Posts Tagged ‘make it do’

Far and away, the most useful flower in my garden is lavender.  I use it for a number of different projects including Lavender Eye Pillows, Lavender Bottles and Sachets.  I love they way it smells… clean and not too sweet.

Lavender sachets are not just for my lingerie drawer.  A sachet is wonderful in a linen drawer, or even in a desk drawer.  Your stationary will take on the slight scent of lavender.

If you don’t want or have time to sew, a sachet can be made from a lace handkerchief.  Put the lavender in the center of the handkerchief, pull the corners up to the center and tie a ribbon around the bundle.

If you have a small amount of fabric and a couple minutes, it’s easy to sew a sachet bag.  My favorite kind of sachet are ribbon closed bags, because it’s easy to open the bag and refresh the scent by adding a few drops of essential oil.  Or when it gets too old, it’s easy to replace the lavender altogether.

Here’s how to make sachet:

To dry lavender from your garden, cut the stems on a dry morning.  I place rubber band around the base of the stems, then tie a piece of twine in a slip knot around that.  I hang them in a cool dry place (my basement) for several weeks.  Once dry, they are ready to use.

The quickest way I’ve found to remove lavender from stems is to lay the dried lavender on a clean dishtowel.

Fold up the towel and roll it with a rolling pin.

Unroll the towel and discard the stems.  This method doesn’t remove every flower from the stems, but it’s fast and does a good job.  Shake the flowers from the towel into a bowl.

For a sachet, I prefer fabric with 100% natural fibers, such as cotton, linen or silk.  I’ve even cut up old linen bedding for sachets.  (Even when the bedding has some holes, it’s easy to find enough good fabric to make many sachets.

Cut a piece of fabric 11″ x 8″.

Fold the fabric in half lengthwise, right sides together.

Using a 1/2 inch seam, stitch along the long side and bottom of the folded fabric.

Fold the top of the fabric down a little more than halfway.  There will be no need to stitch the fold into place, as it will be tucked down inside the bag.  This method makes the top of the sachet very clean.  I’ve made them before with a hem at the top and it looks messy, this method is much better.

Press the top of the fold.

Turn the bag right side out, using a chopstick to make the corners crisp.  Fill with about 3/4 cup of lavender.  You can also substitute other herbs or spices that you love such as: cloves, lemon peel, cedar shavings, or cinnamon sticks that have been crushed.

Tie the top of your sachet with ribbon.

It’s ready for the drawer.  If it stops smelling as strongly, I give it a squeeze, which releases some of the oils.  A lavender sachet in a drawer will last for at least a couple of years…. sometimes longer.

Sachets are a great way to use up your supply of lavender from the garden.  And if, like me, you have a copious amounts of lavender, sew extra sachets and put them away for last minute gifts.

Green Chile Egg Casserole is a big crowd pleaser.  It’s the perfect dish to serve when you have guests for breakfast or brunch.

I absolutely love this dish.  It makes me happy to smell it cooking.  It makes me even happier to eat it.  And here’s a big surprise, picky eaters and kids love it too, even with eggs and chiles.   The secret to this dish’s success is cheese…. lots and lots of cheese.

I love to serve this dish on mornings when I don’t want to or don’t have time to slave away in the kitchen.  We eat it every 4th of July morning after we come home from the neighborhood parade.  We also eat it every Christmas morning… because who wants to cook on Christmas morning?  Green Chile Egg Casserole is perfect for those special, busy mornings because this dish must be made the day ahead.

Plus it is so good (and bad for you) that you’ll want to save it for special occasions.

Here’s the recipe:

Green Chile Egg Casserole

2 – 4 oz. can diced green chiles

1 lb. shredded jack cheese

1 lb. shredded cheddar cheese

4 eggs, separated

1 can evaporated milk

½ tsp. salt

½ tsp. pepper

1 Tbsp. flour

Tomatoes for topping

Salsa for topping

*This dish must be prepared the night before baking.

Beat egg whites until stiff white peaks form, set aside.  In a large separate bowl, beat yolks with a fork.  Add one can of evaporated milk, salt, pepper, flour and green chiles.  Mix well.  Gently fold in egg whites.

Sprinkle mixed cheeses evenly in a 8 ½ x 11 casserole dish.  Pour egg mixture evenly over cheeses and spread with a spatula.  Cover and place in the refrigerator overnight.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Bake for 55 minutes.

Allow to rest for about 10 minutes before serving.  Serve topped with sliced tomatoes and salsa on the side.

Serves 12.

Click over to Tasty Kitchen for the printable recipe.

Here’s the step by step:

Separate your eggs.  I never use a fancy egg separating tool.  I just use what nature provides… the shell.  If you’ve never separated eggs before, simply crack the egg in half, gently transfer the yolk back and forth between the two halves of the shell, as the whites drop into the bowl below.  Once separated, place the yolks into a large mixing bowl and set aside.

Using a mixer, beat the yolks into stiff peaks.  I am always amazed that egg whites can turn into something so lovely.  Set the egg whites aside for now.

In the large mixing bowl, beat the yolks with a fork.

To the yolks add evaporated milk.

Is that how you open a can of evaporated milk?  Whenever I do it this way (as opposed to using a can opener) I think of my mom.  That’s how she opens and uses evaporated milk… it seems old school.

Add flour, salt, pepper….

… and the chiles of course.  One of those cans say they are hot fire roasted diced green chiles.  They are not.  Hot, I mean.  If you love it spicy, you could substitute in some jalapenos.  (Or use pepper jack cheese instead of jack cheese later in the recipe.)

Today I’m using a few more chilies than the recipe calls for.  And that’s OK.  Just be sure to drain your chilies before adding them in.

Mix them all together.

Then add the egg whites.

Gently fold them in.  If you stir too hard, you’ll loose all the loft and air you’ve put in by beating the whites to stiff peaks.  Folding is the key.

Sprinkle your mixed cheeses into an 8 ½ x 11 casserole dish.  I love to use a Pyrex dish for this casserole.

Two pounds looks like a lot of cheese.  It is a lot of cheese.  That’s what makes this dish so sinfully good!

Pour your egg mixture evenly over the cheeses and spread it out with a spatula.

Once it’s even.  Cover your dish and place in the refrigerator over night.

In the morning it’s going to look like this.  The mixture has seeped into the cheeses… and magic has happened.

Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven for about 55 minutes.  I love when the top starts to brown a bit…

Serve it up with sliced tomato on the top… and salsa on the side.

Ummm… it is mouthwatering good!  Just don’t tell anyone how much cheese is in there… and let them enjoy it guilt free.