Whoopsie

Well, I did it again.  I have a HORRIBLE habit of taking on more than one task at a time.  Generally, as long as they're in the same genre (baking, for instance) I'm fine.  If they cross over, usually not a good thing.

See all these beautiful apricots, fresh from the orchards of E. Washington?

I received some fab produce yesterday and thought, "Hmm....I know I'm making a 3-layer 2 tier wedding cake AND baking 4 dozen red velvet and pumpkin spice whoopie pies AND finishing another batch of blueberry pies in a jar AND making cream cheese frosting AND another batch of chocolate pastry cream....but SURELY I can handle one batch of apricot slow-cooker butter!"

Yeah, not so much.  I awoke at 4am to the smell of burning sugar, and for the life of me couldn't understand why.  I figured it was my sleep-sensors telling me I was a baking fool yesterday.  Then about 7am I hopped out of bed and scampered to the kitchen, remembering far, far too late my apricot butter.  Whoopsie.  This is what it looks like after cooking away in a slow cooker for 18 hours:

Happy Friday ya'll! :)

Canning Porn & Dueling Banjos

Today I'm bringing you a little bit of canning porn.  Oh that's right.  Wait till you check out these babies!

As my friend's wedding approaches in mere days (check back later for all the pictures!), I took a break this afternoon from the baking and planning.  I had fruits and veggies to put up!

I was the very lucky recipient of a large delivery of organic produce, straight from a local grower, courtesy of my thoughtful brother.  No way could I let it go to waste.  So first up, salsa.  Ole!

Onions with the dirt still on them!

Gorgeous red, yellow and orange heirloom tomatoes.  In love!

I could live on salsa alone.  It's my all time favorite.  This particular batch has a variety of heirloom and sweet yellow tomatoes.  I'm not sure what particular type of peppers, as I just grabbed a couple from the bottom of the 5 gallon bucket.  But given the burning of my hands while cutting them, I'm guessing it will give off some nice heat.  Ordinarily I would provide you with my recipe, but in this case, the USDA would probably hunt me down.  Cause here's the thing: I HATE the USDA-approved recipes.  For me, I want some chunk and crunch in my salsa.  So I kind of just wing it, botulism be damned.  I don't really cook my salsa, other than a slight warming to bring out the tomato juice.  I figure the time the jars spend in the water bath is cooking enough.  And in the end, it's a nice consistency.  I also don't add sugar, and very little vinegar.  Like I said, the USDA wouldn't care for me sharing the details.  But hey.  They got that whole Pork cooking temperature thing wrong, so I'm going with my gut on this one.  And for what its worth, no one has gotten sick or died yet. ;)

Check out this green pepper.  It's the size of a baby's head!

Next up, pickles.  But first I needed to find the perfect pickling music.  I strongly believe that life is better lived with a soundtrack.  Even if it's just in your head.  I also think that dogs make the best dancing partners, so make of that what you will.  Pickles.  I've never made pickles before.  That was my mom's stinky job growing up.  But I have to say, pickles scream banjo to me.  So on went the Avett Brothers, and let the pickling begin.  (I'm pretty sure my neighbors think I'm nuts, but I'm comfortable with that).

I had a bunch of little pickling cucumbers, as well as some english variety.  I'm not sure if you can pickle an english cucumber, but I'm giving it a try.  I sliced them, and cut the pickling cukes into spears.  And since I had some fresh dill, I threw that into the jars as well.

Since I've never made pickles before, I opted for the Mrs. Wages Kosher Dill mix.  Mixed with water and vinegar, boil and add to the jars.  Side note: pickles stink up the house like nothin' else.  There is just no way to make boiled dill and vinegar smell good.

Check out my pickles!

10 jars of salsa and 12 jars of pickles.  Not too shabby for an afternoon "break"!

Shameless plug time.  My good friend Becky over at Buzzy Bee Creations makes the most amazingly cute little kid clothes.  And aprons.  And if you're a disaster in the kitchen like I am (seriously, I'm a little baking Pig Pen in here), you need an apron.  And why wear one of those ugly boring ones, when you can get a super cute apron you wouldn't mind answering the door while wearing?  I have at least 4 from Becky, and my cleaners thank her.  See:

Cute AND practical!  Love it.  :)

Handmade for Health

While I'm not the strictest of earthly beings, I take pride in buying organic whenever possible, supporting my local farmers market and buying local, carrying my reusable bags and using biodegradable and sustainable items whenever possible.  I'm not a fanatic, but I do my best to reuse or recycle what I can't reuse (I've been known to wash and reuse ziploc baggies multiple times, and will do so until they no longer function).  I'm in the process of making the greatest produce bags, out of flour sack towels.  One more step and then they will be ready for prime time (darn work gets in the way of the crafting!).

Today I received all of my supplies for handmade chapstick from Mountain Rose Herbs.  I found a ton of recipes on tipnut.  Tonight was time to whip it all up.

I was amazed at how easy it was!  A little beeswax, cocoa butter and sweet almond oil.

Melt it all together and pour into tubes and let cool.  Amazing!

It smells like cocoa and feels amazing on the lips. Love it!  After the success with the lip stuff I moved on to lotion...

This was the coolest thing.  Like a fun science experiment.  Emulsifying wax, hot water, olive oil and essential oils for fragrance.  Easy peasy!  Melt the wax and olive oil together.  Add your essential oils (I used a fab mix of lemongrass and lavender).  Pour the hot water into the oil/wax mixture and watch it turn into a milky white liquid.  I then poured into a wide-mouth mason jar.  It sets up to lotion consistency when it cools.  I couldn't wait to try it!  I have horrible eczema on my hands, and very few lotions penetrate my lizard skin.  I instantly noticed a difference, without any greasiness.  I'm excited to try this for a few days and see if it helps calm the irritation.  Check out my handiwork:

Next up....deodorant and laundry soap! :)

Sew many projects....

My friend's wedding is quickly approaching, and I still had a few remaining sewing projects to knock out before the big day.  She has a terrific selection of fabric from her grandmother, which she wanted to turn into cushions for her vintage picnic table.  Being the friend with a sewing machine, I took on the task.

The colors are so fun, and you can't get more vintage then this.  I love it.  My friend had a terrific idea of making each cushion out of a different fabric on one side, then using this awesome piece of terry cloth fabric.  Check out this pattern:

I love it!  Totally makes me think of Mrs. Roper and her Mumus.

I love love love this piece.  Wonder if she'd miss it? ;)

Sewing is not my favorite, nor my best talent.  But I stuck with it and knocked the cushions out.  And then I took the remaining fabric and stitched up table cloths and napkins.  The tables are going to look so fabulous at the wedding!

I Cheated

It's true. I did.  But sometimes, a cheat needs to happen.  When it's for the right reasons.

Let me explain.  I'm on a diet.  A very strict diet.  As a wannabe baker and homemaker, this is unbelievably difficult.  Then add in my office filled with snacks, it's damn near impossible many days.  But I've stuck with it and not cheated one bit.  Until today.

I read a number of food blogs.  Many are funny, most informative, and all inspire me.  But one crippled me today.  I had just finished work for the day and ventured over to one of my faves, and saw an interesting - and off-topic - post about peanut butter pie.  As I read on, I was gripped by the meaning and purpose behind that beautiful little pie.  Then I wandered some more and found peanut butter pies posted all over the food blogisphere.  All in support of Jennie.

You can read her heart-wrenching and humbling post here.

Jennie's husband, the father of her 2 young daughters, passed away suddenly of a heart attack.  In the depth of her grief and her shock, she asked her readers to make her husband's favorite, a peanut butter pie, and share that with those they love most, as today is the only day we are guaranteed.

This touched the very base of my deepest fears.  The fears that wake me in the middle of the night, for no rational reason.  I'm separated from my honey by time, distance and circumstance, and my greatest fear is something happening to him while we are apart.  I know that us being together doesn't certify his well-being and safety, but who said fears are rational?  So I was compelled to make a peanut butter pie.
A sad, humble little peanut butter pie, with a store-bought graham cracker crust (see, I cheated there, too).

And while I can't share it with the one I love, I can write about it, post the picture here, and know that eventually he will stumble upon this post and know.  I made it for him.  I cheated for him.

Anyone who has lost a loved one knows and understands the pain.  And that there is little to ease that pain, but for the passage of time.  But sometimes, the little moments, such as a cook making her husband's favorite dish, helps to assuage that hurt.  And I'm sure the knowledge that hundreds of others are making the same dish, and thinking of her and her family, along with their own loved ones, can't help but provide a slight bit of comfort.

Mason Jar Madness

A few months ago I began collecting antique mason jars for an event I'm planning next year.    I love the gentle blue color, along with the bulbous shape.  In my hunts, I've discovered all sorts of wonderful old mason jars from long-defunct brands.  I have well over 20-some antique jars now, blue, clear and everything in between.  I may be a bit obsessed.

In a happy coincidence, my friend's are getting married this month and I am so pleased to be able to help them.  As I have been helping with the planning and scheming for their backyard wedding design, I've been pulling the mason jars - old and new - into commission.

Check out this cute mason jar of "fireflies".  I've made 6 to hang around the tables.

With some simple wire twisting - and a minor poke or two - I made the hangers for easier set-up.  Reminds me of the old red kerosene lanterns, but way more fun.

This project got me to thinking.....what else can I do with the jars?  Then I spied my solar yard light.

Hmm...looks about the same size as the jar top.

Seriously cute.  But I don't want to risk my antique jars outdoors.  So I pulled out some smaller half-pint jars and got to scheming.

Now to turn these jars blue.  A little Mod Podge and paint.

Slather it on and let it start to dry.

After drying for a few minutes, I wiped it down a bit.  It dries a very pale blue, and looks oh so pretty under the solar light.

My next project is going to be handmade soap in a mason jar with a pump lid.  I can't wait! :)

A Tisket, a Tasket, a Cherry in My Basket

I'm very blessed to have my brother and his family living near me.  Whenever I have my niece and nephews over, we "make something".  It's become something of a tradition.  We will routinely bake a cake, cookies, cupcakes, donuts...you name it.  The last time they were over I had just finished making some jam and other canned goodies.  Apparently this left an impression on their young impressionable minds.

A couple days ago I received a text from my brother informing me the kids had tackled their pie cherry tree for their "Aunt Nenna".  He was giving me a heads up that I would soon be receiving a small amount of cherries.  I was of course ecstatic!

Well, as promised the cherries arrived.  They are gorgeous, if not a little on the potentially over-ripe stage.  What is a girl to do with roughly 2 cups of almost too far gone pie cherries?  Why, pop up the iPad and do a search for Clafouti of course (I'm such a techy gadget geek...)!

I found a few different recipes consisting of pretty much the same ingredients.  I finally settled on this one as a base.  Naturally I tweaked it, failed to measure anything, and basically just winged it.

I switched the sugar for honey, tossed in some slivered almonds, a little flour and eggs and whisked together.  I naturally went for the buttermilk over regular, cause that's just how I roll, and then poured the whole gooey mess over my cherries.

After 40 minutes in the oven, I had a fabulous custardy-like cherry dessert.  The tartness of the pie cherries complemented the honey-sweetened clafouti.  Yum!  Thanks kiddoes!!! :)