My sweet friend Liz, from Hoosier Homemade, is my guest today. I know you will enjoy her amazing culinary talents!

Thank you so much, Connie, I’m just thrilled to be sharing these cute Cupcakes for The Smockity Kiddos with your readers today!

Hello, Smockity fans! I’m Liz, the Hoosier Momma from Hoosier Homemade. I’m a SAHM of 3 teenage boys, that keep me running with their sports and school activities. I’ve been blogging a little over a year, I share lots of  baked goods, Budget Friendly Meals, and decorating tips and tricks, all to help you “Make Your House a Home.”

These cupcakes are quick, easy and would make great birthday cupcakes, Family Reunion, or even just to celebrate the birth of a new baby.

Welcome, Baby Peyton!

You can start with any cupcake flavor, these happen to be chocolate. I used a Devil’s Food cake mix. I change the ingredients just a little to make them taste like they are from scratch, it also stretches the batter a little.

• Cake Mix
• Oil (same as directed on box)
• 1 cup Buttermilk (1 tablespoon vinegar + enough milk to fill the cup, set aside for 5 minutes)
• 4 large Eggs

Directions:

Mix as usual, and fill cupcake liners, with about 1/4 cup of batter. Bake according to directions on box.

For the Decorations:

I tinted the frosting using Wilton blue and pink coloring.

For the faces, I used Vanilla Wafers, and simply piped on the face with a decorator bag and Wilton Round tip.

For the babies pacifier, I used pink taffy and shaped it into a circle, and cut a white piece of candy and placed it in the center using a small dab of frosting.

Congratulations! Connie! We are all just tickled pink for you!

It is super simple to make homemade pancake syrup! I can whip it up in a jiffy while my pancakes are browning and my kids love to have it fresh and hot!

Homemade Pancake Syrup Recipe

• 2 cups water
• 4 cups sugar
• 1/2 tsp. maple flavoring
• 1/4 tstp. vanilla flavoring

1. Bring water to a boil.
2. Add sugar.
3. Boil for one minute.
4. Cool and add flavoring.

Below is a video showing how quickly and simply you can make your own.

Would you like to know how children can make pop up books? How about making homemade pie crust? For more Tutorial Tuesday tips, click on the image of scissors above.

This post is linked to DIY Day and Works For Me Wednesday.

 This week the 4 Moms are sharing recipes and tips on cooking for a crowd, and by crowd, I mean feeding my family of soon to be 10. For company, I use my old stand bys and double them. If you have a “normal” size family, you can still use these recipes, but you’ll want to cut them in half or plan on eating the same meal all week.

I generally like to go with casseroles or one dish dinners for a company size crowd, since I can make my budget stretch more with additions of rice or pasta.

Here are a few of our favorite recipes:

• Chicken ‘n’ Dumplin’s

• Cavatini
• Chicken Spaghetti
• Mexican Mess

• Life in a Shoe
• Raising Olives
• The Common Room

1. Smockity Frocks 2. Raising Olives – Lentil Chili – Cranberry Roast – Stroganoff 3. Raising Arrows {Lunch for a Bunch} 4. Phoebe @ GettingFreedom(Baked Beans for a Crowd)) 5. Amy @ Finer Things (Cavatini and more) 6. Anita (cooking for a crowd or the freezer) 7. DHM, cooking for a crowd 8. Cyndi L. (Inside out turkey cheese burgers) 9. KimC (pudding, bread, enchilada sauce) 10. Cooking for the multitudes (Balancing Beauty/Bedlam)

11. Linda @ Gluten-Free Homemaker (Mexican Lasagna) 12. Plymouth Rock Ranch (Whole Wheat Pumpkin Spice Waffles) 13. Betty- 14. Alicia’s Homemaking–Bean and Sausage Stew 15. Milehimama (Tips to stretch food and Swiss Steak) 16. HoosierHomemade{Homemade Meatballs} 17. Girls and sunflowers (dressing for the masses!) 18. Gwen T 19. Raising a Quiverfull (Shredded pork tacos) 20. Empty the Pantry Casserole

21. Big pot of yummy Lentil Stew @ Every Precious Joy 22. Vickie (Crock Pot Burritos & Lasagna 23. Amber (Plaza III Soup, Potato-Cheese Soup) 24. Dewey’s Treehouse (White Vegetable Lasagna) 25. NerdFamily Food (Chicken, Spinach and Corn Enchiladas) 26. Angela @ Blissfully Single 27. Mrs. Hearts 28. HoosierHomemade{Make-Ahead Meals} 29. Kitchen Stewardship – 4 kinds of Pasta Salad for a Crowd 30. Olivia@Of Such is the Kingdom (Pasta Salad)

Powered by… Mister Linky’s Magical Widgets.

Welcome to the newest edition of Tutorial Tuesday! Today I would like to show you how to make a super simple pie crust in the food processor that always turns out flaky and delicious!

We use this pie crust recipe for lots of dishes, including dessert pies (duh), chicken pot pie, calzones, and pop tarts.  What do you use pie crust for? Leave suggestions in the comments so we can all add to our recipe collections!

Here are the ingredients you will need:

Homemade Food Processor Pie Crust Recipe

• 1 1/4 Cups flour
• 1 stick of butter
• 2-3 Tablespoons of ice water
• food processor

(Please, do remember when watching this video that the camera adds 40 pounds. Really. I read it. I typed it out and then I read it.)

See more Tutorial Tuesday videos here.

See more Smockity recipes here.

Don’t forget to come back Thursday, April 22 for the 4 Moms “Cooking For a Crowd” link up!

This post is linked at DIY Day and Works For Me Wednesday.

It’s Thursday, which means the 4 Moms are discussing How Moms of Many Manage. This week’s topic is “Cooking From Scratch”. Check out what the other moms are saying about cooking from scratch.

• The Common Room
• Life in a Shoe
• Raising Olives

Just today, a friend of my husband’s was asking him how in the world he can afford to support 10 people on one income. My husband explained a few of the principles we live by, like driving vehicles that are paid for, rarely eating out, and considering “needs” versus “wants” before making purchases.

The friend was impressed that when we want pizza for dinner, we make our own from scratch instead of ordering it or going out to eat.

That conversation got me considering the choices for family dining, in order of expense:

• Eating out
• Fast food
• Preparing convenience foods at home (frozen pizza, frozen lasagna, etc.)
• Cooking with mixes (Bisquick, muffin mixes, etc.)
• Cooking from scratch

Obviously, the more work you let others do, the more expensive it will be. Now, none of these choices will make you more righteous or a better wife or mother, but if frugal is your goal, you’ll want to head to the bottom of the list.

We very rarely eat out or buy fast food, and only use convenience foods if we find a super bargain on them (like the free frozen lasagna I scored with a coupon last month).

I occasionally use prepared mixes if I’m in a serious time crunch, but my goal is to cook from scratch as much as possible. I feel good knowing that I’m saving money simply by mixing the flour and baking soda together myself instead of buying a packet of pre-made mix.

It really only takes a few seconds longer to add the ingredients myself, and I figure if I’m going to get out a bowl and crack eggs into it anyway, I might as well do the rest myself, too.  Every little bit of money I can save is helping our large family manage on one income.

Here are a few of my from scratch recipes:

• Make Your Own Pizza
• Homemade Country Gravy
• Fried Chicken (or Chicken Fried Steak)
• Cake Frosting
• Cracker Jack Snack
• Cavatini
• Our Favorite Cookies (oatmeal/walnut/white choc. chip)
• Homemade Donuts
• Salt Water Taffy
• Funfetti Cake from Scratch
• Chicken Parmesan and Fettuccine Alfredo
• CrockPot recipes

Be sure to come back for my next video in the Tutorial Tuesday series when I will show how to make a simple homemade pie crust on Tuesday, April 20!

And you will NOT want to miss the 4 Moms, 35 Kids series next Thursday, April 22, because we will be having a recipe link up! You will have the opportunity to share your best recipes for large crowds, and when you enter your link on one of our blogs, it will show up on all FOUR!

Would you like to see everything the 4 Moms have written about so far? Click here: 4 Moms, 35 Kids – How Moms of Many Manage

It’s the first Saturday of the month, which means it’s time for “What’s In Your CrockPot?”! Share your favorite CrockPot recipes here and find tons of recipes to add to your collection.

Here is a CrockPot recipe my family has dubbed a winner:

Taco Soup

1 lb. ground beef
1 onion minced
1 can pinto beans
1 can whole kernel corn
1 can Rotel tomatoes
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 pkg. ranch dressing mix
2 cups water

Brown ground beef with minced onion. Drain. Toss everything together into the CrockPot. Turn to low and forget about it for 2-3 hrs. Serve with cornbread or chips and shredded cheese. Top with sour cream. Enjoy?

Now, it’s your turn! What is a CrockPot favorite you would like to share?

Please, remember to link directly to your recipe post and include a link back here, so your readers can enjoy all the CrockPot goodness too.

Are you ready for more CrockPot recipes?

“What’s In Your CrockPot?” will now be a monthly feature on Smockity Frocks, appearing on the first Saturday of every month.  So, get those CrockPot recipes ready, because one week from tomorrow you’ll be able to link up!

And by the way, some of you have asked about my CrockPot up there in the photo. It is called the Crockpot SCRBC759-PS Trio Slow-Cooker Server and you can buy your own by clicking on that link.

Which reminds me. I’m dying to know. Do you call it a “CrockPot” or a “slow cooker”? I have noticed there is a definite opinion on the matter and I would love to see which term is most popular.

Boys and girls, you are in for a treat with some fantastic new features here at Smockity Central. 

I have a few ideas up my sleeve, well, okay… my friends have the ideas and I know a good idea when I steal one! In any case, there will be some brand new coming attractions for you to look forward to at your good ol’ local Smockity Frocks.

Here’s a run down of what to expect coming up real soon!

• “What’s In Your CrockPot?” will now be making an appearance, with a chance for you to link up your own CrockPot recipes once a month! That’s right! Back by popular demand, you will have tons more CrockPot recipes to peruse every month.
• “Tutorial Tuesday” (or some variation of that title) will be coming every week, with videos of yours truly showing step by step, easy “how to” projects you can do at home. I have already filmed the first one, which shows how even a child can make her own book with common household supplies. In future episodes, I will be showing how children can make their own pop up books, flap books, and question and answer books.
• 4 Moms, 35 Kids will be blogging about shopping with little ones, food budgets, menu planning, cooking from scratch, AND MORE, with more live blogging PLUS a recipe link up you’ll be able to participate in! And that is just in the hopper through April! We have homeschooling, household management, raising children, and blogging on the list, too!

So? What do you think?

Are there any tutorials you are dying to see me do? Are you ready to see more CrockPot recipes? What else would you like the 4 Moms to cover?

(Photo by Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures)

Did you know making your own cake frosting is a breeze?  We make our own for most of our cakes using this simple recipe.

Creamy Butter Frosting

• 1/3 cup butter
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 pound (3 1/2 cups) sifted confectioners sugar
• 3 to 4 tablespoons milk

Preparation:

Cavatini is a family favorite at our house. Whenever I make it, I always make sure I have disposable aluminum pan on hand so I can freeze one to giveaway if there is a family in need.

If you like lasagne or spaghetti, you’ll like this hearty dish.

Cavatini Recipe

2 9×13 pans
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, chopped
12 oz. pkg. Italian Pasta Trio (tube, curly & shell pasta)
2 32 oz. jars Prego spaghetti sauce
2 sm. cans mushrooms, drained
2 lbs. hamburger
1 lb. ground pork
1 pkg. pepperoni slices
Mozarella cheese, grated to cover top

Brown hamburger and pork, onions and bell pepper. Put sauce, mushrooms and pepperoni in a large pan. Add browned meat and simmer about an hour.

Cook noodles. Drain. Add noodles to sauce mixture. Put in pans and cool. Cover with cheese. Bake 10 minutes at 400. Make one to eat and one to freeze.

This post is linked at Tasty Tuesday.

**Remember this Thursday is the big launch of the “4 Moms, 35 Kids” series! You won’t want to miss it!