Random Ramblings

Well I haven't much interesting to talk about lately. That's why I haven't posted. I am going through a "burnout" phase right now, it was to be expected. Sometimes I get so full of ideas I just keep churning projects out left and right. Now I've gotten to the point where I am dwindling on the last few items on my to-do list of craft projects and though I keep buying more supplies because I have even MORE ideas, I am slightly burnt out from all the work I've been doing for the past couple months. Not to mention this slow economy= slow sales and that's not very motivating for me. The aprons aren't selling as fast as I thought they would. I've sold some but not as many as I thought I would.

Maybe it's the price, I thought they would make great gifts. I don't know, I guess it could pick up cause I do have lot of people who ♥ the store. I've also been working in the garden lately. Got my raspberries fed, blueberries, kiwi vines, and rhubarb is coming up! The garlic is coming up and I've got some tomatoes, peppers and eggplant in water cloches outside already.

The temps have been cool for this time of year and I hope it warms up soon. My friend from MyEmmaGrace on etsy is making and commercially selling her salsa in the near future. I've volunteered to grow her some tomatilloes for the salsa. I am ALL organic too, so they will be tasty. I've never grown them but I've read that they are a good producer and fairly easy to grow. I hope they do well! I tried some of Kath's salsa and it's really good. I wonder if she could sell it on etsy? I know she went through the FDA and all that already so she's good to go.

I am going to a new bellydance class tonight. I am a little nervous about it since I haven't practiced much in the last couple years. I used to go to another class with a different group of people but I got stuck in the middle of some girls that were a little intimidated by me or my enthusiasm(I think?) and I shied away REALLY fast after that came to light. So I stopped going, and I flaked out on troupe practice and stopped performing.
This is a new class and while i really LOVED to bellydance before I can't decide if I will be having as much fun or not because of the new people in the class and how they will be. Also just not sure about the teacher, she's about my age and that alone can make things complicated for some. I don't care as long as she's a good teacher and I have fun. It's not till 7:45pm tonight and I am done with work at 3:30om so I will be hanging around town till then. I don't think I should go home since it's a 20 min drive and the gas prices being so high, it seems like a waste. But I don't know what to do with my extra time! It's not like I have anywhere to go or money to spend. This is always cramping my urges to take classes because driving in and out of town all the time is too expensive and time consuming. Not to mention it feels wasteful.

Anyway- that's my blabbing for now. I will post another soon. I've been working on something for a friend and I want to show it to you!

Roller DErby Kicks ASS!!!!

Last weekend Jarrod (husband) and I went to the 2nd bout of the Bellingham Roller Betties roller derby. It was the "waste not want not" match and it totally rocked. I've never been to a roller derby before but this advertised beer garden and food so I was all over it! The girls are so cool, all wearing there glam gear and battle make-up. I was really tempted to ask about joining but these ladies break bones on a regular basis so I thought I better not since I am paranoid about breaking things, but it sure looks fun! The beer garden had it's own section on green turf nonetheless and I ran into a bellydancing friend of mine so we all sat together. It was so fun, I really got into and I'm not much of a spectator sport type. I don't like watching sports, I think it's boring. But this is AWESOME!!!!! I didn't have a favorite team so I kept rooting for them both. They all have really funny/cool names and I was so impressed with their lack of self-conciousness. They were all stripped to skivvies, short skirts, and ruffle panties with tights or short shorts and I would say the majority were not waify at all. Not that I think they were "big girls" but they were not beanpoles and I think that is very cool.

For the low-waste part they had all the beer cups made from corn so they are super biodegradeable, and everything in the place was recyclable, even the food! The waste department for the city was there handing out free grocery totes and there were recycling bins for everything all over the place. They had super rad music too. So....if you ever have the opportunity to go to a girls roller derby, I highly recommend them. If you want to look for one in your area, try entering "roller derby" and your state into Google, you are sure to come up with a few hits. :) And have fun!

I was featured in an Etsy Treasury! Woohoo!

Oh I feel famous already. And it was so perfect because I love this color combo. :) Thank you Bittystar! You are fabulous! For those of you who don't know this means I was on the front page of etsy.com for a short time yesterday.

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=38506

Baby Showers, BLECH. At Least There's Good Food At these Things

Last weekend I went to a baby shower of a good friend of mine. No way I could back out. She said it was potluck of desserts and appetizers which I thought was cool, at least I could have some fun making food for this thing. 

I hate all baby/wedding showers they are annoying, you play stupid games, everyone talks about stupid things that I could give a crap about. And usually if they aren’t done in two hours I leave anyway. But I was delightfully surprised at this shower. Not only did everyone bring some yummy, healthy foods. But we just sat around and hung out. We ate, the mommy-to-be got a foot soak and foot massage from a person who happened to be a massuese, she opened gifts, we went home.

I couldn’t believe it, no "guess what melted candy is in the diaper" games? It was a miracle, I didn’t even need to sneak alcohol into my drink to endure it. Not to mention everyone at this shower was pretty cool. Also many of the gifts were handmade (quilted baby blankets and such). I left exclaiming "this is the best shower I’ve ever been to!" with a lot of laughs coming back at me. So i may have a new perspective, but I doubt I will be going to any other showers anytime soon. I don’t have many friends in my age group because this stuff annoys me so much. 

Anyway- thought maybe some of you needed some good potluck recipes so I am sharing the recipes of what I brought to this shower. The first is not healthy really, but they are so addicting you will eat them all if there are any leftover (good thing I dropped the tray on the floor when I got home). The other recipe is a lightened version of a cake that I like to bring everywhere.  

Cajun Crab Stuffed Pepperoncini  
Recipe courtesy Dan Smith and Steve McDonagh  

36 pepperoncini  
1 pound cream cheese, room temperature (i use lowfat and it still tastes great)  
8 ounces crab claw meat, shredded  
1 1/2 tablespoons Cajun seasoning  
1 tablespoon hot sauce  
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves 
Chopped fresh parsley leaves 

Cut the stem end off the pepperoncini and carefully scrape out the seeds. Set aside. 
Beat the cream cheese in the bowl of a mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the crab and continue to mix. Add the Cajun seasoning, hot sauce, and thyme and mix until blended. 
Place the mixture into a pastry bag and pipe into the seeded pepperoncini. Dip the cream cheese end of the pepperoncini in the chopped parsley before serving and transfer directly to a serving tray.

Cook’s Note: If you don’t have a pastry bag, use a large zipping plastic bag with one corner cut off. Copyright © 2006 Television Food Network, G.P., All Rights Reserved 

Lemon-Rosemary Crumb Cake  
(I usually double this recipe when I bring it somewhere. I cook it 15 min longer, use half splenda/half sugar and double the servings as well. )

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 
2/3 cup sugar 
1/8 teaspoon salt 
1/4 cup chilled stick margarine or butter, cut into small pieces 
3/4 teaspoon minced fresh or 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary
 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 
1/4 teaspoon baking soda 
1/3 cup low-fat buttermilk 
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 
1 large egg 
Cooking spray 
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind 
3/4 teaspoon water 
Rosemary sprigs (optional) 
Lemon slices (optional)  

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl; cut in margarine with a pastry blender or 2 knives until mixture resembles coarse meal. Reserve 1/2 cup flour mixture for topping; set aside.

Combine remaining flour mixture, rosemary, baking powder, and baking soda; add buttermilk, lemon juice, and egg. Beat at medium speed of a mixer until blended. Spoon batter into an 8-inch round cake pan coated with cooking spray. Combine reserved 1/2 cup flour mixture, lemon rind, and water; stir with a fork. Sprinkle crumb mixture over batter. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack. Garnish with rosemary sprigs and lemon slices, if desired.
Yield: 8 servings (serving size: 1 wedge) CALORIES 203 (30% from fat); FAT 6.8g (sat 1.4g,mono 2.8g,poly 2g); PROTEIN 3.3g; CHOLESTEROL 28mg; CALCIUM 39mg; SODIUM 157mg; FIBER 0.5g; IRON 1.1mg; CARBOHYDRATE 32.Cooking Light, MAY 1998

The Perfect bloody Mary and Breakfast are Not Difficult To Perfect

I didn’t mention this before, but a couple weeks ago Jarrod had to go to Vegas for a business thing for a whole week.So I was home alone and I went to the grocery store to buy a bunch of food that he doesn’t like to eat so I could be master chef of my domain while he was gone. I made all kinds of splendid foods that I celebrated with wine and southpark all alone to myself! On my days off I discovered a heavenly breakfast dish. It’s main ingredient is broccoli raab, or rapini whichever you prefer. So if you like greens like kale, chard or mustard then you will probably like broccoli raab (http://http//whatscookingamerica.net/Vegetables/BroccoliRaab.htm )because it’s similar and can be cooked the same ways. When Jarrod got back we decided to spend the weekend lazing about the house and I made a beautiful breakfast and we had bloody mary’s. We have them at home because no one around here makes good breakfast AND bloody mary’s in the same place- it’s either one or other. When I think of this drink I am reminded of the olden days in MN when my friends and I would go to Sydneys and create our own bloody mary’s at their bloody bars. I’ve been told there is no Sydneys anymore, or bloody mary bars. Which is a shame I tell you. If you have many friends, this is a great way to have a lazy weekend brunch at your house. Set up a huge bloody mary bar with all the fixins- vodka, ice, bloody mary mix, spicy bloody mary mix, variety of hot sauce(I like franks), fresh celery stalks and a smorgasboard of every pickled thing you can think of. Because that giant skewer of pickled things is what MAKES the drink! You cannot skip that part. By making it a DIY bar though people can pick and choose what they like. I like pickled green beans, pickles, green olives, celery, pickled asparagus, pickled jalepeno, and my husband likes pickled onions (yuck!). Don’t forget kosher salt in a dish for the rim! So I am sharing with you one of the most beautiful breakfasts, and a pic of MY perfect bloodAy Mary. Pay no attention to the window in the background, as you can see, neither of us like doing windows. Ever.

I only use 2tsp of olive oil 1 for cooking and 1 for drizzle. It really doesn’t need more than that. I added a little garlic to the broccoli raab because I like it together. I thought I would need two eggs, but it was so filling and satisfying I didn’t need the other egg. Also it was difficult to tell how done the eggs were in the pot, if you are particular about the yolk I suggest frying in pam on the side. this is YUMMY. 

~Cialledda~
A web-exclusive recipe from Italian Cooking and Living

• 1 1/4 pound broccoli raab, washed and trimmed pinch of salt
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 9 cherry tomatoes, washed and halved
• 1/4 pound pitted black olives (i used kalamata)
• 4 eggs
• 4 slices day-old bread

Pour 4 cups of salted water in a large pot; add salt and bring to a boil. Cook the broccoli raab for 15 minutes, or until tender. Add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, the tomatoes, and the olives. Break the eggs, one by one, in a small bowl and gently pour each one into the simmering pot. Cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes, or until the eggs are set. Place a slice of bread at the bottom of each of 4 terra-cotta serving bowls. Distribute the vegetables and eggs over the bread, making sure that each slice has its own egg. Serve hot, drizzling the remaining olive oil over the top of each serving. 
Serves 4 Copyright © 2006, Italian Cooking and Living. All rights reserved.  

Also when Jarrod got back he couldn't stop talking about how awful the place was. Just a big WASTE of electricity, resources, a bunch of annoying people, and the place was permeated with cigarette smoke. Neither of us has ever wanted to go there but now he will for work at least once a year I guess. Lame!

Easter Treats

well I don't really celebrate Easter. I don't have any kids and I'm not religious (not that I have anything against it). But I really like to make these sometimes on Easter because they are so cute and pretty. Not to mention VERY tasty. But I usually send them off with the husband to his office so they can gobble them up instead of me. They are time consuming, but fun to make and the end result is very rewarding. I usually double this recipe.  

 

Easter Egg Cakes

These desserts are made from pound cake shaped to resemble an egg white, then scooped out and filled with a lemon-curd "yolk." These cakes can be made in advance and stored in the freezer. When ready to decorate, bring to room temperature before glazing. The glaze must be made just before ready to use, or it will dry out.

Makes 6 individual cakes.

Ingredients 

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans

3/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for pan

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Grated zest of 1/2 lemon

3 large eggs, room temperature

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt Colored Butter Glaze for Easter Egg Cakes

3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

1/2 cup Lemon Curd

7 cups assorted fresh fruit, like strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, apricots, and cherries, cut into bite-size pieces

3 tablespoons Grand Marnier

24 fresh mint leaves, for garnish

Directions 

Heat oven to 250 degrees, with a rack in the center. Generously butter the wells of an egg-cake pan, and dust the wells with flour; tap out any excess. Set pan aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, combine butter and granulated sugar. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla and lemon zest; beat to combine. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition and scraping down sides of bowl. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to butter mixture. Beat until just combined.

Spoon batter into each of 6 wells in the cake pan, filling to within 1/2 inch of the rim. (If you are using an egg-cake pan with more than 6 wells, alternate between the filled and empty ones.) Bake the egg cakes for 10 minutes. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees, and bake until the cakes are golden, 10 to 12 minutes more. Transfer egg-cake pan to a wire rack, and let cool slightly. While the cakes are baking make the first batch of glaze. Invert pan, and remove cakes. Using a serrated knife, trim the cakes to resemble eggs sliced in half. (To make trimming easier, place the eggs in resealable plastic bags, and transfer to freezer for 45 minutes.) Using a melon baller, scoop out a 1-inch-diameter hole in each cake.

Set a wire rack over a baking sheet. Place the cakes flat-side down on the wire rack. Working quickly, pour the colored butter glaze over 3 cakes, completely coating the outside of the cake. Make second batch of glaze, and glaze remaining 3 cakes. Let glaze set completely, about 1 hour. Turn the glazed cakes over, and trim away any excess glaze with a paring knife so glaze is flush with the flat side of cake. Wash and dry wire rack.

Place cakes glazed-side down on the clean wire rack; generously dust flat side with confectioners' sugar. Fit a pastry bag with a coupler, and fill the bag with lemon curd. (Alternately, the curd can be carefully spooned into the hole.) Fill each hole with lemon curd until it resembles a slightly rounded egg yolk. In a large bowl, combine fruit and Grand Marnier, and toss to coat.

On each dessert plate, make a nest of fruit, and place a decorated cake in the center. Garnish with mint leaves, and serve.

 

*Lemon Curd

This curd can be prepared several days in advance and stored in the refrigerator; use any extra as a spread for your morning toast.

Ingredients- Makes 1 1/2 cups.

3 large egg yolks,

strained Zest of 1/2 lemon

1/4 cup lemon juice

6 tablespoons sugar

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces

Directions

Combine yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar in a small saucepan. Whisk to combine. Set over medium heat, and stir constantly with a wooden spoon, making sure to stir sides and bottom of pan. Cook until mixture is thick enough to coat back of wooden spoon, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove saucepan from heat. Add butter, one piece at a time, stirring with the wooden spoon until consistency is smooth. Transfer mixture to a medium bowl. Lay a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the curd to avoid a skin from forming; wrap tightly. Let cool; refrigerate until firm and chilled, at least 1 hour. Store refrigerated in an airtight container up to 2 days.  

*Colored Butter Glaze for Easter Egg Cakes

 This glaze is made in two batches, to prevent it from drying out.

Ingredients -Coats 6 egg cakes.

2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons milk

Food coloring

2 cups sifted confectioner's sugar

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter

Directions 

Pour milk into a small bowl, and stir in food coloring until the desired shade is reached; set aside. Place 1 cup confectioners' sugar in a medium bowl, and set aside. In a small bowl, melt 4 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat. Remove pan from heat, and immediately pour butter into the bowl with sugar. Add 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon tinted milk, and whisk until smooth. Immediately glaze three of the cakes; the mixture should be just thin enough so that it runs down the sides of the cake; if not, add a small amount of milk until thinned. Repeat Step 2 to glaze the remaining cakes.

Spring Equinox Tomorrow!

YAY the spring equinox is tomorrow! Yay spring! This is our favorite soup to make in spring because it’s full of yummy asparagus. Asparagus is in season in early spring and we always make this soup on the spring equinox (the 1st official day of spring) to celebrate. This soup is YUMMY. For those who want wine with this try a pinot grigio, or if you want even more crisp try a Vino Vherde or a Prosecco.
 
Cate’s Springtime Risotto Soup 
  1 tablespoon olive oil  
2 cups chopped onion 
  2-4 cloves garlic, minced (I add this, it’s not part of the recipe)
2 teaspoons grated lemon rind  
3/4 cup Arborio rice or other short-grain rice
3 (14 1/2-ounce) cans fat-free, less-sodium organic chicken broth
2 cups (1-inch) sliced asparagus (about 1 pound)  
2 cups coarsely chopped spinach  
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg  
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated fresh Parmesan cheese  

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add onion; sauté 2 minutes. Add lemon rind; sauté 2 minutes. Add rice; sauté 3 minutes. Stir in broth, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 10 minutes. Stir in asparagus, spinach, and nutmeg; cook, uncovered, 2 minutes or until asparagus is crisp-tender. Top each serving with cheese. Serve immediately. Yield: 4 servings (serving size: 1 3/4 cups soup and 2 tablespoons cheese)  

NUTRITION PER SERVING CALORIES 320(21% from fat); FAT 7.5g (sat 2.9g,mono 3.6g,poly 0.5g); PROTEIN 14.9g; CHOLESTEROL 10mg; CALCIUM 234mg; SODIUM 815mg; FIBER 4.1g; IRON 1.6mg; CARBOHYDRATE 46.2g
Cooking Light

  **Note buy extra broth and just add more if it thickens. I use brown arborio rice and it tends to thicken, sometimes I use twice as much broth!

New Knitty! New Knitty!

I was just sitting here thinking to myself "hey! next week is the spring equinox....there must be a new knitty soon!" and went there www.knitty.com , low and behold the spring 2008 issue is already up! WOOOHOO! and better yet, i think it looks better than any issue I've ever seen. ....I should be this excited, i'll never find the time to tackle those projects! but I want to! and that's what counts....I think...

Money and Hard Work

I feel like I must explain my prices for the HotDish aprons I am selling. I know there are other aprons that are cheap and serve their purpose. The ones I am selling are made with designer print fabrics which actually cost quite a bit for a yard, also I launder all that fabric, spend 4-8 hours just making ONE, and I make them very well with two layers of fabric (for most aprons unless it says otherwise). 
Shipping for fabric to me, driving back and forth to fabric store, ironing, cutting, pinning, different color threads, patterns, site fees....all this stuff costs money unfortunately and A LOT of time for me to produce them and finally ship them to you. I search all over the place to find these materials for as low a cost as I can, and I then I price the finished apron.  
  Don't get me wrong! I really enjoy making them and my jewelry. I do and and if I made lots of money already I would be making them for charity or for my friends for free! I am not making lots of moulah at the moment and I work very hard at my job and so does my husband. We are fairly low-income at the moment. Though we love where we live, it comes at a price of not many career options. So I choose to do this for some extra dough. The fact is I don't make much profit on these aprons. Much less than minimum wage for the labor that's for sure. So if you've been looking at them and wondering why they are more 20 bucks, it is because it costs more than that to make them. I try to price them as low as possible, but I may even have to raise them slightly cause I am barely making profits as is. I don't want to raise them! But I cannot justify all the costs without doing so. I would like to continue making them and if I get lucky enough to mass produce for less then I will let you all know right here. My aprons are unique, they are handmade, they are high quality and therefore cost a little more than average. I am not a Walmart sweatshop! Nor would I ever want to be one. But I just want to make sure you all know that I am not trying to rip anyone off. Just trying to make some hard earned money and have fun while doing it.

Lagom and my husband

I like to watch the TV show "No Reservations" with Anthony Bourdain (a chef) who travels to different places and eats all their weird foods. He likes weird food, and while I don't really like Tony as person that much I do enjoy watching the places he goes to and the foods they eat. Food is a big draw for me when traveling. Anyway I was watching the one about Sweden and he meets up with these two hardcore male skiers who knit hats on their free time! They even say it's become sort of a "side business." It's so weird and they describe the meaning of the Swedish word "Lagom" which does not exist in any other language. My husband is of much Swedish ancestry (from MN big surprise) and some people are put off when they first meet him because he doesn't talk much, he's calm most of the time, and does like adventure as well. I think this lagom stuff has really helped me make sense of my husband in more ways than one.... Then late Tony goes off to make a handblown glass but they don't show the whole thing. While Anthony may not enjoy the knitting and glassblowing parts of his travel I really did and thought I would share a clip for you all  
Also wanted to share this WONDERFUL recipe a HotDish MN friend of mine, Jenny, emailed me this week. I tried it last night and it's awesome. I've had sweet potato soup before, but not like this. The garnishes are absolutely perfect mixed with it and I never would have thought chopped apples or mint would be so good with sweet potato. I think the hubby and I have a new favorite to add to the soup rotation!  
Roasted Sweet Potato Soup with Curried Apples 
  1 tsp olive oil  
2 1/2 pounds sweet potatoes  
1 medium onion, halved and sliced  
course salt and pepper  
1 red bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, thinly sliced  
2 jalapeno peppers, peppers, ribs and seeds removed, thinly sliced  
3 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped 
1/2 cup sherry 
 4 cups vegetable broth  
2 tsp white-wine vinegar  
1 tsp honey  
1/4 tsp curry powder  
1 small tart apple, cored & finely chopped  
1/4 cup plain yogurt  
2 tbsp chopped mint, for garnish  

1.Preheat oven to 400 Roast potatoes for 1 hour, turning once. When cool enough to handle, scoop cooked potatoes out of skins. Discard skins(your earth friendly self might add them to your compost collection).  
2. Meanwhile, in a large soup pot, heat oil over med. heat. Add onion, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and caramelized, about 20 minutes. Add bell pepper, jalapenos, and garlic; cook for 5 min. Add sherry, sweet pot., and broth; stir to combine. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer, and cook for 20 minutes.  
3. Working in batches, puree soup in a blender (i used my immersion blender for this step). Combine batches in a clean pot. The soup should be thick. (If you prefer thinner soup, add water or broth) Taste and adjust seasoning. 
4. In a small saucepan over med. heat, bring vinegar, honey, and curry powder to a boil. Add apple; stir for one min. and remove from heat. To serve, ladle the soup into warm bowls, add a spoonful of apples, a spoonful of yogurt, and a sprinkle of mint, and think of your Minnesotan friend Jenny while you enjoy this savory sweet potato soup.