A Homemaker's A-Z Index ~ Prepare Your Own Pantry/Products

Before there was the "grocery store" and "bulk food warehouses", there was your backyard…

“The first supermarket supposedly appeared on the American landscape in 1946. That is not very long ago. Until then, where was all the food? Dear folks, the food was in homes, gardens, local fields, and forests. It was near kitchens, near tables, near bedsides. It was in the pantry, the cellar, the backyard.”

~ Joel Salatin, Excerpt from

Folks, This Ain't Normal: A Farmer's Advice for Happier Hens, Healthier People, and a Better World

Do you feel the urge to build up your own reserves like the sisterhood before us? In these uncertain times, it is a personal goal of mine... We can produce items for our homes that do not include added chemicals, toxic processes and preservatives that are causing many bizarre health issues. By personally preparing our pantry foods, making our own medicinal remedies, being resourceful with what we grow and creating our own cleaning products, we can provide like the woman of yesteryear but with the blessing of modern day advantages. 

Below is an A - Z index of homemaking recipes and ideas from this blog based upon "being creative with what you have". These items have been shared in the past and are being updated weekly. Be sure to check back (there will be a link to this post on my side bar) when you need some suggestions regarding what to do with your abundance of...

Apples

• Apple Cinnamon Syrup Using Just Peels and Cores
• Apple Crazy Cake
• Save Your Scraps ~ Make Apple Cider "Scrap" Vinegar

Avocados

• Avocado Salsa

Bananas

• Banana Crazy Cake ~ No Butter, Eggs, Milk or Mess!
• Chocolate Banana Crazy Cake ~ No Butter, Eggs, Milk or Mess!
• Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Muffins ~ Grain Free
• Polka Dot Banana Bread

Beans

• Beans (Pressure Canning for Your Pantry) ~ Some Talk, Tips and Tutorials
• Black Beans ~ Meal and Menu Suggestions
• Pinto Beans ~ 14 Meals to Make

Beets

• Beets ~ Serving Suggestions
• Canning Pickled Beets

Bell Peppers

• Dehydrating Bell Peppers
• Sweet and Sour Pickled Peppers ~ Canning

Broccoli

• Broccoli Bow-ties Lemon Pasta
• Broccoli (How to Blanch and Freeze)
• Broccoli White Bean Pasta Alfredo
• Broccoli ~ Serving Suggestions
• Shredding and Freezing "Odds and Ends Produce"

Butternut Squash

• Autumn Crazy Cake (Wacky Cake) ~ No Butter, Eggs, Milk or Mess!
• Butternut Squash ~ Serving/Storing Suggestions

Cabbage

• Cabbage ~ Serving Suggestions
• Making Sauerkraut ~ Taking the Fear out of Fermenting Foods

Calendula

• Calendula Cold and Flu Elixir and/or Oxymel
• Calendula Collection Link Up List (readers share their recipes)
• Calendula Healing Lip/Skin Balm
• Floral Salve and Lip Gloss
• How to Identify Calendula in Your Back Yard and Its Uses
• How to Make Calendula Medicine (collection of DIY recipes)

Carrots

• Carrot Crazy Cake ~ No Butter, Eggs, Milk or Mess!
• Carrots ~ Serving Suggestions
• Marinated Vegetables
• Shredding and Freezing "Odds and Ends Produce"

Chamomile

• Chamomile Bath Powders
• Floral Salve and Lip Gloss
• Tummy Tincture

Cucumbers

• Canning Bread & Butter Pickles 
• Kosher-Style Dill Pickles
• Marinated Vegetables
• Quick & Easy Deli Style Pickles for Refrigerator

Dandelions

• What to do with Dandelions?

Eggs

• Angel-ed Eggs (printable recipe)
• Egg/Chili/Cheese Breakfast/Brunch Casserole (printable recipe)
• Freezing Extra Eggs
• Fresh Eggs Information
• Popovers! Easy Bread in a Hurry (uses 4 eggs for a dozen quick rolls)

Elderberry

• All-Natural Allergic Tonic
• Elderberry Herbal Soda (immune boosting beverage)
• Elderberry Infused Herbal Honey (immune boosting sweetener)
• Elderberry Oxymel 
• Everything Elderberry Link Up List (readers share their recipes)
• How to Make Elderberry Medicine (collection of DIY recipes)

Figs

• Fig Ideas/Suggestions

Fruit Scraps

• What to Make and Do with Fruit Scraps

Garlic

• Garlic Preparation Tip for Faster Meal Making

Grapes

• Grape Ideas/Suggestions

Honey

• All-Natural Allergy Tonic
• Coconut Honeybee Lip Balm 
• Elderberry Infused Herbal Honey (immune boosting sweetener)
• Healing with Honey
• Honey and Cinnamon Cold Fighting Medicine
• Honey and Spices Cough Syrup
• Lemon Honey Marmalade No Sugar (with printable recipe)
• Pooh's Medicinal Herbal Honey (with printable recipe and clip art)
• Simple Honey Lemon Cough Syrup (with free printable clip art)
• Ways to Use Honey (homemaking hint sheet)

Lavender

• Delighting in Dried Lavender (how to dry and some uses)
• Floral Salve and Lip Gloss
• Free Lavender Plants Using Cuttings From Existing Plants
• Lavender Bath Salts
• Lavender Botanical Perfume
• Lavender Cleaning Products with Printable Labels
• Lavender Drawer Sachets {No Sew} (free printable)
• Lavender Infused Cleaning Products
• Lavender Infused Medicinal Oil
• Lavender Laundry Soap
• Lavender Lotion Bars
• Lavender Scented Carpet Deodorizer
• What to Do and Make with Lavender (round up)

Lemons

• Basic Household Uses for Lemons
• Citrus Garden Fabric Softener
• Citrus Infused Cleaning Products
• Drying Lemon Peel and Its Uses
• Drying Lemon Slices and What to Use Them For
• Dusting Spray
• Freezing Lemon Juice and Our Favorite Uses
• Frozen Lemonade Concentrate
• Lemonade Lip Balm
• Lemon Body Scrub (with free printable labels)
• Lemon Crazy Cake ~ No Butter, Eggs or Milk Necessary ~ Depression-Era Recipe
• Lemon Drop Jelly
• Lemon Extract (with free printable clip art)
• Lemon Honey Marmalade No Sugar (with printable recipe)
• Lemon Inspired Beauty for the Home
• Lemon Juice (how to can)
• Lemon Marmalade (traditional recipe) (with free printable labels)
• Lemon Syrup (using only lemon peels and sugar)
• Simple Honey Lemon Cough Syrup (with free printable clip art)
• What to Do and Make with Lemons (round up)

Oats/Oatmeal

• Chewy Chocolate Chip Granola Bars (with printable recipe)
• Fruit & Grain Cereal Bars
• Granola ~ Good Breakfast/Great Gift! 
• Honey, Rose & Oat Face Cleanser
• Oatmeal Jam Bar Mix-in-a-Jar
• Oatmeal Muffin Mix-in-a-Jar

Onions

• Ragu Style Pizza/Pasta Sauce ~ Quick and Easy

Oranges

• Citrus Garden Fabric Softener
• Citrus Grilling Salt
• Citrus Infused Cleaning Products
• Drying Orange Peel and Its Uses
• Drying Orange Slices and What to Use Them For
• {Frugal Version} On Guard® or Thieves® Protective Oil Blend
• Mulling Spices
• Orange All Purpose Cleaner
• Orange Bath Powders
• Orange Crazy Cake
• Orange Extract (with printable recipe, clip art and gift tag)
• Orange Gem Jelly
• Orange Inspired Beauty for the Home
• Orange Peel Potpourri
• Orange Peel Tea Blends
• Orange Scouring Scrub (household cleaning cleanser)
• Orange Simmering Potpourri
• Orange Sugar Scrub (bath and body product)
• What to Do and Make with Oranges (round up)

Peaches

• What to Do with All Those Peaches?

Peppermint

• Homemaker's Helper Herbal Tea Blend
• Moth-Reppellant Herbal Sachets
• Peppermint Extract
• Peppermint Granite and Marble Countertop Cleaning Spray
• Peppermint Infused Muscle Strain Medicinal Massage Oil
• "Pick Me Up" Tincture

Pomegranates

• Pomegranate Ideas/Suggestions

Potatoes

• Potato Salad
• Potato Skins (A tasty appetizer!)

Pumpkins

• Autumn Crazy Cake (Wacky Cake) ~ No Butter, Eggs, Milk or Mess!
• Drying Seeds for Replanting and/or Roasting
• Honey Sweetened Pumpkin Cake
• Preparing Pumpkin Puree
• Pumpkin Seed Packet Printable ~ Happy Harvest Gifts!
• What to Make and Do with Pumpkins  (recipes, crafts, decoration, inspiration)

Roses

• Vanilla Rose Bath and Body DIY Products

Rose Hips

• About Rose Hips Link Up List (readers share their recipes)
• All-Natural Allergy Tonic
• Preserving Rose Hips
• Rose Hip Recipe Round Up

Squash

• Freezing Squash
• Shredding and Freezing "Odds and Ends Produce"
• What to do with all your Squash (meal suggestions)

Strawberries

• How to Freeze Strawberries
• Raw Strawberry Refrigerator Jam
• Strawberry Freezer Jam
• Strawberry Honey (or Low Sugar) Jam
• Strawberry Honey Jam (No Pectin)
• Strawberry Fruit and Grain Cereal Bars
• Strawberry "Mason Jar Labels and More" Gift Kit ~ Free Printable

Tomatoes

• Avocado/Tomato Salsa
• Canning Pureed Tomatoes for Pizza/Pasta Sauces
• Caprese Salad
• Marinated Vegetables

Zucchini

• Dehydrating Your Giant Zucchini
• Freezing Zucchini
• Shredding and Freezing "Odds and Ends Produce"
• What to do with your Zillions of Zucchini

You may also be interested in creating an herbal for all your household DIY recipes:

Reinventing the "Herbal" for the Modern Day Homemaker

"Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.”

~Theodore Roosevelt

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