Jumping In

Okay,
Along with blogging more I plan on enter more contests and challenges. there is a new challenge blog called Candy Shoppe Designs recommended by my lil' scrapping sister Myia - Check them out, they are doing some awesome giveaways right now! If I can do it, so can you!

Today was a Good Day

Even though I was not incredibly busy at work and I was incredibly tired, I still had a good day.
Scrapbook related, I did some virtual window shopping at stopandscrap.com of the coming soon CHA 2009 summer previews. My total cart is around $133. I will bring it down before I hit that checkout button though, we are in a recession, lol! Out of all of the paper collections I love the new Pink Paislee Amber Road. My girl Jojorenee says that it is definitely my style (that's a good thing right, sis?). I am blocked from blogger at work so I have to do my updating at night. As promised here is a picture of my bridal shower favors. My niece's wedding colors are red, black and white with an Asian theme. I put "Red Hots" in tulle with the wedding ring embellies for the final look. I have to tell you the shoe is a labor of love since you have to hand cut each piece. Here is a link to the template http://www.creatingkeepsakes.com/articles/free_shoe_template_download( I shrunk it to 75% for my favors) give it a try, you will love the results, just make sure you are using a good weight cardstock.

In food news (my other favorite subject, lol) our local newspaper did an article on a Vegan Soul Food Cookbook by Bryant Terry. I am not a vegan but I do try to eat better any chance I get. Here is a link to the recipe I want to try. I put a copy here too but use the link http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/jamaican-veggie-patties-recipe.html for more information. Let me know if you try it before I do. Enjoy!



Jamaican Veggie Patties Recipe
You can certainly experiment with different sizes here, but don't go much smaller than a 4-inch cookie cutter. Any smaller and they tend to come apart at the seams - a bit like gaping mouths (see lead photo). Also, be sure to roll the pastry dough thinly - a true 1/8-inch. And lastIy, I can't resist brushing the patties with a bit of beaten egg before placing them in the oven - it makes the crust nice and golden, but also takes them out of the vegan category.
1 tablespoon coconut oil

1/2 cup 1/4-inch-diced yellow onion

1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon allspice

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

Coarse sea salt

2 larges cloves garlic, minced

3/4 cup coconut milk

1/4 cup 1/4-inch-diced carrots

1/4 cup 1/4-inch-diced yellow potatoes

1/2 cup fresh green peas (or frozen)

1/2 cup sweet fresh corn (or frozen)

1/2 cup shredded cabbage

1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper


Pastry:1 3/4 cups unbleached flour1 cup whole wheat pastry flour2 teaspoons turmeric1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt3/4 cup chilled coconut oil2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons ice water


For the filling: In a medium-size saute pan over medium-low heat, combine the coconut oil, the onion cinnamon, allspice, cumin, red pepper flakes, cayenne, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Saute, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the vegetables are caramelized. Add the garlic and cook for an additional 2 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk, carrots, and potatoes, reduce the heat to low, cover, and cook until the carrots and potatoes are tender, 10 to 12 minutes. Stir in the green peas, corn, cabbage, thyme, and lemon juice, cover, and cook for 3 minutes more. Season with additional salt and the white pepper (or to taste) and set aside to allow the flavors to marry.
For the pastry: Combine 1 1/2 cups of the white flour with the pastry flour, turmeric, and salt in a large bowl and mix well. Set the remaining 1/4 cup white flour aside. Add the coconut butter to the flour mixture and rub with your fingertip until the mixture resembles fine sand, about 10 minutes (hs note: I've also make this dough by pulsing ingredients in a food processor with good results).
Combine the vinegar and water and mix well. Then, without overworking the dough, add the vinegar mixture by the tablespoon, while stirring, just until the dough comes away from the sides of the bowl and begins to coalesce. Squeeze into a tight ball, flatten, cover in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 350F and remove the dough from the refrigerator.
With the reserved flour, lightly dust a clean surface, roll out the dough until it is about 1/8 inch thick. Cut six 6-inch circles from the dough (you can use a bowl). Spoon 2 heaping tablespoons of the filling onto the center of one side of each circle, leaving about a 1/8-inch border. Fold the other half over to make a half-moon, press to seal, and make ridges around the edge using a fork. (hs note: if your dough is at all on the dry side you may need to run wet fingers around the edge of the circles to help get a good seal).
Transfer the patties to a parchment-lined baking sheet and bake until golden brown, about 35 minutes. Serve immediately with some hot sauce.
Makes six big patties, or a couple dozen smaller ones.
Reprinted with permission from Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American Cuisine by Bryant Terry. (Da Capo

Another Try!

After almost three years of being M.I.A. (hence the first song/artist on my playlist) I am going to try this blogging thing again. Now don't get me wrong I never gave up scrapping but I joined scrapbook.com instead of keeping up with my personal blog. Now I am going to try the unthinkable and do BOTH! Who knew? Is it really possible? We will see, lol!

So instead of trying to catch up on the past three years I am just going to start off like I never left. The next two weeks (actually it started last week) are crazy for me. Me an my baby niece, Tise (okay she is 27, not really a baby) gave my oldest niece, Tiya, a wedding shower. It was broken up into the PG version and the X rated verison. I only stayed for the PG version - I know I am such a prude....sometimes :) Anywhoo the first half was fun, I did the favors (to be posted soon) and cooked. Tiya loves breakfast food so we had sausage, bacon, and made to order belgian waffles, yummy. This weekend is my second oldest sister's , LynniePooh (only I can call her that) 50th birthday. We are giving her a party and even though the party itself isn't a surprise we do have some surprise guests lined up. Yup you guessed it, i am doing the favors for that too. The next weekend is Tiya's wedding and guess who is the maid of honor - yup that is me too. I will share pictures as soon as they are available. And since it has been so long and you may have forgotten what I look like here is a picture of me and my niece Tiya - I am so proud of her, she has a beautiful family and such a beautiful spirit!