Around the Campfire 🔥 (week 20)

Dear Campers ~

Here's a quick recap in case you missed anything at camp this week:


Posts ~
5.12: around the campfire (week 19)
5.13: macrame owl
5.14: Tip-sy Tuesday: cleaning the microwave
5.15: bread pudding with whiskey sauce
5.16: Mediterranean lentil salad
5.17: pet emergency care
5.18: patriotic rag wreath x2

What's Cooking ~

• grilled chicken sausage, spaghetti squash with red sauce
• spice-rubbed pork loin, butternut squash ravioli, roasted broccoli
• grilled steak, caesar salad
• buffalo salad (buffalo burger patties on top of shredded lettuce, black beans, corn, tomatoes, avocado, shredded cheese, tortilla strips, southwest dressing)
• grilled thin chicken breast, cheese pierogi, roasted asparagus
• tuna with greek salad, roasted garbanzo beans

took a couple cool shots at my niece's soccer game

Miscellaneous stuff keeping me busy ~

• read "I like you" by Amy Sedaris, weird but fun book about entertaining;  and "Y is for Yesterday" the last of Sue Grafton's alphabet novel series (she passed away before writing "Z is for Zero", so sad). 
• planted the "garden" (you know, my big container boxes on the deck) with tomatoes, green beans, sugar snap peas (mostly for Lucy the bird), lettuces. Also did the flower pots and am trying to grow sweet peas from seeds - I love sweet peas and really hope they work!
• put together two patio tables without bloodshed, believe me that's not usually what happens. 

This upcoming week holds lots of fun stuff - see how to deal with a whole pineapple, make pineapple "flowers", there'll be a craft or two of course; and see the first post of a new series that I'm starting called "My Sister is Hungry" in which I'll be making food for her and her family, and they'll be "reviewing" the recipe and dish (and me haha!) - sort of a take on her "Hello Fresh" reviews (click here and here) only I'm providing the dish already done for her (because how many times does she have to hint about not liking to cook before she knew I'd break down and start cooking for her??). I'm picking what I'm making them (ahem bossy older sisters can do that),  told her to be as honest as possible and it won't hurt my feelings! Although we'll see...if she makes me mad enough that might be the end of the series LOL!! See what you think and give me some feedback if you want to see more...I think it'll be a fun new way for me to try recipes, I get to help out my sis and also stop hearing her whine about not wanting to cook, and also a convenient way for her to add her two cents regarding my cooking ;)

Have a great, healthy, happy, and creative week!

Sincerely ~

Jill

Camp counselor and bossy sister

Patriotic Rag Wreath x2

This is a re-post from last summer's patriotic rag wreath - back then I only made one (even though I had planned for 2) 'cuz I didn't start on them until a few days before the Fourth of July and I ran out of time. Woke up this morning thinking if I'd just put the second one together already I could hang them on our double front doors in time for Memorial Day - and I'll have them for the 4th too. The second one took me less than an hour and a half since I already knew what I was doing this time.

From 6/26/18:
Oh my gosh, I love-love how this wreath turned out! I've never made a rag wreath before and I just this morning decided I should attempt one for a July 4th front door decoration (I realize there aren't many days left in June!) - when I told the fabric cutting lady at the craft store what I'm making she goes "well you better hurry up" hahaha. No judging, fabric cutting lady!

This is simple to make, a little bit time consuming but not bad, maybe a couple hours. All it requires is cutting strips (and if you have a rotary cutter it goes really fast - I recommend you get one if you don't already have!! - but you can cut them by hand of course) and tying them onto a wire wreath. We have 2 front doors so I need to make another one quickly, but I wanted to show you this asap in case you also want to make a rag wreath at the last minute! I'll make the second one tomorrow morning - or find a place where I can hang one by itself!

There are different ways to make these (look online for examples), I asked someone at the craft store (the fabric cutting lady hadn't made one so she wasn't helpful haha) if they had any tips for making a rag wreath...she said she doesn't cut the strips short and tie each one on (lots of the online examples do that) - you can save time by cutting the strips twice as long and doubling it over, stick the loop thru the wire wreath then bring the ends back thru the loop and pull, like a slip knot. That's a great tip - I did that and it was easy and sped the process up.

I cut strips of fabric 1.5" x roughly 10.5" - they do not need to be perfect at all, and best part - you don't need to sew anything. The edges of the material will fray and that adds to the look, don't make the wreath totally uniform and neat. Also vary which way you put the loops thru the wreath so some tails go up and some go down. There are 4 rings on the wire wreath form - I found I liked how it looked when I fed 1 strip over the first two rings, a second strip over rings 2 and 3, then a third strip over rings 3 and 4, then keep repeating. My 16" wreath has 8 sections, each section took 25 strips pushed very tightly together (I took lots of pictures, hopefully they help).

my 5 coordinating fabrics, and one tired helper

one segment of the wreath holds 25 strips

an unexpected surprise - the back of the wreath looks so cool! I might hang it backwards.

close up of the front (LeDonna had the idea to
add flags to the wreath - it's a good finishing touch. 

close up of the back - love this!

I'm in the process of making paper pinwheels (more on that later), look how good it looks on the wreath!

after you cram in as many strips as possible, go back thru and  fluff it by pulling
on the knots and directing them which way to go - no gaps or holes! 

Pet Emergency Care

Did you know it is "pet first aid awareness month"? I wasn't aware there's even a pet first aid awareness month, let alone that it's May. This post is from my vet regarding pet first aid and I thought I'd pass it along - hopefully we never need to use this information but it's a great thing to keep on hand just in case! There's lots of info online but here's one link for some basic info - click here for the link to the AVMA (American Veterinary Medical Assoc.) article. The American Red Cross has a free app you can download full of useful info, click here to read about the app. 

Mediterranean Lentil Salad

Made this salad for lunch and it's really good - fresh, crunchy, colorful, and healthy. What more could you want? (except maybe bacon. I always want bacon. And a donut.) I asked my sissy to come over for lunch but she has a "job" and is "very busy" and couldn't possibly take "that much time" for lunch...her loss! (kidding, she is genuinely super busy and I'm just messing with her). 

Ingredients:

• 2 cups lentils
• 1 cup julienned kale
• 3/4 cup diced roasted red peppers
• 3/4 cup diced sun-dried tomatoes
• 3/4 cup diced cucumber
• 3/4 cup diced kalamata olives
• 1/3 cup diced red onion
• 4 ounces crumbled feta cheese
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• lemon juice and zest, optional

Rinse the lentils and place them in a large pot. Add about 6 cups of water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil then reduce heat to a simmer, cook until lentils are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain off any remaining water. 

Dressing:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon dreid oregano
• salt and pepper to taste

Whisk to combine. 

6-8 servings. Salad can be served immediately or refrigerated up to 3 days. 

My notes: I didn't make this with their exact amounts, winged that part. Pretty much did equal parts of all the ingredients, but I made a lot less - probably half. I didn't want to make all 8 servings because Dave didn't even want to try this salad (because apparently lentils are too weird or something). Whatever. ! Also, I used my salad dressing cruet thing that came with a seasoning packet of dressing, (not sure maybe Wishbone?) so I didn't follow the recipe amounts called for - I filled up the cruet to the vinegar line (probably 1/4 cup), added a teaspoon of dijon mustard, a teaspoon of maple syrup, 1 teaspoon dried oregano, salt and pepper to taste, then topped off with olive oil (less than 1/2 cup). Shake it all up and drizzle on the amount you want, store the rest to use for other salads. 

Click here for the original recipe

French Bread Pudding with Whiskey Sauce

According to Dave, Janis makes The. Best. Bread. Pudding. He is literally obsessed with it - anytime she is bringing dessert he crosses his fingers and prays she'll make bread pudding. Seriously he's kind of obnoxious about it LOL but she's a good sport and makes it. I've made bread pudding once (not this recipe - click here for a different one) and it was good, but she is the master and was nice enough to share the recipe - trust me, if you like bread pudding you are going to love this!

FRENCH BREAD PUDDING WITH WHISKEY SAUCE

Serves 6

Bread Pudding

1 cup sugar

8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter, softened

5 eggs, beaten

2 cups heavy cream

Dash of cinnamon

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

½ cup raisins or dried cranberries

12 slices, each 1-inch thick, fresh or stale French bread

Whiskey Sauce

1 cup sugar

1 cup heavy cream

1 cinnamon stick or a dash of ground cinnamon

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

½ teaspoon  cornstarch

1 tablespoon bourbon

¼ cup additional water

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2.  In a large bowl cream together the sugar and butter.  Add eggs, cream, cinnamon, vanilla, and raisins or dried cranberries.  Mix well and pour into a 9-inch square pan.

3.  Arrange bread slices flat in the egg mixture and let stand for 5 minutes to soak up some of the liquid.  Turn bread over and let stand for 10 minutes longer.  Then push bread down so that most of it is covered by the egg mixture.

4.  Set pan in a bain-marie (placing pan with pudding in a large shallow pan of warm water).  Cover with aluminum foil.  Bake for 45-50 minutes, uncovering pudding for the last 10 minutes to brown the top. When done, the custard should still be soft, not firm.

5.  To make the sauce:  In a saucepan, combine sugar, 1 cup cream, cinnamon, and butter.  Bring to a boil.  Add in the cornstarch mixed with the ¼ cup water and cook, stirring until sauce is clear (like skim milk).  Remove from the heat and stir in whiskey.

6.  To serve:  Spoon the warm pudding onto dessert plates and pass the sauce separately.

Bread pudding can also be served without the sauce and replaced with vanilla ice cream.

Tip-sy Tuesday: Clean the Microwave

My microwave is built in and pretty high up - it's not easy for me to reach the back and top of it so if I need to clean any harder than just wiping it I usually have to get the stool out. Janis gave me this tip and it works (!) - microwave a cup of water for a minute or two and the steam helps loosen anything that's dried and stuck on. Now I can just wipe the surface without having to use so much elbow grease - so much faster, lots less work, and I don't have to get the stool out to scrub!

Macrame Owl

I've been on a macrame kick lately so all the supplies are out on my craft table - when I saw the pattern for this owl of course I had to try it. It didn't take long to make and the directions are easy, worst part was finding beads that had a large enough center hole for the cord to thread thru. Isn't it cute? I bought more beads so I can make more of these cutie owls :)

                  

directions found here at free-macrame-patterns.com, I'm not going to write them all out again - the pattern is easy to follow and no reason for me to try to re-do what they've already done well hahah.

Around the Campfire 🔥 (week 19)

Dear Campers ~

Did you enjoy the week of new posts after having a couple weeks of reruns? Here's what happened at camp in case you missed anything:

Posts ~
5.5: 🔥 (week 18)
5.6: tiny macrame plant hangers
5.7: Tip-sy Tuesday: vanilla
5.8: Jenny's beef enchiladas
5.9: booty lifter exercise
5.10: DIY headboard
5.11: rigatoni with sausage and fennel

What's cooking ~

• rigatoni with sausage and fennel, citrus salad (I'll share the recipe soon!), Cathy's strawberry pie
• grilled chicken with mediterranean vegetable bake (recipe to follow), roasted garbanzo beans
• pork loin, pierogi with tomatoes and peas
• chicken sausages, tri-color vegetable saute

Miscellaneous things keeping me busy that aren't a whole post ~

• read "Modern Lovers" by Emma Straub which was just ok (Vacationers is much better), "Maine" by J. Courtney Sullivan which is really good, and "Cook like a pro" by Ina Garten. 
• saw this tip for slicing a bunch of cherry tomatoes at the same time by placing them between two plates - um, yeah... that didn't work.
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  Hope to see you next week at camp - check back often for more recipes, tips, crafts, and whatever other projects I come up with! Have a great week :)
  
  
  Sincerely ~
  
  
  
  
  Jill
  camp counselor and tomato tip trier (and failer!)

Rigatoni with Sausage and Fennel

Made this for dinner last weekend with Al and Cathy - it's an Ina Garten (Barefoot Contessa) recipe that is so so so good. Rich, creamy, flavorful; it's also quite easy to make and can be made ahead of time which is perfect for having company over - I made the sauce earlier in the day and just reheated it before adding to the hot cooked pasta. It's so good that Al turned around and made it again this week - I'm with him, I totally would eat this twice in one week! I pretty much followed her recipe with the exception of adding a little hot Italian sausage along with the mild, see my notes under the recipe.

• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 3 cups chopped fennel (1 large bulb)
• 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onion
• 1 1/4 pounds sweet Italian sausages, casings removed
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic (2 cloves)
• 1/2 teaspoon whole fennel seeds, crushed with a mortar and pestle
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup dry white wine
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2/3 cup half-and-half
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 pound rigatoni
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 1 cup freshly grated Italian Parmesan cheese, divided

Directions:

1. Heat the olive oil in a large heavy pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the fennel and onion and saute for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until tender. Add the sausage and cook for 7-8 minutes, crumbling it with a fork, until nicely browned. Add the garlic, fennel seeds, red pepper flakes, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper and cook for one minute. Pour in the wine, bring to a boil, and add the heavy cream, half-and-half, and tomato paste. Bring back to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, until the sauce has thickened.

2. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil, add 2 tablespoons salt, and cook the rigatoni according to package directions. Drain and add to the sauce, stirring to coat the pasta. Cook over low heat for 5 minutes to allow the pasta to absorb the sauce. Remove from heat, stir in the parsley and 1/2 cup of the parmesan cheese. Serve hot with the remaining 1/2 cup parmesan on the side. 

My notes: 

1) if you can't find bulk Italian sausage just buy links and remove the meat from 

the casing. To do that you just make a slit down the side and pull the casing off. 

Super easy. I used one pound of bulk mild Italian and 2 hot sausage links, went a

little lighter on the red pepper flakes - adjust this according to your spicy preference. 

I do not like very spicy but this combination was perfect for me.

                             

2) I don't have a mortar and pestle, so to crush the fennel seeds I put them in a 

small ramekin and smashed them with the handle of my meat pounder - totally 

worked. 
                             

 3) If you've never used fennel before: Cut the feathery tops off the bulb and cut the 

bulb in half. Remove the core then chop the fennel in small pieces, maybe 1/2". 

After they cook down there isn't noticeable pieces so don't worry about 

having big fennel chunks in the sauce.

1) I chopped up two small fennel bulbs to get 3 cups - side note, the tops of fennel are
really pretty and after cutting them off the bulb I added them to some grocery 

store flowers for the table centerpiece. A week later both the flowers and the fennel

tops are still going strong. 

click here for original source. 

"Cooking for Jeffrey" by Ina Garten © Clarkson Potter 2016. 

Provided courtesy of Ina Garten. All rights reserved.

DIY Door Headboard

Mark made this gorgeous headboard out of a door turned on its side, topped with crown molding, attached two boards for the legs, and a trim piece down the side to support and finish it; all painted and distressed so it looks like it's one piece. How great is this?!