DEARLY DEPARTED

Well it was goodbye to company today. And hello to more on Friday. I had plans of gallavanting and treasure-hunting for my booth and being the cupcake fairy at the grand's school today but my body would not take me there.

And so I sit at 2:30 in the afternoon still in my robe (red) pretty much zoned out.

But we had fun. And good food. And deep conversation. And laughs. And shopping extraordinaire. (Not so much sleep....hence the zoning.)


Excuse me.............Short break while I scarf a piece of chocolate mousse cake......There! I am marginally revived.

Last night we had a Greek Dinner

Sorry, I didn't even think about taking pics of the food.. You will have to use your imagination. Think awesome!

Here is the menu I made for each guest.

It was easy because I had made the spanokapita and had it in the freezer (so simple.....just fresh spinach and a square of feta wrapped in phyllo and slathered with melted butter and frozen unbaked. When ready to bake, put on a cookie sheet at 375 for 10 minutes or so til browned. Nice to have on hand for appies too)

The potatoes are so-o-o-o-o--o yum. I peel and quarter russets lengthwise, poke holes in them and put them in a ziploc bag with lemon juice, fresh garlic, s and p , fresh oregano and other herbs if I have them, like parsley, rosemary and thyme, and olive oil and chicken stock or water. I marinate them in the fridge for a few hours or over night and then the day before or the morning of, put them in a 9 x 13 pan and pour half the marinade over..... then bake at 400 til divine.... about an hour or so. Half an hour before dinner, pour on the rest of your marinade and put in the oven again at 375 for 30 minutes. These are so lemony delish!

For the kabobs, I cut up chicken breasts into cubes and marinate them in olive oil, lemon juice and zest, s and p and garlic and oregano for about 3 hours...no longer. Then thread on soaked wooden skewers and bake in the oven for 30 minutes with your potatoes.

The salad is great made a day or two ahead. Just make an ordinary Greek salad with red onions, peppers, black olives, cuke, tomato and feta, then add cooked and cooled orzo and dress with olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and zest and s and p.

 I did make my own pita bread and it is super simple but I won't bore you with that one. But you must have tzaziki sauce because it goes with everything up above. It is just plain greek yogurt or sour cream with grated cuke, lemon juice, garlic and s and p. You can also add some fresh mint if you have it.

I like to make baklava with copious whipped cream for dessert with this meal but a guest has a nut allergy so I went with a light lemon fluff dessert and lemon shortbread cookies with lemon glaze.

Basically everything was do-ahead so I didn't have that last minute panic as dinner was approaching.



This morning I saw them off with a simple fresh fruit salad and baked cinnamon toast.

Now it's on to the next guest....so special...my one and only sister Judy is coming to town...for a whole week.

Can't wait.

COMPANY TRUMPS BLOGGING

Well, company is coming...taking advantage of my $2.00 bed and breakfast.

 No time for blogging!!

Bed made......check

Table set.......check

Pumpkin scones ......check

Cauliflower soup.....check

Lasagna steaming......check

Salad......check

Brownies tested......check

Dishes done......check

Actually none of the above are available.....

but what do you expect for 2 bucks???????????

TURKEY (deboned)

Holiday leftovers....great for a day or so......then what?

My favourite thing to do is make turkey pot pies.

 Nothing better on a busy night than pulling a couple of them out of the freezer and popping them in the oven for dinner.

After the big holiday dinner, strip the turkey carcass and put aside a few nice slices for turkey sandwiches the next day. If you don't, everyone will be so sad. (Try your slices laid out on dark rye or pumpernickel with some dijon, mayo, cranberry sauce and lettuce.)

Then chop the remaining turkey meat into cubes. Add any leftover gravy and other veg, even potatoes. Cook some extra carrots and peas and add along with some chopped onion, s and p and some fresh or dried thyme. If you need more gravy, make some more with some chicken broth or from stock made from your carcass (not yours silly, the turkey's!)

Spoon mixture into oven-proof dishes or little foil pans.

 and then cover with pastry.

 I always make extra pastry when I make my pumpkin pie just for this purpose. I swear (not really but you know what I mean)byTenderflake lard. Just throw 5 cups of flour, a pound of lard cut up and one cup of cold water (every time I add the cold water it reminds me about giving a cup of cold water to someone in Jesus'name!) in your mixer and that's it. It will be a bit wet but that's perfect. You add flour to your board and rolling pin before rolling out. This makes perfect pastry. Trust me!!! (Freeze any leftover dough in pie-size balls for easy prep some other day.)

Now freeze the little darlings, unbaked. When you are ready to eat some, simply bake unthawed at 375 until the crust is nicely browned and the juices are bubbly... maybe 40 minutes or so.

For those of you who eshew pastry, simply freeze the mixture in your little pans then cover with whipped yams or regular potatoes and bake as above.

Remember to buy extra cranberries and stash in the freezer while they are cheaper. Cranberry sauce takes minutes to make and goes so nicely with the pot pies. It keeps well for a long time in the fridge.

If your turkey is passe then remember to make some little pies at Christmas. Or, if there is a sale on boxes of chicken breasts, simply bake of a whack of them, still frozen on a cookie sheet and proceed as above.

Swirled Potato Bake

This second dish won rave reviews at my recent dinner.

It is so-o-o-o yum but also easy because you can make it 2 or 3 days ahead.

Boil about 3 pounds of yams, peeled and cut up in boiling water til tender. Mash and whip in a mixer with 4 ounces of cream cheese, 1/2 cup milk, 2 Tbs butter,  s and p and some fresh thyme if you like. Spoon into a 9 x 12 pan.

Then boil about 3 pounds yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut up until tender. Mash and whip in mixer with 4 ounces cream cheese, 1/2 cup milk and 2 tbs butter, 2 green onions cut up and s and p. 

Layer on top of yams and then use a knife to swirl the two tgether. Refrigerate until about 35 minutes before dinner. Heat through in 350 oven. You can scoop it out of the casserole into a nice serving bowl if you like. Feeds 10 amply.



I so love getting free food. That's what it feels like with a turkey. I fed 10 people plus made 11 pot pies for $13.00....plus a big pot of soup!!!

Move over Martha!!!

AUTUMN BRUSHSTROKES

All dressed up for the rain

My tires are a bit soft but I'm darn cute for $5.00

My sign says Bed and Breakfast $2.00. I have had many requests for lodging!!!!

Grab some veg on the way in

My current living rom mantle

Cookies. These found their way to church and were also delivered by the"cookie fairy" to Davis' and Jerod's classes at school

Davis  loves to play with the little table set for dinner. Turkey anyone? 

Of course everything found its way (crammed in the back of my Honda Fit) to the church for a Thanksgiving display

These apples are thrift store finds.......but I bet you couldn't tell

Just knit up this chunky infinity scarf...goes with everything!

Going the distance! Bought this wool skirt on clearance at Winners about 10 years ago for $9.00. So cute with tights and a longish swetater....or so I like to think.

Raided my closet and falled up my bedroom....changed out white gauzy curtains and blue/white quilt for this yellow coverlet (thrift store of course) and brown leafy curtains.

Lunch anyone???

Have fun with your fall decor. If you don't do it now, you will be thinking Christmas soon. Yowsers!!

THANKSGIVING UNSTUFFED

Does it not strike you as extremely odd that we need to set aside a day to be thankful?

Luxury such as most of us experience is beyond most of the world’s comprehension.

 Being able to provide a meal for one’s family in a third world country is cause for deep satisfaction and gratitude. It takes hard physical labour to source food and extreme patience to cook over a fire with few utensils. There is a ravenous hunger to be satiated by rice and beans yet again.

We on the other hand expect to eat….and often…..but certainly not leftovers. Our palates crave new and different dishes every day….and perhaps something out of season…and then of course, our gourmet coffee in between. If we are feeling tired or just plain lazy or needing to be pampered we hie off to a restaurant of our choice and eat too much and complain about the service. We drive there in one of our cars all toasty with our heaters blasting or cool as cucumbers with our AC cranked up high.

How strangely they would view us, outfitting our dogs in expensive little outfits while their children, flesh of their flesh just like yours and mine go without. How they would gasp while peering into our closets, crammed to the rafters with items we hardly ever wear. How inconceivable that we would complain about doing laundry, when it’s a walk downstairs and the push of a button instead of a 3 mile trek with a heavy load, no detergent and dirty water and then lugging it all home again.

I luxuriate in my hot bubble bath at night, step out onto the heated floor and dry myself with a thick white towel before cozying up under my down quilt tastefully coordinated in colours of my choosing and wonder what it’s like to sleep on the cold hard ground with rain trickling through my make-shift shelter and the sound of mortar shells exploding around me while my children cry because their tummies are screaming from hunger.

For me, morning comes and coffee aroma fills the air with a flip of a switch.  I open and close fridge and cupboards, trying to decide what I want to eat. I have choice. I wander around my home and hear their incredulous accusing voices….”All this for two people?”

We bemoan the fact we are out of bottled water while the purest water in the world cycles through our toilets and dishwashers and washing machines.

Our children go off to school at government expense….It is our right!

We go into retirement supplemented by pension cheques and spare body parts freely dispersed to aid us in living our lives of leisure and ease.

Ours is a land of wide open spaces, untouched by the ravages of war and famine and neglect. Beauty is everywhere and we have the means and resources to travel and enjoy its many wonders.

I will get up and casually drive to my place of worship on Sunday. I will freely lift my voice in song and praise, unafraid and yes, ungrateful. I will take it for granted, perhaps complain at the length of sermon or the choice of song while others around the world demonstrate true devotion as they serve God in the face of imprisonment or death.

The difference between us and them is need versus expectation. When they have a need and it is met they are joyful and grateful. We on the other hand need little but want so much. We have expectations of how our lives should look and so we are often disappointed. Yes, we face tragedy or heartache at times too but we are surprised by it not waiting for the inevitable.

I struggle to understand the favour I have been granted….why God chose to place me in a land of plenty and ease.

I cannot fathom it.

And so I am left with acceptance and a response.

As I prepare for Thanksgiving, decking out my house, preparing my menu, choosing the table settings, creating my clever place cards and lovingly cooking and baking for family, I pause….and this is my prayer….

Lord,

 Cause me to look your way while I bask in the sheer abundance and peace I enjoy today and every day.

Allow me a glimpse into your heart and mind to see both your compassion for those who struggle and your sadness when I voice complaint.

Move my eyes more often to tears.

Open my hands to release the things I hold dear and my pocketbook to bless others.

Move my feet to people and places of your choosing.

Bend my knee in prayer.

Humble me.

Teach me about this thing called Thanksgiving.

LITTLE PILLOWS.......

you can make all by yourself

 Clever You!

Thought I would show you a few ideas for some easy little pillows you can make to pretty up a corner or give for a little gift.

These pink and white woollies in this pic were made from a $2.00 vintage blanket.  I used the striped and overcast edge as one end of my pillow and folded it over right sides together, sewed the one side and end together on the machine, turned inside out, stuffed, then stitched the striped ends together with pink wool on the outside. Buttons and trims were added afterward.

The puppy pillow above was just a vintage tea towel sewn up.

The rose, and bird pillows were images printed on white cotton fabric using my computer.

 Seriously!

 If you haven’t discovered the site www.graphicfairy.com  then you really must. There are thousands of wonderful vintage images on every subject imaginable.

 Search in the category tab and pick a topic. New images are added daily and are seasonal. Copy and save your image and then bring it up in Word so you can resize it and center it. If you want to make sure it will be right, then print it on paper first.

You can only make a pillow the size of an 8x11 piece of paper (unless you print a graphic on fabric that size and then use another fabric to border it to make it bigger.)

 The technique is to spray a piece of 8x11 paper or preferably card stock with spray adhesive, then press on a piece of fabric…..use white or coloured or even a tone on tone like damask or even drop cloth canvas for a bit more rustic look. 

Make sure you trim your fabric around the edges to the size of your card stock and do not leave any threads loose. Feed your fabric-covered paper into your printer whichever way will have the image print on the fabric side. Hit print and watch the image transfer to your fabric. Peel off and make your pillow.

 (If you somehow manage to wreck your printer, I have left the country!!!However, I have done this a hundred times with no ill effects.)

For this pillow I simply printed a picture of the boys on a fabric piece. I have  made many of these for little gifts......often using a friend's grandchlid's picture. I have also made larger pillows by printing 4 separate pictures sized to be an 18" pillow when sewn together.

 These pillows with four sections were made with scraps from my sewing stash and embellished with bits of trim and buttons I had on hand. I sewed the four different patterns together (and yes I agonized over each combination) and sewed on the trims then sewed on the backing fabric which was one piece the size of the four sewn together. (It matched one of the four patterns.)

I have also used new tea towels with a pattern I liked like this one for the cabin.

 and also napkins or vintage pillowcases.

This white rose one I made from yardgoods on sale.(I'm not that clever. It comes on the bolt just ike this)

 You could also use part of a plaid shirt (use the part with the front buttoned up and the pocket) or the backside of a pair of jeans (pockets) for a teen’s room.

These next two are made from vintage bark cloth fabric.

This one is from taffeta saved from my fall wedding tablecloths.

And then a scrap of chenille.

I love to change my pillows around on a whim, so sometimes I make pillow coverings with a zipper or split back so I can simply put them over existing pillows and not have to buy and store extra pillow forms.

Have fun creating!

YOURS TILL NIAGRA FALLS.......

If you are of a certain vintage, you will recall the days of autograph books. I had forgotten all about them till I discovered one in a thrift store. For you youngsters, every girl had one and took it to school and had her friends write witty little poems in them. 

This one is from the 1800's

This style was from the fifties

Or maybe you had one like this

See how many of these you remember.

By hook or by crook

I'll be last in your book.

Barbara had a cat

It swallowed a ball of yarn.

And when the cat got kittens,

They all had sweaters on.

Latin is a language

As dead as dead can be.

It killed the ancient Romans,

And now it's killing me.

Don't make love at the garden gate
Love is blind but the neighbours ain't.


A kiss is a germ
Or so it's been stated.
But kiss me quick,
I'm vaccinated.


If there was a boy's camp
Across the sea,
What a good swimmer
Sandy would be.


When you are married
And have a pair of twins
Don't come to me
For safety pins.


OUQT
INVU


If you want a taste
Of heaven's joys
Think more of the Lord
And less of the boys.


There are tulips in the garden
There are tulips in the park
Best best of all tulips
Are the two lips that meet in the dark


Yours til Niagra Falls


Yours til soda pops.


Yours til butter flies


Yours til the U.S. drinks Canada Dry



Your teeth are like the stars, he said
And pressed her hand so white.
He spoke the truth for like the stars
Her teeth came out at night,


Yours til the mountains peak and see the salad dressing


Though your tasks are many
And your rewards are few
Remember that the mighty oak
Was once a nut like you.


If I were a head of lettuce
I'd cut myself in two.
I'd give the leaves to all my friends
And save the heart for you.


Yours til France takes Turkey and dips it in Greece and feeds it to the Hungary USA


Mary had a little lamb
Her father shot it dead
Now Mary carries that lamb to school
Between two hunks of bread.


Grandma has a habit
Of chewing in her sleep
She chews on Grandpa's whiskers
And thinks it's shedded wheat.


In the breadbox of your affections, consider me a crumb.


Twas in a restaurant they first met
Romeo and Juliet
Twas there that he got into debt
Cause Rom-e-owed what Jule-et.


It was midnight on the back porch
Two lips wee tightly pressed
The old man gave the signal
And the bulldog did the rest.

My favourite of all time is one my Dad wrote for me. He of course knew none of the little rhymes, so wrote his own:

Marianne is a pretty little girl
Her hair is the colour of a squirrel.

I carried that page in my wallet for years.

 I wish I still had it.