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its that time again, and looking at the tiny mound of silver in the savings jar, the trip to the mall is forgone.
all the saved washed pasta sauce jars from this year are lined up on the table and all the extra left over Easter baskets just raring to be useful!

COCOA
in a large bowl mix,
3 cups powdered baking cocoa
3 cups dry milk
1 1/2 cup sugar (Splenda ok)
2 teaspoons each cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice
sift all together and add a hand full of mini marchpillows (marshmellows)
spoon into as many jars as you wish, cap and set aside

BREAKFAST TREAT
2 cups, old fashion minute oats in each bowl
add a teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg and powder sugar in one
3 tables spoons cocoa and powder sugar in another
2 teaspoons cinnamon and 3 tablespoons rasins
fill each jar with each flavor, cap tightly.

now to dress it up a little, remember those old candle ends laying around? get a small cat food can, and put all the white wax you can find in it, add a few red crayons, and put in a small saucepan with water. once the wax is liquid, turn the capped jars over and dip the caps to the necks, while it cools, take some ribbon to wind around the neck and tie your gift label on. put in basket with some shredded tissue, and fruit and a sprinkle of glitter.

DINNER BASKET
you know those beer bottles you have laying around from the other weekend? well they can be turned into xmas cheer also! after they have been well scrubbed and de-labeled of course!

at any produce section you can find delicious bundles of herbs, we grow our own. a stem each of sage, thyme, rosemary, basil and oregano is placed root first in each bottle forming a kind of mini garden, fill the bottles with olive oil. cap with a cork and put in a little basket with a bag of your favorite whole grain pasta and a chunk of good mozzarella.

I have noticed that some of my giftees have asked that add garlic to the oil. its yummy.