Baklava and Red Velvet Cupcakes

To celebrate my daughter's class play Julius Caesar, I whipped-up some yummy treats topped with Caesar himself! {see below}

If you like Baklava, you can't go wrong with this recipe from allrecipes.com.
It's 5 star rated with over 1,000 reviews. It's so easy, it's a must try!

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
• 1 pound chopped nuts
• 1 cup butter
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup honey

 Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C). Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
2. Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan. Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
3. Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
4. Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
5. Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers. This freezes well. Leave it uncovered as it gets soggy if it is wrapped up. 

 

RED VELVET CUPCAKES I made these Red Velvet cupcakes with a revised Martha Stewart recipe. 

1. I added a 1/2 cup of coconut oil to replace the vegetable oil, 

2. I used apple cider vinegar instead of white, 

3. I used 1/2 the amount of red food coloring.

 

So, technically it wasn't your typical red- red velvet, but I couldn't bring myself to use all of the red dye {and one of my daughters is sensitive to red dye}. It actually made a really cool swirly purple-ish red color. I'd definitely do it again, everyone love them!

 

 

{homemade cupcake liners & cream cheese frosting}

 

 

 

CUSTOM gifts by MaureenMae

 

I recently ordered a customized necklace from MaureenMae handmade jewelry and I couldn't be happier! Maureen was great to work with, super creative, and the end product exceeded my expectations! 

 

This 1/2 inch charm is so delicate, yet the fine detail is very apparent. On the back side I have a name & date stamped. Even on such a tiny charm, the inscription is clear & easily readable.


I loved it so much, I purchased a second to give as a gift. The packaging was beautiful & really made for a special treasure.

MaureenMae does custom work which I think has many possibilities in the bridal market. This would make a perfect BRIDESMAID gift. Have a little image relating to the theme (a flower, leaf, star, etc...) and on the back inscribe the date.
The chain comes in various lengths too. I JUST LOVE THIS SHOP! Check out her shop on etsy.

Wrapping with Burlap

I reused this awesome box that I got from Anthropologie. No need to wrap this beauty, it could stand alone. But, I thought I'd just add a little to take it to the next level. In comes the burlap.

I roughly cut some burlap and used the frayed strings to to tie it together. After weaving the burlap strings through to hold it, I weaved some red silk tread to add a little contrast and color.

Next, I topped it with a wisteria pod. I am enchanted with these pods at the moment! They are so cool. They look & actually feel like velvet.

I love to add a little nature whenever I can. Now I'm off to see what else I can create with these pods!

Nirmala's Kitchen- Web Design

I recently finished designing the website for Nirmala's Kitchen. Nirmala's site is a travel journal and excellent source of information on exotic spices, recipes & and place to buy unique spices, salts, and grains. Here are a few of the many mock-ups I made for the site.

 

This is the Home Page

Here is a sample of the wonderful spices!

About 90% of the site product photography was done by me.

Here are some travel pictures from Nirmala's travels. 

And lots of detailed information on the spices & their origin.

So, check out Nirmala's Kitchen, it a great source for all types of cooks!

{fyi the programmer is still working-out the kinks, but if you have any difficulties, please be patient and use their call center for orders}. Enjoy!

 

For the knitting enthusiast, here is a sock yarn to take you into the spring. It's soft and ligth-weight, but still has a little bit of wool to keep your toes toasty as the snow melts. The added bonus, it's variegated so it creates a lovely, effortless pattern with no thought at all. So, sit-back, relax & start knitting!

If you're in the Hudson Valley, stop by our local sustainable fiber shop- White Barn Farm Sheep & Wool to get your yarn. Each sock will be different so it adds a cool little twist. And, one ball of this yarn made 2 pairs of socks, one small adult & one med. child pair.

German Pancake

I thought this recipe was definately worth sharing!
Not only did the kids love the taste, it was fast, easy, and fun to watch it cooking!
It grows big and fluffy & then deflates like a balloon. I like that all of those eggs add a lot of protein, but for the kids it taste just like dessert.

Here is the recipe taken from the April 1, 2011 Woman's Day Magazine.

Winning with Waldorf Logo design

This is one of those "things that make you go hmm". I stumbled across this logo comp I designed for a Waldorf School fundraiser a few years ago. The logo would be used to advertise their Pro-Am Golf Tournament fundraiser. While I never thought I'd use Snell Roundhand for anything (let alone a logo), I kinda like it. But at the same time, I kinda don't. I guess that's why this is one of those "things that make me go hm-hmm-hmmm."