L’Shana Tovah Happy New Year Miss Eileen’s Etsy Picks 9.23.11

Morning all! Welcome to Miss Eileen’s Etsy Picks for September 23, 2011. Next week starts the Jewish New Year and the beginning of the High Holy Days starting with Rosh Hashanah. Please join me in welcoming in the new year.
Traditionally we welcome in the new year by blowing the shofar, or ram’s horn, eat apples and honey for a sweet start to the new year, pray at a body of water, and pray some more. My family would get together at Grandma’s. She would serve chicken soup, followed by a salad, then roast chicken.  She always served in courses with lots of bread on the table. She said it filled people up that way and stretched out the food. For some of us, especially my sister, the bread was the best part. She would serve Challah, bread made with so many eggs it was yellow, and then braided before going into the oven. For Rosh Hashanah, the challah would be round, and sometimes there would be raisins in it to make it that much sweeter.

                             L’Shana Tovah Tie Dye Rosh Hashanah Greeting Card by AnjaliCreations

                            Apple green Peridot with medium purple Amethyst dangle earrings in 14k gold filled  August birthstone by TatianaG

                                   Honey Bee Earrings by JOsephines

                           Jewish High Holidays theme silver charm necklace Judaic jewelry by RachelTreasures

                                                                             Large Lace Fruit Bowl/Bread Bowl by NingsWonderWorld
                                South Texas Mesquite Serving Platter- Cutting Board – Bread Board by Jennifer and John

                       Timber Post on the Dunes at Peregian Beach by Philltography

                               Chai Judaism Multi Color Stained Glass Hanging by Goldsmith Glass

OK, there’s my picks. What do you think? Got a favorite or two? Now it’s your turn to vote for the one you think is the best.
Voting starts as soon as this post goes up, winner gets a feature interview by me, Miss Eileen.


Children's Costume Pattern - Simplicity J0786 sizes 3-8

Don’t forget the Halloween sewing pattern sale going on NOW in the GoofingOff Etsy and Artfire shops…..40% off all costume patterns but you must use the coupon code HALLOWEEN to get the discount. The patterns are going out the door so if you see one you like it might just be a good idea to grab it while you can.
Also, I still have skulls, bones, and all that weird stuff at MetalWoodsNWater. Think of the awesome Halloween decorating you can do. Nothing like scaring the little ones, just a little bit.

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Post by Eileen

Tuesday Treats: Homemade Granola

I didn’t buy the ice cream for me. Really, I didn’t. I’m not the ice cream-eating kind. I’m not a saint, either, I just don’t care much for ice cream. Yogurt, on the other hand, is my thing. Oh, and granola. Especially the chunky with nuts kind so when I found this recipe I knew I just had to try it. I carefully copied it out of a magazine in the doctor’s office (really, I copied it not stole the magazine) but I’ll be darned if I can remember the name of the magazine to give them credit. Sorry. Here’s the recipe though. I doctored it up a bit so I will give you both the original recipe and the GoofingOff version. It is so yummy and full of nuts and honey so it is a healthy treat. Sort of. Told you I wasn’t a saint.

Homemade Granola

4 cups of old fashioned oats

1/2 cup almonds

1/2 cup walnuts

1/2 cup pecans

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup honey

1/3 cup oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Prepare baking sheets by spraying with cooking spray (like PAM) or use parchment paper. Set oven @ 375 degrees. Mix oats, nuts, seeds, cinnamon, and salt.

In saucepan, mix sugar, honey, and oil; bring to simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.

Pour hot liquid over oats and stir until mixed. Spread granola on baking sheets and bake until golden brown, 20-25 minutes.

Goofing Off Granola (I doubled the recipe. Told you I like this stuff)

8 cups old fashioned oats

3 cups almonds (I used dry roasted and cinnamon roasted)

1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 cup peanuts

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup honey

1/2 cup cane syrup

1/2 cup oil

2 teaspoon vanilla

Follow the steps from the original recipe. The best part about granola is if you don’t like nuts, leave them out. You like them add more. Like raisins? Add them….you get the idea.

This recipe yielded two big jars (not quart jars, big jars), a quart bag, and another couple more jars (one to give to the guy with the syrup). Easy and totally yummy.

Tips: Make your own brown sugar. It is molasses and sugar. A bottle of molasses lasts forever or damned close to it. Just mix a few spoonfuls with sugar until the brown sugar is as dark as you need it.

What’s cane syrup? I didn’t know either until I moved south. Cane syrup is the syrup that comes from sugar cane when it is ground. Cane grinding is big around here in the fall. I have a friend who makes it. If you don’t have any just use more honey. I found it gives the granola a little different flavor, another layer of flavor.

Hope you like it.

Have you voted yet? The polls are still open for this week’s Miss Eileen’s Favorites.

Post by Eileen Patterson, maven of MissEileen.etsy.com, GoofingOff.etsy and artfire and MetalWoodsnWater.