Author: Nicole

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Recipes

Copycat Lipton’s Dry Onion Soup Mix

Nicole


Here is a great alternative to using the boxed Lipton dry onion soup mix especially in a pinch. I learned the hard way a few nights ago that when the recipe calls for it you shouldn’t skip it. I didn’t have any on hand and never thought about making my own, but now I have and I am super happy I did. 


This recipe tastes great, the same if you ask me, and it’s less expensive. Not that the Lipton dry onion soup mix is expensive, but this way you get more bang for your buck and you can control what goes in the jar. Don’t get me wrong I still love the ease of the boxed kind, but this certain is a nice alternative when you are having an absent minded day like I was having. 


Ingredients:
  • 3/4 cup instant minced onion
  • 1/3 cup beef bouillon powder (Look for MSG Free if possible)
  • 4 teaspoons onion powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed celery seed
  • 1/4 teaspoon sugar

Directions:
Combine all ingredients and mix well. Store in an airtight container.
About 5 tablespoons of mix are equal to 1 1¼-ounce package.
Original Recipe Source

I used an olive jar to store my mix. This is my version of recycling. 😉


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Recipes

Sweetened Condensed Milk (Paula Deen)

Nicole



I have been trying to use as few can goods as possible so when I saw a recipe for homemade sweetened condensed milk I knew I had to give it a try.


The flavor of the sweetened condensed milk is incredible and it’s very easy to make. 

The problem with making your own is it tastes nothing like what’s comes in the can. So don’t make this recipe expecting the same product or you will be very disappointed. Although it taste completely different it still tastes great. It would be perfect in a pinch but not something I would replace the canned sweetened condensed milk with.

The consistency is pretty similar, the color is the same, but the flavor is very different. This is a perfect recipe to keep around for the moment when you realize you don’t have a can in the back of the pantry and you need it right away for a recipe. 


Ingredients:
  • 1/3 cup boiling water
  • 4 tablespoons butter
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup powdered milk 

Directions:
  1. Using an electric mixer, blend together water, butter, sugar, and vanilla.
  2. Add powdered milk and blend until thick. Store in refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Original Recipe Source


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Recipes

How to Make a Decorative Pie Crust

Nicole

Last Thanksgiving I set out to make a pie to serve after dinner. I wanted to have a pretty crust on my pie but in all honestly I didn’t have a clue how to make a pretty crust. I remember my Nana always had pretty crust, and my Mom always has too.  But how? You can find anything and everything online so why not a video that teaches you how to make a pretty crust?  Sure enough I found one! Here is the video and a picture of my crust! What do you think? If you are still trying to figure it out like I was watch this video! It’s great!!


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Recipes

Cream of "Something" Soup Mix

Nicole



Since we are a few days from Thanksgiving and so many Thanksgiving recipes seem to start with “add a can of cream of this or cream of that soup” I thought it would be fun to share as recipe I recently tried for making your own “cream of something” soup mix. 

I have been wanting to make “cream of something” soup to keep on hand as a substitute for canned cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, cream of celery (and so on…) soup. I have been looking at many variations of the recipe for a few months now. I liked the recipes found on One Good Thing By Jillee and One Orange Giraffe, but I wanted to tweek them a little bit.
You know I can make a recipe without tweeking something LOL.  I finally bought a box of dried milk and gave it a shot. It actually turns out just perfect. I read on some sites where people add celery seed or sautéed celery to make it cream of celery, bits of left over or dried chicken for cream of chicken and dried or fresh mushroom for cream of mushroom soup. I thought that was a pretty nifty idea.
I am very impressed with this recipe and excited to have it in a labeled jar in my pantry ready to be used at any moment. This also saves money and time if you forget to buy what you need; better yet it’s not in a can!!

Ingredients:
  • 3-5 cup non-fat dried milk* 
  • 2 1/4 cup cornstarch
  • 3/4 cup bouillon granules
  • 3/4 cup dried minced onions
  • 2 teaspoons garlic powder
  • 3 teaspoons dried thyme
  • 3 teaspoons pepper

*The reason I put 3-5 cups of milk is because I found this recipe to be too salty with all the bouillon. You might start with 3 cups then after your first time using the soup decide at that point if you need to add more milk or not. I just found it incredibly salty.*

    Directions:

    1. Add and mix all of the ingredients together and store in an airtight container or zip bag. Don’t forget to label your container so that you will know immediately how much water and mix to add to get the correct consistency. 
    2. For one can of cream of something soup adds to a saucer 1/3 cup of the cream of something soup mixture and 1-1/4 cups of water. 
    3. Cook on a medium to medium low heat until the soup thickens up to your desired consistency. 

    *1/3 cup of the cream of something mixture to every 1-1/4 cups of water equal one can of cream of something soup.*

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    Recipes

    Hearty Mushroom Barley Soup

    Nicole



    I promised you all this recipe a few days ago, but I fell behind. It’s here now so I guess that’s what counts right? This is a really great recipe it’s nice and hardy and a perfect fall recipe! I am not a fan of fresh mushrooms, but I really enjoyed this soup. The flavor is very earthy and smooth. It has really nice creaminess to it which I was not anticipating.  


    The recipe couldn’t be easier to put together. I actually made it while making something else that night for dinner. I kind of put it together on a whim. The part that takes the longest is just waiting on the barley to be cooked through. When the barley is ready so your soup.

    The recipe yield is 4 servings and at least in our case it was exactly four generous servings, not any more than that.  If you are anticipating big eaters or extra guest you might want to double the recipe. Delicious!

    Ingredients:
    • Nonstick cooking spray
    • 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
    • 2 cups chopped onions
    • 1 cup thinly sliced carrots
    • 2 cans (14 ounces each) chicken broth
    • 12 ounces sliced mushrooms
    • 1 can (about 10-3/4 ounces) cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
    • ½ cup quick-cooking barley, uncooked
    • 1 teaspoon reduced-sodium Worcestershire sauce
    • ½ teaspoon dried thyme
    • ¼ cup finely chopped green onions
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • ¼ teaspoon black pepper

    Directions:

    1. Coat Dutch oven or large saucepan with cooking spray
    2. Heat over medium-high heat until hot. 
    3. Add oil and tilt pan to coat bottom of pan. 
    4. Add onions; cook and stir 8 minutes or until onions just begin to turn golden. 
    5. Add carrots and cook and stir 2 minutes. Add chicken broth, mushrooms, cream of mushroom soup, barley, Worcestershire sauce and thyme; bring to a boil over high heat. 
    6. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in green onions, salt and pepper.

    Original Recipe Source


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