Chrismas making goal

This year, I don't want to buy ANYTHING for my Christmas making.  I want to use only things I have in the house!

That means Christmas cards too.

I had decided to knit socks for my intimidate family, and I *think* I just might have enough yarn for that.

I also have a few other ideas as well that I think I can pull off.  I will have to buy magnets and glue.  But that's it!  (and I think that's fair right?)

rainy day lasagne

I decided to make lasagne today a few days ago.  I was worried it would be too hot out and it wouldn't be a great dinner.  (warm oven hot day yuck)  Turns out it is a perfect day!

Here is the 'recipe' for " My (dutch) moms meat lasagne"

I say 'recipe' in quotes because I learned by watching her, not by anything written down.  I've also tweaked it from how she does it too...


Ingredients:

a sploosh of olive oil
one small onion, diced
several cloves of garlic, chopped/crushed/pressed/grated
half to one pack of ground beef
tsp or so dried basil, or oregano or majorim
a good sprinkle of cayenne pepper (we liked it spicy)
oh...a cup or 2 of mushrooms, sliced
one small/medium zucchini, grated
half to one green, red, yellow or orange sweet pepper chopped (I don't like peppers, so I don't add them, but my mom always made the peppers bigger so I could pick them out and put them on her plate, although with lasagne, it was hard, so I got them down ok)
can of whole, or puréed tomatoes (if whole, blend with a blender stick...my mom used to blend the garlic here, instead of chop it up)
tub of cottage cheese
one egg
pack of baby spinach, or bag of spinach, or pack of frozen spinach
9 lasagne noodles
half a big block mozzarella cheese, grated

-heat olive oil in a medium pot, medium heat, add onions and garlic, and cook a little, until fragrant
-add ground beef and spices and cook 'til done
-add mushrooms, zucchini and peppers and cook for a few minutes
-add can of tomatos
-bring to boil and turn down to second lowest to simmer until mushrooms are cooked

Meanwhile,
-boil water for noodles.  cook until el dente.
-put spinach into colander and poor noodles and cooking water on top to wilt spinach.  (my mom boiled water, and wilted the spinach separately, but this saves time and energy and water)
- pour cold water over noodles and spinach
- put cottage cheese in bowl and add egg (the egg holds it all together), stir in cooled wilted spinach.

- in a deep rectangle baking pan, put a thin layer of sauce, layer on 3 noodles
-add cottage cheese mix, and 3 more noodles
-a thick layer of sauce, and 3 more noodles
-evenly spread grated mozzarella

At this point you can refrigerate it, or if in an aluminium pan, freeze it.  Or turn the oven on to 350 let it heat up and pop it in until you feel it's done...yea, I go by smell, half an hour to an hour?  make sure the egg is cooked in the cottage cheese layer.  Turn the oven to broil and brown the top.

The most important and hardest part is LET IT SIT!  It needs to gel again.  Kinda like allowing meat to sit.

(pics to follow once it's out of the oven...I didn't think to write this post until it was too late!)

hooked, a tutorial

 Our old bed frame was hand made by me.  It wasn't pretty, but it worked.  We used cedar 4x4s for the legs.  We bought a king sized be from a friend, and I kept the 4x4s.  I had put up a couple hooks for Jason and I, and we needed more and I was trying to figure out a way to not put 10 holes in the wall.  I had a brilliant flash of amazingness.  Put hooks into a 4x4 and attach *it* to the wall.  4 holes rather than 10.  and it's a little shelf!

go me.

I'm planning on going to the St. Lawrence antique market to get another motley set of hooks for the other 3 4x4s.

Drill pilot holes first so you don't split the wood, and use anchor sets so you don't pull the set up off the wall when you put you worn but not dirty clothes on it.

ghasp...

This is not a post about pregnancy.

I made nut butter today!  So easy!

1. Get some nuts.  Whatever nuts you like.  Almonds, cashews, hazelnuts...use one type or use them all.  Use seeds, like pumpkin or sunflower.  I choose to use raw, because according to Oprah, and well, actual experts, when you roast nuts you change the really GOOD fat into TRANS fat *buh buh buh*.
2. Put them in a food processor.  A little less than the height shaft of the blade bit.  I added, like a half tsp. of salt.  I think it might be too much...but then, I always get unsalted peanut butter.
3. Stick the lid on, and buzz away.  It will crumble, then turn kinda dough like.  Keep and eye on it and scrape down the sides.  Keep buzzing til it's how you like it.  10 or so minutes?  I forget to time it...another tutorial said 15...but there is no way it took that long.
4. Stick it on a jar, or tupperware or make a sandwich.
5. The oils will naturally separate, just give it a stir before you use it if it does.  Oh and keep it in the fridge so it won't go rancid as fast.

OMG! only a week left! or, how I get though.

My getting though the holidays is different than yours, that is different from theirs.  My troubles come from not having organised enough time for making.

I have a rule.  no making in the afternoon of Christmas Eve., or the afternoon before what ever day I need gifts by.  This year I have a little extra grace period because My sister and her girlfriend are in Mexico over Christmas, so neither my mom or dad are celebrating with out them.  that really only gives me like 2 extra days though HA.

Anyway.  No more making at one am, Christmas day.  I try and stagger my making so everyone has at the very least one thing made for them.

Also, Rescue Remedy.  it works, use it.

My friend Lannis also wrote a blog post about holiday stress over on The Mrs. page.  Go check it out for her tip. 

And Soule Mama also talks about her lists and things to make, on similar lines to my giftmas philosophy.

My friend Khat made the decision 12 years ago so not 'do' Christmas any more.  She buys one present for her children.  She has made traditions with them.  They bake, and they celebrate the solstice, and they fill their house with friends.  Who can get stressed over *that!*?

I'm off to St Lawrence Market to go by the one. last. thing. I am getting for making.  Some beeswax for candles.  Then on to more making.  I have *one* gift done, one out of...many.

Christmas making

So, like last year, I can't really talk about a lot of the gifts I'm making here, at least not *before* Christmas...someone might not be surprised!

So, in the mean time, until I can reveal what I'm making, here are a few posts from last Chrismas that might inspire your making this year!

Here is the tutorial for the bodum cozy.  I made one for my mom, J and my dad.  They all though it was great!
http://beccasnb.blogspot.com/2011/03/tutorialthursday-french-press-cozy.html

Maybe someone would like a home made day planner?
http://beccasnb.blogspot.com/2011/01/day-planner.html

some of the things I made/bought last year
http://beccasnb.blogspot.com/2010/12/giftmas-roll-call.html
and some photos of what I made
http://beccasnb.blogspot.com/2010/12/holiday-making-share.html
http://beccasnb.blogspot.com/2011/01/pom-pom.html

I thought I did a tutorial for the leg warmers.  hrrm.

any who.  keep your eyes peeled for a few Christmas making posts!  Not everyone is reading this (I hope!)

the pig and the pom pom

one of my favourite gifts this Christmas was a salt pig!  with pink Himalayan salt.  I could just eat it on it's own...thats how good it tastes!

*edit*

I was asked why it's called a pig, I guessed the shape slightly resembles one...but it's because "Scots and northern Brits way back when used the word "pig" to refer to a pot, jar, crock, or earthenware vessel. "

and here is a tutorial on how to make pompoms!  this was *my* first time...so...

 first you cut 2 (TWO) circles of card stock (cereal box would work) a bit bigger than you want your pompom.  cut a hole in the middle of each about half the size (so if your circle is 3 inches...the inside should be 1.5 inches)  I have no idea how much yarn you use!!  I brought the 'doughnuts' halfway between a bunch of yarn (leftover from a gift (revealed tomorrow or Sunday!)) and started winding!

 I just kept stuffing it in.  You wind until you cant fit the yarn though anymore.

 Then, you slip scissors in between the two cardboard circles and cut around.

 Slip a long piece of yarn between the circles and pull tight.  I made a reef knot a couple times after winding.  wind once, knot, wind again, knot.  leave a tail for attachment.

the pompom might be a little shaggy, so give'r a trim (I trimmed onto an open book to catch the fluffs)

A knotty joke:  

A rope walks into a bar, and the bartender says, "I'm sorry, um, we don't serve ropes here!"  So the rope walks out all disgruntled.  He sits on the curb thinking for a bit, and has a light bulb moment.  He ties a knot at the top and messes up the end a bit, and walks back into the bar.  the bartender rudely says "HEY BUD!  didn't I say NO ROPES ALLOWED!!??"   and the rope replies "I'm a fayed knot!"

day planner

By trade I'm a gardener...or a "horticulture technician".  So I work about 8 months, generally April-end of November/beginning of December.  Then I go on EI (employment insurance) for December-March.  When I am working, my mind is focused and I know exactly what day it is and what is going on.  My brain this past month has gone to mush!  days?  the date?  (ie, my previous post ...oh, it's NYE!?).  I declared I needed to get a day planner!

but they are 'so' expensive...for something I will use for a year?  sure.  I could go to the dollar store...and some of them are kinda cute...but  made in China...I try not to buy from China, I'd rather source Canada, or even better, Toronto.  I generally don't mind paying more for local, but since I'm on EI, money is tight...

SO...what is a crafty girl, who has too much time on her hands do?  MAKE ONE!  out of reused items...AKA, upcycled items!  A new term I learned recently.

My new boss gave me some gardening mags this year.  I ripped out pages that I had read, and where pretty.  I generally was able to use 3 pages for a month.  5 weeks, plus the month page.

I folded them into 4.  using double sided tape, I stuck the 'wrong' sides together, in half.

I made two holes on the folded edge.
 

for the days, I used label stickers I had, (I didn't want to buy anything new)

 I made a little booklet of each month, cut covers out of card stock, and tied it all up in ribbon.

 AND.  I ran out of stickers!  I happened to have old (one from '96 !!!!!) calendars.  (I keep them if I like the pictures, to make cards/wrap with)  I cut out the days that had no writing on them, and used a glue stick to stick 'em on

It was all kind of random and slapped together...but I love it.  I want to make more for next year, and better, for gifts.  (give me your 2010 calendars!  Maybe you'll get one for Christmas this year)