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2024 Christmas Gift Guide

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November is here and so is our Christmas gift guide! We spent some time getting input from our family and compiling it into a usable list. It is a combination of health and preparedness items we have and use and items we would like to have. We hope you enjoy perusing the list as much as we enjoyed putting it together for you. We have a photo compilation of this list over on the website for fast and easy shopping. Large Item Wish List Camp Stove - This is a must-have for emergency preparedness. Having more than one way to cook is important for any situation resulting in a power outage. Boxed snacks are fine for a time, but never underestimate the power of a hot meal or a warm drink in an emergency situation. Big Berkey Water Filter - While we originally purchased our Berkey water filter as a camping and emergency filter, we use ours every day to filter our tap water for drinking and cooking. The Berkey filters a wide range of contaminants from almost any water source. Click here  to
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Winter Coffee Recipe

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This week we are sharing another drink mix recipe. This one is for winter coffee. It is a recipe my mother has had for years. She sometimes makes it for Christmas gifts. I haven't had it in years, so I think this might be the year to make a batch! As with the other powdered drink recipes, this uses shelf stable ingredients, making it a great recipe for preppers, too. It is important to stay hydrated in the winter as well as the summer and having drink mixes on hand makes it easy to do. Winter Coffee 2 c. powdered creamer (the original recipe calls for non-dairy creamer) 2 c. hot cocoa mix (click  here for the recipe we use) 1 c. instant coffee 2 t. cinnamon 1 1/2 c. sugar Mix together. Store in an air tight container. To use: Add 2 T. (use more or less to taste) to a cup of hot water. Stir well until dissolved. Sip and enjoy!
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The Best Homemade Chai Spice Mix

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Making your own chai tea mix gives you a healthy and frugal drink option. It mixes well with whatever black tea you happen to have on hand.  This mix is good enough to give away as a gift. Simply put the mix in an attractive jar, attach a bow, and include a card with written instructions. You can even add a mug and some black tea to make it a gift set. The chai spice mix is popular at our house - this batch is almost gone Chai Spice Mix for Tea   Ingredients 1 c. organic sugar ½ t. cloves ½ t. ginger ¾ t. Ceylon cinnamon   Mix Directions: Mix the ingredients well. Store in a glass container with a lid.   To Make Chai Tea or a Chai Latte: 1.      Steep black tea in hot water. 2.      Add 2 t. of mix. 3.       Add milk to taste for a Chai Latte. Notes: 1)     We like to use raw cane sugar. 2)     This tastes wonderful with mixed in Earl Grey tea in place of regular black tea.
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Making Homemade Hot Cocoa Mix

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We love hot cocoa and we love a good hot cocoa mix. We use it for cocoa and for adding to our coffee when we want a special treat. Like with most things, it has become harder and harder to find a healthy hot cocoa mix that is affordable. We were buying a brand for a while that was decent, but the price kept getting steeper.  We tried making our own hot cocoa mix years ago, but the recipe I had called for powdered coffee creamer. Powdered creamer usually has terrible ingredients. I tried it anyway, and it was not good. I love chocolate and even I didn't like the homemade mix. With the cooler weather upon us, we decided it was time to find a healthier hot cocoa mix recipe that tastes good. I found several online that call for powdered milk rather than powdered creamer. I saved four recipes and picked one to try. We mixed up a batch and gave it a try. It was okay, but we found it lacking in chocolate flavor. We added a bit more cocoa and tried it again. It was better, but I felt like
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Project Updates - End of Summer

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It has been a while since we have updated on projects in our household. Here are a few things we have been up to since the last update in July: Canning Dill pickles Dilly beans Dill relish Peaches Pears Victoria sauce Peach pie jam Hawthorn berry jam Pinto beans Beef stew Apple pie filling Dehydrating  Greens for powdered greens Zucchini for zucchini flour Microgreens for soups Herbs for culinary use and tea Green bell peppers Freezing Peaches Applesauce Broth Green bell peppers Other Homestead Projects Refrigerator pickles Lacto-fermented pickles Baby quilt New Website Articles Using a Jar Vacuum Sealer Getting the Most Out of Your Root Vegetables Why Prepare? Your Vehicle Emergency Bag Cherry BBQ Sauce Recipe
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