DIY, Sharpie Ceramics

I saw on Pintrest this DIY to design ceramic plates with sharpie markers and then bake them in the oven to set the design. After they bake in the over they are safe to eat on, wash and use as everyday dishes. I decided to try this out for myself.

I went to the Christmas Tree shop and found a great selection of plain white ceramic plates for super cheap. The small plates were $1.00 and the larger ones $1.69. I figured even if this came out terrible at least it wasn't an expensive mistake.

I got a gold & silver Sharpie paint pen as well as dozen pack of colored sharpies.

The paint pen's definitely drew better on the plates. The regular colored sharpies came out a little streaky so I would recommend just using paint pen's for this project.

The how to:

Draw any design your little heart desires. 

For the square plate I did a colored chevron pattern. I just free handed this so the lines are a little off, but hey this is an experiment, right?

For the two round plates I decided on a simple gold design.

Bake them in a 365 degree oven for 30 minutes and you have your very own personalized dinner wear.

Just make sure it fully cools off before touching because they come out of the oven VERY hot!

Wouldn't this be a fun DIY for a dinner party or even for a kid's birthday and then have them take home their plate as the give out!

The possibilities here are endless.

If you decide to create your own, send me a picture and I will post it!

I'd love to see your ideas.

Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding

Magnolia Bakery in NYC has the best Banana Pudding ever. 

I purchased their cookbook and tried the recipe out for myself. It's actually really easy to make and tasted as good as is does straight from Magnolia. I made this pudding as a dessert at Harper's 1st Birthday and got many, many requests for the recipe afterwards. 

Thought I would share...

It's not exactly dietetic but worth the splurge.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups water

2/3 cup vanilla pudding mix

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

3 cups heavy cream

1 (12 ounce) box vanilla wafers

4 bananas, sliced

Directions:
Blend the water, pudding mix and sweetened condensed milk
Refrigerate at least 4 hours to overnight
Whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form
Fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream until well incorporated
In a trifle bowl layer wafers, sliced bananas then pudding mixture. Continue until all the mixture is used up.
Refrigerate for 30 minutes

Cupcake making with Em!

My little sister Emily had the week off from school so she came for a sleepover.

We decided to make cupcakes as an "evening activity".

We used vanilla cake mix and put fresh blueberries & sliced strawberries in the batter.

 Emily hard at work.

Using food coloring and vanilla icing we made blue and pink frosting.

We used a decorating bag and Wilton decorating tip to do the application. 

We decorated the tops of the cupcakes with fresh blueberries and sliced strawberries.

Pretty and Delicious!

Fun Etsy Finds

I am a huge fan of etsy. For those of you who don't know what etsy is (gasp),

it's an online marketplace focused on handmade and vintage items. 

The items cover a wide range of products, including art, photography, ceramics, clothing, jewlrey and vintage finds. It's like an online craft fair. 

What I really love is that you are getting unique items and at the same time supporting artists. 

Below I listed some fun etsy finds.

Reusable Snack Bags

CauliflowerKids Cascade Dress

Personalized Note Cards

XLarge Glass Bubble Chandelier

Cardigan and Bow Tie Onesie

Cozy Cable Knit Lumbar Pillow Cover

Ceramic Salt & Pepper Cellars

Modern Succulent Sculpture

Neon Jute Tote Bag

Brunch date with Baby Benjamin

We had our friends Lisa, Paul and their new baby, Benjamin, over for brunch yesterday.

Now that we live in the "burbs" we don't get to see everyone as often, so it was such a nice treat having them come spend the day!

 I put out some cheese, crackers and spreads when they arrived.

For lunch, I made a salad Nicoise. It's such an easy salad to prepare and makes a really pretty presentation.

I used a long, flat plate and lined the bottom with mesclun lettuce.

I did rows of cucumbers, heirloom tomatoes, hard boiled egg, tuna, string beans, kalmata olives and potatoes. I chopped some chives and capers on top.

For the dressing:

2/3 cup extra light olive oil

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 teaspoons minced shallots

2 teaspoons flat leaf parsley, chopped

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

juice from half a lemon

salt and pepper to taste

We also served bagels and lox, as requested by my husband. 

According to him, brunch isn't brunch without it!

 And for dessert, a raspberry tart.

Best part of the day, Harper and Benjamin meeting! Harper could not stay away...

I see a future romance budding, hopefully Benjamin likes older women.

Valentine's Day Dinner

It's not so easy going out to dinner just the two of us during the week anymore. 

I decided to cook a special dinner for Valentine's Day. As you have probably already learned, I like to cook and I do so often. However, I wanted to make something extra special for Valentines Day.

I started with a mushroom and goat cheese crostini.

Ingredients:

2 packages sliced baby bella mushrooms

goat cheese

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon chives, chopped

1 teaspoon flat leaf parsley, chopped

salt & pepper to taste

1 tablespoon butter

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the sliced mushrooms and mix about 10 minutes, until starting to brown. Add in the minced garlic, chives, parsley, salt, pepper and olive oil. Let cook for about 5 minutes, stirring regularly so garlic doesn't burn. Add in the balsamic and let reduce for about 15 - 20 minutes.  Sauce should get thicker and the mushrooms will turn a deep brown color.

Taste and add more salt/pepper accordingly.

Take off heat.

For the bread you can use either a sliced loaf or a french bread and slice it. It's really just what you prefer. Spread a little bit of butter on the bread and put in a 300 degree oven for about 5 minutes, or until it crisps up. (you don't want it to get too hard though, so keep a close eye on it)

As soon as it comes out spread a layer of goat cheese and then top with the warm mushrooms.

Garnish the top with some fresh chopped chives.

I wanted to do a simple salad since the lamb chops are heavy.

I decided on a simple Bibb Lettuce and Herb Salad.

Ingredients:

2 heads bibb lettuce

Parmesan cheese shavings 

2 tablespoons minced chives

1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley 

1/4 cup chopped tarragon leaves

salt and pepper to taste

Vinaigrette:

(this makes 2 cups so you will have left over, do not use entire thing on salad)

2 tablespoons minced shallots

1/2 cup red wine vinegar

1 cup canola oil

1/4 cup Dijon mustard

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon honey

Separate the lettuce leaves and wash. Wrap in paper towel to dry and leave wrapped up in fridge to crisp.

Chop up all herbs. 

Place lettuce leaves in a bowl and sprinkle with a pinch of salt. Mix in all the other herbs and Parmesan cheese shavings. 

For the Vinaigrette,

Mix together the red wine vinegar and Dijon in a blender. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil, while blender is still going. Shut off blender and mix in the shallots, lemon juice and honey.

Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Mix vinaigrette over salad right before serving.

As a side for the Lamb Chops, I wanted something light. I am kinda over making roasted potatoes so I decided to try a cauliflower puree. It's healthier and lighter then doing mashed potatoes.

It actually turned out really tasty. This is definitely my new "go to" for a healthier side dish.

Ingredients:

1 head cauliflower, chopped

2 tablespoon butter

chopped chives

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

salt  & pepper to taste

Bring a big pot of water to a boil.

Wash and cut cauliflower into about 2 inch pieces. Add to boil water and cook till fork tender (about 10 minutes). Drain but reserve 1/4 cup of the water the cauliflower cooked in.

In the same pot, re add the cauliflower, the 1/4 cup cooking water and a tablespoon of butter. 

Using a hand blender (if you don't have an hand blender you can just do this in a regular blender. Whichever is easier for you) blend until cauliflower is semi-smooth. Add in another tablespoon of butter, chives, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Blend a few more times until smooth.

Serve warm.

For the Lamb Chops

 I seasoned with olive oil, thyme, garlic powder, salt & pepper and let marinate for about 45 minutes.

I seared them on each side for about 3 minutes and then finished them off in a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes. 

As soon as they came out of the oven I brush with a little Dijon mustard.

Set the chops on top of the cauliflower puree and drizzle with a little olive oil and chopped chives.

Happy Valentines Day

Hope yours was a great one!

Valentine's Day Treats

 Harper has been waking up before 6 all week so my intention was to get into bed early last night. Instead I stayed up past midnight making Valentine's Day treats. 

They came out so cute that loosing those hours of sleep was totally worth it (kinda).

 Not going to lie, I went "Sandra Lee" semi-homemade style with these.
I bought a boxed red velvet mix at the grocery.

 My trick for easy cupcake batter filling -

Use a measuring cup for a clean, even pour.

 I got these adorable cupcake boxes at Michael's. 

Link Here. The boxes I got come as a 3 pack and hold 4 cupcakes per box.

They also sell a box that holds a dozen cupcakes.
I added the red and white flower stickers, which I also purchased at Michael's.

 I bought 2 cans of cream cheese frosting. I left one as is and the other I added red food coloring to make this pinky-red color. I added almost the entire thing of food coloring, but adjust yours depending how dark or light you want it.
To get the "swirled look" of the frosting I used a decorating bag (but you can just use a plastic Ziploc if you don't have one and cut off the tip) and a Wilton 1M decorating tip.

I also purchased these pre-made Icing Roses at Michael's.

Link Here.  I got them in Red and White, but they had a bunch of colors to choose from.

For the finishing touch I hand wrote "Happy ❤ Day, Baked with Love" with a red sharpie on these Kraft Tags and tied it to the box with a cute ribbon.

A homemade gift is always a thoughtful and creative way to go.

A little effort and creativity goes a long way!

❤ Happy Valentine's Day ❤

XOXO

DIY Valentines Day Cards for Kiddies

Valentines Day is only 2 days away, which means it's time to get cracking on cards. 

Sure, you can to go to CVS and buy a box of Valentines Day Cards for your kids to give out in school. There is, of course, nothing wrong with that, but why not be creative and do a project with your kiddies at the same time. 

Below are some super cute DIY Valentines Day Card ideas. 

The other classmates are sure to love these Valentines Day treats!

Fill a bag with popcorn and print out stickers that say "My Heart Pops For You"

For an extra special touch make popcorn pink using this recipe

Cute class give out of goldfish crackers in a "fish bowl".

"I am glad we're in the same school"

 Use colored paper, a Tootsie Pop and google eyes to create a Valentine's Day Butterfly Card. Write your message around the edges. 

 Gram crackers and/or gummy bears in a plastic bag to send "bear hugs".

 With a candle or crayon write a note on heart shaped paper and tell them to paint over it to reveal the "Secret Valentines Day Message"!
You can attach a paint brush and watercolor paints to the card for a fun touch!

DIY Heart crayons. 230 degrees in the oven for 15 minutes.

Use a Lollypop and construction paper to make Heart Flowers. Write a Valentine's Day note on the back of the heart. 

Eating and Playing through Nemo

We got hit with a major blizzard over the weekend. We woke up on Saturday morning with over a foot of snow! Being that we still have yet to hire someone to shovel our walkway and driveway, Matt was the lucky candidate. 

While he was outside shoveling away I decided it would be nice to surprise him with a warm, home cooked breakfast. I used whatever ingredients I had lying around the kitchen. It would have been key to have some bacon in the freezer, but it turned out pretty tasty with what I could find. 

(Note to self,  keep some bacon stocked in the freezer for future blizzard breakfast emergencies).

 I scrambled up some eggs and added in fresh chives that I had in the fridge, salt and pepper.

I always like to add some milk to my eggs. I find it makes them fluffier.

I also had a hunk of leftover gruyere cheese that I shredded and tossed in with the scrambled eggs.

                                              

 I had half a bag left of fingerling potatoes. I boiled them until they were soft and then chopped them up and sauteed them with a little olive oil, chopped onions, fresh chives, thyme, parsley, paprika, salt and pepper.

I added some hot sauce to them when they were almost finished cooking.

I also had some greek yogurt, blueberries, honey and granola I served on the side.

And of course, coffee and o.j.

For a last minute "whatever I could find in the fridge" breakfast it turned out pretty successful!

 My two little helpers in the kitchen.

After a good breakfast we took Harper out sledding in the backyard.

As you can see from the above picture, she absolutely LOVED it!