"Easy to make" Empanada

My son, as most of the 3 years old, is a picky eater. So I've been trying some "techniques" to hide vegetables. This empanada was a very successful experience that turned out healthy, beautiful and delicious!

 
Filling:

I used leftover chicken breast with white sauce. I added some frozen spinach and Havarti cheese.
You can use any filling you want (ham and cheese, totally veggie with white sauce...).
I prepared the filling and let it cooled.
I used a regular thawed pie dough.
You spread the filling on one half and cover with the other half.

Now to close the edges you  pinch the edges.

I brushed my "empanada" with a beaten egg and sprinkled with sesame seed.

Put it in the very high oven for 10-15 minutes.

I baked it on an aluminum foil to make it easy to put it in the fridge and save it for the next day...

Your healthy and delicious meal is ready!
Enjoy,

Camila Aguirre.

Big Boy's Bedroom

I'm turning my son's nursery into a Big Boy's Bedroom.

I started making a panel with his name. I bought 6 middle size embroidery hoop and attached small letters (both from Michael's) to it. The fabric was from old coordinate baby blankets in three different colors.

The two little shelfs I bought some time ago in a yard sale and they matched perfectly the colors of the Toy Story Bed.
I used some of his favorites dinosaurs to decorate the shelfs as well as a little teddy bear (keeping the baby stuff around so mommy won't feel that her baby is growing too fast...).

Isn't it just Perfect???

Thanks for reading,

Camila Aguirre. 

Butterfly Wreath

I was so excited when I got this Martha Stewart Monarch Butterfly Punch that I needed to make some craft with these gorgeous punched butterflies.

I came up with the idea of making a Butterfly Wreath!

I guess I’m becoming obsessed about wreaths (check it out some of my creations: http://casadacamila-decor.blogspot.com/2012/05/flower-wreath.html; http://casadacamila-decor.blogspot.com/2012/07/burlap-flowers-wreath.html)

This is what I’ve used to make this project:

Martha Stewart Puncher
Colorful junk paper
Paper flowers
Adhesive beads for the center of the flowers
Glue stick
Paper wreath (this one I made using the technique of rolling paper but you can also use a regular cardboard wreath like this one: http://casadacamila-decor.blogspot.com/2012/05/spring-wreath.html.

Thanks for reading,
Happy Crafting.
Camila.

American Hamburgers

I’ve tried this particular hamburger recipe for the first time when we were celebrating the 4th of July.

It’s soooo delicious that it’s going to be my unique hamburger recipe!

Here’s what you’ll need:

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
½ cup fried bacon
½ cup of grated Parmesan cheese
garlic powder garlic
salt
pepper

Preparation

Mix all the ingredients, make the hamburgers and grill them.

Enjoy with loaf, salad and you favorite sauce!


Happy Summer!
Camila.

Surprise for you: Brazilian Candy (brigadeiro)!!!!

Every day when I pick my son up at school he asks me if I have a “surprise” for him.

One weekend he went out with Daddy and I said I would make him a surprise.

They arrived, we had lunch and finally I finally I gave him the “surprise”!

I have made some “brigadeiros” (Brazilian candy) for him. He loves “brigadeiro”, who doesn’t?

Look at his happy face!

Check it out this site for more “brigadeiros” recipes…

http://meus5minutos.globo.com/blog/2012/08/15/a-confeiteira-danielle-noce-compartilha-suas-receitas-de-brigadeiro-gourmet/

Love,
Camila.

Burlap Flowers Wreath

If you have some fabric scraps you can make this wreath with NO COST!



To compose the wreath I used a piece of cardboard (in the same way I did for the Spring Wreath: http://casadacamila-decor.blogspot.com/2012/05/spring-wreath.html) and covered it with a long strip of the same fabric used for the flowers.
For this step I sew along the edges to give a clean look. I used a very narrow zigzag stitch.

This is the cardboard wreath covered with the long sewed stripe and a green ribbon added.




To make the flowers, I used a simple twist technique. I cut a round piece of scrap paper (the size of the flowers) and made each flower by twisting the stripe of fabric and hot-gluing into the scrap paper.

I hot-glue the flowers and Ta Da...
Here's my ZERO cost Burlap Flower Wreath.

Thanks for reading,

4th of July Holiday!!!

Even tough I wasn't born in the US, I really love the Holiday of July 4th, especially because of the patriotic sense behind it.

My Grandpa gave me this buttom 15 years ago. At that time I would never imagined that I would come to the US for Grad School.

We enjoy the parades, concerts, fireworks and food!

Santa Barbara Court House. 4th of July 2009 Orchestra Concert

Fire works at Sterns Wharf

In honor to this beautiful Nation, where my son was born, I'll post the following song that always brings tears to my eyes:

America the Beautiful

Words by Katharine Lee Bates,
Melody by Samuel Ward

 

O beautiful for spacious skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the fruited plain!
America! America!
God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea! 

Let's celebrate 4th of July!!!

 Happy Holiday!!!

Fire fighter playing - Recycling

My son loves to play pretend as a firefighter!

When he is playing he always wants me to join him (maybe he needs a sibling  = ) ). However, as you know, life is busy and especially this day I had a pile of dishes to wash and dinner to make.
So, I invited him to help me build a tall building.
We, then, put the building on fire! And the fun began...
Sirens sounds, fire engines, fire hoses, hard helmet, ladder, people asking for help, help!!!

Just a grocery bag, some markers and a lot of creativity!

I finally entertained him and while he was "saving lives" I could do my chores.

His cow was also part of the scene... He rescued her from inside the building.
So lovely...

Tip: to make the bag sturdy you can tape a cooking stick on both sides from the inside.

Enjoy the playing time!

Bird Mobile

I made this cute bird mobile for my son's room.

I draw a bird template and cut an old calendar using different sizes of birds.
I hang them with a thread and used invisible tape to attach the birds.

I used a piece of bamboo (leftover from the Fishing Game - http://casadacamila-decor.blogspot.com/2012/05/fishing-game-for-kids.html) but you can use any stick that you may find in your backyard.
I used a nail to fix it into the ceiling...

 ... and it brought some "nature" inside our home!

Thanks for reading,

"Brazilian" Corn Bread/Pudding

I just love any type of cake!!! I like to bake it but especially to eat it =)

This one is something between a flan (pudding) and a cornbread.
It's very easy to make and tastes sooo GOOD.

 
It's perfect for an afternoon craving and it goes well with a cup of coffee.

The recipe can be found here (in Portuguese):
http://meus5minutos.globo.com/colheradas/2012/02/09/bolo-de-milho-com-coco-de-liquidificador/

But it's so delicious that I'll make it international translating to English.

Ingredients
4 eggs
1 can of corn (300g)
1 can of condensed milk (like the one I used for the Lime Pie )
100 g of coconut flakes
1 tablespoon of butter
1 tablespoon of baking powder

Directions
Preheat the oven 375F.
Blend all the ingredients, except for the baking powder. After blending pour into a big bowl and mix the baking powder. Pour batter into a greased pan.
Takes about 20-30 minutes to bake.




Enjoy!