Quinoa and Garden Vegetables

I've bought quinoa before but I could never quite figure out what to put with it to make it taste good.  I liked the idea that it had a lot of protein (6g per 1/4 cup) and could be an interesting substitute for rice or noodles, but just couldn't quite get it right. My garden is starting to produce so I have a ton of cherry tomatoes and some cucumber to work into meals.  I was not only happy with the recipe I came up with, but I talked my oldest into trying it and she loved it too (no small feat with kids sometimes.)

Quinoa with Vegetables and Feta

1 cup cooked quinoa.
1 cup cherry tomatoes or diced tomatoes
1/2 cup diced cucumber
1 to 2 tablespoons of oregano
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 teaspoon garlic powder (I didn't have any garlic cloves, but this worked and didn't overpower the dish)
Olive oil
1/4 cup feta cheese

Cook quinoa according to package directions.  Make a couple of passes in a pan with the olive oil  and add tomatoes, cucumber, garlic and oregano. Saute on medium heat until tomatoes begin to burst and add mushrooms.  Using spatula, break up cooked tomatoes and mushroom slices into smaller pieces until cooked all the way and mixed together well.  Remove from heat and add cooked quinoa and feta, stirring well.  Salt and pepper to taste.

(I would put a picture of the plated dish on here, but we ate it all too quick.  Maybe next time I'll get a picture.)

Behold the Awesomeness...

...that is the new bicycle seat cover I made.  

I love my bike.  My husband surprised me with it when we lived in Germany (it was locked up where I work waiting for me so I could go on a bike ride with my co-workers.  Yep, we did that sort of thing.)  Almost a decade later it's still one of my favorite things, so I thought I would dress her up a bit.  I looked at some patterns for it, but in the end just sort of made up my own, which is good because now I can make some for different holidays.  I've been considering a crate for either the handlebars or on a rack on the back to put my little dog in.  I'll let you know ;)

                           

Yep, I made a Doily

That word makes me laugh: Doily.  It's funny...

Anyway, I got the pattern for this here.  I question putting the word hipster in the name, but I guess we're labeling all new stuff based on old stuff used or displayed ironically "hipster."  The only yarn I had that was the right weight for this was variegated, but I think it might look better if I used solid yarn, or changed the color for every row- the transitions wouldn't be as noticeable.  

Crochet Friendship Bracelets

This project started out with my researching macrame bracelet tutorials. I have a stash of small beads I wanted to use, but most of the macrame patterns called for bigger beads as focal points. Even the pattern (found here) that I used for these bracelets was laid out using fairly large beads. On a trip to the craft store, I found this lovely pink and purple crochet thread (size 3) with a pretty metallic strip in it. Using a 3.25 mm crochet hook, I made little friendship bracelets that were perfect for my daughter and her friend.

An Apple a Day

I've recently gotten into Amigurumi (knitted or, in my case crocheted, stuffed toys) and there are patterns all over the internet for everything from animals to baked goods to fruit. I made a bunch of these apples for my kids to give their teachers as gifts. They turned out well enough that I'd like to try my hand at some other fruit to display together in a bowl. The pattern can be found here. You have to register to the site, but there are a ton of free patterns on there if you're interested.