Dancing with Daffodils

Neglected Blog

dancingwithdaffodils — Fri, 22 Jul 2011 01:48:53 +0000

A little neglect may breed great mischief. – Benjamin Franklin

More business is lost every year through neglect than through any other cause. – Rose Kennedy

A man should never neglect his family for business. – Walt Disney

My blog is suffering from wanton neglect – even my daffodils seem to be wilting…

When making your choice in life, do not neglect to live. – Samuel Johnson

Well, at least, I can say I’ve been living:)

Gloria Dei vivens homo. (The glory of God is man fully alive.) – St. Irenaeus

Whether a dainty cupcake, a massive painting, a mini-mermaid tail or a woolly pair of socks – when I create, I am fully alive!

Magic bubble wands and fluffy tulle – that’s what little girls are made of!

The foundation of my hamburger cake design…

My booth at the Strawberry Festival…

And, my painting…

Sadly, I’ve a neglected blog. On the flip side, I’m feeling ALIVE!

Do not neglect the spiritual gift you received through the prophecy spoken over you when the elders of the church laid their hands on you. 1 Timothy 4:14

Tagged: art, art fair, craft fair, faith, gift, handmade, life, painting, quotes, sewing

And, Pink…

dancingwithdaffodils — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 00:59:21 +0000

A pink tutu, too too…

Sewing and even speaking in duplicate right now:)

Since I was so sure of your understanding and trust, I wanted to give you a double blessing by visiting you twice… 2 Corinthians 1:15

Strawberry Tutu Cute!

dancingwithdaffodils — Sat, 18 Jun 2011 00:30:17 +0000

Turning out tutus and other strawberry stuff…

Strawberry Shortcake makes an appearance on bonnets…

Red gingham lovin’ with this little bib…

Just around the corner…

She selects wool and flax and works with eager hands. Proverbs 31:13

Can You Guess the Flavor?

dancingwithdaffodils — Tue, 14 Jun 2011 15:45:36 +0000

Colin’s birthday cake – can you guess what flavor he requested this year?

Tough one – how old is Colin now?

I’ve made so many carrot cakes over the years so I always try to sneak the age in there along with the names When I look at old pictures now, I’ve some clue as to which birthday I’m remembering. That way, I don’t have to guess!

God can do anything, you know—far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us. Ephesians 3:20

Strawberry Dreamin’

dancingwithdaffodils — Thu, 09 Jun 2011 13:16:37 +0000

Tagged: craft, craft fair, handmade, sew, sewing, strawberries, strawberry

Black Bean Blender Brownies

dancingwithdaffodils — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 01:45:47 +0000

Today, we’re testing recipes for Colin’s upcoming birthday party. He’s craving brownies and I just had to try this recipe I found on the Whole Food’s website: Flourless Brownies. I’d seen recipes for black bean brownies and really wanted to try it out. Since Colin is looking for a fudgy rather than a cakey brownie, we made a test pan.

Organic black beans…

All the ingredients are to be mixed in a food processor, but alas my processor died awhile back and has not been replaced. I used the next best thing, my blender…

Super nutritious and taste rich eggs from Ravencroft Farm…

More blender magic…

Blender black bean brownies baked (say this several times fast)…

Cut and ready to try…

The result: A fantastically fudgy brownie enjoyed by all:)

Does not the ear test words as the tongue tastes food? Job 12:11

Tagged: Baking, Birthday, black bean brownies, black beans, Brownie, brownies, cake, children, Family, flourless brownies, food, organic, organic eggs, Parenting, Ravencroft Farm, sons

New Chicks, Pizza & Donut Chips

dancingwithdaffodils — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 02:29:01 +0000

School is finally out for most of us (except for my high school sophomore) so this morning we went to Ravencroft Farm to see the new chicks. New chicks mean more delicious, organic eggs – I love new chicks!

So precious!

The huddled masses…

After a fun day in the sun, we had home-made pizzas for dinner:)

Do you remember life before Domino’s Pizza? One of my dearest friends when I was growing up, her parents’ owned and operated a pizzeria – the kind everyone flocked to after Friday night football games. They made incredible pizza, but the piece de resistance were their beloved donut chips – oh, my! These lovely little bits of fried pizza dough were tossed in sugar and served with a bowl of hot fudge for dipping. Dreamy!!

It’s a little scary how some of my best memories are tied to food – hmmmm…

Donut chips are simple to make. I simply doubled my pizza dough recipe so I had enough for pizzas and fried dough. Since I don’t have a frier, I heated canola oil in a pan. Using my pizza cutter, I cut pieces of pizza dough – some much bigger than others. I plopped the dough in the hot oil and within seconds the dough puffed and danced. I sprinkled and tossed them with granulated sugar & delighted my sons with a nostalgic after-dinner treat.

Not exactly uniform…

Dancing dough…

A whole lotta lovin’!!

And some hot fudge to boot:)

I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body. 2 Peter 1:13

Tagged: childhood, Cooking, donut chips, donut chips and fudge, donuts, Family, friends, homemade donuts, homemade pizza, life, organic, pizza, pizza and donut chips

Strawberry Festival

dancingwithdaffodils — Sat, 04 Jun 2011 01:39:05 +0000

I’m thrilled to announce: I’m going to have a booth at a local strawberry festival in July. Since the last Art Fair I did was in 1998, I’m kind of nervous too! Wish me well as I plow through a whole lot of work in the next few weeks:)

STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL
KNOX GREEN HILL FARM
SAT. – JULY 2 – 10am-2pm
FAMILY FUN – GAMES – PRIZES
TASTING – EATS & TREATS
U-PICK & WE PICK BERRIES

The mountains will bring prosperity to the people, the hills the fruit of righteousness. Psalm 72:3

Tagged: art, art fair, Baking, strawberry, strawberry festival

No Bake Cookies for Graeme

dancingwithdaffodils — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 23:03:59 +0000

Peanut butter quickly went from a staple to a luxury in our home once we discovered Graeme’s peanut allergy. We had to rethink our go-to lunch and give up peanut butter balls, peanut butter fudge, peanut butter cookies – the list goes on…

I’ve tried to find an adequate substitute in making sunflower seed butter. The reviews are mixed. The sunflower seed butter & jam sandwiches are pretty good, and the cookies are yummy.

But, I’d forgotten about No Bake Cookies. My older sons loved these little oatmeal peanut butter treats which were a breeze to pull together. Sooooo, why not try it with sunflower seed butter…

Tagged: bake, cookies, no bake cookies, sunflower seed butter

More Rhubarb Goodness

dancingwithdaffodils — Fri, 27 May 2011 13:16:51 +0000

This recipe from Martha Stewart has been tucked away in my mind awaiting rhubarb season. It’s finally here and I had to try Rhubarb Upside-down Cake. With many recipes, I’ll make a few alterations because I don’t have the exact ingredients or just because I’m that way. For this recipe, I subbed plain yogurt for the sour cream and used orange juice concentrate instead of juice. Why yogurt? Simple, I had it. The orange juice concentrate goes back to a family recipe for Orange Drop Cookies which has been passed down for several generations. In my experience, it’s adds more “orangey” flavor.

I was intrigued by Martha’s recipe because I love rhubarb, I’ve not made an upside-down cake since I was about 12, and it sounded so yummy!

Another thing, I changed was to use my angel-food cake pan rather than the 9 inch. There’s the crumb topping which actually ends up on the bottom…

In my zealousness to upside-down the upside-down cake, I really didn’t let it cool enough….

The result is a delicious, moist cake with lovely fruity flavor…

A few pieces left the next day & still very moist and flavorful. Martha Stewart’s Rhubarb Upside-down Cake – you must try this!!

But come on, all of you, try again! Job 17:10a

Tagged: Baking, cake, Martha Stewart, Martha Stewart recipe, rhubarb, rhubarb cake, rhubarb upside-down cake, upside-down cake