"BACK TO BASICS"
A Guide to Re-acquaint You to Your Kitchen in Recessionary Times
Introducing Peggy Wells' Back to Basics
A Guide to Re-acquaint You to Your Kitchen in Recessionary Times
Click to view Foreword and Table of Contents
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Available for Purchase:
Section 1 - $2.95
Condiments, Dips & Spreads
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Now Available for Purchase:
Section 2 - $2.95
Dressings for Salads |
Now Available for Purchase:
Section 3 - $2.95
Seasonings, Marinades & Rubs
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We have a new project this year, one I hope you will find more than just interesting and useful. The inspiration for this project came during the dark bleak days of this past winter.
My first passion is working outside and getting my hands dirty. Sadly, this was not an option this past winter so, feeling shut in and a little cabin-feverish, my second passion took new life and I was drawn to the kitchen. Yes, I cook a lot during the winter, which explains the extra few pounds!
In some ways, "Back to Basics" is like a primer, a tool to help people get back in the kitchen and get creative. Do you know how easy and inexpensive it is to make your own salad dressings? Spaghetti sauce? Peanut Brittle? Egg rolls? Pizza?
“Flour + sugar + salt + oil + yeast” is the basis for many of the things we find on store shelves!
In preparation for this project, I decided to go through every piece in my large collection of recipes, to wade through every book, in order to accumulate and compile the ones I believe would be most useful and fun to have close at hand. I have eliminated recipes for dishes that require 20 ingredients to make. I want at my fingertips a good BBQ rub, or a good White sauce for that leftover ham.
Having accomplished this enormous “gathering” task, I am in the process of entering the recipes in book form. We are making this book available for download from our website, publishing "Back to Basics" section by section, as each one is completed. This way, you have the option of getting the section(s) in which you are interested, without the obligation of purchasing the entire book. If you have been a customer of psNature on eBay, please let us know and we will give you a 10% discount!. Please give us your feedback! I need all the encouragement you can offer!
What is the cost? (What can you save?) You can purchase each section of "Back to Basics" as it becomes available at the low price of $2.95. Section 1, "Condiments, Dips & Spreads", Section 2, "Dressings for Salads" & Section 3, "Seasonings, Marinades & Rubs" are now available for purchase. Each document will be delivered to your email address in Microsoft Word format. Click on the Buy Now button to securely place your order.
“BACK TO BASICS” – My Inspiration: Organization helps:
I have a grand collection of cookbooks, probably 50 or more. In addition, I have 10-year’s worth of recipes I have clipped from the Houston Chronicle, and have amassed many more from family and friends. My problem has been a lack of organization. When I wanted to cook something in particular, I couldn’t seem to find the recipe in my library, especially on short notice. Often I have run to the computer in hopes of finding a quick recipe, but this has lead me to a maze of websites, many of which demand membership or personal information. In desperation, I have given in to these demands and ended up with dozens of unsolicited offers and been bombarded by emails from some of the places I have visited - all that just to collect one recipe. Once, I spent so much time finding the recipe for Chicken Pot Pie with a homemade crust that I ended up too tired to cook it! Homemade tastes better:
I had a second, greater motivation to undertake this project. One evening last winter my son and his girlfriend came over unexpectedly. I had some ribs in the freezer, so we decided to cook them on the pit. We were out of BBQ Sauce, but it was nasty, cold and rainy outside, and the last thing anyone wanted to do was run to the store to buy some. Well, we whipped up a great sauce, using what we did have (ketchup, mustard, brown sugar, vinegar and Worcestershire). Those ribs tasted so much better than with the sauce I usually buy that I decided to make my own sauce in the future. Making your own saves money:
A third thought that inspired me to start this project was pure economics. Does this sound familiar? Every time I go to the grocery store I am trying to stay “in budget”. In order to do this, I have had to sacrifice several items I used to purchase, things such as snacks, freezer-to-microwave, prepared and convenience items. I am clipping more coupons, buying more hamburger, and purchasing a lot more cooking/baking products. (You would be amazed what you can do with flour….) You don’t need to hear me go off into a political rant about Wall Street and Washington... Suffice it to say that, like so many, I have had to tighten my belt. One way I have done this is to get “Back to Basics” (hence the name of my new book) in a lot of areas of my life. That has included planting a “Recession” garden, starting my own vegetables and flowers from seed, making my own condiments and baking homemade bread. I have even made my own dog treats - my pets loved them by the way!
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“BACK TO BASICS” - Some Details This will be a two-part book, the first part will include the following: (Subject to future additions) APPETIZERS / SNACKS
BREADS / BATTERS / DOUGHS
BUTTERS / CONDIMENTS
DESSERTS
DIPS / SPREADS
DRESSINGS / VINAIGRETTES
DRINKS (INCLUDING LIQUERS)
GRAVIES / SAUCES
PICKLES / PRESERVES / RELISHES / SALSAS
SANDWICHES
SEASONINGS / MARINADES / RUBS
KID'S FUN STUFF
The first part of the book will contain a section called “Kid's Stuff”. This will be great fun for kids and will include recipes such as Rock Candy, Popcorn Balls, Homemade Play Dough, Chocolate Sauce, Cocoa, Homemade Easter Egg Dye and much more!
These sections will not be published in alphabetical order, since they are being completed at random. I can tell you that the first section will be “Seasonings, Marinades and Rubs”, including Chili Seasoning, Sloppy Joe Seasoning, Taco Seasoning (look out McCormick!), Beef Marinade, Poultry Marinade, Brisket Rub and more.
The second part of this book will get more into the “meat” of the matter, so to speak, and will include the following: (Subject to future additions) BEEF / FISH
CASSEROLES
COPYCAT RECIPES
FAVORITE BUT FORGOTTEN RECIPES
ITALIAN
MEXICAN
PORK / POULTRY
SALADS
SOUPS / STEWS
VEGETABLES
LAGNIAPPE (CAJUN)
Several of our recipes have a “Flavor of the South” to them, including the influence of Mexican and Cajun cooking. There are some "Texas Brags" recipes, i.e. "Best Chicken Fried Steak in the world", "Best BBQ in the world", etc. (you know Texans) and of course “Lagniappe”, thanks to our friends from Louisiana. I am really excited about sharing this with you! |
If this proves successful, who knows? Next we might do a “How To” on Soap Making, Candle Making, Concocting your own cleaning products. Now that would really be “Getting Down to Basics”.
Till next time, I will be “Basically” typing away!
Peggy Wells
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