Tuesday, March 31, 2009

ACHOOOOOOOOOO!


Lots of sickness at our house these days. Everyone sneezing & sniffling, coughing & achy.... still hoping that day of stamping is around the corner, but must find my energy first. What are you all working on these days?
hope to have things to share soon...
.j.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Easy Brocooli Quiche

This is our family favorite! Grab one of those pastry "disks" out of your freezer that you made a couple weeks ago! :)))) (you'll only need 1/2)

EASY BROCCOLI QUICHE

Ingredients:
2 TBPS Butter
1 onion, minced
1 tsp. minced garlic
2 cups chopped fresh broccoli
1-9" unbaked pie crust
1-1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese (we use cheddar sometimes too!)
4 eggs, well beaten
1-1/4 cup milk
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 TBPS. Butter, melted
Directions:
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Over med-low heat, melt butter in large saucepan. Add onions, garlic & broccoli. Cook slowly, stirring occasionally until the veggies are soft. (we often add crumbled bacon in here too -- YUM!)
  3. Sprinkle cheese on crust & then spoon veggies on top.
  4. Combine eggs & milk. Season with salt & pepper. Stir in melted butter. Pour egg mixture over cheese & veggies.
  5. Bake in preheated oven for 30-45 minutes, or until center has set.

ENJOY!

.j.

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

changes & stitched bookmarks.

Changes. That could be one work to sum up our life. Things have been turned upside down here in the last couple weeks {days even} with my husband's work schedule being totally changed. This of course changed everything for us (our schedule, holiday time, leave date...) In all of this we are both just very thankful he has a good job. In today's economy, having to wait a little longer to go on an adventure is not a bad thing. So, everything has been pushed about a month (who knows if that will change again) - we're just taking each day, one at a time. It seems each day something new has transpired, so we'll have a soft plan in place {in pencil only} and just see what happens. Good thing I didn't pack all my stamping stuff yet. Planning on making a stamp day for myself next week! With all this stress I'm NEEDING that!
While I continue to fill my creative void with other people's, I found this amazing idea for stitched bookmarks. Both my girls are AVID readers. I loved this idea of having them draw & stitch a bookmark - what a keepsake! If you're interested, check it out {here}
Enjoy your week.
.j.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Felt Tissue Cases


I saw these SO long ago & thought they would be a great project to do with the kids (cute little gifty too!). Hopefully you don't mind all the NON stamp postings, but with things in pack mode, I haven't time to sit & play {enter pouty face here!}
To make one, cut a 6 3/4-by-5 7/8-inch rectangle from felt, fold short ends in to meet at center, and pin. Sew sides shut with a 1/2-inch seam allowance, and trim with scallop or pinking shears; adhere mounting tab to back side.
You can check it out on Martha Stewarts site - or click HERE.
I think I'm finding a lot of cool projects to do with the kids on rainy days at Grandma's over the next few months! :)
Enjoy your weekend!
.j.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Love that color!!

I stumbled across this blog which had this amazing craft room posted. I just loved all the colors! Isn't it amazing?! Love those kind of spaces that just make you FEEL happy! :)
Perhaps it's all our snow and much too cold for March weather, but this bright place... I'm diggin!
.j.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Basic Pizza Dough

Very few people (that I at least know) make their own bread. I grew up on homemade bread. I remember watching in amazement as that little ball of dough grew into this bubbly beach ball! And I LOVED being allowed to "punch it down". I still love to make bread, and do so as much as I can. Admittedly I do buy for sandwiches when life is too busy. We RARELY order in pizza (honestly CANNOT remember the last time we did... years probably!). I've just always made pizza. Kids love to build their own, select their own toppings.... the dough is very quick & easy to make. If you have a bread machine (I do not, but used to), you can put all the ingredients (wet first like usual then dry) and select dough cycle and skip the *messy* part. :)

Pizza Dough.
2 tsp. active dry yeast
pinch sugar or honey
2-1/2 to 3 cups of unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup warm water
2 TBSP good olive oil
1/2 tsp. salt
Directions:
1. In a small bowl, sprinkle the yeast, sweetening & 1 TBSP flour into warm water. Stir until dissolved & let stand until foamy, about 15 min. (IF it doesn't go FOAMY - THROW it out, your yeast is OLD) :)
2. In a large bowl, place the oil, salt 1 cup flour and the foamy yeast mixture. Whisk hard until smooth (about 3 min.. depending on your pipes!) Add the remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time with a wooden spoon until a soft, sticky dough is formed that just clears the sides of the bowl. Remove the dough from the bowl.
3. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface & vigorously knead to form a springy ball, adding flour 1 TBSP. at a time as necessary to prevent sticking, about 3 min. The dough should be quite soft, smooth & very springy. Form into a flattened ball & place in a greased deep container, turning once to coat the top & cover with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temp (I usually stick it in the oven with the light on) for about 1-1/2 hrs (triple in size it should be).
4. Shape the dough, cover it with toppings and bake in a preheated 500 degree oven (I use a pizza stone), for about 8-10 minutes. Pans can take 10-15 minutes. ENJOY!!!
Just remember to limit yourself to 3-5 toppings.... too much and it's well... too much! Always coat the dough with a layer of sauce or olive oil before assembling.
Makes one 16-18 " crust, two 10-12" crusts, three 8" crusts or ten 4" appetizer pizzette :)
We love to have family movie nights on Friday night -- usually it's with hot, fresh pizza!
.j.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Bag Tutorial.

Tuesday has arrived, and according to the fridge calendar, that means that the new renters are coming through to have one last peek at the townhouse before moving in. For me that means being semi-organized & tidy. SO HARD to do in the middle of packing, soccer games, hockey gear *air drying*, packing paper being used as basketballs, sorting piles of this & that.... oh the joys! BUT, after today then there will be NO MORE showings & that is a good thing. Still trying to go through & figure out what we'll need at my mom, what we'll need on our trip, what we'll need for potentially 4-8 months! That's a long time to pack for (and to ONLY have the back of a pick up!). No, our "trip" will only be for a month or so, but we're going to spend the summer in Vernon....

OK, found another very fun sewing project.

Click HERE for the details. Not sure if it's all this snow again that makes me want to turn on the fire & craft away, but... I do look forward to some time to create again!!

enjoy your day, .j.

Monday, March 16, 2009

Hello Monday.

One thing I'm really looking forward to while I'm staying with my Mom in Vernon is getting into photography. I love taking photos (I'm just not good at it!) and my brother is quite the little photographer!! SO... I've asked him to take me out on a couple of photo shoots so I can learn, learn, learn -- be a SPONGE while I'm there. In my "blurfing" (also known as Avoiding Packing!!) I came across these adorable camera straps. You can check them out HERE. How cute are these??
I'm thinking I need a sewing machine, I'm finding darling things online - everyone seems to be getting little etsy shops on their blogs & I love all the cool things people are coming up with. I'm not a fan of clutter... ack! BUT, I do love useful crafty things! I'll share more cool things I've found... please leave a comment with links to things you find too -- I love to check out other peoples crafty blogs... and seeing as most of things will be getting packed up here... it's the best way to get my *fix* :)
Have a great week!
.j.

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Pie Crust Pastry

Here's the recipe I use for pie crusts. I use this mostly for meat pies (don't really make the fruity kind) but HAVE used this for pastry apple dumplings (MMMmm). Weekend is here, we survived (and ENJOYED!) both parties. very fun. Monday tomorrow - new week for me needs to be MUCH PACKING. Cannot believe how fast this month is going. Yikes!
.j.

For quiches, meat pies or as a covering for casseroles. I use this for my meat pies, chicken pot pie..... YUMMY. It freezes beautifully. I make this batch, form into small disks and then stick it in the freezer to have a continuous supply!

5 cups All-purpose Flour
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Baking powder
3 TBPS. Brown sugar
1 lb. Lard, room temperature
1 Egg
2 TBSP. Vinegar
Cold Water
Measure flour, salt, baking powder & brown sugar into large bowl. Stir together to distribute all ingredients.
Add lard. Cut into pieces with knife. With pastry cutter (I just use my fingers), cut in lard until whole mixture is crumbly & feels moist.
Break egg into measuring cup. Fork beat well. Add vinegar. Add cold water to measure 1 cup. Pour slowly over flour mixture stirring with fork to distribute. With hands, work until it will hold together. Divide into 4 equal parts. Each part is sufficient for a med. size 2 crust pie. Wrap in plastic & store in fridge for 1-2 weeks or (like me) stick them in your freezer. Just take it out the night before & put it in your fridge. It'll be ready to go when you are!

Friday, March 13, 2009

One more bear :)

A busy weekend for us as we host not one but TWO birthday parties! Joshua is having is big 1-0 and Sarah is celebrating her 8th a little early this year so she can have a party with friends before our trip. So we have them back to back... they are small this year so VERY manageable. The only hitch is Joshua is suppose to play outdoor hockey at a nearby rink and it's suppose to dump snow that day.... so we'll see. Guess I better come up with a PLAN B!
Another little bear card... thought this one could be used as a baby card - stuck a little baby diaper pin in the ribbon. Also continuing to use up my stash of rubons here & there. These ones were from Stampn' Up!
Have a great weekend!
.j.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Cheeseburger Pie

I think Wednesday is becoming my "share a recipe with you day" :) For some reason making pies (the fruity & sugary kind) has never been a success of mine. The pastry shrinks to nothingness by the time I pull it out of the oven & try to pour the ooey-gooey goodness inside. HOWEVER... a number of years ago I tried a meat pie & I found that having that top AND bottom crust somehow formed a bond and it STAYED PUT... and was SO yummy. I do make my own pie crust - seriously, not that hard. Seriously, SO much better than store bought. Not sure why. I am however a home-made kinda gal. If I can figure out how to make it myself I'd rather do that than pull out a can opener or twist off a top! Always made our own baby food too. Just liked knowing what was being put INTO the food. Plus, hubby has a real nasty reaction to MSG so it eliminates a ton of prepackaged foods. We make this pie often. I always adjust it and combine a couple recipes depending on what I have. Here's our basic recipe of:
Cheeseburger Pie
Pastry for a 9" pie (let me know if you'd like my recipe, I'd be happy to share it)
1lb. lean ground beef - fried {with onions} and drained
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup water or milk
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup ketchup
1tsp salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp oregano
1 cup medium cheddar cheese, grated
Roll out pastry & fit into pie plate.
In medium bowl combine beef, onions & water. Mix well. Add next 5 ingredients.
**this is where you can do your own thing too. I like to add peas sometimes, or I use tomato soup sometimes instead of the ketchup & water... you could grate carrots in there too!**
Mix & put into shell. Smooth top.
Sprinkle Cheese over top. Cover with top crust and bake uncovered in 350 oven for 45 min. If you notice it browning too quickly, lightly lay a piece of tin foil over top to protect the pastry from getting too dark.
enjoy! Serve with a salad.
.j.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Coming up for Air.

Thankfully I have a couple of cards saved to show you as I haven't had any stamping time... too many boxes to fill - :) I have a few posts ready for Wednesday's recipe days, so at least you'll have that. I'll be sporadic in my postings but I'm going to try to keep up. Thanks for all the emails. I know there's not too many comments on here, but many of you email me, so thanks for that. Good to hear from you! :)
This is the card I made ahead of time for my nephew who will be turning 13 if you can believe it. WOW. Seems INSANE to me how they are all growing up so fast. It's a bit of a mish-mash of stuff, but it all seems to come together without any girly feel to it (I'm guessing that is KEY for a 13 yr. old!LOL) What is everyone working on these days? We woke up to -37 today.. this cold snap is still here... brrr. Feel like cranking the heat & stamping... but... I pack instead. Hope to get some good stamping time in while I'm staying at my moms. We'll see. Not sure how much room I'll have for all my stuff! Enjoy your week!
.j.

Thursday, March 05, 2009

Keeping it Simple

Still keeping it simple with this card. Simple layers, simple ribbon bow & simple scalloped squares. I popped out the center square using stampin' dimensionals to add a bit more depth to the card. To get the different colors on the stamped image, I used Stampin' Write Markers to color directly on the stamp, huffed on it (to slightly remoisten) and then stamped. I love that little technique for getting multicolored images like that. Nearing the end of the week already. I need this month to go nice & slow so I can get done all I need to do. Sure looking forward to some rest. :)
.j.

Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Whole Wheat Ginger Sanp Cookies

Megan & I made these last week. I'm rummaging through cupboards trying to use up everything. Found some molasses & a bag of whole wheat flour.... and this recipe! I wasn't too sure at first, but WOW, are they ever yummy!! If you ignore the butter & sugar... a very healthy cookie! LOL. It's one you should definitely try... nice & spicy & chewy.... Mmmm. A keeper for us!
.j.

Whole Wheat Ginger Snaps
Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup molasses
4 cups whole wheat flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons ground nutmeg
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
1 cup white sugar for decoration
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and 1 1/2 cups of sugar until smooth. Mix in the eggs, and then the molasses. Combine the whole wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice, heaping the measures if you like a lot of spice. Stir the dry ingredients into the molasses mixture just until blended.
3. Roll the dough into small balls, and dip the top of each ball into the remaining white sugar. Place the cookies about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheets.
4. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until the tops are cracked. Bake longer for crispy cookies, less time for chewy cookies.
Cool on wire racks.

Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Tuesday's Radom Tips.

I love tips. Anything that will make life easier... BRING IT ON!! :) LOL. What's your best tip?

Here are a few TOTALLY random ones I have:
  1. Have a bins (in color families) on your table as you stamp/scrap. Throw pieces directly in there as you work so you have (a) less to clean up (b) a place to grab a small piece if you're just needing to punch something out. use mine all the time!

  2. Brown Sugar HARD as a rock? Stick a slice or two of an apple in there.... in a couple days it'll be soft & ready to use again. I use this method a lot now!

  3. Norwex clothes! My sister in law sells them & they are AMAZING. I now only use WATER for all my cleaning. No more chemicals in my house - yeah!! .... and the house shines. Love it.

OK - I thought I'd leave you with a card sketch I found online. Sometimes all it takes is a sketch to get your creative juices flowing again....

Hope your week is going smoothly :)

.j.



Monday, March 02, 2009

Simple Birthday

I think this birthday could be used for either gender. I like cards like that! :) I made these for my dad & father-in-law's birthdays. With us being gone for so long (technically a move as we're moving out of this place, but probably back here.. so then is that a "MOVE"???) at any rate, we'll have all our stuff in storage so I wanted to make sure to get all the family cards done. Still have more to do (hopefully in a week or so I'll find some more stamping time). With DH being home this week, we're going to go full out on packing mode! See how much we can get done while the kids are in school and we have uninterrupted packing time. Of course we typically start chatting.... maybe sit to have a cup of something... and before we know it, it's time to pick up the kids. We must stay FOCUSED - LOL. Both procrastinators.. NOT GOOD!
This simple card is made on Confetti Tan ( an all time favorite of mine that Stampin' Up! retired.. still cry over that one!!). Quite similar to Kraft but SOOOO much better. Red flecks that make it look pretty and not like a cardboard insert. I stamped white "grass" and then used my nestibilites to make the layers on the sand dollar stamped image. Simple. And.. I like it :)