Happy Dancing

Happy Dancing

Saturday, April 12, 2014

LAST EASTER CARDS and
GOURMET DIVAS MEETING

I've put my last Easter cards into the mail and here's a final version I made for my parents and in-laws:


Inside Text

I love a dose of humor in a card!...and speaking of humor...my sister gave me this card for my birthday:


Thanks, Sis!

...and speaking of fabulous...my FABULOUS pen pal, LA, sent me the most magnificent card that made me do a BIG happy dance. The beautiful combination of textures, colors, die cuts and that Coco Chanel saying were extraordinary in every way...so I had to frame it for my craft room! 

I just found a new sign to hang over the door to my craft room that I now see every time I leave my craft room and it says "Go Out There and be AMAZING!" --- it makes me happy =)

I had my cooking club friends over last Friday for a deliciously fun meeting! I made the favors with my new envelope punch board thanks to a PIN IT FRIDAY FAV (posted HERE). I added a small bag of Jelly Bellies to it, but after a few other Easter craft projects I made, there's still about a half of a Costco-size container of Jelly Bellies left - DANGEROUS is all I can say!


The ladies each made their own bunny racers, too:


I made the first batch of bunny racers with yellow bunnies, but I like the way the blue bunnies stand out even if they do use some sort of toxic dye to get that electric shade of blue - LOL!

My cooking club buddy Fran gave each of us this card below and it reminded us of the hours of endless fun we had as kids playing dress up! Glitter has been added to every outfit on this card, but it hardly shows up in my photo. I do use a lot of Stickles glitter glue on cards --- I even added it to the bunny card at the top of this post to highlight the ears and tail =)


...and finally...I made one of my family's favorite breakfast and breakfast dinner items called French Toast Bake. It's the perfect dish to make for company because it's made up hours before serving, refrigerated, then placed in the oven for 45 minutes before serving. The recipe follows below:


FRENCH TOAST BAKE

Ingredients
  • ½ C. melted butter (1 stick)
  • 1 C. brown sugar
  • 24 King Hawaiian rolls cut in half to create a top and bottom
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 ½ C. milk
  • 1 t. vanilla
  • Cinnamon
  • Powdered sugar

Directions: Melt butter in microwave and add brown sugar. Stir until mixed well. Pour butter/sugar mixture into a 9”x13” pan and spread evenly. Beat eggs, milk and vanilla until thoroughly mixed. (I use the beater attachment from my immersion blender.) Place a single layer of rolls into the pan with the top side of the roll facing down and the cut side facing up. Spoon half of the egg mixture evenly over the rolls and sprinkle with cinnamon. Add the second layer of rolls with the cut side facing up. Spoon the remaining egg mixture evenly over the rolls and sprinkle with cinnamon. Cover and chill overnight (or make several hours before serving). Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes (covered for the first 30 minutes). Cut a serving and flip it over to reveal the top of the roll. Spoon some of the butter/sugar mixture on top of each roll and finish with a sprinkle of powdered sugar. Serve if desired with warm maple syrup, bacon and sausage. Recipe serves 8 people.