Monday, April 16, 2012

Another Pinspired Recipe

I love finding good recipes on the 'net. This is one I pinned a couple of weeks ago and tried last weekend. It was yummy!

From Mrs. Happy Homemaker, the recipe calls for tilapia, but I, of course, had to change it. I'd rather have salmon any day, and, as I had a hunk of wild-caught sockeye salmon on hand, I panfried some cod for the hub--he's not fond of salmon--and fixed this recipe for me. Oh, happy days!
(As a matter of record, this isn't a picture of my completed dish. I rarely have a camera in the kitchen so I have to depend on others. This is from Mrs. HH's blog post.)

The recipe calls for mayonnaise, and I'm not much of a mayo fan, but OMG! Even before cooking it, it was wonderful. I don't know if it was the lemon zest, or the juice, or just the spices (dill, garlic and onion powders), but I certainly didn't mind the mayo in this dish.

The link above will take you to Mrs. HH's recipe. Try it; you'll like it.

Monday, April 9, 2012

Hanger Slipcovers

Pinterest has become my new obsession. Rather than paying attention to my fave blogs--sorry, guys!--I visit Pinterest more and more often during my time on the computer. I've pinned many items and tried a few. Some were great; some not so much.
Today I want to talk about these cool hanger slipcovers I found on Salvaged Treasures. She made these out of vintage embroidered pillowcases and, as I had just passed up a number of said items at the thrift store because they were "one-offs", I quickly returned to the store and bought all they had left.

I decided to go a few steps farther than did the original poster (OP) by first padding...
and then covering the hangers.
I used remnants of batting and muslin for these steps so it cost nothing and I believe gives more function to the end product.

Here are the completed hangers:
This one had only a turned up hem, which I didn't feel was decorative enough so I cut it off and added a purchased lace.
This pillowcase was perfect in size and required little handwork. As I like it! (The blue is much more colorful than my pic shows.)
This case was a tad bit too small--the bottom should flare out more--but I used it anyway. And since it had no decoration save the crochet at the bottom, I added a ribbon rose made from vintage hem tape.

Because I believe items such as these should be treasured, I want my construction to equal the work in the original pillowcases so, rather than use adhesive velcro as did the OP, I'll use hand-stitched snaps.

From now on, whenever I hit the thrifts, I'll be on the lookout for decorative pillowcases. What about you? Think you might try this?

I've linked this post to Chic on a Shoestring Decorating's Flaunt it Friday. Stop over and check out the other lovely links!

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Pinterest Pass or Fail--French Onion Salisbury Steak and a few other recipes

I'm open to trying pretty much anything when it comes to recipes. Some I make for myself; others, if I think the hub will eat them, I make for us both. (He is a picky eater.)

I've tried a few lately I'd like to share, beginning with the French Onion Salisbury Steak at Will Cook for Smiles.
 
I'm not much of a beef eater, though, of course, the hub is. When I saw this recipe, I thought it might be something even I would like.  And, honest, when I tasted it, I actually went "mmm!" I seldom do that with anything I make at home, never with beef!
With it, I served Pioneer Woman's Crash Hot Potatoes. It's an excellent recipe, as hers generally are, and one I've made several times. One thing I've learned is to leave it in the oven longer than the recipe calls for. The longer you leave it, the crispier it gets, and who doesn't love crispy?
This last recipe I made for myself only--hub's not a veggie fan. I wasn't as pleased with Everything Fab's Mozzarella, Tomato, and Avocado Salad as I thought I'd be, though I'm not sure why. I'll definitely try it again, but next time I'll use a balsamic reduction rather than the lemon juice called for. I like the heartiness of balsamic, and this combination of veggies should carry it off.

So--pass or fail? A hearty pass on the first two, a milder one on the third.

Oh, and btw, Happy Easter, y'all!