Tasting Rating Fun for Family Night - Monday Funday #1!

We recently had a fun family activity that I wanted to share!  I (Becca) have five kids, ages two to eleven, so it can be a bit tricky to find something the whole family can participate in and enjoy.  I've been trying to have a small activity to do after dinner, as a family, and this one was a bit hit!  We had a "Tasting Rating" of Kombucha.  You could use any food type that you can get a variety of brands or flavors of, there are lots of fun possibilities!  

For preparation, I visited our local health food store, and bought six different kinds of kombucha.  Then, I just quickly made a chart for us to record our scores on.  I went ahead and typed the name of the kombucha in the first column, since I have several non-readers/writers.  I printed each person in our family a copy, and then we were set to go!  During dinner, I went over the categories and made sure everyone understood the rating system.  We used 1-5, with 5 being the best, and doubled the "taste" category so that it had more weight than the "label", for example.  The categories we used were:  look of labeling, bottle, taste, nutrition, and overall.  I passed out saltine crackers to cleanse our palate between tastings, and we used this set of little cups that is one of my favorite things, to do the tastings in.

Everyone enjoyed the activity a lot, and it was fun to see how different people's tastes reacted either similarly or differently on the different drinks.  The kids had several great suggestions for further tastings, so we plan to do hot teas, potato chips, and chocolates next!  What is your suggestion for a tasting?  Let me know if your family tries it also!

{Simple} Lemon Sugar Scrub

Becca here with a really great quick gift idea for giving, or for yourself!  Even though it technically isn't winter for another few days yet, we've already had one significant snow storm here, and the cold weather has started drying our skin out.  This scrub is a terrific way to exfoliate and moisturize your skin, and uses completely all natural, grocery store items!  In fact, you could eat it with a spoon, although I wouldn't recommend it :)  It also makes a great gift, as I made here, in little canning jars.  Here is a huge collection of free printable canning jar labels, one of which I printed on yellow paper to label my scrub with!  My daughter in particular is a huge fan of this scrub, and says that not since she was a newborn has her skin been this soft.  This recipe will make 4 of the small, 4 ounce, canning jar size for gifts.  If you're going to be storing it long-term, refrigeration would be best.  I just leave a few ounces out a time.  The natural citrus smell is such a great, refreshing smell, especially in the winter, and good citrus is readily available.  I used Meyer Lemons, but your favorite kind of lemon or lime would be great too!  Enjoy!

{Simple} Lemon Sugar Scrub

1 cup oil (your favorite kind - olive, coconut, vegetable, etc.)
2 cups sugar (again, your favorite kind! white, organic, etc.)
1 lemon (Meyer, a lime, or regular lemon!)

Place oil and sugar in a large bowl.  Add the zest of your lemon, then the juice of the lemon.  Stir well to combine.  Store in small airtight containers to use soon, or in refrigerator for long term storage!

How To: Easily Clean Stovetop Burner Pans

Jana here with a kitchen cleaning tip that you are going to love!  When I first saw this idea on Pinterest, I was pretty skeptical about it.  It seemed too easy to be true.  But, I decided to give it a try, and I'm so glad I did!  If you're like me, and you use your stovetop for cooking very often, the burner pans start to get really gross, really fast!  I admit that I hadn't cleaned mine in awhile (that will be obvious when you see the "Before" picture!), but that just makes the "After" picture even more amazing!  All you need is some ammonia, and some gallon ziploc bags!  Keep reading to find out more!

 

Ok, so I am putting these up even though it's kind of embarassing how dirty they are! 

Look how clean these are now!  All you have to do is place each burner pan in a gallon size ziploc bag.  Then, pour a small amount (I used 1/4 cup) in each burner pan.  Tightly seal the bag, and allow it to sit overnight.  The fumes from ammonia are pretty strong, so you might want to place them outside (if it's not too cold), or in a garage or laundry room.  Don't worry that the amount of ammonia doesn't seem like enough to cover the pan.  The fumes are what will be cleaning it!  Allow it to sit overnight, or for at least 8 hours.  Once the time has passed, open the bags, and remove the pans.  Using a cloth cleaning rag or even paper towels, rub the burner pan, and all of the gunk will come right off!  It really is amazing how well this works! 

How to: Easily Cut & Peel a Butternut Squash

The butternut squash is a winter squash that is very versatile in the ways it can be cooked!  It makes a great sweet side dish, is delicious in stews (watch for an upcoming recipe!), or used as the main ingredient in butternut squash soup!  Although it is very healthy and delicious, it can be intimidating to know how to prepare it.  I found a simple way to cut and peel the squash on Cooking Light's website, and I wanted to pass the good information along!

 

 

 

If anyone is unfamiliar, this is what a butternut squash looks like.  My grocery store carries the winter squash in the produce section, near the potatoes and onions.  They are priced per pound, so I typically look for a medium-sized one.

 To begin, cut a small section from the top (the stem) and the bottom of the squash, using a sharp citchen knife, to create a flat surface on each end.

Next, using a vegetable peeler, start peeling away the skin until you can only see the bright orange part of the squash.

Once you have removed all of the outer skin, cut the butternut squash in half, lengthwise.  Use a spoon to remove all of the seeds and strings on the inside.  Now the squash is ready to cut and prepare as necessary for the recipe you are using. 

Leave us a comment and tell us your favorite way to eat butternut squash!

How To: Keep potatoes from turning brown

Jana here with a basic "How To" kitchen tip!  A lot of times when prepping for dinner, I like to get things done throughout the day.  Since I have 3 young children, I can't always plan on the hour before dinnertime being a 'convenient' time to spend in the kitchen making our dinner!  There are many things you can do to prepare things ahead of time, and save things from getting so hectic right before dinner!  One of the major things, is to chop any necessary ingredients. For example, when I was making red potatoes recently, I knew it would be much easier to cook them for dinner if they were sliced and ready to go!  I also knew that potatoes can turn a yucky red-brown color when cut and left to sit.  All I did to keep these potatoes looking fresh for several hours was to cover them with water!  You could do the same thing when making hashbrowns, homemade french fries, or any variety of potaotes!  Feel free to share any of your basic 'prep ahead of time' ideas in the comments!