Tales of a Crafty Mama

yummy bread + a super easy dinner

 

Way back in September, I had an amazing lunch at my sweet friend Tiffany's house. It was not super fancy, but it was seriously yummy (and of course, the setting in the world's cutest and coziest kitchen helped!). Anyways, part of the lunch consisted of grilled cheese sandwiches made on really, really good bread. When Tiffany told me that she had made the bread herself that morning, I was so impressed. I have long been intimidated by the art of making homemade bread. Yeast scares me. Or at least it did. That is until Tiffany convinced me that her recipe was easy and that I should just give it a try. And oh, my goodness. It is. Easy and good every time. I am now officially a convert to making my bread from scratch. In fact, in the last four weeks I have not bought a single loaf of bread!

Here is the amazing recipe that gave me confidence in working with yeast:

SIMPLE WHOLE WHEAT BREAD: (from allrecipes.com)

(makes 3 loaves)

3 cups of warm water (I actually just use really hot tap water)

2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast (or 2 (0.25oz) packages)

1/3 c. honey (or agave nectar)

5 c. white flour

3 T butter, melted

1/3 c. honey (or agave nectar)

1 T salt

3 1/2 c. whole wheat flour

2 T butter, melted

01. In a large bowl, mix warm water, yeast, and 1/3 cup honey. Add 5 cups white flour, and stir to combine. Let set for 30 minutes, or until big and bubbly. 

02. Mix in 3 tablespoons melted butter, 1/3 cup honey, and salt. Stir in 2 cups whole wheat flour. Flour a flat surface and knead with whole wheat flour until not real sticky- just pulling away from the counter, but still sticky to touch. This may take an additional 2 to 4 cups of whole wheat flour. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to coat the surface of the dough. Cover with a dishtowel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled. (I just turn my oven on and set the bowl on top of it and that works just fine- it usually takes mine about an hour to double)

03. Punch down and divide into 3 loaves. Place in greased loaf pans, and allow to rise until dough has topped the pans by one inch (I usually just give it another hour)

04. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 to 30 minutues; do not overbake. Lightly brush the tops of loaves with 2 tablespoons melted butter when done to prevent curst from getting hard. Cool 10-20 minutes in pan and then finish cooling on rack.

* Since the recipe makes 3 loaves (which is way more than I need right away), when it comes time to split the dough into 3 pans, I usually freeze one portion for later and just rise and bake two portions. When I want to bake the third loaf, I take it out of the freezer a few hours ahead of time to thaw out and then let it rise in the pan before I bake it.  

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SUPER EASY DINNER (aka. MEXICAN STYLE PULLED PORK):

My mother-in-law recently gave me this yummy dinner idea, which she got from a woman in her small group. I have decided that it definitely makes the dinner rotation because it is so fast and easy.

1 pork tenderloin

1 can green enchilada sauce

1 small can mild green chiles

Dump all the ingredients in a crockpot and cook on low for 8 hours. Shred with a fork and serve it however you like- I made mine into grilled quesadillas with cheese, black beans, and avocado. And that is it, my friends. Easiest recipe ever.

30 days of gratefulness :: 3

 

Me: (I have several today) Rustic Spinach Tart for dinner :: going through all my old, well-loved holiday issues of Martha Stewart kids to get ideas for Christmas :: the book Raising Your Spirited Child (recommended by a dear and trusted friend quite awhile ago, I finally started it this last week and so far it has encouraged me so much in my parenting of Audrey) :: eating dinner together as a family :: listening to Audrey pray

Erik: "Soda and Minnesota." Don't ask. He's just really random...

    

Audrey: "Playing with Parker and painting pumpkins. I really love painting pumpkins!"

Elliot: Eating mama's chocolate-chip granola bars, playing peek-a-boo, and reading my truck books with Grandma

What are you grateful for today?

P.S. I am so excited to hear that so many of you want to participate in 30 days of gratefulness (or something like it) on your blogs. I think that I am going to make a little list of everyone's blogs who are joining in to put on my sidebar, so please let me know in the comments if you would like to be included!

{Edited to add: When I published this last night I completely forgot to add a couple details about both of the recipe links I posted. When I make the Rustic Spinach Tart, I never measure out the salt and the pepper- I just sprinkle it on. One whole teaspooon of each just seems like way to much to me! And when I make the Granola Bars, I follow the directions of one of the reviewers to mix the dry and the wet ingredients separately first before blending them together. The granola bars can be pretty crumbly, but if you let them cool before cutting them and store them in the fridge, they should not break apart too much.}

autumn to-do list :: THE GREAT PUMPKIN COOKIE

 

I know. I know. It is not a picture of cookies. But it is of pumpkins (pumpkins from this year) so that kind of counts, right?

One of my favorite autumn traditions started when I was a kid. Every autumn for as long as I can remember, my mom has made Great Pumpkin Cookies. If I remember right, she originally got the recipe from a Libby's pumpkin ad in a old Better Homes and Gardens magazine. Anyway, she only makes them in the fall and they are the yummiest thing ever. These cookies will always be an autumn staple for me and I hope that my kids grow up with happy memories of me baking them this time of year, just like my mama. 

I originally posted the recipe here, but that was way back when I first started this blog (nearly three years ago!) and I think that it definitely deserves a re-post.

THE GREAT PUMPKIN COOKIE:

Mix 1 1/2 c. softened butter with 2 c. packed brown sugar and 1 c. white sugar.

Add one egg, stirring well.

Mix in 1 tsp. vanilla, 2 tsp. baking soda, 2 tsp. cinnamon, and 1 tsp. salt.

Add one 16 oz. can of pumpkin puree, stirring well.

Mix in 1 12 oz. bag of chocolate chips.

Add 2 c. flour, stir until throughly mixed. Add 2 c. oats; stir well. Add 2 more cups of flour.

Drop onto a baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees for about ten mintues or so (it honestly usually ends up being more like 15-18 minutes for me, but I make really big cookies...)

I would love to know what you think if you end up trying them! Maybe they will become an autumn tradition for your family as well.

seriously yummy

So here is the recipe for the Roasted Vegetable Quesadillas I was raving about. They are one of my family's favorite things to eat for dinner and so easy to make. The recipe is my little adaptation of a recipe from the Moosewood Restaurant New Classics cookbook. I usually double the recipe so that we can have leftovers for lunch the next day.

Roasted Vegetable Quesadillas

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

(Thinly slice all of the vegetables)

Toss 2 cups peeled and quartered potatoes, 1/2 cup onion, 3/4 cup red pepper, and 1 1/2 cups zucchini with 2 or so tablespoons of olive oil, 2-3 minced garlic cloves, 1/2 tsp. oregano, and some salt and pepper. I actually never really measure any of the seasonings so I am kind of guessing on the amounts- I usually just toss them in.

Dump all the vegetables in a 9x13 inch pan and roast in the oven until the potatoes are tender. This usually takes 25 to 30 minutes. I stir the vegetables at least once during the roasting time to make sure that none are sticking to the pan- usually about 15 minutes in. After the vegetables are done roasting, turn your oven down to "warm" for later.

Heat a lightly oiled pan (I use a grill pan) over medium heat. While your pan is heating, pile about 1/2 cup of roasted vegetables on one half of a flour tortilla, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the outer edge. Top the filling with some grated Chedder cheese or crumbled feta. Fold the torilla over the filling to form a half-moon shape.

When the pan is hot, cook two of the quesadillas at a time for 1 to 2 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove the quesadillas from the pan and keep them warm in your oven while cooking the remaining quesadillas.

* Moosewood also shares some variations on the quesadillas in the cookbook that I haven't tried yet: Adding different vegetables, such as mushrooms, eggplant, or asparagus; using different cheese; or accenting with other herbs. Let me know if you find another yummy combination to try!

Hope you enjoy them!

Happy Monday!

small joys friday

Hello friends!

As far as my sewing endeavors go, I think I am going to start with the bibs- super cute and beginning to become a bit of a necessity for Mr. Drooly Elliot. However, I am going to have to wait until after the big move to start them, as I have way too much packing and hanging out with friends to do right now; we're moving two weeks from tomorrow! I think it will be a nice little project to start once I am all settled in our new home and have my little craft area set up.

Now on to this week's Small Joys...

A super fun but not long enough visit from my mom and step-dad last weekend. We kept busy doing all sorts of our favorite things: visiting the Farmer's Market; hanging out with the kiddos; having slow, lazy mornings; eating at our favorite restaurants; and just enjoying each other's company.

Watching Audrey eat an ice-cream cone at the Farmer's Market (see above photo). It was only the second cone she has ever had all to herself and she enjoyed it immensely!

Carrying my sweet Elliot in my Moby Wrap. I never had one with Audrey and I love it! I still use the Baby Bjorn occasionally, but for now the wrap is my baby carrier of choice. It is so comforable (I wore it for 2 1/2 hours straight a couple of weekends ago and my back and shoulders never got sore) and Elliot loves being all snuggled in there close to mama.

Roasted Vegetable Quesadillas made with potatoes, onion, red pepper, and zuchinni. I think I ate them at least four times this last week! I promise to share the super yummy recipe with you soon.

The case of the missing sunhat. While walking to the Farmer's Market on Saturday, Audrey somehow lost her sunhat, my favorite sunhat, I might add. Granted it was only $2.99 at Old Navy, but still. Isn't it so cute? I was so irritated about the whole thing, and after walking down the sidewalk at least three times looking for it, I was throughly convinced that someone had snatched it up and claimed it for themselves immediately after she had dropped it. Then on the way back to the car we saw it perched up on that parking meter (see above photo). Rather than stealing it, some nice, sweet person had stuck it up there so that we would find it! I was so happy. And because of all the attention the hat got that morning, Audrey has fallen in love with it and pretty much refuses to take it off, even while sleeping. The sunhat and her crocs: this summer's fashion loves for my sweet toddler.

Continued purging of junk in the garage. Yesterday one of my friends watched Audrey for four hours and we got so much done! We really need to start packing, but I am just having so much fun getting rid of stuff...I promise to share a picture of our pile before we cart it off to Value Village this weekend. I think you'll be impressed!

Watching Audrey steal everyone's straws at dinner on Saturday night. We willingly gave them to her- anything to keep a toddler entertained while dining out!

Finishing up Gilmore Girls Season Two. On to Season Three! I told Erik that he better tell me what movies he wants to watch or I will just continue on through Season Seven, as I am certainly not getting tired of watching Lorelai and Rory and their cute little life in Stars Hollow.

My children have been sleeping in! No joke. The other day Audrey actually slept in until almost 9:00am! I think that is a record. For the most part though, the last week or so she has been sleeping in until at least 8:00. And Elliot will stay asleep a long time, as long as he is curled up in bed next to me. The thing is, as much as I love sleeping in, I have kind of noticed that getting up later kind of throws the whole morning off. I feel more rushed and less relaxed. Now I will never admit to becoming a true morning person, because my preference is definitely sleeping in. However, I think that during the week, it might work a little better to get up earlier. I can't believe I just wrote that...

Happy Friday everyone!

Edited: I totally forgot to give my mama credit for taking the all the lovely photos in this post! Sorry, Mom!

of funky shirts and cinnamon petal biscuits

I know it probably sounds totally nerdy, but I really wanted to find Audrey a special "Big Sister" shirt to wear to the hospital when she comes to meet her new baby brother. The problem I found however was that all the shirts out there were in fact, nerdy. So, inspired by these three creative ladies, I decided to make my own shirt for Miss Audrey.

I had never attempted any kind of applique project before, so when my mom (an awesome seamstress!) and step-dad Rick visited a couple of weeks ago, I got her to help get me started. The guys took Audrey out on an afternoon hike and my mom and I hit the local quilt shop to find some fun fabric. Of course I got much more fabric than I needed for the shirt- I am now planning on making some applique onesies for my little boy too!

Armed with Amy's instructions, we ironed the Heat N Bond Light onto the fabric. I had planned on cutting out each individual letter by hand, but then I got the brilliant idea to use the die-cut machine at my local scrapbook store to cut the letters. Because the fabric was ironed onto the Heat N Bond, it was thicker and worked kind of like paper in the die-cut machine. It saved so much time and was so much less stressful to do it that way! Plus, while I was there, I cut out some other shapes in different fabric for those onesies I was talking about- stars and fish and boats...

After we ironed everything onto the shirt, my mom taught me how to do a blanket stitch and I began the super tedious task of sewing around each letter and the flower. This part seriously took me forever! But I think that I got faster at the end, so hopefully my next project won't take quite so long.

I am in love with the end result! I am really happy that Audrey will have something special that her mama made for her to wear. Much better than some generic t-shirt from the mall!

On a completely different note...

You have to try these awesome biscuits that I have been making- Cinnamon Petal Biscuits. They are actually technically called Up-&-Down Biscuits, but my mom always called them by the former name when I was a kid, so that is what they are. They are from an old Better Homes and Gardens recipe from 1950 and are super yummy. I tried taking a picture of my muffins, but the photo made them look completely unappetizing, so this picture is actually from this cookbook.

If you try them, let me know what you think!

Cinnamon Petal Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon cream of tarter

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup shortening

2/3 cup milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/4 cup sugar

2 to 3 teaspoons cinnamon

Grease twelve 2 1/2-inch muffin cups. Set aside.

In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, the 3 tablespoons sugar, baking powder, cream of tarter, and salt. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center of dry mixture. Add milk all at once. Using a fork, stir just until moistened.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Quickly knead dough by gently folding and pressing for 10 to 12 strokes or until nearly smooth. Divide dough in half. Roll half of the dough to a 12x10-inch rectangle. Brush dough with half of the melted butter. In a small bowl stir together the 1/4 cup sugar and the cinnamon; sprinkle half over the dough. Cut rectangle into five 12x12- inch strips. Stack the five strips on top of each other. Cut stack into six 2x2-inch squares. Place squares, cut sides down, in prepared muffin cups. Repeat with remaining dough, remaining butter, and remaining cinnamon mixture.

Bake biscuits in a 450 degree oven for 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm. Makes 12 biscuits.

a lovely morning and another little share

We're having a happy morning so far, despite the fact that Miss Audrey decided to wake up at 5:00am . I wish, oh, I wish that she would take after her cousins in the sleep department...

After much whining and complaining about getting up (from me, not Audrey), I actually enjoyed being up early. I made Audrey some oatmeal (her favorite breakfast lately) and then made myself some of these super yummy buttermilk waffles, which Audrey also enjoyed in round two of her breakfast. Then a quick shower for me and getting Audrey halfway dressed -getting dressed is quite a struggle lately, so we often compromise by putting on just tops or just bottoms until we have to leave the house. She is now napping, which is what I plan on doing after I finish this post.

But before I sign off, I wanted to share a little more of the design team work I've been doing. Here is my work from Decemeber- my assignment that month was to make one layout and a mini book:

Here is the layout:

The cover of the mini book:

And a few pages from the mini book:

The mini book was inspired by this beautiful inspiration journal created by the lovely and oh, so talented Kelly. 

Hope you are all having a happy Wednesday!

small joys friday

Lately Audrey has been taking almost an hour to fall asleep for her nap in the afternoon. I lay her down around 12:30pm or so and then she plays contently for awhile before finally falling asleep. I usually peak in on her a few times- partly because its fun to watch her play when she does not know that I am watching, and partly because I want to know when she is asleep! However, today when I peaked in, I caught my snotty-nosed daughter (she's had a cold this week) rubbing snot in her hands like lotion and then wiping it in her hair and all over her face! YUCK! Needless to say, I interrupted her little "beauty treatment".

As gross as that little incident was, believe it or not I still found joy in it. I've been learning that when you're a parent (especially a parent of a toddler!) you have to learn to laugh at things or you will seriously go crazy!

Here are a few more things that have brought me joy this last week...

Homemade chocolate-chip cookies. I made these for the first time in forever a couple of days ago. I don't think that I should make them very often though because they are seriously addicting. I used my mom's top secret recipe...at least I think its a secret. Is it mom? If not, then I will definitely be sharing it with you because its the best recipe ever!

Erik's new work schedule. I was not too happy when his schedule changed last week and he had to work Saturdays again with Thursdays off. I really loved us having the whole weekend together. But after having him home all day yesterday in the middle of the week I think that I could get used to it! It was so nice to have a whole week day as a family- we were really productive around the house, I got to sleep in, and Audrey of course was thrilled to have her daddy home all day.

Herbal fruit teas. I have been drinking them almost every day this week. There is something about tea, even simply the process of making tea, that is so soothing and relaxing to me.

Being on a design team for scrapbooking. I don't know why I never wrote about this before! I think at the beginning I was a little embarassed and then I kind of forgot. This last October I applied to be on the design team at my local scrapbook store. I had to submit two layouts, three cards, and a special project or two. I was so nervous; I had never submitted my work to anything before, so it was a really big deal for me. And I was one of three ladies that they chose!

This is my third month working with them and I love it. On the first of every month I go into the store to pick up my kit- I am given about $40 worth of product and a few assignments. My assignments are due back at the store on the 15th of the month and there they are put on display for the next couple of months. Then I get them back to keep, along with any of the product from the kit that I did not use! So cool.

I need to go into the store and take pictures of the work I have already done, but here are a few of the things that I submitted to them in my application:

The invitation to Audrey's first birthday party

A layout about being a mama

And my very favorite piece of all...

A canvas I made for Audrey's room. (If you click on the picture, you can read what it says better). The amazing photo of Audrey on the canvas was taken by a good friend of mine when Audrey was three months old. The verse is one that I felt like God gave me as a prayer for Audrey when I was pregnant with her.

Staying caught up on housework all week! A very big deal for me. There is nothing like going into the weekend with a clean house.

Hosting small group at our house last night. We have not had it at our house in a couple months and it was really fun to have everyone over. We had yummy food, good conversation, and the kids all played fairly happily; a pretty perfect night!

Erik and I have a date on Saturday night! Our first one since the end of November because our baby-sitting co-op took a break last month. I am so excited!

Happy Friday and weekend everyone!

of blueberry scones...

This afternoon as I was making Erik's favorite blueberry scones, I remembered that quite awhile ago I promised to post the recipe. After trying three different scone recipes, Erik voted his mom's as his favorite. Not only are these scones super yummy, but they are also really easy to make because you don't even have to roll them out. So here is the recipe, in all of its glory:

Blueberry Scones

Sift together all of the dry ingredients- 3 c. flour; 1/2 c. sugar; 2 t. baking powder; 1 t. baking soda; and 1/2 t. salt.

Cut in 1/2 c. butter and 1/2 c. shortening.

Add 1 egg (beaten) and 1/2 c. milk and mix. Add more milk if needed.

Mix in 1 c. blueberries (or something else- I want to try chocolate-chips soon!)

Drop by large spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes.

small joys friday

Just a few small things that have been bringing me joy this last week...

Audrey Bug in her first pair of sunglasses

A new issue of Simple Scrapbooks magazine

Hanging out with my family. My Mom and stepdad have been visiting this week. We've had a blast going to parks, eating, spoiling Audrey, and just being together. My Dad and stepmom were also supposed to visit this week, but unfortunately it didn't work out; hopefully we'll get to see them soon too!

Perfecting the art of baking blueberry scones. This last week I have tried three different recipes for blueberry scones. I am going to have Erik pick out his favorite one, and then I'll post the recipe here.

Audrey's very first art project: fingerpainting! Although it was very challenging- she kept on trying to eat the paint- I had so much fun doing art with Audrey! I lined up all the colors of kid's paint I have and had her pick out a color- I don't know why, but I love that she chose yellow. Although I hate the fact that my baby girl is growing up way to fast, one of the things I love about her getting older is that she is able to do stuff like this with me. Finding creative art projects for children was one of my favorite things to do when I was a teacher. I can't wait to do more art projects with Audrey!

Ice water with lemon.

Getting to know my new neighbors. They have a daughter who is just a month and a half older than Audrey!

Leslie's new blog, Meals Made Easy. Although I didn't try every recipe this week, the one's I did try were awesome. More than anything though, I love that Leslie has inspired me to get back into menu planning; something that I used to do when I first got married, but stopped doing during all the years we were going to school and working and did not have very much time to cook. It was so nice this last week to not have to run to the store every night to get last minute stuff for dinner. Thanks, Leslie!

Finding a local place that makes their own gelato. Gelato was one of our favorite treats while we were in Italy. The place I found here can't really compare with the quality that we had in Italy, but really, can anything compare with Italy? It was just fun to find something that reminded me of our holiday.

Watching Audrey doing her first sign: "more". Inspired and encouraged by my lovely sister-in-law (a term I hate, by the way-I prefer to just call her my "sister" because that is really what she is to me!), I started doing some simple sign language with Audrey a few months ago. Today, for the first time ever, I *think* that she did a sign back to me. Her Oma had snuck her some scones during breakfast and I looked over at her and she put her little fists together in what looked exactly like the sign for "more". She kept on doing it until I gave her some more food. We'll see if she does it again...

Finally getting the courage to start a project for Audrey's room that I have had in my head (and heart!) since before she was born. A few clues: it is a canvas wall hanging; creating it requires using some of my absolute favorite paper in the whole world that is no longer available and therefore, I have been hoarding it forever (its polka-dotted, of course); and it involves a very special verse that God gave me for Audrey when I was pregnant with her...Since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God." (Colossians 1:9,10). Have you ever had a project in your head that was so special to you that you were afraid to even start it for fear that it would not be perfect? That has been this project for me. I'll post pictures when I'm done...

My sweet girl is now an official sleep-in-the-crib-through-the-night-baby! Its still bittersweet, but the sweet is now outweighing the bitter. I am loving having more time to spend with my sweet husband in the evening, as well as more time to myself! I feel more rested mentally because I am getting more time to recharge, although I don't feel as rested physically. I actually have not slept this poorly since Audrey was born, believe it or not! I am just not used to sleeping without her yet; or used to being paranoid about her being alone in her room...

Watching My Life Without Me. A total tear-jerker and totally moving, not to mention very artistic and a bit random (a trait that I happen to love in movies). This movie made me (and is still making me) reflect on who I am, how I am living, what and Who I am living for...reminded me to have an eternal perspective. P.S. It also has an awesome soundtrack.

I have book club in the morning! I get to discuss My Name is Asher Lev with some of my favorite people, including Misha, Anna, Julie, and Kari. I love that I have convinced almost all of my dearest real life (meaning, I know them outside of the Internet) friends to have blogs! 

What small things have been bringing you joy this last week?