Baking: Muffin Tops

Muffin Tops are the bombdiggity. My favorites are the pumpkin muffin tops from Panera. So when I found these pans....

I thought... pumpkin muffin tops became my next challenge. With my favorite pumpkin bread recipe, I experimented and made the best pumpkin muffins ever!!!! Using an ice cream scoop, I measured them out equally in the pan. Baked them at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Absolutely delicious!!!! The perfect combination of crusty outside and moist inside.

 

Pumpkin Muffins

1 1/2 c. of sugar

1/2 c. vegetable oil

2 eggs

1/2 can of pumpkin

1 3/4 c. flour

3/4 t. b. powder

1 t. b. soda

1/3 t. salt

2/3 t. cloves

2/3 t. nutmeg

2/3 t. allspice

3/4 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. vanilla

1/6 c. water

Combine sugar, oil, pumpkin and eggs until well-blended. Add all the dry ingredients and blend carefully until thoroughly mixed. Add vanilla and water. Scoop with mid-size ice cream scoop into muffin top pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove and place on cooling rack.This makes 18 muffin tops.

Delicious!!

Gardening: Time to order the roses

February is the perfect time to plant bare root roses in this part of the world... And I needed to order some new roses for our rose bed I built last year.

 

I started with this sweet pink rose, Heaven on Earth, it looks like heaven. A pink rose that reminds me of a peony and you know how much I love peonies.

Next, I ordered, the Pope John Paul II rose hybrid tea rose. I need a pretty rose to line the fence and with the rose getting five feet tall, I am counting on it to fill the space and provide a nice white anchor to the rose bed.

And lastly, my new climbing rose, Heavenly Dawn, an apricot old fashioned rose that I am going to use for the arbor.

 

The rose is described as a "fully double, extra-large blooms cascade from every stem of this rose" what a luscious description. 

The funny thing about my rose order is the name of these flowers... Heaven on Earth, Pope John Paul II and Heavenly Dawn... I see a trend!!! I know that I feel closest to God when I garden but now my rose bed will be a testimony for that feeling....

Painting a Yard Sale Mirror

Sometimes I go to yard sale after yard sale and leave empty handed. We love them but honestly sometimes I feel like I am wasting my time. But every once in a while, I come across a treasure. This mirror was sitting in the corner, unloved and was $5.

An ugly color and needing an update, I knew this mirror was a diamond in the rough. First of all, it was extremely heavy. The glass is beveled and with the bamboo details, it reminded me of a Pottery Barn mirror. So with this beautiful "masculine"...insert amused laugh here...

I felt like painting the mirror to match the blue would highlight the fine qualities of the mirror and bring out the blue in the wallpaper.

I tested two different blues... a lighter one and a darker one. In the end, we went with the darker color as the room would have denim in it and I wanted the mirror to add some "weight" to the wall.

Look at the beautiful detailing in the mirror.

 Painting a mirror requires careful taping.

 How pretty does this blue look on the wall? It really is a pretty color and a pretty mirror.

I love the lamp and flowers with the mirror but boy is it hard to take pictures of mirrors.

 I can't wait to show you the bed we found for the room. It is completely awesome and was dirt cheap!!! So the moral of the story is to keep going to yard sales... you never know what you may find. I know it is disheartening but every once in a while, you may find a treasure.

Cooking: Are you an Organized Cook?

I am the type of cook that likes order, menus, recipes and lovely refrigerators. As you know from my menu planning? I need a menu. Menus are important to me because they allow me to provide a sense of balance to my family's meals. I build the grocery list off my menus.

Fresh fruit and veggies get washed as they come in from the store or farm stand. 

And place them in the fridge to make the fridge pretty and ready to cook the meals on my menu.

Carefully planned meals allow me to try new recipes, like this Tomato Goat Cheese tart

A menu plan allows me to put together this antipasto dish and have company.... Guests are an important part of my menu plans as they are in our life.

 Menu planning also allows me to bring flavor to our dinners... such as these plum pork kabobs. A good try but a bad experiment...which is why you never heard of them before. Thankfully, I had planned for a back up dinner and had plenty of leftovers when these turned into a flop.

I also plan baked goods in my weekly menus. The baked goods are gifts for elderly neighbors, sick friends and surprises to mailmen, garbage men, and my church, who are usually on a diet. This strawberry bread is always a great hit!!!

Menu planning also allows me to make desserts for family and friends. I know I have the ingredients on hand to whip them out. The blackberries we gathered and froze were delicious in this blackberry cobbler. 

I encourage you to sit down with a calender and a new cook book. As you look through the cookbook, pencil two new recipes in the calender that you would like to try. Fill the rest of the calender with family favorites, tried and true recipes and you will have a menu plan for the month.

Organization: Vacuuming Upholstery

As spring approaches, I start to long to clean every nook and cranny in the home. A sunny day brings new dirt and dust I never saw before.... yuck.

But you all know that I try to plan for everything, so as with spring cleaning, I have a plan. This week, I am vacuuming all the upholstered furniture in our home.

I start with the seat cushion. 

Next, I check and vacuum between the seat cushion and bottom of the chair. 

I also vacuum all the corners of the chairs and sofa.

 

I check the chair for spots, tears or any minor repairs I can perform. 

 

This chair is finished... One down and many more to go... Next Week, washing baseboards and sharpening all the knives. 

Cooking: Menu Week Ending January 30th

I am behind with painting the hallways and living room. So this week is all about painting, working out and dieting. I am a big believer in smaller portions rather than re-vamping my menus. We are also working out more as the big wedding is coming and I need to fit into a cute dress. 

The wedding planning is going. This week we need to work on the table linens rentals, etc. I want to also revamp portions of the blog but that requires researching and experimenting. 

Monday

 

Chicken Tender Salad

Tuesday

Apple Stuffed Pork Chops with sauteed green beans

 Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon chopped onion
• 1/4 cup butter
• 3 cups Pepperidge Farm cornbread breadcrumbs
• 2 cups chopped apples
• 1/4 cup chopped celery
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 (1 1/4 inch) thick pork chops
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. In a large skillet saute onion in butter until tender, approximately 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add the bread crumbs, apples, celery, parsley and salt. Mix all together. Cut a slit in the boneless side of each pork chop; season inside and out with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon apple mixture loosely into pockets.
3. In skillet, heat oil to medium high and brown chops on both sides. Place browned chops in an ungreased 9x13 inch baking dish. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for 30 minutes longer or until juices run clear.

Wednesday

Church for Dinner

Thursday

Steak Quesadillas

with Guacamole 

Margaritas

Friday

Stromboli

Green Salad with Balsamic Vinagrette

Saturday

Beef Stew ( adapted from Betty Crocker)

1	tablespoon vegetable oil
1 1/2	lb beef stew meat, cut into bite-size pieces if needed
4	medium carrots, cut into 1/2-inch slices (2 cups)
3	medium red potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (3 cups)
1	large onion, cut into 1-inch pieces (1 1/2 cups)
1	medium stalk celery, cut into 1-inch pieces (1 cup)
3	cups of beef stock
3	tablespoons quick-cooking tapioca
1/4	teaspoon pepper
2	teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

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1. In 12-inch skillet or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add beef; cook 4 to 6 minutes, stirring frequently, until browned on all sides.
2. Spray 4- to 5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In cooker, mix browned beef and remaining ingredients.
3. Cover; cook on Low heat setting 9 to 10 hours.

Sunday

 Spaghetti and Meatballs
Cesar Salad
Garlic Bread

 Spaghetti and Meatballs

Ingredients

For the meatballs:

• 1/2 pound ground pork
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 cup fresh white bread crumbs (4 slices, crusts removed)
• 1/4 cup seasoned dry bread crumbs 
• 1/2 c. milk 
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 2 extra-large egg, beaten

For the sauce:

• 1 tablespoon good olive oil
• 1 cup chopped yellow onion (1 onion)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1/2 cup red wine
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes, or plum tomatoes in puree, chopped (I have some in the freezer from last summer
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Place the meats, bread crumbs, parsley, Parmesan, salt, pepper, nutmeg, egg, and 1/2 cup milk in a bowl. Combine very lightly with a fork. Using your hands, lightly form the mixture into 1 1/4-inch meatballs. You will have 40 to 50 meatballs.

Adjust the oven racks so the meatballs will be in the middle of the oven, bake the meatballs until they begin to brown, about 15 minutes. Allow the meat to cool and then refrigerate until firm.

For the sauce, heat the olive oil in the same pan. Add the onion and saute over medium heat until translucent, 5 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the wine and cook on high heat, scraping up all the brown bits in the pan, until almost all the liquid evaporates, about 3 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, parsley, salt, and pepper.

Return the meatballs to the sauce, cover, and simmer on the lowest heat for 25 to 30 minutes, until the meatballs are cooked through. Serve hot on cooked spaghetti and pass the grated Parmesan.

Photography: Engagement Photos

When it came time to take engagement photos of my daughter and her fiance, I wanted to take the photos. We have a lovely wedding photographer but I really wanted to try my hand at their photos. I love to take candid photos of the family and truly believed if I didn't get a good photo, I had plenty of time to rectify it. Besides, my daughter and her finance are very handsome and couldn't take a bad picture if they tried. But how could I capture the sweetness of their relationship when I have a tough time capturing good Beef Stroganoff pictures?

So several weeks ago we had the loveliest snow fall, what a beautiful backdrop the snow would make for those two lovebirds. With the snow freshly fallen, I set the camera up and we took some beautiful pictures.

Thankfully, my neighbor had his flag out!!!

No matter how beautiful the background is and the subjects are, the photos could always use some weaking.
 


Pretty in color..

but I transformed it into black and white, added some softness around the edges and punched up the shadows. Much more dramatic and sweeter.

The color photos, I added more shadow, punched up the intensity of the color and sharpened them to make them more dramatic.

Before:

After:

A smiling photo.....

We tried a snow ball fight....

And I had them make snow angels.

A black and white to show off the ring.....

A picture of them after the snow fight.... but sadly, the car is in the background.

 So I cropped it and intensified the color.... much better.

Playing with the dog....

And a Mr. Darcy Sandwich...

All in all, I think the photos turned out very pretty. I am happy with them and I truly think they are happy with them too.

Wait until spring, we will take some photos tip toeing through the tulips!

Garden Planning

January is the least active month in my garden and flower beds. However, this month is the time when I dream of all the beautiful flowers and vegetables, I am going to grow, without all the weeding, pruning or planting.

To transform those dreams to reality requires a little garden planning. I start with

A stacks of gardening catalogs and highlight those veggies I want to try this year.

 

I check to see if there are any seeds left over from last year.

Use my trusty planner and check the last frost date.

 

Draw up my garden plans and plug in the dates of either the seeds that need to be started indoors or when the seeds should be planted outside. I love to draw the garden in my garden journal.

A look at the garden... I can't wait until the garden goes from this....

  

To this.....

Cabbage and broccoli seeds get started inside on February 8th!!!! I will keep you posted.