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.

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.

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.

My Morning Sunrise. {through my window}

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.

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.

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.