The birthday quilt is still on my design wall proper — still waiting on a few signatures.  So I’ve started a new quilt – a 4-Patch Stacked Posies.  This fabric has been in my stash with the intent of making this quilt since January 2008.   It’s time has arrived.

As you can see, I’m still pinning.  I do love the look of the quilt when it’s completed, but the prep work necessary before making the first cut drives me crazy.  Now that I think about it, this might be a good project to take to the next Friday night Stitch and Chat.  It’s only 3 weeks away, so I would still have plenty of time to finish the quilt before my deadline of June.

Check out other’s design walls by following the links over at Patchwork Times.

This past week there has been very little going on in my sewing room.  I’m not exactly sure what I did all week, but I know there was dress shopping 3 days and finally a wonderful night out at the Topeka Symphony Orchestra with my husband, niece and 3 of my husbands former orchestra students.

Here we are after we’d eaten at Culver’s.

The girls with violin virtuoso and soloist, Brian Lewis.

Needless to day not a whole lot of sewing took place (and I haven’t stepped into the kitchen either!)  I have started a 4-patch stacked posy using a length of a print from Wildflower Serenade II by Kansas Troubles.  I’ll count the fabric when the top is done, so it’s going to be a while.  I’m still pinning the layers together.  I don’t need this quilt until June.

So here’s the report:

Fabric Added Since Last Report: 0 yards
Fabric Added to Date:  53.944 yards

Fabric Used Since Last Report: 0 yards
Fabric Used to Date: 1.746 yards

Net Used for the year -52.198 yards

Other stash reports can be seen over at Patchwork Times.

No pictures today but a couple of links.

When Judy announced that Sweetened Condensed Milk was the ingredient for the week, the first thing which popped into my mind was Lemon Icebox Pie.  My MIL taught this to me shortly after my husband and I got married.  Just for the record here’s the recipe:

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 6 oz frozen lemonade thawed
• 1 small container of original Cool Whip
• 1 graham cracker crust

In a bowl mix the milk and lemonade.  Fold in the Cool Whip.  Pour into graham cracker crust.  Refrigerate until firm.

We just had a lemon icebox pie at Christmas, so I didn’t want to make it again – ooh  I found a picture of the pie I made for Christmas.

So, what did I make?  Coconut Chicken Tenders with Honey  Marmalade Dipping Sauce.  I went to my go-to site – Tasty Kitchen searched for sweetened condensed milk and then looked for something which wasn’t a desert.  There’s no picture because quite frankly I seldom fry anything and they looked overdone — not that they were.

I made a couple of changes to the recipe.  I cut the tenders in half-lengthwise. As a result  they cooked much faster than expected!  I forgot the salt and pepper (not a big deal).  I didn’t have peanut oil — in fact, I had to mix vegetable and canola oil to have enough oil in my pan.  Since I was making Parmesan Chicken Strips for my husband which are baked, I tried baking two of the coconut  strips.  The fried were better.

For the dipping sauce, I didn’t have any orange marmalade, but I did have a jar of apricot preserves that I bought by mistake over the holidays.  I started with 1 part apricot preserve and 1 part honey, but decided that was too much honey, so I added some more preserves — maybe 1/2 part?  I don’t think it was 2:1.  Then for a little kick, I added about a teaspoon of prepared horseradish sauce.    I also microwaved a bit of the just the preserves — we used to get a sweet and sour sauce that was apricot based.  My husband liked both sauces.

Will I do this again?  Maybe.  I’m not fond of frying foods, so I’ll get back to you – maybe even with pictures.

Check out other sweetened condensed milk recipes over at Patchwork Times and find out the ingredient of the week.

Saturday my quilting friends and I got together and worked on this quilt.  We each had a job to do.  V & I cut the fabric strips Friday night.  Then Saturday, I sewed, V cut the pieced blocks and trimmed the signature blocks after T removed the freezer paper.  S did the pressing.  All the blocks were made by the time they left at 5 and 4 rows sewn together — two of them correctly.

We decided that with the exception of the center row of the quilt which we reserved for T’s family, the rest of the signature blocks could land where they may.  So, I just started sewing from my EQ drawing.  Except, one block was turned wrong and I didn’t follow the design. Thus the two rows stitched together wrong.

After everyone left I was able to get the blocks sewn together correctly and a few rows sewn together.  Some blocks haven’t been returned and T thought a of a few more names she would like to send squares to.  I hope we can get this quilt finished before T’s next birthday.

To see what others are doing, check out the design wall links over at Patchwork Times.

No fabric was purchased nor used from my stash this past week.  But I did get a bit of sewing done.  Friday night I did a bit of quilting on the DWR (all that fabric was counted back in 2009) and then Saturday my friends and I worked on a birthday quilt — but that fabric wasn’t from my stash (pictures tomorrow).

Fabric Added Since Last Report: 0 yards
Fabric Added to Date:  53.944 yards

Fabric Used Since Last Report: 0 yards
Fabric Used to Date: 1.746 yards

Net Used for the year -52.198 yards

Other stash reports can be seen over at Patchwork Times.

Last night at Stitch and Chat I quilted two of the bottom melons and arcs.   Today, my friends will be over and we are going to work on T’s  birthday quilt.

Other than helping my young friend with her wall hanging, there’s been virtually no quilting going on for the past few weeks.  Which is obvious when you read my blog.  I’ve cooked and I’ve read.  I did wash some shirts with the intent of ‘de-boning’ them, but not having a place for the resulting fabric has somewhat slowed me down.  I think I’ve done two of the shirts.

This weekend I hope to change that.  Friday night is Stitch and Chat at Quilted Memories.  Some of my quilting buddies and I are planning to go.  It’s been a while since I’ve been — maybe October?  I don’t have a machine piecing project that is portable enough to take, so I’m planning on taking my DWR.  It’s been languishing for a while and I want to make some visible progress on it.  It’s on this month’s “Getting It Done!” list.

Then Saturday the ladies are coming over to my house for a day of quilting.  Perhaps these two sessions are just what is needed to get me into gear.

Now I’m off to straighten the sewing room and setup two more tables.  There’s going to be 4 of us in here sewing Saturday!

Last week Judy announced the  “secret ingredient” was Peanut Butter. Since I didn’t think she really wanted a picture of my lunch (I tend to eat a lot of peanut butter – Peter Pan Honey Roasted Smooth).  I started looking for recipes. I knew my young quilting buddy was coming over and she hates peanut butter, so I wanted to see if I could find something she would eat.  The other goal was to find something which I could fix out of my cabinets.  I’m not an adventurous cook.  To give you an example, olive oil is consider exotic in my kitchen.

Back during the holidays I bought some no-bake cookies from the grocery store.  Even though they had chocolate in them, I threw them out before finishing the first cookie.  They were horrible and if I was going to run my blood sugar up I wanted something which tasted good.

I searched the web and ended up combining two recipes to make my cookies.

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cocoa
• 1/2 stick butter (I used unsalted)
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cup oatmeal (I used old-fashioned)

Melt the sugar, cocoa, butter and milk in a heavy pan.  Once melted and combined, bring to a boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Remove from heat, add the vanilla and stir in peanut butter to melt and combine.  Mix in the oatmeal. Because I used old-fashioned oats I let it sit for 5 minutes before dropping onto wax paper by the spoon full.  Let cool to  setup.  Makes 20.

As I was searching the web, I  found comments about the cookies not setting up and the oatmeal to use.  Apparently the boiling the chocolate mixture for 3 minutes is crucial.  I had no problems with my cookies firming up.  As for the oats, the Quaker Oats website said either old-fashioned or quick would work, but if using old-fashioned to let the mixture set for 5 minutes in the pan.

These are very rich.  I think next time I would leave the peanut butter out – or at least use a  “plain” peanut butter instead of the honey roast.

Check out other peanut butter recipes over at Patchwork Times and find out the next “secret ingredient”.

Judy is hosting a link for what we are reading.  As much as I love to read — have since I was a little girl — I have to say I’m reading too much.  I know this because I’m not quilting!  I really need find some good books on CD.  It’s not as good as reading, but at least I can quilt.

Four or five years ago a friend told me about Diana Gabaldon’s books.  I started listening to them on CDs.  Sometimes it would take months for my name to come up on the list to get the next volume.  I guess it’s been 2 years since I finished listening to An Echo in the Bone.  Talk about a cliff hanger.  I can’t wait for her next book to come out Written in my Own Hearts Blood.

A few months back I spotted two of the books at a garage sale and picked them up.  Then I was on a quest to get all of the books.  The last one I needed to complete my set was ironically the first book of the series Outlander. Naturally I started reading them.  Last night after I finished Drums of  Autumn I started The Fiery Cross.

The things I laughed at when I heard the story I’m laughing at again as I read them (think of a large trout as a weapon).  Also, I’m picking up on things that I didn’t get listening to them.   When a new character is introduced I can’t wait to get to some piece of their story that takes place later.

The book is romance, history, time travel all rolled up in one.  Claire, while on a belated honeymoon in Scotland, is accidentally thrown back in time from 1945 to about 1745.  It’s the story of her survival and more. To read more about the series check out Diana Gabaldon’s website.

I’m linking up to Patchwork Times.

Well, it’s no longer on my wall.  This went home with my young quilting friend yesterday evening.  Last weekend we bought the blue KU and red fabrics.  Between the two of us we fussy cut the blocks. Then  I precut the yellow framing from my stash Thursday night.  It was a good thing because once she got here this past Friday night she was ready to sew.

The framing was completed Friday night, then Saturday she added the red sashing and borders.  The moment she finished the top she was digging in my stash to find a backing fabric.  She had the wall hanging quilted and the label made before going to bed Saturday night.  Sunday morning I bound the quilt and added the hanging “sleeve”.  I put triangles in the top corners and a narrow pocket about 4″ long in the center.  We slipped a 1″ strip of wood through the center and into the corners.  I sent some 3M hooks with the quilt so it could be hung.  She’s giving this to one of her teachers.

To check out what others are working on follow the links over at Patchwork Times.