Launch of Our New Blog Website!

I made the leap to WordPress yesterday. Okay, I am a bit intimidated. No actually downright scared but we're going to give it the good college try!

Here's the new site: www.littlehouseonaplasticplanet.com

Yesterday, we began a month long series on the Minimalism Game. Join us!

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Almond Scones

One of the first things out of my children's mouths when they crawl out of bed is, "What is for breakfast?" My five and six year old children have BIG appetites in the morning.

Our typical food cannot be poured out of a box. This recipe is one of their favorites to request. It was one of the basic recipes in my kitchen before we discovered our food allergies and can be made with conventional ingredients also. I hope you enjoy the following breakfast recipe:

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Almond Scones

1 cup fine brown rice flour

1/2 cup potato starch

1/2 cup tapioca starch
1/3 cup sugar

1 tsp xanthan gum

1 TB baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter substitute, chilled & cut into small pieces

1 TB almond extract
1 egg (or egg substitute equivalent)
1/2 cup almond milk (or other dairy free equivalent)

1/2 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips

2 TB almond milk
2 TB sugar

Whisk the first 7 dry ingredients in a medium or large bowl. Using a pastry blender, add butter substitute and blend until the mixture resembles small crumbs. Combine almond extract, egg substitute, and milk in a small bowl. Add wet mixture to the dry mixture and mix gently with a fork until all of the dough is wet and combined. Take care not to over mix to avoid the scones getting tough. Fold in the chocolate chips.

On a floured surface, using your hands, gently form dough into a circle and cut into eight wedges. Transfer to a baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Brush the tops of the scones with dairy free milk and dust the tops with sugar.

Bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes until slightly browned around edges. Enjoy!

To Start The Day On The Farm

I awoke this morning at 6:00 am before the heat and humidity set in to complete the glorious task of mucking out the chicken house. It is not the most enjoyable of tasks but nevertheless a productive one.

I am reminded of the quote by Winston Churchill, "An optimist sees opportunity in every difficulty. A pessimist sees difficulty in each opportunity."

While shoveling chicken manure is a dirty task, the results are valuable for my gardens. I am left with a rich, zero waste fertilizer that is already composted with cedar shavings brought to our homestead from a local lumber mill. There are no plastic fertilizer bags left to dispose of. There are no questions about how many chemicals are contained in the fertilizer, if it is harmful or beneficial. We have kept the waste of one aspect of the homestead here and turned it in to something productive. That is an accomplishment! Nothing was sent to the landfill in the process. How can I expand this idea of turning waste into something productive on the homestead? Only time will tell. The task was much more fulfilling than I had anticipated when I got out of bed.

We each have tasks that aren't our favorite to accomplish in our lives. However, the next time you catch yourself thinking "Do I really have to do that?" stop and see the opportunity that presents itself. It's an opportunity to grow - minus any procrastination - and find the opportunity in the perceived difficulty.

Show Your Plastic Challenge: Week 7

SHOW YOUR PLASTIC CHALLENGE - WEEK 7

Total - 53 items, 12.2 oz.

THIS CHALLENGE IS ABOUT NOT CONSUMING NEW PLASTIC.

How would you handle the challenge of receiving of plastic gifts or gifts generously packaged in plastic? While secondhand plastic gifts would be more in line with our goals, the feelings of the giver must be considered. We don’t want to stifle the generosity and happiness of the gift giver. My children were kindly given gifts this week by loved ones that fell into this genre of consumption.

A debate could ensue whether or not this plastic is consumed by our family or by the gift giver. I have chosen for the purpose of this project to include such plastic if it is new packaging and has no further reuse. This week 9 pieces of our consumed plastic resulted from the gifts we received.

I’ve come to the realization that I have been addicted to Ziploc bags. They’re creeping out of every corner and crevice in the house. Boo! It’s me – the Ziploc bag! It has been over two years since I purchased a new box of bags and my two last boxes were made from recycled plastic. I have a weakness for organization and the Ziploc bag has been my best friend for many years for this purpose. I now must deal with the aftermath of my organization fetish – a plethora of Ziploc bags in the house that are nearing the end of their useful life. The bags have been washed and reused until holes present themselves.

WHAT TO DO WITH THE RETIRED ZIPLOC BAGS?

I’m beginning to go through them slowly and retire them week by week. Who knows how many I have accumulated between the four walls of our home. My freezer is still full of many more from pre-project foods. Any new food put into the freezer is being put into glass canning jars or other glass containers as opposed to plastic bags. Hopefully, by the end of this year plastic ziploc bags will be a thing of the past.

They can be recycled along with other plastic bags at your local store with a plastic bag recycling program. Remember though, refuse, reduce and reuse come before recycle. We must reduce our consumption of these items. Recycling is not a perfect solution since pollutants are off gassed in the recycling process and they can only be down cycled rather than made into the same product again like aluminum can.

PLASTIC FREE PROGRESS:

• We finished week 2 without buying any GF cookies & sweets. 
• Now I have to work on chips! I made one batch of homemade tortilla chips from homemade tortillas this week. They were yummy - but its a trick to get them thin enough.
• Today we're submitting our almost plastic free, bulk produce order from Azure Standard to be delivered next week: a case of: peaches, oranges, apples, and grapefruit. Sometimes they don't even have produce stickers on them. I haven't been able to order potatoes or onions plastic free yet. I don't have ideal storage conditions yet for ordering those items by the case.

SUMMARY:

Month 1 Summary - 205 items, 3 lbs 15 oz

Week 5 Total - 37 items, 12 oz

Week 6 Total - 61 items, 25 oz

Week 7 Total - 53 items, 12.2 oz

GOALS:

• Begin tracking how long a standard 13 gallon kitchen garbage bag lasts in our home before going to the landfill.
• Source local honey in my own refillable jars.
• Make homemade crackers.
• Make another batch baby wipe solution.

I CHALLENGE YOU THIS WEEK TO THINK OUTSIDE OF THE PLASTIC BOX!