Batering at its best - the results

Remember in a previous post when I organized a friend's kitchen in exchange for a granite countertop for my bathroom? Well, I promised to show you the finished product, so here it is ...

I've always wanted a waterfall faucet, so I did some hunting on ebay, and found this one for cheaper than a standard faucet would have been from Home Depot or Lowe's (and a bonus ... shipping was free!).

This little bathroom has gone through a complete metamorphosis. Here's what the countertop looked like when we bought the house ... (kind of like an ugly caterpillar.)

Here's what it looked like a few months ago before we retiled the floors (thanks to the flood), which then led to repainting and replacing the toilet ... (lots of changes happening, chrysalis stage.)

And how the bathroom looks today ... (a beautiful butterfly!)

... I'm thrilled with the results!

Make your own vanilla extract

It seems like everytime I buy vanilla extract at the grocery store, I am shocked all over again by the high price.

Nevermind that I went through the same sticker-shock just two months prior. It still manages to surprise me everytime.

I stand there in the baking aisle and think, "Really? But it's such a small bottle!"

But I always suck it up and buy it, because what are my other options? I refuse to buy the cheaper "imitation vanilla extract." Only pure vanilla extract will do.

So when Kent emailed me this article recently, I was elated to try it. Here's what you'll need:

Mason Jars - I already had some of these in my kitchen cabinets. I used the smaller ones that hold about 1 ½ cups.

Vodka - Shocker, I know, but I already had this in my kitchen cabinets, too. It doesn't have to be top shelf stuff. Any vodka will do!

Vanilla Beans - Now these I had to special order. There are lots of sources for beans, but I got mine at Beanilla.com. The article provides some insight as to the differences in the types of beans. I went with ones from India.

** The recipe is 3 vanilla beans per cup of vodka. **

1) Use kitchen scissors or a sharp paring knife to cut lengthwise down each vanilla bean, splitting them in half, leaving an inch at the end connected. Since I used the shorter jars, I cut the beans in half short-wise first (that's the opposite of lengthwise, right?), before splitting them in half lengthwise.

2) Put the vanilla beans in a glass jar or bottle with a tight fitting lid. Cover completely with the vodka.

3) Store in a dark, cool place. Give the bottle a good shake every week or so, and in about 8 weeks, you'll have vanilla extract!

Lasts for years. You can keep topping it off with vodka once in a while as you use it. Just remember to give it a good shake.

These just need a cute homemade tag, and ... voila! ... super cute Christmas gifts! Since these won't be quite ready to use by Christmas, I'll just include the date that it will be ready on the tag ... it's the gift that keeps on giving.

I'm looking forward to watching the vanilla change color over time.

So, to recap ... vanilla beans + vodka + time = vanilla extract ... now that's my kind of math!

... especially when I calculate how much money this will save in the long run!

** Note -- although the taller, corked bottle looks really pretty, I quickly switched it out for a mason jar after realizing that the vodka was leaking through the cork when I shook it. A tight-fitting lid is key.

Batering at its best

Remember in a previous post a few months ago when I was wishing for new bathroom counter tops to go with my new flooring? Well, I'm making it happen ... 50% anyway. A friend of mine just happens to install granite counter tops, and he approached me willing to trade my organizing skills in his kitchen for a beautiful, granite counter top. How perfect, right? He's a bachelor, but getting married soon, and he wanted his space organized before his soon-to-be-wife and all of her stuff moved in. His kitchen wasn't bad, just lacking a woman's touch! Here's how I helped:

Pots & Pans Before ..... and ..... Pots and Pans After

Spice Cabinet Before ... and ... Spice Cabinet After

Tupperware Before ... and ... Tupperware After

(He's eventually going to install a Lazy Susan here, but it needed a temporary solution.)

Pantry Before ... and ... Pantry After

Under Sink Before ... and ... Under Sink After

Utensil Drawers Before ... and ... Utensil Drawers After

Dishes Before ... and ... Dishes After

(This isn't a dramatic change, but it's an open front cabinet, so it must look it's best!)

Catch-all Drawer Before ... and ... Catch-all Drawer After

(Just sounds better than "junk drawer," right? Come on, we all have them!)

He was a very happy customer, and his fiancée was even more thrilled. I finished it just in time for his housewarming party. Can't wait to get my granite counter top. Hopefully I'll be posting pics of it in a couple of weeks!

Yummy Recipes - Salad Dressing

I've been cooking up a storm this past week. Making up for lost time I guess. My sweet mom brought Kent and I many dinners during our mini-remodel so that we didn't have to take time out to cook and could just continue working. But after not cooking for so long, I felt like I had a lot of catching up to do. Last week I made: salsa, jalapeno bread, cinnamon rolls, banana pancakes, veggie quiche, oatmeal-peanut butter cookies and salad dressing, in addition to regular dinners. I've been really into making my own salad dressings lately. You just need to have a few staple ingredients on hand, and you can make a wide variety of dressings. Plus it's a great way to avoid preservatives and save money. Here are some of my favs:

Balsamic Vinaigrette
from cooks.com

1 cup olive oil
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
3-5 gloves garlic
3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese
Sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste

Whisk together vinegar, garlic and grated cheese. Gradually add the olive oil. Salt and pepper to taste.


Lemon Garlic
from For the Love of Cooking

6 Tbsp olive oil
Juice of one lemon
1-2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp red wine vinegar
Sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste
1/4 tsp dried oregano

Whisk all ingredients together until thoroughly combined. Taste and re-season if needed. Toss the salad with the dressing and serve. Enjoy.


Fran's Simple Vinaigrette
from For the Love of Cooking

1/2 cup canola oil
3 Tbsp rice vinegar
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp sugar
Sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper, to taste (lots of pepper)

Combine all ingredients and mix thoroughly before tossing on your favorite salad. Enjoy.

Bulk Buying

We recently got a Sam's Club membership, mainly for the limo business. My first shopping trip was pretty overwhelming ... that place is HUGE. My dad always used to shop there when we were growing up, but I had never been inside one myself. He used to come home with everything from a 50-pack of snack-sized chip bags to enough toilet paper to last us six months. We don't have that much storage space in our normal-sized house, so at first I wasn't sure if bulk buying was for us. But I was pleasantly surprised. Not everything is ginormous and there are quite a few good deals to be had. They even have one of my favorite wines for $3 cheaper than at HEB. Here is my most recent purchase:

A giant bag of Craisins. Leyla is there to emphasize how big this bag really is! And we will definitely eat all these before they go bad. I put them in my homemade granola, so we go through quite a bit. So exciting ... yea for saving money!