What Are Your Favourite Sandwich Fillings !

This was my lunch today !
After eating my lunch in front of our fire today, it got me thinking, that would be a great blog, about sandwich fillings. So today's lunch was wholemeal bread and I filled it with avocado, grated beetroot & carrot, snow pea sprouts, red onion, cos lettuce, himalayan salt and freshly ground pepper. It was healthy & really delicious, it made me think of a sandwich filling that I had years ago at a shop in Perth called the Magic Apple. It was a shop that served healthy lunches, I'm not sure if it is still around. This was about 25 years ago and I still remember the sandwich ,it was wholemeal bread with sliced egg, tomato & english spinach, it was such a lovely combination, I have since made it lots of times myself.  Another sandwich filling I used to love as a young girl was grated carrot and cheese, I had that a few times last week and still love it just as much. I'd love to hear what every one else has in their sandwiches, we might all try some new combinations after reading every ones posts. I haven't eaten wheat bread for quite a few years, as I was always told I had an allergy to wheat, well the last few weeks I have started to eat wholemeal wheat bread again, a lady said to me about a month ago eat what you love and I thought to myself I will. I hate eating food that I don't really enjoy because someone says its healthy for me. I'm going to trust that I will eat what I need. It reminds me of a saying by Deepak Chopra, if you enjoy what you eat it turns to nectar if you don't enjoy what you eat it turns to poison.

The Best Chocolate Chip Cookies In The World !

These are the best chocolate chip cookies in the world !
Well I think so, make them and tell me what you think ! Here is my recipe its so quick &easy .
2 cups raw sugar.
3 &1/2 cups wholemeal S.R flour. (500grams)
250grams butter.
2 Eggs.
1/2 a 375 gram packet chocolate buttons.
Or you can use chocolate chips !
This recipe makes approximately 50 cookies. Method: melt butter, add to dry ingredients, then add eggs, mix well, if a little dry just add a splash of water. Roll into balls about the size of walnuts,flatten on lightly greased oven trays(or use glad bake) then add a chocolate button in the centre.Allow room on the tray as the cookies spread. Cook in preheated oven 160 degrees Celsius for 20 minutes or until golden in colour, all recipes on my blog will be cooked in a fan forced oven. I reuse my glad bake sheets of paper over and over again, then I brush off any crumbs and roll them up and store inside the cardboard tube of glad bake to reuse next time. A word of warning they are very morish very hard to stop at just one, you have been warned.lol :):) Happy cooking every one !The mix made 53 today, in total they weighed 1.277kgs.
Please post and tell me how yummy they are :)

Happy 1st Birthday Simpleliving !

HAPPY 1st BIRTHDAY SIMPLELIVING!
June the 24th was my very first blog post on Simpleliving, boy its hard to believe its been one whole year !"WOW " So to celebrate I'm having a giveaway ! I have a cotton tote bag & cotton shoe bag to one lucky reader, made by yours truly. All you need to do to be in the running to win is to be a follower, if you aren't already just sign up to become one and tell me what blog post you enjoyed the most and why. I would like to get some feedback as to what people enjoy reading the most on my blog, so I can try to include more of those posts in the future.I'm looking forward to reading all your comments, so please enter. Australian residents only !
I will announce the winner on June 30th.

The winner is ...drum roll...................................
...........................................Congratulations to Nellymary
from "Just like my nan made" Please send me an email with your mailing address to sherriec@westnet.com.au and I will send you the tote bag &shoe bag.
Thank you every one for all your birthday wishes for my blogs first birthday & for all my followers, I really appreciate you all :):)
 

Yoghurt,Apple & Crumble Mixture Makes A Delicious Breakfast !

This is such a delicious,healthy breakfast !
I have been regularly eating this combo for breakfast its so yummy, I thought is was worth sharing with you all, its always nice to see what other people are eating, can give us some great ideas. I hope you try it, its just wonderful. I make my own yoghurt its a product called progurt, its very expensive well I think so, at $20 a litre, but its a strong pro biotic to help rebuild my gut flora. But you could use any yoghurt of choice, I peel and finely grate a green apple, which goes like an apple sauce, then I add my crumble mixture, then I layer it in my glass jar, this is great to have for morning tea or late breakfast at work, I love using glass jars for storing food in, they travel so well also. Now for the crumble mixture, this recipe came from a miss hap I guess you could say. I was trying to create a power ball recipe, I could of added more dates to the mixture, but I chose not too. The ingredients are 1/2 cup of all of these, chia seeds,sesame seeds, almonds,linseeds, sunflower seeds, organic coconut butter & dates, now throw every thing into the food processor until it resembles a crumbly mixture store in a sealed glass jar in the fridge.In a glass jar I layer yoghurt, apple sauce and crumble mixture.I Like eating it this way because some times you get apple and yoghurt, other times you get yoghurt and crumble its a nice taste sensation. "Eat and enjoy" If any one makes it please post and let me know what you think. Its aways nice trying different food combinations.

Tutorial To Make Fabric Beanies !

Tutorial To Make Fabric Beanies !
Step 1
Measure around the child's head and leave a little extra to allow for seams. You will need to draft a rough pattern out of paper,  then place fabric on fold with stretch going around child's head , cut out 2 pattern pieces.You will need half a metre to make 2 beanies.

Step 2 & 3
Get each oval shape of fabric and sew a dart as pictured at each end to tapper the top in, to give a nice rounded shape to fit your child's head. Then join them right sides together and sew around the outer edge and leave a small opening, so the beanie can be turned in the right way like pictured in next step.

                                                                                      Step 4
                                                                                      Turn beanie the right way through gap that you left. 

                                                                                     Step 5 & 6

Make sure beanie fits and you are happy with the finished shape if so, sew up whole and push half the beanie inside the other half of the beanie. If not happy with shape turn back the other way and try to reshape by making darts a little bigger and perhaps reshaping it then proceed  with finishing steps. The last two I made I wasn't that happy with the shape not sure why, that's why it has taken me while to finish the tutorial , sorry if any one has been waiting.

If you need any help please post and ask and I'll help you any way I can. Happy sewing every one.

Make Your Own Fabric Beanies !

Make Your Own Fabric Beanies !
These fabric beanies are so easy to make !
The blue one is the one I made for my son Jack a few years ago, its made from recycled heavy duty rugby knit fabric. The pink one I made yesterday its made from windcheater fabric, which we will give to a little friend of ours for her birthday present. I'm also making another one for Jack that will be a little bigger with the same blue fabric. I'm in the process of making a tutorial, if you would like to make one. I'll also be making a few for my older sons, one is a bricklayer and these mornings now are pretty chilly. So I'm sure they will appreciate a few each as well. They can be made from any fabric that has a little stretch in it, even t-shirt fabric could be used as the hat is double thickness and you could double that again . Could be a good way to reuse any old t-shirts or windcheaters as well. I will post the tutorial as soon as completed. I just remembered I made Jack a little white one when he was a baby, I think I still have it , he looked so gorgeous in it.
Here is the link to the beanie tutorial I have done to show you all how easy they are to make http://simpleliving-sherrie.blogspot.com/2011/06/tutorial-to-make-fabric-beanies.html

Lemons ! What To Do With Them All !

Lemons !
What to do with them all !
We have been given lots of lemons, but what to do with them all. We are going to squeeze a lot of them into 1 cup measurements and freeze, that will be great for making our home made ginger beer. I will also make lots of ice cubes, they are always great for making salad dressings, hot lemon drinks in the cold weather or lemonade in the summer. I usually make lemon cordial, perhaps I will make a batch or two. I will also zest some its great to put into recipes I made my apple cakes the other day and put the juice of a lemon and the zest of two lemons it added a really nice tang. I can also make my lemon bath salts which also uses the zest of the lemons. Last year I made a big batch of lemon peel chutney , I got all excited because I had juiced a heap and had the skins and thought what can I use them all for. I was really disappointed, I hated it , Kev said it was ok .Suffice to say I won't be making that again, you live and learn. I do have a recipe for lemon and poppy seed muffins, perhaps a batch of them. I'm not really into lemon butter. Any other ideas will be really appreciated, I would hate to see them go to waste.

Sending Mail & Gifts Wrapped In Pages From An Old Street Directory !

Sending Mail & Gifts Wrapped In Pages From An Old Street Directory !
Have you got gifts to send in the mail and nothing to wrap them in . I wrap them in pages from an old street directory, I think they look great and you are recycling an old street directory, that most of us would just throw away, I know, I used to. I just use double sided tape (I'm in love with double sided tape)to make them like an envelope, on the front I have cut out pieces of recycled brown paper to write the name & address of the recipient. Just another recycled project. I have done a few blog posts on recycling an old street directory,but as  I have a few gifts to send friends for birthdays, I thought I would share the idea again. Best part its free and I say why not reuse something you already have, also saves using those plastic mail satchels.

They Say Laughter Is The Best Medicine ! Obviously I Need To Laugh More!

Ingenious Way to Stimulate Supermarket Sales!

-----Sense of Freshness....

Last month a new supermarket opened in Topeka, Kansas.
It has an automatic water mister to keep the produce fresh.
Just before it goes on, you hear the sound of distant thunder and the smell of fresh rain.
When you pass the milk cases, you hear cows mooing and you experience the scent of fresh mown hay.
In the meat department there is the aroma of charcoal-grilled steaks with onions.
When you approach the egg case, you hear hens cluck and cackle, and the air is filled with the pleasing aroma of bacon and eggs frying.
The bread department features the tantalizing smell of fresh-baked bread and cookies.
of course I don't buy toilet paper there anymore.

If You Ever Have Sore Tired Feet !Then Make Your Own Foot Spa !Or Just Want A Reflexology Treatment!

If You Ever Have Sore Tired Feet !
Here is a great cheap solution for soothing your sore, tired, aching feet. No need to purchase expensive foot spas, when you can  half fill a tub with warm water, you can put a sprinkle of Epsom's salts in the water, or here is a link to my home made lemon bath salts. lemon bath salts Then put a few marbles in the tub or if you haven't got any marbles, see if you can find some round gravel rocks or pebbles, and put your feet in, move you feet gently over the marbles or pebbles, its like a reflexology work out for your feet .If you haven't tried it, please do so its wonderful, your feet with love it, well your whole body will love it. Then you can empty the water on your lemon tree, they love the magnesium.

Shoe Bags ! For the Month Of June Every Tote Bag Order Will Receive A Free Shoe Bag !

Shoe Bags !
For the Month Of June Every Tote Bag Order Will Receive A Free Shoe Bag.
Tote bags are $8.50 each plus $1.50 postage & handling, Australia residents only !  
Only for the month of June !
You can pop on over to http://sherriesbagworld.blogspot.com/
To see the tote bags I currently have for sale. They are all made from 100% cotton and made using 100% solar power from the sun .I look forward to receiving your orders. They make great gifts for family & friends !
To place an order please email me at sherriec@westnet.com.au

Make Your Own Toiletry Bag !

Make Your Own Toiletry Bag !
I made this bag quite a few years ago, but since I have been posting bags on my blog the last week,I thought I'd stay with the theme. They are so easy to make, inside it has little pockets to store all my toiletries, makes finding things so much easier. Remember that saying "A place for every thing and everything in its place". Pitty I cannot seem to apply that to my home, but I'm woking on it, they say slow and steady wins the race.

Hearty Minestone Soup !

Hearty Minestrone Soup !
One of my all time favourite things to do in winter time, is to make big pots of hearty, warm, delicious soups !
Yesterday Kev and I made a big pot of minestone soup, and I do mean a big pot, I always make enough to sink a ship, you cannot have enough soup in winter, you can even freeze some if you wish, but lasts a few days in the fridge .This weather I'm happy to have it for 3 days for lunch and dinner.
Ingredients.
onions,(finely diced)
celery,(finely diced)
carrots,(finely diced)
potatoes,(finely diced)
zucchini,(finely diced)
garlic,(finely diced)
tomato puree + water.I used two 700ml bottles of tomato puree
haricot beans soaked over night then cooked.I used 1 &1/2 cups dry.
Dried basil
Dried oregano
fresh parsley,
Bunch of Kale leaves, You can use cabbage
salt to taste.
Fry the first 6 vegetables in a little olive oil for a few minutes , then add tomato puree and water to cover vegetables, when about half cooked add herbs and finely cut up kale,cooked haricot beans,salt to taste, simmer until vegetables are tender . serve with a sprinkle of parmesan cheese, maybe a few slices of crusty bread ...yummo
You can also add pasta or rice.

Mesh Bags So Many Uses !

Mesh bags so many uses!
Last year I made a heap of mesh bags to use for all my fruit & vegetable shopping, so as to help reduce getting plastic bags. We keep them with all our green shopping bags and use them all the time. What else are they useful for ! Here is another great idea, its filled with Jack's plastic bath stuff that he still loves to play with in the bath, or shower, all the water drains out so toys don't end up mouldy and smelly . This week is bag week on my blog, draw string bags are so useful for storing so many different things & so easy to make. I'd love to hear what every one else uses them for..

Make A Bag For Your Torch !

Make a bag for your torch !
It was my eldest son Stephen's birthday on the 23rd of  May ,I cannot believe he turned 24, it feels like it has flown by so fast, "unbelievable". Any way for his birthday I brought him a wind-up torch that never needs batteries, it has a AM &FM radio, phone charger & a siren. We brought one last year for ourselves and think it is just fabulous, so decided to buy him one, he also thinks its great. I also made him a fabric drawstring bag to keep the torch and the attachments in, when not being used. I also made one for our torch, its great because I have it hanging on the door handle.

Make Shoe Bags !

Make Shoe Bags + Tutorial !
I've been planning to make these for a few years now, but as I always say "you cannot rush these things". "Better late then never" is another saying.
Well today I finally made one for my summer going out shoes. They are great to use when travelling,they are so much nicer then putting your shoes in plastic bags so they don't touch your nice clean clothes. This one is made from cotton material, they are so easy to make, they would also make lovely gifts for all your girl friends.I'm going to make a few more of them. All you need is a piece of fabric, some matching cotton and a strap to thread through the casing at the top, you could buy a piece of cord or you could use a strip of the same fabric and fold over and make a strap to the desired length. The piece of material I used was width 25 cm and length 75cm. I made a casing at each narrow end, sewed up the sides just before the casing top then I threaded 2 straps through each end tied in a knot. That's it, how simple is that!
I just did a tutorial to add

STEP 1 & 2
I over lock the length of material both sides,then I sew a casing 1inch or 2.5 cm at each end .

STEP 3.
Then I sew up each side inside out. I start at each bottom end and line up the top .

STEP 4.
This is what it should look like, after sewing up each side then turning the bag in the right way.







STEP 5.
You can use either cord purchased for the draw or you can made a strap from matching fabric like I have you will need it to be 2 straps measuring 25 inches or 63.5 cm.
Cut fabric 1 &1/2 inches wide to sew for strap by folding both ends in and sewing, like bias binding.

                                                        STEP 6. 

                                                        Thread the straps through the casing so one straps goes in the same end and comes out the same end then tie in a knot. then thread the other strap the other way and tie in a knot.

    STEP 7.

                                                      Completed bag,  pull both straps at the same time to close bag.