NON TOXIC Homemade Toilet Bowl Cleaner

Yuck!

I consider this the worst job in the house...

Cleaning bathrooms is my LEAST favorite job to do, but one that really must be kept up.

Most of you probably use a "toilet bowl cleaner " purchased at a store.

Have you read the back of it?

Probably not....

It contains Hydrochloric Acid

Anyone know what that is?

Here is the safety section from Wikipedia 

Now.......

Do you really want to be ANYWHERE near this stuff??

There are other ways to clean that won't hurt the environment and won't hurt you!!

Here is a simple NON TOXIC way to clean a toilet.

Directly into the toilet add

1 cup white vinegar

1/4 cup borax

1/4 cup baking soda

Gently give a swish around with the toilet brush

Let sit for 30 minutes or so 

Use toilet brush to scrub toilet bowl

Flush and your done..

See....it's easy to be Green 😉

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20 Minute🍲 Easy Hamburger Goulash

What's for dinner?

Isn't that a dreaded question?

These days there is so much to do and so little time to do it in.

This recipe fits right in.

Dinner on the table in 20 minutes. 

And it's delicious too!

In the time it takes to boil the pasta, the rest of the ingredients are cooked.

There is even time to make a salad!

Plus....everybody loves this dish.

HAMBURGER GOULASH 

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1 lb lean ground beef 

1 medium onion - chopped 

1 lg tin diced tomatoes 

2 tbsp beef soup base ( oxo, Bovril work too)

1/8 tsp pepper

2 cups elbow macaroni 

                       Step 1.) Put large pot of salted water on to boil for pasta

                                                               Cook pasta           

                          Meanwhile......

                       Step 2.) In a frying pan, cook ground beef and onions until thoroughly done.

                       Step 3.) Add tomatoes, soup base and pepper. 

                    

When pasta is cooked, drain and add the beef mixture.

Stir and serve.

We like it with Parmesan Cheese on top, but that's optional 

*If your family is large, double the pasta, add another can of tomatoes and 2 tbsp soup base*

Economical and Delicious 

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NON TOXIC Homemade All-Purpose Cleaner

Today we are all trying to do our best for the environment.

An easy way to do this AND save a ton of money, is to make your own cleaning products.

The price we pay for a spray bottle of toxic chemicals is astounding.

Not only is it harmful to the environment, but it's harmful to us too!!

Take a look at the back of one of the bottles of cleaning solutions you have purchased....

Can you even pronounce some of those chemicals?

Do you know what they are used for?

We buy these products because we see them advertised on t.v. or in magazines or because of their cute little ads on the computer.

Well.....STOP IT !

All you really need is a safe, NON TOXIC homemade cleaner for almost every basic cleaning job.

You probably have everything you need in the kitchen right now.

Let's do our part for the environment and for ourselves.

Let's face it.... 

Do we really want our children exposed to all these harmful chemicals?

Do you want to breath in all that stuff either?

No....

I didn't think so.

Try this instead.

ALL PURPOSE CLEANER 

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2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp Dawn dish soap

4 tbsp white vinegar

1 3/4 cups of warm water.

Put in a spray bottle and shake

That's it. Isn't that easy?

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Bacon Wrapped Pesto Chicken

                                      This is seriously a delicious recipe, and so easy to make.

                                                           And it has BACON!!!

I used mozzarella cheese and pesto, but you could substitute the mozzarella for Parmesan and if your not fussy on pesto, sun dried tomatoes would be awesome too.

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Step 1)  Carefully butterfly your chicken breasts.

Step 2). Add your fillings.  

I used mozzarella and pesto.

Step 3) Wrap the chicken breasts in bacon.

Repeat for as many chicken breasts you plan to do.

Step 4)  Cover and bake at 350*F for 45 minutes

Uncover and continue baking for 20 minutes more.

These are yummy..

Quick tip to save 💰💰💰 on your electric bill

Here's a simple way to save a few $$
Go around your house and see how many items are plugged in to your electrical outlets.....🔌
Go on... I'll wait......

Yep....that's what I thought.
Your 📺📻☎️🎛🔭📱💻🕹....and more are all plugged in, right?
Now....how many of these things are you actually using right now?
Not too many I would guess.
Did you know that even when the power is turned off, things that are plugged in are
                                     STILL USING ELECTRICITY?
Yes ...they are sucking your hard earned money even when not in use.  💸💸
Now I realize you can't very well unplug things like your stove that have plug ins where they are not accessible. But what about that cord for your phone that you keep plugged in, even when your phone isn't charging?
The iPod charger, the lamp that never gets used, the tv in the spare room that nobody watches?
If you are like me, there are LOTS of things you can unplug to save on your electricity bill.
You work hard for your money.......don't just give it to the electric company.
If it's not being used, unplug it!
Saving money really can be that simple.....😉
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Moist and Delicious Banana Bran Muffins

This is a perfect way to use up some of those overripe bananas.
With the added bran they make a good addition to a packed lunch.
Feel free to add raisins if you like, but they are good without them.

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Banana Bran Muffins
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Makes 12 muffins

Preheat oven to 400*F
Spray 12 muffin tins with cooking spray.

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup natural bran
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
3 bananas ( I freeze my ripe bananas then thaw them, which makes them easy to blend in without chunks)

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Add wet ingredients and mix until well blended.
Fill muffin tins 3/4 full and bake for 15 - 20 minutes or until knife comes out clean.

WAIT !! Don't throw out your overripe bananas!

It happens to all of us...
We buy a bunch of bananas and before they are all eaten, at least one of them gets overripe.
Nobody wants it, so it just sits there.....getting browner and browner....
Ready to get thrown out...
But....
DONT DO IT !

Instead, put it in your freezer.
Frozen bananas can be added to smoothies, or thawed and added to your favorite banana recipe.
When thawed, they are almost liquidy and mix well into the batter. Plus no lumps.
So instead of throwing out those " mature" bananas, save them for when your in the mood for a moist loaf of banana bread or maybe some banana chocolate chip muffins....mmmmmmm.

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Stuffed Potatoes

Super delicious fluffy stuffed potatoes. A hit with everyone!!

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These potatoes are so easy and make a meal extra special.
I happened to have a bit of leftover brocolli in the fridge so I added it to my filling, but you can add all sorts of things.
Another favourite is bacon.....yep adding bacon to anything makes it special doesn't it?

You will need:

Baked potatoes ( I used 6, but just adjust the recipe accordingly for as many potatoes you need)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/3 cup milk
Salt
Pepper
Additions.... I used 1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese and 1/2 cup cooked chopped brocolli

Step 1.  Cut thin slice off the top of baked

Step2. Carefully scoop out insides of potatoe

Step 3. In a large bowl, add sour cream salt and pepper to potatoes
Step 4. Mash potatoes until fluffy. ( I use an electric mixer to make them fluffy)
Step 5. Add your additions.

Step 6. Mix well and fill potatoes. Pile it on. They can take it!

Step 7. Add a bit of grated cheese to the top and bake at 350 *F for 45 minutes. 

Enjoy

Whiter teeth

The amount of money spent on products to "whiten" teeth is mind blowing.
Never mind what the dentist charges 😳
Well here is a simple frugal tip that works within a minute.
Do it once a week and you will have a sparkling white smile all the time.😃

You will need 2 simple ingredients that you should have in your kitchen already.
Yep... Just 2.

Lemon juice and baking soda

Step 1.  Wet your toothbrush with lemon juice.
                Fresh or bottled. Both work just fine.
Step 2.  Sprinkle wet toothbrush with baking soda.
Step 3. Brush for 1 minute.
Step 4.  Rinse.

That's it.
All natural.
Easy.
Cheap.

Now go out and wow them with your smile. 😎

Cabbage Rolls

This is one of my favorite meals!
 If you make a double or triple batch, they freeze well and reheat for a delicious meal at a later date.
This recipe has only a few ingredients and turns out perfect every time.

You will need:

************

1 cabbage....place in boiling water and remove leaves as they soften.

You want the leaves only partially cooked as they will finish cooking in the oven.

                   

For the filling:

************

1 lb ground beef ( I use lean )

4-5 cups cooked rice

2 cloves garlic

1 large onion - chopped

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

For the sauce:

************

3 tins tomatoe soup

1/3 cup brown sugar

Bake covered at 350*F for 2 - 2 1/2 hours

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Instructions

1) Remove leaves from cabbage. 

      Set aside.

2) Brown ground beef. 

       Drain fat.

3) Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is cooked.

4) Add salt and pepper.

       Mix well.

5) Add cooked rice to hamburger mixture.

       Mix well.

6) Place a cabbage leaf on clean work surface and add approximately 1/3 cup of mixture.

       Roll up and place in pan with seam at bottom.

7) Continue with rest of cabbage leaves.

8) Mix tomatoe soup and brown sugar in medium/large bowl.

       Spoon over cabbage rolls.

9) Cover and place in 350*F oven for 2 - 2 1/2 hours.

Enjoy!!

Meat spaghetti sauce

This is a basic meat spaghetti sauce that is good served over any type of pasta.
 My husband prefers long noodles and my kids have always liked the shaped ones...
This is good on all of them!

I can't believe what restaurants charge for pasta.... It is so cheap to make it yourself.
This sauce is a good basic sauce that will work for all different recipes.

You will need:

1 lb ground beef ( I use lean )
1 medium onion - chopped
2 cloves garlic -diced
1/2 tsp black pepper
2 tsp basil
2 tsp oregano
2 tins spaghetti sauce or tomatoe sauce
1 small tin tomatoe paste


Brown ground beef in a frypan or med/lg saucepan.
Drain off fat.
Add onion and garlic and cook until onion is transparent.
Add spaghetti / tomatoe sauce, pepper, basil and oregano.
Bring to a simmer.
Cover and turn to low for 30 minutes.
Serve over your favorite pasta.

Welcome

Today we are all living on less. The bills are higher and our pay checks can only stretch so far. 

Over the years I have learned to s-t-r-e-t-c-h my dollars to make ends meet. Some ideas have worked great and others.....not so well. 

One of the easiest ways I have found to save money is to learn how to cook for yourself.

Restaurant food is very overpriced. You can cook just as well, if not better at home. Never mind that the food is healthier for you. You also will know everything that goes into the food you are eating.

There are also household ideas for cleaning and general maintenance that will save money that I will share too.

I hope you enjoy my ideas, recipes and tips and I look forward to hearing what you have to say. 

Please comment and let me know what you think.