Sunday, May 22, 2011

Dessert Crepes


I actually had a crepe for the very first time when we were in Paris on our honeymoon. Wow are they good! For those who aren't familiar with crepes, they can be either sweet or savory. Your basic (savory) crepe is usually used like a sandwich wrap. But my favorite are the sweet crepes. When we were in Paris, we actually bought a package of crepes, heated them up in our little apartment toaster oven, and ate them for breakfast with some nutella. It was a great way to start the day! But you could also have them for dessert. Or a snack. Or whatever. :)

INGREDIENTS

4 eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/3 cups milk
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS

1. In large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, melted butter, flour sugar and salt until smooth.

2. Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat. Lightly grease pan with oil spray or a small amount of butter.
3. Using a serving spoon or small ladle, spoon about 3 tablespoons crepe batter into hot pan, tilting the pan so that bottom surface is evenly coated (this part takes a little practice). Wait until crepe looks solid and fully cooked before flipping it. Cook until golden brown (this only takes a few minutes per side, less for the second side). It should look something like this:

4. Serve however you chose! They are fantastic with fruit and nutella, but there are many things you can add to make a delicious dessert.

Saturday, May 7, 2011

Craft Project: A Reversible Bag


Today's DIY post is actually my mom's mother's days gift!  I hope she likes it. :)

There are lots of tutorials out there for simple bags like this.  I found the most clear instructions in this tutorial by Very Purple Person.  So if my instructions aren't clear, just go look at hers.

I began by making a pattern.  I just traced one of my own reusable shopping bags and then edited it a little (made the strap longer and the body shorter).  It was just easier for me to visualize what the finished product was going to look like that way!  I didn't have any paper large enough, so I traced onto cardboard, made my changes, cut it out, then traced the cardboard pattern onto the fabric.  It worked pretty well, although the cardboard was kind of hard to cut.  For future pattern making, I think I'll try to find some butcher's paper or something.

You'll need two yards of fabric (1 yard each of two fabrics).  I chose to make one side patterned, one side solid.  That way mom can have a fun, bold bag and a more toned down bag in one. :)  Note that you'll be able to see the "inside" fabric along the strap of the bag, so make sure you pick two fabrics that look good together.  Place your pattern on the fold of your fabric and cut out four pieces (two in each color).  Darts are optional, but I think they help give the bag a nicer looking shape.  If you have good scissors, you can do what I did and just lay all four pieces together and cut the darts out at once.
Then sew in your darts, right sides together, on all four pieces.
Sew both of the matching pieces of fabric together, rights sides together, around the bottom edge of the bag (where I drew the dotted line).
And you will end up with two bags that look like this:

Turn one of these bags right side out and put it inside the other.  Make sure everything is lined up then pin the outside bag to the inside bag.
Sew the outside bag to the inside bag along the edge of the straps, but only about half way up.
Then you have to turn everything right side out through the opening in one of the straps.  It is tricky, but don't worry - it will work!  When you're finished, it should look something like this:
Sew the ends of the matching straps together.
Then press the edges of your straps under and pin.
Top stitch them together.

I ironed the body of the bag so that it would look nice.  And that's it!  You now have a nifty reversible bag!

Thursday, May 5, 2011

Avocado Salsa for Cinco de Mayo!


There are few things I love more in life than delicious fresh salsa.  This is a fantastic, simple salsa recipe I've been making for years, and it seemed appropriate to share it on Cinco de Mayo!

INGREDIENTS

3 ripe avocados, chopped
5 large roma tomatoes, chopped
1 sweet red bell pepper, diced
1 banana pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
Hot peppers, as desired, diced*
Large handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
Salt to taste

DIRECTIONS

Mix it all together and enjoy with tortilla chips and a nice cold Corona!

*A note on the hot peppers: I like to experiment, and try a different assortment of hot peppers just about every time I make this.  It really just depends on how spicy you like your salsa!  A couple of jalapeƱos are a pretty safe choice to start with.  I tried adding an orange habanero once - that was a little too hot for me.  Just be careful and wear disposable gloves whenever you handle them!  I had an unfortunate incident once where I handled some hot peppers with my bare hands.  Hours went by, and I washed my hands numerous times, but I discovered there was still some hot pepper oil on my hands when I went to take my contacts out later that night.  It wasn't fun...