Sweet Spring!

Sweet Spring is what it is...

Our Love Me Lovey in Amy Butler fabric has been featured in this treasury of beautiful baby items.  The Lovey is available in the store and on SALE!  There are only two more availbe for purchase.

Amy Rose Designs

Baking Points

Six tips for anyone who bakes!

Tip ONE:

Always place your pans towards to the middle of the oven

Tip TWO:

Use a pastry brush to distribute the butter to your pans

Tip THREE:

Measure your flour properly when baking

Tips FOUR:

Avoid using cold eggs

Tip FIVE:

Rotate your pans during the baking process

Tip SIX:

Cool your cakes upside down on a wire rack

Photo credit: xsomnis

Spring

** All photographs have an embedded watermark

April 15th

Taxes are due

My Grandfather died

 

The sinking of the RMS Titanic

 

Sounds strange?  

Maybe.

I have always been fascinated by this story and tragic event and back in 2003 when the Titanic exhibit came to The Los Angeles Science Center I went to it.  It's not so much the tragedy in and of itself that I find interesting, but of the stories of the people on board it's maiden voyage and how they responded to such an event.

The exhibit was fascinating, eye opening and truly sad at the amount of loss of life.  The artifacts that were retrieved from such a watery grave was amazing.  The shoes of gentlemen and children, shaving utensils, a deck chair and the rows and rows of plates that looked as if someone placed them down themselves.

When you entered the exhibit you were given a boarding pass of an actual passenger aboard the Titanic.  Your boarding pass had the passengers name and whether they were a First Class, Second Class or Third Class passenger aboard.  My boarding pass happen to be of a First Class passenger traveling with her husband, children and her maid and though I had kept the boarding pass for many years after the exhibit I have lost it since then.  I no longer know the name of the woman's family name.  However, I do remember that she did survive along with her maid and children, but tragically her husband died.  What made the exhibit come to life was part of the ship had been displayed in the exhibit.

 

My boarding pass indicated that "my"cabin was on the other side of this actual piece of ship.  Chills ran down my spine.  The differences of the classes were displayed in a subtle and prominent way for you to experience.  The tour walks you through the hallways of Third Class cabins of four bunks and one sink to a cabin and the constant loud vibration and noise of the engines running to the opulent and spacial cabins of a First Class passenger.  It is even displayed in the dinnerware of the classes.  

First Class

 Second Class

 

 

Third Class

It has been 100 years since this tragic ending for so many and yet the story lives on and still captivates people.  I hope that we have learned from the mistakes of this night of running a ship at full speed into dangerous waters, ignoring multiple warnings of icebergs and an unprepared crew.

 

Curry Pineapple Fried Rice

I am always up for trying something new and I had left over BBQ Pork from the night before and this just seemed to be the right fit to make Pineapple Fried Rice with a small change.

Curry Pineapple Fried Rice

4 Cups Cooked Rice

2 Tablespoon Vegetable Oil

1 Small Onion, diced

1 Cup Frozen Peas

1/4 Cup Raisins

2 Eggs, scrambled

2 Cups BBQ Pork, cut into 1/2" cubes

2 Teaspoons Yellow Curry

1 - 15 ounce Can of Chunk Pineapple, drained

1.  Take one teaspoon of the vegetable oil and pour it over the rice and rub it through the rice to loosen the grains of rice for cooking.

2.  Heat the remaining tablespoon of oil and place into a large pan or wok.

3.  Add the onion, frozen peas and raisins and cook over medium heat until the onions are translucent and the peas are defrosted and warm.

4.  Make a hole in the middle of the onion pea mixture and cook the eggs until scrambled.

5.  Add the rice and BBQ Pork into the pan; mixing it well.

6.  Add the curry and mix well.  Continue to cook and turn the rice until the rice appears fried.

7.  Add the pineapple until warm.

8.  Serve immediately on a warm plate. 

Love is a Many Splendid Thing

We love this treasury and we are sure you will love our Love Me Lovey that is featured in our second treasury of this week!

Sweet Spring!

It is a Sweet Spring with our Love Me Lovey in Amy Butlers fabric in this lovely treasury.

The Art of the Colored Egg

I did this posting back in 2010 and I thought I would publish it again, since the results of the colors were so much better than the store kits.  So, here it is again...  enjoy!

I can smell the vinegar. I can see yesterdays newspaper layered across the kitchen table to catch the occasional spill from the coffee cups filled with that magical colored water that would consume our white, hard boiled egg and turn it into masterpieces of egg-art. All of my brothers and sister gathered around the table waiting, timing our egg bath and having to move your color clockwise to the next awaiting dipper. Always the contest to make the egg that would stand out above all others. It's Easter and it wouldn't be the same if we didn't celebrate the memories of it by dying eggs.

Although the prepackaged store dye is easy to use and comes in a convenient package , I prefer a homemade recipe to dye my eggs with. The ingredients are simple and depending on your color preferences, you can create almost every variable shade possible. So, spread out the newspaper and get started!

 

 

 

Peach to Salmon

1 Tablespoon Vinegar

1 Drop of Red Food Coloring

1 Cup Boiling Water

Pistachio to Green

1 Tablespoon Vinegar

1 Drop of Yellow Food Coloring

2 - 4 Drops of Green Food Coloring

1 Cup Boiling Water

Light Yellow to Canary Yellow

1 Tablespoon Vinegar

2 Drops of Red Food Coloring

1 Cup Boiling Water

Robins Egg Blue to Dark Blue

1 Tablespoon Vinegar

1 - 2 Drops of Blue Food Coloring

1 Cup Boiling Water

Boil your eggs for 15-20 minutes, starting at the time the water begins to boil. This insures your eggs are cooked on the inside. Cool and dry your eggs completely before you begin the dying process.

Your color preference is determined by the length of time you leave your egg in the dye. The shorter it stays in the dye, the lighter your egg will be and the longer your egg stays in the dye, the darker it will be. To achieve the colors above I kept my eggs in the dye 5 - 7 minutes, keeping the yellow in one minute longer that the rest.

 

 

 

 

 No matter what colors you choose to make your eggs have fun doing it. Make the memories for your child to carry to adulthood, which I know will be recalled when they are sitting around the table with their children making new memories like the ones you created with them.

Happy Easter!

*Since these recipes require boiling water there is always the chance of receiving a potential burn. With anything always use caution, especially when children are participating.

All photographs are watermarked.