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Taste Test Tuesday — Hummus 3 ways

By KariV on October 8, 2013 in Cooking Light, Taste Test Tuesday

Taste Test Tuesday is back! Starting with a fun experiment with hummus.
I have never made hummus before, but I’ve always wanted to. Luckily, the famous (infamous?) Casey Conrad (fitness and health guru) was here for a few days and she whipped up a batch of hummus! She divided it into thirds, added garlic to one part, spinach to another and shredded BEETS to another!

Just look at that bright pink color! I love beets in my Hot Pink Breakfast Drink so I thought it sounded perfectly reasonable to add it to some hummus. 🙂

Now, a quick note on the Sesame Tahini that is required to make hummus. I always thought it came in a squeezable tube…which is perhaps why I haven’t been able to FIND it in the store. It actually comes in an orange and brown can with a lid. Casey instructed me to look near the jam at the health food store, and sure enough, that’s right where I found it!

Hummus is surprisingly easy to make with a food processor. Just throw the basic ingredients in (garbanzo beans, tahini, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt), mix it up, add your flavor choices and VOILA! Homemade Hummus. As I work out my favorite hummus recipe, I will be back to share it with you!

And now for the taste test RESULTS:
it was completely divided! Some liked the spinach the best, some liked beets, and some liked the garlic! I personally, liked them all, but I have to say the garlic won me over.

So try adding some different veggies to your next batch of hummus and let me know if YOU find a winner.

Do you have a favorite hummus recipe? Let me know in the comments below.

Be sure to come back this week, when I will share a Gluten-Free & Vegetarian Chocolate Cake that is actually delicious! Casey taught me just how to make it…and you will be surprised at one of the main ingredients!

Until then,

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Dose of Sunshine Monday — Good Timber

By KariV on October 7, 2013 in Inspiration

Let’s talk about adversity. Everyone has it at sometime in their life, right? It has been said that adversity makes us stronger…it shapes us into the glorious person we ultimately can be! Do you agree?

This weekend we got a nice reminder of enduring our trials and coping with adversity in General Conference, a world-wide church conference which is televised twice a year. I created a sketch/watercolor to share with you today:

Thomas Monson was actually quoting a poem

by Douglas Malloch

The tree that never had to fight
For sun and sky and air and light,
But stood out in the open plain
And always got its share of rain,
Never became a forest king
But lived and died a scrubby thing.

The man who never had to toil
To gain and farm his patch of soil,
Who never had to win his share
Of sun and sky and light and air,
Never became a manly man
But lived and died as he began.

Good timber does not grow with ease:
The stronger wind, the stronger trees;
The further sky, the greater length;
The more the storm, the more the strength.
By sun and cold, by rain and snow,
In trees and men good timbers grow.

Where thickest lies the forest growth,
We find the patriarchs of both.
And they hold counsel with the stars
Whose broken branches show the scars
Of many winds and much of strife.
This is the common law of life.

_____
That is the complete poem; now that I shared it with you, see if you can find my mistake in my sketch. Sigh.

So if you are facing a trial, think about strength; think about reaching sun and sky and light and air; think about holding counsel with the stars. Someday. When you have conquered and made it through!

I hope these images brought a smile to you today! Have a wonderful week.

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You Make My Life Brighter Card

By KariV on October 6, 2013 in Paper Crafting

Today is my Paper Smooches card challenge! This stamp set called “Happy Bugs” is just so fun. I picked the Firefly (lightening bug) for this card and made each one a different color.

My husband and I were traveling back East a few years ago, and we saw a bunch of fireflies one night. We each thought they were different colors: I thought they were GREEN-ish, he thought they were ORANGE-ish, and we both thought some were YELLOW. So this card is a little joke, with each firefly a different color!

Each little firefly is in it’s own little circle I punched out to reveal the fun polka-dot green background. I used Inktense pencils to give each one their own little color personality, and I painted the wings with Liquid Pearls in white opal.

Then I added a gold heat embossed sentiment and 3 different color hearts (glittered)! You may not be able to tell in these pictures, but their little “light glow” is also glittered.

A little yellow twine finishes off the top of the card. I love how this card turned out.
But can you answer me one question: What color ARE fireflies?

Joining the Paper Smooches challenge here. And the Simon Says Stamp “Going Dotty” challenge here.

Supplies used:
Paper: Me & My Big Ideas green polka dot
Stamps: Paper Smooches Happy Bugs
Twine: American Crafts
Other: Inktense Pencils, Stickles, Liquid Pearls White Opal

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What I’m Looking for is a Blessing Not in Disguise

By KariV on October 5, 2013 in Paper Crafting

Did you know it’s World Card Making Day!? So this weekend I’ve been working on a few cards to share.
I got this stamp a while ago at Michael’s and it just made me laugh, so I had to get it! This card will go to my Dad, who I know will appreciate it.

That embossing folder looks like a metal tool box to me…looks manly, right? And I used some metal “rivets” in the corners.

The sentiment itself I heat embossed with silver to really make it pop.

This ought to put a smile on his face. Happy World Card Making Day!

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Gluten Free Peanut Butter cookies

By KariV on October 3, 2013 in Dessert, Recipes

My co-worker moved away, but she left me the Best. Present. Ever: This recipe for Gluten-Free Peanut Butter cookies! (Thank you, Kait!)

Now don’t let “gluten-free” scare you away. These are the best gluten free cookies I have EVER tasted! And they are easy to make. (Bonus)! Add a drizzle of chocolate on top, and these are a true winning cookie!

A little chocolate, a little peanut butter! Yes, these will be a WINNER at my house.

Here’s what you do: Mix together the peanut butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla with a spoon. Then toss in your “add-in” flavor of choice (full recipe at the end of this post). Bake. Drizzle. Eat. YUM!

We tried white chocolate chips in some of our cookies and marshmallows in others. Here’s the trick: if you add marshmallows, wrap the dough around them before baking.

Also, you want to flatten them just a little with the palm of your hand before baking.

Then, when you take them out of the oven, allow them to cool a bit before you drizzle the melted chocolate. I microwaved the chocolate in a baggie for about 30 seconds, smooshed it around and microwaved it another 30 seconds. It doesn’t take long. Then, snip of a tiny corner of the bag.

These are the cookies just out of the oven. Notice those ones with the marshmallows in them on the left? The marshmallows do try to escape!

That combination of peanut butter and a little chocolate…oh, wow! You will love these little cookies…and you may not even miss the flour!

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We all decided that even though the marshmallow cookies were a little messier, we liked those better than the white chocolate chip ones. But they are all delicious! Which ones would win at your house?

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