Flour Sack Towels

I just finished embroidering this set of owl dish towels. There are seven in the set, each belonging to a day of the week. I ordered a bunch of different hot iron transfers online. Aunt Martha's are my favorite, because she has such a wide variety and they are all so old fashioned. Bundle them up with some baker's string and you have yourself a perfect hostess or shower gift.

Spicy Cheese Crisps

These spicy cheese crisps are a perfect marriage of a cracker and a cookie. They're butter and salt all in one bite. A friend gave me the recipe years ago, and I love to bake them for parties because they're always a crowd pleaser. Yesterday I took them to a birthday party. The cayenne pepper gives them a little kick, you can adjust the amount you add depending on how spicy you want them.

Ingredients:

1 cup flour

3/4 tspn salt

1/4 tspn cayenne pepper

8 oz grated cheddar cheese

1/2 cup softened butter

In a medium bowl mix flour, salt, and cayenne pepper together. Add cheese and butter. Work with hands until dough forms. Transfer to wax paper, form a 1 1/2 inch log, and rollup. Refrigerate for 2 hours. Preheat oven to 400. Slice 1/4 inch thick, arrange 1 inch apart and bake for about 15 minutes.

My Latest Obsession = Vintage Typewriters

Look what arrived in the mail yesterday! I found this 1950's Super Smith-Corona Typewriter on Ebay. I cant wait to start typing letters to friends and family the old-fashioned way.

Shrimp Po' Boys

I made these Po' Boys last night for dinner, adapted from a recipe I found in Cooking Light. For a side dish I prepared a crunchy coleslaw which complimented the sandwiches nicely. I'll definitely be making this meal again. It would be perfect for a picnic. Also, I love to say "Po' Boy", it makes me smile for some reason!

Ingredients (serves 2)

1/4 cup reduced fat mayo

1/2 shallot, chopped

1 teaspoon capers

1 tablespoon spicy cocktail sauce

1/2 pound peeled and deveined shrimp

1 tablespoon Cajun seasoning

2 demi baguettes

romaine lettuce

1 tomato, sliced

Whisk the mayo, shallot, capers, and coctail sauce in a small bowl. Combine the shrimp and Cajun seasoning in another bowl. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Drizzle olive oil in the pan and swirl to coat. Cook the shrimp for about 2 minutes on each side, or until done. Slice and scoop your baguettes (it leaves more room for the shrimp). Spread each sandwich with the mayo mixture and pile shrimp, lettuce, and tomotoes on top.

For the coleslaw:

Combine 2 cups shredded green cabbage and 1 shredded carrot. In a small bowl whisk together 2 tablespoons reduced-fat mayo and 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar. Dress the veggies and toss well.

Dahlias

I picked up these Dahlias on my way home from work tonight. The vase is an old cigar tin that my husband and I found at an antique store in upstate New York. I love how geometric these flowers are.

And for dessert....

I decided to bake a peach and blueberry cobbler. This recipe is super easy and requires little prep. It serves 4.

Ingredients:

Filling:

15 ounces blueberries

2 medium peaches, peeled and sliced

cooking spray

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 heaping tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons lemon juice

pinch of salt

Topping:

1 cup flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces

1/2 cup half-and-half

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a pie dish with cooking spray. Toss the filling ingredients gently in the pie dish. In another bowl, combine flour, sugar, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt. Cut butter into flour mixture with two knives. Add half-and-half and knead until the dough is moist. Drop dough by spoonfuls onto the fruit mixture. Bake for 50 minutes. Let stand 10 minutes, and serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Mini Parmesan Toasts

In lieu of serving my gazpacho with croutons tonight, I decided to make these crispy parmesan toasts.

Ingredients:

1 baguette

extra virgin olive oil

kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

freshly shredded parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400. Thinly slice the baguette and spread on baking sheet. Drizzle bread with olive oil, then sprinkle salt, pepper, and cheese on top. Bake for 15 minutes, or until toasts are brown and crispy.