EASY DIY Christmas Basket Add-Ins: Dried Fruit and Spice Simmer Pot Pouches

One of the easiest DIY add-ins to any Christmas basket is a fun and festive Christmas Simmer Pot filled with dried fruit and spice.

Here's the recipe I used to make mine this year that has all the same ingredients I use in my Hot Wassail that simmers in the crockpot all day on Christmas eve.

3 orange slices, dried

6 apple slices, dried

6 whole cloves

2 cinnamon sticks

1 T cranberries, chopped & dried

1 sprig dried pine or rosemary (optional)

Pour the entire contents into a small pot with 3 cups of hot water. Let simmer over low heat. Add more water as needed.

This recipe is kitchen tested, and it works really well for a 6+ hour stove top simmer.  You can also remove from heat at the end of a day's use, let cool and use the next day.  2 days is the longest recommended use for optimum scent infusion. 

Garden Update 2025 #8: End of The Outdoor Season 2025

My garden updates are a fun little way for me to keep visual track of what's working for me (and what failed miserably! Because that's all a part of the gardening journey as well.) in the garden.  I share these publicly and just hope they bless you as much as they help me.

I haven't been very regular in my garden updates this year. This one is 8 weeks after the last one, and that was 8 weeks after the one before that. 😁 I've just been busy in the garden and haven't really set much time aside to update my garden journal minus a few scribbled notes here and there. 

One of the biggest learning curves this year was, cucumbers and heat. 

I've planted cucumber seeds indoors on heat mats & under grow lights, for years. They always work out.  Until they don't. That was this year. We had an unseasonably cold spring.  What I learned this year was, no matter what may have worked before, wait until June 1st at least, before planting out the cucumbers. I planted all of mine out in early May (with all of my tomatoes and peppers, like I always do) and all but one died. I then re-planted several more in mid-May from local nurseries and they all died as well. Between trips to local farmer's markets and local grower's farms I'd spoken to a good number of gardeners who were all having the same problem. Refusing to give up (because we're a HUGE pickle eating family!) I bought a third round of seedlings from a local grower at the end of May, and planted those out at the first of June.

The growing conditions were finally optimum and all of those plants thrived for the entirety of June, July and August. I was able to can multiple batches of pickles for our family's pantry for the winter. My plan for next year is to keep it the same as this year:  if you're in zone 6a (or colder), WAIT and plant out your cucumbers no earlier than June 1st. You'll save yourself a load of headaches and the cost of replacing all your plants. 

2025 is my  first year with Elderberries. I have two plants, and both produced about the same amount of berry clusters seen here on this one. They've all been harvested and are currently sitting in a brown paper bag in the freezer.  I have just enough to make 1 recipe of Elderberry syrup for a fully natural way of fighting off winter colds & viruses. 

A brand new challenge to me this year was... propagation. 

I've tried this many times before and never had much success with it minus one small Basil plant. This year, that finally changed with 2 small plants (Trumpet Vine & Strawberries) that I was able to facilitate into multiple brand new plants!

Both plants did really well over the summer and fall so we'll just wait & see how they do over winter, and into next spring. I'm hoping for great things for them both!

This winter sown sunflower grew to about 16 feet tall. 

Both my winter sown sunflowers and chamomile plants did remarklably well.  I may do this again over winter to see how more plants do. 

2025's batch of pasta sauce from (mostly) home grown tomatoes. I need about 30 pounds of tomatoes for my homemade ketchup, and another 30 pounds for my pasta sauce for an entire year of product of each. I'm currently only getting about half of that from my garden, so I supplement with the incredible produce from my local farmer's market, for both products for my family pantry. 

My goal for the 2026 garden is to double my tomato plants, and hope I can grow enough to cover all the ketchup and all the pasta sauce for an entire year. I've been working on this for several years now and each year the garden produces a wee bit more than the previous year so I'm happy it's increasing each year. 

DAMAGE CONTROL: This was the first raised bed I ever built of this size, and looking back it's easy to see everything I did wrong. In 2021 I built 2 of these 8'x4'x10" raised beds and just used deck screws to attach the end cap 4' (untreated) boards. 

What I didn't know then and what I know now is, I should have used outdoor treated wood (perfectly safe for edible plants) and maybe even these Oldcastle Planter Blocks I originally bought to construct a simple "tool free" sand box for all my little people.  I had 4 of these on hand from an old sandbox and when I saw the joints giving way to far too much soil/water pressure I did this simple repair. 

My plan going forward for spring 2026 is to replace all corners with these blocks (that I already have) and with 6 inch width pressure treated lumber for each side & end. I'll be losing 4" of overall height but that's okay since this is my pepper bed and they don't need that much depth anyway so it really all works out. I've since learned to raise the bed for those with mobility issues, you can easily double up the planter blocks to a 12 inch depth, drive a stake of rebar in to secure them in place and use 12" tall side & end cap lumber for 1 foot deep beds. I really love how easily this building style is so versatile depending on personal needs and mobility. 

Aside from what I've learned with each plant this year, I've also learned much more about fertilization & soil amendments. Both of which I've unintentionally neglected for a few years so another big improvement for spring 2026 will be the much needed soil amendments of some nutrient rich compost as well as some liquid fish fertilizer. I've used both randomly but never intentionally, so spring 2026 will be a much more intentional gardening plan with richer soil than ever before. 

Thanks for stopping by.  I hope you're encouraged by what you've read here, and if you have any thoughts or suggestions or questions please feel welcome to leave a comment. 😊

The Family Table: Recipe - Easy Pulled Pork Cowboy Candy Pizza

This is a "new" and  delicious variation of my BBQ Chicken Jalapeno Pizza recipe from years gone by. A simple build-your-own pizza method using whatever meat & veggie blend you have on hand. I made this new version for the first time today and I'm delighted to report it was a 100% hit with the whole family. 😊

In this recipe I used leftover pulled pork from this recipe, and canned cowboy candy from last summer from this recipe. You can use any pulled pork recipe you prefer, and any sort of pickled or candied pepper relish you like. 

Almost any recipe I've ever used to make pulled pork there is so much left over after pulled pork sandwiches, so I like to find simple recipes that incorporate it easily (soups, stew & chili all work really well!), and this pizza recipe works perfectly.  This recipe is so versatile, that you can easily substitute any cooked & prepared meat with a veggie combo for whatever you have on your pantry or freezer shelves. For an easy example, prepared taco meat plus diced tomatoes & onions make a fantastic taco style pizza, with some added sour cream, guacamole or taco sauce/salsa on the side for toppings.  

This recipe is for 2 medium, thin crust pizzas.

2 prepared medium sized pizza crusts

1/2 c. pizza sauce (divided)

1 lb. pulled pork (or any prepared meat - divided)

1/2 cup Cowboy Candy (divided)

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese (divided)

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)

Pre-heat oven to 450 or whatever your pizza crusts indicate.

PULLED PORK COWBOY CANDY HOMEMADE PIZZA

Prepare each crust with 1/4 cup each of pizza sauce, applying in a spiral fashion and smoothing all the sauce into an even layer over the crust. Layer on half the pulled pork followed by half of the Cowboy Candy in an even layer. Top with 1/4 cup shredded cheddar and 1/4 cup shredded mozzerella for each crust. 

Bake each pizza for 10-12 minutes. 

Thanks for stopping by. 😊 I'd love to hear from you if you've tried this recipe. 

Please feel welcome to leave your thoughts in a comment. 

Status Report: January 2025

It's a little hard to believe 2024 is already over, but here we are. With Christmas already a month in the rear view mirror I've been thinking a lot about the 2025 garden as well as all the projects I'd jotted down for myself in my journal to take care of over the winter months. I know a lot of people use the new year as a jumping off point for all sorts of things, and recently I saw a comment "with 2025 they hit the ground running!"  I read that and just had to laugh. At my age, if I hit the ground for any reason, I'm at least a week with extra visits to the hot tub and easy things for dinner, like soup or "check the freezer y'all, fix what you want". 😂 There will most certainly be no running, whatsoever. 

I've started the year off a little slower than usual but there are several project on the go. So getting right into it:

Sitting: Finally, after an already long day of working on various projects.  I told myself last spring that before I plant seeds again this spring, I'd tidy up the grow room, paint the floor & make my space more enjoyable to work in. My grow room is the south end of my laundry room that I converted last year and while spacious enough, it's kind of ugly.  It has a concrete floor and the previous owners must have used that room for various projects that they didn't mind if they stained the concrete floor because it's very, very stained. My solution was a good cleaning and dark gray floor & porch paint. I'm about half way done with a couple of coats of paint and it already looks like a brand new floor.  

Been busy with: A completely unplanned furniture flip. I bought this old dresser from a thrift store many years ago, knowing "some day" I'd strip it and see what kind of wood was under all that ugly paint.  I knew it was solid wood because of how heavy it is but at the time I just quickly sanded & sealed the top and tossed on another coat of paint on the rest of it, and then put it into use in one of the kid's bedrooms. Getting the grow room cleared out & tidied up meant I needed to move some extra things in there and this was one of them. I'd already planned to turn this into a coffee bar eventually, but since I needed to move it I figured now is as good a time as any to strip it, and see what we've got. So far, things are looking promising!  (In the first image, there's that nasty laundry room floor I mentioned).

Excited about: Garden plans. Regardless of what I said last week or 6 months ago, the garden plans tend to change all the time and I'm okay with that.  I do still plan to keep things much easier this year but it seems like every time I turn around I find something else I'd like to try growing! 

My garden is a rather compacted, wee plot of land behind and beside my house.  There's a lot going on out there in such a small space so it's really helpful for me to plan it all out like this, before I ever plant anything.  I have 3 new beds going in this year and I'll be tackling bed #6 (finally) with some sort of shade loving plants. 

Thinking: Quite a lot about Titus 2, once again.  The "Titus 2 woman" subject comes up rather often in the circles I'm in. Recently someone on social media made the comment that if older women in the church were took being a Titus 2 woman seriously, then there'd be no need for women's conferences (highly paraphrased, but that was the gist).  Well, as you can imagine, many had thoughts. 😁 I know many older women in the church that take it very seriously, but that certainly doesn't stop women from enjoying their conferences. I don't think a lack of mature Christian women in the church is the reason women's conferences exist, but I do think (as long as they're teaching sound Biblical doctrine) they can certainly be a great encouragement to all women who are able to attend. 

Some had thoughts about the whole Titus 2 Woman premise in the first place. To me it's very simple. Paul writing to Titus instructs him in the very specific qualifications of elders (chapt 1 verses 5-9) and then goes on to tell him why those elders must be qualified in these areas because of the sinfulness and deception that abounds - to be able to both encourage in sound doctrine and to refute those who try to pervert it.  Moving on to Titus 2, Paul shifts and speaks of how we live our lives is proclaiming sound teaching. For mature Christian women particularly (verses 3-5), for young men (verses 6-8) and for slaves/servants (verses 9-10) and then exhorts all to remember the grace of God in what Christ did for all of us, and that should be more than enough to motivate all of us, elders, women, young men, servants to live a life that honors God and proclaims sound teaching.   How we do that will of course look a little different based on our station in life but that we do it, is the entire point. 

Wondering: how I lived until 60 years old and never knew you can actually make cream cheese at home with just... milk & lemon juice. Someone on social media posted that she was making cream cheese and suddenly I was reminded of a recipe I'd recently come across but hadn't tried yet. So, I decided to try it.  

The recipe calls for whole milk and what I had was 2% so I went ahead anyway, and what I ended up with was... a cup of lovely cream cheese 😋  It was much easier than I expected it to be.  Here's the recipe, along with a video. I did a quick cost breakdown and where I live if I bought a 2 liter (8+ cups) carton of whole milk at $5.44  I could make 2 cups of cream cheese for $2.72 each. Compared to a 250 gram (1 cup) of store bought cream cheese at $4.49.  Clearly it's much less expensive to make it at home and I'll definitely be trying this again, and adding some lovely herbs or maybe even some berries.  

Looking forward to: Winter being over so I can get to work outside! I'm a little grumpy if I can't be barefoot in my garden so our long winters are a challenge for me. It's a good time to stay busy with all sorts of indoor projects while I wait for the warmer weather. 

And with that, this month's status update is a wrap. Thanks for stopping by, and I hope you have an incredible, blessed and fantastic day. 😊

If you have any thoughts or questions, please feel welcome to leave a comment. 

The Family Table: Recipe - Breakfast Sandwich Egg Patties

Friendly Reminder for recipes: C. is always cup and T. is always tablespoon. 

Recently I was looking for high protein recipes for easy meals or snacks and I came upon one that I have played around with a bit and turned into my own version for a loaded, delicious 28.9g serving of protein per patty.  

I've made it both with and without the ground sausage, but I prefer it with the added flavor and heartiness of breakfast sausage. 

It's a super easy dish that takes almost no time to put together and can be enjoyed on it's own as a side, or as a breakfast sandwich on a biscuit or English muffin.

Here's the recipe:

Pre-heat oven to 325. 

Line 12 cup muffin tin with silicone muffin liners for ease of removal.

6 large eggs

1 C. cottage cheese

1 C. shedded cheddar

*1 T. Cowboy Candy, or salsa, relish or any other type of sauce you like with eggs (optional)

* 1 t. any salt, pepper, or other seasonings you prefer (optional)

12 oz. cooked, crumbled ground breakfast sausage

Nutrition Label

Whisk eggs together, then add in cottage cheese, cheddar and any optional mix-ins. Add 1 T. cooked sausage to each cup, then pour 1 scant 1/4 C. of the egg & cheese mixture to fill to the top. Bake for 30 minutes. Use immediately or let cool slightly, then gently flatten, wrap with wax paper and place in a freezer bag & freeze for later use. 

To re-heat using a microwave, place the frozen patty on a microwave safe plate and heat for 90 seconds. Flip the patty over and heat for another 60 seconds. Enjoy on it's own or use for breakfast sandwiches on a biscuit or English muffin. 

I used the recipe analyzer at this site for the nutrition label seen here ➤

Please feel welcome to share your thoughts or questions in the comment section below, and I hope you have an incredible, blessed day!  

The Family Table: Orange Citrus Fruit Powders

In my household I'm all about thrifting, saving, stretching and getting as many uses as I can with everything I have, and that's where this simple little recipe comes from. 

I really hope you find it useful.  

At Christmas time I like to include in my dessert menu and gift baskets, a batch of homemade orange fudge. It's very similar to the flavor of the popular Terry's Chocolate Orange, but even better! 

The way I pull that off, is with fresh, organic orange peels I've dried & powdered (intead of artificial orange extract you can purchase at the grocery store). 

The deep citrus orange flavor profile with real orange compared to artificial orange extract is like night and day. 

The added bonus is, you can use this same orange powder in a wide variety of dishes and recipes from breakfast muffins, cookies, candies, pastries and various stir fry dishes. There are countless different ways to use citrus orange peel powder.

Take 2, medium sized, organic Navel oranges & wash with cold water, thoroughly.  Peel oranges with as little of the white pith as possible.  Using a sharp knife or vegetable peeler, whatever works best.  Once the peels are removed, finely dice into pieces and place onto a dehydrator tray. (If you don't have a dehydrator - then just follow these directions for simple oven drying). 

In the dehydrator, run it at 135 degrees for 16 hours.  This is the maximum time suggested to make sure your peels are perfectly dry for powdering.  Once dried, transfer into the Magic Bullet small cup (or whatever blender you have), and blitz until they're the texture you like. 

I like mine a little more coarse but you can blitz them until they're a consistent, uniform powder.  You can use whatever appliance you have, whether it's a blender, coffee bean or spice grinder, or food processor as they all basically do the same thing. 

The texture I'm usually going for is that of a fine crumbly topping, but this is entirely preferential. You can blitz until it's a fine powder or you can leave even chunkier bits. The chunkier you leave it, the more bold orange flavor is present in whatever you're using it in. 

Generally, 2 oranges will produce 2 tablespoons of orange peel powder which is the perfect amount for add-ins to cookies, cakes, candies, muffins, and numerous other recipes.  It's a great solution to over-ripe oranges, nectarines, tangerines, clementines and most any other orange citrus. Instead of throwing it out, simply scrub up those peels and find new life in aging citrus fruits you never would have thought of. 

I hope you found this helpful, and if you have any questions or comments, please feel welcome to leave those below.  

The Family Table: Meal Planning

All the while I was growing up and even while my own kids were growing up, some of the most important conversations happened at the kitchen table. Setting the table, during dinner, family game night, doing homework and even folding laundry. Plans were made, vacations were planned, dreams were shared, announcements were made and questions were asked & answered. It was pretty much the heart of the home.💖  

When I returned to social media in 2023 one of the first things I noticed right away was how many young Christian wives and mothers were asking for tips & advice in a very specific area. Everything from guidance on household management, grocery shopping, meal planning and anything else related to caring for their families. And the cool thing is, there doesn't seem to be a shortage of really good answers to all those questions!  It immediately reminded me of that old family table & the wisdom shared there. 

I'm far too long-winded for twitter/X on some things so, when I see a great question there I'm going to pop in here and share some thoughts on what works for me & advice I've picked up along the way. I'm not an expert in anything really (and don't claim to be) but I do have nearly 42 years of being a wife & mom of seven kids so, that's all the qualifications that I have. I'm going to call this new little section of my blog The Family Table (not to be confused with Jess at The Farmer's Table, who you should absolutely subscribe to right away!) and I hope it serves to bless whoever happens to come along. 

I was trained in the art & science of domesticity by my grandma (she simply called it "keepin' house") who grew up during the drepression. Most of what I've learned came from her, I'm honored to say.    

So without further yammering, the questions in a thread I saw the other day were all about how to go about meal planning. Wondering how to do it, where to start, what works best, why it matters, how it helps, etc. Really good questions, all of them.

Really fun & simple answer? Start with a Weather Forecast meal plan format for all your family's dinner/main meals of the day. Then, plan all the baking, prepping & shopping around the upcoming weather for the next week or however long you set your meal plans up. 

• Is it going to be warm & pleasant?  Grilled meats, sandwiches, salads, finger foods. Pile on the fresh veggies & seasonal fruits. Then, freeze all leftover meats & veggies for use in your next soup, stew or casserole.
• Cool & blustery? Get out the soup, stew, chili & chowder recipes.  Plan the usual sides to go with each. Any leftovers, freeze in single servings for lunches.
• Dark of winter? All your favorite casseroles, roasts, pasta & rice dishes.  Again, freeze all leftovers in singles for lunches or whatever best way works for your household. When my kids were growing up, we'd have "Leftover Night" potluck type dinner at least once a week, where everyone got to pick their own dinner.   

It may sound obvious to folks that have been doing this for a long time but I know the first time I heard it suggested, it gave me a jumping off place with my own ideas on what kinds of foods to make & helped me get way more organized. Not to mention saving money on groceries by getting into the habit of storing up leftovers for the next meal or to pack in someone's lunch. It's a meal plan format I've followed for over 40 years now, and it works pretty well. I've added all sorts of recipes to each type of meal that have become family favorites over the years, so that also helps keep things fresh & fun with new recipes being added. 

Thanks for stopping by, and I sure hope this has blessed you in some way. 😊