It’s been a while since I’ve cracked out the sewing machine.   There are a lot of reasons for this.  The main one is that when I have been getting home from my day job, I’m so brain dead that I really don’t want to do anything.  For the past few years, my job has been very boring.  This means that when I’m done for the day, my brain is asleep.  It’s incredibly hard to get motivated to do anything when  your brain is not in gear.

That’s changed. My job has now changed to where I’m using my brain.  I’m investigating and problem solving and for the most part, I’m coming home invigorated and inspired and really wanting to create things.  I cannot tell you how awesome this makes me feel!

So! I wanted to start sewing something relatively easy before I made any collars. I knew that I would need to warm up a bit before doing the precision work that the collars demand.

Although it’s unseasonably warm for Fall, there have been a few mornings that have been cold and my hands have gotten a bit chilly while walking the dogs.  I stumbled upon this nifty tutorial on making rice filled handwarmers.  I thought this would be a great place to start.

I dug through the stash to find a fabric that I wanted to use and came up with this pretty Firefly Fabric.  I cut a few pieces and folded them in half.

Inside out fabric

Then I sewed a seam around most of the way. Then I clipped the corners for easier turning.

Trimmed corners

Then I attempted to turn it inside out. … um..

erm... ok... sure.

I’ll used my fancy turning tool..  I spent a lot of money on this so I’m glad it’s getting some use.

Available at a gas station near you.

Huzzah

aw.. pretty. Raw edges are folded in

Then I filled it with rice.. but not all the way… just 3/4 of the way. Then I sewed it closed.   Since I have all these fancy stitch patterns on my machine I thought I’d roll with one to see what happens….I didn’t like how the unsewn edge looked so I threw a line of stitching across the top to neaten it up a bit.

Not sure how I feel about that stitch

Wheeee!

Pop those suckers into the microwave for about a minute.   I’ve read you can do up to two, but one minute was pretty darn hot.  I shoved them in my pockets and looked at the time.  After about 25 minutes, they were still pretty warm.  After 45, they had cooled considerably.  I’m interested to see how they do outside on a cold day inside a winter coat pocket.

A few things to consider:

1. Use only 100% cotton fabric.  I worry that synthetic fibers would get all melty
2. I’m reminded of the time my brother made a cake that called for 2 cups of coffee.  Being the literal creature that he is, he used two cups of coffee grounds.  So, just to be clear: uncooked rice, mmmkay?
3. I had this idea to add some lavender oil to my first set of rice bags.  I just put a tiny drop of oil inside each bag.  Although this does smell lovely when being heated up, it will cause other members of your family wonder why the microwave smells of flowers and question how their food will taste after using the microwave for it’s intended purpose.  So, Idon’t recommend this … at all

Last year, I started canning things. Mostly because we joined a CSA for the first time and we would never have been able to eat all of those veggies and fruits! In the process, I discovered the joy of “puttin’ up” food. I bought a canner from Walmart and tons of jars. With the overabundance of pears, apples, plums, brussel sprouts and tomatillos, I had snacks, and salsa and jam to last all winter. But the one thing I had an ungodly amount of?

Beets.

In New York State, beets are harvested from June to November and because they are a root veggie, they can be stored in a root cellar, making them available for 9 months out of the year.

Normally, ew. I don’t care for beets.. but that changed.
I don’t have a pressure canner, which is the only safe way to can low acid veggies like beets, unless you pickle them.

And pickle them I did. I pickled a TON of beets. Last week, I realized… this was all that was left from that bountiful beet season.

That’s it.. one 1/2 jar. And my local farmers market doesn’t have beets yet. **whine**

I have, however starting putting things up.

So far:

Strawberry Rhubarb Jam: this is a soft set, no pectin jam. From The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving: Over 300 Recipes to Use Year-Round

Rose Petal Jelly from Herbal Treasures which is evidently out of print. I also adapted this recipe and didn’t add the petals back in and processed for 10 minutes.

Lemon Balm Jelly. I got this recipe on the Harvest Forum but doubled the lemon balm. Lemon Balm is great for stress, by the way.

And on the right there is the Strawberry Lemonade Concentrate. That is going fast already.. Probably won’t manage to take any to the August Summer Training Camp if we keep drinking it at this rate. I may have to put up some more! That recipe is from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving

I had a request for my recipe for the pickled beets. It’s also from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving but I used the “Sweet and Sour” version and used apple cider vinegar instead of white vinegar. (ok to do as long as it’s 5% concentration)

Sweet and Sour Pickled Beets
adapted from Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving

Makes about 6 pint jars

10 whole cloves
2 cinnamon sticks about 4 inches long, broken
2 1/2 cups apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
10 cups Prepared Beets.

(Tip: prepare beets by scrubbing and boiling until just tender. Peel and Slice. Wear gloves.. really, unless you enjoy having pink hands. For more info buy the book. You’ll use it.. trust me)

Put the spices in a spice bag (or do what I do and just toss them in there.. I take the extra step to strain them)
Combine sugar, vinegar, water and spices in a large saucepan. Boil to dissolve sugar. Reduce heat and boil for 15 minutes.
Remove spices.
Add beets and return to a boil. (This is the hot pack method)
Using a slotted spoon, ladle beets into hot jars within 1/2 inch of top. Ladle hot liquid into jar leaving 1/2 inch headspace.

Process in a Boiling Water Bath for 30 minutes.

In writing this out, I’m assuming you have the basic knowledge of canning; how to prepare the lids, sterilize your equipment etc.

If not, here are some great resources:
Garden Web Harvest Forum
Fresh Preserving
National Center for Home Preservation
Complete Guide to Home Canning and Preserving
Ball Blue Book

I know this post isn’t about crafting.. but it kinda is. I’ve noticed that many of the folks that are crafters are also finding that the “old ways” are worth investing in again.

I’ve learned a lot from my family.. things that I’m looking at again with a critical eye and thinking “I should be doing that”

So, I’m sharing with you.. the things I’ve learned.

From my Great Grandmother:

• When I was 6, she taught me how to crochet.  Although I love knitting, crochet will always be my first love.
• A place for everything and everything in it’s place.

From my Grandmother:

• Mashed Turnips look nasty but are really quite tasty
• You can find make toys out of just about anything you have hanging around.  (Although I was stacking beer cans and saving beer bottle caps, I’ve certainly made a few dog toys out of plastic soda bottles!)
• That women CAN run a business and be quite successful at it.
• How to mix a drink (Don’t ask)

I’m a child of the 70′s   Another time of social change, economic struggle and fuel crisis.  My family was very much the “earthy crunchy”  type.   My father had an idea that we needed to be self sufficient, something that came back around in 1999.    I was telling some coworkers the other day that I like plain yogurt.  They really thought this was wierd but the were even more shocked when I told them I didn’t know what white bread was until I went to public school.

From my Mother

• How to sew.  She let me play with her scraps of fabric and sewing machine.  By the time I was ten, I was making doll clothes and piecing quilted pillows.
• How to make bread.  I’ve (by her own admission) surpassed her skill with this only because I went to culinary school, but she was the one who taught me the joy of kneading and shaping.
• How to make yogurt in a crock pot.  (I now use a cooler covered in towels)
• How to make freezer jam.  (Now I make cooked jams because my freezer is full of dog food)

From my Father:

• Gardening doesn’t have to be limited to farms.
• Raw honey is the absolute best.
• Its always worth trying to “do it yourself” first.
• How to get more than one use out of something.  Soda bottles were great traps for japanese beetles, egg cartons can start seeds, newspapers can be composted along with your table scraps.

I’ve taken a lot of these things to heart lately.  I’ve always been a wee bit “crunchy”.  I’ve recycled as much as I can, try to buy things that are limited in packaging or at least are made with recycled products.  Ironically, the internet, being a global thing, has encouraged me to seek out local farmers, find new ways to reduce waste and reminded me that sometimes doing it yourself is better.

Last year, we bought a farm share.  Because of the over abundace of veggies and fruits, we actually ended up wasting a lot so we decided this year to let another family take our spot.  But because we had so much, I taught myself how to can.  I put up brussel sprouts, pears, peaches, salsas, etc etc.

I’m looking foward to making jam this weekend.  We went to the farmers market this morning and bought some strawberries and rhubarb.  Yum!

I have more earthy crunchy things to share, but I’ll save them for the next post..because I want to share some pictures too!

… although lately, that is what it feels like.

I haven’t been reading and commenting on blogs, much less writing my own blog posts.. why?

Blame the economy.

I’m actually one of the fortunate ones who is doing pretty ok in the midst of this mess. I work for a mortgage company that has been around for a very long time AND has a economic genius running the show.

I’m busier than a long tailed cat in a a room full of rocking chairs. With the economy so in the toilet, interest rates on mortgages are low.. which means everyone wants to refinance.. and it means that in our relatively stable housing market (compared to other parts of the country) this area is a first time homebuyer’s dream.. if your credit is good and you have saved up some money that is.

So.. I’m busy..

and stressed.

But things seem to be smoothing out a bit.. I’m catching up and I’ve done a little bit of sewing here and there.

I shall give you food.

I like to call this the  “Stop your heart Chocolate Espresso Cake”

Another recipe I got from culinary school.  It requires only a little bit of skill.  Getting the darn thing out of the pan and glazing it.  (more on how I messed that up later)

Ingredients:

1 lb unsalted butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brewed espresso
11 oz semi or bitter sweet chocolate, chopped (or use chips)
5 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
8 eggs, beaten (like beaten like you were going to make scrambled eggs.. don’t kill ‘em. Just beat ‘em up a bit)
Before you start:

Preheat oven to 350

Prepare your pan.
You need a 10″ cake pan. Grease it with crisco or butter and then place a round of parchment paper in the bottom. Grease the parchment. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP.
Find yourself a baking dish that your pan will fit into. You will be baking this in a water bath which is why you are using a regular cake pan, not a springform pan. Set your cake pan inside your baking dish to hang out.  It helps if your baking dish has handles since you will be hauling this back out of the oven full of really hot water.  If it doesn’t try putting it on a cookie sheet so at least you have something to grab.

Put a kettle of water on to boil

Method:

In a 2 quart saucepan, bring the butter, sugar and espresso to a boil.
Remove from heat and add the chocolate and whisk in all at once (seriously, get those arm muscles going)
Whisk in the eggs
(note: the recipe says to “whisk in the eggs” but it assumes a lot. What you really want to do is TEMPER the eggs first. Then whisk.)

Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  It should be nice and smooth (and smell amazing)

Put your baking dish with the pan in it in the oven, pour the boiling water in the baking dish until it comes up to about the middle of the cake pan.

Bake your cake for about 30-35 minutes until it’s set. Remove (carefully) from the oven and the pan from the water bath.

Let cake chill over night. (really… I mean it)

The next day you are going to have to unmold it. I like to use a cake board (or a round piece of cardboard, maybe cut out of the side of a box and covered with foil) because I usually have to BANG the pan to get it out. Tips to follow.

Run a metal thin knife around the edge of the pan. Put the cake board on top of your cake and invert.
Is is stuck? Of course it is.

Here is what you do.. Turn on the burner on your stove (gas is the best but use what you have). Once it’s hot, put the bottom of the cake pan on your burner and SPIN the cake pan quickly. This will melt the crisco that is sticking to the parchment and will help the cake release. Flip the cake back over and BANG the cake on the edge of the counter. It should fall out. You may have to do this a few times.

Voila!

Remove the parchment from the top of the cake. Put the the cake and cakeboard on a cooling rack over a sheet pan (commonly known as a cookie sheet)

Make your French Chocolate Glaze.

In a saucepan, Combine
2 1/2 ounces of water (that’s um.. 1/4 cup plus 1 Tablespoon)
1 Tbsp Corn Syrup
3 Tbsp Butter

Bring to boil and remove from heat. Whisk in 8 ounces of semi or bitter sweet chocolate chips.

When it’s slightly thickened, but not super hot, pour over your cake. Mine got a little gloppy and cool before I could pour it on.

Let set and keep refrigerated until ready to serve.

Cutting this thing is a bear. Use your longest knife and dip into hot water after every cut. Or! do what I did and heat your blade up on the gas burner. You will want to wipe off the chocolate after every cut. Please resist the urge to lick it off… you don’t want to cut your tongue… and you will be temped… resist!

If you have any questions on how to make this, let me know. It’s really easy.. but I included a lot of little details to help you.

I’m not really.. I’m just SUPER busy at work. I’ll be back soon. Promise!

Baklava

I got this recipe from my International Baking and Pastry Class. My Father in Law is Arabic and he loves this recipe so I’m guessing it’s pretty authentic.

Ingredients:
1 package of Phyllo sheets (comes frozen. I can usually only find Athens brand) Stick it in the fridge overnight to thaw.
5 cups chopped walnuts
1 Tsp. Cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
1 lb of butter, unsalted.

For syrup:
1 cup honey
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water
½ lemon
1 cinnamon stick

Method:

Take phyllo out of fridge and let it come to room temp while you prep.

Melt butter. If you feel so inclined, skim off the milk solids that float to the top.

Mix together: Walnuts, Cinnamon and Sugar. Set aside.

Lay out your Phyllo on a piece of waxed paper (or parchment paper).
Cover with another sheet of waxed paper and weigh it down with tea towel. (if you work slow, dampen that towel a bit). As you take out sheets of phyllo, cover it back up.. if it dries out, it’ll crumble into nothingness.

Brush melted butter on the bottom of a 9×13 pan.

Lay in one sheet of phyllo. The easiest way is to hold it be the corners of the short end and sort of drape it over the pan. .. like pulling up a sheet on the bed.

Brush phyllo with butter. repeat until you have 12 sheets of phyllo in the pan each brushed with butter.

spread 1/2 of the nut mixture in the pan.

Lay a sheet of phyllo over the nuts, brush with butter (this one will be tricky.. it will try to run away from you.. just hold down one end and brush the other until you’ve got it covered.

Repeat until you have 8 sheets of phyllo, each brushed with butter.

spread the remaining nut mixture in the pan.

(I bet you know what comes next!)

Lay in a sheet of phyllo, and brush with butter… repeat until you have 12 sheets layered but do not brush the last with butter. Brush with water instead. (I just misted it with my water bottle)

carefully score into trianges.. (I did diamonds but that can be tricky).

Bake at 350 for about 1 hour. I put my pan on a cookie sheet so that there is some insulation for the bottom of the pan.

While that is baking, mix together in a sauce pan.

1 cup honey
1 1/2 cup sugar
1 cup water

add 1/2 lemon (just toss in a 1/2 a lemon.. scrub the peel first) and 1 cinnamon stick broken in two.

Simmer for 10 minutes and set aside.

When the baklava is golden brown, take out of the oven. Remove the lemon and the cinnamon from the syrup and pour it immediately over the baklava (another reason for the sheet pan.. it might simmer over!)

Let cool. Follow your score marks to cut the baklava and serve at room temperature. (and for goodness sakes, do not put powdered sugar on it.. I had it served to me once Ice Cold with powdered sugar .. with a side of whipped cream and chocolate syrup.. at an EGYPTIAN restaurant.. I sent it back)

May be wrapped in plastic and foil and frozen

Thanks to the forum funnies on Ravelry