Under the Needle: October

 It's been a busy month and for the most part, it's kept me out of the sewing room. At some point I did finish piecing all of these blocks that I've been working on since June. I am making the quilt bigger and made 110 blocks - these were so much fun to piece:

Now I'm working on trimming them all up:

I'm binding a quilt I started 2 years ago - this shot curtesy of early Sunday Morning Vibes:

And I finished this Posh Pumpkin Jelly Roll Quilt

A ranching friend of ours phoned DH a few weeks ago and asked if I'd make him a quilt or two so I'm in the early planning stages for that project. I'm actually thinking of using the 2x4 pattern and using this fat quarter pack of Sweetwater's Branded that I've been hoarding as a jumping off point:

I adore this collection and have been saving it to make a quilt for us, but it will be perfect for this friend. He requested a full/queen size and I was worried there wouldn't be enough leftover. This line is a few years old, but I found 1 last fat quarter pack on-line and ordered it. So now I can safely cut into this one without hyperventilating. 😂

Chocolate Eclair Dessert

 This is another recipe I've been making for over 20 years. I don't even remember where I got this one (probably Taste of Home), but it's one of DH's favorite desserts and I made it earlier this week and remembered to take pictures so that I could share it here. I'm no food photographer though so although the photos aren't great, you'll have to take my word that the dessert is worthy of applause. LOL. It's not fancy, but we rarely do fancy around here.

Graham crackers. Pudding. Cool Whip. Chocolate. By themselves, they are ordinary, but together, they are magic! Well, perhaps magic is a bit much, but it's a pretty yummy combination. 

Chocolate Eclair Dessert 

*This must be prepared 24 hours before serving.

1# Graham Crackers (you will need all 3 sleeves)

1 8 ox box of Instant French Vanilla Pudding

3 C milk

1 8 oz tub of Cool Whip

4 oz unsweetened chocolate

6 Tbsp butter

4 Tbsp milk

2 tsp vanilla

3 C powdered sugar

*Layer 1/3 of graham crackers on bottom of 9x13 pan. Beat together pudding mix and milk. Fold in Cool Whip.Spread 1/2 of the pudding mixture over graham crackers. Repeat layers, ending with graham crackers. In a small sauce pan, over low heat, blend together butter, unsweetened chocolate, milk, vanilla, and powdered sugar. Stir well until everything is incorporated. Spread over graham crackers. Refrigerate for 24 hours. 

                               

I really do enjoy cooking for family and friends and the crew, but I'm going to have to double my walks this week!

Stepping Things Up This Week

Fall Works are in full swing around here this week so our days are full. We sold 1768 hd of cattle at the sale barn on Monday and I had planned on grabbing groceries to feed the crew after work, but it was close to 7 p.m. when I left and I was too pooped to tackle my list. So that meant an early morning trip to town on Tuesday. Paul's Vet Supply, Sam's, and 2 grocery store stops because store #1 was out of jalapenos. That was a first. What kind of store is out of jalapenos in NM? I had some in the garden, but we had our first freeze on Monday night and there weren't enough left on the bushes. 

I grabbed a $5.00 roasted chicken at Sam's for dinner and headed home. Those chickens are a great deal! We'll get 3 meals out of it and then you can use the carcass, add vegetables and make great stock.

Popping in an old photo here because what good is a post without photos and I didn't think about taking a picture because I emptied sacks quickly so we could get to that chicken!

DH had hay delivered while I was in town so he was busy putting bales out in the pens for the calves we are weaning this week.

After dinner, I started potatoes for potato salad, wrote this post while they were cooking, and laced up my walking shoes when they were done. I'm only cooking for 3 days, but it's still work pulling everything together and I'm determined to fit walks in somewhere.

Then I made today's dessert while DH went to town for a Board Meeting. I was cleaning up the kitchen when he got home at 8 and by 9 we were asleep. 

Then this morning, after DH left for North Camp, Skeet and I walked out to the pens to add Corid to the water troughs

Then it was back to the house to start on rolls:

Here's what's on the menu this week:

Wednesday: Ribs ~ Hot Links ~ Loaded Baked Potatoes ~ Calabacitas ~ State Fair Yeast Biscuits

                      

                                                       ~Chocolate Eclair Dessert~

Thursday: Brisket ~ Potato Salad ~ Baked Beans ~ Rolls ~ Jalapeno Poppers

                                                                ~Lemon Bars~

Friday: Fajitas ~ Guacamole ~ Homemade Salsa ~ Queso ~ Chips

                                                        ~Apple Pie ~ Ice Cream ~

We've got a couple at North Camp and his wife was sweet to cook on Monday while I was at work. I sent eggs over because she cooked breakfast too and will also cook breakfast on Wednesday and Thursday. The cows are on their side of the ranch and the crew will start gathering over there. They will finish up on our side so I'm cooking dinner. Friday's the only day I'll have them for breakfast too.

So, if anyone needs me this week, you can find me in the kitchen...or shuffling down the dirt road before the sun sets. Chocolate Eclair Dessert recipe coming up next!

2 x 4 Autumn Quilt Finish

 The last few years I've concentrated on using up the jelly rolls I have lying around. I don't buy them anymore, but I figured out I like them much better when they are in a quilt. I've had a couple of Posh Pumpkin Jelly Rolls in my stash for a few years and in August of last year I finally decided it was time to put them to work. 

The simplicity of a 2 x 4 quilt appealed to me. Simple, yet classic patchwork, that let the fabric shine. Sandy Gervais does Autumn collections so well. I pulled a few other pieces from my stash to extend the jelly rolls for some blocks

The original 2x4 quilt uses fat quarters: here's a link to that tutorial 2x4

But I wanted to use my jelly rolls so I just modified my measurements. After I cut everything and started sewing, I stumbled upon this tutorial at Cluck Cluck Sew .

The tutorial gives you 2 blocks from each strip with a leftover piece for your scrap basket, but I cut incorrectly on my very first piece so my pieces are shorter by half an inch. My blocks finish 2x3 in the quilt. Still, that actually allowed me to squeeze another block out of the strips with no leftovers.

Sandy quilted a design called Falling Leaves with a camel colored thread across it - it's perfect

I love how these blocks play together

This quilt is 74" x 90". I used a brown from my stash for the binding and bought a wide minky for the backing.

I love this time of year! We don't have typical autumn color here, but the air is crisp and clean and the pastures are curing out. I think the chickens and guineas enjoy these cooler days too. They're chasing the last of the summer bugs.

And I'm so tickled with this finish - it was 37° the other morning so rest assured I'll be breaking this one in while I'm waiting for the morning sun to warm things up enough for Skeet and I to venture out for our Greet the Day trots.