Mason Jar Nation by JoAnn Moser {book review}

Mason Jars have an interesting history and in recent years have become widely popular for it's variety and numerous uses. For food bloggers like myself they make great props and are great to bake cupcakes in!

However, JoAnn Moser shows us that that's not all they are good for! She gives us 50 different ways to use mason jars and I'm sure her ideas will inspire you to do much more with them! The chapters break down by Crafts, In the Garden, In the Kitchen, Inspired Storage, and Lighting and Lanterns.

I'd love to try and make -

From Crafts: 

• Lucky Bamboo Water Garden
• Tissue Paper Tumblers

From In the Garden:

• Mason Jar Bird Feeder
• Jar Band Wind Chime

From In the Kitchen:

• Dark Forest Trail Mix
• Pineapple-Infused Vodka
• Homemade Butter in a Jar
• Fruit smoothie in a Jar
• Night-Before Granola
• Yogurt Breakfast Sundaes

From Inspired Storage:

• Swizzle Stick Pop-up Holder
• Wine-Not Desk Organiser
• Clip and Binder Holder

From Lighting and Lanterns:

• Moonbeam Stakes
• Vintage Firefly Lantern

I am not much of a crafter so the projects I would be most interested in are probably on the easy side, but there are more challenging projects for the craft inclined!

Overall the book was very well researched and I thought the projects weren't just cute, but actual things people would want to try out!!

notes: I was given a copy of Mason Jar Nation by JoAnn Moser to review by the publisher, Cool Springs Press. Retails at £11.99 and available now from your local book retailers or online! All opinions are my own, I was not given any other compensation nor was I asked to give a positive review, please see my contact/policy page for more information.

Rainbow Birthday Cookie Jar!!

It was my friend Louise's birthday yesterday! We don't normally exchange gifts, but as we meet earlier in the week for dinner (sushi!!) I couldn't show up empty handed! So, of course it's my first thought to bake something.

However she is doing so well on her weight loss journey that I didn't want to sabotage it with a big batch of something that would need to be eaten within a few days. In comes the jar idea! I did look around and found the cowboy cookies in a jar on Bakerella's blog so I went with that. I changed the name to Rainbow Birthday Cookies!!

Here's what I did and/or changed to work for people in the UK (sorry I still used cups!!)

layer your jar in this order 
1 1/3 cup all purpose flour, spooned into measuring cup & leveled
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup cooking oats
3/4 cup m&ms I used Smarties
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate chips
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 – 1/2 cup pecans or walnuts, chopped



I put a cupcake wrapper to cover the lid and I made my label with an iPad app that I printed off and layered on colored paper.

I hand wrote the instructions which are:

add: 114g butter, soft (1/2 cup or 1 stick); 1 slightly beaten egg; 1 teaspoon vanilla
to make: Pre-heat oven to 180C/350F Pour jar contents into a large bowl, stir to combine. Then beat in butter, egg, and vanilla. Roll into 1 inch balls (walnut size) and place 2 in apart on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.

I've told her that it's probably best to use within 6 months although I did see some say that her's were good up to a year? Not sure I would push it that long. Baking powder/soda would probably lose their potency.

This was fun and easy to make! A perfect gift!!
Omit the nuts, of course, if the receiver is allergic.

Update: she couldn't wait!
And was kind enough to send me some pictures!!
:0)

Homemade Laundry Soap by Janet!!

I found the recipe for this homemade laundry soap here!

I found everything at WalMart. Here is what I used:

1 (4lbs, 12oz) box of Borax

2 (2lbs) boxes of Arm & Hammmer
Baking Soda. There is a larger 4lb box, it just wasn't available when I looked.

1 (3lbs, 7oz) box of Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda

3 bars Fels Naptha or Pink Zote laundry bars

3 (1lb, 3 oz) containers of OxyClean. You want around 3lbs of some oxy cleaner for stains and such, but it's optional. I used even more because we're hard on clothes. Also, I would have gotten the store brand to save $, but they were out.

1 (13.2 oz) container Downy Unstoppables for fragrance.

I put a trash bag in my roasting pan, grated the Fels Naptha on our cheese grater, and combined all ingredients using a wooden spoon. Then, I poured it into a 1 gallon glass container. I used a scoop from the OxyClean container for my laundry soap. I used 1 Tbsp per load.

My total cost was $31. But without the OxyClean and Downy, it would be around $12. This batch, for me, should last around 6 months.

I have a HE washer and it worked great! Better even than the Target brand liquid I was buying, and it smells great!
 ~ Janet

grated Fels Naptha

Addition of the Downy Unstoppables

Finished and Ready to Use!!

Please note this is not for consumption!! I know my blog is usually full of baked goods, but this is right up my alley as I'm always looking for ways to save money with homemade stuff!! I haven't done my research but I plan to look for all ingredients or suitable subsitutes here in the UK and will update you!! Thank you Janet for sharing!! x Lisa