1,000 Page views!

Wow! I can't believe it it. This little blog of mine has been viewed 1,000 times! 

Thank you everyone, I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you.

In order to celebrate this event here is the blogs frist giveaway!

How to enter:

Leave a comment below with your name, email, and prize you'd like to win.

Prizes:

$10 gift card to Target, Michaels, or Joanns.

A batch of snickerdoodles or tripple chocolate cookies.

A set of purple coasters.

A set of 10 decorated thumbtacks.

The winner will be chosen by using this random integer generator.

You have until Wednesday 10/5 to enter to win!

-Courtney

Dinner is served!

This months dinner was supposed to be Julia Child's Beouff Bourginion. As I attempted this recipe my kitchen became Improvise Central.  

After trying to write about my cooking attempt. I have decided that although I may have used her recipe from "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" I definitely did not follow her directions.  Since I know nothing about cooking and I didn't exactly follow the recipe, I am having a very hard time explaining what to do. 

Below are pictures I took during my attempt. I have added captions so you can kind of figure out what I was doing. 

Ingredients minus the mushrooms and sub bacon for a bacon rind

chop the bacon

the veggies too

This is where my dog Zoey likes to lay. I was using the stove, the counter to the right of the stove and the center island. Needless to say she was in the way. 

Brown the beef.

cook the veggies.

cook for a long time. 

use a bigger pot, and one that can go on the stove.

My version of a sieve set.

We had to eat this the next night for dinner because it took so long to cook!

Apparently I have learned a lot this month because I've said I learned a lot in all of my posts this month. 

Well here is what this post taught me.

1: Read the ENTIRE recipe before staring. 

2: Make sure you have all of the necessary gadgets before starting

3: Make sure you have enough time. 

4: If it doesn't turn out you can always order pizza. 

5: Make sure you understand the recipe. 

I took so long to make dinner that we had to eat it the next night. It was delicious though! I am definitely  going to stick to easier recipes for now. At least I can cross one thing off my bucket list. 

Bon Appetit!

-Courtney 

Apple Struddel

Hey everyone welcome back. I am still working on the timing of theses posts. I need to do about 1.5 a week in order to get all of the done for the month and its proving to be a little difficult. Anyways onto the fun stuff. 

This is the second baking post of the month, and here I made apple strudel.

Here is what you'll need:

1/2 cup golden raisins

2 TBS apple cider (I used Martinelli's) 

1/4 fresh white bread crumbs (put a slice of white bread in the food processor!)

1 stick of butter

2 Golden Delicious apples peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick

1 Mcintosh apple peeled and sliced 1/4inch thick

1/4 cup & 2 tsp granulated sugar

1 tsp fresh lemon juice

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp salt

10 sheets fillo dough

Step 1: bring the raisins and the cider to a simmer. remove from heat and let sit. 

Step 2: Toast the bread crumbs in 1 TBS butter. 

Step 3: Drain the raisins, discard any remaining liquid.  Stir in the apples, 1/4 sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon, salt and bread crumbs. 

Step 4: layer your fillo dough by laying down one sheet and brushing it with butter. Repeat nine more times. 

Step 5: Fill the fillo dough with the apple mixture. Leave enough room to fold over the sides.  

To fold your dough first fold the long sides in, then fold over the bottom. After the left, right and bottom sides are folded over. turn the envelope over its self.  (I really don't think that made sense and I can't seem to find a good how too. GOOD LUCK)

Step 6: make 1inch slits in the top. 

Step 7: Bake at 475 degrees for 15 minutes, turning it half way through. 

This strudel was good, however the apples were not very soft. Here is what I would have done differently. I did not have a brush to brush on the butter so I attempted to spoon in on causing me to use way to much butter. Lesson learned buy a brush.  I also learned to not put the pastry in a tupperware container. It turned into a huge gooey mess. I also would have sprinkled the top with powdered sugar. 

Oh one more tip. Let your fillo dough though on the counter for a few hours before trying to work with it! 





-Courtney 

Apple Muffins

Hey everyone, 

Well I promised you a post about apple muffins and here it is! 

I found this recipe on a blog called The Girl Who Ate Everything. (check it out, I fell in love with her.)

 In a desperate attempt to try new recipes she asked readers to email her their favorite recipes, this one is one of those recipes. 

Lets get started! 

Ingredients

1 ½ cups sugar

2 eggs

1 cup oil

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3 cups peeled, cored, diced apples (I used about 2 ½ apples)

Brown sugar for topping 

Cream together sugar, eggs, oil and vanilla. 

Sift together flour salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. 

Mix thoroughly

Mix in the apples. I had to mix it with my hands because the batter was so thick!

Divide the batter into a lined muffin pan evenly. Sprinkle with brown sugar.

Bake at 350 degrees for 18-24 minutes. 

Let cool, and enjoy! 

A few tips: don't let your muffin mix sit in the paper liners for too long before baking, the moisture from the batter will absorb into the paper. While in the oven, the liners will the become very crispy. Tip #2: If you're going to use a metal muffin pan try putting a cookie sheet underneath. My muffins from the metal tin turned out a litte dry! Tip #3 let them cool completely before storing them in an air tight container, mine became sticky and sweaty. 

Despite my mishaps these muffins were delicious and a real hit! 

-Courtney

September!

Wahoo! Its time to launch my new blog plan!


Here is what this month will entail.


Baking with apples- muffins, strudel, and pie. YUM!


Sewing- for my first attempt I will make a pencil bag. (we'll see how it comes out o_O)


Cookie of the month- macaroons.


Dinner- Julia Child's boeuf bourguignon.


Some of you maybe wondering where I find my recipes and patterns. I scour the internet, cookbooks, pattern books and blogs. I will post links to all of the websites I get my info from!


Of course any other crafts I do I will document and post as well!


I really hope this works out because I am really excited about it!


I feel like this post is naked with out a picture......


How about one of my crazy dogs? 

Zoey is the little one and Bear is the big one. :D

-Courtney

Do you like guessing games?

If so, check out the latest post on Megs Hand Made life. She will be giving away a prize from her Etsy shop to the commenter who most accurately guesses the manufacturing date of her new sewing machine!


While you're there check out the rest of her blog she has some great recipes, tutorials and overall great information posted! Check out her Esty shop too, that way incase you win you'll know what you want!
-Courtney

Sometimes life gets in the way of life!

Sorry for the lack of activity this past month. I have had a ton of stuff going on! However, I have been working on some ideas for this blog, including how I can continue to grow as a creative individual and how I can make it easier for me to update on a regular basis. This is what I will be doing (hopefully) from now on. Each month I will attempt to have a baking focus of the month where I will bake 3 things from a category or using the same main ingredient.  There will be a cookie of the month, a craft project of the month, hopefully a sewing project of the month, and a meal of the month. Its a lot but I think with the right amount of planning I can do it! 


So while I get this all worked out please don't give up on me! 


In the meantime I would like to share with you a few of my favorite blogs! Check 'em out! 


How About Orange here you will find craft projects, printable downloads & decorating ideas!
Make It and Love It  Lots of sewing tutorials! 
A Lemon Squeezy Home More sewing, genreral crafts, and just fun stuff! 
Meg's Handmade Life DIY, Sewing, Knitting, Food, and Life! 
Bakerella I think the title says it all. 
Bake or Break  The baking adventures of an amateur baker! 
Not Martha baking, photography, and life
BeaOriginal Everything paper crafts!!! 


As some of you know, when this blog hits 1,000 views I plan on doing a giveaway. So please share me with your friends and family! Leave comments with any idea, suggestions,  or just because! 




-Courtney


"In every state, there's a station
Playin' Cash, Hank, Willie, and Waylon
In foreign cars and four-wheel drives
There's cowboys and hillbillies
From farm towns to big cities
There ain't no doubt in my mind
Country must be country wide"


-Brantley Gilbert