Game Night Cheese Die

January 5, 2014 ~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

Last night we were invited to a game night with friends. We were asked to bring an appetizer.

There are plenty of easy to eat appetizers to choose from, but I wanted to “go all out” and bring a themed dish. Unfortunately I’m not creative enough to come up with my own clever idea so I turned to the trusty internet. Most recipes I found were desert related – domino brownies, rice krispie treat billiards balls, etc. And then there was this die, made from cheese!

I’ve had cheese balls in the past and thought that this was a winner. The trick to making a cube instead of a ball is having enough time for the cheese to harden in a loaf pan. And to create the white exterior you “frost” the cube with more cream cheese. Stud it with black olives and you have yourself a die! (Mine wasn’t anatomically correct, but no one seemed to mind.)

Cheese Spread Cube

Ingredients:

24 oz cream cheese, divided
2 C shredded Italian blend cheese
6 scallions, chopped
1 tbsp milk
sliced black olives for decorating

Steps:

Mix together 16 oz cream cheese with shredded cheese and scallions. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Place cheese in a plastic wrap lined loaf pan. Cover with more plastic wrap and place in the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours. You can do this the night before your party too.
Remove cheese from the fridge and cut the loaf in half. Place one half on top of the other to create a cube. (Or make multiple smaller dice, whatever you decide.)
Beat remaining 8 oz of cream cheese with the milk until smooth. (It’ll play a mind trick on you, thinking it’s marshmallow fluff or frosting!)
As if you were frosting a cake, cover the die with the smooth cream cheese. Stud the 5 visible sides with olive slices.
Serve with crackers or bread.

*This recipe was modified from http://www.tasteofhome.com/recipes/cheese-spread-dice*

Pecan Pie

January 1, 2014January 11, 2017 ~ lk529 ~ 1 Comment

I had planned on providing you with a healthy shrimp and avocado pesto recipe to start your new year off right. But unfortunately the avocados at the grocery store weren’t anywhere near ripe and they were completely out of basil. So that recipe will have to wait for another day.

Instead I’m going to switch gears entirely and give you a sweet, rich dessert. Stuart’s holiday favorite. Pecan pie. My mom makes this pie just for him – and it amuses me greatly that the woman married to a man with nut allergies provides the only nutty dish of the holidays.

Pecan Pie

Ingredients:

1 C light corn syrup
3 tbsp butter
1/2 C brown sugar
2 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp salt
3 eggs
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 C chopped pecans
1 pie crust

Steps:

Over medium heat combine corn syrup, butter, brown sugar, flour, and salt. Stir until the butter melts. DO NOT BRING TO A BOIL. Remove from heat.
In a small bowl beat the eggs. While constantly stirring the syrup mixture, slowly add in the eggs. Stir until smooth. Add in the vanilla and chopped pecans.
Pour pecan pie filling into a ready-to-bake, thawed pie crust. If desired, place 5 halved pecans in a small circle/star in the center of the pie.
Bake 1 hour at 350 degrees until the filling no longer jiggles.

*This recipe is adapted from http://www.mrfood.com/Pie/Perfect-Pecan-Pie-685/*

Update December 2016: I’ve been dying to re-photograph this pecan pie and every Christmas I say I’m going to. It’s taken three years for that to happen, but hey! My parents remodeled their home in 2016 and all of the yellow tones of the kitchen were replaced by modern and timeless whites, greys, and deep cherry. Even with the new open concept I was surprised at how little natural light penetrated the bright space. I had to take mom’s pie out to the lanai to snap the new photo. It’s amazing what natural lighting can do to the beauty of a pie!

Classic Pecan Pie | Sew You Think You Can Cook | http://sewyouthinkyoucancook.com

Sausage Pinwheels

December 30, 2013December 29, 2013 ~ lk529 ~ Leave a comment

I want to provide you with another option for your New Year’s Eve party.

I know this doesn’t qualify as Mexican Monday – but it could if you decided to substitute Mexican chorizo in place of the breakfast sausage. In fact, that actually sounds delicious! My dad felt that the pinwheels were actually missing something, such as a dipping sauce. But we were all stumped as to what that could be. Red pepper jelly seemed to work, but still wasn’t just perfect. Using Mexican chorizo might give that needed something.

A friend of mine brought these sausage pinwheels to a party last year and they were gone in the blink of an eye. Even my cream-cheese-hating husband gobbled them up.

Sausage Pinwheels

Ingredients:

1 roll breakfast sausage
2 tubes refrigerated crescent rolls
2 pkgs cream cheese, softened

Steps:

Brown the sausage and drain any fat.
Mix cream cheese and sausage.
Roll out crescent dough and press together seams. Spread half of the cream cheese mixture. Roll the crescents lengthwise. Repeat with 2nd tube of crescents.
Place rolled up pinwheels in the refrigerator for 20 minutes.
Slice pinwheels into 1/2″ rolls. Place pinwheels cut side down on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 13 minutes, or until crescents are cooked through.

*This recipe is adapted from Leah at http://abiteofmylife.blogspot.com/2009/02/cream-cheese-sausage-pinwheels.html*

Bacon Wrapped Dates

December 29, 2013 ~ lk529 ~ 4 Comments

It’s the time of year for cocktail parties. Saying goodbye to 2013 and hello to 2014.

Bacon-wrapped anything is always a safe appetizer to take with you to your New Year’s parties. And bacon wrapped dates are your best bet. The dates caramelize in the oven and turn into candy. The bacon crisps up. What you are left with is essentially a chewy centered candy.

I have a big lesson learned to tag along with this recipe. Bake your bacon wrapped anything on a cookie sheet with a rim! Why? Bacon releases fat/grease. This grease is not solid. This grease will most likely drip off of a flat cookie sheet. In a 450 degree oven this grease will catch fire. Now what?! Turn off the oven. According to dummies.com keep the oven door closed and the lack of oxygen will cause the fire to die. But if want to save your bacon wrapped anything quickly and carefully remove them from the oven and throw either baking soda or salt on the flame. DO NOT USE FLOUR. Apparently, flour will cause an explosion!

Bacon Wrapped Dates

Ingredients:

dried dates
bacon

Steps:

Soak toothpicks in water, to prevent them from catching fire. Preheat oven to 450 deg.
Cut bacon in half. On a plate, microwave bacon for 2 minutes (covered with a paper towel).
Wrap each date with bacon and skewer with a toothpick.
Bake 15-20 minutes, or until bacon is cooked and crispy.

*This recipe is adapted from Beau at http://oursavorylife.com/a-delicious-paleo-snack-recipe-bacon-wrapped-dates/*

Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls

December 23, 2013February 7, 2014 ~ lk529 ~ 5 Comments

Christmas morning is the most magical time of the year. Kids wake up to the discovery that Santa arrived – cookies eaten and gifts under the tree. Parents are overjoyed by the wonder upon their kids’ faces. Families come together to celebrate. And breakfast is always perfect. I don’t know if it’s the same as the theory that “everything tastes better on vacation”, but on Christmas morning the breakfast is sweeter.

Cinnamon rolls have always been one of my favorite treats, and I can never pass up a Cinnabon at the airport. My favorite part isn’t the gooey, cinnamony center that everyone desires, I save that bite for someone else to savor. I love the dough and the frosting. To me the cinnamon simply adds a nice depth to the flavor profile.

Always wanting to make my own, I’ve gone through many trial-and-error attempts at baking cinnamon rolls from scratch. Either the yeast didn’t bloom properly or the flavor was just lacking. I couldn’t give up though, I kept searching for the perfect recipe. And a few years ago I found it with these Orange Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls by The Novice Chef.

Making the cinnamon rolls does take about an hour and a half so Mom and I would made them on Christmas Eve after church, covered them, kept them in the fridge, and then baked them in the morning while presents are being opened. Another option is to make them in advance, freeze them, and let them thaw Christmas Eve night. Let them rise and then bake in the morning.

Cranberry Cinnamon Rolls

Ingredients for the dough:

2 packets active dry yeast
2 C warm water
6 tbsp room temperature butter
1 C sugar
7 1/2 C flour, plus extra for rolling
2 eggs
1 tbsp salt

Ingredients for filling:

8 tbsp room temperature butter
1 1/2 C brown sugar
8 oz fresh cranberries, chopped
2 tbsp cinnamon

Ingredients for frosting:

4 tbsp room temperature butter
2 C powdered sugar
2 tbsp milk

Steps:

Stir yeast into the warm water. Let bloom for 5-10 minutes.
Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle, beat butter, sugar, and salt. Add eggs one at a time, beating until combined. Slowly pour in the yeast and water. Beat until combined. Add the flour about one cup at a time, beating until combined after each addition. Once the dough starts to form switch to the dough hook attachment. After all the flour has been added knead the dough for 3 minutes.
Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead by hand until smooth.
Place dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise to double in size (about 30 minutes) in a warm place. (In the microwave or turned off oven)
Divide dough in half and roll out onto a floured surface.
Roll one half into a rectangle. Spread the dough evenly with 4 tbsp of softened butter. Sprinkle with 3/4 C brown sugar, half of the cranberries, and 1 tbsp of cinnamon. Roll the dough into a log, lengthwise. Cut the dough into 2″ cinnamon rolls. Place cut side down in a 9×13 casserole dish.
Repeat step 6 for the other half of the dough.
Cover dough with a towel and let rise for 30 minutes before baking. The rolls should have doubled in size again. (Or you can freeze the rolls and after thawing let rise until doubled in size.)
Bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake another 7 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool, slightly.
Meanwhile, make frosting. Whisk together all of the ingredients for the frosting. Frost the cinnamon rolls!

Pierogi

December 22, 2013May 4, 2015 ~ lk529 ~ 4 Comments

Every Christmas Eve we have the traditional Polish meal of Pierogi. I have so many memories of helping my mom and grandma (Busia) assemble the pierogis. Busia would always make the dough and together the three of us would fill, pinch, boil, and fry. Eventually my mom took over the intimidating process of making the dough. And last year, it was my turn.

I followed tradition and made the dumplings about a week or two early and stored them in the freezer. Doing so takes off the stress during Christmas week. Making pierogi is an all day job! Because they freeze well, you don’t have to limit these to Christmas Eve. Make a batch and you have a great homemade freezer meal throughout the year.

Last year I recruited the help of Kate. I turn to Kate whenever I have baking to do, and making a dough is close enough! It’s also great to have extra hands when it’s time to assemble. This year, family friends helped Mom make hers two weeks ago.

The most common pierogi filling known to Americans is potato. But honestly, I’ve never had a potato pierogi. We fill ours with different canned fruits, cheese, and sauerkraut. And we serve them with salt and melted butter. Stuart actually broke the mold and used maple syrup!

Pierogi

Ingredients for dough:

1 1/2 C skim milk
3/4 C fat free half-and-half
5 C flour, divided plus more for rolling
1 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
1 XL egg
3 L egg yolks

Ingredients for filling:

Cheese: 8 oz soft farmers cheese, 3 oz cream cheese, 1/4 – 1/3 tsp salt
Fruit options: canned peaches, canned cherries (not pie filling), canned blueberries (not pie filling), canned strawberries (not pie filling), plums, figs
Sauerkraut: cook 1 can drained, chopped onion, chopped cooked bacon, caraway seeds, water, little bit of flour to thicken if needed, 1 tbsp brown sugar (This can be made ahead of time and frozen)

Steps:

Spray the bottom of a large pot. (I used my dutch oven)
Over medium heat, bring milk and half-and-half almost to boiling point.
Whisk in 1 C flour. Switch to a flat bottomed wooden spoon and stir often for 20 minutes over low heat until almost smooth.
Remove from heat and add butter and 1 tsp salt. Let stand, partially covered, for 1+ hour.
In a small bowl, gently whisk egg and egg yolks.
Add eggs to dough along with 1 C flour. Stir until combined. Add another 1 C flour. Stir until combined. Add another 1 C flour. Stir until combined.
Turn dough out onto a clean table or cutting board and knead in the last 1 C of flour.
Refrigerate dough for 1+ hour.
In batches roll out dough to 1/4″ thickness. (Leave dough in fridge) Flour the board, dough, and rolling pin as needed.
Place filling on dough and fold over. Cut pierogi with a round glass. Squeeze dough shut and pinch the rims. They’ll look like half suns!
Cook pierogi in boiling salted water for 10-12 minutes. They will float to the top. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Refrigerate. At this point you can freeze the pierogi once cooled.
Fry pierogi in butter before serving.

Snowflake Block

December 20, 2013July 27, 2015 ~ lk529 ~ Leave a comment

Engineer Kate and I figured out how to create a Snowflake block for the back of Let it Sew. We tried surfing the web for tutorials to follow but were unsuccessful. We knew there had to be a way without resorting to paper piecing.

Playing off of a “square in a square” block and sashing we managed!

Here is the how-to for a Snowflake Quilt Block:

Note: These measurements are for an 6″ snowflake block with 1″ wide snowflake lines.

Cut fabric:

4 squares 3 1/4″ white
1 square 1 1/2″ white
4 rectangles 1 1/2 x 3″ white
8 squares 3 1/4″ blue

Layer one blue square atop a white square. Mark the center diagonal, 1/2″ off of the diagonal, and an optional another 1/4″ off of that. (A bonus half square triangle will result from the optional 1/4″ steps!)

Sew on the 1/2″ line. Also sew on the 1/4″ if using. Cut in between the two stitches.

Iron the blue away from the white fabric. Take another blue square piece of fabric and line it up with the white on top of the resulting “block” from the previous steps.

Repeat the above steps and again iron the blue away from the white.

If you used the 1/4″ lines you now have two bonus half square triangles to do with what you wish! (For a project this small I would skip this step, but if you’re doing something larger by all means enjoy your bonus blocks!)

Using the center white line as a guide, trim the block to a square of 3×3″.

Repeat 3 more times so that you have 4 diagonals to your snowflake.

Follow my sashing tutorial to finish off the snowflake block!

Snowman Door Hanger

December 17, 2013December 17, 2013 ~ lk529 ~ 2 Comments

For The Year of the Snowman 2013 my mother-in-law and I made burlap snowman door hangers for the girls in the family. We found an example on Pinterest, but it led only to a photograph.

Luckily my mother-in-law is a genius when it comes to crafts! I have created for you a simple tutorial.

How-to make a Burlap Snowman Door Hanger

Start first with a template of your snowman (or whatever else you want to create!) and trace it onto folded burlap. Pin the two piece of burlap together.

Using a zig-zag stitch follow the outline of the snowman. (We used grey thread so it would show up in these photos. Make sure to use a thread that will easily be covered up with whatever paint you use.) At the bottom of the door hanger leave a 3″ gap, like you do with pillowcases.

Using pinking shears, cut just outside the seam. Lay out your door hanger on a trash bag or newspaper. It’s time to paint!

With the help from my father-in-law, holes were created at the top of the door hanger. A straw, cut to the width of the space between the holes was used to keep the door hanger sturdy. Thread your string/twine/jute through the holes and straw.

Stuff your door hanger with paper or plastic bags.

Using a thread to blend in with the paint, zig-zag stitch the door hanger closed. Garnish with a store bought accessory!

Gingerbread Man Waffles

December 15, 2013May 4, 2015 ~ lk529 ~ 5 Comments

I still have a holly, jolly smelling batch of Gingerbread Spice from November’s Crazy Ingredient Challenge and knew exactly what I wanted to do with it. I added it to waffle batter for a fantastic holiday twist to a classic breakfast. I even make Gingerbread Sugar (instead of Cinnamon Sugar) for sprinkling over top!

The pear syrup was a great compliment and when that ran out I used bottled Strawberry syrup. I liked the tartness it added instead of piling on more sweet from regular maple syrup.

Gingerbread Man Waffles

Ingredients:

2 1/2 C flour
1 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp sugar
1 tsp gingerbread spice
2 eggs
2 1/2 C milk
1/2 C vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

Steps:

In a large bowl sift together all dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl whisk together the wet ingredients.
Combine wet and dry ingredients and pour into a hot waffle iron and cook until golden. Serve with gingerbread spice sugar and syrup. Use a gingerbread man cookie cutter if desired.

*This recipe is adapted from Better Homes and Gardens*

To make Gingerbread Sugar use a 4:1 ratio of sugar to gingerbread spice. (4 tsp granulated sugar and 1 tsp gingerbread spice)

A Two Year Project

December 9, 2013September 18, 2014 ~ lk529 ~ 3 Comments

Two years ago I embarked on a very ambitious Christmas gift for my mom. A beautiful cross stitched Christmas landscape designed by Thomas Kinkade.

There aren’t any good shops in my local area to get cross stitch patterns and kits so I had a friend stop at Hobby Lobby in Auburn for me. She sent me a couple of patterns and I selected “A Treasured Time“. She told me the size and price and brought it to me.

I greatly underestimated how large 12×16” is! I had never undertaken anything so big before, and greatly misjudged my ability to complete it in time. I didn’t start on the project until the family left my home Thanksgiving weekend. Needless to say, given the title of this blog post, I did not complete this masterpiece in 3 weeks. And Santa’s elves were too busy to lend me a hand.

I took this project on every work trip, spending hours in hotel rooms each night working on it. I would stitch every evening while Stuart played video games. It came with me on long car rides.

After two short, yet long, years I have finally completed this winter scene. I can’t even begin to tell you how relieved I am!

It will probably be another year before I decide to tackle something so big again. I am used to doing ornament sized pieces that take me 2 days to complete. I will return to some quick fun pieces soon. Having my Christmas tree up puts me in the cross stitching spirit.