Art in My World

These biscuits are from a cookbook I found at Costco: Clean Eating With a Dirty Mind by Vanessa Barajas.  Every recipe I have tried in this book has been scrumptious and Paleo-Friendly.  Because of the starches she adds to this recipe, it is not SCD complient, but if you are symptom free, you probably could eat these and not be bothered.  Since maple sugar can be expensive I made it from maple syrup using a simple recipe in this book.  Also, I keep a large roll of parchment paper h2andy for the many recipes that require it. Try these, they are flaky, buttery and nutty. 2 cups sifted fine-ground almond flour 1/4 cup potato starch 1 tablespoon maple sugar (or an additional tablespoon of honey) 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon sea salt 8 tablespoons cold butter; cubed 1 large egg 1 tablespoon raw honey 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 1/4 cup arrowroot flour for dusting 1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Line a baki...

 My husband loves apple turnovers for breakfast.  If  I don't provide him something sweet, he will go to a gas station and pick up something filled will chemicals and preservatives.  So I saw this recipe in a magazine while shopping for food and gave it a try today.  With a bread machine, it came together quite easily.  My hubby will be pleased for days and days! 3/4 cup milk 1 egg slightly beaten 1/4 cup butter, melted 2 Tbsp. granulated sugar 1/2 tsp. salt 3 cups all purpose flour 2 tsp. active dry yeast The best way to combine the above ingredients is in the order listed into a bread machine pan.  Use the dough setting to mix dough, then allow to sit in bread machine pan until doubled in size.  This is quick and easy, but if you don't have a bread machine, you can follow the directions below. 1.  In a small saucepan heat milk just until warm (105°F to 115°F). In a large bowl combine warm milk and yeast; stir until yeast is di...

I am in love with shawls and find their delicate beauty addictive.  This three paneled shawl used a wool and silk blend sock yarn.  It has a unique collar section and the three panels, instead of the normal two, help this shawl sit nicely on the shoulders.   This Shaw comes from the following book: The pattern I used is called The Sparrow Sock-Yarn Shawls II

I thought this idea looked interesting, brought to you from the Cultures for Health website.  I haven't tried it yet, but thought it might be something to try, for all those coffee lovers out there.  Let me know if any of you try it. Kombucha coffee provides an alternative both to your regular kombucha and your morning coffee. When using a scoby to make kombucha coffee, there are some special considerations to keep in mind... Special Considerations When Making Kombucha Coffee: Coffee is very acidic, therefore starter kombucha tea or vinegar is not required  Use a spare kombucha culture. Once a culture is used to make kombucha coffee, it should not be used to brew batches of kombucha tea. Because coffee contains oils, it is possible for rancidity to occur. Watch your batch closely and limit fermentation time to only what is necessary to achieve the desired taste. Never consume any kombucha that looks, tastes or smel...

Linda Kemp wrote a book on negative painting called: Painting Outside the Lines. It is a good selection of techniques and examples of her paintings that will inspire anyone who wants to add negative painting to their paintings. I have a hard time painting around objects. It takes a little forethought, planning and patience, but the results are just...nice. I hope to take some time and incorporate this more in my paintings, if only in just a small section, like the foreground grasses or distant trees. Instead of painting the grasses, you bring them out by painting around the blades. Instead of painting the trees, you create them by painting around them, and you do this in layers to create depth.  That is painting: a skill here, a brush stroke there, a bold color wash.... Painting Outside the Lines  

There was this cabin in the woods, that I have tried and tried to paint. It was tucked in front of all this bright light and shadows. There were oranges, yellows,  and reds all over. I never thought it would be so hard to capture all of this on white paper with color and water.  At the bottom of the post is the picture of what was there. The funny thing is the picture doesn't quite capture it, and the paintings do not either. But then paintings are not meant to be exact copies, that is not art. Art is shapes and colors and brushwork all put together in a such a way that it brings glory to the God who created it all. Now that is the a tall order to fill...

The first grand-baby  is only a couple of weeks away from entering into this world. I have been spending a little of my time learning how to knit booties and mittens and hats and my first sweater! I continue to love knitting. There is something very soothing working stitch after stitch and watching the pattern progress. I love working with the colorful wool, live wool. I can feel the difference in the garment when I work with wool as compared to acrylic. It sounds weird, but the garments seem dead-like when I use man-made yarns. The website WEBS has become my new best friend when it comes to finding something pretty and alive to work with. Now that I got my first sweater out of the way, albeit a small one, I can't wait to create one for me. There is a course I want to finish, one I found on Craftsy that teaches about how to knit and fit a sweater to a particular person. After that course, I will put my hand to creating a sweater for me...well, after a few more projects. Probably ...