Time Flies

How can it be August already? I swear the days pass faster every year.

I do have a finish - Free Spirit Potato Chip. I bought a Free Spirit Kaffe Fassett Jelly roll last August and some coordinating green fabric for a project to be figured out (not something I do often anymore but fun!).

I eventually decided on a potato chip block with a narrow scrappy sashing.

I do love the colors in this 50" by 67" donation quilt. I quilted this with a meander using Glide #17543 light gray thread. 

The back is a green print from my stash. 

I have finished painting the second room of my studio - the cutting room. It was a pumpkin orange color and is now the same yellow as the long arm room I recently painted. Ray decided he'd really help with this room so it went must faster than the first room. I love that the room is much lighter now and I think I finally have it put back in order. Here's a look around the room.

I'm trying to clean out things I don't use/want anymore as I'm putting rooms back in order after painting. I really enjoy the larger feel of each of the finished rooms. 

I found a scrap of fabric with the binding that said "It's a good day to be happy". I decided to make a tiny quilt (8.5" square) using the piece of binding because I like the saying. You might have noticed it hanging in one of the above photos.

I used Kaffe Fassett fabrics since some were on the cutting table.

I saw where someone was making binding with selvages so I decided to play a bit. Here's one piece of selvage fabric (I made three). 

And here are some pieces cut for binding.

I now have a large roll of binding and I have no idea when I'll use it. It is rather neat though!

I had a huge pile of tops needing to be quilted and I'm slowly working my way through it. So far, I've finished three so I now have another pile - three quilts that need binding. Here is a sneak peek of all three. (They each still have basting threads.)

ruler quilting

meandering

single and double loops

I've spent lots of time in the kitchen lately taking care of fresh produce. It takes time but I love knowing where our food comes from and preserving food for the next year. I did find a new recipe that we both like - Zucchini Slice, an Australian egg/bacon/cheese/onion/zucchini dish. I've made it twice so far and I think it will become a staple here. We've frozen it and had it for breakfast and a light dinner. 

And now we'll see what August brings...

Vegetable Soup with dehydrated ingredients

It is definitely still winter here so soup sounds good. I am beginning to run out of some of the ingredients so the dehydrator will be turned on next week. I'd like to have a couple jars of the vegetable mix with us when we travel in May and June - we may want soup way up north in Canada.

Vegetable Soup with Pasta

adapted from Colleen Bohrer of 21st Century Simple Living 

You can package the following in a pint jar or just measure it out when it's time to make soup.

Vegetable mix:

2 t tomato powder


2 t parsley flakes 

1 t garlic powder


1/4 c dried diced tomatoes


1/4 c dried onions, chopped


1/4 c dried white potatoes, diced


2 T dried carrots, diced
 (I have used 2 medium raw carrots)

2 T dried celery

2 T dried corn kernels
 

3 T dried cabbage

2 T dried lima beans

2 T dried mushrooms

2 T dried, shredded zucchini

1 dried bay leaf

Notes: 

• This is about 2 cups and fits into a pint jar.
• Any dehydrated vegetables will work - this is just what I usually use. 
• If you do not have dried vegetables, you can substitute raw when you make the soup, but you have to figure out how much. The only raw vegetables I have used are carrots.

To make soup:

1 pint jar dried vegetable mix


12 cups water or beef stock (I usually use 8 c stock and 4 c water)

1 teaspoon dried oregano


3 beef bouillon cubes

3 tablespoons tomato powder or 3 tablespoons tomato paste


1 cup pasta - use whatever you have broken into bite size pieces, if necessary

1. Add everything (except: pasta and any raw vegetables you might be using) to a large pot and bring to a boil for 10 minutes. 


2. Add any raw vegetables you might be using. Simmer until vegetables are tender, about 1 hour. If soup becomes too thick, add more water. 
I often add 2 cups water because the bouillon makes the soup a little too salty for our taste.

3. Add pasta and simmer an extra 15 minutes. 


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Apple Cinnamon Granola Bars

I found this recipe and had to try it. I have seen a number of granola bar recipes that are similar and I think you can make changes and the bars will still turn out. I used dried apples but I think any dried fruit that is a bit chewy will work.

Healthy Chewy Apple Cinnamon Granola Bars

from Lovely Little Kitchen at http://lovelylittlekitchen.com/healthy-chewy-apple-cinnamon-granola-bars/

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup old fashioned oats

1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

1/4 cup flax seeds

4 tablespoons coconut oil

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal (I used Rice Krispies)

1/2 cup dried apples, diced (I cut up with kitchen shears)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9 by 9 inch baking dish by spraying it with nonstick spray and lining it

with parchment paper, leaving excess hanging over the sides for easy removal later.

2. Spread oats, nuts, and flax seeds out in an even layer on a parchment paper lined baking sheet.

3. Bake for 5-8 minutes, watching closely for the oats to just start to brown and become fragrant.

4. In a small sauce pan, bring honey, coconut oil, and brown sugar to a simmer over medium heat. Stir to dissolve

sugar for 2-4 minutes. Remove from heat, add vanilla extract, and set aside.

5. In a large bowl, combine puffed rice cereal, dried apples, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the oat mixture, and pour in

the honey mixture. Stir until everything is well coated.

6. Press into your prepared 9 by 9 inch square baking dish. Use another piece of parchment paper on top to pack it

down and press it into the corners.

7. Place them in the refrigerator to chill for an hour before removing from the baking dish to cut into bars. Serve at

room temperature.

You might want to stop over at Lovely Little Kitchen. She has a number of recipes that sound wonderful.  I'll be trying the Blueberry Muffin Energy Bites soon!

Breakfast for Dinner

Red Coins is finished! I made White Coins a while back and this was in the works then. White Coins 

was the last finish before our trip in May and Red Coins is the first finish post-trip. So maybe it didn't take me forever!

No outside pictures today - it is way too warm outside. We are in an excessive heat warning.

This quilt is 61" square and I used Dream Cotton for the batting. I used a walking foot and straight stitched the quilting.

I love the back! It's just one of those pieces that I randomly buy to use for backing someday. It has all of the right colors and the reds match!

Red Coins will go on the donation pile. One day soon, the pile will shrink by 5 or 6 quilts. 

Ray is downstairs on the treadmill. I'm just taking it easy! Did I mention that I had a wart burned off of my foot - below my pinkie toe? Well the burning had to be repeated and I think it's working this time. I have a large blister. I also seem to have a case of poison ivy on my forearms. Thank goodness it is not contagious. This is definitely my summer for weird little health problems. Along with the sprained ankle which needs to get stronger but I'm not walking much this makes three weird things so I figure the weirdness is over. 

Vegetable Beef Soup using dehydrated vegetables

I keep hunting for recipes that use dehydrated food. Some are ok but many have been somewhat disappointing. Today I decided to use a tried and true recipe and change it. Maybe I've found the key - just use my regular recipes and allow for rehydration.

This recipe calls for 4 cups of tomato juice. If I had tomato powder, I could have made tomato juice. No tomato powder because I could not get an abundance of tomatoes this past fall. I decided to just use tomatoes. I had 3 cups of frozen tomatoes and I added 1/2 cup of dehydrated tomatoes. I would have used all dehydrated but I wanted to get those last frozen tomatoes out of the freezer. The soup is not as tomatoey as the original recipe but it has a good flavor and we really liked it.

This makes 8 good sized servings and freezes well. Sorry I forgot to take photos! 

Vegetable Beef Soup in Slow Cooker

2 c  cubed beef

3 c frozen tomatoes

½ c dehydrated tomatoes

2 T dehydrated onion flakes

¼ c dehydrated carrot chips

¼ c dehydrated celery

½ c dehydrated cabbage

1 c dehydrated potatoes

8 ¼ c water  (original recipe called for 4c; added 4 ¼ c for dehydrated veggies)

2 t salt

1 T sugar

2 t chili powder

¼ t pepper

Brown beef. Can use oil but I didn’t. Add all to slow cooker. Cook 6 hours on low.

Some really good cookies!

I am constantly hunting for healthy recipes - mostly whole foods. Once in a while, I run across a cookie or dessert that I just have to try. This is the latest cookie recipe that I found over at Mel's Kitchen Cafe. I made minor changes to the recipe which I noted in blue.

Quinoa Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Granola Cookies

Yield: Makes 3-4 dozen cookies
Cool the quinoa or the chocolate chips melt!
When measuring the cooked and cooled quinoa, don't mash and compress it into the measuring cup. Spoon it into the cup and lightly press so it stays fluffy.
Also, keep in mind these cookies freeze amazingly well after being baked and cooled. 

Ingredients
1 cup solid coconut oil, melted 
3/4 cup honey
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 1/2 cups cooked and cooled quinoa (cooked only in water, not broth) - see note above 
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1/2 cup toasted slivered almonds (I skipped because I didn't have any - they would be good!)
1/2 cup dried cherries or cranberries (I skipped because DH doesn't care for either of these - they would be good though!)
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used mini chips and they melted quickly with the not cool quinoa.)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line large, rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper, silpat liners or lightly grease with cooking spray.
   
2. In a large bowl, beat together the oil and honey with an electric mixer. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until combined. Stir in the flour, salt and baking soda until just combined and a few streaks of dry flour remain. Add the oats, quinoa, flax, chia seeds, almonds, cherries or cranberries and chocolate chips and mix by hand gently (so the dough stays nice and fluffy) until the ingredients are pretty evenly mixed.
   
3. Use a spoon or cookie scoop to scoop the dough into 2-3 tablespoon-sized portions. Bake for 8-10 minutes until the bottoms are browned but the insides are still nice and soft. If you want a thinner cookie (instead of puffy), flatten slightly before baking. 
   
   
   
   http://www.melskitchencafe.com/quinoa-chocolate-chip-oatmeal-granola-cookies/ 

Brookies - Oh Yeah!

Before we knew about Ray's cancer, we both began seeing a homeopathic doctor in January. We wanted to feel better and thought we might be able to accomplish that by losing weight. We followed the Shape Reclaimed program under the guidance of this doctor. We both left the program before Ray's surgery. He had lost 30+ pounds and felt great. I had lost almost 20 pounds and felt good. About six weeks ago I went back on the program which in part is a very restricted diet - I wanted to drop my last 10 pounds. I am now feeling great and have also lost 30+ pounds. My very restricted diet ended two days ago. Yay!

Our now normal diet includes lots of vegetables, fruits, and some protein. Did I mention LOTS of vegetables?! We can eat anything we want but we try to limit sugars, starches, and most grains.

During the last few months, I have collected and tried many new recipes - mostly for vegetables. I think I mentioned that we eat LOTS of vegetables! There was this one recipe though that looked so good that I had to try it today - it is a really good treat. BROOKIES are part brownies and part chocolate chip cookies.

I found the recipe at Mel's Kitchen Cafe. You can find it there too! 

I also baked a couple kinds of zucchini bread today - a couple of those bigger zucchinis were begging me to make them into bread instead of a stir fry.   Most of the bread is headed for the freezer along with the brookies. Does zucchini bread count as a vegetable???

Wish you were here to enjoy our treats and the wonderful aromas in our house today!

Baking on a Rainy Morning in the Mountains

We woke up to a rainy, cool day. We are rather socked in - very low clouds and we can't see any mountains!

I saw this post on Facebook from Bonnie Hunter at Quiltville:

Messing up is an honor and a privilege. 

We have to make mistakes to learn what to do 

and what not to do... 

it' an EXPERIMENT always!

I had 2 eggs, a little over a cup of oatmeal in the box, 3 overripe bananas .... what to do ? Experiment! 

I found this recipe online - it happens to be from Weight Watchers.

Banana-Oatmeal Bread
1 1/4 c flour
1/2 c unpacked brown sugar
1/2 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1/4 t baking powder
3 t canola oil

1 large egg, beaten
2 large egg whites, beaten

3 large bananas, ripe
1 c uncooked old fashioned oats

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Stir together dry ingredients. Add oil and eggs. Mix thoroughly.
Add mashed bananas and oatmeal to batter.
Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray. Pour batter into pan and bake until top of loaf is firm to touch, 45 - 55 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes. Flip out onto wire rack and cool another 10 minutes.

I had most of the ingredients. I do not have baking soda unless I use what's in the fridge -  one of my kids did that once when he was making cookies! Anyway, I read that you can substitute baking powder for baking soda but not vice versa and you should use a little more baking powder. 
My first changes:
1/2 t baking soda skip the baking soda
1/4 t baking powder use 1 t. baking powder

I have a few spices with me so I made some additions:
Add:
1/4 t nutmeg
1 t cinnamon

I don't have canola oil and I didn't want to use olive oil so the next change:
3 t canola oil 3 T melted butter
Why 3 T instead of 3 t? Because I didn't read carefully!

I only had 2 eggs so:

1 large egg, beaten
2 large egg whites, beaten 2 large eggs, beaten


One comment said the bread was a little dry so: 
Add:
1/4 c plain Greek yogurt

When I had everything mixed together, it seemed a bit too runny so the last change:
1 c uncooked old fashioned oats use a generous 1 1/4 c oats

It came out of the oven smelling wonderful but didn't raise as much as I'd hoped.

It was a little hard to find a cooling rack - I took the rack out of the toaster oven and balanced it between two cutting boards.

And then I tasted it - the consistency is not like banana bread - it does have oatmeal in it. But it is good! Nice and moist. As it cool, it is a bit crumbly but still good.

It was a great experiment for a rainy morning and it made good use of a few 'leftover' food items. Yup,  the experiment was a success!

Now, what to do on a rainy afternoon....