Cheesy Jalapeno Rolls...

"Baby it's cold outside!"

    As the Fall weather winds down and Winter prepares for her debut I find myself preferring the crock pot for dinners. Warm aromas permeating the senses. Warming you from head to toe, heart and soul. Sunday dinner is the perfect opportunity to indulge in the smell of fresh rolls. Rolls with crisp outsides and tender, soft white centers, perfect cheesy layers...

     Because my little one is sensitive to spicy foods we halved our batch of jalapeno rolls. Which also meant we had plain rolls later for a dripping butter and honey dessert! The jalapeno rolls were served with crock pot sloppy joe meat. I used the ingredients from the Food.com version of Test Kitchens: Sloppy Joe Recipe.  To convert the recipe to crock pot, simply brown your meat, onions and garlic. Then add it as well as the other ingredients to your crock pot on low for 4-5 hours. Once your meat is going, roll up your sleeves and start the rolls.

   
    Start by combining room temperature milk with warm water and yeast. You could use whole milk, I always have 2% on hand and it works like a charm. Allow the yeast mixture to become frothy before adding it to a mixing bowl that contains: sugar, room temp butter, salt, one egg, and two cups of flour. Mix until everything is wet and well mixed. Change to bread hook and add remaining flour a cup at a time. Mixing well after each addition. When dough is sticky, but firm and pulls away from sides of bowl turn onto floured surface and hand knead until smooth and elastic.

    Allow dough to rest and double in size! Punch down and roll out into a large circle. Add your jalapenos and cheese. Cut into triangles. (I usually get 16 triangles, you can cut more for smaller and more rolls) Roll them up into a cheesy croissant. Place on a buttered baking sheet and allow to rise once more. During the last few minutes of rising, boil 5 cups of water. Pre heat oven and place boiling water on the lowest rack with the rolls on the middle rack. Hello crispy crust. Hello tender middle. Bake for 20-25 minutes until tops are golden brown. Brush tops with melty butter. Serve warm, and of course... Enjoy!

Tulle Mermaid Tail...

   Tulle and hot glue have always been kind to me. Seriously if the house was on fire I would grab the kids, family pics, my craft bins and my glue gun... Maybe some clean underwear if there was time to spare.

     There was the seven (fingers bleeding by the end) Peter Pan fairy costumes. Two Halloweens ago an adorable Hoot Owl . Last years Olaf and Elsa. Tulle and I are friends. Inexpensive, easy, with endless possibilities....

   This year the baby doll has been dreaming. Dreaming of mermaids... or "wormaids" as she pronounces it. She is dreaming of red flowing hair and a shiny green tail. However, one thing I truly cannot stand about tulle is how messy bunches of it can get. I have tried everything to keep it from bunching up. Its usually a catastrophe. The Elsa dress was fabulous, but by the end of the night it was a ball of static electric leaves and crud.

    I kept thinking about this as I began to formulate a plan for the wormaid tail of a little girls dreams. After playing around a bit... this is what I came up with. I used this technique for fairy costumes and it was a hit. I have had numerous dance teachers ask how this was done. I am finally getting to posting a tutorial. By far my favorite. A little tedious, but totally worth it! The best thing (besides its not a fluff ball) is that she can use this tail for dress up after Halloween!

Supplies needed:
For a child size tail.
*4-6 rolls of 25 yard tulle. You can do solid colors or mix up a few.
*Safety pins
*Measuring tape or ruler
*Sewing thread and needles
*Scissors
*Hot glue gun and sticks
*Ironing board. Not necessary, but will make life much easier.

1. Start by taking two measurements. One of the waist and one from the waist to the floor. Add a few extra inches to both of these so the waist can be tied in a fancy bow and you have material to work with on the bottom. Double the waist to floor length so you can fold the material in half, securing it to the waist piece in a slipknot. This is how a basic tulle skirt is fabricated. If you are new to skirt tying Ben Franklin Crafts has a quick and easy tutorial here. Use your waist to floor measurement to cut multiple strips before beginning to tie.

 2. You can tie all of your strips onto the waist band first or take it in sections. I find sections easier. You will be braiding three strands and stitching braids together. The excess tulle will get in the way. Its really up to you. I have done it both ways.

   3. Taking three strands create a braid. Keep even tension. Use a tape measure or ruler to decide where your braid will end and the flared portion of the tail will begin. I like to use safety pins to secure the bottom until they are stitched together. This will also help you keep your braid ends consistent and even.

  4. Take two completed braids, secure your thread at the top of the braid closest to the waist band and use a simple whip stitch to bind the braids together. When you get to your safety pin at the bottom whip stitch the ends of the tulle braids as well to prevent them from coming undone. The third picture in the frame below shows how this is done. Each braid has a straight line of stitching along the bottom.

     5. Secure the end of your thread. I found that the bottom was not quite thick enough, and could be fluffier. Simply add an additional strip of fabric to the backside of the skirt as shown above.

  6. Continue tying, braiding, stitching (I just noticed the typo in my photo) and gluing until the desired width is achieved. Once it is wide enough to go around that wiggly little body you are done! You can stop there, or flip it over to the front and add some bows and additional length and thickness on the front. Your little one will adore you! Tie the excess tulle on the waist band into a fancy bow. I did not apply fixed fasteners on the back. I found looping extra tulle through the braiding secure, adjustable and flexible enough for her to run around in! Trim any long pieces from the bottom.

 
    The stitching portion could be done with a sewing machine for added strength, or just to be a bit quicker. Someone more talented than myself with the sewing machine could probably accomplish this. I found the sewing machine difficult. Once you get the hang of it, the whip stitching goes pretty quick!

    What is your go to material? Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

Pumpkin buttercream? Yes! Please, and thank you!

    I have been having a lot of fun with buttercream lately. Tis the season! Birthdays and celebrations all around, but more importantly pumpkins abound! One cannot login to Facebook without an inundation of pumpkin spice jokes, recipes, and photos. I am by no means a pioneer to the buttercream society. Just dabbling in the joys of creation. Nibbling away at spoonfuls of elation. Turning to tabata in the mornings to keep up with this dangerous habit!

    Last week the lil one and I stood in the kitchen with satisfied grins as we licked the Nutella buttercream beaters clean! This beautiful fall crisp morning, after a few days of recuperating from a wonderful head cold, little and I were feeling ambitious! Working with what we had on hand it was decided warm, flaky, soft centered sugar cookies would be our contribution to the day. Having no cream cheese or traditional ingredients on hand my mind wandered to the stockpiled cans of pumpkin puree.

    A quick Google search confirmed it was possible! I played around with it a bit to create a frosting that would win the hearts of men, women, and children alike! Woah! Cold medicine high! Whip up a batch of your favorite sugar cookies, or chocolate cupcakes, or whatever you fancy! Slather them in orange pumpkin goodness! Our sugar cookies taste like mini ,buttery, melt in your mouth pumpkin pies! Enjoy!

1 cup pumpkin puree (not pie mix)

1/2 cup unsalted sweet cream butter at room temp

1tsp vanilla

1tsp cinnamon

3-5 cups powdered sugar

    With a paddle attachment combine the pumpkin, butter, vanilla and cinnamon. Once it is well combined begin adding powdered sugar 1/2 cup at a time. Mix after each addition. You may notice pearls of butter not combining well with the pumpkin. This will not be noticeable in the completed butter cream. Add powdered sugar until the desired consistency is reached. Once consistency is achieved allow the buttercream to whip for and additional 3-5 minutes. This recipe covered 30 sugar cookies with a luscious thick layer!

Got a minute....

Fall is officially here! Time to get to work! True to fashion, or blog style. I have looked around the house to come up with this quick inexpensive decorating idea! My cost was $0.00! Using some imagination and what you have laying around, is hands down the best way to begin your Fall fun! Next time you are tossing out recycleables... give them another look! Enjoy!

Fall Fun!

    There are so many wonderful decorating ideas floating around! Plenty of inspiration! Talented Bloggers and Pinners abound sharing their creativity!  Easing into the end of the year craft season with a few quick and simple projects can be just the thing you need to get your creative juices flowing! Look around and gather ideas, then make them your own! I fell in love with a tutorial for vintage signs and decided to give it a go!

    It was really quite simple and quick! Cut the wood to the desired length! (I also thought this would be cute on a wide variety of surfaces! Old doors, walls, old windows, just about anything!) Paint colorful stripes! This is where I got nervous! It looked rather weird! I found that I was happier with a straight lined stripe in the finished product... Use masking tape to create letters! Paint over the top with a festive color! Remove tape and allow to dry. Finish with a distressing method of your choice, mine is the old reliable stain distress!

I was having so much fun...

That everybody's getting one!

Fall Feelings!

    I am antsy to get my Fall fingers busy! Unfortunately life has been a little too crazy lately! My patience will have to remain intact until next week! My final race of the season is Saturday! It is bittersweet! I have had a triumphant year, but I am ready for a break! My hometown beckons with its annual celebration, and family will join together on Saturday to pay tribute to our amazing legacy!

Next week its so on!

   Until then enjoy this post from the archives!

    After a weekend of sight seeing I had to get home and create! I was feeling a little burned out and not looking forward to the tasks at hand! A trip to the city set me straight! I received so many curious emails and a comment or two asking about the original picture I posted showing the Fall leaf mobile I had created. I am flattered and feel sort of silly because it was so very easy and cost me nada...

Anthropology! 

One word for love! I immediately fell in love with their display! How clever! I came home from our trip craving a new project! My husband, who is a geologist was not as enthused as I hoped he might be about hanging a rock mobile from our ceiling?! Men! 

So many things I would love to tackle!

While it is not rocks...

The leaves add just the right touch!

    I found some old white string and dismantled an old garland I had stashed, the challenge was trying to figure out how to hang the leaves above the stairs to create the cascading look....Last year for my Coke can Snow flakes.. 

    I used handfuls of thumbtacks to hold them to the ceiling....

  Facing that prospect again, and possibly sudden death as I leaned out over the banister?! I looked around until I found this old wire basket we used for Baby K's socks! It was perfect! I think this would look amazing with real leaves...I was just to antsy to go get some:) I also love the look of the string! It creates a great contrast! So there it is ladies!

Easy Peasy! I want to see your creations!

Raspberry Cream Cheese Pin Wheels...

    Behind the scenes I have been working on perfecting my pastry skills! Yesterday, wanting a delightful treat! Yet not wanting to commit to the time frame a fluffy pastry dough takes, I decided it was time to experiment!

    There has been some debate on whether or not a cream cheese dough can be laminated properly. The fundamental basics of a puff pastry dough depend on a high fat content. This binds your ingredients, and high fat content allows you to create wonderful, flaky layers of goodness by creating air pockets in the dough while baking! A typical puff pastry recipe calls for 24 tablespoons of butter, and can take anywhere from 1 to 3 days to prepare. By omitting more than half the butter and substituting with cream cheese you lose fat content.

  But! Determined am I! 

     My husband has a real sweet tooth! Not the candy and chocolate sweet tooth that I have, but rather a danish, cinnamon roll, monkey bread kinda hankering! I am happy to oblige! I love to have treats ready after school and work! Again, not wanting a treat that took days of anticipation... (all though croissant dough is resting in the fridge as we speak) here is what I came up with! Just a little quicker, different textured version of a great! 

8 T softened unsalted sweet cream butter
4 ounces softened cream cheese cut into cubes
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 T sugar

splash of vanilla

(I wondered about orange zest)

    This can be mixed with a food processor or by hand! I used my food processor. Mix butter, cream cheese, and whipping cream until smooth. Add the flour, salt, sugar, and vanilla and blend/knead until a smooth ball is formed. If dough is too sticky add additional flour a Tablespoon at a time. Let dough rest covered with plastic in the fridge for an hour.

    On a floured surface roll the dough out into a thin rectangle. Then fold into thirds, like a letter... cover with plastic and refrigerate for thirty minutes. After thirty minutes remove and with the open flap towards you roll out again. Fold into thirds, refrigerate. Repeat this step two more times. I turned my dough three times. If dough becomes to sticky to work with pop back into the refrigerator!

These are the layers I achieved with three turns, you could add a few more if you are so inclined!

 Pre heat oven to 350 After the final turn, roll out once more shaping an even rectangle. Cut off the uneven edges. With a pizza cutter or knife divide dough in half lengthwise. Then make 8-10 squares. For a pinwheel shape cut two inches into the corners of your square and fold in on top of your favorite fruit topping! Sprinkle Coarse granulated sugar on top! If you would like that golden brown appearance use an egg wash. I did not do this. Bake until the tops of your pinwheels are browned, mine took about 12 minutes!

    Cream Cheese topping:

At our house we prefer to taste the cream cheese, so this recipe is not the typical sweetened frosting recipe!

4 ounces softened cream cheese

3 T salted sweet cream butter

1 T milk

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Mix it all together until light and fluffy! Top and enjoy!

Bread and Better....

What are you feeding your kids? There is an amazing web article in Parents that has some sandwich ideas that will give you confidence and your kiddo's proper nutrition! 

no truffle at all... A tasty post from the archives!

Get your chocolate on!

     I am so behind! Sweet baby K has been so sick this week and I have been busy keeping her happy. My Valentines prep is suffering! I have finally begun! I am going to share the easiest chocolate truffle recipe with you!  

 For easy peasy chocolate truffles you will need:

16 oz bittersweet chocolate chips
1 cup whipping cream
2 tsp almond extract
truffle toppings of your choice!

 In a saucepan bring your cream and almond extract to a simmer. Stir occasionally. Like my spatula?

 Have your chocolate chips ready in a separate bowl.

 Pour cream over chips and let sit for a few minutes then mix.

Oh my ganache!

     You just created ganache! Refrigerate for three to four hours. Once chilled roll into teaspoon size balls and top! This step gets kind of messy so move fast!

Peanut Butter?

 Feeling encouraged? My husband loves peanut butter! Try this awesome recipe! Peanut butter truffles

     While your mixtures cool get to work on your presentation! I love books so I always feel bad when I destroy one! However...creating a book box is always a fun and unique gift! I found a few old books at the D.I. for under a dollar! Start by gluing the pages and back cover together. Once dried trace a square onto the front inside cover, and using a razor blade carefully begin cutting out your box.

Too cute!

    Once I get close to the back cover I start peeking carefully at the pages remaining until I find a neat picture to stop on. This will serve as your box backdrop.

Yum!

    Truffles rolled and topped! I used two coffee filters to line my box and place my truffles in. It turned out darling! I might have to keep one for myself! Keep refrigerated until ready to share! Happy dipping! 

Peppermint log candles...

     I have had these logs kicking around for awhile now. The intent was to turn them into pumpkins. The pumpkin logs I have already made have been holding up real good. Sooo these logs have sat in the backyard making my husband irritable for some time:)

     I cleaned them up. Brought them in and painted them white. I was relieved when the spray paint did not stick to the oil treated logs because it was chilly outside! I painted them with a latex semi gloss instead whilst keeping warm!

     While the paint dried I gathered some random items still not positive what I was doing. I used some old bulbs we had laying around, some jute, and a few bamboo sticks to fashion my wick and flame.

     When the paint was almost there...I am low on patience:) I used red ribbon and a matching red acrylic paint for my peppermint striping effect.

I really like them! They turned out just like I imagined! Good luck!

Coke can snowflakes...

   I love to find ideas that suite any budget and ability!  

    Cut your can in half...don't throw the top away just yet! Carefully cut and bend the can into strips. Fold the strips in half to begin your snowflake design! Have fun! I used a white spray paint and iridescent glitter to finish...

 

Hang anywhere using fishing line! Love that stuff!

I am working on something fun with this old window.

    Save the tops of your cans to make a lighted snowflake garland! Carefully snip the pop top off and place light through opening. Use the remaining portion of the tab to secure:)