A doughnut truck, hot chocolate, and embroidery . . .

I saw this on my way to work this morning.  I snapped a pic (at the stop light!) and sent it to Aaron :)

My rear is still hurting.  I'm still using ice but it makes my whole body cold when I ice it.  Another trip to the chiropractor today helped!

I had some time after lunch before my appointment so I went to my two favorite places.  Hobby Lobby and Barnes & Noble.  I want to make a few sets of cloth napkins to use at home so I went in search of some fun material to make them out of.  I wasn't feeling very inspired as I was shopping.  Not that HL doesn't have some really cute fabric because they do.  It's just that I really want to paint my kitchen and Aaron and I have yet to decide on a color and I want my napkins to coordinate.  I did get some red gingham . . . since the red from my cabinet is growing on me I thought it would make some cute napkins.

Then I went into B&N to kill some time before my chiropractic appointment this afternoon.  I really wanted a good coffee or something so I stood in line forever at the Starbuck's in B&N and ordered a Skinny Salted Caramel Mocha.  I love salted dark chocolate or salted caramel.  There is a candy store in the mountains we like to visit that makes and sells gourmet chocolate.  They have a chocolate covered caramel candy with sea salt that it swoon worthy.  Using deductive reasoning and common sense, I decided that this was the drink for me.  I.  Was.  Wrong.

It.

Was.

Disgusting.

I don't know if the girl who made it just really messed it up or what but I couldn't drink it.  As a matter of fact, I gagged.  Never again will I step out of my caramel latte comfort zone and try anything different at Starbucks.  I poured my $4.55 down the drain.

I was really disappointed about missing out on a fancy drink so after my chiropractic appointment I went home and made some real hot chocolate.  You know with milk, Hersey's Cocoa powder, sugar, salt and vanilla.  It was wonderful and much cheaper.

 So I sat down (on a hard chair and with some ice) with my hot chocolate and computer to catch up on some blogs I like to read.  Then my hiney starting hurting so I got up and finished up some things I started for my craft room that still does not exist. 

I stitched this dress makers form using a Sublime Stitching pattern and framed it in a metal hoop that was my Grandma's . . .

and this cameo which is also in a metal hoop from Grandma's . . .

and I embroidered embroidery in this wooden hoop (not vintage) . . .

All to eventually hang on a wall in my craft room . . . sometime . . .

A few weeks ago I found a pillow case that Ava and I had started a long time ago and never finished.  She had almost finished one of the birds :)  I finished up the other bird then made a second pillow case for Adrianna.

Here are the two finished pillow cases.

Just for fun, here are some pretty vintage spools of thread that belonged to my Grandmother.

Aren't thy pretty!  Coats and Clark 15 cent.

*all embroidery patterns are from Sublime Stitching

Natalie

You Say Donut, I say Doughnut . . .

This evening I told my girls IF they ate all their dinner then we could make a special treat for dessert.  Doughnuts!  That's right, make doughnuts!  They were in total agreement.  Adrianna doesn't always stick to her agreements.  That's just how she is.  Call me an enabler but I just could not tell her she couldn't have a doughnut after all the hard work she put into making the chocolate glaze, or "blaze" as she called it.  I guess you see where I'm going with this . . . Adrianna didn't eat all of her dinner yet she still got a doughnut.  She didn't eat all of that either so I don't feel like a total loser mom.

When we (my sister and I) were growing up my Mom used to make doughnuts for us every once-in-a-while.  I remember, just as if it were yesterday, my Mom standing in the kitchen making these doughnuts in her electric frying pan!  We would toss them in a cinnamon and sugar mixture or powdered sugar as a finishing touch and they were sooo good!  What I find really funny is that I really don't like doughnuts.  I mean I'll eat a custard filled or a chocolate cake doughnut once in a blue moon but they are not something I crave.  My husband LOVES Krispy Kreme and will stop, wherever we are, if he sees one.  One of his favorite things to do is to find a Krispy Kreme after he runs a race as an after race treat.  Barf, I say.  I don't even like going in the place because I don't like the smell.  So, imagine my surprise when I saw on Pinterest where someone had pinned something about making homemade doughnuts.  Ahhhh, nostalgia!  As soon as I saw it I was transported back in time to my childhood and remembered that I like those doughnuts.

Want to make some for yourself?  Here ya go!

Here is what you need:
1 can of biscuits, the buttermilk homestyle, don't use the flaky ones.
vegetable oil

Huh?  That's it.  For the doughnuts.  If you want to do a "blaze" you will need . . .
*I will refer to glaze as "blaze" from here on out*

Chocolate Blaze:
1 cup Confectioners sugar
1/4 cup Cocoa Powder
3 Tbsp Milk

White Blaze:
1 cup Confectioners sugar
1 tsp Vanilla flavoring
2 Tbsp Milk

And whatever other topping you want to use.  We added sprinkles on top of the chocolate icing. 

Here's what we did . . .

 

I got Adrianna started on making the blaze.  She did a good job and it kept her away from the hot oil on the stove.  Ava was "photographer" . . . 

I poured about an inch of oil in my pan and turned the stove on to about medium high.  As was waiting for the oil to heat I started on the dough because it takes a long time to pop open a biscuit can!  To make the hole in the center I used a bottle cap like a cookie cutter and it was the perfect size :)

Carefully place the dough in the hot oil.  CAREFULLY!!  When they start to turn golden brown on the bottom, flip them over . . .

 

 

  (photo credit Ava)

When the other side is golden brown, remove from pan and place on a plate lined with a paper towel . . .

 Aren't they pretty . . .

I did melt some butter and dipped them in the butter before we "blazed" them.

Yum!  The Chocolate blaze was delicious!

Delivering a chocolate blazed doughnut, sans sprinkles, to dad . . .

(See, how could I say no to that face?)

Adrianna's decorated doughnut . . .

Mmmm . . . They loved them . . .

 

I dipped the doughnut holes in the melted butter then rolled them in granulated sugar.  I guess they were good because Aaron ate them all . . .

  Now my house smells like a grease pit but who cares?!?!  My husband and kids are happy so I'm happy.  Now, where did I put that febreeze??

Oh, you are so welcome for this post.  I know you are going to go make some doughnuts right now and love me all the more for it :)