Our Thanksgiving Feast AKA year of the flaming oven.

Last year my husband and I went above and beyond to create the most amazing dinner and experience for everyone who came to spend the holiday with us. This year I decided I did not want to compete with our success so we would just keep it low key but go with some less traditional foods. Obviously we would put on a feast that would be unforgettable , just not so extravagant.

We had quite a crowd, My mom came from north eastern Oregon and stayed for 10 days. I miss her so much already, it has been years and years since I was able to spend that much quality time with her. Steve's mom, sister and her family were here as well, our house was quite full with 10 of us for 3 days. 60 meals were prepared over 3 days.. we consumed a vat of butter, a wagon load of carbs and we all need to diet now.

Everything was going well, we were making a BBQ prime rib and my famous or perhaps infamous roasted duck. Along with all sorts of fabulous sides.

About 1.5 hours before serving time I removed the duck from the oven to pour out the fat that accumulated in the bottom of the pan when I failed to grab both sections of the damn thing, I pulled out the roasting rack and that was all I had in my hands a roasting rack and a duck but no pan. The pan of drippings, mind you there was not just a scant 1/2 cup it was more like 4 cups of juice and fat just fell into the oven draining into the vent holes in the bottom. I have a gas oven so the floor of the oven is above the flames that heat it up there are long opening for heat to pass up through. All the juices went down into where the flame element is. Well at first it didn't seem so bad. I wiped up what I could see, turned on the fans, it was starting to smoke pretty bad....but nothing to worry about So I put in the Yorkshire puddings. Figuring I'd clean it after cooking.

Smoke was pouring out of the oven but we checked it and figured it would burn off and I'd just have a mess to clean later. Pretty soon it was not just annoying smoke but horrible black thick smoke, Steve opened all the windows and turned the whole house fan on to clear the air for breathing. Now it is like 37 degrees in five min from the fan. everyone is donning coats and covering up with blankets.

I opened the oven and HOLY HELL flames erupt out of it, smoke is curling through the kitchen and my daughter yelling to call the firefighters... someone said pour water on it....
NO water
NO firefighters, I can handle this just calm down people.

I poured salt a lot of it all over the flaming oven bed, pulled the Yorkshire puddings. They were a bit blackened but still edible. Thankfully I was house sitting the neighbors house, so my sister-in-law suggested we use their oven to finish the puddings, while we sorted out our own mess.

My first thought was sure I'll burn down not just my own house but theirs too... Happy Holidays! Ok we'll cook them over there....

Anyhow, since it was freezing in our house the oven cooled off quickly and in the 20 min the puddings needed to finish cooking my husband and I unscrewed the bottom plate of our oven and cleaned up all the salt, the grease, the juice from the duck and put it back together in time to cook the stuffing and whatever else we ate.

I like to make certain our holidays are unforgettable I think I managed to do it once again. We won't remember what we ate but we will all remember the flaming oven.

What will I do next year, how could I possibly top this experience?

Happy Holidays from Chef Cytel!

Little Paper Birds

Little woven birds crafted from paper.

Available in my Etsy Shop.

A gift for you.

I drew up these bird ornaments last night to share with all my friends. I just ask that you use them for personal use and do not sell my designs.

You need:
X-acto knife, I like the smaller one with a very pointy blade
extra blades at least a 5 pack
8"x11" white cardstock
colored cardstock for the background
craft glue ( I thin mine is a small Tupperware with a little water)
paintbrush for the glue
a self healing mat or other cutting surface. Not your dining room table

Right click on the picture below and choose "print picture". Print onto the back side of your white cardstock. I am sorry if the bottom of the picture gets cut off by font on the printed page, but you can draw in the bottom yourself. I am just not savvy enough to know how to set up my blog to let you print a picture perfectly.

Anyhow, I start cutting the smallest details first, such as eyes and wing details. Then I cut the smaller sections away that are in the leaves and between thin branches. I leave the bigger section for last, they help anchor the paper while you cut.

Practice a few times and don't worry about perfection, your human not a machine, inconsistency adds charm... that's what I say.

After you cut it out, apply a thin coat of glue to the printed side being careful not to get glue on the from of your ornament. Place it on the colored cardstock and press the paper down flat. when this is dry carefully cut along the outer edge and cut out the top hole for adding a hanger.

I hope you enjoy this little tutorial. If you have any questions just ask.

Cytel

While I have not been blogging I have been busy crafting away...

My Husband found this gem on the side of the road. I grabbed it for a friend who is sore need of a working machine. It works! It is old but good. The best part is the cabinet it lives in, it is really pretty or it will be when it gets refinished. Makes me want one for my sewing machine.

Also,
I finally completed the face of my big queen sized patchwork quilt. I tried so hard to make a layout where matching colors did not touch. Yet never the less when I sewed it up many mistakes popped up. I probably had one drink to many while sewing :) Despite that I just went with it, I'm not ripping it out to fix it. Mistakes add character.

Now I have to put it together... I have never quilted something so large. Any advice?

Silhouettes and Paper Cutting

The holidays for me are a time when I create an array of gifts. I try not to duplicate items I made in the years past.

So in my quest to make something new I found yet another craft that sweeps my imagination away. It is also very easy on the pocket book, which for many of us can be quite a blessing.

What I found for this years mini gifts are paper cut scenes, or Scherenschnitte. This is a craft brought to us by our ancestors. Paper carving has been a folk art in most countries spanning since paper was invented.

I recall cutting silhouettes in grade school to give as gifts to our parents. Not to mention pretty much everyone have cut a snowflake to display in the winter.... another example of Sherenschnitte in our daily lives.

One of the best things is it is so accessible all you really need is scissors, or and X-acto paper and a mat or cutting board. I love the folk art charm of the pieces and have quite a few ideas I hope to make.

Above is a selection of ornaments I have been making, They are just 5" tall and a couple inches wide. Each scene takes me a while to think up and draw out, but once I begin to cut it is pretty simple. The main thing is to try to keep the scene connected so the paper stays whole. Another thing to be wary of is accidentally slicing way to far across a scene, it probably happens to me when I've been at it a while, or if the blade is dull... but I almost cut the head right off my Turkey while making the menu frame for my Thanksgiving party.

I am working on this to showcase our menu, it is 8"x11"and I have not decided what color to use in the background, likely it will be an Autumn orange. The center will be empty and we will print something and frame it for the table. I think my mom is going to LOVE it and she will be coming down to have the holiday with us this year, so it will also be a gift for her. Maybe we can take out the menu and replace that with a photo of the family gathering.

I hope someone out there is inspired by this post to create something beautiful for themselves or as gifts to others.

Peace,

Cytel

Fall Crafting Season is officially here

Too bad the chill in the air only last until the sun begins to shine each morning. It is going to be 98F this weekend. I just want a nice 60 degree day to bake bread and make comfort foods.

In honor of a somewhat cool day last week, only got into the 70's I decided to make myself a hat. Yes, I could buy one that was made in China for allot less, but that is not my style.

I found a decent pattern on Etsy and first made a fedora.

Unfortunately It is a little small, good thing I used inexpensive fabric instead of the wool I want for a final hat. Regardless I think it is very cute, and it is going to Etsy as a sample product. The hat is for someone with a 22.5" head, my head is bigger, good thing I have big hair to balance it all out.

Hat #2 is an Irish cap, it is to big... just a little to big. Yet despite things I want to change it is really cute, I cannot wait to make a perfect one to wear everywhere.

I did not get photos yet, so I'll just wait until I make a second hat with a better fit before I show it off.

I ordered yet another patter from Etsy , and older vogue hat pattern, still waiting for it to arrive, it shipped from Australia so it may take a bit of time.

In other news from the Oak Forest, it is harvest time, and although I have the tiniest garden ever I still managed to put away a fair amount of tomatos and pickles. Plus I just got myself a Lil Chief smoker and and making a big ol batch of venison and elk jerky. YUM! Thank you to my family who provided my meat :)

Sunshine and silk scraps make for a pleasent and beautiful creative weekend.

 

I have a bag of hand painted silk scraps my mom-in-law gave me after she was done with her own creations. Knowing I am a packrat to the extreme she knew they would never be wasted while I’m on watch :)

Anyhow, I have been in some odd creative funk lately and have been thinking WAY to much and accomplishing nothing. Then by the grace off all that is right in the universe I read something that snapped me out after 7 long months of almost no creating.

It was just a simple statement by another artist …” You need to make time your your art if you don’t no one else will”

Ha! what have I been waiting for? For my husband to get out my beads and make dinner so I can craft? For my daughter to suggest I go take over the kitchen table with wool and scraps and beads and fibers?

I needed to also recall my own saying “ less thinking more doing” and start doing more art again.