Hanging Initials

     With this post, I am trying out the whole schedule thingy where I write the post now and it publishes at a time that I tell it to. The reason I am doing this is because I made these for Rachel's birthday present. If I were to post it now when I am making it, there is a possibility (although very slight because I highly doubt she even reads my blog even though I have asked her to do so countless times) that she will see it and the surprise will be ruined.
     I don't recall seeing this on Pinterest, but if I did and the author of the blog or whatever that originally came up with this happens to run across this post, I apologize if it seems as though I am taking this and claiming it as my own. I actually think that it is a combination of several pins.
     I purchased the things needed to make these at Craft Warehouse, but I would assume that other places like Michael's and JoAnn would have them too. To make them you will need:

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          Unpainted MDF Letters
          Scrapbook paper (one for every letter unless using smaller letters)
          Adhesive Spray
          X-acto Knife
          Rhinestones
          Tacky Glue (or something similar)
          Toothpick
          Picture Hangers (I used ones that were referred to as "Triangular Hangers.")
          Hot Glue Gun
          Newspaper (to keep your work surface clean)
          Large, heavy book (I used "Munschworks" since it was nearby.)

     Lay out the newspaper over your work surface so it doesn't get all sticky from the spray.
     Spray the letter with a good coating of Adhesive Spray. Also spray the wrong side (the side that you do not want showing) of the scrapbook paper lightly.
     Place the letter on the paper sticky side down. On top of this, place a sheet of newspaper and your heavy book. (You probably don't need the sheet of newspaper, but I did it to be safe so that my book would not accidentally stick to my letter.)
     Let the letter set for a few minutes until the letter is dry.
     Once the letter is dry, turn it paper side down on your work surface. Using the X-acto Knife, cut out around the edges of the letter.
     After cutting around the edges of the letter, flip over and use the X-acto Knife to cut all the way through the paper.
     Arrange the rhinestones on the letter however you would like (arrange without glue first so you don't make a commitment until you are sure you like where they are all placed).
     Using a toothpick, place small drops of glue where you would like to place the rhinestones. (I found that the easiest way to pick up the rhinestones is to lick your finger and then press down on the rhinestone.) 
     Allow the Tacky Glue to completely dry (I left mine overnight.)
     Using a hot glue gun, attach the picture hangers to the back of your letters. (My letters had plastic hanger thingies on them for when they were in the store that I had removed before working with them; this is where I attached my picture hangers.)
     Hang up your letters and enjoy!

     Note: The instructions for how to attach the paper to the letters go along with the directions on my can of Adhesive Spray. You may want to check your can to make sure that they are the same.

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This is what the letters look like prior to attaching the paper.

These are what my hangers looked like. I did not use the screws as the letters were too thin.

My rhinestones are clear, but this is basically what they look like.

     The final product:

      I haven't given these to her yet so I have no idea where she is going to hang them. Hopefully she likes them. I'll give you an update after she puts them up.

"What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

- Juliet in Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet"                

Garlic Cheese Twists

     Last night we had spaghetti and rather than having the usual garlic toast, I decided to make the Garlic-Cheese Twists that I found a recipe online for. (I apologize that I cannot remember where I found it so if the person who originally posted this sees this, would you please provide a link in the comments and I will update the posting giving you credit.)
     To make the twists:

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          3 cups All-Purpose Flour
          2 1/2 tsp Active Dry Yeast
          1 T Granulated Sugar
          1 1/2 tsp Salt
          1 1/4 cups warm Water
          1 T Extra Virgin Olive Oil*
          1 clove Garlic, minced
          Cheddar Cheese
          Extra Virgin Olive Oil for brushing

     Spray two baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray.
     Combine half of the flour (1 1/2 cups) with yeast, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add warm water and oil. Beat on medium speed until smooth, about 4 minutes.
     Stir in garlic and as much of the remaining flour needed to make a stiff dough.
     Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.
     Divide dough into fourths (I used a pizza cutter). Shape each portion into a ball and then divide each ball into ten portions. Shape each of these portions into a stick.
     For each twist, brush one stick with water and twist with another stick. Make sure to press together at the ends so they stay together.
     Arrange all the twists on the baking sheets about two inches apart.
     Brush twists with olive oil and sprinkle with Cheddar cheese.
     Cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free place for about 50 minutes. (I put mine in the oven with the light turned on, a tip that I learned on Pinterest.)
     Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
     Bake until lightly browned, 12 to 15 minutes. Serve warm.

     *The original recipe calls for Canola Oil, but I live Extra Virgin Olive Oil better and think it provides a better flavor.

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Before raising. They get bigger, but don't quite double. (I forgot to take a picture after they rose.)

Fresh out of the oven.

     The consensus? They need more garlic. You can hardly tell that there is any in there. This is most likely due to the fact that fresh garlic is not as potent as granulated garlic. Next time I make them (and there will be a next time), I am going to use two cloves of garlic and possibly sprinkle a little bit on top of the twists along with the cheese.
     Dad said that he liked how they were kind of crispy on the bottom. Mom said that was what she didn't like about them. So, next time, one pan will be baked a little less so Mom can have breadsticks that are not at all crispy.
     And Rachel? It's bread and cheese, two of her favorite foods, so there was no question about whether or not she liked them. No, the question was how many she would eat. I didn't count how many, so I can't tell you, but I do know that she ate one right as they came out of the oven, at at least one at dinner , and took at least one in her lunch today.
     I reheated one to have with my lunch today and they are still as good as they were last night.

"Tomatoes and oregano make it Italian; wine and tarragon make it French. Sour cream makes it Russian; lemon and cinnamon make it Greek. Soy sauce makes it Chinese; garlic makes it good." 

- Alice May Brock      

Blueberry Lemon Muffins

     Mom had promised all summer long that she would make a batch of Blueberry Lemon Muffins. She never did, so I decided that I would make them. This is my first time making them so I am hoping that they are going to turn out as good as her's. To make Blueberry Lemon Muffins:

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Blueberry Lemon Muffins

     Makes 12 muffins.*

 

           2 eggs

           1/2 c melted butter

           1 c sugar

           1 c plain yogurt

           2 c flour

           1 tsp baking powder

           1/2 tsp baking soda

           1 tsp lemon zest**

           1 c blueberries***

     Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

     Beat together eggs, melted butter, and sugar.

     Stir in yogurt.

     Add dry ingredients just until blended.

     Fold in lemon zest and blueberries.

     Spoon batter into muffin tins that have been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

     Bake 25 minutes or until a toothpick that has been inserted in the middle of a few of the muffins comes out clean.****

     *This is what the recipe I used says, but I found that there was more batter after filling the 12 muffin cavities in the muffin tin so I put the extra in a mini loaf pan and made a mini loaf of Blueberry Lemon Bread.

     **I am of the mindset that you can never have enough lemon, so I just added the zest of a whole lemon.

     ***A tip that I learned a while ago is that when using berries, chocolate chips, nuts, etc. in a recipe, toss them in flour before adding to the batter. This will prevent them from sinking to the bottom of whatever it is that you are making. I know it sounds like an old wives' tale, but it really does work.

     ****My muffins were done after 20 minutes and the mini loaf after 25.

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     I would be eating one right now, but since they just came out of the oven, I have a feeling that I would not be able to enjoy it as much as I would like and would burn my mouth. They do smell delicious.

Melted butter, eggs, and sugar. Look how nice and yellow it is from farm fresh eggs.

Yogurt has already been stirred in. This is before the dry ingredients have been added.

With the lemon zest and blueberries.

This is how I floured my blueberries. I put a little bit of flour in the measuring cup and then added the blueberries and stirred with a spoon.

In the muffin tin pre baking.

In the muffin tin post baking.

      You have no idea how good these smell right now, but I am being good and restraining myself from eating one... for now.

Two muffins were sitting in an oven.
One muffin said to the other, "Ooh, gettin' a bit hot in here don't you think?"
The other backed away in surprise, "Oh My God!! A Talking Muffin!!"

Easy Breezy Waffles

     Sometimes when we have our cased pork sausage for dinner, we will have waffles with it. They are extremely easy to make and very delicious. To make them:

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Easy Breezy Waffles

          1 3/4 c. flour
          3 tsp baking powder
          1/2 tsp salt
          2 beaten egg yolks
          1 c. milk
          1/2 c. cream*
          2 egg whites, beaten until stiff peaks form

     Sift dry ingredients together.
     Combine egg yolks, milk, and cream; stir into dry ingredients.
     Fold in egg whites leaving a few fluffs - do not over mix.
     Bake in preheated waffle iron.
     Makes about 5 waffles depending on how big you make them.

     *I usually use Heavy Whipping Cream, but Half and Half works too.

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     I think it is nearly impossible to mess these up (unless you forget to plug in the waffle iron or forget the waffle in the waffle iron). I like to put butter, applesauce (homemade of course), and cream on mine. They are also good with the traditional butter and maple syrup.

Dry Ingredients

Egg Yolks, Milk, and Cream

Beaten Egg Whites

Wet ingredients have been added and egg whites have been folded in. As stated in the recipe, make sure to leave some fluffs. This makes your waffles nice and fluffy.

Waffle!!! Yum!

     As you can see, I did not take a picture of my waffle on my plate with the applesauce and cream... I kind of forgot until after I had eaten most of it. Oops.

"We can stay up late, swapping manly stories, and in the morning, I'm making waffles!"

- Donkey from "Shrek"

Hamburger Pizza

     Mmm... Pizza. Who doesn't like pizza? Seriously. The nice thing about pizza is that you can pretty much put anything on it that you want. And if you make it with a sugar cookie crust, it can be a dessert pizza.
     This pizza dough is super easy to make and can also be used to make calzones. To make it:

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            3 ¼ to 3 ¾ c flour
           2 ¼ tsp. yeast
           1 ½ tsp. salt
           1 ¼ c warm water
           3 T oil

     In large bowl, combine 1 ½ c flour, yeast, and salt. 

     Add warm water and oil. 

     Blend at low speed until moist. 

     Beat 3 minutes a medium speed. 

     By hand stir in enough flour to make firm dough. 

     Knead 3-5 minutes. 

     Cover dough with plastic wrap or a warm towel. Let rise 20 minutes. 

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     This can be topped with whatever pizza toppings your heart desires. This time, I topped ours with:

     Hamburger (fried with chopped onion and seasoned with salt and pepper),

     Canadian Bacon,

     Olives (cut up into fourths),

     Shredded Cheese (mozzarella and cheddar), and

     Pineapple Chunks.

     To make the pizza, make the dough from the recipe above. After it has risen for 20 minutes, stretch it out onto pizza sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. You can also use a cookie sheet or make personal sized pizzas using pie plates.

     The sauce can either be homemade or store-bought. (I used store bought this time because I totally forgot about making the sauce and everyone was getting hungry.) To make pizza sauce:

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            1 8oz can tomato sauce
           2 tsp. oregano
           ¾ tsp. salt
           1/8 tsp. garlic
           1/8 tsp. pepper

     Combine the above ingredients and stir well. It is a good idea to make it prior to starting the pizza dough so the flavors have a chance to incorporate better. It also works fine to make it and use it right away.

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     After putting all the toppings you want on your pizza, put it in a 425 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown on both the edges and the bottom. Check on the pizza a couple times while it is baking and rotate it to make sure that the pizza is cooked evenly. Let the pizza set for a few minutes before cutting it or you will have a problem with all of your toppings wanting to fall off.

     To make calzones, make the pizza dough from the above recipe. When we have calzones, they are usually filled with the same things that we put on hamburger pizza minus the pineapple (it is too juicy to put in them). However, you can fill it with you want. When my cousin makes them, she fills them with sausage (fried and seasoned with salt and pepper), pepperoni, olives, and cheese. 

     Break off a section of the pizza dough and stretch it into a circle that is about 5 inches across (unless you want to make mini calzones, but those are a lot of work). Place your fillings on one half of the dough. Fold over the other half of the dough and press the edges together to seal. Place on a pizza sheet or cookie sheet that have been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray. Bake in a 425 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until they are golden brown. Make sure to rotate the pan at least once to ensure even baking.

     Other variations we have used this pizza dough recipe for are:

          BBQ Chicken Pizza -  BBQ Sauce instead of Pizza Sauce with two chicken breasts that have been seasoned with salt and pepper, cooked in a pan, and then chopped up (we use a Pampered Chef Food Chopper).

          Honey Chipolte Pizza - Foster Farms Honey Chipolte Chicken Breasts (we buy them from Costco) that have been cooked in a pan and chopped up. For this one, we still have not decided if we like it better with Olive Oil or normal Pizza Sauce.

     And now... Pictures!!!!!!!

The dry ingredients

This is what it looks like after you have added the wet ingredients and mixed it for 3 minutes.

After adding the wet ingredients, you slowly begin to work in the rest of your flour. This is what it looks like when it starts to come together.

Kneading the dough. A very important step.

After the dough has been kneaded and returned to the bowl.

Twenty minutes later, your dough will have at least doubled in size. It does better if there is no draft. I like to cover mine with plastic as well as a light towel that I have put in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

Stretch out the dough onto your pizza sheet that has been sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

Add your toppings.

After coming out of the oven.

     The nice thing about making your own pizza rather than getting delivery, somewhere like Papa Murphys, or buying a frozen one is that you get to control what you have on your pizza and how much of everything you want on it. This helps to please everyone who eats it. For example, my sister does not like pineapple, so there is no pineapple on 1/4 of this pizza and my cousin who was there for dinner does not like olives (crazy kid) so there are no olives on 1/4 of the pizza. In the end, everyone is happy and no one ends up with a pile of toppings on their plate because they are things that they do not like.      

 "Pizza. Great equalizer. Rich people love pizza. Poor people love pizza. White people love pizza. Black people love pizza."

-Michael Scott - "The Office"