This and That

Soooo...here I am, still waiting for my sister-in-law Paige to push out that baby and trying to focus on creating a blog post. It's been a while again, I know. I'm clearly having some difficulty keeping on top of it this summer. Since I am presently so distracted, this post is going to be a little of this and a little of that. Stick with me. I'll be back to my normal blogging self in no time.

What Do Vegans Eat?



We eat well. I realize this isn't such a great picture. I'm embarrassed about the Gladware shot. However, we were so hungry when we originally ate the meal that we didn't get a shot of our plates in advance. I took this one the next day. I didn't even manage to get a photo of the rest of the meal. You'll have to use your imaginations. The recipe for the potato salad came from one of my favorite cookbooks, Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson. There are loads of amazing recipes in this book. I haven't even managed to scratch the surface. This was my first time serving this salad. I was skeptical at first. Green olives in potato salad? That sounds like something my father-in-law would do. I mean this is a man who once tasted a mimosa blossom! I'll say it again. Green olives in potato salad? It totally rocked. I encourage you to try this served over a bed of fresh baby field greens. As with all potato salads, this is ridiculously easy to make and, of course, tastes even better the second day. As usual, I was unable to completely stick with the recipe. My changes are in parenthesis. Enjoy it! (That's a command, by the way.)

"Close to Mom's Potato Salad"

1.5 lbs red or white waxy potatoes
1 inner celery rib, minced (I used 1.5 outer ribs.)
2 tablespoons grated onion (I used an entire small onion, minced.)
1/4 cup sliced pimiento-stuffed green olives (I added a few extras.)
3/4 cup soy mayonnaise (I used Vegannaise.)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
salt and freshly ground black pepper
paprika (I forgot this ingredient.)

1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan with salted water to cover. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and continue to boil until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain and allow to cool.

2. Peel the potatoes (I skipped this step.), cut into bite-sized chunks, and place in a large serving bowl. Add the celery, onion, and olives and set aside.

3. In a small bowl, combine the soy mayonnaise, vinegar, mustard, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and add to the potato mixture, stirring gently to combine. Sprinkle the top with paprika. Serve right away or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. This is best eaten within a day or two of being made.

Serves 4 to 6.

We had another of our favorite dishes with the potato salad. This one was created by the aforementioned sister-in-law. Since I don't have a photo of the dish, I thought I'd share a picture of her. This one was taken at an art/music show in Huntington, WV, where I was born. My brother-in-law, Ben, aka Bengineer, aka the Solo Buffalo played a set early and we were able to take LB and Mea. Paige, as usual, was the snack master. However, instead of her typical bag of fruit, she bought some chips and cookies. I thought she looked pretty funny packing junk food around in her current state. Anyway, she's a vegetarian and wanted to create something like a barbecued chicken pizza. She then used the same recipe to create what we refer to as "Barbecued Chickie Sandwiches." They are good served with a lettuce leaf, tomato slice and vegannaise or a generous portion of vegan cole slaw. This is so easy to make that you just can't not try it.

"Barbecued Chickie"

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 package of seitan or Morningstar Farms Chick'n Strips
Sweet Baby Ray's Barbecue Sauce, to taste
K.C. Masterpiece Barbecue Sauce, to taste
lettuce leaves
tomato slices
whole wheat buns, toasted

1. Heat oil in an oven-safe pan on medium heat and saute' the garlic until it starts to brown. Add the chik'n and brown. Once the chik'n is evenly browned, add both barbecue sauces to taste (I usually coat it well and then add a little extra.).

2. Place pan of barbecued chik'n under a broiler and watch closely. Broil until slightly blackened.

3. Serve with toasted buns, lettuce and tomato, or your favorite toppings.

Serves 4-6.

Current Projects

I've got some projects that I've been working on for a while and am about to finish. Finally! My mother-in-law's patchwork porch throw is almost bound! This is the most tortuous part for me. I hate to bind! It is sooo tedious. It's worth it though. The finished product makes me forget the torture I just endured! Here's the throw now. You can see part of the completed binding. I'm really liking the way this turned out and wish I could keep it for myself. Alas, it is Robin's birthday/Mother's Day gift (I know, I know...I'm always dreadfully behind).I'm also about to finish an afghan for someone else, but I can't yet divulge the recipient. It's top secret. I'm using three colors, as you can see. One is chocolate brown and the others are shades of blue. This is my first attempt at making granny squares. I found an awesome site some time ago called crochet cabana. She explains different stitches and shapes step-by-step. I believe you could teach yourself to crochet using her site alone.

Look for a new etsy "Back to School" gift guide in the next day or two.

Projects

I have a lot of ongoing projects that I have been meaning to share with you. I don't have any updated pics of the house projects, but we are still in the middle of a playroom renovation (turning our old breakfast nook into LB's space), refinishing the stairs and putting up the reed fencing. I finished the herb garden, with the exception of the mulching. Once that is complete I will post pics of it. The perennial garden is looking awesome, if I do say so myself. The Bee Balm, Jacob's Ladder and Baby's Breath are all in bloom. I also have a new addition to the shade garden. I found an old ladder back chair with a cane seat that is coming apart on the curb in my neighborhood. I brought it home and put it in the fern garden. It has an old kettle with English Ivy growing out of it on the seat. I know this sounds ratty, but it really does look nice. I guess I'm going to have to take pictures to prove it. Anyway, that's what's going on with the house and yard.

Because I'm a glutton for punishment, I have many other crafty-type projects going on as well. I still haven't hemmed the dress I made for LB. She might grow out of it before I get around to this! There is also a patchwork skirt and coordinating halter top in the works for her. And then I bought some gorgeous fabric the other day to make yet another skirt for her. I wasn't planning to make another one, but I couldn't pass up this tree fabric that I found at Joann's. I haven't yet landed on a pattern, but I found several free ones online that are interesting and appear to be fairly straightforward. I randomly bought some additional fabric at the Nearly New Shop in the Highlands. Nearly New is a nicer thrift store that only accepts well cared for clothing and items for the home. I found some vintage dresses that I would have loved to purchase, a bed frame that was adorable, two modern armchairs and some wooden serving plates. Alas, as I am being financially responsible, I didn't buy any of them. I walked out of there with a 50 cent piece of fabric. It's roughly half of a yard and super cool. I don't yet know what I'll do with it, but isn't that the way it goes? I'm leaning toward a small purse with a cane handle, at the moment. So those are potential projects just barely in the works. I have actually been working on some things. I finished the bag for my mom, but I forgot to photograph it before giving it to her. It was made from the paisley fabric I posted a few days ago. She left for the beach this morning and I made the bag large enough to be a beach bag and stuffed a huge bright pink beach towel down in it. I'm still not done with the orange project, but I have started another one. I taught myself to make granny squares using a tutorial from Crochet Cabana. I'm planning to make an afghan from these yarns and, perhaps, a third. This is obviously my first one, so I'll let you know how tortuous the process is.

Then I've also been working on my cards for my shop. What I intended to be a paper goods shop has quickly turned into a card shop. I need to make some albums and embellishments. Anyway, here's a sneak peak at a couple of the new items. I'll be listing them this week. If you decide to buy one or both of them, I'll take 10% off of the price (before shipping). Just put "sneak peak" in the message to seller when you make the purchase.

Signing off...check back later this week for a new gift guide.

Etsy "Yart Sale" Gift Guide

The annual "Yart* Sale" on etsy began yesterday and goes through the 14th. For specifics on the sales, you can visit the Etsy Supplies Street Team's blog. It's basically a big yard sale for the art on etsy. Fun, huh? I think this would be a good time for a gift guide, don't you? This time I'm taking a different approach to the creation of the guide. Instead of doing all of the searching myself, I'm letting the sellers come to me. I put a post in the forums letting everyone know that I am looking for Yart items to feature. I'm going to let it go for a while and then I will choose those I want to include in the gift guide.

Oceanic Flower Necklace Crocheted in Cotton



All "Yart Sale" items in Fuzzy Lumpkin's Crochet Shop are already discounted 10% and include free shipping.

Gulf Breeze Vegan Soap



All of the soaps in the Solstice Scents Soap Shop are discounted through the end of the "Yart Sale."

Blank Hand-Stamped Red and White Flower Journal



All items purchased from Green Ribbon Gifts during the sale are shipped for free.

Stained Glass--Sunburst



All of Radiance Art's stained glass items are 20% during the sale.

Keep on Growing



Moon Through Fog has a section for the "Yart Sale" in her shop with marked down work. Items not on sale are eligible for free shipping and gift of an original drawing.


*Yard+Art=Yart

And a few of my own "Yart Sale" items:

Blooming Blue



Botanics Art Card Set



my DAD