Spatulas, Corkscrews & Suitcases

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE & Bake It, Make It & Take It

It's been a while since Erika from Stampin' Mama and I have done a Bake It, Make It & Take It dessert/paper craft project together. Things have been hectic in both our lives at the moment. She's had lots of things going on with the kids and we're moving into a larger boat...more about that in a later post!

Where we live, strawberry season is in full swing. Lush and juicy, strawberries are a favorite of just about everyone! And if you really don't like strawberries, there either must be something wrong with you or you're allergic to them! I know of a few people that have allergies and I feel so very bad for them as this is one of the highlights of my summer. Substitute raspberries or blueberries!


Strawberries, Strawberries & More Strawberries!
Years ago, during our short 2 1/2 year stint in Pennsylvania Dutch country, we moved into a house that had a garden. The first week we were torn whether to empty our packing boxes and move in or pick the thousands of quickly ripening strawberries. The strawberries won out - the unpacking could wait - the strawberries wouldn't! I sent the kids out with buckets and we all sat there in the rows eating to our hearts content! It was definitely a bumper crop that year and I felt bad for the family that moved out just as all their hard work was coming to harvest. Truth be told, I didn't feel THAT bad!                   
                                                      

We were in our glory! We ate and ate and ate! Our knees, hands and clothes were all stained red, but it was worth it. I made strawberry bread, Strawberry Mousse Pie, Strawberry Muffins, strawberry tart, Strawberry Cheesecake, pints and pints of strawberry jam and of course...Strawberry Shortcake! I froze the rest for future desserts. I think we were still eating them when the next harvest came around!

Buttermilk Biscuits, Sweetened Whipped Cream and Shortcake!
Anyway...Erika used my Strawberry Shortcake recipe from Suite101. When you click on over there, you'll find a recipe for Buttermilk Biscuits that were our weekly specialty for sale. Everyone loved them, not only for Strawberry Shortcake, but also for Chicken & Dumplings, plopping them on top of Beef Stew, an accompanianments to the best Vegetarian Chili or just slicing in half and slathering them with butter and strawberry jam! There's also a recipe for Sweetened Whipped Cream...yes, from scratch! Of course, the recipe also tells exactly how to assemble the perfect Strawberry Shortcake.

Another Cute Project from Stampin' Mama!
Erika then had to come up with a cute project and packaging for Strawberry Shortcake. You ask, "How in the world do you package Strawberry Shortcake?" Well, she improvised a little, because of course, you CAN'T package the finished product. It would leak all over the place and be a total soggy mess when the LUCKY recipient opened the gift!

Her project can be found just a click away at Stampin' Mama's blog. She stacked some homemade Buttermilk Biscuits in a clear cellophane bag. Colored crinkle grass made by using her crimping tool was piled inside the bag with the biscuits. Then she made 2 handmade cards, one for the front with a greeting "For Fantastic Neighbors" and the back with a recipe for the Strawberry Shortcake. The cute little package got all tied up with some pretty striped/polka-dotted ribbon in the colors of strawberries and green gingham. Totally cool! You'll have to go over to her blog and she'll explain exactly what she did and what tools and colors she used. And while you're at it, take a look at the rest of her site. She's got loads of tutorials and CD's that she's put together. VERY talented and creative girl if I do say so myself! AND, if you act quick, she's got a CONTEST going on right now until 6/16!

So, do yourself a favor one of these hot summer days and buy yourself some ripe and juicy strawberries, make a batch (or two) of Buttermilk Biscuits, some fresh Sweetened Whipped Cream and have yourself a party! But, don't forget your neighbors across the way. Save some biscuits for them and package them up nice and pretty. They'll love you forever!

(photo of strawberries by errika79,sxc)

BASIC MUFFIN RECIPE & Bake it, Make it & Take it with Stampin' Mama

                                                                            

 
Forgive me, I was a little slow to post our Bake it, Make it & Take it feature this week. Erika a.k.a Stampin' Mama had it already up and live the other day and I didn't even notice it. Too many cookbooks on the brain I guess!

She emailed me and said she was making muffins using my Blueberry and Strawberry Muffin Recipe. This is a great Basic Muffin Recipe that you can use as a base to create all sorts of yummy muffins. You can click here to see the recipe in all it's yumminess! I used that word in my last post too. I like it. I think I'll keep it as my yummiest word of the week! Duh!

You can put raspberries in them.

                                                                        

(photo by fir0002, wikicommons)

Chocolate Chips go real good in them too!

                                                                         

(photo by csspaulding,sxc)

Strawberries are in season now!

                                                            
(photo by sebiv122sxc)

And my favorite, Blueberries for the most delicious Blueberry Muffins :-)

                                                          

(photo by rosevita, morguefile)

They come out of the oven looking like this....
                                                                     

And then you stamp a cutesy paper bag, see, just like this, and you have to cut out a window so everyone can see the yumminess inside!

Erika had Zach home this week with pink-eye and although he felt fine, he couldn't go to school. So, being the good Mom that she is, they had their little chai parties each morning for breakfast with the muffins she made. He's the cutest boy a Nana could ever want! You have to take a stroll over to her blog and see her photos, not just for this groovy guilt-free paper lunch bag that she made, but to see her amazing works of art using stamps and paper crafts.  If you're a crafter, you won't be sorry!

Oh, and you absolutely have to stamp the words "guilt-free" on it. There is a reason for this.... 

Erika says, "One thing my dad always taught me is that there's no calories in something if you eat it standing up. Now...whether you choose to believe that or not is entirely up to you. I like to think that if I make my muffins with organic flour and unrefined sugar, I don't have to worry about all the guilt. A muffin is only as guilt-free as you like to think it is. haha!"

Then, you put a huge pink polka-dotted ribbon on it like this. Isn't that the most awesome designer bag you've ever seen? You can make this too! I can't though, because I don't do crafts! Don't ask!

                                                                                    

That's my Five-Cent Tour of Basic Muffins!  And Erika's $5.00 Tour of Paper Crafts and Stamping!

Now, you have to click here for the Basic Muffin Recipe for all these yummy muffins from Yummy-ville, (yeah, I know, it's corny, but it's 3:30am and I'm still awake writing this, so I'm a little punchy). Then you click here and this will bring you to Erika's Stampin' Mama Designs page where she'll show you step-by-step how to make these designer Lunch Bags!

WHITE CHOCOLATE MACADAMIA NUT COOKIES

                                                         
Welcome to The Famous "Bake It, Make It & Take It" Show!

Here we are again with another installment of The "Bake It, Make It & Take It" Show! Doesn't that sound like the newest reality game show to you? Or a Soap Opera? Contestants in teams of two would get the "secret recipe" the week before, then go through hoops to buy the ingredients from dispicable vendors, bake the cookies in ill-equipped kitchens, and then strut their stuff in the talent and swimsuit competitions. It would end in a massive cookie eating contest and finally with an all out food fight! Oh, if only those shows were as tasty as these White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies!

                                                                                 

Use a cookie scoop for the nicest and roundest cookies!

I gave Erika from Stampin' Mama the recipe a while ago and she wanted to make them in the worst way. But you see, Erika has a confession to make. She says, "I've never been a fan of white chocolate. I know a lot of people LOVE white chocolate, but I have tried and tried, since I was a kid, to like it but I just can't. It's like a food item that wants so badly to be chocolate, it strives to be like chocolate, it even calls itself "chocolate" but it will never be chocolate." Poor girl! Can you imagine NOT liking white chocolate? Who's daughter does she think she is anyway?

So, like any good chocoholic girl would do, she substituted a large bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips for the white chocolate, and pecans for the macadamia nuts. It just goes to show you, when life gives you white chocolate, you can always find a substitute! I'll show you her photos of the chocolate pecan cookies she made and photos of the White Chocolate Macadamia Cookies I made. Make them both and see which ones you like the best! Either way, you better pour a BIG glass of cold milk for these babies. You're gonna need it!

Because this batch makes 48 good-sized cookies, you're probably going to want to give some away as gifts. (You can cut the recipe in half if you must!) Erika worked her magic again and designed an adorable little gift box for you to showcase these sinfully rich cookies in. She used a basic origami box design, stamps by GinaK Designs, Very Vanilla grosgrain ribbon and markers from Stampin' Up. Anyone receiving this gift would feel lucky indeed! For all you stampers and crafters reading this, you'll need to jump on over to Stampin' Mama for all the important details and complete directions on how-to make these gorgeous boxes.

Then, Blast on over to Suite101 for the White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookie recipe. When you get there, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click the "Print Article" button for a nice looking recipe. You can even click the "Email Article" button to send it to all your friends!                                                                                    

White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
                                                                
Erika's Chocolate Butter Pecan Cookies....Yum!

HOMEMADE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES

                                                         
The Best Homemade Peanut Butter Cookies
Yes, it's been a while since our last Bake It, Make It & Take It project. I'm going to have to stop making excuses for myself and just make you happy with these awesome Peanut Butter Cookies! Erika from Stampin' Mama and I have put our heads together once more. I'm not sure who has any brain power left. I'm sure it's her 'cause she's younger than I am! But it is genetic, so she better watch out.

Erika has out done herself once again and designed the cutest package ever! Erika says, "For a simple stamped greeting, I chose the word that came to mind: YUM  - Talk about simple and to the point!" You have to see what she's done with Kitchen Sink Stamps, a belly band and some ribbon. Sometimes I just can't believe she's my daughter!

Peanut Butter Cookies ~ All in the family!
This recipe was passed down from my Grandma. Remember the story about my Grandma's recipes a little while back? Long, long ago, she gave this recipe to my Mom on a piece of scrap paper. It never made it into her recipe journal. Not sure why. Maybe it had fallen out. Anyway...way before I knew there was a journal and way before my Grandma passed away, I was making The Best Peanut Butter Cookies in the world! What did I know at 10 years old? I had nothing to compare them to.
                                                                              
My Dad ate everything I put in front of him. He was my best-est taste tester ever! He's going on 79 now, and he's STILL my biggest fan! Funny how Dad's are. You could bake a piece of crap and they'd still tell you it was fabulous and smack their lips, all the while trying to swallow it down with a glass of milk! Gotta love him! Now that I'm away, Erika bakes these treats for him. My son John ~ he's the one with our bakery ~ keeps Grandpa's freezer stocked with cookies. But when I'm in town, I RULE! ME! The favorite daughter!

Will You Like Them? Absolutely!
So, to get back to The Best Peanut Butter Cookies. You will absolutely adore these cookies. They are rich beyond imagination ~ if you like peanut butter that is! They're a little crumbly on the outside and softer on the insides. Just like a true Old Fashioned Homemade Peanut Butter Cookie should be!

You can put chocolate chips in the batter or plop a Hershey's Kiss in the middle as they're coming out of the oven! Make them with smooth or creamy peanut butter. Dip them in melted chocolate. Everything's better with chocolate! Be creative and have fun!
                                                                                 

My son makes these cookies to sell in the stores. He had to change the recipe slightly to beef them up so they don't break under pressure ~ from people squeezing them! Seriously, people squeeze cookies! Can you imagine? he he! He doesn't put the famous criss-crosses on the tops with the fork though. When you're making hundreds and hundreds of these cookies, who has time for dipping a fork in sugar? BUT, you should, because they are soooo wickedly gorgeous with the criss-cross on top!

My recipe can be found at The Best Peanut Butter Cookie Recipe from Suite101. Remember, they're the online magazine I write for, so I can't republish it here. But it's just a click away and you'll be Smokin'! THEN, go to Stampin' Mama Designs and Erika will walk you through a  step-by-step how-to, to make the perfect gift package just right for these cookies.

HONEY RAISIN & NUT GRANOLA and TRAIL MIX

                                                            

Bake It, Make It & Take It ~ Trail Mix To Go!
It's been a busy week for Erika and I! Since the last Bake It, Make It & Take It project, Erika from Stampin' Mama has been out straight. She had a Scrapping retreat called "Go Scrap Yourself" that was a huge success and everyone had a great weekend. She's was busy the whole time we were in Vermont. We didn't do too much together during the 10 days we were there.

I was going nuts with baking and cooking and making my family of 14 happy (that's everyone combined). At least I think I did! There was one point when just about everyone said, "No more food!" But that's what I do. I feed people. I can't help myself!

Earthy Crunchy Granola 
Erika and I wanted to bring you something totally different and fun this time around. Not that all the other recipes weren't fun, they were just ~ different! M&M's are fun right? I suggested my Honey Raisin & Nut Granola and then she ran with the idea and said the kids absolutely loved the Trail Mix she made out of my Granola. Make Granola. Check. Go out and buy M&M's, raisins and peanuts. Check. So, that was settled.

Something Fun and Funky 
Now she had to do her magic thing and come up with another amazing package to put it in. She decided to use a small kraft colored gable box to hold the trail mix. Dig out the craft boxes and cellophane bags. Check. Pull out a few new stamp sets by Kitchen Sink Stamps and pick out just the right colored inks for the job. Check. You just gotta have some "bling", so out come the buttons and silver cording to give this box a funky finish! Check and double check. 

Erika says of her original Trail Mix To-Go-Box, "It has a nice "earthy, crunchy, granola" feel to it for trail mix. Hey, what more could a dreadlocked hippie want than a kraft colored box, decorated in rainbow colors and filled with granola/trail mix? Now, if it were only warm enough to put my Birkenstock sandals on!"
This is so darned cute Erika. You Rock! It's crazy and bright, and everyone is gonna love it!

Remember to check out my Honey Raisin & Nut Granola Recipe, and then go to Erika's blog, Stampin' Mama, for the complete instructions on how to make this groovy project!

STRAWBERRY MUFFINS & STAMPIN' MAMA DESIGNS

Bake It, Make It & Take It ~ Strawberry Muffin in a Basket!
Spring is here, the calendar says so! That is just so hard to believe as we watched the snow fall almost all day today. It was raw and windy....and snowy! We came to visit our kids in Vermont and we get snowed on. It was a cruel April Fools joke to play on us in the frozen north. Tell Old Man Winter to take a hike! We deserve Spring!

Strawberries and Spring
It doesn't matter where you live ~ New England, Florida or Australia! Anytime is a good time to make a batch of luscious Strawberry Muffins. We've been able to get some really delicious strawberries on sale the last few weeks. So, to celebrate Spring, Stampin' Mama's one and only Erika Martin, whipped up a batch of these easy muffins today.

                                                                                 

Strawberry Muffins
Because we're in cahoots with each other, she used my recipe for Strawberry Muffins, and she says they were fantastic! The kids ate the first batch, so she had to make another batch just to take pictures and finish her muffin baskets! This muffin recipe is actually three muffins in one. It's a basic recipe that has variations for The Best Blueberry Muffins and another one for Apple Cinnamon Muffins. Make them all, they freeze great!

Erika's brainchild ~ Bake It, Make It & Take It ~ has been so popular, that we decided to make it a regular feature. We really do strive to bring you a weekly project, but with Easter and so many other obligations on both our parts, we totally missed a week. We're sorry :-( We hope to get back on track right away!

Stamping and Scrapbooking???
I'll be the first to admit that I know almost nothing about stamping and scrapbooking, and my words and descriptions will probably sound silly to you. But for those of you who do stamp, you'll HAVE to see what Erika has come up with this time! She started with a basic origami box, then used things like, Rose Red Prints Designer Series paper,  GinaK's new Bling & Dazzle Mega Rhinestone brads and Scalloped Circle punches. Like I said, I'm challenged when it comes to crafts! You'll just have to take my word for it and go see her Strawberry Muffin In A Basket for yourself. And don't forget to check out my Strawberry Muffin Recipe over at Suite101.

LEMON TEA CAKE & Stampin' Mama Designs

Spring Ahead to Easter!
Easter is right around the corner! How did that happen so quick? I knew it was next week, but I seemed to have lost a whole chunk of time somewhere! Maybe it's all the rain we're getting. It makes me want to crawl into a corner and have something sweet and refreshing with a big cup of tea! With lots of lemon zest and soaked in sweet lemon syrup, this Lemon Tea Cake always satisfies my cravings. This easy recipe is great for Easter too. It makes 8 mini loaves or 4 large loaves. Make it in mini muffin pans and decorate with a swirl of lemon frosting and an edible pansy for a special Easter brunch!
                                                                           
Bake It, Make It & Take It!
Erika, over at Stampin' Mama Designs did it again! She took my recipe for Lemon Tea Cake and made it into something totally awesome! You have to see what she came up with this time for our weekly feature Bake It, Make It & Take It!
For a little over a month now, the two of us have been brainstorming new and exciting ideas to incorporate Food and Stamping Fun. She never disappoints me. You'd think this girl would run out of ideas, but her radioactive dreads have her creativity all fired up!
Bling It Up With Rhinestones!
Neatly packaged in cellophane with an adorable hand stamped Blue Bayou belly-band, it's decorated with white embossing powder "daises". She then "blinged it up" by adding some self-adhesive rhinestones and a cute little tag to hang off the side. Way too cute!

She designed this sweet package for some new neighbors that were moving in next door. Settling into a new area can be a bit scary for some people. Bringing them a beautifully decorated Lemon Tea Cake is a perfect way to break the ice and introduce yourself.

So, check out Erika's Bake It, Make It & Take It project at Stampin' Mama Designs. And then print off my Lemon Tea Cake recipe from Suite101.com. Together, you'll have a darling little gift for someone you love. Heck, just eat the whole thing yourself! You're gonna love it! You know you will!

REESE'S CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CUP BROWNIES

Over the years, I have made so many brownies that I could have built a cute little brownie cottage complete with a picket fence and window boxes! Can't you just picture it? Chocolate Fudge Brownie shingles with PB Cup steps and a Marshmallow Fluff snow covered roof. Kind of like a gingerbread house but made of brownies instead!

We used to make them in 12 X 18 inch sheet pans and then cut them into 24 squares. The restaurants we sold them to would order anywhere from 2-8 pans a week. They froze them and thawed them out as needed. In any given week, we could have orders for 30 pans of brownies or more. Let's do the math. 30 pans X 24  = 720 brownies! That's a lot of brownies!  Multiply that by 15 years ~ more-or-less ~ and I can't believe we made that many brownies!

BROWNIES, BROWNIES & MORE BROWNIES!
The choices were endless. Chocolate Walnut Brownies, Cream Cheese Brownies, Chocolate Frosted Mint Brownies, Chocolate Chocolate Chip Brownies, Turtle Brownies, Snickers Brownies and the always popular Reese's Chocolate PB Cup Brownies. Every week the restaurants waited with anticipation to see what I would dream up next!

As a kid, I wasn't allowed to eat brownie batter. I got to lick the occasional bowl and spatula, but the rest was for the pan. After I was all grown up and owner of my own bakery, it dawned on me that I could do whatever I wanted. So, one day I decided it was high time for me to eat a whole batch of brownie batter. I sat in the corner on my stool and ate the entire bowl. It tasted so good going down. I felt like a kid again and even had some smudges on my face! You know the saying, "All good things must come to an end"? Well, it wasn't long before my tummy started to ache and I ran to the bathroom. I was so sick I wanted to die. That brownie bowl did double-duty that day! And to this day, I have never been tempted to do that again!

Another Bake It, Make It & Take It Original!
Now that I've made you all a little queasy, I want to tempt you with my very special, knock-your-socks-off Reese's Chocolate PB Cup Brownie Recipe.  Erika Martin ~ Stampin' Mama's one and only creative stamping guru ~  has put together another one of her Most Amazing Projects to share with you too! The "scratch-and-sniff" photos are intentionally put here to make you drool!
                                                                               
Caution: No matter how tempting and delicious, resist the urge to eat the whole bowl of batter!
                                                                              

Bake it, Make it & Take it.....Birthday Party To-Go!

The Stamping Diva ~ AKA my daughter Erika from Stampin' Mama ~ has done it again! She has the most amazing talent for creating outrageous treasures out of totally ordinary things! Given the success we had with our last Cherry Kisses project, we've decided to make "Bake it, Make it & Take it!" a regular feature. I'll give her the recipes from my collection at Suite101.com, she'll bake the goodies, then dream up some way-out container to showcase them in! Erika has always been creative, but I swear those twisted dreads have given her some magical power to make everything she touches sparkle!

While I was in Vermont visiting a week ago, I got this uncontrollable urge to play bakery! What a coincidence my son has a bakery (that's another story)! I bought all sorts of ingredients and went to play with the BIG BOY equipment. I made Kahlua Tiramisu at his place. The next day, I went to Erika's house and we both had a blast, making messes and licking bowls! When I was done, we all got to eat the fruits of my labor ~ meaning cheesecakes and Tiramisu!

For this "Bake it, Make it & Take it" project, we came up with a version of my Chocolate Zebra Cheesecake Recipe. After I was done with everything I wanted to make, I still had some batter left over and decided to make mini cheesecakes with Oreos, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Chocolate Chips. Erika then grabbed the cheesecakes before the guys and kids could devour them and took a bunch of very professional photos. She then sat down and savored every bite while groaning in delight! Can't you just picture it? That's my girl!
                                                                         

Cherry Kisses Cookies with a Hershey Kiss on Top!

Tomorrow is Valentine's Day, but don't fret, there's still time to make these easy cookies for your kids class party! Cherry Kisses ~ or Cherry Winks ~ can be whipped up real quick. The kids can help you unwrap the Hershey Kisses ~ one for the cookie, one for me! ~ and with adult supervision, they can even place the kisses on the cookies when they come out of the oven.

I've teamed up with Erika Martin from Stampin' Mama.com to do a "Bake it, Make it & Take it." project. This new feature is going to showcase different goodies that you can easily bake and can be showcased in a stamped or paper-crafted container/box/bag/holder/etc. Roughly once a week, she'll be posting a project that you can create and include some goodies inside of. I'm so excited to be doing this with her! I send her the recipes, she bakes them, she takes the photos, her kids eat them and we both post them on our blogs! What's not to love?

In Erika's own words, "I'm really excited about this feature because it means that I'll be getting us all to think beyond the realm of cards (I DO love cards, but I really enjoy paper-crafting of all kinds) and it also means that I'll be able to bake something yummy to eat and share. And those that know me well enough know that I have a sweet tooth and that I love to make things for people (my neighbors are usually the recipient of these goodies)."

 

Today's "Bake it, Make it & Take it" post features an adorable mailbox and yummy Cherry Kisses Cookies!

This project is Erika's creation from Stampin' Mama using my Cherry Kisses Cookie Recipe from Suite101.com.

I have to give Erika all the credit for the photos, aren't they adorable?