"Morning Glory Muffins"

Hi Everyone, I wish you could just smell these delicious muffins cooling in my kitchen! Tomorrow I was asked to bring something to church for a Prayer Breakfast, so besides some watermelon chunks, I decided to take these yummy HEALTHY muffins.

For the past few weeks, I have really been trying to eat lots healthier and with no added salt! This recipe uses shredded carrots, apples, raisins, walnuts and calls for coconut, but I used dried cranberries instead of the coconut.

They are Yummy! Below is the recipe.

Morning Glory Muffins

1 cup whole wheat flour

3/4 cups sugar

1/2 cup oat bran

1/2 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp. soda

1/4 tsp. salt(optional)

Combine all the above in large bowl and set aside.

3 eggs

3/4 cups applesauce

1/4 cup vegetable oil (you can actually leave this out if you want)

1/4 cup molasses

2 tsp. vanilla

1/4 tsp. orange extract

2 cups grated carrots

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup coconut (Iused dried cranberries)

1 medium tart apple, peeled and finely chopped

Mix moist ingredients together...add to dry ingredients and then fold in the carrots, raisins, walnuts and coconut, and apple. Fill muffin cups three-fourths full. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes and remove to wire racks. Makes about 18 muffins. Enjoy!

Rain Appreciation Day!

Hi everyone, Today I am celebrating my own "Rain Appreciation Day"! Everything looks so much better since we have been having showers most every afternoon or evening. Flowers are blooming and things are lush and green. Here are some photos of the back patio and garden.

The banana tree looks gorgeous and so does the plumbago and the Mexican petunia!

Here is a close up of the plumbago. The yellow butterflies love this bush and usually there are at least 3 or 4 on it!


Happy Rain Appreciation Day!

Making fabric pumpkins

Hello and welcome to Ten Gables Cottage,
I have been busy making fabric pumpkins. I'm really in the Fall mood, as you can see. The ones pictured here are made of an old chenille bedspread dyed a golden orange. I have also used all sorts of pretty fall fabrics, including some orange and black flannel.







I started with a piece of fabric cut twice as long as it is wide.





I think I usually cut the pieces maybe 22 by 11 or 20 by 10, 18 by 9, etc.

Sew up the side, leaving both ends open. Then take a needle and thread and hand sew across one end, gathering up the fabric. Stitch a few times to secure.









Now turn right side out and stuff with fiber fill, very tightly.

Stitch across the top, gathering it and secure. Now you have a "ball". Take a big needle with yarn and go up through the bottom to the top, pulling the yarn tight to make the sections of the pumpkin. Make a stem and leaves of your own design or use wood, silk leaves, etc. Glue in place and there, you have a pumpkin!

Think Fall!

Blogger Giveaway Prize from 52Flea

Hi everyone and welcome to Ten Gables Cottage,
I am so excited because I won a beautiful giveaway prize from one of my favorite blogs...http://52 FLEA.blogspot.com/ I hope you will go on this beautiful blog and enjoy it as much as I do. The card came with the gift and was handmade by Laura's mother. It's lovely!
Then I received 2 gorgeous wooden paddles tied together with twine and I think they are either sock darners or dryers or they are used in the kitchen. I must find out the original use. They are so smooth so I know they had a special purpose. Then I received a skeleton key tied with a bit of lace, a cute little bag of vintage white buttons, all sizes and shapes, a wonderful little tin scoop that I had to dispaly the buttons in, and an old wooden stamp which I must stamp and see just whose name is on it! what a nice lot of treasures and I want to thank Laura for giving me the opportunity to enter her nice giveaway. What a thrill to be a winner!

Comfort Food...Navy Beans

Hi everyone and welcome to Ten Gables,

After deciding that I need to eat less meat and more fruits and veggies, for health reasons, I thought I would cook a big pot of healthy beans for protein. So, at the market, I looked at all the packages of dried beans and selected Navy Beans. I did not want to season them with either salt or meat, so how in the world would I get them fit to eat???

First, I washed them, looking them over carefully for bits that might not be beans. Then I put 1 lbs. of beans in a large pot with 8 cups of water and brought them to a boil. I then let them boil for 2 minutes, turned off the heat and let them sit for 1 hour. Next I poured off that water, washed them again and put them in 6 cups of fresh water. Now, what to add!! I added several leaves of celery, a dash of salt substitute, pepper and a mixture of herbs and spices called "Better than Salt". I then added a package of no sodium beef broth seasoning. I am not trying to be a strict vegetarian, but don't want the fat in meat and I am allergic to pork, so do not eat ham, which is traditionally what one would use to season dried beans. Well, let me say that these beans turned out delicious! They were soft and cooked just right! I simmered them about 3 hours. The seasoning was good, too, not overpowering but you knew there was thyme, garlic, celery, a little basil, maybe a bit of sage and whatever else that made them yummy. I had enough to freeze some for later, too. A nice alternative to meat! Best of all, not full of salt.

Pink Depression Glass Collection

Hi everyone,
I hope you are having a nice Sunday and I sincerely hope you are safe from the Hurricane called Irene.
I have inherited a good many pieces of Pink Depression glass from various relatives and then added some to my collection myself. It first was found in Oatmeal containers as premiums during the Depression. It has been called "the poor man's glass" because it could be purchased in five and ten cent stores and mail order catalogs, as well. It was made in amber, green, pink, blue, red, yellow, white and crystal. There are also many different patterns. I like to use mine with the table covered with an old quilt and fresh pink roses in the center. Nowadays, you can find it in any antique shop, some colors easier to find than others, and all fairly reasonable.

This piece makes a good "spooner". Grandmothers everywhere used them on the kitchen table to hold spoons at the ready for that good cuppa tea or coffee!

A Hawaiian Luau

Hi everyone, Yesterday our church seniors had a nice little Hawaiian Luau party and pot luck meal. We decorated with lieu's and had some entertainers (sorry my photos are dark due to the subdued lighting for the party.

It was fun to dress in our tropical prints, etc and one brave lady donned a grass skirt and taught us some basic hula moves!

The food was superb...we had lovely baked pineapple casserole, several meat dishes, banana bread, banana cream pie and much more.


Going through the buffet line.

I took a big basket lined with lettuce leaves and filled with all kinds of crisp veggies and Ranch dip served in a green pepper. The little white flowers were cut with a cookie cutter from turnip slices and the centers were made of carrots. In the photo, a lot of it has already been eaten!