Pots and Pins

Birch Tree Quilt...

Does anyone know if there is a support group for parents of adult children who don't listen to their parents??  At what age do adult children get to ignore their parents sage advice and do exactly what they want?  In this day and age where the ground beneath our feet seems to be shifting constantly, I'd like to throw a wrench into things and suggest that adult children STILL need to heed their all-knowing-all-seeing-Parents advice in all things 24/7.  My life would be so MUCH better if they did!  I'm all about the Monarchy!!  No make that a communist monarchy or a dictator-monarchy!!!  Yes, even better!!!  The girl and SIL announced they will be moving BACK to Utah!!!  Moving away.  And they are apparently taking their children, MY grandchildren with them!  I offered to work out a very generous visitation schedule for them to visit their children who should stay here and live with me but they thought I was joking...I was not.  Shouldn't I be allowed to lock them all in their house and keep them here?!?!?  Damn kids.

This quilt first showed up in my Pinterest feed about a year ago and after seeing it I fell in love.  From what I can tell, the very first birch tree quilt was made back in 2012 by Amanda Jean and you can see it and read about it on her blog, Crazy Mom Quilts. 

Amanda's quilt has inspired hundreds, if not thousands of other quilters to make their own version - copying someone is the most sincerest form of flattery, right?  This was such a fun and easy quilt to piece, made with all scraps.  I will probably make another one as a gift in different colors, I just love this pattern.  This was my 4th Corona quilt, and possibly the best thing to come out of our lockdown!

Originally I picked out a nice red and white stripped binding, but it just seemed to get lost.  Then I tried a scrapy binding, and it was just meh.  The black and white seemed to speak to me, I always seem to pick darker binding to "end" the quilt.  Now back to the girl and her family, would taking them as hostages really be a bad idea?  Since they want to move, I won't lock them in their house but mine; wouldn't that show them how much I love them?!?!  Damn kids.

The backing is flannel so this quilt is very soft and warm.  Pictured above are the color-catcher sheets I used when I washed the quilt.  Not a lot of color came out but enough that it might have left a few stains if I hadn't used them.  Red fabrics are notorious bleeders after all but only one fabric bled which is why some quilters always wash their fabrics in advance...I can't be bothered with that, not when I can buy color-catchers to save me!  Answer me this, how is it right that the girl and SIL can just take my grandchildren and move 800 miles away and rip out my heart and soul at the very same time?!?!?  HOW???  Shouldn't there be a law against that?  Seattle has allowed the CHOP, defunded police, protested repeatedly about BLM...how about GRANDMA'S LIVES MATTER???  Maybe I'll defund the girl!  Maybe I'll set up an adult-children-free-zone!  Maybe I'll protest about Grandma's Lives Matter!!!  Who wants to join me???  Damn kids.

I waited 20 years for the girl and SIL to move to Seattle.  20 years!  And now after a short 13 months, they are moving away.  I am just so sad.  I'll just be sitting here wrapped up in a quilt trying to console myself until I die from a broken heart.  Too much??  I don't care!!!  Damn kids!

Cheese-Filled Puff Pastries with Fresh Herbs...

I know no one in their right mind would even consider turning on their ovens in 95 degree heat but that's exactly what I did because I wanted something delicious to nibble while the mercury soared.  Cheese, herbs and toasted pine nuts, surrounded by puff pastry...worth heating up the kitchen.  Worth the calories.  Worth tiny beads of sweat on my brow.  Just worth it all.

 

Edges of pastry sealed with melted butter and then a bit more butter is brushed on top, because what's a little more butter during a heat wave?  You could use phyllo dough instead of puff pastry, and I considered it but decided I wanted these to be a bit more substantial; phyllo dough would make these more compact, not enough pastry for me.

Our Sunday feast had a Spanish theme (Paella was our main course) so these cheese-filled puffs fit right in.  These are called borek, but are also known as empanadas, pittas, pastillas, boregi, briouats, briks - small turnovers from the countries surrounding the Mediterranean.  The recipe comes from a cookbook that was gifted to me (thank you Lisa Sharp!) From Tapas to Meze, it's filled delicious recipes for "small plates from the Mediterranean."  I learned that borek is a generic term for a whole range of Turkish pastries and they are very adaptable, so use whatever herbs and/or cheese filling you want!  These make great appetizers or serve with soup and salad for lunch or dinner and they make a darn fine late night snack as well!

I personally love the flavors of this - chives, dill, parsley and mint, real tastes of summer and then there are the pine nuts, well, who doesn't love them?  The recipe called for kefalotyri cheese but suggested Parmigiano as a good substitute so that's what I used.

Cheese-Filled Puff Pastries with Fresh Herbs - Adapted from the cookbook From Tapas to Meze by Joanne Weir

6 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

4 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

1 egg, lightly beaten

large pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

4 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1 package (2 pieces included) puff pastry, thawed according to package directions

6 tablespoons butter, melted

To make the filling:  mash together the feta, Parmesan, nutmeg, chives, dill, mint, parsley, and pine nuts.  Season with salt and pepper and set aside.  Unwrap thawed puff pastry and roll out one piece to be 12-inches square.  Cut into three strips and cut those strips into 3 pieces, so you'll have 9 squares.  

Preheat over to 375 degrees.   Scoop a shy tablespoon of the cheese mixture onto each square of puff pastry.  Using your finger, dip it into the melted butter and run it along two sides of the pasty so when you fold the pastry over, the butter will help seal the edges.  Fold the pastry over, opposite corner to corner, seal with finger and or fold edges up and over each other.  Place on parchment lined baking sheet.  Repeat with remaining pastry sheet, making a total of 18 pieces, 9 from each sheet.  With remaining butter, lightly brush the tops of the pastries before baking.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.  Serve hot from the oven, warm or at room temperature.  Makes 18, serves 6 to 9.

 

 

Mango Slaw...

It's been nothing but quilts around here for a long time so I need to post a dang good recipe to break the cycle and this one is just that, dang good!  It's not like I haven't been baking/cooking, in between the quilting I've been in the kitchen making and eating pretty much non-stop since March, like everyone else I suppose.  I've been trying new recipes, some I've liked, some have lined the trash can before they even hit the plate.  This recipe, well this is a keeper for me and it should be for you, too.

Millie Peartree  (such an interesting name!) is worth Googling, she owns a food truck in the Bronx called Millie Peartree's Fish Fry and Soul Food but got her start in the food industry with cupcakes.  Her recipe for Mango Slaw was published in the NYT Cooking section and once you try it you'll know why it's now as famous as Millie herself!  Go read about her, she's had an interesting life!  But first, make her slaw, which is not only the perfect summer side dish but absolutely outstanding on top of a sandwich - its crunchy, sweet and refreshing!

Mango Slaw - Adapted from NYT Cooking via Millie Peartree

1 (8 oz.) bag coleslaw (about 3 cups)

2 large, slightly firm mangoes, peeled, pitted and thinly sliced (about 2 cups)

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

2 tablespoons honey

1/4 teaspoon celery salt

freshly ground black pepper to taste

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients.  Toss with tongs to make sure everything is coated well with the honey and lime.  Refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving.  Serve cold.  Serves 4 as a side dish.

 

 

 

The Real Corona Quilt...

Most quilters I know name their quilts.  I've named all of mine and usually the name has something to do with what's happening in my life.  So when I began quilting again last Spring, when Covid hit, I called all of my quilts Corona quilts, but really only this one deserves to be called Corona. 

This is the 6th quilt I've made since Covid hit, and it's the only one that kind-of-sort-of resembles the virus, if you squint your eyes and look at it while standing on your head.  Or not.  But since it's a jumble of loud fabric scraps I think the name fits.

Pretend those are stars on that picture of the virus...surely now you can see it, right?  Well whatever, this quilt will forever be known as the Real Corona Quilt, like it or not.  I just finished my 8th Corona quilt top, if you're counting, and I'm starting a new one tomorrow.  Why this sudden burst of activity?!?!  Well let me tell you, I discovered that I CAN sew and watch Korean soap operas, while reading sub-titles, after all!  This might be my one and only real talent, and I could not be more proud of myself.  I tell you, it's the little things that make all the difference in life!!

I decided to audition a few spots for the Real Corona quilt...the porch was almost the spot but then I thought better of it.  Someone might wander off with it, so a more secure spot was needed.

 Next I tried it out in the entry, tossed over the handrail because I liked the look of it with the hydrangeas.  It hung out here for a few days before I got tired of it and decided it needed to be another "deck quilt."  We have several quilts on our deck because it does get cold here at night and the mister likes to sit outside in the dark and watch the bats...it's his latest obsession.

I managed to capture the mister singing Red Solo Cup to Rosie...such cute daddy-daughter bonding time.  The mister didn't much care for this quilt because it wasn't big enough to cover him.  It truly is a lap quilt, measuring just 58-inches square.  Perhaps if the quilt didn't get "high-centered" on the mister it would have covered him better...

The backing fabric is from Hobby Lobby, if you haven't checked them out for fabric you should - they do have quality cottons and they carry the entire range of Kona solids, which can be hard to find. (The closest Hobby Lobby to me is in Issaquah.)  Plus their prices are much less than quilt shops, I think this fabric was $7 a yard which is a far cry better than the $13 a yard quilters usually have to spend!

The Real Corona quilt is already a favorite - unlike the virus, the quilt is bright and happy (unlike my usual quilts!)  It was made entirely from fabric I had in my stash as the fabric stores where closed when I started this one.  

When the rains return and summer is just a memory, this is where the Real Corona quilt will end up - on the quilt bed in the Imaginary Baby's Room.  It will fit right in with all the others, just waiting to be loved.  You all have a room like this, no?

Stay healthy and wear a mask!