when seeds are planted outside in the fall.

So basically, I filled a small container with moistened potting soil, planted the seeds, and placed the container in our refrigerator where it will stay for the next 3 to 6 weeks, until they are finished chilling in the refrigerator and ready to go under grow lights.

I’m sure my husband will absolutely LOVE this. It’s bad enough I’ve taken over his office, the garage and the entire backyard. Now I’m staking claim to the refrigerator too. Ha! But who cares right? Lavender is da’ bomb, and it smells soooo good. I know he’ll be thanking me when I start stuffing lavender sachets in his sock drawer. You just wait and see.

Brief description: Lavender is a very fragrant perennial {in zones 5-9} with deep purple flowers.

Where to Plant Lavender: In garden beds, rock beds, raised beds, or containers.

Planting Seeds: Plant 1/8″ deep, with 8 seeds every 10″. Thin to 1 plant every 10″ once plants are 1″ tall.

Growing Tips: Lavender likes a sunny place, but is very drought tolerant and can withstand quite a bit of neglect. {Hmm, if only more people were like this.}

How to Harvest: Clip off as needed, leaving the base of the plant intact.

Here are a few lavender recipes to try:

Lavender Jelly I love lavender, it smells amazing and is easy to grow. It never fails to bring in the bees, and it’s supposed to repel mice, flies and mosquitoes. What a helpful little bugger–or I guess I should say de-bugger. Ha!

Who wouldn’t love to get a jar of Homemade Lavender Bath Salts as a hostess gift? They are super easy and very inexpensive to make.

These homemade lavender sachets are basically the simplest things ever. And, I really like the idea of throwing them in my sock and underwear drawer…because people will totally believe that my feet and butt naturally smell of lavender.

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Frugal Living Tip – 10 Cool Uses for Vinegar

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By Mavis Butterfield on January 15, 2013 · 26 Comments

I’m sure you have heard of a million uses for vinegar, but here are a few more to try:

Put on a pair of cheap $1.00 store cotton gloves. Soak fingertips of glove in a bowl of white vinegar and warm tap water {equal parts}. Run your hands across the bottom and top of blinds.
Clean paintbrushes accidentally left in paint by placing them in a simmering pot of white vinegar. {For dried on paint, let the brushes soak in vinegar for an hour or so prior to adding heat.}
Have some fun with the kids: soak pennies in a bowl of undiluted vinegar overnight. When they wake up, they will have a bowl of shiny pennies.
To prevent glassware from becoming ruined with hard water mineral deposits, spray with undiluted vinegar, rinse them with hot water and dry them.
Clean your coffee maker with 1 cup undiluted vinegar. Run through a brewing cycle. Rinse with water, and run it 1-2 more times with plain water. {Check owner’s manual first}
Fix stained plastic or smelly food containers {can you say left-over spaghetti?} by wiping with a cloth dipped in white vinegar.
To clean brass, copper, or pewter mix a paste with equal parts table salt and white vinegar.
Mix 1/2 cup white vinegar to 1/2 cup water in a microwave safe bowl. Bring it to a boil in the microwave. Stinky microwave, gone. And food splatters should wipe off easily. {Drop your kitchen sponge into the water while it boils, and you’ve clean and sanitized it at the same time}
Remove water rings from wood by using a solution of equal parts white vinegar and mineral oil.
Fix stinky garbage disposals by pouring 1/2 cup baking soda and 1/2 cup hot white vinegar down the drain. Let sit for about five minutes and then flush with hot water.

I use vinegar for canning, as a natural weed barrier, to get rid of fruit flies, to make buttermilk, and the list goes on. Want to learn more? Check out this nifty little reference book: Vinegar: Over 400 Various, Versatile, and Very Good Uses You’ve Probably Never Thought Of.

How about YOU? What do you use vinegar for?

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