Archive for December, 2010
Eco-friendly gift wrap ideas
By MarthaStewart.com
Source: Yahoo!Green
Why buy fancy wrapping paper when it will only end up crumpled in the recycling bin? Every year, Americans spend billions on ribbons, paper, and bows, only to see them ripped up and tossed away.
These creative, eco-friendly gift wrap ideas make use of materials already lying around your home — maps, shopping bags, even kids’ artwork. Did we mention they don’t cost a cent?
Biodegradable stuffing
Biodegradable stuffing cushions small, fragile items just as well as plastic bubble wrap or Styrofoam peanuts, a recycler’s worst nightmare.
Potato-chip bag gift wrap
Give a new life to empty potato-chip bags by dressing up your gifts in them. Cut open a potato-chip bag along its seam to reveal the shiny white or silver inside of the bag. Flatten the bag, wash it with soap and water, and air dry. Then wrap your present and adorn it with ribbons and homemade cards.
Clockwise from top left, we used: vintage scarf, burlap rice bag, wool scarf with a knitting needle, tea towel with rickrack, scrap from a vintage kimono.
Cloth gift wrap
In Japan, the art of wrapping gifts in cloth is called furoshiki, and it’s brilliantly eco-friendly. Use scarves or towels (which become second gifts) or fabric scraps leftover from other projects. Secure open ends with a button, safety pin, or knot.
Stamped shopping-bag gift wrap
Have shopping bags around the house? Repurpose them into festive gift wrap. Cut an open paper shopping bag along one fold and scissor out the bottom of the bag. Wrap your gift in the paper. Dip one end of a wine cork into ink or a dark fruit juice and begin stamping patterns.
Clockwise from top left we used: Vintage wallpaper, Chinese newspaper topped with colored paper, recycled map, grocery bag with Japanese beads.
Vintage and repurposed paper gift wrap
Easy to find and work with, vintage and repurposed papers add pop to presents. Layer several colors and textures, or add vintage beads for a finished look.
Kids’ artwork gift wrap
Children’s drawings make for inexpensive and delightful homemade gift wrap, especially for family members. Have kids doodle on Kraft paper, calendar pages, shopping bags, magazine pages, and phone book pages.
Family Movie Night
I work with a grassroots organization called Moms4FamilyTV, and our goal is to promote high-quality family friendly entertainment that the entire family can watch together. Our initiative is sponsored by Walmart and P&G, who have made it their goal to “bring back family movie night” by producing family entertainment for NBC and FOX.
The next film, Change of Plans, will air January 8th 8/7c on FOX. This heart-warming, funny film surrounds a married couple with no kids, who–through unfortunate events ends up adopting 4 kids from Africa, Asia, and South America. The film reveals how fulfilling life can be when you look beyond your own plans and invest in the lives of others. The film is also very pro-adoption!
Will you please help us make a difference?
We are asking people like you to help spread the word about Family Movie Night and Change of Plans.
Tune in: January 8th at 8/7c on FOX.
Share: Post the trailer on your website & Facebook page.
Watch the trailer: Change of Plans – Trailer
Spread the Word: Tell your friends and family, your church, anyone who has children or might be interested in supporting wholesome family entertainment.
Best regards,
Johanna Hatfield
Moms4FamilyTV Partnership Development
Huckleberry and Raspberry Syrup Recipes
Here are two syrup recipes taken from two of Karen Jean Matsko Hood’s cookbooks from her Cookbook Delights Series, Huckleberry Delights Cookbook and Raspberry Delights Cookbook. Check them out and let Karen know what you think of them. She also invites you to join others to share your favorite recipes on Cooking with Karen Blog.com.
Raspberry Syrup
Nothing is better than hot pancakes, waffles, or French toast, and homemade raspberry syrup. Adjust the sweetness to your taste.
Ingredients:
2½ c. frozen raspberries, thawed, with juice
1 c. sugar
1 c. light corn syrup
Directions:
- Place raspberries (including juice) and sugar into blender and process at high speed.
- Mash and force through a sieve with potato masher.
- Pour into saucepan and bring to boil over moderate heat.
- Add corn syrup and cook a little while longer.
- Pour into bottle and refrigerate.
Huckleberry Syrup
Try this delicious version of syrup made without corn syrup. It is full of true huckleberry flavor. While this recipe normally gives good results, fruit sugar, pectin, and acid concentrations can vary. Start with a small test batch and allow it to cool thoroughly before testing for syrup thickness.
Ingredients:
2 c. huckleberry juice
1¾ c. sugar
1 Tbs. lemon juice (optional) for a tarter syrup
Directions:
- Crush fruit; press out juice using cheesecloth or jelly bag.
- If you will not be making syrup immediately, pasteurize juice by heating to 194 degrees F. for 1 minute; filter through cheesecloth and refrigerate.
- Mix juice and sugar in large pan, and bring to rolling boil that cannot be stirred down; continue to boil for 1 minute.
- Remove pan from heat and skim off any foam.
- Pour syrup into clean, hot canning jars.
- Process following canning directions on page 186.
- Refrigerate after opening.
- This recipe produces fairly thin syrup. If you desire thicker syrup, use 1½ cups sugar and ¼ cup corn syrup in recipe.
- Do not add more sugar or boil longer to thicken, because both methods can cause jelling to occur.
- Corn syrup and lemon juice can be used together.
Visit these websites to get your copy of these and other cookbooks in the Cookbook Delights Series today: Karen’s Bookstore or Whispering Pine Press International Bookstore.
Announcing Cooking with Karen Blog.com!
Announcing Karen Jean Matsko Hood’s new blog – Cooking with Karen Blog.com!
Whether you enjoy preparing and sharing your favorite foods or you just love to eat, you will discover something deliciously fun and new at Cooking with Karen.com!
Karen Jean Matsko Hood has always enjoyed cooking, baking, and experimenting with recipes. Karen regularly entertains large groups of people and especially enjoys designing creative menus with holiday, international, ethnic, and regional themes. As a mother of sixteen children, she has a great deal of experience cooking for others and is excited to share her knowledge. She is the author of the popular Cookbook Delights series and has appeared on Good Morning Northwest on a local Spokane, Washington, television station many times to share her cooking expertise.
Situated in beautiful Spokane Valley, just minutes away from the Washington/Idaho border, Cooking with Karen.com provides cooking classes and all kinds of epicurean delights, including a variety of ethnic dishes, baked goods, fresh farm produce, dried and frozen foods, spices, and teas. Karen Jean Matsko Hood uses these items in her bountiful collection of recipes, many of which she shares in her Cookbook Delights Series and Hood and Matsko Family Favorites series.
In the Cookbook Delights Series, each cookbook emphasizes a different food ingredient or theme. The first cookbook in the series is Apple Delights Cookbook. Karen is also working to complete her other series of cookbooks titled Hood and Matsko Family Favorites, which includes many recipes handed down from her family heritage and others that have emerged from more current family traditions.
Cooking with Karen.com offers a variety of cooking classes for beginners and skilled chefs alike. We also have classes specifically geared for children and welcome family participation. Classes cover holiday themes, traditional home cooked meals, ethnic dishes, and more. Class sizes are small to ensure hands-on learning and a personal touch.
We invite you to join us at CookingWithKarenBlog.com to find great recipes to try and share! Check back often, as Karen will be adding cooking classes soon!
Christmas Holiday Jam Recipes
The Christmas holiday is rapidly approaching. Excitement is in the air. Plans are being made for family dinners and parties. Baking is being done. Why not add special jam recipes to your holiday menu this year. Following are two jam recipes that would add to your holiday breakfasts, meals, or parties. The first takes some work, but the second it quick to make.
Sparkling Holiday Jam
This makes a great holiday red jam full of flavor and texture.
Ingredients:
2½ qt. strawberries, coarsely chopped
1 pkg. cranberries (12 oz.), fresh or frozen, chopped
2 pkg. powdered fruit pectin (2 oz. ea.)
1 tsp. butter
5 lb. sugar
Directions:
- Sterilize jars and lids in boiling water for at least 10 minutes.
- Let simmer while making jam.
- In large saucepan, combine strawberries, cranberries, pectin, and butter.
- Bring to boil; stir in sugar, and return to boil.
- Cook 1 minute; remove from heat.
- Quickly fill jars to within ½-inch from top.
- Wipe rims clean and put on lids; tighten lid firmly onto jar with ring or use single formed lid in place of ring to cover inner lid. Do not tighten down too hard as it may impede sealing.
- Place on protected surface to cool, taking care to not disturb lid and ring. A slight indentation of lid will be apparent when sealed.
- Leave overnight until thoroughly cooled.
- When cooled, wipe jars with damp cloth and then label and date each.
- Store upright on shelf in cool, dark place.
Instant Raspberry Cordial Jam
This is so quick and easy to make, and the flavor is wonderful.
Ingredients:
12 oz. raspberry jam
1-2 Tbs. Chambord or other raspberry liqueur
Directions:
- Stir liqueur into jam and cover.
- Refrigerate at least 1 day to allow flavors to meld.
These and other recipes can be found in Karen’s Christmas Delights Cookbook, Vol. I, A Collection of Christmas Recipes.
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