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Thursday, November 26, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving!!!!

I hope everyone is enjoying Turkey day and remembering what they are truly thankful for. I am thankful for my healthy family, my fantastic pups, a great job in a not so great economy and my fab chic customers and blog followers :)

During the holidays, I break out the baker in me. One of my favorite desserts that I make is Sweet potato cheesecake. I received this recipe from one of my friends. The recipe is by Sweet Potato Festival, Vardamon, Mississippi, 1994

Crust:
  • 1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup butter or margarine-melted

Cheesecake:
  • 3 8oz pkgs cream cheese--softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 3/4 cups sweet potatoes, mashed
  • 2 eggs
  • 2/3 cup evaporated milk -- undiluted
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Topping:
  • 2 cups sour cream--room temperature
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Crust: Combine crumbs, sugar, and butter in bowl. Press onto bottom and 1 inch up on sides of 9 inch spring form pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes. Do not allow to brown. Remove from oven and cool.

Cheesecake: Beat cream cheese, sugar and brown sugar in large bowl. Beat in sweet potatoes, eggs, and milk. Add cornstarch, cinnamon and nutmeg. Beat well. Pour into crust. Bake at 350 degrees for 55 to 60 minutes or until edge is set.

Topping: Combine sour cream, sugar and vanilla. Spread over warm cheesecake. Return to 350 degree oven and bake 5 minutes. Cool on wire rack. Remove side pan and chill several hours or overnight.

For extra sweetness, I have adjusted the original recipe slightly by making the following changes:
Cheesecake: Increase sugar to 2 cups and add 1 tablespoon of vanilla. For the topping, I increase the amount of sugar to 1/2 cup. I also decreased the amount of sour cream to 1 1/2 cups. Once the cheesecake is fully cooked, I sprinkle a brown sugar mixture on top. The mixture consists of 1 tablespoon of brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg.

I hope you enjoy.

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Featured Etsy Blogger

The featured Etsy Blogger is The Fab Miss B from Kailua Kona, HI. The Miss Fab B has two Etsy shops filled with unique items, vintage aprons, ornaments and other great items for your home.

Go check out The Miss Fab B's Etsy Shop and Blog at

Below are my favorite items from The Miss Fab B's shop. It inspires me to cook :)

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

EtsyBloggers - EtsyBloggers 2009 HOLIDAY SALE!!


EtsyBloggers - EtsyBloggers 2009 HOLIDAY SALE!!

H a p p y H o l i d a y s ! !

The EtsyBloggers HOLIDAY S*A*L*E* is going on from Black Friday thru Cyber Monday!!
That's Friday 11/27 thru Monday 11/30!!

See our team website for a list of all shops having a SALE http://etsybloggers.com

Monday, November 23, 2009

Getting ready for the Holidays

I spent Sunday preparing for the busiest shopping weekend of the year. I went to my favorite bead shop in the morning buying lots of sterling silver beads, wiring and Swarovski Crystals and spent the afternoon making new jewelry. Below is one of the new bracelets posted at my Etsy shop.

Continue to stop by my blog for new items, Holiday savings and giveaways.




Sunday, November 22, 2009

Happy Birthday Saggitarus!




Happy Birthday to all my fellow Sagittariuses. These two bracelets are made for the November and December Sagittariuses. This bracelets have the Sagittarius sign engraved on the charm and the colored gemstones to match November and December birthstones. Both bracelets are on sale at my Etsy Shop.

I've been exposed!!!

Etsy Blogger Artisans are exposed on Etsy Treasury West. Click here to meet us.

Monday, November 16, 2009

I'm back!

I'm back from vacation, my computer is back from the shop so I am back in commission. Below are the pics from our family road trip




Our first stop was in Knoville, TN where we visited my mom.










This pic was taken on our way to NC












This pic was taken on the Blue Ridge Parkway. We were high in the mountains. The view was amazing.











We had to drive through South Carolina to get to the Great Smoky Mountains.














This picture was taking in Cherokee, NC. This town was very cute. In the middle of this small town a huge casino is being built.










This was taking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park at the NC/TN state line.

This is our family pic at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park
We had so much fun that I am starting to plan our next road trip. East Coast here we come!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Technical Issues

I am so frustrated. My computer is in the shop again. It is time for me to start saving for a new computer. Also my charger for my digital camera isn't working. I am having technical issues. So I am going to be offline with blogging for several days. Last night, Office Depot called me and said that they were need several day to fix my computer.

The hubby, my boys and I are going on a mini road trip this weekend. We are going to Knoxville, TN, Charlotte, NC, Smoky Mountains National Park, Nashville, TN and then back home to MI. I will take a ton of pics to share!

Due to my technical issues there will not be a Two Dollar Tuesday today :( but I will work on fabulous jewelry pieces for next Two Dollar Tuesday.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

New Jewelry

I added two new pieces of jewelry to my Etsy shop.

This bracelet I really like. It is made from dark purple and gray Swarovski pearls. The sterling silver beads are the beads I bought from the gem and jewelry show I went to a few months back. I love the color of the pearls.













I really had a lot of fun making these earrings. This was the first time I have done this type of design with wiring. I was in a earring making mood and wanted to try something different and the concept of these earrings were born. I really like how the earrings came out.





Tuesday, November 3, 2009