Foodie Friday

Eggplant Parmesan

• 3             medium eggplant (~3 1/4 lbs.)
• 2 T          olive oil
• 1/2 t         salt     
• 2 T           butter
• 2 slices     firm white bread, processed into coarse crumbs
• 1 clove     garlic, minced
• 1 C          shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 C       grated Parmesan cheese
• 15 oz       part-skim ricotta cheese
• 1/4 t        coarsely ground pepper
• 4 C          tomato sauce, warmed

1.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Grease 2 large cookie sheets.  Trim ends from eggplant, then cut them lengthwise into 1/2 " thick slices.  Arrange in a single layer on cookie sheets; brush with oil and sprinkle with salt.

2.  Bake eggplant 25 - 30 minutes, or until tender and golden, rotating sheets and turning over slices halfway through cooking.  Remove from oven and reduce temperature to 350 degrees.

3.  For the topping:  Melt butter over medium heat in a 10" nonstick skillet.  Add bread crumbs and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, about 7 minutes.  Transfer to a small bowl.  Add 1/2 cup mozzarella and 2 T grated Parmesan, and toss well.

4.  For the filling:  Mix ricotta, remaining 1/2 cup mozzarella, remaining 2 T grated Parmesan and pepper in a medium bowl.

5.  To assemble, spread 1 cup tomato sauce evenly into a 9" x 13" glass baking dish.  Arrange half of eggplant on top, overlapping the slices.  Top with another 1 cup sauce, then dollops of cheese filling.  Top cheese with 1 cup sauce, remaining eggplant and remaining 1 cup sauce.  Sprinkle top with bread-crumb mixture.

6.  Cover dish with foil; bake 15 minutes.  Remove foil and bake 15 more minutes.  Let stand 10 minutes for easier serving.

This recipe came from the June 2008 issue of Quick and Simple magazine. 

Until Next Time...Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn      

Show & Tell Tuesday

Show and Tell Tuesday

I have two quilts to share today.  Both were made in 2011 of cheerful spring colors.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Happy Stars

This quilt is named Happy Stars for two reasons.  It is made from the Moda line of fabric called Happy, and it makes me "happy" when I look at it.  It measures 45" X 58".

   The pattern for this quilt can be found in the book Jelly Roll Quilts and More by Kimberly Einmo.  The quilt in the book is called Star Light, Star Right:  Star Chain.

Sugar Twist

 

This pretty spring quilt was made from a pattern by The Pattern Basket.  It measures 59" X 77".  

Both of these quilts were quilted on my long-arm machine, Annie.

  

Words of Wisdom

If I surround myself with stuff I don't love - I can't enjoy the stuff I do.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Make-A-List Monday & Blog Hop Party Winner

Make-A-List Monday

Hi everybody.  What a beautiful sunny day it is here in NJ!  A little chilly but no complaints here.

 First of all, I want to send out a prayer request for my BFF, Karen.  She is dealing with a health scare and needs all the prayers she can get for good health.  I love you, Karen!!!

Now for the winner of the Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt book and FQ Give Away. 

Drum roll please........The winner is Sandra from Kearns, UT.  Your book will go out in today's mail.  Congratulations!!!  I'm sure you will enjoy this book as much as I do.

Now, on to Make-A-List Monday.  Let's review last week.....

The Week of March 19, 2012

1.  Make four scarves from left over Batik fabric.  

Well, here they are!  I love the way they turned out.

2.  Finish piecing two Quilts For Kids and quilt them.

Quilts are done and will be delivered next Tuesday.

3.  Begin work on four baby girl gift quilts.  No pictures to show here but one quilt is pieced and currently being quilted on Annie.  Another quilt is in production.  I am using a disappearing nine patch pattern in floral, pink and green fabrics.  The other two are still WHIMM's (Works Hidden in My Mind), yet to be designed.

4.  If time...I want to start working on Just Takes 2 blocks 19-22.  HAHA!  I didn't even come close to working on these blocks. I'll try again this week.

Now, for this week's list:

The Week of March 26, 2012

1.  Continue working on my baby girl gift quilts.

2.  Work on Just Takes 2 blocks 19-22.

3.  Attend my husband's baseball games.  He has two scrimmages and a game this week.  Go Pirates!!!

4.  Look into taking a class at MQX.  Machine Quilter's Exposition East is held in Providence, RI.  I have never attended before but want to look into attending this year.  My husband, Don, will be away for spring training with his baseball team, so it would be a perfect time to go on a little get-away of my own.

5.  Work on The Village Quilter BOM Building Blocks. 

As usual, a very busy week.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Sunday Soup-athon

Hearty Pasta Tomato Soup

 

 

• 1 pound           bulk Italian sausage
• 6 C                  beef broth
• 1 can (28oz)     stewed tomatoes
• 1 can (15oz)     tomato sauce
• 2 C                  sliced zucchini
• 1                     large onion, chopped
• 1 C                  sliced carrots
• 1 C                  sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1                     medium green pepper, chopped
• 1/4 C                minced fresh parsley
• 2 t.                  sugar
• 1 t.                  dried oregano
• 1 t.                  dried basil
• 1                     garlic clove, minced
• 2 C                   frozen cheese tortellini
•                        grated Parmesan cheese

1.  In a skillet, cook the sausage over medium heat until no longer pink; drain.  Transfer to a 5 quart slow cooker; add the next 13 ingredients.  Cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours or until the vegetables are tender. 

2.   Cook tortellini according to package directions; drain.  Stir into slow cooker; cover and cook 30 minutes longer.  Serve with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Yield:  14 servings (about 3 1/2 quarts)

This recipe is from a cookbook called 

 Taste of Home Quick Cooking Annual Recipes 2002.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching

Sharyn

Show & Tell Tuesday

Show & Tell Tuesday

It is a foggy day in New Jersey, but I can't complain considering it will be 70 degrees.  I am going to share two quilts today that I made in 2011.  

Avignon Picnic

Avignon Picnic is a Moda Bake Shop quilt.  It is made with a Breath of Avignon jelly roll.  It measures 74" x 74". The pattern was designed by Andrea Harris of Millions of Thoughts .  

                       

This quilt happens to be one of the quilts I made from The Village Quilter  strip club.

Yesteryear

Yesteryear was a very challenging quilt for me.  It measures 80" x 98" and includes both piecing and applique.  

The original pattern was named Star Light, Star Bright and it was offered by Bits 'n Pieces Quilt Shop of Wayne, MI.  It consists of twelve - 12", 9" and 6" star blocks.

I hope you have enjoyed looking at these two quilts as much as I enjoyed making them.  

Words of Wisdom

Trust your instincts

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Make-A-List Monday

Make-A-List Monday

It is hard to believe that March is more than half-way through.  It has been a very busy week, so let's see how I did with last week's list:

The Week of March 12, 2012

1.  Finish piecing two baby boy gift quilts.  I finished piecing the tops of these two quilts...one with a dinosaur theme and one with an airplane theme.  One problem...my son told me that one of the babies is a girl.  I'm positive he said two baby boys.  EEERRRRRRR!    Oh well, no problem.  I'm sure you can guess who will get the other baby boy quilt.  Is it possible for a grandson to have too many quilts?

2.  Complete four labels for quilts I have recently finished.  I finished all labels and have attached them to the quilts.  

3.  Work on my Stella and Stonehenge blocks for PQW Saturday Sampler.

  

I love the way they turned out.

4.  Make two blocks for the Quilt Square Quilt Along.

These little 12 1/2" squares are made from a pattern by Lori Smith.  Aren't they CUTE?

5.  Attend The American Quilter's Society Lancaster Quilt Show  and The Lancaster Spring Quilt Show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

I was able to attend these shows on Wednesday 3/14. I took lots of pictures and posted them in my Wordless Wednesday post on that date.  Here is a picture of the Best of Show.

The applique and quilting was amazing.  Congratulations!  All the quilts were just gorgeous.

6.  Attend Strip Club at The Village Quilter in Mt. Holly, NJ.  

This is always a fun class and the quilts they make from 2 1/2" strips are always so pretty.

 I can't wait to get started on this quilt.  Unfortunately I have so much going on, it might be a while.

Now...for this week's list:

 The Week of March 19, 2012....

1. Make four scarves from left-over batik fabric. I recently made some jackets that produced a lot of left-over fabric. I hope to find a way to turn this fabric into scarves.

2. Finish piecing two Quilts for Kids and quilt them.

3. Begin work on four baby girl gift quilts. There seems to be sooooo many people we know having babies.

4. If time...I want to start working on Just Takes 2 blocks 19-22.

 

 Although there are only four things on this list I have a feeling I will be very busy this week.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Sunday Soup-athon

Corn Chowder

•   3 C        frozen whole kernel corn or 6 ears fresh sweet corn
• 1/2 C       chopped onion
• 1/2 C       chopped sweet green pepper
•   1 T        vegetable oil
•  1 can      chicken broth (14 oz)
•   1 C        cubed, peeled potato
•   2 T        all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 C    half-and-half, light cream, or milk
•   4 oz       white cheddar cheese, shredded (1C)
• 3 slices     bacon, crisp-cooked, drained, and crumbled

1.  If using fresh corn, use a sharp knife to cut the kernels off the cobs (you should have about 3 C corn kernels).  Set corn kernels aside.

2.  In a large saucepan cook onion and sweet pepper in hot oil until onion is tender.  Stir in corn, broth, and potato.  Bring to boiling; reduce heat.  Simmer, covered, for 10 to 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally.

3.  In a medium-sized bowl combine flour, 1/2 t. salt, and 1/4 t. black pepper.  Stir half-and-half into flour mixture; add to corn mixture in saucepan.  Cook and stir until slightly thickened and bubbly.  Cook and stir for 1 minute more.  Stir in cheese and heat until melted and smooth.  Add bacon; heat through.

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn





Blog Hop Party with Give-Aways

It's Blog Hop Party time and I have a great Give-Away for you.

I am giving away a copy of the book

The Farmer's Wife

Sampler Quilt

I've made two versions of this quilt so I know you will enjoy making your own.  In one I used civil war repro fabric and in the other I used 1930's fabric. 

This book comes with a CD to print out all templates needed. 

To enter this give-away, just become a follower of my blog.

This Give-Away ends on March 23rd, 2012.  All followers of this blog will be eligible to win.  I am willing to ship internationally.  As a bonus I will include a fat quarter to get you started.

Good Luck!!!

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

AQS Quilt Show - Lancaster 2012

Best of Show



Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn



Show & Tell Tuesday

Show & Tell Tuesday

It's Tuesday again and time to share a few of the quilts I have made. 

Trip for Two to Boston

These two quilts were pieced and quilted in 2011 from the same batik fabrics. They are called Trip for Two to Boston.  Strip sets were made and then the alternate setting was achieved by carefully placing the order of the fabrics.  

 

Each quilt measures 41" X 54".  I did the same overall quilt pattern on each quilt.  I used batik fabric on the backs, as well.

The next quilt is the third in my set of monthly rag quilts.

March Rag Quilt

It is for the month of March and it has a St. Patrick's Day theme...complete with shamrocks. 

It was completed in 2009.  I love this quilt on my kitchen table during the month of March.   It measures 23" square.  I used pretty homespun fabric that frays so nicely.  When making a rag quilt, some of the seams are done on the outside of the quilt.  Then it must be washed and dried to achieve the fringed appearance. 

Hopefully you have enjoyed viewing these quilts.  Next week I plan on sharing two more quilts that I have created.

Words of Wisdom

Trust can be destroyed faster than it can be built

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn

Make-A-List Monday

Make-A-List Monday

It is a BEAUTIFUL day here in Princeton Jct!!!  It is a perfect day to review what I accomplished last week and plan for this coming week.

The Week of March 5, 2012

1.  Finish Baby Boy Hutchinson quilt.  Done!  It was made to order so it should be received well.  I'm sorry I can't post a picture as I have to keep it a secret until the shower.  I also still have to do the label.  Now I have to make one that I want to make!

2.  Visit Pennington Quilt Works for Quilts for Kids and Saturday Sampler.  I went to PQW on Tuesday for QFK and Friday for Saturday Sampler.  Now I have to get busy on all the quilts and blocks I started from these two events.

Pennington Quilt Works

3.  Meet my Dear Son, JT, for lunch.  We met on Friday after PQW.  It is so nice to catch up with him now that he lives in Philadelphia.  He is doing so well and we are very proud of him.  After our lunch I drove over to Cherry Hill, NJ to visit The Container Store.  If only this store existed when I was first setting up my house eighteen years ago.  I would go crazy with all the useful gadgets they have to offer. 

 Then on my way home I discovered a discount bookstore in Maple Shade.  Needless to say, I went a little crazy buying books for Baby Boy Hutchinson.  When I got home my husband, Don, reminded me of the hundreds and hundreds of books we have in our basement; the result of teaching preschool for 25 years.  Oh, well...I couldn't resist!

4.  Register for classes at Quilt Odyssey in Hershey, PA for July.  YIPPEE!!!!!  Promptly at noon on Saturday I logged onto the Quilt Odyssey website, and I am pleased to announce I was able to get into both classes that I wanted to take. 

Bonnie K. Hunter

 In July I will hear a lunch lecture with Bonnie K. Hunter on her Scrap User's System.  Then the next day I will be a member of her Tumalo Trail

class.  I am beyond excited!

5.  Complete two more Dear Jane blocks.

Both of these blocks were paper pieced.  Current totals:  146 blocks and 36 triangles complete for a total of 3802 pieces!

6.  Complete quilting my Jelly Roll Race quilt.  This quilt is done and just awaiting a binding.

Now, for The Week of March 12, 2012...

1.  Finish piecing two baby boy gift quilts.  These quilts are almost done.  I am currently working on pieced backings made with leftover fabric from the fronts.  I hope to have these done soon as one of the babies has already been born.

2.  Complete four labels for quilts I have recently finished.  Labeling quilts is not my favorite thing to do but it is a very important part of the quilt making process.

3.  Work on my Stella and Stonehenge blocks for PQW Saturday Sampler.  This month we are doing lots of flying geese blocks for the 12" blocks.  This should be fun because I like to make flying geese.

4.  Make two blocks for the Quilt Square Quilt Along.  The month is almost half way through so I need to get busy on these two blocks.  This Quilt Along is sponsored by Jo Kramer at Jo's Country Junction.

5.  Attend The American Quilter's Society Lancaster Quilt Show and The Lancaster Spring Quilt Show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. 

 These two shows are always very well done, and any excuse to go to Lancaster makes me happy!

6.  Attend Strip Club at The Village Quilter in Mt Holly, NJ.  Every month or two a quilter from this quaint quilt shop uses 2 1/2" strips to make a quilt. 

 The strips are available at a discounted price and often the quilt pattern is free.  I have attended this class since the beginning and have made some beautiful quilts from these strips.

Well, that is quite a list for this week.  I will try my best to accomplish these things and cook, clean, do laundry, attend baseball games and whatever else comes up in my busy life.  I can't complain......

Life is Good!!!

Until Next Time.....Happy Stitching!!!

Sharyn