Crochet Shark Hat

7:00 AM Chelsea 0 Comments

I swear, every day it gets a little bit cooler and cooler here! And the breeze that I once practically begged for during the summer is beginning to become a nuisance to my poor ears! Hats are about to be a necessity for outside time, but my son refuses to wear one. That is, until he saw this cute shark hat I made!




I found this pattern through Repeat Crafter Me here. The sizing seems to be pretty accurate and I just love how cute it came out! She has a ton of other free patterns, including more hats that I'll have to add to my to-do list for sure!

Pie Baking Contest

7:12 PM Chelsea 0 Comments

Those of you who know me know that I'm a tiny bit competitive. Ok, a lot competitive. I'm a total perfectionist and have a hard time admitting defeat. So when Mr. S told me that his battalion was having a pie contest, I knew there was no messing around.

I thought long and hard about what to make. My mind immediately went to those cinnamon roll pie crust pics I see on Pinterest. Little did I know it's not as easy as throwing some cinnamon rolls in a pie pan! So I stuck with old faithful and went with a classic apple pie that I've been making for years. I'm so glad I did! Everyone tried something crazy or fancy and there were no classic apple pies! Umm... what's more american than apple pie at an Army event?!


So, here is my perfect apple pie recipe, in case you feel like being uber American or a perfectionist.
Side note: How cute are those little apple cut outs?! You can find the pie crust cutter I used here.

INGREDIENTS:

• Crust:
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup shortening (recommended: Crisco)
• Ice water
• Filling:
• 6-7 cups apples (prefer Macintosh and Granny Smith together)
• 1 cup white granulated sugar
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup- 1 cup flower (depending on juice)
• 1 heaping teaspoon cinnamon


• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
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• DIRECTIONS:
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• In a medium-mixing bowl cut the shortening and salt into the flour by hand or with a pastry blender hands until it's the texture of cornmeal. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of ice water over the mixture and mix just until the dough is moistened. Repeat by adding 6 to 8 tablespoons water (one at a time) until all the dough is just moist. Take care not to over mix.
• In a medium bowl combine the apples, with the brown and white sugar. Add flour, cinnamon and continue mixing until they are well coated.
• Divide the dough in half and roll into a ball. Roll 1 ball into a circle to fit a 9 to 10-inch pie plate. To transfer the pastry to the pie plate, wrap it around a rolling pin and ease it into the pie plate. Be careful not to stretch the pastry. Trim it even with the edges of the pie plate. Add the apple filling into the pastry lined pie plate. Make sure they are laying flat. Cut butter into small pieces and put on top of the filling.
• Roll the remaining pastry into a 12-inch circle. Place on top of the filling. Trim off 1-inch beyond the edge of the pie plate. Crimp the edges as desired. Cut slits to allow steam to escape when baking. Sprinkle a little sugar and cinnamon over the pie.
• Cover the edges with foil to prevent over browning. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove the foil and bake for another 20 to 25 minutes, or until it is golden brown. Serve warm with vanilla ice cream.

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