Get thee to the nunnery!
Just not a phrase that flows from me!
Yep ... if you ask my good friends .... I'm pretty certain they have never ever ever heard me say that!
But once a year, on a cold weekend in January, you can find me ............wait for it ................at a convent.
(And that brings me to a question. Is a convent the same thing as a nunnery???)
It is time for Crafting at the Convent.
Yes .... it is like the Super Bowl of local crafters. Quilters and knitters, jockeying for position on a couch or dining room table.
And the food..... we will talk later about the food!
I am awe-struck by the quilters. And I swear .....one of these days ... I am breaking out the sewing machine and going to catch that quilting bug!
And how did I get so lucky to be there? It was my dear friend Laura . Laura, who would regularly summon Saint Anthony ... patron saint of lost items ... to find a piece of binding, a lost knitting needle or a pattern that had gone AWOL. Laura, who started that sweater on Friday and seriously kicked butt with that fabulous Bartlett yarn.
It was a fabulous weekend. Amazingly talented women. So much laughter. And a few tears as another seam was ripped or a project frogged.
I am thankful to have been invited and included on such a special weekend.
Oh ..... I did mention food, didn't I? Well ... a new-me-recipe was shared. And I will share it with you. You no idea how good these are!!!
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
3 eggs
1 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole pecans, toasted & tossed with 1 tbsp butter
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 9×13 pan with foil, grease.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt. Cut in 2/3 cup of butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the prepared pan, and press in firmly.
3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
4. While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. In a large bowl mix together the eggs, corn syrup, 1 cup total brown & white sugars, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the pecans. Spread the filling evenly over the crust as soon as it comes out of the oven.
5. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until set. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing into bars.
*Note- After these cooled on a rack for about 3 hours, I put them in the freezer for 30 minutes. This made the cutting process super easy.
Yep ... if you ask my good friends .... I'm pretty certain they have never ever ever heard me say that!
But once a year, on a cold weekend in January, you can find me ............wait for it ................at a convent.
(And that brings me to a question. Is a convent the same thing as a nunnery???)
It is time for Crafting at the Convent.
Yes .... it is like the Super Bowl of local crafters. Quilters and knitters, jockeying for position on a couch or dining room table.
 |
| Dress code ... jammies! All weekend! I LOVE IT! |
The latest and greatest of gadgets.
 |
| Look at that cute little iron! And the sewing machine is seriously drool-worthy! |
The coolest and neatest of fabrics.
 |
| Tina cut and sewed this quilt top in ............. (drum roll, please!) ... 2 1/2 hours. |
And the food..... we will talk later about the food!
I am awe-struck by the quilters. And I swear .....one of these days ... I am breaking out the sewing machine and going to catch that quilting bug!
 |
| Friday night .............. fabric is in fat quarters. Sunday morning ............ top is put together and binding applied. And more amazing than all of that ............... FIRST. QUILT. EVER. |
 |
| Look at Sally's fabrics. Aren't those yummy? I love that color combination. |
And how did I get so lucky to be there? It was my dear friend Laura . Laura, who would regularly summon Saint Anthony ... patron saint of lost items ... to find a piece of binding, a lost knitting needle or a pattern that had gone AWOL. Laura, who started that sweater on Friday and seriously kicked butt with that fabulous Bartlett yarn.
 | ||||
| Not only was she knitting like a wild woman .. she was designing this sweater as she was knitting. |
I am thankful to have been invited and included on such a special weekend.
Oh ..... I did mention food, didn't I? Well ... a new-me-recipe was shared. And I will share it with you. You no idea how good these are!!!
Pecan Bar Recipe
Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup butter
3 eggs
1 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups whole pecans, toasted & tossed with 1 tbsp butter
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 9×13 pan with foil, grease.
2. In a large bowl, stir together the flour, 1/3 cup sugar, and salt. Cut in 2/3 cup of butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle the mixture evenly over the prepared pan, and press in firmly.
3. Bake for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
4. While the crust is baking, prepare the filling. In a large bowl mix together the eggs, corn syrup, 1 cup total brown & white sugars, 2 tablespoons melted butter, and vanilla until smooth. Stir in the pecans. Spread the filling evenly over the crust as soon as it comes out of the oven.
5. Bake for 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until set. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack before slicing into bars.
*Note- After these cooled on a rack for about 3 hours, I put them in the freezer for 30 minutes. This made the cutting process super easy.
Comments
I'm starting to try to relearn quilting, but I wasn't too great before. Maybe I should try a nunnery for some blessings on my projects.