Quilt Project

   The last couple of weeks has been very busy around here.

 In between moving and settling in I have been working on a commission quilt.

 I loved having an empty room big enough to lay out the quilt. 

 Recently I read on-line that painters tape worked well for taping a quilt to the floor.

It did work very well and pulled up off the floor with no trouble.

 This quilt is a queen size so I used almost every quilting pin I own.

 To help hold up the bulk of the quilt I set up my ironing board. It worked but wobbled a lot.

 Chenille was used for the sashing. It's very pretty and adds a lot of weight to the quilt. 

 The back is a striped fabric which I also used for the binding.

 I really love how the stripes worked for the binding.

And now it's finished and ready for a new home. Up next, some sewing for Elizabeth.

Smoked Brisket

I love smoked brisket and have wanted to learn how to make it for some time now.

 After reading online how others smoke their brisket I decided to give it a try. I began by rinsing the meat well and placing it in a foil pan fat side down and sprinkled it well with garlic powder, salt and black pepper.

 When the grill was ready I added some water to the bottom of the pan and placed it on the grill. This is how the meat looked after 2-hours.

 Here is how it looked after 4-hours.

 I was afraid the meat would dry out so after 4-hours I turned it over so the fat side was now up.

 After about 6-hours I took the meat off the grill and out of the pan and covered it with foil.

 When it was time to slice the meat it was moist and tender.

I was very impressed with the flavor too. In fact, the brisket was just as good as any restaurant only a lot cheaper!

Sewing From My Stash

Our recent move has opened up my eyes to the amount of stuff we have and will not ever use.

Fabric is a definite item I have too much of; so when I came across this fun scrap of tapestry fabric I decided to put it to good use instead of giving it away. 

 Originally I had planned to make sofa pillows but instead this fabric is now a dog pillow.

Rani is very pleased with  her new bed.

A Big Day

Jonathan's big day has now come and gone and I didn't even shed a tear; I was too busy smiling.

4 years of hitting the books and getting little sleep has now ended. 

I'm so proud of my Math Major who graduated Summa Cum Laude with Honors.

Baking in a Toaster Oven

I have had great success baking cakes, cookies, cobblers, biscuits.... in a toaster oven. The one item that    has always been a challenge was baking a loaf of bread.

My new toaster oven is taller than normal so I decided to see if it were possible to bake a loaf of bread without it burning or under cooking. I placed a sheet of foil on the top of the bread so if it rose too high the bread wouldn't stick and make a mess.

 It's a good thing I used the foil because the bread rose higher than expected and pushed up against the top of the oven.

 The bottom of the bread cooked perfectly.

 When I cut the bread in half I was very pleased to see it was completely cooked.

Now I'm set for baking all summer without heating up the house.

Quilt Club Block 4 of 12

I have been so busy the last few weeks that I completely forgot to sew up my April quilt block; thankgoodness I remembered before we meet this month.

 While at the quilt club last month I learned about a service project the sewing store was participating in. They were asking for volunteers to sew together small Christmas Stockings.

 All that was needed to complete a Christmas Stocking was to finish the edges and add some type of decoration.

I didn't have any Christmas fabric on  hand but I'm pretty pleased with how the Christmas Stockings turned out.

Rice Cooker

A bargain isn't a bargain if you don't use what you buy.

Several years ago I found a neat little stove top rice cooker at a garage sale for 1-dollar. Sadly I couldn't figure out how to use it.

Right before making the decision to get rid of the cooker I searched the Internet and found a man looking to buy a stove top cooker. I took time to send him an e-mail asking how the cooker was used and thankfully he shared with me the simple steps.

 The rice cooker works pretty much like a normal pot except the bottom pan holds water which makes steam for the top pan. Originally I thought the rice was to go in the top pan dry and the steam would cook it.

 After measuring my rice and water I cover and cook for 20 minutes.

 What a difference this cooker makes.

The rice comes out fluffy and moist and does not stick at the bottom. So glad I didn't get rid of my cooker as planned.

Creative Leftovers

Earlier this week I grilled pork steaks for dinner with all the fixings; corn on the cob, baked potatoes.... Yum, it was all so good.

 No matter how good a meal is sometimes you don't want to eat it a second time. So I decided to get creative with the leftovers.

 I took the leftover baked potatoes and sliced them, leaving the skin on. These were then fried in a skillet until brown on each side.

 Next I fried up some eggs, warmed up the leftover grilled pork steak and we had a meal fit for a king.

Just as we were sitting down to eat I remembered I had some biscuits leftover from breakfast which was the perfect addition to our meal. Yum, leftovers sure are tasty. 

Kitchen Necessity

In my home a toaster oven is a necessity that is used daily; and we tend to wear them out quickly. Here in my newest toaster oven.

 

It's not just a toaster oven but a rotisserie as well.

 Purchased 2nd hand for 16-dollars.

The last time I needed a toaster oven I purchased it new and it lasted less than a year. So glad I found this one for such a great price. And, best of all, it works! We tested it with a batch of brownies and they baked up perfectly.