Progress on my new quilt for 2015

Hi all:

I was so excited about this quilt, that I had to keep going today and cut the rest of the  triangles. I am now trying to place them in a configuration that makes sense.

Here is what I have so far.

I noticed that the 2 halves of the bottom left hand corner block were too similar in colour, so I changed things around and came up with this.

I think this works better. I like seeing the definite diagonal lines of green versus blue/purple. As well, I have now marked them so that I know in which order to sew the triangles/blocks together.  I also purchased 2 additional charm packs of Kaffee Fasset (Tides and Cool) from the Missouri Star Quilt Co. and will make a pieced outer border using those charm squares.  Both of those fabric lines have similar colours, so I think they go well together.  If I only use the 9 main large blocks, the quilt will be too small and I was hoping to make a good size lap quilt.

Here is another arrangement.

Let me know what you think about these arrangements.

Rosie

New quilt for 2015

Hi all:

I get emails everyday for "Quilter's Daily Deals" from the Missouri Star Quilt Company. I am sure a lot of you also get these daily deals sent to your inbox.  I really enjoy looking at these deals and reading the little stories to go with them, but have never bought one until about 2 weeks ago.  When this one found its way into my inbox, I couldn't help myself.  

The daily deal was for a Kaffee Fasset jelly roll in "Tide".  Well, when I saw it, I just had to have it.  I really like pre-cuts; jelly rolls and charm packs.  They make designing a quilt so much easier and I really like how they make a quilt look "patchy"; as if thrown together from scraps you had lying around. Well, as soon as I saw this daily deal, I had visions of jelly roll strips, dancing in my head! I like to use larger pieces of fabric to show off the fabric design; I am not a huge fan of piecing small, fiddly bits of fabric to make a design. It seems to me, that defeats the purpose of having a lovely fabric design in the first place. (just my opinion!)

Even though I am really busy with school (4 classes this semester) I set about sewing up those jelly roll strips as soon as I got them. I have been sewing up a storm the past 2 days and this is what I have so far.

I fell in love with this dot print. It made me buy this jelly roll!

Here, I am trying to place the strips in a pleasing arrangement. I wanted an ombré effect.

I love Kaffee Fasset's vibrant colours, don't you?

These haven't been sewn yet. I am just trying this design out.  I made a mistake in cutting some of the strip squares and cut them the wrong way. That just figures!!! It never fails... I seem to always make mistakes somewhere in the quilts I make!!

Alternate arrangement.

I like how you can see a diagonal swath of green beside the purple/blues.

I haven't made all of the triangles yet. They are still to be cut.

I was checking online for some design ideas and found a beautiful quilt on Pinterest that seemed perfect for this jelly roll.  The only directions I could find were:  sew 8 strips together; square up the sides; cut the squares at a 45 degree angle to make triangles; mix and match the triangles.

Here is the original quilt I saw on Fancy Tiger Crafts. I love how simple it is, yet has a lot of impact.

How can you resist such a pretty quilt?  I hope mine turns out as nice as hers! (Apparently, this was her first quilt.)

I will post more pictures once I have made more progress.  Wish me luck!

Rosie

Today's Healthy lunch

Hi all:

I just made a wonderful salad for lunch with a product I have never used before. It is called "Salad Sensation" and is a mix of fruit, seeds and herbs that I added to my salad instead of the usual seed mix that I use.  It contains sesame seeds, dried soybeans, sunflower seeds, dried herbs, bacon bits (yum) and dried zeresh.  Now, I had never heard of zeresh but I looked it up and apparently it comes from the Barberry bush and produces small red berries that are packed with vitamin C and is used in middle Eastern cooking.

Here is my salad.  Of course I used some leftover blackened chicken breast from last night's dinner and added that to a mixed green salad I made. I then threw on a handful of this salad sensation mix and topped it with a drizzle of olive oil (Jamie Oliver's EVOO) and a drizzle of rice wine vinegar.(sometimes I find balsamic vinegar is too heavy for a lighter meal).

This looks like large pieces of chicken but in reality, they are thin strips of chicken; not the whole breast.

Had to have a Tim's as well. ( coffee that is; black gold, Texas tea)

Here is what the salad mix looks like.  The good thing is that you can taste the tart zeresh but it has no added sugar, unlike the Craisins I often put on my salad.

On a side note, the bean below is a soybean, is it not? I just assumed that it was.  Please let me know if you know, that is what it is.

Bye for now.

Rosie

Dicing Onions 101

Hi all:

Does anyone have trouble dicing onions properly? I think I have gotten the dicing of the lowly onion down to a science.  It may seem simple enough, but it is amazing how many people can't dice an onion.  I have been cooking since my early teens, so I have diced many an onion in my time.  Here is how  I like to dice them. ( Does anyone else cringe when they see the "expert chefs" on TV dicing an onion by sawing into it sideways? I look away at those moments!)

Here is the primer on Dicing Onions 101:

(**Use caution when cutting onions**)

Make sure you use a cutting board that is NOT MADE OF GLASS! It will not hold onto an onion and the onion just might fly across the room if you try to cut on one.  Use either wood or plastic. It will help to grip the onion slightly.

Cut off the very tip of the pointed end of the onion. ( not the side with the roots)

Flip the onion cut side down and let the roots point upwards.

Hold the onion carefully and cut it in half.

This is how it will look.

Flip the onion again onto the flat cut side.

Cut off the root end and peel off the skin from the onion.

 

See the grooves or lines running along the onion from end to end? Follow those lines and cut along them in very thin strips. Cut the entire half onion this way.

Ok my knife isn't following the lines exactly, but you get the idea. I have done several thin cuts at this point but you can't see them because they are still attached to the onion.

Here you can see the cuts I have made along the grooves/lines in the onion. Keep them stacked up together for the next step.

Turn the onion so that you are now cutting into it at a 90 degree angle from the first cuts. (You will be cutting ACROSS the cuts you just made). This will give you the small diced pieces that you want.  Make sure you hold the onion and the knife really securely in your hands, so that the knife doesn't slip.

Done.  I am sure I could dice a whole bag of onions in less than 5 minutes. (I might be exaggerating somewhat)  This is such a simple method that I always shake my head when I see those experts slicing  onions by holding their knives flat and parallel to the table. I don't get it!!!

Anyways, use caution when using knives to cut onions.

By the way, have you seen those goggles that stop you from crying when cutting onions? You can find them in specialty kitchen stores or the kitchen gadget aisle.  I had that exact idea about 34 years ago when I would don swimming goggles to cut my onions.  Everyone thought I was crazy for slapping those on my head when I cooked and they used to laugh at me, but they worked! It didn't matter that the goggles cast a hideous yellow glow over everything. What mattered was that I did not shed one tear!!  Now, someone is making a fortune selling those "specialty cooking items".  I say, go out and buy yourself a good pair of swimming goggles and use those instead. Who knows; in a pinch they can do double duty for your child's swimming lessons.

Night all.

Rosie

Healthy Gluten-free "Rum balls"

Hi all:

I had a real craving for a healthy gluten-free snack a few days ago and came up with this recipe. Since I am trying to avoid carbs and gluten right now, I wanted something flour-free, yet with a lot of taste.  One of my all-time favourite treats is rum balls.  I could eat them every day, but sadly they have a lot of sugar and carbs in them, so I wanted to make a healthier version. Enter my Healthy Gluten-free Rumballs.  They are small and compact (easy to grab and go) but pack a healthy, flavourful punch.

Here is the recipe for my HEALTHY GLUTEN-FREE RUMBALLS:

                                       ************************************************

(you will need a food processor for this. It makes everything so much easier!)

This was the first time I used this gigantic behemoth!!  It is really heavy but does a great job of processing foods. I think it may be a 12 cup food processor. You will need a large one to make this recipe. (Or cut the ingredients in half for a smaller capacity food processor.)

It doesn't get any easier than this;  On, Off, Pulse.  I like simplicity.

In the large bowl of a food processor add:

1 c. Dried Pitted prunes

1 c. Dried Pitted dates

1 c. Dried apricots

4 T. Candied orange peel ( I used a 100 gram container)

3/4 c. Ground flax seed

Pulse these ingredients until fairly fine.

In a skillet, toast the following nuts and seeds separately for about 1-2 minutes BEFORE adding to the fruit mixture above.

1 c. Filberts (hazelnuts) - toasted (toast in a skillet for 1-2 minutes)

1 c. Slivered almonds - toasted 

1/3 c. Pumpkin seeds - toasted

Add these nuts and seeds to the fruit mixture in the food processor and pulse again for a short time to mix well.

Next add:

1-2 tsp. almond extract (to taste)

1-2 tsp. rum extract (optional)

1 tsp. vanilla extract (optional)

Pulse again quickly to mix then roll the mixture into 1 1/4" balls. I also rolled some of the balls in sesame seeds and left some plain.  Either way, they are good.  This recipe makes about 38-40 balls. 

I hope you enjoy these delicious, healthy Rumballs. (Yes, I know the candied orange peel has some sugar in it, but oh well....  You can omit it or like me, pretend it doesn't!!)

Hazelnuts.

Almond slivers.

Pumpkin seeds.

This is how the mixture should look.

Yummmmm!!!

I hope you enjoy these too.

Rosie