MONSTER COOKIES

 

 

MONSTER COOKIES - makes 18 monster-sized cookies

 



1-1/4 cups Peanut Butter

1/2 cup Butter (softened)

1 cup Sugar

1 cup packed Brown Sugar
3 large Eggs (beaten)

2 teaspoons Baking Soda

1 teaspoon Corn Syrup

3/4 teaspoon Vanilla

4-1/2 cups Quick Cooking Oats

1-1/2 cup Chocolate Chips

1-1/2 cup M&Ms (divided)

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.

Cream butter, peanut butter, sugar and brown sugar together.

Add beaten eggs, baking soda, corn syrup and vanilla.

Mix well.

Stir in oats, chocolate chips and 1 cup of the M&Ms.

Drop by 1/4 cup onto ungreased cookie sheet (or baking stone). Smash slightly with hand.
Top with up to 5 M&Ms per cookie.
Bake 18 - 24 minutes until lightly brown.
Let rest for 5 minutes before moving to a cooling rack.

I bet these would be Cookies Monster's favorite!

 

 

 



Zentangling - You can do it too!

 

Below is one of my Zentangles.  I started it by tracing around my hand!

 

 

I love to zentangle!  Never tried it?  Never even heard of it?

Well, it's cheap, fairly easy and relaxing!

 

The short definition: Zentangle is an easy to learn method of creating beautiful images from repetitive patterns. It was developed by Maria Thomas and Rick Roberts of Zentangle, Inc.

 

So, a "zentangle" is a doodle, a structured doodle that is.

 

 

Supplies to create your own? 

1.  Sharpie pens in fine tip and ultra fine tip....or other art felt markers with different sized tips.

2.  Paper (start small...4"x6" or 5"x7")

 

The easiest way to start a zentangle is with a major shape like a circle (trace around a glass or other item) or draw around your hand. Now draw random lines, wavy or straight across the paper at different angles.  When doing this step, keep your movement fluid by moving your whole arm, keeping it from touching the table.  You may want to practice fluid movements by just drawing wavy lines on a scrap paper.   

 

Remember to relax, this is to be an enjoyable, stress free time to create artwork. When drawing the smaller doodles, feel free to rest your arm on the table, still keeping your hand relaxed. There is no right or wrong way to doodle your zentangle.

 

1.   In each enclosed space, create a small doodle, and repeat it.

 

2.   If the shape of a space looks like something to you (ie: leaf or eyeball), draw it into the space (notice in my picture I have a leaf, seashell, flower and even the tip of my finger).

 

3.   You can also fill a space with one word or a phrase. 

 

4.  Be sure to save a small space for you to write in your signature - making it part of the artwork.

 

 5.  If you run out of ideas for patterns, try searching "zentangle" on the web (print some out)....there are lots of ideas. 

 

6.   If you don't like the result of your zentange, you can always trash it and start over, afterall  its just paper.  Have fun! 

 

 Now, Relax, Feel the Zen, and Doodle Away!

 

Beefy Sour Cream Enchiladas

"HEY, WHAT'S FOR DINNER?"

This recipe was given to me by my niece Lynette.  It is a staple meal in our household.  I fix it at least once every six weeks.  Of course, we are originally Kansas girls, so it is not "authentic" Mexican food, but it is yummy and easy to make.  It takes about 30 minutes to prepare and 25-30 minutes to bake.
 

BEEFY SOUR CREAM ENCHILADAS

 

12- 14 corn tortillas

1 pound of ground beef

1 pkg. taco seasoning

1/2 cup water (divided)

8 oz. light sour cream

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 - 4oz. can chopped green chiles

2 cups sharp cheddar cheese (shredded)

2 cups pepper jack cheese (shredded)

 

In a skillet on medium heat, brown ground beef until no longer pink.  Stir in the taco seasoning and 1/4 cup of water.  Turn off heat and let set.

 

In a medium bowl stir together the sour cream, mushroom soup and green chiles. In another bowl, combine the shredded cheeses. 

 

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a 9"x13" pan with non-stick spray.  Lightly spoon some of the soup mixture onto the  bottom of the pan, just enough to coat.

 

Using a plate, take one tortilla and spoon 1 Tbsp. soup mixture down the middle.  Top with 2 Tbsp. of the beef mixture and top with some cheese.  Roll up and place end down in the pan.  Repeat with remaining tortillas and tuck together in the pan.  You should have about 1 cup of soup mixture left.  Stir in the remaining 1/4 cup of water and pour over all of the enchiladas.  Top with any remaining beef and cheeses.

 

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until tortillas are just starting to brown and cheese is bubbly.  Serve with salad, rice and beans.

 





My Favorite Laundry Products

I never thought I would like doing laundry.  But with the help of Pinterest and The Big Bang Theory, I have found some great products that make the job more enjoyable.  The recipe below is one I found on pinterest, but I amped it up a bit to make it great smelling, as well as great cleansing. All products can be found at Wal-Mart.

SMELLY GOOD LAUNDRY DETERGENT RECIPE

 



 

3 cups Borax Powder

3 cups Washing Soda

3 bars of Fels-Naptha (grated)

1/2 bottle of Downy Un Stopables

 

Combine all four products in a large gallon plastic container.  Use 1 Tbsp. per load, or 2 Tbsp. for large load.  (I keep a smaller batch in a Mason Jar and tuck in a Tablepoon in an elastic band stretched around the jar.)  Very inexpensive and smells wonderful. I know the Un Stopables aren't considered "green" like the other products - but I really like the smell of them....feel free to delete this from the ingredients and use up to 15 drops of essential oil per recipe, or go without extra scent.  I've never wanted to go back to store bought detergent. 

 

MAKE YOUR OWN FELTED WOOL DRYER BALLS

 

Replace dryer sheets with felted wool balls.  Why? ...you may ask?  Felted wool bars are eco-friendly, fun to make and help dry your laundry faster and help reduce static.  You can also add a few drops of essential oils to each ball to give a nice refreshing scent to your laundry. Plus it will save you lots of money.

 

All you have to do is purchase one skein of 100 percent Wool Yarn. Around $6 at craft or fabric stores.  Wrap into balls a little smaller than tennis balls.  You should get 6 - 8 balls depending on the size of your skein.  To felt the balls:  Cut off a full leg of a pair of panty hose.  Drop the balls all the way down to the toe.  Tie off using string or yarn (just don't use wool yarn, as you do not want the ties to felt) inbetween each ball, making each one tight inside the hose.  Now wash with clothes of similiar color.  Throw the "ball snake" into the dryer and dry completely.  When done, cut off the hose to expose the felted wool balls.  Notice how the fibers have connected the strings together.  It will not unravel now.  Use 2 to 8 balls per load.  The more balls added to a load, the quicker it will dry, as the balls separate the clothes allowing the air to circulate better.  Just keep using them over and over, no need to wash the balls again.  They should last you for years, and save you lots of money!

 



 

Did you notice I mentioned The Big Bang Theory earlier?  This is the television show on CBS and reruns are on TBS.  My family just loves this show.  I noticed a product that Sheldon Cooper was using to fold his clothes and I just HAD to have one (see the blue flip fold in the picture above?).  So I searched the internet...fortunately I checked out all of the reviews before buying one, as there are many cheap knock-offs of this product.  It is called The Flip Fold and is made in the USA.  You can buy an adult sized flip fold for under $20.

http://www.flipfold.com/FlipFold-s/37.htm  I love my flip fold and have given one to my college son in his favorite color of green.

 

And that's it!  Please feel free to leave comments below.  Hope you try these great product and recipes, I believe you will be happy you did.  Thanks!  Kerri

 



Turn a book into a Kindle Cover

I was at Goodwill yesterday and purchased two books for $1 each.  I had already read them - great books, in fact, I may have been purchasing my own books back since I frequently donate to Goodwill.

I purchased them with the sole purpose of upcycling them into covers for my Kindle.  I know some may think this is a waste of a book, but they were already at Goodwill, so I don't feel too bad.

To make your cover you'll need:
   A hardback book slightly larger (In length, width and depth) than your Kindle
   A ruler
   Scissors or rotary cutter
   A box knife
   Decorative Papers of your choice
   A Cutting Board
  Stick On Velcro  (I used 4"x2")
  Felt Pad Dots
  Glue Stick or Spray Adhesive

1.  Open up the book and cut/slice down the pages on the spine, repeat on the back (be careful not to cut into the actual spine of the book, you only want to cut out all of the pages) Remove the pages.

2.  Now measure the front inside cover from the left edge of the book to 1" past the right edge of the spine.  Cut decorative paper to the measurements.  I used a glue stick to cover entire paper, but you can use spray adhesive (be sure to spray in a well ventilate area). Weight this area ( I used heavy books) to help the adhesive stick.

3.  Now measure from the right side of the spine to the right edge of the back page.  Glue on, overlapping the previous page. Weight this area as well.

4.  Attach the "soft" sides of two Velcro strips to the back of your Kindle, making sure not to cover any important print, or speakers.

5.  Attach the "loop" side directly on top of the "soft" velcro on the Kindle.  Peel off the plastic or paper to reveal the adhesive, carefully center the Kindle on top of the RIGHT side of the open book.  Press lightly.  Leave in place several hours before attempting to remove.  ( I recommend the first few times you take your Kindle off the Velcro, that you slide a spatula or butter knife between the velcro pads, this will ensure that you don't pull the paper off the back - I learned the hard way. lol)

6.  Attach the felt dots to the left side of the open book, where they will rest and protect the Kindle when closed.

7.   Now you are done.  You can leave the book cover off, or attach it as I did by cutting the inside flaps to about 1/2" and glue only the 1/2" down.

Yay!  I am very happy with my two Kindle Book Covers, no sewing, hardly any money and they're just my style. 

I hope you make your own Kindle, Nook or ipad cover.  Please post pictures if you do! - Kerri

Organize your Pantry

There are lots of great places on the internet on how to organize your pantry.  I found great ideas everywhere, including pinterest.  First of all, what is a pantry?  Wikipedia says: A pantry is a room where food, provisions, dishes, or linens are stored and served in an ancillary capacity to the kitchen.  But, I don't have a room designated for a pantry.  Do you?  You don't have to, any area that you can store away food and staple items can be considered a pantry.

For My Pantry:

I have a 6'x8'x2' closet in my kitchen that the previous owners had already prepared with shelves and sliding doors - perfect. For the first two years I simply would unload my groceries onto the shelves. After looking on pinterest, I discovered the pantry could be more useful, organized and a lot more appealing to the eyes.  So I had some work to do.  I didn't think to take a before picture, but these are the after pictures.  Trust me, much better!

Left side - Cereals, baking supplies, baskets of breads and chips.

 

 

Right Side:  Dry goods for cooking, canned items, spice packets and misc.

 

 



My first step was making a search around my house and digging through unpacked boxes in our garage.  I love to shop at yard sales and Goodwill and had stocked up on Mason, Ball and Kerr jars. For larger glass jars, Wal-mart had a great selection.  I used blue painters tape to mark off squares on the jars and painted 4 coats of chalkboard paint (I prefer to brush it on).  After 24 hours of curing time, I was able to chalk in the names of items to store:  Flour, Sugar, Stevia, Brown Sugar, Rice, Beans, Quinoa, Steel Cut Oats, etc....

Secondly, I needed to find some baskets or boxes for some of the bagged items I didn't want to store in jars, like chips, pretzels and cookies.

Now for the cans.  I organized them buy fruits, veggies, soups, etc....but I felt I could better see them if they were raised on shelves.  I found several at Wal-mart reasonably priced.

Larger items, like the dogs' food, I stored in large upright containers on the floor. My dining room tables leaves (there are eight of them) are on the floor, as well as boxed toys for when small children visit.


Now I can easily locate all of my items from oatmeal to tomato soup to dog food.
 

Steps to Make Your Own Pantry Space:

Locate your ideal space: in your kitchen, a closet, the basement, hallway, garage, anywhere you have extra room.  Build shelves if needed so you can take advantage of verticle space. 

Shop around your house first before buying items like jars, boxes and baskets.  Consider recycling food packages like creamer bottles to hold small snacks or plastic deli meat containers to hold spice packets.

Put snacks for the kids on lower shelves (if you want them to reach them on their own).  Heavy items like large canned items at arm level so you won't have to bend to reach them, or drop them from a high space.  Items you don't use often, store up high.

Please feel free to share your pictures and comments.  Good Luck!  Kerri

2013 Resolution #1: Get Organized

As an artist I am very creative, but very messy. As my Nana Ruby used to say "Creative people are rarely tidy." I am a prime example. That is not to say that I do not want to be organized. I find I am more relaxed and happy in a neat and tidy atmosphere. So one of my New Year's resolutions is to not only organize, but downsize. I plan to sort, donate and get rid of the extra stuff in my life that I really don't need. Then to find easy, inexpensive ways to organize the items I choose to keep.

Details and pictures to come of each space I "overhaul". (Since I posted it, that means I have to do it - oh, boy!)