Succulents Galore!

Last year, I shared my love of terrariums and made 4 tropical terrariums that thrive in enclosed containers with high humidity (check out Terrariums Galore! for all the details).  My heart really belongs to the Succulent variety, so I have made 4 more open-container terrariums and have literally filled every corner of my house.

Succulents Galore!

Succulents Galore!

Succulent Terrarium

Succulents thrive in dry conditions and need an open container, whereas tropical plants do better in high humidity and are best suited for a terrarium with a lid.  Select your container and plant varieties accordingly.  To create more eye-catching levels and dimension in your arrangement, choose succulents in a variety of sizes, colors and shapes.

Supplies:Succulents Galore

  • glass or solid container without a lid
  • washed gravel
  • cactus potting soil
  • sand and/or decorative rocks
  • succulents

Assembly:

Layer the washed gravel at the base of the container.  Next, fill in with cactus soil, leaving room for the succulents.  Plant each one carefully, making sure there is plenty of soil between the roots and gravel layer.  Arrange sand or place a few decorative rocks around the plants for a finishing touch.

Succulents Galore   Succulents Galore   Succulents Galore   Succulents Galore

Care:

Place the terrarium in a spot with plenty of indirect sunlight and water lightly about every other week, or as needed.  Over-watering can cause the plants to rot, but this desert variety does need water to survive.  The gravel will help with drainage, but avoid having a large amount of water sitting in the gravel layer which could cause too much humidity to build up in the container.

Succulents with White Sand

Succulents with White Sand

My new succulent terrariums are happily grouped together, and soaking in plenty of light from the adjacent dining room window.

These are a great alternative to fresh-cut flowers, which are pricey and die far too quickly.  I had all of the glass containers on hand, and spent about $50 in total for the plants, gravel, sand and soil to make 4 terrariums.

I love having living arrangements to add color and life to my home with very little maintenance   My husband was happy to hear that these terrariums would be replacing the need for fresh-cut flowers and for the cost of 2 bouquets, we could have 4 terrariums to last all year (and hopefully longer if I keep up my green thumb).  Of course, he referred to my idea of saving money by spending money as ‘women logic’, but that’s beside to point…

New Terrarium with the Old

New Terrarium with the Old

My very first terrarium, which I made over 2 years ago is still alive (after quite a few scares due to repeated over-watering and sometimes under-watering).  I grouped it with a tall cylinder vase with a succulent variety that will continue to grow up and out the top.  I can’t wait to see how my new plants will grow!

I’m obsessed!

Gluten-Free Italian Meatballs

Last week, the Hubby and I officially purged our cupboard and fridge of all items laden with wheat and gluten.  We are determined (for once) to stick to a diet of mainly organic fruit, vegetables, and protein.  Wish us luck!

Tonight, we were craving spaghetti and meatballs.  Using spaghetti squash instead of pasta is an easy swap, and we were pleasantly surprised with how light and moist these experimental gluten-free meatballs turned out!  We threw in a little bit of this and that, and ended up with the best meatballs we’ve ever made.

Gluten-Free Italian Meatballs

Gluten-Free Italian Meatballs

You can check out my Pesto ‘Spaghetti’ Squash & Prawns recipe for instructions on cooking a spaghetti squash.  For this weeknight meal, I simply doctored up an organic bottled marinara sauce with a little extra garlic, onion, red wine, diced tomato and italian seasoning, and after cooking the meatballs, they went for a quick dip into the marinara pool before getting smothered over the spaghetti squash.  I’ll have to save my spaghetti sauce from scratch for another post.

Gluten-Free Italian Meatballs:

makes 18, 5 min prep time, 25 minutes cook time

3/4 lb. ground beefalo
1 lb. ground chicken
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
2 eggs, whisked 
1/4 medium sweet yellow onion, finely chopped
2/3 cup canned garlic & basil diced tomatoes, strained
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
2 tsp italian seasoning
1 1/2 tsp sea salt (to taste)
1 tsp finely ground pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
pinch of red pepper flakes (to taste)
2 tbsp ketchup
 

 Preheat oven to 350°.  Combine the ground beefalo meat and ground chicken in a bowl.  Add the almond meal, parmesan, and whisked eggs and stir until both meats are well incorporated.  Stir in all remaining ingredients, leaving the ketchup aside.  Form 1 1/2 to 2 inch meatballs and place on a foil lined baking sheet.  Place in a 350° oven for 20 minutes, and flip them over half way through.  Increase the temperature to 400° and using a basting brush, coat the top of each meatball with ketchup.  Remove once they reach an internal temperature of 160°, about 5 more minutes.

Toss them in your favorite marinara and enjoy!

 
 
 
 
 

Banana-Nutella Sandwich ‘Pops’

I’m not sure why it took me this long to discover Nutella, but I just bought my very first container of the delightful chocolate-hazelnut spread this week.  I’ve tried it over the years, at a friends house or in a restaurant dessert, but have always refrained from keeping it as a pantry staple (apparently many others do).  Of course, my 3 year old son was very happy about my recent purchase, so I decided to make a little treat for him today.  Kids go crazy over anything in a ‘pop’ form, so that’s what I did.

Banana-Nutella Sandwich 'Pops'

Banana-Nutella Sandwich ‘Pops’

Banana-Nutella Sandwich ‘Pops’:

makes 6 
 
1 ripe banana 
2 slices whole wheat bread
2 tbs Nutella
6 lollipop sticks

Using a 1″ biscuit cutter or round cookie cutter, cut out 12 circles from the wheat bread (toast the bread for an extra warm crunch).  Cut the banana into 1/2″ thick slices, spread the nutella on two bread rounds and sandwich the banana slice in between.  Press the lollipop sticks through the mini sandwiches and serve.

Assembly was a pinch on these yummy morsels!  They were the perfect Sunday afternoon snack, but would also be a hit for any kids party.

'Pops' to Share

‘Pops’ to Share

Simple Tablescape & Floral Centerpiece

For years, my Mom has impressed me with her ability to pull together floral arrangements in a variety of vases; big, small, low and tall.  I have known that she used a floral frog in some of her arrangements, and she even gave me one years ago, but somehow I never pulled it out until now.  Its sharp spikes were intimidating, and I always imagined using it would be complicated and most likely painful.  I was so wrong, the ‘frog’ has changed my floral arranging life!

Floral Centerpiece

How To Use a Floral Frog:

  • Place the floral frog in the bottom of your vessel and use floral tape to adhere it to the bottom
  • Cut flowers to desired length and stick the base of each stem into the frog, starting at the center and working your way outward
  • Cover the frog with decorative rocks and fill the vessel with water, ensuring the base of the stems are submerged

The floral frog pictured can be purchased on Amazon.com.  The one my mom handed down to me has more spikes than this one, but I’m sure it will do the trick.

For Thanksgiving this year, I kept the table setting simple.  I’ve never been one to enjoy holiday themed color schemes, or a lot of color in general.  Instead of using typical fall colors and leaf patterns on my Thanksgiving table, I used a more neutral color palette and added Thanksgiving flair with a Thankful Tree  and Golden Pumpkins (left over from Halloween) adjacent to the dining table.  The floral centerpiece was the star of the table.  That, and the place cards, helped to break up the neutral tones.  Simple and elegant, but still casual enough for everyone to relax and enjoy themselves.  No need to worry about staining a fancy tablecloth or breaking the china.

Simple Tablescape

Thankful Tree

I am truly thankful for my wonderful family, who filled my house with love and laughter this Thanksgiving.   Have you thought about what you’re thankful for this year?  It’s never too late to give thanks. . .

Over the years, I have seen many variations of ‘wishing trees’ and ‘thankful trees’ and thought it was time to create one of my own.  This was such a simple way to decorate for Thanksgiving.  It also served a very meaningful purpose to allow the family to share what they were thankful this year.

Thankful Tree

Supplies:

  • Large Twigs- I got mine for less than $7.00 in the floral department at the Market, or you can cut from a tree in your yard
  • Decorative Paper cut into leaf shapes- I made a template to get a uniform shape and used three different papers in the same color scheme
  • Thread or String to attach the leaves- I used thread and created a hole in the top of each leaf with a needle for a more discreet look
  • Vase & Decorative Rocks- Make sure to weigh down your vase with decorative rocks if your twigs are top-heavy 

Give Thanks. . .

My favorite thankful quote was from my Mom.  She wrote: “I am thankful for the family Thanksgiving traditions that my Mother and Mother-In-Law ingrained in us”.

Over the years, we have held onto many family traditions, and as our family has grown and extended, we have taken on new ones as well.  We are all creatures of habit, and the traditions that have been handed down can extend the legacy of those that started them and are no longer here to share in the joy they bring.

Pumpkin Heads & Spooky Bats

Growing up, I didn’t carve pumpkins like most kids.  Our family tradition was creating silly faces on pumpkins using vegetables and gourds.  These are super fun to make and I think they’re much more kid friendly for the younger trick-or-treaters.  They would also be great for decorating a children’s Halloween party, or as a party activity.

Pumpkin Heads

Halloween just isn’t the same without these funny pumpkin-heads on my porch.

Pumpkin Heads

There are endless possibilities for decorating a pumpkin-head, but I try to stick to heartier vegetables that will withstand the weather, and hold well with a toothpick.

I typically use a variety of kale or collard greens for hair.  For this one, I found Chinese Long-Beans at the market that made a great dreadlock hairdo.  It’s become  slimy over the last couple of weeks, which is perfectly fitting for this spooky holiday.  I usually try to make these no more than 2 weeks before Halloween, any longer than that and the vegetables start shriveling and falling off.

Pumpkin Heads

Pumpkin-Head Tips:

  • Use hearty vegetables
  • Poke toothpicks into the pumpkin, leaving the other half out to skewer through the vegetable
  • Use a thimble to push in the toothpicks (don’t poke your finger)
  • Eyeballs:  Use mushrooms, radishes, potatoes, beets, or zucchini, and layer them up for more dimension
  • Nose:  Use funky gourds, carrots, parsnips, mini pumpkins, or peppers
  • Lips:  Use red peppers, carrots, or beets, and create sharp teeth with a slice of mushroom or potato cut into a zig-zag
  • Ears:  Use baby carrots or radishes
  • Hair:  Use kale, collard greens, or Chinese long beans, and attach with discretely placed toothpicks

Spooky Bats:

Last year, I made these little bats from a template found on MarthaStuart.com.

Spooky Bats

I used black construction paper, and hung them with clear wire and thumb-tacks.  They were very easy to make and have lasted 2 years!  They held up great outside (under a covered porch), but would also be perfect for inside party decorating.

There are two sizes and best of all, the template is free!  You just download and print.

Happy Halloween!

Golden Pumpkins

Halloween is fast approaching, which means it’s time for Fall decorating.  This year, I painted golden pumpkins and gourds for a simple table centerpiece.

Golden Pumpkins

These pretty pumpkins couldn’t have been easier.  I used masking tap to cover the stems and 2 coats of spray paint, allowing some dry time between each coat.

Table Centerpiece

I found the Rust-Oleum Metallic Paint & Primer in One, in ‘Champagne Mist’ at Home Depot for about $7.00.  It covered well and dried pretty fast too.

Golden Pumpkins & Gold-Tipped Pinecones

Most of my pumpkins were white to start, which gave a truer golden finish.  The gourds which were originally orange and green turned out with a more grey undertone.  In the end, I liked the contrast and variation between the pumpkins, and am happy they didn’t turn out exactly the same color.

I arranged the pumpkins on a tray from World Market and added gold-tipped pinecones in a goblet for extra Fall flair.  I supposed I could have added the gold sparkles to my own pinecones, but they were on sale at Michael’s ($1.50 for 4 pinecones), which was too good to pass up.

In addition to the dining room table centerpiece, I also filled an extra-large decorative brandy glass with more small pumpkins and pinecones, and displayed them on my coffee table.  I started getting lazy, and didn’t mask off the stems on these ones, which I am now regretting.  Hopefully, people won’t look that closely (other than everyone who’s reading this).

Coffee Table Centerpiece

I love the sparkle they add to the antique-gold tray on my coffee table.  These should transition well into November, and the pinecones will surely be used for Christmas.