Learn together at the Chalkboard
It’s that time of year! Oh, the holidays –the time when you wonder just what the heck to get everyone on your list! Some people are so easy to buy for like my husband who gets silly socks every year or my boys who only want Nintendo Switch games. But other people — oh boy, they are hard to shop for!
Well, if you have a cook in your life or just someone that loves to eat I’ve got the gift guide for you.
Let’s go to The Chalkboard.
When my firstborn was a baby, I was so concerned about everything. It’s so hard to be a parent. You want to do what’s best for your child and what’s best is not always known. One day something is the greatest idea ever, the next day it’s the worst. Like they say on Project Runway, “one day you’re in, the next you’re out.”
What I fed my kids was a big concern for me (no surprise there). What do I feed them, how much? I decided I would make their baby food, with our loads of CSA veggies. I was so happy that my oldest son especially loved my sweet potatoes. So much so that his nose turned orange from all of the sweet potatoes he was eating! My pediatrician had a good laugh at that one. Now, at eight, he won’t touch a sweet potato! I can still remember googling “orange nose baby” at all hours of the night.
When I read the recent reports on high levels of metals in baby food I immediately thought, this is so concerning! What do you do? How do you avoid them? Is it even possible? I’ve done some research, and yes, it is possible. I’m happy to say that it’s simple!
Want to learn how to avoid metals in baby food?
Let’s go the Chalkboard.
…Recently, the unthinkable happened. I got sick of cooking! I know, I know! The girl who loves to eat and can talk about food all day long got tired of cooking! But the spark was gone. So instead, I was making stir-fries over and over. I knew my family needed to be fed but couldn’t think of what. Sick of the same old stuff; I needed to change things up.
So I went to trusty Pinterest for inspiration. I pinned and pinned and pinned recipes. When looking at the board, there was a trend. It was full of grain salads. They were colorful and not too complicated, and because of that, I was all in!
As I read the recipes, I saw ingredients I had never tried before — namely bulgur and farro. I found that they were ancient grains after a quick search. I was intrigued. What were they? Where could I find them? Most importantly, how did they taste? I needed to know everything, and as a result, I tried seven ancient grains. After all of this research, I realized that they are all excellent rice alternatives.
Let’s go to The Chalkboard.
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I have been watching Tidying Up with Marie Kondo on Netflix obsessively and now have this unrelenting need to get organized and downsize. As I was purging closets and deciding what “sparks joy,” as Kondo advises one to do, I started thinking about the kitchen. (All roads to lead to the kitchen with me). How to organize recipes came to mind.
My first foray into organizing recipes was to simply create a folder on my computer and bookmark the recipe. This method is excellent for its simplicity. It falls down a bit when you are looking for a recipe, and you have no idea its name. You have to be online to access the website and rely on it still being in the same location it was when you found it. I found, over time, sites shut down, or recipes were placed behind a paywall making it challenging to access. There had to be a better way, so off I went to find the best way to organize recipes.
I tried the Paprika Recipe Manager, Pepperplate, Pocket, and Pinterest. There are pros and cons to each one, but to me, there is a standout method.
Which one is right for you?
Let’s go to the Chalkboard.
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Let’s be honest, how many times have you gone in your freezer and found something that you had no idea what it was? You couldn’t even remember the last time you bought or cooked that. If I am being honest, it’s too many to count for me.
Each time it happened I felt terribly guilty. I was just throwing away money I thought. It had to stop. So over the past few years, I have made a conscious effort to use up the food in my freezer. I’m happy to say I haven’t thrown anything away since.
Do you want to save money and stop throwing away food? Want to learn how to use up freezer food?
Let’s go to the Chalkboard.
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A few years ago, my husband came home from work and told me some asking him about the CSA farm share we belong to. I was surprised, to say the least, as my carnivorous husband was discussing vegetables. This was the person that once suggested I may be “killing him with kale.” Someone went as far as to say, “he knows all about vegetables.” What the what?!?
This exchange, along with the many other benefits of a CSA, will have me forever singing its praises. If you like to eat, join a CSA. Want to learn all about it first?
Let’s go to the chalkboard.
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Need Fall meal ideas? Temperatures are dropping, the grill is covered up and cozy meals are being called on. This Fall Meal Plan makes use of farmers market vegetables and some apples you may have picked. Barely have time to cook? Want some comfort meals that your family will love? I’ve got you covered!
Let’s go to the chalkboard.
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Online grocery shopping is exploding in popularity. There’s an abundance of services available to us. You can read a comparison of some of them here. And the advantages of shopping online are many. Shopping from your couch in your pajamas has a certain allure. Also, the time you save from having to drive to the store and pack up the groceries is priceless. Not to mention the time spent wandering the aisles looking for that one ingredient. Maybe that’s just me? Seriously though, where do they keep the genoa salami?
But convenience comes with a cost, right? Or does it? Is it possible to save money grocery shopping online?
Want to learn 10 Ways to Save Money Grocery Shopping Online?
Let’s go to the Chalkboard.
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