Favorite Recipes

I love food, always have. Food is comforting, whatever mood I'm in. Tired, stressed, happy, depressed, I have favorite foods for all my moods! I also love to create dishes, I seldom follow a recipe without adding my own little touch. Today I thought I would put one of my favorite recipes here.

Now, being from Minnesota (I say that with a Minnesotan accent, of course--long ooooo), you would think I can't make anything spicy. That's the generalization about us. I'm different because I love spicy--not just hot, but flavorful. LOTS of flavor! One of my favorite foods is Guacamole and mine has lots of great flavor. So here goes, and if you try it, make sure you get (or make) really good, fresh tortilla chips to go with it. A cocktail goes well with it too!

Keep in mind that all recipes are just "guides". Do what you want! If you don't like one of the ingredients, don't add it; add something else that you DO like! But make it sing with flavor. Life is too short to eat boring food!

Barbara's Guacamole

2 ripe avocado, mashed with a fork (leave some chunks for great texture)

Tomato, sliced into chunks for about 1/2 cup (I use Roma or grape tomatoes, something with sweet flavor)

Garlic, fresh or pickled (how much is up to you--I put in at least 6 cloves, but then we LOVE garlic! Please, please, please do not use the garlic in water that comes in a jar. There's no flavor in it! Don't waste your money.)

Onion, chopped, about 1/3 cup (use sweet onion, red onion, scallions, or a combination)

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1 Tablespoon Lea & Perrins Worchestshire sauce (best in the world)

1/2 cup sour cream

Cumin to taste (I add at least 1 Tablespoon)

What else can you add? Try 1/2 cup of sliced black olives, jalapenos, banana peppers, whatever you like.

Mix all ingredients together carefully, you do not want to smash the tomatoes. Then--and this is the hardest part--let it sit a while in the fridge. It gets better the longer you let it sit. The flavors meld together to form the most delicious concoction you've ever tasted. But if you're like me, you're probably opening the fridge every 10 minutes to "just have a taste". Next thing you know, half of it is gone and you're deciding if you should just eat the other half and not tell anyone you even made it. (Make sure you wash the dishes so no evidence is left at the scene of the crime.) Or hey, make another batch!

There you go, this is my secret guacamole recipe! Enjoy! I did yesterday and it was fantastic!

The More I Learn, the More I Realize I Don't Know

Over the past year, I've done a lot of research. I've probably learned more than when I was back in college, but maybe that's just because I have more control over what I'm learning. I'm learning because I want to. And I've definitely learned more than I learned in my previous corporate job (in 7 years), but we aren't going there.


I'm becoming more active in our real-world community, which is also opening up doors to learning new things. For example, who to talk to about what, who to get quotes from on products and services, where to advertise what, and of course who not to talk to and why. I'm learning about all these neat little niche communities and websites and magazines. I've always known there were thousands out there, but then you learn about one or several in your own backyard and wow! I didn't know. (Why didn't I know?)


My real world is expanding and I'm feeling smaller and smaller. I know that's normal, look how big our world is! And it's composed of millions and billions of littler worlds. Wow, it can really be overwhelming. There's times when I just want to draw a hot bath, lock the bathroom door, and keep the world out. I never actually get to do that, of course, but the thought is often present!





Thank goodness for good friends to help keep me sane, or at least put up with me while I lose it! And big thanks to my little dog, Shamus, who is a good listener while I rant and rave. He doesn't repeat anything he hears and seldom complains about my insanity.

I'm going to my first Chamber of Commerce event soon, we'll see how that goes. Who knows, maybe I'll learn something?

Looking Back

It's now the new year and I am very positive and hopeful for a bright one! Maintaining a positive attitude can be difficult at times, especially when the daily news is so full of "bad people" as my 8-year-old son calls them, and how the media seems to concentrate on negative events, crime, and such. I truly enjoy watching shows like CBS Sunday Morning, which posts stories on real people or history or current events in a factual fashion. And I can never get enough of Ben Stein telling it like it is.

For the past few days, everyone is talking about how bad the past decade was. It is what you make of it! I try to think of the positive, find that silver lining in everything. As I look back, every time I hit a rock in the road, the unexpected turn onto that side road led to something so much better. I've lost jobs several times due to corporate downsizing or restructuring, only to find a better one. I married the wrong guy, but then found my soulmate. So we must keep that positive attitude, something better is bound to be around the corner, whether it's finding that job, that mate, or the economy! To the media pyranhas out there, here is my message--please stop accentuating what's bad and start concentrating on the people that are helping to do good in the world. There are many of them out there!

Okay, I'm done now, I just had to get that off my chest. Now I can concentrate on making 2010 the best year ever! And what can you expect from us? We've been researching in our spare time...at some of our customers' requests. So new products are on the horizon. And we hope to make a few small changes to our website, mostly behind the scenes. Everything we do is to make a better experience for everything Heaven and Earth Essentials! And of course, we will continue to take your suggestions. Thank you for everything in the past year, and we hope to continue to work with you in the future!

October Ramblings and Holiday Elegance Collection

I normally LOVE this time of year--the crisp, autumn air smells like leaves, there's lots to do outside, shopping for pumpkins and decorations and playing with kids. This year, however, it's been gloomy, rainy, snowy, and just plain yucky. They keep saying on the news that we are setting a record for lack of sun. Oh yes, please, keep telling us that! It really helps everyone's mood.

So I've been keeping busy inside as much as possible. Cooking (mostly big pots of yummy soup), sewing (the little fabric bags for HAEE orders), and playing with my perfume goodies! I know I should be cleaning, but I like a sunny day for that (with the windows cracked open and the stereo blasting). Because we have no sun, I'm not going to clean. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I recently sent out sample bags to Snowberry Creek, but in order to do that, I had to have my Holiday Elegance Collection ready to go. So I spent a few days playing and I ended up with 13 scents for the collection! Once I got started I just couldn't stop. After we make the scents, we test them on people and in rooms. (Some scents make incredible soy tarts and candles, some make wonderful bath and body products. In my opinion, there's scents I'd definitely have in my house but that I wouldn't wear myself, and vice versa.)

So without further ado, here is the list of scents and a brief description. These will be added to the website in November. "Holiday Elegance 2009" consists of:

Winter's Kiss--pretty, girly, perfumy, like the first snow glistening on the ground.

Torcolato--the name belongs to an Italian dessert wine. This one is a little sweet, heavy, and lightly spicy. It too would make an incredible dessert wine.

Snowbunny--I used to downhill ski and I remember going into the lounge after a long day on the slopes and having a rich hot chocolate with Peppermint Schnapps, whipped cream, and little marshmallows. This is it!

Ice--not the kind you find here in Minnesota on the lakes! No, we're talking diamonds here. Clear, brilliant, attention-getting.

Gift of the Magi--this is one of those scents that sneaks into your senses, grabs hold, and doesn't let go...I'm a big foodie, this is not a foodie scent, but I love it and can't get enough! It's lightly floral. One of my new favorites!

Caramel Embrace--Here's a foodie, it's OMG yummy! It's a White Russian drink meets Caramel. It's fantastic as a Whipped Sugar Scrub or Shine On Shampoo!

Winterberry Musk--this scent is Christmas in a bottle! It's greenery, it's pomegranates, it's musk. I just had to test this with soy tarts and it made my house smell so wonderful I wanted to start putting up decorations! (It's not even Halloween yet.)

Chateau Noel 2009--continuing the tradition that Michele started several years ago, we have our Chateau entry. Noel smells sexy and mysterious.

Christmas Moon--a holiday delight, this is reminiscent of sugar plum fairies, sugared nuts and fruits, and light spices.

Krumkake--a Norwegian tradition, Krumkake is a dessert that I grew up with. This scent is so close you'll want to eat it.

Coconut Truffle--another dessert foodie and I love it! Yay, my favorites all wrapped in one--rich, dreamy chocolate, coconut, a creamy filling. Try this as a Whipped Sugar Scrub, Shine On Shampoo, or Damage Remedy Conditioner! You can't handle it as a lotion, because you'll be licking it off all day.

Hazelnut Cappucino--exactly what you'd think--creamy, dreamy, delicious!

No name yet--a sexy, dark fragrance, great for men! With fabulous Oakmoss, Sandalwood, Vetiver, it will knock your socks off. Or his. (There's a kitten?)

On Being a "Maker"

A funny thing happened the other day...I was really, really stressed out because too many things were going on and I was being pulled in too many directions at once. I kept thinking to myself, "All I want to do is be alone with all my ingredients and create a coffee scrub...why can't I just do that?" It's my comfort zone--creating something. It's also my obsession. It often doesn't matter what I'm creating, just that I AM creating. It's the process, it keeps me going.

It also gets me in SOOOOO much trouble! I have issues saying "no" to people because in my mind what they ask will "only take me a few minutes". Hahaha, yeah right. My head knows better, but my heart always wants to help out. (So I can sleep later in the week, or maybe next week....)

I made it through that day and took care of the hundred or so things on my list, and the next day too. But the first open spot on my schedule was filled with the creation of a spectacular coffee scrub! I enjoyed every minute of it, looking like a mad scientist in her laboratory, adding a little bit of this, a little bit of that, sneaking in bites of really good chocolate to keep me going. So now I'm good for a little while.

Or so I thought...

This past weekend I bought a drop-spindle so I can make my own yarn from various types of fiber. I'm starting with alpaca and we'll see how that goes. I have to laugh at myself because I already have tons of crafty hobbies that I do not have time for...ah well, what's one more?

Inspirations from Nature's Bounty

Yes, I'm writing again about soap! It's now the dog days of summer and we are in the midst of a bounty of delicious fruits and vegetables, grown and harvested by our own hands. What a beautiful way to celebrate nature's bounty than to make soap from it all!

I just finished creating Pumpkin and Flax Seed Bars, Apple and Honey Soap, and Alex's Fresh Cucumber Soap! The honey is from our bees, the apples from our tree, and Alex grew the cucumbers. At almost 8 years old, he is really getting into growing vegetables; he goes out every day and checks to see what is there. And he is quite proud of the fact that they are organic! I'm just glad that he is aware of what that means.

Next it will be carrot and zucchini soap, I think the bars will be very pretty. A woman I know asked if I would create soap with Dill, I'll have to go to the farmer's market and get some to try it out. I just have to come up with ideas of what to combine it with and what recipe to use.

Last week I also made a batch of Margarita Soap! I was at the local liquor store getting a bottle of Port (which will make a very fine soap for Winter!), and spotted a bottle of pre-made Mango Margarita on sale. "Why not try that in soap?" I asked myself. OMG, it is fabulous. It's curing right now, but smells incredible--I added Mango, Pineapple, and Juicy Lime for fragrances. Smells good enough to drink and the bars are absolutely beautiful. (By the way, yes, the guys at the liquor store think I'm crazy!)

I have also finished creating our Autumn Harvest 2009 Collection, which will be released in September. Ooooh, I have some yummy fragrances coming out! Some are dark and sexy, some are light, and oh yes, we have some foodie desserts as always. You just can't go wrong with pumpkin for fall! Here are the names and brief descriptions:

Echoes of Madness, dark, with Sandalwood, sexy

King's Library, very autumn-y (this one is my favorite), named after one of my favorite authors

Sorceress Sculd, a Norsk warrior and sorceress, with Nag Champa, perfume-y

Butter Rum Blondie, a butterscotchy brownie that makes an awesome sugar scrub (you'll want to chew your arm right off)

Tortured Soul, very complex

Bonne Bouche, french for an elegant tidbit (dessert), a decadent, creamy, white chocolate, almond biscotti cookie, very fattening

Arabella, light but with Tamarind Nectar, spices, rum, and baked apples

Pumpkin Honey Spirits, a truly fantastic dessert fragrance with pumpkin, honey, several kinds of cake, vanilla bourbon, and spices. This one makes an awesome soy tart, your entire house smells like an expensive boutique in the fall!

Candy Corn, of course, we offer this every fall, makes an excellent sugar scrub or shampoo

I recently released a new scent called L'Exploratrice Indomptable as a request for our new friend Rachel. Scott loves it on me, told me I should wear it instead of my dessert scents. (I'll add it to my collection, but nobody tells me to get rid of my foodie scents! LOL)

New for fall, we will also be offering a solid shampoo bar for dogs, shaped like a dog bone! It's called the Pampered Pet Shampoo Bar and makes a great gift, stocking stuffer, and it's good for the dogs! No nasty chemicals, it's good for their coat and skin, and it smells wonderful.

That's it for now, back to work!

A Ride in the Moonlight

I had the opportunity last evening to do something I've never done before, which made me feel closer to the land than I've ever been. The moon was full, looking like a giant peach, and hanging low in the sky. I was driving an antique John Deere tractor pulling an even older hay rack through a field, while another pioneer-type loaded small square bales on the rack. By the time we finished, the rack was loaded with over a hundred bales, the sky was black as coal, but that beautiful moon was still watching over us.

It took a long time to perform this task, the old tractor slowly putt-putting through the field, stopping here and there. But I can imagine that 70 years ago, this was an incredible marvel that greatly increased feed production. What excitement it must have caused! Today, combines and tractors cruise through the fields with computers, A/C, stereo systems, and GPS to guide them. I think the farmers are losing their touch with the land with this technological separation.

But I got in touch with it last night on a wonderful, satisfying moonlit ride that I will never forget. I now appreciate those bales of hay more than ever, because a lot of sweat and hard work went into each one. And I got to help.

New Love

My newest love is a handsome guy, a little on the short side, but sweet and a gentleman. I've named him Prince Norbert as he needed a regal name. He's a 4-year-old Hackney and he's broke to ride and drive. He's lean and muscular, almost all black except for the white socks on his rear legs and a white smudge on his nose. It looks like he got all dressed up for a night on the town, but forgot his dress socks.

Next to our Belgians he looks like a toy, but he'll pull the antique buggy and sleigh we have with no problems. He has a fancy gait, it looks like he's dancing when he walks. He'll do very well in the parades next year and I'm very pleased that he found and adopted us.

Welcome to our family, Prince Norbert, we will treat you like royalty. And it will be a pleasure to feed you some of that full-moon-harvested hay.