Foodie Friday-Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread

My kids have been asking me to make some banana bread for a while now.  I think they quit eating the bananas we had at home so I would be forced to make a loaf.  Thinking about banana bread brings to mind all the times my mom made it when I was quite small.  This was really special since (sorry mom) she's not much of a cook.  To me banana bread is a classic comfort foods that tastes so good warm with a bit of butter on it. 

Since I like to try new recipes I went through all my bread pins to see if I had anything pinned that looked good.  Up popped a recipe for Cinnamon Swirl Banana Bread.  Umm what?  Yes please! 

The bread is just as easy to make as regular banana bread.  The cinnamon and sugar kick up the flavor quite a bit making this more of a dessert bread than a snacking bread.  My son actually said it was the best bread he has ever had!

 

 

So if you have a few brown bananas laying around you should give this bread a try.  You won't regret it!

Recipe from Lovin' From the Oven

Shy Girl & Boy

In my previous post I showed you what I got from sheepBlue in our personal swap.  

 

This pair of hooplas are part of what I sent to her.  She had the pattern pinned and I thought I would give it a go.  These are actually much more detailed then what I normally stitch what with all the hair and wrinkles but I love how they turned out.  I also think it's safe to say I have finally mastered the art of the French Knot!  It's actually really easy!

I was very happy to hear that sheepBlue liked these hoops and was happy with the color choices I made!  Always warms my heart a bit when someone enjoys what I have created for them.

The pattern purchased from Sublime Stitching and was stitched up using the back stitch, a straight stitch, and some French knots.

Manic Monday

I received these amazing goodies in a personal swap with the super talented sheepBlue who blogs over at QuirkieCraft

I was super spoiled by her!  She made me this amazing screen printed Doctor Who shirt.

 

A "junk" necklace and earrings

 

And a second screen printed shirt featuring Daryl Dixon from The Walking Dead.

 

Finally something I have been wanting forever!  A silverware windchime!  Love it!!

Foodie Friday-Sesame Noodles

 

We enjoy making homemade lettuce wraps at home but I am sometimes left wanting something else on my plate.  I am not much of a white rice eater so these noodles were a must try.  They came together very quickly and I had just about everything I needed already at home except for the sesame oil. I just subbed in some regular oil and it worked out fine.  The recipe does call for a small amount of Sriracha and you can definitely add more if you prefer things to be a bit spicier.  Our house is split with half thinking the spicier the better and the other half being weenies.  So to be nice I followed the recipe and then just added more Sriracha to my own wraps and noodles. 

If you want to make the lettuce wraps you can try one of the recipes that I have used before or of you are short on time just pick up a bag of lettuce wrap mix in the aisle that sells the Asian food in your local store.  

Recipes:

Lettuce Wraps

Lettuce Wraps 2.0

Sesame Noodles

Skull Swap

I really should try crafting a bit for myself one of these days but I find that I have enough trouble keeping up with all the swaps I join.  On top of my regularly scheduled craziness I swap and swap and swap.  I actually feel somewhat anxious if I don't have something to work on.  

If you know me you know I couldn't resist joining the Skull Swap.  I do love me some skulls.  It's funny how your tastes change as you get older.  10 years ago I am not sure I would have enjoyed all the skully goodness that I love now.  Hopefully, I continue to love skulls since I am now permanently marked with them...

 

So anyway back to the crafts I made for my partner...

First up is an altered wooden tile pendant topped with some Diamond Glaze to give it some dimension, shine, durability.

 

I also made this beaded wrap bracelet.  I thought the little white beads looked like bone and used the tiny red hearts to add a pop of color.  I love these itty bitty skull beads that come in a great variety of colors then finished the whole thing with a 3D rose button.  I need to pick up more of these since this one was the last in my stash.

 

I was going to make my partner a shrine but I had this little cubby sitting around waiting for me to do something with and decided to alter it instead.  I used scrapbook paper and some Paper Cuts I purchased from Retro Cafe Art Gallery.  Honestly, I didn't want to send this away..

 

Finally I stitched up this Day of the Dead skeleton girl.  The pattern is one I purchased from Urban Threads quite some time ago but had never done anything with it.  Must have been saving it for the right person.  

 

I am quite pleased with the package I put together and hope that my partner enjoyed it too!

Manic Monday

The gorgeous goodies I got in the Skull Swap.  My partner said this was the first hoop she has ever stitched but I don't believe her!

Foodie Friday-Oven Baked Fajita's

 

I like most people am busy.  I work full time, have two kids to wrangle, and my mom is very ill.  So I am always running between work, the hospital (or my moms house depending on where she is), and home.  I am stretched pretty thin most days so dinner tends to be the last thing on my mind.  Honestly 5-6 years ago this wouldn't have been a problem since I would have just hit up a drive thru and called it good.  These days I am a bit more educated about what I put in front of my family to eat and what I put in my body.  Now that's not to say that we organic grass fed whatever all the time or that we don't order pizza anymore we just try to make better choices overall.  This is also much cheaper than eating fake food every day....

That being said, quick, easy, and tasty are what I am looking for in a dinner recipe.  This fit the bill.  I love me some chicken fajita's but I HATE using that store bought spice packet to make them.  I have no idea who decided that is what fajita's taste like cause they are WRONG!  This though, this comes pretty close to what you would get in a restaurant and it's so easy to throw together and toss in the oven.  While you may not have all the ingredients in your pantry you can get them at any grocery store along with some tortillas, cheese, and whatever other toppings you like.  The chicken turns out nice and juicy and is very flavorful.  This will definitely be making another appearance on my dinner table!

Recipe from Six Sisters Stuff

Craftster Hoopla Along-May

 

The May theme for the hoopla along was something you geek out over.  Well I am not ashamed to say that I geek out over Harry Potter and now Doctor Who and since my partner in the Random swap is a part of both of these fandoms too I wanted to create something for her that fit into one.  Bonus was being able to have an offering for the hoopla along.

I was Google searching for sayings in Gallifreyan, this is the Time Lord language and Doctor Who is a Time Lord in case you didn't know, and stumbled across this gem.  It has a very popular quote from the Harry Potter books and films spelled out in Gallifreyan. It says "After all this time?" "Always"  ***sigh*** this gets me every time....

So while I do not speak Gallifreyan myself I will have to trust the translation and hope it says what it is supposed to.  I am not too worried though since I don't think many people speak Gallifreyan and regardless it still looks pretty cool.

Manic Monday

 

I received this super cute bunny hoopla in the Dreaming of Spring swap.  Straight from my Pinterest wants!

 

I also got this amazing yarn wrapped wreath in the swap.  Love the grassy look!