Annadrew Quilt

I saw a red and white quilt in a magazine, but I was too cheap to buy the magazine.  So I just started sewing red and white triangles together.  Then I turned them into squares. I borrowed a lot of reds from Cindy because I wanted a lot of different reds. I immediately planned to make this quilt for Anna (before she even started dating Andrew) because I knew she loved reds. 

I couldn't decide how I wanted to lay them all out, so I sketched up a few different patterns.  All that engineering graph paper comes to great use when quilting.  I am glad I have several pads of it left.

Here is the finished product. I love the way that it turned out.  Funny thing, Annadrew has blue walls in their bedroom that go with the blue trim that I picked out. I had no idea at the time I made this.  Also, our walls in our bedroom are also blue now.  They look so much better than these plain white walls.  I will have to take an updated picture.  Actually, you can see one here. They look so much better in blue!!!!

 This is one of my favorite quilts... probably because it took so long to make.  I worked on it for over 15 months... off and on. 

A baby quilt for Ivy

 Most quilts start out as sketches. I usually spend time trying to figure out how to have the smallest amount of waste.

Here are the blocks sewn together. 

 Here I am playing with concepts. 

Here my concepts are starting to take shape. I thought the white space was too blank, so I added birds. 

Finished product. I really like the way it turned out.  It is great when ideas turn out better than you imagined.  Yay. 

Runners

 I made this runner for a relative of Mrs. Bailey's.

I threw this together from some scraps that I had.  It was a pattern in a book that I wanted to try.  I need to make some other ones now that I am retired.  ha ha. I have two books of patterns that I have only made two or three out of.  I will have to pull those out again. 

This was one of my first runners that I made. 

Quilt

I have decided to start documenting all of my past quilts (and eventually my future quilts too).  This quilt was made for Sarah and Josh's wedding.  It is called Shadowbox.  Cindy bought me the pattern while she was visiting North Dakota. 

My Dad has apple trees, but there is one problem.  They produce really ugly apples. They are speckled black and have many indentations.  We have tried making applesauce out of them a few years, but it is a lot of work.  Most years they just go to waste. This year came up with a new scheme to use them. I want to make apple cider.  My Dad and I have been talking about going in on a press for a while. If we bought a working press, I have calculated that we would make our money back in 5 years at the latest (that is only assuming 5 or 6 gallons each year).  

Well, today when I was online at my parents, I found this tutorial for making a press out of a mud bucket for about $20. I think I should do a trial run before apple season rolls around. If it works, hooray and if it fails, then I will have time to buy a real apple press. My brother came up with the great idea to adapt it to our picnic table so that we wouldn't have to use as much wood. We will see if it works... if it does, I might blog about it. And if it is a huge failure, I might blog about it, as well.  Hopefully, we are able to make some really good apple cider.  :) 

Martin Lewis

A few pictures:

Anna said I needed some pregnancy pictures...  Pregnancy is not easy, but it does lead to a baby, which is worth it. 

Martin is so worth it.  Even right after labor, I told Jared that it wasn't that bad and we could have several more children.  ha. 

 I love seeing Martin interact with his Grandparents.  I love my Mom and Dad. 

Martin loves my phone.  We take a lot of pictures because it is calming to him. 

We also walk around the zoo a lot. I made his hat for his first beach day.  It is a super easy pattern.  Cindy lent it to me.  I will have to post the pattern make and number later. 

The Best Strawberry Pie

Well, since it has been a while, I thought I would start off with a few recipes that I have been making recently.  The first is adapted from America's Test Kitchen.  I just watched this episode about Strawberry Pie a few weeks ago and I jotted the recipe down while nursing.  I made it on June 10^th for the first time for a co-worker of Jared's that is moving on to another job!! I also made a Chocolate Pecan Pie, which will be my next recipe.  Their recipe calls for things in ozs and lbs.  However, I do not own a scale and have never seen the need for one (and I am slightly afraid that if I start using one that I will never go back to using measuring cups and I don't have room for it in my kitchen).  So, I have put the rough estimates of what I used.  Also, I do not own a food processor, so I simply mashed up my strawberries with my potato masher.

This recipe is super easy and tastes INCREDIBLE!!  If I had more strawberries, I would make a bowl of this filling to eat with a spoon.  It is so delicious.  It definitely does taste better than the trusty old Jello recipe.  When ATK said that on the show, I thought, “Come on! The Jello recipe is classic! I don't think anything can beat it.” Well, I was wrong.  My favorite pie is now even more amazing thanks to ATK. 

First, bake a pie crust until light brown. I make my own when I have time, but a store bought crust would work as well.  The filling is what matters in this recipe.

Ingredients

•    6 oz puree strawberries (or roughly 1 cup mashed)

•    ¾ cup sugar

•    1-1/2 tsp low or no sugar pectin (pink box)

•    2 T cornstarch

•    2 T lemon juice

•    2 lb strawberries (8 - 12 cups)

1.                  Combine first 4 ingredients (in a sauce pan, I mashed my strawberries in the saucepan before placing it on the stove) and bring to a boil.

2.                  Boil 2 minutes. Mix in lemon juice.  Mix in strawberries. 

3.                  Pour into crust. Chill 2 hours.

4.                  (optional, but recommended) Scrape out the bowl and eat extra filling with a spoon.  :)

*** Note: ATK suggested not cutting your strawberries because it will release the juice and make the pie soupy.  I had already cut my strawberries and it didn't seem to affect the pie.  I will make it with uncut strawberries next time to see if it turns out differently.

**** Update: I add a bit more cornstarch and pectin, not a rounded teaspoon or tablespoon, but a bit more. When you cook the sauce on the stove it should reach a thickish, jelly like consistency. I have found it is better to be too thick than too thin. Some of the juice from the strawberries will loosen it up, but then it will also thicken a bit more in the frig. If you are using cold strawberries, it usually thickens once you mix them into the sauce and doesn't get much thicker. Anyhow, lean towards a thicker sauce. 
Also, I have been using a 1/2 cup of sugar because I like a more tart pie. 

A New Quilt

I was trying to clean out my sewing room and use up all the scraps that I had been holding on to for the past four years.  I started out by trimming everything to a 5" by 5" square and then I trimmed everything else to 3" pieces of various widths. I sewed all the 3" pieces (sorted by color) together and then trimmed them into rows. 

I just finished quilting and I am working on the binding now.  I was discussing with Cindy if the binding is my favorite part because it is the last step and it makes it look finished or because I find the hand stitching calming. It is probably a combination of the two. I decided to do a scrappy boarder to match the scrappy nature of the quilt.  It looks pretty awesome.  I will post a picture when I am finished.  

Blueberry Boy Bait

From America's Test Kitchen Cookbook 2008 Season based on a recipe that won second place in the 1954 Pillsbury Grand National Baking Contest.

This year I am in charge of snack for VBS.  After two years of co-directing VBS, it is a nice little break.  As a bonus, I love cooking and baking and running a kitchen.  I have great helpers this year, who are making my job very easy.  They have cheerfully been prepping everything that I need and cleaning before I even ask them. It has been a joy to serve with them.  Also, it has been amazing to see all of the wonderful donations and snacks that people have brought in.  God does more than we can ask or expect.  I have not had to spend any money from the VBS budget and have had extra donations left over for a breakfast tomorrow morning.  I was also able to buy more fresh fruit for the children!  Yay! God is so very good.

I made this recipe for Monday morning at VBS and several people asked for the recipe.  It is super easy.  All my blueberries sank to the bottom and made a layer of blueberry jam. I either didn't measure the flour perfectly or stirred the blueberries too much when I folded them in (or I may have added more than the recipe called for...). 

Cake Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 T baking powder

1 tsp salt

16 T (2 sticks) butter

¾ c. brown sugar

½ c. sugar

3 large eggs

1 cup milk (I used 2%, they called for whole)

1 tsp flour

½ c. blueberries (fresh or frozen, if frozen, do not thaw)

Topping Ingredients:

½ c. blueberries

¼ c. sugar

½ tsp. Cinnamon (I added another ¼ tsp. because I thought it needed more)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease (and flour, if you are planning on removing it to a serving platter – I made it in a pretty pan so that I could leave it in the pan) a 13 x 9 pan.

2. Beat butter and sugar until fluffy (about 3 to 4 minutes).  I find that I have to scrap down the sides of my kitchen-aid several times. The consistancy of the butter should be no longer grainy.  I just learned how to cream my butter and sugar together.  I never beat it enough before. It looks completely different if you beat it for a longer period of time.

3. Whisk flour, baking powered, and salt in a small bowl.

4. Add the eggs and beat until smooth.

5. Add one third of the flour mixture. Stir until smooth.  Add half the milk stir until smooth.  Add half the remaining flour. Stir. Add the rest of the milk. Stir.  Add the remaining flour. Stir.

6. Mix blueberries with 1 teaspoon of flour. Fold in with spatula (I may have mixed mine too much, the blueberries all sank to the bottom).

7. Spread batter into pan.

8. Sprinkle remaining half cup of blueberries over the top of the batter.

9. Stir sugar and cinnamon together and sprinkle over the blueberries & batter.

10. Bake until toothpick comes out clean (about 45 – 50 minutes – I baked mine for an extra 10 – 15 minutes).

Cooking Brown Rice Revolutionized

The other day, I was reading Cook's Illustrated and I stumbled on a recipe for brown rice.  I thought, Now how exciting and new can a recipe for brown rice be? However, this recipe has changed the way I think about brown rice.  

What is the trick?  Boil the rice and drain it, just like pasta. That is it. It takes half the cooking time.

I thought that it sounded crazy, but I tried it and then I tasted the rice and it changed my mind.  The rice was perfectly cooked and or sticky.  The science behind it is that the rice is able to absorb water from all sides, which makes it cook in half the time and creates a more consistant consistancy throughout the rice.

June 17^th

This weekend was extremely busy.  Travelling and attending events with a baby is exhausting (and takes planning ahead).  However, I delight in being a mother; it is a big puzzle. It is more facisinating that I imagined. Martin is a wonderful baby. 

Thursday we had dinner with good friends that we had not seen since Annadrew's wedding.  Annadrew treated us to delicious burgers, chicken, fruit salad, and other goodies (I love this time of year, fresh fruit salads are so tasty).  It was pretty relaxing, but still a change Martin's schedule. Jared and I watched the first half of the Spurs game when we came home, while I was nursing Martin. 

Friday we spent finishing a wedding and baby shower gift (three burp clothes, a skirt, and a toy  bear blanket – Cindy gave me a book of different quilting patterns for Christmas and I have been trying out different patterns on burp clothes.  They are good practice. The toy bear was one of three that Martin received.  He loves them, but he does not need three.  I added ribbons to the edge of the blanket part and apliqued flannel shapes to the top surface and then embroydered the shapes to make them even more fun to touch and see). Friday afternoon and evening was the wedding. Martin was watched by Aunt Hope in the venue with other children.  Martin was a little overwhelmed by being around so many people.  I nursed him for his last feeding and usually he falls asleep by himself, if he is especially fussy I will rock him to sleep. Hope walked him around for over 1.5 hours and he was wide awake (he was not crying, just gazing straight ahead).  He was completely overwhelmed. After crying for about twenty minutes on the way home, he fell asleep (2 hours after his normal bedtime).

Saturday Martin and I went blueberry picking with Aunt Hope (and visited Uncle Luke). Hope watched Martin again, this time while I picked a bucket and a half of blueberries.  My total came to $12.34.  I wish I had taken a picture.  We rushed home, showered, and changed before headed off to a baby shower for one of my old co-workers.  It was nice to see everyone again.  They loved Martin.  I miss spending time with them somedays, however, Martin more than makes up for the loss. I hope they invite me to other baby showers in the future. Saturday night Jared and I packed for our trip to DC and then crashed and watched 12 Anger Men.  What a great old movie. 

Sunday I had nursery in the morning.  Then we quickly changed and headed up to Silver Spring. We arrived around two and spent time with the Grandis and about 40 of their relatives and friends.  I showed Martin where I lived during college.  He loved all the trees in the backyard.  He stayed awake the whole 3 hours that we were there (most of the time I carried him around in a front carrier, thinking he would fall asleep that way).  By the end of our visit he was so tired. It was so funny.  He was so tired that he would nod off, while looking around. His eyes would close and he head would lay down on my shoulder, but then he would remember there were new surroundings to take in and he would wake himself back up.  His head would bob up and he would gaze around again, just to fall asleep in a few seconds and then wake back up. It was highly entertaining. He slept on the way to Michelle's house and woke up to spend some time with her. We left there around 6:30p.m and arrived home around 8:30p.m. Thankfully, Martin was so tired out that I simply fed him, placed him in his crib, and he fell asleep.

I had one more vacation day to use this year (other than the 5 that I am allowed to roll over for next year -- to spend time with the baby).  I wanted to break up my last week (of the year) and avoid making a presentation this afternoon, so I took off today. 

I woke up this morning, collected the trash, took the trash out to the curb, stripped the bed of the sheets, and started a first load of laundry.  

Then I went to Walmart (I HATE THAT STORE, I haven't been in over 2 months, but I had to go to Sams Club and it was right there, plus, I needed things like bandaids, eye drops, and toothpaste, and you can't find those cheaper at other grocery stores).   It always takes forever to get through the lines in Walmart; I should learn to bring a book or something to do.  We have 4 smoke detectors in our house (yes, four) and one of them decided to start beeping two nights ago and interrupt our sleep. So, I was looking for square batteries at Walmart... I asked 3 people and no one could help me (one person was stocking batteries in a display and 2 in electronics).

Afterwards, I quickly ran in Kohls to see if they still had this maternity swimsuit on the clearance rack for $20 that I saw two weeks ago.  It was still there and it had been marked down even further to $10.20.  What?!? I also found a pair of maternity capris for $3.75.  My total savings were $104.05 (according to my recipe).  ha.

Next it was in to Sam's Club to pick up some baking supplies and chocolate to make chocolate covered pretzels. 

My next two stops were at Uptown Cheapskate, where I found two shirts (originally dresses -- yes, dresses... see the picture below) and Panera (for internet and lunch (smokehouse turkey with a side of onions - yum yum yum.  It is my FAVORITE!! )).  Thanks to everyone that gives us gift cards to food places.  I love coming to Panera or Chick-fil-A and not having to pay my money.  It is such a treat!!

The rest of my day will consist of stopping at Food Lion for milk and clementines (which are on a super sale), Sears (for nursing bras and weights), washing more clothes, putting the sheets back on the bed, cleaning the living room, making cinnamon buns for my employees and Jared's company Christmas breakfast tomorrow, possibly a nap, and maybe cleaning Michelle's room... If I have time I would like to sew some sheets for the baby, but I think that is going to have to wait until next week when I am off.

Are you doing anything exciting for Christmas?  We plan to relax and spent as much time with our families as possible. 

That baby squirms around all the time, expect when my family wants to feel him.  He was unusually still last night even thought Anna and I tried to poke him to get him to move, however, he has made up for it this morning.   I have found that I have heartburn in the afternoon if I don't eat an afternoon snack, but I am usually not hungry because my stomach is squished.   I have to remind myself to eat something small or else I will be popping 7 tums like I did yesterday to make the heartburn go away.  Otherwise, I haven't found too many other things to complain about.  I have to sit up straight now or the baby digs into my ribs, which is nice for my posture at work.  I am definitely getting more tired and can't do as much around work and home.  But what should I expect when I am lugging around an extra 30 pounds and feeding an active little baby.  We still have no names picked out.  It is way too stressful to think that our son will be stuck with whatever we pick for the rest of his life.  I don't find the idea of naming a girl as daunting. 

The longer I am away from the internet, the more I dislike it when I return to it.  Does anyone else experience this?  I love looking up recipes and craft ideas, but I enjoy looking those things up in a book just as much (or even more).  There is something solid and familiar about a book.  I like the quickness of finding a recipe through a search engine, but I love pouring over old favorite cookbooks and stumbling on recipes that I might want to try, while searching for another recipe. 

I do miss the chance to skype and chat with friends that live farther away, but I have a phone and it seems to work pretty well to stay in touch.  I guess what I am saying is that I don't feel like I am missing out on anything by not being connected and that I actually enjoy being unplugged from computers and the internet (I am perfectly aware that this might change once I have a baby and we spend hours of time together by ourselves).  But for now, I enjoy it and I am thankful for a husband that does not require internet or cable tv for any of his pursuits. 

Since it is almost thanksgiving, I suppose I should do a post about being thankful... but I would rather go home and clean my kitchen.  Maybe there will be time next Monday when I am in lab to through together some words about how thankful I am to be alive.  There is so much of life that I am thankful for (and I am even more thankful the more I meet ungrateful, miserable people).  That God for joy and peace. 

Happy Thanksgiving!! 
(It is my favorite holiday)

More posts will come about some new recipes that I have tried recently (including gingerbread cupcakes, gyros (bread and meat), and marshmallows and hot chocolate).

Wise word of the day: When the Gap model looks bad in a shirt, you should not buy it.

Random things

Just in case you were wondering...I was half joking when I suggested it because my list of boys name is so scarce (I think I might have half a dozen names that I might like, but nothing that really stands out to me), but Jared has said, "no" to the name Gilbert.  ha ha.

In other news, I was told at work the other day that I look like a Norman Rockwell picture (specifically the one of the girl with a slingshot and over sized baseball cap).  Since then I have nicknamed baby Shelton, "Rockwell".  It sounds a little more manly than Muffin (which my siblings have been calling him). 

It has been beautiful out lately, I walked around the SU campus Tuesday just for fun.  The leaves are changing and it is the perfect temperature.  I love fall!

 

 

 Baby at 12 weeks (2" long).

Baby at 22 weeks (12' long). I am pretty much living in dresses and leggings (or stockings) these days.  They are so comfortable!!

We go to the ultrasound place to get updated pictures of Rockwell today (by today, I mean last Wednesday - for some reason this post did not post until now).  If they are good, I will post them someday (the only photo I like is of his long feet).  I think he looks like an orc (from LOTR) in his 20 week pictures because of the way the screen blurs the edges.  Please, ignore the pile of reusable grocery bags that are waiting to go back out to my car.  I was so proud of myself for remembering them on Saturday when I went grocery shopping. 

I made gumbo this weekend and I am eating it for lunch each day (with extra Tabasco sauce) and it doesn't seem to be killing me.  The only thing right now that is giving me heartburn is tomato sauce (oh spaghetti and lasagna and stuffed shells I miss you).

I have 6 labs down this semester and 6 more to go.  I can't believe the semester is half way finished already.  It is so much easier to teach a class that you have taught before (even better if you have taught it 3 times before).  This week's lab was on electricity and motors; it is my favorite lab. 

Verse of the day:
"...In love he predestined us for adoption ..."

I have been marvelling at that portion of the verse today.  I have never noticed the, "in love" part before or it just never stuck out to me. I love how deep the Bible is.  I look forward to reading it to our little baby.  He will probably point out things to me that I have never noticed and ask me questions that make me rethink things I thought I knew.   

Okay here is the rest:

"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,"

(Ephesians 1:3-5 ESV)

Clothes Shopping

To my non pregnant friends (and ones without kids): Maternity clothes are expensive.

Here are a few tips that I have assembled that will save you quite a bit of money.

1. Shop the maternity racks for dresses and tops now (and pants and shorts if you are brave). I have at least 5 or 6 dresses that I bought on clearance racks for $5 of $6, that would have cost me $35 or $40 if I bought them full price. The Target clearance rack is a jackpot of beautiful clothing. Kohl’s can also have some sales; they are hit or miss.
2. Buy dresses that are roomy in the waist and chest. I have 4 or 5 dresses that are non maternity that I still wear and will for a few more months.
3. Buy shirts that are a little bit roomy, but also make sure they are long. Roomy short shirts will not work as your stomach expands; they also need to be long. Empire waist shirts are wonderful.
4. Find pregnancy leggings on sale or else roll the tops down (or buy low rise) normal leggings. $24 for maternity leggings is not happening!!
5. Motherhood Maternity has the best (super comfy) nursing bras (and they are cheap on sale). They have sales at department stores and at the outlets.

Think about it now or spend extra money later. Buy things now!! I have been saving shirts, dresses, and pants since I got married. I have only bought a pair of dress pants and one shirt so far (at full price).

6. Lastly, borrow if you can. Jeanne lent me a pair of maternity jeans, which are so comfortable (I have worn them every Friday for casual Friday (the last 3 weeks) because the GAP jeans I bought are a bit too big still). Linnea sent me her maternity pea coat (in purple, my favorite color) and Jeanne lent me her pea coat (in black, so classy). So, I will be warm this winter. Bring on the snow.

Baby names

Here was my list before we found out the gender:

Girls
Evelyn Grace
Rose (middle name of second girl)
Louisa Anne
Virginia and Georgia (twins)
Emma
Elsie
Violet
Margaret
Ella
Lucy
Julianna
Eliza
Adeline
Amelia
Blaise Isabel (just because you can rearrange blaise to get isabel -- ha ha)
Olivia

Boys
...
...
...

So, I wasn't surprised to learn that we were having a boy because life is just funny like that.  I love so many girl names and have no strong feelings towards boys names at all.  Well, at least I have 19 weeks to prepare.

I just realized in typing that list that I really like vowel names for girls. Maybe if we have 5 girls someday I will name them A, E, I, O, and U. I just need a U name. I am just kidding. But if they are girls, it looks like they will be a nice mix of A and E names.

Butternut Squash Mac & Cheese

So, I have a confession to make, when I cook a recipe for the first time I rarely follow it (unless I am baking, sometimes).  I throw most of the ingredients into a pan and mix it up for maybe the number of minutes that it calls for (or maybe shorter if I am not patient, which is usually how it goes).  This makes it extremely hard to write down what I cook to tell you about it. 

I made a recipe based on one I found online on a food blog that I read, realsweeteats. However, I didn't measure my squash, want to use browned butter, or have fontina cheese.  I also didn't measure my chicken broth or milk or pasta (which may have been the rest of a box of springs and elbows).

Here is what I did.  I will try to follow my own recipe next time and test to see if this comes out the same.  Maybe you are having the same reaction that I had when I first read cheese and squash together in a recipe, but believe me, it is delicious!!

Ingredients (my ingredients are in ( ):

(some - the rest of two boxes in cupboard) 3 cups uncooked whole wheat pasta shells
(1 - cooked whole in oven for half and hour to make cutting up easier) 4 cups 1/2-inch cubed uncooked butternut squash
(a dash, maybe 1 T) 2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
(1/6) 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
(1/2 cup) 3/4 cup low-sodium chicken or vegetable stock
(3/4ish of a cup - I just poured it in) 1 1/2 cups skim milk (or unsweetened almond or coconut)
(I have no idea, I used the rest of a block, probably 4 or 5 oz) 6 ounces freshly grated fontina cheese (extra sharp cheddar)
2 ounces freshly grated parmesan cheese2 tablespoons unsalted brown butter2 tablespoons fine (panko) breadcrumbs

For those of you that have cut butternut squash before, I learned a trick today: put the whole squash in the oven for 20 -30 minutes, pull in out, and it will be nearly all the way cooked and so easy to slice through the skins.  I let it cool off a little, peeled off the skin, diced it up, and threw it in a pan with a little bit of olive oil.  I also added the seasonings. 

I let it cook for a while, because I was grating the cheese, before added in the chicken broth and some of the cheese.  Save some of the sharp cheese to put on the top with the bread crumbs (yum yum yum, the bread crumbs make this dish even more amazing). 

Dump everything, once the cheese is melted into a pan, top with rest of cheese and bread crumbs, put in oven to cook (or if you are hungry, broil it for a few minutes until the cheese and bread crumbs start to brown). 

Baby muffin (as my siblings call him) and I fully enjoyed this meal (no heartburn, unlike most other foods, I am looking at you pulled BBQ pork and beef stew sitting in my frig).

Does anyone else love butternut squash?  Everytime I eat it I think, why do I not eat this more often?  They sell butternut squash for $2 a piece at the farmers market downtown.   While I was quite envious of Boulder's expansive farmer's market, I am thankful for my cheap source of butternut squash here.  I hope they have more this Saturday!!

Favorite Oatmeal Cinnamon Whole Wheat Bread

This is one of Jared and my favorite recipes!!  I am sure it would be even better if I didn't substitute applesauce for the shortning.  :)

Ingredients:
4-1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 c. warm water
1-1/2 c. quick cooking oats
1-2/3 c. warm milk
1/2 c. applesauce (or shortning)
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp salt
5 - 5-1/2 c. flour (whole wheat or white - I use whole wheat)

Swirl ingredients:
2/3 c. sugar
4 tsp cinnamon
handfuls of raisins (optional)

1. Dissove yeast in water.  Add oats, milk, applesauce, 1/2 cup sugar, eggs, salt, and 2 cups flour.  Mix 3 minutes.  Add enough flour to make a soft dough.  Again, I do air on the side of softer doughs so that they rise properly.  Also, I don't knead my dough or use the bread hook.  I just use the paddle attachment on the kitchenaid and let it run a little longer.  I also do not put in a greased bowl.  I leave it in the kitchenaid bowl and cover with a wet dishcloth.

2. Rise 1 hour.

3. Punch down.  Divide in half.  Roll 16x8.  I use a cookie sheet with a lip for this part so that I do not get flour all over my counter.  Sprinkle with water.  Sprinkle half the swirl mixture.  I also add raisins at this point.  I just sprinkle a bunch on top of the sugar mixture.  

4.  Roll jelly roll style.  Pinch to seal (I sort of do this).  Make sure to place the seam at the bottom of the pan.   Place rolled up dough, seam down, in a greased bread pan. 

5. Cover and let rise for 30 - 45 minutes. 

6. Bake at 350 for 35 - 45 minutes. 

7. Leave in pan for a few minutes when it comes out of the oven.  

8.  Cool on wire rack. 

9. Slice and enjoy.  

I love the way a cut loaf looks. 

Jared and I love to toast this with butter.  Since this recipe makes two loaves, we usually slice both loaves and freeze most of the slices.  They are easy to pull out of the freezer and throw in the toaster to heat up.  Yum yum yum.

 

English Muffins

I originally found this recipe here:
The Frugal Girl (includes lots of pictures with each step)

These are so simple (and in the summer you don't have to even warm up the oven).  I try to keep a bag of them in my freezer to grab on my way to work.  I love them fork-split and toasted with honey and butter.  Yum!!  I keep meaning to make the cinnamon raisin version, but I stick with the whole wheat each time. Someday.

Ingredients:

1 c. warm water
2-1/2 tsp yeast
1 c. warm milk
2 T. sugar
1-1/2 tsp salt
3 T butter
5 cups flour (white or whole wheat, I use whole wheat)

I put everything in the kitchen aid mixer and stir it up. I am not a fan of multiple dirty bowls.

1. First, I add the yeast and water.

2. Then I mix in the milk, sugar, salt, and butter.  The water and milk are somewhere between 100 - 115 degrees.

3. I don't hand knead my dough, I just mix it in the mixer for a little bit longer. Add the flour until the dough is still a bit wet. Dry dough is the enemy of rising.  Thus, I usually air on the side of softer, stickier dough and add flour when I roll it out to prevent sticking.

4. Rise 1 hour.

5. Punch down let rest 10 min. on surface sprinkled with corn meal.

6. Roll out dough to 1/2" thichness

7. Cut out with 3" biscuit cutter and place on ungreased baking sheet.

8. Cover with dry towel. Let rise 30 min - 1 hour

9. Warm up griddle or pan to medium (I use 4 on my stove) heat.   I have also cooked these on a pizza stone in the oven so that I can cook more at one time.

10. Gently place each muffin in pan.

11. Cook 5 -10 minutes on each side, depending on heat (I find they cook faster and the second side takes a much shorter time).

12. Cool on wire rack.

13. Split with fork, enjoy with honey!! (my favorite)

Or homemade blueberry jam...

Projects

Now that I have some energy and I am not sleeping all the time, I have started looking at quilt patterns again. Here are some of my favorites.

Moda Quilt.  I am not to sold on the fabric choice, but I like the grey background.  I usually use light backgrounds and this makes me rethink some of my other patterns.  I doubt there are ways to go wrong with Moda fabric and quilts.  I love that they give away patterns on their website: Moda Bake Shop. 

More Moda Bake Shop goodness.  I love these fabrics and this pattern.  It looks super simple.  You will probably see this quilt in my near future.

Giant Star Throw.  I am thinking of using this pattern to make a few throw blankets for people to use up some of my fabric.  Of course, it will not be as lightly colored as this fabric, but I like the pattern.

Plus Plus Plus.  I have seen this quilt several places and it has been on my list for a while. It is probably the math person in me that LOVES the way this pattern turns out.

This is made with alternating hot and cold fabrics. I don't think I have enough blues and purples to pull this off. But I am keeping my eyes out for fabric scraps to make this.  If anyone wants to donate little fabric scraps to me, I am always willing to take them.  This is high up on my list of quilts to make.  I just need to fabric. :) But I am not buying any fabric until I use up some of my other fabric.  Thus, this is lower on my list than I would like.

The Louvre!! My favorite place in Paris.

 All the ceilings look like this. Incredible.

 "I used to rule the world..."

 Mummys

 "Gleaming in the moonlight..."

The moat under the Louvre from when it used to be a castle. What?!? So cool.

Grilled Potatoes and cheese

So, my Dad grew yellow and red potatoes in his garden this year.  I am blessed enough to be his daughter, which means I am given free potatoes.  I never realized that potatoes could taste better fresh, but they really do!!  Last night I had to run back out, after work, to VBS decorating.  Thus, I needed a quick meal.  The following recipe is what I came up with; I will definitely make theses again.

Grilled Potatoes and Cheese (and broccoli and green onions)

1a. Poke holes in potatoes with a knife.  This is the fun part.  I probably poke way too many holes in my potatoes just because it is fun to stab them. Place on a plate or dish with a little bit of water.  Microwave on high 4 - 10 minutes depending on the size of potato.  You may want to rotate them.  I poke at them some more with the knife to see how done they are.

1b.  While they are cooking, turn on grill to medium.

2. Once they are close to being fully cooked, removed from microwave and smash.  I took a heavy bottomed glass and pounded on them a few times, just to break them up. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.

3. Grease a piece of tin foil and place on a grill over medium heat.  Place on smashed potatoes. Leave on grill for 5 - 7 minutes.

4. Grate cheese (I used Cheddar and Parmesan), chopped up green onions, and cook broccoli.

5. Flip potatoes over.  Sprinkle with cheese and green onions.  Let cook 4 -6 more minutes. Sprinkle on broccoli loosely chopped up.  Cook another 3 -5 minutes.

6. Slide airbake cookie sheet under the tinfoil. Turn off grill.  Carry inside.  Enjoy.

Fresh food!!!

My parents have invited us over 3 times in the last week for yummy food out of their garden. :)  Do you know how happy this makes me?!?  I love food from the garden.  

The first night we went over for corn and green beans, but the corn was not quite ready (we each ate one tiny little ear). The second night we at green beans and made homemade peach and strawberry ice cream.  The third night, last night, we had all you could eat corn and green beans.  My mother also made cauliflower and cheese and ribs.  Cauliflower is one of my favorite foods; it is one of the only foods that Jared does not eat.  So, when I have it at other people's houses, I am happy.

I had half a rib last night. The rest of what I ate was green beans (cooked with bacon, of course), corn, and cauliflower and cheese. I have listed two (simple) recipes below for my benefit so that I can look them up whenever I need to. Green beans from the garden are in my top 5 foods of all times list.  I would pass by a bunch of other foods to have a bowl of green beans cooked with bacon.  Yum yum yum.

Green Beans with Bacon
Fry bacon in pan
Add green beans
Add water to cover
Cook until not quite limp
Drain water and serve

Cauliflower
Put a 1/2 - 1" water in a pan
Cut up cauliflower head
Sprinkle a bit of salt
Cook until finished

Thanks to my parents for WONDERFUL food and for cooking for us!  It was fun to spend the evening with my family. They are my favorite people (especially when they cook for me).  My Dad sent me home with potatoes, green beans, squash, and cucumbers from the garden.  And my mom packed up the leftovers so that I could eat green beans and corn for my lunch today!!!!!!  I was looking forward to my lunch ALL DAY TODAY!!

We also spent Monday night at the Shelton's with more good food and family time with our niece and nephews.  We played Tornado Rex and Blockus with the kids.  Bright and I won blockus and Krue and I came in second in Tornado Rex.  It is always fun to see my niece and nephews.  They are hilarious.  My parents-in-law loaded us down with fresh peaches and a new garden hose when we left the house. 

I love having family live so close by.  It is great fun to see them all so often.  I am so thankful that both sets of our parents live close by.  We really enjoy visiting them (and having them cook for us) often.  :)  Praise God for family!!

BBQ Chicken Taquitos

I was hopping from food blog to food blog last night and I came accross this recipe.  It looked so good and I knew I had all the ingredients so this morning I made these.  They were delicious and super easy!!

Baked BBQ Pork (or Chicken) Taquitos
Based on this recipe (with my own twist):
http://www.pink-parsley.com/2012/05/baked-bbq-pork-taquitos.html

3 oz. cream cheese, softened to room temperature (reduced-fat is fine)

1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chile powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder (or 1 garlic clove, minced)
1/2 tsp mustard powder (I never have mustard powder and used mustard instead)
1/2 tsp brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup diced onion
3 green onions, diced
2 cups shredded cooked pork or chicken (I already had BBQ shredded chicken in my frig, so I cut out the BBQ sauce the recipe called for and just added my already made chicken)
1 cup sharp cheddar cheese
8-10 (6-inch) corn or flour tortillas
cooking spray

The original recipe also calls for:
2 Tbs minced fresh cilantro or parsley

hot sauce (optional)
liquid smoke
red pepper flakes
BBQ sauce
Ranch Dressing and/or BBQ Sauce, for serving


The original recipe called for these to be made in the oven, but it is over 100 degrees outside.  Turning on the oven is crazy.  I turned on my grill instead. I find that the grill ends of making things crispier and with a better flavor in the long run.  I grill my pizza all year long, even in the winter.


Chop the onion and green onions. 

In a bowl, combine everything but the chicken and shredded cheese.  Mix the cream cheese mixture until it softens up a bit.  Mix in the shredded cheese and chicken. Set aside.

Put 4 or 5 tortillas on a plate, cover with a damp dish towel, and microwave for 30 - 40 seconds.  The tortillas should be easy to roll after being microwaved.  I used corn tortillas.

Spoon mixture (2 - 4 TBS) onto the lower third of the tortilla and roll tightly.  Place seam side-down on a plate that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Spray the top of each tortilla with cooking spray and sprinkle with a bit of salt.  Repeat until all the mixture is gone.
Place seam side down on the grill (med - low heat) and cook for 5 or 6 minutes.  Rotate.  Cook for 5 or 6 more minutes.  It will really depend on your grill for how long you will cook them.  Also, watch for the cheese to drip down and cause flames to come up and burn the tortillas.  This happened to my last batch that I cooked, but it ended up being okay because I caught it in time. 
 
The recipe calls to serve these with BBQ sauce or ranch dressing as a dip, but I just ate them plain.  I will definitely make these again!!  Yum.  It is a great way to use up shredded pork or chicken that you have as leftovers.  :)