Friday, February 17, 2017

Warm Up with Beef Stew

Hey, Glitterinas, 
is it cold where you are?

We are having typical Texas weather....

cold for a few days...

then warm and sunny for the next few days!

I have to leave cold and warm weather 
clothes out....and night gowns, and 
shoes....you get the picture.

I try not to whine too much.....I could be hip deep in snow!

During our last cold snap 
I made a yummy beef stew 
for dinner.

I want to share my stew recipe with 
you today.

This is not a hard recipe, none of my recipes are, 
but it does need time to simmer after it's 
assembled.

If you already have a favorite stew 
recipe, compare it to this one 
and let me know how they differ.

Let's get busy, Glitterinas!

Chop four stalks of celery 
and half a white onion.



Into a deep dutch oven on 
medium high heat, 
add 3 T. butter and the 
chopped onions.


Then add the celery,


.....stir, stir....

and let the onion and celery cook 
until they are transparent.


The next ingredient to add is
a handful of small carrots.....


......and  then the next ingredients are all 
just added one right after the other.

Stew meat, about a pound and a half...


.....there are many types and cuts of 
stew meat available, 

but I like pieces that 
are chunky and large enough to cook 
for the longer amount of time stew 
requires .....

and not cook down into 
minuscule meat pieces.


If you are lucky enough to have a butcher that you 
like, talk to them about the best cut of stew meat to 
use for this recipe.

Having a butcher who is knowledgeable and will 
take time to help you learn how to cook different 
types of meat is a wonderful resource.

Back to our stew...

...next add
mushrooms,


beef stock,


.....and 4-5 chopped potatoes.


You can make your own stock with 
bones, veggies, spices and water.....

or use already prepared stock from your 
favorite grocery store.

Sometimes I have to add a bit more water, 
to get the level of liquid I want.



I like the liquid level to cover all the 
ingredients well.

We'll let the stew simmer now 
for 2-3 hours.

I place the lid on the dutch oven with a small 
space left open for steam.

Reduce the heat to low and go read a 
book....

or fold laundry....

or do any of the two million things 
on your to-do list.



The kitchen smells so amazing when 
stew is simmering away.

This makes a hot, delicious, 
warm-you-up
dinner.

It can be served with bread, corn bread,
and/or a salad for a complete dinner.

I hope you will try this beef stew recipe 
and let me know how it turns out.


As always, 
thank you so much for taking time 
out of your busy day to stop by 
Pink Glitter!


Until next time,
Tammy












Friday, February 10, 2017

Valentine's Day Is Almost Here!

It's crazy how fast this year is passing!

It's February already......goodness.

There are a few hearts and other, simple Valentine 
decorations sprinkled around the house.














I collect heart shaped rocks....the grands helped me 
arrange them for February!


Here are a few of them......


The chalkboard on the back door even 
gets in on the seasonal decor!


Some special vintage cards get put out each year....





The little, vintage truck on the dining room table gets a special 
rose cargo to deliver for Valentine's Day.


The grands will be checking their Valentine envelopes 
soon.....



I wish you each a 
Happy Valentine's Day, Glitterinas!

I hope you have a day that's calm,
enjoyable, with a little chocolate sprinkled in it.


This valentine is just for you!


Will you be my valentine?





I'm so glad you stopped by....

thanks for spending some time here at
Pink Glitter!



Hugs and glitter,
Tammy











Saturday, February 4, 2017

Grand~Darlings Get Very Creative

I don't need to tell you how proud 
of our grandchildren we are!

I will tell you about the projects the 
girls made to enter in the 
project show that is coming up 
in their school district.

Oldest cutie found an amazing piece of 
bark/root off of an old, dead tree that was cut down.

She was very intrigued with this and wanted to use it 
for her project.




She and her Dad sanded and smoothed and worked 
on this piece of wood to get it to 
sit nicely....
it was going to be a centerpiece!

She and Pops shopped for succulents and other 
items to make this project amazing.



Each piece was carefully arranged....

and clipped.....


and hot glued into just the right place.

They gathered up some very interesting moss 
and lichens to use, also.


The time and creativity put into this project 
really paid off.

The finished centerpiece is wonderful.



There have even been requests for several more....

friends want one for their home!


What do you think of this succulent centerpiece,
Glitterinas?

Didn't she do a nice job?

Let's change gears to fairy gardens and take a look 
at another project!

This grand is all about fairies!

She has been wanting to construct a fairy garden
for a while.....so this was the perfect time!

She started out by gathering sticks....a whole bucket full....
to use in building the fairy cottage that would be in her 
fairy garden!


It's amazing what sticks, hot glue and some 
card board can transform into....

She and Pops used popsicle sticks and more hot glue 
and card board to make a very fun roof for the 
fairies' cottage.

She spent some time painting the roof, the door, and 
a shutter to make them look just right!



Pops got to take another shopping trip to buy 
plants that would complete the fairy garden.

Everything was ready to plant and assemble....




She was very happy with the way her 
fairy garden was looking.


Here's the finished fairy garden.....


Somebody looks very pleased with their work!


Both girls worked hard on these 
projects.....and Pops needs a pat on the back, too,
for knowing just when to offer help
and
 when to step back and let our 
creative grand~darlings go to town!


You know I am so glad when you take time 
to stop by 
Pink Glitter 
and see what shakin' ......

there's always something going on!

Leave me a comment.....

 so I know you stopped by....

and

.....to let me know what you think of 
the girls' projects!

Thanks, Glitterinas, you are the best!


Hugs and glitter,
Tammy



P.S. The project show was a success for both grands.
They each got a blue ribbon for their project 
and 
the fairy garden won Grand Champion of the 
show!

It was a fun day!