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One Hundred Dollars a Month

I am your typical housewife living in high maintenance suburbia. I have a handsome husband, 2 kids and a flock of pet chickens. I try and feed my family with $100 a month. With the help of coupons, gardening and bartering I am able to squeeze the most out of our grocery budget and still manage to have a little fun along the way.


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Apple Cider Butter Recipe for Home Canning

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This morning the HH and I were up early canning a second batch of this apple cider butter recipe. The recipe was new to me this year and the first batched turned out so good, I knew I wanted to make a second batch so we could give it away for our “neighbor gift” this winter.

Not only is apple butter awesome on toast, but it’s even better slathered on roast turkey or pork chops.  A perfect condiment for fall if you ask me. This recipe for apple cider butter is a keeper! MAKE IT!!! 😉

Ingredients

6 pounds apples {I used Ginger Gold}
2 cups apple cider
3 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

Directions

Fill a boiling-water canner about 2/3 rds full with water and bring it to a boil.

Wash and quarter apples {you can also core and peel them if you’d like, but I simply quarter mine and then when I use the food mill it does a fantastic job of separating the core, seeds and peels}. Combine apples and apple cider in a large pot and and simmer until soft. Puree using a food mill. Discard pulp {apple peels, cores and seeds}.

Combine apple mixture, sugar and spices and simmer until the sugar dissolves and the butter has thickened enough to round up on a spoon. As mixture thickens, stir frequently to prevent sticking.

Ladle hot butter mixture into 1/2 pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch head space.  Remove air bubbles.  Adjust 2 piece caps, and process in a boiling water canner for 10 minutes making sure water covers the tops of the jars by at least 2 inches. One recipe makes {8} 8 ounce jars or {4} pints

Remove jars and place on a towel to cool. After 24 hours check the seals. If the lid springs back, jam is not sealed and refrigeration is necessary.

Looking for a few more canning recipes? Search my Full List of Canning Recipes

Also, check out these tutorials if you’ve never used a canner before:

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Meal Planning and Grocery Shopping Trips – Week 35 of 52

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This week started off slow {with temps in the mid 90’s} and eating random pickety bits and ice cream while lounging around watching documentaries. Then, all the sudden the temps cooled way down {mid 70’s!} and we spent most of our time outside working in the yard that I got so busy and forgot to take meal pictures. I did manage to squeeze a few in though. 😉

Tomatoes have been on my mind a lot lately. The season, it’s winding down and tomato production is coming to a slow end. I mean, we still have loads of green zebra tomatoes {that nobody is interested in buying at the vegetable stand} but they are not so great for canning or even dehydrating. The big Oxheart heart tomatoes I planted on the other hand are great for canning and I am hoping to get a few more jars of sauce put up before tomato season officially comes to an end.

Next year, I think I’ll stick to around 6-7 varieties of tomatoes {half being cherry type tomatoes for the veg stand} so I can focus more on putting a few more jars on the shelves instead of trying to grow 20 million different kinds of tomatoes just because I have the space.

The HH cooked again! This time it was Tiki Marsala {sauce was from a jar from ALDI} with a bit of garden fresh yellow squash tossed in.

The zucchini plants were a bit of a disappointment this year. And I have no idea why. In all my years of gardening I have never ONCE had a problem growing zucchini. But this year? We’ve only harvested a handful of them and so I’ve only been able to add 2 loaves of zucchini bread to the freezer so far this summer.

Ginger Gold Apples $7.00 {a half peck, about 5.5 pounds}

One of the fun things about living in New England…. Is all the new apple varieties! So far at the local fruit stand we’ve bought Zestar and Ginger Gold Apples. Gravenstine apples are just now being harvested and I think I might get a half bushel of those and put up a bunch of applesauce this week. Applesauce spice cake is one of my favorite things to make during the late fall/winter months and so I want to make sure we have loads of homemade applesauce in the cupboard.

Rudy’s Apple Cider $3.99

Fresh apple cider. It makes me want to buy an apple press.

This horse is my new best friend and I don’t even know his name. The HH and I were working outside yesterday when he came by and I had to run inside the house to grab a few carrots. There are several families who have horses around us and so it’s pretty common to see people out riding down our dirt road on the weekends. This was the first time though I was able to give one of the horses a snack. 🙂 🙂 🙂

I wonder if we’ll see any horses pulling sleighs this winter? How cool would that be?

And last but not least, date night. Steak tips, mashed potatoes and Mexican corn. My favorite! It was kind of a weird week, but a good one {well, minus the poison ivy of course}.

How was YOUR week? Did you pick up anything exciting at the store? Are you ready for fall? Curious minds want to know!

~Mavis

Total Spent in September $10.99
Total Spent in August $259.90 <– $30 on salami splurge
Total Spent in July $276.56 < – $38 Spent on Amish meat and cheese
Total Spent in June $206.47 <- Attempting once a month grocery shopping
Total Spent in May on Groceries $216.50 <- Included a stock up trip to King Arthur Flour
Total Spent in April on Groceries $169.98
Total Spent in March on Groceries $306.75 <– Apartment life, moving across the country and settling into a new house
Total Spent in February on Groceries $259.81 <- Living in an apartment and buying a lot of ready-made meals
Total Spent in January on Groceries $240.15 <– Packing mode and not cooking from scratch as much

Go HERE to read more Shopping Trip Stories.

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Daily Deals – Homemade Applesauce Recipe, Lavender Garden Scrub, Online Deals and More

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Quote of the Day  “Happiness is not something you postpone for the future; it is something you design for the present.” Jim Rohn

Hello Monday! How was your weekend? Anything exciting happen? After working in the yard all day, the HH and I went out last night for date night. And now BOTH of us have the poison ivy itch. Luckily though, I only have it on my left wrist {right where the glove meets the end of the shirt sleeve}. Thank you all for your suggestions on what to do/buy.

I ended up getting the Benadryl extra strength itch cream {but the knock off brand because it was half the price but had the same amount of active ingredient}. The HH refused to go to the Dr. for the steroid meds {I would have gone and got the meds if mine was all over my person like his is} but he’s hanging in there with the cream. Guys can be funny that way. I’m all about give me the drugs…. but with him…. a limb has to be falling off before he will seek medical condition. Whateva.

Hey! It’s Monday. Get out there and have some fun! 🙂 🙂 🙂

♥ Mavis

*This deal post will be updated throughout the morning so be sure and check back for deals. * Amazon prices can change without notice. Please verify price before ordering. Amazon offers Free Shipping with a $49 purchase or Amazon Prime. {Sign up for a free Amazon Prime 30 day trial!}

Available Kindle Books I think look interesting…

The prices on Kindle Books can change quickly, so grab them while you can. Don’t have a Kindle? Download the kindle app on your other devices. It’s easy! 🙂

Subscribe and Save Deals

Subscribe and Save prices reflect a 15% discount for ordering 5 or more items in 1 month.

Apple season is here and I can’t think of a better way to extend apple season than canning a few jars of applesauce! You can get my recipe HERE.

Home and Kitchen Deals

Each month, Amazon Prime members can download and keep one free book from their Kindle First selection of six pre-released picks. Here are this month’s selections:

Add on Items

*These are all Amazon Add-on Items and they will ship with qualifying orders over $25 and are eligible for free shipping on $25 orders with Amazon Prime {or will ship FREE on $35 orders without Prime}. 

If you play in the dirt a lot…. You’ve got to try this Lavender Hand Scrub Recipe. I think it’s pretty awesome.

Kid’s Stuff

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My 15 Goals for 2018 : Week 35 of 52

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“The biggest adventure you can take is to live the life of your dreams.” ~ Oprah Winfrey 

My goals for 2018

Goal #1 – Write Like No One is Reading.

“Close the door. Write with no one looking over your shoulder. Don’t try to figure out what other people want to hear from you; figure out what you have to say. It’s the one and only thing you have to offer.” ~  Barbara Kingsolver

Goal #2 – Slow Down

For two days in a row this past week it was 95 degrees outside and about 90% humidity. All I can say is thank goodness for Ken Burns documentaries. 😉 The are the best way to slow down and learn something at the same time.

Goal #3 – Shop Small

This week at our local recycling center I picked up 3 children books, 3 magazines and a wooden stand that’s missing a leg on the bottom. I think I’ll have the HH pop the legs off the bottom and attach them to the middle shelf and then the stand will be the prefect size to set jam on at our little vegetable stand at the end of our driveway.

Goal # 4 – Have a Designated Meal Prep Day

I think I’m going to try this out again and see if the HH and I can do this in October.

Goal #5 – Install a Vegetable Garden

The vegetable garden is in and doing well. The past few days the temps have been in the 70’s though so we’ve been out front working on cleaning up the end of our driveway by removing brush and repairing the rock wall. I think we worked outside for a solid 6 hours yesterday and it felt good. Although today, I’m pretty sore.

Goal #6 – Clear Land for a Chicken Coop and Future Raised Garden Bed Area 

Work on the chicken run has come to a halt. Shocking, I know. Maybe this week the HH will get a gate up? Maybe some wire if I’m lucky?

Goal #7 – Grow 500 Pounds of Vegetables

Our tomatoes are starting to taper off, but these bumble bee tomatoes I started from seed this spring keep on producing. If you have never tried them before, you may want to add them to your seed list for next year as they have become one of our new favorites.  In case you missed it, you can find the results of our last weigh in are HERE.

Goal #8 – Hook 100 Rugs

I only have 19 more rugs to hook before I can check this goal off my list! This past week I worked on another batch of sunflowers and another bee pillow that I should have ready for my next Etsy update on September 15th.

Last Saturday I updated my Etsy Shop with a bunch of new hooked rugs and an enormous stack of 1/4 cuts {bundles actually} of wool. I love selling on Etsy and I’m looking forward to being able to get more hooking time in this winter once the temps drop and the garden has been put to be for winter.

Goal #9 – Make a Set of Dolls

A few days ago LL Bean had their Women’s Soft Cotton Rugby tops on sale for $22 each {on clearance plus I used the additional 25% off coupon} and they came with an extra button. As soon as I spotted the extra buttons I immediate knew they’d make the PERFECT eyes for the one of the dolls I plan to make this winter. 😉

Goal #10 – Make a Sampler, Frame it and Hang it on the Wall Done!

Goal #11 – Visit 22 Bakeries

I’ve still got a few bakeries on my list I want to squeeze in but you can see all the bakeries we’ve been to HERE.

Goal #12 – Start a Collection

Nothing new to add to the collection this week.

Goal #13 – Read {or listen to} 26 Books

This past week I’ve been listing to Debbie Macomber’s book Cottage by the Sea on audiobook.

Goal #14 – Try 12 New Canning Recipes

This week we canned a few jars of tomato sauce and a batch of apple cider butter {I’l post the apple cider butter recipe on Tuesday}. Although my original goal was to try 12 new canning recipes, so far out of the 8 recipes we’ve canned this year, only 3 have been new ones. Funny how that happens.

Goal #15 – Secret {for now} Holiday Project

I had a good week experimenting, and next week The Girl and I are going to make a special trip for yet a few more supplies. I had planned on sharing my “secret project” around mid-September but after 42 attempts, I’m still not quite there and well, I can be kind of a perfectionist sometimes. 😉 This is a holiday project after all, and I’ve still got a little time to work out the kinks.

How about YOU? Did you set any goals for 2018? How are they coming along?

~Mavis

Read About My 2018 Goals HERE.

This post may contain affiliate links. These affiliate links help support this site. For more information, please see my disclosure policy. Thank you for supporting One Hundred Dollars a Month.

Mavis Butterfield Etsy