New Year's Eve

In keeping with our family tradition, tonight will be spent working on puzzles, playing games and eating hors d'oeuvres.

I wanted to share with you one of my son's favorites - the reason this one is so great is if there is any left overs, you can easily make ravioli pasta for dinner tomorrow!


Bacon and Tomato Cups

8 slices bacon
1 cup chopped tomato
3 scallions, thinly sliced
4 oz shredded Swiss Cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tbsp chopped basil
Won won wrappers

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Brush both sides of a won ton wrapper lightly with vegetable oil and press into a mini muffin pan.  Bake for 8 minutes or until light golden brown.  Cool on a wire rack while preparing the filling.

In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until evenly brown.  Drain on paper towels.

Crumble bacon into a mixing bowl, and mix with tomato, scallions, cheese, mayo and basil.

Place a baked won ton wrapper back into each of the mini muffin pan cups and fill with 1 tablespoon of the filling mixture.

Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the filling has melted through.  Be careful not to let the won ton cups burn!

Like I said, if you have left over filling and uncooked won ton wrappers, use them for ravioli!

I originally found this recipe on AllRecipes.com, but tweaked it just a bit for work better for my family.

New favorite in the kitchen!

I first read about these pans in Bon Appetite magazine - and they are truly GREAT!  I received one for Christmas and ran out to buy the other two sizes they come in. 

The Bialetti Aeternum nonstick  pans come in 8", 10.5" and 12" - you can buy the sets online, or separately.  Last I checked they are sold out at their website bialettishop.com, but you can get them at Bed Bath & Beyond bedbathandbeyond.com .

The finish is PFOA, PTFE and Cadium free.  The release is amazing, and clean-up couldn't be easier.  I have made eggs and fried bacon in mine so far.  The white interior makes it a bit difficult to see that your egg whites are cooked properly, but I'm sure with experience, this will not be a real issue.  The picture on the packaging shows some very nicely browned scallops - I haven't tried getting to really caramelize anything yet, but my bacon didn't crisp the way it would in a traditional skillet.

Everyone I know is going to get a set of these next holiday season!

Favorite Fruit Cake

My mom received this recipe from our family friend Helen Sheppard.  I'm not sure where she got it from, but it is my favorite holiday sweet - I especially like it with a bit of cream cheese.

Brazil Nut Sensation

3/4 cup sifted flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 lb shelled Brazil nuts
1 lb pitted dates
1 cup drained maraschino cherries (I used a 9 oz jar)
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla

Heat oven to 300 degrees.  Grease and line a 9x5x3 loaf pan with wax paper

In sifter, place first 4 ingredients.  In a large bowl place nuts, dates and cherries.  Pour sifted flour mixture over nut mixture and mix with your hands until nuts and fruits are well coated.  Beat eggs until foamy, add vanilla and stir into nut mixture until well blended.

Spread into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour and 45 minutes.  Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes.  Remove from pan and peel of paper.  Cool on rack.

Thank You Card

In the spirit of giving - and therefore receiving - I made a Thank-you card to send out to my family.

I am having so much fun with my Silhouette SD!  In the spirit of trying to use up what I have before going out to get more, the flowers turned out a bit "spring-y", but cute none the less.

Below are the materials that I used for the card.  I have to say, once I started putting them together, it was so much fun!  I even have flowers leftover for some other time - Perhaps to put on a package?

Happy Holidays

Wishing you and yours the Merriest of Holiday Seasons

Looking forward to sharing with you in the coming year.

Yummy Canine Treats!

Today is my day of Holiday Baking!

 

Not to leave our our four-legged friends, I have made these treats for the neighborhood pooches for years now.  The recipe was originally produced in Gourmet Magazine December 2005.  

 

 

Photo: Romulo Yanes

 

 Dog Biscuits

• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 cups whole-wheat flour
• 1 1/4 cups cornmeal
• 1 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup toasted wheat germ
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon pieces
• 1 cup plus 1 tablespoon water
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint leaves
• 1 large egg

Pulse flours, cornmeal, oats, wheat germ, brown sugar, baking powder, and salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with pea-size butter lumps. Add 1 cup water and pulse until a coarse, dense dough forms.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead in parsley and mint until well distributed. Gather, then halve dough with scraper. Form into 2 balls and flatten each into a 6-inch disk.

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 2 large baking sheets.

Roll out 1 disk of dough into a round (1/3 inch thick) on a well-floured surface with a well-floured rolling pin. (If dough becomes too soft to roll out, wrap in plastic and chill until firm.) Cut out as many biscuits as possible and arrange about 1/4 inch apart on 1 baking sheet.

Gather scraps and reroll, then cut out more biscuits. Repeat with remaining dough, using other baking sheet.

Whisk together egg and 1 tablespoon water. Brush biscuits with egg wash and bake, switching position of sheets halfway through, until tops are golden brown, about 35 minutes total. Turn off oven and dry biscuits in oven overnight.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Dog-Biscuits-233290#ixzz1hTzWUu5i

 

I hope you enjoy making them and giving as gifts as much as I have.

I'm finally back!

Let the blogging begin again!

Energy

Money doesn't  bring you bliss, it's your happiness that brings you abundance!

Be Yourself

Do what you feel in your heart to be right - you'll be criticized anyway.  You'll be damned if you do, and damned if you don't.  - Eleanor Roosevelt

So you might as well believe in yourself and give a damn!

Holiday Card and Tags

I love making my own holiday cards every year.  This time around I was able to use my Silhouette SD to make a really fun - kind of retro looking card.

I was also able to use leftover cuts to make gift tags - also very fun I think!

Send me copies of your creations and I'll post them here for inspiration!

Doing good in Oakland

I came across this item in last Sunday's newspaper. 

Oakland Animal Services is waiving adoption fees for dogs, cats, and rabbits who have been at the shelter for more than 60 day.  If you are thinking about giving a wonderful animal a forever home this season, please consider your local rescue organization!

Thanks and Happy Holidays!

Christmas Ornament... again

I wasn't really happy with the original ornament I made, so I saw something similar to this and thought it might be cute.

I used the cork from a bottle of wine we had at Thanksgiving, and I'm going to send it to my dad who was there, and is in desperate need of ornaments!

Christmas Cookie

Cranberry Pistachio Cookies

1 cup sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
1 large egg
2 tbsp milk
3 cups sifted flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1 package (3.4 oz) instant pistachio pudding mix
1 cup chopped pistachio nuts (shelled - of course)
1/2 cup chopped dried cranberries

Cream sugar and butter.  Beat in egg, milk and vanilla/  Add sifted flour, pudding mix, soda and salt.  Stir in pistachios and cranberries until combined.

Drop by rounded tablespoons onto cookie sheet and flatten slightly with your fingers.

Bake in a 350 degree oven for 9-11 minutes.  Be sure not to over bake. 
Let cool 2 minutes on cookie sheet before moving to rack to cool completely. 
Store in an airtight container.  Makes about 4 1/2 dozen.


This recipe was originally from Betty Crocker (http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/cran-pistachio-cookies/e36c24c7-851f-4785-8a9e-13672ef9d97c#?st=6&term=pistachio&ps=9&pi=9&fv=AND%28HasGridViewImage%3ATrue%29 ) using their sugar cookie mix.  I decided to try it using my mom's sugar cookie recipe and adding the additional ingredients.  I really liked the way they turned out and although a bit on the salty side right out of the oven, they seemed to mellow overnight.

Holiday Shopping - Punjammies!

I came across a site which sells the most adorable "Punjammies".

LOVE all the patterns and had the hardest time deciding which to buy - I think both my sister and my aunt would love them - but I have all of their Christmas gifts purchased for this year, so I decided to buy a pair for myself and see how the fit is, and then go back and buy more!

Punjammies are sold by International Princess Project ( intlprincess.org ) and the description on the website reads:

PUNJAMMIES™ are made by women in India rescued from forced prostitution seeking to rebuild their lives. Proceeds from the sales of PUNJAMMIES™ provide fair-trade wages, savings accounts, and holistic recovery care.

The Capri style runs about $35 and if you use the promotional code: SHAREHOPE - you get free shipping during the month of December.

I love the mission statement of this company and I am really looking forward to receiving my Punjammies!  I'll keep you posted when the arrive - 

Share Hope this Holiday Season!

Book Club - December 2011

Hi and Welcome to the first entry for Poppy Ridge Farm Book Club!

For this month, I selected "The Mermaid Chair" by Sue Monk Kidd:

I chose this book because it is about a woman, in her 40's who is on a journey of self-discovery.  You should be able to find this in paperback for decent price pretty easily - I found my at the Goodwill for $3.29 - I will post discussion questions next month.

I look forward to Book Club-ing with all of you!

Being of Service

Don't ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it.  Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.

  

- Howard Thurman

Rescued!

I am a strong believer in rescuing animals from high-kill (and even no-kill) shelters.  I actually have three and wanted to share with you where I adopted them and what great additions they have been to our household.

First up is Cata

She came from the Peninsula Humane Society peninsulahumanesociety.org and we have had her for about 13 years.  She came to us at 8 weeks old and had been picked up as feral at 3 weeks.  She isn't the nicest cat, but she is one of the prettiest!  She enjoys laying in the sun and getting her neck scratched.

Holiday Shopping - Part Two

Yesterday I mentioned how difficult it was to find things not produced in the USA while Christmas shopping.

I came across an item on the ABC News website about how, if every American spent just $64 this holiday season on gifts manufactured in the United States, it would generate 200,000 jobs here at home!

abcnews.go.com/WN/MadeInAmerica/

You can go here and find peoples suggestions about places to shop and products to buy that have been Made In America.  You can even post where you have spent your $64 this season.

So far this season I have bought the following products "Made in America":
Drinking glasses from World Market ($28)
Paint supplies for craft projects from Orchard Supply Hardware ($40)

I know this doesn't really count as "Made in America", but at least it didn't end up in a landfill, and I didn't buy something from overseas - in fact, the mirrors were both produced in the USA in the mid-60's!

Mirrors, toys and books from Goodwill ($36)

I'll post the finished Goodwill and paint projects at a future date.

Let me know if there are any Local Purchases you have made and want to share!

Holiday Shopping

I have been out shopping the past few days just for some little odds and ends to add to my Christmas decorations - and possibly gifts.  What has really disturbed me is the lack of American made products for sale in the stores I visited:

Paper Source - I don't think ANYTHING was made in the USA - every item I picked up had been made in China

Sur la Table - Had great things that I would have loved to buy - a garlic rocker from Joseph Joseph, double-walled glassware from Bodum and an electric hand mixer from Cuisinart... all made in China

Pier1 - I know that "Imports" is part of their name, and I was able to find some candles and decorative tiles  (Vietnam) which I did purchase

It got me to thinking about trying to be more "local" in all of my spending - but the harsh reality is that some things that you want are only made overseas (my Silhouette SD machine for one).

I'm not saying that you shouldn't buy items made in other countries, just that if you have a choice, I believe it best to purchase those locally produced.