Even More DIY Birthday Cards!

Last month my cousin turned 4 so, of course, birthday cards were made! I love making cards for kids since I get to use up all the cute stuff I have in my stash. Lauren loves elephants so this card from Nathan was a no brainer.

 

It’s made entirely from Sassafras paper and stickers. I just did a lot of layering and added the 4 sticker since it was her fourth birthday. Here’s a look at the inside.

For the card from me and Chris I just kept it simple and girly with some patchwork papers and a pretty sticker tag. I love that little caterpillar crawling across the top of the card :)

 

And here’s the inside of that one – felt birthday shapes and some cute little stickers including a little To and From tag.

 

We all had a great time celebrating with Lauren (and a bunch of her rambunctious 4 year old friends!) at her butterfly themed birthday. Can’t believe she’s 4 when it seems like just yesterday I was driving to see her in hospital on the day she was born. Looking forward to another great year with one of my favourite people in the world :)

By the Batch – Cookies & Cream Cookies

Well we’re a week into November and I find myself at a bit of a loss. Halloween is over and it’s really too early to pull out Christmas decorations. Americans are gearing up for Thanksgiving but that’s long over here in Canada. So with no holidays to decorate or prepare for, what’s a girl to do? Bake! And that’s just what I’ve been doing. I’ve actually started selling my cookies locally and am really pleased at the response I’ve received so far. For more information visit my Facebook page. In the meantime, here’s my take on a crazy good recipe for Cookies & Cream Cookies I found on Cookies & Cups.

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter
• 1 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• 2 cups coarsely chopped cookies & cream chocolate (I bought mine in large pieces at the Bulk Barn)

Directions

Preheat to 350. Cream together butter and sugar until fluffy and light. Beat in eggs and vanilla. On low, slowly beat in cocoa powder until well incorporated. On low, mix in your remaining dry ingredients (flour, baking powder and salt). Fold in both kinds of chocolate until evenly incorporated. Drop by large tablespoonful on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for approx 12 minutes or until edges are set. When done baking let cool on baking sheet for 2-3 minutes before transferring to wire rack to finish cooling.

According to Sarah

Seriously so good! The cookies & cream chocolate doesn’t come cheap so these are definitely not a cookie I’d have in the house all the time but for a special treat or for the holidays these are sure to please!

Guest Post - Cheese Ravioli with Garlic, Mushroom and Rosemary Sauce

Well it’s the weekend again. Halloween has come and gone. I suppose my American readers are gearing up for Thanksgiving but as we Canadians celebrated at the beginning of October I’m ready to skip right to Christmas! I’ve been crafting up a storm for a craft show I’ll be at on November 24 – more details to come for you local readers. But first, here’s another yummy recipe from One Hungry Dude. I really liked this pasta and loved how fast he was able to get it on the table ;)

A few weeks ago, I saw Michael Symon create a ravioli recipe on The Chew, and was inspired to make this dish. It's incredibly filling, and one of the most delicious pastas I've cooked in awhile. I've made a few slight amendments to the original recipe, since I was trying to use up existing items in our pantry. But either way, this dish is simple and quick — from start to finish, the recipe took about 30 minutes to prepare.

Ingredients
• 1 Package of frozen Cheese Ravioli
• 4 Tbsp Butter or Margarine
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
• 2 Cups Button Mushrooms, sliced
• 1 Tsp Dried Rosemary
• 1 Tsp Dried Thyme
• Salt and Pepper, to taste
• 2 Cloves Garlic, diced
• 1/3 Cup Grated Parmesan

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Heat a saute pan over medium-high, then add the olive oil and 2 tbsp of the butter. Once hot, add the mushrooms, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper. Drop the ravioli into the water, and stir with a wooden spoon.

Add the garlic into the pan, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the garlic cooks through and becomes fragrant. Cook the ravioli one minute shorter than the packaged instructions, then drain, reserving the pasta water. Put the ravioli, about 1/3 Cup of the water, and the remaining butter in the pan. Add the Parmesan and toss the pasta until the sauce becomes creamy and emulsified. Serve immediately.

This recipe yields about six servings.

— Recipe inspired by The Chew

Happy Halloween! Salty, Spicy Pumpkin Seeds

It’s here! Happy Halloween everyone! The weather here isn’t exactly ideal but we’re still hoping for a good turn out of trick or treaters this evening. Otherwise we’re going to have an awful lot of candy to eat! Here’s a peek at my little trick or treater – his no sew costume was inspired by the unicorn costume here.

If you’re leaving your pumpkin carving for today then you’re going to love this recipe from One Hungry Dude for awesome pumpkin seeds. Have fun tonight, everyone!

Pumpkin seeds are a favourite treat for me, around this time of the year. Since Sarah enjoys carving at least one pumpkin for Halloween, there's always a big batch of leftover seeds to work with. Try this simple recipe, and you'll be rewarded with a tasty and healthy snacking option, while your kids are taking advantage of their Halloween spoils.

Ingredients
• Seeds from one Pumpkin
• Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper, to taste
• Juice from about 1/4 of a Lemon

Place a cookie sheet in the oven, and preheat to 375 F. Once the oven is hot, take the sheet out. Spread the seeds on the sheet in a single layer. Lightly drizzle the olive oil over the seeds, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Squeeze or drizzle the lemon juice over the seeds, then place them in the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until the seeds begin to lightly brown around the edges. Pull the sheet out of the oven, place the seeds in a bowl, and serve.

Halloween Vase from a Salsa Jar

I have to admit that I have more than enough Halloween decorations. I believe I told Chris about a month ago that my collection was verging on “ridiculous”. But that didn’t stop me from wanting to make some more this year. The catch was that I wasn’t going to spend any money so I had to use only things that were already in my stash. So far I’ve showed you Luminaries, Painted Pots and Painted Pumpkins. Today I’m showing you a painted vase I made from an empty salsa jar.

This one was really simple. I just used a sponge brush to apply silver craft pain to the outside of the jar. I painted lightly so you can almost see through the paint and it has the great textured lines. Once it was dry I mod podged on some Halloween shapes and then tied on a big black and white bow.

It doesn’t get much easier than that!

Painted Pumpkins

I’ve gone paint and glitter crazy this Halloween – it seems nothing can escape my sponge brush. That includes these mini pumpkins that I decided needed a bit of dressing up.

If orange and white aren’t your style a little bit of paint can go a long way towards transforming your pumpkins and Halloween display. I started by making a glittery pumpkin using the leftover mixture from my Halloween Luminaries and Painted Pots. I used a sponge brush to paint on the mod podge and glitter mixture and then just let it dry.

Next up I used a sponge brush to lightly add some black paint to this orange pumpkin. I wanted the orange to show through and I liked the texture the sponge brush made. I dabbed a little silver on to the top of the pumpkin for extra dimension.

Lastly, I painted this white pumpkin a bright blue but decided it didn’t really fit in with any of my other Halloween decor. The fix was to sponge some silver paint on, leaving just a bit of the blue peeking through. I like that it looks sort of weathered and antique.

All told it took me about 15 minutes to paint these little guys. I was using real pumpkins so I didn’t worry about what would work and what wouldn’t since they’re just going to be thrown out in a week or so anyway and it was fun to just be creative. I’m tempted to paint our full size pumpkin after it’s carved!

Guest Post – Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Wow, it’s Monday already! One Hungry Dude and I had a busy weekend with lots of running around so I’m a little late posting his recipe. But don’t worry, you’ll forgive me once you read it. And you’ll really forgive me once you try it because it is darn good!

When the weather begins to get cooler, I love moving cooking indoors. After a summer of barbecuing, it's nice to regularly turn on the oven and stovetop burners, and revive recipes that have been stored away for months. This recipe is based on a soup that I made during a cooking competition last year. It's got plenty of harvest and fall flavours, with a slightly sweet touch.

Ingredients
• 1 Large Butternut Squash, peeled, seeds discarded
• 1 Yellow Onion, peeled
• 1 Green Apple, cored
• 2 Cloves Garlic, Peeled
• 1/4 Cup Olive Oil
• 1/4 Cup Brown Sugar
• 1 Tsp Thyme
• Salt and Pepper, to taste
• 3 to 4 Cups Vegetable Broth, warmed
• Cream and Parsley, for garnish

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Cut the squash, onion and apple into one-inch cubes. In a single layer, place the squash, onion, apple and garlic in a large baking pan or casserole dish, and drizzle with the olive oil. Sprinkle the brown sugar, thyme, salt and pepper over top. Place in the oven, and cook for about 40 to 45 minutes, until tender.

Remove from the oven. Place the mixture in a large pot, add about half of the broth, and puree until smooth using an immersion blender. Add more of the broth, until the mixture becomes a thick soup. Bring the soup to a simmer, and add more salt, pepper or broth, if needed.

Serve in bowls, topping the soup with a touch of cream and a sprinkle of parsley.

* This soup can be served immediately after it is brought to a simmer, if time is a constraint. But I prefer to let it simmer for about an hour or so, to let the flavours meld together.

— This recipe yields about six servings