Christmas Quilt 2010

VERY simplified compared to last year's quilt, but a much more pleasant experience.  I bought the fabric after Christmas when it was on clearance and so I didn't even need to worry about spending money or choosing fabric.  I just used bias tape to bind it (I found a bunch  I already had) and that was a new experience, but it was pleasant.  Binding quilts is NOT my favorite part, but I would do bias tape again.

Christmas Quilt Tradition

I got the idea for this tradition from my friend, Amberlyn Wood. I fell in love with the description of her Christmas Quilt Tradition and with my own family heritage of quilting, I felt it was one I couldn't pass up. You can see her past Christmas quilts and the description of her family's tradition here.

As I was discussing my plans for starting this tradition with my sister, Shan'l, the idea kind of evolved into a Christmas Service Quilt. Starting December 1 (in the future, because this year I didn't finish till a week later), I will start by choosing a family member to serve. After I have performed an act of service towards them, I will lay the quilt on their bed. They will get to sleep with it that night, and then the next day they will choose a family member to serve, and thus the quilt will be passed along each day throughout December all the while keeping service at the forefront of our minds.

I will make a new quilt each year until I feel I have plenty. Although each quilt will have it's own theme and color scheme, I wanted the first one to represent the Nativity to remind my children that when we serve other people, we are actually serving Him. I found my focus fabric last year after Christmas, and the design kind of evolved from there. I designed it to represent the journey to the Stable with the white blocks representing stepping stones along the pathway. Starting from the bottom, the first large square is the Wise men following the star, then moving up, the Shepherds and the angels, and finally at the top, we reach the stable where Christ was Born.

I also think this will be a good opportunity for me to actually learn to quilt. I've been mostly successful just winging it, but I've never done it right. I learned something this year about color and contrast, and found that I need to learn how to stretch the quilt properly (despite my efforts, I still must have done something wrong) so to avoid puckering and tucks on the backside. I'm sure there will be more to learn each year, and I look forward to that journey, as well.

As we serve each other within our home, may we develop unity, may our love for each other deepen, may my children feel a sense of belonging, and may our testimony of Jesus Christ and His love for us grow.

Jedi Costume

Here is Ian's new Jedi costume I made yesterday. I made the robe and "tunic" yesterday and Ian is tickled. He had a lot of fun during our photo shoot. I'd like to set up a backdrop and take some more professional photos of him in his costume. Maybe later. I got the pattern idea from here. It was way easy. I finished it all in one day. No pattern, no sewing skills needed. Although, if I were to do it again I'd change a few things. Hopefully this Jedi robe will last a few more years. The last one I made doesn't even hit his knees anymore.

Corn Harvest

As a little girl, I remember visiting my Grandparents' house in Fruitland, Idaho for a special yearly event. My Mother's parents lived on several acres out in the country along a highway in a big white house. They had a pasture with cows bordered with a white fence. They had a chicken coop that was abandoned that I loved to explore, although always afraid I'd find a forgotten egg that had turned rotten (but never did). There was a big two story barn with a huge pile of hay where I remember my Grandpa teaching me to feed and milk cows. Attatched to the barn there was a workshop that had tools neatly haning on the walls. I never knew so many tools existed! There was a pile of old logs that had been there so long they had petrified into stone. I loved to study the patterns in the rocks and was fascinated that such a change could occur. There were wild cats and kittens always around to stalk, catch and cuddle. There were horses to ride, raspberries to pick, tetherball to play, places to explore, cousins to play with and old clothes to dress up in.

But this visit was for a special purpose. It was September and it was time to harvest the corn! My grandpa would disappear into the rows of corn only to emerge later with a wheelbarrow full with ears of corn. He'd wheel it to the shady spot by the house and dump it in a pile in the middle of the circle that was made by my Aunts and Uncles and cousins. We would then husk the corn amid cheerful visiting and laughter. There was always someone snacking on a fresh ear of corn. The golden cobs of yumminess would then be taken inside to the kitchen where Grandma (in her ruffled apron) and the lucky older cousins were blanching the corn. From there, the kernels would be cut off the cob and put in baggies for freezing. Although I always wished I was old enough to help with the blanching and cutting, the next part was always my favorite of all. After the cobs had been scraped clean of all the juicy sweet corn, Grandma would let me take the cobs out to feed to the cows. Those cows looked forward to the Corn Harvest just as much as I did. I still remember the rough dry feeling of a cow tongue as it grazed my hand in search for her treat.

Such beautiful memories. I am so grateful that my Grandpa's love for gardening and CORN was passed on to my mother. She has a large garden, and the corn always seems to be the highlight of our summers. This year she had the best corn crop she's had in years, and today was our corn harvest. I look forward to it every year. We gathered together today to carry on the tradition of the corn harvest. It was so fun to see the kids enjoying it as well. They were all very helpful and played so well together after their work was done. We had fresh homemade bread and raspberry jam for lunch with as much corn as we wanted! I hope that they have fond memories of their experiences in their Grandma's garden as I did in my Grandpa's garden.

Apple Cider

My brother in law has a cider press that his grandfather built.  My sister bought 100's of pounds of Gala apples and we came over for a Saturday of making fresh apple cider.  And boy, that was the most amazing apple cider I've ever had.  Mmmm!

Even Great grandma came to help out

Here are our apple washers.  Brynlee was Grandpa's helper.

How about some apple to garnish your apple cider?

Zuchinni

Summer is here. That means Zucchini. I love Zucchini. I love how prolific it is. How reliable, how versatile. I was very sad to come home from our crazy month on the road and to see that both my zucchini plant and my yellow summer squash plants had been eaten to dust by squash bugs. Never fear, there is always zucchini to be had somewhere.

My parents took a motorcycle ride to Montana for a week and left me in charge of caring for their chickens and her garden while they were gone. Rick volunteered to check on the chickens on his way home from work every day, and not wanting to overwhelm him, I decided that I could go check on the garden a couple times during the week, well, I FORGOT. Saturday had arrived and I went to tend to my duties for the last time. As I was watching the chickens, my gaze landed upon my parents' lovely garden, and oh, how many red tomatoes there were. And then it hit me! So I spent the next hour harvesting tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers of every size, and 3 zucchini. 2 of them were large, but still edible, and the third? I don't know if I have ever seen a zucchini that big. I laid all of the fruits out on a table, put the large sized evidences of my neglect in a couple grocery bags, left the tomatoes, small cucumbers, and zucchini, and headed home.

With the zucchini the size of a small child in my fridge, I began to look for ways to cook it. We have tried 3 new zucchini recipes this summer that we've all liked that I thought I would share.

The first 2 recipes I tried on the same day. A main course and a dessert. Both were a hit. The main course was called Spaghetti Zucchini Bake. I actually doubled this recipe and froze the other half. I just unthawed it, topped it with cheese and cooked it. It worked out great!

Spaghetti Zucchini Bake (serves 8)

1 lb Penne or Macaroni Pasta

1 1/2 lb Italian Sausage, cooked and cut in to bite sized pieces or Meatballs (I used hamburger)

2 cans 14 oz Diced Tomatoes

1-2 cans mushrooms (optional. I opted OUT)

1 can Tomato Paste

1/4 C. Dehydrated onions, hydrated

1-2 cloves of Garlic

4-5 C Zucchini, cut into large chunks

1 t. Oregano

2 t. Basil

2 C. Mozzarella Cheese, grated (I used cheddar)

Salt to Taste

1. Cook your pasta in boiling water until tender.

2. combine diced tomatoes, mushrooms, tomato paste, hydrated onions, garlic, oregano, and basil in large pot. Heat to boiling and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

3. While the noodles are cooking, grill Italian sausage.

4. Place zucchini chunks in a bowl and microwave for 3 minutes (just to cook them slightly).

5. Add zucchini and meat to sauce and simmer for 5 minutes. Add in noodles and 1 C of cheese and stir. If you don't want to heat up your oven just place remaining cheese on the table for people to top theirs with.

6. Place Spaghetti Zucchini Bake in a 9x13 casserole dish and top with remaining cheese. Place under broiler until cheese is melted. Make sure and watch it so the cheese doesn't burn.

The dessert we had that night was

Death by Chocolate, Zucchini Cake (one 8" pan)

1/2 C. Brown Sugar

1/4 C. White Sugar

1/4 C. Butter

1/4 C. Oil (or Applesauce)

2 Eggs (if you're doubling the recipe use 3 eggs)- 2 T. dehydrated eggs + 1/4 C. Water

1 t. Vanilla

1/4 C. Buttermilk-3/4 T. Dry powdered milk + 1/4 C. Water + 1/4 T. lemon juice or white vinegar, let stand for 5 minutes before adding to the recipe

1 1/4 C. Whole Wheat Flour

1/2 t. allspice

1/2 t. cinnamon

1/2 t. salt

2 t. baking soda

3 T. cocoa

2 C. Zucchini, grated

1/2 C. Chocolate Chips

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325.

2. Cream brown sugar, white sugar, butter and oil together in large bowl.

3. Add eggs vanilla and buttermilk and stir well to mix.

4. In a separate bowl mix remaining dry ingredients together and add to mixture.

5. Fold in grated zucchini.

6. Pour into greased, floured 8 inch round cake pan or 8x8 pan.

7. Sprinkle the top of cake with chocolate chips and bake at 325 for 30-35 minutes or until inserted toothpick comes out clean.

The one we had last night was called

Zucchini Cakes

1 large zucchini

1/2 c. seasoned bread crumbs

1 heaping Tbsp. minced garlic

1/2-3/4 c. Italian cheese blend (I used half queso fresco and half cheddar)

1-2 eggs

a pinch of kosher salt

olive oil

black pepper

Chop the ends off the zucchini and then use a cheese grater to shred it. Place the shredded zucchini in a clean towel and squeeze out the liquid (VERY IMPORTANT. I even ended up putting mine in a strainer as I was cooking to continue to let the moisture out). I was very surprised how much came out. Next place the semi-dry zucchini in a large bowl. Add the garlic, bread crumbs, cheese, 1 egg and salt and pepper then stir with a fork (I used 3 eggs. I liked a firmer texture). If mixture is to dry, add another egg. If it is too dry, the mixture will fall apart when you try to cook it. In a frying pan, heat olive oil on medium heat. Use enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan by about 1/4". When the oil is hot, drop the zucchini batter by large spoonfuls into the pan and then flatten with the back of the spoon. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. The PW recommends serving these with Ranch dressing for dipping sauce, of which I had none last night, so we ate without and they were still fabulous on their own.

Carrot Harvest 2008

This year I am trying square foot gardening. I have 2 grow boxes that I've used for 2 years and just this year I decided to divide it into squares and try this new method. This is my carrot harvest I got out of 8 square feet (1/2 of one box). I was pretty pleased with the amount of carrots I got, but of course I couldn't enjoy all the fruits of my labors without ruining it somehow.

I picked about half of the carrots one day and then got so busy I wasn't able to do anything with them, so I just left them in a bucket with greens and dirt and all. By the next morning all of those carrots were like wet spaghetti noodles they were so soft. So, Carrot Lesson #1: CUT GREENS OFF IMMEDIATELY AFTER HARVESTING. That was quite disappointing, as I was hoping for a large one-time harvest to make one of my favorite carrot-treats to freeze.

I was still able to use about half of the carrots, but I didn't get nearly as much as I wanted, so I'm going to attempt to re-plant for a fall harvest. I've never done that before, but I've heard it can be done, so watch me! It may be too late already, and I just can't seem to get organized enough to get the seeds in the ground, but hopefully I'll get to it this week.

My favorite carrot treat is called "Carrot Stuff" (creative, I know. Any new-name suggestions are welcome. I've thought "Orange Delight" might sound a little more appealing). It is a recipe my not-famous-for-her-good-cooking Grandma Orton made up to feed my Grandpa when he got old. It is very simple to make, and my mom would make it for us occasionally growing up. I love it, but am aware it's weird, so I'm not offended if no one else likes it (I'm the only one in my family that likes it). But I'm sure I've made you curious by now, so I'll include the recipe.

Carrot Stuff

Carrots, peeled and chopped coarsely

pineapple juice

sugar to taste

Cut up the carrots in large chunks (1-2 inch pieces) and put in blender. Cover carrots with pineapple juice. Add sugar (I add about 1/4 cup of sugar per quart, but that might be too sweet for some). Blend till very small chunks (Do not puree). Eat chilled, or put in plastic containers to freeze and enjoy later.