Organizing the Cutter Clutter

Over a year ago I went to a Cookie Decorating class. Since then, You can read about them Here , here,  and here. I have collected a lot of cookie cutters and they were getting a bit out of control in the box I was keeping them. I had to figure out a few things:
1. What ones & how many I had
2. A neater way to store and find them
3. Where to store them

I took Sunday afternoon and tackled this project. I separated them into categories, catalogued them, then put them into groups in clear shoe boxes (thanks to Target). I realized then that I was over 150 cutters and there are still a few I want need.

 

 When I finished that- I had to start baking for a LARGE order for this coming weekend. Here is a hint of what I am working on.

Check back later this week for the finished results and more about this order.

What a beauty...

...that this chair is going to be!!

I found this chair at a Church yard sale yesterday. I bought this piece for $15- I would have bought 2 if they had it but nope. I am leaving the cushion since it is in excellent condition. I think the chair is going to be white soon!

Now it is time to check some of my favorite bloggers for tips on painting / finishing this chair.

October Goals

I have had a busy beginning to October, and it doesn't seem to be slowing down. So here are the goals for the month.
1. Read 3 Books
2. Finish 2 Crochet projects
3. 4 new recipes
4. Make lunch
5. Organize craft items

Good Luck to me!

September Goals Recap

I feel like September has FLOWN by! But here is how the goals went for the month.
1. 3 new recipes
Done! Lamb burgers, Turkey chili and also 3 bean chili
2. Read 2 books
The Castaways and Nantucket Nights
3. Improvements on Diet / Gym routines
Fail! My health hasn't improved enough to start the gym.
4. Clean out paperwork (left over from last month)
Fail! I am procrastinating on this job BIG TIME.
5. Finish first Crochet project
50/50 Almost done. But I did sign up for another class for October, making a baby blanket.
6. Bake & freeze Halloween cookies
Fail! But by choice. I decided to hold back on this one until October.
7. Go to Craft / Street Fairs for ideas
Pass! I looked around online and through magazines, went to 2 fair- most were rained out
8. Save more & plan money spending better
Fail! Big time fail!
9. Decorate for Fall
Done! It looks great.
10. Change all passwords for accounts
Done! A little mishap, when I lost the sheet of paper I wrote them down on, until I remembered them all. But I found it and it all worked out!

Cleveland Rocks ... and Detroit too!

My husband Greg and I went on a quick weekend Getaway to Ohio and Michigan. We drove to Ohio and stayed overnight. We explored Cleveland and visited Lake Erie and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. For dinner we went to one of my favorite Food Network stars restaurant. We ate a delicious meal at Lolita in downtown Cleveland. We tried Fried Chicken Livers! They were amazing!
Next we went to Detroit which was an experience. It was sad to see what distress the whole area of the city of Detroit is. So many places are closed and vandalized. There was many people homeless on the street. It was a real eye opener. We traveled outside of Detroit to Clarkston for the Sugarland concert. What a fantastic night! 2 great openers and a double encore by Sugarland.

We jammed so much into a 3 day weekend. I am so happy we did it with Marty and Kathy. Great travel companions.

Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

Iron Chef Michael Symon's restaurant 

Kathy and I at the DTE Area in MI for the Sugarland Concert

The Heart is an "Incredible Machine"

It's All Greek To Me

Back in August I mentioned that I wanted to make Lamb Burgers. This week, my husband executed that idea and it was a sucess! We used a recipie from FoodNetwork.com called "It's all Greek to me". I apologize that I do not have a picture, but it was unbelievably good. Here is the recepie from their site.

Ingredients

For Feta Dressing:
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
4 ounces good quality feta cheese
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 small clove garlic, grated
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For Burger Patties:
1 1/2 pounds good quality ground lamb
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon dried mint
Directions
3/4 teaspoon smoked sea salt (large crystals - if using fine salt cut this amount in 1/2)

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For Assembly:
4 slices mozzarella cheese
4 good quality kaiser rolls or hamburger buns, split
Romaine lettuce
Sliced tomato
Sliced red onion
Mild banana pepper rings
English cucumber slices
Add all ingredients for dressing to the bowl of a small food processor and pulse to combine. Remove to bowl and set aside to allow the flavors to blend.

Mix all the ingredients for burger patties (do not overwork). Divide the meat into 4 equal patties that are a little larger in diameter than the size of your bun, so that when they shrink after cooking they will fit the buns perfectly.

Heat a grill pan, cast iron skillet, or outdoor grill to medium heat. Once the grill is hot, cook burgers about 3 to 4 minutes per side, or until desired doneness is reached. Do not overcook or the burgers will be dry.

Top each burger with mozzarella cheese during the last 2 to 3 minutes of cooking.

Lightly toast the cut sides of your buns either on the grill or under the oven broiler.

Spread some of the feta dressing on the bottom half of each bun, top with a burger patty, romaine lettuce, sliced tomato, red onion, banana pepper rings, and sliced cucumber. Spread some feta dressing on the top halves of the buns and cover the burgers.


We did not use bananna peppers or sliced cucumbers but the rest we did and it was fantastic. If you want to try something savory and different, give this a shot. KUDOS to my husband Greg for making such a delicious dish and finding this recipie!

Crock Pot Love

I have mentioned in past blogs I love my Crock Pot, but I really LOVE it. I made a 3 bean Turkey Chili last week for dinner. Today it is rainy and there is a chill in the air, so I took out the Crock Pot and started a Spicy Beef Chili. I have the Rival Crock Pot in the picture above. I also have the cookbook listed below. I think I have made about 5 meals from this book so far.


Do you use a Crock Pot? What are some of your favorite recipes?