Gardening Jones

Catnip is a mint and very easy to grow.
In fact, it will reseed itself and spread, so its best grown in pots.

To make a catnip pillow, follow the basic instructions and video for the Dream Pillow.

The main difference is that you want to use a much heavier fabric, as the kitty will be most likely chewing on it and perhaps clawing it.
I used an upholstery fabric for this project.

Of course, you stuff the insert with dried catnip. So easy.

Here’s 2 pics of our 13 year old FatCatWithAttidude playing with her pillow.
For her age, this is quite a reaction!

I love handmade cards. And gardening.
This is an easy way to combine the two -by adding seeds to a greeting card.

For this project you will need:
Blank note cards with envelopes
Rubber Stamper, your choice of design
Ink Pad, your choice of color
Fine point sharpies
Herb seeds
Bathroom tissue White glue
Plain envelopes

First, make a ‘seed tape’ by placing 4 small dots of glue along one side of a square of bathroom tissue.
In each dot put a seed, then fold the tissue in half.
Set aside to dry.

Make a packet to hold the seed tape by sealing a plain small envelope, and cutting about 2 inches off the side.
Write the name of the seed and the planting instructions on the packet.

Decorate the outside of the card using the rubber stamp.
I like to add a little detail to make it more unique and a little more colorful.

Place the seed tape inside the packet.
Attach to the inside of the card using a small sticker. I used plain white but a decorative sticker would look pretty.
Add your greeting.

I like to take it up a notch by adding a little more detail to the back of the envelope.

Happy Holidays!

Making soap at home is easy to do.
I purchased a ‘melt and pour’ soap base and took it from there.

Grease your molds lightly with petroleum jelly (Vaseline).
Cut base into thin slices and melt slowly in a double boiler.
If you are making a lot, use 24 ounces per batch so it’s easy to work with.

Remove from heat and add your choice of fillers, scents and colors.
I suggest just one filler per bar, with a complimentary scent.
For example, for one large batch I would use about 1 cup of oatmeal and scent according to package directions; usually about 5 drops per bar.

You can also add Vitamin E oil to the bars as a skin care supplement.

Go light on the colors; they can come off on the skin as the bar is used.
Let cool in the mold, or you can hasten the time by placing the mold in the freezer.

Remove from mold and leave the bars to dry for 3 weeks.
Store bought soap is not allowed to dry, you may notice it feels wet when you open the package. This helps it make more lather, so it gets used up faster.
(They’re not stupid- they even show tons of lather in their ads so you think that is what you need, too).

Wrap the soap for gift giving, using your imagination. The soaps pictured below have been wrapped in a strip of bright shelf covering–the rubbery non-skid type, and secured with craft pipe cleaners.
Pretty ribbon with the wire borders works very well, too.

1. Oatmeal Soap: Use ready to cook oatmeal either as is, or I prefer to ground it up more in the blender, add Apple scent. Good for dry skin.
2. Orange-Cinnamon: Use freshly grated orange peel; add a little Fruit Fresh and a dash of cinnamon. Citrus tightens pores for younger looking skin, try other kinds like Lemon.
3. Eucalyptus-Pine: Make an infusion to add to the soap base. I use this when I feel a cold coming on, in a hot bath before bed.
4. Lavender-Chamomile: Use scents only or a little ground dried lavender. Mentally soothing to help you sleep.
5. Anise Seed: Purported to help attract fish when fishermen/women use it.

I give soaps every year as gifts (oatmeal is the most popular) and you’ll see below they also make wonderful party favors.

I purchased a 25 pound clear vegetable soap base; with shipping it cost $60, and I made 100-4 oz. bars of soap. If you can find it locally and skip the shipping, even better!

homemade soap molds
where I got my soap base
Australian soap base supplier
prescented soap base supplier
Soap making stuff from Amazon.com

These puppy treats are simple to make, healthier for your dog than some off the shelf treats, and will save you money as well. They also make a great gift for the dog in your life and the dog lovers as well.

Mix all dry ingredients thoroughly:
1/4 cup dry milk
1 1/2 cup flour (I use a mix of white and wheat)
1/2 cup instant Maypo
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Add:
1 egg
1/2 cup applesauce
1/2 cup oil

Mix and form into a dough ball. Turn onto floured surface and roll to 1/4 inch thickness. Add flour if needed so dough is not sticky.
Cut cookies and bake on foil or parchment paper 325 derees F until crispy and light brown, about 30 minutes depending on the size of the cookie. Let cool.

Left-Right: Our dog “Mandog” size, my friend’s Border Collie size, teaching our dog tricks size, Mr and Mrs Jones’ dog size.

Icing is optional but does make it look festive.

This recipe makes about 2 doz. cookies.
The egg is good for the puppy’s coat, and the oil will help prevent shedding.
Variations:
You can use any flavor instant oatmeal instead of Maypo.
I also made a batch subbing part of the flour with corn meal and adding one finely chopped jalapeno.
Mandog loves hot peppers.
What NOT to use
Chocolate, Onions (inc, onion powder in bouillon powder), raisins. If you have any doubt about an ingredient, ask your vet.

Yes, you read the title right.
The month of November is National Blog Posting Month. The idea started many years ago by novelists “NaNoWriMo” and has spread to include blogs.

This will be my first year and I’m very excited.
The idea is simple, post a blog entry every day. No matter what.

The bloggers themselves offer words of encouragement… and prizes. Some are silly, some are simple.
It’s all for the same goal – to become a better blogger.

So pictured above is my meager offering to the cause.

I hope the winner likes it, and I hope I survive the month.
Thank you for bearing with me.
Any and all topic suggestions are welcome!

Mostly I will be posting on my other blog, but since this prize is a Gift from the Garden I figured I would link it here.
Good luck fellow bloggers!!! ~GJ

Up until about a year and a half ago, Mandolin was the only male in a house full of females.
A wife
Two daughters
One female German Shepherd
Two feminine felines

Then our puppy Trixie passed away of natural causes. She was a great dog that we found at a local no-kill shelter, I still miss her.
After a few months, the girls (not the cats) went to another shelter to find a puppy.
And what a puppy we found.

Part Lab, part Great Dane and a male. Six months old and underweight at 65 pounds.
We (the females) all fell for him right off. Big Lovable Puppy.
The girls named him but Mandolin thought the name was not Manly enough.
He decided to call him Man-Dog.
Not only that, he talks to him with something of an Arnold Schwarzenegger accent.

“Mandog-what are you barking at? Are you barking at but-ter-flies? Men don’t bark at but-ter-flies, only GIRLS bark at but-ter-flies. Don’t bark like a girl. Be a man, be a Real Man!”
or
“Mandog-is that a blan-kie the girls gave you? Is that a pow-der blue blan-kie? Men don’t have blan-kies, only GIRLS have blan-kies. Be a man, be a Real Man”

-and my all time favorite-

“Do you think you are Man enough to play with me? Are you Man Enough? Be a man, be a Real Man.”

You get the idea.

So I found a recipe online for a hot pepper ‘candy’ called Cowboy Candy. I thought the men in my life would enjoy it.
The whole time I was making it, Mandolin was in my head.

“This is candy for Men, Real Men! This is not girlie candy, no! This is not pep-per-mints. Only GIRLS eat pep-per-mints. This is candy for men, Real Men!”

So I’m renaming this recipe Man Candy.
Because this is candy for men…

Our dog, like the other men in my life, loves hot peppers.
There was a little leftover from canning, so I gave him some
…while Mandolin’s voice played in my head.

The recipe
Mandolin and Mandog at play

My husband, Mandolin Jones, started sculpting pumpkins over 20 years ago when we were in the restaurant business. One year in particular, he sculpted a number of different ones and placed them all around the lobby.
Our customers wanted to buy them because they were so unique and cool looking.

One of the neat things is, as they age they get nastier looking; it’s great!

I thought some of you might enjoy learning how he does it:

First choose a pumpkin that is as flat on one side as you can find.

Next, make a sketch of what you want to do.

Slice away some of the peel to get at the flesh.

Now, using the point of a steak knife, carve away what you don’t want. Cut out the areas around the eyes, on the outside of the nose. There is a video link at the end here which makes this clearer.

Starting to show his age.

Oh, and the fly is real; he likes the pumpkin too.
how to sculpt a pumpkin
Click the link then click again to see the short video. Mandolin didn’t realize he was humming a bit.

To me, this is the perfect gift to give with the Pancake Dry Mix.
The recipe calls for ‘walnut pieces’ but I confess I chop mine up much finer in the blender.
The nuts rise to the top of the jar no matter what size they are, but I think chopping them finer makes the taste of the walnuts go more throughout the syrup.

you should smell the air in the kitchen right now...mmmm

Maple Walnut Syrup
1 1/2 cups corn syrup
1 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
2 cups walnut pieces
Combine corn syrup, maple syrup and water in a saucepot. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer syrup until it begins to thicken, about 15 minutes. Stir in nuts; cook 5 minutes. Ladle hot syrup into hot jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a hot water bath. Yields 4 half-pints.

I must also admit that a half-pint jar just doesn’t seem to be enough to give as a gift, this syrup just tastes too good. So I double the recipe and process the pints 15 minutes.

When it is completely cool, clean the outside of the jar with a window cleaner to make it shine.

A simple hand-written label is all you need for this jar.

Recipe reprinted with permission.Recipes provided by BALL BLUE BOOK(r) OF PRESERVING. Copyright (c) 2009,
Jarden Home Brands, marketer of Ball(r) and Kerr(r) fresh preserving
products.
Jarden Home Brands is a division of Jarden Corporation (NYSE: JAH).

This is part 2 of 3.

This is a take-off of the recipe we used at our restaurant many years ago. We would make a big batch of it to have ready when someone ordered pancakes, or for our breakfast buffet.

For a gift-size batch:

2 2/3 cup flour

1 1/3 cup pumpkin flour

2 Tablespoons sugar

2 ½ Tablespoons baking powder

1 Tablespoon salt

1/2 tsp Pumpkin Spice

Mix all ingredients thoroughly.

You’ll want a nice container to put your gift in. I like to use canning jars. There are many ways to decorate them, here’s one.

To Decoupage a jar, you’ll need:

A clean quart size canning jar

Decorative paper or fabric

Mod Podge decoupage medium

Paintbrush, scissors, hole puncher, pen

Decorative cord or ribbon

Cardstock or a used card

I chose a Christmas themed fabric that has a little gold in it, that will be reflected by the jar’s lid.Cut the paper or fabric into strips of different lengths and widths. Shorter, thinner strips are better for the rounded curved areas of the jar.

Apply some Mod Podge to the jar and lay the strips on. I find it easiest to use the paintbrush to smooth them out, adding more Mod Podge as I go.

Cover the jar from the bottom edge to the top just under the rim. Allow to dry. Keep an eye on it to be sure none of the paper/fabric pulls away. If it does, press it back into place using a little more Mod Podge.

Apply 2 more coats, letting it dry in between.

In the meantime, get the cardstock. I use the backs of cards that I receive. They are nice and glossy on one side and ready for writing on the other.

On the card write:

Pumpkin Four Pancake Mix

1 cup mix

2 Tbl. oil

1 egg

1 cup milk

Mix just until moist.

Cut a square around your recipe, leaving enough room for a hole-punch. I happen to have a star punch, but you can use any punch. Punch a hole in one corner to lace decorative ribbon or cord through.

Attach the ribbon to the jar. Fill the jar with the dry mix (using a funnel will help keep the outside of the jar clean). Add lid and ring.

You can also buy decorative lids/rings some of which are pretty enough for gift giving!

The next post will be the recipe for what goes great with this-Maple Walnut Syrup.

Note: If you’re not into canning, you can give the mix as a gift with a nice bottle of Walnut Oil.

Note: 10/1 I change the name of this recipe by adding the word ‘flour’, I dind’t want anyone to get the impression it was a strong pumpkin flavor, it isn’t. It is very subtle. I do have another recipe for Pumpkin Pancakes that tastes almost like pumpkin pie, much different.
How To Make Pumpkin Flour

Note: This recipe has a very subtle pumpkin flavor. Try this recipe for a stronger tasting Pumpkin Pancake.

If you have “Foodies” on your gift-giving list you may want to try this.

This is Part 1 of 3 that will use what you make here to end up as a great gift.

All you need is a pumpkin, a good knife, a food dehydrator or oven, a blender and a coffee bean grinder.

Cut the pumpkin and remove the seeds and stringy part. Peel the pumpkin (that’s the hardest part) and slice the flesh thin. The thinner the pieces the faster they will dry.

Dehydrate in a machine or in an over set at the lowest setting. Dry until leathery.

Grind the pieces first in the blender to get small chunks, then in the coffee grinder, until fine.

 

Success! You’ve just made a very healthy and tasty flour!

In Part 2 I will give you the recipe for Pumpkin Pancake Dry Mix (and then it gets even better!)