Dinner with Edible Bowls

Posted on August 19, 2012 by eclecticlamb

My 15 year old nephew wanted to make a meal with edible bowls. This is the same nephew who when he was young wanted to make a dinosaur shaped bread that stood up. (we made it happen)

Since I am a vegetarian I required that this dinner be vegetarian. My nephew did almost all of the cooking. I mostly just gave some advice and helped clean as he worked.

During the photo shoot I came up with the idea of adding a sage leaf to the soup. I ran out to my herb garden to get a leaf. If I had planned ahead, a sage leaf pan fried in butter would have been great.

The Parmesan cup recipe is here from Food and Wine. My nephew designed the salad: romaine lettuce, mandarin oranges, toasted walnuts, and Wegmans Raspberry Vinaigrette.

The bread bowl recipe is from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe. The soup is a Potato Cheddar Chowder from Vegetarian Times.

Salad in Parmesan cup

We had a lot of trouble with edible bowls for the ice cream. We tried the balloon dipped in chocolate idea. Our balloons stuck to the chocolate. There was no way to separate them. So we gave up on the chocolate bowl and tried a cookie bowl. Nephew found a chocolate chip cookie bowl recipe and directions from Michael Ruhlman. We also struggled with this. We tried a few times without success. The cookie tasted amazing but we could not release the bottom of the cup in one beautiful piece. Our ice cream was served in the cookie rings. Not exactly a bowl but it looked cute and tasted great.

Black Raspberry ice cream topped with whipped cream served in a cookie ring

This was an ambitious meal but a great activity for a teen nephew and Aunt.

Posted in Food | Tagged , , , | 8 Comments

Week 33 Pekinese Stitch

Posted on August 18, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 33 was the Pekinese stitch. It is a simple stitch but I struggled with threads and ripped out a lot of stitches. It was not my first time working with the Pekinese stitch.

Pekinese attempted several years ago

Posted in Embroidery | 3 Comments

Bear Puzzle Bento

Posted on August 17, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I made this especially for Fancy Sandwich Friday at Beneficial Bento. It is raining this morning so I could not get good photos.

I assembled this meal quickly with food I had in the house. My husband went out in the rain to pick the cherry tomatoes from our garden. I used my new puzzle Lunch Punch for the first time.

Sandwich: wheat bread, peanut butter, homemade low sugar raspberry jam, cheddar cheese, dried blueberries, and tortilla (to eat with the cheese bear).

Vegetables: green pepper and cherry tomatoes

Fruit: peaches

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 8 Comments

Bake Sale Food

Posted on August 16, 2012 by eclecticlamb

We made caramel popcorn, cheese bread, and cookie pops for a bake sale at my in-law’s church.

Caramel Popcorn

My husband made his family’s favorite caramel popcorn recipe.

Ingredients

3 quarts air popped popcorn

1 1/2 cups peanuts (optional)

Cooking spray

1 cup packed brown sugar

1/2 cup butter

1/4 cup light corn syrup

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

Method

Place popped corn and peanuts (if using) in large paper bag.

Coat 2 quart microwave-safe bowl with cooking spray. In prepared bowl, combine sugar, butter, corn syrup, and salt. Microwave on high 3 – 4 minutes, stirring after each minute until mixture boils. Stir and microwave 2 minutes more. Stir in baking soda.

Pour syrup over popcorn in bag. Close bag and shake well. Microwave on high 1 1/2 minutes. Shake well. Microwave 1 1/2 minutes more. Shake and spread out to cool and separate.

Caution: Microwave cooking times will vary depending on your microwave. Be careful when microwaving popcorn and syrup together as it will burn if left in too long.

Cheese Bread

Sunset Menus & Recipes for Vegetarian Cooking, 1981. I think that this bread is best toasted and buttered.

Cookie Pop

I followed the recipe and directions from Claire K Creations.

My baking did not go as planned. It was 90 degrees with 88% humidity – not ideal baking weather for a kitchen without air-conditioning. I wanted to wrap a box in bright paper and stick the pops into it but I could not guarantee that they would not wilt. Some of the cookies did not end up firm enough to send to the bake sale.

They tasted great. At the bake sale they put the cookies in a mason jar. They sold fast!

Posted in Food | 4 Comments

Lego Bento

Posted on August 15, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This lego themed lunch was fun to make. My 8 year old nephew thought it was fun to eat.

Lego Bricks

  • Blackberry yogurt: I dyed some bricks blue and kept some natural. I froze the yogurt in a building bricks silicon mold. Inspiration was from Veggie-Bento via a guest post on Bentoriffic.
  • Watermelon: I used a large pastry bag tip to make the Lego dots.
  • Cheddar cheese: I used a small pastry bag tip to make the Lego dots.
  • Bread: I baked drop biscuit dough and french bread dough in a building blocks silicon mold. I used both types to see which one turned out better. The drop biscuit dough resulted in holes instead of bumps. The french bread dough resulted in a few bumps and a few holes. The drop biscuit dough was more consistent.

Lego Man with Shield

  • Man: I froze chocolate in a mini Lego figure ice cube tray
  • Shield: I cut a shield from a Wegmans Fruit Flat. I decorated the shield with a sprinkle leaf.
  • I used melted chocolate to attach the shield to the Lego man.

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network KitchenFun

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged | 16 Comments

Week 32 Cast-on Stitch

Posted on August 14, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 32 was the Algerian Eye stitch.

I enjoyed this stitch and expect to use it again.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 32 Cast-on Stitch

Bento Tips – Sandwich Backgrounds

Posted on August 12, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I continue to experiment with edible backgrounds for my bentos. I make a lot of American food bentos because that is what my nieces and nephews will eat. Many of my bentos contain some type of sandwich. I love the look of a full Japanese bento but it is more difficult to obtain with a sandwich. My goal is a background that looks nice and the kid will eat.

Benefits of putting food backgrounds under a cute sandwich.

  • Increases calories for a bento with a small cute sandwich (for older kids)
  • Adds volume so less food shifting during travel
  • Raises the fun factor

Blueberries under letter sandwiches

Celery sticks and spinach under a Zebra sandwich

Lettuce under a torch quesadilla

Blue tortilla chips under a Saturn bagel

Popcorn under an airplane sandwich

I have tried and would recommend the following backgrounds:

  • blueberries
  • celery (thinly sliced sticks)
  • lettuce
  • popcorn (air popped)
  • snow peas
  • spinach (raw)
  • tortilla chips
  • tortillas (I used flour)

I have tried and caution against using the following backgrounds:

  • caramel popcorn (not as healthy, only as special treat)
  • M&M’s (not as healthy, only as special treat)
  • pistachios in a shell (takes time to eat and only safe for an older child)

If you have suggestions for sandwich backgrounds, please leave a comment.

Thanks!

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 1 Comment

Adirondacks Bento

Posted on August 7, 2012 by eclecticlamb

For this vacation themed bento I made a bread canoe. Canoes remind me of summers at our family property in the Adirondacks  (Hamilton County, NY). I love canoeing on a calm lake in the morning or evening.

Canoe: French bread with cheese lettering (see below)

Paddle: pretzel stick with chocolate

Lake: blueberries

Trail mix: Wegmans Berry Pistachio blend

Adirondack Pack Basket: carrots, chives, cucumber (see below)

Supplies used to make a carrot basket

Carrot basket tutorial

Supplies:

  • Mandoline slicer (vertical carrot strips)
  • Vegetable peeler (horizontal carrot strips)
  • Carrots
  • Cucumber sliced to size of desired basket
  • Sharp knife (to cut the carrot strips in half lengthwise)
  • Pins (to hold vertical carrot strips while weaving horizontal strips)
  • Chives (to hold top of basket when pins are removed)

Method:

Start by cutting carrot strips with a mandoline slider. These will be the vertical strips for the basket. Pin vertical strips to the cucumber.

Cut carrot strips with a vegetable peeler. These will be the horizontal strips for the basket. Start at the bottom and weave carrot strips horizontally. Keep weaving strips until you get to the top of your vertical strips.

Tie a long chive around the top edge and carefully remove pins. Insert shorter chive pieces for the basket handles.

I only made one basket. It was very fragile but was fun to make and eat.

Bread canoes after baking

I made my french bread dough and tried different size canoes. I followed a similar method as my alligator. I sprayed aluminum foil with cooking spray and pushed into bread before second rise and baking.

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

Pasta and Beets Lunch

Posted on August 5, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This is not a cute bento but it was delicious. I love the combination of pasta, blue cheese, and beets.

  • Farfalle pasta (bow-tie) with blue cheese and a little bit of olive oil
  • Peach
  • Beets (from my sister-in-law’s garden)
Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 1 Comment

Week 31 Algerian Eye Stitch

Posted on August 3, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 31 was the Algerian Eye stitch.

I enjoyed playing with this stitch!

Posted in Embroidery | 6 Comments

Wild West – Gold Rush Party

Posted on August 3, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Two of my nephews (in one family) have birthdays a few days apart so they have a combined birthday party with family.

The theme this year for their 8th and 12th birthdays was Wild West / Gold Rush.

My niece painted signs on cardboard which looked great!  They had signs with their family name and population, Shooting Range, Chuck Wagon, and Muddy Waters (gold panning pool).

Sign painted on cardboard to look like wood

We set up a shooting range using the paper target idea from Apple Falls. The target on the wooden barrel are tin cans balanced on a thin board.

Cans target practice

Another activity that was a HIT was panning for gold. It was a warm day and many party attendants enjoyed playing in the water searching for gold.

Pool filled with sand, water, and gold (spray painted rocks)

Results from panning for gold

When we had a family planning meeting for this party, my younger nephew came up with the idea for a Wanted poster with his Uncle on it. I found an old photo of the Uncle that I thought fit with the theme. My 15 year old nephew designed the poster.

Wanted Poster

I created this TNT candy favor using these directions from Allie Makes via  Jean’s Crafty Corner. I made a few changes. Instead of Rolos and white rope, I used SweeTARTS and white chenille pipe cleaners. I already had the wooden box.

For dessert we had a nice selection of delicious sweets.

  • Gold Rock Candy – I followed these directions but I lightly sprayed the yellow rock candy
  • Pick axe cake with gold nugget cupcakes
  • Banana Split ice cream dessert with lasso’s and star decorations
  • Chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter centers decorated with sprinkle sugar stars
  • Caramel popcorn in muslin bags

Dessert Table

The inspiration for the gold bags was this from One Charming Party. In order to keep down costs we decided not to do an iron-on label because we needed to make a lot of bags. My sister-in-law and niece sewed the bags out of muslin. They created a bag template to fit a plastic zip-lock bag. My sister-in-law hand painted the labels on the bags. They tied the bags with jute string.

Caramel popcorn with gold bag

Linked to: Show and Tell Saturday’s at Be different Act Normal

Posted in Party Planning | 1 Comment

Week 30 Oyster Stitch

Posted on August 2, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 30 was the Oyster stitch.

I think that  I eventually understood the stitch but it is not my favorite.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 30 Oyster Stitch

Olympic Bento

Posted on August 1, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This lunch was for my 10 year old nephew. In my constant quest to find interesting backgrounds, I used caramel popcorn this time. I think it was my first and last time. It is not healthy and is a bumpy background. Also in this case the background is distracting. But my nephew loved it.

Rings: tortillas with blueberries, black raspberries, dried cherries, dried pineapple, and snow peas

Background for Rings: Crunch and Munch Caramel Popcorn

Torch: cheese quesadilla with flames drawn with Wilton Food Writer

Background for Torch: lettuce

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Comments Off on Olympic Bento

Week 29 Basque Stitch

Posted on July 31, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 29 was the Basque stitch.

This is another new stitch that I enjoyed learning. I can see myself using it for borders and other uses.

Posted in Embroidery | 2 Comments

Union Square Greenmarket in July

Posted on July 29, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The city that never sleeps does not wake up early on Saturday morning. I had some time Saturday morning before leaving NYC for my Great Aunt’s 80th birthday party on Long Island. I decided to go to the Union Square Greenmarket.

Once again, I had fun walking around this market. It was plum season and many varieties were available. I bought many and enjoyed trying so many different types. I am sorry that I did not take any photos of plums.

It was summer so no dogs in clothing but I was interested  to see a dog with pack bags carrying produce. I happened to take this photo when the owner was trying to prevent her dog from fighting with another dog.

Dog with pack bags

I enjoyed taste testing tea at the Tweefontein Herb Farm stall. It was 2$ a cup or 1$ if you have your own cup. The woman said taste as many as I like and then fill up with the one I wanted.

I sampled:

  • Lavender and Applemint
  • Sage and Lemon Balm
  • Nettle, Anise, and Hyssop
  • Ginger and Cayenne with Maple Syrup

I decided on the Lavender and Applemint and loved it so much I later went back to buy another cup. The Ginger and Cayenne stung my throat. I thought about the time when my husband accidentally drank coffee with salt instead of sugar.

Click on photos to enlarge.

Carrots and Radishes

White and Purple Eggplant

Herbs

Flowers from The River Garden

Freekeh and Whole Spelt Berries from Pure Cayuga Pure Organics

Garlic

Sunflowers and Peaches

Hand dyed yarn from Catskill Merino Sheep Farm

Tomatoes

Posted in Adventures, Food | 3 Comments

Week 28 TAST Up and Down Buttonhole

Posted on July 28, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 28 was the Up and Down Buttonhole stitch.

I loved working with this stitch and expect to use it again in the future.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 28 TAST Up and Down Buttonhole

Butterfly Bento

Posted on July 27, 2012 by eclecticlamb

My 13 year old niece and I made this bento lunch. I used a cookie cutter to mold the sticky rice butterflies.

  • Spinach salad with pistachio nuts
  • Rice butterflies with heart sprinkles and pistachios
  • Watermelon butterflies

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network KitchenFun Eats Amazing World Book Day Linkies

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged | 6 Comments

Week 27 TAST Bonnet Stitch

Posted on July 26, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 27 was the Bonnet stitch.

I experimented with this stitch and did not quite get it. I think that the top row is the furthest from being correct, but it is my favorite.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 27 TAST Bonnet Stitch

Care Package Graduation Gift

Posted on July 25, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Many years ago, I found this idea  from Be*mused for a care package gift certificate. It is a perfect gift for a high school graduate planning to attend college.

I first used the care package gift certificate a few years ago. I created a simple gift certificate and used cookie stickers to decorate. The recipient surprised me by redeeming the certificate only 2 days after arriving at college!

This year I attended a graduation party for a brother and sister. I could not find cookie stickers so I used brownie stickers. I put the certificates in graduation cards.

Front of certificate

Back of certificate

Posted in Crafts | 2 Comments

Winners of 1st Blogiversary Giveaway

Posted on July 25, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Thank you to everyone for your kind comments and for entering my first giveaway!

The winner of the napkins is #1 – Mary Lee.

The winner of the bento is #26 – Rina.

Mary Lee and Rina, I will be in contact to get your addresses so I can send your items to you.

Posted in Blog | 2 Comments

Week 26 TAST Palestrina Stitch

Posted on July 24, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The TAST stitch for Week 26 was the Palestrina stitch. I am very far behind. Hopefully I will complete some catch-up stitches this week.

I enjoyed working with this stitch.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 26 TAST Palestrina Stitch

1 Year Blogiversary Giveaway

Posted on July 18, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Today is my blog’s 1 year anniversary. I started this blog as a class assignment for a masters course in Social Media. I went against advice to have a single topic blog because I wanted one place to document my interests. I hoped that others would be interested in what I wanted to show.

My blog has many focuses but this year embroidery and bento’s are important themes. So I decided to giveaway two items.

Embroidery: Martha Stewart Napkins for you to embroider with a monogram (alphabet chart included)

Bento: Large Lunch box Bento 2 tiered plastic lunch box set with 4 removable inner pieces. It is pink as pictured above.

Please indicate in the comments which item you would like to win (embroidery or bento). International entries are welcome.  Please make sure that I have your email address so I can notify you if you win. One entry per email address.

Of course I would like more followers but personally I often don’t enter contests if there is a requirement to follow a blog or like in Facebook. If you want  to become a follower of my blog I will be happy. But if you don’t, that is fine also.

The contest will end on Wednesday July 25 at 8 am EDT.

Posted in Blog | 40 Comments

Zebra Bento

Posted on July 17, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I created this for my nephew a few days before his 4th birthday. This bento lunch was themed to match the activity we did that day. We went to Hidden Valley Animal Adventure. They have trolley rides where visitors can feed animals such as zebras from a cup.

When I returned my nephew to his parents. They asked him what we did. He said, “I ate a zebra sandwich!”.

Zebra: Peanut butter sandwich cut with a horse cookie cutter. Eye: Wilton candy eye Stripes: Fruit by the foot

Cup: Starburst candy (softened a few seconds in the microwave and then shaped)

Background: celery sticks and snow peas (I know that this was wishful thinking that he would eat it all but I wanted a background)

Striped Cookies: I used these cookies.

Raspberries

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged | 7 Comments

Transportation Birthday Party

Posted on July 13, 2012 by eclecticlamb

My sister-in-law held her son’s 4th birthday at her parent’s farm. The invitation for this party mentioned trains, cars, tractors, and trucks. This was a family party with about half adults and half young cousins in attendance.

My contributions to this party:

Watermelon: I used these directions from the National Watermelon Promotion Board.I decided to make the numbers out of card stock instead of watermelon. I was a little nervous since it was my first watermelon I carved. But I have plenty of pumpkin carving experience and I have carving tools so this was easy.

Race car watermelon

Train: I used this idea (scroll down) from ID Mommy. I changed the engine and added numbers. I could not find black card stock so I used a combination of construction paper and card stock. Since my nephew was celebrating his 4th birthday I created four cars and numbered them. We filled the train with cheese, crackers, trail mix, and pretzels.

Engine and first car of snack train

Entire train (before it was filled)



Tractor: My husband came up with the concept and created this vegetable tray tractor. We forgot to take a photo of the finished tractor. The dip container was in refrigerator when I took photo. We put the cherry tomatoes around the dip container to serve as the wagon.

Green Fendt vegetable tractor

Noodle Race track: I found the directions for the track here at My Little Gems. We just balanced the tracks on a chair. The kids enjoyed playing with this! I decided to keep the tracks separate to allow for flexibility of play. It was a cheap and easy party activity.

Race tracks balanced on a chair

Finish line

Contributions from others:

Car jello

Traffic light fruit on chocolate and cinnamon graham crackers

Traffic light celery

Flatbed truck cake (side)

Flatbed truck cake (back) The license plate has the birthday boy’s age and initials.

Posted in Party Planning | 3 Comments

Week 25 TAST Cable Chain Stitch

Posted on July 12, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 25 of TAST is the Cable Chain Stitch.

While my version may not be as beautiful as more accomplished stitchers, I enjoyed playing with this stitch.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 25 TAST Cable Chain Stitch

Picnic Bento

Posted on July 11, 2012 by eclecticlamb

My 13 year old niece and I planned this bento. I am proud of her concept and planning. She even created a grocery list for me!

Picnic blanket: rice and red pepper

Grass: snow peas

Watermelon: red pepper, chocolate sprinkles, green bean (rind)

Blue Cooler: apple coated with lemon juice and blue sugar

Ants: chocolate sprinkles

Jam Tarts: raspberry and grape

I used a wooden berry basket and added a wooden cover (my husband cut some craft wood to fit). I took apart a dollar store basket to create a handle. My handle is temporary but you can add a staple to make it more permanent.

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 6 Comments

Felt Road Gift

Posted on July 5, 2012 by eclecticlamb

When I found the Felt Road patrol kit post by Kristen at  Make the Best of Everything, I knew it would be perfect for my nephew’s 4th birthday. I decided to keep my kit simple and did not add the road signs or instructions. I bought a plastic box to hold the kit but forgot to take a photo.

My husband and I made this kit together. He came up with the idea for drawing the templates. (see photo below). He taped two carpenter pencils to a paint stick. Our pencils are 5.25 inches apart from center to center.

Drawing a road piece template

Cutting out the felt road pieces

Painting lines

The entire kit

To make your own kit, see the Felt Road patrol kit post by Kristen at Make the Best of Everything.

Posted in Crafts | 1 Comment

Sand Dollar Bento

Posted on July 4, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This week the Bento of the Week (BOTW) theme at the Bento Blog Network is “Beach”.

My inspiration was Maine vacations my family took when I was a kid. I loved to walk the beach and find sand dollars. This is what the Maine sand dollar looks like.

Sand: Near East Parmesan Couscous
Sand Dollar: Monterey Jack Cheese and Wilton Food Marker
Ocean: Blueberries

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 2 Comments

July 4th Bento

Posted on June 27, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This week the Bento of the Week (BOTW) theme at the Bento Blog Network is “4th of July”.

My 11 year old nephew and I came up with this red, white and blue theme for this lunch. We worked together to make the lunch (my nephew made the sandwiches).

  • mozzarella cheese sticks (white)
  • sliced strawberries (red)
  • white bread sandwiches with grape jelly (white and blue)
  • blueberries (blue)

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 6 Comments

Hot Bento

Posted on June 21, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This week the Bento of the Week (BOTW) theme at the Bento Blog Network is “Hot”.

While brainstorming the theme I thought about three interpretations for hot.

  1. Sun
  2. Spicy
  3. Cool and refreshing for a hot day

I decided to incorporate all three interpretations for hot in this bento.

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 3 Comments

Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge

Posted on June 17, 2012 by eclecticlamb

A few days ago my 11 year old nephew and I went hiking at the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge in Alabama, NY. We walked the Swallow Hollow and Onondaga trails. This was our second time visiting these trails. Our first time was in June, 2009. Both times the trails were abundant with wildlife. This visit we saw turtles, frogs, blue herons, many birds, dragonflies, deer, and a mouse. I highly recommend a visit to this wildlife refuge.

WARNING: Be careful walking the Onondaga trail. There are many animal made holes near the water section of the trail. Try not to step in a hole while enjoying the beautiful views and wildlife.

Click on photos for a larger view.

Swallow Hollow Trail Sign

Entrance to Swallow Hollow Trail

Boardwalk section of trail

Empty shells

Green cattails

Turtle on log

Onondaga Trail Sign

View from Onondaga trail

Frog in water

Deer on trail

Frog (my nephew took this photo)

Posted in Adventures | 1 Comment

Week 24 TAST Buttonhole Wheel

Posted on June 16, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 24 of TAST is the Buttonhole Wheel. I tried the Buttonhole Wheel during week 2 Buttonhole stitch. Since I did not need to make a page for my sampler, I created a bookmark. It was a fun little project.

Posted in Embroidery | 7 Comments

Swimming Bento

Posted on June 13, 2012 by eclecticlamb

SwimmingBentoW

This week the  Bento of the Week (BOTW) theme at the Bento Blog Network is Swimming. The only theme part of this is the bears swimming in blueberries. But it tasted great!

  • Cinnamon Teddy Grahams in blueberries
  • Plain Greek yogurt with blue sprinkles
  • Cold Peanut Noodles with cucumber (recipe below)

Close-up of bears in pool

Cold Peanut Noodles Recipe (4 servings, 1 cup pasta per serving, add cucumbers to each serving)

  • 1/2 pound angel hair pasta
  • 1 TBS sesame oil
  • 1 tsp powdered ginger
  • 1 1/2 TBS natural peanut butter
  • 1 TBS soy sauce
  • 1 TBS rice vinegar
  • 1/2 TBS lemon juice
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 1 cucumber, chopped

Cook pasta according to package directions and drain.

Whisk together remaining ingredients except the cucumber.

Mix dressing and hot pasta.

Refrigerate pasta and cucumber separately for several hours.

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Bagel and Cheese Bento

Posted on June 10, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I created this bento lunch for my 11 year old nephew. He did not want a theme. Typically I like to make themed bentos but it was fun to try to make ordinary food interesting.

  • Chocolate covered pretzels
  • Strawberries and blackberries
  • Pistachios
  • Mini plain bagels with homemade grape jelly
  • Jalapeno cheese sticks from Wegmans
Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 1 Comment

Weeks 22 & 23 TAST Knotted Cretan Stitch & Catch-up

Posted on June 10, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 22 of TAST is the Knotted Cretan stitch.

I was not good at Cretan (week 4) so I was not looking forward to working with the knotted Cretan stitch. I don’t think it is a stitch I will use often.

Week 23 was a catch-up week. I am looking forward to seeing what the stitch will be for week 24.

Posted in Embroidery | 2 Comments

Tree Bento

Posted on May 30, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Maybe this should be called Sugar Bento. There are not as many M&M’s as there appear. They are not under the tree. But there are still more than I intended. My 10 year old nephew requested this theme and helped assemble this lunch.

  • Peanut butter sandwich with green sprinkles
  • Raspberry yogurt with green candy leaves
  • Strawberry and kiwi
Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 3 Comments

Week 21 TAST Butterfly Chain Stitch

Posted on May 28, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 21 of TAST is the Butterfly Chain stitch. I had fun working with this stitch.

Posted in Embroidery | 3 Comments

Basketball Bento

Posted on May 23, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I created this basketball themed bento for my 15 year old nephew. I had thought that he would not want a themed bento but he did not care as long as it tasted good. I was happy to work with a theme.

  • Mozzarella cheese quesadilla with basketball court drawn with Wilton food safe markers
  • Clementine basketball with some blackberries
  • Cucumber spears with ranch dip
  • Chocolate covered pretzels
  • Pistachios

Bottom tier

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 5 Comments

NGC Flower Show

Posted on May 21, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The National Garden Club (NGC) convention was in Buffalo this year. My garden club attended their flower show. It was fun and educational to see entries in the various categories.

Apples are in the water

Bamboo and roses

Columbine

Cafe table setting

Another table setting

Hosta

Miniature arrangement with rose

Gourds painted as snakes

Terrarium

Posted in Adventures | 4 Comments

Week 20 TAST Bullion Knot

Posted on May 20, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 20 of TAST is the Bullion Knot stitch.

I have wanted to try this stitch for a long time. One of the things I like about TAST is that it forces me to attempt new stitches. I enjoyed working with the Bullion Knot and look forward to trying it again.

Posted in Embroidery | 4 Comments

Marionette Bento

Posted on May 17, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This weeks theme for Bento of the Week (BOTW) at Bento Blog Network is kabobs. When brainstorming kabobs I came up with a Marionette.

I was aiming for clown but I think it looks more like a silly puppet.

Wood for Marionette holder: pretzel sticks

Strings: angel hair pasta

Hair: sun-dried tomato

Face: Wilton candy eyes, cinnamon imperial nose, Wilton food writer mouth

Arms: pimento stuffed green olives

Frill: red pepper cut with flower cookie cutter (used at neck and sleeves)

Body: baguette and cheddar cheese

Legs: cherry tomatoes

Background: spinach rice

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network KitchenFun

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 4 Comments

Card Games Birthday

Posted on May 14, 2012 by eclecticlamb

I helped my sister-in-law with my nephews 10th birthday party. They have family birthday parties with a mix of adults (Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents) and children (siblings and cousins).  My nephew enjoys playing card games so this was the perfect theme. My sister-in-law did a great job with creating food in the black/red/white theme. My niece and nephews helped with the decorations.

Click on the photos to enlarge.

Decorations

  • Garlands: my nephew punched holes in the cards and we strung them
  • Centerpieces: Card cubes with card game set-ups. We used these wonderful directions. The birthday boy set-up the card games and I took photos. We created set-ups for Cribbage, Euchre, Go Fish, Poker, Rummy, Sequence, Solitaire, and Tripoley. Then I printed out two sets for each type and taped them to bamboo skewers. We stood them up in balls of clay.
  • Tablecloths: black and red
  • Plates: black and red

Party tables

Euchre centerpiece

Garland and table

Another card garland

Appetizers

  • Chips and Salsa: with rectangular (card shaped) chips
  • Cheese and Crackers: Pepper Jack and Cheddar cheese with playing card picks (I copied actual playing cards at 50% – printed out two sets, then taped them to toothpicks)
  • Black and Red fruit tray: strawberries, watermelon, blueberries, blackberries, and black grapes
  • Red, Black and White vegetable tray: mushrooms, red pepper, cherry tomatoes, and black olives

Appetizer table

Cheese and crackers with playing card picks

Meal

I created playing card labels. I used 10’s because it was my nephews 10th birthday. I printed the labels on card stock and taped to skewers. Click here for free playing card food labels. (pictured below)

  • Stack the Deck Sandwiches: marble bread and rolls with assorted cheeses and meats
  • Pinnacle Pasta:  Greek Macaroni Salad
  • Red Suit Salad: I made hearts and diamond croutons using these directions. I also added sliced radish, sliced red pepper, heart and diamond shaped red pepper and cucumber to the lettuce.
  • Bridge Broccoli Salad
  • Joker Jigglers
  • Game of Hearts Snack Mix: homemade chex mix with honey and butter, pretzels, red M&M’s, peanuts, and raisins

Left side of buffet

Right side of buffet

Drinks

My niece created a cute label for the root beer bottle.

  • Queen of Hearts Punch: lemonade, cranberry juice, and ginger ale
  • King of Spades Ale: root beer

Queen of Hearts Punch and the front of King of Spades Ale

Queen of Hearts Punch and the  back of King of Spades Ale

Dessert

  • 10 of Hearts Cake: Chocolate cake with shortening frosting (shortening, confectionery sugar, milk, and vanilla)
  • Trump Tarts:  Tiny Cherry Cheesecakes
  • Ice cream with chocolate or red sprinkles

Dessert selection

Linking to: Tip Junkie handmade projects

Posted in Party Planning | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Week 19 TAST Half Chevron Stitch

Posted on May 9, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 19 of TAST is the Half Chevron stitch.

I liked working with the Chevron stitch but did not have fun with the Half Chevron. I think that I did the last part of the stitch wrong because I do not have a continuous line but when I tried it that way I had other problems. I could not find many online resources such as videos for this stitch and it was not in any of my books.

Anyway, I am glad that I was at least able to complete an attempt at this stitch.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 19 TAST Half Chevron Stitch

Armadillo Bento

Posted on May 9, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This is my attempt at using a leftover stuffed shell to make an armadillo. I had to curve the tail to fit in the bento. The armadillo is on a bed of green beans. I used a slivered almond for the ear and piece of dried blueberry for the eye. The armadillo letters are from cheddar cheese.

In keeping with the letter “A”, I also added almonds and apricots.

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 6 Comments

Week 18 TAST Crossed Buttonhole Stitch

Posted on May 7, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 18 of TAST is the Crossed Buttonhole stitch. This was my first time working with the stitch.

Posted in Embroidery | Comments Off on Week 18 TAST Crossed Buttonhole Stitch

Saturn Bento

Posted on April 30, 2012 by eclecticlamb

You need an imagination for this one. My 7 year old nephew and I made this the same day we went to a movie at the planetarium.

Saturn: Clementine

Rings: Nutella bagel sandwich (homemade from bagel dough)

Sky: Wegmans blue tortilla chips (salsa served on the side)

Moon and stars: Cucumber

Sky with stars: Chocolate pudding with sprinkle stars

Linking up at:
Bento Lunch Bento Blog Network

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 3 Comments

Week 17 TAST Wheatear Stitch

Posted on April 26, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 17 of TAST is the Wheatear stitch. This was my first time working with the stitch. I found it enjoyable.

I tried to stitch in a circle on Aida and picked it out. I did not yet try the circle again on a different cloth but I think that Wheatear circles are beautiful.

Posted in Embroidery | 2 Comments

Fruit and Vegetable Themed Bento

Posted on April 24, 2012 by eclecticlamb

This bento was for my 13 year old niece. I decided on a fruit and vegetable theme to use some of the cute items my friend sent me from Japan.

Left: Strawberries and Blackberries

Middle: Salad with cucumber cut outs (fruit and vegetable shapes), Wegmans raspberry vinaigrette in strawberry containers, rice ball with peas and carrots in decorative sleeve

Right: Pistachios and chocolate covered pretzels

Strawberries and Blackberries

Closed bento containers

Rice ball packaging – front (click image for larger view)

Rice ball packaging – back (click image for larger view)


Linking up at:
Bento Lunch

Posted in Bento / Cute Food | 5 Comments

Week 16 TAST French Knots

Posted on April 22, 2012 by eclecticlamb

The stitch for week 16 of TAST is the French Knot. Above is my sampler page for the French Knot.

Below are some French Knot examples I did years ago.

Sheep

Tree

French Knots with Antique Button

Posted in Embroidery | 2 Comments

Zucchini and Cheese Pie with Rice Crust

Posted on April 22, 2012 by eclecticlamb

Zucchini Cheese Pie

I enjoy trying new recipes so I do not have a lot of repeat recipes in a dinner rotation. This Zucchini and Cheese Pie is one recipe that has been in my menu rotation for many years. It is adapted from Cooking Light’s Roasted Vegetable-Cheese Pie. Before I married, I made the recipe as provided by Cooking Light.  Since my husband does not like several ingredients in the original recipe I slightly changed this dish. My current version has only one vegetable (zucchini) and more cheese. It is not as healthy as the original but I recommend both recipes.

Adapted from Cooking Light

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked jasmine, basmati, or long-grain rice
  • 2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
  • 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
  • Cooking spray
  • 2 small zucchini, sliced
  • 1 teaspoon dried basil
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • Freshly grind salt and pepper to taste
  • 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice that melts well)

Directions

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine rice, egg whites and Parmesan cheese. Press evenly into a 9-inch pie plate coated with cooking spray. Bake at 400° for 10 minutes. Remove from oven. Increase oven temperature to 450°.

Combine zucchini, basil, oregano, olive oil, salt  and pepper in a medium bowl; stir to coat. Place zucchini mixture on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until zucchini is tender. Remove zucchini mixture from oven.

Reduce oven temperature to 375°.

Sprinkle half of cheese (2 ounces) over rice crust. Top with vegetable mixture. Sprinkle with remaining half of cheese (2 ounces). Bake at 375° for about 25 – 30 minutes.

I like to serve it with fruit and milk.

Roasted Zucchini

Baked Rice Crust with Cheese

Completed Zucchini and Cheese Pie

Zucchini Cheese Pie

 

Posted in Food | Tagged , | 2 Comments