Eating For Your Future/Massaged Kale Salad with Quinoa and Pomegranate

For those of you who have become accustomed to seeing a daily post from me, you may be thinking that you'll need to put out a missing persons alert ;) All is well, I've just been super busy in my garden, in fact, all of my spare time has been spent in the garden. Later this summer, we are hosting 2 rather large parties and my garden really needs some attention. By the end of this upcoming week, I should be in pretty good shape, fingers crossed. Between the garden, trying to get ready for the marathon in October, as well as other activities, something had to give, and sadly, it has been the blog. So hopefully one more week and life will begin to get back to normal, at least my normal :) 

On a fun note...

I went to the drug store a few days ago and basically bought out the Epsom salts. My husband picked up the bag of salts that I had in the car and without hesitation exclaimed, "how many pounds of Epsom salt did you buy?!!! My muscles are screaming and I need all the help I can get!

So now for a really good salad. Hey, who doesn't like a massage?!! Well, I guess there are a few people in this world, I'm not one of them. As it turns out, even kale likes a little massage ;)

With most green type salads, they really need to be made and eaten the same day. Not so with this salad. The kale really holds up, so the salad can be made the day before, and leftovers can be eaten even a few days later.

Massaged Kale Salad with Quinoa and Pomegranate 

Ingredients:

1 large bunch of kale

1 large clove of garlic

1 teaspoon of salt

juice of 1 lemon

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 purple onion sliced into strips

5 radishes sliced

1 cup cooked quinoa(I like to use red quinoa as it stands out against the green kale)

seeds of 1 pomegranate

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

extra salt and black pepper to taste

The key to this salad is the dressing that is massaged into the kale.

Begin by chopping the garlic clove. 

Then mash the garlic to form a bit of a paste, but not a complete paste, you want there to still be bits of the garlic.  

Combine the garlic with the lemon, salt, and olive oil. Set aside.

Remove the stems from the kale and then roughly chop. Place kale in a large mixing bowl.

Pour the dressing over the kale and then start massaging. Be sure your hands are clean!!!

Massage until the kale begins to wilt. This will only take a few minutes. The kale will soften slightly, but will retain its crunch.

Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.

The result is a hearty, yet light salad that is full of protein. And it's pretty too!!! The lemon juice gives the salad just a bit of a tang and the pomegranate offsets the tang with a touch of sweet.

If you give it a try, I hope you enjoy it!
Rhonda

Priceless

Finding a great tea towel on Spoonflower...

Fun

Making an all purpose bag out of the tea towel...

Creative

Surprising a friend who has been through a rough time and seeing her smile...

Priceless!!!

Have You Ever Wanted A Dolce and Gabbana Gown?

The Fall/Winter 2015/16 collection from Dolce and Gabbana was all about roses. I thought it was an especially pretty collection. 

This morning I received an email from Haberman Fabrics, a fabric store in Michigan. This store carries the most beautiful fabrics. I initially found out about the store while participating in the Passion For Fashion contest put on by The American Sewing Expo in Novi, Michigan. 

While not exactly the same, the embroideries that they have acquired will give you a very close copy of a Dolce and Gabbana gown.  

  

Underline it in a white silk charmuse and it would closely resemble the dress below.

The dress below is from Marchesa Notte.

This embroidery closely resembles the fabric used in the gown.

While both of the pieces above are beautiful, below is my favorite piece. And of course, it's the most expensive of the bunch! 

You can see all of Haberman's beautiful embroideries HERE. 

Sadly, I'm not getting any incentive to do this post. I just thought the fabrics were so beautiful and that you might at the very least enjoy seeing them. After all, it's always nice to dream :)

I'll let you know if I break down and purchase a piece.

Monday Morning Inspiration/Visible Mending

When I was in St. Louis a few weeks back, my husband and I had brunch with a friend at the most delightful restaurant called Tree House. It's a vegetarian restaurant and the food is amazing. If you are ever in St. Louis, by all means, make your way over for a meal. You won't be disappointed.

Our waitress that morning was so delightful, and as it turns out, quite creative. She loves taking old pieces and giving them new life. She was wearing a vintage silk top that had a hole in it when she found it. Rather than pass the piece by, she purchased the top and then did the sweetest little applique over the hole and added an embroidered spider web over the applique. I wish I had taken a picture. 

With that in mind, I decided to check out mending on Pinterest and I found a few inspirational pictures that I thought you might also enjoy. If you're in the mood, just search visible mending. You'll find lots of interesting ideas.

So here's a few that I found,

I love how a hole was turned into a window in the 2 pieces below.

       

Another window idea, but with lace. 

The next 2 pieces are from an amazing artist, Lou Tonkin. She does needle felting over holes. Beautiful work.  

If you think you might like to give needle felting a try and do a little mending, or just add a sweet touch to a garment, check out THIS POST. 

Even just a simple little touch can save a garment and add interest. 

I may be showing my age, but I am not a fan of the ripped up jean look. The Japanese have such a beautiful art form called Boro where garments are pieced and saved, but no holes are left open.

I thought this was rather fun, adding the British flag in a subtle manner.

Rather than discard a garment because the sleeves are worn, a touch of embroidery will make a worn garment so special. 

I loved how this artist took a striped denim and matched the mend with plain denim and white thread.

A beautiful touch of Boro on this pair of jeans. You can find more of this artist's work at Woman With Wings.

Amy Meissner is another textile artist that you might want to check out. Very interesting work.

And finally, for a little peek into my hippy personality ;), a pair of jeans that I actually wear. It all began with a hole that I decided to cover with a patch.....and then I went crazy!  

So now you see, patching no longer needs to be what your mother did to save the life of a pair of pants by ironing a patch over the knees.  

Happy Monday!

Rhonda

Sunday Night Reflections

At birth we boarded the train, met our parents, and we believed they would always travel by our side. However, at some station. our parents stepped down from the train, leaving us on the journey alone.

As time goes by, other people will board the train, and they will be significant, like our siblings, friends, children, and even the love of our life. Many will step down and leave a permanent vacuum. Others will go so unnoticed that we don't realize they vacated their seats. This train will be full of joy, sorrow, fantasy, expectations, hellos, goodbyes, and farewells.

The mystery to everyone is:
We do not know at which station we ourselves will step down. So, we must live in the best way, love, forgive, and offer the best of who we are. Success consists of having a good relationship with all passengers requiring that we give the best of ourselves. It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty, we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the train of life.

I wish you a joyful journey. Reap success and give lots of love. More importantly, thank God for your journey.

And lastly, I thank you for being one of the passengers on my train....... 

A Little Something Sweet On Sunday/Easy Apple Tart

After a little absence, I'm back with something sweet and so, so easy to make. If you are in need of an easy dessert that will still impress, this apple tart is a must!  

Easy Apple Tart

1 Sheet puff pastry

3 Granny Smith Apples peeled and sliced

1 12 1/2 oz. can Almond Cake and Pastry Filling

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 Tablespoons sugar

3 Tablespoons butter melted

1/2 cup slivered almonds

Begin with 3 large Granny Smith apples. Peel and slice. Set aside.

Roll out 1 sheet of puff pastry to fit a 9" x 13" baking sheet. Make sure that the edges overlap the edge of the baking sheet. Lightly grease pan before laying out pastry.

Take 1 can of almond cake and pastry filling and spread evenly over puff pastry.

Arrange sliced apples over almond filling.

Sprinkle cinnamon over apples.

Sprinkle sugar and slivered almonds over apples and cinnamon.

Crimp edges of the puff pastry inside the baking sheet. This is a rustic tart, so the edges don't need to be perfect.
Brush melted butter over apples and the edges of the puff pastry.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and bake tart for 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the almond filling is bubbling between apples. 

This will yield 8 slices.
Serve as is, or if you like, serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. I like it just as it is :) 
Enjoy!
Rhonda

The Amber Trouser Giveaway Winner

A very Happy Monday to you all! Here in America, it's not only Monday, but a national holiday, Independence Day. There will be lots of outdoor grilling, picnics, and fireworks. My Independence Day celebration is a very quiet affair. We will cook out on the grill, but no fireworks for us. My poor dogs are so terrified, so our celebration involves curling up together and watching a movie, and keeping things as quiet as we can. Keeping the house quiet is no small feat as the park that is near us looks like a scene from a war movie. And guess what, fireworks are illegal in the city of Chicago!!! 

So many of you sent such nice compliments on my Amber Trousers. Thanks so much :) I really do like the pants. I have the narrow leg version on my cutting table and pattern hack version as well for the wide leg version. A simple little change that I think will be fun. I'll be sure to post them once they're finished.

Now for the winner...

It's d*art!!!

Congratulations d*art! Please be sure to email me at sewbussted@yahoo.com ASAP. Lisa of Paparika Patterns will be forwarding the pattern on to you. 

In the meantime, for those of you who sadly didn't win, the Amber Trousers are part of the Monthly Stitch Pattern Bundle.

The bundle is quite a nice deal, all 6 patterns for only $33.00! 

There's a 3 pattern pack for $21.00 as well, but the 6 pattern pack is a much better deal.

But if all you would like is the Amber Trouser, you can always pop over to Paprika Patterns and pick up the pattern. 

If you like the patterns that are included in the bundle, don't delay as the offer will expire on July 6, 2016.