I had a look around after reading Mary Jane's post on cleaning products and thought that I would post some links to some of the products I use. The first is 'Eco Balls", a way of washing your clothes without using any detergent. How could that be, you may ask! I asked the same question four years ago but decided to try them and we have been using them ever since!
http://www.lakeland.co.uk/ecoballs!REG/F/keyword/laundry/product/21756
Next, I discovered microfibre cloths from the same supplier during this summer just gone by. I thought that if the ecoballs work why not try the cloths. Again, you don't need to use detergent with them. And yes, we are still using them 6 months later:
http://www.lakeland.co.uk/F/keyword/microfibre%20cloths
Thursday 28 January 2010
Saturday 23 January 2010
About Today's Lunch from Leftovers
To make today's lunch, used leftover turkey chili from the freezer, baking potato from the dark cupboard, spinach from the crisper drawer and low fat sour leftover from New Year's Eve.
Defrosted the leftover chili and kept in warm on stove.
Baked the potato in microwave. Cut it in half and scooped out the white. Mixed it with the sour cream, celery salt, garlic powder and black pepper. Mounded potato back into both skins, making a little trough-like indentation down the centre.
Returned the two potato halves to microwave to warm up.
Mixed some baby spinach leaves with a very light dressing of olive oil, red wine vinegar and seasonings.
Put a thin bed of spinach on each of two plates. Set half a potato on the spinach. Spooned warm chili along the trough and then on top of the trough. Sprinkled on some grated Parmesan, chopped fresh cilantro and chopped green onion. Then gave each plate a good grating of black pepper.
We liked it..seemed to suit a wintery Saturday.
Defrosted the leftover chili and kept in warm on stove.
Baked the potato in microwave. Cut it in half and scooped out the white. Mixed it with the sour cream, celery salt, garlic powder and black pepper. Mounded potato back into both skins, making a little trough-like indentation down the centre.
Returned the two potato halves to microwave to warm up.
Mixed some baby spinach leaves with a very light dressing of olive oil, red wine vinegar and seasonings.
Put a thin bed of spinach on each of two plates. Set half a potato on the spinach. Spooned warm chili along the trough and then on top of the trough. Sprinkled on some grated Parmesan, chopped fresh cilantro and chopped green onion. Then gave each plate a good grating of black pepper.
We liked it..seemed to suit a wintery Saturday.
Wednesday 20 January 2010
About Leftover Basic Black Beans
There's a recipe for Basic Black Beans in a post dated a few days ago. In today's post are some notes about two ways to use leftovers from that recipe. Fr both recipes, you start by pureeing the beans in a blender or food processor.
Then...
Black Bean Soup
Add the purred beans to a few cups of good chicken, beef or veg eatable stock. Season to taste with cilantro, ground cumin and salt. If you've sour cream, a dollop onto the soup in the bowl is a good garnish.
Black Bean Dip
Add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil per cup of pureed beans. As with soup, season to taste with cilantro, ground cumin and salt. Serve with oven baked corn or flour tortillas chips. A lager is a nice accompanying beverage.
Then...
Black Bean Soup
Add the purred beans to a few cups of good chicken, beef or veg eatable stock. Season to taste with cilantro, ground cumin and salt. If you've sour cream, a dollop onto the soup in the bowl is a good garnish.
Black Bean Dip
Add 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil per cup of pureed beans. As with soup, season to taste with cilantro, ground cumin and salt. Serve with oven baked corn or flour tortillas chips. A lager is a nice accompanying beverage.
Sunday 17 January 2010
About Pico de Gallo
We like the Black Beans (recipe in previous post) with flour or corn tortillas, Pico de Gallo (recipe below) and some very finely chopped jalapeno pepper on the side.
Pico de Gallo
2 or 3 ripe but frim tomatoes, roughtly chopped
!/2 whote onion, roughly chopped
3/4 cup or so of roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
juice os 1/2 a lime
salt to taste.
Mix above together and enjoy with the beans. We like our Pico de Gallo to be made within a few hours of eating it, enjoy the freshness.
Pico de Gallo
2 or 3 ripe but frim tomatoes, roughtly chopped
!/2 whote onion, roughly chopped
3/4 cup or so of roughly chopped fresh cilantro leaves
juice os 1/2 a lime
salt to taste.
Mix above together and enjoy with the beans. We like our Pico de Gallo to be made within a few hours of eating it, enjoy the freshness.
Friday 15 January 2010
About Basic Black Beans
Basic Black Beans
Rinse a bag of dried Black Beans, also called Turtle Beans, I think they're ususlly about one pound bags.
Toss the rinsed beans into the crock pot along with a chopped whole onion and 2 or 3 cloves of copped garlic. Cover with water. Cook on high for 1 to 2 hours.
Check water, keep it just barely above the top of the beans, not too much as you dont' want to end up with too much "sauce".
Add about 1/4 cup of ground cumin and 1 T cocoa. Continue cooking for 1 hour or so more. It depends on how fresh your beans are.
When beans are soft, add about 2 T cup of chili powder, 2 t cumin seed, 1 t hot pepper flakes and salt to taste. About 2 tsp salt might taste right, it depends in part on how much salt is in your chili powder.
You may want to add more cumin at this point, depending in part on the quality of your ground cumin.
Continue cooking on low for at least 1/2 hour more.
We use these beans as base of burritos and dips. They freeze very well.
Rinse a bag of dried Black Beans, also called Turtle Beans, I think they're ususlly about one pound bags.
Toss the rinsed beans into the crock pot along with a chopped whole onion and 2 or 3 cloves of copped garlic. Cover with water. Cook on high for 1 to 2 hours.
Check water, keep it just barely above the top of the beans, not too much as you dont' want to end up with too much "sauce".
Add about 1/4 cup of ground cumin and 1 T cocoa. Continue cooking for 1 hour or so more. It depends on how fresh your beans are.
When beans are soft, add about 2 T cup of chili powder, 2 t cumin seed, 1 t hot pepper flakes and salt to taste. About 2 tsp salt might taste right, it depends in part on how much salt is in your chili powder.
You may want to add more cumin at this point, depending in part on the quality of your ground cumin.
Continue cooking on low for at least 1/2 hour more.
We use these beans as base of burritos and dips. They freeze very well.
Thursday 14 January 2010
About white vinegar
I am confident someone else will soon show up here. In the meantime, I will try to keep my resolution to post here three times per week...so far, so good.
Okay, this is another, and likely final, post about household cleaning products.
What do you do with white vinegar?
- Mike thinks it gets sweat stains out of workout shirts so soaks his gear in it from time to time
- I think it gets rid of bad smells. Put out a dish and your home smells like white vinegar, not paint of cooking odoure or smoke.
- I know it removes calcium build up in kettles and from around taps
- What else...???
I know some people use it to wash windows. I don't. To wash windows, I use a spray bottle of water, just tap water and a aqueegie and nothing else. I think anything else in the spray bottle contributes to streaking may be wrong on that.
I think I've reached the bottom of my well of knowledge about household cleaning products.
Okay, this is another, and likely final, post about household cleaning products.
What do you do with white vinegar?
- Mike thinks it gets sweat stains out of workout shirts so soaks his gear in it from time to time
- I think it gets rid of bad smells. Put out a dish and your home smells like white vinegar, not paint of cooking odoure or smoke.
- I know it removes calcium build up in kettles and from around taps
- What else...???
I know some people use it to wash windows. I don't. To wash windows, I use a spray bottle of water, just tap water and a aqueegie and nothing else. I think anything else in the spray bottle contributes to streaking may be wrong on that.
I think I've reached the bottom of my well of knowledge about household cleaning products.
Saturday 9 January 2010
About cleaning products
How many different cleaning products do we need?
Here's what I think we have on hand right now:
All purpose spray cleaner
Liquid dish detergent
Powdered dishwasher soap
Scouring powder in a can
White sponge..I think it's called an eraser
Spray carpet spot cleaner
Liquid laundry soap
Spray spot remover for laundry
With exception of "eraser", scouring powder, carpet cleaner and laundy spot remover, I think all are "green" or "greenish".
Suggestions for improving my list are welcomed? What do you have?
Here's what I think we have on hand right now:
All purpose spray cleaner
Liquid dish detergent
Powdered dishwasher soap
Scouring powder in a can
White sponge..I think it's called an eraser
Spray carpet spot cleaner
Liquid laundry soap
Spray spot remover for laundry
With exception of "eraser", scouring powder, carpet cleaner and laundy spot remover, I think all are "green" or "greenish".
Suggestions for improving my list are welcomed? What do you have?
Friday 8 January 2010
About Oatmeal Plus
I've been eating the same thing for breakfast for the best part of four years and it may be time to name it. I think I'll call it Oatmeal Plus.
Put 1/3 cup regular oats into a microwavable bowl with 2/3 cup water. Microwave on high while you slice a banana and get out the plain, low fat yoghurt. Remove bowl of oats from microwave and give it a stir. Plop about 1/4 cup of yoghurt atop the oats. Toss the banana slices on top of the yoghurt and there you have it: Oatmeal Plus.
Mike likes his without the yoghurt and banana and with raisins and semi-thawed frozen blueberries. I think I'll call that version Oatmeal Plus for Him.
Any breakfast alternate suggestions? Any Oatmeal Plus alternate ideas?
Put 1/3 cup regular oats into a microwavable bowl with 2/3 cup water. Microwave on high while you slice a banana and get out the plain, low fat yoghurt. Remove bowl of oats from microwave and give it a stir. Plop about 1/4 cup of yoghurt atop the oats. Toss the banana slices on top of the yoghurt and there you have it: Oatmeal Plus.
Mike likes his without the yoghurt and banana and with raisins and semi-thawed frozen blueberries. I think I'll call that version Oatmeal Plus for Him.
Any breakfast alternate suggestions? Any Oatmeal Plus alternate ideas?
Thursday 7 January 2010
About too many ripe bananas....
Okay....I resolve to post here 3 x per week or should that be I'll try to post her 3 x per week......we'll see Here goes:
Yes we had too many bananas....too many ripe bananas.
Just removed three soft and blackened bananas from the fruit basket, peeled off the skins and popped the mush into a ziploc bag.
I now have 1 1/2 cups of ripe banana on hand. More precisely, I have 3 cups of ripe banana on hand as there was already a bag of bananas in the freezer. (Note to self: go back to freezer and mark which bag of bananas in oldest.)
I've a quick and easy "low fat" banana bread recipe but I think I'll postpone making it. Even though low fat, it is high in calories when you snack on it all day.
...and that brings me to my annual weight loss resolution which seems to fit well with this blogs title" "Live More with Less".
Yes we had too many bananas....too many ripe bananas.
Just removed three soft and blackened bananas from the fruit basket, peeled off the skins and popped the mush into a ziploc bag.
I now have 1 1/2 cups of ripe banana on hand. More precisely, I have 3 cups of ripe banana on hand as there was already a bag of bananas in the freezer. (Note to self: go back to freezer and mark which bag of bananas in oldest.)
I've a quick and easy "low fat" banana bread recipe but I think I'll postpone making it. Even though low fat, it is high in calories when you snack on it all day.
...and that brings me to my annual weight loss resolution which seems to fit well with this blogs title" "Live More with Less".
Wednesday 6 January 2010
Normandy sausages
This was absolutely wonderful!
Ingredients:
450g of sausages
3 dessert apples
1 T calvados or apple brandy
200 ml cider
100 ml cream
butter
oil
Slowly fry the sausages in butter or oil for around 20 minutes or until they are cooked.
Meanwhile add butter to a second pan and fry the apple pieces until they are golden brown
Remove the sausages from the pan and keep warm. Add the cider to deglaze the pan. Stir, bring to a boil and reduce the cider for a few minutes. Add the calvados and cream, reduce the heat and let this bubble for 30 seconds. Check seasoning and pour the sauce over the sausages and apples. Serve with mashed potatoes
Ingredients:
450g of sausages
3 dessert apples
1 T calvados or apple brandy
200 ml cider
100 ml cream
butter
oil
Slowly fry the sausages in butter or oil for around 20 minutes or until they are cooked.
Meanwhile add butter to a second pan and fry the apple pieces until they are golden brown
Remove the sausages from the pan and keep warm. Add the cider to deglaze the pan. Stir, bring to a boil and reduce the cider for a few minutes. Add the calvados and cream, reduce the heat and let this bubble for 30 seconds. Check seasoning and pour the sauce over the sausages and apples. Serve with mashed potatoes
Monday 4 January 2010
How to work out quantities for a large meal
I found this site just before Christmas and then lost it again just in time for our Christmas feast. Here it is to help others when their next big meal comes up:
http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/perfect_portions
http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/perfect_portions
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