I have been making this recipe for years and we love it.  I love it because it is not only delicious, it is super easy.  You simply put the ingredients in your bread machine and make the dough, then put the dough in a pan and bake in the oven.  ​

You might ask, Why not bake it in the bread machine?  I don't like the shape of bread that I have baked in my bread machine.  I much prefer the more natural looking shape of a bread pan and the warmth and aroma of baking in the oven. ​

Anyone else been baking more during quarantine?  There is something so wonderfully comforting about both the process of making something and enjoying the fruits of your labor (although this is really not difficult).  

If you don't have a bread machine, you can see the original recipe at Tammy's Recipes.  Her original recipe is for whole wheat bread.  

Homemade Bread

1 cup warm tap water 
1 tablespoon milk or coconut milk
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons coconut sugar or brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour 
2 teaspoons dry yeast 


1.  Put all ingredients in the bread machine in the order listed.

2.  Run your machine on the dough cycle.

3.  When the dough cycle is finished, take the dough out and shape into a loaf in a greased bread pan.  Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place for 30-45 minutes or until doubled.

4.  Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

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I received this product for free from Moms Meet (momsmeet.com) to use and post my honest opinions. Compensation for this post was provided and this page may contain affiliate links.

I have been giving my kids probiotics for a couple of years.  They take them daily which helps with regularity and overall health.  The boys are rarely sick and hardly ever have any tummy issues.  I do think probiotics have made a positive impact on their health.  

The boys tried Wakunaga of America Kyo-Dophilus Kids Probiotics and they love them!  They are easy to chew, vanilla flavored tablets.  There is no refrigeration required making them easy to store and take along on trips.  

It is amazing what a difference probiotics have made for the boys.  I remember years ago before we introduced probiotics, more issues with upset tummies and constipation.  I can't say they never have any issues, but they are very rare.  I have four very healthy boys full of energy running around (full time now that they are out of school).  They spent the entire day outside in the creek, climbing trees, and in the barn and pastures.  

Did you know 70% of your immune system is located in your gut (your gastrointestinal system)!  It's amazing when you think about it.  

Kyo-Dophilus Kids Probiotic maintains good bowel regularity, relieves occasional digestive discomfort, and promotes healthy immune function.  Wakunaga of America Kyo-Dophilus Kids Probiotic is available to purchase at local health food stores, Sprouts Farmers Market, Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers, as well as online at Swansons Vitamins and Amazon.  

Life has really been crazy lately.  We are all homeschooling now or maybe you could call it co-teaching since teachers are sending the work home and grading it.  All we have to do is help our kids and make sure they do their work and learn something.  It is a big change for all of us though.  We are all together all of the time which means there is less quiet time, more meals to serve, more dishes etc.    We have lots of space and luckily the weather is warming up so the boys go outside a lot, but there are still moments when they are so loud and just generally driving me crazy that I have to send them outside.  We all need to make sure we get lots of fresh air and sunshine and this mama needs a break every now and then!  I should make it part of our routine, Mom's afternoon break, except we should call it something fun like recess or outdoor adventure.  Everyone goes outside and Mom gets 20 minutes of quiet and a cup of hot tea.  Sounds like a plan.   (Today the boys are outside digging for worms...I love living in the country!)

With busy households and limited grocery options right now I know a lot of you are wondering what to make for your families.  I went through all the recipes on Home Ec @ Home and selected eight of our favorite slow cooker recipes that rely heavily on pantry and freezer ingredients.  I hope you find something useful.  Here is a link to more slow cooker recipes.

Butter bean soup is one of my favorites because it is delicious, easy, and budget friendly.  The ingredients are mostly pantry items.  I keep a jar of minced garlic in my fridge since its so easy to use and I cook a lot.  Onions can keep for a month or two in a cool, dry, dark place like the pantry or garage.  They will keep even longer in cooler weather.  If you don't have vegetable broth, use beef or chicken broth or make broth with bouillon.  Butter stores well in the freezer too.  This is one of our favorite simple hearty meals.  The boys love it too.  Such an easy meal to throw together in the morning and have a hot cooked meal at night.  

This slow cooker chicken and stuffing with sweet potatoes is one of our absolute favorite meals.  Simple to prepare and complete comfort food.  Since we are all about pantry and freezer staples right now, there are several substitutions that can be made too.  You can easily substitute boneless skinless chicken thighs for chicken breasts.  If you don't have chicken broth, sub vegetable broth.  You could use any brand of stuffing mix that you could find and since you are only using half the bag, you could just use a smaller boxed stuffing.  If you don't have herb seasoning, use any seasoning you like on chicken or even just salt and pepper.  

An old classic from the archives, Chicken Tortilla Soup,  is super easy to make and it relies heavily on pantry staples like canned beans and corn.  I have always used boneless skinless chicken breasts, but you could use chicken thighs or even canned chicken.  If using canned chicken, it should be ready in less time too.  

This slow cooker potato soup has been one of our favorite meals for years.  I always make the whole package of bacon and serve the extra bacon on the side as a treat for the boys.  Bacon freezes really well so in this time of social distancing and staying in, you can keep a couple packages of bacon in the freezer, thawing it in the fridge when you need it.  This recipe uses simple produce that lasts well, potatoes, onions, and celery.  You can also substitute a can of evaporated milk for the half and half.  

Slow cooker split pea and ham soup is hearty and delicious and it is made from really simple ingredients.  Dry peas, 1 onion, 1 carrot, 1 rib celery, 2 potatoes, butter, ham and a few standard spices come together to create this creamy, filling, healthy meal.  

Slow cooker cuban black beans is always a treat and has really simple ingredients.  Beans store well in the pantry.  You can leave the bell pepper out.  Remember onions and garlic store well and you can keep a jar of minced garlic in your fridge.  You can freeze bacon and thaw in the fridge when you need it.  You can keep chorizo in the freezer until you need it, but I always leave it out because I like it better without the chorizo.  This is pretty versatile.  You can even adjust the seasonings if you need to.  It's a simple, delicious and inexpensive way to feed your family and add some variety to the menu.  

This lazy cabbage roll casserole is always a treat.  Simple ingredients and easy to throw together, it is one of my favorite family meals.  It is great with ground venison or beef.  It does call for a bell pepper, but you could use frozen diced peppers which are a good idea to have on hand in the freezer.  Whole cabbage stores well in the produce drawer in the fridge for 3 weeks up to a couple of months.  

Easy One Pot Slow Cooker Chicken Dinner has been one of my easy, go-to family dinners for a long time.  This one is really easy...layer vegetables and chicken in the crockpot, season, cook on low.  Your house will small amazing and your family will love it.  This is so flexible too, use your favorite chicken cuts or a whole chicken.  Use any kind of potato you want or other root vegetables.  Potatoes will store well too so this is great for meal planning.  

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I've seen the chaos happening around us mostly on social media and online.  It hasn't quite hit our small midwestern town yet.  I went to our local Walmart in our town of 6500 people on Friday morning and it was business as usual, shelves well stocked.  I do not know if they had toilet paper at that point because I didn't check.  I saw pictures from friends and family in other states whose grocery store shelves were bare and was glad that this had not happened in our small corner of the world yet.  

,We were driving to what I'm sure was the last fish fry of the lenten season when I received a text from the kids school.  We found out that our kids will be missing school for a few weeks.  I am glad that they will be home with us, glad that I am home with the kids so it's easy to be flexible in these situations, and glad that my husband's university will be going to online classes.  I know that things are a lot harder for so many others going through this, so I don't take it for granted.  

 We are kind of an unusual family in that we go to two churches on a regular basis.  We have always gone to both Catholic and Methodist.  We get to be part of two church families this way and we always go together as a family.  We still had church today, in fact the kids have one last day of school tomorrow to prepare for their long break.  I know church may be cancelled soon, but I felt so blessed and reassured to be in church today.  

The message was on target with our current situation!  You can listen to it too at fumcduquoin.podbean.com.  The service went much longer than usual.  Since today was a national day of prayer, there was a lot prayer.  I will admit I have felt some uncertainty with all of the news about coronavirus, it would be hard not to, but pastor April was so reassuring.  My mom has been reminding my sisters and I to pray Psalm 91.  Someone in church reminded us all of this verse today during the "sharing praises and concerns" segment.  

The message today was about Shadrach, Meshach, and Abendnego.  We may be in harm's way, but God will be with us, he will not abandon us.  Pastor April said the most repeated command in the Bible is "Do not fear".  Here is the link again, fumcduquoin.podbean.com.  If you need some reassurance listen to this message.  To give you a little background, Pastor April is phenomenal.  She is spirit filled and gives an incredible message week after week.  If you want to fast forward to the message, feel free, otherwise enjoy some good prayer and worship in the beginning.  

I don't say any of this to say you shouldn't be prepared to feed your family over the next few weeks, but to say that we shouldn't live in fear because God is with us.  We will be social distancing with the rest of you and have stocked our pantry so that we don't have to go out of the house, but we will pray and listen to God's command, "Do not fear".  

​Since we are all staying in, I will try to post more recipes especially recipes using freezer and pantry staples.  If you need an easy recipe idea, here is a video I posted on instagram last night.  You can see it on facebook too.  

Even when we cannot attend church in person, we need to take comfort and peace in spending time in his presence.  ​I have two devotionals that I love.  One was gifted to our family at our open house this Christmas.  It is a Guideposts devotional book, the other is Jesus Calling (amazon link).  This is the easiest way for me to spend time with God.  Plus I usually take a moment to look up the Bible verses for each day which gets me in the word.  Whatever works for you and is your easiest way to spend time in prayer and devotion, do.  You will feel more at peace in his presence.  We have the Jesus Calling children's bible stories (amazon link) and the kid's version (amazon link) of Jesus Calling too.  I have been meaning to read these with the boys so with our time off, I want to start on these again.  

I have started doing yoga again on a regular basis (for a couple of months now).  Nothing fancy, youtube videos and a yoga mat (amazon link) .  I love how it makes me feel.  It is so calming and I feel myself getting stronger.  I usually watch yoga with Adrienne (the best), but I recently searched for Christian yoga and found some nice options.  I tried one which included prayer and bible verses while doing yoga.  

Do  what works for you to spend time in his presence and not in a spirit of fear.  

Just for fun, hear is a cute video of my littlest in the rain.