Pomp & Patchwork Quilt

07/31/2012

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A finished quilt!  I'm starting to get the gears moving, dusting off the sewing machine, and feeling like I'm finding my groove once again :)  
Does this fabric look familiar?  It was what I had leftover from this quilt -- fashioned into a patchwork design.  I love how 'scrappy' the quilt looks.
The hardest part of this quilt was restraining myself from wanting to quilt it more -- I had originally thought of doing a sort of rhombus quilting deign over the top, but after finishing the horizontal lines, I decided to let it be for fear that a more complicated quilting design would compete too much with the already busy fabric designs.  Purchase or see more pictures of Pomp & Patchwork here.
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Creamy Bananas Foster Popsicles!

07/24/2012

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Dare I say I have created a world's first!?  I don't know...maybe!?  While quilting has taken a back burner for the last couple of months there is always one thing I can count on doing, no matter how busy life gets, and that is eating...and cooking...and keeping the kids' stomachs full and happy :)

Faced with a large tub of greek yogurt, 1 lonely ripe banana and 3 hot and hungry kids, I decided to make bananas foster popsicles....only, I couldn't find a recipe!?  So, I decided to invent one of my own!   Here's what I came up with!

Creamy Bananas Foster Popsicles
(with my molds, which are smaller, I yielded 6 popsicles -- this will vary based on your molds...)

Ingredients:
1 ripe Banana
1/8 cup Brown Sugar
1/8 tsp Allspice
1/4 tsp Nutmeg
1 cup Plain Greek Yogurt

Directions:

In a small bowl, mash banana and add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT for the yogurt.  Mix to combine.  
Add banana mix to a small saucepan and heat over medium low heat for 3-4 min or until sugar has dissolved.
Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
Once cooled, add yogurt to the saucepan and mix completely.  Next spoon yogurt/banana mixture into popsicle molds.  Place in freezer and wait....overnight is best, but check after 4-6 hours, if you're lucky, they might be ready!

Note: To make this an adult version add Rum!  Or even rum flavoring from the spice aisle....I'm going to try it on the next go -- I'll let you know how it turns out!

Although my expectations weren't high, I was blown away by these!  Such a perfect summer treat!  The kids devoured them, and I, well...am about to have my second one of the day!  I hope you give them a try!
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Saucy Asian Meatballs (Lower Fat Version!)

07/19/2012

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I came across a lovely looking recipe over at The View From The Great Island for Saucy Asian Meatballs.  It looked eerily similar to the Lettuce Wraps recipe I posted a while back, only in a more compact, eater friendly, meatball form!  What's not to love!?  I made this recipe for dinner tonight, and it did not disappoint!  Deliciously simple -- great on it's own or it would also make an amazing appetizer or finger food for your next gathering!

I'm sure that I have mentioned before that I am not a big red meat eater, so I naturally changed this recipe to suit my tastes and used ground turkey instead of ground beef and/or pork -- the results?  Awesome!  Not only awesomely tasty but awesomely lower in fat than the original recipe!  


Saucy Asian Meatballs (Lower Fat Version)
Makes Aprox. 24 one to one and half inch meatballs

Ingredients:
Meatballs:
1 Lb Ground Turkey
1 Egg
1 tsp Sesame Oil
1/2 Cup Bread Crumbs
1/4 tsp Ground Ginger
1/2 Tbs Minced Garlic Cloves
1/4 Cup FINELY sliced Green Onions
Salt and Pepper to taste

Sauce:
1/2 of a 7 oz Jar Hoisin Sauce
1/8 Cup Rice Vinegar
1 Minced Garlic Clove
1 Tbs Soy Sauce
1/2 tsp Sesame Oil
1/2 tsp Ground Ginger
Sesame Seeds for Garnish

Directions:

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees.  Generously spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.

Combine all meatball ingredients in a large bowl.  Using your hands or a large spoon, mix ingredients until well incorporated.  Next, shape meat into meatballs: mine came out to about 1 - 1.5 inches.  Place rolled meatballs onto greased baking sheet.

Bake for 10 min at 400 degrees.  After 10 min, flip the oven to Broil and Broil on HIGH for 3-4 min until meatballs are nicely browned and slightly crisp.  

While meatballs are baking, whisk together the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.  Set aside.

Once meatballs are baked, remove from oven and let cool slightly.  If you are ready to eat, GENTLY toss the baked meatballs with the sauce mixture...careful, you don't want to bust any balls :/  (errrrr.....ok, I had to go there, it's a meatball recipe after all!) hehee!   If you aren't ready to eat, simply place the baked meatballs into a crock pot set on warm, drizzle with sauce, cover and let sit until ready to eat...before serving, sprinkle sesame seeds over top.

Just to give you an example of how flexible this recipe is, I baked my meatballs around noonish and had them sit in the crock pot until dinner time at 5:00ish and they tasted great!
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Oh Lordy!

07/17/2012

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This is me.  I feel like I have been on a perpetual tilt a whirl ride for the last 4 weeks -- like I am Sandra, frantically trying to steer this crazy possessed bus through a crowded metropolis while having Keanu awkwardly whisper distracting commands in my ear...Dude, I am trying to concentrate!

And, I don't mean to whine and complain, because the root of all of this upheaval comes from a very good place -- we have done some incredible things as a family over the last month, but at the same time we are starting to feel the effects of not having our usual routines and schedules....I guess it takes a little adventure for you to appreciate the mundane sometimes :)  

I've always been a creature of habit.  I once touted that I loved spontaneity, that I always wanted adventure and the feeling of not knowing what was coming next....who was I kidding.  I love routine.  I don't like the idea of a routine....but I love routine.  Right now, we, as a family are routine-less....and we are lost without it!  

We still have a couple of more weeks before we get back into the swing of our normal, 'boring' life.  Until then I will try to relax, enjoy myself and catalog all of this 'craziness' into my mental memory catalog -- because I know when the kids are older, and the house is quiet, and my life is mundane by default, not by choice, I will reflect on these moments and smile....and wish I hadn't been so hasty to move through them...  
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And The Winner Is....

07/03/2012

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Comment #2! Kayla!
Ok....so Kayla happens to be my wonderful sister! But I promise the contest was not rigged :). The random number generator must have known that Kayla needed these foblettes because she mentioned to me 2 weeks ago that she was the only one in our immediate family who didn't have one...So, congrats Kayla!!

Thank you to everyone who entered the contest, and if you fell in love and would like to order a foblette or two, just shoot me an email (thespottedlamb@yahoo.com) -- they are $5 a piece plus shipping.

Happy Independence Day!!
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