Thursday, September 27, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
Equalizer Blanket
Abbreviations:
American English: DC = double crochet
[British English: TR = treble crochet]
This pattern is in American English terms, the British terms are in [brackets].
An important note about corners:
I've used a DK weight yarn. This is lighter than a worsted weight yarn, so I created my corners by crocheting two DC [TR] + two chains + two DC [TR] into the corner space. If you find that your work is bunching or curling, it is possibly because your yarn is heavier or your tension is tighter. One way you can correct this is by only crocheting one DC [TR] into your corner spaces, i.e. one DC [TR] + two chains + one DC [TR] into the corner space.
Bright Colours
Start by chaining 4, then join with a slip stitch.
Round 1:
Chain 3 (counts as the first DC [TR]), do 2 DC [TR] into the ring. Chain 2, 3 DC [TR], chain 2, 3 DC [TR], chain 2, 3 DC [TR], chain 2 and join to the third chain of your first 'fake' DC [TR] - like this:
Round 2:
Chain 1, do 1 DC [TR] in the same stitch below. Crochet 1 DC [TR] in next two stitches, *in corner space crochet 2 DC [TR] + 2 ch + 2 DC [TR], then crochet 1 DC [TR] in the next three stitches.**Repeat from * to ** twice more. Join with slip stitch to the top of the first DC [TR].
Round 3:
Chain 1, do 1 DC [TR] in the same stitch below. Crochet 1 DC [TR] in next four stitches, *in corner space crochet 2 DC [TR] + 2 ch + 2 DC [TR], then crochet 1 DC [TR] in the next seven stitches.**Repeat from * to ** twice more. Join with slip stitch to the top of the first DC [TR].
Round 4:
Chain 1, do 1 DC [TR] in the same stitch below. Crochet 1 DC [TR] in next six stitches, *in corner space crochet 2 DC [TR] + 2 ch + 2 DC [TR], then crochet 1 DC [TR] in the next eleven stitches.**Repeat from * to ** twice more. Join with slip stitch to the top of the first DC [TR].
Change to BLACK
Round 5:
Chain 1, do 1 DC [TR] in the same stitch below. Crochet 1 DC [TR] in next eight stitches, *in corner space crochet 2 DC [TR] + 2 ch + 2 DC [TR], then crochet 1 DC [TR] in the next fifteen stitches.**Repeat from * to ** twice more. Join with slip stitch to the top of the first DC [TR].
Round 6:
Chain 1, do 1 DC [TR] in the same stitch below. Crochet 1 DC [TR] in next ten stitches, *in corner space crochet 2 DC [TR] + 2 ch + 2 DC [TR], then crochet 1 DC [TR] in the next nineteen stitches.**Repeat from * to ** twice more. Join with slip stitch to the top of the first DC [TR].
Chain two, yank tightly. Leave a long tail for joining, and cut yarn.
Now, the bad news...
(Yarn needed is given as an approximate amount. I was virtuously using scraps, so these amounts are approximate and represent the maximum amount I used.)
You need to crochet:
- 9 turquoise squares* (75g yarn)
- 17 green squares (150g yarn)
- 14 yellow squares (120g yarn)
- 11 orange squares (100g yarn)
- 6 red squares (50g yarn)
- 51 black squares + edging on other squares (1100g yarn)
Lay your squares out as per the diagram above and sew them together. I edged the blanket with a round of DC [TR] in black, then a round of SC [DC] in a contrasting colour (I used turquoise) and finished it off with another round of DC [TR] in black.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
San Antonio Beer Spill
SAN ANTONIO - A beer truck that jackknifed Sunday morning on the ramp connecting I-35 to I-10 caused a full day of traffic headaches near Downtown.
According to on-scene reports, a male driver somehow lost control of the 18-wheeler he was driving along I-10 near Camaron Street shortly before 10:30 a.m. The ramps and lanes were re-opened around just before 7 o'clock Sunday evening.
There were no injuries and the beer-carrying truck was the only vehicle involved.
Source
According to on-scene reports, a male driver somehow lost control of the 18-wheeler he was driving along I-10 near Camaron Street shortly before 10:30 a.m. The ramps and lanes were re-opened around just before 7 o'clock Sunday evening.
There were no injuries and the beer-carrying truck was the only vehicle involved.
Source
Water Bed Fun at Ikea!!!!
I want someone to do this here at the Ikea where I live... and just stand back at watch!
Friday, September 21, 2012
Cupcake Onesies Gift Idea
I started with the following supplies:
- cupcake gift box (I found mine at my local Michaels store)
- colorful cupcake liners
- cupcake sleeves (optional)
- 4 onesies (I used a pack of Gerber ones from Target)
- 2 pairs of baby socks (also found at Target)
- Scotch tape
Here is a visual of how I made the cupcakes:
- Fold each onesies long ways twice in on itself, so it is a very thin long piece.
- Then take one sock and let the top of the toe area of the sock pop above the onesie.
- Roll the sock tightly in the middle of the onesie to create the cupcake shape. The sock becomes the cherry, and the onesie becomes a swirled cupcake shape.
- While holding the rolled onesie cupcake, take a piece of clear scotch tape to secure.
- Place in cupcake liner and cupcake wrap and place in cupcake gift box. Repeat for all 4 onesies.
- Finish off by tying a cut ribbon around the box, attach the gift card, and voilá!
Family Poem
When monsters lurked beneath my bed,
and scary dreams ran through my head,
when thunder growled, those sounds I dread,
here I am, my father said.
When scuffed-up knees sure made me cry,
soft hankies wiped my sad eyes dry,
coaxing me each time I tried, here I am,
my mother sighed.
Who held my hand when I was scared,
ate the candy I should have shared,
things I said because you dared, here I am,
my sister stated..
In times of trouble,
in times of glee,
I feel such strength surrounding me,
with whose love I can't succeeded,
I love you all, my family indeed.
Copy Right.
Katherine M. Jones
August 29, 2006
and scary dreams ran through my head,
when thunder growled, those sounds I dread,
here I am, my father said.
When scuffed-up knees sure made me cry,
soft hankies wiped my sad eyes dry,
coaxing me each time I tried, here I am,
my mother sighed.
Who held my hand when I was scared,
ate the candy I should have shared,
things I said because you dared, here I am,
my sister stated..
In times of trouble,
in times of glee,
I feel such strength surrounding me,
with whose love I can't succeeded,
I love you all, my family indeed.
Copy Right.
Katherine M. Jones
August 29, 2006
From Harry Potter Here are Some Treacle Tart Recipes
Serve 4
Ingredients:
100g/4oz Wholemeal Flour
50g/2oz Self-Raising Flour
A pinch of Salt
75g/3oz Butter
Water to bind
120ml/4 fl.oz. Golden Syrup [what is it?]
75g/3oz Fresh Brown Breadcrumbs
Grated zest of 1/2 Lemon
50g/2oz Toasted Hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
Instructions
1. Sift the flours with the salt into a mixing bowl. Tip the residue of bran left in the sieve into the bowl and stir lightly to mix.
2. Cut the butter into the flour with a palette knife, then rub in the butter with your fingertips until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Gradually stir in just enough water to bind the mixture together. Knead briefly until smooth. Wrap in cling film and leave to relax in the bottom of the refrigerator for about 15 minutes.
3. Preheat the oven to 200C, 400F, Gas mark 6. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry and line an 18cm/7 inch flan tin, reserving the trimmings.
4. Place syrup into a saucepan and heat gently. Stir in the breadcrumbs, lemon zest and chopped nuts.
5. Spread the syrup mixture evenly over the base of the pastry case. Roll out the pastry trimmings thinly and cut into long, narrow strips. Arrange the strips in a lattice over the filling. Trim off any overhanging pastry, then lightly brush the strips with the beaten egg or milk.
6. Bake for 30-35 minutes, until the pastry is cooked and the filling a rich dark brown.
Ingredients
2 ounces fresh white bread crumbs
finely grated rind of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon lemon juice
5 ounces rich short crust pastry -- see note
6 tablespoons Golden Syrup -- see note
a) Golden Syrup, or treacle may be substituted for light molasses or
honey.
b) You may substitute the pastry by an unbaked pie crust from your
local bakery.
Instructions
Put the syrup into a saucepan with the bread crumbs, lemon rind and juice and heat gently until just melted. Cool.
Roll out the dough and use to line an 8 in pie plate. Pour in the syrup mixture.
Roll out the dough trimmings and cut into long, narrow strips. Arrange them in a lattice pattern over the filling.
Bake in a moderately hot oven (400 ºF) for 25 to 30 min or until the pastry is slightly browned.
Serve hot or cold.
2 ounces fresh white bread crumbs
finely grated rind of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon lemon juice
5 ounces rich short crust pastry -- see note
6 tablespoons Golden Syrup -- see note
a) Golden Syrup, or treacle may be substituted for light molasses or
honey.
b) You may substitute the pastry by an unbaked pie crust from your
local bakery.
Instructions
Put the syrup into a saucepan with the bread crumbs, lemon rind and juice and heat gently until just melted. Cool.
Roll out the dough and use to line an 8 in pie plate. Pour in the syrup mixture.
Roll out the dough trimmings and cut into long, narrow strips. Arrange them in a lattice pattern over the filling.
Bake in a moderately hot oven (400 ºF) for 25 to 30 min or until the pastry is slightly browned.
Serve hot or cold.
Treacle Tart
The perfect dessert for the sweet-toothed is a Treacle Tart. A treacle tart recipe involves first making some pastry but if you are short of time ready rolled but make sure it is sweet pastry.
Treacle Tart is full of delicious, sweet golden syrup and black treacle. If you can't find golden syrup then use corn syrup. And, likewise, can't find black treacle dark molasses will do.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients:
* PASTRY
* 225g /8oz plain flour
* Pinch salt
* 25g /1 oz fine sugar
* 115g /4oz very cold unsalted butter
* Cold water to mix
* FILLING
* 300g /10oz golden syrup
* 1 heaped tbsp black treacle
* Zest and juice of 1 unwaxed lemon
* 4 medium free range eggs
* 25g /1oz fresh bread crumbs
Preparation:
* Heat the oven to 180ºC/350ºF/Gas 4
* Place the flour, salt, sugar and butter in a food processor. Pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. With the processor running add the water a few drops at a time until the dough comes together. Remove the dough from the bowl and wrap in cling film and leave to rest in the fridge for an hour.
* Roll out the pastry and line a loose bottomed tart tin the place in the fridge for 30 mins.
* Meanwhile, mix together the golden syrup and treacle with the lemon juice. Beat the eggs in a bowl and add to the treacle mixture. Finally stir in the bread crumbs.
* Carefully pour the mixture into the prepared tart case.
* Bake for 20 – 25 minutes until the crust and filling are golden brown and firm to the touch.
* Serve warm with crème fraiche which balances really well with the sweetness of the tart or a good vanilla ice cream.
9 oz pie crust pastry (enough for two single standard pie crusts)
approx
11 tablespoons black treacle (can use golden syrup if desired)
1 heaping teaspoon ground ginger, optional
4 dry oz (approx 2 cups) unseasoned breadcrumbs
Grease each cup of a miniature muffin baking pan first.
Line each cup of the miniature muffin baking pan with the pastry, rolled as thinly as possible.
Warm the treacle in a saucepan.
Add the ginger to the treacle and stir in the breadcrumbs.
Spoon the breadcrumb mixture into each pastry cup only about 2/3rds full. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 F, watching closely so the crust edges do not burn.
Serve at room temperature.
approx
11 tablespoons black treacle (can use golden syrup if desired)
1 heaping teaspoon ground ginger, optional
4 dry oz (approx 2 cups) unseasoned breadcrumbs
Grease each cup of a miniature muffin baking pan first.
Line each cup of the miniature muffin baking pan with the pastry, rolled as thinly as possible.
Warm the treacle in a saucepan.
Add the ginger to the treacle and stir in the breadcrumbs.
Spoon the breadcrumb mixture into each pastry cup only about 2/3rds full. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 350 F, watching closely so the crust edges do not burn.
Serve at room temperature.
Treacle Tarts
Makes about 2 dozen miniature tarts.9 oz pie crust pastry (enough for two single standard pie crusts)
approximately 11 tablespoons black treacle (can use golden syrup if desired)
1 heaping teaspoon ground ginger, optional
4 oz unseasoned breadcrumbs
After greasing the pan first, line each cup of a miniature muffin baking pan with the pastry, rolled as thin as possible. Warm the treacle in a saucepan. Add the ginger and stir in the breadcrumbs. Spoon the breadcrumb mixture into each pastry cup only about 2/3rds full. Bake for 15-20 minutes, watching closely so the crust edges do not burn.
(I found this Treacle Tart recipe online and adapted it to make miniature individual Treacle Tarts with the black treacle I found at my local British food shop. I also used miniature fluted brioche pans/sandbakkel tins so the crust looked more like a fluted tart crust. Also, be careful, since the breadcrumbs are given by weight, not by fluid ounces, and breadcrumbs are very light. Since I do not have a food scale, I eyeballed it by stirring in breadcrumbs until it looked like the mixture would hold together, and I think I ended up with at least 2 cups. Both golden syrup (less bitter taste - inbetween honey and light corn syrup) and black treacle are usually only found in British food shops. Theoretically, dark molasses could be substituted for black treacle, but the taste is different, so if you don't have a local British food shop, try online, since treacle and golden syrup don't need to be refrigerated and last quite awhile.)
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Space Shuttle Endeavour Passes Over Austin Skyline Heading West to California
Space shuttle Endeavour embarked on its new life as a museum piece Wednesday, leaving behind its NASA home in Florida and heading west on the last ferry flight of its kind.
Next up on its itinerary: Austin.
NASA's youngest shuttle departed Kennedy Space Center at sunrise Wednesday bolted to the top of a jumbo jet, arriving to excited crowds in Houston hours later.
Wednesday evening, NASA announced that Endeavour will make a low pass over downtown Austin near the Capitol between 7:30 and 8 a.m. today after leaving Houston's Ellington Field about 7 a.m.
Once past Austin, the plane will stop to refuel in El Paso about 9:30 Central time, and then it will continue west, making low-level flybys over the White Sands Missile Range and NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, as well as Tucson, Ariz.
The plane is expected to land at Edwards Air Force Base in Southern California about noon Pacific time.
It will then make a farewell tour around California on Friday before landing at Los Angeles International Airport.
In mid-October, Endeavour will be transported down city streets to the California Science Center, its permanent home.
In Cape Canaveral, Fla., early Wednesday, hundreds of people — astronauts, space center workers, tourists and journalists — gathered at the runway to bid Endeavour farewell following two days of rain delays.
Crowds also lined the nearby beaches as the shuttle swooped in and out of low clouds in one final show.
"You know what? I am feeling a tremendous amount of pride," said astronaut Kay Hire, who flew aboard Endeavour two years ago.
Several hours later, onlookers cheered as Endeavour flew over its landing place in Houston, not far from the home of NASA's Mission Control.
The jet carrying Endeavour landed a short time later at Ellington Field.
Monday, September 17, 2012
The Mechanical Instrument I want in my House
Take a look at this in action
Video speaks more then words. Truly a work of genius by the creators.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Lemon Cheesecake Creme Brulee Bars
I’m sorry in advance. These are evil. And amazing. And addicting. And life changing. Take a peek at the step by step photos and experience the beauty that is this dessert.
Here’s what you need:
For the bottom layer, mix together some butter, sugar, vanilla and flour. Basically, you’re making a quick shortbread. And, try not to melt your butter in the microwave while trying to soften it. Don’t be like me.
So, once it all comes together, that’s it! 1st layer done.
Press this dough into an 8×8 glass dish. I like to line mine with parchment, but that’s totally optional! Lightly spray your pan with non-stick and you should be good to go. Also, my dough was particularly sticky because I melted my darn butter. If you don’t melt your butter, you won’t have this problem. Again, don’t be like me.
For the cheesecake part, start by whipping your softened cream cheese.
With the mixer on low, stream in a can of sweetened condensed milk. Scrape the sides and mix again.
Stir in an egg,
lots of lemon zest,
and lemon juice.
Scrape the sides and mix again. Once you have a smooth batter, pour it over that first layer.
Bake this at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until it’s completely set…meaning it shouldn’t jiggle!
Once it comes out of the oven, let it cool to room temp and then refrigerate. These will taste a million times better if they’re cold.
After a few hours, remove from the fridge and pop out of the pan. {All thanks to Mr. Parchment} I like to cut off a tiny strip along each edge to get sharp cuts, but that’s totally up to you.
Now comes the fun part! Separate your squares and sprinkle with sugar. Spread the sugar around the top evenly with your finger so you have a nice thin layer and then……….
….grab one of these bad boys and get crackin’!
Turn that sucker on and brulee the tops of the lemon bars. You can hardly see the flame, but it’s there! {*If you don’t have a torch, use your broiler!}
Hello, my pretties! Once they are all done, refrigerate until you’re ready to serve.
Throw these onto a serving platter and voila! A perfect dessert everyone will love! Sweet and tart, similar to key lime pie, but a million times better!
Enjoy!
Lemon Cheesecake Creme Brulee Bars
yield: 16 squares
Print This RecipeIngredients:
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 oz. softened cream cheese
1-14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons lemon zest
6 tablespoons lemon juice
5 tablespoons fine granulated sugar for brulee-ing, approximately
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line an 8×8 glass dish with parchment paper and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. In large bowl, combine butter, sugar, flour and vanilla until dough forms. Press evenly into the bottom of prepared dish. Set aside. In another bowl, whip cream cheese. Stir in sweetened condensed milk. Scrape sides and mix again. Pour in egg, lemon zest and juice. Mix until mixture starts to thicken, 20-30 seconds. Scrape sides and mix again briefly. Pour overtop cookie bottom and smooth the top. Bake 20-25 minutes or until cheesecake is set completely. Cool, then refrigerate. Cut into 16 squares and separate. Sprinkle the tops of each square with 1 teaspoon of sugar and spread around with finger to evenly distribute sugar. Torch the tops until the sugar melts and turns an amber color. {If you don’t have a torch, place under the broiler}. Return squares to fridge until ready to serve.
Valentine’s Day Lemon & Blackberry Eclairs
Here’s how to make these:
First, we’re going to mix up the pate a choux…or the dough for the eclair shells. In a small pot, pour in some water and a hunk of butter.
Bring this to a boil. This recipe may look fancy, but it calls for super simple ingredients and is actually quite simple. Keep scrolling and you’ll see what I mean.
Once that butter and water have come up to a bubble, sprinkle in some flour and stir it all up with a wooden spoon.
Everything should get mixed together and become really thick. Cook this maybe for a minute over medium-low heat.
Remove the pot from the burner and sprinkle in some salt.
Wait a few minutes until the pot has cooled a little bit and stir in two eggs, one by one. {You don’t want to scramble these suckers right up because scrambled eggs in desserts=nasty city.}
You’re going to want to incorporate these eggs completely after each addition. The mixture will look slimy and weird, but that’s how it’s supposed to look.
After the second addition of the egg, stir it until the pate a choux is completely smooth. Then you can either pipe it out into hearts or spoon it onto a baking sheet. Bake these off first at 425 and then at 350. Oh and, press down any points with a quick dab.
While those are baking away, we’ll make the fillings. Forage some blackberries in the woods. And by forage I mean buy. And by woods I mean Target.
Wash the blackberries and sprinkle some sugar over top. The amount of sugar will depend on how sweet the berries are. Taste one and decide from there. Oh and squeeze in some lemon juice too. {Pretend there’s a photo of that here too.}
Mush everything around and set it aside. The longer you let this sit, the more juice you will get. Juice=yum.
Pull out those cute hearts when they’re done and set them aside to cool. All of mine didn’t turn out this perfectly just fyi. If yours don’t all look this good, just don’t say a word and no one will know!
Now for the lemon filling, I just threw everything into a mini chopper and whizzed it up until smooth. In here is sugar, softened cream cheese, lemon zest and cream.
After a few pulses and scrape downs, you should be done!
Now to assemble this all together, slice a heart in half and top with a heaping tablespoon of that lemon filling we just made.
Top that with some blackberries….
…and the top part of the heart…
and then some powdered sugar! How cute are these?
Happy Valentine’s Day, friends!! Hope you enjoy this one!
For all you chocolate lovers, here are some other treats you will LOVE: Molten Chocolate Lava Cakes, Double Chocolate Silk Cream Pie {aka the pie that got me married}, Nutella Topped Red Velvet Oreo Cheesecakes, Nutella Cream Pie, Double Chocolate Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Buttercream, Cookies n’ Cream Brownie Bars, Chocolate Truffle S’more Tart, Peanut Butter Brownie Cake and Heart Shaped Brownie Cheesecake Bites.
Valentine’s Day Lemon & Blackberry Eclairs
yield: about 24 small
Print This RecipeIngredients:
for the pate a choux-
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup all purpose flour
pinch of salt
2 large eggs
for the lemon cream cheese filling-
6 oz. softened cream cheese
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 lemon, zested
1/4 cup heavy cream
for the macerated blackberries-
12 oz. blackberries
1-3 tablespoons sugar {depending on how sweet the fruit is}
1/2 lemon, juiced
powdered sugar, for garnish if desired
Directions:
To make the pate a choux–Preheat oven to 425. Line baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. In a small pot, boil water and butter together. Slowly sprinkle in flour while mixing with a wooden spoon. Mixture will become very thick. Cook over low heat approximately 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool a few minutes. {You’re going to be stirring in eggs and you don’t want to cook them!} Stir in a pinch of salt and eggs, 1 at a time, incorporating completely after each egg addition. After the batter becomes smooth, spoon into piping bag {or large ziploc}. Pipe into 24 small heart shapes. Press any points of dough down with a wet finger. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce temperature to 350 degrees and bake 18 minutes. Remove eclair shells from oven once they are golden brown and puffed. Set aside to cool.
For the lemon cream cheese filling- in a small bowl of a mini chopper, place cream cheese, sugar, lemon zest and cream. Blitz until smooth, scraping sides as you go. Mixture is done once there are no lumps. Set aside in fridge.
For the blackberries–place all ingredients into a small bowl. Stir and mash the berries until the desired consistency is reached. Let berries sit at least 30 minutes before serving.
To assemble–slice heart eclair shells open. Spread a heaping tablespoon of lemon filling onto the bottom and spoon over berries. Top with upper half and dust with powdered sugar
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)