Pots and Pins

Two Weddings and a Death...

I've been off my game lately and am now just getting things back to normal...last weekend I double booked myself.  I am horrible at scheduling things - never bothering to look at my calendar until after I've committed myself!  In my next life I shall do better.  So two weddings in the same weekend - one that only needed me to make a cake...but a very special cake...and the other needed me to do the flowers...15 table arrangements and the bridals!  It was very hectic but very fun.

Claire married a farmer...so she requested a cow cake!  She gave me the cow salt and pepper shakers to use as cake toppers - and it turned out so cute!  Oh, yes, that IS a fly on the cake!!!  The Happy Valley Grange, where the reception was held, seemed to have some sort of fly infestation!  I kept shooing them away but it was futile...but as you can see, the fly is enjoying the frosting...almond buttercream...the cake was a Devil's food cake...it was pretty dang good if I say so myself!  Claire's reception was so adorable - every little detail showed and the grange was filled with lots of laughter and love.  They were not quite finished setting up when I delivered the cake so I didn't get any pictures of how the simple little grange was transformed into a beautiful and elegant reception.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rachel's reception was equally as pretty - above are a few shots I managed to get.  They just don't do the room justice but it was very lovely.  The bride's mom and grandma both collect white pitchers, they were the vases, all of them were different and special to the family - such a nice touch!  Both newlyweds could not have had better weather!  It was sunny and 75 in Seattle - on a weekend, no less!

Now the death...the dishwasher died.  Let me rephrase...the mister killed the old dishwasher.  He tried to "fix" it.  The new dishwasher was delivered but when the installer pulled out the old one he discovered black mold.  Black mold is toxic...so the mister was quite proud of himself that he murdered the old dishwasher, thereby allowing us to find the black mold.  Two weeks later, the mold had been removed, all dry wall cut out and replaced, along with the wood floor under the dishwasher and new insulation put in, to the tune of $2,200...so now it was time to install the new dishwasher - finally!  Five minutes after it was installed, I left for the airport, leaving the mister and boy to operate the new cleaning machine...how hard could it be?!?  Alas...I expected far too much of them...the mister turned on the dishwasher and left for work...never opening it to look inside or (heaven forbid!) actually put dirty dishes in it!  Two hours later the boy called me (I was 800 miles away) to ask me why there was water on the kitchen floor!  Turns out, had the mister opened the dishwasher he would have discovered THE OPERATING MANUAL...but since he didn't, bits of it, along with other bits and bobs that should have been removed before the maiden voyage, had clogged the drains!  ONE WEEK LATER, when I arrived home, the standing water in the dishwasher had stunk up the house like you wouldn't believe!  The mister didn't notice it...neither did the boy...so here's the end of the story...five weeks after the mister killed the dishwasher, $3,200 out the door for the new one and repairs, I had to make a service call on a brand new dishwasher that had yet to run a full cycle!

The moral of the story is this:  Do not let your Caveman in the house, but if you must, ban him from touching anything!

Doily Table Runner...Thanks Pinterest!

While cleaning the nerve center, I unearthed an old box filled with bits of lace and doilies...and I knew immediately what to do with them - thanks to Pinterest and a picture from Anthropologie...

This is the picture I saw - a beautiful tablecloth with crocheted doilies sewn on.  I liked this a lot. 

I had a tablecloth that needed some sprucing up...and enough doilies...but for whatever reason, I was just not "feeling it" when I had them all placed when I wanted.

I had one hour to play/work before the doilies had to go back into the box...I'm on such a short leash these days!!!  Anyway, after tossing them around a bit I decided I wanted a runner for my dining room table.

 

 

 

 

There are 8 "units" in this runner - two lace placemats, one large round doily, two small doilies, two pieces of lace for the ends and one large doily in the center.   I placed the doilies where I wanted them, then top-stitched into place - took about ten minutes start to finish.

This has a very vintage look to it, as does my dining room...as do I...so it fits in just perfectly!  I didn't worry about over-lapping or if the doilies were perfectly flat - as you can see they are not - I could starch them to pieces and have a nice stiff runner but for now I'm liking it as is. Since I still have a lot of doilies and bits of lace left, I think I'm going to make a tablecloth that is all doilies and lace - not just trimmed with them...now that would be something, don't you think?!  Just need to find the time!!  

 

Community Sew Day for American Hero Quilts...

 

If you live in the Seattle area, have a sewing machine and a generous heart, then we'd love for you to come and sew with us on Friday, May 11th!  Our little quilt group of 12 is going to sew together as many quilt tops as we can for American Hero Quilts but we'll help!!  If you're not a sewer, you can still come and help us by ironing, or sorting fabrics or pinning...I promise, we'll put you to good use!

 

Everyone is Welcome!!  Invite your friends!  Friday, May 11th at the LDS Church on the Sammamish Plateau, 922 - 216th Avenue NE

10:00 till 2:00   Pot luck for lunch!

If you can't help us that day, how about donating some of your red, white/cream and blue stash/fabric to us?  Anything that is 100% cotton, without metallic, will be gladly accepted! Send me an email if you want to donate fabric and we'll make arrangements to get it picked up!  ([email protected])

American Hero Quilts gives quilts to returning wounded soldiers and Marines through Madigan Army Hospital in Tacoma, Washington and also at the military hospital in Afghanistan.  There has never been a shortage of wounded...please come and help us support this wonderful way of saying thank you to our military men and women.

Thanks!  Hope to see you there!

Squash With Lime and Aleppo...

I used to be a squash hater.  I am now reformed.  I actually buy squash for myself.  And not only that, when I open the refrigerator, looking for something to nosh on, I will reach for the bowl of cold squash...provided it's been properly doctored with lime and Aleppo!  I discovered Aleppo about a year ago and I wrote all about it here.  I'm now on my second jar.  Let me restate that...my second jar of Aleppo spice in a year's time.  That's got to be some kind of record!  I still have the original little tin of cayenne pepper I got when I was married an eon ago!  But Aleppo is much more subtle than cayenne, it adds some heat but it also brightens whatever it lands on...if you haven't jumped on the Aleppo band wagon, what are you waiting for?!?

When my mom reads this she'll probably say to herself, "See, I told you you'd like squash if you tasted it!"  It only took decades of an up-turned nose and feigned gagging, but mom was right.  I do like squash!  Let's compare how most people eat butternut squash...buttered with salt and pepper...yawn...to roasted butternut squash with a spritz of fresh lime juice and a sprinkle of Aleppo...it's like comparing a hot-dog to filet mignon!

As a side dish, this is going to enhance whatever you pair it with - might even steal the show!  So why not make it the show?!  Squash with lime and Aleppo, inside of a flour tortilla with a smattering of cheese and salsa makes a great lunch/dinner - and it's good for you, just ask your mom!

Squash with Lime and Aleppo - Pots and Pins

1 medium butternut squash

2 tablespoons olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

juice from one lime

1/2 teaspoon Aleppo

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Peel squash, cut in half and scoop out the seeds.  (To make peeling the squash easier, you can put it in the microwave for about 4 minutes, which will soften the peel just a bit.  Cut a piece off the bottom so it's flat and then run your peeler or knifed down the sides.)  Cut into bite-size pieces.  Put squash on a rimmed baking sheet, pour olive oil over squash and using your hands, toss to coat.  Season with salt and pepper.  Put in oven and roast at 400 degrees for about 35 to 40  minutes, or until squash is fork tender, but not squashed!  Remove from oven and immediately coat with lime juice.  Sprinkle Aleppo on top and serve.  Makes 4 servings.

Baby Carrier Cover/Canopy...

My banner is back!! Apparently it was not hijacked or stolen...just another example of how my warped mind works...why would anyone do that?  They would have to be MORE stupid than me!  Okay, so the experts at Typepad told me when my banner was originally loaded it was done so through Photobucket...and everything has been fine and dandy until Photobucket had some kind of hiccup!  Now it's been restored and I can eat again...I mean, eat without being stressed because I wasn't smart enough to fix the issue...I can always eat!  Thank you to the experts, I shall bake you a cake for your hard work!

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I want to show you another great baby gift - it's a cover for a baby car seat, to keep the sun out of the baby's face while in the car and to keep the wind and rain off the baby when going to and fro.  The girl asked me to make one for her so poor little Elsa, stuck facing backwards in the back seat of the car, would not have the sun in her face...oh, and also because she could tell Max that when the cover was down Elsa was sleeping so he would leave her alone...there would be no more, "I touched Elsa's eye!  Elsa let me touch her eye!" 

This is no big deal to make - two pieces of fabric, with corners curved, sewn right-sides-together and then turned right sides out.  A scant 1/4-inch seam is sewn all the way around the edge and it's half-way done!  Two strips are sewn on, that have velcro on the ends so they can be attached around the handle to hold it on.  And just like that, the sun goes down over Santa Monica Boulevard...(unless your Cheryl Crow and then the sun comes up over Santa Monica Boulevard! Got that stuck in my head this morning...now it's stuck in yours!)

You could say this was free...I used fabric from my stash.  It looks like the fabric is touching the floor in this picture but it's not, that's why the corners need to be curved, so it doesn't touch. 

If the cover isn't needed it's just folded back over the top of the handle - I backed this with a pink and white check...it just dawned on me that maybe I should have put Elsa in the car seat to show you her sweet face...but since I didn't, I'll show you Elsa in her bed...

Her room still isn't finished!!  I made the drapes and brought them to hang but the curtain rod was not up...yes, I'm sure you're wondering why I didn't put it up, well let me tell you...the SIL basically told me I was never to do anything in his home again...he put it this way, "HOW WOULD YOU LIKE SOMEONE COMING INTO YOUR HOUSE AND DOING THINGS?!?!"   (I personally would LOVE it but apparently the SIL has issues with help...errrr maybe just MY help!)  So the curtain rod stayed on the floor and the drapes did not get hung and I will NEVER do another thing, EVER, in their home.  (Hell hath no furry like a MIL scorned!)  I sound a little testy, don't I?  Well not to worry, I'll get over it...in my next life!

 

So little Elsa's room  is waiting for the drapes and a few other things to be done.  I put the drapes on the curtain rod just to see how they would look - they will be darling...but for now they hang on the dresser!

 

Elsa was so very tired - just ready to close her eyes - such a sweet baby!  She is 3 months old and has almost doubled her weight!  She's now wearing 6 to 9 months clothes...I'm so happy she takes after her Grandma!  If you want to make a cover/canopy, click here.  I followed her instructions and in about 30 minutes the cover was done...you can purchase a cover for $35 to $49...or you make make one with 2 1/2 yards of fabric and a few pieces of velcro - in the fabrics of your choice - and hear rave reviews when you're done!

Who Hijacked My Banner?!?!?

Seriously!!! Who would do such a thing!???  Who stole my Pots and Pins banner?!?  I want it back right now!!  If you're going to hold it for ransom you'll be sadly disappointed...now really...c'mon, put it back!!! 

Lampshade Redux...

Mom had a little project waiting for me when I arrived...she wanted her bedroom lampshades made-over.  She saw something on Pinterest...I got her started on that time-sucking-trance-inducing-all-consuming-nightly-ritual on my last trip here...and I think she has now officially become a pinhead!

 

This is the lampshade before...very nice and traditional.  Mom purchased two yards of this gauze-y fabric at Hobby Lobby, I cut the fabric into four pieces...two pieces to cover each of the two lamps, using the selvedge edge on the bottom so I didn't have to finish it; and two pieces to be used as the ties/bows.  Using a hot glue gun I folded the top edge over and glued it into place on the top of the inside of the shade.  I loosely gathered/folded the fabric around the shade, glueing and burning my fingers in the process.  Mom's glue gun has the same temperature as the surface of the sun.

After the fabric is glued into place, all that's left to do is tie on the bow!  It takes about 10 minutes to make these shades - transforming them from traditional to shabby chic - mom loves them.

Actually, I think they turned out pretty cute, too!  When mom gets tired of them, she can just pull the fabric off - presto-change-o!  If your shades need a lift, you might consider this...cost of the fabric:  $11.00, cost of Band-Aids for my burnt fingers:  $1.25.  Totally worth it.  

My mom found a pin of this shade on Pinterest, the link was to Funky Junk Interiors, which looks like a "clearing house" for great blogs - go check it out, it's a very fun site, but I could not find the picture/post of the shade on their site and nothing popped up in their search bar...I would have loved to have given credit to whoever made this first!

Bomboloni...Italian Donuts...

I made these two weeks before Easter, then I made another batch the week before, and now, the week after Easter, I have made them again!  Which begs the question: Why???  If you thought Easter was only about chocolate bunnies or colored eggs or ham and scalloped potatoes, then you're SO wrong!  Easter is about eating warm Bomboloni (the singular is Bombolone) filled with sweet lemon curd or raspberry jam or vanilla pastry cream!!  Yes, I know, Easter is about something else as well...this  year it truly was a "high holy day"as it fell on the final round of the Masters Golf Tournament!  Now, before I am smote, I do know the real reason we have Easter...I'm not a total heathen.  That being said, I have it on good authority that on the third day, Bomboloni was served.  Blasphemy and Bomboloni seem to go hand in hand because they are so dang good you won't be in control of your faculties!  Not to worry, I shall repent later...as soon as I'm convinced I have convinced you that these are worth making, worth the calories and worth wearing jeans so tight one can't fall to her knees to repent without cutting off her circulation at the same time!

 

 

 

Italian donuts - that's what I'm talking about...you can buy them on the street in Tuscany where you can get 4 for 2 Euros, plus airfare, or make them at home and pretend you're in Tuscany...works for me!  And here's the best part, you make the dough the night before!   In the morning you roll out the dough,  cutting small circles - they are flat as the dough doesn't rise, and then you deep fry them.  They puff up, into the sweetest little rounds!  Roll them in sugar, let them cool a bit and then you can either eat them just like that or inject some filling into the centers...Mama Mia!!

This last batch I made at my mom's house and we filled them with vanilla pastry cream...but any type of jam will work.  Since they are small, just a bit larger than a golf ball, they are SO easy to pop into your mouth...one after another!

Bomboloni - Adapted from Food and Wine

1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon lukewarm water

3 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 1/2 tablespoons honey

3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

3 tablespoons milk

6 large egg yolks

1/3 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling

2 teaspoons salt

3 tablespoons butter, softened

3 cups canola oil, for frying

3/4 cup seedless raspberry preserves or 3/4 cup lemon curd or 3/4 pastry cream (recipe below)

confectioners' sugar for dusting, optional

Vanilla pastry cream recipe follows

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, mix the water, yeast, honey and 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of the flour.  Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until foamy, about 1 hour.  Return the bowl to the mixer, fitted with a dough hook.  Add the remaining 1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons of flour, along with the milk, egg yolks, 1/3 cup of granulated sugar and the salt.  Mix at low speed until blended, then add the butter and knead at medium speed until silky but sticky, about 5 minutes; the dough will not pull away from the side of the bowl.  Using an oiled spatula, scrape the dough into an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap.  Refrigerate overnight.  The dough will not rise. 

In a large saucepan, heat the canola oil to 360 degrees.  (It really helps to have a candy thermometer for this, if the oil gets too hot the Bomboloni will cook too fast on the outside and be undercooked on the inside.  If the oil is not hot enough, they will take much, much longer to cook and the outside will be tough.)  Line a rack with paper towels.  Fill a shallow bowl with 1/2 inch of granulated sugar.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough a scant 1/2-inch thick.  Using a 2-inch round biscuit cutter, stamp out 32 rounds; do not reroll the dough.  Fry the rounds, 6 to 7 at a time, until they are browned, about 2 minutes, then turn and cook for additional minute or two.  Be sure to keep the oil between 360 and 375 degrees.  Drain the Bomboloni on paper towels, then roll them in the granulated sugar.  Continue frying and rolling the remaining Bomboloni.

If you are going to fill them, fit a pastry bag with a 1/4-inch tip and fill with the preserves or lemon curd or pastry cream, you can also use a squeeze bottle.  Poke the tip 3/4's of the way into the Bomboloni and squeeze in the filling, pulling the tip out slightly as you squeeze to fill them as much as possible.  Dust the Bomboloni with confectioners' sugar and serve.  If not serving immediately, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.  Makes 32.

Vanilla Pastry Cream:

2 cups half-n-half

1/2 cup sugar

pinch salt

5 large egg yolks

3 tablespoons cornstarch

4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Heat the half-n-half, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, and the salt in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat until simmering, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar.  Meanwhile, whisk the egg yolks in a medium bowl until thoroughly combined.  Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar and whisk until the sugar has begun to dissolve and the mixture is creamy, about 15 seconds.  Whisk in the cornstarch untill combined and the mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 30 seconds. 

When the half-n-half mixture reaches a full simmer, gradually whisk the simmering half-n-half into the yolk mixture to temper.  Return the mixture to the saucepan, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula, return to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until a few bubbles burst on the surface and the mixture is thickened and glossy, about 30 seconds.  Off the heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla.  Strain the pastry cream through a fine-mesh sieve set over a medium bowl.  Press plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent skin from forming and refrigerate until cold and set, at least 2 hours.

 

 Just in case you need a little more sugar...feast your eyes on my sweet Max, full of excitment for his Thomas the Train birthday party.  He's holding on the the cute cupcake toppers the girl made - he loved them!

Bimini Key Lime Pie Shots...

Does anyone remember how Bimini was "put on the map?"  Aside from Ernest Hemingway living on the tiny island 53 miles east of Miami or the Duke of Windsor visiting years ago...there was another hystorical (when hysteria and history meet) event that made Bimini all the talk...from Wikipedia:

"In May 1987, Colorado Senator Gary Hart's presidential bid was derailed after media reports exposed an affair with model Donna Rice. Photos taken of the Senator on an overnight trip to Bimini on the yacht Monkey Business fed the media frenzy. An intimate photo of Rice sitting on the lap of Hart on one of Bimini's docks was the nail in the coffin for Hart's campaign for the presidency."

Marrried Senator + Model = Monkey Business!  Not even The National Enquirer could have made that one up!  Okay, let's move on...Bimini is known for other notable things, like Jimmy Margaritaville Buffet writing one of his books there...not quite as impressive as the Democratic Senator writing his swan song...hahaha...trying to moving on...Bimini, which is said to be a very charming little island, is known for something else, something even more provacative than Senatorial Sex...their Key Lime Pie.  It's different.  It's a no-bake pie that's so light, refreshing and smooth it'll make you want to slap the nearest Democrat and scream God Bless America!

 

 

 

In case you don't happen to own 65 or so shot glasses and you're not needing pie shots for a baby shower, you can make a 9-inch pie like normal people...it will taste just as great.  The crust for this delectable island dessert is made with graham crackers and coconut...ya mon, co-co-nut!  And then, even though the crust is fabulous and the filling, almost defying description, you top the little things with a piece of candied lime peel...mi gotta say mon, dees are bashy baby, upright bashy!  (I don't know where the island slang came from, it just kind of took over my brain...bashy means really, really good...in case you're not up to speed!) 

For the shower I also made Lemon-Strawberry Pie Shots, with the same graham-coconut crust...and while they were very good, the Bimini Key Lime Pie Shots stole the show...make them and see for yourself!  This may look like a long and involved recipe - it's not - it's fast and easy and there's not another dessert out there that will WOW your family/guests better than this...5 dangs on the ol' meter my friend...FIVE!  This one is dang, dang, dang, dang, dang good!

Bimini Key Lime Pie Shots - Adapted From The Bimini Sea Shack/The Key Lime Cookbook by Joyce Young

1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk

1 package (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/2 to 3/4 cup Key Lime juice

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Graham-Coconut Crust:

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut (if you can't find unsweetened coconut, use sweetened and omit the sugar)

9 graham crackers, broken into big pieces

2 1/2 tablespoons sugar

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Candied Lime Peel Garnish, optional, but so worth it: 

1 lime

1/4 cup sugar, plus more for coating lime peel slivers

To make the crust:  Heat oven to 325 degrees and adjust oven rack to middle position.  Spread the coconut into a 9-inch glass pie plate and toast in the oven until golden brown, about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally and being careful not to burn.  Pulse the graham crackers in a food processor until they are coarse crumbs.  Put the crumbs into a medium-bowl and add the coconut, sugar and the melted butter.  Toss with a fork to combine.  If you are making a pie, use the same 9-inch glass pie plate, press the crumb mixture into the pie plate and up the sides.  Use the bottom of a measuring cup to flatten out the bottom and sides, spreading the crust as evenly as possible.  Bake the crust until a deep golden brown, about 20 minutes.  Cool the crust on a wire rack while making the filling.  If you are making the pie shots, after mixing in the coconut, sugar and butter, press about 1 to 2 teaspoons of the crust mixture into the bottoms of 15 shot glasses, using the end of a spatula to tamp down.

To make the filling:  Place milk, cream cheese and lime juice in blander or food processor.  Process on low speed until smooth.  Add vanilla.  Process until mixed.  Pour mixture into crust, if making a pie, and chill in refrigerator until set, about 3 to 4 hours or overnight.  If making the pie shots, carefully spoon about a tablespoon or so into each shot glass, filling almost to the top.  Refrigerate until set, about 2 hours for shots, or up to overnight. 

To make candied lime peel:  Place 1/4 cup sugar in small sauce pan and 1/4 water.  Bring to a boil.  Cut lime into slices then carefully go around the edges, removing the peel only, leaving the white pith.  Cut peel into small slivers.  and put into boiling sugar water. Reduce heat to a simmer and let boil for 5 minutes.  Remove lime peel with a slotted spoon and drop into a small bowl of granulated sugar to coat.  Discard sugar water.  Use as a garnish for the pie shots or the pie.

Note:  You can use a purchased graham cracker crust...I won't judge you...and you can also top the shots/pie with whipped cream if you haven't met your cream quota for the day.  This recipe makes one 9-inch pie or 15 pie shots, but lest you think one shot is enough for one person...plan on two per person because one is never enough!

 

Burp Cloths, Hooter Hiders and a Sweet Pillow...

I've been crazy busy - working, sewing, baking, cleaning, eating...wedding flowers, wedding cakes...it's enough to make my head spin...faster!  For a baby gift, I decided to make some hooter hiders (Ha!) also known as nursing covers (blah!) and then I had to make some burp cloths to go with them and then I realized that I hadn't made any for the girl so back to the machine I went! 

But first, I made this sweet, sweet pillow for someone in California!  She needed it for a shower this Friday so I had to work fast...I think it turned out very cute. 

Matching burp cloths seemed like a good idea...a new mom can never have too many of them!

These burp cloths were made by following this tutorial from MADE.  I've usually sewn burp cloths by adding cute fabric to ready-made cloth diapers...but Dana has this great tutorial for making them any size you want, still with cute fabric but without necessarily using diapers...on these burp cloths I used diaper fabric and these cloths measure 10-inches by 16-inches...not too big, not too small...just right!  Seriously easy and fast...two burp cloths take about 15 minutes, start to finish!

Eight burp cloths in an hour!!  That's pretty fast!  They make great gifts...and you can use scraps!  I backed some of these cloths with waffle fabric I had to make dish towels out of...I also had some towel fabric and I used that on a few...whatever soft, absorbent fabric you have will work.

Four hooter hiders...two for the girl, two for a gift...easy, fast and a fraction of the cost of buying them.  Plus, they are practical and used over and over and over!  There are patterns on-line but if you'd like a really easy pattern, shoot me an email and I'll send it to you.  Now I just have to finish the drapes for Elsa's nursery and make a car seat cover...today!!!  No rest for the wicked!