Sweetheart Cherry Pies — Cake Student Valentine’s Day is one of those holidays that have become a bit too commercialized I think. I like to keep this holiday simple… so I helped my son make and mail valentine’s cards & bake something special. (UPDATE: Sweetheart chocolate chip cookies with love messages for this year!) When I checked out the Kitchen Play February menu, I knew exactly which recipe I would tackle. This month’s sponser is Cherry Marketing Institute, and Julie from The Little Kitchen had a wonderful idea with her cherry mini pockets. I wanted to take her idea and change it up a bit to make a sweet heart shaped pocket for the sweethearts in my life. Use your favorite pie dough. Update: I have been asked where I got my heart-shaped cookie cutter; it’s actually an egg mold! Pit and chop about a handful of fresh sweet cherries. Fill with Ricotta Cheese, and the chopped cherries. Serve for breakfast, dessert, or anytime in between. Summary: Mini Pastries for Valentines Day Ingredients Instructions
The “Melted Snowman” Ornament | Eyeballs By Day, Crafts By Night I have been quite the lazy blogger lately, and for that I am sorry…I have been doing all kinds of little projects and finally just getting around to documenting them all! This weekend I finally did a Christmas craft project that has been on my to-do list for quite some time – the “melted snowman” ornament! I thought they might be fun for my upcoming holiday craft show. I would consider this a “dollar store craft” because these shatterproof clear plasic bulbs were $1 ea. at A.C. Moore, and most of the other materials could be found at the Dollar Tree, i.e. the salt and peppercorns. I used salt for the “snow”, whole peppercorns for the “eyes / mouth”, and orange Fimo sculpting clay for the “noses.” I rolled out little noses and chopped off the thicker ends with a knife to make it look like a real mini carrot. In the meantime, I propped up the clear globes in small cups and used a small funnel to pour in approximately 1/4 cup of salt. Waiting for the noses to finish baking…tick, tock…
Earl Grey Tea Infused Chocolate Ice Cream - Sage Recipes After making three batches of Italian buttercream last week, I had quite a few egg yolks left over. With cream and milk also in my refrigerator, homemade ice cream was the obvious choice, but I was a little hesitant… For three months, I was in charge of making desserts for the restaurant at culinary school. I made banana ice cream and cherry ice cream every week! I start by making a simple ice cream base (milk, cream, and sugar), then add coco powder and infuse the mixture with earl grey tea. There is nothing like homemade ice cream. I’m glad I made ice cream again! Earl Grey Tea Infused Chocolate Ice Cream Recipe Ingredients 2 cups cream2 cups milk1 cup sugar (split into 1/2 cups)1/2 cup unsweetened coco powder1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract2 earl grey tea bags10 egg yolkspinch of kosher salt Instructions 1. 2. 3. 4. Makes 1 quart of ice cream Ice cream base from Thomas Keller’s French Laundry Cookbook Like this: Like Loading...
DIY surf wax candle My favorite summer days are those spent driving with the windows down, surf boards stacked on top of the car, staying all day at the beach, and coming home salty, tired, and ready to do it all again the next day. To bring some of these summertime vibes into my room (and to remind me of sunny days even when the weather turns cold), I created these surf wax candles. These could not be simpler to make! And if you've never smelled surf wax- it pretty much smells like summer in a bar of wax (aka the best scent in the world). I picked up some surf wax from a local surf shop (Coastal Edge). I found that Sex Wax melts well (and the colors are gorgeous). You'll also need glass containers for the candles (I found some at the thrift store) and candle wicks (I got mine from Michael's craft store). I melted my wax in a glass jar placed inside a pot of boiling water. When the wax was completely melted, I removed the jar from the pot with potholders, and poured the wax into my candle container.
"What you give away you keep.": Mini Cherry Pies If pies are the new cupcake then these mini cherry pies can rival any cupcakes in the cuteness category and they're 100% home-made and so delicious! Start with the Pate Brisee, I had leftover from the other day's apple marzipan galette, Pie dough is easily made ahead of time, frozen and left to thaw in the fridge overnight for convenient use. Martha Stewart's recipe is one of my favourites, however I've altered it slightly below: Ingredients2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour1 teaspoon salt2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes1/4 cup ice water, plus more if needed 1 tsp lemon juice (mixed into the ice water)DirectionsIn the bowl of a food processor, combine flour and salt; pulse to combine. With the last of the season cherries I picked up the rest was easy, pitting was the most fun using the cool technique I learned recently and used on my cherry dumplings here. An alternate and easier design to do for covered pies is something like this Cherry pie filling:
Crafts of Christmas Past: Fairy Walnut Presents - Curly Birds Join me on pinterest Become a facebook fan I made these fairy walnut presents last year for my girls and their cousins. Needless to say, they were a big hit! To make some yourself: place walnuts on a cookie sheet and bake at 200 degrees for 10 - 15 minutes. Add some glitter for a festive feel. Cut an oval shaped piece of felt and fill with the loveliest tiny thing you can find. A little magical and ever so special.
Egg custard. How to make homemade custard | Step by Step Recipe | Unodedos.com © Pamela Rodriguez. Uno de Dos La receta Las natillas caseras con un clásico en todas las casas y personalmente me parecen una forma muy fácil para aprovechar yemas de huevo. Las natillas de huevo nos gustan mucho, pero siempre podemos darle un “toque” diferente haciéndolas de otro sabores simplemente añadiendo un ingrediente extra: natillas de chocolate, natillas de caramelo, natillas aromatizadas… La proporción de huevos-leche variará según la textura que nos guste de la natilla. Como tenía un bote de haba tonka desde hacía más de un año- no sé por qué esperé tanto para utilizarlo-, decidí probar con esta receta de natillas, y aunque me gusta el sabor que aporta, me ha decepcionado un poco, esperaba otra cosa y creo que no pasará a ser uno de mis ingredientes preferidos por el momento. El acompañamiento esta vez de nuestras natillas ha sido una “galleta” de chocolate hecha con el molde para bombón “Tea Time” de la gama Easy Choc de Silikomart. Ingredientes: Preparación: Bombones: Natillas:
DIY Decadent Crystal Necklace | Fall For DIY In the past few weeks I’ve encountered many instances in which I have been referred to as a DIY Jewellery blogger. I don’t disagree with this as such but I always thought of myself in the more simple guise of “DIY blogger” and not wanting to pigeon hole myself into such a specific category made a conscious effort to branch out of jewellery from time to time. I often wonder why I come back to jewellery so much. Perhaps it’s the little details and embellishments. Materials: You can get some gorgeous crystals from this shop. Instructions: 1. 2. 3.
Earl Grey Tea Cookies, Take Two « I'll Have What She's Having First of all, I’d like to thank everyone who left a comment on my last post. My family has gone through a tough time lately, and although I’d prefer not to get into the details here, the virtual hugs are very much appreciated. Secondly, I’d like to apologize to all my subscribers and followers for hitting “publish” instead of “preview” earlier today. Now onto the cookies. The cookies were perfectly crisp and very lightly flavoured with Earl Grey. Earl Grey Tea Cookies Makes about 60 cookies 2 cups all purpose flour2 tbsp finely ground tea (tea can be ground in a spice grinder or mini food processor, use the best quality you can afford as cheaper teas have less flavour)1/2 tsp salt1 cup unsalted butter, softened1/2 cup powdered sugar1 tbsp finely grated orange zest (optional)In a small bowl mix the flour, tea and salt together. Enjoy! Like this: Like Loading...
DIY Upcycled Vintage Plates My collection of vintage china is growing at a concerning rate. I’m addicted to scouring flea markets for the finest porcelain and snatching up affordably priced mismatched sets online. But honestly, what is one to do with all those saucers, tea cups and dinner plates?! You’ll need:vintage platesclear waterslide decalsclear urethane coat or clear acrylic coatscissorssmall bowlwarm waterpaper towels Start by printing images onto the glossy side of the waterslide decal papers. Place the decal in a bowl of warm water for about 15 seconds. Place the decal onto the plate, with the liner still attached. Note that I’ve added the decals to saucers and not dinner plates or tea cups. Use as saucers for tea cups, jewelry trays, or even wall art! (images by HonestlyWTF)
Brown Sugar Cookies with Sea Salted Caramel and Dark Chocolate Sigh. There are times that I wish I could just do things over again. Like the fact that I should have embraced my curly hair looooooooooong before I actually did. All of those bad yearbook photos and my poor, poor curling iron – it never expected to be used as a straightener. I also would probably not have pierced my bellybutton. I would have embraced my love of Dave Matthews Band and Pat Green earlier than when I was in college. Or what about the time that punched my sister and sent her to the hospital? I probably would have gone to culinary school when I still lived in Dallas. I would have married Nate earlier than I did. Oh, and another thing – I decided that I simply must try again to make some cookies that I was going to make for you guys. I did them over and I’m so glad that I did because WOWZAH. For the cookies: mix together the butter and sugar until incorporated. To make the caramel-chocolate swirl, first fill the middle of each cooled cookie with about 1 Tbsp of the caramel.
Color Enhancing Shampoos & Rinses: Natural Alternatives Looking for cheaper alternatives to washing your hair (or something with more natural ingredients)? I’ve moved the homemade shampoo, conditioner and color rinse recipes and tips onto this page for better organization, there’s a lot here to get you started. Enjoy! First up, here’s an easy way to give natural color a boost without harsh chemicals or dyes. Directions: Mix 1 cup of shampoo with 1 cup of the following: Blondes: Steep 1 tablespoon chamomile, calendula or powdered rhubarb root in 1 cup boiling water for thirty minutes.Brunettes: Add 1 cup strong black coffee *OR* water in which is steeped 1 tablespoon powdered black walnut shells, allspice, or cloves for thirty minutes.Redheads: Add 1 cup red wine and/or real orange juice, *OR* water in which 1 tablespoon red hibiscus or 2 tablespoons red clover have been steeped thirty minutes. To Brighten: (with 1 cup of shampoo) Source: Ageless Natural Beauty By Sally Freeman Bring Out Highlights: craftster.org naturemoms.com avocado.com Directions:
Japanese Cheesecake There are cakes which look absolutely stunning and gorgeous on the outside, but when it comes to the taste, it disappoints, and you just wished that it tasted as good as it looks. I've had a lot of those experiences, and in fact, I think I've made a few of cakes like that myself! What I love about a good Japanese cheesecake is that while in appearance it resembles a humble (and perhaps, plain or boring?) We all go through phases, don't we?! Right out of the oven...hmmmmm. Japanese Cheesecake Recipe from The Cookbook Chronicles300g cream cheese 45g unsalted butter 57g egg yolk (this equals to 3 yolks)20g sugar11g cornstarch150g milk95g egg white (3 egg whites)55g sugarUse an 18 cm (7 in) cake pan with a fixed bottomCut a strip of parchment that is 3 cm higher than the height of the cake pan. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Wrap the cream cheese in clear wrap and microwave until it becomes soft to the touch. In a large bowl, melt the butter over a double boiler. Pouring the mixture into the dish