A Sneak Peek

Here's a sneak peek at my next project:

My husband saw me downstairs cutting fabric and he said, "I thought you were going to take a break from quilting." I smiled up at him and said, "I did! It was like 2 days."

haha! Once you're on a roll, it's hard to stop. So, now I'm working on a window pane quilt (completely ignoring the other quilts that are ahead of it in line). Ha!
It's that center fabric that did it. I fell in love instantly when I saw it at the store a few months ago. The other two fabrics I've already had for a long time. I just love all of them and I'm excited to start piecing things together! Hooray for a simpler quilt than a log cabin!

Holy Honey Bees, Batman!

There was an interesting story on NPR about bees today. It's called "Nature's Secret: Why Honey Bees Are Better Politicians Than Humans". (Click to listen.) Who knew bees could teach us so much? haha!

You can check out Thomas D. Seeley's book Honeybee Democracy to learn more.

The Flag Quilt Is Finished!!!

I finally finished my log cabin quilt (I designed myself!) that I started 9 years ago in 2002! It was one of my New Year's Resolutions, so I feel pretty stinkin' proud that I accomplished it before half the year was even out. Yipee! My son is the lucky kid that gets to have it on his bed. :-)

13 stars for the 13 original colonies. This quilt was kind of an homage to the old flag quilts women used to sew back in the day. They would always include a deliberate mistake so it was never an exact replica of the flag. I think my mistake is quite obvious... :-)

It's my first hand-stitched quilt. The stitches aren't perfect, the corners don't all match up, but I made it, so I love everything about it!

The Storm Cellar

I just updated my "The Storm Cellar" tab that you see above. Now included are pdf documents of things I used to teach an emergency preparedness workshop for my church. I've also added new links for food storage. Check it out!

This Year's Garden

Strawberries, lettuce, acorn squash, maybe a cucumber?, dill,  rosemary, thyme, and basil. And potatoes that haven't sprouted yet.

Well, folks, here it is! My garden for this year. I've got some slightly high hopes for this one. I'm just hoping the birds don't make off with our berries before we get to enjoy a nibble. Not pictured is my hanging planter of Tumbling Tom tomatoes. It already had a ripe tomato that I picked the other day! Yippee!

Blueberry-Rhubarb Crumble

This recipe is the best late-spring recipe! I was excited to get some rhubarb at the farmer's market and remembered this as my favorite recipe to use it in. I was short on rhubarb and frozen blueberries, so the rest of the fruit I added were strawberries I had taking up room in the freezer. Boy, was it yummy! Experiment with your favorite seasonal fruit on this one!

Blueberry-Rhubarb Crumble*

6 c. fresh or frozen blueberries
4 c. diced rhubarb
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. all-purpose flour

Topping
1 c. quick oats
1 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. cardamom
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. cold butter

Combine blueberries, rhubarb, sugar and flour. Transfer to a greased 13x9-inch baking pan.

Topping: combine oats, brown sugar, flour, nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon, and salt. Cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over fruit mixture.

Bake at 350º for 45-55 minutes or until fruit is bubbly and topping is golden brown. Let cool 10 minutes. Serve warm w/ whipped cream or ice cream. (Also good at room temperature!)

*Adapted from a Taste of Home recipe, Aug/Sept 2009 issue

Cornmeal Molasses Pancakes

You may have read before of my failed attempt to turn sour milk into yogurt. Well, I had some more sour milk on my hands. It seems the wonderful grass-fed organic cows milk we buy goes sour if we don't drink it fast enough. (Since my son is now lactose-intolerant, we don't go through milk as fast as we used to.) This is a good thing, actually, because I never buy buttermilk. I'm too lazy, I guess, and I never use it all in time. This is where the sour milk comes in!

I was looking for a way to use my sour milk, which can be used in place of buttermilk. I forgot I had printed off this recipe for Cornmeal Molasses Pancakes and so I gave it a whirl for breakfast this morning. Whoa! It was amazing! This is a delicious variation on pancakes if you're looking to change it up a bit. We drizzled on some pure maple syrup and I was in heaven! It helps that I absolutely adore cornmeal. (And just a note - the molasses does not come out strongly. It just adds a deeper flavor to the mix.) The cornmeal gives it a lovely texture too. Mmmm!

Cornmeal Molasses Pancakes

adapted from recipezaar
makes 16-20 pancakes

1 large egg
1 1/4 cup buttermilk (or sour milk)
1 generous Tbsp. dark molasses
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

In a small bowl, whisk together egg, buttermilk, molasses, vanilla extract and butter. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine.
Add the cornmeal and stir until just mixed. The batter may be a bit lumpy. That's ok.
Drop 2 tablespoonfuls of batter onto a hot, greased griddle, or cast iron skillet.
Flip when browned and cook through. Place on an oven proof plate in a 200ºF oven to keep pancakes warm while you cook the rest of the batter.

Serve with butter and maple syrup, molasses, honey, or blackberry syrup. Yipee!