Heidi's picks for top ten blogs of 2008

I've learned so much from the blogosphere this year. I'm always on the look out for new recipes, great photography and crafty ideas. I've come across some great blogs this year, each an inspiration for my own blog. So here's a big 2008 thank you to those great blogs.

Let the countdown begin.

10. Indie Fixx

This blog contains great tips for music, arts, crafts and interior design. It's updated by guest bloggers frequently. It links out to other craft blogs, so it's always full of new ideas.

9. made by michelle brusegaard

This Minneapolis artist recently quit her job to devote herself to her growing design business. Her blog is entertaining, even if it's not updated very frequently. Hey, she's a busy girl. Her Etsy site is fabulous. Michelle's custom-made stationary is a great gift for those people on your list who seem to have everything. Her work has been featured on my No. 1 pick (see below) several times, and according to her latest post, will be moving to Fargo this summer!

These handmade cards will only set you back 5 bucks.

8. David Lebovitz

I will never achieve this level of culinary skill, but it's fun to read each week. Not only does he make ridiculously awesome food, but he's a great writer. I've never actually tried to make any of his dishes, but I read the blog religiously and usually chuckle aloud at an entry or two. His food photos are eye candy:

Maybe I'll actually try this recipe for candied ginger.

7. bugheart

She's got great style and great art. If only a could knit like this girlie. I also enjoy her photography side project, trinoculars, with her brothers. They are three very talented siblings.

6. angry chicken
This hip mom cooks, sews, crafts and shops. Her recipes never steer you wrong; they're easy to follow and taste amazing. I wish I had more time to try all of the stuff she manages to get done. I'd really like to try this sweater conversion craft. Pure genius.

This cute cardigan started out a v-neck pullover sweater.

5. wikstenmade
I asked for (and received) a sewing machine for Christmas this year because of this blog. Her fashions are out of my price range, but someday I'll own one of her awesome shifts. I'm sure I'll mess up a creation or two while trying to whip up a few of my own.

This scarf is on my Christmas list for next year.

4. Design*Sponge

I found many a gift ideas on this blog chock full of knitting, crafting and design ideas. They even throw in a few recipes for good measure. It's updated at least once a day, giving me something to look between Facebook and CNN.com.

3. Smitten Kitchen

This is the first site I visit if I'm in search of a new recipe. I made "speckled for the freckled" banana bread the other day. Anyone who adds bourbon to a breakfast food deserves a place on my best blog list. I'm also a sucker for creative food photography.

2. Britta Trygstad

This Fargo gal is one heck of a photographer. A former photo editor of The Advocate (shameless shout out), she developed—pun intended—into a photojournalist with a very artistic edge. Her wedding photos for Milestones Photography would make even the most cold-footed bride ready to walk down the aisle.


1. poppytalk

The mother of all hand-made blogs. It's updated (seemingly) hourly. It links out to great Etsy sites I wouldn't have otherwise found and features fantastic new artists. They have news about local art fairs and everything else handmade. This week they have some great ideas for a rockin' New Years Eve party, including decorating, entertaining and recipe ideas for the big night.

This is a drink recipe I'll definitely need to try.

I encourage you to frequent each of them and share your favorites. Who knows, maybe you'll make it on my 2009 list! You know, because this blog is the ultimate authority on everything cool *sarcasm*.

So what if Christmas is over

We decorated our apartment for Christmas a few weeks ago. With the scurry of the season, I didn't get a chance to post the photos before Christmas, but still think it's worth the effort.

Our wondrous white tree.

Yes, that is a pickle ornament.


Cristen and I have collected vintage ornaments over the last couple of years.
I think we finally have a pretty good assortment.

We have a pretty dim living room, so we tried to come up with ways to make it brighter.
A string of lights made this punch bowl we had laying around sparkle.

Gawdy, vintage fabrics are our favorites.

My aunt Emily made this wreath before I was born.
It might be an oldie, but it's a definite goodie.

Cheers to a new year

Tomorrow is the drinkiest of holidays, and what better to indulge than with a holiday flavored treat like Apple Pie Schnapps.

My roommate, Cristen, makes it every year to give away as gifts.

This is a great gift idea for co-workers. Just make sure not to imbibe at work ;)

The beverage shows up at numerous events throughout the year, as each of our friends attempts to finish his/her bottle of potent deliciousness. I think our bottle only lasted through the cold months of March last year, but Cristen was still toting a bottle as late as Tara's wedding in October. That night, it went over great, not so much the next day.

This batch should fill about eight 750 mL bottles

CRISTEN'S APPLE PIE SCHNAPPS

3 gallons apple cider
1 cup sugar (She actually recommends less, but this was what the original recipe called for. You could easily halve this)
1 fifth Everclear (Trashy, we know)
12 sticks cinnamon

The amount of Everclear and cinnamon depends on taste. I think adding a few peeled pieces of fresh ginger would taste fantastic.

Directions: Combine apple cider, sugar, Everclear and cinnamon sticks in a very large stockpot over low heat for about three hours. Don't let it boil! You wouldn't want to lose any of that 77 proof alcohol content or anything. Remove cinnamon sticks and strain to remove large chunks left from cinnamon. Divide into bottles and add festive tags to give as gifts.

Cristen found some nice clear bottles with a resealable cap at IKEA last year, but was also able to get some pretty blue-hued jars at a local brewery.

Christmas break...ahhhh. How relaxing.

I haven't done a whole heck of a lot since I got back from my mom's for Christmas. I've spent a total of 4 hours, 35 minutes on my Wii Fit, read five or six magazines, watched plenty of TV and made a couple of loaves of banana bread. Going back to school is going to be a nice change. I'm beginning to get a bit restless.


One nice this about all of this time is that I've finally gotten caught up on some reading and listened to music. With all the time I put into the paper, I usually try to ration my spare hours on homework and going to the gym, leaving my record collection neglected.

Oh how I've missed you Devil Dogs...

The weather outside is DELIGHTFUL

I know I haven't posted in a while, but I promise —or maybe I should resolve— to post much more frequently.

We're gearing up for our third or fourth or fifth or tenth winter storm advisory for the month of December in Fargo. I'm not going to lie, I love it. I think people that choose to live in climates such as this need to learn to simply embrace it and enjoy winter's fury—err beauty.

I just got back from a whole week of family Christmas fun. I was fortunate enough to get to watch my two nieces for a few days when my sister and her husband worked. Having kids is seriously too much work. I love them, but it's nice to know I get to send them home.

Between numerous Barbie wardrobe changes and "more more" horsie rides around the living room, the temperature finally climbed above zero, so we could play outside.

My niece Elena, 4, enjoyed climbing atop the snow mountain in my mom's driveway.


Maia, 2, was a little less enthusiastic about the snow mountain.


She would have rather ridden her bike a little out of season.


We enjoyed a couple of cups of hot chocolate when we got inside.


Maia enjoyed hers with a few ice cubes in her Elmo cup with a side of princess gummies.

My mom makes her own cocoa mix. It's very similar to this recipe from Alton Browne. The girls thought it was pretty good.

It's a Silly Putty week

For those of you who ever visit me in the office, you might have noticed my dingy wad of silly putty that I constantly mold and squish in my hand while "pretending" to get stuff done each Tuesday.

Because it's that stressful time of year, here's an ode to my Silly Putty:

I guess I know what I'm making myself for Christmas.

Last-minute baking

I decided to make the pumpkin cookies my mom and I made together last weekend (see Nov. 20 post for recipe). They tasted like crap because I decided to use less sugar since I thought they were too sweet last time. They do look pretty though.




I also made some apple sauce (which will be used in an apple pie for Thanksgiving). I had two large Rome apples left over from last week's groceries.


They were too ripe to just eat, but I sliced them up and added:
1/4 cup sugar
2 t. cinnamon
1 t. cloves
1 t. nutmeg.


I cooked them over low heat for about an hour, stirring ocassionally.

I like to use sweet apples instead of sour ones, which I know many people prefer. By using the overripe apples, they remind me of these pickled apple rings my great grandpa used to eat. Feel free to use harder or tarter apples if that's what reminds you of your grandpa.

My new toaster

I bought a new toaster last night. Some advice: don't just buy the cheapest toaster at Wal-Mart. a) The slots are too narrow to toast a bagel.
b) the slots aren't long enough to fit a piece of break.
c) the thingy doesn't push down.

Yeah. Once I crammed my bagel, then my boyfriend's bread into the slots, I couldn't even toast them because it's a piece of royal crap. Then again, what did I really expect from a $6 toaster?

My kitty liked the box it came in at least.

Saturday crafternoon

My roommate and I held our first crafternoon of the Christmas season yesterday. As usual, we didn't get as much done as we had planned, but we have several ongoing project we will work on throughout the season.

Our first project was making gift tags. I originally was going to buy a fairly expensive set of woodland stamps from an online boutique, but found a similar set from the new Martha Stewart craft collection at Wal-Mart. Who knew?


They turned out pretty cute, but there were quite a few that we threw out. We compared them to our adventures in cookie decorating—we always have really good intentions and pretty colors picked out, but they always end up looking like a couple of 5-year-olds went nuts on them.


As we went along, we realize that less is more, and it got a little easier. Next time I would recommend having paper punches that can cut out various shapes. We scissored most of the cut outs and they didn't turn out very clean. Also, the ink we used for stamping dried slowly, so we ended up smudging quite a few tags.

We also used glitter from the Martha Stewart collection. I highly recommend it. It's messy, but it stuck very nicely to the glue. We also got a pen that contains glitter glue that worked quite nicely for lettering and find details.


The second project we are working on is felted stockings. So far, we are still knitting the stockings. We will be washing and felting them later this week. I'm curious to see which yarn works best for it. Both of the colors we are working with are 100 percent wool, but according to my sister, some yarns look better felted than others.



More crafternoons to come...

Mama Mia!

Gosh, I've been bad about posting this week. It's crunch-time at school and deadlines for internships are fast approaching.

I did, however, have time over the weekend to stay with my mom for a couple of days. We got a lot of girl-time in, which included baking, soup-making, scrabbling and babbling—all over a glass of Bailey's on the rocks of course.

We made a Fresh Chicken Salad for lunch:




Ingredients:

1 6 oz. can of white-meat chicken
1 bunch of red grapes, halved
1 stalk of celery
1/4 cup of light mayo
2 T walnuts
1 small bunch of cilantro, finely chopped
2 whole wheat pitas, halved

Combine chicken mayo. Add grapes and celery. At this point the salad can be refrigerated at this point until you are ready to serve. Once ready, add walnuts and cilantro. Spoon into pitas. Serves: 2.

We also made some cookies to freeze until Thanksgiving when the whole family will be home. OK, I admit we might have eaten a few this weekend, too.


White Chocolate Pumpkin Cookies

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups flour
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
2 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground nutmeg
1/2 t. ground cloves
1/2 t. salt
1/3 cup butter
1 cup white sugar
1 14 oz. can pumpkin
1 egg
1 t. vanilla extract
1/4 cup chopped almonds
1/2 cup white chocolate chunks

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices in a medium bowl. In a separate large bowl, cream butter and sugar, once combined, add pumpkin, egg and vanilla. Slowly add in dry ingredients. Once the mixture is smooth, add almonds and white chocolate chunks.

Using a tablespoon, spoon onto cookie sheet. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes. Makes about two and a half dozen cookies.

We also made my Winter Minestrone recipe from a few weeks back. It was even better than I remember.

We ended the night with a rousing game of scrabble. My kind of weekend!

Put those scissors down!

So I started out cutting my bangs.

First they were crooked to the left.

Then they were crooked to the right.

They looked a bit thin, so I cut some more.

Then the rest of my hair looked off balance, so I trimmed a little there.

And a little here.

Then it looked like I had a mullet.

And not the sweet kind.

So I cut off the back.

Then it looked a little thick on top.

A large pile of hair on the floor later...

Before

After

I liked it better before : (

Striking gold

I stopped by the thrift store down the street to sift through the craft supplies. I didn't find much in the crafts (which is strange because I normally come away with at least one priceless item), but I did find three killer necklaces.

This one reminded me of a brooch my great-grandma gave me.
Plus, it's a really good color purple, no?


When I was 9, my Christmas list consisted
of anything with whales or dolphins on it.
Here's to my old self. Now, I'd prefer whales.


Obviously, I will wear this with my gold tuxedo.

If all else fails, make soup

What a lazy day. I had every intention of getting everything done, but my seemed to get foiled at every turn. My portfolio has yet to be recovered from my stupid corrupted USB disk, my photo subject never showed up for the shoot and my gym buddy flaked out on me again.

I did get a few things done.

The leftover vegetables and herbs from my soup-making escapades of the weekend went into a big pot of what I'm calling "Leftover Soup"

Ingredients:
1 potato
3 cans of stewed tomatoes
2 cloves garlic
2 T vegetable oil
1 t pepper
1 t salt
1 head cabbage
4 carrots
1 cup water
1/4 cup parsley
1 cup uncooked pasta
(This is all I remember including anyway)

Saute onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add salt, pepper, tomatoes, potato, carrots and water, simmer for 20 minutes or until carrots a potato are tender. Add cabbage, cover and cook for another 15 minutes. Bring to soft boil, add pasta and cook for about 10 minutes.

Voila. It's a fast, easy way to get all five of your daily servings of vegetables and clean out your refrigerator.

Forward and back

On my way home from my great-grandmother's funeral, I turned off the radio and drove in silence, so I could enjoy the late summer drive through Minnesota and unwind. Through the open window, I felt the late September heat as a warm wind buzzed in my ears and kissed my face. It was that time of afternoon when the sun is low enough in the sky that the car visor no longer shielded my eyes. Dust, insects and birds were backlit in a dreamlike vision.

Following the burial service at a cemetery a small town away, I came to visit another cemetery where my infant brother and great-grandparents were buried. As I stepped out of the car, holding my hand as a visor above my eyes, the sun illuminated a rabble of butterflies. I recognized them as Danaus plexippus, the monarch butterfly and remembered a time when they were more than just a rabble—they were my special project.

Throughout my childhood, my dad worked at a wildlife research center in central North Dakota. My older sister and I grew up accompanying him on various wildlife adventures. My earliest memory took place at the center when, at age 3, I followed my dad along a weed-lined path. Near the edge of the path, a fence encased a group of animals the center was studying. “Don’t touch the fence,” my dad warned, as we got closer. As most curious three year olds would, I grabbed the fence. A bolt of electricity traveled through my body.

The summer before I started sixth grade, I grew particularly interested in research the center was doing on monarch butterflies. The biologists and statisticians spent countless hours recording and calculating mating, reproduction, and metamorphosis cycles. I was most interested in the metamorphosis stage.

My research began without the intention of it really being research. My dad and I wandered along the gravel road near our house and came upon milkweed—the only plant in which monarch caterpillars will feast. As I examined the weed, I began to find caterpillars of nearly the same bright color green, devouring the leaves. I could actually see the leaves shrinking before my eyes. I broke off a branch of the plant, careful not to disturb the caterpillar's noshing and carried it home.

I found a Mason jar my mom used for canning our yearly apple harvest. I slipped the branch into the jar, covered the top with paper towel and screwed on the gold ring used to hold the lid in place. The jar sat on the windowsill in the basement for a couple of days. I replaced the milkweed daily, keeping my caterpillar happy.

One day, I couldn't find my caterpillar on the milkweed. I was almost convinced he had mysteriously escaped from the jar when I spotted his white, fuzzy cocoon hanging from the paper towel. Over the next couple of days, I checked on him every chance I got. On the third day, I began to see the orange and black tips of his new wings. Soon he emerged a beautiful butterfly, and I released him where I found him and began to search for a new caterpillar that I could watch transform.

It wasn't hard to find a new one. In fact, I wasn't sure I'd be able to find enough jars for all the new caterpillars I had found. My mom probably wondered what I was doing running up and down the stairs and in and out the back door. I don’t think she ever noticed her canning jars disappearing one by one.

I named each caterpillar and gave it a number and recorded its measurements and length of the metamorphosis cycle. Some caterpillars took three days to transform, others emerged only a day after I found them. One caterpillar remained in its cocoon for nearly a week. My anxiety heightened each day as I wondered when it would emerge. One morning, the cocoon disappeared. I looked for a flash of orange and black. Instead, the lifeless cocoon lay at the bottom of the jar. Tears welled in my eyes, and I left my caterpillars unattended for the rest of the day.

It probably wasn’t my fault he didn’t make it, and I knew there were many more caterpillars to take care of in my basement. My work continued. With each release, I gained a deeper understanding of its life cycle.

By the end of the summer, I had caught and released several dozen butterflies. I also had the makings of a pretty good science project for school the next year. Most importantly though, I learned about how fragile a life can be.

I stood in the cemetery and looked at the gravestone carved with my brother’s name and a date that reveals he didn’t even live a day. Next to it, stood the large gravestone of my great-grandparents, who both lived into their 80s to see their grandchildren’s’ families grow. I thought of my butterflies. Some caterpillars never made it into their cocoons, while others never made it out. Some made it through the summer, the long fall migration and rough winter, back up north in the spring to lay eggs of new caterpillars.

OOOh. Volare.

I can't get over how adorable Ximena Sarinana is. Besides, you really can't go wrong with a little Dean Martin, which reminds me that it's time to get out my Rat Pack Christmas songs.

She also makes me feel a little better about wearing my samurai ponytail in public.

Apparently this song is not available on CD, but it's downloadable on her MySpace. I wish I spoke Spanish because her CD probably contains amazing lyrics. Oh well, her voice makes up for the lack of comprehension.

Most wonderful time of the year (list)...

So now that I've started my list for my loved ones, it's time to start my own. Selfishly fun.

1) I want this bag, I WANT IT. It's organic and just plain lovely. It would be even lovelier packed full of my crap.

Moop's market bag in gun metal

2) I'm growing my hair out (trying...again), so fun accessories are my new favorite. I adore these bobbies from Sprout Studio.

I plan to plan my outfits around these hair pins.

3) I secretly hope the trip to Costa Rica gets canceled simply so I can buy my dream camera.

The Nikon d300 leaves my mouth agape. All I really want is
to just be able to take decent photos at 6400 ISO.

Bike Workshop

Bike Workshops are a non-profit organization that provide bikes and bike repairs for those who need them. The organization is looking for bike and parts donations and well as those who can help repair bikes. Volunteers work two days a week fixing bikes and sorting donations.




The workshop outgrew their previous space in downtown Fargo and moved Nov. 1 a few blocks down First Avenue North to a larger building. The slower winter months will be spent fixing up the new space. Volunteers are needed for painting, building, plumbing and electric work.



The organization continues their work through the winter months holding winter bike-riding classes, in which volunteers with teach winter safety techniques and illustrate how bikers can make their own studded snow tires.

Freezer-ready food

This week was stressful at work. I tend to eat a lot of crap because it's what I crave, and I simply don't have time to pack a lunch.

Fall is quickly turning into winter, and what better than some yummy soups to warm me up. I wanted some that I could freeze and bring to school this week. I found two recipes that have several overlapping ingredients, as to save a bit of money, but each features a very different taste.



FREEZER-READY BEEF STEW

Ingredients:

2 medium onions chopped
4 carrots chopped
4 celery stocks chopped
6 cloves garlic minced
2.5 lbs. beef chuck
1/2 cup flour
2 14.5 oz. cans beef broth
3 large russet potatoes
1 14.5 oz. can stewed tomatoes
1 T. tomato paste
1 bunch parsley
1 sprig thyme
4 T. butter
2 T. red wine

Coat beef chunks in flour, salt and pepper well. Heat 2 T. butter over medium heat, add beef and cook thoroughly.

In separate skillet, heat 2 T. butter over medium heat. Add chopped onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook until tender. Add mixture to beef. Add beef stock, tomato paste, potatoes and tomatoes.

With kitchen string, bind parsley and thyme. Add to stew. Add wine.

Cook for 1.5 hours. Remove herb bunch.

Let cool overnight in fridge. Skim off fat and divide eight servings into microwave-safe plastic containers.


FREEZER-READY MINESTRONE
(adapted from a recipe by Giada deLaurentiis)

Ingredients:

2 T. olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
2 carrots chopped
2 celery stocks chopped
2 gloves garlic, minced
1 large russet potato, cubed
1 14.5 oz. can stewed tomatoes
2 T. parsley finely chopped
2 14.5 oz. cans of Cannellini beans
1 14.5 oz. can of chickpeas
2 14.5 oz. cans beef broth
1 cup pasta shells

Heat olive oil in skillet on medium heat. Add chopped onion, carrots, celery and garlic. Cook until onion is translucent. In a food processor, mix 1 can of Cannellini beans with 1 can of broth.

Add bean/broth mix to onion mixture. Add second can of broth. Bring to soft boil.

Boil pasta shells just until tender, add to soup. Add potatoes, cook until tender.

Add second can of Cannellini beans, chickpeas and parsley. Cook until beans are heated through. Salt and pepper to taste.

Let soup cool, divide into six single servings in microwave-safe plastic containers.

Freeze, thaw and eat as needed!