Noodle Bead Bracelets in Pink, Blue and Silver

Iron Craft ‘13 Challenge #1 - Cotton

I’ve decided to join Iron Craft Challenge this year! I’ve watched Kathy, Susi and co. show off their beautiful projects and this year, Kathy asked me if it was time for me to join. After doing my Ornament Wreath a while back, I realized I’d missed crafting. So when she asked, I said yes! Every challenge has a different theme, and this first one is Cotton. We could make anything we wanted, but it had to be made with cotton.

See my new shop for these bracelets and other handmade items for sale! Click the photo below and you'll be taken directly to the shop.

I gave it some thought, and came up with these bracelets made with waxed cotton cord. I can’t sew to save my life, or crochet or knit, and these seemed like a good way to ease back into crafting. I love the bright silver noodle beads, and you can use any color cotton cord you want to personalize yours. I already have some supplies for making jewelry, though for this project, I needed everything but the tools that I have.

My local Michael’s and Hobby Lobby were out of the findings I needed to make these, and I almost panicked until I found Beadaholique!  Beadaholique.com makes it so simple! Not only do they sell everything you could ever need to make jewelry, but they also sell ready made kits that they put together. Pick a project, see the directions, and go ahead and order a kit if you like. That’s what I did for these bracelets.

You can find the directions and supply list here. I also picked up these extender chains for a little dangling action. The crystal charms are to add some sparkle and are from Hobby Lobby--a set of 4 for under $2. It was pretty simple to make these! It definitely helps to have the correct tools, so if you can spare it, the tools are pretty inexpensive at your local big chain craft stores.

• Note that their project instructions are for a finished 6 1/2 inch bracelet. I wanted a 7 inch bracelet, so I cut my cords at 6 3/4 inches.
• I’d also like to note that the blue cord was from Michael’s and had no measurement on it. The pink cord from the kit is 1.5 mm, and the blue one is much thinner, so I cut 10 blue cords to fit into the Barrel Cord Ends.
• I had a little trouble getting the ends of the cords all to go easily into the Barrel Cord Ends, so I grabbed the pointy file in my kit that looks like the first one on the left in this photo to push any stray ones in. That made it simple.

I hope you’ll check out the other entries in the Iron Craft Challenge, and you can also check out the Flickr Group!

Herbed Cocktail Onions and Olives

This is one of my favorite little snacks/nibbles. It’s so simple to make, and it can be served at your most sophisticated dinner parties, or served up in a little bowl just for you while you relaxing at home with a book and a glass of wine. It transforms simple Kalamata Olives and Pickled Cocktail Onions into something that you won’t be able stop eating. Add some lightly salted mixed nuts on the side and you have perfection. I found it at the Rowes Wharf Bar in Boston.

You know those places that you can walk into from a noisy street and within seconds, be transported to a spot that’s quiet, cozy and comfortable? It almost feels like home, but there are no kids or dogs asking for your attention every five minutes. Yeah, you know what I mean!

The Rowes Wharf Bar at the Boston Harbor Hotel is one of our favorite quiet spots. Just look at it, with it’s comfy chairs, dark wood, and non-trendy atmosphere. The staff is incredible, too. They’re there to see to what you want or need, even before you know you need it--always very attentive, refilling glasses and snacks. On one occasion, there was a table of…I want to say kids, because they were so immature, but they weren’t--they were young professionals--still, old enough to know better. They were about ten of them, and they were loud, which I can live with. It’s a bar, after all. Then they had to get louder and start using miscellaneous expletives and totally embarrassing themselves. Someone must have complained (I swear it wasn’t us!), because our waitress went to their table and quickly and quietly got the situation under control. They shut the heck up and we profusely thanked her. See? They’re looking out for you!

The bar snack at Rowes Wharf Bar is this mix of little onions and olives, served alongside mixed nuts. You think it won’t be anything special, but oh, it’s a bit briny from the olives and onions, salty, crunchy--and they'll just keep replenishing your supply! The olives are velvety and the onions give you that little pop--I could go on and on about it, but I’ll just give you the recipe. Oh, how did I get the recipe? I emailed the concierge at the hotel, and she asked the chef. He was kind enough to share and I’m forever grateful!

Herbed Cocktail Onions and Olives

Chef Daniel Bruce, Boston Harbor Hotel
  
2 cups Pitted Kalamata Olives
2 cups Pickled Cocktail Onions
1/4 cup Balsamic Vinaigrette
1/4 cup chopped fresh herbs,including Parsley, Basil, Thyme and Chives
Salted Mixed Nuts (to serve alongside)

Drain the olives and onions, and put them in a bowl with the vinaigrette and herbs, then toss to incorporate everything.

Store in a covered container and refrigerate for at least four hours so the flavors can mingle.

Serve with nuts and your favorite beverages.

• The balsamic vinaigrette mellows the onions and olives and takes the edge off so they’re a bit more pleasant on the taste buds, and not so sharp. So even if you think the olives and onions will be strong and overpowering, they’re not.

See the archway in the middle of this picture? The hotel entrance where the bar is located is just to the left of the archway. When you’re done at the bar, you can head out this back way and walk along Boston’s Harborwalk at Rowes Wharf. It’s just beautiful with all of the boats docked and the fresh ocean breeze--and the views are spectacular!

Simple Tomato Soup (Campbell’s Copycat)

It’s cold today. COLD. Twenty degrees F, to be exact. It’s soup weather! Last night when I served this, it was six degrees, and “felt like” eighty gazillion below zero(that last fact has not been verified by anyone but me). And what’s more comforting and hearty than tomato soup with a grilled cheese sandwich on the side? Well, I’m sure everyone has their favorite, but for me, this one’s right up there at the top of the list! My family loves Campbell’s Tomato Soup, but I haven’t bought any in a long time because it has high fructose corn syrup. No one needs that. So I grabbed some stuff and made my own.

Looking at the ingredients on the CS can, you’ll see tomato puree, water, HFCS, wheat flour, salt, vegetable oil, flavoring, ascorbic acid and citric acid. Not hard to duplicate, but that soup has that certain something, doesn’t it? I dropped the flour, salt and oil, and the two acids. “Flavoring” came in the use of vegetable stock instead of water, and a bit of garlic powder, because garlic makes everything better. What you’re left with is a velvety soup with hints of vegetables, and that telltale hint of sweet that you get from the corn syrup they use.

Penguins love tomato soup, did you know? But they'd probably ask for a grilled fish sandwich instead.

Give it a taste after you add the butter, and I’m pretty sure you won’t need salt--I didn’t need any. If you find it too velvety, add another 1/2 cup of broth, and up to 1/2 cup more if you feel you want it thinner. I’m biased, of course, but I thought it was perfect as is. Our grilled cheese sandwiches were simply Black Forest ham, sharp cheddar and thinly sliced tomatoes. A match made in comfort food heaven!

Simple Tomato Soup (Campbell's Copycat)

Makes just about 9 cups (2 1/4 quarts)

1 (26 oz) box of Pomi Strained Tomatoes (you can use a 28 oz can if you can't find Pomi)
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
5 cups vegetable broth
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp butter

In a medium soup pot, heat the strained tomatoes, tomato paste, vegetable broth, garlic powder and sugar over low- medium heat. Stir occasionally to make sure that the tomato paste and sugar are dissolving.

When the paste and sugar are incorporated, add the butter and stir till melted. Serve in mugs with grilled cheese sandwiches and some kind of cheesy cracker, because that's the law.

Store any leftovers in the fridge.

Whole Wheat Brownies you’ll actually love!

Who doesn’t love brownies? I guess there may be one or two of you out there. For the rest of you that do love them, keep reading. I’ve made them with finely stone-ground whole wheat pastry flour and your kids/family/friends are never going to tell the difference.

We all want to eat healthier, and I think the easiest way to do that is by making small changes that add up. Once you start making small changes, they have a way of snowballing. Before you know it, good things are happening all over the place!

This recipe is for Hodgson Mill’s “Have a Grain Holiday” recipe contest. The idea is to chuck the white four for a change and get that whole wheat in there. It’s  not as difficult as it seems. Last year, I did a Whole Wheat Whisky Gingerbread. My daughter still talks about that one--she loved it, whole wheat flour and all!

I’ve taken the white flour out of these brownies and brought in the whole wheat pastry flour as a replacement. Now, does this make these 100% healthy? No, of course not--they’re still brownies. And it’s the holidays, so we all indulge somewhat. The brownies, even with whole wheat flour, are so rich, dark and fudgy, that no one would ever guess the change that was made. Go ahead and try these, you won’t believe how decadent they are!

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Click here and enter to win one of 50 Baker’s Holiday Gift Packs, including whole wheat flours, baking mixes, and more from Hodgson Mill, valued at $85!

Added bonus: Click here to get a coupon for $1.00 off any 5 pound flour or cornmeal from Hodgson Mill!

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I also have $25 worth of assorted Hodgson Mill products to give away to one of you! Hodgson Mill uses grains that are of the highest grade, produced domestically wherever available, and purchased in the United States. They use only stoneground milling to ensure, unlike other mills, that their products contain the entire nutritional benefit of the grain. And Hodgson Mill has a commitment to solar and wind power at our mill and an award-winning recycling program.

How could you not love all of that? See below to enter!

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Decadent Whole Wheat Brownies

Makes a 9"x13" pan

This makes a lot--good for holiday parties, potlucks, etc. The mini chocolate chips I use are Ghirardelli, in a 10 oz bag. You're dividing it into 3 and 7 oz portions in this recipe. In case you’re wondering, these got big thumbs up all around.

To make the Christmas decorations, I simply used candy melts from the candy making section at any craft store. Melt them, pour into a zip top bag and snip a small corner off the bag. SMALL. Make your shapes on parchment paper or foil, and set aside to cool. I stuck them on the brownies using a simple ganache, and I'll include the recipe below. I free handed the decorations, as you can clearly tell, ha! They give the brownies a nice, old-school homey look. Yeah, that's what I'm going with! You can also just dust with a small amount of powdered sugar for that “snowed on” look.

3 (1-oz) squares of unsweetened chocolate
3 tbsp cocoa (I use Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa)
3 tbsp canola oil
3 oz of mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup butter
1 tbsp espresso powder or instant coffee
1 tbsp Raspberry Liqueur, optional
5 eggs
2 1/4 cups sugar
1 tbsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
1 tsp salt
7 oz (remaining chips from the bag) mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a 9 x 13" pan with foil, and lightly grease the foil.

In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the unsweetened chocolate squares, cocoa and oil, the 3 oz of mini chips, the butter, the espresso powder or instant coffee, and raspberry liqueur, if using--and melt over low-medium heat, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

While that's all melting, start the next step. Beat eggs, sugar and vanilla at high speed for 10 minutes. This is where a stand mixer comes in handy, but a hand mixer will also do the job.

Add the melted chocolate mixture to the mixing bowl, along with the flour and salt. Mix until just blended, and then stir in the remaining 7 oz of chocolate chips. Let the batter sit on the counter for 20 minutes before pouring into the greased pan. That's right, 20 minutes.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and tap the pan on your work surface a few times to release air bubbles.

Bake for 25-27 minutes. The top should be shiny and the sides should be pulling away from the sides of the pan. Let them cool completely before cutting! To cut, lift them out of the pan using the edges of the foil. Cut into squares, decorate if you wish, and store in an airtight container.

Ganache Recipe

1/2 cup heavy cream
7 oz bittersweet chocolate
pinch of salt
1 tbsp raspberry liqueur, optional

Put the chocolate in a bowl, add the pinch of salt and liqueur, if using. Set aside.

Set the cream over low-medium heat in a small saucepan. Heat gently until small bubbles start to appear around the edges of the pan. Don’t let it boil.

Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Let this sit for 2-3 minutes, and then using a rubber spatula, gently stir the cream into the chocolate. Doing this gently prevents any air bubbles in the ganache.

To attach the decorations, put the ganache into a plastic zip top bag and seal. Snip off a tiny corner of the bag, and gently add a dollop of ganache to the center of each brownie. Set the decoration right on top of the ganache, and let them sit for a while to set up. Store any leftover ganache in the fridge, and then you can eat it with a spoon. That’s what I’m doing with it!

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To enter the giveaway for $25 of assorted Hodgson Mill products:

1. Leave a comment on this post telling me what kind of recipe you’d like to make with Hodgson Mill Whole Wheat Flour. Use a valid email address so you can be reached.

Optional Entries:

2. Tweet about this giveaway and leave another comment here telling me that you did.

3. Share this on Facebook and again, leave another comment on this post letting me know.

I’ll choose a winner next Friday, December 14th. The winner will have 48 hours to get back to me or I’ll choose another name. Good luck!

Don’t forget to go and enter to win one of 50 Gift Packs full of assorted Hodgson Mill products!

 

Tate’s Baking for Friends Review +Cookie and Bar Tower Giveaway

I absolutely adore Tate’s Bake Shop. Have I ever been? No, It’s not close enough for me to just hop on over. This may be a good thing, however, since their stuff is fabulous--I’d be there every single day! The cookies, the brownies, the bars…and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!

Giveaway is CLOSED. The random winner is #43, Jamie. Congrats, Jamie! And thank you to everyone that entered. 

I can personally vouch for the thin, ultra crisp cookies. They’ll make you swoon. And want more. The butter and brown sugar really shine in these, as do the soft chocolate chips. The brownies? They’re the epitome of melt in  your mouth, fudgy, chocolatey goodness. They’re what other brownies can only dream about being like. You want to swoon? Get your hands on some of Tate’s brownies--trust me on this!

Kathleen King, the baking genius behind Tate’s Bake Shop, has written her second Tate’s cookbook, Tate's Bake Shop: Baking For Friends. Just like her first, Tate's Bake Shop Cookbook: The Best Recipes from Southampton's Favorite Bakery for Homestyle Cookies, Cakes, Pies, Muffins, and Breads, this one is packed full of recipes you’ll actually make. You don’t need exotic ingredients or 12 pans and 50 hands. These aren’t recipes you’ll dream of making one day because they’re so complicated--you can make these now. They’re the ones you’ll reach for again and again, and make for your family and friends.

That’s not to say that they won’t impress, because these recipes certainly will! Here are just a few of them as I flip through the book: Three Berry Crumb Pie, Cinnamon Swirl Scones, Ginger Plum Muffins, Pfeffernusse (my mom loved these for the holidays!), Chubby Tate’s (the thick, soft and chewy cousin of Tate’s signature ultra crispy chocolate chip cookies), Vanilla Bean Chiffon Cake, Blackout Cupcakes, and so many more.

So far, from this book, I’ve made:

1. The Milk Chocolate Cake, which is bordering on brownies and is not nearly as sweet as you’d think, but delectable.
2. The Raspberry Chocolate Scones, which are as far as you can get from dry scones, and have a nice touch of orange zest.
3. The Hurricane Irene Cookies, which are chock full of good cookie things--oats, chocolate chips, coconut, pecans and toffee bits, and like the cake I mentioned above, not as sweet as you’d think, but a fabulous chewy cookie with lots of great texture.

I have many more recipes bookmarked to try, as well. The Breakfast Cookies are definitely being made in the next week or so. Cookies for breakfast? I’m in!

The folks at Tate’s have generously offered to give a Cookie and Bar Tower to one of you lucky readers, and trust me when I say it, you want this. Your taste buds want this. Heck, I want this, ha! I’ll put my order in for one soon so I can splurge and share it for the holidays, but one of you can have this now!

It includes three 7-oz boxes of cookies, one each of chocolate chip, oatmeal raisin and white chocolate chip macadamia nut. Two rich, buttery raspberry bars, two chocolate chip and walnut loaded blondies, and two rich, dense and fudgy plain brownies round out this crowd pleaser. Each 7-oz box contains approximately 12 cookies, and bars measure 4" x 2.75"

US shipping only.

To enter:

1. Leave a comment on this post and let me know what you’re most looking forward to trying--the cookies, the raspberry bars, blondies or brownies, and be sure to use a valid email address!

Optional for additional entries:

2. Tweet about this giveaway and leave a comment here letting me know that you did. You can do this once a day.

3. Share this post on Facebook and again, leave a comment here telling me that you shared it. You can also do this up to once per day, if you like.

That’s it--easy! I’ll choose a comment (using the random number generator) next Monday, December 10th and announce the winner on Tuesday. The winner will have 48 hours to get back to me or I’ll choose another name. Good luck!

Disclaimer: I received a copy of Tate’s Bake Shop: Baking for Friends at no charge. My opinion is my own and not influenced in any way.