Cassie Bustamante

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In My Amazon Cart: Domestic Goddess Wannabe

August 19, 2016 by Cassie 34 Comments

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Sometime over the last year a good friend convinced me that Amazon Prime was the way to go…. We would go for walks and she would tell me about all of the things she ordered on Amazon.  I mean, I had shopped there before, but some of the things were items I never would have thought to check for.  I decided to sign myself up for prime and over the course of my membership, I’ve ordered many things and also developed a real friendship with my UPS man.  He knows all about my work at Sweet Clover, as often times he pulls up our driveway to find me out there painting.  He drives by me running and waves and beeps at me.  One day I was driving on my way to work and he flashed his lights and pulled over because he had a next day package he was about to deliver to my house so he figured it was important.  You guys, he’s pretty much one of my best friends at this point. 😉 I have Amazon Prime to thank for this friendship.  The past couple of weeks I’ve been honing in on my domestic side and ordered a bunch of items from Amazon to help me.  Today I wanted to show you what I put in my Amazon cart and give you my thoughts on it all. (And yes, this post does contain affiliate links, but these are all items I purchased and just wanted to share with you!)

After attending Haven in Atlanta, we spent a couple days with my brother’s family.  My sister in law Viri had a couple of great cookbooks that caught my eye.  I thumbed through them and took note of the names so I could order when I arrived home.

When we arrived at their house, this cookbook was sitting on the island, and I have to admit I picked it up to say, “Really, Viri?  You bought this one?”  But then I flipped through and read some of the excerpts and it was actually quite humorous and the recipes looked delicious.  Chrissy Teigen, the glamorous model and wife of John Legend has compiled a beautiful book filled with images of tasty goods as well as photos that poke fun at her own life. Viri and Dana (my brother) had made the dutch oven pancakes, and have since made a couple other recipes from the book and have been thrilled with all of them.  We have yet to try anything from it, but the recipes that are calling my name are sweet chili and mustard-glazed salmon fillets, roasted tomato soup, and yellow cake baked oatmeal (totally healthy, right?  I mean, it’s oatmeal, people!).  We’re also growing our own Brussels sprouts this year, so this shaved Brussels sprouts with grapes and almonds is calling my name!Chrissy-Tiegen-Cookbook-ReviewPinI’ll be sure to let you know how the recipes pan out over here, but on Amazon it’s gotten great reviews. And one thing I know fur sure is that you can almost always “trust the people.”  If I am on the fence about anything, I read the reviews.

Viri also had a book about canning, which is something I was planning to do as soon as we returned home from Atlanta.  Our garden produced a great amount of tomatoes this year and I wanted to save those babies!  Food in Jars is a great book for the beginner (me!) because it’s got lots of ways to can in smaller batches, which I find less intimidating and more likely to happen over here anyhow.  I used the salsa recipe in this book, to jar our first salsa- only varying it by omitting the sugar, and using whatever tomatoes we had on hand.  Our salsa combined sky reacher, green zebras, and regular garden variety tomatoes.  In the past I’ve made fresh salsa, but now we’ll get to enjoy it months from now.  Food-in-Jars-Cookbook-Review-And-CanningPinAs you can see from my collection of jars, I’ve been canning tomatoes to save for soups and sauces this winter as well.  A friend of mine passed on his mother’s technique, so I followed the directions he sent me and didn’t use the book for that.  (The green jars aren’t relish, but are our green zebras- my absolute favorite tomato variety.)  Aside from recipes to be preserved and canned, this book offers some other items that can be saved in jars that would make great Christmas gifts, such as flavored sea salts, baking mixes, and more!  I am headed to the farmer’s market this weekend and hope to find peaches and other goodies because I am on a roll and want to can all the things!

Last year I made the easiest applesauce with a food mill I purchased from Amazon as well.  I had borrowed all of the other supplies from a friend but this year decided that I needed my own if this was going to become a habit.

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I purchased this granite ware set for less than $40 and it has pretty much everything you need for simple canning.  I’ve owned it for one week so far, and it’s already been used and abused several times.
Canning-Essentials-What-You-Need-To-CanPinHere it is being used in my kitchen earlier this week!  The towels are there to set the scalding hot jars on, and in my case I needed another towel because homegirl filled up her pot too much which lead to water boiling over onto the stovetop.  Whoops.  Did I mention this was all new to me and I am learning as I go?

This year was the first year that we truly had a legitimate herb garden, and I wanted to make the most of it, and have fresh organic herbs straight from our own garden all year round.  A dehydrator is the most efficient way to dry herbs hygienically and quickly.  The Excalibur is the one that I really wanted and is supposed to be the “mac daddy” of all dehydrators.  However, it wasn’t in my budget.  I took to the amazon reviews, and also googled reviews online, and eventually settled on the Nesco Dehydrator which is a fraction of the cost.  We  had an abundance of basil, which is our favorite, so I spent time this week harvesting it, and trimming it to dry.  I set the leaves on the trays and let the machine do its thing and dehydrate.
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It took a little longer than anticipated but I think that’s because I had washed my basil leaves and they were still a little damp when I laid them down.  I have so many more herbs to harvest and dry and will be working on that over the next few weeks!  Once dry, they should be stored in a cool dark place and in a solid jar if possible.  I had some clear glass jars available, so am using those, but storing them in a closed drawer.

And in exciting chicken news over here, all 5 of our hens are now laying!  We collect 5 eggs each day, and were in need of somewhere to store them.  Eggs that are fresh from the chicken do not need to be refrigerated and will stay fresh for a while, so I wanted something that would look nice in our kitchen.  I love the ceramic egg storage containers and wanted one in aqua, but I know that in all practicality, an egg basket would be much easier to use. Emmy loves to check for eggs each day, so I needed something she could carry.  I ordered this fun green egg basket and it sits on our island showing off our bounty.  Amazon-Green-Egg-BasketPinAnd I can’t even begin to tell you how delicious eggs from our own chickens are!  Yum!  My mother in law suggested I serve some of our homemade salsa on scrambled eggs, and I am thinking that just may be the Saturday breakfast menu over here this weekend.

And finally, just because I can’t have you thinking I am just a nerdy homemaker these days, I have to share some good reads with you, too.  When I placed my order for all of these items, I also added a smutty young adult read, The Selection.PinI had just finished reading Red Queen, which I adored (SERIOUSLY- go get it!), and the sequel to that was only out in hardcover.  I decided to wait for the paperback version and whet my appetite with something else.  So this weekend I hope to dive into The Selection, all while my herbs are drying, of course. 😉

So while I am over here reading cheesy young adult books, shopping at the farmer’s market, canning, and drying herbs, what will you be up to this weekend?  Just try to top my level of excitement if you can.  (Pun intended… womp womp womp).

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Filed Under: Chickens, Garden, Summer

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Comments

  1. Julia@Cuckoo4Design says

    August 19, 2016 at 5:56 am

    I’ve never made food in jars ever. And I bought a dehydrator for my iPhone which works wonders 😉
    I’m such an Amazon Prime addict 😉

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 19, 2016 at 8:45 am

      haha! i will keep in mind should my phone get wet.

      Reply
  2. Anita says

    August 19, 2016 at 7:53 am

    Oh my goodness, Cassie, my mother would trade me for you in a minute!! She’s carrying on her family farming tradition and has been canning for years. I have canned tomatoes and made my own marinara several times, but that’s about it.

    I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who leaves sugar out of a tomato based recipe, though:-) I have yet to really dry all the herbs I have, so maybe the dehydrator is the way to go.

    I think it’s wonderful what you’re doing, and my mom will be so glad to hear about a young person even being interested in canning and preserving:-)

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 19, 2016 at 8:32 am

      i had a lot to say and then you went and called me a young person and i got too excited about that! 😉 i appreciate it.
      and yes- i always leave the sugar out- i don’t understand why it’s added in the first place when the flavor comes from the natural foods! i made applesauce last year and it was all just apples and so delicious! i do like to add cinnamon to it when i eat it though. 🙂 you should totally try to dry your herbs! i feel like they are so expensive for those teeny jars you get in the grocery store, and these will be organic, from our garden, and will have longevity and most likely better flavor. i forgot to mention in the post you can get extra trays and stack the machine higher and dry more at a time- i did buy extra trays but haven’t yet used them. i just thought they would be handy to have.

      Reply
  3. Jessica | Petal + Ply says

    August 19, 2016 at 9:01 am

    Look at all those pretty jars!!!
    Thumbs up on your egg basket choice. Super cute!

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 9:16 am

      thank you! i have a jar of salsa for you!

      Reply
  4. Design Chic says

    August 19, 2016 at 9:14 am

    Living in a small town, Amazon Prime is amazing. What’s better than what you need being at your front door in no time?! Loved seeing your new items but most importantly, your backsplash is gorgeous! Happy weekend!

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 9:16 am

      i know!!! exactly! we are small town dwellers, too, so it’s amazing i can order something and have it the next day!

      Reply
  5. Gretchen@BoxyColonial says

    August 19, 2016 at 9:37 am

    The little egg basket is adorable! When we had chickens, I would always just grab a tupperware container to take out there…which was not nearly so pretty 😉

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 9:16 am

      i love my egg basket! it’s the little things, right?

      Reply
  6. Laurie @ Laurie Jones Home says

    August 19, 2016 at 9:50 am

    Look at you Martha Stewart!!! Honestly though love all the items you talked about! By the looks of it you all had a great summer’!!!

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 9:13 am

      we have had a great summer… it’s been low key as well as busy if that makes sense… the right mix! and yes, all of these are such great things and i love using the food we grow!

      Reply
  7. Haley says

    August 19, 2016 at 3:18 pm

    Amazon prime is the best! Kind of want to try that cookbook.
    We’ve been really into Amazon Now and they’ll deliver us food (or other products) within an hour or you can schedule a drop off.

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 9:01 am

      it really is the best!

      Reply
  8. Ellen says

    August 19, 2016 at 4:50 pm

    I am so glad to see younger women starting to do a lot of these things like canning, the skills for which my mother’s generation despaired would be lost forever. I have done some of it, and in fact, just this last week, I made pickled okra.

    I am glad to know about the dehydrator. I had a bumper crop of basil this year, and have made pesto which I then froze, out of the first harvest. I don’t have a big garden, but we hit the farmer’s market every Saturday morning. I need to try my hand at salsa. Is it difficult?

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 9:00 am

      the salsa was not hard at all! pretty much you chop things up, add a little fluid in the form of lime juice and vinegar, bring it to a boil and simmer it, and then can it! if you’ve canned anything you can make salsa!

      Reply
  9. Shelley says

    August 19, 2016 at 8:14 pm

    I had a love/hate relationship with my grandparent’s hens as a child. I would love gathering the eggs in their yellow egg basket but those hens scared me to death when I needed to shoo them off the eggs. Your Emmy is braver than I was, for sure.

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 20, 2016 at 8:58 am

      haha! that’s hilarious!!!! ours are friendly- nothing to be scared of!

      Reply
  10. Kirby says

    August 21, 2016 at 5:39 pm

    My mother used to can a lot. I did not get that gene.

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 23, 2016 at 3:49 pm

      my mom did, too and still does! i don’t can the same things though. she made jellies and jams and pickles…. And I like to can applesauce, tomatoes, and of course peaches!

      Reply
  11. Kelly says

    August 22, 2016 at 8:36 am

    Enjoyed this post so much… I’m new to canning too… Thinking I just might get that cook book.. It’s been awhile since I splurged on one…. And we luv our chickens…. So much fun…

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 23, 2016 at 3:48 pm

      awesome! you should treat yo’ self!

      Reply
  12. Julie W says

    August 22, 2016 at 2:24 pm

    What a busy bee! My weekend consisted of dealing with the (literal) pile of crap my ex left in the back yard…I now have a much cleaner yard and can actually use the patio set under the gazebo for entertaining now!

    I also mopped floors – which, with 3 boys and 2 dogs might seem like a pointless activity. But at least I know they were clean for a half second.

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 23, 2016 at 3:48 pm

      oh i know the feeling! i have 3 dogs and 2 kids and i mop and wonder why. 😉

      Reply
  13. Lisa | Shine Your Light says

    August 24, 2016 at 7:31 am

    Oooooh I would love to try canning and also preserving my herbs. I’ll have to put those on the bucket list for next summer since this summer kicked my butt. Isn’t Amazon Prime the best? I felt like it was a huge splurge at first but the free shipping has won me over – I use it for all my Christmas shopping, my kids’ textbooks and tons of practical things throughout the year. I don’t know if I can ever give it up at this point!

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 28, 2016 at 4:48 pm

      it’s seriously the best! i ordered sawyer’s music book there as well! so great!

      Reply
  14. Jacek says

    August 25, 2016 at 11:06 am

    Honestly, I love everything in your post. In the past I tried to plan tomatoes and the result wasn’t good as I expected and I’ve given up for a long time. Recently, I’ve tried growing it again and I couldn’t believe that it has exceeded my expectation. At the harvest, lots of tomatoes were cut down and they looked great with the scent of freshness. My mother made canned food for using for later use, just like you-using jars. Those jars are really helpful in those cases.

    Reply
  15. Jessica says

    August 29, 2016 at 10:59 pm

    You are inspiring!!!! I also love the new blog, congrats!!!!

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 31, 2016 at 1:08 pm

      thank you, jessica!!!

      Reply
  16. Beth says

    August 30, 2016 at 4:09 pm

    You’re so productive! Just FYI — I’m all for lowering sugar, but it plays a specific role in canning by acting as a preservative and making the food last longer. If you mess with that, you want to be sure to eat your tomatoes sooner rather than later. I’m not sure of the timing.

    Marisa from Food in Jars (it’s a blog too!) knows more about it than I do: http://foodinjars.com/2012/07/canning-101-sugars-role-in-home-preserved-food/

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      August 31, 2016 at 1:01 pm

      Ooooh I just checked out her blog- thank you for that!!! We won’t be saving our tomatoes for super long. The guy who gave me the directions has been doing it this way for years and so far so good! So I’ll cross my fingers! 😉

      Reply
  17. ashley@biggerthanthethreeofus says

    August 31, 2016 at 2:07 pm

    HUGE Amazon Prime addict over here. My recent purchases are a few new books, batteries (boring!), and a new plant. They actually have a decent plant selection.

    Can’t wait to make my own applesauce again. My dad has two apple trees that we always pick and then I make applesauce for everyone. I use a few crockpots and cook it down that way.

    Reply
    • Cassie says

      September 1, 2016 at 11:37 am

      our apple tree produced hardly anything this year- we had a cold spell after it bloomed so i think it killed them. i plan to take the kids apple picking because emmy and i love applesauce!!!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. No Sugar Added Peach Salsa (A Canning Recipe) – Cassie Bustamante says:
    August 31, 2016 at 5:00 am

    […] ready for the colder season ahead. A couple of weeks ago I wrote all about what I had recently purchased from Amazon so that I could commence the canning!  Since everything arrived, I have  been putting my supplies […]

    Reply

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Hi, I’m Cassie!

I believe that you don't have to spend a lot of money to live a beautiful life and be your best self.  Here you will find budget friendly ideas to live happily, healthily, sustainably, and most importantly authentically.  We all get one chance at this life, and this ordinary girl plans to make hers extraordinary. How about you? Read more...
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Hi! I'm Cassie.

Mother, wife, shop owner, blogger, writer, incurable diy-er, furniture painter, coffee and wine drinker, friend. Seeking happiness and passing it on. Read More…

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