Sunday, September 11, 2011

a pretty little number


Just another card I recently put together for a dear colleague of mine. The paper is from Pink Paislee's "Butterfly Garden" and Graphic 45's "Once Upon a Springtime". The flower is Prima with stick pins from Maya Road. Just a simple piece of twine ties it all together in the opposite corner. I apologize for the blurry pictures. The card was finished after the sun went down and I still refused to use my flash - silly girl! I tried to create enough natural lighting - but didn't quite succeed! Oh well - the lessons of photography!


Hope you are enjoying the end of your weekend!

Thanks for looking!

xoxo



Tuesday, September 6, 2011

a warm country howdy!



This cute little card was made with a few scraps from the childhood mini album I shared yesterday. I used a cream card base with paper from Crate Paper's "Emma's Shoppe". The farm gal is from Crafty Secrets farm scraps - so cute!


47 degrees this morning.....ummm - what?! Good Lord I'm not ready for fall just yet! It turned out to be a super, sunny, 70 degree day. But even so, we needed something warm in our tummies tonight. I stumbled upon this recipe a little while ago and since I am a corn maniac I couldn't wait to try it! This is not a real thick creamy soup - but it was still surprisingly tasty. The chipotle powder adds a nice smokiness while the jalapeno and pepper flakes add a lip tingling kick. The bacon on top was surely my favorite part! We omitted the chicken and it was still yummy.


Corn Chowder
8 servings

Ingredients
5 strips thick cut bacon; sliced into ½ inch pieces
1 sweet onion, diced
2 carrots peeled and chopped
2 stalks of celery chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped
6 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon chipotle seasoning
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes (add more if you like some heat)
6 cups vegetable stock
2 cups heavy cream
2 Idaho potatoes, peeled and diced
6-8 ears corn
2 cups cooked and shredded chicken; I use rotisserie chicken from the local market
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
green onions; sliced for garnish

Directions
1. In a Dutch oven, cook bacon over medium high heat until crisp; remove bacon with a slotted spoon and allow to drain and reserve for garnish.
2. Reduce heat to medium. Add the onion, carrots, celery, garlic, jalapeno and thyme to the bacon drippings and cook until the vegetables are soft; about 8 to 10 minutes. Dust the vegetables with flour, chipotle seasoning, crushed red pepper flakes and stir to coat well.
3. Cook vegetables, flour and seasonings for 2 minutes; stir frequently.
4. Pour in the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Add the cream and the potatoes, bring to a rapid boil. Allow soup to boil hard for about 7 minutes, until the potatoes break down. This process will help thicken the soup.
4. Cut the corn kernels off the cobs and add to the soup. Season with salt and pepper to taste and add in the cooked chicken. Simmer until the corn is soft and chicken is heated through; about 10 to 12 minutes.
5. Stir in the parsley. Ladle the soup into bowls and garnish with the reserved bacon and green onions.

recipe courtesy of My Baking Addiction


Monday, September 5, 2011

childhood memories mini


Hello my dear friends!

Well life turned me into a busy bee for the last month and a half. I've been back in school for the last three weeks - can you believe it?! It was so nice to see all the smiling kiddos - but I really wasn't ready to give up my summer! I've tried to suck every minute of sunshine that I can before it gets too cool to read outside.

I did manage to get this little number finished a few weeks ago - perfect for capturing a little princess's memories. I just fell in love with this line by Crate Paper. So vintage - but bright and fun too! Just 10 pages of yummy goodness with a little mini paper bag album tucked inside. This album was designed with the intent to share a little girl's childhood pastimes....whether comparing a mother and daughters memories or preserving your grandmother's events from long ago. The album measures 6"x6" and was cut from sturdy cardstock. Many vintage bits and baubles were added throughout to stick with the vintage theme.
















Phew! Lots of pictures!
Hope you were inspired!
xoxo