On my "to do" list...

I've been busy lately and haven't had time to make anything...well, besides Easter Dinner, which BTW, was  a total success.  Everyone had so much fun. Plus, my friend Carolyn-Marie made the BEST salad. I'll see if I can get the recipe and share it with you.

Anyway, this week, I found a couple recipes I want to make. The first is using the left-over pink champagne I had from my cupcakes.  I found this recipe for Strawberry jam using Pink Champagne:

STRAWBERRY PINK CHAMPAGNE JAM

4 ½ cups strawberries
1 package powdered pectin
¼ cup lemon juice
½ cup pink champagne
7 cups sugar

Combine strawberries, lemon juice, pectin and champagne in pan. Over high heat, bring to a rolling boil. Add sugar. Stir constantly until mixture comes to a rolling boil again. Continue to stir and boil for 1 to 2 minutes. Place in sterilized jars while still hot.

The other one is Cake Batter Pancakes from the blog, "How Sweet It Is."

The next creative endeavor I want to tackle is a mixed media art project. I got a book for my birthday from my friend Tiffany called, "Art at the Speed of Life", which has inspired me.

I have a huge canvas in my office/studio ready to go. I just have to get in there and start!

I'll keep you updated.

Until then...have a great week!

A little inspiration for a friend

If you haven't figured out by now, I like making collages. I have a friend who is planning a special event where tartan plaid may be used. I thought I would put together some inspiration for her!  However, it might be overkill...what do you think?

Au Gratin Potatoes Recipe

I'm going over the final touches of the menu for Easter dinner. I ended up not going with leg of lamb because:
a) I'm having 10+ guests
b) I'm having picky eaters over (read: teenagers who may or may not like lamb)
c) at $6 a pound I can't afford it (can't afford the chance to spend over $60 and people not like what I'm serving. I know most people like ham).


So, ham it is...I still think it's weird that as Christians we eat ham at Easter. Then again...$1.77 a pound is easier on the pocket book. I guess that must be why we do it. Anyway, I digress.

I'm making Au Gratin Potatoes as the side dish. My mom never made them when I was growing up or if she did, then it was rare. Counting this year, I've only made them twice. However, I used this recipe last time and now wouldn't consider making anything else with my ham (at least at Easter).

Remember calories don't count when you are eating with friends AND it's a holiday :)

Here's the recipe:

Au Gratin Potatoes

Serves 8

4 russet potatoes & 4 Yukon gold potatoes, sliced into 1/8-1/4 inch slices

1 onion, diced or grated

6 Tbls. butter (NOT margarine)

6 Tbls. flour

1 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. white pepper

4 C. milk

3 cup shredded cheese (I'm using 1 1/2 C. Cheddar & 1 1/2 C. Colby)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 2-quart casserole dish and then layer the potatoes in the dish. Season the potatoes with salt and pepper as you layer.

In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Sauté the onion until soft and transparent. Make a roux by mixing flour, salt, and pepper into the butter and stirring constantly with a whisk for one minute. Next, stir in the milk. Cook until the mixture is thickened. Take the pan off the heat, stir in the cheese and continue to stir until the cheese is melted and thoroughly incorporated into the béchamel. Pour the cheese sauce over the potatoes and cover the dish with a lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 1 1/2 hours in a preheated oven.

Bon Appétit

Getting ready for Easter dinner

Can you believe it's almost Easter! I love Easter. It is hands-down my favorite holiday. This year we've invited friends over for dinner after Church. Depending on what's available at the market for a decent price, I'm making roast lamb, beef or a baked ham. Here's the rest of the menu:

Raspberry White Iced Tea 

Deviled Eggs 

Fruit Plate 

Refrigerator Pickles 

Apricot Honey Glazed Ham 

Or 

Roast Lamb 

Creamy Au Gratin Potatoes 

Steamed Asparagus 

Biscuits 

Pink Champagne Cake 

I'm totally excited about my "new" Easter tradition-the Pink Champagne Cake. This will be the second year I've made it for Easter. However, I'm thinking I will make Pink Champagne cupcakes this year.

Come back, 'cause I'll share more recipes as the week progresses. Here's my refrigerator pickle recipe:

REFRIGERATOR PICKLES


6 c. sliced cucumbers

1 c. slice onion

1 c. vinegar

2 c sugar

1 tbsp. salt

1 tsp. celery seed


Combine all ingredients; mix well. Place in jar, refrigerate. The pickles will be ready in 24 hours and will keep up to 1 year

My birthday @ Carrabba's

My husband arranged a "surprise" dinner for me at Carrabba's last night for my birthday. Through quite a few unintentional "clues" he left behind, I figured out what was going on by one o'clock in the afternoon. (I already knew who was coming by last Monday). No matter, it was definitely the thought that counted. It was such a sweet and kind effort. You can see some of the snapshots I took with several different camera apps on my iPhone last night (some better than others). I then used a new app called Zapd to create a website. It was quick, free and easy to use.  I highly recommend it. Click here to see the website

The best "Best Banana Muffins"

A sweet friend/co-worker of mine makes "The Best Banana Bread." That is actually the title of the recipe. Truth be told, it really is good. However, I can't ever leave anything alone so I tweaked her recipe yesterday. I had some time on my hands and since I had several bananas in the freezer that I've been saving up to make banana bread, I pulled out the recipe. Unfortunately, I didn't have enough time to wait an hour for bread to bake, so I decided to make muffins instead. I call this recipe, The Best Best Banana Muffins.

Here at home, we've managed to eat several over the last couple days. I also brought some to work, which were gobbled up, too. I'm trying to save some for breakfast tomorrow. Try the recipe. You may find you have the same problem. Caution: This recipe contains chocolate. *yum*

4 ripe mashed bananas (thawed if previously frozen)
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup oil
1/4 cup vanilla soy milk (I used the Vanilla Light Silk)
1 tsp Butter nut & vanilla extract
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp Baking soda
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.  Pour batter evenly into muffin cups lined with paper liners. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Makes 24 muffins

What I've been doing lately... making a fabric handbag

Several years ago, I bought several purse handles on clearance at a craft store. Then, I packed them away never to be seen again...until last Saturday. I pulled out the wood handles and some brown and white pin-dot fabric from the closet but then was stumped on what to do with it. So, I started looking for inspiration. It took me awhile to figure out what I wanted to do, but after some doodling sketches, searching google images and diddle daddling at Hobby Lobby--I came up with this bag>

It has a front and back pocket and snaps in the middle. I made the rose, too by melting satin ribbon. I'll take a better picture of the rose and post directions in a different post later. I'd give you step by step directions to make the purse but since I made up the design by trial and error...you don't want to go through what I went through. In addition, there are things I would have done differently. None the less, I think it turned out cute for the first time purse I have ever made.

My Birthday Present

I'm hoping to have the back patio fixed up for my birthday. I put together this "Inspiration collage" to help my husband catch my vision... let's see if it works. :)

Correction to the Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Quiche Tartlets

I posted an excerpt from the entertaining book I'm writing, several days ago. Included in the "Spa Opulence Party Planner" a recipe for Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Quiche Tartlets. I tested the recipe on Thursday and had to make some alterations. I'm including the modified recipe in this post and pictures of how I made the mini quiches. I hope you try the recipe--they are yummy! In fact, the quiches did not last long in our house.

First modification: only needed one pie crust and 2 1/2" round cutter instead of 1 1/2". I tried a 3" but it was too big.  However, you might have to adjust the size of round depending on the size of your mini muffin tin.

I increased the spinach by 1 cup.
I think it works better to add the cheese, spinach, and sun-dried tomatoes first,
then add the egg mixture. 

I added the cheese on top of the egg mixture on a couple of these,
 then realized it filled better to add the egg last.

Here are the finished quiches out of the oven.
They did not last long past this stage (barely, made it to a plate).

Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Quiche Tartlets

Pre-made Pie dough (enough for one 9 inch crust)

1/2 cup finely snipped sun-dried tomato 

3 eggs, slightly beaten

3/4 cup half-and-half

2 1/2 cup spinach, loosely torn

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon salt

Dash ground black pepper

Dash nutmeg

Dash cayenne

3/4 cup finely shredded swiss cheese 

Olive oil, for saute pan

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. 

Over medium heat, drizzle one tablespoon olive oil in a saute pan. Add spinach, garlic and a pinch of salt to pan, saute until spinach is wilted. Set aside.

Roll out pie crust, then using 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut 24 rounds. Press each round into the cup of a mini muffin tin and set aside.

In a medium bowl, mix together eggs, half-and-half, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. 

Distribute equally the spinach, sun-dried tomatoes and swiss cheese between the cups. Next, spoon egg mixture on top of spinach evenly into pie shells (about 1 1/2-2 tablespoons per cup). 

Bake for approximately 18-20 minutes or until filling is slightly puffed and a small knife inserted into the centers of the tartlets comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes.

Makes 24.

Make-ahead directions: Prepare and bake tartlets one day ahead. Store tartlets in an airtight container and refrigerate. On the day of event, place tartlets on a baking sheet and bake in a 300 degrees F oven for approximately 10 minutes or until heated through.

Grain Sack Pillows

As I was looking for pillows for my mom's bedroom, I came across these lovely grain sack pillows. Whew! These were expensive:

$129 (SOLD)
from Full Bloom Cottage

$185 (SOLD)
http://www.frenchgardenhouse.com/catalog.php?item=2306

Being the DIYer that I am, I knew there was a less expensive way to recreate these pillows. First, I found this great source for grain sack fabric: Click here to go to the online store.  There you can buy burlap grain sacks for around a $1.00.

17 X 27 grain sack bag for $1.04

Lauren, from Our Hiding Place, had the same idea of making her own pillows.  She recreated the grain sack pillow found on Pottery Barn and gave step by step instructions. Click here to see her tutorial.

Here are Lauren's pillows

Then again, I could just buy a less expensive one from The Bolster Queens on Etsy. Check out their pillow:

Red Stripes Grain sack bolster pillow 8x18 for $38

The Bolster Queens' pillow may not be as inexpensive as if I made it myself, but it is whole lot less expensive than the inspiration pillows.

For mom...

After I posted "Mom's New House", my mom fell in love with the bedding I chose for her bedroom. However, it is expensive and being discontinued. She found several choices that she said, "I could live with." I told her, "No, let's actually get what you really want." I told her, "We can make a duvet easily." So, I did some searching and found a nice "inspiration" bedding by Horchow. Spendy, right? Well, not if you make your own duvet, shams and skirt plus buy the sheets and quilt from Kmart and Walmart.

Check it out:

Cute little Spanish-Style house for sale

I LOVE Spanish Style houses!

I've dreamed of owning a cute little spanish bungalow for years. Back in 2005, my husband and I visited Mexico. From Puerto Vallarta, we drove to Tonalá, Jalisco Mexico and bought a beautiful hand-painted sink and tile. At the time, we were remodeling our home and thought we would use it there. However, we decided that it would look best in a spanish style house. So, for the past six years, we have held on to it thinking we would buy a house that it would fit into.  (Kinda crazy to buy a house that will match a sink, huh?).

Anyway, this morning while checking my email, I got an update on a listing for this house MLS# 572088:

 The house is now $14,000 less. Here is the catch--  it's a short sale.  I saw it when it first went on the market. It was a bargain then...now, well it is a steal.  I'm going to see if my husband wants to check it out tomorrow and see if it is worth the hassle of a short sale.

Here are pictures of what I dream of it looking similar to when we are done fixing it up:

http://www.homebysunset.com/

http://www.rhoadsstephens.com

http://www.en.eprospecting.com/

http://www.modative.com/heted-hybrid-bungalows/

http://www.yelp.com/user_local_photos?userid=2Ikibg9SF2nAYl6XpIi6dw

I'd love to have a back courtyard like this (I can dream, right?):

http://www.trails.com/rentals/property.aspx?vacation=095695_Oxnard_CA

I'll keep you posted as to what we decide to do...

 

Celebrating Friends!

Several years ago, after moving here and there with my family, I started losing connections with my friends. I then came up with an idea to have a "girls only" party. I invited five of my closest friends (not all from the same city). It was a spa theme with food, beauty stations and a masseuse. We had so much fun!  About a year or two later, we had another party but this time it was an afternoon tea plus one more friend. To this day, my friends still talk about it and ask when we are having the next one. It's a little bit harder now because I live on the other side of the country. However, I've added new friends now and may surprise them. (Start saving up for those plane tickets now ladies!)

Well, anyway let me get to the real reason I am writing this post...I put quite a bit of work together organizing myself and collecting recipes for these parties. It occurred to me, "Why don't I write a book on celebrating friendship?"  So, I've been slowly working on parts of the book. I've saved some interesting journal articles on how friendship helps you live longer and stay mentally healthy (you are less likely to be depressed).  Plus, I have several get together ideas from elaborate parties to small get togethers. Each entertaining idea includes checklists, menu with recipes, and step by step directions to throw a successful party. I thought I'd share part of what I am currently working on...it is called "Spa Opulence Party." I still need to complete the invitation and party favor section, but it's almost done. Let me know what you think of this first draft.



Click here to go to the corrected Sun-dried Tomato and Spinach Quiche Tartlets Recipe