Find What You Want

28 June 2014

Homemade Sauce - For Pasta

Sometimes life throws you a curve ball, right? Recently, life has been throwing non-stop fast balls directly at my head. Or back, since that is what has been my recent setback. I started my physical therapy last week and even though I understand why it is a beginning to end process, the exercises are simple and I am not feeling any better. I think they are just trying to get my baseline and work from there. We will see next week when I go back and see what they have in store for me.

As an "I AM SO SORRY FOR BEING A HORRIBLE BLOGGER", I present to you my sauce recipe, which did win the office sauce off, mind you. I am not Italian, but I married into an Italian family, so I learned how to make this right quick.

Materials
  • Large Pot
  • Cutting board
  • Knives
  • Large mixing bowl
  • Food processor (I have a ninja stick blender that came with an attachment)
  • 9x13 baking dish

Ingredients
Sauce
  • Garlic (4-6 cloves minced)
  • Ground Sausage (or whatever meat you like)
  • 1 105 ounce can of tomato sauce
  • 2 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes
  • 2 4.5 oz cans of tomato paste
  • 3 14.5 oz cans of water
  • Fresh basil - chopped - to taste
  • Fresh oregano - chopped - to taste
  • Salt and pepper - to taste
Meatballs
  • Meatloaf mixture (ground pork, beef, and veal; however, you can use what you want)
  • Sweet Italian sausage (same as above)
  • 1 medium/large onion - diced
  • 3-5 cloves of garlic - minced
  • Fresh basil - chopped - to taste
  • Fresh oregano - chopped - to taste
  • Salt and pepper - to taste
  • Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese - To taste
  • 2-5 eggs
  • 2-4 cups of bread crumbs
For the sauce
  1. In the large pot, saute 4-6 cloves of garlic in olive oil over medium heat for about 10 minutes or until you have a strong cooked garlic smell coming from the pot.
  2. Place in about ½ pound of ground sweet Italian sausage (or your favorite meat; ground beef, veal, chicken, hot sausage, etc.) and brown completely through.
  3. Once this is browned, take mixture out and place in mixing bowl.
  4. Add mixture to food processor in order to make a fine chop. I use the pulse method and only put in about a ½ cup of the mixture at a time. If you want larger chunks of meat in the sauce, you can skip this step.
  5. Once the mixture is to the texture you desire, place mixture back into pot over medium heat for about 5 minutes. 
  6. Add the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and tomato paste to the pot. Stir together and add the water to the mixture. My favorite brands are Hunts or Cortadina’s, but use what you like. And if you can your own tomatoes, I envy you. Stir and bring heat up to medium/high.
  7. Add basil, oregano, salt, and pepper to the mixture. There is no measurement to the spices. I used fresh basil and oregano. I add what I think I will need and throughout the cooking process, I will taste the sauce to see if I need to add any more. 
  8. Let the sauce sit over medium/high heat for about 20 minutes and then turn down the heat to a simmer. 
For the meatballs – you can use any meats that you like. In this recipe is what I used in the sauce-off
  1. Preheat the oven at 400 degrees
  2. In a large mixing bowl, add ground sweet Italian sausage, ground beef, ground veal, and ground pork (the last three can be bought as a meatloaf mix in most stores)
  3. Dice one medium yellow/white onion and garlic. Run through the food processor until you get a very fine chop. Add onion and garlic mixture to the ground meat
  4. Add basil, oregano, salt, pepper, and freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. There is no exact measurement, add to your taste. If you do not like cheese, you do not have to add.
  5. Add eggs to the mixture. Add these eggs one at a time and mix through. You want a consistency of a gooey mess. 
  6. Add bread crumbs to the mixture. I prefer Italian-Seasoned Panko Bread Crumbs. They have a really nice texture and crisp up nicely in the oven. Add the bread crumbs ½ cup at a time and mix through. You want the finished mixture to bind together in meatballs without falling apart. If you add too much breadcrumbs, add an egg and try making a meatball again. 
  7. Coat a 9x13 baking dish with an olive oil or cooking spray. When cooking for family, I usually make larger meatball. When cooking for a party, I make smaller meatball. It is all up to what you want to make. Line up the meatballs side by side in the dish. They can touch. And if you made a ton of the mixture, you might need more than one baking dish!
  8. Depending on the size of the meatballs is how long they will cook. For smaller, about 15-25 minutes. For larger, about 20-30 minutes. They should be cooked through but not burn to a crisp. 
  9. Take out of the oven and let sit for about 15 minutes. Once they are taken out, place them into your pot of sauce. 

The longer you let the sauce simmer, the better the sauce will taste. I start my process at around 9am and we eat around 6pm. And the sauce tastes better the next day!

My biggest recommendation for this recipe is TWEAK IT! Make it your own. The basis of this recipe was given to me by my best friend and I made it to the liking of my family. Add more garlic, use ground turkey meat, use freshly canned tomatoes (which if you can do, more power to you, I cannot). I try different techniques every time I make this sauce and it turns out better than the last. 

19 June 2014

Prosciutto Wrapped Cantaloupe

Original Pin
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/231513237064272385/


Prosciutto Wrapped Cantaloupe





So, this is a favorite appetizer from our family gatherings. The pin takes your right to the Food Network site and it is so quick, so easy, and so worth the time.

Materials

  • Cantaloupe
  • Prosciutto
  • Toothpicks
  • Cutting Board
  • Knife

What I Did
Cut or ball the cantaloupe into bite-sized pieces. Cut the prosciutto into strips. Wrap prosciutto around cantaloupe. Hold in place with toothpick.



Conclusion
5 out of 5. I told you it was quick, easy, and so worth the time.

17 June 2014

Lemon Juice & Baking Soda Blackhead Scrub

Original Pin
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/115475177917187632/


Lemon Juice & Baking Soda Blackhead Scrub





This pin actually takes you to a really nice site about different ways to use baking soda and lemon juice for beauty products. I used it specifically for the blackhead scrub. As with 99.9999999% of the population, the location on my blackheads is on my nose, in those stupid creases of the nose. I hate them. This "product" has been shown so many times, I had to try it. So I attempted it for 2 weeks.

Materials

  • Baking Soda 
  • Lemon Juice (fresh if possible)
  • Small mixing bowl

What I Did
There is no picture since I am not too comfortable showing myself on this site just yet. The world is not ready for that. At the end of each night, I washed my face clean and mixed a small batch of the baking soda and lemon juice. I used a tablespoon of baking soda and added the lemon juice bit by bit until it was a paste. Put paste where you have the blackheads and let it sit and dry for about 15 minutes. Once it was done, I rinsed my face and went to bed. Simple, easy, and affordable.

Conclusion
4 out of 5 pins. This is a great beauty tip and a great way to do it; however, it is messy. REALLY MESSY. As soon as the paste beings to dry, it cracks and goes everywhere. The area that you put the paste on starts looking like an old house with cracked paint. And one touch and you have "white snow" EVERY WHERE! As for the blackhead removal, it worked okay. I am very picky about my skin. I have been since I was a swimmer and the chlorine did a number to it, I make sure things are good with my skin. I saw a difference, but not the results I was looking it achieve. If you need something that will help clear up some bad spots, this is the pin for you. If you need more than just a quick clear up, buy a blackhead scrub as a drug store. It will not only scrub the blackheads away, but have medication to help any other issues you may have.

16 June 2014

Little Flower Bucket

Original Pin
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/76772368622820973/


Little Flower Bucket





This is an adorable idea, but do not go to the pin to attempt it. The pin takes you to a website that just shows you more pictures of "adorable stuff". One of the things that I learned with using fake flowers is make sure the stem is long enough or use glue to hold the flower to the Styrofoam ball. 

Materials
  • Mini Bucket
  • Styrofoam ball 
  • Flowers (fake or real)
  • Fabric (optional)
What I Did


This is basically a put everything together and display. I could not find a Styrofoam ball that sat nicely on the top of the bucket, so I used a little fabric and glue to move the ball up. 

Once everything was in place, I took the flowers that I wanted for this project and just stuck them in until it looked pretty enough. What is cool about this project is that you do not need the fabric, you can have the ball sit lower in the bucket and have a different looking arrangement. This is just the one that I loved because it was pleasing to what I like. 

Conclusion
2 out of 5 pins. The pin is only worth it for the idea. There is no instructions or help on how to make it. The project is adorable, the pin, not so much. 

08 June 2014

Resuming June 16th 2014

Thank you everyone for your concern with this blog. All post will resume on June 16th, 2014.

27 May 2014

Family Break Time

For those reading this blog, you have seen that my grandmother passed away last week. Due to this event, I have fallen slightly behind on my posting and crafting. I will restart posting pins in the next few days, no more than week off. I  sorry for the delay; however, my family and sanity is more important than this blog right. Thank you all for your understanding.

Mani Pedi in a Jar

Original Pin 
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/427560558346398341/


Mani Pedi in a Jar






This is a gift in which seems like a good idea; however, it can backfire in a quick second. This can be a great idea if you know the person that you are giving the gift. The project comes with "issues" that have been brought up by a group of different people at different times that I asked them. Below are just a few:

  • The color of nail polish is wrong
  • The person does not do a mani/pedi
  • The person could embarassed thinking you believe they have horrible feet
  • The person could be offended by the idea of the gift (as one person stated that they would be)
With that being said, this is a very simple, very cost effective gift that you can give someone or for you to even take with you on vacation.

Materials
  • Mason Jar
  • Nail Polish
  • Manicure Kit
  • Pedicure Kit
  • Cotton Balls
What I Did
Buy everything at the dollar store, except the nail polish. Get good nail polish if it is a gift. A good brand that will not take 6 million coats to look okay. If it is for you or a test gift, you can get nail polish at the Dollar Store. Put cotton balls in mason jar first and then fit everything else in the jar. That is it and does not need photos. 

Conclusion
3 out of 5 pins. The pin a a great gift idea, if, and only if, you know that person that you are giving the gift.