Homemade Sausage

My sister treated me to some of her homemade sausage yesterday. Not only was it lean and flavorful, but it didn't contain all of the nitrates, preservatives, and sodium that are found in pre-packaged sausage. It literally took her 2 minutes to make! I'll be making this instead of buying the store bought version from here on out!

Here's what you need: ground pork or turkey and spices. That's all, folks!

Homemade Breakfast Sausage

         Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon Table Salt
• 1 teaspoon Sugar
• ½ teaspoons Black Pepper
• ½ teaspoons Dried Parsley
• ½ teaspoons Rubbed Sage
• ¼ teaspoons Ground Marjoram
• ¼ teaspoons Dried Thyme
• ¼ teaspoons Red Pepper (optional)
• 2 teaspoons Water
• 1 pound Ground Pork Or Ground Turkey

In a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients except the ground pork or turkey. Whisk until the spices are moistened. Add the ground pork or turkey and stir until thoroughly combined. If you have time, cover the sausage and refrigerate for a couple of hours to allow the flavors to meld. If you don’t, the sausage will still taste great.
To cook, form the sausage into patties (or crumble if making sausage gravy). Cook over medium heat until the sausage has nicely browned on both sides.

Monogrammed Food!

No, I can't take credit for this idea (Thank you Southern Living!) but thought it was too clever not to share! Pipe an initial onto dessert bars for a personalized treat for bridal showers. I've seen this done on chocolate covered strawberries, petit fours, brownies, and lemon bars. It's a lovely custom touch that is both personal and delicious.

Graduation Gift

When buying a gift for your college or high school graduate, think food. Give a gift of kitchen supplies that they may need for their new kitchen or dorm, but make it special with a recipe box or binder. Hand-write the grad's favorite recipes from childhood to present. This thoughtful and practical gift will be used again and again and will bring a smile every time.

Rain Barrel

Need a cheap, eco-friendly water source? Make a rain barrel today! All you need is a plastic 55 gallon drum barrel, flexible guttering, a valve, hose, and a few pallets.

• Cut a hole for the guttering and a hole for the faucet.
• Attach faucet and direct the guttering into the barrel. (If you have a lot of trees nearby, you may need to attach a screen over the guttering hole to keep debris out.)
• Set atop a few pallets and you're done! Perfect for hand-watering or drip irrigation. You can also purchase a small pump for washing the car or other chores that need pressure.

 You can paint the exterior of your barrel with spray paint for plastic too!

My dad made a "cradle" for our rain barrel, but you can set yours upright if you don't have one.

The valve, which attaches to a hose. Just remember to put the valve at the bottom of the barrel so gravity will work in your favor!

*You can often find these barrels on craigslist. I've even seen rain barrels made from trash cans!

A Sweet Invitation

Have a child with a spring or summer birthday? Make your own popsicle invitations for a fun mailbox surprise. All you need is double sided tape, paper, and popsicle sticks.

• To achieve a nice, evenly rounded top, I just traced a half circle of a coffee mug and drew straight lines down.
• Cut out the popsicle shape.
• Tear 2 strips of contrasting colored paper and tape onto the large piece.
• Slide a popsicle stick in between the papers and you're done!

Master Gardener water bucket idea

Plants thrive when given a slow supply of water directly to the roots. Watering by hand tends to apply water too quickly causing the water to run off. Here’s a clever way to ensure your plants get the slow dose of water needed without having to remember to turn off the hose!

Simply drill six to eight evenly spaced 1/16 diameter holes in the bottom of a five-gallon bucket. Fill the bucket with water and place beside the thirsty plant. Place near a cluster of plants to water more than one at a time.

I will survive

My sister gave a survival kit to me at my baby shower that was perfect. We're not talking corny, useless stuff. This one was great! You can use the same idea and customize one for your friends. Each item was wrapped too, which made things more fun!

• A bar of good dark chocolate for emergencies
• A dust mask for changing diapers (haha!)
• A book of uplifting short stories
• A binder full of quick, easy, and healthy recipes
• Instant coffee
• Blog entries for busy days- my personal favorite
• A pack of thank you notes
• Chapstick