Food Network Magazine Review: September 2011

Do you remember what I said in last month's review of FNMag? "You know a cooking magazine was a great issue when there are crumbs between the pages and the cover is destroyed."  Well the same is true for the September 2011 issue.  I was able to avoid the crumb issue, but there is brownie batter all over the cover.... this is why I save all my favorite recipes in a binder with protective sheets.  So long story short, September is a great issue and these are some of my highlights:


I learned: about what's actually much cheaper to buy at the salad bar instead of packaged.  Great tips for a family on a budget page 47.


The Kids are Cooking too!: Guy Fieri's son Hunter share's his recipie for chicken salad sandwiches - a great one to have on hand for back to school lunches.  Hunter Fieri's Chicken Salad Sandwiches: Page 54

Fun Stuff! Make your own pop tarts! I really want to try this... I wonder if I can make the smore ones? Grape Jelly Breakfast Tarts, Page 68

Time for Fall Cooking:

I want to make Alex Guarnaschelli's skillet cornbread on page 71 - mostly because I don't have a cast iron skillet and it's a great excuse to get one.  And the homemade strawberry jam looks so easy.

We're going to try the Apple Honey Drumsticks for dinner tomorrow night.  This is a recipe created because they had to use Mott's Apple Juice.  I bet it would also work well for the extra apple cider (because I don't like it) that ends up the fridge after the local fair.

If we have a fall dinner party this year, we might do fried brie as appetizers.  You'll have to grab the magazine for this recipe but it looks like a fun way to do individual brie servings for a cheese course - Page 87

Weekend Cooking:

This past weekend we made the Tuscan Cookout Meal on page 119.  We used a sirloin to do the Grilled Florentine Style Steaks because it's more affordable.  The Braised Beans were delicious and something I'll cook again.  Instead of the Eggplant Ricotta Bites we just swapped the eggplant for bread to make it easier, still so delicious!

Honestly, you really just need to check out the magazine for the rest.  It's flooded with easy dinner recipes, great for the busy back to school time in the Weeknight Meals section.  And I can't wait for the next issue! Rumor has it the newly crowned Sandwich King will be featured! Then it's the Thanksgiving issue! And then Christmas cookies! Wow - if you don't have a subscription you should get one now!

Enjoy!

- All photos used in this post are from http://www.foodnetwork.com/ And no - Food Network does not give me anything for saying how awesome this magazine is - although that'd be super if you're listening FN! ;-) 

The Seasonal Collection is hitting the "shelves!"

Yes: I've been busy
Yes: The day job has me working insane hours
Yes: I've been filling my warm summer weekends with outdoor activities
Yes: The blog has suffered
No: I haven't taken a break from creating....!

It's time - Etsy is full of back to school treasuries hitting the front pages each and every day.
My contribution: the very first Miss Meghan Elizabeth Seasonal Collection!

Textile Yoyo Necklace - Sunflower

I played with some textile ideas when I worked on the collection I made for the ballerina inspired photo shoot I was a part of in the spring.  The idea stuck and has now become my fall/winter collection.
A hand full of these pieces are yoyo necklaces, which I know have been found on Etsy, but I swear! I made a few before I even bothered searching to see that others made them too.... that always seems to happen.

The other half of the seasonal collection however I haven't see anything like! They are an ode to the Lumberjack and to the cozy flannel shirts of fall and winter.

What do you think? I think it's a fun way to love flannel and plaid without wearing a flannel shirt around - the sophisticated lumberjack.  They'll all be posted in my shop shortly with a few more being made.

The Crafty Family - Sister

I thought it would be fun to share with you some other amazingly creative people I know.  It just so happens that we're related.  You've already seen the amazingness that is my Mom in the post about my Crafty Hero.

Today I bring you my sister - Jenny.  We're only 14 months apart and used to fight like cats and dogs when were were little.  The older we get however, the better and better our relationship has gotten.

Yes - Crafty Mom made those costumes.

She has no idea that I'm posting this, and I did not ask permission to "borrow" these photos, but facebook still has a download feature.  My sister paints.  It's currently a hobby and I'm not sure if she'll ever sell her work.  I'm impressed with it because they all contain wonderfully happy emotions.
I love this series of pictures she took of a recent painting.  The photos show the timeline of her creative process as she develops a final image of one of her favorite things - sunsets.

Thanks for "sharing" Jenny!

Spoiled with Professional Photos

Is anyone else overwhelmed with all the back to school things?! I just got my first sunburn tan of the summer (so not proud of forgetting to re-apply after swimming) at the beach last week, yet I can't find beach towels at Target, only lots of crayons and trapper keepers.
Summer is flying by and all of the exciting things to do have kept me away from blogging, but in the spirit of back to school I will be blogging again more regularly.
So much is going on in my little shop that I can't wait to share with you, but instead of starting out with a big self promotion for my first post in August I'll just share some beautiful photos instead. Everyone loves photos, right?

Cathy Lee is a photography living in my town and we worked together for my first bridesmaid collection for her recent July wedding in exchange for new product photos.  I don't have a model and stink at taking portrait photos, so I was excited for the opportunity to get more photos of my jewelry on some beautiful women. 
Check them out! You can also consider this a sneak peak of the custom bridal collection that has just hit my shop (finally! - only nine months in the making!) Cathy also blogs about her photography here!