SNOW

SNOW!!! IT SNOWED AND NO ONE RAN OUT FOR MILK, EGGS, OR BREAD BEFORE HAND. :0)

Anyway, it was a lovely surprise to wake up to today. Winter weather is better when it looks pretty. I guess that goes for anyone’s least favorite season. So for those you who want snow and don’t have it, make some of your own – snow out of icing on mini-gingerbread houses (made with graham crackers or waffle squares and candy decorations, marshmallow snowmen, or snowflakes made out of lots of different things.

Use powdered sugar and milk to make “snow” icing. Use it to stick together marshmallows for snowmen. Use it to stick together waffles or graham crackers to make a house. Put the icing on the back of candy and stick it to the walls of the house. Cover the roof in icing and leave or decorate. You could do this with your children, grands (over Zoom or Google Meet).  Here’s a link to directions for these. Put two whole rectangle grahams together to make the base for the house. Cover this in icing and it looks like it snowed around the house. Once the icing dries, they last forever. When my oldest was 2 ½, he climbed up on the upright piano and tried to eat the starlight mints off the roof. This was many weeks after Christmas. Needless to say, the icing won and he didn’t get anything but some cracker crumbs.

                                                                                              

The recipe I put in the newsletter last week works great for snowflakes. Make snowflake ornaments out of jigsaw pieces painted white. Make a wreath using the jigsaw puzzle pieces too. Paint them white, red, green and glue them together or on a foam form. The possibilities are as endless as the number of jigsaw puzzle pieces you have lying around. :0)
             
   

Strawberries upside-down are great Santa hats. Do a round of icing on a mini-cupcake or brownie. Place the strawberry fat side down in the icing. Add a drop of the icing to the top of the strawberry. Voila – Santa hats. Mini-pretzels are another food that is very versatile. You can put them together in a circle to make a wreath, use them for reindeer horns with NutterButters and M&Ms, or dip them in icing and decorate with sprinkles.

                             

Don’t have an excuse to make ornaments, then make food. Make some reindeer food or winter chex party mix. Reindeer food is a mix of mini-pretzel any shape, red and green M&Ms, peanuts, and you can add some of your favorite cereal (Frosted Flakes, Cheerios, Cinnamon-Toast Crunch).  The recipe for Winter Chex mix is below.

                

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

1.  Line a rimmed baking sheet with wax paper, parchment or a silicone baking mat. Set aside.
2.  In a large mixing bowl combine the cereal, M&Ms, pretzels, and peanuts. Set aside.
3.  In a double boiler or in the microwave, melt white chocolate and shortening until smooth. Remove from heat and whisk in vanilla extract.
4.  Pour chocolate over the cereal mixture and stir until evenly coated. Pour over the prepared baking sheet, add sprinkles over top.
5.  Place in the refrigerator and chill for 30 minutes before breaking apart into chunks.

If you need a break from sewing (blasphemy), hope the above gives you a place to start doing something else with your time. Don’t forget that Santa likes cookies too. He’s coming in 2 ½ weeks! Also remember to send "your" Santa to QA for your presents. We have excellent elves to assist with gift giving. We're open to 4pm on Christmas Eve. We will be closed Dec. 25-28. 

Happy sewing all you elves,

Phyllis and the QA staff