Author Archives: mlwilkie

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About mlwilkie

Software Developer, Mother, Wife with keen interest in art, design and crafts of all kinds.

Blueberry Muffins

These blueberry muffins are a family favorite and they work for breakfast, snack or dessert. The recipe is from “Essential Vegetarian Cookbook” by Rachel Carter.

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Ingredients

3 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
3/4 cup brown sugar
125 g butter, melted
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
1 cup blueberries
icing sugar (powder sugar)

Pre-heat oven to 415 degrees F (215 degrees C). Sift the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Add the brown sugar. In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs, add the milk and butter. Add the liquids to the flour mix and mix until just combined. Add the blueberries.

Spoon the batter into a greased muffin tin. Bake for 20 minutes or until skewer comes out clean. Place muffins onto a tray to cool. Serve with a coat of icing sugar.

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Small weekend finishes

I managed to get a couple of small projects done this weekend in preparation for our modern quilt guild monthly meeting – nothing like having an incentive :-).  I showed my “four seasons in one day” quilt for the first time at our meeting.  It was funny how nervous I was, showing my quilt and other projects. I present on a daily basis and usually have no qualms…..but not this time – it was like the first time you ever present to a “large” audience. I got great feedback for my quilt though, its nice getting that validation.

The small projects I was able to complete include:

  • The second pot holder for our kitchen. This has been a fun project trying out different techniques and using new materials, for example, quilt as you go technique and using the insul-bright material.
  • A name tag for quilt guild meeting. This was the first time I have used hexagons which I can see can be addictive. I was able to sit down in front of the tv and hand-sew this together in an hour or so. I used leftovers scraps for the front and backed the name tag with felt, using fusible web for the adhesive (first time using fusible web as well), and then quilted on my sewing machine. For the name part, I followed the same process I use for my homemade labels. I thought it turned out cute 🙂
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  • I fixed my son’s monster I had made, some stitching had come loose and needed a quick fix (it only took me 4-6 weeks to get around to doing it)
  • Finally, quilted the first straight line for the “four seasons in one day quilt”.

I am hoping to start a couple of my other March goals this week – I think I am going to try the kiwi paper piecing from Tartankiwi and also cut the fabric for the triple zipper pouch.

Weekly Meal Plan – week 9

Let me start by saying, I hate daylight savings when you loose an hour, especially when you only realize it is happening a couple of hours before bed. Woke up this morning, had breakfast and now finishing my breakfast latte while writing this blog and it is midday already – I have not done a whole lot yet. Anyway, into the recap from the week and this week’s plan…..

This week was a much better week. I actually cooked a couple of meals in preparation for the week, and there was less stress at work which made it easier to come home and get things done. I got some brownie points as I was proactive and organized 2 days of walking at lunch with a friend starting this week.

We have switched to gluten-free pasta now for about 6 weeks and I will say everyone in the house (my husband, 5-year-old and myself), have found two great brands that we all love. In fact, we like Quinoa Gluten-free Pasta – Spaghetti Style and the Archer farms Gluten-free Fusilli Pastas better than the old stuff we were using. The price ($2.50-$4.00 range at our local Super Target), taste and overall cooked result are our main reasons for liking these two products. My son, who is a little fussy (not too bad, he’s jus not a vegetable person), asks for seconds and devours the spaghetti by the bowlful.

Gluten-free Pasta

Here is our meal plan for the week:

DAY BREAKFAST DINNER EXERCISE
Saturday ^Strawberry-Banana Whole Wheat Crepes Cabbage Soup (Slow-Cooked which differs from the recipe)*
Sunday ^Strawberry-Banana Whole Wheat Crepes Vegetable Frittata 3-4 Mile Walk
Monday Egg + Berry/Banana Fruit Salad with Flaxseed Vegetable Pasta Bake*
Tuesday Whole Grain Cereal+Soy Fish and Vegetable Pockets 3-4 Mile Walk
Wednesday Oatmeal + Banana and Almond butter ^Pizza @ zPizza (love the options at this place)
Thursday Berry + Banana + Spirulina Smoothie Hungarian Casserole + Quinoa*  3-4 Mile Walk
Friday Berry + Banana + Spirulina Smoothie Vegetable Chilli + Brown Rice + Corn Tortilla’s*

^ indicates my splurge for the week
* Pre-made and can be kept refrigerated or Frozen