Last Day of Second Grade

Green T-shirt Makeover

Here is my boring green shirt. ZZZZZZzzzzz.

I found it on clearance at JoAnn Fabric of all places.  It had some weird sort of stain on the front. While I managed to remove the stain, I've had this shirt for almost a year and NEVER worn it. 

Aside from being boring, the shirt was just a tad too short.  It sat right at the waistband of my jeans.  Every time I raised my arms you could see my belly and all it's lovely stretchy stretch marks.

No thanks. 

Something had to be done. 

Mrblocko had this shirt that he bought from our vacation in Oregon many many moons ago.  He has since lost quite a bit of weight so the shirt is too big for him.  The shirt also has some unattractive sweat stains in the armpits.  So instead of pitching that shirt, I hacked it up!

Here's the finished product:

I used the bottom of the gray shirt where it was already hemmed to lengthen the green shirt. I stitched over the existing hem stitching on the green shirt to attach the gray band.

And here it is on:

Ta da!  No more peek-a-boo belly.

Yay!

Robe for Blockette

We are trying to teach Blockette to be modest.  This has involved her wearing a robe when she comes out of the shower instead of making a nakid dash from the bathroom to her bedroom. 

Wouldn't you know it but the kid outgrew the durn thing?  The nerve of the child.

Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a robe this time of year?

IMPOSSIBLE!!!!

Because apparently kids only wear robes when it's cold out.  Sigh.

So I tried to find some free instructions for making a robe online.  I came up with this and this.  Except it wasn't exactly what I wanted.  Then I realized what I wanted was a smaller version of a rob I had bought back in the late 80's.  It's so old that I got it from Pier One Imports back when they sold clothing.  Anyone else but me remember that?

So I traced the robe and scaled it down a bit, but not too much because I didn't want to have to make another robe next year. 

My bestie was even nice enough to let me go shopping in her fabric stash.  I found this nice purple lightweight paisley stuff.  It worked perfectly.

Please excuse the weird photo.  Apparently we must twirl when I'm photographing clothing.

Blockette says she feels like she is wearing a kimono, in a good way.  She's actually not too far off.  It's really a lot like a summer kimono called a yukata. 

Dumbledore's Army T-shirt Reduction

While doing spring cleaning back in March, I came across two of the exact same shirts in Mrblocko's t-shirt drawer.  There is a long story about why he has two of these shirts.  The Reader's Digest version is that there was a mix up by the post office, and the shirt got lost so a second one was ordered.  Of course after the second one arrived, the first one mysteriously showed up.

I think this shirt is the coolest ever, because c'mon it's Dumbledore's Army.  So Mrblocko let me have his spare shirt.

Except, ahem...

The shirt was like a tent on me.    Yikes!  Look at that armhole!

I found this tutorial on how to transform a large t-shirt into a fitted one over at a.steed's.life.

Ah. That's so much better.  Now I'm not, as we say in Minnesota "drownDing" in my own clothes.

Dusty Rose Colored Shawl

I hope you aren't sick of shawls. They are like potato chips to me lately.  I can't seem to stop!

This shawl is the Iris Shawl pattern that I found on Ravelry.  I used Caron Simply soft for this shawl too.  It is so smooth and easy to crochet with.  I used about 1 and a half skeins of Rose yarn and about 3/4 skein of off white. 

The shawl was designed to be made with a fingering weight yarn, but I wanted it to be larger and have a bit more substance to it.  Although, personally, I think I'd like this shawl better if it was light and airy. However, this shawl is not for me, so it's a moot point!  I'm confident that it will find the perfect person.

Because I used a thicker yarn, I bumped up the hook size from an F to an I.

As you can see, this is a huge shawl.  The point goes past Blockette's knees!  Sometimes when I make these shawls I worry that I am making them too big, then I remember that not everyone is short like me and they might want that extra length!

Sloppy Lentils

Sloppy Lentils?  What kind of dish is that?  It's like Sloppy Joes, but instead of ground meat, it's got lentils.

Did you know there are umpteen kajillion meatless versions of sloppy joes out there?  I chose this particular recipe because it contains Kitchen Bouquet.  I only ever use Kitchen Bouquet once or twice a year when I make mashed potatoes and gravy.

Kitchen Bouquet gives gravy that something extra that makes you say, "MMMM! What is that?!"  It also gives things a nice brown caramelized color.  In this recipe, it makes the end product look more like the color of Manwich.  That's a good thing when you are trying to get your 7 year old to eat something different.

I'd say this was the dish I made over Lent that Mrblocko liked the least.  And there was so much of it!

After dinner, Mrblocko and I decided this lentil concoction would taste better over a baked potato instead of on a hamburger bun.  It did.  Loads better.  I topped mine with some shredded cheddar and dill pickle relish.  YUM!

Sloppy Lentils from Feral Kitchen
1 c lentils (rinsed and picked over)
3 c water
3/4 c chopped onion
3/4 c chopped red bell pepper (I used half a chopped roasted red pepper)
1 t olive oil
1 14.5 ounce can diced tomatoes (I used roasted diced tomatoes)
8oz tomato paste
3/4 c ketchup
2 T brown sugar
2 t garlic, minced
1 t dried mustard
1/4 t black pepper (to taste)
2 t kitchen bouquet (browning sauce for color)

Cook lentils and water in covered pan on med low for 30 min until lentils cook. Drain. Mash lightly with potato masher. Meanwhile, in skillet  saute onions and pepper in oil. Cook til onions are translucent. Add remaining ingredients except for lentils. Cook med low, covered, for about same  time as lentils, stirring occasionally. When lentils done, add to tomato mixt, taste, and season. Add water if necessary. Ladle on warmed whole wheat burger buns or baked potatoes, garnish with pickles and cheese. Makes lots!

Coconut Rice and Fish

Woah, I just realized I never posted about some of the meatless dishes we ate over Lent. 

I'd been wanting to try this Coconut Tilapia with Apricot Dipping Sauce from  All Recipes for at least a year.  Since fish is not my favorite thing I usually find excuses to make something else for dinner.  I was determined to make it this year.

This was the recipe I mentioned in this post a few weeks ago that called for creole seasoning.

I thought this dish would go well with rice, but I wanted to jazz things up a bit so I made Tropical Rice from Steamy Kitchen.

I really liked the apricot dipping sauce went well with the toasted coconut in the "breading" on the fish.  It also almost nearly masked the fish taste.  It was just fishy enough that I knew I was eating fish, but not enough so to be bothersome.

The heat from the creole seasoning helped balance the sweet from the sauce.  The spice neutralized the sauce from making the dish overly sweet.

As for the rice.  I really liked it.  Blockette and Mrblocko didn't.

The rice gets cooked in coconut milk and stock.  It also has crushed pineapple in it.

Sounds like a great match for the coconut fish doesn't it?

For some reason that rice did not want to cook.  I cooked it 10 min longer than the package suggests and it was still "al dente."

Mrblocko is not a fan of rice to begin with, and hates chewy rice.  I thought adding some chopped slivered almonds might help with the texture.  I thought they tasted great, but not to mrblocko.  I'm wondering if he doesn't care for coconut milk.  There are a few things I've made with coconut milk that he didn't care for either.  I'm just realizing that as I write this, so I should probably keep that in mind for future reference.

Anyhow, we had lots of leftover rice that I happily ate all myself.


Coconut Tilapia with Apricot Sauce from All Recipes
1 c flaked coconut, finely chopped
2 T flour
1 T Creole seasoning
4 (4 ounce) fillets tilapia
1/2 c cornstarch
1 (4 ounce) carton egg substitute (I used 1 egg, beaten with a splash of milk)
1/2 c veg oil

Apricot Dipping Sauce
1/2 c apricot jam
2 t spicy mustard
1 t prepared horseradish

Place conrstarch on rimmed plate. Beat egg with milk on separate rimmed plate.  On another rimmed plate combine coconut, flour and Creole seasoning. Coat fish with cornstarch, then egg. Press fillets in the coconut mixture coating all sides.

Heat canola oil in a frying pan to a temperature of about 350 F (175 degrees C). Fry fillets one or two at a time on both sides until golden brown. Remove to drain on a paper towel. Prepare the apricot dipping sauce by stirring together the jam, mustard, and horseradish in a small bowl. Serve the tilapia accompanied by the dipping sauce.

Tropical Rice from Steamy Kitchen
2 c jasmine rice (I had medium grain rice)
1 1/4 c chicken or veg broth
1 c good, thick coconut milk
1 c crushed pineapple
2 Tsoy sauce (or Tamari on a gluten-free diet)
1 T sesame oil
1 T brown sugar
1/4 c finely chopped green onion (Mine were all wilty when I went to use them so I left it out.)
Optional toppings: macadamia nuts, almonds, toasted coconut flakes

Rinse rice several times until water runs clear. Drain rice. In med pot, add rice, broth and coconut milk. Boil on high. Once boiling, turn heat to low, and cover.  Cook 20 min. Turn off heat and do not open lid. Let sit off the heat 10 min to finish steaming. Fluff rice with fork and add pineapple, soy sauce, sugar and oil. Top with chopped green onion and optional toppings.