This is my new favorite smoothie!  The boys and I usually having a smoothie with lunch and this has been a hit for the past few weeks.  I will say that it tastes different each time, probably depending on how ripe and sweet the peach is…and of course, how much sweetener is added!  I find that the ripest (softest…without being bruised and damaged) peaches make the best tasting smoothies!!!

Ingredients
1 banana ($.10)
1 peach, seed removed ($.30)
1 cup strawberries, fresh or frozen ($.35)
1 cup milk ($.10)  Rice milk for us!
2 Tbsp ground flaxseed ($.10)
1 Tbsp sweetener…honey, agave, sugar ($.05)
Water to fill blender to 4 cups

Directions
1. Add banana, peach (with or without skin…lots of nutrients in the skin!), strawberries into the blender. Add milk, flaxseed and sweetener.
2. Fill blender with water until the liquid level reaches 4 cups. Don’t have markings…add about 2 cups of water.
3. Blend on low for 30 seconds, then blend on high for 30 seconds, or until smooth and creamy!
4. Drink immediately!!!

Cost $1.00 for 4 8 oz. glasses

Find More Savings

• Free Money Management Software at Mint.com
• Get Free Coupon Alerts
• Print Grocery Coupons
• Join AFullCup to find more ways to save on Groceries!!!

Ingredients
2 quarts of strawberries
3 pints of blueberries
4 cups of sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 package pectin

Follow the directions for canning that are found on the pectin packaging! Be sure to read the directions for your pressure canner as well! And keep jars and lids in HOT (not boiling water) water before adding jelly. All important canning instructions can be found HERE!)

1. Wash and dry blueberries and strawberries. Remove stems from strawberries and any strays on the blueberries.

2. In large saucepan, crush blueberries and strawberries with potato masher. Add pectin and lemon juice. Bring to a boil. Add sugar and return to bowl for 1 minute, stirring constantly.  

3. Using tools, transfer jelly into ball jars.

4. Add sealed jars to pressure canner and process at 5 lbs of pressure for 10 minutes.  Follow cooling instructions in your pressure canner’s manual.

5. Label jars and stash away to use later or give as gifts!

**Please be sure to consult Pick Your Own and/or the instructions on your canner and pectin packaging. These directions are just a sketch of the different steps involved in the process!

Find More Savings

• Free Money Management Software at Mint.com
• Get Free Coupon Alerts
• Print Grocery Coupons
• Join AFullCup to find more ways to save on Groceries!!!

I made the “executive” decision to invest in some canning equipment…because I am the CEO in my kitchen.

I have fallen in love with my garden…and have wildly elaborate plans for next year’s expansion…which I hope to put into place this fall, so it’s all ready to go in the spring!

In order to preserve and protect my garden’s harvest, I thought it wise to start canning. I’m most looking forward to making salsa and spaghetti sauce. I’ll use the tomatoes from my garden, as well as from a nearby “you pick” market that practically gives the tomatoes away at the end of the picking season!

In the meantime, I’ve made a few jellies, as the prices on berries have been LOW!

Blueberries and strawberries with some lemon juice

A few of the jars “in the bath”

Round 1…of hopefully many!!!  Blueberry-Strawberry Jelly!

Find More Savings

• Free Money Management Software at Mint.com
• Get Free Coupon Alerts
• Print Grocery Coupons
• Join AFullCup to find more ways to save on Groceries!!!

Here’s a Red White and Blue smoothie for you all to try this holiday weekend! 

It turns a magnificant purple color when blended!

Ingredients
1 banana
1 cup of milk, rice milk or yogurt
6 large strawberries
About 1 cup blueberries
2 Tbsp ground flaxseed (optional)
2 Tbsp favorite sweetener, like honey, agave syrup or sugar (I used agave)
Enough water to cover all the fruit (about 3-4 cups)

Directions
1. Add all ingredients and blend until smooth.
2. Drink!

Find More Savings

• Free Money Management Software at Mint.com
• Get Free Coupon Alerts
• Print Grocery Coupons
• Join AFullCup to find more ways to save on Groceries!!!

So a friend gave me some rhubarb. And well, there’s just but one thing to do with rhubarb…and that is make Strawberry Rhubarb Pie.

But wait.  Perhaps there is more you can do with rhubarb! 

While on a hunt for the best pie recipe, I ran across a few other recipes that called for rhubarb that I wanted to try. I had enough rhubarb and strawberries to make 1 pie, 4 mini tartlets, an 8×8 crumble, and a batch of jam!

After some cutting and prep work, the strawberries and rhubarbs were ready for action!

Peeling rhubarb is not necessary, but I peeled some of the skin off each stalk, just as you would peel the strings out of a celery stalk.

Quarter the strawberries. Place the strawberries on their heads, after cutting off the stems. Cut a cross into each strawberry. Quick and easy!

4 quarts of strawberries and 5 stalks of rhubarb ready to go!

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

So the first pie I ever made was just after I graduated from college. I saw an Oprah episode where someone made a strawberry rhubarb pie…so I jumped in the car, ran down to the store to get the ingredients and came home to make it. And it was delicious! I jumped on Oprah.com, knowing that that recipe from 8 years ago would still not be there, but figured she had another one and she did! It was Cindy Crawford’s favorite Strawberry Rhubarb Pie recipe. So if it’s her favorite, it must be low cal, right? Ha!

This pie will be frozen and brought to our Memorial Day BBQ and Party this weekend with our dear friends!

Strawberry Rhubarb Mini Tartlets

For these little pieces of heaven, I used the same filling recipe from Cindy’s recipe and just wrapped the filling up in smaller cirlces of pie crust.  Here is a Raspberry Rhubarb Tart recipe I would have used, had I had some raspberries!

These will be eaten with dinner tonight!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble

While browsing around, I found a crumble recipe that called for just rhubarbs, but since I didn’t have enough rhubarb pieces left, I threw in the rest of the strawberries, and oh boy!  Delish!!!  I never eat dessert after lunch, but I did today! 

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumble with vanilla ice cream.  The baby was really begging to have a taste

Strawberry Raspberry Rhubarb Jam

I did not have any fruit pectin, which many of the recipes called for, but I did have a small box of raspberry jello!  So using this recipe as a model, I made up my own jam recipe!

Ingredients
5 cups of diced strawberries and rhubarbs
2 cups of sugar
1 3 oz box of raspberry jello

Directions
1. In saucepan, combine diced strawberries and rhubarb pieces with 2 cups of sugar. Let sit for at least 20 minutes, allowing time for sugar to draw out the juices.
2. Once juices have appeared in the saucepan, bring to a boil. Stir often. Boil for about 10 minutes, or until rhubarbs have softened.
3. Reduce heat and let bubble. Add jello packet and stir continuously until the jello dissolves.
4. Remove from heat, let saucepan cool, then place in refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Jam will thicken. Place in Mason jars. Jam will last one month in fridge. Put in the freezer if you don’t think you will use it all within a month.

There you have it. A morning up to my elbows in strawberries and rhubarbs! Now we can enjoy every bite of these delicious treats!

Find More Savings

• Free Money Management Software at Mint.com
• Get Free Coupon Alerts
• Print Grocery Coupons
• Join AFullCup to find more ways to save on Groceries!!!