Magic Stromboli

This recipe came to me via a reader/friend, Kelly. It was so simple she posted the whole recipe on my Facebook page! In her instruction she said "roll up and MAGIC stromboli!" So I just knew the dish had to be called Magic Stromboli.

Its a great Be Your Own Chef recipe. I'll put the ingredients that I used as inspiration.

Magic Stromboli

4 crescent rolls (roll of 8 for 2 people)
Cooking spray - olive oil or butter

Pizza Toppings:
3 Pepperonis per roll
1 tablespoon Mozzarella per roll
Sliced onions
Marinated artichokes
Parmesan cheese to top

Pizza Sauce:
1/2 c. Tomato paste
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried oregano

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lay out 4 crescent rolls with edges all pressed together on a sprayed baking sheet. Fill with your favorite toppings. Be careful to not overfill. Roll up and magic stromboli! Spray with cooking spray and sprinkle on Parmesan cheese. Bake for 11 minutes. Serve with a salad.

They were flaky and tasty. Be sure to make a salad or something extra to go with these. Or plan to eat all four yourself!

I put a few slices of onion in two of them and  half a chunk of artichoke in two of them. So to distinguish the different strombolis I put a tiny piece of onion on top of the onion filled ones. Clever, right?

This would also make an excellent appetizer for your next gathering. And you can make lots of different kinds very easily. So easy to please everyone!

Go ahead and give this simple recipe a try. Thanks to Kelly for sharing her Magic Stromboli!

Simple Alterations

Why is the thought of alterations so frightening? Why do people freak out when I say the word hem?

Take a deep breath. Its okay, even you can do a simple alterations. Now I'm not saying get out that $200 blazer you just bought and try to put darts in it. Start small and very basic. Hemming pants is a good way to begin.

For all of my growing years, I watched my mom diligently hem all the pants and jeans I had to the proper length. I think they were mostly tall sizes that were hand me downs from my sister. At least my mom was teaching us economy. Which is so important today.

That is why I even had this first project to work on. I found a great deal on a pair of dark jeans that actually fit my hips and waist. Unfortunately there was only one pair left, a long. I'm only 5'6", these long jeans went clear over my feet. Not even the tallest of heels could hide how ridiculously long these jeans were on me. So I went to work on them (about 3 weeks after I originally bought them).

I could actually cut off another few millimeters off the bottom. They still seem a little long, but they are not covering my feet up anymore. That was my real goal. I'm counting that as a success.

While chopping off my jeans, I had a brainstorm about this shirt hiding in my closet.

I bought this cute gauzy shirt about a year ago. At the time I thought I could accept the weird 1/2 to 3/4 sleeve length, but the cuff of the sleeve cut into my arm. Honestly it was hard to get the shirt off over my head. So what I'm trying to say is I never wanted to wear it, before...

Before I hacked off those wonky sleeves. I sewed up the edges with a simple straight stitch. (I honestly wasn't even that careful about the straight part.)

It looks much better, its more comfortable and its so much easier to put it on. Now I think this shirt will become a summer staple in my wardrobe.

Okay so this was no "how to" guide on these alterations. More of a suggestive nudge. This is a simpler take on the Re-dress Idea. We might not all have the skills the Bishie has, but we can still do simple things recreate a piece of clothing. Even if its switching a retro button to a more modern one. It can really transform an outfit.

Dust off that sewing machine, if you don't have one borrow one from a friend or your mom. Begin your adventure in creativity.

Orange Creamsicle Cookies

Another great recipe from Our Forking Blog. When I first read the title of this recipe I thought to myself, "Hmm this looks too tasty to be easy enough for me to make." But since Paul and I had just had an amazing orange creamsicle bar from a bakery in downtown Charleston, I had to at least look at the recipe. To my great and joyful surprise it looked like something even I could make with my limited baking skills.

Orange Cremesicle Cookies

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons orange zest (for me that was the zest of 2 oranges)
2 cups Guitard Choc-Au-Lait Vanilla Chips (I used white chocolate chips)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and creamy. Beat in egg and vanilla until smooth. Gradually add flour mixture until combined. Stir in orange zest and chips.
Drop rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Do not flatten cookies; it will make them dry. Bake 8 - 10 minutes or until golden brown around edges. Do not overcook! Cookies will be plump. Cool for several minutes on cookie sheets before transferring to rack to cool completely. Store in airtight container.

 

I actually made them as a surprise for Paul as a welcome home from his business trip this week. I also shared them with some friends. They got rave reviews all around.

 

I couldn't believe how that little bit of orange zest perfumed the cookies. Every time I open the container of cookies I get a whiff of the lovely scent of oranges.

If you are tired of the old stand by cookies, give this recipe a try. Impress your family and friends with this seemingly complicated cookie. They will be I'm sure of it.

 

Collard Green Pesto

This recipe is just for fun. I have seen many variations to a basic pesto (basil, pine nuts, Parmesan, garlic, and olive oil). This recipe is boasted to be a "healthier" version. I don't know if you are cutting any calories but you are adding a ton of nutrients with the greens. Its also a good alternative for those that aren't big basil fans.

Collard Green Pesto

Sunny Anderson

Ingredients

• 1 pound bunch collards, ribs discarded, leaves roughly chopped
• 1 (13-ounce) box whole-wheat linguine
• 1/4 cup pecans
• 1 1/4 cups grated Parmesan, plus extra for garnish
• 1/2 cup pitted kalamata olives
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium heat. Blanch collards until bright green, about 1 minute. Transfer immediately to an ice bath to shock, saving the boiling water for cooking the pasta. Remove the collards from the ice water and pat dry with paper towels before transferring them to a food processor.

Add the linguine to the pot of salted boiling water and cook according to package instructions.

Meanwhile, in a dry skillet, over low heat, toast the pecans until fragrant. Transfer to the food processor with Parmesan, olives and garlic. With food processor running, slowly drizzle in olive oil until pesto comes together. Taste for seasoning, and add salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

To serve, put enough pesto to coat the pasta into a large serving bowl. Drain the pasta and quickly add it to the bowl. The water still clinging to the pasta will loosen up the pesto. Toss to coat. Add more pesto, if needed. Transfer the pasta to a serving bowl and garnish with Parmesan sprinkled over the top.

The minuses to this recipe is you have to be careful with the ingredients and really taste test as you combine them. Too much garlic or olives will really twinge the taste of the pesto. 

Another pitfall is this recipe makes a TON of pesto. It would probably cover 2 pounds of pasta. I get really bored of eating it before its all gone. I thought of making it for the next pot luck I go to.

Just have fun with this one. Its an interesting twist to a classic that I wanted to share.

Summer Squash Patties

For those of you that have a backyard garden, you may have tried growing yellow squash. If so you know they go crazy in the summer months. Then you struggle for weeks trying to figure out what to do with them. Well here is one solution that I grew up enjoying.

These savory little cakes are a great side dish for dinner or even a different take on a pancake for breakfast. It a pretty good substitute a butter and syrup covered pancake.

Ingredients:

Gina's Skinny Taste

• 2 cups cooked shredded squash (from 3 1/2 yellow squash)
• 1 egg
• 1 egg white
• 2/3 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1 clove garlic, chopped
• 1/3 cup parmesan cheese
• 3 tbsp fresh chopped chives
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• pinch fresh cracked pepper
• olive oil spray

Directions:

Add squash to a medium pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cover; cook until soft. When soft, drain; add to food processor and pulse a few times until chopped. Add 2 cups of squash to a medium bowl. Combine squash with remaining ingredients except oil and mix well.

Heat a large skillet on medium heat, when hot spray lightly with oil and reduce heat to medium-low. Drop 1/4 cupfuls of batter, slightly flattening them with the back of a spoon and cook a few minutes or until golden. Turn and cook the other side until golden. Set aside and repeat with the remaining batter.

The only modification I made to this recipe was I used two whole eggs and used a little butter and a non stick pan, not oil olive spray. I might try adding some cayenne for a kick.

I like serving it with ketchup and hot sauce.

Give it a try. These are some tasty cakes.

Pink Lemonade Cake

I made a version of this cake as a thank you gift for Paul. I wanted to do something special for him after he helped my parents paint their new house. When I say a version I mean I used the basic idea and added my own flavor and didn't pay any attention to the recipe. This was not a good plan. That's why I'm going to give you the exact recipe from Paula Deen that I modeled my cake after and recommend that you make it her way. Not mine.

Pink Lemonade Cake

Ingredients 

Cake:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, plus more, for coating pans
1 (18 1/4-ounce) box white cake mix
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 tablespoons sweetened pink lemonade drink powder
Icing:
1 pound confectioners' sugar
5 tablespoons frozen pink lemonade concentrate
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 2 (8-inch) round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment paper or waxed paper.

Prepare the cake batter according to the package directions. To the batter, stir in the lemon zest, vanilla, and pink lemonade powder. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Let the cakes cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Carefully turn the cakes out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

While the cake is baking, prepare the frosting by beating together the confectioners' sugar and remaining 1 cup butter until fluffy. Beat in the remaining frosting ingredients until combined.

Transfer one cake to a cake stand or large platter. Using an offset spatula, spread the top of the cake with a layer of frosting. Place the second cake on top of the first. Spread the remaining frosting over the top and sides of both layers.

I used a strawberry lemonade mix and decorated it with fresh cut strawberries. Since I didn't pay close enough attention to the ingredients I put in too much of the lemonade mix and it came out too tart.

Although it was edible and it turned out very pretty. So that was worth something, right?

Paul appreciated that I went out of my comfort zone and actually baked something for him. It is true what they say, "The way to a man's heart is through his stomach". I believe this to be true for women too, maybe I should speak for myself.

I like this idea for a thank you present, plus if you're lucky the person you give it to will share.

Flower Hair Clips

A few days after spending too much money in a store on flower hair clips, I found directions online for how to make the same hair clips. Figures... I thought I would share with everyone, so you could avoid my error.

Here are the step by step instructions I used:
Little Miss Momma - Scrunch hair clips
Little Miss Momma - Lace hair clip

To create added depth and definition, I wrapped each piece of cotton fabric in a circle of a darker pink tulle.
Also I saw several templates for sale at the fabric store, instead I made my own template with a thick paper for the shape of the petals. That just helped as a guide to make more uniform petals.
There are so many different ways to make these. Next time I want to try different fabrics and shapes and colors.

There is a reason why I made so many...

I got an email a few days after I made my first hair clip about a day camp for kids with cancer and their siblings called Camp Happy Days. This Wednesday they were having a dress-up/dance day. The camp was taking donations of cute dresses and accessories. I thought that this was the perfect way for me to contribute. The hardest and most costly part was trying to find different hairbands to attach the flowers to.

I used a few clips but mostly different kinds of stretchy elastic bands. (I wanted to make sure the girls that were going through treatment could have a cute accessory too.)

All in all I'm happy with how they came out. And it was an excellent reason to flex my crafting skills for a good cause. Of course I could find many reasons to make these cutie clips, including for myself.

4th of July Parade & Flag Cake

When I was kid before the age of ten years old, I lived in Elkhart, Indiana. It was a very typical midwestern town. It was a safe, calm and great place to be a kid. We lived in a neighborhood with a ton of school age kids. We were able to run and bike around in the streets. (I feel like that is pretty uncommon now-a-days.) I feel very lucky that I was able to be to be part of a community like this.

We would shoot off fireworks, have cookouts, light sparklers, and would have 4th of July parades.
Parade? I'm not talking about the big downtown parades with giant floats. I mean a parade of neighborhood kids with their ridiculously decorated bikes! We used all kinds of patriotic decorations and then we'd roll down the streets with our parents by our sides.

Now that I'm older its easy to see that all the loud and dangerous fireworks, adult beverages, hot grills, and staying up past dark to see the fireworks, made Independence Day not especially kid friendly. Well except the hamburgers and hot dogs. So its great that our parents found a way to include us in the celebration.

Just don't do it around naptime. You might have some tears.

I love this idea because you can even get the littlest babies involved. Just dress them up and put them in the wagon.

In this post, just for the holiday, I am giving you a bonus idea!

Another fun 4th idea is a flag cake!

Just make any kind of sheet cake you want: red velvet, yellow, chocolate, or even funfetti! Use white frosting, strawberry halves, and blueberries. Easy-peasy and patriotic.

Just be sure to be safe, have fun and be patriotic!