artsy-crafty babe

on the table

One of my favorite aspects of fall is spending time in the kitchen.  After a very long, hot summer that never seems to end, I look forward to cooler temps so that I can use my oven to cook hearty meals.  Beef stew, baked chicken, roasted vegetables, chicken pot pie - those are some of my favorites.  Tonight I made a chicken pot pie with the left over chicken and roasted vegetables from Sunday's meal.  I've learned that it is just as easy to bake 2 chickens as it is to bake one.  It was wonderful.  A perfect fall meal.

Oh, in case you were wondering, I pretty much use this recipe + whatever seasonings & vegetables I have on hand.

 

a hat + some soup

I don't know if you've heard, but it's been cold in the deep south. Much too cold for my liking. Thankfully we don't have any snow or ice to deal with, but it's still a pain when you're not used to it.  All I've wanted to do since the cold front came through is cook and knit, which isn't necessarily bad thing unless you're trying to move more and eat better (I'll get to that next week).

What better to knit for cold weather than a hat?  Now that I've discovered the joys of hat knitting, I'm all in.  Do you like my hat? (I can't help but think of Go, Dog. Go! when I say that)  I must admit that I feel a little silly wearing it, only because I'm not used to wearing hats just yet.

This is the Felted Bucket Hat by Chic Knits.  I used Ella Rae classic yarn.  This yarn felted like a dream.  If I were to make it again, I'd knit a few more rows to make it a little taller, but I was getting low on yarn - the pattern calls for 220 yds and the ball of yarn was 219.  I got nervous and cut it a little short.  That's probably why my top is more rounded than the picture on the pattern.  I had to stretch it down to cover my head resulting in a rounded crown, which is fine by me. 

To give it a little kick, I added a wool felt flower brooch on the side.  I was into making these a few years ago, in fact I had to search through my archives to remember what they looked like.  Has it really been 3 years since I've made them?  That doesn't seem possible, but I can't argue with the archives.

Okay, now on to the soup.  This evening I tried out this broccoli & cheese soup recipe.  I had a bunch of broccoli in the fridge that needed cooking, so it just made sense.  I must say, this recipe isn't too bad.  It has a lot of flavor, which I like.  I ended up trippling it and had to do some improvisions, but overall I followed the basic recipe.  This is more of a broth type soup than a cream one, not too cheesy, perfect with a bug hunk of french bread.

Okay, now that my belly is full my knitting is calling.  See ya!

back amongst the living

Well, hello there!  I'm still alive.  What day is it?  Geesh, I feel so out of it.  I blame it on my sinus ailments that have had me feeling like crap these last few days.  I HATE feeling yucky.  It really puts a damper on my creative mojo.  This weekend I spent a whole lot of time laying around, trying to rest (is that even possible with 3 little kids?), and tending to LOTS of laundry and dirty dishes.  Exciting stuff, huh?

Today I am happy to be feeling better and I am thoroughly enjoying the little cool snap that decided to visit the deep south.  Brrr - it was in the 30's last night and will be for the next few days.  Then it's back to reality and highs in the 80's next.  That's okay, I'll take it.  This cool weather makes me want to curl up on the sofa with a warm quilt, my knitting needles and some yarn, while a loaf of bread is baking and a pot of soup is simmering.  Doesn't that sound divine?  Too bad I have a broken range.  I've had to be creative with supper, using my toaster oven and crock pot.  We're making do.  The other day I made chicken noodle soup and last night I made meatloaf with roasted veggies and steamed green beans.  Tonight we're ordering out :)

Look at that - I knit something for someone other than myself!  It's not the original baby sweater I started last week, which ended up being big enough to fit Ava, but I like this one better.  I still need to add some buttons and block it.  I think baby sweaters may be my new favorite thing to knit.  Love that instant gratification!

Just because I like to keep it real, this is what I allow to happen in order to have a little blog time - Ava did this while I was composing this post.  It'll only take a few minutes to clean up, so worth it!

Yum

When I saw the guy selling  Louisiana Berries on the side of the road, I couldn't resist.  I bought half a flat. 

I've already eaten a pint all by myself.  I don't think these will last too long in this house.

banana bread and beds

Here's the recipe for that wonderful banana bread I made the other night:

From Louisiana Entertains

Official cookbook 1984 Louisiana World Exposition

Banana Bread

1 ¾ cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup shortening  (I use stick margarine)

2/3 cup sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1 cup mashed ripe bananas (about 3 bananas)

½ cup chopped nuts

Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, and salt.  Beat shortening until creamy.  Add sugar gradually add continue beating until light and fluffy.  Blend in eggs. Add flour mixture alternately with bananas, a little at a time, beating after each addition until smooth.  Stir in nuts.  Bake in greased 9x5 inch bread pan at 350 about 1 hour 10 minutes.

***This has nothing to do with banana bread, but why do I bother making the beds in the morning?  I made three beds this morning, and by lunch all the beds were disheveled, not from sleeping, but from little feet jumping and using pillows hitting implements.   This drives me mad, I tell ya!!!