Prepare your home for winter

This weekend we will see some pretty low overnight temperatures. While we have had a pretty mild fall, it looks like the winter will be coming in fast and strong. Now is the time to prepare your home for the really cold winter days. As a homeowner or renter, one of the main things you worry about in the winter is freezing water lines. Frozen lines have the potential to burst and split. The real damage to your home comes when the frozen pipes thaw and water leaks from the cracks and breaks. Often times we are unaware of the issue until it has caused significant damage to the home. 

Here are some pictures of what can happen.

Ways you can prevent this from happening:

1. Know where your shut off valves are located. 
   
2. If you have a crawl space, make sure all vents and openings are closed during the winter and opened again in the spring. If you have an unheated basement, make sure that all openings are sealed. 
   
3. Insulate all exposed water pipes, pipes in unheated basement areas or inside water lines that are near exterior walls. 
   
4. Shut off and drain all outside spigots. If you do not have a shut off for those, you can purchase insulated covers that will protect them. 
   
5. Make sure your heat is set an an appropriate level (especially if you will be away from your home). In the event that the temperatures and wind chill drops below 20 degrees, make sure all cabinets under sinks are open to circulate the warm air onto the pipes. 
   
6. If you are away from your home for an extended period of time over the winter, make sure to shut off the water coming into the home and drain all the pipes to prevent freezing. For seasonal homes, contact a professional plumber to "winterize" your home. They will shut off your water, drain all the water lines and toilets then place anti-freezing agents into the lines. You can contact them when you are ready to inhabit the dwelling again. At this point, they will turn on your water, fill all lines and inspect for any leaks.

Keep the name of your insurance agent handy in case you have a claim. We are always here to answer questions and give you ideas to help you prevent losses.

I hope you have a warm and dry winter!

Barbie Lambert

Manager

Barbie's Apple Pie Recipe

I love having family over for dinner and treating them to some good home cooking! This weekend we had some family over and I made an apple pie. This does not go with our diet, but sometimes you just need some extra goodness. It wasn't too bad for us since after we all had a slice, I gave the rest to my brother-in-law.

I will start by saying, I have not perfected the art of making pie crusts, so I leave it to the professionals (Pillsbury). It saves on time and frustration. I also started with a Betty Crocker classic apple pie recipe and added my own twist.

Ingredients:

1 Pillsbury deep dish pie crust

1 Pillsbury pie roll

8-10 small-medium golden delicious apples (you can use granny smith apples or a mix of both)

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar (not packed)

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (you can use to 1/2 tsp, depending on your tastes)

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup all purpose flour

1 teaspoon of lemon juice

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Peel apples and cut them in thin slices (I cut mine from the outside working in - I don't like to have to core apples). Place the apples in a large mixing bowl. It will seem like a lot more than your crust can hold, but the apples will cook down when you bake the pie. Add the lemon juice, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Mix until apples are evenly coated. Add flour and mix again (the flour helps thicken the juices when the pie bakes). 

Once everything is combined, pour the mixture in to the pie crust (I poke a few holes in the crust so it doesn't bubble up when cooking). Unroll one pie crust and lay over the top of the apples. Fold up the edges of the crust along top rim. Use a sharp knife to place some slits in the top pie crust (this helps the steam vent). I lightly brush the top of the crust with milk and sprinkle sugar and brown sugar on the top.

I usually place some aluminum foil around the edges of the pie crust, making sure to leave the top and vent areas open (this will help the edges from over browning). Place in oven and cook for 40 minutes, then removing foil and baking an additional 10 minutes.

Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

I hope you enjoy as much as we did. Happy baking!

Barbie Lambert

Manager

East Tennessee Mutual Insurance Company