Contest Entry: Egg Nest

No, the photo isn't blurry, the yarn is extra fuzzy and the contrast with the green glitter yarn is what makes it look out of focus.

I spent Saturday creating my entry for the Martha Stewart Crafts challenge and here it is! The challenge was to make anything using her brand of yarn. I sewed together a coil of Mambo yarn for the nest, used Glitter Eyelash for the grass, and Roving Wool for the eggs. I actually tried to write down the crochet pattern for first time. Normally, I freehand all my yarn creations. If anyone's willing try out my instructions, I'd love some feedback as to whether or not it works:

Hooks: J/10 6mm
G/6 4.25mm (for decreasing)
stitch marker
yarn needle
filling (I used polyester fiber fill)

Egg:
Using the J/10 hook, ch 6, slip stitch in first ch to form a circle. Place a marker at the start to mark your rounds.
Round 1: 2 SC in each st around (increasing to 12 sc total)
Round 2: SC around (12 Sc)
Round 3: *Sc in first stitch, 2 Sc in 2nd stitch* Repeat from * till end of round (increasing every other stitch, 18 total)
Round 4: SC around (18 Sc)
Round 5: *Sc in first 2 stitches, 2 Sc in 3rd stitch* Repeat from * till end of round (increasing every 2 stitches, 24 total)

Switch to the smaller hook to begin decrease

Round 6: *Sc in first 2 stitches, decrease next* Repeat from * till end of round (18)
Round 7: *Sc in first stitch, decrease 2nd* Repeat from * till end of round (12)

Start stuffing egg with filler

Round 8: Decrease every stitch (6)
Cut a long tail and attach yarn needle. Thread through remaining 6 loops and draw to close. Weave in ends.

Lion Brand/Martha Stewart Yarn Contest!

Create something worthy using Martha Stewart's yarn collection and you can win up to 100 skeins of yarn and a loom kit ($1000+ value). Looks like it doesn't even have to be an original design either, but that's my goal, in which case I'll have to go back to crocheting. Lunch-time Lion Brand store visit for me today!

Click here for more contest info

Buttermilk Peach Coffee Cake

This is probably the richest coffee cake I've ever eaten, not to mention the biggest. It has a layer of peaches and crumb in the middle, as well as crumbs on top. The edges got a bit over-baked but otherwise, no complaints! This takes a bit more prep than most cakes to make, but it's definitely worth it.

Recipe from The Cake Book by Tish Boyle

Crumb Topping and Filling
1 cup flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup unblanched sliced almonds
7 Tbsp unsalted melted butter

1. Mix flour, sugar, cinnamon, salt and almonds. Add melted butter, stir till butter is absorbed and ingredients are evenly moistened. Set aside

Cake
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp almond extract
3/4 cup buttermilk (if you're like me and you never can finish the liquid variety, look for the powdered kind)
1 heaping cup 1/4 inch thick fresh or frozen peach slices (I used canned)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease bottom and sides of a 9" springform pan
Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside
Beat the butter and sugar till light and fluffy.
Beat in eggs and egg yolk one at a time, beating well after each addition
Beat in vanilla and almond extract
Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions alternating it with the buttermilk in 2 additions

Scrape half the batter into the pan and smooth the top.
Sprinkle half of the crumb topping evenly over the batter
Arrange peaches on top of the crumbs
Spoon remaining batter over the filling
Smooth it down and sprinkle the remaining crumb on top of the cake

Bake for 50-60 min. Cover cake with foil during the last 15 min if getting too brown. Cool in pan for 20 min

Doodle

iPad doodle with ArtRage app.

A different look at food preservation

I stumbled on this article through Etsy: Artist Jihyun Ryou combines design with more traditional methods of keeping food fresh without refrigeration.

While not necessarily practical for all climates or households with more than 2 people, I like the idea behind it and designs are simple and clean. Control humidity and avoid keeping certain foods next to each other because they release certain gases which may speed up ripening or affect flavor.

Click here to see more of the designs.

Valentine's Day Stalker Cookies

Butter cookies with royal icing and edible ink by Kopykake. Happy Valentine's Day!

Recipe Box App

Available for iPad $3.99. Also a "To Go" version for the iPhone.

If you're like me and you have dozens of bookmarked websites with recipes you love, (or want to try) and you want to consolidate them all, this is an awesome app. Very user-friendly interface, easy to navigate and edit and once you've input the recipe, you don't have to be online to look at them.

Basically, you copy/paste a recipe from the internet (or from any other digital document) into their app, then cut it up into the appropriate sections (generally Ingredients and Directions). Or you can just hand type the recipe yourself. There's a great in-app keyboard with keys like "preheat," "chopped," measurements, etc. to save you some typing. I'm actually addicted to plugging in as many recipes as I can right now, so I don't have to sift through all my books.

You can also import photos from your albums or from the internet.

It's great if you're out shopping and you forget what ingredients you need. Personally, I love propping it up near the kitchen, instead of having to run across to my computer, while dripping ingredients all over the floor.