Cards for the Family!

My oldest son's wife is a fashion diva.  She looks like she just walked off the cover of Vogue most of the time.  And she is as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside.  My son is certainly blessed.

I tease her about her love for shoes.  She adores high heels, I mean REALLY high heels and she wears them well.  The funny thing is she is already six feet tall so she certainly doesn't need the height .  I don't blame her at all. If I could wear those 5 inch heels without destroying my body I would, because they just look so wonderful!!

So..... with that in mind..... I had no choice but to make her a card that embraced one of her loves.  I found the perfect cutting file at The Cutting Cafe. It was a shoe shaped card that I thought it would be fun to make and decorate. But then I had an idea to use the card as an embellishment and put a card on a card.  It was definitely something different for me but it was fun to play around with different ideas.

Where the shoe opens up I wrote "Happy Birthday" in a white gel pen.  You can see all of the dimension of the card in this photo.

The card base is a Coredinations paper - I like the "tweedy" look of it.  The dotted paper (on the shoe) is from Bo Bunny. I took the black Sakura glaze pen and went over each dot (who does that??) to give the dots dimension.  It really went fast and I have to say I really like the added texture!!  The heel is glittered paper from American Crafts and it is easy to cut on the Silver Bullet because the glitter is as smooth as silk, so no damage to the blades!  I think it might be fun to wear a pair of shoes that looked like these (for maybe 10 minutes or so!!)

Really happy with how this card came out.  She loves red and black so hopefully will love this too1

And a week later there is another celebration - their wedding anniversary. I think Scott planned it that way so it would be easier to remember (not that he would ever forget...!)  So once the birthday card was finished it was time to work on the anniversary card.  Am I the only one who struggles with those?  I was at a loss for ideas so I defaulted to their wedding colors which were maroon and navy blue - striking really.  It is so hard to believe that this is their second anniversary.

You can clearly see the positive and negative images of both the rose frame cut and the sentiment.  I rescued all of the extra cuts for a future project!

The design is elegant but simple - another one from Birds Cards.  And all of the papers are from Paper Temptress. That should come as no surprise by now!  I am clearly addicted to her papers!  And using the Silver Bullet Pro Cutter guaranteed that I would have a positive and negative image - again - so I have pieces set aside for another card in the future.  Love it!

A close up of the sentiment and detail of the cut.

I kept this card pretty basic with a popped up mix and match sentiment , again from Birds Cards, and just added some pearls and pre-made roses from Wild Orchid Crafts (they have some  beautiful flowers if you are not familiar with the site and need to add to your stash!)

And the final product. The bow was made with my new Bow It All tool.  It is my favorite bowmaker (and I have tried a lot of them!)

Hope you enjoyed these two celebratory cards.  I have one more family member that will need a card the end of the month, so stay tuned for more!  

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Spiced Pumpkin Muffins - sugar free and healthy

It's Fall..... and Fall screams pumpkin.  I am not a huge fan of pumpkin pie (I know - that is almost sacrilegious!)but I do love everything else pumpkin - muffins, bread, cheesecake, pancakes, waffles - well you get the picture.  I am a fan!  Even my dogs love pumpkin. They each get a tablespoon of it every night because it is really good for them!
So it should be good for us too  -right?  And this recipe is truly a "good for you" recipe.  it is low in sugar, low in fat (really NO fat) and totally healthy.  And yes, they are good too - I mean really good.  They are not like a regular muffin, but that doesn't make them any less desirable.

SPICED PUMPKIN MUFFINS

adapted from Foods for the Soul

1 1/2 cups plus 3 Tbsp. flour

1 1/2 cups plus 3 Tbsp. white whole wheat flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/4 tsp. salt

4 1/2 tsp. applesauce

1 1/2 cups pumpkin

1 1/4 cups non or low fat milk (I used vanilla coconut milk - Silk brand)

1 Tbsp. lemon juice

3 Tbsp. vanilla (not a typo - it adds a TON of flavor)

1/4 c. Truvia Baking Blend

2 tsp. Truvia

1/2-1 cup raisins, soaked in apple cider then drained  (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 and spray a muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray (I love EverBake from King Arthur Flour - so worth the extra money to me).

In a medium bowl, combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt.. Whisk together and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together the applesauce, pumpkin, milk, lemon juice and vanilla.  Stir in the two different Truvia products. Add in the flour mixture and stir, just until the flour is incorporated. Gently fold in the drained raisins, if desired.

Ready for the oven with a dusting of maple sugar.

Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin tin, filling each to the top.  Bake at 325 for 28-32 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and finish cooling on a wire rack.   Serves 12.

The aroma is intoxicating as these cool.

These muffins are different than the "regular" muffin. They are very dense, not cake like, because of the ingredients.  But when you take that first bite, you instantly know you are eating something fabulous and the healthy part is just an added bonus!!   Healthy is transformed into something wonderful!!
 Because they are dense, they are incredibly moist and are delicious the next day , warmed in the microwave.

 You definitely cannot eat just ONE bite!

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Amazingly EASY Peach Cobbler

I love it when I find something that is so incredibly easy AND good.  I really like to try to bake as much as I can from scratch. But there are times when there just isn't the time or the energy to take those extra steps.  So when I ran across this recipe I was more than willing to give it a try, and it was unbelievably easy and surprisingly good.

I will admit to having my fair share of cake mixes stored away in the pantry that I have picked up on sale. There is always a need for something quick and easy, and I have all of the Cake Mix Doctor cookbooks that put this supply to good use.  It is always comforting to have a back up plan , right?

So this recipe was not only easy, but delicious, and I imagine you could easily substitute apples or any combination of berries.

Oops - forgot the blueberries in the picture!

SUPER EASY PEACH COBBLER

adapted from Butter with a Side of Bread

There is actually very little that I changed with this recipe because when there are only FOUR ingredients, there isn't much leeway!

1 box cake mix (I used Butter Golden)

1 (12-oz can) diet Seven-Up

4-5  cups fresh peaches, chunked
1 cup fresh blueberries

2 TBSP cinnamon-sugar

Peel and slice fresh peaches into chunks. Place into a 13x9 inch pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray. Scatter the blueberries over the top of the peaches.

Step 1 - add the fruit!

Sprinkle the dry cake mix directly on top of peaches. Use a spoon or rubber spatula to gently press the cake mix down into the fruit.

Pour the can of soda on top of the cake mix,, making sure to cover the cake mix completely. It will bubble up and look rather inedible!

The Seven-Up is foaming!

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Do not preheat earlier because you want to give the cobbler time to sit and bubble and just be!

Sprinkle the cinnamon-sugar on top of the soda. It will pop some of the bubbles, but it will still be very runny on top.

Adorned with cinnamon-sugar.

Bake cobber for 1 hour. Remove from oven and let cool for about 5 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped topping! 

The smell of this right out of the oven is heavenly!

Yum!!  You can leave the whipped cream off

and eat it for breakfast too!

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October Birthday Cards... Positive and Negative

So here we are again with another installment of positive and negative cards.  I have to say, I just love when I can cut one file and create two cards from a single pattern.  It's like a two for one sale - who doesn't love that?!?

The mat was placed over a colored sheet of paper so the designs would be more visible. 

The positive is on the left, the negative pieces on the right.

This file is from Birds Cards.  She has some great files for anyone who loves to make cards.  And I was able to cut a square of double sided adhesive from All That Jazz to pull up the negative pieces for the glitter application.  But first things first...... the main image....is cut from Paper Temptress mica paper, dotted with Viva Decor pearls in the center of each flower (those are so easy to make and fun) and then I cheated and used a Prima flower that I had in my stash for the center.  I have so many flowers to use up that I am trying to make a concerted effort to use them .  I like the colors of the card - the patterned paper is from Echo Park (I think). I had several out and lost track when I finally settled on one. I need to pay more attention.

Here is the cut file again showing the frame on the right and the pieces on the left,

with the double sided adhesive placed on top.

And finally, the frame on the card base  on the left with the double sided adhesive covered in glitter with the negative on the right.

The negative card or reverse image was sprinkled with Ritz lilac glitter onto the double sided adhesive.  The center flowers are from the Calendar Series at Ducky's Designs and were cut out of two shades of the mica paper from Paper Temptress.  Yes I use that paper a lot. I love how it cuts and there is something about the subtle shimmer that glimmers on the card. It just makes me smile.

These are two of the upcoming birthday cards.  There will be more to come in the days ahead. I have a lot of family occasions hitting in October so hope my motivation doesn't run out before I finish.

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A Special Birthday!

All of a sudden, October had become a VERY busy month for family and friend greeting cards.  So you will be seeing a lot of sharing this month, and I will try to be more creative and try some new things.  I am definitely in the mood to stretch my wings - a little! :)

This first card is the "negative" of a tulip frame card that I featured here.  If you scroll down in that post to the red and gold tulip framed card , you will be reminded of that beautiful file from Monica - and that was the positive or main image.

Well guess what?  Yep  - I saved the negative image with double sided adhesive attached just waiting for the right person or occasion - and it happened!  I have a dear friend, who recently moved from our city to Las Vegas.  So now she is amid the bright lights and dazzle of that most interesting city!!  And I know I have not lost a friend, but gained a new place to travel!! I can hardly wait.

Here is where the project started - the positive and the negative.

The original image is on the left - the negative or remaining pieces are on the right.  That part

was covered in double sided adhesive.

I simply sprinkled the adhesive with  Ritz poppy orange glitter and voila - instant card front!

This is the image with the double sided adhesive covered in glitter.

 I layered a flower image in the center with foam adhesive and accented the center of the little flower with some glitter glue. The card base is Paper Temptress Mica card stock - I am addicted to the mica and lustre line!

A side view showing the dimension of the 3D flower

I will have another postive/negative card set in a few days. In the meantime, I just want to say...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR GAIL!

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Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate - low sugar and Truvia Baking Tips!

Bananas and Chocolate - what a great excuse to incorporate dark chocolate into the breakfast menu, right? Well,  these are going to be a staple. They are not overly sweet, but have just enough chocolate to make them feel decadent, without leaving overwhelming guilt in their wake!

I took this recipe and reduced the sugar with Truvia Baking Blend as I have been doing with most of the recipes of late.  I have been wondering if it made a difference in the finished product since I was reducing a quantity of an ingredient in half - so did that give me less batter in reality?  I wondered, but that was as far as I got until my friend, Nance asked a question about substituting regular Truvia for the Baking Blend.
Thank goodness Truvia has a conversion chart or you would need to have a math degree to figure it out!! But in finding that for her, I discovered some great tips for getting the best product possible when using the Baking Blend.

I will assume that you all know when you use the Blend that you reduce the sugar stated in half. So if the recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar, you substitute 1/2 cup  Truvia Baking Blend.  But here are the tips.  Add 1/4-1/2 tsp. of baking soda to help increase the volume.  And..... substitute at least 1/2 of the butter or shortening with oil.  I used both tips in this recipe and my muffins rose more and seemed a bit lighter.  I love learning the little tricks that make things look as good as they taste!!

So here is my latest muffin treat that is lower in sugar and tastes OH SO GOOD!!

Low Sugar Banana Muffins with Dark Chocolate

adapted from Buns in My Oven

1/4 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup oil
1/2 cup Truva Baking Blend
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 bar (3.5 oz) 80% dark cocoa/dark chocolate, chopped (I used the bar from Trader Joe's)

Spray a muffin tin with non stick spray and set aside.

In a mixer, blend butter, oil and Baking Blend until creamy.  Add the eggs, one at a time and beat until they are well mixed.  Continue beating and add the vanilla.  Then add the bananas (premashed or whole if they are really ripe), and blend them in well.

Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon.  Gently mix into the batter and finally fold in the chopped chocolate.

Fill the muffin tin 1/2-3/4 full and bake in a 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes.  Check to be sure they are done by inserting a toothpick in the center.  Remove and let sit for 10 minutes, and then remove from the muffin pan and let cool on a wire rack.  YUMMMMM!!!

Makes 12 large muffins.

Banana batter with chopped dark chocolate - flavor sensation!

Ready for the oven with a surprise of vanilla sugar on top!

Fresh from the oven...

Yes the first bite is THAT good!

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Glass, Glaze, Glitter and Glow!!

I love to make cards. Unfortunately the ideas do not always come as the need arises, but I try to push through it.  I have been in a rut lately, needing to make a LOT of cards for October and feeling overwhelmed and uninspired.

So when I decided to participate in a challenge on the "That's Scrap Inc" forum (for cutting machines), I was ready to push out of my comfort zone.... and push I did!  LOL  It was all about doing something with glass containers, vinyl and glitter. I love cutting vinyl because you can do the most detailed work with ease.  But I couldn't think of anything to do.  I scanned all of the vases and jars sitting stored in my garage. They were just begging to be used. But of course none of the dozens were quite right!!  So I finally settled on a trio of square candle holders.  I found a new website of designs from Lori Whitlock and grabbed some of her flourished leaves.  I also was drawn to a quatrafoil background that was a tracing of a design (thank you Lisa!!) .  It was starting to come together - at least in my head!!

So technically, I didn't really use vinyl - but it's close. It's patterned contact paper and it just said "fall" to me. I don't decorate for Halloween anymore with all of the kids grown and the grandkids away, so I chose a simple autumn theme to carry me through the next couple of months.  I am hoping that if I decorate for fall it will start to feel like it here!!  It will be in the 80s again today and then 90s this weekend  - ugh!  I am SO ready to pull out my boots and sweaters and cuddle up on the couch with my dogs in front of the fireplace. Somehow the ambiance of the air conditioner is less than comforting! But enough of my whining......

So here is my project.  I used the acrylic glitter glaze from Dick Blick (it has been waiting for some attention) and then used Distress Rock Candy glitter to further add to the sparkle on the inside. It added a nice background to the vinyl cutouts.  Then I picked up some battery tea lights from Michaels and added a variety of glass pebbles, both in the containers and sprinkled around.

Step 1 - paint glitter glaze and add dry glitter to coat.  It looks nicer after it dries!!

These are the products I used on the inside of the candle holders.

Step 2.  Apply the vinyl cut outs.  It was super easy to do with the transfer tape.

This is just a test run to see how they look with the battery candles!

A closeup of the larger center candle.

One side of one of the smaller candles.

Candles arranged for a day time display.  Love the colored glass pebbles!

The glow at night.........

The finished arrangement

I am really happy with the effects and they look really festive at night. I would definitely do this again.

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Double Chocolate Zucchini Muffins - Low Sugar

Healthy can truly be delicious!  Oh.....my......gosh.......these are yummy. I think I could even get my granddaughters to eat these (and they would not touch zucchini with a ten foot pole!)  Of course if I made these for them I would grate the zucchini finer so it would be WELL hidden!!

Another thing  I did was change the chocolate chips to Ghirardelli premium baking chips that are 60% cacao. They have a higher concentration of cocoa butter so they melt really well and even after the muffins have cooled, the chocolate still has a wonderful gooey texture.  YUM!

I hope you love these too!!

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup Truvia Baking Blend
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 cup Ghirardelli premium baking chips (60% cacao/bittersweet chocolate)

Preheat oven to 325.  Spray the muffin tin with a non stick spray or use muffin liners. Set aside.

Beat butter, unsweetened applesauce, and Truvia baking blend in a large mixing bowl.  The mixture will be lumpy - almost curdled in appearance.  Add the eggs.  Mix to combine.  Add the vanilla and buttermilk and mix again.

In a separate small bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients  slowly - adding 1/3 of the dry each time and blending in between. Do not overmix.  Add the zucchini and chocolate and stir just until combined.

Scoop the batter into the muffin cups, filling about 3/4 full.  Bake for 15-17 minutes or until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let cool on a wire rack for 3-5 minutes and then remove to the wire rack to cool completely.

The texture of these muffins is almost brownie like, especially when you get a bite of that melty gooey chocolate! I hope you enjoy these!!

I think I need to make another batch.  YES.... they are THAT good!

Who says chocolate isn't a breakfast food?  Zucchini makes everything healthy!

You can see how these are brimming with zucchini.  

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Mexican Chicken Salad a la California Style!

In southern California, summer finally hit - with GUSTO!! It has been hot and humid and just plain miserable.  Now if you live in the East or the South you will laugh at my intolerance of CA humidity. But we are spoiled - I admit it.  And when there is moisture in the air, it is just plain miserable unless you have the ocean breeze. I am just inland enough to miss that cooling mist...

I have been feeling so icky in the evenings that dinner has often been yogurt, frozen  yogurt,  mozzarella slices and tomatoes - in other words, anything easy!!  So I was determined to actually MAKE something and I did - from beginning to end, without a recipe. Granted, making a salad does not require a recipe, but I created a marinade for the chicken breasts and a dressing for the salad and it turned out delicious!!  So I just had to share.......

MEXICAN CHICKEN SALAD WITH GUACAMOLE DRESSING

Cilantro, roasted red peppers, roasted garlic olive oil and lemon juice = best Southwestern marinade

(Disclaimer - totally forgot to photograph the white wine vinegar - oops!!)

Marinade:

1/4 cup roasted garlic olive oil (found this at Costco and love it!!)

1/8 c. white wine vinegar

1/4 c. roasted red peppers
2 cubes frozen cilantro (Trader Joe's) or several Tablespoons of fresh, chopped

juice of 1 lemon

Combine all ingredients and mix with a stick blender.  I have the one from Cuisinart and  use it often!

Place two chicken breasts halves in a ziploc bag with the marinade and put in the refrigerator for 3-4 hours.  Turn over occasionally to be sure it is distributed well.

Light ranch dressing, wholly guacamole and taco seasoning (with chives) = perfect dressing!

Dressing:

2 packets of individual servings of Wholly Guacamole! (you can certainly make your own, but I only had a few avocados and wanted them for the salad.)

1/2-3/4 c. ranch dressing - to taste

1 tsp taco seasoning (to taste)

Mix and refrigerate so the flavors can meld.

Salad:

romaine lettuce

black beans (rinsed and drained); kidney beans would work well as an alternative

orange pepper, sliced and chunked

yellow pepper, sliced and chunked\

fire-roasted corn (about 1 cup - I use the Trader Joe's brand)

tomatoes, chunked (about 1 1/2 cups)

2 avocados, chunked

black olives, sliced

1 bunch green onions, sliced

*cheddar cheese, grated (optional)

*jack cheese, grated (optional)

tortilla chips, crushed for garnish

* I used a shredded Mexican blend

Assembly:

Grilled chicken breasts after marinade - YUM!

Grill the chicken and slice or chunk depending on your preference.  You can either mix all of the ingredients like a chopped salad, or layer on a plate with slices of the chicken on top (pictured below).

This was beyond delicious and made enough for several nights. I shared with my neighbor and we both had leftovers. The beauty of this salad is that you can use as much or as little of any of the ingredients as you want.  There are no hard and fast rules. This was fun and I will definitely be creating new salads in the future.  I wish I would have started this earlier in the summer as it's a great solution to eating healthy when it's just....... too....... hot!!

Salad in process...

The finished dinner serving - or several servings!!

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August and September Birthday Cards

And there are more!!

The burst of inspiration is still with me so I am taking FULL advantage of it.  This card was made from one of the designs from Birds Cards.  I do love her card backgrounds and it was fun to use some patterned paper again - but even though I chose an entirely different brand of patterned paper (First Edition), I still ended up with purple being the accent color.  It's surprising to me how many times I end up with a card that highlights purple.  I will try to break into a new color family with the next card! (see below - I did it!!)

This card utilizes several designs from Birds Cards: the Circle Square Frame, Flowers 2 and 6 and the stamens.  I also uses her digi stamp in the center of the card and did a print and cut with SCAL and the Silver Bullet Professional.  I took the sentiment one step further and used the FoilMaster to add purple foil to the greeting. I love the sheen of the foil - it is just so darn hard to photograph!

I think this frame has a lot of possibilities.

You can see how detailed the cut is -  even with it still on the mat!

And here is a much better example of the detail.  Look at those little triangles!!!

Love the foiled greeting.    The papers from Paper Temptress are Kunzite and Amethyst 

from the Mica line

Another card that went together easily (and kicked me out of my purple rut) was this one.  Monica's files are so detailed but I never have to worry how my Silver Bullet Professional will handle them.  This is her spring season file and I altered the separate tulip file in SCAL to make it shorter and two sizes.  The paper is my favorite line from Paper Temptress - the mica line (aka Stardream). It cuts like butter and I love the shimmer.

Another intricate cut from the Silver Bullet Professional Cutter.

I really like how this amber color pops on the red.

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