The Last Christmas Stocking

No, this is not a sad tale about some poor lonely Christmas stocking left at a store during the holidays.  It is a celebration that I have stitched my last Christmas stocking!  :)  It took me a  little over a year to finish it.  It is now living at my Mother-in-Law's house where she is going to sew it together for me.  Why, you ask?  Because many moons ago she sewed together mine and my husband's before I even knew how to turn a sewing machine on.  And even though I'm very capable of sewing it myself it has become a happy holiday tradition to have her do all of our family's stockings.  After all... the holidays are all about traditions right?

(But, I'm kind of glad this one is ending.  It was torture having this last one hanging over my head, praying that I finished stitching it before Christmas arrived.)

Recipe: Black Bean Brownies

I know what you're thinking.  EEEWWWW!  Well, stop that thinking right now.  A friend of mine mentioned these and I had that very thought.  Then I saw a blog post about them on Make and Takes, and since they were so easy I decided to try them out.  They don't have any eggs, butter, oil, or milk in them so I was a little skeptical.

They actually turned out great!  I used a Ghiradellis Dark Chocolate Brownie Mix with Chocolate Chips (Dark Chocolate being healthier and a stronger flavor to hide the black beans as suggested on Make and Takes).  The texture was great and I didn't experience any of the black beans getting in my teeth or anything.  I pureed mine REALLY well though.  :)

Even the husband liked them.  I know I have a winner if he likes it.  He's picky.  So here ya go!  Black Bean Brownies.  How can you resist?  They're good for you right?  And hey, licking the bowl out isn't bad for you either...no raw eggs.

Quick Black Bean Brownies

1 15 oz. can Black Beans
1 box of brownie mix (Dark Chocolate preferred)

1.  Spray your pan with cooking spray.  Preheat oven.
2.  Drain and rinse black beans.  Return beans to can and fill the can up to the top with water.  Puree.
3.  In a medium (or large) size bowl add the black bean puree to the brownie mixture and stir until fully incorporated.
4.  Pour into pan.  Follow the box directions for cooking time and temp.

Kid Activity: Autumn Apple Place Mat

I am always trying to think of fun crafts that my 19 month old son can do.  Just because you're little doesn't mean you can't create something beautiful.  At least that's how I feel.  :)  And who doesn't like seeing their finished work?  

Enter the Autumn Apple Place Mat.

Supplies:  

1/2 apple (Eat the other half for a yummy snack)

Finger paint in Autumnal colors (we used yellow, orange, and red)

Popsicle stick (I used this as a handle for my son's small hand to hold on to as the apple itself would have been cumbersome for him.)

Plates for the paint.

Large paper

As you can see I started with a plate for each color.  However, that quickly turned into color mixing as we only had 1 apple half.  If you want an apple for each color just cut accordingly.  Personally this wasn't so much about the colors as it was about the motor skill activity of stamping.  But, you could easily make this an activity about color naming (say the color you're using while you're stamping, name other things that are those colors), or color mixing (yellow + red = orange, what happens if you have more yellow than red or more red than yellow?).  Anyway, you see what I mean?  A great activity for the little ones.

Always make sure to sign and date your child's art (front if you want them to notice it, back if you want it to be hidden from view).  Make sure to use a pen that won't bleed if you want to write it on the back.  I know I enjoy as a grown up seeing old art projects I did and thinking about how old I was when I made them.  

In this case I will be cutting this large paper to be a tad smaller.  Then I will take it to be laminated.  I'm hoping to find someone with a cold laminator which is thicker and more placemat like.  Then for years to come my son can use this placemat and think about how cool it was that he made it all on his own.

Recipe: Chewy Caramel Popcorn and Pretzel Bars

I made this yummy dish from the October 2010 issue of Everyday Food.  The bars turned out really yummy, but I made an adjustment to the recipe as I found the volume to be too much for one pan.

• Nonstick cooking spray
• 1 microwave package of popcorn (plain, do not use the buttered kind) [Martha calls for 2 but that was waaaaaay too much]
• 4 cups coarsely chopped salted pretzels (had my 19 month old help me snap them up)
• 2 cups sugar
• coarse salt
• 2/3 cup heavy cream
• 2 cups mini marshmallows

1. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with cooking spray.  In a large bowl, toss together popcorn and pretzels.  In a medium saucepan, bring sugar, 1/2 tsp. salt, and 1/2 cup water to a boil over medium-high.  Boil, undisturbed, until mixture is amber in color, 8-12 minutes *Watch this mixture carefully, if left too long it will go from amber to being burned...and that is not a good thing.  Remove pan from heat and slowly pour in cream (mixture will sputter).  Immediately add marshmallows; stir until melted.
2. Pour caramel mixture over popcorn and pretzels and quickly stir with a rubber spatula to coat.  Transfer mixture to dish and use a piece of plastic wrap coated with cooking spray to press evenly into dish.  Sprinkle with coarse salt if desired.  Let cool completely before cutting.  

Fun New Things

As promised here are pictures of my recent fun purchases.

My new sewing machine.  This thing has sooo many features it will take a me a lifetime to learn them all I believe.  For me the greatest feature is I can thread a bobbin from another spool while I continue sewing with the spool and bobbin I was already using.  AWESOME!!!

Viking-Husqvarna Sapphire 875 Quilt.  It intimidates me.  I have yet to use it.  Hopefully once I finish my daughter's Christmas stocking I'll have the nerve to give it a go.

 Here are my quilt show purchases.  I bought lots of pretty fat quarters and a couple of half yards and one pattern I've been admiring for a while.  Some of these are for a project I already have in mind.  Others are just because I loved them.  The ones on the right are great because they are very basic prints allowing them to fit into a variety of quilts (hopefully).  The fat quarters/half yards on the left are from Sheree's Alchemy Designs and the fat quarters on the right are done by Fat Quarter Queen.  I can't seem to find a website for her though.

 This package is a crib blanket kit.  It is Bambi fabric for the backing and 8 fat quarters for the front.  You got a free pattern (of your choice) with the kit.  And while it doesn't take a genius to think of this...I can't believe other people haven't thought of this!!!  Their booth had hoards of people around it.  Their concept is that when you're low on time their "Sweet Treat" fat quarter packs can help you whip together a quick little project.  It's BRILLIANT!  (After all...I bought one.  lol)  Visit the Pincushion Boutique if you're interested in getting one for yourself.

Quilt Show!

I went on my first visit to the Houston Quilt Show with my Mother-In-Law today.  What a GREAT time we had!!!  It was so fun and overwhelming!  lol  So much inspiration everywhere.  I got a new machine on Thursday.  A Husqvarna Sapphire 875Q.  Top of the line quilting machine.  I can't wait to use it.  Especially on all of the fabulous fabrics I got today.  (I will be back with pictures of my purchases...both the new machine and the fabrics/patterns.)

But, I just had to get on tonight to tell you about one FABULOUS booth!  Sheree's Alchemy Designs.  Sheree is a wonderful gal with a wonderful selection of what I call "young people" fabrics and patterns.  She even has a book coming out of some children's clothing designs that I'm looking forward to.  We loved her so much we visited her booth twice!  Yes, twice!!  She has an online store and Esty shop.  Click here to visit her blog which can also direct you to her shops.

And while you're there enter yourself in her giveaway.  She has a copy of SewScrappy up for grabs as well as a bundle of scraps to help you get started!  Thanks for the great fabrics, Sheree!  I loved meeting you.  :)