.

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

-

I have no special days.

Wednesday, November 02, 2011

Cheesy Bacon Potato Chowder~ Original Recipe

Not a great picture....but super hearty and very filling! A wonderful Fall Supper!
Came up with this recipe this week. Was such a huge hit with my family I decided to share it with you. This can very easily be turned gluten free (use a gluten free cream soup). I haven't tried, but I think this could also be altered into a lacto-vegetarian recipe using meat substitutes.
Cheesy Bacon Potato Chowder ~ Original Recipe
Serves about 6-8, 1-1/2 cup servings.
Elizabeth Mareno 2011
1/2 lb bacon- cut into bits
1 cup onion- chopped
2 cups carrots- chopped
3 lbs potatoes- chopped (I didn't peel mine. Use your preference)
4 cups chicken or veggie broth
1 can crm of mushroom or crm of chicken
8oz cream cheese
2 cups shredded cheddar
salt, pepper, granulated garlic(use sparingly) for seasoning
Cook bacon in soup pot until fat is rendered and pieces are crispy. Remove some for garnish.
Add onion and cook till translucent.
Add chicken broth (a little at first to deglase the pan, beware of the steam).
Add carrots and cream soup, mix well.
Add potato, cook until tender.
Using a manual potato masher, slightly mash carrots and potatoes to thicken soup.
Add cheeses, stir until completely melted.
Garnish with crispy bacon and chives (optional).

Hats and Shawls


Hi all. More finished objects today. I updated my computer, so of course it didn't work right anymore. I glitches have apparently fixed themselves, so we are back to our regularly scheduled programming.
We will start with shawls today.
My Mommy turns 64 on Friday. (I was supposed to be born on her birthday, but I decided to come 2-1/2 weeks late. I was born to disrupt the status quo.) I decided my mumsy needed some shawls. I wanted to make her three, but only had time to make her two before I had to get the box mailed in time for her birthday. I knit one and I crocheted one. I don't love the crocheted one for two reasons. I think I picked a bad colorway and it is too short for true "shawl-ness". Nevertheless, I sent it to her.
That is the link. I can't get my laptop to work with me today. Maybe the glitches aren't fixed?
I made mine with Lion Brand "Jiffy" in #189 Wine. It is an acrylic bulky weight yarn, with a bit of a "fuzz" to it. The technical term eludes me today . I used a size 15 needle. I also added an extra "V" because I wanted to make sure this would be long enough to wrap around her. Thanks Stef for being my model.
This is the crocheted shawl I made. I want to try it again with a different color and adding a repeat or two.
Fabulous Shawl. http://www.favecrafts.com/Crochet-Sweaters/Fabulous-Shawl-from-Red-Heart I used, "I Love That Yarn" from Hobby Lobby. Don't know the colorway. It looks prettier in the skein.
Here we have a new baby hat pattern I have come up with. I will be adding a pom-pom to the top. This is something I will be selling in my Etsy shop. http://www.etsy.com/shop/originalbiz This particular hat is a custom request from a patron, but I will be making more for the shop soon.
Last week I made some hats for my Mom. She is in the frozen tundra and she needs some cute hats. I sent her some links to hats I was interested in making and these are the ones she approved of.
I learned Entrelac, people!! Exciting to say the least. I feel so accomplished! It is a slow moving pattern for sure, but such cute results. It makes you look brilliant. I will admit, I struggled with it at first. My brain almost imploded, but then Shazam! I caught it and we were off to the races.
This particular pattern gives a very sketchy explanation of how many stitches to cast on for the ribbing. I did the whole measurement thing and did the first hat with a cast on of 104. Turned out big. Not "turn it over, add handles and call it a purse" big, but definitely requiring bobby pins to hold it on big. Or big hair, big. The second one I took it down and cast on 96. Still feels a little roomy to me. The next one I will either cast on 90 or 84. We'll see. Btw, I have a 23" head circumference.
This one is: Patons 100% Wool, not sure of colorway. It's a blue, teal, brown, tan mixture.
This one is Debbie Norville "Everyday". It is my NEW acrylic worsted weight favorite. Soft, really great spring and pill-free. Definitely not the "plastic, scratchy" feel of Red Heart SS. JoAnn's had it on sale 2 for $5, so I thought I'd give it a try. It is spendy if you are looking to do an afghan. I believe it sells for $3.99, or something close to that, for a 3.5 oz skein. But it's GREAT for hats and other small projects like that.
The last hat I made Mom was a take on the Brattleboro Hat from Knitting Daily. http://www.knittingdaily.com/media/p/47263.aspx It is a pattern that is for sale in a book. I wasn't willing to pay $25.00 for a book for one pattern that I was interested in, so I sorta figured it out for myself. This is a terrible picture of me, but I wanted to show you the hat.
I made it from Lion Brand Wool-Ease with size 7 dpns. I, also, had to research how to make decreases while doing a seed stitch in the round. Oy...the things I do for my mother. I did write down the pattern so I could repeat it. However I don't feel right putting it on here because I just copied somebody else's design. Besides, mine is not nearly as "polished" looking as the original. My Mama appreciated it, though. :)
Last, but certainly not least, is the newest 'hat addition' to our house. My love needed to get a second job to take care of this family. He was hired by Domino's to be a rush driver. He went through several weeks of feeling embarrassed about the fact that he had to get a job at Domino's. I, being the tender sweetheart that I am, just could not wrap my brain around what the big deal was. A job is a job. But, for him, it really mattered. He was ashamed. Something clicked last week. He noticed he was not the only late 30's man working there that worked a day job and delivered pizza's at night to make ends meet. God has touched his heart and now he is grateful for this job. *whew* I must say, I thoroughly enjoy his employee discount. :)
Be grateful....Be blessed. :)

Crafting Memories: Section 5 of the Memories Blanket CAL

     Crafting Memories: Section 5 of the Memories Blanket CAL Oh my gosh!! It's the last week of the Memories CAL already!! I can't ...