The joy of creation can result from doing beautiful needlework, creating a lovely quilt or simply baking and cooking delicious treats for your loved ones!
Professionals from the Quilting and Needlework Industries have joined together to share their holiday memories, a glimpse into their businesses, and MANY irresistible recipes!
Please visit ILovetoBakeCookies.com and TheArmchairChef.com for more fabulous holiday creations!
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Needlework and Quilting Pros |
| ILoveToBake.com PEPPERMINT BARK No Bake Recipe |
| We have a tall living room and generally get a fairly tall tree. A couple of years ago, we put the tree up Christmas Eve in the afternoon and trimmed it right away. All seemed well when I went to bed about eleven. About an hour later, my daughter heard a sound from the living room as if one of the cats was climbing up the tree,something they have never done. It turns out , she got there in time to see the tree slowly falling.
The ornaments had made the tree too heavy for the stand! We lost a few ornaments, some of which we replaced, and some of which we repaired. But many of the packages got wet. So we ended up opening presents at about 1 AM, an having a delightful time. Good thing we were all old enough to stay up that late! |
| Ingredients |
| 1+ pounds good white chocolate 1 box candy canes peppermint extract (optional) |
| Step by Step |
| 1) Line a jelly roll pan with wax paper. 2) Unwrap the candy canes and put them into a large Zip-loc bag. Using the mallet, pound the candy canes into small pieces. 3) Meanwhile, break up the chocolate and set it to melting in a double boiler. If you don’t have a double boiler, you can melt the chocolate in the microwave, but white chocolate burns easily, so take it out before it is completely melted and stir to complete the melting. HINT: Because white chocolate is the main flavor, it’s important to use good chocolate. Most white “coating” does not have a good flavor. The best white chocolate has cocoa liqueur in it, although this can be hard to find. If you can’t find that, use a chocolate from a well-known chocolate maker. I use Ghiradelli, which I buy in big chucks at Trader Joe’s. HINT: If you want a more intense peppermint flavor, add a drop or two of peppermint extract to the melted chocolate. 4) Stir the broken candy canes (including the dust) into the chocolate. You can control the crunchiness and flavor of the bark by how much candy you add. I like mine to be really thick with candy. 5) Stir until well-combined and pour out into the jelly roll pan. 6) Spread into an even layer and let site overnight to harden. 7) When hard break into irregular pieces.  Serve and Enjoy! |
| Napa Needlepoint |
| Janet Perry has almost never been without a needle in her hand since learning to needlepoint in 1970, when she was a teenager. And she’s been designing her own needlepoint almost that long.She takes an innovative approach to needlepoint, developing new stitches and fun ways to do techniques which are often regarded as difficult.
Her specialty is writing stitch guides for canvases from a wide variety of designers, including Melissa Shirley, Whimsy & grace, Raymond Crawford, Elements, Kelly Clark, Needledeeva, and River Silks. She is also developing a line of hand-painted canvases, available in 2007 from Whimsy & grace. She is a popular writer of needlepoint news and instruction, both in her blog and newsletter, Nuts about Needlepoint, and in her column for Cross-Stitch and Needlework. In addition to her work for designers, she does stitch guides and custom designs for shops and individuals. Web sites: http://www.napaneedlepoint.com, |
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Posted in Holiday Bake Along