Little gardens of happiness...

also known as terrariums.

I love these things!

I've been wanting to make some forever, so I finally decided to since I was already at the garden center buying seeds.

Not really sure what the names of these plants are, but they are so cute and fun!

And, like with my seedlings, I had to get creative with these as well. Two went in lanterns made from old glass jars, and one is in a glass canister I used to use for flour.

The two smaller ones have three plants each: a flowery one, a shorter one, and a tall fern-looking one:

  

 

  

And here's the larger one. I like to call it "a peaceful little resting place". You'll see why:

    

I also threw the leftovers in a glass candy shop/apothecary kind of glass that I have:

  

I'll keep you posted on how these survive... :)

more growth...

Quick update on the "garden" for ya... :)

    

I also started a few more seeds: Dill, Mint, Parley, Oregano and Kale.
I had to get a little creative with where I put them though, so that they would fit onto my little home.

Mint and Dill in candle holders:

   

  

  

   

Oregano, Parsley and Kale in a pie plate, under a glass bell:

Stay tuned for more growth... and some cooking too, I promise! ;)



let the growing begin!

I decided that in addition to cooking, I would add a little growing to my blog this year!
I should probably start by letting you know that last year I had a nice little vegetable garden on my patio (all in pots of course), which I plan to have this year as well. And, in addition to my patio garden, I will also be growing vegetables in the garden at my parents new house.
Now, their garden doesn't even exist yet- it's currently just weeds and underbrush- but it will be something great in the spring!
Therefore, this topic of growth will be an ongoing one...

To start, lets begin with my seeds. Round one: basil, cilantro and yellow tomatoes. I also have a tray of corn that will be for the garden at my parents.

    

Below is a shot of my "greenhouses".

The small one is a seed-starter kit I got at the garden store. The big one is a giant lantern I got on clearance at Home Goods. I thought it would be Perfect to use as a greenhouse. Plus, since I collect lanterns, it just made it that more appealing to me.

And here are the herbs after one week:

See you soon for some more updates!

:)

Roll 'em!

First of all, I have to be honest- I made these a few weeks ago and totally forgot to post them. Also, I Have been cooking, but I have also been really bad about taking pictures, so for that I apologize. I'll do better I promise!
Anyways, to begin, I must tell you where I got the inspiration for this recipe.
It was at King's in Dedham. I went for a birthday party, but had a bite to eat at the bar with a friend beforehand. We ordered waffle fries (amazing) and cheeseburger egg rolls (even more amazing!). These egg rolls were unreal. Truly. I could not get home fast enough to make them!!
Now, if you know me, you know that I don't like to use recipes. I like to try something,try to figure out what's in it, then try to make it on my own. And when I had these rolls at King's, I knew it was just basic ground hamburg, but it had a flavor I just couldn't figure out. Thankfully the bartender was nice enough to let us know it was Worcestershire sauce. Once I had that figured out, I was ready to go. So, 3 days later, I decided to take a stab at them!
First, I cooked up some hamburg with a little garlic powder and Worcestershire sauce.
Now, since I can't (and shouldn't) eat all these by myself, I knew I would be bringing them to work, so I kept the recipe pretty simple. But, if they were for me, I would have cooked onion and maybe some mushrooms or peppers into the meat.

Once the beef was cooked, and had cooled down, I warmed up a pan of oil so it could heat up while I made the rolls. I just used a deep skillet, but if you ave a fryalator, I would definitely use that!

While the oil heated up I got to rolling. This was very easy, but very time consuming.

Simply place a few spoonfuls of the meat in the middle, add some cheese (I used American), and roll.

Now, I placed the cheese on top of the meat, but the next time I make these, I will mix the cheese into the meat while its still warm so it is all mixed in. I think that will make them much better!

Next step: fry!!!!!
Once they are a yummy golden brown they are good. A few minutes on each side seemed to do the trick.

That's it!
Garnish with whatever you like (pickles, tomatoes, onion, lettuce, ketchup/mayo) and enjoy!!!

See you soon!
:)