Bind it All

A couple of weeks ago i purchased a bind it all. It is so i can make my own little albums. Of couse another way to scrapbook. I am spending this weekend in my room just scrappin away. It has been so relaxing. I love it. Now i can make my own albums.

Blogging Ins & Outs

Ok molly honey i need a lesson on how this blogging works. I have not really played around much and i know i could go through and read and figure it out. But i want a quick version of it. I know that people have blogs so they can post about anything they want. So how does this work with Keeping it private so that only the people you want to see can? Also if you decided to look at other blogs is there a search place here and how does that work? Any help you give i would appreciate. I will also try looking around this weekend too.

Love Ya

Geneology

Well today i decided its time to get my geneology bug going. I have pulled all my old stuff out and i am getting excited again. I found some new information in just an hour of looking. I get so excited when i find new stuff. Its like peeking back into history. Well i am off to find out more of the past.

Congrats

Taylors baby was born 8lbs Feb 20th. Just thought i would share.

CrockPot Minestrone

Minestrone Soup with Pasta, Beans and Vegetables

Prep Time: 15 min Inactive Prep Time: hr min Cook Time: 4 hr 0 min Level:
Easy Serves: 4 Servings

Ingredients
3 cups reduced-sodium vegetable or chicken broth
1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 (15-ounce) can white (cannellini or navy) beans, drained
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 celery stalk, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried sage
2 bay leaves
Salt and ground black pepper
2 cups cooked ditalini pasta
1 medium zucchini, chopped
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh or frozen spinach, defrosted
4 tablespoons grated Parmesan or Romano cheese
Basil sprigs, garnish, optional
Directions
In a slow cooker, combine broth, tomatoes, beans, carrots, celery, onion, thyme, sage, bay leaves, and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.

Thirty minutes before the soup is done cooking, add ditalini, zucchini and spinach. Cover and cook 30 more minutes. Remove bay leaves and season, to taste, with salt and black pepper. Ladle soup into bowls and sprinkle parmesan cheese over top. Garnish with basil, if desired.

Eggplant Gratin

Ingredients

Good olive oil, for frying
3/4 pound eggplant, unpeeled, sliced 1/2-inch thick
1/4 cup ricotta cheese
1 extra-large egg
1/4 cup half-and-half
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup good bottled marinara sauce
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat about 1/8-inch of olive oil in a very large frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is almost smoking, add several slices of eggplant and cook, turning once, until they are evenly browned on both sides and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Be careful, it splatters! Transfer the cooked eggplant slices to paper towels to drain. Add more oil, heat, and add more eggplant until all the slices are cooked.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the ricotta, egg, half-and-half, 1/4 cup of the Parmesan, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.

In each of 2 individual gratin dishes, place a layer of eggplant slices, then sprinkle with Parmesan, salt and pepper and spoon 1/2 of the marinara sauce. Next, add a second layer of eggplant, more salt and pepper, half the ricotta mixture, and finally 1 tablespoon of grated Parmesan on top.

Place the gratins on a baking sheet and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until the custard sets and the top is browned. Serve warm.

Pauls & Molly's Engagment

This is the engagment picture. I am still working on title.

Molly's Wedding

I just started scrappin your wedding pictures. I thought i would show you some of them. This one is still not finished.

Valentines Cake Balls

I saw these on a website that i love. I thought i would share with you because you love making them. They are so cute this way. On a stick. Who would have thought.