Festive Holiday Treats #2

Elegant Raspberry Milanos

2 pkgs. Pepperidge Farm Milano Raspberry Cookies
White chocolate melting wafers
Colored sprinkles (Jimmies, sugar, & Non-Pareils)

Dress up Milano Raspberry Cookies. Melt white chocolate in a Wilton Chocolate Pro Electric Melting Pot; mixing well as chocolate melts. Remove cookies from pkg. & place evenly spread apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Dip cookies half way into melted chocolate; then dip into paper cupcake liners filled with colored sprinkles. After dipping into sprinkles, lay finished cookie on parchment paper until dry. Once cookies are dry, place each cookie into a cupcake liner, & fill a decorative tray. White colored sprinkles & red colored sprinkles are great; they work well for both Christmas & Valentine's Day!

Festive Holiday Treats #1

Snowy Snack Mix

5 C. Frosted Cheerios
1 (11 oz.) pkg. Ghirardelli classic white chips
1 C. white-colored M&Ms
1 1/4 C. yogurt-covered raisins
1 C. coconut flavored Jelly Belly jelly beans
1 (12 oz.) container yogurt-covered pretzels
1 (10.5 oz.) pkg. mini marshmallows

In a large bowl, combine ingredients in order. Lightly toss. Evenly divide mixture among silver cupcake liners.

Dazzle Charm

You can wear the entire Dazzle Charm necklace, detach the charm & wear just the necklace, or attach the charm to your favorite bag. Black & silver is such an elegant combination and always the most versatile. A completely different concept than the Charm Tassies necklace we taught this summer.

Kiwi Loco

This place ROCKS! Self-serve Frozen Yogurt in Idaho Falls. "A perfect treat that can be enjoyed any time of the day or night!" They even have no sugar added frozen yogurt for those of us watching carbs & sugar. What a fabulous location on the corner of Sunnyside & Hitt. The atmosphere is really nice, child friendly w/little seats, flat screen tv, & in the best colors lime & black! We give Kiwi Loco an A+. Go support this family-owned IDAHO business!

Glass Pendant

Sparkle & shine through the Holiday Season with this sassy Glass Pendant necklace. A great combination of silver, glass, rhinestones, and shiny beads. Wear with jeans for a chic look or jazz up a cute outfit with a little sparkle & bling.

Keychain Wristlets

This is an assortment of our NEW hand crafted & sewn "Keychain Wristlets" by Purple Fig with the latest trend in quilting fabrics. Just add your personal keys & you're ready to go! You can place it on your wrist while shopping or writing a check (hands free), easy to locate in your bag or purse, hook it on a door knob, & they also make fantastic Christmas stocking stuffers. They are currently available on consignment at the Mini Bazaar in Idaho Falls, ID or contact us if you're interested in purchasing.

Italian Herb Chicken - November Recipe

Easy tasty Saturday Slow-Cooker meal to fix, go shopping, & have dinner ready when you get back!

4 or 5 lg. boneless skinless frozen chicken breasts
1 McCormick Slow Cookers Italian Herb Chicken Seasoning packet
1 (14.5 oz.) can Italian stewed tomatoes
1 (14.5 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
3 or 4 fresh carrots, sliced

Add frozen chicken breasts to Slow-Cooker. Mix Seasoning, tomatoes, & tomato paste until blended. Pour over chicken. Add sliced carrots, stir, cover Slow-Cooker, & cook on high for 4 hrs. Stir sauce before serving.

Monster Eye Brownie Pops

We made these fun Halloween treats for our co-workers. You start with the "easy" Seriously Fudgy Brownie Mix add water, bake in pan with parchment paper, cool/cut/roll, & add sticks. Then dip in a layer of melted chocolate, vanilla, & colored sprinkles. Wrap in treat bags & tie with curling ribbon. ENJOY!!

The combo of the brownie with chocolate & crunch from the sprinkles is superb. Also try the Chocolate Raspberry Brownie Mix, it's like eating those chocolate raspberry sticks.

Creamy Italian Chicken - October Recipe

Super good Sunday Crock-Pot meal with leftovers for Monday evening!

4 or 5 lg. boneless skinless frozen chicken breasts
1 Kraft Good Seasons Italian seasoning dry packet
1/4 C. water
1/4 C. butter, melted
1 can Campbell's Healthy Request Cream of Chicken Soup
1 (8 oz.) pkg. softened cream cheese OR tub of whipped cream cheese spread
1/2 C. grated Parmesan/Romano cheese (shaker container)

Add frozen chicken breasts to Crock-Pot. Mix Italian seasoning packet, water, & melted butter until blended; pour over top of chicken. Cover Crock-Pot & cook on high for 4 hrs. Mix soup, cream cheese, & Parmesan/Romano cheese until smooth & well blended. Add to slow-cooker & cook 30 min. to an hour, stirring occasionally until hot & smooth. Serve over hot cooked rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes.

Saturday Night Live

Another late night project - Scrappy Lanyards!

Wanted to make fabric lanyards because they're so stylish and a smart way to clip on your badge. Cut pieces of fabric 3" x 3", sew together to create the scrappy part, a few quick tips, add a D ring, and viola "Scrappy Lanyard"!

Candy Tree

Make the "Candy Tree" for Halloween! It's a blast to paint, design tags, and attach lots of candy & spooky trinkets with bright colored ribbons. This is so fun to display for the Holiday or watch items disappear as the little ones Trick-or-Treat.

Greek Mini Baklavas - September Recipe

Easy & super delicious!

24 mini Phyllo shells (frozen food section)
1/2 C. walnuts
1/2 C. almonds
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 TBL. butter, melted
2 TBL. sugar
Zest of 1/2 orange
1/4 C. water
1 1/2 TBL. sugar
3 TBL. honey
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place mini Phyllo shells into wells of mini muffin pan & cook them for 5 min. Add nuts, salt, cinnamon, melted butter, 2 TBL. sugar, & orange zest to food processor & pulse until consistency is like coarse crumbs. Add 1 tsp. nut mixture to each mini shell & bake for 8 to 10 min.

In the meantime, make the syrup. In sm. saucepan over med. heat, add water, 1 1/2 TBL. sugar, honey, & vanilla. Bring to a boil & simmer for 7 to 8 min. or until the syrup reduces & thickens.

Once the mini Baklavas are out of the oven, pour 1 tsp. of the prepared syrup over each one & allow to soak in, then repeat with another tsp. Allow them to cool on the counter for 30 min., then cool in the fridge for at least 2 hrs. Remove Greek Mini Baklavas from pan with mini silicon spatula & place into mini paper liners.

Scentsy

We love Scentsy! The scents are fantastic. Still can't believe how many people have never tried them. Turn your warmer on, place two or three sections of a Scentsy Bar into the warmer dish, and ENJOY! Of course then you need the Scentsy Room Spray to add a touch of frangrance whenever you want.

Christmas Cottage is a great new scent for Fall/Winter. Cherry Limeade was yummy for Spring/Summer. Our classic favorites are Coconut Lemongrass, Blueberry Cheesecake, Washabi Ginger, & Sticky Cinnamon Bun.

Trendy Fashion

Have you been to the new Runway Fashion Exchange in Idaho Falls? It's terrific!! Get name brand fashion on a budget. A great selection of trendy name brand clothing, bags, shoes, and accessories. Explore the great finds at this store, you'll be goin' there all the time. We do... Check out the store photos.

Another fun place if you get over to Boise, drop the hubby off at Cabela's, and shop next door at Plato's Closet.

Marinated Shish Kabobs - July Recipe

1 (1.12 oz.) pkg. McCormick Meat Marinade Mix
1 to 3 lbs. sirloin, cubed (1-inch)
1 med. orange bell pepper, cubed
1 med. yellow bell pepper, cubed
1 med. baby zucchini, cubed
cherry tomatoes
pineapple chunks
sweet red onion, cubed (optional)

Combine pkg. mix with 1/4 C. oil, 2 TBL. apple cider vinegar, & 1 TBL. water in shallow glass dish. Add meat & marinate 1 hr. or more, turning several times. Remove meat from marinade. Add and alternate meat, veggies, & pineapple chunks on wooden shish kabob sticks (that have been pre-soaked in water for 30 min.). Grill & serve. Note: sirloin can be reduced & kielbasa added.

RIT Dyed Buttons

Transform plain buttons into the perfect color. Dyeing buttons is simple and fun! Terrific for all your craft and sewing projects. Also a fantastic idea to achieve the right color for jewelry making. Button rings & bracelets are the hot new TREND...

Charm Tassies

This is the Charm Tassies class we taught. Everyone made a different color and they all turned out great! The Charm Tassies are so funky & fun to wear. You can swap them out and attach em' to different chains or even hook them to your bags. Super fun to make. You will start buying beads to match your outfits...

Fiesta Bean Dip - June Recipe

Ole' - have a party with this fabulous dip!

2 cans Rosarita no-fat refried beans w/zesty salsa
2 (8 oz.) pkgs. Avomex classic guacamole dip
1 container sour cream
2 (8 oz.) pkgs. fiesta blend fancy shredded cheese

Place refried beans in bottom of glass dish. Add guacamole dip, smooth over bean layer. Spread sour cream over guacamole layer. Sprinkle shredded cheese over top, repeat layers. Refrigerate overnight. Serve with white corn tortilla chips, Baked Tostitos Scoops, or Frito Scoops.

Pixie Chain Necklaces

These are Purple Fig's examples from our Pixie Chain Necklace class we taught. We all had a great time. It has been fun to see the necklaces that our customers have created since the class. You guys rock, keep that creativity flowing. It's addicting isn't it?

California Olive Beef Dip - May Recipe

This is a terrific midnight snack!

3 (8 oz.) pkgs. 1/3 less fat cream cheese
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
3 tsp. dried minced onions
1 (4.25 oz.) can chopped ripe black olives
2 (2.25 oz.) jars Armour sliced dried beef

In lg. mixing bowl, beat together first four ingredients. Slice & chop dried beef into small pieces, add to cream cheese mixture, & mix well. Place into two glass dishes, packed firm. Chill & serve with Wheat Thins or Pork Rinds.

Lunch Date(s)

We decided to try Famous Dave's since we were craving BBQ. What a great new restaurant for Idaho Falls and a big boost for the West side of town. The food was so yummy we went for lunch on Friday and again Saturday. The meats have a great flavor & the corn bread muffin, corn-on-the cob, and famous fries for the sides were really good. Definitely cured the BBQ craving. What a fun atmosphere!

Recycle Tips

Earth Day was April 22, 2010:

• If you are using a cooler to keep picnic foods chilled, fill a couple of empty washed milk jugs with water and freeze. It lasts a lot longer than ice cubes and it is free.
• Safely cut the tops off of empty washed milk jugs and place over garden plants when the weather dips in temperature.

Tracks on the Trail

We decided to attend our first quilt shop hop, so we purchased our passports and started traveling to each shop to get them stamped, collect our charms, patterns, and buy some new fabric. You still have time to join in this fun event. It will be exciting to see how we attach our charms into a memorable piece of jewelry, so stay tuned. Maybe we will have to check into Utah for the next shop hop!

Rocky Road Fudge Bars - April Recipe

These bars are a lot of work, but so worth it!

Base
1/2 C. margarine
1 oz. (square) unsweetened chocolate
1 C. flour
1 C. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla
2 eggs
3/4 C. chopped nuts

Filling
8 oz. cream cheese (reserving 2 oz. for frosting)
1/4 C. margarine
1/2 C. sugar
1 C. milk chocolate chips
2 TBL. flour
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1/4 C. chopped nuts

Frosting
2 C. mini marshmallows
1/4 C. margarine
1/4 C. milk
1 oz. unsweetened chocolate
3 C. powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp. vanilla

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease & flour 13x9 pan or line with parchment paper. In lg. saucepan over low heat, melt 1/2 C. margarine & 1 oz. chocolate, stirring consistent until well blended. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup, level off cup. Add 1 C. flour & rest of base ingredients, mix well, spread in pan. Combine filling ingredients except chocolate chips & nuts. Beat until fluffy, stir in nuts, spread over chocolate & sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake 25 to 35 min. Sprinkle mini marshmallows over top & bake 2 min. In pan melt margarine & chocolate, add cream cheese. Remove from heat & stir in powdered sugar. Pan frosting over marshmallows & swirl.

Summer Fun...

New nail polish for SUMMER!

For those of you that know us, we love bright colors. Since we are OPI fans, we were a bit hesitant in buying. After trying a color, we cruised back to Walgreens to buy more.

It goes on really smooth, the colors are intense, and for the sale price of only a $1.99. We always use "Out the Door" topcoat from Sally Beauty Supply. Keeps the polish shiny, dries super quick, no dings, and makes it wear longer. A great enhancement for your toes...

Kitchen Gadgets

These are a must have! Strawberry Slicer and Pineapple Slicer, ingenious handy kitchen gadgets. Talk about easy. We have spent so much wasted time cutting strawberries. What a time saver this is. Who likes to cut pineapple? We use to live in Hawaii so we love pineapple, but trying to cut them is torture. Summer is almost here, watch out Farmer's Market here we come.

Michael Bolton Concert

We were surprised that Michael Bolton was coming to Idaho Falls Monday, April 12th! For getting tickets last minute, we had great seats at the concert and he was WONDERFUL. The highlights were Michael singing in Italian Opera and also when he surprised the audience by singing off stage in the middle of the auditorium. His band was superb and the new album One World One Love is available in stores May 4th, just in time for Mother's Day. He sang Just One Love from his new album. The new track Murder My Heart, one of the standouts on the album, was co-written with Lady Gaga who also sings back up. Money well spent, what a fun night...

Cupcake Craze

The cupcake obsession is spreading...
We have noticed there are cupcake magazines and cookbooks everywhere. Well, talk about perfect timing when the Sunday newspaper came today. Low and behold this cute pink Babycakes Cupcake Maker was staring right at us, and off we went with Tucker (the dog) to the store! The recipe book is wonderful and this darling machine bakes 8 mini cupcakes in just minutes. We made Mini Lemon Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting, using mini cupcake liners it made 34. It has got to be the easiest, funest, no clean-up project ever. How exciting to try new combinations with frostings. We will be watching the sale ads for cake mixes and making them for several weeks to come. Now we know why this is called the "cupcake craze"! We had soooo much fun.

Early Easter Present

We went this weekend to Sam's Club and got a Hot Dog and Pizza Combo for lunch, yummy! Of course we could not leave without a trip to the book section, where we found us an early Easter find. An awesome cookbook, Taste of Home Baking Classics. It has 655 great recipes with 449 fantastic color photos. It includes 10 tips for baking success, quick breads, yeast breads, coffee cakes & sweet rolls, pies, cakes, cupcakes, desserts, cookies, brownies, and bars for a super price at $12.98.

Okay we admit it, we are a bunch of cookbook hoarders. Our favorites are Taste of Home, Gooseberry Patch, and of course spiral Church Cookbooks.

Altered Art - Mugs

Altered Art is so inspiring to create. Begin with photo mugs from Starbucks, insert an altered logo, edge/chalk heavy weight patterned cardstock, and punch flowers for an added touch. A great way to display artwork, while keeping track of your beverage!

Mocha Munchies - March Recipe

What a perfect time to pick up Girl Scouts Trefoils Cookies to use in this wonderful recipe.

2 C. crushed shortbread cookies
1 1/4 C. powdered sugar
1 C. finely chopped pecans
2 TBL. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. instant decaffeninated coffee crystals
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
4 to 5 TBL. water
1/2 C. powdered sugar

Combine crushed cookies, 1 1/4 C. powdered sugar, nuts, cocoa powder, coffee crystals, & cinnamon. Add water, just enough to moisten. Form mixture into 1 1/4-inch balls. Roll balls generously in the 1/2 C. powdered sugar. Place balls on waxed paper, let stand until dry (1 hr.). Before serving, roll balls again in powdered sugar.

Watchband Art

Watchband art is exceptionally versatile and always fashionable! Unique looks can be achieved by making watchbands with a funky, retro, whimsical, casual, or elegant look. You can create the perfect accessory for any outfit by mixing & matching watchbands and watch faces. They are fast to make and very addictive. We carry a great selection of beads at fabulous prices, findings, watch faces, supplies, etc. Pre-made watchband art can also be purchased at Purple Fig. Schedule a class and/or send us an email for shopping times. For those that would like to do some bead shopping, bring Promotional Code: BEADS01 (expires 4/15/10) with you for an additional 10% off your entire purchase.

Recipe Extravaganza

At our Recipe Extravaganza classes, you put together pre-cut kits. All recipes in fun fonts, doo-dads, high quality sleeves, and email photo are included. We have one kit remaining (Slow-Cooker Ranch Chops, Taco Tater Casserole, Taco Soup, Zucchini Bread, Sea Salt Crisps) for $20. If interested, please send us an email. Additional classes will be scheduled soon.

Saturday Night Live

Another late night project - Scallop Square Pincushions!

We started with Fat Quarters and Warm & Natural or Flannel, using the Big Shot Die Cut Machine with the Stampin' Up! Scallop Square Die. Once cut, add a little spray adhesive to make your quilt sandwich pieces, and you are ready to sew; leaving a small opening to fill with a funnel & Poly Pellets. Carefully pin the opening, sew it up on your machine, and VIOLA you have darling pincushions. Hint: we use Poly Pellets for added weight.

Collage Clock

Several people have asked us what kind of classes do we teach? We have posted a Collage Clock from a previous scrapbooking class. Our classes include the entire kit. A "Plain Janner" clock turned it into a "Collage of Art". We teach an array of classes, which includes scrapbooking, stamping, beading, watchband art, and venturing into sewing. For additional details, please send us an email.

Love Bug - February Recipe

Make these for your Valentine, they are soft and so good!!

Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 C. powdered sugar

1 C. butter (room temperature)

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. lemon juice

2 1/2 C. flour

1 tsp. baking soda

1 tsp. cream of tarter

Combine powdered sugar & butter in mixer until light & fluffy. Add egg, vanilla, & lemon juice until combined. Add remaining three ingredients, slowly until dough comes together. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface. Roll out to 1/4-inch thick. Cut out with cookie cutters & place on non-stick cookie sheets at least 1-inch apart. Bake 7 to 8 minutes at 375 degrees (DO NOT let brown). Let cookies cool before decorating.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 pkg. cream cheese (room temperature)

1 cube butter (room temperature)

2 tsp. vanilla

1 box powdered sugar

Food coloring (select color)

Combine cream cheese & butter in mixer until smooth. Add vanilla, slowly add powdered sugar until mixed. Add food coloring, mix until color is well blended. Frost cooled cookies. ENJOY!!

Fabric Finds

Polka dots, flowers, hexagons, letters, and Asian print fabrics are really popular this season. The combination is great for fabric balls, pin cushions, pot holders, coasters, and smaller sized projects. Had a blast picking them out at the fabric sale! Word prints are really hard to find, but add a very special touch to the combo.

Show N Tell

This is a bag we completed for a friend of ours. She requested a Retro-Asian print for her daughter's birthday. It is reversible and was fun to make.

Big New Announcement

We are pleased to announce that we have re-named our company to Purple Fig. Welcome to our new blog and we hope you continue to follow us on our exciting journey...