another sweater for a special wee one

I finished another baby sweater, this one the baby sophisticate pattern available free on Stockinette. I was inspired by SouleMama's cutie in his green grampie version.

Can I just say how much I love patterns that require hardly any finishing at the end?! Well, I do. This one is knit in one piece -- so simple and satisfying -- yet the collar makes it stinkin' cute.

And yes, it's going to be for our special wee one -- due at the beginning of December!

Kind of explains all the baby crafting here happening over the past several months. =)

Speaking of which, tonight, I whipped up a very simple double-layer flannel blanket number. I just loved this blue and rose fabric -- I swear my grandparents must have had matching pajamas out of this material because I just picture them -- and can almost smell cinnamon and woodsmoke -- when I look at it.

gone packin'

Even more berries are in the freezer now -- this week I brought home raspberries and blackberries from the farmers' market. And 4 pounds of Okanagan cherries are now six 1/2-pints of canned cherries. (I love canned cherries and toast when I'm illin' in flu season.)

But you'll just have to take my word for it since we packed away my camera cord already. Oops.

Not much cooking worth mentioning is happening during the week these days -- we're just using up odds and ends. Beans on toast, anyone?

I may disappear for a couple weeks while we move and settle. By then, I should have crafty things for show and tell.

blueberry season

We bought a condo! To experience sealing the deal for the first time was a bit stressful, but very exciting.

We're in moving mode now: we've started packing up our books and dishes, and we're trying to use up all the goods in the pantry and freezer so that we don't have to lug extra foodstuffs across town. With one exception.

You see, our new place is complete with not only in-suite laundry (a much-anticipated first for us), but it also has a deep freezer! So at the same time as I'm using up my nuts and flour, I am re-filling my small freezer with get-'em-before-they're-gone fruits and veggies.

Exhibit A: 10 lovely pounds of fresh, local blueberries.

dick and jane

I'm diggin' primary coloured quilts these days. Here's one I just finished. It's backed with a soft fleece.

Hope you're enjoying summer!

chicken and sage tortellini

Wondering what to do with ground chicken? Just add won ton wrappers for homemade tortellini!

I now have a few dozen tortellini in my freezer, waiting to be boiled up and eaten with a little olive oil, lemon juice, and parmesan. Mmmm.


chicken and sage tortellini
serves 3-4

won ton wrappers
1/2 lb ground chicken
7-10 fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
salt

Mix together well the chicken, sage, garlic and a few dashes of salt.

To make the tortellini, take a wrapper in the palm of your hand, add a spoonful of the chicken mixture to the center, and then dip your finger in water. Run your damp finger along two edges of the wrapper and then seal in a triangle, pinching up the sides. Then pinch together the two far corners and bend back the third corner. Don't worry -- after making a few, you really get into a rhythm. While you're working with one wrapper, make sure to keep the rest under a damp cloth. And have a little dish of water to dip your finger into.

Either boil and enjoy right away or freeze for later. To freeze, lay them individually on a cookie sheet. (I dusted the sheet with a little flour 'cause I was afraid they might stick.) Once they were frozen, I threw them together in a ziplock bag.

baby band tshirts

Who doesn't have ol' tshirts lying around? It seems pretty simple to downsize 'em for a rockin' recycled baby gown. Although I don't know if we need another generation of Guns n' Roses fans...

city quilt, built

I love this quilt. I worked on it a while ago and then let it drop to the bottom of the stack of WIPs. But now it's finished -- and it's one of my favourites. Mostly because of that cute frog.

It was pretty quick to finish once I had the top done and embroidered. I did the ol' right sides together trick with batting on top, turned it inside out and then top-stitched. Simple.

I used a polyester batting so I could get the high loft I wanted and I could space the zitzits 6-7 inches apart. Not sure what to call them because instead of tying, I used the zig zag stitch on the shortest length and widest width (same way I made that turtle blanket.) Makes for a neat baby-safe connection. If you ever need a quick baby gift, I highly recommend the method.

chicken apple sausage

Whoa. That was kind of a long unplanned hiatus from this place. Well, welcome back! I've made chicken apple sausages for the occasion.

If you want to make these more breakfasty, try adding a dash of cinnamon.

chicken apple sausage
serves 2 (adapted from a Martha recipe)

1/2 lb ground chicken
1 small granny smith apple, diced
1/2 onion, finely diced
about 10 fresh sage leaves, finely chopped
salt and pepper
olive oil

Preheat oven to 350. In oven proof frying pan, saute the onions in a little olive oil, until translucent. Add the apple pieces and saute for a few more minutes, until slightly soft.

In medium bowl, combine the chicken, sage, salt & pepper, and the onion-apple mixture.

Form mixture into four patties and place in hot frying pan, prepped with a little olive oil again. Brown both sides for a few minutes each, and then place in hot oven. Bake for about 10 minutes, until cooked through.

We enjoyed ours with some mashed potatoes and corn on the cob. Its starting to really feel like summer 'round here.

pasta logic

In Italy, there's an unwritten code for what pasta goes with what types of sauce. Like language, the best method of learning this pasta culture is immersion. Only because the rules seem a little arbitrary and silly if you just read about them. But if you can taste the difference, and you can see the way certain sauce clings to different shapes, then pairing garlic and oil with a light angel hair, but pairing alfredo with thicker noodles like fettucini makes perfect sense. (It also helps to have a host mom that just shakes her head in disgust at your untrained suggestions...)

Usually I just go from memory of what my host mom did, but Chow has this great cheat sheet!

And while we're on the subject of pasta, if you've been tempted to make your own, here is a video to help.

creamy sausage veggie pasta -
sauteed garlic, red peppers, zucchini, and sweet sausage
tossed with spaghetti, a little pasta water, cream, and parmesan

drunk crisp

Happy May Day!

Pretty soon it won't be crisp season any more -- my summertime desserts are more along the lines of simple fresh fruit. And in the meantime, well, what is a springtime dessert? It doesn't feel quite right to make a baked apple anything when the weather is teasing us every few hours... cupcakes maybe?

But while we're still bundling up at night and waiting for fresh berries, I'll share this recipe for apple, prune and brandy crisp.

drunk apple and prune crisp
serves 4 (originally from Gourmet magazine)

1/2 C brandy
1 C pitted prunes, halved
2/3 C flour
1/2 C packed light brown sugar
6 Tbs cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" cubes
1/4 teas salt
1/8 teas cinnamon
2/3 C old-fashioned oats
6 McIntosh apples (or a mixture of sweet and sour apples)
vanilla ice cream, of course

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bring brandy to a boil in a small saucepan and remove from heat. Stir in cut prunes and let stand while making topping.

Mix flour, 6 Tbs brown sugar, butter, salt, and cinnamon together until mixture resembles coarse meal. (Food processor works great so you don't melt the butter with your fingers.) Add oats and stir to just combine.

Peel, quarter, and core apples and cut into 1/2" wedges. Transfer apples to a 1 1/2-quart shallow baking dish and toss with prune mixture and remaining 2 Tbs brown sugar.

Sprinkle topping evenly over filling and bake in middle of oven until topping is golden brown and filling is bubbling (about 30 mins.)

I tend to like my crisp cold, the next morning, but enjoying it warm with vanilla ice cream is a close second.