Corned Beef and Cabbage

Hi there. Happy St. Patrick's Day! It's been a while, but I'm back. I took a much needed break to rest. During the hiatus, I traveled to the British Virgin Islands and made a huge career change - I'm now working at the corporate office of Lizard Thicket, an Atlanta-based clothing boutique. Check us out online. We just released some adorable things for Spring! The first day of Spring is this Wednesday, so be prepared to bust out your mint and peach (they are the hottest colors of the season).

It's been so long since I had the time to make a Sunday night meal and as it's St. Paddy's, I made the traditional Corned Beef and Cabbage in honor of Adam's Irish heritage. I grew up on this dish and remember many Sunday afternoons eating it after church. I wanted to update the recipe so I turned to the Pioneer Woman's website, Tasty Kitchen. The site is full of fabulous recipes and I used my own spin on it. Although it takes about 4 hours to cook, it's easy and delicious. Enjoy!

Corned Beef and Cabbage

prep/cook time: 4 hrs; serves 2

Ingredients

• corned beef (I purchased one at Whole Foods big enough to serve 2)
• water
• 1 tbs dijon mustard
• 1 tbs yellow mustard
• 1 tbs spicy brown mustard
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 head of cabbage, quartered
• can serve with roasted red potatoes

Directions

Place corned beef in a dutch oven and add water until the meat is fully covered. Bring to a boil on stovetop, then reduce to a simmer on low. Simmer for 2 hours. Mine started floating after about 15 minutes of simmering, so I had to add a burger press to weigh it down...you want the meat to be submerged in the water the entire time. While that is cooking, mix the three mustards and brown sugar together in a small bowl.

After 2 hours, cover a jellyroll pan with foil and place corned beef into the pan. Add several ladles of corned beef broth from the dutch oven into the pan - this is called a "wet bath". Baste the meat with the mustard mix and place in the oven on 275 degrees for 2 more hours. Baste with mustard mix half way through. Add a third layer of mustard mix, then turn the oven to broil and (watch the meat) for 2-3 minutes. Don't let it burn.

To cook the cabbage: when there is about 30 minutes left on the corned beef, bring the beef broth in the dutch oven to a boil and add the quartered cabbage. Add salt to taste.

Once corned beef is cooked, cut thin slices against the grain and serve with cabbage. Drizzle any leftover mustard mix over the slices.

It's so easy and yummy!!!! I hope you enjoy making and eating this as much as I did. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

 

Proud in 2013

It's hard to believe 2013 is in full swing! Another year has come and gone. 

Wishing you many proud moments this year!

Simple, easy Christmas arrangement

Adam and I host our families for a Christmas Eve dinner every year. This will make our fifth (er, maybe sixth) year doing it. After dinner we head to our church for the candlelight service full of lessons and carols. We've made it a tradition and it's easy for us because our moms bring the food - we do a huge pan of the Pioneer Woman's lasagna, salad, and bread. Simple as that! This year is no different and we can't wait to host everyone tomorrow evening.

I always set the table different each year. This year I bought some large white hydrangea stems (just 3 for $6.99 at WF), and some chrysanthemums (7 stems for $6.99). Whole Foods had some great greenery and Christmas berries, but sheesh...they were so darn expensive.

Want to make some arrangements for your holiday table? Buy a few white stems of hydrangeas and another smaller flower for variation. The hydrangeas have a large head which takes up a ton of space - meaning you won't have to fill your vase with more flowers. I like the spikes of the chrysanthemums agains the delicate, large stems of the hydrangeas. Instead of wasting money on Christmas berries (seriously, they were $19.99 for a few stems), look around your yard and trim a few spring from a holly bush, magnolia tree, or evergreen. Heck, do what I did and cut some branches from the backside of your Christmas tree.

I chose 2 large, yet squatty cube vases. Keep in mind you don't want anything too tall because it will block everyone's view from each other. You want to keep the conversation going without having to use a machete to see!

I placed 2 handfuls of small river rocks that I found at Lowes in the bottom of the vases. From there I cut the hydrangea stems to where the base of the head just hits evenly with the top of the vase. You don't want it too tall or short so cut a little at a time until you get the right height. From there add the greenery on the edges around the whole vase. Then, add the chrysanthemums in any holes that you see.

For the berries, I added fake ones that I had leftover from my decorations. I found mine at Hobby Lobby for .79 each (plus 50% off).

I think my arrangements are pretty nice and they were less than $10/each.

What are some of your holiday traditions?

{SEVEN} 12 Days of Pinterest

Day #7...

{TEN, NINE, EIGHT} 12 Days of Pinterest

The weekend caught up to me...

Day #8

Day #9

 Day #10

I hope your weekend was as good as mine. We celebrated some sweet friends at their engagement party in Macon. This countdown to Christmas is really starting to stress me out... It's almost HERE!

{ELEVEN} 12 Days of Pinterest

Day # 11...

 

 

 

via Pinterest.  

{DIY} :: Custom Message Board

Hi there! Happy Friday! 

Need a little DIY inspiration? Remember the Weekend Project Series that I started? 

Well I finally get to show you the project. It took forever to get the fabric order in. Thank you to those who gave your input on the fabric selection. I ended up choosing the Braemore Konya Ikat in Pond from fabric.com. Just be mindful of their long order processing and shipping. They aren't in a hurry there.

Plus, to be honest, I am a little behind on blogging...

So what was I using the fabric for? A custom message board! I have this small space under my kitchen cabinets that collects paper, cards, and invitations. We were making a cork board out of wine corks but I didn't like the look of it and it was too small for the space. I couldn't purchase a store-bought message board because this area was a unique space, so customizing one was a must!  Here is the DIY How-To:

Custom Shape Message Board

Materials Needed:

• Wood Panel or Particle Board
• Cork Tiles (found at Michael's)
• Cotton Batting (thin, basic kind. Found at Hancock Fabrics)
• Decorative Fabric (i only needed 1 yard, but measure your project first)
• Nail Heads Used for Upholstery (found at Lowe's in the hardware section)

Tools Needed:

• Pencil (and string if you do a round shape)
• Measuring Tape
• Circular Saw
• Palm Sander or Sand Paper (course grit)
• Hammer
• Staple Gun

So here was the plan: I measured the space and decided on a shape:

Then, using a piece of wood shelving that I had laying around the basement, I measured, traced, and cut the wood to the right shape. Obviously the blade of a saw doesn't cut round shapes, so I did the best I could. You can use a palm sander to soften the edges if you choose to do a similar shape.

After it was cut into the correct shape, I attached the store-bought cork tiles. They were easy to cut down with a box cutter so that it fit perfect to the shape of the board. I just used the double-sided tape that came with the cork tiles to attach it to the wood. You could also use hot glue or Elmer's.

This what the board looked like after attaching the cork.  At this point, you want to move to a clean working environment, which is why I moved from the basement to upstairs.

I ironed the fabric and the batting and laid both face-down on a clean surface, then laid the wood on top close the edge (cork side facing down). I left about 2 inches on the sides.

Using a staple gun, staple the edges of the fabric to the board as you pull tightly. 

The curved edges were a little tricky.

After you have tightly stapled the fabric around the entire piece, cut the extra fabric.

At this point, this is what it should look like.

Finish with nail head trim. I purchased a pack of 20 nail heads at Lowe's for a little over $2. Make sure to have a few extras because some will break if you hammer them too hard. It took me about 3 packs to complete this board. Space the nail heads accordingly and tap them [lightly] into the board using a hammer.

 

This is the completed project! Not the best photo, but you get the idea.

I was recently commissioned to make one for a friend to give as a Christmas gift...she wanted to use natural canvas and I really love the way it looks with the bronze nail head.

Is your nest in need of a custom message board? 

It's the perfect DIY project for a rainy {or fingers crossed, snowy} day.