Five Simple Things

Wordless Wednesday

2020-08-12T10:30:00.004-04:00

Happy Wednesday!

#wordlesswednesday

Wordless Wednesday May 30

2018-05-30T05:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Wednesday!

#wordlesswednesday

Preserving Fresh Lettuce - Salad from a jar

2016-09-13T06:00:00.000-04:00

I'm a salad-lover!

I could eat a salad every day,

and I usually do.

Yet I'm always throwing away

lettuce that has turned brown or wilted.

note: I don't actually throw it in

the trash bin, it goes to the chickens/compost.

Well, no more!!

(cue dramatic "ta-da"music here)

I now preserve my lettuce in canning jars

with my handy dandy FoodSaver vacuum sealer.

We purchased jar sealers for both regular

and wide-mouth. These use the accessory

hose that comes with most FoodSaver models.

Here's how we do it!

We use a mix of lettuce, whatever

we're growing along with store-

bought.

1. Chop it into bite-size pieces.

2. Wash and DRY it really well

in your salad spinner or with

paper towels.

3. Pack your mix of lettuce into

mason jars. Push in as much

as you can!

4. Place a lid* on the jar.

5. Place the jar sealer over the lid.

6. Attach the hose to both the jar

sealer and your machine, hit

the vacuum button.

7. When it is finished, DETACH

the HOSE from the jar sealer

first. You should hear a ping.

8. Then remove the jar sealer from

your mason jar. Test the lid to make

sure its sealed!

9. Keep your jars in the refrigerator

for up to seven days.

That's it.

* you can use new lids (and still use them for canning later) or

you can reuse old lids as long as they aren't too banged up.

Also, this works for quart or pint jars.

I use a pint because that is a perfect serving size for me.

We have been doing this for well over a year now.

You can experiment with different lettuce. More delicate leaves/spinach, I know just starts to turn by the seventh day. However, more sturdy leaves such as romaine will last longer.

This is a huge time saver during the week. For lunch, I simply

grab a jar, empty it onto my plate throw on a few toppings and

I'm good to go!

I have a friend that takes a jar with her to work each day, she puts

her toppings in another container; grabs both on her way out the

door.

I'm all about prepping for one day,

so I can eat for a week.

Do you have any prepping shortcuts

to share??

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Happy Labor Day 2016

2016-09-05T14:30:00.000-04:00

Happy Monday!

and

Happy Labor Day

to those celebrating today!

If you have the day off,

I hope you're enjoying it.

September is going to be a busy month,

I'm hoping to stay on top of things and

take pictures to share here on the blog.

Have a blessed day!

Easy Zucchini Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting - Printable Recipe

2016-08-30T05:30:00.000-04:00

Last week I talked about my
stockpiles of shredded zucchini!

So, this week, I wanted to share one

of my favorite recipes to make with

that shredded goodness!

Easy Zucchini Cake

with Cream Cheese Frosting

(printable recipe)

2½ cups all purpose flour

2 cups sugar

1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs

2 cups zucchini, shredded

½ cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

directions:

1. Combine flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt, baking powder & baking soda in mixing bowl

2. Combine oil & eggs; add to dry ingredients, mix well

3. Add zucchini; stir until thoroughly combined.

4. Fold in walnuts, if desired.

5. Pour batter into 13 in. x 9 in. x 2 in. baking pan.

Bake @ 350° for 35-40 minutes.

~Maria Matter http://asimplefive.blogspot.com/

Frosting

4 ounces unsalted butter, softened

4 ounces cream cheese, softened

2 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

directions:

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese with an electric mixer. With the mixer on low speed, add the powdered sugar a cup at a time until smooth and creamy. Beat in vanilla extract.

note:

If you're using your frozen shredded zucchini,

there may be quite a bit of liquid in the freezer bag

after thawing.

DO NOT DRAIN! The zucchini "juice" helps keep

this cake super moist!

Check out some of my other

Zucchini recipes and ideas.

How to preserve your summer squash-zucchini.

Zucchini Bread Gift Set idea

Super Moist Zucchini Bread

My pickiest eater actually requests

this recipe for his official birthday cake!

Yea, it's that good!!

I hope you'll give it a try (:

Have a blessed day!

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Preserving Your Summer Squash - Zucchini

2016-08-23T06:00:00.000-04:00

If you're someone who likes

to share, grow summer squash.

It's a very prolific plant!

We grew green & golden

zucchini summer squash

this season.

Unfortunately, we started

our garden a bit late due

to our May/June vacation

this year and it was just

when the squash "moths"

were laying their eggs.

We didn't notice in time,

and their larvae feasted

on our plants!

#sadface :(

We were able to pick a few before

the vines started dying off.

Most of my zucchini is shredded,

preserved in FoodSaver bags and

stacked in the freezer for later use.

Although you can add shredded

zucchini to a number of recipes

to increase your veggie intake,

our main uses are...

*Zucchini Cake with Easy Cream Cheese Icing,

*Super Moist Zucchini Bread and

*Zesty Zucchini Relish.

I'll provide links above as I share my recipes here on the

blog in the coming days.

We use a food processor with

a shredder blade.

If you have a shredder for your

Kitchen-Aid mixer great, if not

a hand grater would work too!

Then we bag it up in 2 or 3 cup portions.

3 cups for the bread, 2 cups for the cake

and relish. Freeze it flat then stack it to

save space. No blanching required.

You could also slice your zucchini in

rounds and dehydrate it for use in soups

and casseroles.

Sprinkle on some seasonings before

drying them for variety.

Whether you shred it, freeze it or

dehydrate it, Zucchini is easy to

preserve and a great veggie to keep

on hand.

Now, I'm off to bake a zucchini cake!

Do you grow squash

in your garden?

What is your favorite

way to use it?

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DIY Notepad Cover - Recycle, Reduce, Repurpose

2016-08-09T06:00:00.000-04:00

I am definitely a "SHE" -

Sidetracked Home Executive (via Flylady)!

Stationery supplies make my heart happy;

notebooks, journals, papers, pens, markers,

file folders, planners, etc.

So when hubby & I went to some local

yard sales this past weekend and I saw

a fellow "SHE" selling a portion of her

stash, I was like...

Then during a little crafty time,

I created a pretty cover for one

of the notepads I had picked up.

These lovely papers are from Echo Park,

For the Record, they were in my scrap

box along with their stickers & trim.

However, the scraps weren't quite wide

enough to cover my pad so I pieced some

together. It worked out perfectly with a

little washi tape to hide things inside! (:

I even found a little

resin flower to match!

I now have a pretty covered

notepad for my purse...

I like when everything coordinates!!

check out the one

I created for my

Christmas list...

Are you a SHE?

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Easy Melt & Pour Seashell Soaps

2016-08-02T06:00:00.000-04:00

Ah, summertime...

sun, sand, beach, seashells...seashell soap!

Why not!

It's a fun activity to do with the kids!

You'll need a melt & pour glycerin bar

and some seashell candy or soap molds
from your favorite craft store.

Then cut a few cubes from the bar and place

them in a glass bowl for melting.

Pop it in the microwave and heat it

for 30 seconds, stir. Continue heating

it at 30 sec. intervals until melted and

its easy to stir.

Separate the melted soap into different

glass bowls if you want to add color to

your soaps.

Once colored, you'll simply pour it into

your molds and let it sit overnight until

firm.

Then pop them out of the molds to use

or give as gifts.

Simple, huh?!

We used food to color our soaps;

brown sugar, paprika, dark cocoa and

blue "Jello" powder.

Think of the possibilities...

depending on the molds and colors

you use; you can coordinate seasons,

holidays, sports, special events, etc.

side notes:

if you notice bubbles in your melted

glycerin soap-and they bother you-

you can put a little rubbing alcohol

in a spray bottle and lightly spray the

surface of the soap, the bubbles will

dissipate.

Also, if you have older kids, this could be

a great fundraiser project. I've given

you the basic instructions, but you

could get a little more involved by

purchasing soap fragrance and color

gels (a little goes a LONG way!) It can become

rather addictive, be warned!

Have you ever made

your own soap?

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A Baby Giraffe Card - 5 minute cardmaking

2016-07-26T06:00:00.000-04:00

How to make a super quick card.

(I used a digital image and a stamped sentiment for this one.)

After I chose an appropriate image

for my card, the process went like this...

1. print

2. cut to size

3. color

4. attach to card base

5. stamp a sentiment

And in less than five minutes I had

a card.

This can be an important skill to know

when you completely forget you need a

card five minutes before leaving the house

for a party, shower or important event...just saying...

Copic markers, foam adhesive squares,
MFT sentiment stamp, Memento ink, white gelly roll pen.

I dotted the blue spots with a

Sakura white Gelly Roll pen to add

a bit of whimsy but I see they're not

showing up in the photo. {{sad face}}

*side note:

I think this was the last baby card for awhile, I promise. (:

However, if you need more baby card inspiration, click HERE.

Thanks so much for stopping by.

Have a blessed day!

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Simple, Sparkly and Recycled - Birthday Card

2016-07-19T05:00:00.000-04:00

A few months ago, my son

received this cute birthday

card below.

It was bright, fun and sparkly.

And honestly, it was the sparkly

parts that saved this card from

the bin when he was finished with it.

So, with a piece of white cardstock

and a trimmer, a new birthday card

was born. Simple, huh?!

Can you see the sparkly glittery parts???

Oh my heart be still! (:

white cardstock, personal trimmer, foam dots

"So that which is old becomes new."

Works great for Christmas cards too!
Enjoy your day!

What do you do with

your old birthday cards?

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my "But for the Grace of God" bench - Home Decor

2016-07-13T13:00:00.000-04:00

Quite a few years ago, my eldest son

(with a wee bit of help from my carpenter husband)

made me a lovely bench for Christmas.

He left it unfinished so I could

paint it to match where ever I

wanted to use it...so sweet.

It's a beautiful bench, buttery smooth

and I debated whether to just leave it

as is.

Then I was inspired...

Keith Urban 2016

by a Keith Urban song,

"But For the Grace of God!"

It was a #1 hit back in 2001

but it's one of my favorites

from him.

I originally used my Cricut to

cut out a stencil but had major

issues with placement and paint

getting underneath it...what a mess.

So I pretty much free-handed it.

Sketching the letters with pencil,

painting with acrylic then using a

sharpie marker to even out where

my hand was unsteady. whew!

Determination always succeeds!

Hope you're having a great day.

Blessings!

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A Doodlebug Onesie for Baby - Cricut Craftroom

2016-07-08T06:00:00.000-04:00

Welcome to Baby Card Central!

the series continues...

I'm stilling using my Doodlebug Design papers,

they are so sweet!

Cricut Craft Room basics, Cricut, Memento ink,
Doodlebug Designs paper (Snips & Snails),
kraft paper, button, baker's twine, SU! Congrats sentiment

The Cricut Craftroom offers some

basic cuts and this is one of my

favorites for ~~baby making~~ baby

card making! (:

So many babies, so little time.

I believe I have two more cards

to share; another boy & a girl card

finally. Stay tuned.

More baby card inspiration...

CAS Doodlebug Baby

A Rubber Ducky Baby card

Thanks so much for stopping by.
Have a blessed Thursday!

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Cricut Wall Art - Bless This Home - Cutting Vinyl

2016-07-05T10:00:00.000-04:00

Playing with my beloved Cricut,

I made this fun little vinyl sign

the other day.

I had cut out this phrase some time

ago when the Cricut Craftroom had

it for free. (It's now available HERE

for $1.99)

The three boards were cut at 3.5"x12.5"

then glued and stapled together.

After my acrylic paint dried, I placed

the vinyl and made sure there were

no air bubbles.

The vinyl on the paint is "moveable"

at this point using transfer paper if

you need to adjust it but be careful.

I then painted a thin coat of Mod Podge

over it, left it dry overnight and wrapped

the cord around three times. The cord

is knotted in the back and stapled down.

Note:

when cutting vinyl on your Cricut,

your blade should be at 3 and the

pressure at medium.

(I used my Cricut Expression)

Do you use an

electronic cutting machine

for you DIY projects?

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Books to Read - The Summer Reading Program - Are you Signed Up?

2016-07-01T06:00:00.000-04:00

I picked up a book at the library
the other day and saw that their
summer reading program had
started...is it summer already?!

I love to read!
We even have a library room in our
home; the shelves filled with classics
and books I want to read "someday"
...does someday ever come????

So I signed up for the adult read!

If we read at least eight books we'll

be entered to win some fun prizes.

I'm not too concerned with a prize

but I did get a pretty lanyard just for

signing up! score!

So, I'm challenging myself to read

eight books off my "someday" shelf!

My first book is John A. MacMillan's

The Authority of the Believer.

What will you be reading

over the summer?

Any recommendations?

Does your local library have a

summer reading program for adults?

Are you signed up?

Road Trip, a New Journal and Coming Soon on Five Simple Things!

2016-06-29T11:00:00.000-04:00

Gosh, life gets busy,

days go by and all of a sudden half the year is over.

Stop this crazy, spinning world for a moment,

I need to get off!

Virginia IS for Lovers!

So much has happened since I last spoke with you!

We've traveled the highways and by-ways of the U.S.A.

Visited some lovely folk and saw some amazing sites!

Arizona...but it's a dry heat!

Then came home to massive gardening chores.

Daniel built me more garden boxes to fill!

Planting veggies, herbs, trees and bushes.

We're starting a bit late since we didn't want

to plant everything before we traveled, so

we'll see how it all turns out.

purchasing trees & bushes at the nursery.

I also started a new planner system to organize &

journal our exciting life {{grin}}

Super Moist Zucchini Bread - printable recipe

2016-05-18T05:00:00.000-04:00

I'm sharing a long-time family

favorite recipe today!

When our garden explodes with

zucchini every summer, I work

feverishly to process it for the

freezer.

Shredding, measuring and bagging

it with my beloved Food Saver!

The uniformly bagged zucchini

occupies a designated corner of

our chest freezer to be used in a

variety of dishes throughout the

year!

zucchini bread

Adding shredded zucchini to recipes

is a great way to increase your veggie

consumption as it doesn't have a

strong individual flavor.

However, there are two main recipes

in our home that quickly deplete my

pretty little frozen piles; this super

moist zucchini bread and our rather

sassy zucchini relish.

Both are well loved by adults, children

and assorted family & friends!

Today, I'll share our bread recipe...

Zucchini Bread

(printable recipe)

3 eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup oil

3 cups zucchini, shredded

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking Soda

¼ teaspoon baking Powder

3 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup raisins (optional)

1. Preheat oven 350 degrees (Fahrenheit)

2. Beat eggs until foamy

3. Add sugar, mix well

4. Add remaining ingredients, mix well.

Grease & flour 8-9 mini loaf pans, fill half full.

Bake @ 350° for 40-50 minutes.

~Maria Matter http://asimplefive.blogspot.com/

So delicious!

Be sure to pin it for this summer's

zucchini harvest!

Are you a

Zucchini lover?

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Easy Crockpot Mushrooms with Ranch & Parmesan - 4 ingredients

2016-05-12T05:00:00.000-04:00

A simple mushroom recipe!

I am a carnivore!

yep, I'm a red meat eater and

if that red meat is in the form

of a steak, all the better...

and if that steak is topped with

savory mushrooms...well, that's the best!

Only 4 Ingredients

Simply combine the four

ingredients in a crockpot for

four hours then serve!

You can slice the mushrooms

or leave them whole.

I used mushrooms I had

processed and froze from

this past year and they were

actually still a bit frozen when

I put them in the crockpot.

So fresh or frozen, though

fresh is just a bit better! (:

Here's the handy dandy recipe.

Crockpot Mushrooms

(printable recipe)

1 pound mushrooms

½ cup (1 stick) butter

1 ounce (6 tsp.) ranch dressing mix (powder)

2 Tbsp. parmesan cheese, grated

Cook 4 hours on high in Crockpot or until tender.

*note: if you're not using them immediately,

refrigerate in all their juices to reheat later.

Maria Matter

http://asimplefive.blogspot.com/

Delicious!

Like easy recipes?

Check out my

"Easy Recipes"

board on Pinterest.

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Birthday Cardmaking with My Mind's Eye and Paper Smooches!

2016-05-10T00:01:00.000-04:00

Quick morning cardmaking!

When I decluttered my crafting

supplies, oh my, I found that I

had somewhat of a paper fetish!

However, with so many designer

paper pads it's quite easy to be

inspired.

For this birthday card,

MME's Happy Day pad

caught my eye.

Hey Chickie!

My Mind's Eye-Happy Day papers, The Twinery twine,
Paper Smooches-Chubby Chums, Memento ink

So ~~tweet~~ sweet!

Anyone else have

a paper fetish?

I know I'm not alone on this one!

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Giant Soft Sugar Cookies - Printable Recipe

2016-05-03T00:01:00.000-04:00

Giant Soft Sugar Cookies...are there four sweeter words?!

Excluding chocolate chip cookies, these are my favorites!

We have a local grocery store that sells giant sugar cookies,

six to a plastic box. When the kids were little, it would be a

treat to buy a box so we each would get one giant cookie.

Then we found this recipe...and OH are they good...and soft!

As you can see from the title, the cookies are to be made

giant, larger than your average cookie, but I promise the

cookie police will not show up at your door if you choose

to make them regular size. (:

They just seem a bit more special when you can fill up

a plate with four cookies.

Here's the handy dandy recipe!

Giant Soft Sugar Cookies

(printable recipe)

makes 24 cookies

1½ cups sugar

¾ cups butter, melted

2 eggs

1 cup buttermilk*

1 tsp vanilla

3 cups flour

dash of salt

1 tsp baking soda

coarse sugar for topping

Cream together sugar, butter & eggs

Add buttermilk, mix well.

Add vanilla, mix

Combine flour, salt & soda.

Add dry ingredients to bowl, mix well on LOW speed.

Drop large spoonfuls of batter on parchment papered

cookie sheets.

Sprinkle with coarse sugar on cookies before baking.

Bake @ 350° for 10 minutes.

Maria Matter @ http://asimplefive.blogspot.com/

*substitute buttermilk

with 1 cup milk + 1 Tablespoon vinegar,

let set for a few minutes before adding to

the recipe. works great!

Super easy to make, super easy to eat, and they share well!

What's your favorite

cookie?

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A Rubber Ducky Baby card - Cricut Craft Room

2016-04-26T00:01:00.000-04:00

My Doodlebug Designs papers are at it again.

I shared a CAS baby card the other week and

here's the second one in my "baby series!"

This sweet little rubber ducky die cut was made

using my beloved Cricut and a free cart from

the Cricut Craft Room.

Cricut Craft Room basics, Cricut, Inkadinkado sentiment stamp,
Doodlebug Designs paper (Snips & Snails),
kraft cardstock, flower button, jute twine

The rubber ducky song kept going through my

head as I was making this card.

Rubber Ducky you're the one,

you make bath time lots of fun...

I hope this post brought a little smile to your face!

Thanks for stopping by, enjoy your day!

This baby card series will
continue in the coming weeks. (:

If you own a Cricut,
have you ever used the free
online Cricut Craft Room?

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My TO-DO List Altered notebook - Bella BLVD

2016-04-22T09:00:00.000-04:00

Happy Earth Day!

Here's a fun little recycle/upcycle - reuse

project I've been wanting to share.

I am an admitted list-maker, yep, it's right there

on my "About Me" page! Lists are a constant in

my life.

My mind naturally works in lists.

When I have a project to do, I see the steps in

list form before my pen even hits paper.

So where does a prolific list-maker keep her lists?

Notebooks!

But I'm a crafter too, so they need to be

embellished notebooks!

I make one for each season. (:

notebooks - Summer '15 & Winter '16

Recycling or is it Upcycling?

I use the kids old composition books; they

never use all the pages. Would that be

recycling or upcycling?

Upcycling the kids old notebooks.
The used pages are carefully cut out and
the cover is joyfully altered.

Most notebooks have more than half of

their pages unused, in that case I just

alter the cover.

However, my current edition was pretty

much thinned out so I made a quick

bookcover from kraft wrapping paper.

This will allow me to transfer my spring

cover to another book when this one

is finished before the end of the season.

creating a kraft paper book cover

Ironically, some of Bella Blvd's winter papers

were perfect for my spring notebook!

Bella Blvd Winter Wonder design papers were

used, earlier in the year, for both my winter notebook

and my 2016 daily planner, I really liked the color scheme.

Winter '16 with Bella Blvd design papers

My 2016 daily planner using Bella Blvd Winter Wonder papers

spring 2016 To-Do list notebook

Are you a list-maker?
Do you keep notebooks of notes?

For more fun projects...

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5 Favorite Books from My Childhood

2016-04-20T11:30:00.000-04:00

We've been de-cluttering our home for the last two

years. I think I can claim that I'm a minimalist now!

It's a lot of work but it feels sooo good!

And you find things you haven't seen in years.

My mother had kept my favorite childhood books

to pass onto my children, hoping they would enjoy

them as much as I did.

I'm happy to report, they loved them too!

Gus was a Friendly Ghost - I loved how kind Gus

was and how patient he was with that mouse!

We Were Tired of Living in a House - this was

such a wonderful adventure to me and gave me

a warm, cozy feeling when they ended up back

home. Ooops, maybe I should have labeled

that a "spoiler alert"! (:

The Monkey and the Crocodile -

I was impressed at how clever the

monkey was!

Down Down The Mountain -

such a sweet story and a great

lesson that generosity is somehow

always rewarded.

The Strange Story of The Frog Who Became a Prince -

I'm not sure why I like this book so much, maybe the

black & white sketch-like drawings or maybe it was just

a funny story.

I'll admit...when de-cluttering uncovered these books,

I read through each one...and enjoyed them all over

again! (:

Blessings!

Do you remember your
favorite childhood books?

Cheesy Bacon Quiche - Printable Recipe

2016-04-19T11:00:00.000-04:00

Quiche is one of my go-to meals!
And I have an easy one to share with you today.

quiche: (keesh)
is an open-face pastry crust with a
filling of eggs and milk which, when
baked, becomes a custard. It can be
made with vegetables, meat and seafood.

This definition tells me that as long as I have
milk and eggs, I can pretty much dump any
thing else I have in a pie crust and have
dinner on the table in about 30 minutes!

That's a winner in my book.

And the fact that you can "customize"
your quiche for your family puts this
meal over the top!

Today's recipe is a very basic one, you could
switch out the bacon for any meat or seafood
and use any cheese that compliments the
protein you chose.
OR
Use whatever you have on hand; leftovers
work great!

My hubby likes to make a big breakfast for the family

over the weekend; bacon, eggs, pancakes and french

toast. Its a regular breakfast bar.

So this past weekend, I asked him to make some extra

bacon so I could make quiche this week.

Well, you would have thought I spoke in a foreign

language, both my son & hubby cocked their

heads and in unison said, "There is no such

thing as "extra" bacon!"

Ooookay!

So I just bagged some up before bringing it

to the breakfast table and no one even noticed.

This quiche starts simply by putting your pie

crust in the pie plate. Homemade crust or

store bought, both work fine.

Feel free to make a pretty crimped edge,

I just throw my store bought crust in this

time and didn't worry about the pretty part.

Then ~~toss~~ gently place your bacon and

shredded cheese in the crust.

Beat your eggs, milk, salt and pepper together

and pour it into the crust.

Pop it in the oven and in about 30 minutes you'll

be enjoying a yummy meal with your family.

It's that easy!

Here's the handy dandy printable recipe.
I hope you'll give it a try.

Blessings!

Cheesy Bacon Quiche
(printable recipe)

Pastry for 9 inch pie

5-6 stripes of bacon, cooked and crumbled/chopped

1 cup (4 ounces) shredded cheddar cheese

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

4 large eggs, beaten

1½ cup milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven, 375 degrees

2. Fit pie crust into pie plate, fold ends under and crimp.

3. Spread shredded cheese and bacon evenly in pie crust.

4. Beat salt, pepper, eggs and milk until well blended,

5. Pour over cheese and bacon in pie plate.

Bake 30-40 minutes or until set. Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

yield: 6 servings

Maria Matter @ http://asimplefive.blogspot.com/

If you like this recipe,
be sure to check out my
Sausage Cheddar Quiche
it's a bit more spicy!

What's your go-to meal?

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A Clean and Simple Doodlebug Baby

2016-04-13T12:00:00.000-04:00

A CAS baby card

The end of the world is NOT near!

I just thought I would put that out there today.

How do I know?

Because of the un-naturally high number

of babies being born over the next few

months to friends & loved ones!

With all that new freshness coming into our

world...the world can't possibly be near it's end!

Cricut Craft Room basics, Cricut, Memento ink,
Doodlebug Designs paper (Snips & Snails),
My Favorite Things (DC stamps: notched tags)

CAS (clean and simple) cards are

definitely my go-to approach to

cardmaking, it fits nicely with

my minimalistic lifestyle!

Doodlebug Designs: Snips & Snails paper

was perfect for all the baby boys cards I

crafted; love this monkey print!

Then I used my beloved Cricut and the

Cricut Craft Room basics cart, available

for free online, to cut my little onesies.

This design would be great for mass

production but I wanted to get a bit

creative with each of the cards I made.

Stay tuned for a "series" of baby cards

over the next few weeks!

Thanks for stopping by, have a blessed day!

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Springtime Centerpiece - Chicken Wire Flower Cage

2016-04-11T15:00:00.000-04:00

Spring has sprung!

So I thought it appropriate to dust the

cobwebs from my blog and say HELLO!

This past winter season was a busy one
in our home, more on that later but I
wanted to share my first spring project
with you.

A Chicken Wire Flower Cage

centerpiece using recycled bottles

My original idea was to place

single stem flowers in plain

clear bottles spaced across my

table. Cute idea, right?

Turns out it was not very practical

once I needed to move them every

evening for meal time. So hubby

made me this sweet chicken wire cage!

So simple but I'm lovin' it!

general materials used:
soda/beer bottles, labels removed.
flower bouquet (Walmart $3.00),
snipped to separate stems.
scrap wood.
chicken wire.

*side note...we have a very long
farm table (nine foot long) so I
needed at least seven bottles to
make the piece look right. If you
have a normal size dining room table,
and you wanted to make a similar
centerpiece you could probably get
away with using only 3 to 5 bottles.

Sweet & Simple

What do you think?

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