Mason Jar Madness

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I admit it!  I suffer from Mason jar madness - and I’m hoping it’s contagious! 

I use a lot of mason jars, even though I don’t do as much home canning as I have previously.  And when I was preparing to downsize from a home with three bedrooms, family room and garage to a small two bedroom apartment across state last year, I sold, donated and gifted things (including a lot of my - horrors! - craft and sewing supplies) for a solid two months. But I kept my mason jars!

In kitchen cabinets, I use them as storage containers for legumes, small pastas, grains and home dehydrated foods. I use them to store small amounts of leftovers in the refrigerator. I use them for homemade ‘convenience’ mixes and recipes in a jar and I use them as containers for homemade snack mixes and to grow sprouts. 

In other areas of the house, they might be used to store cotton balls and makeup sponges (not that I wear makeup very often these days!) or bath salts; to keep bandaids and antibiotic ointment together; and to store paint brushes, craft supplies and markers on my art table.

Photo courtesy of Amy at Four Corners Design

They’re easy, convenient, inexpensive – and can be left plain, decorated or painted.  Do I have you convinced yet?  Time to start collecting and developing your own case of mason jar madness!  Check garage sales, Craigslist and Freecycle for inexpensive, or even free, mason jars.

 Back to recipes in a jar!  They’re a great way to make your own convenience foods, both allowing you to cut food costs AND to have some control over the ingredients that are used.  If you use organics, which I prefer, buying staples in bulk and making your own mixes is a great way to make organics more affordable. 

Front left to right: Chicken-Rice soup; Italian cheese seasoning; Skillet lasagna; Taco seasoning; Parsley-Parmesan spaghetti

They also make wonderful and inexpensive gifts for family and friends, topped with a circle of fabric and a tag with cooking instructions.  When I give them as gifts, I usually put a set of 3 or 4 in a basket; usually a main course, a bread and a dessert or two – and they’re always a hit!

I’ll be posting recipe in a jar mixes once in a while, so keep your eyes open! In the meantime, check out this link to an awesome, alphabetized list of recipes .  And, if you know of any other awesome sites or posts dealing with mason jars, leave a link!

Growing Houseplants from Food

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It’s relatively easy to grow houseplants from food using the seeds, pits and parts of fruits and vegetables that you would normally throw away.  It takes more time and patience than buying a plant at the store, but I think it's a good trade off.  I'm taking my Grandma's favorite saying to heart -  'Use it up, wear it out, make it do new, do without'.

If you have kids (whether or not you’re homeschooling) you can make this a family project and use it to teach them the concept of life cycles, simple plant biology and much more.  A quick search online will yield multiple ideas and helpful materials. 

I’d really recommend also planting some seeds that are quick to grow so that the kids (and you) won’t get bored while waiting the month or so it can take the seeds I’ve listed below.  While they’re not houseplants, lettuce seeds sprout within days, as do lentils and mung beans (which I’ll discuss at the end of this post).  The bonus with these is that they take up little space and can go from pot to plate, which will provide valuable lessons in where our food comes from.  That extra nutrition won’t hurt you or your wallet either!

Avocado

When you’re finished making and enjoying that luscious guacamole, don’t toss the avocado pit!  Rinse the pit to get rid of any pulp and grab a small glass or small mason jar and 2 or 3 toothpicks.  Insert the toothpicks, at an angle, into the sides of the pit.  You’ll want the flat part facing down.  The toothpicks will help to hold the top half of the pit out of the water. 

Fill the glass or jar with enough water to cover the bottom half of the pit.  This should be put in a dark place (cabinet, garage, etc) for 2-4 weeks and the water should be checked regularly. I usually change the water every couple of days and never let the water level fall below the pit.

The pit will split in half as it begins to root.  This will be followed by a small shoot.  Once the shoot is about an inch and a half long, you can place it in a pot of soil.  Keep the shoot just above the soil and, because you want to help acclimate it to the outdoors, you’ll need to cover it for the first few days to protect it from direct sun. 

Sweet potato

Sweet potato vines make beautiful, leafy houseplants. Simply cut off a few inches from the pointed end of the potato and plant it, cut side down, in a pot of soil. Keep it watered and you'll have a vine within a few weeks. You can also start it the same way as you would an avocado - placing the potato end in water. 

A word of caution: These vines are poisonous once they've sprouted, so please keep them out of reach of children. The containers can always be moved into reaching distance for watering and then put back out of reach.

Pineapple

Pineapples are a type of bromeliad and can make wonderful houseplants (don’t expect to grow fruit though!) and are fairly easy to start.  Use fresh pineapple to make a smoothie or to broil on the barbeque, but don’t toss the pineapple top! 

When cutting, keep about an inch of the fruit (attached to the leaves) and let this dry for a few days. You’ll need to bury the fruit portion in potting soil and then water.  Water often because the soil needs to stay wet.  Rooting will take about two weeks.  You may not be successful at first, but a way to check is to see if the central leaf is growing.  If it is, then roots are taking.  If not, you’ll have to toss it and try again.

Keep the plant in a sunny window and it should do well!

Mango 

There are two different methods of rooting mango pits, both of which I’m in the process of trying (sorry, no pictures yet!).

The first method involves planting the pit, including the fibers it will be covered with, in potting soil and then watering.Easy, peasy.

The second method requires removing the husk (with fibers).Be sure not to cut or damage the seeds inside.The seeds will be shaped a bit like a lima bean.Lightly push the seed into a container of potting soil.It can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to sprout.

 Mung beans and lentils

Sprouted mung beans are most often used in stirfrys and other oriental dishes.  Sprouted lentils are more often used in salads and sandwiches.  Both contain a lot of nutrition and add a bit of crunch to foods. The following links will take you to information and simple instructions for mung beans and lentils

Shared for Catch As Catch Can at My Repurposed Life

Celebrate With a Salsa Garden!

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It’s Cinco de Mayo tomorrow, and while my blended and extended family will be celebrating with a gathering and plenty of delicious, homemade Mexican food, I thought I’d post about plants (and a recipe!) instead of the typical celebratory things.  Not just any plants, but the garden bounty that’s used in salsa!

A salsa garden is perfect for small spaces and for container gardening too.  Tomato, peppers, and cilantro are typical salsa ingredients and all do well in containers and small, sunny spaces.  Making salsa at home isn’t difficult either.  It’s inexpensive and using home grown, chemical free produce adds  the bonuses of extra taste AND helping to keep your body free of toxins.

If gardening in containers, you’ll need a larger container for the tomato plants, but peppers and cilantro can both be grown in smaller containers.   ’m using a 20“ container for tomatoes and chives and, for peppers and herbs, large coffee cans with holes punched into the bottom for drainage. 

A few years ago, I recycled two large, round plastic tubs that had stored toys and used them for planting tomatoes and herbs.  I simply drilled holes in the bottom for drainage and put empty aluminum cans (turned upside down) in the bottom to lessen the weight from the soil and to economize on the amount of soil I needed to buy.

If money is an issue, then growing plants from seed is definitely a frugal move.  It’s late in the season for starting seeds indoors, but you can also do the planting outdoors at the beginning of the growing season. To find out when that is for your area, check here

For healthy tomato plants, it’s important to water regularly, without over watering. Tomatoes don’t like waterlogged roots but, when growing in containers, it’s also important not to let the soil dry out beyond the first inch at the top.  Mulching will help with that, as well as discourage some garden pests.  I use dry grass cuttings or leaves, along with dried coffee grounds, making sure that the mulch doesn’t touch the plant stems.

You can save money on fertilizers as well, and keep your plants chemical free.  Crushed eggshells added to the soil or placed on top of the soil around your plants will give them much needed calcium, while coffee grounds will provide nitrogen.  I use this combination most often for tomato and pepper plants.  Used coffee grounds can also be used as a mulch, or diluted in water as a gentle fertilizer.

If you're not a coffee drinker, or have a larger garden, try stopping by the local Starbucks or other coffee shop and ask if they will let you have used coffee grounds.  Starbucks will let you have the grounds for free and local shops may do the same. 

I love to garden, but finances necessitated a move from a house to an apartment a year ago.  Although my patio is really small, I’ve been determined to have a container garden of some kind.  I’ve gotten a good start this year, planting seeds indoors for tomatoes, chives, three different types of lettuce, parsley, basil and one type of squash.  The last frost date here is in mid-May and we have a short growing season in the high desert of Eastern Oregon, so an early start indoors is a must!

I was hoping to include some photos of my patio, but we’re having a huge thunder, lightning and hail storm today so I haven't put the plants outdoors.  I do have a simple salsa recipe for you though!

The recipe

2 lg. ripe tomatoes, cut in half
4 jalapeños, seeded and minced
1 medium white onion, minced
2 cloves of garlic, minced
18 cilantro sprigs, minced
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. freshly squeezed lime juice

Preheat a pan on a stove with 1 tbs olive oil.  Add tomato, jalapenos, onion and garlic then roast the mixture well.  Pour the mix into a blender with a very small amount of water and mix on the lowest setting until you have a thick, pulpy (not liquid) salsa.

Add the cilantro and salt to taste, then the lime juice and stir by hand.  You can serve as soon as it’s cooled a bit or store in the refrigerator until needed.  An extra day or two even improves the salsa, giving the flavors time to blend.

Tip:  I don’t like cilantro so I’ll typically leave it out and add chopped chives for taste and color instead.  You can also control the ‘heat’ by leaving out some of the jalapeno – or adding extra.

Enjoy!!

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