Fettuccine Mona Lisa

Two weeks ago my Mum and I had a lovely lunch at Fasta Pasta (I was craving sundried tomatoes).  I haven't been there for awhile and I forgot how lovely their pasta is.

We both ordered the dish Fettuccine Mona Lisa (sauteed bacon, sundried tomatoes, pine nuts, baby spinach, basil, garlic and a hint of chilli in a light cream and napoli sauce) which was just what I wanted and while we were chatting over our meal I realised that I could make my own version of this at home! Yeah!!!!

So the following week while doing the usual grocery shopping I picked up a tube of  Latina Fresh Spicy Bacon and Tomatoe sauce.  I already had fettuccine, pinenuts, cream and a jar of sundried tomatoes at home.

All I had to do now was cook enough fettuccine for 2 people, then with the sauce, instead of reheating it in the microwave as per instructions, I put it into a small pan along with the sundried tomatoes, dash of cream and pine nuts so that they would all heat through and the pine nuts would soften.

Then add to the fettuccine and tada!!! you have your very own version of Fettuccine Mona Lisa!!  (Don't worry Fasta Pasta I will still dine in from time to time).

mmm would be nice with a glass of Cab Merlot!!!

So yummy!! next time I will remember to add some baby spinach.

Happy Cooking!!!!

February Giveaway at Retro Mummy!!!!!

Corrie at Retro Mummy is having a giveaway.  You could be the winner of a Hunky Dory honey bun and a selection of 1/2 metre pieces from the hunky dory range as well as some quilters muslin in pink and white.

All you need to do to enter is leave a comment! Oh and if you haven't already checkout her wonderful blog!

Good luck!!!

The Fabric Jungle Challenge

Recently The Fabric Jungle   put out a creative recycling challenge and I have had a skirt that I was going to make into a dress for my 3 year old for over 4 months now so I decided to take up the challenge as well as make it into a tutorial as well.

I bought this skirt at the local charity shop for 2 dollars and what I like about it is that the zip is at the side so I only have to make any adjust on one side.

So the first thing to do was to put the skirt on my daughter and mark where to cut the skirt so it will fit around her chest.

Then using my taylor's chalk and ruler I marked where to cut the dress (the off cut will be used to make the straps).

Now pin and sew on the marked line.

Cut of the excess material for the straps.  If you do not have a overlocker or a sewing machine that has a zigzag stitch you might like to use a pair of pinking shears to cut off the excess material.

To finish the cut seam I actually used my overedge foot on my sewing machine to stop the material from fraying.  And please forgive the sewing as this is the first time I have used this foot (which is embarrassing as I have had this machine for over 4 years now).



Overedge Foot

Overcasting using the zigzag stitch with the
Overedge foot.



Now for the straps.  First I put the dress back on my daughter to make sure that it fits, then I marked where to place the straps.



Strap placement



With the off cut material from the dress, I folded it in half and pressed it flat and using my sewing and knitting gauge ruler I marked the width of the straps.  I chose to make them 1 1/2 inches wide.


Stitch along the marked line and cut off the excess material.  It is up to you if you would like to finish the edges off for fraying but I did not bother as you will not see it.

Turn the straps the right way out.  I used a large knitting needle to do this.

Iron flat making sure that the seam is in the middle of the strap so it will not be seen after sewing.

At each open end I decided to use an overcasting stitch again but you can turn the material inwards and sew a straight stitch.

(Just a quick note, I did measure the length that I needed the straps to be but unfortunately I didn't have enough material to make the length that I wanted so after pressing I cut the straps exactly in half.)

Now to just pin and sew the straps to the dress.

And here you have it:

This skirt was the perfect length for my daughter so I did not need to touch the hem of the skirt but of course if you have a skirt that is too long you will need to measure from the chest down to where you wish the skirt to be and redo the hem.

And here is my happy girl with her new dress.  I added 2 red heart buttons to the bottom of the straps as I loved the red buttons that appear above the zipper on the side.



Oh dear! look at that hair!!!

Happy Sewing!!!!

Baby Number 3

I have been blessed with having another baby due in June and as my girl's are turning 4 and 5 this year and I have given a lot of my baby stuff away, I have been looking at a lot of things that I now need and the things that I didn't have with the girl's that I wish I did have.

And as baby number 3 means that I am going to be a stay at home mum a few more years and I follow a few work at home mum's via blogs and Facebooks, I thought why not me too.

So I have been running around town with my measuring tape and have been scribbling in my note book a few ideas.

So in the coming months, please watch this space to see what I will be up too!!!!!!

Have a great day!!!!!

Tandoori Wraps with a little twist

I was watching a cooking show on one of our local channel's (Alive and Living I think the show was called) and the chef made these yummy Tandoori Chicken Wraps with chicken breasts that he minced, and were baked in the oven, YUM!!

So when doing the weekly grocery shopping I came across a Tandoori Wrap Kit that had everything I needed and all I had to do was add the chicken mince and baby spinach.

Tandoori Chicken Wraps

Ingredients:

1 Tandoori Chicken Wrap Kit

500gm chicken mince

handful of baby spinach

grated cheese

or if you cannot find a Tandoori Chicken Wrap Kit

8 pack of tortilla wraps

500gm chicken mince

2 tablespoons of tandoori paste

handful of baby spinach

grated cheese

To make:

Pre heat your oven to 180 degrees.  In a bowl mix the tandoori paste/seasoning together with your chicken mince.  Next blanch your baby spinach for a couple of seconds to wilt then mix together with the chicken and tandoori mix.

Then grab a tortilla wrap and place a couple of tablespoons of the chicken mix in the middle, roll and place in a baking dish or tray.  Make as many or as little as you like, top with grated cheese and bake in your oven for 25 mins.

Then serve with your choice of salad.  Yummy!!!!!!

The kit also comes with seasoning that you mix with sour cream.  If you cannot get the kit then serve with tzatziki sauce/dip.  And if you don't like tandoori why not experiment.  I'm going to try it with sun dried tomatoes next time.

Mmmmm they reminded me of those chicken strudels that you can buy at Lenard's Chicken. 

Happy cooking !!!!!

Handmade Gift

Everyone loves a handmade gift, I know I do.  It makes you feel like that person has put a lot of thought and a lot of love into the gift.  So when my Mum said that she would like to learn how to crochet and her birthday was coming up, I thought why not make a lovely bag and fill it with what she needs to crochet.

I love crocheting, I find it relaxing and I have been crocheting since I was around 10 yrs old.  When I'm working on a project, I like to keep everything I need in one bag so I don't have to keep getting up and looking for anything and plus it keeps my wool clean from dust or hair that it might pick up.  Plus I can grab the bag on the go and take my crocheting with me if I'm going somewhere like the doctors or the hospital for a checkup and have to wait for ages.

So to make the bag I found a pretty Magpie and Plum Blossom fat quarter I had purchased from Etsy a while ago and a matching red poplin to line the inside.  The fat quarter measured 18 inch x 21 inches (45.7 cm x 53.3 cm) so I cut it in half  (22.85 cm x 26.65 cm) and did the same for the red poplin.

Next I folded the material in half with right sides facing each other and sewed 3 sides leaving an opening for the top of the bag.  Now you should have to pockets.

Now to sew the pockets together.  I placed the magpie and plum blossom pouch inside the red lining (sorry for some reason I haven't taken any photo's of this part) along with some pink ribbon for the handles and sewed them both together leaving a gap so that I could pull them through so that they were facing out the right way and then hand sewed the hole shut.

And now it's done, now just to fill it with goodies.  Some red and pink wool to match the bag along with a variety of crochet hooks.

So this got me in the mood for crocheting and as my nephew's birthday is on the same day as my Mum I decided to make a vest and matching boots for his 1st birthday!



Do you have a family or friends birthday coming up, if so why not make them something special!

Happy Sewing!!!!

Homemade Pizza

Homemade pizza is the best I reckon especially as you can put on it whatever your hearts desire.  My husband and I like a thin base too so when making your own you make your base as thick or thin as you want too.

A very good friend of mine shared here pizza base with all her friends on Facebooks so after giving it a try, this is the only way we make our pizza bases now.

And here is the recipe:

Tracey's Pizza Base

2 Cups Plain Flour (or pizza/bread flour)

8g Satchel Dry Yeast

1 Tsp Caster Sugar

1/2 Tsp Salt

1/2 Tbsp Olive Oil

3/4 Cup Warm Water

Method

1. Mix all dry ingredients then add oil and water.  Mix to a soft dough.
2. Knead on floured surface till soft and pliable
3. Put back in bowl and cover with cling wrap.  Put in a warm place for 30 mins or till it double's in size.
4. When doubled, punch once to get air out.
5. Remove from bowl and knead gently for 1 minute
6. Roll to desired thickness and size and add sauce and your choice of toppings.
7. Place in oven for 20-30 mins at 200c

I find that as I like a thin base there is enough dough for my two little girl's to make their own pizza.

MMMM guess what we are having for dinner!!!

Enjoy!!!!