Recent Projects

I've put the knitting aside for a little awhile and turned to sewing. I'm getting ready to open my own Etsy shop, and am trying to find things I can make that can be made within a reasonable amount of time. Here are some project I've been testing out:

by the way, don't cut a pattern out with a cat around....they like to try and "help". This is one of my nephew cats "helping".

Pink wood grain bag with beaded birdy and leaves fabric lining.

Front, (back is just plain)

Bird detail

Lining

Tree fabric bag with beading and purple lining.

Front

Back

Detail

Lining

Grocery bag with needle felting detail and birdy lining.

Front

Back

Detail

Birdy Lining

Superbowl

The Superbowl was well over 6 weeks ago and I've been a food coma ever since. As you all know my team the Colts made it this year, so this was no normal superbowl party. (yes, I know we lost...moving on.) My friend Cindy and I did some major planning. Before I share the menu, let me clarify that Cindy is a recently graduated Food Wizard (aka: pastry chef). So most of the amazing things listed below are due to her magic and everything was made from scratch.
Menu:
Pulled pork sandwiches w/ homemade brioche Colts buns (see photo below)
Nachos and Queso dip
Buffalo wing dip
Blue doughnuts (see photo below)
Football Oreo truffles
Blue Macaroons w/ chocolate filling (see photo below)
White Macaroons w/ peanut butter filling (see photo below)
Blue and White Macaroons w/ vanilla filling (see photo below)
Peanut butter popcorn (see photo below)
Blue Kool-Aid w/ Blue vodka (yuck) (see photo below)

Cindy and I made the truffles the night before, and I have to say that dipping things in chocolate is very relaxing. Piping football laces however, is not. The pulled pork was cooked overnight in root beer, evidentially the carbonation breaks down the meat faster. Who knew? Cindy hates dyeing food blue because it doesn't occur in nature. "There is no blue food!" I agree with her, but because she loves her boyfriend soooo much she promised that she would make blue doughnuts if the Colts made it to the Superbowl. FYI:  blue food dyed dough smells like fish and turns brown when fried. Eww. The men folk ate it anyways.

Needle Felting

As if I needed a new craft. I've been hooked on needle felting for the last few months. (pun intended.) Needle felting is best described as sculpting with wool. You use roving which is the term for wool before it's spun into yarn, and then you use a special needle that has teeny-tiny barbs on the end to poke and sculpt the wool into shapes. Wool on a microscopic level also has barbs, so the more you poke the wool the tighter the wool inter-locks together. Cool huh? :)

- Check out this youtube videos to see this how this is done: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8JYOhxHLXI&feature=related

- For those of you in the Los Angeles area. The Urban Craft Center offers a fabulous needle felting class for $25. (The also have sewing and yarn spinning classes. I heart this store.) http://www.theurbancraftcenter.com/

Here are a few of my recent projects:
Mini-Lex

Mom's Christmas Bunny

project from The Urban Craft Center class

Favorite Food #1: J-Dubs Chilli

First up in the Favorite Foods series: J-Dubs Chili. I know everyone has their own special chili recipe. I've been tweaking mine over the last few years and it's just right for me. I use a bottle of beer and a few cubes of sharp cheddar to some depth of flavor and to cut down the spicy a bit.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 lrg onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 ½ lbs ground chuck or lean ground beef
salt to taste
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
¼ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp ground cumin
1 ½ - 2 tbsp chili powder
2 (10oz) cans Rotel Tomatoes
1 (8oz) can tomato sauce
2 (16oz) cans red kidney beans, undrained
½ to 1 beer (optional, I like to use an amber ale or lager)
1-2 oz shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions:
In large pot heat oil, med high heat.
Add onion and garlic, sauté until they just beginning to turn brown.
Add meat stirring to break up lumps, cook until brown
Drain off fat and put back in pot
Add salt and next 4 ingredients, stir
Add tomatoes, sauce, beans, and beer
Stir well and bring to a simmer
Add cheese and stir
Simmer for ½ hour uncovered and 1 ½ hour covered, stir occasionally
(if becomes too thick, add tomato juice)

Holiday Food Traditions

This is going to be difficult. I am at that point between Christmas and New Years where if I have to eat another cookie or drink another egg nog I may run for the hills. Holiday food burn out. Ugh. I'm not usually this bad, here is why:

My hubby and I stayed in LA for Christmas this year. It's not fun. We obviously would rather be with our families, but airfare is a killer. So to try compensate, I made all my families favorite food traditions. Food traditions are fabulous things. The problem is most of the recipes I have feed a family of 6+ people. So that "taste of Christmas" you usually get for one or two days has lasted for 7 days (and counting). I just want to run into a 24-hour fitness and scream "Please!!!! Put me on a diet!!!! I'll do anything, just no more cookies!!!!!" (This feeling would last for about 10 minutes on a treadmill unfortunately.)

Since the point of this blog to write about food and not complain about it, I am going to write about the three things I made that weren't under the list of my traditional Christmas food.

First up: Cocoa-Cayenne Popcorn Balls www.chow.com/recipes/27803

Yum. I L-O-V-E popcorn. This recipe had a very unexpected taste, it was good, but unexpected. I'm not sure how much of it was due to the fact that I used lemon zest instead of orange. It was tangy, spicy, and not very chocolately. If I do this recipe again there will be much more chocolate, and just a hint of citrus and cayenne.

Makronen "German Macaroons"

The term macaroon has gotten a little confusing for me lately. I grew up thinking macaroons were coconut flakes and condensed milk. There is also the french macaroon, which is a very colorful and uber-gormet in comparison and is also threatening to overthrow the expensive boutique cupcake fad that is going on right now. (Noooooo!) However, I was recently introduced to the german 'Makronen' and it stole my heart. Crunchy on the outside, chewy on the inside, while somehow still being light and fluffy. It's amazing. The Germans use almond or hazelnut meal instead of flour so you get a nice nutty flavor. And when you dip them in a semi-sweet chocolate? Forget about it.

Pepparkakor

This is a hard core Swedish ginger cookie. Wow. Even the name is hardcore. I felt the need to say Pepparkakor in a low and threatening voice like the giant from the Princess Bride. I probably won't be making this again. It was delicious, don't get me wrong. But, in order to get a very crunchy thin ginger cookie, there are a lot of molasses and sugar in this dough. The word sticky doesn't quite cover it. I think I was missing something, some technique that a Swedish grandma somewhere would know all about. There is no picture of these things because they were REALLY ugly despite being tasty. Next year I'm going back to my Martha Stewart ginger bread cookie recipe.

Don't hedge your bets...

Meet my new friend the hedgehog. She's a festive little gal, so I needle felted her a little holly and berry ornament. I bought this pattern from Julie, who writes the blog Little Cotton Rabbits. Check it out, its one of my faves: http://littlecottonrabbits.typepad.co.uk/

Eureka! I have found it!

What is it?

The Kelly Moore camera bag. (http://kellymoorebag.com/) I have been scouring the Internet for weeks looking for the perfect camera bag, and I have finally found it. You would think this would be easy....I assure you it is not. Yes, there are designer camera bags out there, but I'd prefer not to carry something that has cheesy zebra print or looks like a Halliburton case with Ikea fabric on it. Am I too picky? Yes.

I was specifically looking for a camera bag that looks like a handbag. I’m a photography student and the number one thing my professors tell me is that if I’m going to be a serious photographer, then I need to carry my camera at all times. That’s great, sound good. Except I work a corporate job during the day, meaning I can’t carry a backpack around, and carrying two bags is out of the question. A fumbling photographer can be a dangerous and expensive thing.
Enter the Kelly Moore Bag. It’s sleek, stylish, and simple. The exterior is quality leather in colors that are both in style and will go with most of your wardrobe. (My fave is a jewel tone purple see above). There are plenty of pockets on the outside to hold keys, phones, and small camera accessories, but not so many that you waste time trying to find which pocket you left your lip gloss in. The strap is adjustable, so the bag can be over the shoulder, or across the body. The interior is padded and has configurable Velcro inserts so you can customize the space. Just need to carry your camera? No problem. Going on vacation to fashionable Paris and need to carry a few lenses plus a flash? Pas de problème. And, the bag snaps shut to keep away prying eyes. The bags will be available sometime in January and cost $250. Which might seem a little steep, but like I said it’s a leather purse and a camera bag so I think it’s well worth the investment. The search is over, now I can relax and start saving my dollars. Whew. UPDATE: Because I wrote this review ms. Kelly Moore is giving $50 off the price to my blog readers if you pre-order before Christmas. If you want the code, comment below.