Beef Burgundy

Steve got me a Le Creuset dutch oven for my birthday.  Isn't he sweet?

I already broke it in making a beef roast.  It turned out great! Moist and wonderful.

I've always wanted a dutch oven just to make Beef Bourgunignon.

It is really involved. 2 days of marinating and things going in and coming out of the pot. The trouble is worth it. Such rich flavor!

If you haven't guess it by the recipe, I'm still fat. I love food a little too much!

There is still time to lose weight when the leftovers are gone.

A Real Man Who Quilts

Lucky me was asked to present to Minnesota Quilters as part of their April program, Real Men Quilt.

I had such a great time presenting. Thanks Laura for asking me!

Doug Leko of Antler Quilt Designs also presented. What a talent! I already had his Mysterious pattern after seeing it at Grubers, but what fun to see all the different layouts in person.

I have to also thank Mitzi for being my photographer, otherwise there would be no slideshow.

Most of the quilts I showed are Glad Creations patterns and have already been on the blog, but no harm in seeing them again.

I hope you enjoy the slideshow.
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This picture slideshow made with Smilebox

My First Row

I've started making a shop sample of Seasons in a Row.

It is a fun sampler quilt with each row representing a different month.

Seasons in a Row is the current block of the month at Glad Creations. If you want to do it too, no worries, there is still time to get registered.

The snowmen are the row for January. I'm using the kits from Glad Creations.

January's kit comes with buttons for the eyes and noses and embroidery floss for the mouths.

The kits are great. Preselected fabrics in just the right amounts.

I already have February's kit, so be looking for a row of hearts shortly.

Brownie Goodness

I volunteered to bring the treat to quilt group today and baked up a little experiment.

Byerly's makes Killer Brownies, which have something yummy baked into the center. One of my favorites is German Chocolate Brownies.

One of my mom's cookbooks has a recipe for Caramel Brownies. I decided to modify it and bake German Chocolate Cake Frosting in the center instead of caramel.

So here is the recipe I used.

1 German chocolate cake mix
1 Devil's Food cake mix
2/3 cup evaporated milk
1 1/2 cup melted butter
1 cup chocolate chips
1 batch of German Chocolate Cake Frosting

In a large bowl, combine the cake mixes, evaporated milk and butter. Stir by hand. Spread 1/2 of the dough in a 9"x13" ungreased pan. Bake at 350° for 8 minutes. Spoon the frosting across the top. Crumble the remaining over the frosting and top with chocolate chips. Bake for an additional 20-25 minutes.

I served it with vanilla ice cream and carmel topping. It was a hit. I hope you enjoy!

I'm FAT!!!!

Sorry for not blogging for a while. I'm going to try to blogging more often and about more than just quilting.

I've been feeling like my life is a bit out of balance. One reason is that I haven't been exercising or eating right.

One of my New Year's resolutions is to lose my extra batting around my middle.

Here is a picture of me from about 5 or 6 years ago.

I like the way I look in this picture.

My goal is to eat right and exercise at least 3 times a week.

I'm hoping by the end of the year that my clothes fit a little better.

I'll be posting an updated picture of me every couple of months, to show my progress and as motivation to keep up with this resolution.

Of course, good luck to all of you with your resolutions!

A Few of My Favorite Things

I've been listening to Christmas music to get in the mood for the holidays. One song I don't quite get making it into the mix is My Favorite Things.

Why that song says Christmas, I'm not sure.

But it did make me think. I have a few new notions that would be on the list of my favorite quilting things.

The first is Grip and Grip. Love it. Great for marking what needs marking.

I've used it for marking my applique and here I was using it to mark my half square triangles for the border of Tapestry.

It sticks to the surface it is on and grips the fabric too. It is smoother than a sand paper board, so it won't scratch up your ruler.

Since I'm making Tapestry king size, I need 28 border units which means 56 half square triangle units.

That made quite the long chain. Enter the Chain Ripper.

It has a weighted holder, which keeps the seam ripper upright. The point on the ripper is broken off, so you can't injure yourself.

Just with slight pressure the chain is broken and you have your units free for your next step.

Both these notions are affordable and would make great stocking stuffers for the quilter on your shopping list.

What are some of your favorite things?

Stewing

I'm a little hurt that no one commented on my last post.

Instead of stewing over it, I'll tell you about my new stew recipe.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew.

Steve and I used up stew meat that had been in the freezer for over a year. About time!

He froze the parsnips from our garden. Really what are you supposed to do with parsnips? Make a stew!

His big innovation was sucking out the extra air from the ziplock freezer bag with a straw. I think he might have got a little light headed.

I begrudgingly let Steve put in some parsnips in the stew. Really they weren't bad, until I had a bite with only parsnip in it. Not so good.

The flavor of the stew really was tasty. It was very flavorful today as a leftover lunch.

If anyone wants frozen parsnips, you know where to find some!