Bible Journaling and Card Making ~ so Relaxing

Psalm 37:4

Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.   I have spent the last few days filling out my new planner... Great time to set priorities and make fresh new goals!

Lemon Chicken with Mushrooms

This is a  great chicken recipe ! Loved the mushroom sauce! Mixing the stock with the flour in a jar before adding it to the pan makes a smooth sauce.  

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons salt
• 2 tablespoons rosemary 
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano
• 8 chicken thighs
• water, or as needed to cover
• 2 lemons, thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup light butter

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3 cups sliced mushrooms
• Sliced garlic cloves to taste
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 1 pinch garlic powder
• 1 pinch onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chicken stock

Directions

1. Stir 1/4 cup lemon juice, salt, rosemary and oregano in a large bowl. Add chicken and enough water to cover; stir well. Cover and refrigerate chicken 4 hours to overnight. Drain and discard lemon juice brine.
2. 
   
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Line a large baking dish coated with coconut oil. 
4. 
   
5. Spread half the lemon slice in the baking dish. Arrange chicken thighs over lemon slices; top chicken thighs with remaining lemon slices.
6. Bake chicken in preheated oven until no longer pink at the bone and the juices run clear, 30 to 40 minutes. An instant-read thermometer inserted near the bone should read 165 degrees F (74 degrees C).
7. 
   
8. Melt light butter with olive oil in a skillet over medium heat; cook and stir mushrooms, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, garlic powder, onion powder, and lemon zest in hot butter-oil mixture until mushrooms are browned and soft, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the garlic at the end. 
9. 
   
10. Meanwhile, combine chicken stock and flour in a jar with a tight fitting lid; shake well. Pour mixture into mushrooms.
11. Increase heat to medium high; simmer mushroom sauce until thickened, about 10 minutes. Serve with chicken. Loved this served with a salad and over basmati rice.

Cookies for a Coffee House Ribbon Cutting this Afternoon

Clay Diffuser Pendants!

Can't Wait to put these together with some leather and beads.. I love how they turned out!  Kiln Fired Pottery Pendants that I created this fall. 

 I have been wearing one that I added Patchouli to, just love it.  

Baking is in Full Swing!

Several more Dozens of Cookies to go before I get to start on some fun new Holiday Designs!  These are a few of the Cookies left over from the Cookie Decorating Workshop.  

Fun Cookie Decorating Workshop this afternoon

Buckeye Brownie Cookies

Ingredients

• 1 box fudge brownie mix (19.5 ounce or family size)
• 1/4 cup butter, melted
• 4 oz. (1/2 block) cream cheese, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 cup creamy peanut butter
• melted chocolate to drizzle on top of peanut butter ball

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, beat the brownie mix, butter, cream cheese, and egg. The dough will be a little sticky. Scoop the dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet, making about 24 cookies. Smooth the edges of each to form a round cookie.
2. In a separate bowl, mix the powdered sugar and the peanut butter until it is completely combined. Form the mixture into about 1 inch balls. Make sure you have one ball for each cookie. Set aside.
3. Bake for the cookie dough 12 minutes, keeping an eye out to make sure the cookies doesn't overcook or undercook.
4. As soon as the cookies come out of the oven, press a peanut butter ball lightly into the center of each cookie. The peanut butter mixture will soften slightly, but that is OK. Let the cookies cool for 5 minutes, then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. Melt the 4 blocks of chocolate in a microwavable bowl for 45 seconds. Stir the chocolate and melt for additional 15 seconds or until the chocolate is completely melted. (Candiquik comes in 16 ounce packages. When you open it, there are 16 blocks. Cut off 4 of these blocks for this recipe.) Spoon about 1/2 a tablespoon of melted chocolate on top of each cookie so it covers the peanut butter ball. Let the chocolate set.  Store in an airtight container.  

Baking and Baking and more Baking

Working on Water Color Cards

Pumpkin Cranberry Scones

The Leaves Colorful and falling today! ~ Great Reason to bake something with Pumpkin!



Pumpkin Cranberry Scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1/3 cup lightly packed light brown muscovado sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup very cold buttermilk
1/2 cup canned pure pumpkin
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup dried cranberries, soaked in hot water for 30 minutes and drained well
Scant 1/4 cup candied ginger, finely diced
1/4 cup heavy cream
Whipped Maple Butter:
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
Pinch sea salt

Directions

For the scones: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, ginger and salt in a large bowl. Cut the butter into the mixture until it resembles coarse meal.
Whisk together the buttermilk, pumpkin and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth. Add the wet mixture to the dry along with the cranberries and candied ginger. Mix until it is all just combined (do not over-mix or the scones will be tough).
Transfer to a lightly-floured surface and knead the dough gently 4 or 5 times. Pat the dough into a circle that is about 8 inches round and about 1 1/2 inches thick. Cut the circle in half, and then cut each half into 4 pie-shaped wedges (triangles). Place the scones on the baking sheet and brush the tops with the heavy cream.
Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 20 to 25 minutes. Let cool on a baking rack for 15 minutes before serving.
For the butter: Meanwhile, combine the cream, maple syrup and sea salt in the chilled bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Whip on low speed at first, then once the mixture begins to thicken, increase the speed and whip until light and fluffy and has turned into butter. Don't over-mix the butter or it will break.
Recipe courtesy of Bobby Flay

Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/pumpkin-cranberry-scones-with-whipped-maple-butter.print.html?oc=linkback

Planning and Creating New Workshops

Workshops by SimplyHomeSweetHome

Sleepy Owls

I just love this coffee mug set from the 70s. Sleepy Owls.... There are 6 ceramic mugs and a Creamer and a Sugar cup with lids.   I love that they are two sided~ a sweet little owl to see from the front and the back of the mug.   

Creamer and Sugar Set with the lid

Farmer's Market Produce Season is Here!!

I love having a neighbor that grows and sells for the Farmer's Market.   The hardest part trying to catch him before he has left for the market.  Today I picked up cabbage, eggplant, red and white onions, zucchini, and cucumbers...

Last night I used the Eggplant in one of my Favorite things to make~ Eggplant Parmigiana.
I did not have mozzarella so I used a combination of Ricotta and shredded cheddar mix.  I added a ton of fresh basil from my herb garden.. It turned out great!  Not Traditional but still very good.


I followed this recipe as a guide but made so many substitutions according to what I had in my fridge~ Did I mention with two very hungry teenage boys there is never any food on hand.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alexandra-guarnaschelli/eggplant-parmigiana-recipe.html

Eggplant Parmigiana with Cheddar and Ricotta Cheese

Fun Painted Chair Project

After 

Before

Farmhouse Coffee Table and End Tables

This was a great table set to freshen up with some paint.  I had the set sitting in my studio for awhile ~ I just had to find the time to get them painted.  Several people who had visited my studio noticed them and even commented on how ugly the pine tables were.  Just a couple coats of my favorite chalk/mineral paint and hardly any prep work involved and they turned out Beautiful!  

Before

July Junk Market went Great!

We had a Beautiful Day Yesterday. Great weather for July!

Beautiful Set of Blue Vintage Luggage

Love this Set of suitcases from the 60's. They are in mint condition and have never been used!  I just love how they stack so nicely! 

Painting projects this week!

Antique High Chair Cleaned up with a Little Hemp Oil

I love the character that this antique high chair has. Beautiful finish and shape for how old this is.  All it needed was cleaning and a coat of hemp oil. I brushed on a thin coat of  Miss Mustard Seed's hemp oil and then wiped away the excess.  

Just a little Paint Brightened up this Vintage Chair

I love this color of Chalk/Mineral paint.  Azure by Pure Earth Paint! 

Antique Desk Chair Milk Paint Make-Over in Trophy

One Coat of Milk Paint

Before 

I found this Antique Desk chair in need of rescuing!  I love the style and it is solid oak; but had a very stained seat and the wood was very dry.  I cleaned and sanded it well before I painted it with two coats of Trophy Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint.  The chair soaked it right up.  I got a little bit of chipping on the seat.  I distressed the painted chair and then finished it Miss Mustard Seed's wax both dark and clear.

Coffee Table in Paris Grey

Love this large coffee table.  Painted with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Paris Grey and Pure White.  The Stenciling on the top of the table took quite a while to do.  I used a  combination of clear and dark wax to finish the coffee table. 

Potting Table in Luckett's Green

Loved Freshening up this Antique table that I found along the curb.  Very Rustic! Very Dirty!


I stained the entire table with Curio milk paint mixed as a stain and let that soak in and set for a few days.  I finally found some time to finish this up this weekend.  I had to add a few nail to tack down the large boards that make the top of the piece.  I loved the character the top had with a few paint splatters and worn spots.  Makes it just Perfect to use as a work table or to display plants!
I just finished the top with a few coats of hemp oil.
I wanted a good vintage garden green for the base.  I also wanted a chippy worn look to.  So the perfect choice was Luckett's Green Miss Mustard Seed's Milk Paint.  I applied a very think streaky coat of hemp oil to sections of the table prior to painting it with the milk paint.  This allowed the paint to come off in a few places to allow the brown to show through.  I only applied one thick coat of luckett's green to this piece to acheive the look that I was going for.  After sanding and distressing, I then finished the entire piece with hemp oil.

Oak Armoire Re-Loved in Old White

Finished up this piece last week before the July 4th Holiday.  It took several coats of Annie Sloan Old White to cover, but I do love the Transformation.

A Very Large Coffee Table Re-do

Painted with a mix of Annie Sloan chalk paint and finished with a mix dark wax and clear wax.

Super Fast & Easy Salmon Salad~ enhanced with Dill Essential Oil

Salmon Salad

8 ounce package of cream cheese

2 Tablespoons Mayo

Sea salt

pepper

garlic powder

dill weed

a few drops of dill essential oil

1 onion chopped

3 stalks of celery chopped

2 cans of Canned Salmon~ We like the Pink Salmon from Costco~ Drained

Place cream cheese in a glass mixing bowl and warm in the microwave for 30 seconds.  Stir until smooth and add the mayo and the seasonings to taste.  I added 3 to 4 drops of dill essential oil.  I love adding this oil to savory dishes it really gives a great fresh dill taste.    Next, add the rest of the ingredients.  Serve in tortillas or as a Topping over Greens.  Super fast Summer Supper.

Love this Lane Mid-Century Table

Such Beautiful Detail in this end table from the 1960s.  The top had a few marks and stains.   I could see that the top was solid wood with beautiful detail underneath a layer of varnish.  So I decided to apply a thick coat of a natural varnish remover and let it sit for overnight.  The next morning, I carefully cleaned off the top by gently scraping and cleaning it.  It came out really beautiful.  I will probably just go over the top with a flat poly to protect it.  I am so glad I did not paint over this beautiful detail.  Did I mention? ~ The table was a free rescue project!