Ribbons for Grace

Genious Healthy Mac n Cheese

2013-01-10T17:48:00.003-08:00

This was such a hit at our house, I had to share:

Ingredients:
1 lb Elbow Noodles
1/2 lb - 1 lb Ham (I used Canadian Bacon, but any kind of ham would be really yummy)
3 Tbs Butter
3 Tbs Flour
2 1/2 Cups Milk
2 Cups Cheese (best if its 1 cup each of two different kinds)
2 Cups Broccoli
Salt and Pepper to taste

How To:
Cook the Noodles.
Heat the Ham
Steam the Broccoli

In whatever pan you used for the noodles, on low-medium heat, melt the butter. Whisk in the flour to form a paste. Pour in the milk slowly, whisking the milk and the paste together. Sprinkle in your salt and pepper. ( don't use any salt because the cheese is already really salty) Add in the cheese, little bit at a time, whisking it in to the milk (it should melt quickly) Make sure that the milk does NOT boil.

Add teh ham, noodles, and broccoli to the sauce.Stir it up. SERVE!

No pictures because this looks like almost any cheesy casserole you might make.

Back in the blogging world again

2013-01-04T13:40:00.001-08:00

Hello long lost blog reading friends!

After the recommendation of a professor, I’m back in the blog world again. This time with a renewed focus, more vigor, and most importantly, a definitely plan.

I’ll lay out my plan and my ideas soon… sorry for the long lapse in fun craft posts, maybe we’ll have time for some of that too now that I’m not taking a full course load of graduate school classes.

Cheers,
M

Quick and Easy Crock Pot Roast

2012-11-15T12:33:00.001-08:00

The saga of feeding your family when you're taking night classes and the solutions I've found are getting better, tastier, and easier. I'll write an update on school and such later. For now, I just need to record this AMAZING recipe.

This one was so easy I couldn't believe it.

Ingredients:
1 bag Trader Joe's potatoes (with some kind of veggies in it makes it the easiest)
2 Cups Beef Broth
Beef Rump Roast
Optional additions: Carrots, Onions, Celery, Green Beans

Put the ingredients in your crock pot and let it go for 4 hours on Hi, 8 hours on low. Serve.

Why have I not known about the wonders of Crock pot meals before now?

Taco Soup

2012-11-12T10:43:00.006-08:00

Needed to post this somewhere so it doesn't get lost in my FB messages. This is a recipe for Taco soup from my dear friend Molly which she found somewhere else.. I'm reposting it here for my convenience and yours too!

Crockpot Taco Soup -
prep time 10 min. - serves 8-10
1 (16 oz) can pinto beans
1 (16 oz) can white beans or 1 (16 oz) kidney beans
1 (11 oz) can niblet corn
1 (11oz) can Rotel tomatoes & chilies
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (4 oz) can diced green chilies
1 (1-1/4 oz) envelope taco seasoning mix
1 (1 oz) envelope ranch dressing mix
1 lb. shredded chicken, ground beef or 1 lb any meat

Instructions:
1) Cook meat and drain.
2) Shred if needed.
3) Add all ingredients to crock pot.
4) DO NOT DRAIN CANS
5) Stir
6) Cook on high for 2 hours or low for 4 hours
7) Keep on low until serving to keep hot.

I'd also like to add celery and carrots the next time I make it.

Raspberry Coconut Sandwich cookies

2012-05-07T14:11:00.001-07:00

This is a modified recipe from one of my cookie magazines.

Yield 2 1/2 dozen

3/4 C Butter
1/2 C sugar
1 egg (OR 1T milled flax seed, 3 T water, set for five minutes)
1tsp Vanilla
2 C flour – (low carb or gluten free? – try Almond flour)
1/2 C flaked coconut
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Filling:
1/4 cup butter
3/4 C confectioners sugar
2Tsp milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 C raspberry preserves

I’m pretty sure that cream cheese can be substituted for the butter, confectioners sugar, and milk part of the filling. and for those of you on low sugar diets, cut the sugar down to 1/4 cup or less. The coconut does a nice job add some sweetness to the dough.

Instructions:

Cream softened butter and sugar, add egg and vanilla and cream together. Combine Flour, coconut, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl and sift together slowly into the mixture. Combine well.

Shape into 1” balls and place on a cookie sheet. Use a glass dipped in flour to flatten them out. Bake for 12-14 min at 350 or until edges begin to brown. Let cool on wire racks.

Beat together butter, sugar, and milk for filling in a small bowl. Spread 1/2 tsp preserves and a short of a tsp of filling onto half the cookies. Top with the remaining cookies.

Enjoy!

Free Pattern: Crochet crayon pocket

2012-05-03T12:47:00.001-07:00

Because sometimes, ziplock bags and cardboard boxes just won’t do for your traveling tot.

This entire project is worked as one piece until the top piece.

Starting with a magic loop, single crochet 6 times into the loop.

Bottom:
Rd1: 2sc in ea, (12)
Rd2: (2 sc in 1st st, 1 sc in next 1 st), repeat 6x (18)
Rd3 (2 sc in 1st st, 1 sc in next 2 sts), repeat 6x (24)
Rd 4 (2 sc in 1st st, 1 sc in next 3 sts), repeat 6x (30)
Rd 5 (2 sc in 1st st, 1 sc in next 4 sts), repeat 6x (36)
Rd 6-10 Sc in ea st. (36)
Rd 11 Sc in 1st 18 sts, ch 1, turn

Opening:
Row 12-23 Sc 36x, ch 1, turn.
Row 24 Sc 36x, ss to join. DO NOT TURN

Resume:
Rd 25- 30 Sc in ea st (36)
Fasten off.
Weave in the tail.

Top:
Repeat rounds 1-5 of the bottom. End with a long tail.
Use the tail to stitch the top onto the bottom using a tapestry needle.

Finished pocket should measure about 5 inches long and 2-3 inches wide. The gauge is not important as long as your stitches are tight and the crayons don’t fall out!

Next up: PLARN

2012-03-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

As if my recycling adventures had not reached an all time high with my upcycled t-shirt yarn bag, I’m am now venturing into the realms of recycled grocery bags!

I never saw a tutorial for making plarn, so I figured it out just for you – all four of my dedicated readers. <sarcastic grin!>

Since WA has new laws going into effect soon about the use of plastic bags at stores, everyone is really into using the reusable grocery bags. Instead of throwing my plastic shopping bags into the recycle like I usually do, I’m now turning them all into plarn and I’m going to make reusable grocery bags out of the grocery bag plarn! (The irony here is killing me!)

Plarn is super easy.

First: be sure your grocery bag didn’t hold something gross like chicken because it’s not really going to be launder-able.
Next: flatten out your bag and pull the corners so the plastic is nice and square.
Then: fold up the sides so the handles are together.
Cut the handles off.
Cut off the sealed bottom piece.
Cut 2cm “strips” from the folded bag.
Link the “strip/loops” together so they are one long series of loops.
Repeat with lots of bags. 50? 100? use your whole cabinet full.
Pretend they’re not loops, roll into a “plarn ball.”

How to make t-shirt yarn?

2012-03-18T20:30:00.001-07:00

I’ve had a couple of requests for how to make t-shirt yarn. Its pretty simple and only a little messy. There are lots of tutorials made by fabulous bloggers out there. This is the one I used:

I usually do it at the table and then the little fuzzies that come off the t-shirt yarn as I’m pulling the strips into yarn fall on the bale instead of me or the floor. This makes clean up easier and faster. Of course if you have hardwoods instead of rugs then the floor would work fine and swiffer solves all measures of fuzzy problems.

Enjoy!

T-shirt yarn becomes a bag.

2012-03-18T17:29:00.001-07:00

Wonder what I did with all that t-shirt yarn? Enter bag:

The bag took about 8 t-shirts worth of yarn and is about the same size as the purse I usually use (the one my grandma quilted for me!) See the fun tassle I added. Oh yes, I'm Really stylish now. Tehe.

What do you think?

Meal of the Week 16: Pumpkin and Sausage Soup

2012-03-09T20:49:00.000-08:00

More traditional for the fall… but I had to use up my last pumpkin from our pumpkin patch trip in November (which I should have used in November, arguably). Caveat: I was trying really hard to copy the same texture and flavor as my friend Emilie’s soup… but I failed. This one is good, but Emilie’s is better. SO when I get her recipe from her I’ll post the differences and you can decide!
Ingredients:

1/2 lb turkey sausage
1 onion
4 mushrooms
salt and pepper
1 T butter or 2 T EVOO
2 cups pumpkin puree
3 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 T Cumin
1 tsp Thyme
1 bay leaf
1 1/2 T brown sugar
1 cup cream

Directions:
Start by cooking up your sausage. It doesn’t really matter if its cooked and then sliced or just ground cooked. It looks prettier if it cooks as a tube and is afterwards sliced. Remove from heat.
In you favorite soup making pot, melt 1 T butter. Sauté diced onion and mushrooms until soft (3-4 min). Puree in a blender with 1 C stock until very smooth. Return to the pot.
Add all of the rest of the ingredients to the puree in the pot including the sausage that was set aside. Heat on Med until boiling and then lower the heat so it simmers nice and low for about 45 minutes so all your spices can cook in.
Variations:
From what I’ve read online, you can easily make this Vegetarian or Vegan by taking out the sausage, using vegetable stock instead of chicken stock and using coconut milk instead of cream and sugar. You can also add in celery to the sauté and puree. I’m tempted to try the coconut milk next time I make this just to see what its like (and because I can never do something the same way twice… which is actually a real problem when something comes out SOOO perfect the first time like this one did.)
Play with the liquid levels until you like how soupy or thick it is. Use 4 cups of broth for a really slurpy soup, 3 for a thicker version. I like it a little thicker than it came out, but my husband thought it was the most perfect soup ever made.
Serve with Rosemary bread, cranberries, granny smith apples, bacon bits, and sour cream for toppings. The recipe makes enough for four-6 bowls, depending on which dish set you have.
Oh yeah and the reason there is no picture is that we ate it so fast because it was SOOO good that we didn’t stop to photograph.

It looked a lot like this recipe from genaw.com: (But you should really follow my recipe because the one from the link has no spice!)

~~~~~~~~UPDATE~~~~~~~~~
Here's Emilie's recipe: IT IS WAY BETTER than the one I wrote above, therefore I admonish you to use it. And if anyone knows where I can find Old Bay in the NW, please let me know!!

Em's Pumpkin Soup

1 TBS olive oil
2 TBS butter
2 dried bay leaves
1 onion chopped
Salt and Pepper
3 TBS flour
1 TBS Old Bay
1 TBS Tabasco
4 cups chicken stock
29 oz can pumpkin (about 3 cups. Add more for thicker consistency)
2 cups Heavy Cream (give or take 1/2 to 3/4 cup)
1 tsp nutmeg

One or two granny smith apples chopped
a handful or two of dried cranberries

In a dutch oven: Heat oil and butter and add the chopped onion, bay leaves, salt and pepper (about 2 tsp), sautee about 6 minutes till onions are tender
Add the flour, Tabasco sauce, and old bay, stir for a minute
Whisk in 4 cups chicken stock and bring to a simmer
Whisk in the pumpkin
Add sausage
simmer for 10 minutes
lower heat and add cream and nutmeg.
Garnish with apples and cranberries

More t-shirt yarn

2012-03-09T15:41:00.001-08:00

Just raided the t-shirt drawer to make more yarn. Any ideas for what I should make?

Here’s my list of projects so far:

Tote
set of multi-colored coasters

I guess you could say it’s a short list?

Meal of the Week 15: P.F. Changs Knock off Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Sauces

2012-03-06T10:15:00.001-08:00

We found a great recipe a couple of weeks ago on theculinarylife.com for knock off P.F. Changs Chicken Lettuce wraps. The sauces have a lot of sugar in them but they were well worth the extra time and effort because they were SOOoooo scrumptious! This is my favorite thing to order when we go to P.F. Changs so it makes me super excited that we can make it at home now… And did I mention that my Mr. is a super sauce fan? Oh yes. This one saturates you with sauce, leaves your belly happy and tantalizes your tongue with that fabulous eat out taste right at home. Enjoy!

T-shirt yarn experiment

2012-03-05T11:21:00.001-08:00

This is my first time trying to make t-shirt yarn to crochet with! I found this lovely tutorial HERE and it was perfect!

Now if I could only find my crochet hooks I would be able to get to work! AHHh! Where could they be?

Meal of the Week 14: One of a kind Pancakes

2012-02-12T15:56:00.001-08:00

Here’s a recipe that I got from a local friend of mine here in Seattle:

Nan’s Protein packed Pancakes

Ingredients:

16oz Cottage Cheese
6 eggs
6 heaping table spoons of flour
1/4 cup oil

Method:

Mix all the ingredients in the blender. Then cook like regular pancakes.

Tips: This recipe is actually best if you let the pancakes cool before eating them. If you eat them right off the pan they tend to be a bit gooey from the cottage cheese. So make the recipe and then share them for a nice family breakfast. This recipe makes enough to serve 3 people.

Café con leche

2012-02-12T15:30:00.001-08:00

I swear that two years ago when I looked online for free crochet tutorials/patterns there were like 4. Literally – a lady bug, an octopus, and um… yeah. AND there were no pictures! Well ladies and gents, the internet is providing more and more interesting and free awesomeness right at your fingertips. Here’s my latest creation, courtesy of Ana Paula’s free pattern.

Oh and there’s more fun projects and links in crochet on the way – including the first pattern I’m writing! Stayed tuned for more yarn-o-licious fun!

Meal of the Week 13: Kale Chips

2012-02-09T18:18:00.000-08:00

Snack Attack!!! How am I so late in discovering this vitamin filled amazingness??

So I totally burned my first batch and I undercooked the second, but I think the third time will be the charm.... if I can eat any more? (and I haven't even had dinner yet ooops).

Here's a link to the recipe I used:

I also used the pre-washed pre-cut ready to cook Kale from Trader Joe's so the time to make is LITERALLY cook time plus 1 min.

Yum. Just Yum. Thanks internet for another great recipe.

Baskets of groceries, bundles of fun

2012-02-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

As my Sweet Pea gets more and more excited about copying everything I do, I’m trying to keep up with her interest and make fun toys to go along with her age.

Right now I’m in the middle of a big project to make a bunch of crocheted food items for her before we get her a play kitchen. We’re thinking to get her the kitchen (or DIY make one!) before Christmas next year so I’m not feeling stressed at and just taking my time.

Here’s the first round up on free patterns I’m using:

1. Sandwich from Yummi-Gurumi by Craft foxes

2. Cupcake by Anapaulaoli

3. Pancake Breakfast by the Craft Frog

4.Eggs by Easy Makes me Happy

5.Sausage links by tots and bottoms

6. Sweet Little Cake by KTB Designs.

Meal of the Week 12: I Wish it Were Summer Salad

2012-02-04T08:44:00.001-08:00

I must be late in discovering this, but did you know that bags of triple washed organic spinach leaves at Trader Joe’s are the same price or cheaper than regular spinach at other grocery stores??? OMG. How can I be so late to find this out?
Anyways, This is my all time favorite salad for the summer.. and since I wish it were summer, well… you know what I’m saying.
Ingredients: fresh spinach leaves, cut strawberries, chopped walnuts.
I like to top it with a balsamic vinaigrette, but you can dress it however you like!

Simple, Easy, Yummy. Enjoy!

Crochet Hearts

2012-02-03T14:11:00.000-08:00

I found this fabulous pattern to make crocheting festive for Valentine’s day and I wanted to share it!

The linked picture above give the pattern. SOOO easy. I’ve been making them while we watch tv at night. My husband thinks they’re cute. Here are the ones I’ve made:

I’m going to hopefully have enough by valentine’s day to fill one of my vases (so my hubby won’t feel the need to spend bunches of cash on flowers that will die)

5 down…. 50 more to go!

Heart Wreath

2012-02-01T13:58:00.001-08:00

I saw this:

on the idea room from a couple of years ago and decided to use what materials I had to make something similar.
So I took my pile of red t-shirts

and a wire hanger
and cut out a bunch of circles… and then kept cutting out circles (I used 2 whole t-shirts and some scraps!)

And then went crazy with my glue gun!
Here it is half done:

I would stick some glue on it and then kind of squeeze the shirt scrap until it was the shape I wanted.
And several hours and at least 6 glue sticks later: Tada!

Some V-day fun.

2012-02-01T13:36:00.001-08:00

I’ve had bunches of fun this January trying to create some fun décor for valentine’s day. And here’s what I’ve come up with:

I have three projects that I’ve been working on. The easiest and most fun was my wire heart garland:

I took wire – mine was copper, but and wire will do – you could even use green floral wire if you have a mind to mix up colors! – and wrapped it in circles then shapes into hearts. I made twelve of them, not caring what size they were. They all ended up about the same size, but varying thicknesses.

Then I tied them to some ribbon and hung them up over my office area!

And now the kitchen/office is just a little festive!

Meal of the Week 11: The best potato soup ever

2012-01-27T13:51:00.001-08:00

Um. Yes. I like this soup. That is all.
I have been in search of the perfect potato soup recipe for what seems like years. I read literally a dozen different recipes before combining them all into this one. It has been christened by husband as “the best soup ever”
Ingredients:
1 bunch leeks (or green onions, or scallions) – I use green onions because I like them best.
4 pieces of bacon – or more…
1 tbsp. butter
10-12 potatoes, peeled and diced
48oz. chicken broth
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
Salt & pepper
Minced parsley
Variations:
Substitute regular bacon for turkey bacon (but I used like 6 pieces of turkey bacon)
Use only 32oz of chicken broth for a thicker soup.
Cooking Instructions:
Cook bacon, cut off extra fat, and pat dry with paper towels. Chop into bacon bits.
In a large pot, add precooked bacon, and green onions. Cook in butter until soft. Add diced potatoes and chicken broth. Simmer for 40 minutes. Add cream, salt and pepper to taste (approx 1 1/2tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper). Sprinkle with minced parsley. (This soup may be whirled in a blender or smashed with a potato masher to make a puree). If it becomes too thick, add milk or broth.
I made this for the first time two weeks ago when I wanted to take a dear friend dinner. It was really good then. Then I made it again today a using the variations.
Yes, please. I would eat the whole pot right now if I could.

Organization: The Board

2011-12-01T19:50:00.001-08:00

So when I made this board I hadn’t intended to blog it, but after a request from a friend here it is:

Supplies: old Corkboard or bulletin board
an old sheet or a couple of old white t-shirts
Staple Gun
Ribbon – 1/2 inch for the border, 1/4 inch for the interior sections and lattice
1 sheet of felt, or bulk felt cut to size
container (cut in half)
Freezer paper (for stencils)
cardstock or construction paper
magazine photos of household chores
thumb tacks – I used both flat tacks and knobby ones
paint/paint brushes
the glass from three old 4x6 frames
Planning:The first step is really to decide what you want. I needed 4 things:
1) a place to organize my weekly chores
2) a place for meal planning
3) a place for bills/mail that needs to be read
4) a place for notes and lists that usually clutter up my fridge

Cover the Cork Board:First, lay your sheet right side down on a flat surface. Place the cork board face down on the sheet. Measure about 4 inches out on each side and cut. Cover your cork board with your old sheet. Stretch and secure it to the back using your stapler or staple gun. Be sure to roll the rough edges under before stapling so the back isn’t crazy looking. Glue ribbon around the edges to create a nice border.
Measure:Marking only along the very edge of the board with chalk or a white sewing pencil, measure out the difference sections you want. For mine I used the following measurements:
4 inches for the date of the week letter
5 inches for the chore cards
4 inches for the meal planning
the rest of the board for everything else.

Weekly chore cards:Using freezer paper and your cricut, slice, or other machine (or an exacto blade) cut your day letters. Mine were 2 1/2 inches tall. I cut a couple of letters in scrap paper first to make sure I had the sizing and spacing right before cutting the freezer paper.
Lay your freezer paper stencils on your sheet covered cork board and iron them on. Be careful with the spacing! Paint and let dry. Seal with the iron after they’re completely dry.
Cut 2x2 squares of paper and again using your cricut cut your chore words out (mine are 1/2 inch tall). Pop the letters out and glue on pictures of the chores if you want. I thought this made them look cuter and since cuteness was my goal… yeah. Then cover each square with shelving paper so they won’t tear. If you don’t have a cutting machine you can just write the chores on the cards or decorate however you want.

Meal Planning:Glue ribbons on the board to separate this section from the top and bottom sections. Using flat thumb tacks attach your glass to the board. Three pieces from 4x6 frames were perfect for my board. Use like a dry erase board. Be careful when cleaning so you don’t stain the sheet or the ribbon.

Bills:Take your container and cut it in half. Paint if necessary. (I used an old plastic laundry booster container and needed to cover up the label.) Use your imagination to attach them vertically on one side of your board. I wrapped a ribbon around the middle under the lip of mine and then stapled the ribbon to the board. I used hot glue to attach the corners, but that came up so best to stick with staples or maybe super glue.

Lists/Notes:Take the sheet of felt and staple to the board on the other side from the bills area. Hot glue ribbons in a lattice formation so you won’t have to use thumb tacks if you don’t want to. Then hot glue ribbon around the edge to cover up the ends of the lattice ribbons.
Happy Organizing!

Ornaments: Oranges

2011-11-28T13:34:00.001-08:00

This was a great DIY craft inspired by my mother-in-law Deb. She’s always coming up with really beautiful, handy ways to decorate. I saw these on her tree a couple of years back and decided to try to make some this year. My husband was excited to try too since he had enjoyed his mom’s trees for so many years.
Basic instructions:

1) Slice oranges in 1/4 inch even slices horizontally so you get a nice star pattern. This is easiest if your oranges are fresh, but if you’re using old ones because you don’t want to eat them.. its ok, it still works.

2) arrange on a cookie sheet at bake at 150 for approximately 4 hours. Flipping them half way through will help with even drying of the slices. Depending on your oven, the thickness of your slices, and the relative humidity of your house this may take more or less time. It took me about 6 hours to get my thicker slices dried out enough.

3) Tie a ribbon

4) And hang on a tree, or garland. I hung mine on my garland to spice it up some. The Oranges look SOO pretty with the twinkle lights on.

And there you have it, Dried Orange slices for ornaments. This is perfect if you don’t have a lot of money to buy ornaments or if you’re just starting out as a family and don’t have lots of eclectic memories in your ornament collections

Cards cards and more cards

2011-11-28T08:19:00.001-08:00

Another thing I love about Christmas are all the beautiful photocards I get in the mail. For those of you who take the time to send them THANKS!! I love getting your notes, your pictures, and your updates. It’s the only time of the year that I really get to relish in how much your kids are growing and how beautiful all your families are!

I just ordered our cards for this year and I was so excited because snapfish.com had a coupon for 50% off! Sweet deal… but only for two more days. If you have a card that you’ve made and are waiting for a deal this one is great! Use the code CYBER50.

Happy Card Making!