Sunday, January 31, 2010

Remaking my Mandala

I started remaking my "Ojo de Dios" Mandala.
As many of you know, my Mandala was one of the finalist of the Vanna White/Lion Brand Yarn Contest of 2009. It was damaged/destroyed on it's way to New Jersey for the final judging.
Once returned, I carefully removed the yarn from the 36" broken dowels.
I started to weave the Mandala a couple of weeks before Thanksgiving, and then put the project to sleep until after the Holidays.Slowly but surely it is starting to take shape.







Saturday, January 30, 2010

Making our favorite: Hummus

Hummus
“A Vegetarian’s Delight”
Garbanzo Bean Purée with Tahini
I adapted a recipe out of “Alice’s Kitchen” cookbook, to mimic our favorite restaurant’s version.

2 cans garbanzo beans (Name Brand only, it does make a difference. We use Bush Brand.)
2 Tablespoons Baking Soda
1 cup liquid (½ cup broth and ½ cup water)
4 Tablespoons Tahini (sesame seed paste)
4 Cloves Garlic (crushed or minced)
2 Lemons or Mexican Limes (juiced)
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Drain beans saving the liquid. Keep beans in can and fill can with cold water and one tablespoon of baking soda in each can. Let sit until ready to use. (Rinse beans thoroughly before using.)
2. Mix ½ cup broth from the beans with ½ cup water and set aside until needed.
3. Rinse beans and put in blender with 1 cup liquid, tahini, garlic, lemon juice, salt, and olive oil.
4. Blend on chop, then puree, and then liquefy, until smooth.
5. Spread into a thin layer on a plate with the back of a spoon. Drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Sprinkle with paprika or cayenne. Garnish with parsley and serve with pita bread.

This goes great with cherry tomatoes, olives, green onions, and radishes.

Note: Depending on your blender, you might blend one can of beans at a time. I burned up a brand new blender last year. Only used it a couple of times to make hummus, and then it burned out. My new one has a feature that turns itself off before it gets too hot. This feature kicks in every time I make this recipe.

Crochet Star Stitch Caps

I made these hats for my cousin and her toddler granddaughter.

Caps I made for youngest grandsons

Sis-in-Law "M" making quilted jacket

We are making quilted jackets, out of sweatshirts, at the Quilter's Hideout in Weslaco. Classes were held in the "Tea Room" and both are located in an Antique Store. It is an awsome place to browse around. I took this class last year, but my sis-in-law went back home before the class. (Winter Texan) She has waited a year to take this class and nothing was going to stop her. Not even a blow-out on their RV on the way here (near Falfurrias) the night before the class. Luckily they got here safe and we were able to take the long awaited class.
My theme, once again, is Dia de los Muertos. Her theme is beautiful birds surrounded by patches of coordinating colors. We both have new electronic sewing machines that have so many beautiful stitches to accent our quilting.

Quilted jacket out of a sweatshirt















Photo on left, making my jacket at "Quilter's Hideout" in Weslaco.
Photo on the right, working hard on finishing my jacket.

I love being so busy

Welcomed my sister-in-law and brother-in-law to the Valley. (Winter Texans are pouring in since November 1st.) The second day she was here we attended our first class. "Making a quilted jacket out of a sweatshirt."
It was great. Can hardly wait for all the craft sales and quilt shows that we will attend together.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Laurie Notaro

Laurie Notara, of the idiotgirls.com, has a new book. Love her stuff, and her facebook is awsome!!
http://www.facebook.com/#/laurie.notaro?ref=nf
http://www.idiotgirls.com/

Tofurky

Tofurky

Had a great sandwich with this today!!! Yum.....

Caramel Cake Recipe at Epicurious.com

Caramel Cake Recipe at Epicurious.com