I am such a Homeschooler...

Not the plant near our house

Everyone needs a break from schoolwork. Right? Well last week I did.

Eleanor and I went to pick some pokeberries from the plant growing near our house.(I do have to say that picking pokeberries is not normal for us, nor is what we did with them. But it's just plain fun!) We crushed and strained our berries, added salt and vinegar, and we got homemade ink! 

You may be asking yourself what this has to do with homeschoolers. You see homeschoolers (or at least some of the ones that I know) tend to do really neat projects for fun! (usually history related) Oh yeah! We are that cool! : ) Last week, for instance, we made berry ink. Other days we have made fresh butter, costumes, and sugar cube pyramids. Homeschoolers are also cool because they have cool supplies just hanging around the house.(Am I the only one who keeps quill pens and little jars?)

Here is the recipe for homemade berry ink: (This recipe can be doubled or cut in half. Because it is made with fresh berries it will go bad so don't forget to use it up!)
1 cup berries(any kind will do. Play around with different berries for different colors)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vinegar

Crush and strain the berries. Stir in the salt and vinegar until dissolved. That's all! It also works best to write on a heavy paper so the ink won't bleed. (Again, am I the only one who just happened to have calligraphy paper from a calligraphy set?)

Sorry, no pictures for this one. You will just have to imagine Eleanor and I crushing and straining pokeberries and then writing our names with the purple ink. ; )


Fly with Christ!
Rachel : )

Bean Soup

Let me introduce you to my latest interesting find: Bean flour. 

Sounds REALLY weird, I know. 

But it's very nutritional, and you can add it to breads or make it into sauces and soups.You can grind up beans in a grain mill or in a coffee grinder. White beans seem to make the best flour. I have also ground red and green lentils in a coffee grinder.

Here is what you will need for a basic soup:

Water

Bean flour

Spices

(That is all!)

For every cup of water use:

1-2 Tbsp. flour for thin

3-4 Tbsp. flour for medium

5-6 Tbsp. flour for thick

Boil your water on the stove. *Making this recipe in the microwave will kill all the nutrients.*

For my spices I put one bouillon cube and dissolve it in the water. You could add any spices you wanted: Mexican, Italian, or just salt and pepper.

Bring the water to a boil.

Today I used a mixture of white bean flour and ground red lentils.

Flour from white beans

Red lentils mixed with white beans

Whisk the flour into the boiling water and boil for 3 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Ladle into bowls and serve immediately.

 Top with cheese and more spices if desired. ENJOY!

Fly with Christ!

Rachel : )

Funny...

Hello everyone! I am here today to break up this monotonous Monday. : ) I hope that your Monday isn't as dreary as mine is. O.K. I'm not a fan of the song, but this video is so funny! I hope y'all enjoy it as much as I did.

Fly with Christ!
Rachel : )

Apple-Walnut Muffins: Part 2

PART 2: THE MUFFINS

Yeah, yeah... I can hear you now. "Great muffin mix, Rachel. But, um, how do I bake it?" Fear not good people, help is on the way! Baking them is equally as easy as making the mix. Here we go! : )

I have listed two ways to prepare the mix. The first way comes from the magazine and makes a small (and I mean really small) batch. I made up the second way for a larger batch.

Batch # 1:
2 Tbsp. fat-free milk
2 Tbsp. reduced-fat plain yogurt
2 tsp. canola oil
YEILD: 2 muffins

Mix the milk, yogurt, and oil together. Add to 1/2 cup muffin mix.

Batch # 2 (with pictures):
1 egg
2 Tbsp. oil
1/2 to 1 cup milk
YEILD: about 12 large muffins or about 24 small

 Muffin mix, oil, egg, milk.

 Put 2 cups of mix in a bowl.

 Create a well or hole on the center and add the egg, oil, and milk.

 Mix together in the hole.

 Stir in the rest of the muffin mix. Can you see the pieces of apples and walnuts? I'm getting hungry right now.

Scoop into greased muffin pans.

Batch #1 & #2:
Bake at 400 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Serve warm.

Fly with Christ!
Rachel : )

Apple-Walnut Muffins: Part 1

PART 1: THE MIX

YES...yet another muffin recipe. But wait! This one can be made ahead of time!! It makes a super speedy breakfast. (it's also healthy) This recipe came from the August/September edition of "Healthy Cooking" from Taste of Home. The original recipe makes about 3 cups of mix or about 12 muffins (which equals one meal for us). I have tripled the recipe for this post. You can also make an even bigger batch if you need to. They didn't last long to long for us. : )

3 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups whole wheat flour
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 cup chopped, dried apples
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp. baking powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
P.S. I used a gluten free baking mix instead of the AP flour, and about 1 3/4 cup of demerara instead of the 2 1/4 cup sugar.

 Dried apples, walnuts, flour, baking soda, cinnamon, baking powder, sugar, and salt.

Chop your dried apples into little chunks. Also chop your walnuts.

 

 Mix it all together.

 Put into your container of choice (I used a Ziploc bag), label and date. I told you it was SIMPLE!

Part 2 is coming soon!

Fly with Christ!
Rachel : )

Blueberry Muffins

Here is another simple muffin recipe! (If you haven't caught on yet, we really like muffins over here) This recipe can be made with or without blueberries(though they taste better with them), and can be used with a number of substitutions (see the bottom of this post for possible substitutions).

1/2 cup butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup milk
1 egg
3/4 tsp. vanilla
1 cup blueberries
YIELD: 12 muffins

Ingredients: Milk, egg, flour, salt, butter, blueberries, sugar, baking powder, vanilla.

Melt your butter either on the stove or in the microwave.

Mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together.

Next mix the egg, milk, and vanilla together. If you are out of eggs, you can substitute flaxseed. Take about one Tbsp. of flaxseed per egg (ground in a coffee grinder or food processor) and stir with a little water. Then mix with the remaining wet ingredients.

 Add your wet mixture to your dry mixture with the butter, and mix well.

 Then stir in the blueberries.

 Scoop into greased muffin pans.

 Bake at 375 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes.

Substitutions: 
1/2 cup butter = 1/2 cup coconut oil
2 cups AP flour = 2 cups whole wheat or gluten free flour
1/2 cup sugar = 1/2 cup (or less) demerara, honey, agave necter, etc.
1 cup milk = 1 cup rice, almond, or soy milk
1 egg = 1 Tbsp. ground flaxseed
1 cup fresh blueberries = 1 cup frozen blueberries

Fly with Christ!

Rachel : )