Gettin’ Crafty

As the title may suggest to you, during this snowy, cold, Covid time I have been doing some serious crafting. I have also been cooking and other things but crafting has definitely taken the lead. Drop a comment and let me know how you’re spending your time.

Recipes

Butternut Squash Soup (Diary of a Real Housewife)

• 1 large butternut squash
• 1 large yellow onion
• 3 large carrots
• 1 tablespoon rosemary leaves
• 1 tablespoon thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 32 oz vegetable broth
• 1/3 cup heavy whipping cream

• Preheat oven to degrees 350 F. Prepare a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. 
• Start by peeling and dicing your squash, onion, and carrots. Place them on your prepared baking sheet. Season with rosemary, thyme, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and cayenne pepper. Place in the oven to roast for 60-75 minutes or until all vegetables are tender. 
• Once tender add all roasted vegetables and broth to a large pot. Use an electric immersion blenders to blend soup until smooth. Allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes. 
• Remove from heat and mix in heavy whipping cream. Serve and enjoy.  

This soup was delicious and froze well.

Cauliflower Soup (Pampered Chef)

• 1½ lbs. (700 g) russet potatoes, peeled (about 3 medium) * I used whatever type I had
• ½ cup (125 mL) vegetable broth
• 4 oz. (125 g) sharp cheddar cheese (1 cup/250 mL grated), plus more for topping
• 2 cups (500 mL) cauliflower florets (6 oz./175 g)
• 3 cups (750 mL) milk
• 2 tbsp (30 mL) butter
• 1 tbsp (15 mL) Three Onion Rub * I used onion powder
• ½ cup (125 mL) sour cream

Optional: bacon bits, chopped green onions

Cut potatoes in half lengthwise. Add potatoes and broth to microwave safe container and cook covered in the microwave for 11 minutes.

Meanwhile, coarsely grate the cheese.

Rotate the potatoes and add the cauliflower mixture. Microwave, covered, until hot, about 7-9 minutes or until potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork.

Coarsely mash the potato and cauliflower mixture. Add the milk, butter and Three Onion Rub. Microwave, covered, until hot, about 4-5 minutes.

Place the sour cream in a small bowl. To temper, add 1 T. of hot soup at a time, whisking between each addition until the mixture is warm. Then add the sour cream to the soup. Stir in the cheese and gently whisk until it fully melts.

Top with additional cheese, bacon and green onions if you like.

Crafts

I know that it is after Valentine’s Day but for future reference I wanted to share a couple of things that I did.

You know by now that I love the Dollar Tree store! I bought this die cut truck after Christmas. I had been make to show Christmas trees in the back of the truck. I painted it an off white and the tires black with silver rims. I decided it needed a little more depth or interest and dry brushed some black on top of the off white. To make it usable for Valentine’s rather than Christmas, I purchased a package of adhesive hearts from the Dollar Tree, also. I used them for the bed of the truck to hide the trees. All together it cost $2 for this piece since I had the paint and brushes on hand.

This is another Dollar Tree special! To make this I purchased a pack of gold coins, a die cut pot of gold, and a leprechaun wall hanging. First, I removed the jute hanger. I painted the pot completely black. It said the word “lucky” on the front but I covered it up by hot gluing the “Happy St. Patrick’s Day” sign from the leprechaun wall hanging. I then used the feet from the wall hanging and glued them on the top of the pot so that it would give the appearance of a leprechaun diving into the pot of gold. Finally, I glued the gold coins on for a three dimensional look. By gluing the gold on, I covered up the holes to reattach the jute hanger so I hot glued it to the back of the piece. Viola!

For my St. Patrick’s door decor I purchased 3 shamrocks and one scarf from Dollar Tree. I removed the hangers from 2 of the shamrocks and using the scarf tied the shamrocks to together, alternating their orientation. I think for $4 it sure is cute!

I also purchased this die cut shamrock from my favorite store and found some St. Patrick’s Day napkins at TJ Maxx. I painted the entire piece white after I removed the jute hanger. The inner petals of the shamrock were raised. After the paint was dry I applied Mod Podge to the raised part. I removed the top, printed ply from a napkin and cut it into fourths. I took 3 of the quarters and put them on each raised part. To get all the wrinkles out I put a piece of Saran Wrap over the area and gently rubbed out any bubbles or wrinkles. Then I removed the plastic and allowed it to dry. As you can see the top, inner, petal is now a solid green. That was due to a mishap. I tried sliding the napkin ply since was a little off. That didn’t work at all. In fact, it made quite a mess. So I sanded it smooth and gave it 3 coats of green. I think it looks nice and you probably wouldn’t know it was a mistake unless I told you. I put the jute hanger back on and I was done.

For a couple of days I went nutty making snowmen because, well, this is Western New York and it is snowing.

Snowman #1

As I am sure you can tell, this is made from a vintage cheese grater that I had on hand. Originally I was going to paint it as a Santa but the holidays got too busy and my idea morphed into a snowman. I painted him, added a scarf and some embellishment to his hat and there you have it. A candle or some twinkle lights inside could be added as well.

Snowman #2

This cute little guy is from a vintage bed spring to which I glued some buttons and added a snowman head. I made the head from an old flashbulb from a camera. I painted the face, added a strip of fabric for the scarf and had an old felt hat from another snowman.

Snowman #3

I had purchased 3 small fish bowls from Dollar Tree a long time ago. I put Styrofoam in each to imitate snow and added some decor that I had on hand. I then glued the three together and made a hat. The hat was made using a cardboard circle, half of a toilet paper roll and was covered in felt.

Hacks

• When you get advertisements or bills in the mail and don’t use the return envelopes hang onto them. You can use the envelopes to drop of night deposits at your bank, to hold local bills that you drop off, or use them for many other purposes. I buy much less envelopes than I used to and I am saving a tree or two.
• I am sure you all know that you can make your own meat broth but do you think to make your own vegetable broth? I hadn’t until recently. Whenever I prepare carrots, celery, onions, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, garlic, etc., I put the scraps in a freezer bag and pop them in the freezer. I keep adding to the bag. When I get a gallon bag full I prepare my broth. Add the vegetables to a large part and with water to about an inch above the vegetables. Cover and cook on low for at least 3 hours. Depending on how tightly your cover fits you may need to add water from time to time. After the 3 hours (or longer if you wish) strain the vegetables from the liquid and add salt to taste. You can store in the fridge for a week or so and the freezer for a couple of months. If you can, then you could do that as well. Each time you make the broth it is a little different as you have different amounts of each vegetable or different vegetables entirely. Below are listed some of the ways in which different vegetables add different flavors to the broth.
• Onion ends/roots (or skin that is too tough to cut) – for depth of flavor
• Celery pieces – for depth of flavor and body
• Carrot ends/peels – for sweetness
• Mushroom stems and Tomato ends (these add GREAT umami flavor!)
• The “core” of peppers (sweetness)Stems of fresh herbs, such as Parsley and Cilantro (more depth/body)
• Stems from leafy greens, like Kale (depth)
• Tops and/or unusable parts of Sweet Potatoes and Squash (sweetness)

• If you ever have to pay for medication for yourself or a pet please do yourself a favor and shop around at different pharmacies. You could save a lot of money! I had to get medicine for my dog once that the vet didn’t keep on hand and it was also a medication for people. He gave me a script and advised me to call around. I called one major pharmacy that I always use for myself and it was $90. I then called a pharmacy in a discount store and it was $43. Finally I called an independent pharmacy and it was just slightly over $8. The lesson learned here is “shop around”.

• Sticking to the medical area for another minute, let’s talk about high out of pocket medical bills. If you happen to have one, as my one son recently did, there are some suggestions to help. You can arrange an interest free payment plan. You can also negotiate a deal. By this I mean, offer to pay a lump sum in exchange for a percentage off the bill. It is called a prompt pay discount. Apply for financial assistance. However, don’t use a credit card to pay it or ignore the bill. It won’t go away!
• I don’t usually mention makeup ideas but I do have a couple that I have recently adopted. 1. I don’t use eyeliner under my eyes but it is nice to have a little definition there in addition to my mascara. Before I apply my mascara I take a flat, small brush and get some darker eyeshadow on the tip. I gently run the brush along my eye under the lashes. It really makes a difference! 2. I have just discovered a heated eyelash curler. They are awesome! I ordered mine on Amazon and although they have many brands, I ordered a Panasonic. It uses an AA battery and heat up quickly. You just hold it on your lashes, pressing up slightly for 3 seconds and there you go!! You should definitely try it!

Thank you so much for reading! Hopefully you found something of interest to you. See you next month.