Hello April

I really want an electirc kettle that looks like this one!

This morning we woke up to a house that was only 57 degrees. I am not going to name names but the person who turned off the heat a few days ago name starts with Mr. Thankfully thats an easy fix and the house is warmer now. Mr plugged in our vintage 1970's kettle and then came into our bedroom and told me it caught on fire. Let me tell you that news like that makes one wake up pretty darn fast. I did go into the kitchen and smell something but am happy to report nothing was on fire. Maybe that was an attempt at an April Fools Day joke. Who knows? Now I get to start searching for a new tea kettle. I have a few that go on the stove and they will do the trick until I find the perfect one. Mondays, you gotta love them.

We used the sausage grinder over the weekend. That is an experience. We should have made a video because all the videos you find on it show people making these beautiful sausages with ease.  We may have created new profanity while learning to do ours. It was fun and we can not wait to give them a try but after making them yesterday we were not ready to cook them for dinner last night.

We made some venison beer brats and mixed in two pounds of pork roast to add some fat to the meat. The venison was free and the pork cost around $2. The dark beer we used cost around 75 cents. It cost more than that but Mr Ladybug got drink the half we didnt use. The spices were things we already had and were a few pennies at the most. The casings we used were maybe $3 at the most. A little less than $6 for the total cost of making them. When you price homemade brats at the store you are looking at the very least $6 per pound. We made 5 pounds so thats a saving of $24 total after taking off what it cost to make. I will subtract this from the cost of our kitchenaid.

We also make turkey brats and the cost of the turkey breast was $7.50 I did get a little over 4 cups of broth plus some small pieces of turkey we can use in soup or a potpie so I will subtact $1.50 off the cost and use $6 for the brats plus the cost of casings which was round $2. We got 3 lbs off brats so thats a savings of around $10.

 It wont take long for the $421 we have paid for the mixer and attatchements to pay for themselves. This is really important for me because I didnt want to just buy something that was going to sit on my counter taking up space and collecting dust. I do enjoy baking but having the mixer has not made be bake any more or saved me money. I could say the pasta maker has saved me money but I have never purchased homemade pasta at $8, which is the cost of it at our local farmers market. It costs me around 50 cents per pound to make so I am getting better quality than purchasing the boxed stuff at the grocery. But if I were keeping tabs on the pasta thats like $22.50 saved. Seriously I have goosebumps!

Besides sausage making we binge watched season 3 of The Santa Clarita Diet. This show is crazy and if you like funny zombie shows its for you. I love Shelia played by Drew Barrymore and her husband Joel played by Timothy Olyphant.

Last week I made a new all purpose cleaner and its my favorite one so far. It cuts through grease and does great on simple things like wiping off the counters after cooking.

2 Tablespoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon washing soda , not the same as baking soda
2 teaspoons of blue Dawn, not the concentrated stuff this is the old cheaper Dawn
1 1/4 cup hot tap water

Pour all ingredients into a spray bottle and swirl to dissolve the washing soda. Dont shake because they Dawn will bubble up. It wont explode or anything.

Dont judge but this was a bowl in the top of a cabinet I hadnt used in forever. I have since decluttered the cabinet and gotten rid of anything I hadnt touched in over a year. I just used the spray and a towel. I would not suggest washing dishes this way but was wanting to show how well it cut through the grime.