Christmas Crafts

Over the past year with not being too well, at times when i've felt OK i've needed to keep myself busy with things that I can enjoy but without causing any more pain or discomfort. Crafts have always been a love of mine but even more so over the past couple of years, and although I'm not a master of any of them, the pure fact of making something myself not only lets out my creative side but it also really chills me out and helps me to relax, who cares if it's not perfect?

With Christmas coming up I decided to make some homemade decorations. The first ones i've made were done with a little help from Hobbycraft. Hobbycraft is like my haven, I could spend hours in that shop, and if my purse would allow it i'd buy the lot! I bought some unfinished wooden shapes to decorate myself. These come in a variety of different christmas themed shapes as well as non christmas shapes.

These don't work out very expensive to make and are much cheaper than buying decorations from a shop. Making them yourself is not just rewarding but it creates a lovely homespun feel to your decorated home. You could even make them for a friend or a relative, I made my sister a few for her new home but I decorated them to match her decor colour scheme.

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Homemade Coleslaw

Today I thought I would share the recipe for a crunchy coleslaw which I made a few days ago. It makes the perfect accompaniment to a meal and goes great with a juicy burger and chips, you could even eat it on its own. Its so quick and easy to make, you can adjust it to your personal tastes and it is much healthier for you than the ones you can buy from the supermarket.

 

1 white cabbage

3 carrots

3 spring onions

3 tbsp of extra light mayonnaise

1 heaped tsp of wholegrain mustard

1 tbsp of lemon juice

salt and pepper

 

Firstly shred the cabbage, then use a peeler to create ribbons of carrot. Finely slice the spring onions and add them all to a mixing bowl. To the mayonnaise mix in the mustard, lemon juice and seasoning to taste. Mix the dressing into the cabbage, carrot and onion and it's ready to eat!
Enjoy x

Homemade Burgers

Yesterday I was writing my blog posts from the garden, making the most of the lovely weather as i'm sure it won't last too long. We were having a BBQ which will probably be the last of this year because i'm sure the bad weather is on it's way very soon. I decided to make homemade burgers instead of buying them. They were not spiced with anything and didn't contain any crazy flavourings, just simple burgers. It's nice knowing what is going into homemade burgers as with shop bought ones you have no idea what goes into them.

I was making quite a few burgers, and also making them quite big so I used 1kg of extra lean mince. To this I added 1 finely diced white onion, breadcrumbs made from 2 slices of bread, 2 beaten eggs, 1 crumbled oxo cube and salt and pepper to taste. Get your hands stuck in and mix it all together. If you find the mixture is a little to wet add some more breadcrumbs. From this mixture I managed to make 13 burgers but they were really big, they could have been halved to make 26 burgers and they would have still been a decent size.

 

I finished my burger with some cheese and crispy prosciutto for a salty kick.

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Homemade beef and ale pie

 

Last week I decided to make my first ever pie. Considering how easy it was to make i'm surprised I hadn't made one before. I decided on a beef pie, but to give it an extra something adding a whole bottle of ale to give it some extra flavour.

 

To start heat a little oil in a pan and lightly fry a whole onion until softened then remove from the pan. After lightly coating my braising beef in some seasoned flour I browned it in the pan. Once browned add the onions back into the pan, add a whole bottle of ale along with 3 beef stock cubes. I only added about half a pint of water to the mix as I like my pie filling quite thick but if you prefer it thinner then simply add some more water. Simmer on a low heat for about an hour until the meat is tender, remebering to stir occasionally. When ready, seperate into individual pie dishes making sure that everyone has a generous portion of beef. Then simply top with the pastry.

 

I cheated and bought Jus-Rol's puff pastry (I won't tell anyone if you won't). After topping my pie dish with the pastry I brushed it with some egg yolk and popped it into the oven. Bake in the oven until crisp and golden. Next time I'm going to try a chicken and mushroom pie in a white wine sauce.

 

It was truly scrumptious, a simple recipe which doesn't contain lots of fancy herbs but who says a tasty meal has to be complicated! A lovely warm and hearty meal.

 

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Homemade Frozen Yogurt

Over the last couple of weeks i've done a couple of posts about some yummy frozen yogurts and sorbets which i've been testing out. I've become a little addicted to them, i'm constantly looking for new flavours or what different brands have on offer. This morning I had the idea to make some of my own. It's so simple, you don't have to be any sort of chef to put this one together! I simply blended a pot of low fat natural yogurt with a punnet of frozen berries and added a tablespoon of sugar. Pour the mixture into a container and freeze. I thought it was gorgeous, really refreshing and the fact that it was homemade and so easy to make made it even more appealing. I'll definitely be making this again and testing out some different flavours!



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Homemade Spicy Tomato Soup

Today I thought I'd share the recipe for a yummy soup I made recently, It doesn't look the most appetising but what soup does? It's a yummy tomato soup, but with a fiery kick.

Ingredients:
1 x Tbsp Olive oil
2 x Cans of chopped tin tomatoes
1 x Yellow pepper (diced)
3 x Carrots (diced)
1 x Onion (diced)
1 x tsp Tomato puree
1 x tsp Garlic puree
1 x tsp mild chilli powder
1 x Vegetable stock cube
Water
Season to taste

Heat the oil in the pan with the garlic puree, then add the carrots, onion and yellow pepper, cook for about 5 minutes. Once softened add the chilli powder, tomato puree, tin tomatoes and stock cube. Add salt/pepper if you wish. Add water depending on how thin you like your soup.

Blend the soup, and enjoy.
If you prefer your soup thinner add more water or put through a sieve.

Enjoy x 

Blueberry & Apple Jam

Due to a busy week I haven't been able to blog as much as I would have liked. Over the last year I have had a real interest in all different sorts of arts and crafts, just making things really.
Today I thought I would share the simple recipe for a yummy jam which I made last week.

                                                      Blueberry & Apple Jam
- A punnet of Blueberries.
- An Apple , peeled, cored and chopped finely (I used Golden Delicious).
- 5 heaped tablespoons of Sugar.
- Juice of 1 Lemon.

Add the apple, blueberries, lemon juice and sugar to a heavy bottomed saucepan, bring to the boil and them simmer for about 10 minutes. Slightly crush the berries whilst they are cooking, Once it has thickened and started to set pour into a jar/container and then once cooled put the lid on and refridgerate.

It is really simple to make, and really yummy on a piece of toast!
Enjoy
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Homemade Scented Bags

Today I have been looking up those little scented hanging bags/hearts which you can hang around the house or put into drawers or wardrobes to make them smell nice. I guessed they wouldn't be that cheap but was quite surprised to see some of them costing £10, and that was just for one! Most of them averaged around £7/8 each.

Wanting to save money as everyone does, I decided to make my own. Making them your self can save a lot of money, they'll only cost you a fraction of the price or if you have everything you need already lying around the house somewhere then it will cost you absolutely nothing!

All you need to make them is:
- Old material/bed sheet/flannel
- Fragrance oil
- An old pillow's stuffing.
- Sewing needle
- Sewing thread
- Scissors

To make my first one I used an old flannel, from just one flannel you could make about 3 regular ones or about 5/6 minature ones.

• Firstly I cut a third off of the flannel (or whatever size you'd like but doubled), this should be folded in half. (fold it so that the outside of the material is on the inside, this may not matter depending on what material you are using).
• Secondly you need to put your thread through your needle, remember to tie a not at the end of the thread.
• Now sew the 2 longest sides leaving a gap at the top.
• Once you have an empty pouch, get your pillow stuffing, sprinkle a few drops of your favourite fragrance oil, (I used lavender) then gently stuff it inside your pouch.
• To complete your scented bag, sew together the top of the pouch.
• You now have your completed scented bag, this can be put into drawers or cupboards to make them smell lovely. If you would like to make it a hanging bag, simply use some of the excess material, make a loop and sew it to the top of your bag.

For my first attempt I have just made a simple one using a plain white flannel with blue stitching but there are endless possibilites to what you could make, using coloured materials, stitching buttons on or shaping them as hearts would make very pretty and beautifully smelling hanging decorations for the home. All in all these are a fantastic bargain,cheap, easy and fun to make!
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Homemade Bath Bombs

Today I have been experimenting with making my own bath bombs, after finding recipes on the net I decided to gather the ingredients and try to make them myself.

The things you need to make the bath bombs are:
- 2 Parts Bicarbonate of soda
- 1 Part Cream of Tartar
- Fragrance oil of personal choice
- Witch hazel
- Food Colouring
- Moulds ( I used silicone cases which you buy for cupcakes)

First of all you need to blend the bicarbonate of soda and the cream of tartar together so they are completely blended together.

Then add a few drops of your favourite fragrance oil to the mix, blending in fully. I used lavender oil.

Then a couple of drops of the colouring, this will have a little reaction with the powder mixture, just be sure to blend it in until the powder is completely coloured. Do not add too much colouring as the colour will intensify when the witch hazel is added.

Next add the witch hazel, either through a spritz bottle or by just adding a small amount at a time and blending thoroughly. You want the mixture to be able to mould and hold it's shape but not be too wet. A bit like a sandcastle, you need enough witch hazel so that it doesn't fall down but not too much that it's soggy.

Once the mixture is ready, put it into your moulds for about 4-6 hours until it has fully set. You can then take it out of the mould.

For a first attempt I don't think it went too bad, but the proof was in the bathing. Once they were full set I decided to run myself a nice warm bath and test them. The outcome was good but I think I need to tweak with the measurements slightly to make them even better. Once they have infused with the water the smell of the fragrance which in my case was lavender was lovely. It's a nice and relaxing aroma to have whilst bathing.
I am definitely not calling myself a pro on these and they may not be perfect but I have definitely caught the bug for making them, I'm already excited about making more, testing out different shapes, colours, fragrances and maybe even with some dried flowers incorporated into the mix!

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