• Blog - Kitchen

    Recycled Christmas card ornament

    December 18, 2014 - By 

    This is definitely not a new craft…but it was a new one for me. I hang on to all our old cards. They are so pretty I can’t bear throwing them in the recycle bin.

    Of course, Pinterest played a big part in me actually creating one of these. Ah, Pinterest… How much time I spend with you… The thousands of pins we share… Time organizing and reorganizing when I should be organizing the real things in my life.

    IMG_0052

    Maybe this is a better clue to the size. IMG_0051

    It was created with a 1.25″ punch. IMG_0054

    The green one on the left. My neighbor borrowed the blue 2″ punch. I’m curious how much exponentially bigger another one will be with that punch. Yes I’m aware I could do the math…but I’ll just give it a whirl in the physical dimension and compare. Results to follow…soon.

    Unless I’m crushed under all the Christmas goodies I’ve been making…treats2

    These are just from this morning. I’m getting a sugar rush just smelling them.

    I’m getting to the point that just thinking about eating any of it just doesn’t sounds appealing. Just like when I worked at Baker’s Square when I was a teen…when you are around pies, cookies and muffins all day long…you have desire to eat any.

  • Blog - Kitchen

    T Tuesday: jam edition

    October 14, 2014 - By 

    T stands for Tuesday_200
    Hey it’s Tuesday already….seems all I’m doing with my blog is T stands for Tuesday.  I’ve got to do something about that! Although I did finally finish and post my 2014 Summer Scavenger Hunt wrap-up…so I haven’t been completely lackadaisical with my blog.

    tea and aloe

    By the way, did anyone notice I changed the background of my blog? I’m thinking that a little more change is due but haven’t given it any brain cells yet.

    See now I’m trying to justify things for you and me…silly girl. Anyway…on to the jam!

    20140909_6922

    A while back I mentioned that I’d be making some Yellow Pear Tomato Jam with these babies… I’ve only made jam once before.

    cooking jam

    I was skeptical at this stage as to whether the jam would ever turn out. It seemed so juicy and not thick. It definitely cooked down though.

    jam

    Ta-da…the finished product.  It’s a cross between a jam and a sauce in my opinion but that works just fine for pouring over Brie for a yummy appetizer.

    This is the recipe I used: spicy yellow tomato jam.  I think I’d back off on the sugar a bit or add more jalapenos and maybe add pectin to thicken it a bit.

    Just got back from a 3.5 mile walk with my friend….lost my favorite stocking hat with tassels. I’m going to have to retrace my steps.

    What are you doing today?

  • Blog - Kitchen

    T Tuesday: catching up edition

    September 30, 2014 - By 

    Welcome to T stands for Tuesday.T stands for Tuesday_200

    Do I dare say that I think our internet troubles are finally over?  We haven’t had a reboot in almost 3 days now.  Of course, we’ve hardly used the computer either since we’ve been so busy.  Where shall I start?

    Apples….Phil and friends

    We helped with the annual harvest at our neighbors house on Saturday. We brought home 6 grocery bags of apples to be processed…a fraction of the total haul from their 7 trees.

    Later that evening I went to a new neighborhood edition of craft club, where I made these 4 cards as well as got my stamp on the backs of a huge stack of previously made cards. I was pretty tired from the day and didn’t really have my craft mojo going.

    craft club cards

    Sunday was spent with Little J in the garage processing through the apples.  They are organic so they have spots and holes so most need some trimming after being run through the peeler/corer/slicer. BIG JOB! So glad I had help this year. We ended up with about 15 gallons of apples ready for the next step.

    applesauce

    So far I’ve made 7 quarts of sauce…

    apple pie

    One pie…dehyrator

    An overstuffed quart bag of dried apple slices and three 8×8 apple crisps are in the freezer at the ready for future desserts. That was only about 1/2 the apples. More apple-ing today…

    Last night I had a well deserved glass of wine.relaxing

    Last week I finally got around to doing some creating…here’s a work-in-progress shot of a painting.

    WIP

    I’m a little late with my post today as I went for a walk with a friend around a local lake this morning. 4.25miles.  It was a little brisk at times but as long as you keep moving it helps keep you warm.

    What are you doing today?