Sunday, March 29, 2015

Bread for the Journey

"the crowd spread their coats in the road, and others were cutting branches from the trees and spreading them in the road. The crowds going ahead of him and those who followed, were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David; BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD; Hosanna in the highest!"
Matthew 21:8-9

Friday, March 27, 2015

Carrot Cake

I'm not sure if I ever shared this recipe with my readers before, but it's such a good one, especially with Easter on the horizon.


My friend makes the best Carrot Cake, so what better time to share it!

Carrot Cake

2 Cups All purpose Flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
3 cups grated carrots
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 cups sugar
1 /2 cup walnuts (chopped)
4 eggs

Grease and flour three round 9" pans.  Sift dry ingredients.  Add all other ingredients except eggs.  Add eggs one at a time.  Mix well.  

Bake 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Cool 5 or so minutes before removing from pan.  Cool completely before icing.

Icing
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1 box confectioners sugar
1/2 stick butter
2 teaspoons vanilla

Cream the butter and cream cheese together.  Add sugar and vanilla.  Ice cake and top with chopped nuts.

Enjoy!


Sunday, March 22, 2015

Bread for the Journey


Spring!
Brings forth Fruit,
Life,
Hope.

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Basketball Tourney

The USF Women's Basketball team is slated to play in tonight's NCAA Tournament.

Two or three years ago, my daughter befriended an International student from USF.  She originates from Sweden and has joined us for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter holidays.  My daughter has studied with her and helped her with her English papers.  We met her family when they visited a couple of years ago. Ivana is a Senior this year, and plays for the USF Women's Basketball team.

But when Ivana asked my husband and me to stand in for her parents, we were both excited and honored.


The USF Women's basketball team is seeded sixth in the tournament.  So the prospects of this being an exciting game are high. 




GO BULLS!

Friday, March 20, 2015

Flowers and Fabric

There are two things I never get tired of.  Flowers and fabric.






I love to compliment flowers with fabric from my stash :-)

The breath of spring is never far behind in my fabric garden.

"I never get tired of looking at my fabric. It's like looking at a beautiful garden that never goes to seed."

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Sneek Preview

I love it when the FedEx truck pulls up in front of my house.  I especially love it when the delivered box is addressed to me :-)  And even more than that, is the pleasure of receiving the new lines of Island Batik fabrics.


Part of the new Spring and Summer collections.  Can't wait to make something beautiful :-)

Island Batik Store
Happy Quilting!

Monday, March 16, 2015

Want to lend a hand?



Hop over to Confessions of a Fabric Addict and sign up for the Hands2Help Challenge.  
You may already have a quilt laying around that would bring comfort to someone.

Let's lend a hand.  It makes for ...
Happy Quilting!

Sunday, March 15, 2015

Friday, March 13, 2015

Cranberry Bliss Bars

My daughter made these desserts recently. The one on the left is a Pumpkin roll. The one of the right is called Cranberry Bliss bars. She found the Starbucks copy cat recipe. And let me say, it's delicious!!!


Cranberry Bliss Bars
Cake

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened 
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar 
3 eggs 
2 tablespoons minced crystallized ginger
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder 
3/4 cup chopped sweetened dried cranberries
4 ounces white chocolate, cut into chunks
Frosting
4-ounces cream cheese, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped sweetened dried cranberries
Drizzled Icing
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vegetable shortening




1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Make cake by beating the butter and brown sugar together with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the eggs, ginger, vanilla, and salt and beat well. Gradually mix in the flour and baking powder until smooth. Mix the chopped dried cranberries and white chocolate chunks into the batter by hand. Pour the batter into a buttered 9 x 13-inch baking pan. Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly across the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the cake is lightly browned on top. Allow the cake to cool.

3. Make the frosting by combining the softened cream cheese, powdered sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. When the cake has cooled, use a spatula to spread the frosting over the top of the cake.

4. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of chopped dried cranberries over the frosting on the cake.

5. Make the drizzled icing by whisking together powdered sugar, milk, and shortening. Drizzle this icing over the cranberries in a sweeping motion with a squirt bottle or fill a small plastic storage bag with the icing and cut off the tip of one corner.

6. Cover the cake and let it chill out in the fridge for a couple hours, then slice the cake lengthwise (the long way) through the middle. Slice the cake across the width three times, making a total of eight rectangular slices. Slice each of those rectangles diagonally creating 16 triangular slices.

Makes 16 bars.

http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/Starbucks-Cranberry-Bliss-Bar-Recipe.html


Monday, March 9, 2015

Best kept secret

For years I have used Hobbs Heirloom Premium Batting for my quilts. We all have our favorites, and I've come to like this brand the best. 

Now what we need to keep under wraps is that this same size batting at the big "JA" store can be a little pricey. I looked online and they are carrying Warm and White for $26.99, and Warm and Natural for $34.99. The price at Michaels for the Hobbs Heirloom QUEEN size batting is regularly $16.99 Whenever "JA" issues a 50% off coupon, I trot on down to Michaels and buy the QUEEN size batting for $8.50. 

Shhhhhhh,............. you didn't hear it from me ;-)

Happy Quilting!

Thursday, March 5, 2015

A day at the beach


Even in February, the beach beckons.

Dig your toes into the sand.

\
Watch the sunset as the sun starts it's descend into the ocean..

Peaceful Quilting!

Monday, March 2, 2015

Yardage chart

One little hint about using yardage for a charm pack pattern is how many 5" squares can you get from a yard of fabric -

1/4 yard = 8 squares
1 fat quarter = 12 squares
1/2 yard = 24 squares
3/4 yard = 40 squares
1 yard = 56 squares

I thought I would go one more step and add the yardage guide for strips. I always find this information helpful when trying to decide how much fabric to purchase.

Width = Strips Per Yard -

1.5" = 23 strips
2" = 17 strips
2.5" = 13 strips
3" = 11 strips
3.5" = 10 strips
4" = 8 strips
4.5" = 7 strips
5" = 7 strips
5.5" = 6 strips
6" = 5 strips

Happy Quilting!