Raw Corn Salad plus DIY Ideas

I remember my Mom standing in our garden picking corn and eating it right off the stalk. She said it tasted sweeter that way. So when I make a raw corn salad I always think of Mom.

photo credit: CK Worley

photo credit: CK Worley

Take 3 or 4 ears of corn and slice the kernels off. Mix that with a can each of black and red kidney beans. A bunch of cilantro, onions, grape tomatoes (cut in half) and garlic. Then instead of chopping some pickled jalapeños (which is what I usually use) I chopped some green beans that I had put into a jar of Greek pepper juice. My Dad always put green tomatoes into left over pickle juice so I thought why not green beans? It worked!

photo credit: CK Worley

photo credit: CK Worley

I never really measure anything while making this salad. Just what ever looks good.
Then I add the juice of one lime, olive oil, salt and pepper.
This is really good and it’s very pretty.

photo credit: CK Worley

I had a Do It Yourself with essential oils class this weekend. It was really fun. We made foaming hand soap, an Anti Aging Salve, a Soothing Salve, Lip Balm and we made Orange Power Bites. Really easy and all healthy!

photo credit: CK Worley

And now for some DIY projects I can share with you.

Earlier that day I had made some of my own handy wipes with essential oils. They are safer than the store bought kind.



The warnings on the back of those store bought clean up wipes are frightening.
“For surfaces that come in contact with food: Use only on hard, non porous surfaces and rinse thoroughly with water.” How many of you rinse your counter after using these?
“Precautionary Statement: Hazards to humans and domestic animals. Wash hands after use.” REALLY? YIKE!
Make your own safe wipes.

My friend Helen taught me how to do this one. Cut a paper towel roll in half. Put one half in an old coffee container (or a similar sized container) and use the other half later. I first soaked the container with water and baking soda to get the coffee smell out.



Then I took the cardboard roll out of the middle of the paper towels. After that I added Protective Blend, Cleansing Blend and Lemon essential oils to a pitcher of water. Once that was mixed I poured it into the coffee container. Just use enough to soak the towels.

That’s it. The wipes come out one at a time, just like the store bought kind. Use the lid to keep them moist.

NOTE: I will use those heavy duty paper towels you can get from the hardware store next time. They are a little bit thicker but these regular paper towels will do for now and they make the kitchen smell amazing.

Lemon is a great disinfectant. Protective Blend has wonderful antibacterial properties. Cleansing Blend cleans and deodorizes. Together they made a safe and efficient kitchen and bathroom cleaner.

Contact me at settersrun360@gmail.com and I’ll show you how you can get the BEST essential oils that represent the safest, purest, and most beneficial essential oils available today for 25% off retail price!

Guinness Ice Cream

I was listening to the radio in the car one day and heard two women talking about making all different kinds of ice cream and creating unique ice cream sandwiches. One of them was a shortbread cookie with Guinness ice cream. I wondered what Guinness ice cream tasted like. And so a blog post was born.

I got this recipe off of the web site PopSugar-

Ingredients:

2 cups Guinness (16 ounces) That's almost two bottles.
2 cups heavy cream
1-3/4 cups whole milk
15 large egg yolks
1 cup granulated sugar


photo credit: CK Worley

photo credit: CK Worley

Directions:
In a large saucepan, combine the Guinness with the cream and milk and bring to a simmer over moderately high heat.

photo credit: CK Worley

photo credit: CK Worley

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks with the sugar. Gradually add the hot Guinness cream to the yolks, whisking constantly until well blended. (15 eggs is a lot! I am planning to make an angel food cake with the egg whites)

photo credit: CK Worley

photo credit: CK Worley

Pour the mixture into the saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly until it coats the back of a spoon, about 6 minutes; do not let it boil. Pour the custard into a medium bowl set in a large bowl filled with ice water. Let stand until the custard is cold, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.

photo credit: CK Worley

photo credit: CK Worley

Pour the custard into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. I got this ice cream maker from Cobb Hardware off Roswell Road in Marietta.
I added mini semi sweet chocolate bits during the last 5 minutes in the ice cream maker.
Pack the ice cream into an airtight container and freeze until firm, about 4 hours.

photo credit: CK Worley

I've heard of people making floats by adding the ice cream to a glass of Guinness. It has a unique flavor but that's the point. Summer is a wonderful time for ice cream and a great opportunity to explore the possibilities! Have fun with it!

Carpenter Bee Control

A friend of ours asked how we kept carpenter bees from eating our pergola. "We have no carpenter bees”, I said, "but I’ll investigate how to manage your bees and let you know”.

She was worried that since the bees pollinate flowers, controlling carpenter bees may be a bad thing. I replied, “There were plenty of things they could eat besides your house, so let’s figure this out". I also found that the larva will attract woodpeckers and they will also destroy a house, which happened to be a problem for her in the past.

The very next week we had signs they had arrived! We saw sawdust on the top of the car we park underneath the pergola.



So I went to bugspray.com and ordered three things.
Drione Dust
1/2 inch corks
Crusader bellow

Remember, the female carpenter bee will sting--so make sure the hole is empty before you begin. The male bee won’t sting, but they are the ones that fly in and around you to scare you off. They have yellow faces; while the females have black faces.

The reason why it’s a good idea to get rid of them now is that the babies tend to return to the nest where they were born. One nest could turn into more with every passing year. The next thing you know, you have hundreds of holes in your deck or house that are also going to attract woodpeckers.




Drione has a baby powder like substance and it will make a “poof” of dust when shot into the holes. Make sure it doesn’t come in contact with your skin or eyes. (I should have worn protective goggles because it would have been safer.)
Use the Crusader bellow to poof the Drione dust into the hole. You can seal the hole with a cork after you let it stand for a few hours. If the cork won’t press all the way in with just your thumb you can hammer them in the rest of the way.



I have a stain pen that I used to color the cork a little closer to the pergola color so it won’t stand out as much.

There you have it. Simple as that.

Bugspray.com is a wonderful resource for bug control of almost every kind. I recommend you visit that sight.

Here is an added bonus on Carpenter Bees from my friend Cathy who writes:

"Two weeks ago I learned from two gentlemen from Jasper, GA that there is a product that successfully deters carpenter bees from burrowing holes.  The product is called NSB-30 and can be bought over the internet.  It can be mixed with stain or water.  It is a better environmentally safe product for your home and the bees, as it doesn’t kill the bees but detracts them.

I purchased it online and have since mixed it with the stain we used on our pergola.  I inserted a small amount of insecticide first (as you suggested), filled the holes with steel wool then filled the remaining indentation w/ stainable wood putty.  I then applied the stain.  I waited until now to fill the holes as I had read online that the eggs hatch in August.  Since carpenter bee’s are pollinators I’m trying to do my part, albeit not very significant, by not killing them out right.  I hope this tip helps."



Thank you Cathy - I appreciate the tip!