Corn Cakes and Amazing Salsa

Image and recipe from here.

This is what we had for dinner last night. I found the recipe in Pinterest, of course. We enjoy eating meatless meals a couple times a week and this was the best meatless choice we've bade in a long time. It was like an infusion of fresh fun for the taste buds. Now, that's not my picture above but I'm not kidding when I say mine looked just like that. I even plated them nicely but ours were served with a side of fresh blueberries.

Do note that if my kids were eating the salsa, I'd have doubled it. We had a few left over, plus the ones my kids ate that didn't have salsa, and the salsa was totally gone. You've been warned.

Summer Corn Cakes with Chopped Tomato and Avocado Salsa

Adapted from “Sara Foster’s Southern Kitchen”

Makes about 12 large cakes; serves 6 to 8 as a side and 4-6 as a main dish

• 3 ears corn, shucked
• 1 C. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 C. cornmeal
• 1/4 C. diced red onion (this was good, but next time I’ll try green onion)
• 1/4 C. thinly sliced fresh basil
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 T. well-shaken buttermilk or 2 T. of any milk
• 2 T. unsalted butter, melted
• Canola oil, for frying
• Chopped Tomato and Avocado Salsa (recipe follows)

1. Cut the corn from the cobs into a large bowl, and scrape the stripped cobs with the back of the knife (or a spoon) to release the juices into the bowl.
2. Place 2 cups of the corn kernels (for me that was nearly all the corn) into a food processor, and pulse several times, until the corn is slightly pureed but still chunky. Scrape into the bowl with the remaining corn kernels.
3. Add flour, cornmeal, onion, basil, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pepper to the corn. Stir to mix.
4. Add the eggs, buttermilk and butter, and stir just to combine. (Do not overmix.)
5. Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add just enough canola oil to barely cover the bottom, and heat until sizzling hot.
6. One heaping tablespoon at a time, scoop the batter into the skillet. Cooking in batches of 4 to 5 to avoid overcrowding, fry the cakes 1 to 2 minutes per side, until golden brown.
7. Drain on the lined baking sheet. Serve warm topped with a heap of Chopped Tomato and Avocado Salsa.

Chopped Tomato and Avocado Salsa

Makes about 2 cups

• 1 large tomato, cored and chopped
• 1 scallion, trimmed and minced
• 1/2 jalapeno pepper, cored, seeded and diced (I was happy with 1/4 of the pepper)
• 1 T. chopped fresh basil
• 1 T. chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Juice of 1/2 lime
• 1 1/2 t. extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 1/2 t. white wine vinegar
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 avocado, peeled, pitted and diced

1. Place all of the ingredients (except the avocado) in a bowl, and stir to mix. Refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to serve, for up to 2 days.
2. Just before serving, add the avocado, and mix gently.

Fabric Flag Banner

I posted previously about making birthday banners with paper and pretty embellishments. Well, I've taken that to the next level recently. I made these fabric banners for Father's Day and then used them again a week later for a surprise party.


I LOVE how they turned out. And look how much this made!

They are very gender and occasion neutral and I think that's important to have on hand. We would whip these out for a missionary homecoming, birthday party, summer BBQ, or any other occasion that needs a little celebrating and decoration.

I used 1/2 a yard each of striped and polka dot fabrics. Then I printed off a template from the computer. I just used auto-shapes in publisher to make the right size triangle. Mine took up most of the page. I printed and cut that out.

After that, I folded the fabric in half (lengthwise, or as we said in elementary school, hot dog). I placed the triangle template down and used a rotary cutter to make quick work of the cutting. Of course, I don't have the rotary cutter, board, and other such tools so I used my friend's tools.

A 1/2 yard of fabric made so many triangles! I made 3 banners - 2 longer and 1 short. I actually sew them together, first my hand assistant (my sister) mad e apile of flags, alternating between stripes and dots. I placed them next to the sewing machine and just fed them through one at a time, overlapping just slightly. It was just a straight stitch and it wasn't even that neat. But it looked great.

I'm so happy with how they turned out. I can't wait to do another for my daughter's THIRD birthday. It's coming up in a month.

Beading

Some crafts are costly. A lot you can do with minimal supplies and a little know-how. But some... some are an investment. Then, ideally, each thing you make is less expensive than the last, in theory. When it comes to beading, you make an investment.

I was curious how much I'd like real jewelery making. I did seed beads on fishing line when I was in college, making numerous small strand bracelets. I made some pretty things that I wore for a long time but they ended up breaking over time. The fishing line wasn't strong enough and my kids grabby fingers were very strong.

Recently a friend of mine let me play around with her large supply of beads and make a few things. I have to say, it's a little addicting. It was SO fun to try different styles and color combinations. Here are my creations from that day.


I made three pairs of ear rings and 1 bracelet. I really like how they all turned out, especially the hoop ear rings. I made those with wire and then looped it around the ear ring post and help it with a crimp bead. It was a new experience for sure. Also, I'd never twisted wire for jewelery making with needle nose pliers since I have mostly made simple bracelets and rings that are made of, you guessed it, elastic. :)


I'd love to make the investment to get into beading and I hope to... some day.

Button Projects

I love simple and cute. I even love them independent of one another but I especailly love them together. That's why I love these two projects.

The first is cute hair ties for my girlies. They're super simple. I just tired elastic string through buttons to make little rubber bands with flowers on them. Simple, right? AND cute.



This second project was one I made before the hair ties. I made matching rings for my daughter and me. I saw the idea on Pinterest here. Again, just the same thing as the hair tie - a button and elastic thread. You just make it tighter and make sure you snip the ends really close. Simple and fun for mom and daughter.