Holidays

Three Tips for Picture Perfect Pie Crust

15 · Nov 27, 2013 · 109 Comments

This post brought to you by Crisco // When I was about 14 years old, I had a wise woman in my life, her name was Mrs. Robinson, who gave me some great advice… When in the kitchen, learn how to make one thing REALLY well. If you love chocolate cake, learn how to make the best chocolate cake. If you love pies, learn how to make the best pie out there. She said that if you have one really good dessert recipe, you could catch any guy you want. LOL!! Well, I decided that I wanted to make the perfect pie. To be more specific, I wanted to learn how to make the perfect pie crust. That way I could have several more options when it came to my man catching baking skills!

I have to say, I got pretty good at it. I was always called on to make the pies in my house during the holidays and after many attempts after awhile, they turned out nice and flaky every time. Then I met my so-to-be husband and boy was she right… He loved pies. All kinds of pies… Blueberry, Peach, Cherry & Apple. I was golden… Thank you Mrs. Robinson!!

Recently, I was asked by the lovely folks at Crisco to become a Crisco Pie Partner and I was thrilled. I'm excited for two reasons… I'm excited to share some of my hard earned pie tips and tricks with you, and that I could also honor my friend Mrs. Robinson, who has since passed on by sharing her sweet advice with all of you. So here you have it… Some tricks to making Picture Perfect Pie Crust EVERY TIME thanks to Mrs. Robinson.

With the holidays here, we are all gearing up to do all kinds of holiday baking and pies are always on the list. However, many of us have taken to using store bought frozen pie crust and my friends… it's just not the same. We have been tricked into thinking that pie crust is hard to make and it's not. It's really rather easy if you follow a few basic principles. Here are my tried and true pie crust secrets…

Tip #1 // Selecting the Right Ingredients

For years the debate with pie crust has been, which fat is better… Butter, Crisco or Lard? After MANY years of making pies and trying each option myself, I hands down select Crisco shortening every time. It just seems to make the lightest, flakiest crust each time. Sometimes I will do half butter, half Crisco if I'm wanting that buttery flavor but I always use Crisco or even the butter flavored Baking Sticks. The recipe I'm using today is your simple basic pie crust using just flour, salt, Crisco and water…

It's super simple click HERE to visit the recipe page. Can I just take a minute and thank Crisco for coming up with the Baking Sticks… I LOVE them!! No mess, no fuss and the measuring is done for you. PERFECT!!

Tip #2 // Cold Ingredients are your Friend

The absolute key to making good crust is to use COLD ingredients. I place my Crisco Baking Sticks in the freezer for a few hours before hand and I use ice cold water when mixing the crust. I also try not to touch the dough too much with my warm hands. That will also cause the dough to warm up and you don't want that.

The reason why you want things to stay cold is… You want your Crisco to stay solid and in small little pieces within the crust. When those little nuggets are hit by the heat in the oven that is what makes those flaky little pockets in the crust that we love so much. Without those little gems, your crust will turn out solid and tough and not a whole lot of fun to eat.

To start, I place my flour and salt in a large bowl. Then I remove the Crisco from the freezer and cut it into small pieces…

Sometimes, I even stick the Crisco back in the freezer for a few minutes after I have cut it, in order for it to chill again. Then I place my shortening into the bowl with my flour and salt. Using a pastry cutter I cut the Crisco into the flour…

Again, you want to make sure to leave your shortening in small little pea size pieces so don't over work.

Tip #3 // The Key is a Light Hand

When it comes to working with this kind of dough. a light hand is key. Don't over mix the Crisco into the flour. Next, you will lightly fold in the cold ice water into the dough. I use a rubber spatula at this stage and gently fold in the water starting with one tablespoon and slowly mixing it just until the dough starts to come together. Again… light hand here. The more you mix the tougher the dough will be.

For this crust, the recipe calls for 3-6 tablespoons of water. I ended up using 4 but, that will depend on your environment where you are baking. You may need more, you may need less. Then I pour the loose dough out onto a clean board and this is what it should look like…

Now, this is the one step where I will quickly use my hands. I carefully pull the dough together and form it into a disk like so…

Then I wrap it in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator for 20-30 minutes. Once it has chilled again, than I am ready to roll it out. On a clean floured surface I roll out my dough. I carefully turn the dough after a few passes with the rolling pin, to ensure that the dough doesn't stick to the board. You may even need to turn it and flour your surface a few times. But, be careful not to over flour.

Then using your rolling pin as a handy tool… roll the dough onto your pie plate…

I trim my edges a bit and then crimp my edges using my two finger pinching method…

Now, you have the perfect canvas for any pie that you can dream up…

Not sure what to make? Crisco has you covered! Here are some fabulous resources for creating the perfect pie…

You can call the Crisco Pie Hotline 1-877-FOR PIE TIPS (877-367-7438) for all kinds of around the clock PIE help this holiday season!
Crisco has a Picture Perfect Pie Pinterest board that has all kinds of fabulous recipes.
The Crisco Kitchen has teamed up with Michele Stuart owner of Michele's pies in Connecticut, she is over at Crisco's site sharing all kinds of fun pie tips and ideas.
Crisco is hosting a fun Rate & Review contest for a chance to win a Michele Stuart pie prize pack. Visit the Rate & Review site to rate your favorite pie for a chance to win!

I hope Crisco and I have inspired you to pass on the freezer pie crust and try your hand in a truly homemade pie. I promise, if you follow these tips you will blow your family away with your scrumptious pies this year! In order to do just that… Crisco is giving away a fabulous Perfect Pie Prize Pack to one of you!! Here is what you will win…

A Prize Pack valued at $200!! Follow the directions in the Rafflecopter box below to enter. This giveaway is open to those with a shipping address within the United States and will be open from November 27-January 2 with the winner announced on January 3rd.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclaimer // This post is sponsored by Crisco. I did receive payment for development of this post.

Free Printable Christmas Countdown and Wood Clipboard Tutorial

0 · Nov 26, 2013 · 3 Comments

Hi all! It’s Jenn from My Fabuless Life. I’m SO excited that the Christmas season is HERE, and even more excited to share a little printable Christmas Countdown project with all of you. If you follow me on my blog, you already know that I’m a sucker for all things counting down to the big Holiday, so this is one of several advent calendars that I have around my house.

All you’ll need for this project is:

* a block of wood (mine is 8×10, purchased from a local woodcraft store, but you can easily use whatever scraps you have lying around, or even a picture frame).

*a metal clip or clothespin

*the printables I’ve provided for you at the end of the post

I sanded and rounded out the edges of my wood block, and then stained it with my favorite stain (Early American from Minwax). Once the stain was dry, I sanded the edges again to give them a more aged look,

then I hot glued the clip on in the center of the wood.

To give the cards a little something extra, I colored the edges with a red marker.

This would be a really fun project with a picture frame too. Just put some pretty paper inside the frame, and glue the clip to the glass on the frame.

{DOWNLOAD FILES HERE}

Enjoy! And happy Holiday decorating! You can get details on my full Christmas display (including details on the coordinating "Merry & Bright" print) over at My Fabuless Life.

Or you might enjoy a few of these other Christmas projects:

Gold & White Nativity / Holiday Table Decorating Tips / $20 Handmade Tree

From Napkin Rings to Beautiful Wreaths, Five Festive Ornament Frame Ideas

11 · Nov 24, 2013 · 11 Comments

This post brought to you by Michaels Craft Stores // I have always been a fan of the Ornament Frame, they are just perfect for creating all kinds of goodies for the holidays. I've given them as personalized gifts for years. This year, Michaels challenged me to come up with FIVE different "out of the frame" ideas for crafting with ornament frames.

Merry Christmas Banner

We will start with my Merry Christmas banner. This one was last minute inspiration, but turned out to be one of my favorite projects. I used my Silhouette Portrait to cut letters out of gold vinyl and then affixed it to the face of the frame. Then, this is the good part… I found these super cute gift bags at Michaels that I just fell in love with. I thought they would be a great background for the letter frames to make a fun banner. SUPER cool and SUPER easy to make. You don't have to cut any paper just use the bag as is as your banner background!

This year's hot trend is using both silver and gold together so, I thought the silver frames would look fantastic with the gold accents.

The banner looks perfect in my new GIANT shadow box…

Personalized Napkin Rings

This idea was super simple and will add a little flair to your holiday table. Just use a little chalkboard paint on the face of the frame to make a chalkboard surface. Glue the frame onto a basic napkin ring and you're set.

Use a chalkboard maker to personalize your stylish napkin rings. You can even use a 3D Glue Dot to temporarily affix your frame to the napkin ring. At the end of the night, add the ribbon back and send the ornament home with your guests as a party favor.

Decorative Wall Art

This piece was so fun to make. I again employed my Silhouette Portrait to help with this project. I cut several holiday images out of their gold vinyl and affixed it to the face of the frames. Then I glued the frames to an inexpensive silver charger that I found at Michaels. I LOVE how this turned out!!

Accent Element

This one is SIMPLE… I used one of the ornament frames to add a little accent element to a sign that I had created. Again, I used my Silhouette to cut the 2013 out of gold vinyl and affixed it to the frame. It was a great addition to my shadow box display…

Personalized Gift Tag

Last, but not least… I created a decorative gift tag that can be used over and over and over. I used one of those cute tiny gift bags that I had left over from the banner, cut it to size and then placed that inside the frame. You can then use dry erase or chalkboard makers to write the name on the tag and voilá, you have a stunning gift tag that anyone will love!

Well… there you have it. 5 different ways to create with a simple ornament frame. Did that get your imagination running? What would you make? Take a little time to "think outside the frame" and create something fun with some ornament frames!

Disclaimer // This post was sponsored by Michaels Craft Stores. I receive product from Michaels in order to create the projects in the post.

Grinch Oreo Pops

2 · Nov 21, 2013 · 5 Comments

Hello Whipperberry readers! Jenn here from Clean and Scentsible. I am SO excited to be back here today with these fun Grinch Oreo Pops….

Although I love celebrating all of the holidays, the Christmas season is by far my favorite. December is always filled with so many activities with family and friends and I love repeating all of our Christmas traditions. The kids and I look forward to all of the Christmas specials that come on television and The Grinch Who Stole Christmas is always on the top of our list. This past weekend, we had an early Grinch party with some of the neighborhood kids to start off the Christmas season and these Grinch pops were the hit of the party!

Ingredients

Oreo cookies
wooden skewer sticks {or thin sucker sticks}
green candy melts {I used about half a package for 8 pops}
banana marshmallows
black edible ink pen
large red sprinkle for the nose
strawberry marshmallows
mini marshmallows
toothpick
white mini cupcake liners

Directions

Melt chocolate melts in the microwave according to package directions. Be careful not to overheat.
Cut banana marshmallows into small almond shapes for the eyes and use the edible ink pen to draw in an eyeball.
Insert skewer into the center of the Oreo.
Spread chocolate around all sides of the cookie.
Add eyes and the sprinkle for the nose.
Place on parchment paper and allow chocolate to harden.
Spread out cupcake liners, turn it upside down, ad pierce skewer through the center.

NOTE: My original plan was to draw on a mouth with the edible marker, however, it did not draw well over the chocolate and I just decided to skip it. If you would like to do a mouth, you could try using a toothpick to carve it out of the chocolate before it hardens.

Even if you are not having a party, these pops would be great for a family Grinch night or fun class treat! And of course, you can't have Oreos without milk! 🙂

If you are looking for more Grinch party ideas, head on over to Clean and Scentsible to see the rest of the party.

Feel free to check out some of my other Christmas projects while you are there or connect with me here: FACEBOOK / PINTEREST / INSTAGRAM / TWITTER

Elf on the Shelf Breakfast / Twinkling Christmas Canvas / Chocolate Oreo Cheesecake Balls

"Maybe Christmas", he thought, "Doesn't come from a store. Maybe Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more."

Happy Holidays!

Sparkly Ornament Advent Calendar

3 · Nov 7, 2013 · 8 Comments

Well ho ho ho hello there! I'm so happy to be back here again this month! I'm stepping away from my usual food posts, and instead I've got a little Christmas project to share with you. I know, Christmas feels very far away, but it's not really, especially if you want to make your own advent calendar which needs to be ready for December 1!

Every year we have advent calendars for the kids and they love the countdown to the big day (secrets be told, I do too)! I've always just bought those candy or picture advent calendars, but this year I wanted to do something a little different and make my own. I was inspired by this advent calendar that I saw on Bower Power blog a couple of years ago, so when I received a box of ornaments in the mail recently, I knew they would make an amazing advent calendar.

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The idea with this advent calendar is that there is a unique ornament for each day leading up to Christmas that the kids can hang on our tree.

Here's How To:

Materials:

A picture frame
A piece of cork board to fit the frame
Paper or fabric to cover the cork board
25 paper key tags (you can find these in any office supply store)
25 silver push pins
25 ornaments
number stamps & silver stamping ink
Large ribbon for hanging the frame.

Instructions:

First choose a frame for your calendar, then string through a 2 1/2 foot long ribbon for hanging.
Then cut a piece of cork board to fit the frame, and wrap it in paper or fabric. I liked this sparkly wrapping paper, as it was very forgiving when I needed to move around the push pins…it hid tiny holes well.
Place the covered cork board firmly into the frame.
Chose 25 different ornaments to hang in the frame.
To mark each day, you can use paper key tags, and stamp them with the number of the day.
Now it's time to hang the ornaments! First lay out the ornaments approximately where you would like to hang them.
Use a push pin to first hang the date tag, then the ornament.

That's it! SO simple!

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Here's what mine looks like all done! Sparkly, fun & festive!

The fun part of making your own advent calendar is you can tailor it to your own Christmas decor. Have fun with colours, textures and different kinds of ornaments!

Here are some ideas for your calendar:

Use a picture frame that you can hang on your wall each season.
Or put heavy duty magnets on the back of the frame so that you can hang it on your fridge.
Keep the background on the frame neutral so you can change the ornaments every year. I just used silver sparkly wrapping paper.

Instead of tree ornaments you can hang:

Little envelopes with Christmas messages.
Or put a little note in an envelope that has a seasonal activity to do for that day: things like skating, make hot chocolate, go for a walk, bake cookies…
You can hang little bags filled with candy.
Fill envelopes or little boxes with tiny treasures like money, earrings, erasers…fun little dollar store items.

I hope I inspired you to make an advent calendar of your own!

Thank you so much for reading today! Have a wonderful day!

Feel free to stop on by anytime! I'd love to have you!

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