Homemade Salted Caramel

I love all things salted caramel. As in, I would venture to say it's almost an obsession. In the dead of winter I slurp down my fair share of Salted Caramel Frappuccino Blended Cremes from Starbucks despite the fact that I'm freezing. They're that good! The combination of sweet and salty is simply out of this world. It warms my soul. In fact, if I weren't in the middle of 6 straight days of freezing temperatures at my house (and 6 straight days of my kids being home from school) I would go get one right now. But I'm too scared to drive. I'm not a great driver under perfect weather conditions. It's probably best for everyone if I stay off the road. However, it would be best for my kids if I could get one one. Mommy's feeling a bit... restless.

Cue dramatic uplifting music: I can make my own. At home. Only better. And I can do so without changing out of my pajamas, without going out into the freezing cold, and without subjecting myself to yucky ingredients. This is Starbucks' Caramel Sauce's ingredient list. 

This is my ingredient list. 

Which would you prefer? 

And the good news is? It's just not that difficult!

Homemade Salted Caramel

1 Cup of Water

2 Cups of Sugar

1 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream

1/4-3/4 teaspoon of Himalayan Pink Salt

(or Fleur de Sel, Course Sea Salt or any other form of course salt)

Pour 1 cup of water in a large (2-3 qt) heavy sauce pan.

Add 2 cups of sugar into the middle of the water, being careful  not to let the sugar touch the sides. Turn heat to medium and allow sugar to dissolve. Do not stir. I repeat DO NOT STIR. Patience Grasshopper! 

Once the sugar has dissolved, turn the heat up to medium high and watch carefully. 

In the mean time, warm the heavy whipping cream for 45 seconds in the microwave, or until just warm (not boiling) in a separate sauce pan on the stove. 

Wait for the sugar water to turn a beautiful amber color. Let me repeat yet again... Do. Not. Stir! If the sugar water is too light your caramel will be more of a vanilla caramel. If you let it turn too dark, it will simply scorch. Wait and watch carefully, pulling the pan off of the stove just as it reaches a deep (but not too deep) amber color. 

Then, slowly whisk in the heavy whipping cream. It will bubble up quite a bit, which is why a larger sauce pan is necessary. Continue whisking until the cream is fully incorporated and you see a beautiful caramel sauce appear.

 Let it cool slightly then add the salt, 1/4 teaspoon at a time until you achieve your desired level of saltiness. 

I actually use a combination of course sea salt and Himalayan pink salt. I like mine extra salty, so I tend toward using 3/4 of a teaspoon. 

Store in a glass container in the fridge for up to one month. Once refrigerated it will thicken quite a bit. You may have to run the jar under hot water or scoop desired portion out to microwave before using.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 

In honor of finishing this blog post, I am now going to go make myself a Salted Caramel Blended Creme. With lots of caramel and lots of salt. Maybe I will skip the drink altogether and just stick my straw in the jar of caramel? Now that's a good idea! 

p.s. Sharing is a good way to make friends. So is letting your kids lick the spoons!

Celebrating Small Businesses (and a Sweet Giveaway!)

I'm not a big name blogger. I'm just one of the little guys (er, gals) who's trying to make my way in a small corner of the blogosphere. My craft is writing, and my purpose is just for fun. I pray that at some level I will inspire someone, somewhere, in someway to love God, love their spouse, love their kids, or simply love their lot in life a little bit more.

Maybe something I've written has inspired you to find the joy in the mundane. Have you tried one of my smoothie recipes? Maybe you've decided to do something a little different with your finances. Maybe you've made a cool recipe seen here that makes you a little more confident as a hostess. Perhaps someone has found camaraderie in the midst of loss or infertility. Maybe my yet-to-be-finished Love Story has inspired just one young woman to hold out for the best God has for her?

If even one of those things has happened, then my efforts with this blog have been well worth it. I'm just a simple Pastor's Wife on a mission to keep things real. I'm glad you've stopped by!

Today I am celebrating the day after Thanksgiving with my family... by staying inside of the house. I made a decision not to do any Black Friday shopping this year. I am exceedingly exhausted by endless consumerism and marketing ploys. For some reason, I really want this year to be different.

 

I am not anti-big business. However, I AM pro-small business! I've been challenged to celebrate small businesses this year. Therefore, wherever possible, I'm buying handmade gifts or gifts from small business owners.

After all, I'm just a small name blogger, doing what I do for fun. However, many small business owners are doing what they do to make a living. They're supporting their families or helping to meet their financial goals. They're real people, working really hard to make and/or sell a product.

So today, in honor of Small Business Saturday, I'm doing a giveaway... with a TWIST! After all, it's better to give than to receive, right? Okay, sometimes it's nice to give AND receive!

 

I'm going to give one lucky winner something to GIVE AWAY to a Pastor's Wife in their life.

(Hey, I happen to think Pastor's Wives deserve a little extra pampering sometimes! Missionary wives, retired pastor's wives and those married to a man between ministries all apply... I'm not trying to be legalistic here... I'm just trying to have some fun with this!)

Side Note: For the record, I use and love this makeup. I mean, truly, absolutely LOVE it. Not just because it's made by my sister-in-law but because it's the first makeup I've EVER used that has worked for my skin. It's natural, easy to apply and doesn't look caked on. It just looks simple and classy. I love it! Oh, and it's free from all of the yucky fillers and preservatives typically found in makeup products. This bodes well with my attempts at limiting the amount of chemicals I come in contact with on a daily basis. I'm starting to get a wee bit crunchy...

Mineral Makeup - Holiday Gift Set -

10 Piece Starter Set - Neutral Tones

 

In return, the winner will receive this to keep!

Holiday Sparkle Set - Mineral Makeup -Sparkle Mineral Eyeshadow - 5 piece set

 All you have to do is check out my sister-in-law's Craft Cafe or Etsy Shop and browse through her amazing hand-crafted, natural, gluten free mineral makeup. Right now she happens to be running an amazing Black Friday Cyber Monday Sale!
 

 

Then, leave me a comment and tell me:

 

1.) What your favorite product is, and

2.) The name of the Pastor's Wife you would be giving the Holiday Gift Set to.
(And why if you'd like!)

 

 (If you are a Pastor's Wife, you get the Holiday Gift Set to keep

and you can tell me who'd you give the Holiday Sparkle Set to instead.)

 

This giveaway will be open until December 1st at 9:00pm PST. The winner will be chosen through a random number generator from the eligible comments.

 

And, for fun, you can check out one of these other small businesses that are run by some of my friends and family members.

 

http://rufflesnsuch.etsy.com

http://www.lillarose.biz/hairfun

http://www.amway.com/beckycharlick 

http://www.perfectlyposh.us/664/

http://www.freelyeducate.com/

www.personalclothier.com
Express Yourself Vinyl Designs
(If I missed you and I personally know you, leave a link to your
small business and I'll add it to my list!)

With that being said, let me encourage you to consider shopping small and local for at least part of your holiday gift-giving this year! Let the shopping begin!

Simple Swap-- Homemade Kettle Corn

I look around at my fellow Americans and I can't help but notice that there are several things that are pervasive in our culture that I have a strong desire to steer clear from.

One of them is obesity. 

Every woman on either side of my family has had a significant weight problem at some time or another. I know the ability to gain weight fast is permeated deep within my genes. And that scares me. 

I don't want to be overweight. I don't want the health problems that come along with each extra pound I carry. I don't want to look at myself in the mirror and loath what I see. I don't want to be limited in what I can do, and where I can go because of my weight. I don't want something that I can control to stand in the way of having fun with my husband, my kids, and (when the time comes) my grandkids. 

Because of this I've been doing a lot of reading on health. I've been calling into question every practice that we as Americans don't think twice about. Because, clearly, we as Americans are doing a whole host of things that together lead us to this point in time where you would be very hard pressed to find a thin American. I spent 7 weeks in Taiwan almost 9 years ago and when I came back to the States I realized a shocking truth: Even thin Americans are fat. It's true. Take a look around and tell me how long it takes you to find an American who is truly fit and healthy. 

Our society is medicated to the core to deal with the host of problems that have been brought on by over consumption of nasty, toxic, processed foods packed full of preservatives. 

In my recent reading I've even discovered how toxic a lot of the packaging our food comes in can be!

I'm not a health nut. In fact, I love so many of the foods that are awful for me. I confess, I ate a strawberry blintz with ice cream on top and a side of hash browns for dinner and lunch this week. It's especially hard for me to eat well when I'm at a restaurant (like Pig n' Pancake... maker of the delicious strawberry blintzes!). Truth be told, it's hard for me to make healthy food choices on a daily basis. And, all of my good intentions have yet to translate into an exercise program that actually motivates me to get up and get my body moving. 

Yet, making good health choices is a fight worth fighting. Even if I regularly fail. Because, if I give myself over to my failures I will end up fat. I will end up unhealthy. I will end up unhappy. 

But if I keep trying, and if I make one good decision at a time, I will always be better off than if I didn't try at all. Right? 

If you're looking to get advice from a health nut, you'll have to look elsewhere. But, if you are looking to replace one bad choice at a time with one better choice, than stick around and learn along with me!

Today I am bringing you the first ever Real Life Pastor's Wife Simple Swap.

I am swapping microwave kettle corn for home made kettle corn. You can read about the dangers of microwave pop corn here and here.  Or you can do some research for yourself and find plenty of other articles with similar information. 

The funny thing is, making home made kettle corn is so easy! And it's much more tasty than microwaved kettle corn, in my opinion! Note, I am not trying to fool anyone by calling this recipe healthy. But, it undoubtedly is healthier than the alternative. Baby steps folks, baby steps!

You'll need 1/4 Cup Canola Oil (I'm sure you can use other oils too)

1/3 Cup Sugar

1/2 Cup Pop Corn Kernels

Sea Salt to taste

Put 3 pop corn kernels in a big pot along with the canola oil and turn the burner on medium heat. 

When the 3 kernels have popped, through in the rest of the kernels and sprinkle the sugar on top. 

Put a lid on the pot and shake the pot every 3-5 seconds once the kernels have started popping. 

Once there is a lull of 2-3 seconds between pops, immediately remove the pop corn from the stove and place it into a separate bowl (it will scorch of you leave it in the pot).

Top with sea salt and enjoy!

In our family we personally believe this goes great with our green smoothies! Sometimes we even combine the two and call it dinner. Yum!