Ms. March Guest Designer at the Cricutolics Forum

 Top of the mornin' to you!

I am this month's guest designer at the Cricutolics Forum over in the UK. If you have not previously visited the Cricutolics Forum please do follow the link and pop on over.  It is a fun site.

Given that I am guest designing on an International forum, I decided to skip right past Presidents' Day (because really, the UK doesn't care about our silly colonial celebration!) and jump ahead to a fun holiday we can all sink out teeth into.... St. Patrick's Day!!!  I feel certain that my Irish ancestors are all cheering this choice, just as surely as I know the Scottish and English ancestors are rolling their eyes in my direction!

I used three cartridges to create this card, George and Basic Shapes for the base card and the printed sections, Designer's Calendar for the large and the single shamrocks as well as the hat, and A Child's Year for the shamrock border.   My design calls for a white base card, green and white solid cardstock, and three to four Celtic or green print papers.

 The cut file for this card is available for free download in the left column of the blog, under the title Shuttered Tri-Fold St. Patrick's Day Card.     Even if you do not want to create a St. Patty's card, the cut file does contain the base card pattern.

A Day Late and A Dollar Short

So, about that title, it should read "A Month Late".   I seem to be perpetually behind lately.  As evidence, I am a month late making my St. Patrick's Day cards.  I suppose I could say that I am eleven months early, but honestly we all know better.  :-D

I used the Picturesque cartridge, along with Just Because Cards (my new Go To cartridge), and an assortment of fabulous green papers to create this Celtic Knot Card.  There are three layers of knot pieces, plus the oval frame and the frame center that I inserted between layers two and three of the knot as a background. 

I kept embellies to a stark minimum; I did not want to distract from the knot cuts.  I did add white doodle dots and I found some fabulous Irish buttons I had been saving.  I removed the loop section from the back of a large button and used a large sticky dot to attach the shamrock to the card front. 

Now that I have finally "Gotten my Irish on", a month late(!),I will tell you about my upcoming week.  I will have a new post EARLY Monday morning with the BBTB2 weekly challenge.  On Tuesday or Wednesday I should be able to share a cute project I created for Custom Crops - I am excited to share this cutie with you.  I will be back later in the week with a personal project as well as a new CUSTOM blog look that I have commissioned.  And that friends will take us into the following weekend and my first Saturday on Everyday Cricut.  I foresee a busy week....

And finally, one last thing, remember April 14th is the release of the Cricut Cake on HSN.  Have your charge card in hand at midnight!!!!   I will have an announcement later in the week regarding the Cricut Cake!! (Cryptic ending!!).

Late with St. Patrick's Day Dinner plus Pics from Hiking

This last Sunday was hiking at the Mt. Baker National Forest Trail 22 here in Washington state. The weather either out-and-out rained or calmed to a mere drizzle. As the hiking group descended, the drizzle stopped . . . of course =o).Round trip, the hike was 5.4 miles with a destination view of a frozen lake and snow at the top. The trail has old growth timbers, coating of thick moss, waterfalls, rushing rivers and stunning views everywhere we looked.I tested the group's patience for massive picture taking with my Canon Rebel XLR. I think the count was 236 pictures when I downloaded onto the computer.Some were more prepared for the hike then others. The weather may have been drizzly but the temperature was in the mid 50's so no one froze.The whole trail was well maintained.
The last of the huge trees before the scenery starts to change to a rockier terrain.Our goal is only about 15 minutes from this point.From rain to snow and ice. Amazing and Gorgeous! There is a wooden bridge and path around the whole lake and the lake is 50 feet deep in the center.While descending, the river's rush gets so loud, having any conversation is difficult. The hike is one I would love to do again. The drive took about 1 hour and 45 minutes to get to the trail from our house and the hike took the group about 3 1/2 hours. Carpooling was the way to go and pizza afterwards, then home.

Monday night meant dinner catch-up for me. I have been trying to make the St. Patrick's Day dinner since the 17th and defrosted my corned beef 2 days ago. I started doing evening bike rides last week, which threw off my whole schedule. The shortest of the rides was 22 miles. I think I bikes a total of 68 miles during the week. (Uhm, I haven't been on a bike in 19 years and have my father's Fuji racing bike to get accustomed too.)

St. Patrick's Day Menu:

Iced Irish Coffee; Whiskey-Glazed Corned Beef; Sweet n' Sour Cabbage and Guinness Floats

Iced Irish Coffee

(adapted from Cuisine at Home)

Makes: 4 servings (about 3 cups)

Total time: 15 minutes

2 cups ice cubes

1⁄4 cup sugar

1⁄4 cup hot water

2 cups fresh brewed coffee, chilled

3⁄4 cup Irish whiskey

1⁄4 cup chocolate syrup

1 cup heavy cream

3 Tbsp. sugar, optional

Directions:

Crush ice in a heavy-duty resealable plastic bag using a meat mallet, or use crushed ice from refrigerator door setting if you have one.

Combine 1/4 cup sugar and hot water in a pitcher; stir until sugar is dissolved.

Add coffee, whiskey, and chocolate syrup, stirring to blend. Fill serving glasses with crushed ice, then pour coffee mixture over the ice.

Whip cream and 3 Tbsp. sugar in a bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until soft peaks form. Top each drink with a spoonful of whipped cream; serve immediately.

Whiskey-Glazed Corned Beef

(adapted from Cuisine at Home)

Makes: 2 lb. beef

Total time: about 4 hours

1 corned beef brisket ( 2- 4 lb.)

1⁄4 cup ketchup 1⁄4 cup whiskey (such as Jack Daniel’s)

1⁄4 cup cider vinegar

2 Tbsp. brown sugar

2 Tbsp. low-sodium soy sauce

1 tsp. dry mustard

1⁄2 tsp. ground ginger

1⁄4 tsp. red pepper flakes

Directions:

Submerge corned beef, fat side up, in water in a large pot. Cover and simmer over low heat until beef is tender when pierced with a fork, 3–3 1/2 hours. (If chilling overnight, keep the meat in the liquid. Bring it to a simmer the next day, then continue with the recipe.)

Preheat oven to 450°. Line a baking sheet with foil, top with a rack, and coat with nonstick spray. Transfer the cooked beef to the prepared rack, fat side up. Use a knife to trim off the fat—it will be soft and easy to remove.

Whisk together ketchup, whiskey, vinegar, brown sugar, soy sauce, dry mustard, ground ginger, and pepper flakes in a saucepan; bring to a boil over high heat until thickened, 3–4 minutes. Spoon glaze onto beef, then roast for 10 minutes, or until the glaze is dark and sticky. Remove from oven and let meat rest for 15 minutes.

Transfer to a cutting board, then thinly slice against the grain.

Sweet n' Sour Cabbage

Makes: 4 cups

Total time: 25 minutes

4 strips thick-sliced bacon, diced

1 tsp. all-purpose flour

2⁄3 cup dry white wine

2⁄3 cup apple juice

2 Tbsp. cider vinegar

2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup

2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

1⁄2 tsp. red pepper flakes

1 bag coleslaw mix (16 oz.)

1 cup thinly sliced red onion

1⁄4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Salt and lemon juice to taste

Directions:

Sauté bacon in a sauté pan over medium heat until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate; pour off all but 1 Tbsp. drippings.

Whisk in flour; deglaze with wine. Add apple juice, vinegar, syrup, Dijon, and pepper flakes; simmer until slightly syrupy, 5 minutes.

Pour hot mixture over coleslaw and onion in a bowl; toss. Finish with parsley, salt, and lemon juice. Serve Guinness Float

1 scoop vanilla bean ice cream

One 14.9-ounce can Guinness Draught beer

Whipped cream, for topping

Dash nutmeg

Directions:

Place the ice cream in a large soda-fountain glass. Fill the glass with the beer. Top with a swirl of whipped cream and the nutmeg.