Heavenly Homemakers

Encouraging women in homemaking, healthy eating and parenting

Best Gifts for Teachers

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It’s the end of the school year! Here’s a list of the best gifts for teachers. Leave a comment to add to the list!

After an especially difficult school year, I think all of our teachers deserve extra love and some spoiling, don’t you?!

Best Gifts for Teachers

1. Gift Cards

Teachers deserve some big treats after a long school year, wouldn’t you agree?! Write a kind and appreciative personal note, then slide in a gift card that will provide your teacher with free dinner, free ice cream, free coffee, free shopping, or free anything fun from around your community.

2. Supplies for the Classroom

When I asked for gift suggestions on my Facebook page, Stephanie said this, “I always ask the teachers if they have any classroom needs-supplies, games or activities for inside recess days, etc.” Brilliant gift idea! Restocking some fun and necessary supplies after a school year is a great idea to help them get ahead for next year!

teacher gift4

3. Simple Cookbooks

This is what we gave Brayden’s teacher for Christmas and she was thrilled with the simple, tasty ideas! Get these books here.

4. Breakfast in the Break Room

Meredith shared this fabulous suggestion, “One year I brought in breakfast for the office staff of our elementary. We were newish to the school then, and I didn’t want to bring in homemade food that might make some uneasy, so I made up my own shortened (and with prices that fit in my budget per person) list of breakfast options from Panera and handed it out early with a date on it I needed to collect them. I brought in orange juice and iced coffee from the grocery dairy section and a chopped fruit bowl from the grocer (but bananas and oranges or apples would be good too, I was just really wanting everything to clearly be commercially prepared if that makes sense) to go with each person’s selections. Panera boxed all the other stuff up and I brought it in early before the kids arrived. It was about $6-7 per person and we have a small office staff. They really loved it!”

Fruit tray

5. A Monogrammed Tote

Oh my goodness, how cute are these?! I think teachers will love this gift! Check out the options here.

 

6. Homemade Vanilla

Did you make some vanilla? What a fantastic gift this makes! If you haven’t made some yet, get some started for Christmas gifts or next year’s teacher gifts! Here’s how.

7. Handmade Earrings

I love these so much!! I also love supporting small businesses. Use the code Heavenly to get $3 off your order at Delight Accessories!

8. A Fun Tumbler

I love these! Choose from several different colors and styles. They are simple and practical and fun all at the same time! See these options here.

 

9. Car Wash Tokens

As someone who constantly has a filthy vehicle, I like this idea very much!! Lyn said, “When the boys got into middle and high school and had so many teachers, I started getting gift cards for the local car wash (one or two washes each). Our local place runs a “20 for $100? special each year. It’s inexpensive, different and they love them!”

Fill in the gaps! What are your favorite gifts to give teachers?

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Bluebird on the Prairie

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This is beyond exciting! Check out Tasha’s news!! And in case you’re wondering, I LOVE THIS BOOK. (I got to read it early, and you can bet I preordered a whole stack!)

Hey, it’s me, Tasha Hackett!

I have some of the most exciting news to share with you about Bluebird on the Prairie. Finally, I wrote a clean romance novel after years of work, years, and it’s now available for pre-order and will be released May 18, 2021 wherever books are commonly sold. 

I set out to write a romantic comedy that explores themes of grief and hope and finding love again after death. Was it possible to have a historical inspirational romance without riding double on a horse? (Which we all know would be highly uncomfortable.) Without anyone fainting? Without anyone physically being rescued? I wanted to write the book I wanted to read. Can the characters be so real that they’re relatable even if they’re from the late 1800s?

As I asked myself these questions and developed these characters I had no idea where God was leading me. When I started the book in early 2017 I hadn’t yet been through a spiritual fire. I stopped writing for over a year when I had my fourth baby. The person I was in 2019 (when finished the novel) was not the same girl who started it. It’s almost like God knew what he was doing all along. 

Bluebird on the Prairie is a witty love story. 

book cover of bluebird on the prairie

 

Bluebird on the Prairie is also story of what grief can feel like. 

back cover

Eloise Davidson is strong, enduring, wistful, angry, afraid, isolated, and determined. 

But what is her story about? Love. But also grief. 

Bluebird on the Prairie is a witty, compelling, and inspirational romance about all the good things like home, family, and love, but it’s about hard things like death, and grief… but also about this one time when Eloise was playing the creek with her toddler nephew and a strange man fell down the bank headfirst. Compared to other books of this genre, just imagine if Janette Oke met Mary Conneally . . . or Laura Ingalls met Karen Witemeyer. 

So there she is, wearing nothing but a wet chemise, which is absolutely scandalous, and a dirty man—who may or may not be attractive in the least—is sprawled out at the bottom of the creek bank. 

Hmm. What would you do? Suppose you better read and find out. ;-)

Pre-Order Here

Once upon a time there was a 12-year-old girl who started writing a book about a field of daisies and best friends who wandered into another world where they fulfilled a prophecy and saved the kingdom. Or something like that. Sadly, this girl never finished the story. It was me. Obviously, I was that girl. The story is still tucked away in a shoebox in my closet, thankfully; maybe I’ll finish it someday. What I’m trying to say is that 12-year-old Tasha wouldn’t be surprised to see my name on the cover of a book. Of course she’d say, “Well, yeah. That’s what writers do. They write books. Duh.” 

Sometime soon I’ll tell you some of the tale of how Bluebird came about. But for now, I invite you to hop over to my website and find out more about me and this novel. 

If you’re just here for a recipe and homemaking tips, check these out. While I was doing more writing and editing the past couple of years these are the recipes I turned to again and again. 

And the past five months of eating Paleo, these are some recipes we’ve been eating on repeat:

Cheers, 

Tasha

P.s. I forgot to mention, all pre-orders sold directly from my website, www.TashaHackett.com, will be SIGNED copies. The eBook will become available after the release of the paperback. However, upon release both the eBook/paperback will be available through any place books are commonly sold.

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How to Ask for Help

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Here’s how to ask for help. See also: How to say yes to offers of help. Ready? Let’s do this!

Why ask for help?

First, we should probably tackle the reasons we need to ask for help. Is it because we are weak and needy? Well, yes actually. But not in the negative way we typically use those words.

I’ll reshare what I wrote a post a couple of years ago explaining Why You Need to Say “YES” to Offers of Help! The reasons included:

  1. You don’t want to miss out on the powerful work of the Holy Spirit on your behalf through others.
  2. We are called to live a life of humility.
  3. Because…we need it. We. Need. Help.

You can read all the words I said about each of those points here. But in summary, when people offer to help you? Say yes. You’re missing out on more of God’s goodness if you don’t!

So we need help. But…

Why do we struggle to ask for help?

Straight up: I believe that the reason we struggle to ask for help is that we are ashamed. We are holding onto pride. We don’t want to admit to ourselves that we actually need help. We don’t want to appear weak. We would rather be the helper, not the one who needs help.

Stop it.

  1. There is nothing to be ashamed of when asking for help.
  2. Ungodly pride is sinful and keeps us in a place of hurt.
  3. It’s time for us to admit that we most certainly need help!
  4. You can still be a helper. You can also be helped. This is a win-win. Keep reading!

If asking for help is hard for you, it’s time to stop reading this and pray. Ask God to show you how to ask for and say yes to help. Ask Him to heal your pride and to help you acknowledge your needs. Ask Him to fill you with peace and to provide you with answers. Then watch Him be at work for your good!

How I learned to ask for help

The short story is that God didn’t give me a choice. During the past three years, He has filled our home with foster and adopted children, giving us a current total of nine kids as I write this. I currently have three in diapers, one with extra medical needs, and two who are trauma survivors.

My days are so full and the needs in our home are so great that if I didn’t ask for and receive help, I would be drowning.

Right now, I absolutely cannot keep up with laundry. I cannot keep up with dishes. I cannot keep my floors clean. I am running and chasing and training and snuggling and disciplining and in general keeping tiny humans alive all day long. Plus I have a calendar full of meetings, appointments, and events. Caseworkers, therapists, doctors, WIC, lawyers – my phone blows up constantly. My door is revolving with people coming in and out. Sometimes I don’t have time to eat lunch.

Also, I have four older kids. Three out of four have launched, but I’m still their mom. I try to attend their events, answer the phone when they call, offer advice when asked. Our high schooler needs help with school work and guidance in many other ways. I’m not complaining! I’m just sharing the many reasons that:

I have to have help. And I love that God has helped me to embrace my needs and to reach out and ask. The response is overwhelmingly beautiful.

You might be saying to yourself, “Well, I don’t have tons of kids. I don’t have any special needs right now. I am not like you. I can handle my life without help.”

But I caution you to be open-hearted as you consider your true needs. We all need help daily. Some days we need more help, some days we need ALL THE HELP, and some days we may just need a friend to pray for us. Whatever it is you’re doing, be prayerful about humbly accepting help.

Here are some examples of the ways I’ve asked for help JUST THIS WEEK:

  • Can you go with me to Malachi’s soccer game and help me chase kids on the sidelines?
  • Can you come help me clean my kitchen?
  • Can you come watch kids so I can get some blog work done?
  • Can you come over at 3:40 and stay with sleeping littles while I go pick up Sister?
  • Can you make those cookies we love so much so I can serve them with our college student lunch on Sunday?
  • Can you fold the laundry piled up on my bed?
  • Can you come stay with the kids while I go to the chiropractor?
  • Can you come help put kids to bed while we go to Justus and Elias’ performance?
  • Are you available to go get my Walmart pick-up order for me?
  • Can you pray for me? Pray for Baby? Pray for…

Sometimes, I don’t even have to ask. Often, because we have been open to help, people reach out and ask what we need.

I have learned that if someone asks to help me, this is God at work in my life for my good. I will not say no to God’s work in my life for my good. So before I answer, I stop and pray. Then I say yes to their offer and tell them what they can do to help me. Why? Because:

I WILL NOT SAY NO TO GOD’S WORK IN MY LIFE FOR MY GOOD.

Say this out loud. Proclaim it for yourself. May God transform us all into people who joyfully receive help when we need it!

Don’t feel guilty. Feel grateful!

Recently I was in the hospital for an unexpected few days with our baby girl. She was my full-time focus, but we had all of our other children at home needing to be cared for. I called on many people to help, and they all went above and beyond.

I didn’t feel guilty about needing help. I didn’t feel bad about asking for help. I didn’t feel weak for needing help.

Instead, I felt grateful that we have such a loving community surrounding our family. I felt joyful that so many were willing to step in and meet our family’s needs. I felt overwhelmed with all the goodness God provides through His people.

Often the Help is Mutual

Here’s one of the biggest truths I’m learning: When people come to help me, I am helping them too. No one is keeping score. This is simply the beauty of how God works!

Some of our biggest helpers are college students. This has turned into a win-win! They bring over their laundry to throw in while they are helping with our kids. They come over as dating or engaged couples and are being given the opportunity to serve together while they grow in their relationship. They bounce babies while I’m cooking and they learn valuable kitchen skills while they observe. They sweep my floor while we talk about Jesus, giving us both the opportunity to grow as I mentor them and they encourage me. Do you see the beauty in this!?!

Start with prayer

It’s time to learn to ask for help. You can do this, and you need to! We all need to! Listen to God’s direction about this, and obey. Ask Him to show you what kind of help you need. Let Him tell you who to ask and how to ask.

Then watch as He provides the answers, the help, and the humility. Be amazed as peace and love fill you in ways they never could before you reached out for help.

God is good. He is the ultimate helper. Say yes to Him!

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The Best Recipes That Use Cream Cheese

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Who needs recipes that use cream cheese? All of us, that’s who. Everything tastes better with cream cheese.

If you disagree with that statement, we can still be friends. In fact, I’ll just take one for the team and eat all of your cream cheese for you. Notta problem.

The idea to share my cream cheese recipes came after a conversation I had with a college student recently. He sat at my kitchen counter and he couldn’t stop dipping into my Strawberry Cheesecake Parfait. He was like, “This is the best whipped cream I have ever eaten in my life!” and I was like, “Well, that’s because there’s cream cheese in it.”

And then we both declared that OF COURSE it was the best whipped cream he’s ever eaten because:

Everything tastes better with cream cheese.

So.

It only makes sense that I now provide you with easy access to all of my recipes that use cream cheese. First, here’s how I find affordable cream cheese:

  1. Buy at Aldi.
  2. Buy at Costco.
  3. Watch for sales and stock up at your local grocery store.

Cream cheese to avoid:

  1. Walmart brand cream cheese
  2. I repeat, never buy the Walmart brand cream cheese.

Some off-brands of cream cheese are just as wonderful as the Philadelphia brand, and I love that these good off-brands cost half as much. But I’ve never been happy with the results of my recipes when using the Walmart brand of cream cheese. And now on to the wonderful recipes!

Recipes That Use Cream Cheese

  1. Strawberry Cheesecake Parfait (My very favorite thing to eat in all the world.)
  2. Chocolate Cheesecake Parfait (My second favorite, and another huge hit when feeding guests.)
  3. Cream Cheese Pastries (You should make these next Saturday.)
  4. Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Bread (Every word of that title should make you want to bake this.)
  5. Easy Low Sugar Cream Cheese Cookie Cutouts (The best sugar cookie you’ve ever eaten.)
  6. Easy Chocolate Cream Cheese Marble Cake (The cake is moist, and then there’s the cream cheese part. Always enjoy with coffee.)
  7. Cream Cheese Corn (This is a favorite side dish to share on special holidays. And also on Tuesdays.)
  8. Cream Cheese Salsa Dip (You haven’t had chip dip until you’ve had this dip.)
  9. Easy Chicken with Cream Cheese Sauce (This makes people cry tears of joy whilst they eat it. Beware.)
  10. BLT Wraps (You’ll never go back to a regular BLT again.)
  11. Crepes with Cream Cheese Filling (Fix these when you don’t want to work hard, but you do want your family to think you are extra amazing.)
  12. Cream Cheese Pumpkin Muffins (There’s an actual wedge of cream cheese in these. Check them out!)
  13. Easy Cream Cheese Fruit Dip (Fruit is good. Fruit with this dip is 100% better.)
  14. Flaky Cream Cheese Pastry (Made with homemade dough instead of the kind that pops out of a can. So good.)
  15. Italian Cream Cheese Chicken (The meal one of my sons requests for every birthday.)
  16. Whole Grain Chocolate Chip Cheesecake Bars (Cookie and cheesecake all in one!)
  17. Whole Grain Raspberry Cheesecake Bars (For dessert or for breakfast. Or both in the same day.)
  18. Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups (These are a big reason to be thankful at Thanksgiving.)
  19. Mini Crustless Cheesecakes (I love having these on hand for grab-and-go snacks!)
  20. Chocolate Cheesecake Dessert (It’s like a fancy dessert that is easy to make. Love!)
  21. Cream Cheese Fruit Dip (You’re going to need a lot of apples to go with this because people can’t stop eating it.)

Cheesecake Topped Muffins

You can make muffins. Or you can make muffins topped with cheesecake. I think we all know the right choice to make.

What are your favorite ways to use cream cheese?

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Foods to Purchase and Have on Hand for Busy Days

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Here are some of my best tips for foods to purchase and have on hand for busy days!

If you haven’t already, go check out all these amazing ideas for ways to get ahead in the kitchen!

Beyond homemade food, which of course we all love best, it’s nice to have some healthy convenience items on hand for busy days.

Foods to Purchase and Have on Hand for Busy Days

You know I’m going to start with this one:

1. Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

Just do it. These are so easy to purchase and so easy to serve and eat! Eating lots of fruits and veggies is the biggest, best way to be sure we’re getting lots of nourishment. And when we’re talking about busy days and maybe eating on the fly, we can feel good about what we’re eating or serving our families if we are making sure we’re/they’re eating an apple with their frozen pizza (or whatever). ;)

Great fresh fruit and veggie ideas that can be easily eaten on the run:

  • Apples
  • Bananas
  • Berries
  • Oranges or Clementines
  • Carrots
  • Mini-Sweet Peppers
  • Sugar Snap Peas
  • Pears
  • Peaches
  • Grapes
  • Grape Tomatoes
  • Cucumber Slices
  • Prepared mixed greens for quick salads

Regarding fresh veggies? I’m all about the dips. If ranch dip helps you or your kids eat the veggies? SERVE THE DIP. Veggies with dip is better than no veggies at all, am I right?

Need some dip ideas and recipes?

2. Frozen or Packaged Fruits and Veggies

These are great because they can be eaten or prepared quickly!

3. Whole Grain Breads

I prefer to make this Simple Stir-and-Pour Bread. But lately, since I haven’t had time to bake, I find that having 100% whole grain breads and bagels on hand has been very helpful.

These give us breakfast, lunch, and snack options from simple bread and butter to peanut butter sandwiches or lunch meat sandwiches.

Sometimes, on my busiest days, all I have time to serve is a peanut butter sandwich with one of the fruits or veggies listed above. It fills their bellies and offers nourishment too. I call it a win!

4. Boneless Chicken or Chicken Legs

My favorite is boneless chicken thighs. My second favorite is a package of chicken legs. If I have these in the freezer and I don’t have time for anything else, I can easily dump some sauce on some chicken and put it into the crockpot, into the oven, or onto the grill.

I serve the chicken with a steamed veggie (from the frozen veggies mentioned above) and a fresh fruit and we have a fantastic, healthy meal that hardly took any time to prepare!

5. Potatoes

I am not a fan of russets, but we love Yukon Gold or Red Potatoes! We can make so many fast meals with potatoes, specifically:

Baked Potatoes in the Crock Pot – which can be topped with anything we have in the fridge! Ham, leftover chicken or hamburger or taco meat, cheese, sour cream, broccoli, peas…

Baked potatoes make quick meals or side dishes.

6. Frozen Hashbrowns

This Mr. Dell’s brand of hashbrowns contains only potatoes, which I love! I buy them in 5-pound bags and use them to make so many of these recipes. Fast, easy, good for us!

7. Packaged Convenience Foods??!

Yep, I just said it. This is where I’m at now that we have so many kids and so much going on. Loving people is more important than standing in the kitchen. So some days, we eat the packaged nuggets and the frozen pizza. I feel no guilt about this. We eat salad with our pizza, we still have energy to smile at each other. It’s a win!

What do you purchase to help you get through busy days?

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Homemade Chocolate Bar

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Want to make a Homemade Chocolate Bar?! And here’s a fun new treat recipe from Tasha!

homemade chocolate

Homemade Chocolate Bar

by Tasha Hackett

This homemade chocolate bar recipe is everything I ever thought it could be. I tend to eat it all and so I make it small batches. Apparently, I have the self-restraint of a two-year-old near a puddle. Which is none-at-all. In case you haven’t been around two-year-olds lately, they pretty much do what they want. Thankfully this homemade chocolate is a good source of calories and protein.

 

Yum

A now a word about our homemade chocolate bar sponsor.

Laura once shared a recipe about Fat Bombs and we all said, “Ew, no.” Every now and then she talks about how hungry she is and is she ever grateful for these amazing goodies and we say, “Ew, no.” Initially, she explained how fat is good for our bodies because woman cannot live on salad alone. Secondly, she tried to be sneaky and change the name of these treats to “Healthy Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups.” Nice try, Laura. I can still read and the recipe is the same and know it consists of butter, coconut oil, peanut butter, cocoa powder, and a drizzle of honey. And I said, “Ew, no.” 

And Laura shook her head and thought, “Oh ye of little faith.”

When I was literally starving after switching to a paleo diet (not for weight loss, but for other health reasons) she said, “Tasha, you have to make the chocolate peanut butter cups.” I can’t decide if that’s hyperbole or not about the starving. I was ravenously hungry all the time. If you’ve ever cut out sugar and grains, you know how your body freaks out for about a week. I’ve been eating a paleo diet for over four months and chocolate is life. Except, you know, after Jesus. Obviously. He’s literally life and light and I hope we know I’m speaking superfluously here. But figuratively . . . chocolate is life. I can honestly say that I’ve used significantly more cocoa powder the past four months than I ever have in my life before. 

Why buy the chocolate when I can easily make the chocolate? 

I confess, when Laura shares a recipe, I glance at it and then I take it cruising through the backroads. Is anyone else guilty of this? Therefore, keep reading Laura’s post if you want simple. If you want mostly simple and a heck of lot more ingredients, then also read my posts . . . Whew. Glad I got that off my chest. 

It is here. The chocolate bar that beats all chocolate bar cravings. Come one, come all, and enjoy the gluten-free, dairy-free, honey-sweetened granola chocolate snack thing that will make you wish I was your favorite aunt. 

I have been known to eat these in public and then share the bounty with my fellow mom-friends. (Living the dream over here. There are friends, and then there are mom-friends. #ifyouknowyouknow) This homemade melty chocolate bar has been met with surprise statements of, “This is really good!” As if they, clearly, didn’t think homemade paleo “sugar-free” chocolate would be any good. Oh ye of little faith.

Boy, we showed them! 

I mean, eh-hem, I am modestly pleased when others enjoy the food that I make. So how’s about it? You ready for me to quit gabbing and give you the recipe to my honey-sweetened granola chocolate bar thing?

Okay, it is practically Laura’s Honey Sweetened No-Bake Cookies. Except I took her recipe, skipped off the highway, and drove through the country roads and a few corn fields. Figuratively. Literally, my car would be ruined and there would be no chocolate. Maybe a huge fine. Possibly jail time. Is there chocolate in jail? If so, it wouldn’t be as wholesome as this one.

homemade chocolate bar

This is a huge batch I made to share.

A word about the ingredients in this chocolate bar:

I replace all peanut butter with almond butter. Thankfully, I find it at Sam’s Club for a reasonable price or I make it myself. I go through about a tub a week. Yet I continue to lose weight. Figures. Feel free to use a natural (thick) peanut butter.

Butter is not technically paleo. Use ghee or make your own ghee by warming the butter and scraping off the white foamy stuff. But I’m not concerned about butter. Also, ghee is expensive and I always have butter in the freezer because I buy all of it when it goes on sale. (That’s a hyperbole, I don’t literally buy it all. That would be ridiculous. And rude. And against the rules. I have a heart.)

Where to get Cocoa Powder

Remember that cocoa powder is not all created equally. I buy Better Body Foods Cacao Powder from Amazon and it’s yummy. Actually, I subscribe to it and it shows up on my porch. *Voila* But I’m not going to tell you how many bags I’ve used since January. Mind your own business, mmk? Whatever you do, do not buy the cheapest store-brand variety, it’s not as good. Laura recommends this kind and it’s her favorite. (<— use the code home to get 15% off your purchases at Olive Nation!)

If you’re a rule-keeper and legalistic, there is sugar added to dried cranberries and cherries. If you can find some without sugar, the more’s the merrier. Dried cherries are my all-time favorite, but they’re expensive. I hoard them. Therefore, I share less frequently with my children. Literally. 

Always buy unsweetened coconut flakes. There are tons of varieties all over. (Figuratively. There are literal tons of coconut flakes. But only a figurative ton of brand varieties because brand names cannot be weighed.) I subscribe to Terrasoul on Amazon and get six bags at a time and they’re squirreled away in the basement pantry. 

A homemade chocolate bar blessing

May your homemade chocolate be as delightful as watching your toddler march his new rubber boots into a puddle.

Go ahead, bless your neighbors, your friends, your family, and your mom-friends.

chocolate blessing

Typing this out at the library and chuckling to myself every now and then has been a delight. But now I’m going to mosey around the bookshelves and look for a new historical romance to enjoy. Before I go to bed tonight, I will make myself another batch of homemade chocolate because somebody ate the last of it a few days ago and now that somebody is going to do something about it. Literally. 

chocolate bar recipe

Homemade Chocolate Bars

5.0 from 2 reviews
Homemade Chocolate Bars
 
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Author:
Ingredients
  • ½ - ¾ cup honey
  • ⅔ cup natural almond butter
  • ½ cup butter or coconut oil
  • ⅓ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 3-4 cups total of a combination of dry ingredients such as: pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, chopped pecans/walnuts, dried cranberries/cherries, unsweetened coconut flakes.
  • Suggestion: 1 cup pumpkin seeds, 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes, 1 cup dried cherries, ½ slivered almonds, ¼ cup sunflower seeds
Instructions
  1. In a medium-sized saucepan, stir together honey, almond butter, butter or coconut oil, salt, and cocoa powder,
  2. Melt and stir ingredients over medium heat until well combined and slightly bubbly.
  3. Remove from heat.
  4. Add vanilla extract and dry ingredients and stir until coated.
  5. Scoop 1-2 Tablespoons of mixture onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet OR pour into a parchment paper lined 9X13 for a granola bar OR pour into one or two parchment paper-lined cookie sheets for chocolate bark.
  6. Chill Homemade Chocolate Bars in the refrigerator until they are set, about 1 hour. Cut into bars.

Go forth and make a homemade chocolate bar!

Thanks for sharing and blessing others with this recipe! Finally, be sure to let us know when you take a recipe and cruise through the backroads. Take us on the scenic route with you.

Tasha HackettTasha Hackett is a friend of Laura and author of Bluebird on the Prairie, a Christian historical romance releasing Spring 2021. Sunshine, homemade chocolate bars, or hot chocolate—whichever is more readily available is her fuel. While she often pretends to be a ballerina while unloading the dishwasher, her favorite thing is writing with hope and humor to entertain and encourage women. Most of her time is spent with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about. You can connect with her at www.TashaHackett.com or Instagram @hackettacademy

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!

5 Easy Ways to Get Ahead in the Kitchen

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Want to try to get ahead in the kitchen this month? It’s a great idea! After all, April and May are typically a pretty busy months as we wrap up a school year and head into summer.

Here are 5 ways to get ahead in the kitchen. If you do even some of these, you’ll find your days just a little bit less hectic on extra busy days!

5 Ways to Get Ahead in the Kitchen

Ready for lots of links, recipes, and lots of ideas? We are going to have a lot of fun getting ahead and making our lives easier!

1. Make and freeze some breakfast foods.

All of these recipes can be made the day before and served right away in the morning!

You can make these cereals to make for super fast breakfasts:

If you have these in your freezer, you can thaw and rewarm in the oven or toaster oven!

This super easy Stir-n-Pour Bread takes practically no effort, but turns out a delicious loaf of bread. When I have this on hand, we can slice it and make:

  • Peanut Butter Honey Toast
  • Fried Eggs on Toast
  • Cinnamon Toast
  • Scrambled Egg Sandwiches
  • Simple Buttered Toast

2. Make and Freeze Muffin Batter

This could have fit up in the breakfast bullet point above. But I wanted to feature it separately because it deserves a headline of its own! We can make and freeze muffin batter!

\silicone muffins 2

I like to do this with silicone muffin cups like these. Then I pop out the frozen batter and can bake muffins any time I need them for snacks or breakfasts.

With so many little ones in the house again, we go through a lot of muffins! Read more here about making and freezing muffin batter.

Need some muffin recipes? We have a couple:

3. Make Salad Dressing Mixes

Our house favorites are Ranch Dressing Mix and Italian Dressing Mix.

If I have a jar of these mixes on hand, I can quickly make Ranch Salad Dressing, a Ranch Cheese Ball, Ranch Potato Wedges or Cheddar Ranch Burgers.

ranchdressin2sm.JPG

With Italian Dressing Mix I make the obvious Italian Salad Dressing. And I use it for these easy recipes: Italian Cream Cheese Chicken, Italian Roast Wraps, and Italian Stew. It also makes a great marinade for grilled meats.

So many great salad and meal options to be made when we have these mixes on hand!

4. Make some Bacon

I love having pre-cooked slices of bacon and pre-cooked bacon bits in my freezer.

With homemade bacon bits I can make simple Bacon Cheesy Eggs, plus recipes like Bacon Cheese Muffins, Bacon, Egg, and Avocado Salad, BLT Chopped Salad, or BLT Wraps.

Pre-cooked sliced bacon in the freezer means that we can have a side of bacon with our pancakes and eggs with just a quick bacon warm up!

5. Cook hamburger meat for quick meal prep

Here’s how I cook 5-7 pounds of frozen hamburger meat in my Instant Pot in 30 minutes. This is a game changer at our house! Having pre-cooked hamburger meat means I can put together any of these meals (plus many others) super quickly:

Coming up next, I’ll share some great foods to purchase and have on hand for busy days!

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Easy Homemade Pancake and Waffle “Syrup”

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Nothing beats real maple syrup, but in a pinch, and to save a little money, here’s how you can stir together Easy Homemade Pancake and Waffle “Syrup.”

Why would we want to avoid Real Maple Syrup? Oh, we don’t want to avoid it. That stuff is delicious and natural! I keep it on hand and we use it…most of the time for our pancakes and waffles.

But, I’ll admit that I get a little bit stingy when feeding pancakes or waffles to a large crowd. Real Maple Syrup can be pretty pricey! And most people are used to drowning their cakes in syrup! When they do that at my house with the real maple syrup I set out, then they leave $3 worth on their plates and wash it down the sink, I cry just a little bit.

Not really.

Yes really.

So…if I’m feeding a large crowd and I don’t want $20 worth of the good syrup to be washed down the drain, I make a Brown Sugar Syrup that has always received rave reviews.

OH! And if you’re wondering why I don’t just buy some Aunt Jamima for occasions such as this the answer is: Well. I just can’t bring myself to put it into my cart. Because of the high fructose corn syrup. She just isn’t welcome on my table. Shucks, Aunt Jamima.

Easy Homemade Pancake and Waffle “Syrup”Yum

Easy Homemade Pancake and Waffle "Syrup"
 
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Author:
Ingredients
  • 2 cups brown sugar (give or take)
  • ⅓ cup water (give or take)
Instructions
  1. Heat and stir on the stovetop until sugar has dissolved.
  2. Serve over pancakes and waffles.

Yes, it really is that easy. And those measurements? Don’t worry too much about them. Mostly you can just put brown sugar and water into a pan and heat it and serve it and it will be delicious (because it’s sugar).

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Three Keys to an Organized Home

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I always feel like decluttering, cleaning, and, organizing my entire house this time of year. Perhaps it is the promise of spring, but I really start craving a tidier, more efficient home. Today I am sharing how you can get your home organized in just a few minutes per day!
Three Keys to an Organized Home

Three Keys to an Organized Home

1. Declutter first

It’s hard to organize when you have a lot of clutter.
The more toys, clothes, and dishes you have the greater amount of containers and organizational components you will need to obtain.
Make the entire job easier by starting by decluttering! Get rid of trash, bag up items for Goodwill, or set things aside for a garage sale in the spring (here are Laura’s best garage sale tips!)

2. Tackle one room at a time

Organizing the entire house is way too overwhelming!
I suggest you start with one room, even better if you choose the room that will be the easiest for you! I usually choose our bathroom to start with, because it is a small room, has a limited amount of items already, and is fairly painless to organize! Once you have completely finished one area, then choose the next room to conquer!

3. Use what you have before purchasing anything new

Before you go out and buy a bunch of new totes, and bins go ahead and shop your own home. You might be surprised by all the items you have collecting dust that can be used to organize!

Three Projects to Try

Looking for a few new organizational project? Here are a few fun ideas!

1. Organize Your Recipes in a Binder

I don’t know about you, but I am always printing off recipes from blogs. I had an entire pile of loose recipes on top of the fridge, that I often had to sift through to find what I was looking for. It was frustrating to say the least!
It occurred to me one day that I needed a binder to corral all these recipes, enter Laura’s DIY Recipe Binder! I found an old binder, printed off the pages, and set it all up within one afternoon! Next, I want to grab some clear page protectors to make it even more fancy. Grab your free printables here!

2. Organize Your Homeschool Days

Homeschooling this year? If so, check out all Laura’s tips and tricks on how she organizes her homeschool days . I LOVE the folder system she uses for her kids!

3. Clean out your kids’ closets!

It’s a smart idea to go through your kids’ closets at least twice a year, and switch out the clothes seasonally! When your kids are little, you might want to do this even more often. I go through my kids’ clothes every couple of months, because it only seems to take that long for them to grow into the next size! Here’s how Laura cleans out her boys’ closets!

Your turn to share! What’s your favorite organizational tip?

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Simple Spaghetti Squash for Delightful Sapiens

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This is a regular (albeit amazing) spaghetti squash recipe. It’s intended for all people, mankind, and sapiens. However, WordPress informs me that titles with uncommon words perform better. Sapiens fits the bill. Ha!

Simple Paleo Spaghetti

I’ve been eating a paleo diet for over three months! Simple meals are slowly making their way back into my life. I spent the first month floundering and relearning how to use my kitchen. The second month I discovered all the “junk” food I could make with honey and maple syrup and and ate an insane amount of homemade chocolate. But I’m rocking this new diet now. My crowd-pleasing, feed-the-people meal is either a ginormous salad with Almond-Orange Dressing or spaghetti squash. (Or both.)

The spaghetti squash topic has already been covered by Laura. 

spaghetti squash

Yum

If you search on this sight you will find multiple spaghetti squash posts. Like how to cook it in an instant pot. (Highlights: Gut it. 5 minutes. Or leave whole and 20 minutes.) But, I had more information to share. I’ll see your spaghetti squash and I’ll raise you sausage. At first I was afraid this idea was too simple to even bother sharing, but after our great dinner last night with friends, they encouraged me to please share. Mostly because she wanted the “recipe.” 

Make it now. Eat it later. It’s a no-fuss dinner. 

Here’s how it went down. One morning I remembered I had a meeting scheduled at my house the next day. This meeting would last until suppertime. Therefore, I wanted to make something I could pop in the oven at four o’clock and then feed the delightful sapiens at five o’clock. No prep. No mess. 

While I was overseeing third-grade math and language arts I baked two spaghetti squash in the oven (In short, slice in half, gut, bake “bowl-down” at 350* for 40-50 minutes. Or use the instant pot. Or bake whole and gut later). I chopped romaine leaves and other vegetables for a nice salad and put it all-together in a bowl in the fridge to be served with the amazing Almond Orange Paleo Dressing. Next, I cooked two pounds of pork sausage. 

When the squash was thoroughly cooked, I pulled it from its shells with a fork. This next part is where it gets exciting. THEN I mixed it with the sausage and a can of pasta sauce and spread it all into a 9X13 pan. Done. Mostly. 

A pre-made simple meal!

The next day, I simply popped the pan into the oven and re-heated it at 350° for an hour. At five o’clock the smell filled the dining room and I remembered I had completely forgotten to extend the invitation to dinner to our friends. “Oh, hey. You guys wanna stay and eat with us? Dinner’s already in the oven. We’re having squash and salad and stuff.” Haha. Who could turn down an invitation like that? They stayed. A good time was had by all indeed. Especially by my four-year-old, who cleaned his plate and spent the majority of the meal explaining, in detail to fresh ears, everything he knew about dinosaurs. 

looking at books

Simple meal prep is the best kept secret for the ease of serving other sapiens.

I want to be able to host and feed the people at a moment’s notice. When I first switched to paleo, I wasn’t able to do this. How could I bless others when I was following detailed recipes that included ingredients I wasn’t used to and only had enough on hand for four servings? After weeks of learning new skills, I’ve been able to put Laura’s good advice to work with my new diet requirements. I have pre-formed Salisbury steak (fancy burgers) in the freezer. I have riced cauliflower and shrimp on hand for quick and fun stir-fry. My fridge is usually full-to-bursting with fresh vegetables for snacks and salads because that’s fast food around here. Homemade chocolates, almond flour muffins, and green smoothies are a new staple. Whatever your diet needs, there are ways to make it simpler. I’m sure of it! 

Premade Spaghetti Squash Dinner
 
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Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
Author:
Serves: 8 servings
Ingredients
  • Two Spaghetti Squash
  • Two Pounds Pork Sausage (or regular ground beef or pork)
  • 24 ounces of pasta sauce of your choosing
  • If using a plain pasta sauce, add salt, pepper, garlic, and Italian seasonings to taste.
Instructions
  1. Slice the squash down the middle to make two bowls and discard the seeds with a spoon.
  2. Oil the cut rings and place bowl-down on a pan with edges. Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes.
  3. To check for doneness, a knife should easily slide into the squash.
  4. Brown the sausage in a skillet, pour off the extra grease if desired.
  5. Mix the squash, sausage, and sauce together. Add any extra seasonings to taste (salt, pepper, garlic, etc.)
  6. Serve immediately, or spread in a 9x13 and refrigerate up to three days.
  7. To reheat, put the cold pan in the the oven and then set to 350 for an hour.

Have you ever given spaghetti squash a chance? 

I double-dog dare you to make it for dinner this week. Only mix in some great sausage and pasta sauce and voilá: Simple dinner for the masses. Just to be clear: viola is a musical instrument (played by skilled sapiens). Because I already knew that, I did not *ahem* need to search the web for the proper spelling of the French term “to suggest an appearance as if by magic.” Ya learn something new every day!

Tasha HackettTasha Hackett, friend of Laura and author of Bluebird on the Prairie, a Christian historical romance releasing Spring 2021, is fueled by sunshine, paleo pudding, or hot chocolate—whichever is more readily available. Though she often pretends to be a ballerina while unloading the dishwasher, her favorite thing is writing with hope and humor to entertain and encourage women. Her time is spent with four chatty children and an incredibly supportive husband. They give her the kind of love people write books about. You can connect with her at www.TashaHackett.com or Instagram @hackettacademy

Heavenly Homemaker's Club Members: Access your homepage and all your fantastic resources here! Not a member yet? Please join us!