16 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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In my quest to declutter and streamline and move towards a more sustainable household, I recently decided to tackle all of the ‘random’ electronics that had accumulated over the years. I, like many of us living in this century, was guilty of owning an assortment of random electronic equipment and parts. Inkjet printers. Power cords and connectors. Old electronic devices. Random connectors and accessories. Sadly, the list goes on…
9 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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As the calendar year winds down, I like to purge and clear out the refrigerator and ‘start fresh’ in new year. This often leads to the creation of a soup or two. Here’s one that can easily be adjusted to whatever vegetables and produce you have on hand. Here’s what I had on hand….
Celery root, potato, carrots, onion and more.
7 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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Now that we’ve decided to keep the juicer (at least while it still adds value and happiness), I’ve started experimenting with different fruit and vegetable recipes. I will commit to using the juicer at least once per week, and see what happens.
Here’s for my next juicing attempt!
Ingredients for juicer juice recipe.
4 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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I know it’s a bit of a cliche. But I really, truly am inspired by both of my parents – constantly. They live a life based on frugality and simplicity. They have embraced and lived a life of sustainability for more than 40 years, long before it became ‘hip’ to be green and eco-conscience and ‘use what you have’.
When they moved to Northern California in the mid-seventies, they had very little. Growing their own food, making their own bread, raising their own chickens, rabbits and geese (the rabbits and geese were kept more as pets) were just some of the things that they did out of necessity and being frugal with the little that they had – not trying to be cutting edge.
As it turns out, they were onto something a bit ahead of their time, something that newer generations are now starting to realize is just good sense: use what you have, be frugal, and save the environment. Novel concept, right?
Here’s one story about my mother and her bread, and just one of the ways that she truly inspires me… Continue Reading →
4 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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We made the proactive decision to begin to seriously de-clutter our home, lives and overall way of thinking. We wanted to get rid of the ‘closets of stuff’ and the boxes of never used items in the garage. We wanted to frequently use the things that we valued and owned, and no longer wanted to just own things for the sake of owning. We were ready.
“But where do I start?” I felt overwhelmed and wanted to hide behind our wall of ‘things’ and stuff…. Continue Reading →
3 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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Warning – this is not pretty.
Contrary to what most blogs would like you to think, not every homemade experiment turns out right the first time (or even after several noble attempts). Even in this age of YouTube, Wikipedia and endless pixels of user generated content, it’s still possible to do a bunch of research for a project, follow steps exactly, and then have the project totally and completely flop.
This was the case in a recent kitchen adventure. I decided that I was going to make homemade sauerkraut….
Red cabbage before homemade sauerkraut experiment.
3 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
2 Comments
Stems and All:
Part I
Part II
Part III
I had reserved the green carrot tops from our first juice experiment, and I wanted to see what I could come up with.
I used to toss the green tops of the carrots into the compost. But I had read that these were totally nutritional and could be eaten. They are actually rich in protein, minerals and vitamins, including lots of potassium.
THE PESTO:
Here’s the final topper of our first ‘stems and all’ juice experience. Try this nice pesto on top of any variety of foods… Continue Reading →
3 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
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Stems and All:
Part I
Part II
Part III
I always thought that juicing was very wasteful. Even if you compost the pulp, you’re still missing out on a lot of the nutrients and benefits of the skin and fiber of many fruits and vegetables.
I had held aside the celery and carrot pulp from our first juicing experience. I had frozen it, and decided this morning that today is the day to see what I could do with it… Continue Reading →
3 January, 2013
by Jane Newcomb
1 Comment
Stems and All:
Part I
Part II
Part III
The man-cub moved in. And we merged assets, and did a lot of purging. A lot. More on that later.
One of the items that made it to the “use it or lose it” area of the kitchen was the Breville Die-Cast Juice Fountain Elite. From the outset, I was very opposed to the juicer.
“It’s huge, looks dangerous to clean, and seems wasteful since you only use the juice.” That was my argument. But, since it had made it to the “use it or lose it” pile, I was determined to see how often I would use it over the course of a month. Continue Reading →
