christmastime.

Merry Christmas from cats and dogs, cookies, and new robes from Menard's.

pancake mix muffins.

I've got 1,000,000 things to complete. I LIKE LEARNING but sometimes I want to put everything aside and just go ice skating.

Finals are also for muffins and tonight, that was really all I wanted.

Who has time to mix together dry ingredients? I don't have three extra minutes for that because mulling over the likes of Paulo Freire and Pancho Villa is attacking my life. So for those times, I've created (someone probably created it first) a way to have muffins in half the time. Because I used pancake mix. Oh, I'm sorry! Did I just hear you judging me?

I am unfazed, so is Mr. Pancho Villa, and you can thank me later. (i love you)

Pancake Mix Muffins

Ingredients:

2 cups pancake mix
1 egg substitute (or a real egg)
1 cup non-dairy (or dairy) milk
2 tbs melted butter, margarine, oil what-have-you
1 tsp vanilla

Whatever add-ins for whatever kind of muffin mood you're in.

(this recipe is sassy like my finals-oriented mind)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees

Mix everything together.

Fill twelve muffin cups and bake your new friends for 20 minutes or until a toothpick, inserted, comes out clean.

You know who else is sassy? This guy. He's a Christmas yeti. And if you come to i like you in Northeast Minneapolis, you can visit him. And maybe me.

in any given week & the hollydaze.

This week things happened and I got way excited for the holidays. WHY?!

1. My new baby Canon Rebel has been doing me real good.

Welcome to my Tuesday/Thursday weekly life. Improvising with these lovely mugs.

It's true, I'm totally learning things in school.

 2. During my prime years of cool, (1st-3rd grade), I was an figure skating princess. Which is why I'm excited to report my newly acquired ICE SKATES. From the best of friends, Nicole. I'm about to make a serious comeback, world.

3. All week. Lianne Lahavas. You want to listen? You should.

4. Things I'm currently excited about that have something to do with the holidays:

• cranberry bread
• Hallmark Channel Christmas movies
• candy cane cookies
• Pretending I know the lighting the menorah prayer. I might. I'm just not sure.
• apple latkes
• breakfast on Christmas
• dogs
• gingerbread gingerbread gingerbread

(Notice how I put things in between the bullets that had to do with food. I did that on purpose. Because I'm not only excited about cookies. I just wanted to get that out there.)

5. A special creation brought to you by Ms. Samantha Feld.

6. TWO MOUSE EXPERIENCES THIS WEEK WHY.

7. This week I went to our local cash only, no meat eatery to indulge in some tempeh jambalaya, forgot to order it to go, and then was forced to have alone time. All I had with me was an issue of Glamour. You don't read Glamour in Hard Times. I felt like an awful, awful person. Like I was committing a crime. The jambalaya was good.

8. This weekend my mother is visiting. How many cookies will we eat? I will report back later with this information.

Lata, playas. There's some nanner bread in the oven that needs my attention.

sometimes part deux.

Sometimes, after I go to the University Center of Recreation, I buy a cookie. I did that today.

Sometimes I don't even look at any other page in the newspaper besides the crossword puzzle.

Sometimes I let my bran flakes soak in their almond milk for ten minutes because I like it.

Sometimes I wonder if the people working at the Seward Co-op recognize me as the girl who takes too big of samples from the hot bar.

Sometimes my roommate and I look on the front page of Pinterest just to get angry at people. It's possible that last night, searches were done for cake pops, cake batter, red velvet, and jello shots just to see how upset we would get. This is not just a sometimes activity. Last night's winners included "books" made from a square of white chocolate with a fruit leather wrapped around it and waffle jello shots.

Sometimes I borrow pens and never give them back.

Sometimes I don't want to wear pants.

yarn and stick alphabet ornaments.

Listen, Anthropologie. I really dig your style, you smell real nice, and sometimes I think my dream home might be...any one of your stores. But sometimes I see something and think "HEY. I CAN MAKE THAT." That's what I did here, Anthropologie. Except I used real sticks instead of mass fabricated pieces. Oops, sorry.

P.S. I still love you.

DIY Yarn&Stick Alphabet Ornaments

Materials: Yarn (assorted textures is a good thing), fairly thin twigs, but not so thin that they'll break when you wrap yarn around them, and scissors.

1. Choose your sticks, choose your letter. Those long sticks for the M? They're about 5.5 inches long. Definitely choose sticks with nubs, they make it way more fun. Arrange your sticks in the letter you've chosen.

       *Obviously, letters with curves prove to be more difficult. One thing you can do is use more live       

         sticks that will bend.

2. Wrap pieces of yarn around any joints and overlapping you might have in your letter. Just to keep it sturdier. You'll be able to secure their positions once you start wrapping.

3. Choose your yarn! I've been working with two colors, because I like being able to switch between the two or use both at the same time. Make them about six feet long.

Start wrapping! Make a route for your wrapping so you'll end up at the point where you want the hanging loop to be. For example, I started at the bottom of the M, up to the middle, and down to the other side. Make sure you wrap your yarn extra tight around the joints.

4. Here's where I wish I had a hot glue gun. (But Danie, aren't you supposed to have all of the crafting supplies ever?! No.) When it's time to make your loop, you can either use one string to loop and tie to the other (see picture) or use a hot glue gun to secure both colors to the back. Hot glue would be preferred.

 Mmm...it's real cute, y'all.

this infinity scarf is for you, thora birch.

I want to tell you about one of my favorite movies, Now and Then. What? You've never heard of this cinematic masterpiece?

Let me break it down for you and give you reasons why you should drop everything and watch this movie. You too, boys.

1. The movie stars some of this centuries most beloved actors:

• Thora Birch, also the star of another favorite, Hocus Pocus
• A young Christina Ricci who, at this point in time, also graced our VHS players with her fabulous portrayal of the troubled pre-teen Kat in Casper. 
• Rosie O'Donnell at the peak of her stardom (cerca the era of The Rosie O'Donnell Show) playing the grown-up version of Christina Ricci.
• Demi Moore playing a serious, dressed in black, smoking author. She was the most troubled.
• Cameos by Cloris Leachmann, Janeane Garofalo, Brendan Fraser--the list goes on.

2. The movie touches on coming-of-age subjects prevalent in all our lives.

• What material you should fill water balloons with in order to create the most authentic bra stuffings. Answer: pudding. (Thanks, Thora)
• If you come across Brendan Fraser walking along the side of the road, stop and talk to him. He might give you a cigarette.
• Red Rover rules.
• How to properly execute a seance. 
• You should totally be nice to old men that ride their bicycles through cemeteries at night. They'll save you when you happen to get stuck in a man-hole.

You might be asking yourself, "Danie, why are you telling me this?" It's because recently, I indulged in the film and in the time it took to watch it, I knit up the coziest of infinity scarves.

This guy uses up only one skein of Lion Brand Hometown USA Yarn and will take you less than 1.5 hours to complete. Totally less. 

It wraps around twice and it's super warm and cozy. Do yourself a favor and knit yourself one.

Super Simple Quick Knit Infinity Scarf

Materials:

• One skein Lion Brand Hometown USA Yarn (or something similar)
• #17 knitting needles
• Tapestry needle
• A MOVIE.

Cast on 14 stitches 

Sl 1 purlwise (with yarn infront), K2, P2 til one stitch remaining, K1

Repeat with the rest of the row for pattern.

It's important to slip the first stitch purlwise in order to achieve a nice, clean, chain edge.

When you run out of yarn, cast off, leaving about nine inches of yarn. Bring both ends of the work together, and with your tapestry needle, sew up the seam. If you don't have a tapestry needle (or can never find yours like me) just roll some tape around the end and use that like a needle. Weave in the ends of the yarn.

 

Love,

Steve

ain't nobody got a best friend like danie.

my favorites.

Dear Carole, Joni, Billie, Ella, and Carly,

You got to get up every morning with a smile on your face and show the world all the love in your heart. Then people gonna treat you better, you're gonna find, yes you will, that you're beautiful as you feel. Carole King proverbs.

You gal pals get me through the day. I never get bored of you. I think you make me feel strong. My mornings are swingin', my afternoons filled with poetry, and my nights calmer than they should be. You're the perfect soundtrack for every moment. I'm sure you have all the answers to my problems somewhere in all of those words.

You're practically perfect in every way. Can we hang out together?

Love,

Danie

Mark my words; something in my future will be named Joni Mae. It might be a small French bulldog.

jewish apple cake.

I have a Grandma Barbie. She's actually one of the best people in the world. She sends me packages for every "unimportant" holiday. Recently, she's been really into sending popcorn--I shall not complain. But usually these packages contain socks that go with the holiday--I shall not complain. 

I love my grandma crazy town amounts. I have her cheeks, her love of collecting, her desire to have fun. She tried to get me to part my hair on the side before it was cool, she used to bring me happy meals when I stayed home sick, and this year for Halloween, she dressed up as a bumblebee. We get along. She's why every important person in my life is nicknamed -insert name-face. Nicoleface, Kevinface, Mommyface. Everyone.

She's where my Jewish heritage comes from. So I dedicate this apple cake to her. Also, Hanukkah's coming up and I'm really getting into the spirit. 

Vegan Jewish Apple Cake

3 apples: peeled, cored, and cubed

1 Tbs cinnamon

2 1/2 Tbs sugar

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 Tbs baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil

1/2 cup non-dairy milk mixed with 1 Tbs apple cider vinegar (or the equivalent of two egg replacements)

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and prepare a 8x8 cake pan

Toss together apples, cinnamon, and sugar. Set aside. In one bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together sugar, oil, and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into dry and then add egg replacements. Mix until combined. 

Pour half the batter into the cake pan and spread evenly. Arrange half the apples on top. Pour other half of batter into pan and add the second half of the apples on top of that. Bake for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick, inserted, comes out clean.

Dust top with powdered sugar if desired.

seasonal knit picks.

Knitting and I are totally pals. Once fall rolls around, the needles get whipped out and we have some gal pal time. Why are we best friends?

1. Less time on the internet.
2. Minnesota winter.
3. Yarn stores.
4. Knitting challenges! 
5. It adds to my ever-growing geriatric tendencies. Which I absolutely love and hone and am proud of.

So, just in time for never-remove-your-infinity-scarf season, a list of perfect-for-gift-giving knitting tutorials I'm-way-into. UNNECCESSARY HYPHENATION.

knit 1 la: infinity scarf

• You guys. It's so big. 

spud and chloe: chinese lantern hat

• Worked flat. Great. Thnx, Spud and Chloe.

the purl bee: tube sock legwarmers

spud and chloe: dogwood set

• I actually never want to knit anything but these mittens. 

jennifer adams: graham beanie

yellow dog knitting: thrummed mittens

• Currently making. They're going to be the warmest things of my life.

ohmygoodknits!: colorwork recipe

• This is very scary for me. Colorwork is scary. Let's learn together?

dull roar: mandelbrot hat

• I don't know why it's called mandelbrot hat. But I like mandelbrot...a lot...so I like this hat...a lot.

lion brand: vertical stripe tie

• I like a boy in a knitted tie. 

the purl bee: brioche cowl

• Can I have this?  I would like this right now.

the purl bee: men's mini herringbone cowl

• Nice. Real nice.

So there you have it. Things I've been perusing. Now I just have to practice having enough patience to finish a project that takes longer than a couple hours. It's a problem when you stop after only making one mitten. I have two hands.

vegan pumpkin spice graham crackers.

My most recent discovery about myself has to do with the fact that most of what I remember about a favorite childhood movie or TV show is centered around someone eating something.

Examples.

• My favorite part of Caspar (with THE Christina Ricci) is when the ghosts eat breakfast. I thought whatever they were eating looked pretty tasty.
• The only good part of the intro for One Saturday Morning was the cereal bowl.
• I liked the show The Weekenders because every Friday they went out for pizza.
• When the little girl in Smart House orders a smoothie from Pat, the robot inside the house. I was jealous. 
• Crabby patties? I can't even. Crabby patties were all I ever wanted.

It goes on. I'm not ashamed. In fact, I think my knowledge regarding those things is pretty impressive.

Anyway, I made you some graham crackers. They're spicy and cozy. It's a good thing.

Vegan Pumpkin Spice Graham Crackers (adapted from this recipe by edible perspective)

Ingredients:

1.5 cups whole wheat (or all-purpose) flour

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp ginger

2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1 Tbs pumpkin puree (or unsweetened applesauce)

3 Tbs molasses

3 Tbs maple syrup (or any other sweetener)

1 tsp vanilla

3 Tbs non-dairy milk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together all dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and add pumpkin, molasses, maple syrup, and vanilla. Mix until combined. Add in milk and mix until a soft dough forms (you might need to use your hands). 

Transfer dough to a floured surface and roll into a rectangle about 1/8" thick. (I pressed mine into a small jelly roll pan to form a uniform rectangle. I also don't own a rolling pin) Cut dough into 12 crackers. Gently score crackers down the middle (like a real graham cracker!) and using a fork, poke holes.

Transfer crackers to a prepared baking sheet and bake for 14 minutes.

Owl and his best friend Graham wish you the happiest of fridays.

fishtail sweaterband.

I have a problem. It's called Savers. A Goodwill, Salvation Army, consignment store.

Why do I love it?

1. Student discount days.

2. Family Dollar is next to it.

3. The "vintage" section that sometimes contains things from Target's summer 2011 collection.

4. Terrible framed paintings.

5. Sweater.

A typical Danie-Savers shopping experience involves me jetting straight to the sweaters, picking up at least five of them and carrying them around the store When I visit home my sister makes fun of me for my outrageous (AND REALLY WARM. AND SOFT.) sweaters. When you have to spend your winters in Minnesota, you need sweaters. I love my Savers sweaters. They keep me warm and usually require no jewelry. They're that special.

But I have this one sweater...it's uh...it's from a company called Girl Gear...that's a little past it's prime. 

I wanted to craft something for winter and I wanted to make use of this snazzy Girl Gear sweater. Because I can't let my sister win.

So I came up with this winter weather fishtail headband. All you really need is a sweater you can't seem to part with but are willing to repurpose. It's perfect. You're welcome.

You'll need: A sweater, scissors, a needle, and thread. 

1. Cut off one sleeve. My sleeves just happened to be long enough to work. I'd say they were about two feet long.

2. Cut down the seam of the sleeve so you have one flat piece of fabric. Starting from the bottom, cut eight strips about one inch wide. Leave a little over an inch at the top (so don't cut all the way up the fabric). Before you start braiding, tug each strip to make the edges curl under and look cleaner.

3. Start fishtailing! Split the strips into two groups (four and four). Start from the outermost strip on the left and bring it to the middle, adding it to the group on the right. Then take the outermost strip from the right and bring it to the middle, adding it to the left group. Continue doing this, keeping the braid fairly flat. 

4. When you reach the end, clip all of the ends of the strips on top of each other to keep them in place.

5. Bring both ends of the braid together and stack the clipped ends on top of the other end.

6. With your needle and thread, tack the ends together to keep them in place.

7. Cut another strip from your sweater, about 2 1/2 inches wide and 6 inches long. 

8. Stretch this strip to make the ends curl under. Wrap it around the ends of the headband and gather the edges on top of each other. Tack the strip to the headband. 

Lookin' good, kiddo.