Tomato Abundance...and aren't we smiling

The fruits of my labor.  Yellow Pear, Black Cherry and Indigo Rose.  Yum!  Tomatoes at their August best.   I grow many heirloom tomatoes, but this year I tried a new and unique variety, Indigo Rose.  The "bluest" naturally bred tomato out there.  The blue pigment gives you the healthful antioxidants of blueberries.

My Indigo Rose tomatoes.  These babies have tricked me all season long.  They start out like this...

Deeply purple with a green spot.  Then they finally mature after what seems like ages and ages and the green bit goes red.

 And then you do this.  Heaven!

Now, what do you do with all these tomatoes besides eat them freshly picked?  Melted cheese and tomato sandwich, of course!!  A lovely sprinkling of salt and pepper, melty oozing cheese, crusty bread and the freshest tomatoes around!  The angels in heaven are singing right now. There is a melted cheese sandwich underneath the tomato abundance there...would I like some sandwich with my tomatoes?  Maybe.

Sorry, I couldn't resist. 

Neither could she.

Yes, she is just eating the tomatoes off of the sandwich.  My children, pretty much every day run outside and harvest all the ripe tomatoes.  Eat half of them outside, then bring me whatever they didn't gobble warm off the vine.

Other tasty things that have been devoured at the Hearth lately, Smitten Kitchen's Whole Wheat Raspberry Ricotta Scones using Bear Lake Raspberries.  And if you're not from Utah or Idaho, you might not know, but these are the best raspberries you can find.  Period.  Head to Bear Lake for the tastiest raspberry milkshake you've ever had.

So, enjoy the fruits of the season.  Get out to a Farmer's Market and start thinking about what you want to plan in your garden next year.

Thanks for reading!

Heather

Oven Roasted Bacon

Bacon, there's nothing quite like it.  Salty, crisp, a touch...make that a lot, greasy, so, so, so good and everything instantly becomes better when it's included in the recipe.

I love roasting my bacon in the oven, for a couple of reasons.  First: I don't get splattered with bacon grease.  One day I was making bacon and a splatter just missed my eye...by an eyelash.  Talk about scary.  Look, I don't mean to complain, but I'd hate to be that person who had to say she went blind in one eye from bacon grease.  Second: The bacon cooks up nice and flat.  This makes it so nice for a BLT.  Third: You don't have to stand by the frying pan and fuss with it.  You simply toss it in the oven and 20 or so minutes later out comes the good stuff.

Oven Roasted Bacon
Bacon...yup.  That's it.  This is the best recipe evah!!!!  One ingredient.  Make extra, always make extra because sneaky fingers might try and snag a piece or two.

Preheat oven to 400 F.  Place a cooling rack inside your sheet pan.  Lay the bacon on top of the rack.  Cook for 18 to 23 minutes.  Cool and eat.

I cook mine towards the high end of the time spectrum...because I like my bacon to be more on the crispy side, and I use the nicest, thick cut bacon from my butcher shop.  The other nice thing about this cooking method is that the grease drops down from the meat and collects in the pan.  I still like to drain mine on paper towels though.

Go ahead, give this a try.  You won't want to pan fry bacon ever again.

Thanks for reading!

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With a Blast
Mellywood's Mansion

Heather

Just beet it....beet it...no one wants to be...Pickled Red Beets

Oh Michael.  My Aunt had your poster hanging up in her bedroom in the 80's alongside Tom Selleck in his itty bitty khaki shorts.  I still have a thing for mustachioed men in short shorts and love it when The Mister indulges my mustache whims.  He flat out refuses to indulge my short shorts whim.  Whatever.  He claims that red-heads should NEVER have mustaches (but every once in a while I get a mustache out of him).  This stems from a childhood with a red-headed father who wore a mustache.  I will never confess to him that this may, in fact be sage wisdom.  I still like it.  I also like...beets!

Beets are a misunderstood root vegetable.  I think they get a bad rap from being cooked incorrectly.  Roasted they are divine.  They are sweet and pair so nicely in savory dishes.  As a child, beets were always pickled and canned.  So when the time came to harvest my own beet crop, I knew exactly what I was going to do....make my children recreate a page from my own childhood.  Scrubbing beets.

Here's what you do.  Put on your dumpiest clothes.  Beets juice will stain the heck out of anything.  Clothes, hands, counter tops, so be prepared.  Get a scrub brush, a clean bowl and head outside with your kids.  Turn on the hose and ask them to scrub the dickins out of each and every beet.  You want all the dirt off and the beets to gleam bright purplish red.   If you have a dog...they will probably try and steal your beets.  Wild beast.
 
At first, your kids will think this is lots of fun.  Until they realize that Mom is actually having them do work.  Then be ready for the whining and complaining.  Don't give in.  Make them scrub those beets.  You had to scrub bushels of them...for goodness sake, I think they only have 25, max!  Weak.

While kids are cheerfully scrubbing beets, get your work station set up in the kitchen.  Pot for boiling the beets.  Canning pot and tea kettle ready with hot water to replenish canning pot's water level.

Take the scrubbed beets...and give them a good once over.  I'm guessing your kids do a questionable job, as my kids did.  They're learning.  They'll do better next year.  Chop off the tops and the tails.  Plunge them into boiling water for about 10 to 15 minutes until they're slightly more tender and peel them.  You can actually keep the skin on, but my Mom didn't, so I don't.  Chop them accordingly, if they're very petite...whole.  Halved.  Quartered....etc...you don't want huge chunks of beet, you want them to be nicely bite sized.

While all the above is happening, heat your pickling fluid up to simmer and get the sugar dissolving.  Follow your recipe.  Or be like me and use half my Grandmother's recipe and half the Ball Blue Book's recipe.  And then be nervous you're going to give your family botulism and store the three jars you get in the fridge.

This is my fancy new canning pot.  Loving it.  It's extra huge and has a fancy lid that tells you when you are able to start timing.  I live at 6000 feet above sea level, so at different altitudes, you have to adjust your canning time accordingly.  Fancy.  I just said fancy a lot...fancy, is in fact one of my favorite words.

Voila!  Final product and so, so pretty.  I have eaten 2 out of my three jars so far.  A...because they are taking up valuable space in my fridge, but B...they are so good.  Unless you ask my children and they are foul.  They are quite sour because I used a larger vinegar to sugar ratio.  I suppose if I used more sugar they'd like them more.  But, my Mom's beets were sour, so I like mine to be a bit sour.  If you're putting them on tossed salads, they really cut through creamy dressings...and I love it.

Thanks for reading!

Heather

Mason Jar Paper-Pieced Quilt Block

If you haven't noticed, there's a mason jar craze going on right now.  People are decorating with them, cooking in them and well, I guess still canning in them.  I know I am.

Thought I'd jump on the bandwagon by making a paper-pieced mason jar.  This is actually my second and a half attempt at making this block.  I should have taken a picture of the first one, but I had a moment of seam ripping inspiration and so I just got to work.  When you're inspired to un-pick seams...you just gotta go with it, cause it doesn't happen very often.

The first attempt, was far too wonky.  The lid of the taller mason jar was not a pretty sight, so much so, I had to re-do it....which meant unpicking the entire block.  Even this attempt is still a bit off, but I am much more satisfied, so it gets to stay.

My half attempt had me using a pale yellow, solid fabric for the sash...ahem...can we say urine sample?  Yeah.  Not attractive.  That was undone with lightning speed.

I am going to embroider the above phrase using some floss, but first I had to write it on and make sure I liked how it looked and if it was centered....The Mister wanted me to embroider on something random, but modern as he put it...because I wanted to write...Beets...or...Raspberries.  I don't know, I like to take his advice into consideration because quite often he is correct, but in this case, I just felt like putting something weird on would just be confusing and not modern.

This pen is my new favorite quilting tool.  The ink disappears under friction or a hot iron.  So you can write on your sewing or quilting lines with a pen that writes quite smoothly...and then it just goes buh bye!  No rubbing off and making a huge mess like with chalk and no tell-tale signs of pencil lead.  So a worthwhile investment!

Want to know The Mister's suggestion?  Salty Tart.  Yeah.  I don't think so.  We were watching a show about bakeries and there's one that's named the Salty Tart, which for the record is the best name I've ever heard for a bakery.  But...not good for my mason jar quilt block.  Just saying.  So I finally settled on Fresh Picked.  It's not fruit or veg, but it's not completely random either.  More...modern, if you will.

Oh yeah, and the red thing up there, is a beet.  Not a strawberry.  Artistic license. 

Thanks for reading!

Heather

VW bus Pillow Case...in case you're starting to think about Christmas...what?!?!

8-17-13
I posted this over at CSI Project: they're having a pillow link party right now, and figured might as well mention that Christmas is coming up....fairly soon.  I have a tradition where I make everyone in my family a pillowcase for Christmas Eve to go along with their new jammies.  So, if this is not a tradition you currently have, it is one of my faves.  It's fun to choose the fabrics that fit my kids and husband for that year...or whatever strikes my fancy.  So, time's a ticking.  Get started on those Christmas projects now!

This post is about the raddest pillowcase I've ever made...and the most involved.  When I initially posted this, I didn't want the Mister to see what was going on...so I put a pie decoy picture up.  Very clever, very clever.  Well, let's get to it...

Sometime in Winter 2011
Just thought I'd start this post with a put him off the track picture...are you looking Mister? I hope not...by the way this is a tasty little creation of mine using chocolate ganache and chocolate pudding. Top it with homemade whipped cream and some chocolate shavings and you've got pure heavenly goodness. Make this.  I used Callebaut dark chocolate as my chocolate involved in the ganache and pudding and it was rich and awesome!  I also weighed my ingredients when necessary. Go get a scale, you'll be happy you did when all your recipes turn out amazing.

Sometimes I'm ambitious...maybe a little too ambitious some might say.  But, look I figure if I want to make a pillow case with a picture of a Volkswagen Camper Bus on it, circa 1970's...then by golly I should be able to do it!  Commence the very difficult project...

I had to scour the Internet for pictures of a VW Bus...because I'm not schooled in this lovely mode of transportation.  We only had 3 kids, we got to pile 3 deep in the back of the Lincoln Continental...seat belts optional. 

There are lots of pictures and of course I figure I can make my own paper-pieced block from my own brain cells.  I've done plenty of paper piecing.  I'm smart enough...good enough...etc etc etc...well...I am...I think.

This started out much more complex.  I figured I could do a slightly off center full-body view of a VW Bus...HAHAHA.  No.  You can't!  Don't try it! Unless you do try it and it works...please let me know if this is the case.

Look, you have to be able to keep everything perfectly centered and so you can't just put a piece wherever you want and hope it'll match up correctly.  There are seams involved! 

Just a fun little fact...the windows on this VW Bus are from one of my husband's shirts.  He thinks I'm a loon because I like to keep fabric from shirts of maybe torn sheets or whatever and save them for future projects.  I like to think I'm frugal...he thinks I'm crazy!  So it was a bit of fun revenge to use one of my scavenged treasures in his pillow.

Really I had to think and rethink how I was going to pull this off at several points during construction.

Because I'd get to sewing what I was sure would work....and then come to realize that I just made it have weird wings at the top...rethink time.

One of the trickiest things about paper piecing is sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith and hope you are positioning your fabric correctly...because you are going to fold it over to the right side and sometimes angles are not so friendly!

I confess, I wasted more than my share of fabric on this project...but I was in a bit of a hurry and didn't know exactly what I was doing...I felt a little overlap was what i need to make sure everything ended up the way I wanted it.

Then I got to this point and realized I had to figure out a way to get the wheels on...hmmmm...won't exactly work with the current block, so luckily I had an epiphany and made 3..ish separate pieces to be sewn together at the end!  AHA!  Turns out it actually is part of paper piecing to sew multiple blocks and then stitch them all together at the end.  Now I know. At the time, thought I was a freaking genius!

Oh yeah, got me some wheels.  Of course things didn't exactly work out with these wheels the first time as I miscalculated and cut one of them off completely...right then....re-figure time. 

My seam ripper and I were besties again for this project.  So...the wheels are a little wonky.  But, by this time...the pile of wasted fabric and unpicked thread had piled up and I was a little crazed...so I figured wonky was the way I wanted it from the start...right?  Right.

Add the extra bits to be later needle-turn appliqued into place...and I was starting to feel really good about things.  The wings were gone...there were wheels, a bumper, the W on the front...HURRAY!!!

Finished product and DAMN if I don't love it!  I put a piece of paper over the personalized license plate...I know, I know...but just in case.  So you can embroider whatever you want on the licence plate to personalize it.  I love the Denyse Schmidt fabric I used to complete the pillow case.  What turned out to be an impulse buy I once regretted has now made me so happy!  I have made 3 things now using it and I love them all!

Here's the back.  I always like looking at the backs of blocks.  It's just fun.  Yeah...there are paper scraps still attached.  I was exhausted by this time.  And picking off every last piece of paper was not happening.

All done and it's love!  This might not be the side my loving husband ever sleeps on, as it's not exactly smooth, but that's okay.  I love it too much and am pretty sure he will too!

Thanks for sticking with me through the play by play.

Back to the future, My Oldest has currently claimed this as her pillowcase.

Thanks for reading!

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The Dedicated House

Heather

Frolic Done! Christmas in August

It has been a long time coming.  Some sewing projects just take longer than others...like, years longer.  Many years.  Eons, maybe.  

But, it's all good.  Because right now, I have a completed project.

Frolic.

I am so happy with it.  The bright, pastels, the, it's a Christmas quilt, but I can keep it hanging through winter because it's really a winter quilt!  Not an elf in sight!

My favorite block.  I love how all the colors work together.  The pinks for the body of the reindeer, and the bright green and red on the ribbon.

The little embroidered touches and the fabric that is fun, not jolly.

I started out needle-turn appliqueing this puppy, but wasn't loving how all the blocks were ending up.

So I switched to iron-on transfer and never looked back.  A sweet little blanket stitch around all the pieces to keep everything secure and I was one happy quilter.  Plus, I kept the needle-turn blocks that I thought were fine. So, this quilt is 1/3 needle turn and 2/3 iron on transfer.  And it's perfect!  You don't even notice the different methods unless you look carefully.

For the many berries, I simply used felt and secured them in place with a sequin.

Felt for the faces too!  Love the ease and simplicity, and as a plus I didn't go insane sewing itty bitty teeny weeny triangles and circles.

For those in the know...can you even imagine needle-turn appliquing this one?  Nuh uh!  No thank you.

And here it is, hanging up in my living room...four inches too long.  But I'll make it work.  Think it goes pretty well with my summer pillows.  I'll show you those in a few days.  I was on a Dresden Plate Kick for a long time and now I'm on to Courthouse Steps!  Lots of fun sewing going on!

Thanks for reading!

Heather

Proper Summer Feast

Mid to late summer rolls around and I feel like I've won the lottery...almost.  I mean, if I actually did win the lottery, then I am pretty sure the sheered beaver fur carpet I bought would feel awfully nice too...PETA don't hate, you have to admit it'd be pretty soft on your own tootsies...

The summer-time winnings I am talking about is the food!  There is a wealth of things to try and make and it all tastes so darn good, especially when it comes fresh out of the earth or hot off the grill.

Warm Goat Cheese and Roasted Beet Salad is one of those things I could eat all the time.  Every day, just sit this in front of me, and I am a happy gal.

Ingredients for salad...
Roasted Beets
Several beets, scrubbed and cut into smaller pieces (quartered if they're not too huge) Greens cut off and set aside for later
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
Fried Goat Cheese
Log of goat cheese cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch rounds (it's easier to cut and fry if you have placed this in the freezer for about 30 minutes before hand)
Seasoned bread crumbs
1 egg, whisked
oil for frying
Salt and Pepper

Salad
ummmmmm...that would be some lettuce
A yummy vinaigrette (I used Brianna's Champagne Caper Vinaigrette and it was perfect)

Here's what you do:
Place cut beets onto a large piece of foil, sprinkle with oil and a nice dash of salt and pepper.  If you happen to be grilling your main dish, throw them onto the hot grill and let them go for about 40 minutes until fork tender.  You can also roast them in your oven at 400 F for about 40 minutes, too.

While beets are roasting and when there's about 10 to 15 minutes left of beet cooking time, heat a skillet over medium heat with about 1/4" oil in the bottom. Take your rounds of goat cheese, dip them in your egg, then place them in the bread crumbs until they are thoroughly coated.  Season with salt and pepper.  Place in hot skillet and cook until GBD (golden brown and delicious) on both sides.

Place hot goat cheese on top of a bed of lettuce, throw on several beets and top with a delicious vinaigrette.  Enjoy the tastiest salad you'll ever eat.

DON'T THROW AWAY THE BEET GREENS!!!

I mean, please refrain from tossing the greens.

You can eat those too, you know.   Simply cook like you would spinach.  Place a skillet over medium heat, with a bit of water in it.  Bring to a boil, throw in beet greens and reduce heat to simmer, cover with lid and let wilt for about 5 to 8 minutes.  You do not want them to get mushy!  So, sample every minute after 5 have passed until they reached your desired level of tenderness.

Top with a pat of butter, a squeeze of lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste.  Serve and enjoy!

And, if you really want to bring your feast over the top, serve the goat cheese and beet salad alongside this...

And maybe....

 This for dessert!!!!!

You will be the hero of the day.  Unless your kids decide they don't like beets (which they will, but don't fret because that just means you get to eat their goat cheese and beet salad).

Also, a word of caution....a few hours later, do not be afraid that you are having digestive problems....beets are vibrantly colored.  Even, shall we say....hot pink. 

Enjoy the fruits of the season as much as you can.  Summer food only lasts a few more months.

Thanks for reading!!

Heather