Coffee Cake

Hello there my dears! Happy eve of Christmas Eve! It’s time for a recipe and a backstory. The recipe is for some delicious coffee cake (YUM!!!). Now I found out a few years ago I’m allergic to eggs so this is an eggless coffee cake, but you would never be able to tell. Every Christmas my family has coffee cake for breakfast, this tradition stopped when I found out I couldn’t consume eggs. All the other recipes I’ve tried have been flops but this one is PERFECT! Hope you all enjoy and a merry almost Christmas, thanks for reading, Kirstin.

Eggless Coffee Cake  

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups sifted unbleached all-purpose flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup white sugar 3 teaspoons egg replacer (dry) 4 tablespoons water

1 cup sour cream substitute 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/4 cup fresh blueberries (optional) 1/4 cup chopped walnuts (optional) 5 tablespoons white sugar 2 tablespoons soy margarine 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions:

1.	Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a 9x9 inch baking pan.
2.	In a large mixing bowl resift flour with the baking powder, baking soda, salt and 3/4 cup of sugar. In a separate bowl combine the egg replacer and water (2 eggs' worth) and mix in sour cream substitute and vanilla. Pour the 'egg' mixture into the flour mixture and beat until smooth. Spread batter in baking pan. Sprinkle blueberries (optional) and/or walnuts (optional) over the batter, and stir slightly so that they stay in the top layer.
3.	In a small bowl, combine the 5 tablespoons sugar, margarine and cinnamon. Mix with a fork until mixture resembles cornmeal (not smooth). Sprinkle topping over batter.
4.	Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool slightly before serving.

Owls Round-Up

Howdy lovelies! It’s Friday!!!!! And I am going back to my Friday round-ups. As you may have noticed owls are very “in” right now (well at least my friend is completely obsessed with them!).  So while bopping around on Pinterest I found lots of just plain adorable owl tutorials! Well here we go:

First up, this lovely bunting

Source: moonstitches.typepad.com via Kirstin on Pinterest

Next a little tote:

 

Source: gingercake.typepad.com via Kirstin on Pinterest

And these little pillows:

Source: prudentbaby.com via Kirstin on Pinterest

Next these little owl stuffies:

Source: efemera-ink.blogspot.com via Kirstin on Pinterest

And finally this little hootie boo hoo pack:

Source: simplyjenna.blogspot.com via Kirstin on Pinterest

Thanks so much for reading, Kirstin

Bearing Change

Hello you wonderful people! If you haven’t noticed I’ve been changing the look of my blog (again!). It’s taking me a while to try to get it just the way I want. Sorry that this may be hard to read! I’m new to the whole html codes and what not! I hope to be done with this little adventure soon!

Thanks for bearing with me and for reading! Kirstin

Blog Button Vote

Happy Monday everyone! Today I want to have a little poll for my blog button! I made four and would like your feedback on which one you guys like the best! The gray and yellow one is number 1, to vote just leave a comment with the number (there are 4 different ones). I’m looking forward see which one you guys like!

Thanks for reading, Kirstin

Little Trees Round-Up

Hello my dears. Sorry I’ve been giving my blog the cold shoulder! I’ve been feeling a little under the weather, and very tired. So I have been on Pinterest a lot lately so I am breaking my mold and doing a round- up on Wednesday (gasp!). Since it’s almost Christmas I found a few little tree’s for you to make to. So here we go!

1.   The first one is in another language, but essentially you use saran wrap, glue, and yarn to make an adorable little tree: http://trocasdelinhas.blogspot.com/2010/10/arvore-de-natal-e-bolas-feitas-com.html

2.   The next trees are wire ones and I thought they looked very nice and are super simple: http://www.myhomemystyle.com/enotes/2011/12/02/turn-wire-into-whimsical-trees/?utm_source=MyHomeMyStyleEnotes&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=5366

3.   And finally this Anthro knock-off paper stacked tree: http://www.thewonderforest.com/2011/11/diy-printed-paper-pine-tree.html

Have fun! Thanks for reading, Kirstin

Another Follower, Another Freebie: Reprise

Well hi there! Some great news; this blog has another lovely follower! Now because I made a freebie my last lovely follower I made another one for follower number 7! Ok well partly because of the follower and partly because my mom liked the quote! So I killed 2 birds with one stone!

Thanks so very much for reading, Kirstin

Dance in the Rain_edited-1

Just Something I Whipped Up

Why hello there! I was a wee bit bored so I was playing around with shapes and stuff in Photoshop, because my mom wanted me to make signs. Anyway I loved these little hearts and have always loved bunting, so I put the two together. Then in my little artistic mind thought of the text to put on and, ta-da!!!!! I came up with this lovely thing. O I thought I should say please don’t try to sell any of my amateur prints or claim them as your own. I work hard on these and expect my lovely readers to be honest people!

Thank you so much for reading, Kirstin  

Banner Over Me is Love

Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! I hope your day has been filled with joy and happiness. One of my relatives said today, “Thankfulness is one of the most wonderful emotions we can possess. Every day we should be thanking God for all the provisions He has given us.” I know it sounds cliché but we really should have every day be full of thanks, and remember to thank God for His wonderful plans for all of us! And also we should remember why we celebrate Thanksgiving and all those who risked everything so we can have our many freedoms.

Thanks so much for reading and may your day be blessed, thanks so much for reading, Kirstin     

Another Follower, Another Freebie

Hola to all you lovely people! The other day I was on Pinterest, which I will openly admit I spend a good chunk of time on. Anyway I found this cute quote and decided to make a little poster for myself. Today I checked my email and found I have a new follower!! So in honor of my newest follower I am sharing my handiwork with all you charming readers! Hope you enjoy it, Kirstin

Be the Kind of Woman

Chloe

Another happy Monday to you all! Sorry I’ve been so lax in my posting lately my health hasn’t allowed me to get around to it. When I don’t feel good I craft or play with my dog. Well I haven’t felt good enough to craft so my dog has been my little fur ball of happiness lately. She’s a little 12 pound mutt named Chloe and God had blest me with her companionship. Anyway I took a ton of pictures of her daily activities (which isn’t much she is very lazy).

These are some of the best pictures I took of my precious little fluff ball. Thanks for reading, Kirstin

Mark It

 Hello all you lovely people! Today I have prepared a cute little bookmark for my awesome readers. It’s has one of my favorite verses from Lamentations, which may seem like a strange book of the Bible to enjoy, but I love it. The poetry and gravity of the situations happening is amazing! So whether you’re reading Lamentations or another good book, you can keep your place with this bookmark.

Thanks so much for reading, Kirstin    

Arizona and Randomness

Happy Monday!! As you may have noticed I changed my font! I thought this one was easier to read! Well I had a very eventful time last week. I went to Arizona for a business meeting and didn’t have internet to post anything! I felt very disconnected. I was amazed at how beautiful a desert could be though. God’s creation never ceases to amaze me.

Random fact, when my parents and I were site seeing a dust storm kicked up, I thought it was odd how the sky and the ground were the same color. I wish I could have gotten a picture but small car windows make that difficult.

Ok randomness over. Thanks for reading, Kirstin

Halloween Hilarity

Howdy beautiful people! How was everyone’s Halloween? Candy is great! I really love seeing all the crazy costumes people wear. I was browsing Pinterest and found some fabulous ones! These ones are my favorite.  

Hope you got as much of a kick out of these as I did! Thanks for reading, Kirstin

Beef and Veggie Soup

Hello lovelies! I finally am getting around to posting the final soup I have! It’s Beef Soup. I created this recipe by throwing in a bunch of tasty veggies and spices. Well here we go:

Beef and Veggie Soup

What you need:

·         Oil

·         2 lbs. stew ready beef

·         2 tsp. honey

·         6 cups beef broth (I made mine from bouillon cubes)

·         2 tsp. garlic

·         2 peppers

·         3 large and peeled carrots

·         3 cups onion

·         ½ can diced tomatoes or one fresh tomatoes

·         1/8 tsp. ground cumin

·         1 tsp. parsley

·         A sprinkle of bay leaves

·         ¼ tsp. ground cinnamon

What to do:

1.    In a skillet heat the oil. When it is hot enough place the beef and the honey in the skillet and cook the beef until it is red in the center.

2.   While the beef is cooking, prepare the broth and bring to a simmer.

3.   Chop the veggies (in green) and simmer in the broth.

4.   When beef is cooked drop into the broth, veggie combo and simmer 30 minutes.

5.   Add the spices and simmer for 15 minutes.

6.   Now let’s make the roux:

a.   For this you need 2 cups of the simmering broth and a cup of flour.

b.   In a separate pot whisk the flour and broth until blended

c.   Bring to a simmer and mix the roux into the soup.

7.   Simmer the soup for an hour and serve.

Just a Thought

Finally I got a minute to post! I feel like I haven’t had a break for 5 days! Well other than in my car! On the way to work yesterday I saw the prettiest clouds. They looked like waves and in some spots had a hole like area. It’s kind of indescribable; I wish I had my camera, now I can’t even find a picture online like it. They were just amazing! I was awestruck by God’s creation! It made me feel so small and yet so honored that I was witnessing this sight. I just thought I would share this awesome experience w9th all of you. Thanks for reading, Kirstin    

French Onion Soup

Sorry I skipped a day! I got a little behind yesterday because I wasn’t feeling all that well.  dysautonomia is very unpredictable! I will just extend Soup(er) Week a day so I will have another tasty soup on Saturday! Tomorrow I will have Beef Stew and Saturday I will have Tex-Mex Chili! Ok, now onto today! I present to you French Onion Soup! I got this recipe from my favorite cookbook The New Good House Keeping Cookbook (I thought I should cite my source, I guess that’s what you get when you’re still a student!) Get ready to cry! Not only is this delicious to the point of tears but there is no easy way to cut all the onions! Well here we go:

French Onion Soup

What You Need:

·         1 loaf of French bread

·         4 TBS (of a half stick) of butter or margarine

·         3 large onions (I used 4 medium ones)

·         1 tsp. sugar

·         1TBS all-purpose flour

·         2 ½ cups water

·         ½ cup dry red wine

·         2 10 ½ ounce cans of condensed beef broth

·         4 or 5 slices Swiss cheese (I used Havarti, you can use any of you favorite cheeses)

·         Jelly-roll pan

What to Do:

1.    Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit

2.   Place the butter in a skillet and put on medium heat to melt the butter

3.   While the butter is melting, chop your onions into 1/8 wedges (cunt the onion in half and then into fourths)

4.   Place the onions and the sugar into the skillet and stir every couple minutes, until the onions are golden brown. (about 10 minutes)

5.   Mix in the flour until the mixtures becomes well blended.

6.   Place the onions, water, wine, and broth into a large pot.

7.   Bring the mixture to a boil

8.   Turn the heat down to a low-medium temperature and simmer for 10 minutes

9.   While your soup is simmering, slice the bread into 4 1 inch slices and toast the bread until it is crisp.

10.  After the soup has been simmering for 10 minutes ladle the soup into four bowls and place the bowls on the jelly-roll pan.

11.   Plop the toast into the soup and place a slice of cheese on top

12.  Carefully place the pan into the oven for about 5 minutes, or until the chees is completely melted

13.  All that’s left is to enjoy your delicious French Onion Soup!

Thanks for reading, Kirstin  

Chicken and Rice

Hello everybody! Welcome the second day of Soup(er) week. Today is another favorite of mine; Chicken and Rice Soup. Hope you love it, thanks for reading, Kirstin  

Ingredients:

·         2 cooked chicken breasts (sliced or pulled)

·         16 oz. carton of chicken broth or stock

·         2 large carrots (peeled and sliced)

·         ½ of an onion

·         Sprinkle of parsley leaves

·         Garlic

·         1 cup cooked rice (if you desire)

·         (I just throw in spices to taste, cinnamon is my favorite!)  

What to do:

1.    Cook the chicken fully and slice or pull it. To pull boil the chicken until cooked and “tease” or shred the chicken with 2 forks.

2.   If you want rice cook the rice and set aside

3.   Pour the broth into a large pot and simmer

4.   Throw in all the veggies

5.   Bring to a boil for 10 minutes (until the veggies are cooked)

6.   Then plop the chicken, rice, and the spices, simmer the soup for 5 minutes

7.   Serve and enjoy!

Sweet Potato Soup

Happy Monday all! Today marks the first day of Soup(er) Week! Today I will be sharing a new recipe I tried over the weekend: Sweet Potato Soup! I’m not the biggest fan of soup and broth but I had to eat soup because of my wisdom teeth being removed. This one is quite delicious as well; hope you enjoy it, Kirstin.

 Sweet Potato Soup

·         1 TBS flour

·         1 TBS butter

·         1 ½ cups chicken broth

·         1 TBS brown sugar

·         1 ½ cups cooked sweet potatoes (I used 2 medium sized sweet potatoes)

·         ¼ of an onion

·         2 TBS apple sauce

·         ¼ tsp. ground ginger

·         1/8 tsp. ground cinnamon

·         1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg

·         1 cup milk or cream

·         Salt (to taste)

What to Do:

1.    In a large pot, over medium heat, mix the flour and the butter. Stirring constantly until roux is a light caramel brown.

2.   Add the chicken broth and the brown sugar. Bring to a boil. Then lower to a simmer.

3.   With a beater, beat the sweet potatoes. Add them to the broth along with the remainder of the purple ingredients.  Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minuets.

4.   In a blender puree the soup.

5.   Put the pureed soup back into the pot and add the milk or cream, add salt to taste.

6.   Serve warm (add a couple marshmallows on top if you like) and enjoy!