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Apple Pie with Cream

Ingredients:
Pie Crust:
1/2 C of Walnuts, lightly toasted
1 1/4 C of Flour
1/4 C of Powdered Sugar
3/4 C of Butter cut into cubes
1 Egg Yolk
1 Tbs. Milk/Cold Water

Pie Filling:
3 Apples
1 C Sour Cream
1/2 C Granulated Sugar
2 Tbs Flour
1/4 Tsp Salt
1 Egg
1 Tsp. Real Vanilla Extract
1 Tsp. Grated Lemon Peel
1/4 C. Raisins

Topping:
1/3 C Brown Sugar
1/2 C Flour
1/3 C Butter
1/2 Tsp Cinnamon

Preparation:
Crust:
Grind Walnuts in a food processor
Add Flour and Powdered Sugar
Add Egg Yolk and Milk and knead just until dough is smooth
Transfer to Refrigerator for 1 hr.
After cooled, transfer dough to pie pan
Preheat Oven to 180 degrees

Filling:
Peel and slice Apples and arrange slices artfully in pie crust
Mix together the rest of the pie filling ingredients and pour gently over the apples
Bake for 25 mins

Topping:
Process together all topping ingredients until coarsely crumbled
Refrigerate for 25 mins
After removing pie from oven, sprinkle topping on pie

Return pie with topping into oven for 20 mins
Keep refrigerated
May be served hot or cold according to taste. And don't forget to add a dollop of
sour cream!

Felt Stocking Results!

 I love Christmas! These stockings were completed 2 Christmases ago! It is now one week before Thanksgiving 2022. We've survived CoVid and are thankful for God's blessings. I'm ready to show my Christmas stockings: 

I searched for images that would give each stocking a personalized feel. After printing the images, I used each one as a templet to cut the sections of felt.

I was so happy to find sparkly blue felt for the background of this ornament.

All sections of felt were cut out and ready to be glued or sewn.

I used a combo of beading and embroidery for accents.

Here they are all finished and hanging on the mantel. 

                                    Vintage Felt Christmas Stockings

                      I am feeling nostalgic this Christmas. When I was
                a child, my mother designed and stitched together
                our beautiful Christmas stockings. She used felt
                applique, sequins and beads. I no longer have the
                stockings, so I have been searching the internet for
                inspiration to recreate the stockings for my own family.
                                   

                       Here are a few of the designs that caught my eye:

       
                I love the red felt and sequins in these three stockings,
            but they may be a bit too busy.

                    
              These beautiful stockings were designed by Corey
               Moorgat and can be seen in more detail on her blog.

               
                  Blogger Pam Garrison designed this stocking for her
            son Dugan. More pics at her blog.

This design has a nativity scene that I would like to 

use for inspiration. Designs are from the blog

Do Small Things With Love.

Here is inspiration for Mother and Child applique that I found

on Pinterest: 

I really like the simple design of this nativity scene:

I'll keep you updated when I finalize my designs! 

Roasted Habanero Salsa

                     

                   

     My husband inhales Mexican food! This is one of his favorite salsas.
                  I found this fab recipe at Daydream Kitchen.

                 (This salsa can be spicy hot- so please be aware!)

Ingredients: 9 plum tomatoes

                   2 Habanero peppers

                   1/2 red onion

                    6 cloves of garlic

                    handful of fresh cilantro

                    juice of 1 lime

                    1 tbs. olive oil

                    1 tsp red wine vinegar

                     salt and pepper to taste

Instructions: Half the habanero peppers, remove stems and seeds

                    Line baking sheet with foil, place halved peppers and 

                           garlic cloves on foil and roast until peppers are slightly                                            blackened, about 2-3 mins. Or, you can use your grill.

                     Finely dice the roasted peppers, tomatoes, garlic and onions,
                           place in a large bowl
                     Wash and de-stem the cilantro, chop finely and add to bowl
                     Add wet ingredients-lime juice, olive oil and vinegar
                     Mix together and salt and pepper to taste

                                               Hope you enjoy!

Fall Family Favorite: Organic Vegetable Stew

      Fall Family Favorite: Organic Vegetable Stew

What warms the heart more than a nice bowl of vegetable stew?
My family has enjoyed this stew for many years. This is my
Mother's recipe with the modification of using organic
ingredients. I also opted for frozen peas, green beans and corn which could
be substituted with fresh or even canned ingredients. We
also like to eat "meatless" as often as possible, so
this recipe is vegan. Browned stew meat could be added to your own version
of this recipe.

I've started with :
5 peeled carrots
4 med. sized peeled potatoes
2 fresh tomatoes
1 med. white onion
2 cloves of garlic
1 bag of frozen peas
1 bag of frozen green beans
and 1 bag of frozen corn
all items are organic
I also used Bionatura brand
Organic Strained Tomatoes
24 oz. no salt added
(we purchased ours from Whole Foods)

All ingredients are rinsed and diced, removed from packages and
are ready to be added to a large stew pot.

I just add all ingredients in an evenly dispersed manner.

Next, I add 4 cups of Ozarka Spring Water. You may choose
any type of water, but Ozarka is our favorite.

Now, I'm ready to add the jar of strained tomatoes. 

I like to mix all ingredients evenly within the pot.

I add the following spices which can be adjusted according to
your family's preferences.
1 tsp Frontier brand Herby organic Mediterranean herbs and sea salt
1 tbsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground pepper
1/4 tsp basil

I bring the mixture to a boil on high heat and I stir often.

Then, I lower to temperature to med hi heat and cook for 25 mins.
Remember to keep an eye on the potatoes because they can stick to the
bottom of the pan and burn if not stirred often. 

I also cover the pot while cooking to keep in the
flavor of all the juices. Once cooked, place the stew on lo heat to
keep until dinner time.

My family always want seconds! You could add nice homemade bread to your meal
for extra flavor.

Hope you enjoy!

Simple Cardigan Refashion

I recently ran across Tarakina Svtlana's tutorial for refashioning a cardigan that was purchased on sale. Here is the before pic:

To begin, she used blue camo fabric as a template. She wanted to use the sheer polyester fabric as her ruffle to be added to the cardigan. You could also just use a tissue pattern. No dimensions are given. You will have to freehand your own pattern (sorry).

Now, to make the flower. The tutorial for that can be found here. Basically, you will use a tea candle and very carefully melt the edges of the polyester fabric petals. You will layer the petals to form a flower. 

Next, you will need to cut out a strip of fabric to form the ruffle. Starting with the narrow end of a strip of cloth from the middle of the back of the sweater to the front placket, repeat for the other side.  You could either attach the ruffle together or you could place the ruffle from the top of the sleeve to the front.  Stitch along the edges of the ruffle. 

Then, sew the front placket with a cascading ruffle.  The fabric is laid out in a zigzag pattern. The tutorial for sewing a cascade ruffle is here. 

Hand sew the flower together and add a small brooch in the center. 

Finally, to shorten the sleeves, cut off at the desired length 

and then cut off the cuffs. Looks like she also adjusted the seams at the side for a more tailored look.

Sew the cuffs to the gathered edge of the shortened sleeve for a cute, puffed out look. 

It turned out so cute and feminine! Here are the pics of the completed make-over:

Hope you have a wonderful week!

Thanks to Ugly Bugs and Pretty Bees for the flower tutorial and to Shwin and Shwin for the cascade ruffle tutorial!

Adorable Teddy Bear Cookies!

How cute are these teddy bear cookies by the Cookie Fairy Blog?  These
are perfect for an after school snack or a Teddy Bear themed party!

Prepare two equal-sized balls of dough- Cocoa and Vanilla

Cool dough, then flatten between 2 sheets of parchment paper (no need for flour)

Cut dough into circles for face, ears and nose

Stack circles to form contrasting faces and ears, slightly push on each piece to connect

After cooling decorate with eyes, nose and mouth and enjoy!

                        Teddy Bear Cookies
                                        Makes 16 Cookies

Cookie Ingredients:

1/4 C Butter (1/2 Stick)
1 C Powdered Sugar
1 Egg Yolk
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
2 C Flour
1/4 C Cocoa

Icing Ingredients:
3 TBS Powdered Sugar
1/2 Tsp Cocoa
A few drops of milk or water
A handful of Chocolate Chips

For Cookies:

Beat Butter and Powdered Sugar together for several minutes until smooth
Mix in Egg Yolk and Vanilla Extract
Next, Sift in Flour until incorporated
Divide the Dough into 2 equal parts
In 1 part of the Dough mix in Cocoa

Wrap each part in plastic wrap and refrigerate for several hours
If dough becomes soft during preparation, then place in refrigerator until stiff
Flatten each piece of dough between 2 cookie sheets or parchment paper into a             square that is approx. 25" X 25"
Using 2 sizes of circular cookie cutters cut out small and large circles of each color     of dough
Stack the circles of dough contrasting each piece and slightly push on each piece
    to connect (2 small for ears, 1 large for face and one small for nose)
Bake cookies for 10 -12 minutes at 350 deg.
Let cool completely

For Icing:

In a bowl: 2 TBS of powdered sugar
                gradually trickle a few drops of milk or water while stirring
                just until mixture is smooth but still thick
                If icing is too thin, add more powdered sugar to desired consistency

In a separate bowl:
                Mix remaining powdered sugar with cocoa trickle in a few drops of milk                   or water while stirring

Place each color of icing in separate pastry bags with small round couplings

For Chocolate faced Cookies: Use light colored icing for eyes and add a mini chocolate chip for his pupils
Use dark colored icing for nose and mouth.

For Vanilla faced Cookies: Use dark icing for eyes and add a mini white chocolate chip for pupils. Use light icing for nose and mouth.

Have fun eating the cute and delicious Teddy Bear cookies!