Wednesday, May 31, 2017

...W.I.P. Wednesday...the Baby Shower edition...

...the Baby Shower was Saturday...so I can show you the goods now...
...of course I knit a pink version of my Super Simple One Hour Baby Hat...
...and I loved this soft and sweet...purple and pink variegated yarn...so Cute!...
...and then I just knit one of my rectangle stockinette stitch blankets...
...and y'all have seen another version of this wavy border before too...
...I absolutely could not keep kitten off of this blanket...
...I had to put her in another room just to take a photo...and she was purring the entire time...
...not sure why this photo is not rotated...but it emphasizes the importance of using the same dye lot...even with plain white yarn...arghhh...
...this one is sideways too...but the Mom-to-Be requested a book instead of a card...so I found a cute farm themed board book...but got a card also...
...and I've started using a pretty printed reusable shopping bag instead of a paper gift bag...
...and I embroidered the new baby's initial on the blanket just using duplicate stitch...
...this is the pattern I drew...it's wonky because it was on two sheets and I skewed the two photos together...I should do an actual scan...

...what's in your workbasket?...

~Have a lovely day!

Tuesday, May 30, 2017

...Tuesdays with Julia...

...we made a couple of versions of Braised Celery with Julia this week...
...first we had the warm version with baked tofu and rice...
...and of course all of the particulars are at The Vegan Version

...and then next up we had the cold version...
...which we had with cold noodles...

...and I liked them both better than I thought I would...

...also over at The Vegan Version

...have you ever had braised celery?...celery is such an interesting vegetable...and I've met a lot of people who don't like it at all...

~Have a lovely day!

Saturday, May 27, 2017

...KALE!...

...Kale is super cheap at the grocery store right now...I've been getting huge bunches of kale for 99¢ ...a whole sink full of Kale...

...so...I just wash it well...a couple of times...
...and I pull off the stems...but I save them...to use later in smoothies...soups...etc...
...then I mix in some spices we like...clockwise here...paprika, garlic powder, chili powder, onion powder, nooch...and black pepper in the middle...and the avocado just makes it stick to the leaves really well...
...then it spends a couple of hours in the dehydrator...
...and we have crispy kale chips to snack on all week...

~Have a lovely weekend!

Friday, May 26, 2017

...a super simple snack...

...we've had these crackers before...they're simple and good...
...and you've seen my leftover almond meal cream cheese before...
...and I had some leftover cranberry sauce that I wanted to use up...and I'd seen 'cranberry mustard' in the gourmet foods section of the grocery store...

...so...I just mixed those two things together...
...and piped it on top of the cream cheese...

...this was such a simple and frugal snack...and I'm happy to have found a way to use up leftover cranberry sauce...which tends to just hang out in my fridge until it has to be thrown away...

~Wishing you a lovely start to your weekend!

Thursday, May 25, 2017

...W.I.A.Y. on a family visit,,,...

...sorry to have been absent from this space for a few days...but we've been busy visiting...

...and since it's a What I Eat in a Day...day...I prepared some tofu for the grill at Mom's before we left home...
...just sliced and baked...
...mixed up a simple marinade...just beef flavored bouillon...
...poured it over the pre-baked tofu...
...and sealed that up in Tupperware for the journey...

...this winds up having the perfect texture...and it's good on it's own or with vegan Steak Sauce...actually most bottled Steak Sauces are vegan...
...then at Mom's we got busy preparing all the veggie sides...a tray of peppers, cauliflower, and broccoli went into the oven for roasting...
...Brussels Sprouts were chopped...
...as was some zucchini...
...my sweet Mama putting the sprouts on the grill pan...
...then she oiled a bunch of baking potatoes...
...and added some onions to that pan...
...and then I snapped this sweet photo of Jack...because as soon as Frank got up from his seat...Jack hopped up there and took it over...
...the Brussels Sprouts are ready...
...and so is the other veg...
...and the potatoes...
...Scout playing a made up game with his cousin...he used to call this family time 'Cousin-ing'...so cute...
...the CHAOS that was dinner...!
...my HUGE plate of food...and I ate every bite...
...then after a little time had passed and we weren't so stuffed...Mom brought out these little cakes...(recipe here)...
...topped with strawberries...
...and the cream...well that's a funny story...I'd brought what I thought was a can of full fat coconut milk to make some vegan whipped cream...

...but...it wasn't full fat...so there was no cream on top...and it was sort of homogenized looking...so we just spooned it over like cream...
...and you know what...it was still DELICIOUS!...

...then there was some more visiting...and some goodbyes...and plans for the next day...and then some sleep...in my childhood bedroom...
...and then it was time for breakfast...oatmeal...fresh fruit and almond milk...
...one of my favorite breakfasts ever...
...and finally a visit with my Grandma...

...she was so funny...when Scout came in and gave her a hug and kiss...she asked him if she was the only 102 year old woman he knew...

...so Mom corrected her...that she's actually only 101...and she said...well...I've already had that birthday...and she's right...of course...she is OVER 101...

...and she IS the only 101 year old woman Scout knows...

~Have a lovely day!