Homemade Orange Julius (Make Your Own!)

I knew it was a winner before I took the first sip. Orange and vanilla combined for an intoxicating scent. I'm not kidding. This simple -- frugal even -- drink is that good. If you love (even like a little!) Orange Julius, then you should give this a try.

I got the recipe from Tawra Kellam's book Dining on a Dime. If you don't own a copy, you might want to consider it. Her drink recipes alone are worth it to me. I'm also fond of her mocha frappuccino recipe. (That's what I call it -- from her "master" smoothies list.) Tawra also has a website, Living on a Dime. I searched it for the "Creamy Orange Shake" recipe, and she has it posted here.

Frozen orange juice concentrate, milk, sugar, water, and pure vanilla (this is how I make my own) are all it takes.  Blend all together with a few ice cubes to get some wonderful frothy action.  Please don't leave them out -- the froth is simply divine.

Homemade Orange Julius

- Slightly adapted from Tawra Kellam's "Creamy Orange Shake" recipe in Dining on a Dime.

- Ingredients

• heaping 1/3 cup frozen orange juice concentrate
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 5 ice cubes

- Instructions

• Combine in blender (on a high speed) til smooth and frothy!

Yield: 1 tall glass, filled to the rim

Shared at The HomeAcre Hop, Thriving Thursday, Simple Lives Thursday, All Things Thursday, Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop, and Show Me What Ya Got.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a very small commission if you click the link and buy something. This helps support my mountain homestead dream as well as my blogging activities, and the price you pay will be no different than if you arrived at the same destination through any other link. My opinions are my own, to be sure. If I link to a product and say I like it -- I truly like it! :-) Thanks for reading and following Stephlin's Mountain.

It all started with a recipe for Blueberry Cherry Baked Donuts I found over at the Taste and Tell blog. She posted it back in 2012, and I pinned it months ago. Fast forward to Christmas 2013, and Mom gives me a gift card to Bed, Bath, & Beyond (woo hoo!). A few days ago, I used a portion of it on a new donut pan. The only thing I had to do today was take my 16 month old boy to the vet, so why not take my new pan for a spin afterwards?

I decided to do just blueberry donuts early on, but at the last minute chose to throw an overripe banana in the mix. The batter might have ended up a bit thick, but the donuts are moist and tender with a hint of banana flavor in addition to the blueberry freshness, so I call it a win.

The first lesson I learned with my new donut pan, is be careful not to overfill. My first attempt could have passed for mini bundt cakes. ;-)

My second batch was much more donut-like:

I was so anxious to try them, I didn't wait for them to cool to add glaze. I just slapped some homemade cream cheese icing I had in the fridge on one and took a bite!

YUM!

I did eventually get to the glaze, though, and that made them even better. Just feast your eyes on these blueberry beauties:

If you've stuck with me this far (thank-you!), I'll bet you'd like the recipe. Give these a go, and let me know what you think.

Blueberry Banana Cake Donuts

Adapted from Deborah's Blueberry Cherry Baked Donuts at Taste & Tell blog.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup honey flavored Greek yogurt
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 cup blueberries
• 1 mashed ripe banana (the riper, the better)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Coat donut pan with non-stick spray.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
3. In a large bowl, mix together sugar, yogurt, eggs, vanilla, melted butter, vegetable oil, and banana. Stir in flour mixture. Fold in blueberries.
4. Fill donut pan about 2/3 full. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes. Use the toothpick test to be sure they're done. Turn out of pan and cool completely on wire rack.
5. Whisk together 2 cups powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, and 3 - 4 tbsp milk for glaze. Top donuts when cool and return to wire rack to dry.

Yield: 18 donuts

Shared at Simple Life Sunday, The Heritage Homesteaders Hop, Simple Saturdays Blog Hop, Simply Natural Saturdays, Happiness is Homemade Link Party, Tasty Tuesday, and Teach Me Tuesday.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a very small commission if you click the link and buy something. This helps support my blogging activities, and the price you pay will be no different than if you arrived at the same destination through any other link. My opinions are my own, to be sure. If I link to a product and say I like it -- I truly like it! :-) Thanks for reading and following Stephlin's Mountain.

We had a good deal on some nice strawberries recently at work, so I partook and purchased a couple of pounds. Little did I know how that simple transaction would change my life. Exaggeration? I think not, but you be the judge.

I was poking around the 'net for a strawberry bread recipe, and what I found did not disappoint. After giving it a go, what resulted was quite possibly one of the best things I've ever eaten. Definitely the best strawberry bread I've ever eaten.

Yep, all that strawberry goodness in one loaf!

The recipe is from Saveur. More specifically, Saveur kitchen assistant Farideh Sadeghin. It has a yield of two loaves, but, me being me, I cut it in half for one loaf. I know that doesn't always work in baking, but this one turned out just fine.

There is cinnamon in the mix, and you can taste it nicely in the batter before baking. (I think that batter alone would make a nice coffee cake, but that's for another day.) But I got barely a hint of it after baking, so don't let that scare you. The recipe also calls for strawberry jam to be swirled into the top. Between me and you, I wouldn't do that unless maybe you had freshly made jam at your fingertips. Store bought jam (IMHO) puts a damper on the fresh strawberry flavor of the rest of the bread.

Another delectable of this loaf is the slight crisp and crunch of the crust. That sugar adds a lovely texture as well as yummy-ness.

Funny thing is, just two people managed to make that single loaf of strawberry bread disappear in about 24 hours. B (obviously) agreed with me that it was so good -- Oh. My. Goodness good. So much so, that he made a second loaf with the second pound of strawberries.

Recipe after one more enticing photo...

O.M.G. Strawberry Bread

Adapted from Saveur kitchen assistant Farideh Sadeghin's recipe here.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 + 1/8 (or, 5/8) cup canola oil
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups strawberries, roughly chopped
• 1/4 cup strawberry jam (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 350°, and grease a 9x5 loaf pan.
2. Whisk flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.
3. Whisk sugar, oil, and eggs in a separate bowl. Combine wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Stir in strawberries.
4. Pour batter into pan. If using jam, just dollop across the top and swirl into batter.
5. Bake until golden brown, about an hour (mine took 1 hr, 6 min). Let cool a bit before turning it out of the pan -- about 30 minutes.

Yield: 1 loaf

Shared at Simple Saturdays Blog Hop, Simply Natural Saturdays, Old-Fashioned Friday, From the Farm Blog Hop, Freedom Fridays, and Farmgirl Friday Blog Hop.

Since I've started making jams and butters, I decided to start looking into making my own sweet breads (yep, that's how I like to eat my jams and butters -- with more sugar). I also thought of it as a cost-cutting measure. Some of the breads I like to eat are crazy priced.

I'm not new to making bread; I've been getting paid to do it for about twenty years. It's not often something I do at home, though. Many, many years ago I owned a bread machine. We used it often enough, but when I got my all-time favorite kitchen appliance it seemed a little unnecessary so we got rid of it. What's my all-time favorite appliance? The Kitchen Aid mixer, of course!

My Kitchen Aid is one of the classics (that's really what they call it now). I've had it for about twelve years, and it still works wonderfully. I've thought about upgrading to one of the artisan mixers, but that would be filling a luxurious want more than a need. Maybe one day, but probably not as long as my classic continues to do the job well.

I guess the reason why I shared that with you is because of the recipe book I used for the sweet bread -- it's a collection of recipes for bread machines. (But I'm here to tell you, you don't have to have a bread machine to use the recipes!)

The recipe that follows is for an egg bread with slightly sweet overtones, using Mountain Dew instead of water. It's delicious with blueberry butter, and it makes a mean honey smoked turkey sandwich. (You can totally go with water if the idea of Mt. Dew in your bread makes you squeamish.)

Wet Ingredients

Ready to Bake

Enjoy!

Sweet Mountain Dew Bread

Adapted from Sweet Bread recipe, pg. 59, The All-New Ultimate Bread Machine Cookbook

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup Mountain Dew
• 1 extra-large egg
• 1 extra-large egg yolk
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut up
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 3 tbsp sugar
• 3 cups bread flour
• 1 packet fast-rise yeast

Instructions

1. Add dry ingredients to mixer. Next add the butter and incorporate. Then add the egg, egg yolk, and Mountain Dew. Mix until dough forms, cleans the bowl, and has proper development.
2. Let dough rest for about an hour. Shape it into a loaf and place it in pan.
3. Let dough proof in pan for about two hours.
4. Bake in a 375° oven for about 25 minutes. Turn out of pan and let cool on rack.

Shared at From the Farm Blog Hop, Freedom Fridays, The HomeAcre Hop, Thriving Thursday, and All Things Thursday.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a very small commission if you click the link and buy something. This helps support my blogging activities, and the price you pay will be no different than if you arrived at the same destination through any other link. My opinions are my own, to be sure. If I link to a product and say I like it -- I truly like it! :-) Thanks for reading and following Stephlin's Mountain.

Rice Pudding and (Real!) Caramel Sauce

I like to bake. It's actually what I do for a living -- in a production dominated setting with not a lot of play time. But, truth be told, I don't do it at home often enough. I'm trying rectify that.

So, to get started, I simply walked into my pantry and opened up the first cookbook I saw. My guy really enjoys cooking the savory, so the book on top was one of his faves: Three Guys from Miami Cook Cuban. I didn't expect to find much in the way of desserts, as that section is a bit small. I was proven wrong, however. I adore rice pudding (without raisins) so that was an easy pick. A couple of pages later was a caramel sauce recipe (which I have never made unless you count unwrapping the candies and melting them), so I knew I had found my first endeavor. Since this is a Cuban cookbook, it's officially called Arroz con Leche and Dulce de Leche Salsa.

Here we go!

Rice Pudding ingredients (pg. 198):
1/2 cup uncooked rice
1 1/2 cups water
1 lemon rind (I omitted this)
1 cinnamon stick
5 cups whole milk
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 cup white cane sugar (I used regular granulated)
ground cinnamon (I didn't use since I was making the caramel sauce)

I cooked the rice and water with the cinnamon stick for about 15 minutes. The directions suggest you skim off any excess water, but I had very little (as I believe is the correct result). They also say to remove the cinnamon stick, but I did not. Left it in for the entire cooking time.

I next added the milk, salt, vanilla extract, and sugar to the rice. The directions say to cook it uncovered over low heat for 45 minutes to an hour. It's probably my stove, but it took waaay longer than that for me. I eventually turned it up to get it going, then turned it down when it showed signs of thickening. Be sure to stir it often so there's no burning.

Almost done!

On to the caramel sauce! (a.k.a. the Star of the Show)

Ingredients (pg. 203):
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
3 tbsp. light corn syrup
8 tbsp. butter
1 1/4 cup heavy cream

Since I had never truly made caramel sauce before, I followed the recipe to a T. There was a whole lot of boiling and stirring -- my arm got quite tired -- but I will never take the short cut on caramel sauce again. I promise you, it's that good.

My warped whisk worked just fine!

I did take the advice of the Three Guys and put the cooled caramel sauce in a glass container so it will be easy to microwave. This stuff is yu-um. I know I ate far too much of it alone with a spoon. BTW, it was good with the rice pudding, too! :-)

I didn't have any cute, dainty bowls handy -- my
Peacock Fiestaware had to do!

Shared at the Homestead Barn Hop, Homemade Mondays, Tuesdays With a Twist, and Tasty Tuesdays.

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Disclosure: This post contains an affiliate link, which means I may receive a very small commission if you click the link and buy something. This helps support my blogging activities, and the price you pay will be no different than if you arrived at the same destination through any other link. My opinions are my own, to be sure. If I link to a product and say I like it -- I truly like it! :-) Thanks for reading and following Stephlin's Mountain.

Frugal Fabric Refresher Attempt #1 (or, a Frugal Febreze Fail?)

This post is really two-fold. It includes a recipe for homemade fabric refresher (a.k.a. "Febreze"), as well as a recipe for homemade fabric softener. One is used in the other, so it's a no-brainer to put them together in one place. (I've been wanting to make them both, ran out of Febreze first, and needed both to make it. Follow me?)

First up is the liquid fabric softener. I haven't been one to use it much in the past; have always been a dryer sheet girl. A few months ago, I switched to homemade dryer sheets. Been working beautifully, I might add. The "dryer sheet" does require diluted liquid fabric softener, though, so I now have a use for it. [Note: I'm sure to be writing about this in a future post, but if you can't wait -- Google it!]

The recipe is widely found on the 'net. Simply mix (stir, don't shake):
· 6 parts water
· 3 parts vinegar
· 2 parts conditioner (in your favorite scent)

I must confess I haven't used it with my laundry, yet. But I know for a fact vinegar works for softening and static, so I'm confident in the recipe. My end goal was "frugal febreze", and I wasn't prepared with a large (empty) container, so my 1 part was equal to 1/4 cup. Here's a pinnable pic:

After that successful stirring, I moved on to the main objective.

Here's the most common recipe I came across when searching for "frugal febreze" -- mix together the following:

1/8 cup fabric softener
2 tablespoons baking soda
about 4 cups warm water (I filled up my old generic Febreze bottle)

It's advised that you shake before each use.

I used this concoction immediately -- triumphantly sprayed it in an odorous place...and was disappointed.

To be clear, the mixture actually worked. The odor was gone (neutralized by the vinegar and baking soda, I think). But I want more fragrance. Is this extra good-smelly-ness necessary? Nope. The real stuff brainwashed spoiled me.

BTW, the fragrance chemicals are not good for us. So let me reiterate that this mixture is a good commercial fabric refresher replacement. The smelly issue is all mine.

What's my answer? I think it's going to be an essential oil. Will let ya know!

UPDATE: My thought was correct! I used some lavender essential oil from a sample pack I purchased -- maybe 4 to 5 drops? -- and my now fabulously frugal febreze is a new best friend!

Great place to find more timeless frugal tips:


Shared at From the Farm Blog Hop, Homestead Barn Hop, and some of these other fine hops.

Turn Tomato Powder into Fresh Tomato Paste. Or Sauce. Or Juice.

So after yesterday's post, we all know how super simple it is to make tomato powder. Right?

Now, what do we do with tomato powder? Of course, it could be added into your cooking as is. It also could be incorporated into any pre-made dry mixes you might wish to make. (I have some "rice-a-roni" ones I'll share with you sometime.) Today, however, I'd like to show you how quickly and easily you can turn that powder into fresh tomato paste. Or sauce. Or juice. (You get the idea.)

In order to reconstitute your powder into paste or sauce, you just need to add a bit of water. Whether you want paste or sauce, it's all about the ratio. One part powder + one part water = paste.

And one part powder + three parts water = sauce!

Though I didn't make any juice, the recipe I have is 1 tsp. powder + 1/2 cup water. Of course, you are the chef, so the consistency of any of these is really up to you.

No more tomato paste tubes! Or, no more opening a can of either paste or sauce and only using half of it! No more added salt or chemicals! And the flavor of this is intensely * deliciously * tomato-y. (Like how I did that?) If you're lucky to be using tomatoes from your organically grown garden, there's the added benefit of no pesticides involved. Need I say more?

Here's a pinnable pic to sum things up.  Enjoy!

Shop Ball and Kerr Products
Shared at Green Thumb Thursday, From the Farm Blog Hop, and Homestead Barn Hop.

How to Make Tomato Powder for Fresh Tomato Paste and Sauce

A couple of months ago, really on a whim, I bought a food dehydrator. And, guess what. I. LOVE. It. Really. I'm talkin' starry eyed love. I've made dried strawberries, made banana chips, dehydrated onions, and made garlic powder, for starters. Oh, the fun I've had!

Now, I don't have a garden that's producing a ton of tomatoes (yet!), but last week my local Aldi's had a great deal on some fresh Romas.  They were 79¢ for 20 oz.  That's a wonderful price for my area. If you do have a ton of tomatoes coming out of your garden (or somehow end up with more than you know what to do with), this is another great way to preserve them.

I've dried tomatoes before, but stopped short of making powder.  I became enamored with the tomato chips I had created when B started eating them straight off the dehydrator.  So I packaged them just as they were and put them in the pantry.  Imagine how clever I thought I was when I saw a post by Christy Jordan at Southern Plate talking about the same thing!

Anyway, back to the powder. It's so darn simple.

First, take your washed tomatoes and slice them up. I used a cheap nothing-fancy mandolin with a thin slice blade. (Here's a link to one like it at Amazon, but mine cost even less. I got it for about $10 at Bed, Bath, & Beyond. It does have fewer blades, though.)

Next, I loaded up my dehydrator. I did put the tomato slices in a single layer, of course, but wasn't too picky about them touching.

And I dried them to a crisp.  Since I sliced them thin, it only took about 7 hours at 135°.

Finally, I threw them in a blender and pulverized them to a powder!

So easy, right?! A little under 5 pounds of tomatoes netted me about a half pint of powder. Come back tomorrow, and I'll show you how to reconstitute your fresh tomato powder into fresh paste and sauce. Yum!

Shared at Green Thumb Thursday, From the Farm Blog Hop, Homestead Barn Hop, and Tasty Tuesdays.

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Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means I may receive a very small commission if you click the link and buy something. This helps support my blogging activities, and the price you pay will be no different than if you arrived at the same destination through any other link. My opinions are my own, to be sure. If I link to a product and say I like it -- I truly like it! :-) Thanks for reading and following Stephlin's Mountain.