Saturday, August 31, 2013

Homemade Whole Wheat Tortillas

I stopped buying bread and tortillas at the store. Stay tuned for my homemade bread post, where I will explain why. Anyway, since we make a lot of Mexican food, I needed a recipe for whole wheat tortillas. I found a great one at the 100 Days of Real Food blog. If you are looking to cut out processed food, you should check out this amazing blog. These tortillas are quite simple to make and they are delicious! You won't want the soft, strange tasting ones that come in a plastic bag anymore!

You will need:
  • 2 1/2 Cups whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 Cup oil (I use Extra-Virgin Olive Oil)
  • 1 tsp. sea salt
  • 1 cup warm water (original recipe stated to heat water in microwave for 1 min. This worked well.)
Steps:
  1.  Add flour, oil and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook, beat until crumbly, about 3-5 minutes. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed.
  2. Gradually add the warm water, while mixing. Continue to mix until dough is smooth, about 3 minutes. I had to add a bit more flour than the recipe calls for to get a smooth dough, so use your best judgment. 
  3. Transfer dough to a lightly floured board or counter and divide into 12 pieces. As 100 Days of Food suggests, roll into an 8-10 in. log, cut in half, then cut each half into 3 pieces, and then cut each piece in half to make 12. Or use whatever method is easiest for you.
  4. Roll each piece into a round ball and then flatten. Cover and let sit for 15 minutes-1 hour.

  5. Heat skillet over med-high heat and get the pan fairly hot before you begin cooking the tortillas.
  6. On the lightly floured board or counter, roll each ball into an 8-10 in circle before cooking it. These will come out very thin. Use your fingers to gently peel it off the counter or board. I only used a light dusting of flour to roll each tortilla, so the excess didn't burn in the pan. I rolled one tortilla at a time and then rolled the next while the previous one was cooking.
  7. Grease the pan with a bit of oil and cook tortillas one at a time, until bubbly and slightly brown, about 30-45 seconds each side. Eat within an hour, refrigerate, or freeze.
I didn't get a picture of the finished product because I was rushing to get dinner finished. Sorry! If you want to see the finished product, visit 100 Days of Real Food for some nice pictures. Enjoy!

Momma Makes it Better!

~Anna

Friday, August 30, 2013

Homemade Laundry Detergent

As requested, here is the easy-peasy recipe for homemade laundry detergent. I love it. Our clothes come out clean and smelling fresh. I found the recipe at one of my favorite blogs, DIY Natural. Their blog is like pure heaven to me!

For the laundry detergent you will need:
  • A bar of soap (about 4.5 oz. size), shaved. I use Kirk's Castile, but others have also recommended Fels-Naptha and Zote. DIY Natural has more recommendations.
  • 1 cup Borax
  • 1 cup Washing Soda (not baking soda) *Learn how to turn baking soda into washing soda at Penniless Parenting.

 Step 1: Shave the bar of soap. I like to recruit my husband for this! He is much faster than me.

 
 
Step 2: Add Borax and washing soda. Mix well and it's ready to use!



I use 1 tablespoon per load. You may use more (2-3) for heavily soiled or large loads. One tablespoon has been plenty for all our laundry. Upon another momma's recommendation, I add a little bit of shaved Fels-Naptha (I don't use it in my regular recipe because I have not researched the ingredients) for my husbands dirty, sweaty cammie uniforms to get the yuck out. My fellow military spouses know what I mean! Field cammies are hard to get clean!

For more recommendations, information, cost comparisons, and links regarding the use of Borax, please visit DIY Natural's original post.

Be sure to let me know how it works for you and don't forget, Momma Makes it Better!

~Anna

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Homemade Granola Cereal

Hello everyone! Welcome to my first post on yummy from-scratch food! Some friends have requested that I share some of the things I make on a blog, so here it is! Please be patient with me as I figure all this out.

So, for the homemade granola cereal. I LOVE granola cereal. I really won't eat any other cereal. I grew up on the processed sugary stuff and now the thought of it and all the additives and food coloring turns my stomach. Back to the granola. It can be very expensive to buy in the store and I want to know what all is going into my food, so I searched for a recipe to make my own and found a great one at Homestead Revival. They have much better pictures than mine too!

Let's get started! For my version of this recipe, you will need:

Dry Ingredients
6 cups rolled oats (not quick oats)
1 1/2 cups chopped nuts of choice (I use almonds in mine)
1 cup shredded coconut
1-2 tsp ground cinnamon, depending on your taste

Wet Ingredients
1/2 cup local honey (add more for a stickier, clumpier granola according to Homestead Revival)
1/2 cup coconut oil

It doesn't get any better than that! Yum! Check out Homestead Revival for other options and add-ins for your granola cereal. This is just how I make mine.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F

Step 1: Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl

Step 2: Combine wet ingredients in a saucepan and heat slowly, until honey and coconut oil are well incorporated

Step 3: Pour the warmed honey and coconut oil mixture over the dry ingredients and mix well.

Step 4: Spread mixture into jelly roll pans


Bake in 300 degree F oven for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.

Your final creation should look something like this:


Store in an airtight container and enjoy! Yum!


Don't forget, Momma makes it better!

~Anna