You know your a redneck when...

Last night I decided to make this delicious recipe that I had found (surprise surprise) on Posie Get's Cozy. Now, it's definitely not cold or blustery around these parts but it looked good and I've always wanted to try a bolognese sauce. Sadly, all the recipes I have ever read were really complicated, took hours and hours of cooking time, or called for weird ingredients that I never have on hand. But, I was quite delighted to see that I had all of the ingredients (well, enough to fudge it) and it only took 1 1/2 hours of cooking time. This I could do! So I printed of the recipe (you can get the original here) and got started.

Ingredients

• 5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 carrot, finely, diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 rib celery, finely diced
• 1 clove garlic, sliced ( I used 5 because this is Italian food after all!)
  
• 1 pound veal, ground (I used 2 lbs of ground beef because, come on, who eats veal anyways???)
  
• 1 pound pork, ground
• 1/4 pound pancetta or slab bacon, ground ( I used 1/2 package of bacon, sliced into little strips)
  
• 1/2 tube tomato paste ( I used half a can since I didn't have a tube and you can never have too much)
  
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup dry white wine ( I used beer, don't do this! Continue reading after recipe)
  
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Parmigiano-Reggiano, for grating (none was to be found in our fridge, we used smoked gouda instead)
  

Directions

In a 6 to 8-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the onions, celery, and garlic and sweat over medium heat until the vegetables are translucent and soft but not browned, about 10 to 15 minutes. Add the veal, pork, and pancetta and stir into the vegetables. Add the meat over high heat, stirring to keep the meat from sticking together until browned. Add the tomato paste, milk, and wine and simmer over medium-low heat for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Season with salt and pepper, to taste, and remove from the heat.

When ready to use, the cooked pasta should be added to a saucepan with the appropriate amount of hot ragu Bolognese, and tosses so that the pasta is evenly coated by the ragu.

Ok, so if you read the ingredients you can tell that I fudged the recipe a bit but the bacon and ground beef suggestions were via Ms. Paulson so I was pretty certain on that part. What threw me a bit was the white wine part. Now, I usually have a bottle of white in my fridge but since I'm the person in the family who enjoys it and I haven't been drinking lately, there was none. But I have in other recipes been able to substitute small amounts ( 1/4 c. -1/2c.) of wine for beer because that is something that we most generally have on hand. I had second thoughts before I pour the entire cup in. "Maybe I should use chicken broth instead. No, there's no chicken in this and it's will throw the flavor off. Ok, pour it in." And so it went in. The gravity of this began to settle in in earnest when the entire bottom floor of our house began to smell of cooking beer.
Mike couldn't quite figure out what I was cooking when he arrived at home. I explained my problem of the lack of wine and the substituting of the beer. He looked at me somewhat askance and said, "you really put an entire cup of beer in the sauce when it called for white wine???" Of course my answer was "yes." At that we decided to laugh about it and eat anyways.
It turned out ok, but the flavor was a little too dark and earthy for me and Olivia to truly enjoy it. Today, we had it as leftovers and I added about 1/2 c. of chicken broth to loosen it up as it was short on saucy-ness and long on meaty chunks. It helped a whole lot and we enjoyed it much more with it's beer flavor tempered quite a bit. I can't say I'm in a great hurry to try this recipe again but it will be going in my recipe binder and I'll make sure to follow the ingredients list a bit more closely next time. And please don't let my mistakes deter you from trying it, it really is delicious. We ate ours piled high on quinoa and corn pasta and topped with a generous helping of shredded smoked gouda.
But for heavens sake make the little extra effort and buy a bottle of white and then drink the rest with dinner. :)

An itch

I have been incredibly unproductive(in my creative life) for the past 2 months. So many things going on and mental stresses and bodily stresses and comings and goings. It has been miraculous most days to have 3 meals fixed, clean dishes to eat on, and clothes clean but definitely not folded to put on. We've had company, been company, done some semi-major construction on our house, spent almost over 25+ hours at the church in one week, drove 2400 miles in 10 days, and have lived to tell about it. Momma has been tired and even some days, quite ill. During that time, my life was pretty much shut down to necessities only. No blogging has gone on, not even reading other blogs or hardly any Facebook, (gasp, I know!) most days I didn't even turn my computer on. I just checked my email on Mike's laptop if it was necessary.

But, life has finally slowed down, momma's feeling herself again, and certain stresses have dissipated and newer ones I'm pretty much content to let someone else worry about. I'm finally spending some time reading blogs again and it's been ever so nice to catch up a bit on what's been going on everyone's lives. Some made me cry, I had missed so much, others sent me into giggling fits and snorting my tea. ( you know who you are!)

While do my wanderings (after I checked on my "friends") I went over to {inspiration blogs} Kelly McCaleb's and felt a little tickle in my brain after reading this post. No, I told myself. Get a grip. So, wander on over to House on Hill Road. Crumb, that's not much better! So, then I did the worst thing possible and stepped into Ms. Paulson's most cozy little blog space. Shoot! Bad bad, terrible, no good, disastrous idea! Now I'm completely overwhelmed and have a head full of ideas (like I need any more!) and the most insane urge to pull out all of my carefully folded and packed boxes and bin of fabric and start tossing everything all over my newly organized FROG. Forget the fact that I'm in the middle of a custom order that involves 7 yards of black duponi silk, 7 24" zippers, and many many more hours of labor than I estimated and a custom designed 50's style apron for another client that has even been started yet. Nope! A summer patchwork quilt for our bedroom is far more important as are patchwork hexagon seat cushions and embroidered wall hangings for our bedroom.
I mean, come on! Who could resist the likes of this?

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(Because I really have a pressing desire to make a patchwork quilt. Right.now.)

Or this?

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(Because I really must start setting a prettier table)

Or this?

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(Because who would say "no" to a hammock, in the backyard, covered in vintage quilts, fluffy pillows, and a vintage chenille bedspread topped with a sweet corgi?)

Or to this?

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(because every seat in our kitchen is wooden and hard and my hinney hurts quite frequently from them)

Do you see what I mean? I could go on and on forever and ever. And this isn't my first time down this road either.
But, I digress.
So, I made myself a promise. Finish these last 2 orders and then no more custom orders for at least 6 months (forever?). And to make one thing a month just for me, my house, or someone I love. Just because. Just because I can and I enjoy it. No deadlines and no worrying about whether it's up to someone else's standards.
It truly sounds like bliss. I can't wait. I'm making my lists!
And I'm working up the courage to sew 336" of zipper.

What are you greatful for?

Although we are technically still a little ways from summer, we have been enjoying the early days of it here. Sunshine, breezes, windows open, entire afternoons spent in the pool, and fruit. Lots and lots of fresh fruit.






10 Things I'm greatful for today:
1. fresh cherries
2. thrifted pyrex
3. $2 vintage child's chair garage sale find
4. the kissable face of a 2 year old
5. gentle rain
6. plans for a date celebration on Saturday
7. a stack of freshly laundered vintage sheets
8. prayer in the morning with Mike
9. the hugs of Olivia
10. playing hide and seek with my girls


Good List Daily

Vintage Sheet Swap

I love vintage sheets! The first thing I do in thrift shops and good will is search the bedding racks for sheets, pillowcases, and towels. Some days it's hit or miss, but other days I hit a good vein. (I'm still waiting to hit a mother-load.) So many of us have the thrifting bug and how many of us have a few vintage sheets laying around? I know I do! And that can be a lot of fabric! Sometimes we don't know what to do with it all and sometimes we just want more variety. Using vintage sheets is a great way to recycle, re-purpose, and add some vintage flare to our sewing projects. I use mine for dresses, skirts, aprons, pillows, fabric balls, and more! The possibilities are endless and so much fun to contemplate. So, why don't we have a Vintage Sheet Swap!

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Here's your to-do list:

1. Leave a comment on this page by Friday, May 21st, letting me know you want to join in.
   
2. Pick out a lovely twin (66x96) sheet (or larger if you want!), making sure there is no excessive fading or other blemishes that would make it undesirable to use.
3. Cut the sheet into thirds (3 pieces 66"x 26" or there abouts and you may have a little left over)
4. By June 1st, put as many sheet pieces as you want to trade in the mail to me, along with $$ to cover the cost of return postage. If you are International, please put your sheets in the mail as soon as possible so that they will be in the mix with all the other sheets and I can return them to you in a timely manner. I would appreciate it greatly if everyone would use the flat rate postal boxes. These boxes are free for the taking at the PO and that way you would know exactly how much postage to send for return postage. Here is a breakdown of the two sizes and prices with my estimate of how many sheet pieces you can fit in them that would be most convenient for our situation.

Size: sheet estimate: shipping price:

Priority Flat rate small box (8.75"x5.5"x1.75") 1-3 sheet piece $4.95
Priority Flat rate med. box (11"x8.5"x5.5") 4-8 sheet pieces $10.70

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Here’s my to-do list:

1. I will jump up and down with glee every time a new package comes in the mail and then I’ll add them to the pile and once all have been received (or most of all of them) I will redistribute them.
2. I will mail back to you the same number of sheet pieces you sent me, but in different patterns and colors.

And then your to-do list again:

1. Wait daily for the mail to come
   
2. Jump up and down in delight when your new sheet pieces arrive in your mailbox
   
3. Make yourself a whole bevy of new things with your new {vintage} fabrics!

I will send everyone that signs up an email on the 21st (or 22nd) with a few more details, like where to send the box and what to include in your box, etc, etc.
Sounds like fun! So sign up and then start thrifting!

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a little wish list

Mother's Day is just around the corner and we are involved in all of our card writing and sending today. So much love being sent out to mother's and grandmother's and great-grandmother's.
My sweet husband never really know quite what to do on Mother's Day so I thought I would make him a little list of ideas to possibly help ease to stress of what "to do."

1. I think this sweet mug is all too cute.













2. Love love love the Matrushka measuring cups














3. I think these Babushkups Cups are darling.














4. You know how I love to make lists, this would be prefect.














5. I'm pretty sure I've mentioned "porch swing" a few times lately. :)














6. And some outdoor pillows to go on said swing would be lovely as well.














7. I think I've also mention that I need a few special things, just between you and me sweetheart.

8. dinner on the grill, (steak or shrimp perhaps) salad, and sweet potatoes. Friends over maybe?

9. a trip to Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream or the fixings at home for sundaes, yummy!

10. I'm in great need of a new set of measuring cups, pastry cutter, a silicone spatula or two, and pretty dish towels.

11. Anthropology Latte bowls always hold a soft spot in my heart.













12. and don't for get the pretty pyrex bowls I'm always pointing out!










13. an afternoon at the park downtown. Just our sweet family, playing in the sprinklers, and enjoying the sunshine.


All just ideas darling, sweet thoughts to make a day special. Because being a mommy is hard work, thought I wouldn't trade my job for any other (most days) and I'm so happy that I'm the mommy to your babies. <3