d's delights- cooking and crafts

I told you all about my love for homemade dressings-    well, here are a couple of my favorite more complicated ones.   I call them more complicated because they require a food processor, and usually some ingredients that you might not always have handy at home.   These are the dressings that YOU MUST TRY if I bring them to a dinner party!   The first one, I am ever so proud of because I virtually stole it from a cookbook in a restaurant!   I know, I’m bad!   I used to enjoy going to Charbono’s for lunch in Avon when I was teaching there.   (It was right next to my favorite scrapbooking store, you know!)   I would always order the side salad and some chicken velvet soup.   (Which was just as yummy as the old Arbor Café’s was.)   The dressing that came with this salad was PHENOMENAL! I mean, “wow!”   Well, on my way out one day, I noticed they had a cookbook for sale.   It was $25.00, and I didn’t have that much extra ...

Since 2002, I have been keeping “recipe journals.”   Whenever I make a bew recipe-whether it is from a book, magazine or the internet- I write down the recipe and the original source it came from. This helps me keep a record of all the recipes that I have tried, and keeps them all in one place for me.   It also allows me to make my own notes about if I or others liked it, and what I might to, or did do, to change it.   I now have 4 such notebooks.   One of them, most notably chronicles my weight loss with LA Weight Loss from 2003-2006, and has most of my healthy recipes in it.   I love looking back at these books, because not only do they remind me of the food that I made, but also of whom I shared that food with.   I made notes in the book if I made something for a party, or dinner guest, and if they seemed to like it!   I also love that these are the kind of notebooks that really look “loved.”   They are messy, have food, oil and water stains on...

I believe that the dressing can really make or break the salad.   I prefer to make my own dressings, because I know what is in them, and they are by far tastier than anything store bought!   I confess, that I get really annoyed when I make a lovely, delicious dressing for a dinner party,and someone brings out the “Ranch” or “French” or “Italian” dressing for the salad!    I’m thinking, “I did not make that salad to go with those dressings!”   Not that I won’t eat those kinds of dressings, but in my mind, the dressing has to go with the salad! (Food sensitivities and allergies aside) I  have a lot of recipes for dressings.   Many are very quick and simple that you canwhip up in a minute or two.   A few aremore complicated, but TOTALLY worth it in taste! (These are the type I bring todinner parties and pitch-ins!) Here are a couple of quickies that I like to add variety to myhealthy eating habits! Poppy Dressing for Cherry Brie Tossed Sala...

I love to do paper crafts- particularly scrapbooking and card making.   I consider myself more “creative” than “artistic,” as I cannot draw or paint very well.   But, I can cut and paste (learned THAT in kindergarten!) and I find making my pictures look fun and interesting is a great way for me to get some creative energy out, and feel like I am doing something useful for the future.   I have already been glad that I do this because I was able to show a scrapbook to Will so he could see the pictures and start identifying his family members.   He loves the bright colors and textures that I use. I love making cards for people. Though I know that letter writing is becoming a lost art, I also know how special it is when you get a card from someone, and how much more special it is when that card is homemade. So, as I said before in my first blog, I will write a bit about my paper crafting!   Here are some examples of my cards:   (If you are interested...

For some people who might be beginning cooks-or for those who have never really taken the time to cook anything that doesn’t come from a box and with instructions, I will be glad to show you some simple and yummy basics- stuff that you won’t even need to have a recipe for. Some people are afraid of cooking meat-   I know I was at first.   I started off only cooking ground beef!   Here is something easy and fairly quick that you can do with chicken. I buy chicken breasts.   That way, I don’t have to mess with bones etc.   It is also the healthier part of the meat.   You can get them in big bags, frozen, or in smaller packages in the meat section not frozen.   If you have frozen ones, you should thaw them out a bit.   These days, you can do it in a microwave!   Check your settings. After you thaw them, if they are thick, cut them in half.   You can leave them partially connected, and just flay them out.   I don’t k...

This is better than many dressings in a restaurant, and definitely better than anything you can get at the store! 1 tablespoon of raspberry preserve. (all fruit spread) 1/2 C balsamic vinegar 1-2 tsp prepared Dijon mustard 2 Tbs olive oil. (or canola or walnut oil) Microwave the preserve for 20 seconds Whisk together and serve over a salad with a little fruit in it. It is great with walnuts and blue cheese!

I love pictures.   I love to take pictures and I love making them into something memorable to have for the future.   I can take some pretty good pictures, and many people complement me on the photographs I take.   Before Will came along, Toby was one of my favorite subjects, but I also love to take pictures of family and friends.   I even started to think about making my own photography business.   I really wanted to take pictures of couples, kids, small weddings etc.   I did do a photo-shoot on a lovely day in May 2011 The pictures turned out really lovely.   But, I had just found out I was pregnant, and did not have the energy to pursue that as I wanted right then.   Here are some examples of my photography: The playground is always a fun place to take pics of kids!   I love this one!   These girls were watching a plane go by! My Toby in the Snowstorm of 2011! Candles at the Taize service in Green Lake, W...