Make Your Own Onion Powder

I ran out of onion powder and put some dehydrated onion in a blender, with the bread crumb blade, and it made great onion powder! No onion tears today!

Popcorn Ground Into Corn Meal

Did you know you can grind popcorn in your wheat grinder? It makes great corn meal.

Another tip: I just learned I can use corn meal instead of flour as a thickener in white sauce. Of course, it gives it a little grainier texture and a little yellow coloring. It was perfect for the cheese sauce I made for homemade mac and cheese yesterday. (soon I will post how I make white sauce/ cheese sauce) My husband LOVES Mac and Cheese but my daughter and I both hate the boxed version and only like homemade.

"Footballs" Whole Wheat Crock Pot Cereal

This is so easy to make. It can be made in a rice cooker in about 1 1/2 hours or even left in the rice cooker or crock pot overnight. I put about 1-2 cups of whole wheat in and then cover that with water almost to the top of the rice cooker. (Can add a little salt if you want--I don't) Then leave overnight (or until done if you want to make it the same day). You will know it is done when the wheat puffs up into little "footballs." Serve with milk and butter and brown sugar. This is my hubby's favorite way to eat it. It is so nice to have breakfast already ready to eat as soon as I get up.

Variation: Put the football cereal into a blender and make it into creamy wheat. That is my favorite way to eat it. put in brown sugar, butter, milk and top with some dehydrated berries or fruit. Yummy!

Tuna Patties

There are so many recipes for Tuna patties online. We made some today which the whole family liked and my dd said I should "put it on your blog Mom!" So here is what I did:

-2 servings of mashed potatoes (I made some from flakes)

- 3 cans of tuna, drained

- 1 egg

- a few shredded baby carrots

Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Put some flour on a plate and shape into patties and dip each side of each one in the flour. Heat some olive oil over medium heat and cook the patties for just a few minutes on each side--until golden brown.

I served these on toast with some parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. My hubby also likes to have a little barbecue sauce on his.

Make Canned Chili So Much Better

I don't like canned chili very much so when I don't have time to make homemade, I like to "re-make" the canned chili. It is so much tastier that way.

-2 cans chili
-1 can tomatoes (diced or whole, same size can as chili you use)
-1 can corn (creamed corn is yummy too)
-1/2 -1 Cup sour cream, plain greek yogurt or 2-4 Tbs of ranch dressing

Heat it all up together. This is really good! It is even better with cornbread or corn chips.

Honey Syrup Substitute

Use 2:1 ration of honey to hot water and stir until honey dissolves into the water.

tip#1 For a stronger flavor and darker color, you can also add 1 tsp of molassas.

tip#2 If you don't mind it being a little runnier you can even use 1:1 ratio of honey to water. That is how I usually make it since we like it fine that way and it means less sugar.

tip #3 remember that honey isn't good to feed to infants under age 1.

This syrup has no cornsyrup in it like most imitation maple syrups do so it is a healthier choice. Of course real maple syrup is the best but this is a really good substitute.

Tastes really good with my waffles or german pancakes recipes

Fast and Fun Healthier Waffles or Pancakes

Pancakes don't keep me satisfied for long but my family loves them so I always look out for healthier, heartier versions. I got this idea from the back of my Coach's Oats oatmeal bag but didn't want to follow their recipe since this way is so much easier. This is my new favorite:

1)Use some regular complete pancake mix (I used Krusteaz big bag from Costco). I don't measure I just dump about half of the amount of batter I want to make into the bowl.

2)Before you add water add in some oatmeal. (My favorite is Coach's Oats since they have a nuttier texture--again from Costco). I still don't measure just pour some in.

3) Add water a little time and mix with a wire whisk until the consistency is what I want either for waffles (thicker) or for pancakes (a little thinner).

4) Now just have fun and make pancake shapes or just use the waffle iron.

These waffles are crispy and heartier. My family started eating them as a piece of bread without even putting syrup on them and my husband asked me what I did different because they tasted so good. I can eat some of these and actually feel satisfied for more than a half an hour.