Sara Jane: Spray Paint

A few years back, I discovered spray paint and all the fun, amazing, creative ways that you can use it.  My last spray paint project was our TV stand.  It is BRIGHT yellow and so very pleasant in our family room.  I haven't used spray paint in quite a while though so I decided today would be a good day to get reacquainted with my old friend.

For this project, I went to our local Goodwill store and found these three great pieces:  two tins (each $0.99) and one ceramic rooster ($1.99).  Then I headed to Joann's (which happens to be next door) and picked out a few colors that I liked.  If you don't want to spend oodles of money on spray paint, Walmart has cans for only $0.99!  Its not the most quality spray but it works fine.

Anyway, here are the three pieces I bought today:

First up was the rooster.  I have a special place in my heart for roosters.  Last year, we bought four chickens.  My chicken's name was Mrs. Pettitoes.  She was absolutely beautiful but one Sunday, when we came home from church, she was crowing at our back door and we realized that Mrs. Pettitoes was actually a MR. Pettitoes.  I was sad....

Anyway, I love roosters.

For my rooster, I wanted him to be a deep red.  To start, I sprayed my first coat and let it dry for about 15 minutes.  Then I sprayed another one.  Remember to use short, even sprays for the most even color.  After that coat, I only had to do a few touch up sprays in little cracks and here is how he turned out...

We don't have a permanent home for him yet but I am hopeful that he will have a nice place in my kitchen one day soon.

Next up were my tins.  I have seen spray painted tins all over Pinterest lately so I thought I would give it a try.  Well, the first tin (the one with the handle in the picture above) didn't turn out so well.  Since it is rather hideous (very gloppy and runny), it is now a small trash pail in the backyard for the kids.  The second time, I remembered to slow down and take my time (something I am constantly reminding myself of).  This one turned out perfectly!  For this tin, I sprayed very small areas to start. It took me about three coats and about 30 minutes to get it just right.  It turned out the perfect color and really transformed the tin.

I will definitely be spraying more tins around the holidays to use as the wrapping for gifts.  I love how they look!

Since I had this beautiful tin, I decided that today was a good day to do the cookie of the month for my father-in-law.  I tried out something new and loved how it turned out.

Using my favorite pie crust recipe, I made little cookies (simply make the dough and shape it how you like, sprinkle cinnamon sugar on the top then bake them at 450* for about 7 minutes or until lightly browned).

While I could eat pie crust all day long, I know not everyone likes it so I put a small jar of some pear jam my husband just made in the middle.  We had to test everything out before we gave them away and let me tell you, they were scrumptious!  It tastes exactly like you are eating a bite of pear pie.

I have decided that I will one day soon make an entire platter of these pie crust cookies and then put out all my favorite jams - blackberry, strawberry, pear, peach- and just eat pie all day.  Yummmm!

Happy crafting, my friends!

Sara Jane

Sara Jane: Pumpkins!

Hi friends!

From now until January, be prepared for way too much excitement in my posts.  Like I told you last Wednesday, I LOVE everything about September, October, November, and December.  I love all the food, the decorations and the overall excited/giving spirit that most people seem to have.  

I'm not sure if it is the changing of the seasons or what but I have had way too much happiness in me the last few weeks.  Its the kind of happiness that all you want to do is turn the music up way too loud to sing and dance.  Yesterday, I tried to channel that happiness into something productive for the blog.  

We have had this huge pile of wood sitting outside of our house since July.  A lot of it is wood we picked up from my in-law's house, the pallets were delivered to our house by a friendly neighbor, and then there are just lots of scraps of wood from some remodeling we've been working on.  Hmmmm, what could I do with all this wood???  PUMPKINS!

This project was so easy.  I went through our huge pile of wood...

and found a few random pieces that I thought would make cute pumpkins.  I also I had my sweet hubby cut a few little pieces for the stems. 

Then came the painting.  I had a few little helpers for this part.  For their pumpkins, they painted then entirely orange.  For my pumpkins, I did the first coat white.  When that coat was dry, I painted an orange coat on top of the white.  For the stem pieces, I simply painted them green.

When everything was nice and dry, I distressed the wood with a piece of sand paper.  If you don't like that look then just omit this step.  Next, using my glue gun, I glued a piece of thin wire, which I curled, and the green "stem" to the top of the pumpkin.  I think they turned out pretty cute.  When I finally dig my harvest decorations out of the attic, I will decorate with leaves but for now, these will simply sit on my mantle as they are.  They brighten up my living room....I LOVE them!

I never feel like my posts are complete until I share with you a favorite recipe.  Today, I thought I would share with you a recipe my sister-in-law, Micky, gave me.  Gingersnap Pumpkin Pudding.  I have seen several recipes similar to this one but I have not liked any of them as much as I do this recipe.  It is always a hit when I have it at parties.  I use it mainly as a dip for gingersnaps or fruit although I am positive you could eat it by itself.  It is absolutely delicious.  We have it several times during the fall.  If you love all things pumpkin, you must try this gingersnap pumpkin pudding!

GINGERSNAP PUMPKIN PUDDING

Ingredients:

* 1 3/4 cup cold milk

* 1 package instant cheesecake or vanilla pudding mix (the small box)

* 1/2 cup canned pumpkin

* 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

* 3 gingersnaps, crushed

* 1 cup whipped topping

Directions;

In a large bowl, whisk milk and pudding mix together for 2 minutes.  (I use my electric mixer for this part).  Stir in the canned pumpkin and the pumpkin pie spice.  Let stand for a few minutes or until soft-set.  Fold whipped topping into pudding.  Sprinkle the crushed gingersnaps on the top. 

There you have it folks.  Have a great rest of your week!

Sara Jane

Friday Favorites: Cold Treats

Hello, hello!  What a week this has been!  Lisa and I were trying to brainstorm ideas for today, and "cold treats" popped into my head.  Probably because I'm 35 weeks pregnant and melting here in Arizona.  It's been crazy hot and I'm currently restricting my sweets intake until this baby comes.  That makes for a VERY grumpy pregnant lady.  And what's the one thing you want when you're trying not to eat sweets?  SWEETS!   So... It looks like I'll be torturing myself a little while reading about all the yummy, cool treats my sisters have found.

My treat is one I think I can actually eat!  I didn't even realize that it was a low-sugar treat until I read through the ingredients.  These orange creamsicles looked amazing, when I first saw them on Pinterest. You can find the original recipe here.  I love that the recipe uses honey or agave instead of sugar.  As I'm writing this intro, I still haven't made them yet, but my mouth is watering in anticipation.


Okay... through the magic of blogging, it's now 6 hours later.  I've made the creamsicles, and my husband and I have both tested them...AMAZING!!  I'm pretty sure it's the heavy cream that makes these to die for.  And the best part: they're low in sugar!!  I think I'll probably be living off of these for the next 5 weeks.  I even used the 50 calorie orange juice to reduce the sugar and calories even more.  I might try half and half next time to see if it affects the taste at all.  

A little cautious at first, but then she dug right in!

Final evaluation: you must try these,  especially if you like Orange Julius or orange-flavored treats.  They're the perfect combination of citrus and cream.  Obviously from the pictures, you know one 22 month old who agrees.  :)  Enjoy!!


Allison


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My cold treat isn't usually one that I make in the summer.  I usually make it throughout the fall and winter but sometimes a little Fudge is all one needs to get through the day (can you tell its been one of those weeks???).

This isn't a picture of my actual fudge (pic from
Allrecipes) but it is similar to what the end
result looks like.

My fudge recipe is probably the simplest one you will find.

Ingredients:  a 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk, one bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips and vanilla (optional).


Directions:  In a medium size sauce pan, stir the sweetened condensed milk and chocolate chips until the chocolate chips have completely melted.  I tend to like all my chocolate rather bitter but if you don't like it like that, add 1 teaspoon of vanilla and stir.


Line a 9x9 (or 8x8 if you want them thicker) pan with parchment paper, pour in the chocolate mixture and put in the freezer until set.  When set, cut into bite size squares and enjoy.

Sara Jane
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Friday Favorites: Recipes

Hello!  Welcome to another Friday Favorites!  This week we'll be concentrating our posts on favorite recipes or dishes that we've discovered/stolen from others.  Isn't that how it works?  You find some amazing dish and it slowly becomes your own, though it originally came from someone else.

That's how I feel about my favorite recipe.  Sometimes I think my husband and I ultimately ended up together because we both LOVE plain New York-Style Cheesecake.  No strawberries, no topping, no swirled flavor inside... just PLAIN cheesecake.  He even added it to his mental list of "reasons I love my wife".  There you go.  :)

So a couple of years ago, when I was trying to think of a really special dessert to make for Valentine's Day, I decided to venture my first cheesecake.  I looked up a recipe on allrecipe.com for "plain cheesecake", and found this recipe.  I have no idea who Chantal is, but I've mentally thanked her many times for this recipe.

If any of you are like me, you're probably intimidated by the idea of making a cheesecake that takes close to 8 hours.  It's not that bad, and I'm going to share my tips/tricks to make it PERFECT!  Most of them I found online, or from others that have tried this recipe, but I'm taking credit for applying them.  I'm not going to brag too much, but I've used this recipe 4 times now, and they've all been amazing.  No splits or cracks... just perfect!

TIPS/TRICKS
-I'm not going to retype the recipe here, but I'll list what I changed about the actual recipe or the steps given.


#1- If you like a sweeter graham cracker crust, add just a little sugar to your crushed crackers and butter.  The cheesecake itself is plenty sweet, so it's not really needed, just depends on preference.


#2- I didn't change any other ingredients, but I did reduce the oven temp to 325 degrees and altered the baking time to 45 minutes.  When the 45 minutes is up, turn the oven off and forget about it for a couple of hours.  For real.  Don't open the oven every 5 minutes, just let it set.  (This part is hard to do, as you'll want to make sure it's not cracking.)  Just walk away...

#3- I used a water bath.  I think it's the reason that my cheesecakes have never cracked.  It's not too difficult.  I use the heavy duty tin foil around my springform pan (though regular would work... just double it up/overlap it), to make sure the water doesn't get in. I wrap it almost to the top of the springform, and place it on a cookie sheet.  Once they're both in the oven, pour enough water to fill the cookie sheet, but not too much that it'll overflow (duh).  I only had water seep into my pan once, and that was because the springform wasn't completely "closed" before I added the crust.  Oops.  Check that.  Ironically, it still turned out fine.  Just with crust a little more "moist" than usual.  :)


#4- DON"T OVERMIX YOUR CHEESECAKE FILLING!  That will create bubbles, and won't make it as pretty.  Make sure your cream cheese is room temperature before mixing with a hand blender.  After that, I only used the blender to add the sugar and milk to the cream cheese.  The rest I mixed by hand.  It's a bit of a work out but not too bad.  


#5- After your cheesecake has been in the cooling oven for hours, you can leave it on the counter (I put mine on a cooling rack) for awhile longer.  But you can also just leave it in the oven until it's completely cooled.  I usually venture to remove the springform pan edge then.    If the edges look a little ragged, you can smooth them with a wet table knife (if you're a crazy perfectionist, like me).  


#6- This part is tough.  It will be so tempting to try a slice, but it really is best overnight in the fridge, or at least for a few hours.  To me, it seems to get better the longer it cools.  Mmmm... my mouth is watering just thinking about it.  

#1- I think I took the springform off too soon. #2- I discovered the wet knife technique... much prettier.  I also doubled the graham crackers, but the crust became a little too much.  #3- My best by far!  Yum!  No picture of #4.

Okay.  That was a lot of info, but really not as crazy as I made it sound.  The actual prep for this recipe doesn't take too long and the results are AMAZING!  My husband says this recipe rivals any cheesecake he's ever had, including The Cheesecake Factory.  That's pretty high praise from someone who would choose cheesecake over almost any other dessert.  I hope you venture this amazing recipe.  If I left anything out, please feel free to ask.  Good luck, and happy baking!!



Allison

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I have an obsession with bread.  

Not just plain old bread but fresh-out-of-the-oven-covered-in-butter (and-sometimes-honey) bread.  When we make it, whether it be by hand or in the bread machine, the loaf is gone within an hour.  My mouth is watering just thinking about it.....

Photo from recipeschezmoi.blogspot.com

My only issue with fresh-out-of-the-oven-covered-in-butter bread is that by the time I think about actually wanting it, I don't want to wait the 3 hours it takes to make it.  Soooooo, when I found the following recipe, I thought I had died and gone to heaven.  (Honestly, this bread isn't as good as the 3-hour bread BUT it is perfect when, if you're like me, you decide at 4:00 PM you want to have bread with your dinner which is supposed to be at 5:00 PM.)  The original recipe I found was on the Recipes Chez Moi blog.  I, however, after making it many times, have changed several things and want to share the recipe with you.

 1(ish) Hour Bread

Ingredients:

5 1/4 c. white flour (if you feel the dough is too sticky, you can add another 1/4 cup)
1/4 c. sugar 
1/2 T. salt (I think I actually added 1 T. on accident and it was still great)
1  T. yeast

1/3 c. oil 
2 c. hot tap water

Directions:

Mix together the flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a large mixing bowl (I used my Kitchen Aid).  Add oil and hot water to the dry ingredients mixture.  Mix for one minute, scraping the bowl once (this is where if you think the dough is too sticky, you may add the additional 1/4 cup of flour).  Mix dough for five more minutes on a medium high speed without scrapping the bowl.  When you finish mixing, the dough will be sticky.  ITS OKAY :)  On a floured surface, divide the dough into two equal portions.  Shape the dough and put into a greased (I used Pam spray) bread pan.  Let sit, covered, for 1/2 hour (I accidentally left mine for 1 hour the other day...still perfect).  Bake in a 375* oven for 35 minutes.  Makes 2 loaves.

I hope this delicious bread finds its way to your home soon.  

Sara Jane

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Lisa here!  One of my favorite things in summer is to not use my stove.  At all.  I love food that my family and I can eat raw, grill or cook in the crock pot.  One of our favorite crock pot recipes is a very simple pot roast on Sundays.  We have a late church and we often don't get home until 4:30pm and we are all super hungry!  To walk in and smell the roast is heaven!  And this one couldn't be simpler!  I've seen this recipe a lot of places but I orignially got it from a friend when we were living in Arizona (talk about hot!).

Courtney's Pot Roast

3-4 lb Chuck roast (mine was frozen and it was perfectly alright!)

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1 pkt. Lipton onion soup mix (or Walmart brand)

1 large onion, sliced

3 large potatoes, chopped

a handful of baby carrots

Spray the inside of the crockpot with a non-stick cooning spray, like Pam.  Place roast in bottom and vegetables on top of the roast.  Mix soup and soup mix together and pour over everything.  Cover.  Cook on high for 6-8 hours. 

It really is such a favorite with my family.  The meat is super tender and the vegetables are perfectly cooked.  Thank you so much my Arizona friend!!!

Lisa

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I've gotten into the habit of making a big breakfast every morning to feed my growing boys (that includes the husband).  One of my favorite things to make are pancakes with homemade buttermilk syrup.  It is especially fun because Clark is starting to help out now.

Pancakes

2 cups flour
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
3 tbs unsalted butter, melted
2 cups buttermilk

Mix all dry ingredients in a bowl.  In a separete large bowl mix all wet ingredients together.  Add the dry to the wet ingredients and mix till a few lumps remain, be careful not to over mix.

Using a buttered hot griddle, pour pancake batter according to the size you prefer and flip once bubbles appear on top.  Serve hot with your favorite syrup!

 

Enjoy!

Allison: Patriotic Treat and Kids' Craft

I LOVE THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA!  It's true... I consider myself to be a very patriotic person, and LOVE any holiday that celebrates my country.  I lived in Spain for 18 months as a missionary for my church and didn't realize just how much I loved my country, until I was away from its soil.  Every time I would see an American flag, I would get emotional and instantly homesick.  That being said, I'm excited to share a patriotic-themed dessert/appetizer recipe and kids' craft with all of you today.

I took my inspiration for these cute little cupcakes from here.  I loved the idea of a bite-sized dessert that wouldn't be TOO messy.  They were surprisingly easy to assemble and even easier to snack on in the process (tee hee).  Here's what you'll need:

Duh.  You could probably figure out those ingredients.  But I'm going to share the whipped cream cheese frosting recipe that I discovered, and you are going to thank me (or curse me)!  Of course I found it through Pinterest, on this site , as a cinnamon roll topper.  I may never make another cream cheese frosting again.  It is amazing!  I had to stop myself from sampling it too much, before it was all gone.  This would work great for a standard size cupcake too, but I liked the idea of a bite-sized treat, so I used the mini cupcake tin.  The adorable little pinwheels I found in Target's dollar section, and worked great to secure the stack.  I love them!

Here's the frosting recipe:

Ms. Humble's Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting

16oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup heavy cream, cold

Beat the cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth and fluffy. In a separate bowl, beat the heavy cream to nearly stiff peaks, then add the whipped cream into the cheese mixture and quickly and briefly beat to combine. Do not over beat.

Mmmm... So good...

This patriotic craft came from a cute blog I came across called "Random Thoughts of a Supermom".  This mom is so creative and I loved that she involved her kids in the project.  I planned to replicate her version of this windsock but wouldn't you know it... I got lazy.  So instead, I thought I'd share my version.  Maybe not AS cute, but still a little cute and definitely kid-friendly.

You'll need these things:

* blue plastic cups
* red & white crepe paper
* tape
* star stickers


This little guy was so easy to assemble!  I just taped alternating red and white crepe paper to the inside of the cup, and poked a little hole in the top to string some white ribbon to hang it up.  Next, grab your star stickers and stick them on.  Done!  I didn't think my two-year-old could handle this yet, but I think this craft would be so fun for kids!


The blog I "borrowed" the idea from used empty baby formula canisters and spray painted them blue.  She also used ribbon instead of crepe paper.  Either way, I think they're a great way to decorate the outside of your house for patriotic holidays.  

Before I end this post, I wanted to advertise to our faithful readers and friends the special I'm offering this week on our Etsy page.  I'll be selling my 9" Patriotic Rag-Tie Wreath until the 4th of July for only $10 (instead of the $15 it sells for on Etsy).  Any local orders can be hand-delivered also, saving on shipping.  For any out-of-state orders, I'll give you a discount on shipping (only $3, instead of $5).   Message me or leave a comment and I'll create a posting for you where the discount is applied. 

Get your wreath now!!  :)

http://www.etsy.com/shop/fivecraftysisters

Well, I hope you enjoyed my easy dessert and craft!  Even more, I hope you enjoy celebrating our freedom this 4th of July.  May we always remember those that have fought and continue to fight for that freedom.  Happy Independence Day!!

Allison