Irish Potato Cakes

Healthy?  Nope!  Delicious?  You bet!  This is like eating a fried loaded baked potato, and it has me hungry just thinking about it :)

This serves 2-3 people as a main course or 4-6 people as an appetizer (depending on how big your potatoes are)

You will need:

• 2 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-2 inch cubes
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
• a dash of milk
• 4 strips of bacon
• 1/4 - 1/2 yellow onion, chopped finely
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 tablespoon of a mixture of: thyme leaves, tarragon, and marjoram (you can use whatever seasonings you like, though!)
• Canola oil for frying the patties

For coating the patties:

• flour
• 1 large egg mixed with a dash of water
• bread crumbs

Cook the onion in a small pan with a drizzle of olive oil until they are soft.  When they are soft, remove them from the heat.  While the onions are cooking, cook the potatoes in boiling water until soft (about 15 minutes).

Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.

 

Mash the potatoes and then stir in the butter and milk until smooth.

Stir in the nutmeg and seasoning mix, and let the mixture cool for about 5 minutes.

 

While the potato mixture is cooling, cook the bacon until it is crispy (I did ours in the microwave, but stove top works well, too!)  Mix the bacon and the onion into the potatoes, then form the mix into patties.

 

Dredge the patties in flour, then the egg/water mix, and then the bread crumbs.

 

Heat the oil in a large frying pan over medium high heat.  When the oil is hot, add the patties and cook for 3-5 minutes on each side until they are browned.

Serve on a bed of greens- it looks pretty and you can pretend it's healthier ;)

Bathroom Updates

Yesterday, I had "make something" on my list of things to do so I could blog about a new project.  Instead, I ended up doing quite the home improvement project!  Check it out:

Here is our bathroom sink and hardware before

And after: I put up new drawer pulls in a silver tone.

The old gold light fixture and tiny cabinet pulls

So much brighter with silver (and clean light bulbs, haha)

I spray painted it and did the electrical work myself (so proud)!

New cabinet pulls on the medicine cabinet, too!

I even replaced our old toilet paper holder to match our new towel rods.

It's amazing what a difference such little changes can make!  Next up, a new shower curtain and bath mat to add some color to the room :)

Missed my Good Natured Giveaway?

... well there is another one going on at JessicaNDesigns!

For a chance to win a $30 credit to Dani's shop, hop on over to Jessica's blog!

Image from JessicaNDesigns :)

Painted River Rocks

I saw some cute painted stones in an Etsy shop and thought I would try my hand at them:

You will need:

River rocks (I got mine at the dollar store!)
A pencil
White acrylic paint
Small paintbrush (the smaller, the better)

The steps are super easy.  Just draw your design on your rock

And paint it!

I think these would be so cute piled in a little dish or out in the garden!  Mine are currently in a dish around our potted red shamrock :)

New Packaging and Washi Tape

I have had my Etsy shop for a little bit now and I'm so happy to have some new packaging for my goods!

 Now whenever an order is placed, it will be sent in one of these cute little gift boxes!  I think I'd like to dress it up even more with a border around the label, but I really love the polka dotted washi tape!  What do you think about these other patterns I found?

Purple lace - so pretty!

Chevron washi tape!  How cute are these?

Made with love - perfect for the do-it-yourselfers :)

 Washi tape is a simple, inexpensive, and super cute way to dress up any package- whether for your shop or just for any little gift!

Shrimp and Asparagus Stir Fry

Another recipe adapted from The Williams Sonoma Cookbook.

It's a go-to book The Williams-Sonoma Cookbook: The Essential Recipe Collection for Today's Home Cook

I sized the recipe down for two and made a few tweaks to accommodate my mild Midwestern palate :)

To serve two, you will need:

1 pound of shrimp (buy it already de-veined and peeled)
1 smaller bunch of asparagus with the ends trimmed and cut into one inch pieces
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sesame oil
1 and 1/2 tsp soy sauce

1 tablespoon finely chopped ginger
1 green onion, cut into small pieces
1 tablespoon cooking sherry

Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pan over medium high heat.

While it is heating, toss the shrimp with the salt, sesame oil, and soy sauce.

Add the ginger and the shrimp to the pan and cook until the shrimp is pink on both sides.  Remove the shrimp.

 

Add the asparagus.  Once the asparagus is bright green, add the sherry and green onion and cook for another couple of minutes.

Add the shrimp back to the pan and toss them together.  Cover and heat until the asparagus is tender.  Serve over steamed rice.

Yum!

Inspired by Crate and Barrel

While browsing at Crate and Barrel, I saw some wine glass charms that looked felted and super easy to DIY and I thought, hey, I could make that!  So, here is a little DIY so you can, too!

 

First, make a template of the shape you want with a hole in the middle a little larger than the stem of your glasses.  I did a flower, but I think a group of hearts or suns or even squares would be cute, too.

 

Cut your felt into smaller squares to make it more manageable.

 

Then, using a sharpie in a color similar to the felt, trace the template.

Cut the felt just inside the sharpie lines.

Finally, make a little snip through the charm so it can slide onto the wine glass.

So simple and so cute!  Friends and family, if you're looking for a set of wine glass charms, hit me up!  I have lots of felt left :)

Good Natured Winner!

And the winner of a $20 Etsy shop credit for Good Natured is....

Mary from something nice!

Congratulations, Mary!  I'll be sending your info along to Dani so she can hook you up!

Puppy Palooza

Today, I went to a puppy meet and greet for Safe Hands Animal Rescue.  This is the organization that we got Inga through, so it was a lot of fun for the group to see how grown up she's gotten.  Inga was a bit overwhelmed at first, but once she had some time to get settled, she had a blast and played with a TON of new friends :)

This is McKenzie- doesn't he look like a little Yoda?

Jolie; she would be a great first dog for someone- such a sweetie!

Rosie: she and Inga played, rolling all over the floor

A doxie-beagle mix!

This little guy wanted to play with EVERYone

And Una, a husky shepherd mix- such a pretty girl!

We had so much fun seeing all the dogs and puppies.  If you are looking for a friend, you should definitely check this group out!  Who knows, Inga might even get a sibling... :)


** Don't forget to enter the Good Natured Etsy shop giveaway!  Winner announced on Monday! **