Crafty and Cooking to do list

I finally finished up my exams and papers for the semester last night (yay!), so now that I'm full of freedom, I'm mildly freaking out about how messy my apartment is and how many Christmas gifts I have yet to start and make. So I figured I'd get a bit organized in terms of my craftiness and Christmas baking that I want to do in the next few days at least, and gather some tutorials for things I want to make all in one place.

I really want to make this lipgloss--and hoepfully not explode a glass jar like the LAST time I made lipgloss!

Source: pulchritudefest.blogspot.com via Gillian on Pinterest

I want to try out a metal chocolate mold pan I thrifted, and I think one of these recipes will be just the ticket!

Source: framed-mylifeonepictureatatime.blogspot.com via Gillian on Pinterest

The icing on these ones is pretty fun!

Source: our-everyday-art.com via Gillian on Pinterest

These look amazing--wonder if I can put this inside a molded chocolate?

Source: bbcgoodfood.com via Gillian on Pinterest

The idea of cheesecakes in chocolate size form is pretty darn awesome also!

Source: roxanagreengirl.com via Gillian on Pinterest

There may also be some sugar cookie making and Christmas movie watching to try to get into the Christmas spirit a bit.

Source: peppermintplum.blogspot.com via Gillian on Pinterest

Source: motherthyme.com via Gillian on Pinterest

What are you cooking up this holiday season?

♥ Craftzilla 

Things I made and Saw: Baking Night!

The highlight of my usual week of crazy was hanging out with my lovely friend Jessica last night for a baking fun-stravaganza! We had lofty ideas, which included caramel apples, these sweet rolls, apple crisp, chocolate bacon and butter tarts. Clearly, our desire for baked good outweighed the time we actually had to bake things, but here's what we did get done!

Caramel apples would have happened, but I forgot that the way Zen makes them requires some whipping cream. We did go on an epic adventure to try to find it at a convenience store, and to bring the dog out after he got too excited and peed all over the (recently dry-cleaned) rug.We failed,  but we saw this awesome car/dog:

Photo by Jessica, @atthisvolume

At any rate, here's what we actually ended up making, butter tarts and chocolate bacon!

For the butter tarts, we used this recipe for the filling, and Zen just made pastry how he usually does, which doesn't really have a written down recipe at the moment. 

For the chocolate covered bacon, I looked at this recipe, but I basically just fried the bacon until crispy, then melted some chocolate chips in a metal bowl suspended over a pot of boiling water. I then cut the bacon up into smaller pieces and brushed/used a knife to spread the melted chocolate onto the bacon. I reserved a strip or two of bacon and cut it up finely to be the topping, and then refrigerated it for about half an hour.

I had trouble getting a good picture of this, but trust me, it was tasty! Next time we'll use better quality chocolate though, since it did turn out *very* sweet.

I took a few silly pictures of myself eating the tasty things today--you're welcome.

Some of them came out like I was standing in front of a wind machine for some reason.

Also, Jesse got a haircut lately and is looking pretty darn adorable right now, don't you think?





































































Have you cooked or baked anything tasty lately or ever had a baking party with friends? I'd love to see pictures or hear stories about what you made !


♥ Craftzilla 

Blog Action Day- Poverty and the Importance of Food

I'm participating in Blog Action Day this year, a day where bloggers get together to talk about a specific topic. This year, the topic is food, as today is also World Food Day. 

Since I've been in this Social Work program, I've had to think a lot of poverty and food and the impacts of this on every day life and how people deal with the lack of money to buy good food, and it's an issue that keeps coming up in discussions of poverty and community action that needs to take place. I even wrote a paper last year for a community development course that used a community development model to highlight areas where poverty persisted in my community and how to resolve them. In my reasoning, the issue of food banks and access to good food is one that keeps coming to the top of my mind, as food bank usage continues to rise, even though the economy is apparently pulling out of it's slump.

There are a few local organizations that we discussed in a class whose focus is on food and the need to increase the amount of money that people on social assistance are given to go towards necessities such as food. Challenges such as the "Food Budget Challenge" and Do the Math Challenges which challenges participants to live on $20 a week, the average amount that many people on social assistance have to spend on food. Personally, I don't even know how this is possible and think that the suggestion of immediately increasing the amount of money that people on social assistance get for food by $100 may provide some temporary relief for those on social assistance, but the solution to the problem entirely is not forthcoming. More and more people, people who have jobs even, and by token of our economic system should thus be earning enough to feed themselves are using food banks, are falling on hard times and poverty due to the fluctuations and whim of the economy, and a solution does not really present itself readily that works within this current system that we live in that actually leads to radical change. This site also highlights the difficulty of choices when you have limited resources, and how easily you can lose everything based on making the "wrong' choice of paying bills or buying food or medicine. It's actually  bit like a realistic online game of the Game of Life.  


I guess I also have a few of the tenets of the Occupy Wall Street movement on my mind, especially since the movement's protests here in Guelph are just up the street from my apartment (I can hear the drums of some of the protesters even). A handful of Occupy Guelph protesters are out camping in tents in the downtown square, to protest the way that profit and the bottom line currently prevails over the needs and realities of real people. 





Their chosen slogan "Life over Profit" is pretty much in line with my thoughts on how food and the real life needs of people has ceased to be the bottom line for governments, especially when it comes to making needed changes to social programs and making them quickly and comprehensively enough so that people are helped when they need help. 


At any rate, I think we need to think a bit more about what's important, and how to make sure that everyone gets the necessities that they need, especially the greatest necessity of all, food. 


♥ Craftzilla 

http://blogactionday.org

Friday Fancies: Hot Drinks and Tasty Treats

Today is sort of a rainy, cool day here, and I'm still really feeling in a fall kind of mood. And to me, this means a bit more of snuggling up indoors with a blanket, drinking hot drinks and eating a few tasty treats. I thought I'd share a few drinks and treats which I'm dying to make at the moment! (click the pictures to go the source recipes!)

Candy Cane Hot Chocolate

Pumpkin Fudge

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Apple Cider

What are your favourite drinks and eats once the weather starts getting chilly?

Yum! I'm definitely ready to eat and drink some of these tasty things! But first, I'm off to a wedding reception in Toronto tonight, to see some dear friends from university! I'm hoping I'll have a lovely time, if this cold doesn't keep me from partying the night away!

♥ Craftzilla

Things I made and saw: Parks, Pottery and Blended Drinks

It's been a busy, hectic week --I've been crazy busy at work, due to the regular lead being away in Cuba and me filling in, so lot of stress! It's been nice to do some relaxing things this weekend and unwind a bit. So here are a few photos from my weekend adventures for you to enjoy!

I've actually been getting to the studio a fair amount this week, so have gotten some pretty things made! Here's a few sneak peeks:

New table runner made --i love all the flower prints!

pillows! my mom gave me this great remnant piece of fabric last time I visited

Hello Kitty snuggles up under a doll blanket

New fancy pouches!

The boy and I took the pup on a garage sale-ing adventure yesterday when it was beautiful and hot out.

"Guelph: Making a Difference"

pretty flowers!

We walked by the market, but ended up with garage sale treasures and didn't end up going in :(

When we came back, we were super hot and thirsty, so the boy made up some homemade Orange Julius-type drinks in the blender. I've never had the real thing before, so I don't have a point of ocmparision, but they were mighty tasty, refreshing and energizing!

Today, I made a trip to the local clay-painting place,  Play with Clay and painted a cute gnome for my Dad for Father's Day (a little belated I know, especially given firing time).

The outside

Some finished pieces on display

Some of the pieces available to paint

I was technically crashing an 8 year old's birthday party, but since she's one of the Brownies, and was more hanging out with a friend who is one of the other Brownie leaders and helping to supervise, I didn't feel too badly :P I may have also eaten a lot of ice cream cake which always puts me in a good mood!

Some of the choices of things to paint for the party

My gnome, before being painted

My gnome after he was painted (but before firing) --T.V. are my dad's initials

♥ Craftzilla

Vintage Apron Love--What I'd Make -Part 1

I was poking around in a bin of half finished crafts last night, and look at the lovely-ness that I found! My mom gave me these aprons last year--they had been make-shift curtains in the basement of their new house. I find them much more beatuiful and functional as fancy aprons. The desire to cook some tasty things (and pose for 50's style apron pictures) is high! So taking the aprons into account, here's what I'd cook while wearing each of them!

I love the stipes and the flowers/hearts on this one! It's super bright and sunny and is cheering me up just looking at it. For some reason, this one makes me think of the tasty goodness of coconut cookies. I know, I know --coconut cookies seems like a super weird thing, but they are seriously amazing and fabulous!

  source

 This is very similar to the recipe I usually use --it's not a strong taste of coconut, but a light tasting, coconut-esque kind of cookie that's fairly light and flavourful. Check out the recipe here.

I love paisley generally, and this one is reminiscent of winters and warmth and cuddling up with your mom when you're sick for some reason, and thus makes me want to drink a lot of hot chocolate :

source

The recipe sounds great--I think there needs to be a few cold evenings again so I can whip myself up a batch!
Recipe from the Joy of Baking is available here --Hot Chocolate Recipe

Stay Tuned for Part two! I have two more fabulous aprons and recipes to go with them to share next week!

♥ Craftzilla

Things I Made and Saw : Muffins, Beads and Hello Kitty

It was another day of fabulous walks, but silly me, I forgot my camera :( But trust that there was beautiful countryside, lots of Mennonites out in their buggies for Sunday drives, fields of growing things and cute puppies romping about (though a little too much, Jesse got hot and laid in a stinky puddle, much to my dismay and his for the inevitable bath he would receive on our return home).

Anyways, once I recovered from the walk, which took much Pita Pit pita eating, coffee and episodes of Doctor Who, I did some cooking.

 Banana chocolate chip muffins are so awesome --one got ate up before I could even get a picture:

And also some tasty pasta casserole!

Since the pasta casserole is pretty easy and I just sort of made it up as I went along today, here's my recipe:

Recipe for Pasta Casserole 

Boil up 1 box penne pasta in salted wate. Drain and set aside when finished.

Boil (or steam) 1 head of brocoli for about 5 minutesx


While the pasta and the brocoli are cooking, make up the sauce:

Sauce:
Fry up in a pan until soft and cooked:
3 cloves garlic
1 onion
1 tomato
1 green pepper

Add all the vegetables to:
1 can pureed tomatoes that is seasoned with salt, pepper, thyme, hot pepper flakes

Cook the sauce for about 10 minutes over medium heat.

Mix together the cooked pasta, sauce and a package of ricotta cheese broken up into pieces into a large casserole dish. Cook at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Let cool a few minutes and then enjoy!

While I was relaxing, I was also working on some bracelets for Craft Hope Project 12 which is a project to send bracelets to orphans in Russia in affiilation with the organization Orphan Outreach.

For anyone not familiar with Craft Hope, they have done a lot of amazing crafty projects such as quilts and sock monkeys through various charities and organizations to give hope to people who are ill, poor, or victims of recent tragedies. They also have an amazing book of  projects that are good for donating to charities called Craft Hope.

I've got a good few bracelets done so far, and hope to get a lot more done before I have to mail them off to meet the June 15th project deadline.

Additionally, I am looking at a cute Hello Kitty (aka Hello Knitty) that I made for the boy back when I still lived in Toronto....I just finally got around to taking a picture of her in all her fabulousness:

If anyone wants to make their own Hello Kitty, you can find the patten here. I think I finished knitting this in a few hours, and it took a few hours to sew together and stuff --overall it was super easy and fun to make !

I'm off to get some rest after all my adventures --good night all!