How to char poblano peppers & make basic Rajas. Yum!

Have you ever had rajas?  They are strips of poblano peppers, corn and onions in a delish creamy, cheesy sauce.  They are ridiculously good.  I like them as a side dish or put into a quesadilla.  Handsome Hubby likes them wrapped in a warm corn tortilla.
However you eat them… they are crazy good, and they are a big hit whenever I serve them.

My version is adapted from Marcela Valladolid’s. You can see her's here.

RAJAS

• 6 fresh poblano chiles (they are sometimes called pasilla)
• 1 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 large white onion thinly sliced
• 4 ears fresh corn
• 1/2cup heavy cream 
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 cup, shredded Monterrey jack cheese
• salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Start by charring your poblanos.  Wash and dry them, then set directly on your stove burner.  You want to burn the skin and have it turn black.  You are not trying to cook them.  I made the mistake of trying to char them on my gas BBQ once and all I did was end up cooking them, which made them mushy.

Keep turning them with tongs until they are charred all over, then quickly put them into a large ziploc style bag and let them sit for about 15 minutes.  The steam in the bag helps to loosen the skin.

Take them one at a time and you are literally going to wipe off the skin with paper towels.  Either take great care not to get the peppers on your hands too much, or wear gloves.  You can get a chemical burn if you have your fingers directly on these too long.

When the peppers are peeled, cut off the tops, slit one side to open it up flat and use a knife to scrape out any seeds.  Cut the peppers into thin strips that are about an inch long and set aside.

Take your ears of fresh corn and cut the kernels off with a sharp knife.  A tip Marcela gave was to cut the corn on top of a clean dish towel.  It keeps the kernels from bouncing everywhere, and when you’re done, you can just pick up the towel and sort of pour the kernels where you need them….

… in this case on a hot griddle or large skillet that has a little oil or butter on it.  Mix the kernels around to get them coated and then let them sit without stirring for a few minutes over medium high heat.  You want them to caramelize a little bit.  Stir every so often until they’ve achieves that “roasted corn” look.  Set aside.

Peel the onion and slice in half.  Slice each half in thin strips.  In another skillet over medium high heat, add the vegetable oil and the butter.  Sautee the onion for about 5 minutes.  Add the corn and cook another minute of two.

Add the poblano strips and stir.  Cook an additional minute or so, then add the heavy cream and sour cream (you can also use creme fraiche or Mexican Crema if you can find it).  Stir and cook until bubbling.  Add the Jack cheese and stir until smooth.  Add salt and pepper and serve.

image credit

Oh so yummy!  Enjoy!

It's back! My Memories Suite promo code & coupon for future purchase.

Last month I had a review and giveaway for My Memories Suite digital scrap-booking software.  The nice folks at My Memories Suite also provided a discount code for my readers so they can get the software for $29.97 instead of the  regular price of $39.97!

Well, they've brought the promo deal back and sweetened it a little too.


Go to their STORE and use this code at checkout STMMMS8203 when you buy their Version 2 software.
Once you complete your order, you will get an additional coupon code to take $10 on a future purchase too!

Make a big Newspaper Sail Boat (using everyday items...)

I shared this project earlier this month at The Country Chic Cottage's "Beach Bash".   I was asked to come up with a beach themed craft, and I knew immediately what I wanted to do.  I wanted to try and create one of those big, gorgeous (expensive) sailboats for my mantel.

You know what happened?  EPIC. FAIL.

What’s a crafty girl to do?  Pardon the pun, but I changed course and decided to embrace the failure.  The finished product is more Huck Finn than it is Nantucket Weekend, but I am really liking it.
Sort of papier mache, sort of not... I give you my Newspaper Sail Boat:


I did NOT want to spend any a lot of money on my project.  I am not even kidding when I tell you I used what I had, and only what I had....



Step 1: Get a piece of wood from the wood pile and ask Handsome Hubby to drill a hole in it “real fast”, even though he’s walking out the door to go to work.

Step 2: Find old pieces of cardboard and use duct tape to make a frame around the log. Tape the log down as well.

Step 3: Get a big piece of kraft paper and fold it over and around the basic boat shape of the cardboard.  Secure with duct tape.




Step 4: Take basic and wonderful Elmer’s Glue and water it down.  Brush it on the “boat” and then add strips of newspaper.  Brush more of the glue mixture over the top.

Step 5: Keep adding layers of newspaper, including across the top of the “boat” being sure to leave an opening over the drilled hole, where your “Mast” will go.

Step 6: When you realize that this might be a dumb idea after all, and that you might only have a mess on your kitchen counter and wise-cracking husband as a result of your efforts, pour a glass of wine and keep going.



Step 7: After all the newspaper was applied with the Elmer’s Glue mixture, go over it with a nice coating of Mod Podge as a sealant. Figure out the general size and shape you’d like the sails to be and cut them out of fabric.  This was left-over drop cloth from another project I did.

Step 8: I decided I wanted to put our house number on the sail.  Make a stencil (use a cutting machine or a store-bought one) and apply to your “sail.”   Be sure to put newspaper or a protective layer of something between the fabric and your work surface.

Step 9: Use a stipling brush to lightly apply paint.  (Or if you’re me and can’t find a stipling brush, an old toothbrush will work too)  Blot with a paper towel. (I also painted the dowel I used for the mast this same blue.)

Step 10: Use a wire coat hanger to serve as a frame for the bottom of the sails.  Unwind it and cut it to length.


At this point, you will want to fire up your hot glue gun.  I put a little hot glue on the end of the dowel “Mast” and wedged it into the log in the bottom of the boat at this time as well.

Step 11: At the bottom of each sail, poke a small hole on each end.

Step 12: Insert the cut piece of wire from the front side of each sail and run it the length of the sails. Secure with a little dab of hot glue on the back.  It is one wire running through both sails.  Here’s an additional picture so you can see what I mean.



Step 13: Poke a hole at the top of each sail and hook a piece of wire through both of holes.


Step 14: Hot glue the crap out of the ring at the top.  (shh.  It's a technical term.)  Since I knew this would have a definite “front” and “back” side on the boat, I did not worry too much about how it looks from the back.  You will also want to put a little, teeny, tiny, barely noticeable drop of glue where the wire at the bottom of the sails crosses the mast to help it stay in place.

Ta-Da.

Now that I’ve made one of these, I’m thinking they would be cute at a party.
Instead of putting my house number, how cool would it be to have one on a buffet table that says EAT or FOOD and one near the drinks that says BAR…?  hmmmm.  I might need to have a summer party just so I can do this…

Even though Handsome Hubby is not a fan... and is, in fact, still rolling his eyes, I like it.  He should consider himself lucky I have ditched the idea of a full blown Columbus Day celebration where I would be compelled to make the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria.

Check the bottom of the blog to see where I've linked this project.

Also: Home Stories A2Z  Savvy Southern Style

Seriously! Please stop peeing on the toilet seat! A guest post from Strictly Homemade.

Hi all! Technically, I am back from vacation... but practically, I am trapped under the washing machine and can't get to my computer.  Thankfully, my friend Maridith is here to help me out today...

Hi The V Spot Friends, I am beyond thrilled to be here. My name is Maridith and I have a little ol’ blog (on the East Coast) called Strictly Homemade. I call my blog Strictly Homemade because 9 times out of 10 if I want something I have to make it myself. My budget does not support my decorating and clothing wants. I do find it very rewarding to make most everything from home décor, clothes, gifts, and crafts and I love sharing my ideas and projects with my readers.

I have been blogger friends with Vivienne for over 2 years and this is my first time I’ve been asked to guest post here. I am SUPER EXCITED to share with you a brand new never before seen sign (well, I haven't seen it on blogland to date.) I have had this up my sleeve for quite sometime waiting for the perfect opportunity to share it with the perfect audience. Since Vivienne has 5 boys in her household (hubby included) I thought she might appreciate this sign.

A little history. a sign hung in my hubby’s grandparents guest bathroom and it read…

“If you sprinkle when you tinkle, please be neat and wipe the seat.”

I will never forget reading it every time I went in there. When his grandparents died and we were asked what we wanted from the house I asked for the cross-stitched sign that had a cute kid sitting on the toilet. Well, I didn’t get it. Six years later and 2 boys in my house- I am making my own sign!
Here is the quick 1, 2, 3 pictures of how I constructed the sign. I downloaded the toilet picture from the Silhouette Website.

The real treasure are the words!!! Haha!!

Then hang near a toilet and pray for drier seats!

I hope you enjoyed!!
Now a shameless plug…I would love for you all to join me every Tuesday for Strictly Homemade Tuesday Linky Party for you share your latest homemade creations!

Thanks Viv, for letting me share this with your readers!! I hope you had a fabulous vacation--

Not a shameless plug at all!  I link up at Strictly Homemade Tuesday, myself!  Maridith, thanks for the tutorial.  I have actually had the words "Who peed on the wall!?" come out of my mouth before.  This is totally fitting!  Thanks for sharing this. 


Guys, if you would like inspiration as far as sewing and cute clothing projects, please, please please do yourself a favor and go visit Maridith.  I guarantee you'll be inspired!

Update an ugly 70s table with metallic paint and glaze. A guest post from the Sisters Of The Wild West.

I love these ladies! They do amazing crafts, sewing projects, and furniture transformations, and they were kind enough to share one of their fabulous "before and afters" with us.

We are so excited to be guest blogging here at The V Spot!

 HI!!  We are Amy and Emily.

The "Sisters" of the Wild West.  

We are newbies to the blog world, and we are LOVING every minute of it. 

A few facts about us:

*we drink diet dr pepper like water

*we take turns blogging (kind of...its a long story)

*we are highly competitive from playing sports our entire lives

 *we compare notes on who's posts get more attention

*we have 11 kids between us (Amy 4 girls & 2 boys) (Em 5 BOYS)

* We love to craft any chance we get...Especially when we are together!

Today we are going to share one of favorite types of projects:  A Before & After Transformation.

We absolutely LOVE treasure hunting and finding awesome pieces of furniture that

we can restore or bring back to life, and sometimes make better than their original state!

We got this piece for FREE!

I have been dying to try this technique.  I just love the look.

I thought this piece would be perfect with all of the details.



I used this "aluminum" paint by Rust-oleum.  Its very smelly, but I

just love that you apply with a paint brush.

I then aged it with some glazing.

I used Ralph Lauren glaze tinted with "expresso bean." 

I love how it turned out.  Thanks so much again for letting guest post here today.

We are honored and hope that you will stop by our blog an visit us @

Sisters of the Wild West.

Thanks, girls! I love how it turned out too!

Exploring metal finishes with Suesan from Frou-FruGal.

Suesan from Frou-FruGal is here today with some great examples of metal finishes that you can incorporate into your home.  Go with just one kind or mix-and-match like Suesan does in her home.  Click on any of her photos to view the item and how she achieved the look.  

Thanks for having me here today, Viv!

Do you have a favorite metal?

Do you get giddy for gold?

Do you swoon over silver?

Maybe bronze makes your knees buckle, especially if it’s of the Oil-Rubbed Variety?

Could you be coo-coo for Copper?

We all have some type of preference when it comes to metal.

Do you prefer your metals shiny and bright, thankyouverymuch, or do you like the worn patina of time and use? Are you a closet member of the Brass Elimination Squad? Or a Flag-waving Brushed Silver or Die supporter?

Me? I am not such a Metal-ist. I have a more egalitarian approach when it comes to metal. I embrace them all with open arms.

Well, truth be told, shiny brass and rust are still kind of like the crazy uncle you tolerate only at certain times during the year, but I’m working on my equal rights for all metals approach.

Metals are somewhat seasonal for me, too. Last fall, I was in love with copper and wanted to copperize everything I came into contact with. By winter, I was on a Silver streak and wanted everything to be aged silver.

I’m not sure I’m back to my copper mood, but something about sure makes me happy.

The truth is, around my house, most metals happily coexist with one another.

I like metal. I don’t really care what type it is. It all has a place in my home.

On one end of my piano, lives aged gold, shiny silver, worn brass and oil-rubbed bronze.

While on the other end, lives more shiny silver, rusted tin and faux copper.

I’m quite happy with it. I think it works because they are small pops of metal.

I plan to redo the blonde wood piano into an aged silver finish, like I did with these chairs.

With such a strong metal look, I may have to change up my display, but I really won’t know until I get it done.

Sometimes, just a hint of metal is all you want on your furniture, like with this shelf.

If you want to how to achieve some of these metal looks for yourself, click on the above pictures to see how to do it.

What kind of Metal-ist are you?

Suesan

Thanks Suesan!  I'm probably too fickle to commit to one kind or another, so it's nice to know there's a big selection out there, and that it can all work together!

The cutest ruffled pillow ev-AH! A tutorial from Maggie at Midwestern {Sewing} Girl

Pardon the pun, but everything that Maggie at Midwestern Sewing Girl does is sew cute, I knew right away that she needed to share one of her projects with you.  (Enjoy, peeps! The Lord only knows when you will ever see a sewing tutorial that actually uses a sewing machine instead of a glue gun around here again!)
Here's Maggie!

OK, I nearly fell out of my chair when Vivienne asked if I would be willing to guest post for her while she was on vacation...I mean, seriously...that, to me, is like Oprah asking her assistant's cousin's neighbor to host her show...how could I possibly say no?!?!? So here I am...at The V-Spot...super-excited...

Let me tell you a little bit about me...

My name is Maggie & I write a little blog called Midwestern {Sewing} Girl where I write about a whole bunch of stuff...home decor, furniture makeovers, sewing projects, and tons more! I'd love love love for you to come visit sometime!

Today I'm sharing a tutorial that I posted on my blog a few months ago...

Here it is!
The Springtime Ruffle Pillow tutorial!

OK...let's do this...

Here is what you'll need:

*Pillow or pillow form you want to cover. I've used a pillow form that is 12"x16" for this tutorial, but you can use any size pillow you like...the measurements adjust easily...
*Fabric: for my pillow I needed only 1/2 yard, and I had fabric left over. But if you're using a larger form, you'll (obviously) need more fabric...smaller form, less fabric. I always think having more on hand is better than having less...if you make a mistake, or decide you need more ruffles, you'll be set. Plus, you can always use the leftovers for other projects.
*A rotary cutting tool (or scissors)
*Straight edge (so you can achieve perfection in cutting your fabric...{smile})
*Tape Measure (this will really help when measuring the pillow's circumference...trust me - a ruler just doesn't cut it in this instance).
*Straight pins (nope, they're not in the photo, but you'll need 'em)
*Sewing machine (or needle & thread)
*Iron (yes, this is a must!!!)

*SEAM ALLOWANCE: 1/2"

STEP 1:
IRON, IRON, IRON your fabric! This is just so important to ensure correct measurements, to make the project easier to work with and to make your finished project pretty...

STEP 2:

Measure the circumference around the width (longest dimension) of your pillow - try not to squeeze the pillow while you're doing this. Better to have a circumference that's too large than too small.

STEP 3:
Take your circumference measurement and add roughly 6" (this number is just a matter of preference...this extra fabric will be what forms the overlap on the back of the cover. I like to have a fairly large overlap...this way it will lie flat on the pillow).

...this is what your fabric will look on your pillow after you have overlapped the two ends on the back...

**You can also avoid any measuring at all by simply wrapping your fabric around your pillow, overlapping the ends a little and cutting it (make sure your cuts are straight!).**

STEP 4:

Cut your fabric. You should end up with a rectangle...the long side should be your width circumference + 6", the short side should be the height of your pillow + 1" (for your 1/2 seam allowance on each side).

STEP 5:

Working on the short sides of your rectangle, with the right side of the fabric down, turn down your raw edge 1/4" and then again 1" to form your hem. Iron flat and sew 1/8" from the inner edge of the hem.

STEP 6:

Once you have your hems sewn, place your pillow down on the right side of the fabric and fold your edges up over the top of the pillow...allow one side to overlap the other. 

STEP 7:

With the pillow form still between the fabric layers, mark the fabric where the top & bottom layers of the pillow meet (the side seams of the pillow). This will allow you to see where the "front" of the pillow cover is when you remove the pillow. Mark both the "top" and "bottom" of the fabric with pins (see photo).

STEP 8:

Carefully remove the pillow form from between the layers of fabric, being sure not to disturb any of your pins. You should have a rectangle of fabric with four pins marking the "top" of your pillow cover (your pins should be on the "right" side of your fabric)...The area between the four pins is where you will attach your ruffles.

STEP 9:

Now it's time to cut your ruffle strips...

Here is the general rule I follow when it comes to ruffles...cut the ruffles twice as long (in this case twice as high) as the fabric you are attaching them to...for example, the height of this cover is 12", so cut your strips 24" long. The width of the strips is up to you...I used 2" strips for this pillow. For a smaller pillow, I may go more narrow and for a larger pillow I would probably go wider. Cut at least 10 strips to start...I'm sure there's some great math formula I could figure out that would give me an exact number of how many to cut for a certain width pillow, but I ain't doin' it. So, just cut a bunch...if you need more, cut more.

STEP 10:

Take each of your ruffle strips and sew a basting stitch (or the longest stitch you have on your machine) all the way down the center of your strip. REMEBER: DO NOT backstitch when you start or end this stitch...just put the fabric under the needle and go...when you are done - no backstitching...leave it loose. Also, leave enough thread on both ends of the stitch so that you can grab hold of it without any trouble.

 STEP 11:

Now take a basted ruffle strip and place it so that it lines up next to the pins that you have in your fabric. This strip will be the first one on the top of your pillow. Pin the strip to the bottom (or top, whatever is easier for you) of the fabric rectangle, allowing about 1/4" - 1/2" overhang.

...this photo doesn't show it, but pretend there is a pin along the right side of the ruffle strip -  

STEP 12:

Grab one of the long strings from your basting stitch (either the bobbin thread or the needle thread...doesn't matter which one...but one will probably pull more easily than the other) and start to gently tug at it. You will see your ruffle start to develop. Start to spread the ruffle out along the length of the strip, being very careful not to pull too hard on either the thread or the fabric...you don't want the thread to break...then you have to start all over with the strip...and that's not fun...believe me.

STEP 13:

When you have finished creating your ruffle, pin the top of the ruffle to the fabric rectangle (and the middle, too, if you'd like...this will make the ruffle a little more stable and easier to sew to the rectangle). The top of your ruffle should line up with the other pin at the top of your rectangle...this will assure that the ruffles are straight.

STEP 14:

Now take your rectangle with the ruffle attached back to your machine and sew down the middle of the ruffle, just to the right (or left) of your basting stitch. Backstitch at the beginning and end of your stitch. After you have finished attaching the ruffle, take the thread that you pulled to make your ruffle and continue to pull it all the way through the ruffle and out of the fabric. Then remove the other thread (either the bobbin or the needle - whichever one you didn't pull to create the ruffle)...be careful when removing these threads - if the thread breaks while you are removing it, it's no big deal - it just takes a little longer to get it out...

When you have the basting stitch removed, take your attached ruffle and pin one side (the side that will be closest to the next ruffle) and pin it up so that it won't get in the way of you attaching the next ruffle.

STEP 15:

Take your next ruffle strip and attach it the same way you did in STEPs 11-14. I usually attach my ruffles so that there is a slight overlap between the edges of each ruffle. You may like them more bunched up or more spread out, so attach the next one wherever it looks "right" to you. In this example I left about 1/2" between the middle of the previous ruffle (the stitch) and the edge of the next ruffle. When I unpin the previous ruffle, it's edge will slightly overlap the edge of the adjoining ruffle. How's that for a crazy sentence? Make any sense?

Continue attaching ruffles in this manner until you reach the other two pins. (I worked from right to left on this pillow...don't know why, just did. You may choose to work from left to right - like every other normal American).

STEP 16:

Almost done...hang in there...this is the easy part...;)

Place your pillow form on top of the ruffles and bring your edges up over the top of the pillow (again, these edges should overlap). You should find that the ruffles cover only one entire side of the pillow (the side that is now on the bottom) - if you see that your ruffles are coming up over the top or around the side, adjust the rectangle until they lie across only one side of the pillow (unless, of course, the former is the look you're going for). 

...looks like these edges could stand to be ironed again!!!

STEP 17:

Now pin the overlapping edges of the fabric (make sure the fabric rectangle fits snugly (is that a word? Or is it snuggly?) over the pillow - you don't want it to be too loose...)

STEP 18:

Carefully remove your pillow form, again being careful not to disrupt the fabric placement. You want to make sure the ruffles are still on the "bottom" and that they stretch from side to side of the pillow cover. Also, make sure that each individual ruffle lays flat...you don't want any of the edges folding back on itself.

...umm, iron, please?

STEP 19:

Now you will pin the sides of your cover together. You may find this a little more difficult because of the slight ruffle overhang on each side...no worries, just take your straight edge, and your cutting tool and slice off the extra ruffle yuck (make sure you don't cut the sides of the rectangle! Just the ruffle ends...) You should now have a (relatively) nice, clean edge to pin...

STEP 20:

Now sew (with your 1/2" seam allowance) down both pinned sides of the cover, being careful to not sew over the pins.

NOW...turn your cover inside out, push out the corners and fill with your pillow!

YOU'RE DONE!!!

Not too bad, huh?

You'll notice that I left the edges of my ruffles raw...I really like this  look, especially with linen (the fabric I chose to use). If you would rather hem your ruffle edges or finish them with a rolled hem, fantastic...just make sure to add a little to your ruffle width measurement to account for either a hem.

Thank you so so much for letting me share this with your readers today, Viv! It was so awesome being your guest!!! 

Thanks for sharing this!  For those of you (like me) who would probably poke the sewing needle in your eye, rather than use it to create something, be sure to check out Maggie's etsy shop, My Sweet Kate.