Simply Rurban

Burlap and Potatoes – Could It Work?

Posted on April 24, 2012 by simply0637

Spring is so in the air – we hit 90 degrees last week with the other days in the 70’s and 80’s. I had to get my hands into the dirt! Last weekend I spent about 6 hours cleaning up the remnants from the accident in my backyard in December, pieces of fence, car and glass and I filled 4 bags with dead plants and dead plant parts. It was a very depressing day in the yard. I am still fighting with insurance over the replacement of my landscaping, solar lights and compost bin – I think I miss my compost bin the most! It makes me cringe to put my kitchen scraps in the garbage, wish we had a community compost program.

Since my yard is a do-over, I decided that I am going to use most of the space for produce. I was trying to decide on what to do in the area they had to cut the tree down (to put up the new fence), since the root system covers a large area. I thought about putting in a raised bed, but then I would have to transplant the few plants that did survive and I did not want to take the chance of killing them, especially my wild geranium and toad lily. I don’t remember where I saw this, whether in a book or magazine or on-line, but it was about making gardening fun and easy for kids. One of the great ideas they had was to grow potatoes in burlap bag – this makes it easier for the kids to harvest. As the plants grow you just cover higher and higher with mulch or hay – the top of the bag being the limit. When harvest time comes, slice open the bag, spread the dirt and harvest the potatoes. It seemed like a good idea and I could do this over the tree root system and a couple of other areas where digging is not possible.

Burlap Bag Potato Gardening

Items Needed

Crampons

Potatoes that have “eyes” growing
Burlap (or if you can find burlap bags)

Crampons (see note below)
Organic gardening soil
Mulch or hay/straw

Note 1: I could not find burlap bags, but had some burlap left over from winter covering. Some of the burlap has Velcro and then to close up the sides even more I used a stapler, faster and easier than stitching up. If using my method you will needs pins to secure the burlap to the ground – you can get a pack at a gardening or Home Depot, pack of 10 for about $2.50.

Note2: Directions are given for burlap, if you have burlap bag start at step 4.

1. Loosen the soil under where will be placing your burlap.

2. Close up the side of the burlap about half way up.

3. Secure the bottom of the burlap to the ground, in a circle or as close to a circle as you can make.

4. Fill the bottom to about 3” with organic garden soil.

5. Place the potatoes on the soil, about 12” apart.

6. Cover the potatoes with another 4 – 5” of organic garden soil.

7. Place about 10” of mulch or hay/straw on top of the soil.

8. Water (I let Mother Nature take care of that).

Now you just have to let nature do its thing. When you start to see the plants coming through, place more mulch/hay/straw on top – allowing the top of the plant to see the sun.

Will do another post when we are harvesting. I am pretty excited to see how easy it is to harvest and how well they grow this way. If this works, will be doing all my potato growing this way in the future – will prevent the nicks that usually happens when getting them out of the soil. Stay tuned for the next episode in September or October!

Posted in Garden | 4 Comments

Delicious! Asparagus Risotto

Posted on April 23, 2012 by simply0637

I love asparagus, sauteed, baked, grilled, you name it – delicious! When I came across this risotto recipe and with the first of the asparagus in the stores – I knew what I had to do – make it! Making risotto takes time, but I love seeing the transition in the rice and the creaminess developing with each addition of broth, mouth watering – just anticipating the taste sensation.

Asparagus Risotto

Ingredients

2 Tbl butter
1/2 cup onion, finely diced
1/2 cup carrots, finely diced
2 – 3 gloves garlic, finely diced
1 cup arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine (or can substitute with broth)
4 – 4 1/2 cups broth, chicken or vegetable (I used vegetable)
1 bunch asparagus, wash, ends broken off and cut into 1″ pieces – about 2 cups
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Prepare all you ingredients.

2. Heat the broth in a saucepan – you want the broth to be hot when adding to the rice.

3. In a heavy bottom saute pan or wide pot (I used my cast iron dutch oven), melt the butter.

4. Add the carrots and onion and saute until soften. When they are almost done add the garlic.

5. Add the rice and stir to coat the rice thoroughly with butter.

6. Add the wine and cook until the rice absorbs it all – stirring occasionally.

7. Over medium-low heat, add 1/2 cup of broth at a time, stirring pretty constantly until absorbed, then add more broth. This process will take 30 – 40 minutes.

8. When you are about to add the last 1/2 cup of broth, also add the asparagus. This will allow it to cook along with the rice – about 5 minutes. The asparagus will be cooked but crisp.

9. Add the cheese, stirring to mix throughout.

Serve immediately!

Posted in Dinner, Recipes | Tagged asparagus, Recipes, risotto | 5 Comments

Silver Beads – Making A Necklace (Part 2)

Posted on April 20, 2012 by simply0637

Years ago I received a necklace as a gift that I love and, as mentioned yesterday, with the clean silver beads I wanted to try and make a similar one. I have to say it looked easier than it was and after my first try – a second try was in order. About half way through making the necklace I realized some of the strands were going to end up shorter than the others – so I ended up cutting the strings and starting over – learning from my mistake on the first.

Making A Necklace With Beads (Silver)

Items Needed

Beads (with large enough openings for the hemp string)
Clasp
Hemp string/twine
Glue

1. Lay your beads out and decide which ones you want to use – lay out the pattern. You want the beads on each strand to NOT match up with beads on other strands.

2. Cut 4 pieces of hemp twine, a little more than twice the necklace length you want. I want my necklace to be about 24 inches so I cut 4 strands of hemp 60″.

3. Joining the ends of the strands in your hand ( you will have 8 strands for the necklace), take the folded loop and thread through the clasp end. Take the ends and put through the loop – pull tight.

4. For your first strand and all others – take the beads for the strand and string them – place a knot before and after each bead. When starting the second and subsequent strands – line up the beads to make sure the beads are of different positions.

5. When you have finished all 8 strands you need to secure the other end of your necklace to the clasp. This was the hardest part – making sure all strands were of the same length, or close, when securing. You can either do a knot or use a macrame knot.

6. Place a drop of glue on each knot.

7. Put your necklace on, admire and show off your creativity and the one of a kind uniqueness! The hemp twine is stiff at first, but with wear it with get “softer”.

Posted in Crafts, Jewelry | Tagged crafts, jewelry, silver | 2 Comments

Easy Way To Clean Silver (Part 1)

Posted on April 19, 2012 by simply0637

The other day I was wearing a necklace and had one of those – “ah-ha” moments, where I thought I could make this using the beads I have from a necklace that broke. About 20 years ago I made a necklace out of silver beads that I took about a year to collect – I loved the necklace and wore it often until one day it broke while I was putting it on. I collected the beads put them in a cardboard jewelry box and every now and then would take them out, look at them and wonder what to do with them. Over the years they have become very tarnished, which has made me more and more reluctant to do anything with them – mainly because I dreaded having to clean them! But then researching green cleaning methods I read how to easily clean silver and silver jewelry – I thought it was too easy to really be true, but figured why not, worth a try!

How To Clean Silver and Silver Jewelry (this is not a way to clean silver with some gems – the reaction will harm turquoise, so use with caution with silver-gem jewelry)

Before

After

Items needed

Glass dish or disposable tin pie pan or take out container
Baking soda or salt (I used baking soda)
Tin foil sheet, crumpled and flattened
Boiling water

1. Line your glass dish or disposable tin pan with a piece of tin foil – crumple and flatten first.

2. Place your silver on the tin foil – making sure all pieces touch the tin foil.

3. Sprinkle with baking soda – making sure all pieces are covered. If using salt dissolve the salt in the boil water first.

4. Pour boiling water into the dish – there will be a reaction. Turn your pieces once or twice, use a wooden spoon handle. Allow to sit for 5 – 10 minutes.

5. Rinse in cold water – if you have smaller pieces – place in colander and rinse that way.

6. Rub dry with a soft cloth.

If you silver is as tarnished as mine was you may need to do several times. I ended up doing some of my pieces 3 times, but the results were wonderful and less time than polishing each piece.

Come back tomorrow for how to make the necklace!

Posted in Crafts, Jewelry | Tagged baking soda, cleaning, jewelry, silver | 2 Comments

Kids Craft Corner – Candlesticks

Posted on April 18, 2012 by simply0637

We light candles often in our house and Stella started collecting the wax awhile back – she has bags full of wax that she has pulled off the sides of candles or off the candle holders. We have been talking a lot lately about melting down her wax collection and make new candles, but that is for another day and another project. With the warm weather we have been experiencing that may have to wait – also I have never made candles from collected wax, but I have been told that when you melt the different colored wax together it turns black – so will have to sort the colors or figure some other way to re-use the wax.

I was recently in a dollar store and came across some wooden candle sticks, that were really a dollar – so I figured why not – good afternoon project. With more and more of our weekends and evenings taken up now with outside activities I have to find projects that are shorter in length – this was perfect.

Decorated Wooden Candle Sticks

Materials Needed

Wooden candle sticks
Paint
Paint brushes
Newspaper

1. Lay newspaper over your work area and get all your supplies out and ready.

2. Paint your candlesticks, multicolor is fun!

3. Stick a candle in it and light it. We had out dinner by candle light! Stella still wants to do more on her candle stick, but has not figured out what yet – a work in progress. She can’t decide it she wants to paint some design on it on use some of the press on gems.

Posted in Kids Crafts | Tagged candle sticks, crafts, kids | 2 Comments

Spring Is In The Air – That Must Mean Spring Cleaning!

Posted on April 17, 2012 by simply0637

Throw the windows open, wash the bedding – let it hang on the line and wash all the winter jackets and pack them away! There is something about spring cleaning, getting the winter clutter put away and swept away, the boots put out of sight, coming out from the cave and enjoying more outdoor living.

There is the basic of spring cleaning, the windows (club soda works great, fizzy or flat), airing out the down comforters, switching the clothes in the closet, and putting the screens on the windows to let all that fresh air in!

I have a Green House Cleaning business and thought I would pass on some tips to make your spring cleaning and general cleaning a little easier and of course greener.

Cleaning the Stove Top

Before

Every once in awhile, for most folks, something boils over on the stove and makes a mess! Usually a sponge with water does not do the whole job. In 4 easy steps your stove will be looking it’s best.

1. Sprinkle the area with baking soda.

2. Spray with vinegar and watch it fizz and bubble.

3. With a sponge, scrub the area – the baking soda is an abrasive, but won’t scratch. Wipe clean with a wet sponge.

4. Buff with a micro fiber cloth or chami – presto!

After

Cleaning Rings In Your Toilet Bowl

Stain

Sometimes stains and rings form in your toilet bowl and normal cleaning just doesn’t do the job. Well here is something that will amaze you or at least it did me when I first did it. I hope you can see the stain in the before picture.

1. Grab yourself a pumice stone, really – get one.

2. Wet the pumice stone and rub the stain – it will not scratch.

3. Ring and stains gone!

Stain Gone

Cleaning A Glass Shower Door

This is my most dreaded task in most homes! I am so glad that I do not have one. This job takes some elbow grease, well a lot of elbow grease. If you have a glass shower door – invest in a squeegee and get the water off the glass after each shower – it will make the cleaning so much easier.

1. If the shower is wet, squeegee off the water.

2. Clean both sides of the glass with club soda or if you prefer vinegar and water.

3. Spray lemon juice onto a sponge and cover glass with a circular motion. You can also use a fresh lemon cut in half. The lemon juice is acidic and will cut through the hard water and soap scum stains. You will want this to sit on the glass for at least 15 minutes. For tough areas you can spray some lemon juice on a tooth brush and then dip in baking soda – using a circular motion cover the areas (usually the bottom and sides).

4. Spray club soda on the glass again and wipe clean. It is great to follow up with a glass cleaning cloth (the one bartenders use) to buff any areas that need a little extra help.

After

I hope you found some of these helpful. Happy cleaning!!

Posted in Cleaning | Tagged cleaning, Green Cleaning, spring | 4 Comments

Cinnamon, Apricot Biscotti Recipe

Posted on April 16, 2012 by simply0637

I love Biscotti, but don’t make it very often, mainly because of the time it takes to make a batch. My mom makes wonderful biscotti and using her recipe I added the apricots. Stella loves them, they make a great gift and you can make ahead and freeze – so good for the holidays or for when you have people over for dinner for that little something to go along with coffee and tea at the end of the meal! I am sure that Stella will add these to her lunch for the week and her friends with have another thing they are trying to get from her. Stella told me the other day she got up from lunch to go to the bathroom and when she got back to her table most of her lunch was gone! I told her to take it as a compliment, but if it continued to happen she may have to wait to go the bathroom or take her lunch with her – she gave me a look of ARE YOU CRAZY I would never take my lunch with me to the bathroom!

Cinnamon, Apricot Biscotti

Ingredients

2 cups flour (I used 1 cup whole wheat and 1 cup white wheat)
3 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt (ommit is using salted butter)
1 cup plus 3 Tbl sugar (I used about 3/4 sugar)
6 Tbl unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 – 1 cup dried apricots, cut into small pieces

1. Line 2 large cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. Cut up apricots.

3. Mix together the flour, 2 1/2 tsp cinnamon, baking powder, apricots and salt (is using).

4. In a large glass mixing bowl combine 1 cup of sugar and butter – mix with an electric mixer until fluffy.

5. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

6. Add 1 egg to the sugar/butter bowl, beat well. Add egg yolk and beat well, again. Mix in vanilla.

7. Add the dry ingredient to the butter mixture – combine all ingredients. I use my hands to form the dough, squeezing the mixture together.

8. Transfer dough to a work surface. Divide in half. Shape each half into a 9″ long, 1 1/2″ wide log. Transfer logs to cookie sheets.

9. Beat remaining egg in a small bowl (I use the egg white leftover from the yolk instead of a whole egg). Brush each log with egg.

10. Bake until golden brown and firm to the touch (dough will spread) – about 50 minutes.

11. Take out of the oven, cool on baking sheet. Keep the oven on.

12. Mix 3 Tbl sugar and tsp cinnamon in a small bowl and blend. You will have leftover cinnamon, which I put into a spice bottle – which I just pull out for this and sprinkle the cinnamon on.

13. Working with one log at a time, transfer to a large cutting board. Using a serrated knife, cut slices on the diagonal about 1/2″ wide.

14. Place biscotti, cut side down back on the cookie sheets. Sprinkle with sugar/cinnamon mixture.

15. Bake until pale golden, about 20 minutes.

16. Cool slices on racks.

This recipe is easily doubled. You can make up to a week ahead of time and keep in an airtight container or you can freeze them for even longer. Fix a good cup of tea, grab your book or knitting, place a couple biscotti on a plate – find the perfect spot and ENJOY! Great dipped in your tea.

Posted in Dessert, Recipes | Tagged apricot biscotti, Cinnamon | 1 Comment

Kids Can Cook – Banana Sunflower Cookies

Posted on April 13, 2012 by simply0637

Stella has been watching me cook and helping me for a long time. This is Stella’s first, all her, baking debut! Usually she will ask to make something and then half way through ask me to finish. This one I just directed and showed tricks of measuring, etc. and I put the cookie sheets in and took them out of the oven. When she tasted them, and loved them, she was very proud of herself for being able to make something so delicious!

With coconut

Banana Sunflower Seed Cookies

Ingredients

1/2 cup oil (we melted coconut oil)
1 1/2 cup flour (we used wheat)
2 medium bananas
1 cup sunflower seeds (we used roasted, unsalted)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
Unsweetened, coconut flakes (optional)

1. Measure coconut oil and place in a saucepan to melt.

2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

3. Peel the bananas and place in a glass bowl, mash with a fork.

4. Add oil and sugar to the bananas and mix well.

5. Add flour, sunflower seeds and baking soda to banana mixture and stir well.

6. Stella added some coconut flakes to the last of the dough and it was a nice combination.

7. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and take a few minutes to act silly and play your spoons!!!

8. Take your two spoons and drop dough by the rounded spoonful about 2 ” apart on the cookie sheet. Bake for about 15 minutes or until the edges are lightly brown.

We made ours a little bigger than bite size, which makes for a healthier choice snack in Stella’s lunch.

Posted in Cookies, Kids Cooking, Recipes | 4 Comments

How To Make Enzyme Cleaner

Posted on April 12, 2012 by simply0637

Having a green house cleaning business, I am always reading up on new cleaning products and recipes. I kept coming across articles on how to make your own enzyme cleaner, but since it takes 3 months, yes that is 3 months for it to ferment I have never tried making it. Why now? Because I have to know if it really works as well as I have read about. The hardest part was finding a plastic container to use – but I just finished a bottle of vinegar – so I decided now was the time. I will take pictures along the way and report back on it in 3 months time – can’t wait. Ok – I have to confess that I went dumpster diving yesterday morning as I walked the dog. It was recycling day – so I came across a juice container that was perfect, brought it home washed it and wah-lah!

Enzyme Cleaner

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups citrus fruit peels, some fruit is fine (I used all organic)
7 Tbl brown sugar (I used organic)
4 cups water

1. Clean a large plastic container (at least 2 liters). I think a fruit juice bottle would work best since the top screws on and you can determine how tight it is.

2. Cut up the fruit peels small enough to fit through the opening, some fruit is ok.

3. Add the brown sugar and water.

4. Put the top on and shake the contents until the sugar dissolves.

5. Mark the date you started it on the bottle.

Store in a cool, dark area.

For the first month you will need to give it a shake every day, so store in a cool, dark place where you will see it – the pantry is a good place or a cabinet you go into daily. Gas will build up, so leave the top partially on – you do not want it to explode. After shaking open the top and let the gas out. If you start to see a white or black film, just give it a shake – that is the natural yeast growing. After the first month, give it a shake every so often and check for gas build up. When the 3 months is up – strain through cheese cloth into a spray bottle.

You will want to use this diluted, but you can use this pretty much, from what I read, for all your cleaning needs: glass, tile, kitchen counters, laundry, cleaning up urine. Don’t worry I will try it on everything and see how it works compared to what I use already. Will report back in 3 months with another post!

Posted in Cleaning | Tagged cleaning, enzyme, natural | 1 Comment

Chocolate Quinoa Bars

Posted on April 11, 2012 by simply0637

A neighbor purchased a big bag of quinoa – hoping to add it to her families diet, but it was not a hit and the bag was given to me. I already had a lot of quinoa, since we use it often – so I started thinking what else could I use it for? We were getting low on snacks for Stella’s lunch so I thought why not try and make some quinoa bars similar to the granola bars. I found a recipe on-line (http://www.fit-and-frugal.com/2010/10/31/naturally-homemade-energy-bars-4-chocolatey-quinoa/) and made some adjustments using the ingredients I had on hand. These were a huge hit in our home and I am sure will be requested again and again!

Chocolate Quinoa Bars

Ingredients

3/4 cup dry quinoa (2 cups cooked)
1/3 cup dried fruit (I used a combination of apricots and blueberries)
1 medium banana, mashed
1/3 cup honey (I think you could also use agave nectar – will try next time)
1 Tbl coconut oil
1/4 cup flaxseed meal
1/4 cup sprouted oat flour
1 1/2 Tbl unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup ground almond
1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)

Quinoa

1. Rinse the quinoa in cold water and drain. Boil 1 cup of water in a saucepan, when boiling add the quinoa, cover and reduce heat. Simmer for about 12 minutes – if all the water is not absorb you can also turn the water off, leave covered for another 10 – 15 minutes. Allow to cool.

2. Place the apricots or other dried fruit in hot water for about 10 minutes to plump. Drain.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

4. In a food processor add the quinoa, mashed banana, cut up dried fruit (I did not cut up the blueberries), honey and coconut oil.

5. Process until fairly smooth, scraping sides along the way – you want everything mixed up.

6. Add the flaxseed meal, ground almond, oat flour, and cocoa.

7. Mix well.

8. Add the chocolate chips, if using, and mix by hand.

9. Line a 8×8 baking dish with parchment paper. Scoop the mixture into the pan and spread evenly.

10. Bake for 30 minutes or until firm to touch.

11. Cut into bars while still in the pan. Lift the bars out with the parchment paper and place on wire rack. Allow to cool completely. Store in an airtight container.

Posted in Recipes, Snacks | Tagged bars, quinoa, snacks | 4 Comments

Burlap and Potatoes – Could It Work?

Delicious! Asparagus Risotto

Silver Beads – Making A Necklace (Part 2)

Easy Way To Clean Silver (Part 1)

Kids Craft Corner – Candlesticks

Spring Is In The Air – That Must Mean Spring Cleaning!

Cinnamon, Apricot Biscotti Recipe

Kids Can Cook – Banana Sunflower Cookies

How To Make Enzyme Cleaner

Chocolate Quinoa Bars

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