Recipe - Mains - Stuffed Pasta with fetta & spinach

A little while ago I made this stuffed pasta, it's a little bit fiddly but well worth the effort.

Stuffed Pasta with Fetta & Spinach.
Serves 4. Prep time 30min. Cooking time: 30min. Oven Temp 200C. 2.5ltr rectangular ovenproof dish
20 jumbo pasta shells
2 x 400gm cans of tomatoes
2 teaspoons of crushed garlic or 2 garlic cloves crushed
180gm fresh spinach chopped
300gm fresh ricotta
125gm fetta crumbled
1 egg
1 cup of grated mozzarella cheese

1:Preheat oven.
2:Put a large pot of salted water on to boil. Place a clean tea towel on a baking tray.
3:In a large bowl break up the the tomatoes with a wooden spoon, stir in 1 teaspoon of garlic. Spread the crushed tomatoes on the bottom of the ovenproof dish.
4:Cook pasta in batches for about 8min or until just tender (don't over cook or they will fall a part). When pasta is cooked use a slotted spoon to take it out, put it into a colander to drain refresh with cold water to stop the cooking. Transfer to the prepared baking tray.
5:Combine spinach, fetta, ricotta, 1 teaspoon of garlic & egg in a bowl. Season with salt & pepper.
6: Spoon the mixture into the pasta shells & a range them in the dish.
7: Sprinkle cheese over the filled pasta shells.
8: Bake for 30min or until sauce is bubbling & the cheese is golden. Stand for 5 min. Then serve with a salad & bread.

*Large pasta shells are available from Italian grocers, delis & some supermarkets.

Enjoy
♥ Kerri

Our New Vintage Market Cart

Our New vintage market cart is finally finished, after months of work, drawing up designs, discussing what was needed, how it was going to work & all the things that go in to bringing an idea to life. It was finally unveiled Sunday 4 of August at Confetti Fair Melbourne & the response was overwhelming. There were lots of oohs & ahhs  about how amazing it looks but also the fact that it can be taken apart to be stored flat.
Our gorgeous vintage market carts are made here in our workshop in The Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, Australia. They are about the same size as 4ft trestle table, which makes them perfect for creating a WOW  factor in small spaces. The vintage market cart also makes a great drinks cart to go along side a big table. The canopy & upright poles are removable too.  The canopy comes in lots of different colour/pattern choices.
If you would like information the Vintage Market Cart or purchase one please contact me at info@vintagesewandso.com.au, it's also listed in the store too just click here

♥ Kerri

Rhubarb, Blueberry & Apple Crumble

Rhubarb, Blueberry & Apple Crumble

I love crumble of any kind really but this one has to be my fave at the moment.
I think its the colour is so in your face & the taste is pretty good too :)

It's really easy to make & you can make them ahead of time & pop them in the fridge.

Recipe
Pouched Fruit
I bunch of Rhubarb washed with the leaves removed cut into 2cm pieces
2 apples (I used Granny Smiths but any kind will do)
1/2  punnet of Blueberries
2 tablespoons of sugar
2 tablespoons of water.  

Crumble Topping
1/3 cup brown sugar
1  teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
60gm butter
100gm plain flour
 Oven 200 c
Method
Remove leaves from rhubarb & wash stems, then cut into 2cm pieces.
Peel, core & chop apples into chunks.
Put the rhubarb, apples,  sugar & water into heavy based pot with the lid on & cooked over a medium heat for 5min, then stir, cook for a few more minutes until the apple is soft the rhubarb will have cooked to a soft puree. Remove from the heat.
While the fruit is cooking, crumble butter into the flour with your fingers to making small pea sized pieces then mix sugar, cinnamon & baking powder with butter & flour crumble. 
Spoon poached fruit into 6 cup sized oven proof bowls or 1 large oven proof dish scatter blueberries over the top  & sprinkle crumble over it all then bake until golden  ( small bowls approx 15min, large dish approx 30min).
Serve with cream or ice-cream or both.
Enjoy ♥
Kerri.

fruit puree

crumble on poached fruit

just out of the oven

Super Cool Blackboard Signs

I have had these timber signs sitting in storage for awhile, so on the long weekend (Melbourne Cup Day), I brought some paint & turned them into things of wonder. Super Cool Blackboard Signs or Chalkboard signs for you guys in the US.

Awesome Blackboard signs

Sweet wood burnt bow design

How cute would this look on the Cake Table

 

These are my Favorites

So you really need to have one of these, well you can they will be available in my store Vintage Sew and So very soon but in very limited numbers.
♥Kerri

Brownies stuffed with Oreos & Peanut Butter

My darling daughter found a picture of Oreo & peanut butter stuffed Brownies on FaceBook yesterday, so we had to make them.
It's not the best photo but you get the idea.

Oreo, peanut butter stuffed Brownie

We used my tried & true Brownie recipe. It's not as rich as some recipes that I have, so it great for this as it's super rich with the Oreo & peanut butter.

Brownie                   Oven 170C.
250gm butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
1 1/3 cups plain flour
3/4 cup cocoa
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven.
Place butter, sugars & vanilla into the bowl of an electric mixer & beat until light & fluffy.
Add the eggs one at a time, beat well.
Sift the flour, baking powder & cocoa over the mixture & fold through.
Place patty pans in a 1/2 cup 12 hole muffin tray, spoon a tablespoon of mixture into the patty pan. Spread one Oreo with peanut butter then top with an other Oreo to make a sandwich. Lightly press the Oreo sandwich into the brownie mixture, top with a small amount of brownie mixture.
Bake for 15-18min 
Cool in the tray.

We only had 1/2 packet of Oreos so we made peanut butter stuffed Brownies & a loaf pan too. The loaf pan brownie is in the freezer for later.

Peanut butter stuffed brownie

Enjoy ♥ Kerri

Party Props - Market Cart

This is our market cart all prettied up. These photos have all been taken in my yard. We live in The Dandenong Ranges just outside of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The area we live in is a cold climate rain forest so we have heaps of tree ferns, huge Mountain Ash Gum trees,  an abundance of native animals & birds. The mountain climate also makes it perfect for European & Asian plants too, so the Rhododendrons, camilas & azaleas are stunning this time of year too. 

Styling Leo & Bella, Flowers The Bouquets of Ascha Jolie Cakes Kiss my cakes, Photo Lee Bird Photography

We will be hiring it out in Melbourne in the new year, so if you are interested just leave me a comment or email: vintagesewandso[at]gmail dot com
♥Kerri

Lemon Muffins with lemon curd center

Lemons are in season & just about every Lemon tree in  Melbourne is bending under the weight of a bumper crop. So I have gotten creative with ways to use them up. Use the  Lemon Curd on ice cream or as the filling for lemon tart.

Lemon Muffin with Lemon Curd Center.

Lemon Muffin Recipe  makes 12

2 cups of SR flour

3/4 cups of sugar

1 cup of low fat yoghurt

2 eggs (60gms)

1/3 cup of vegetable oil

1 teaspoon of grated lemon rind

1 tablespoon of coconut (optional)

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius

Put the flour, sugar & lemon rind in a bowl, stir to combine.(add coconut now if you like)

In another bowl whisk eggs, yoghurt & oil until smooth.

Stir the wet mixture into dry ingredients until just combined.

Half fill 12 half cup muffin tins with batter, make a small hole in the batter(don’t go to the bottom of the pan) spoon 1 teaspoon of lemon curd into the hole, cover the lemon curd with more batter.

Bake for 20 -25min or until cooked. (can be frozen)

Lemon Curd (makes about 1 1/2 cups)

1 cup of water
1/2 cup of lemon juice
1/2 cup of sugar
3 tablespoons of cornflour
grated rind of 1 lemon
2 egg yolks
60gms butter
Method:
Put the water, lemon juice, rind, sugar & cornflour in a small saucepan & whisk until smooth.
Heat the saucepan of ingredients over a medium-high, whisking until it boils, then boil until it thickens it takes about 5 minutes. (it will go from cloudy to sightly clear).
Remove from the stove, whisk in the butter & egg yolks .
Set aside to cool slightly. Keeps in the fridge for a week.

 Enjoy
 ♥ Kerri

Lady Ga Ga Costume

If you remember way back in  2010 I was making a Lady Ga Ga costume for my daughters dance concert, well it got finished & I just didn't have any really good pics of it to put up at the time.
The costume has had a few wears & the dance has been preformed a few times too(brilliant dance)
Tonight my daughter & her friends are going to Lady Ga Ga's Melbourne concert so of course the costume has gotten another run, we add  a studded bustier that I had from the early 90's & the black boots.

My Little Monster

X Kerri

Some books I have read

Starting last September thought I would take a picture of each of the books I read just to keep track of them & to see just how much I did read. So here are some of them. I got these from the Library too.
Fade - Lisa McMann, Flash Forward - Robert J Sawyer, The Infernal - Kim Wilkins
I loved them all for very different reasons.
♥Kerri

Ombre - Graduated Colour

Ombre is a massive colour/style trend at the moment, whether it be hair colour, cakes, nails even homewares.
You see this colour graduation in nature all the time, my favorite is the way hydrangeas fade from dark to light.
I really think flowers do it best. Oh & sunsets they do it really well too, I guess sunrises too but I don't do  mornings very often, so I'll let you be the judge of that.
There are some awesome tutorials on the web that show you how to achieve this effect.
These pic are from pintrest.com
 ♥ Kerri

From greenweddingshoes.com

 from pintrest

Ombre cake

Ombre hair natural

 

 Ombre Hair

 Ombre Tablecloth

A stripe T-Shirt skirt. How to make one.

I really needed something new to up date my wardrobe and am just a little bit in love with stripes.
So after searching pintrest  and finding some lovely stripe skirts I decided to make one.

This is one of my faves

http://www.stylescrapbook.com/2011/04/look-of-day-stripes.html

This is so super easy to do. It took me all of 20min but even if it takes you all day, that doesn't matter because you'll have new skirt.

 The T-Shirt Fabric Skirt.
You will need T-shirt fabric, elastic, sewing machine, safety pin, pins & scissors.
OK Lets go!
I had some stripe t-shirt fabric just kicking around in my stash.  Decide how long you want your skirt to be.
Mine is just above my ankles. Then add 10cm this is for the waist band. I needed 97cm so if I was going to buy fabric I would get a metre.
Now take one end and wrap your fabric around your waist let it just drape over your hips this is where you decide how loose or tight you would like it to be. Once you have decied how you want it to fit put a pin in the top where the edge of the fabric meets rest of the fabric. This will be come your cutting line.

Now cut off any excess along the bottom, keeping your fabric still pined, fold your fabric right sides together(the bit you want the world to see) so the straight edge becomes the guide for you to cut other side seam.

Trimming off the excess along the bottom

The cutting line

Now you will have tube shape. Sew or overlock together.

a very unfortunate picture of me

Take your tube, turn the top of it down 10cm run a line of stitches around it, leaving a space big enough for your elastic to fit and an opening to tread the elastic through.

The waist band

Grab a safety pin attach it to one end of your elastic & thread it through the waist band of your skirt adjust it to the fit you want then use the safety pin to hold the spot.

Inserting the elastic.

Pin holding the elastic together.

Sew the elastic together then cut the excess off.

Turn you skirt the right way round. There is now need to hem it as it is T-shirt fabric. YAY.

Ta Da you have a NEW SKIRT.

I'm going to make a black one next.
♥ Kerri

Party Party Party

No one loves a party more than me, so when I was asked to design themed display units & accessories for Boutique Affairs I jumped at the chance. Alecia's work is outstanding & her attention to detail astounding, she has the natural ability to know what a client wants even before they know themselves.  If you need a great party or event styled, Alecia is the lady to see & she might just use one of my displays too.
Here are the pictures of what I have made. 
♥ Kerri
Vintage Sew and So

Boutique Affairs Pink & white party

Circus Tent (so not styled but at least you get an idea)

white ruffle tablecloth

Black & white canopy (Boutique Affairs stunning table)

Saturday Market

I'm at The Handmade Show this Saturday.
It's at the Oakleigh/Carnegie RSL 95- 97 Drummond St Oakleigh from 10.30 - 3.30pm.
I'll have some new things to show you & I'll also be making the coffee.
This is a really great market with some of the most talented artists & designers selling their work.
Plus they are all really sweet fun people.

 ♥ Kerri

Some New stuff is happening

Hey how are you guys doing, I'm great!

Things have been quite busy for me in my world as of late, we have had a few hiccups here; they have been sorted now (I hope).

I've been making some new quilts & things for my stores & I've opened a new online store too.Kerri Anastasia (shop)

And they REALLY BIG NEWS is I've been given the opportunity to start an indoor boutique market here in the Dandenong Rangers (Olinda), just waiting for a thing or two to falling into place and it will be all systems go for a June start. So all you crafty people out there drop me a line if you are interested kerrianastasiag[at]gmail dot com