No.425: Five Good Things // No.02 | The Big White Farmhouse

1 // MOLASSES CRINKLES

A few months ago, I was organizing my cookbooks when I came across a little book toward the back of the shelf. It was given to me years ago by my grandmother (who has now passed away) and was a collection of recipes from members of her church. I finally took the time to browse through the booklet and what a treasure trove! So many simple tried-and-true recipes were inside. I decided to start with a cookie recipe and it’s been a big hit with my kids. I’ve made it many times since. Thank you, Martha R, whoever/wherever you are! Here’s the recipe:

¾ cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

¼ cup molasses

2¼ cup flour

2 tsp. baking soda

¼ tsp. salt

1½ tsp. cinnamon

1½ tsp. ginger

Cream butter, brown sugar and egg. Add molasses. Mix together dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture. Roll into balls and dip in sugar. Sprinkle with water. Cook at 350° for 14 minutes.

2 // THE BOX TRICK

Did you see this going around the Internet toward the beginning of lockdown? My kids always seem to rip the cardboard flaps and this has been so helpful to keep food inside their packages.

3 // SELF RELIANCE MAGAZINE

With all of my gardening and homesteading searches, I think the Internet is starting to predict my interests. This magazine was an ad, but I’m so glad I clicked through! Self-Reliance Magazine is chock full of helpful advice, with everything from how to start raising chickens to how to preserve your bean crops to chainsaw care. It definitely won’t win any awards for beauty (the photos inside are just so-so) but a wonderful resource of information. I purchased these three back issues and have already referred back to them many times.

4 // THIS QUOTE

While I wouldn’t necessarily recommend this entire book (see my thoughts in this post), this quote made me pause:

In his book Requiem for a Species, Clive Hamilton discusses how attitudes have shifted over the past century. Hamilton writes about how we used to be a production society, focused on producing goods to meet needs in the marketplace, igniting the investor’s confidence. But over time we have become a consumer society, focused on the process of acquiring things, igniting the consumer’s confidence. This causes us all to focus less on what we produce and more on what we own, drawing more of our identity from the latter. – The Year Without a Purchase, p.58

I found it really thought-provoking and it’s made me realize how much I actually crave being a “producer” but often end up consuming, just because it’s easier. I still need to ponder this in terms of concrete goals, but I’d really like to retrain my brain in this area.

5 // NEW SOAP FROM BORDEN ACRES

New soap! I think it would be fun to actually buy soap from each artisan on my list, so I randomly chose to start with Borden Acres (affiliate links) in California. I bought three scents that seemed summery to me: Sweet Tea, Honeysuckle + Citrus, and Grapefruit + Orange. They smell wonderful and lather beautifully. I’d recommend them all!

Comments

Torrie says

July 21, 2020 at 2:19 pm

Have you ever tried the magazine Mother Earth News? It's got a very similar feel it seems like to Self-Reliance. So glad to see your blog popping up in my feed again!
- Ashley says
  
  July 21, 2020 at 4:54 pm
  
  I haven't heard of Mother Earth News. I'll look into it, thanks!
Laura M says

July 22, 2020 at 10:41 pm

I love "fancy" soaps. #4 is very interesting indeed.

1 // MOLASSES CRINKLES

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