etsy shop preview.

i wasnt planning on doing a whole bunch of suspenseful build-up in regards to my etsy shop re-opening, but yesterday i was able to shoot my first batch of listing photos, and i was just too excited to keep them to myself. so far ive got pocket skirts for grown-up ladies, made from recycled fabrics:

 and if pretty florals and paisley arent really your thing, ive also made a few in some novelty prints:

 ive also got some hair bows, also made from recycled fabrics:

both the skirts and the bows are all finished and photographed and will hopefully be up for sale next week, with more and more styles and sizes coming soon thereafter!

im really, really excited about this, the only thing is im kind of struggling with the shop descriptions/policies/etc., i always feel so awkward writing those. 

so what do you think? and what colors/prints would you like to see in the future?

p.s. BIG thanks to my mom and sister for so generously modeling for me!

ratatouille recipe.

so far id say the only pleasant side-effect of my new gluten free diet is all that ive finally broken out of our long standing dinner rotation of pizza, mac and cheese, stir fry, hummus, fish tacos, and soup. seriously, that was our week of dinners every week for i dont even know how long.  not that theres anything wrong with any of those meals, especially given that all of them were made from scratch and absolutely delicious, it just got really, really boring. 

i have to admit that finding recipes that are: 1. gluten free, 2. dont cost seven hundred dollars, and 3. dont seem like they taste like cardboard,  are pretty dang hard to find. honestly ive pretty much been completely avoiding any kind of recipe thats specially marked as "gluten free", and just sticking to finding new recipes that are coincidentally gluten free. like ratatouille. 

a couple of weeks ago my mom gave me some squash that she grew in her garden and i wasnt sure what to do with it, but then i remembered when i was on bedrest before alice was born and this nice young lady from our church brought over the most delicious ratatouille and couscous so i decided to try and recreate that. heres what i did:

ratatouille:
serves four

ingredients:
1 large (or two small) zucchini 
1 large (or two small) yellow squash
1/2 jar spaghetti sauce 
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
olive oil
lemon juice, salt, pepper, parmesan cheese, basil, oregano, and garlic according to your preference

preheat oven to 375. start by greasing a large casserole dish (i use this one) with olive oil and set it aside. next thinly slice all the squash, using a mandoline if you have one (unfortunately we dont). once thats all done (it will seem like forever), start arranging a single layer of squash on the bottom of the casserole dish in a sort of fish-sale arrangement. once thats finished you can begin the entirely unscientific step of seasoning the squash however your heart desires, before topping it with another layer of squash, and then a few spoonfuls of spaghetti sauce. repeat this step until you run out of squash (in our case about 4-5 layers), then finish by topping with a layer of sauce and finally the mozzarella cheese. bake for 45 minutes and serve hot. 

since i cant eat couscous i substituted some quinoa, but unfortunately i havent quite figured out how to make it taste like anything other than just air. so if youre making this and you dont have celiac disease, id say go with the couscous. 

im really, really glad that i branched out and tried making this, it came out so good that im really excited to put it on our rotation for the summer (or at least, until squash stops being on sale for 99 cents every week). 

sunday sweets. brownie sundaes.

for this weeks special dessert i finally got around to using this brownie mix. i had intended on making them earlier this week, but every day one thing or another got in the way and before we knew it, it was sunday again. 

im going to be completely honest here: im not a big fan of brownies. i never have been, im just not that into chocolate and rich, gooey desserts are just not my thing (i think this fully explains why ive never gotten along well with other ladies). i still wanted to try out this mix, mostly because im trying really hard to try new things and be more open minded about food, so to get myself more excited about this dessert, i added ice cream, strawberries, whipped cream and sprinkles to make brownie sundaes. 

the brownie mix (by pamelas products, available at most stores with a gluten-free section) actually came out really, REALLY well. i was definitely impressed that they tasted just like real brownies, even if brownies arent exactly my favorite. i liked that they made a full 9 x 9 pan of regular-thickness brownies, and i really appreciate that the package had recipes for several variations, so i was able to make them more cake-like than fudgey. my only complaint is the price (around seven dollars per bag). if this mix wasnt on the half-price rack, i definitely would not have bought it, but it was certainly worth what i paid for it. 

the best part of this dessert though was the whipped cream. i always make homemade whipped cream. its cheaper ($3 for a pint of whipping cream that makes two large batches rather than $4-5 for one container), healthier (just cream and sugar instead of soybean oil, chemicals, and propellant), AND it tastes way better. did i mention that its also super fast and easy to make? i used this recipe and it seriously takes just a few minutes in the kitchenaid (ok, maybe its not so fast and easy if you dont have a kitchenaid). 

anyways, thats what we had for dessert tonight, stay tuned for next time when i show you how to make some ratatouille!