Shopping Switch-ups

 Aging has made me cranky in my shopping habits. For one thing, I have really gotten tired of bad food ingredients. That's why I post so much about finding better ingredients. Another thing is, I'm tired of buying things I like only to have them go up in price and go down in quality.

The Switch from Wax Melts to Incense

I love having my living space smell nice. I think it helps my mood when there's a nice scent wafting in the air. My favorite home scents are of the lemon-vanilla variety. For years I bought these ScentSationals wax melts called Iced Lemon Sugar Cookies. LOVE the scent. I would try to buy them in the multi-pack and the scent used to last forever. Everyone in my family associated that scent with my house. Then, suddenly, the scent didn't last as long. I'd have to replace the cubes almost daily I thought I was getting nose blind, so I gave that scent a rest. Nope. The quality had definitely gone down.

I tried other brands of wax melts and some oils to use in the warmer. I found some really nice scents. One of my favorites was an oil from Virginia Candle Supply. It was lemon-vanilla scented, and I would use it with some soy was. Then they discontinued the scent. Even now, when I try to find it, it comes up as another name. I like to know something is going to be available so I stopped using them on a regular basis. VCS is great though so I'm not knocking the site and will use them occasionally.

Anyway. After trying different melt and such - the best smelling ones didn't last or were way too pricey - I gave up. For a while. Then...

I found these incense powder bricks (this one is a favorite) and love them. Of course, the scent is nothing like the lemon-vanilla that I love so much, but it smells amazing. It's an ambery-musk-cedar type of scent and reminds me more of a light perfume. 

Now I do NOT like incense of the normal type from my '70s youth. I detest that kind if incense. But I do love UAE perfumes and that is what this reminds me of. It's not sweet and exactly feminine; it's more the way I picture a Eastern boutique or spa smelling.

The best thing about the bricks is that they last and last and last. They work best with t much hotter warmer than those used for wax melts. The "Bakhoor burners" get real hot real fast. I got one for cheper than I could get a multi-pack of those wax melts... I generally turn mine on for about 10 minutes at a time. So that's what I'm using now.

The Switch from Euro & American Perfumes

This is something you know all about it you've come near this blog in the past year. I started with the sprays and now I almost always by the oils.

If you to see my quick reviews of the ones I have gotten to sample or buy, here ya go. 

The Switch from Random to Specific Food Choices

Again, you might have seen my posts on this. I started making my own sandwich bread at home and realized I wasn't putting on a pound for every slice I ate. Recently I have been making Focaccia almost twice a week for myself and my brother's family. Again, not putting on weight.

I no longer buy just anything as far as food. I check the lists that compare ingredients and potentially toxic additives. I have a whole list of YouTube channels I follow just because they keep up with this sort of thing.

Soon I will be putting together a page of all the posts I've done about food and ingredients. For now, here are some:

• Being Free: What Is the Function of the FDA?
• Being Free: **Food Revolution** Replacement for Old Bay Seasoning
• Being Free: UPDATED With Recipe **BREAD MAKING** Artisan Bread Is SO Easy (Kind Of)
• Being Free: **UPDATE #2** My Personal Food Revolution (and Good Chop)

Now that I think about it, I should make a page of all the useful YouTube channels...

I just wanted to rant with yall for awhile. I am trying to make myself stay busy. I got my second shingles vaccine and, man, that is no joke. I kind of recent vaccines but I am so afraid of my current health issues getting worse. This vaccine tried to kill me. I am having head and muscle aches and I am more wipe out than usual. Hopefully, it will pass quickly!

Peace

--Free

**RECIPE** Focaccia (It's Not Difficult)

 Thanks to The Apron on YouTube, I have learned to make Focaccia at home. I can't spell it all the time, but...

When I told SIL and one of my brothers that I had made Focaccia, I'm not sure they believed me. I would not have. However, here is the video I used and trust me, if I can do it, you can do it.

This is the video for The Apron's easy Focaccia. 

If you are like me and have comprehension issues, do what you need to make it work. I suggest printing the recipe out in large print, numbering the steps and highlighting any important tips. My SIL who has no comprehension issues, just wrote out the recipe and put it in her card box.

Here are some examples of what I managed to put out: 

The first mostly successful attempt

The 3rd much better attempt

The 3rd one baked

Of course, I'm not going to show anything that I screwed up royally! 😂

Because I have learned a couple of things, my next attempt should be my best. For one thing, my original baking pan was too small. I went up a size, so the last one was better. However, I might need to go up a teeny bit more in size... Also, I did have to dig out a much bigger dish for overnight proofing. 

As far as overnight proofing, I couldn't figure out the best size bowl to use. Someone online helped me to figure out that for the recipe I was using (with about 600 grams of flour with high hydration), I needed at least a 5.5-to-6-liter container. I dug around in my storage and found my Sterlite container (not big enough at 4.4 liters) so... I finally managed to find a 5.5-liter tray-style container (exactly like this one). My online source thinks this will work. Fingers crossed.

source

Once I realized how easy it is to make Focaccia, I wondered if there could be ways to make more variations. Of course, I know about the garlic-cheese and the herbs, but I was thinking dessert Focaccia. And, yes, there are recipes for that.  Here's a page from Chef's Bliss and a whole guide from My Daily Sourdough. I haven't done any sweet one yet. I'm just happy not to have to buy bread.

I am so thankful the The Apron. The recipes are so easy to follow and the demonstrations are very clear and helpful. 

Before I go, I have to say that not only is baking my own bread healthier for my diet, it has also been a mental help. On my worst days of depression, if I can think clearly enough, spending time making bread is a coping mechanism. I was having a bad time a few weeks ago, and I realized that the time spent working with the dough and going through the process to create something was better than any medicine doctors could give me. I thank God for learning how to bake a little.You let me mess around and find something that can help me think clearly... Watch out, world!

Peace

--Free