5 Ways to Go Green Today

Five ways, not eight ways, Jackjack!

Being thrifty and being green go hand-in-hand. Here are five easy ways you can go green and save a bit of money, too!

1. Try washing one load of laundry in cold water. You won’t pay to heat up the wash water, and your clothes will get just as clean.

2. Ditch the dryer sheets! Your clothes will be soft from the tumbling action of the dryer. If you like the scent dryer sheets give your clothes, put a few drops of essential oil onto a fabric scrap or old washcloth.

3. Put a pitcher of water in the fridge instead of running the tap until the water gets cold. For added flavor, add a few slices of citrus or cucumber to the water. That’s what they do at the fancy spas!


That's better...

4. Save empty glass jars from spaghetti sauce, peanut butter, and the like. Use them to store bulk foods, freezer jam, or custom spice mixes. Which leads me to…

5. Make your own taco seasoning mix instead of buying the over-packaged, salty packets from the grocery store. This is our favorite:

1/2 c chili powder
4 tsp cumin
4 tsp coriander
2 tsp oregano
1 tsp cayenne pepper (adjust to taste)

Add 1/4 cup of mix and 1/2 cup water to each pound of cooked ground beef or ground turkey. Simmer until most of the water evaporates and serve. Yum!


Got it!

Frugal Flop: Making Graham Crackers

It started with a rant.

We love Annie’s organic graham cracker bunnies, but I just couldn’t stand paying $4 a box. “I can do that for less!” I boldly declared, as Husband rolled his eyes (he hears that a lot).

A bit of online searching, and I found a recipe. An Alton Brown recipe, no less—he’s my favorite Food Network chef. Huzzah!

I found it quite humorous that the same store that carries the $4 crackers also has graham flour right across the aisle for $3.59. Feeling extra-triumphant, I deduced that the bag of flour would make at least three batches of graham crackers.

Back home, I unpacked the groceries and was ready to get crackerin. I got all the ingredients out and started taking pictures, so you could bask with me in the joys of graham cracker frugality.


Looks easy enough, right? It was all OK until I started reading the recipe. If you watch Alton, you know that he’s a precise and accomplished chef. This means that (for baking especially), he weighs all of his ingredients.

I don’t have a kitchen scale, but that’s not stopping me. There must be some kind of online calculator that will convert ounces to cups, right? Remember, I’m an English major—the thought of Actually Doing Math makes me break out in a cold sweat.

Well, the ounces converted to cups…sort of. (C’mon Alton, 8 3/8 ounces graham flour? Could ya make it any harder?) Yet I was unfazed. I decided to substitute half of the molasses with honey, so I converted 2 1/2 ounces to teaspoons and then split that in half.

This is where things really started going to heck. I converted ounces to teaspoons but didn’t write down the amounts. When I mixed the dry and wet ingredients in the food processor, they most decidedly did not form a ball, as they were supposed to.


Desperate to complete the recipe and not waste the ingredients, I added a bit more graham flour. And a bit more regular flour. And so on.

Then it was time to roll it to cracker thickness between a couple of sheets of parchment. I rolled and rolled until it was falling off the parchment. Figuring that must be the right thickness, I grabbed a cookie sheet to slide the parchment onto.


Lesson #23: Parchment (and dough thereupon) is wider than standard cookie sheets.

It baked for the prescribed amount of time, and smelled absolutely heavenly. I was soooo excited to try it! And then I took it out of the oven.


That doesn't look like any graham cracker I've ever seen.

*sigh*

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

Is your potato peeler getting dull? Trade with a friend who's left-handed (or right-handed, if you're the lefty). You'll find that their peeler is still sharp for you, and it will keep two peelers out of the landfill!

Garden Update

The watermelons are taking over everything. The jicama in the square next to them are completely overshadowed.


There's one teeny little jalapeno in there.


Zucchini from seeds are a little slow to get growing.


This empty expanse should be carrots, johnny jump-ups, and green onions. *Sigh*


Green beans, cucumbers, and tomatoes are doing well.






You never know who's going to stop by!

Hired Killers: Bugs in your garden

Eeeeeek! Doesn’t it look like something out of a horror movie? The first time I saw one of these little guys, I wanted to squish it. Good thing I didn’t—it’s a ladybug larvae.

Ladybugs are one of the many predator bugs you want in your garden, and here’s why:
• They can eat their weight in aphids every day (that’s about 50 aphids per ladybug).
• A female ladybug will lay more than 1000 eggs in her lifetime.
• You do the math—that’s a lot of aphid destruction.

Here’s another one that you might not recognize:

That’s a praying mantis egg pod (ootheca for you word nerds). Some cool praying mantis facts:
• They eat moths, crickets, grasshoppers, flies and other insects.
• Their excellent eyesight allows them to see movement up to 60 feet away.
• They can turn their heads 180 degrees to scan their surroundings.

And the uglybug award goes to:

This is a dragonfly naiad, or larvae. Hideous, yes—but it eats mosquito larvae. Could you ask for more? You could? OK then, adult dragonflies also eat mosquitos, flies, and moths.

Watch for these guys the next time you’re out bug stompin’. Don’t destroy a predator bug by mistake!

And if somebody asks you why you’re a successful gardener, just smile and tell them, “hired killers.”

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

If you keep your toothbrushes in a cup in the bathroom, run the cup through the dishwasher every now and then. Warning! Don't look in the cup the first time you wash it. If you do, you'll immediately want to go buy new toothbrushes.

Making Strawberry Freezer Jam

The best place to get strawberries is at one of these little roadside stands. They’re fresh, local, and absolutely amazingly good. They actually taste like strawberries, unlike the little red golf balls you get at the grocery store.

Jackjack and I picked up a whole bunch of strawberries and headed home to make freezer jam. Freezer jam doesn’t have to be cooked and canned, so it’s easier to do with a little one around.

The ingredients:


Strawberries (we’ll end up with 2 cups mashed)
2T lemon juice
4c sugar
1 package pectin

Wash your strawberries and cut off the tops. Wash some more because they get eaten as quickly as they are washed.




Get the potato masher from the back of the junk drawer and clean it. Prep your noble assistant for strawberry-smashing duty. Wash the potato masher again since it touched his nose.


Mash the strawberries, a little at a time, until you have two cups.


Add in the lemon juice and let your assistant pour the sugar. Don’t touch the measuring cup or he will remind you that he is FOUR and can do it All By Himself. Then mix it all together thoroughly.


Add the pectin into 3/4 cup water and bring to a full boil. Boil, stirring constantly, until it becomes clear (about 3 minutes).


Add the hot pectin into the strawberries and stir, stir, stir.


Pour the mixture into clear jars, leaving 1/2 inch at the top. This will allow for expansion when it freezes. Wipe off the edges of the jars and put the lids on snugly.


Cool them in the fridge for at least 24 hours. Store them in the freezer until you’re ready to eat!

10 Reasons Why I Love the Library

10. No more card catalogs—request books online. If a friend or fellow blogger mentions an author or suggests a book, it’s on my list with a couple of clicks.

9. The books can be delivered to any branch. I pick mine up at the library by work during lunchtime. Grab them off the reserve shelf, do self-checkout, and I’m out the door!

8. You can return books at any library in the system. Jackjack prefers the library by our house, since they have a kids’ area with a computer. Apparently our new computer at home is not as cool.

7. I’m not much of a shopper, but if you are, it can satisfy your shopping craving. Pick up books on crafting, makeup, jewelry, fashion—all that girly stuff. You can browse magazines, flip through some novels, rent a CD or movie, even attend a class.

6. It’s like Christmas when your reserved books come in!

5. Check out an armload of cookbooks (my current weakness) and copy down the recipes that sound good. Beats paying $20-$35 a pop for a cookbook that only gives you one good recipe.

4. You can be scandalous and check out a “Banned Book” (see list here). Personally, I couldn’t have made it through junior high without Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret. But enough people tried to have it banned that it made #62 on the list. *insert rant here*

3. Allowed us to try a book on CD without buying—which was a good thing, since we didn’t like it at all. We got a Bill Bryson book on CD for a trip to Monterey and turned it off before the end of the first chapter. I’d rather listen to Mexican polka as we pass through Watsonville than a book on CD. Guess we’re just old fashioned.

2. Check out up to 30 books/CDs/DVDs at once. This doesn’t sound like much until you count the ones you’ve reserved, discover that there are three new eco-green books coming out, and you need the one on soapmaking, and Jackjack wants to get six race car books, three bug books, and then spots a book on rocketships on the way to the checkout…

And the #1 reason why I love the library? If I bought all these books,
I would have paid $250.00!

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

If your recipe only calls for the green part of the green onion, plant the white part in the garden or a small pot (leave a bit sticking up out of the soil). In a couple of weeks, you should have more green onions!

Harvest Time

The garlic I planted last October is finally ready to harvest. The tips of their leaves are turning brown, and the stems have fallen over.



According to Grandpa (the true garden expert), you need to stop watering them for a couple of days to let the papery skin dry out. I did that and then carefully dug them out, being careful not to cut or bruise them.



Once harvested, I brushed off most of the dirt and then hung them to dry in the garage. Don’t wash them, or it could make the bulbs more susceptible to fungus while they cure.



After they cure for a few weeks, I’ll trip the tops and the roots for easier storage. The bulbs from this year are much smaller than my last harvest (see right side picture), so I need to do some research and figure out why.



If I had giant bulbs like last time, I would save the biggest ones to plant in the fall. I think I'll be buying seed garlic this time though...

Why is THAT in your garden?

This question usually comes up when friends take a look at the garden. There’s sometimes more interest in the garden “accessories” than in the plants themselves!

Garden Box Strings

We have a great backyard at our house, but the swimming pool takes up about 80% of it. The garden is in the back corner and along the back fence. I’ve gotten very good at squeezing crops in here and there, so most of the backyard is practical, not ornamental.

The strings on the garden box are part of the Square Foot Gardening method. This method is also known as intensive gardening, since you plant the maximum number of plants that will grow in each square foot. In addition to being easier to weed and water, it gives you the maximum return for the space you use.

The strings are there to mark the spaces between each crop. That way, the carrots aren’t running over into the jicama and I know right where each plant is. This sure helps with weeding! The pepper plants are smack in the middle of each square, so if anything pops up around them, I know it’s a weed and pull it right away.

Eggshells

Omelettes and breakfast-for-dinner make frequent appearances on the menu over here. Add in a bit of baking, and each week there are a lot of eggshells to be disposed of—but not in the trash! During the winter, I crush them and put ‘em in the compost bin. In spring and summer, they’re a snail and slug barrier.

After using the oven for that week’s baking, I put them and let them dry from the residual heat. This hardens them a bit and makes them less fragile. The next morning, Jackjack smashes them (big fun when you’re 4) and we sprinkle them around the seedlings.

The sharp edges keep the little gastropods away from my plants and I don’t have to use any chemicals to get rid of them. This is especially important because I don’t want pesticides in my pool, my family, or any of the birds and cats that roam the backyard.


Growing Potatoes

This contraption is a compost bin that I’ve converted into a potato planter. Taters need to have soil mounded around their stems as they grow. By doing this, the stem turns into a long taproot with side roots that branch off. Theoretically, all of these roots will turn into potatoes!

When I started, the planter was empty and I placed the prepared seed potatoes right on the ground. As they started to grow, I added dirt mixed with straw (for aeration) as the stems grew. Looks like they’re due for another load of dirt…and I’m due for another trip to the landscape supply store.

According to what I’ve read, they’ll be ready to harvest after flowering, when the vines have turned brown and died back. Since they haven’t flowered yet, it may be quite a while before they appear on our dinner table.

The garlic and onions I planted last fall are almost ready to harvest. Stay tuned!

Why Didn't I Think of That? Wednesday

Each Wednesday I'll share a tip to make your week go more smoothly or just make you say "aha!"

If you bought some shampoo that you don't like (or that your hair doesn't like), don't throw it out. Use it as body wash or dish soap in the kitchen.

CVS is here!

There's lots of construction going on in the area near my work, and I usually don't give it a second thought. When I noticed that a CVS was being built right across the street, though, my frugal spidey-senses went off.

CVS has been around for a long time but I've never seen it out here in California until now. Lots of frugal blogs talk about the deals and bargains available there. Like Aldi, it sounded great but I didn't think I'd ever get to shop there.

They have a rewards system called ExtraCare Rewards. It's not complicated, but you do have do do a couple of things to get started. Nicole's Nickels has a great article called "CVS 101" that will tell you all about it and how it works.

Thanks to Nicole for permission to link to the article. See you at CVS!