Being Loved is a Picnic!

“Love is a choice you make everyday.”
― Gary Chapman

“Love doesn't erase the past, but it makes the future different.”
― Gary Chapman, The Five Love Languages

 

    

     This quilt was made a couple of years ago.  I got creative and made up my own pattern.  I needed a smallish quilt to hang on my wall for February.  It was my first experience with scalloped edges. 

 

 

This is one of the books that is on the docket for our book club to read this year.  I was over anxious and read it already.  It is an amazing self-help book for those who want to enrich their relationship with their spouse or anyone for that matter.  I learned a lot about myself and my spouse at the same time. It helped me count my blessings that I have a wonderful, amazing husband that has my best interests at heart.   I do recommend this book for everyone.

 

 

The following recipes would work out well for a nice Valentine's dinner or any nice meal that you might feel inclined to prepare for your family.

 

 

 

   

Creamy Tomato Basil Soup

1 quart (4 cups) tomato juice                         2 T. butter

¼ cup sliced or diced onion                            2 T. flour

1 tsp. salt                                                        1 ½ cup milk

½ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. pepper

1 tsp. basil

1 bay leaf

            Combine first seven ingredients in a 2 quart sauce pan.  Simmer for 10 minutes.  Make a white sauce with butter, flour and milk.  Slowly add to hot tomato mixture stirring constantly.  Serve at once.  Serves 6.  Excellent with grilled cheese sandwiches.  Fun served with popped popcorn or cheesy fish crackers.

     This recipe comes from my friend and neighbor, Tammy.

Tossed Craisin Salad

1 package romaine lettuce                                 Craisins to taste

1 package coleslaw mix                                    Breanna’s poppy seed dressing

salted peanuts to taste

            Combine first four ingredients in large bowl.  Toss with dressing when ready to serve.

 

     The following two recipes come from recipes adapted from www.ourbestbites.com.

 

 

Garlic-Rosemary Roasted Potatoes

1 ½ lbs. small potatoes, or potatoes cut to bite-size

2 ½ Tbspn. olive oil

2 ½ Tbspn. coarse-grain or Dijon mustard

2 ½ Tbspn. chopped fresh rosemary (or 2 ½ tsp. dried rosemary)

About 5 cloves garlic, minced

Ground black pepper

Salt

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Combine olive oil, garlic, rosemary, mustard and black pepper in a small bowl and set aside.

Add potatoes to the boiling water and cook for about 10 minutes or until tender.  Drain potatoes and return to the pan.  Toss with the mustard mixture.  Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil and spread potatoes out evenly on it.  Sprinkle with salt and bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until the skins are browning and sizzling.  Place potatoes on a platter and scrape seasoned bits off the foil onto the potatoes and serve.

Garlic-Rosemary Pork Tenderloin

1 large or 2 small pork tenderloins

2 ½ Tbspn. olive oil

2 ½ Tbspn. chopped rosemary leaves ( I used 2 ½ tsp. dried rosemary)

2 ½ Tbspn. coarse mustard

5 cloves garlic

½ tsp. salt

A few turns of freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Line a baking sheet with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.  Set aside.  Rinse pork tenderloin and trim away excess fat.  Pat dry and place on prepared baking sheet.

In a small bowl, combine olive oil, rosemary, mustard, garlic, salt and black pepper.  Rub this mixture all over the tenderloin, especially on top.  Place in heated oven and roast until meat reaches 160 degrees, about 25 to 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and wrap in foil and allow to sit for 5- 10 minutes before slicing.  Serve with Garlic-Rosemary Roasted Potatoes.

 

Cheesecake Dessert

Make crust using:

2 cups flour                             ½ cup brown sugar

1 ½ cups butter                       1 cup chopped nuts

Press into 9x13 “pan and bake for 15 minutes in 350 degree oven.

Let cool and break up into small pieces and spread evenly over bottom of pan.  Reserve about ½ cup crumbs to garnish top of dessert. 

Make filling by mixing:

Two 8 oz. packages of whipped topping

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened

1 cup powdered sugar

Spread the filling evenly on the crust.

 

Make topping by using:

1 pkg. Danish dessert mix                              2 cups frozen strawberries or raspberries

Follow directions on Danish Dessert mix.  Remove from heat and add berries.  Let cool and then spread on top of the filling.  Sprinkle reserved crumbs on top.  Refrigerate for a few hours until served.

 

     The day the family took an outing to Hardware Ranch, we also made our way over to Honeyville in Box Elder County.  We braved the 22 degree temps and went swimming outdoors at Crystal Hot Springs.  I don't know if we're crazy or adventurous, but it was fun.  I only managed one trip down the water slide.  That was cold!   This place has been around for a long time.   I have fond memories of going there with a large group when my husband and I were dating.

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Piece of My Heart

“Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” ― Mother Teresa

 

 

     I found the pattern for this cute table runner in the Jan./ Feb. 2013 issue of McCalls Quilting Magazine.

It's called "Heart of the Home".  The heart blocks remind me of the hearts we made in 3rd grade with red and pink construction paper.

 

 

     These little pillows found a place to rest this month on the bench in my entry way.  The pattern comes from "The Pillow Lady" Muriel Andersen.  It's called #219 Love X 2.  So cute with a little embroidery and a little patchwork.

     This is the first year in many that my kids have not made valentines for the kids in their classes.  My youngest is 12 and no longer in grade school.  To ease my sadness a little we had a friend party for my daughter.  I was delighted when 12 beautiful, giggly girls showed up.  The highlight of the afternoon, to my surprise, was when each girl wrote something nice about each of the other girls on a small piece of paper then rolled it up and gave it to that girl to insert in the opening of a balloon.  The balloon was then blown up and tied off and later sent home with her.  I told the girls they can pop their balloon and read the notes when they are having a bad day.  It should cheer them right up.  They also painted their nails.  The girls helped me make mini cheesecakes and they all enjoyed pizza with lots of fruits and veggies.  They got to choose out of three different kinds of toppings for the cheesecakes; cherry, blueberry or raspberry.  Each girl received a treat bag and some cute, warm gloves.

Mini Cheese Cakes

2-8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese, softened              1 Tbspn. lemon juice

2 eggs                                                              1 tsp. vanilla

¼ cup sugar

            Beat all ingredients until smooth.  Put vanilla wafer in each cupcake liner in muffin tin to form a crust.  Fill half full with cream cheese mixture.  Bake at 350° for 20 to 30 minutes.  Let cool and top with cherry pie filling just before serving.
 

 

  This recipe came from one of my college roommates. It's so easy.   I have used it quite a bit for parties or showers.

 

 

 

     If any one knows anything about love it would probably be Mother Teresa.  I am not Catholic but I do admire this woman and all the work she has done among the poor. Reading this book opened my eyes to see what a truly beautiful person she is.

     I bought this countdown board for Valentine's Day last year at a little store on Main Street and Vine in Tooele called Homebodies.  My kids had fun eating the kisses each day until Valentine's Day.
    

 

More Frosty Days!

"One kind word can warm three winter months."--Japanese Proverb


     This month the family took a field trip to beautiful Cache Valley and proceeded on to Hardware Ranch. We took a picnic lunch and ate it there in the building provided near the visitor's center.  Then we took a sleigh ride to see the elk.  The Rocky Mountain elk is the state animal of Utah (just a little trivia to make it educational).  Our tour guide/ sleigh driver, who insisted his real name was Cheeseburger, filled us in on all the details of the ranch.  This was a great winter activity.

 

Bella and Nicki

 

Cheeseburger

 

     I read the best book this past month.  It's called The Rent Collector by Camron Wright.  It's about a family that lives in the garbage dump in Cambodia.  The mom has a chance to learn to read and the whole story is about how that changes her life.  I loved the examples of poetry and prose throughout the book.

          Here's an easy recipe to try out.  It was adapted from a recipe from Managing Your Meals Cookbook.

 

Sesame Baked Chicken

1/3 cup butter                                     1/8 tsp. pepper

1 egg, slightly beaten                         8 boneless chicken breast halves (tenders work nicely)

1 ½ Tbspn. water                                1/3 cup flour

1 ½ Tbspn. soy sauce                          ¼ cup sesame seeds

½ tsp. salt                                           

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Place butter in 8x12 inch baking pan and let melt while oven preheats.  Meanwhile, blend egg, water, soy sauce, salt and pepper.  Dip chicken in flour, then into egg mixture.  Arrange chicken in pan, turning to coat with butter.  Sprinkle generously with sesame seeds.  Bake at 400 degrees for 40-45 minutes or until tender and golden brown.  Serve with mushroom sauce if desired.

Mushroom sauce:  In medium saucepan melt ¼ cup butter.  Stir in 1/3 cup flour. Remove from heat and add 1 can chicken broth.  Stir until smooth.  Cook and stir until thick.  Add ½ cup cream (or milk), ¼ tsp. salt, few grains pepper and 1 can sliced mushrooms( drained).  You can also add some chopped fresh parsley.  I just use a little dried parsley.

 

     I found this recipe at Allrecipes.com.  It has cranberries in it so it has to be good.

Cranberry Rice Pilaf

1 Tbspn. olive oil                                             1 tsp. salt

1 cup chopped onions                                     black pepper to taste

½ cup dried cranberries                                 2 green onions, thinly sliced

1 ½ cups rice                                                   3 Tbspn. chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

3 cups chicken broth                                       ¼ cup sliced almonds

     Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add onion and cook and stir until tender; about 5 minutes.  Stir in cranberries and rice and cook for another 5 minutes or so.  Pour chicken broth into the skillet with salt and pepper.  Bring mixture to a boil.  Cover and reduce heat.  Simmer for about 20-25 minutes or until rice is tender and liquid is absorbed.  Remove skillet from heat and add green onions, cilantro and almonds.  Stir until mixed and warm throughout.

 

 

    It took me awhile, but I finally finished my Forget-Me-Not quilt.  It was a block of the month sponsored by Quilts, Etc. in Sandy. We learned how to make twelve blocks from Japan. Then we got to finish our quilts any way we wanted.  I finished mine with a little applique in each corner and some blue squares and a mock scalloped border.



     This is a kit I purchased at The Wood Connection in Midvale.  When I'm finished with it it will look like the snowman on the right.  I just need to find a wild shoelace for the scarf.

 

Winter Wonders

“Nature is full of genius, full of the divinity; so that not a snowflake escapes its fashioning hand.”

--Henry David Thoreau          We had a snowstorm last week that left us with 8 inches of snow.  Since then we have had more snow and the temperatures have been well below zero at night.  Variety is the spice of life.  I have always loved looking out the window and seeing a beautiful, pristine blanket of white snow covering the entire landscape.  Besides, it's perfect weather for quilting and reading.      I read this book when I was a teenager and really enjoyed it.  It's about a girl from Boston who marries a Canadian Mountie. They go and live in the wilds of Canada.   It's a poignant story of their joys and sorrows and mostly their adventures.           It's still soup weather, more now than ever.  This soup recipe is hearty and satisfying.  I added a bay leaf for extra flavor.     Beef Barley Soup 1 cup chopped carrot                         1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes, undrained ½ cup chopped celery                         1 cup quick-cooking barley ½ cup chopped onion                                      1 ½ tsp. salt 1 T butter                                                        ½ tsp. pepper 4 cups beef broth                                            ½ tsp. dried basil 4 cups water                                                    ½ tsp. dried oregano 2 cups chopped cooked roast beef                  ½ cup frozen peas In a large soup-pan, sauté carrot, celery and onion in butter until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the broth, water, beef, tomatoes, barley, salt, pepper, basil and oregano; bring to a boil.  Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add peas.  Simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes.  Makes 8 servings.          This is the perfect bread to go with any kind of soup. It's so moist and flavorful.  It rises a lot so split it in half and put it in two different loaf pans.  I also just put all ingredients in my bread machine to make the dough.   Dill Bread 1 Tbspn. yeast                                     1 unbeaten egg ¼ cup warm water                              1 Tbspn. minced onion 1 cup cottage cheese                           1 Tbspn. dill seed 2 Tbspn. sugar                                     ¼ tsp. soda 1 Tbspn. butter                                    3 cups flour 1 tsp. salt Soften yeast in warm water.  Heat cottage cheese to lukewarm.  Combine with sugar.  Combine balance of ingredients.  Add flour to form soft dough.  Beat well.  Cover and let rise in warm place for 1 hour.  Stir down and mold into well-greased bread pan.  Let rise 30 minutes.  Bake at 325° for 30-35 minutes.                    Here are more mini quilts made from Art to Heart patterns.  They are just too fun.  The little wool pillow was made by my friend, Sam.  She gave it to me for Christmas last year.   And here is yet another table topper that I made last year.