Fennel is in season again. (Hooray!) You might remember the last time I professed my undying love for fennel last winter. In this recipe I’ve left out the orange and paired fennel with beef.

It can be intimidating to try something new. And fennel is pretty intimidating, especially if you aren’t sure if you like its mild anise flavor. Fennel goes very well with pork, but also beef. Besides using the fresh fennel bulb, I added sliced onions and gave the beef roast a quick rub with some crushed fennel seeds mixed with salt and pepper.

If you absolutely hate fennel in all forms, feel free to substitute another spice (or leave it out completely) and use more onions in place of the fennel.

You want to cut off the fibrous, tough stalks.  Save them to make a vegetable stock.  The fronds are really great used as a fresh herb, so save those too for another use.

Cut the fennel bulb in half, top to bottom.  There’s a hard core in there.  Cut that out with a sharp knife.  I used my serrated bread knife.

Then cut the fennel into slices lengthwise.  About 1/4″ is a good size.  Fennel keeps its shape and texture even after long cooking periods, so keep that in mind.

Now for the beef roast.  I put a few tablespoons of fennel seeds plus about 1 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/2 tsp. black pepper into my spice grinder.  I then seared the entire surface of the roast in a very hot cast iron skillet coated with a little canola oil.

About 8-10 hours in the slow cooker and you’ve got yourself a tender roast with great flavor.  I skim off the fat from the drippings and thicken them with cornstarch mixed with water to make a quick gravy.

Slow Cooker Beef Roast with Fennel

One 3-5 lb. beef roast

1-2 fennel bulbs, stalks and fronds removed, sliced lengthwise into 1/4″ strips

1 large onion, sliced lengthwise into 1/4′ strips

1-2 Tablespoon fennel seeds

1 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. ground black pepper

1 Tbsp. canola oil

1-2 Tbsp. cornstarch mixed with enough water to make a thin paste (optional, for gravy)

Using a spice grinder, grind fennel seeds, salt and pepper to a medium-fine powder.  (Or coarser grind, if desired.)  Rub the surface of the roast with the spice mixture.  Heat a heavy-duty skillet over medium-high heat.  Add the canola oil and heat until you see small wisps of smoke rise from the surface.  Sear the beef on each side, over the entire surface until nicely browned–about 2-3 minutes per side.

Place the seared roast into a slow cooker along with the sliced fennel and onions.  Add a little water if the roast is lean.  Cook on low for 8-10 hours.   When done, remove the roast from the slow cooker and place it on a serving platter.  Cover tightly with foil while preparing the gravy.

For the gravy, strain out the onions and fennel.  Set aside in a bowl and cover with foil until ready to serve.  Skim the fat from the drippings, add beef stock or water if there’s not enough to make gravy.  Pour the drippings into a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Add a little of the cornstarch/water slurry, bringing the gravy to a rolling boil until the desired thickness is reached.  (If you have about 2 cups of drippings plus any added stock or water, you’ll probably only need 1 Tbsp. of cornstarch.)

Slice the roast and serve warm with gravy and the fennel and onions on the side.  We served ours with homemade spaetzle (noodles) and homemade rolls.

Guest post by Candace of Naturally Educational

Making mini Jack O’ Lantern Votives out of baby food jars has become a family tradition.  This year, I thought we would shake things up a bit and make a Frankenstein Monster and a Ghost out of jars of varying sizes.
 Working with kids is always a little unpredictable.  My daughter was not interested in Frankenstein or a Ghost–she wanted to make a “Rainbow Monster”.  So, she made a rainbow monster while I made Frank.
Materials:

• one glass jar (we use jam, baby food, pasta sauce jars–whatever we have around; just make sure your tea light will fit in the jar)
• cut-out squares of appropriate color tissue paper (greens for Frankenstein, orange and green for a Jack O’ Lantern, white for a ghost)
• black construction paper
• inexpensive white school glue mixed with a little water
• scissors
• paintbrush or spounge
• tea light

Directions:

My daughter decided at this point to make a “frowny-face Jack O’ Lantern”, which is also in the photograph.

Let dry, add a votive, and light up the night!

Candace Lindemann is an educational consultant, recognized expert on topics in education, a published children’s writer, an active community volunteer, and a happily married mom of three children, ages 5, 3, and newborn. She shares educational crafts and activities for kids and ideas in education at NaturallyEducational.com. With her co-editor at Mamanista.com, Candace also founded Bloganthropy.org to promote social media philanthropy.

Summer Camp guest post by Carolyn of Cookin’ for my Captain.

Everyone knows that one of the worst things about camping is dealing with the food. What to bring? What dishes do we need? Do we need butter? Did I forget the salt? Well, here is a quick and easy solution! These can easily be prepared ahead of time, frozen. Pack in your cooler, and they will thaw out, safely. Most of these recipes, however, are best over coals—wood/fires are hard to estimate hot/cold spots. Most campsites should have a grill available, or if you want, bring your own miniature charcoal grill. Just don’t forget the charcoal.

Here are a few pockets that we really love. If you are planning a longer camping trip, try making up your own! If all else fails, cook a hotdog (just remember to put them in your cooler too!)

A few tips:

• I don’t recommend turning wrapped foil packets because the butter melts in the packets and will drip our and cause a flare-up if turned.
• These pockets also use a LOT of foil. Try consolidating meals into 1 pocket per person instead of 3.
• When preparing pockets, place in Ziploc bags and label so there won’t be any guessing while camping!

Recipes from Paula Deen’s “A weekend Campout” Cookbook, and slightly adjusted from my own experience.

BREAKFAST BURRITOS

1 egg per person
1 tblsp butter per person
Salt and pepper
1 flour tortilla per person
1 tblsp cooked, crumbled bulk sausage per person
1 tblsp grated Monterey Jack cheese per person
Sour cream
Salsa

Directions:

Scramble the eggs in the butter and add salt and pepper. Lay each tortilla on a large square of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Spoon a scoop of eggs on each tortilla. Add a tablespoon each of sausage and cheese. Wrap the tortilla around the filling and wrap tightly in the foil, rolling the ends to completely seal package. [at this point, FREEZE or use within a few days] Cook the packages over hot coals for 5 to 6 minutes or until heated through. **The tortilla will burn on the bottom if you leave them on the grill grates too long.**

Serve with sour cream and salsa.

PORK CHOP AND PINEAPPLE PIE

1 boneless pork chop per person
1 slice of red onion per person (optional)
1 slice of green bell pepper per person
2 canned pineapple slices per person
1 tblsp teriyaki sauce per person
1 tblsp butter per person
salt and pepper

Directions:

For each serving, lay a pork chop on a large square of heavy duty aluminum foil. Top each with onion, pepper, and pineapple slices. Drizzle with teriyaki sauce. Top with butter and generously sprinkle salt and pepper. Wrap tightly in foil, rolling ends to completely seal the package. [at this point, FREEZE, or use within a few days] When ready to eat, place packages directly in coals for 15 to 20 minutes. Check to see if pork chop is cooked through; rewrap and cook longer if necessary.

ZUCCHINNI POCKET

1 zucchini per person
Seasoned Salt/ Lemon pepper
1 tablespoon butter per pocket

Directions:

Slice up zucchini in thin slices and toss with seasoned salt and lemon pepper. Wrap up tightly in foil, rolling ends to completely seal pocket. Place directly on coals for 7 to 9 minutes. *I like mixing zucchini and squash together*

HAMBERGER PIE

1 lb ground beef
salt and pepper
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 large baking potato, thinly sliced
4 carrots, thinly sliced
Butter

Directions:

Form the meat into 4 ½-inch thick patties. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Lay each patty on a large square of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Top each with a few slices of onion and potato, and 1 of the sliced carrots. Top with a generous amount of butter and add more salt and pepper. Wrap tightly, rolling ends to seal. [at this point, FREEZE, or use within a few days] When ready to eat, place packages directly in coals and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes.

TORTILLA DESSERT WRAPS

4 8-inch flour tortillas
1 cup mini marshmallows
½ cup milk chocolate chips
1/3 cup coconut flakes
Cool whip, thawed out (or the canned works great too!)

Directions:

Sprinkle ¼ of the marshmallows, ¼ of chocolate chips, and ¼ of the coconut on half of each tortilla. Roll up the tortilla, wrap each in heavy-duty aluminum foil, and seal tightly. Cook in the coals for about 5 to 8 minutes, until the chocolate is melted. Remove the foil and place on a plate. Garnish with cool whip. **The tortilla will burn on the bottom if you leave them on the grill grates too long**

Don’t forget your traditional S’Mores too!

Here’s my little one blessing the food. Then we enjoyed all the family time these pockets freed up!

My name is Carolyn, and I’m an Army wife and a SAHM of 2 beautiful redheads. I have a major in art, but because of all the moving around we do, I find creative ways to express my artsy side. I love cooking especially, and really enjoy trying new things, letting my kids join, and throwing parties. For more of my recipes and ideas, visit and follow along my blog.

Basic Crochet Series by Dani of Oh Sweet Sadie

Now that we finished our granny square… what’s next?  If you are going to make a sweet heirloom blanket, you are going to need more than one granny square.  How many?  You decide how big you want the blanket to be, and get to work.

Connecting the Granny Squares: Once you have a pile of granny squares, you can begin to connect them.  The fastest and easiest way to connect granny squares is with a yarn darner needle, and whip stitch the two squares together, like this.

Weaving in the Ends: When all your granny squares are stitched together, you will have all the yard ends sticking up everywhere. Weave all the ends into the blanket using the yarn darner needle.  Insert the needle first, slip the yarn through the eye of the needle, then pull the end through.  Trim off any excess yarn.  I made a video incase these directions are clear as mud.

Crochet Tutorial: Weaving In the ends from Dani Lassiter on Vimeo.

Blocking: Most crocheted items are stiff when completed.   Blocking relaxes the fibers and allows them to stretch so the item (blanket) will lay flat and drape the way a blanket should.  Pin the granny square blanket down on your carpet, lay a damp towel over it and allow it to dry. When the towel is dry, your blanket should be successfully ‘blocked’.  My favorite way to block an item I have just crocheted is to take it to the dry cleaner and ask them to do it.  They steam the item on the spot, and you take it home all done.

This post wraps up our Basic Crochet Series… I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did!  A big thank you to Marie for asking me to participate in this adventure in blogging.

Dani Lassiter is co-owner of Oh Sweet Sadie! Art & Gift Show and the organizer of Goldilocks Bike Ride.  She loves graphic design, cycling, facebook, her four children, and her handsome husband.

Are you ready for some football? After a 2 year hiatus, I’ve once again joined my family’s Fantasy Football league and scored Adrian Peterson in the draft (ya, I don’t really know who he is yet, but soon will as we’ll be spending 16 weeks together!) We’re getting ready for game night by making some fun football snacks for our home team! Here are some cute mini footballs and a giant football created from Rice Crispy treats.

Supplies for Rice Crispy Football Treats:

• Rice Crispy recipe – I used chocolate flavored Crispy Rice cereal, but you can simply color your marshmallows with brown food coloring when making these treats. Or make them in their natural color with different colored frosting for the laces.
• plate or tray
• white cookie icing – the kind for writing
• toothpick
• small triangle paper

1. Make your recipe, then set it out on a piece of wax paper or onto your tray. I placed my treats into a fun giant plastic football tray/bowl I had, but you can simply place it on a tinfoil lined tray.

2. Using your white cookie icing, draw the shape of the football laces onto the football. Mine turned into a little wobbly line, as the cereal isn’t flat.

3. We added a fun green paper triangle taped to a toothpick, with the words “Go Team” on it, to our football.

Now the team is ready to eat. I’m betting that my kids are more excited about eating these football treats than watching my star player, Adrian Peterson, make a football catch!

Who are you cheering for this football season?

I’m happy to announce that we’ll be starting a 10 week basic quilting series. I’ve got the very talented Amy Smart of Diary of a Quilter here to help guide us as we make a Basic Patchwork Quilt. We’re breaking it down step by step! So come back each Tuesday to see how she puts it all together, from basic quilting supplies, choosing your fabric, cutting, sewing, and binding your quilt.

Once you’ve completed your quilt, you’ll be able to make fun and easy patchwork quilts for your very own or give to your loved ones.

• Basic Quilting Supplies
• Choosing Quilt Fabric
• Quilt Patterns
• Cutting Fabric
• Piecing Cut Squares
• Sewing on Borders
• Batting and Backs
• Sewing the Quilt
• Adding Binding with a Machine
• Bias Binding, Hand Finishing, and Washing

Here’s a few fun Easter kids crafts and yummy treats we’ve made in the past. They’ll be sure to help you celebrate this Springtime holiday!

Crushed Egg Shell Art

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Growing Easter Grass in Egg Carton Baskets

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Marshmallow Easter Bunny Treat

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Teaching the Meaning of Easter

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Stuffed Fabric Easter Egg

]]> http://www.makeandtakes.com/kids-crafts-for-easter/feed 4 http://www.makeandtakes.com/make-and-takes-gets-a-new-look http://www.makeandtakes.com/make-and-takes-gets-a-new-look#comments Thu, 21 Jan 2010 09:05:17 +0000 Marie http://www.makeandtakes.com/?p=7268 Make and Takes has a new look. Yay! We decided to define our brand a little more clearly with our nesting mama bird! This cute little birdie is ready for crafts, food, and fun! This logo design came from Nicole of We Collective. She illustrated the font, the nest, and little red bird! She creates [...]]]>

Make and Takes has a new look. Yay! We decided to define our brand a little more clearly with our nesting mama bird! This cute little birdie is ready for crafts, food, and fun!

This logo design came from Nicole of We Collective. She illustrated the font, the nest, and little red bird! She creates amazing illustrations, and has a darling etsy shop. Thanks, Nicole.

For the rest of the design, it was done by my all time, ever amazing, rock star husband, Jordan! He built the rest of the website, style, background, and buttons. Thanks, Jordan!

Enjoy the fun fresh new look of Make and Takes!

I’m not sure about you, but where I live, it’s cooooooold. I’m needing some yummy soup recipes to keep me warm. Here’s some winter sippin’ soups I’ve found that are helping thaw us out on a cold snowy day.

• Taco Soup Ole’ by Make and Takes (pictured above)
• Baked Potato Soup by Good Life Eats
• Chunky Chicken Noodle Soup by Picky Palate
• Spicy Cauliflower Soup by Jane Spice
• Tuscan Tomato Soup by This Week for Dinner
• Roasted Green Chilies Stew by A Southern Fairytale

This post is a little bit off topic for my blog, but it’s something that I feel is important to address. A few months ago, I was approached by Nestle to attend a small blogging event to learn more about their company and products. I signed on to attend and to participate in part of the presentation by sharing a couple of Holiday crafts. I was excited to attend the event, meet with other bloggers, and happy to learn more about the company. Then… a few days before the event I learned about the Nestle Boycott on Twitter. In short, Nestle has been under scrutiny since the mid-70s for using aggressive and ethically questionable marketing tactics in promoting its baby formula products to women in developing countries. I’m embarrassed to say that I had never heard of the boycott and obviously hadn’t done enough research before I committed to participate in the event.

After reading through many articles and blog posts covering the topic of the boycott, I had to make the decision of what to do next. I talked it over heavily with my family, friends, and other bloggers, and made the choice to continue with the commitment I’d made, hoping to engage directly with Nestle and learn more about their involvement in the issue.

I do have to say that Nestle put a lot of effort into the event, and I had an enjoyable time meeting and getting to know the other bloggers and also some of the great folks over at Nestle USA. Although I did get answers to many of my questions, I still feel like there’s more that needs to be addressed. I realized this is a global issue and goes beyond the Nestle representatives we interacted with. Read here and here for some additional attendee perspectives.

It’s been interesting to see the results of my decision. I’ve been forced into this world of confrontation, where I usually steer clear of (I’m not one to engage in a debate, I think of myself more as a mediator). I do know that I’m a changed person, mother, and blogger because of getting more involved in the boycott issue. I’ve come to learn from and respect many of the activists involved with the boycott. I may not agree with everything they say or do, but I know that many are trying their best to educate anyone and everyone on some very important issues.

Now what? I don’t know. I do know that I will continue to email, read, and educate myself about this issue to appease myself and my family. I’m happy to see these questions posed and I’m hopeful for some answers. Thanks to Annie for her research, as I wouldn’t even have known what questions to ask.