Sunday, July 17, 2011

One Ingredient Caramel Pie!


























Another OH MY moment! ONE INGREDIENT FOR THE FILLING. Are you ready? Sweetened condensed milk.

Extras:
  • Oreo cookie crust (purchased pre-made at store)
  • Pecan pieces
  • Chocolate Sundae Syrup topping (squeeze bottle type)

Take 2-3 14 oz. cans (I think three might be better) of Borden's Sweetened Condensed Milk. Peel off the labels and place in LARGE kettle of water. Make SURE water covers the cans completely. Boil for 3 1/2 hours. Consider using a lid on the pot. Do NOT let water level drop below can tops, as pressure changes can cause cans to explode.

Carefully remove from boiling water and let cool a little. Punch a hole in top of the can with bottle opener to relieve the pressure, then open cans with can-opener. Pour caramelized contents into pie shell and smooth top with rubber spatula. Place in refrigerator to cool. The caramel will become firm. (Later you can cover with plastic wrap misted with cooking spray.)

Slice and top with pecan pieces and drizzle with chocolate.

Good enough to save for yourself, pretty enough for guests. No calories. I swear.

Skylight moment...

I was walking through the kitchen and the light was streaming in from above.  A stunning moment.

Sunday, June 26, 2011

Ravani: A Moist Greek Cake
















I got a new mixer on Friday (YAY!) and had to make something. And since later I am making some Greek pitas, this seemed like a great idea - Ravani. It's a really moist Greek cake... sort of no frills. But delicious. It uses Semolina flour, which is the first time I have used that. (Almost left the grocery store without it!)

The cake is easy to make - but the kicker is the sweet homemade syrup you pour over the cake while it is still hot from the oven. I worried about using all the syrup from the recipe, and stopped short. I should have used it all. The syrup is totally absorbed and the result is a sweet, moist cake. Great with a cup of coffee or glass of milk.

Recipe from Elly Says Opa!

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Summer Succotash Salad - It's what's for dinner


New Recipe! Cold, fresh succotash salad to go with dinner tonight. Fresh green beans, fresh corn right off the cob, baby limas, red onion. Toss with a mix of olive oil, lemon juice, basil and honey. Courtesy of  Cook's Country.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Salted Caramel Butter Bars





























Oh my. It's sweet. It's gooey. It's rich.

A crust base. A caramel and cream center and a crumbled crust top. When I eat more later, it will be with a scoop of vanilla.

I wish I could say it is my recipe, but kudos go to  Cookies and Cups. If you check out the recipe, I used vanilla in the crust batter. I used a rather coarse Kosher salt on the caramel because I could not get my jar of coarse sea salt open, ha ha. And I halved the recipe and used an 8" x 8" pan. Worked great. The half-recipe was an effort to contain how much dessert was in the house.


Saturday, June 18, 2011

Berry Crumble - This is too easy


























Fresh berries, flour, brown sugar and butter. Ta da. I used 2 cups of blueberries and 2 cups of raspberries.

I have to admit, it's a weight watchers recipe.
  • Mix 3/4 c flour and 2/3 c brown sugar in a bowl.
  • Take 3 Tbs of mix and add to 4 cups fresh berries that have been placed in a second bowl.
  • Melt 6 Tbs butter and add to flour mixture. Mix well.
  • Now pour berry mix into 8"x8" dish and cover with the flour/sugar batter. Since flour mix is moist, just take small clumps and place them over berries until berries are covered.
  • Bake at 350 degrees  for 35-40 minutes until berries bubble.
Serve with low-fat vanilla ice cream or vanilla frozen yogurt.
OH MY!

Tuesday, June 07, 2011

Strawberry Shortcake Cookies

The other day a friend was getting ready to make strawberry shortcake. Except she was using the small, round sponge cakes in a package. That's not how I remember shortcake. Growing up, shortcake was homemade, dry and crumbly and soaked up the cream from the bowl.

Then I saw this recipe on SweetlySerendipity.com. Real shortbread! In a cookie! So I made them, following the recipe at the link. Heaven, warm from the oven. And later just divine in a bowl with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. You could pour some real cream in the bowl... I did not have enough left over from the recipe. If that sounds good, buy a pint of cream (instead of the cup required for the recipe).

If you like scones, you will love these. I think I will have to try blueberries next.

Photos & Notes: cut strawberries, strawberries in the lemon juice and sugar, the batter, and the dollops of cookie dough. At first the batter will seem like it does not have enough moisture, but follow the recipe. The juicy strawberry mix will hold it together. For scooping the cookies, I used heaping-heaping tablespoonfuls. Then I stuck extra pieces of dough on top if needed. For the sugar topping, use raw (turbinado) sugar or dusting (decorating crystals-type) sugar. Regular sugar will melt and caramelize. I stored the cookies in a big zip-lock overnight - I think it made them too moist and more like cupcakes this morning... so don't recommend that. I prefer the crumbly scone texture.

Sunday, June 05, 2011

New Fancy Lure - Romance



































Finally getting around to posting the first of the Fancy Lures. Goes with something soft or with blue jeans, as well. It hangs on a ball chain, or hooks to belt loop. Ribbons, lace, fabric, beads, fishing tackle swivels...

The Apple Galette





























Apple Galette - frankly I was not familiar with a "galette", but you learn something everyday! I made this last weekend and I am making another one this morning... it was that good. Very easy with the wonderful recipe I found at Elephantine. I need to work on how to core and slice apples! The turbinado sugar in the recipe is actually raw natural cane sugar, available at the grocery store. It's a bigger sugar grain and simply "makes" the crust... adds crunch and well worth it. This will be lovely a little later with a spot of vanilla ice cream and some coffee :)


 Here is the galette before I put it in the oven. I added, this time, a little more sugar to the apples, dashes of cinnamon and allspice - a little more like apple pie flavors. Note: top photo is last week's baked galette; photo directly above is this week's.

Monday, May 30, 2011

In Remembrance




In remembrance of those who gave their lives in service to our country, to those who have served and to the men and women who are currently in harm's way. We thank you!

Sunday, May 29, 2011

Thinking Memorial Day and 4th of July





Some good ol' Red, White & Blue for the Holiday tomorrow. Too festive to pass up. And good again on the 4th, or any day for that matter. Sterling Silver wires.

Little Wild Things


































A friend asked about whether Wild Thing came as earrings... so here they are! They look fabulous on. Spunky little things. Sterling Silver wires.

Weekend Potato Salad


A little "lighter", if that's possible for potato salad. Light mayo and red wine vinegar. Onions, parsley and turkey bacon. Almost more of a marinade, so it's not slathered in the traditional mayonnaise. And made ahead of time, it just gets better. Just put the bowl in the refrigerator.

Friday, May 27, 2011

See, I said the magazine was good...


























Bacon-wrapped club crackers cooked in a low, slow oven. A brief died-and-gone-to-heaven moment. They taste like homemade bacon biscuits - could be appetizers or would honestly be good with breakfast eggs. This was from Garden & Guns magazine. They always feature fabulous foods from the Deep South.

One Scrumptious Magazine



Scrumptious  Extremely appetizing or delicious. Very attractive.

Garden & Gun is one delicious publication. It's one of the few that I look forward to reading - soaking up the all the flavors of the Deep South.

Food that we live for: catfish, BBQ, crawfish, fried chicken, biscuits, cole slaw, deviled eggs... hungry yet?

Stories on Southern musicians, artists and designers, craftsmen.
Riverboats and bayous.
Plantations and cabins.
Whiskey and mint tea.
And the best little towns to visit.

Thursday, May 26, 2011

New Fancy Lure - Wild Thing




































































Fun and funky combination of my newest "Lure" (think trailing a long glittery fishing lure). A mix of ribbons, and charms, rhinestones and a handcrafted bead. Hook on neck chain, belt loop, purse strap. Lobster clasp makes it 'portable'.

Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Spring Palette


So fresh and beautiful. A soft color palette that's like velvet shaped into petals. Creation and photo credit: Geny's Wholesale Flowers in Nashville.

Saturday, May 21, 2011

Funky Town



Long necklace with handcrafted polymer clay beads. 32" strand with magnetic clasp.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Melting Pot



Project finished and framed!
Flag is approximately 13" wide, framed in a shadow box. Very tactile, so no glass on the front.

Here is a detail shot:


And this helps a little for context/size:

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Teaser shot of WIP



Just a teaser corner of a WIP. Love the palettes you can get from fabrics! More later.

A run through the wet woods


She is her own work of art. Miss Mattie, the standard poodle, waiting to come inside after a messy run through the wet woods. Ugh.

Friday, January 21, 2011

WIP - Still on the Fence



I am still on the fence on this one... macro crochet pattern for fun. Seemed like it could be like a textile stained glass and allow for an unlimited series. Pastels on Wallis. More time consuming than I imagined!

I need to think this through!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Felted Bowl



Stepping it up with a felted bowl - 7" wide and 2" deep. Yarn is a wonderful wine color with accent rows added in a wonderful variegated Japanese yarn.

Tiny Felted Vessel



It's tiny - 1 1/4" wide and 2 1/4" high - perfect for holding rings, when you take them off. Or one hard boiled egg, if you are inclined.

Crocheted and felted 100% wool.

Sunday, January 16, 2011

This FELT fun to do.



Felted heather green coasters. Been wanting to try felting with 100% wool, so I felted my crocheted coasters and, ta da, a set of 4. Watch for more!

Friday, December 24, 2010

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Died on gone to color heaven



Oh my, such luscious colors all wrapped up in one piece. Even richer in real life.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Kid Mohair and Silk



Lovely combination of colors and feel. On the left, it's wool and bamboo viscose and on the right, the softest kid mohair and silk. The combination is really soft to the touch. Sorta' like 3-D painting palette.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Nickel-plated Colt 6 Gun


Finally getting around to finishing up this big one in pastels. Ornate holster along with collector guns - favorites of the Cowboy Action Shooting crowd.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

New Web Home Page



Made an update with new home page images on The Illustrated Cat! Perfect gifts - note cards, post cards and prints. Check it out if you have not done so already....

Saturday, November 14, 2009

Tote that Cat!



New on www.TheIllustratedCat.com !! Just introduced a fabulous new tote bag. I carry mine as a purse and use it when traveling. Might make the purr-fect Christmas or Holiday gift for someone special. Six totes available - all with reproductions of my colored pencil cat portraits.

Thursday, October 08, 2009

Wear a Cat!


New in the line of The Illustrated Cat... pendants! handcrafted.... Made from reduced images of my colored pencil art. They are kinda' fun. For sale on the website - all six portraits, but just one photo posted at the moment. www.TheIllustratedCat.com

Neglectful

I have not managed to keep up. Goodness, what an embarrassment. Between normal demands and launching the card line, things have gotten away! This is a photo from the NYC Gift Show!

Thursday, June 25, 2009

New Post Card



What 'cha think? This is a new 5"x7" postcard for sending or framing. Thinking about doing a series with all 6 cats.....

Friday, May 22, 2009

New Line of Stationery!




Wow... it's a been a little while but I have been busy launching a line of illustrated note cards. Showed at the Atlanta Gift Mart in January and it's been busy since then.

Now I have launched the consumer site that has my note cards, Purrfect Occasions notes and pre-matted prints. There's more to come! Please visit...
www.TheIllustratedCat.com

All those little kitties were done in colored pencil. Someone at the trade show said I needed 40 of them. I said, fine, I'll be back in two years. Not.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Silver Jewelry



Explorations! I took reduced images of the colored pencil cat portraits I did, and made silver solder pendants (lead-free!). Long chains. Crazy, but they make the best clinking sound.

Saturday, December 06, 2008

Blue Eyes


And this one, with beautiful blue eyes. Technique is somewhat different when doing a cat with long hair. I think I'll treat myself to more colored pencils for Christmas!
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