Healthy earth Scrub from Queen of Clean

Queen of Clean Linda Cobb

I want to share an awesome natural cleaner that you can make up easily at home. It will replace your all- purpose cleaners and cleansers for use in the bathroom and kitchen. 

HEALTHY EARTH SCRUB

• 1-1/3 cup Baking Soda
• 1 cup Dr. Bonners Castile Soap (any fragrance)
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 – ½ Tablespoon White Vinegar

Combine and put in your favorite container. A squirt top container works well. You can also use a plastic container with a snap on lid. Use on any hard surface except for wood. If it gets thick simply thin with water or castile soap. Buy Dr. Bonners at drug stores and health stores.

Great on Stoves, ovens, cook tops, sink, faucets, tubs, showers and even shower doors.

If it gets stiff over time, add a little more water or a little more vinegar to it. Be sure you cover it tightly to keep it moist.

Copy CAt Red Lobster Chedder Biscuits

Copycat Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits in 20 Minutes
makes approximately 18 biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 Tbsp garlic powder
¾ teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1 ½ sticks (¾ cup) unsalted butter (divided)
1 cup whole milk
1 (8 oz) package shredded mild cheddar cheese
½ teaspoon dried parsley

Preheat oven to 450°F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  Add 1 stick (½ cup) of butter to a small microwave safe mixing bowl.  Microwave for 30 seconds or until butter is melted.  Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl combine flour, baking powder, sugar, garlic and ½ tsp salt.  Whisk until well combined.  Add melted butter and milk and whisk just until flour is all wet, do not over mix.  Add cheese and fold in with a spoon.

Drop heaping spoonfuls onto baking sheet.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, until biscuits are golden brown.

Meanwhile melt remaining ½ stick (¼ cup) of butter in small mixing bowl.  Microwave for 30 seconds or until butter is melted.  Add ¼ teaspoon salt and parsley.  Stir with pastry brush.

Remove biscuits from oven, brush with melted butter mixture.  Serve and enjoy!

Healthy Chocolate Pudding

Chocolate pudding is one of my favorite sweet treats but I haven’t been eating it very often these days because, let’s face it, it’s usually loaded with sugar and starch. I discovered a whole new way to make pudding that’s not only delicious, it’s completely healthy and Paleo friendly. I made up a batch of this yesterday and it absolutely satisfied my chocolate craving. Bonus… It’s so healthy it could pass for breakfast!

for 2 servings of healthy chocolate pudding:

1/4 cup shelled sunflower seeds

3 Tablespoons unsweetened, dark cocoa powder

1 ripe avocado, peeled and pitted

1 and 1/2 large bananas, peeled and frozen and cut into chunks

2 Tablespoons raw honey

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

pinch of sea salt

2 Tablespoons sweetened or unsweetened vanilla almond milk

Place sunflower seeds in a small bowl and cover them with water. Soak seeds for 1 hour. Drain seeds and place them, along with all of the other ingredients, in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until completely smooth.

Scoop into 2 wide-mouth jelly jars or dessert cups. Top with honey-sweetened whipped cream and a few Paleo chocolate chips.

Enjoy!

~Melissa

Cleaning with things from your pantry

Queen of Clean Linda Cobb

CLEANING WITH THINGS FROM YOUR PANTRY

KETCHUP: This is a great cleaner for copper. Simply work it in with a paper towel. Let it sit a few minutes, rub until you see the copper shine and then rinse well. 

DRY MUSTARD: It’s a great odor remover for plastic storage bowls. Fill the bowl with warm water, add about ½ teaspoon or so or dry mustard and let soak a few hours. Wash, rinse and dry. If you have onion or garlic smell on your hands work dry mustard into wet hands. Rinse and dry.

FLOUR: You can use dry flour on a dry stainless steelsink to polish it. Sprinkle in the flour and rub firmly with a paper towel. Rinse and dry well.

LEMON JUICE: Mix some lemon juice with cream of tartar and apply to stained countertops or breadboards. Let sit an hour or so or even overnight and then rinse and dry. Light stains can be wiped away immediately with this combination. Do not use on stone.

ONION: If you have brown stains on knifes from tomato products or the dishwasher, stick them into an onion. Let sit for a while the then pull out, rub the stain, wash and dry.

SALT: Pour it on spills or run-overs in the oven to absorb grease. 

VODKA: Swish diamond jewelry in undiluted vodka to clean. For heavily soiled pieces let soak 15 minutes. May be used on gold and hard stones.

Chocolate cake using Bananas

Chocolate Monkey Snack Cake

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

38 mins

Total time

48 mins

 

A delicious snack cake great for using up those ripe bananas. Since it's a "snack", why not have two pieces?

Author: Danielle of Cozycakes Cottage

Recipe type: Dessert

Serves: 6 to 10

Ingredients

• (adapted from Betty Crocker)
• Ingredients
• •2 very ripe bananas
• •1/3 cup vegetable oil
• • ⅓ cup water
• •1 tsp. instant coffee granules
• •1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• •1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
• •1 and ¼ cups flour
• •3/4 cup sugar
• •1/4 cup dark cocoa powder (I use rich, dark, Dutch-processed)
• •1/4 tsp. kosher salt
• •1 tsp. baking soda
• •1/3 cup milk chocolate chips
• •1/3 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, mash the two bananas well with a fork. Stir in oil and water. In a small bowl, mix instant coffee granules with vanilla extract and vinegar and add to banana mixture. Add the flour, sugar, cocoa, salt, baking soda and mix until combined. Mix the milk chocolate chips and semi-sweet chips together in a small bowl. Add ⅓ cup of chips to batter and stir until just combined. Pour batter into an ungreased 8 x 8-inch pan. Sprinkle remaining ⅓ chips on top of batter. Bake for about 33-38 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool slightly (about 10-15 minutes) before serving. We prefer it warm.
2. Enjoy! ♥

Banana Cake

CRAZY BANANA CAKE WITH CREAM CHEESE ICING

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The richest, moistest banana cake you'll ever make!

Author: Happy Hooligans

INGREDIENTS

• Cake:
• 1.5 cups very ripe bananas (3 fresh bananas or 4 thawed, previously frozen bananas)
• 2 tsp lemon juice
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1.5 tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¾ cup soft butter
• 2 cups sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1.5 cups buttermilk (OR milk soured with one tbsp vinegar or lemon juice)
• Icing:
• ½ cup softened butter
• 8 oz cream cheese, room temp.
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3.5 cups icing sugar (also known as powdered sugar or confectioner's sugar)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Pre-heat oven to 275 F, and grease and flour (or spray), a 9x13 cake pan.
2. Mash banana and mix with lemon juice and set aside.
3. In a med bowl, mix flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
4. If you're making your own buttermilk, combine milk and vinegar (or lemon juice) in a small bowl, and set aside.
5. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar.
6. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Stir in vanilla.
7. Beat in flour mixture alternately with buttermilk.
8. Stir in bananas.
9. Pour into cake pan and bake 1 hour and 10 mins (or until knife comes out clean). *if need be, cook longer, checking every 10 minutes until cake is fully cooked.
10. Immediately place in freezer for 45 minutes. (if not completely cool upon removal from freezer, let cool further before icing).
11. Cream butter and cream cheese.
12. Beat in vanilla and icing sugar on low until combined, then high until smooth.
13. Frost cake and enjoy!

Buttermilk Pie

~ buttermilk pie ~

This is considered an old Southern “hard times” pie. It’s made with simple ingredients and it’s pure heaven. Jeff and Gracie just love it, and it’s fantastic served at room temperature or chilled.

1 prebaked 9-inch pie shell

2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 and 1/4 cup sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick (1/4 pound) unsalted butter

3 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg

Bake pie crust at 350 for 15 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a baking sheet to cool a bit while you mix up the other ingredients. Keep the oven on.

Blend flour with sugar and salt, whisk in the melted butter (that is liquified but not sizzling. If it’s really hot, let it cool a bit before whisking in.) Beat the eggs and whisk them in. Add the buttermilk, vanilla and nutmeg. Pour into the baked pie shell. Slide the pie, still on the baking sheet, into the oven on a rack that has been placed in the lower third of the oven. Bake for 50-60 minutes at 350, or until a knife inserted in the pie comes clean. The center of the pie will still be a bit jiggly but will set up when cool. Cool on a wire rack.

Enjoy!

~Melissa