PROJECT 20- MAKING STRAWBERRY LIQUEER!

Who says a pastors wife can not make liqueur!

I had half a bottle brandy deep down in a cupboard after making a Christmas cake some time ago.  After harvesting lots of strawberries during spring, I paged through all my books to get recipes and ideas to use it!  We are still eating frozen strawberries with our oats in the morning.....I cooked strawberry jam.....we've eaten bowls full of fresh strawberries......I've given away......then I got this recipe and I remembered the long forgotten brandy...........

Use firm, fresh strawberries.

You will need 250g strawberries, 200g white sugar, 125ml water and 500ml brandy......

Halve the strawberries and place in a sterilised bottle.  

Heat the sugar and water and stir until all the sugar dissolve. Cook the syrup for 5 minutes. Pour the syrup and the brandy over the strawberries, seal and shake lightly.

Keep in a dark place for at least 2 weeks.  Remove the strawberries by using a muslin cloth.  Bottle the filtrate and keep the strawberries in the fridge.

I used the strawberries in a muffin recipe!

Recipe came from "lekker vir later" by Annette Human....and I did not change this one as it was a first and I did not feel very adventurous!  Maybe you can use different berries.......

Project 19......a good salad dressing....

The boys never ate salad dressings until I started making this home made one.  One day the one told me tat he likes the green sauce in the fridge and use it on his eggs!  I tried it that way....delicious!

recipe.....

handful spring onions

1 clove of garlic

60 ml white vinegar

30 ml fresh parsley/thyme(or whatever in season)

200 ml olive oil

30 ml lemon juice

5 ml whole grain mustard

1 ml salt

freshly grounded black pepper

chop the spring onions & garlic in food processor until fine, then add rest of ingredients and mix for a while....allow 2 hours to stand before using it....

You can keep this in the fridge for quite some time 

PROJECT 18-MAKING LAVENDER CANDLES

I am sure you noticed by now it is lavender season in the sunny South Africa!

I saw these candles in a magazine some time ago, and had to try them.  I was wondering if they really smell of lavender when they burn, and they do! 

Well, well, well.....the dinosaur is around again.....I lost the end products photo and searched for half an hour now!  Let me tell you what I've done.....will look for the snap later or do a new one!

I have melted plain white candles in an old coffee tin.  Beware this can be very hot!  In the meanwhile I used a piece of string, taped it to the bottom of my mold, and secured it to a sosatie-stick at the top.  This is just to prevent it from going back into the wax when you pour it.

When the wax was melted, I added a few drops of lavender oil and a handful of fresh lavender flowers.  I used a silicone muffin mould.  Pour the liquid into the mould and allow it to set for at least 6 hours before removing it. 

project 17 -----------------making a patchwork quilt

This is my long term project........I am almost to scared to mention it......I hope to finish it this year!

I started making this quilt a couple of years ago, and it never came passed the 50x50cm size!  I recently decided that I have to finish it.  I placed it in front of the TV and now spend half an hour on week nights on this whilst watching my only soap!  You will be surprised how quick it grows!  It is now the size of 3/4 of a single bed!

My middle son came to ask me the other night ''and what was this?''. "Grandmas apron when we were kids" I replied. "And this?''.  " A dress grandma made me that we had a fight about because I did not like the material".  "And this one?".  "My matric dance dress". "Cool" he said.  Then I thought "pretty cool" and decided that this could lead to many conversations once finished, so here it is..... I will keep you updated on how it is going!  

I have cut hexagons with a diameter of 10cm and hand sewn every piece.  What a mission!

PROJECT 16 - MAKING A GIFT BOX

I am the self crowned queen/master of recycling!

Living on a smallholding we have to take all our waste to the rubbish dumps ourselves.  So you learn to recycle if you do not want to go to the dumps too often!  I have a compost heap for the peels, tins are washed and used as planters, containers to wash paint brushes or any other thing that needs something hollow!  The bread crusts go to the animals, eggshells into the garden, bottles used for jams and pickles, name it, I recycle!

Well, I started making these handy gift boxes with cereal boxes! 

I first cut the open flaps at the top off.  I then painted the whole box with a cream base coat to cover all the writing.  Sometimes a second layer is needed.  I then roughly paint the box in a colour I want to use-in this case green, as it goes well with the cows.  I then decoupaged pictures of cows to both sides of the box.  Punch two holes at the top on both sides to string your handles through.  I used red gingham material.  i tied a knot at the inside on both sides to prevent it  from slipping through.  If you want to use it for heavier items, you can tape it on the inside.  For the cows I used old pieces of chicken wire and glue gunned it on one side of the box over the cow to give it a farmy feeling.

With a piece of cellophane or tissue paper inside this makes quite a unique gift box, and you can be sure your won't be the same than anyone else's.

Use your imagination and use whatever you have lying around.     

hallo there..........

I am exhausted! We had a very busy week!  Our church had a youth camp this past weekend, and it was very tiring!  It was fun though!  I saw teenagers disgusted eating chicken livers, chicken feet and hearts! One boy came to the conclusion that 'everything on a chicken taste the same'!  At the end the grown-ups were tired, but the youth fired up! Tonight we had three extra youngsters joining our regular home cell! Isn't that a blessing?

Well, with all the excitement there was not a lot of time to do much around the house!  On Wednesday I made a bird feeder and pinched my finger with the pliers until it had a painful blood filled blister.  And then the feeder was so kitch that I did not even want to show it to you!  It is hanging in the tree though, and the wild birds are enjoying the seeds inside.  I am sure they don't mind what the feeder looks like.  My son however said I must just wait for his friends to leave before I hang the 'thing' in the tree!

I am secretly starting to understand why my sons are convinced that I am not only technologically impaired, but totally retarded!  I switched from taking photos with the big camera(just after I managed to change the lenses myself!) to my cellphone as it was easier to download the pictures!  Now I can not find my pictures tonight!  I all of a sudden have a whole volume of 'Modern Talkings' music on my phone!  Must have uploaded/downloaded the wrong thing!

Well this dinosaur has a lot to do and the days are ticking!

Enjoy your day!

Sandra
xxxxx

PROJECT 15...LAVENDER SUGAR

Now this is real easy to make!

Place about a cup of sugar in a bowl with about four lavender flower sprigs. Cover with gladwrap and microwave for 2 minutes on defrost.  Remove from microwave and allow to cool.  You can now remove the flowers, but I store it with the flowers as I love the smell and taste.

Use in fruit salads or when you bake biscuits.