Acknowleding fear, and moving on
There’s a lot of family changes happening in our extended family this year. I’m grateful that they are of a positive sort, but all the same they’re major changes. People are getting married, babies are arriving, and family members are scrambling around to make the necessary plans for the upcoming changes.
Being the responsible sort, who loves her family, this is resulting in my internalizing a lot of stress. In many ways our household functions as a sort of hub between siblings and parents….which means that we hear a lot about individuals’ opinions. They don’t often agree with each other or mesh with my view. The long and the short of the current situation is that I feel a lot of competing pressure to be helpful, supportive and available but I’m short on ways to actually help out. There are just certain things I cannot do for others.
I realized last night that I’ve been spending a lot of time grinding my mental gears on familial guilt-trips, assumed obligations, actual obligations, and worry over the needs of my own family. It’s wearing me out, and it’s wearing me down. My attitude is crappy and I don’t like rehashing my feelings of overwhelm and anxiety.
Previous experience has taught me that this sort of negative emotional loop happens when I feel emotional pressure, and the unvoiced fears associated with them, but never acknowledge what I’m afraid of. If I don’t acknowledge my fears – rational or not – I can’t deal with them or escape the negative, oppressive emotions that they cause.
Fortunately, there’s a simple fix: acknowledging my fears…rational or not…..big and small. I’ve thought them out. I’ve written them down. They look better on paper. I can deal with them one-at-a-time. I understand myself better, and I feel able to tackle each fear as an individual problem. I’ve dispensed with the guilt and overwhelm.
I feel better. Lighter. Able to cope. I can move on.
Fear can be caused by anything in life. Sometimes I feel fear about business changes or creative endeavors or new opportunities. Though the “fixes” for fears are not always easy, acknowledging the fear in the stark light of day will give you the power to overcome it.
If you, too, are feeling stressed out and overwhelmed, take some time to really figure out what’s underneath. Write it down, and make a plan. You’ll be more productive. You’ll be happier. You might even discover that fear is an opportunity for positive changes.
Katie wonders why she isn’t Japanese
Do you ever find yourself wondering why you don’t fit into a radically different category than the one you usually occupy? For instance, if you were a petite but mightily curvy woman born & raised in the Midwest you might find yourself wondering (many times, on multiple occasions, over a fairly decent spread of time) why you weren’t Japanese.
No, I’m not crazy. And I furthermore blame the Japanese people for my self-perception issues. Why? Because of things like this:
And this dress:
(This dress is from a Japanese sewing book called the Stylish Dress book, more about that here. For sale here.)
And if that weren’t enough, the things they do with knit & crochet blow me away. If only I had a few dozen more hours per day to spend sewing, knitting and crafting crazy-cool Japanese crafts!
Now you know….the secret & somewhat silly thoughts of a midwestern girl. I even have a pinboard devoted to “Japanese Inspiration” over on Pinterest. I’m YarnLove over there, in case you’re in the mood to oggle my pins.
The Triumph of the Red Velvet Cheesecake
A long time ago, two knitters imagined something amazing. It was so wonderful it haunted their dreams….eventually the dream was whispered via Twitter and spread like wildfire over the internet. This dream was a dream of the most decadent, delicious, perfect cake ever – the marriage of red velvet and cheesecake. After many sleepless nights, and much sugar-coated toil that dream is now a reality.
Behold the triumph of the Red Velvet Cheesecake!
Ok, so in reality, last week Ruth of Rock and Purl and Marly_Bird started tweeting about how amazing a Red Velvet Cheesecake would be, and wondered if it could be done. I wondered, too. Since I have not slept through the night in more than a year (my 1 year old still doesn’t sleep well) I have ample time each night to sit quietly, rocking the baby and dreaming up the perfect cake.
The Requirements
To start with, the requirements were cheesecake, red velvet cake, and traditional whipped red velvet frosting.Further complicating things is that my husband is wheat intolerant – the cake had to be entirely or very close to wheat free. If you have done any gluten free baking, you know that it’s nearly impossible to get a layer cake to hold together – they usually crumble like a high rise in an earthquake.
Twitter speculation was rampant about the layering: Cake + Cheesecake + Cake + Frosting? Cheesecake + Cake + Frosting? In the end, I went with Crust + Cheesecake + Frosting + Red Velvet Cake +Frosting. I figured that trying to turn out a cheesecake and layer it between Red Velvet was asking for trouble. If a cheesecake is cohesive enough to turn out on it’s own, without any crust, you might as well slap a slab of cream cheese in the middle of Red Velvet cake and save yourself some trouble.
But that wouldn’t do. It had to be cheesecake. And it was! Here’s how I did it.
Start out by making sure you have a round cake pan and a springform pan that are the same size. Mine are 9″ pans, and I dropped the bottom of my springform pan into my cake pan to check – it just fit.
The Recipe Line Up
Let me warn you now, if you like uncomplicated recipes, don’t bake this baby. To complete, it requires mixing and baking four separate recipes. It also is time consuming, so don’t try this if you remembered at the last moment that you’re due at a potluck in an hour. The cheesecake alone requires about 8 hours to fully chill. But I can attest that the results is worth it!
Three out of four recipes below were from my treasure chest of favorite recipes. I’ve made them multiple times before, and knew what to expect of the recipe. If you are free to eat gluten / wheat, I suggest you use your own favorite recipes in place of the red velvet and crust layers. The frosting and the cheesecake started life as “normal” baking recipes and can be used as-is without the need for a full complement of gluten free flours.
The recipes are listed in the order for assembly: crust, cheesecake, red velvet and frosting. The cheesecake needs 8 hours (give or take) to fully chill, once it’s cooled from the oven. You can easily make the red velvet layer and frosting the next day.
The Crust – Gluten Free Shortbread
This makes wonderful shortbread cookies. They’re amazing with coffee. It’s also sheer bliss and a perfect foundation for this cake.
1/2 C Almond Flour*
1/2 C Rice Flour
1/2 C Corn Starch
1/2 C Butter – softened
1/2 Cup of butter
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Sift dry ingredients together. Add butter mix on low until the dough comes together and is well incorporated. if the dough seems too soft, pop it into the fridge for a few minutes until it begins to firm.
Grease and flour the bottom & sides of the springform pan. Press shortbread dough evenly into the bottom – about a 1/4″ thick. I had leftover dough, and you may, too. Wrap in plastic wrap and pop into the fridge for later.
Bake 20 minutes or until the crust looks golden brown. Remove and let pan cool while you work on the cheesecake filling.
* You can make your own almond flour by blending unsalted, blanched almonds in your blender, and sifting to remove the large chunks. I have even omitted the blanching step as I’ve found the skins add a little color and don’t disrupt the texture. I usually blend, sift, re-blend then measure.
Alternate: Graham Cracker Crust
This is the original crust for my cheesecake – it contains wheat. It’s easy, and you can use pre-baked shortbreads like Lorna Dune cookies in place of the graham crackers
6 Whole Graham crackers
1/4 C Melted butter
Finely grind graham crackers – I use my blender. Add butter and blend until combined. Press into the bottom of your spring form pan and bake at 350 F until golden brown – about 8-10 minutes.
Katie’s Go-To Never-Fail Best Cheesecake Ever
This is converted from a regular, gluten containing recipe. There’s hardly any difference. It always turns out and only once has this baby ever cracked. You’ll love it.
3 – 8 oz Packages cream cheese (use full fat) – room temp
1/2 C Granulated sugar
1 T All purpose flour*
2 Large eggs
6 T Sour Cream or Heavy Cream
1/2 C Half & Half
1 t. Vanilla
1.) Beat cream cheese and sugar together in a large bowl until smooth.
2.) Add eggs, one at a time until just combined.
3.) Mix in remaining ingredients.
4.) Pour filling on top of crust in prepared pan.
5.) Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 250 and bake for about 40 minutes longer.
6.) Crack the oven door and cool the cake in the oven for at least 10 minutes. Take out of oven and allow to cool to room temp.
7.) Run a sharp knife around the outside of the pan to loosen. Chill 8 hours or until cake is chilled through and firmly set.
8.) Keep the cheesecake in the refrigerator as much as possible. This will help you assemble the layers.
Red Velvet Cake – Gluten Free
This recipe has a lot going for it – it’s pretty tasty and holds together like a champ. I had no trouble creating a cohesive layer cake. Due to the delicate taste of red velvet cake, gluten free versions always taste just a bit different. There’s just no getting around the fact that non-wheat flours don’t taste exactly like wheat. However this version is extremely tasty, has a moist crumb and won’t go to bits at a crucial moment.
If you can eat wheat, use your favorite red velvet recipe. I halved my gluten free version and it was the perfect amount.
3/4 C + 2 T Canola Oil
3/4 C Granulated Sugar
1 Egg, beaten & room temp
1/2 C Brown Rice Flour
1/4 C + 2 T. Sorghum Flour
1/4 C + 2 T. Tapioca Starch
1/2 C Buttermilk (or 1/2 C 1/2 & 1/2 + 1/2 T. vinegar)
1 tsp. Vanilla
1/2 oz. red food coloring (this is half of a McCormick’s bottles)
1 Tbsp. cocoa
1.) Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F (noticing a theme here? All three layers cook at the same temp!)
2.) Prepare your pan by greasing and flouring.
3.) Cream the oil and sugar until well mixed. Add the egg and beat until well incorporated. (You’ll notice that this thickens and creates the emulsion that will hold the cake together.)
4.) Whisk all dry ingredients together in a separate bowl.
5.) You will now incorporate the dry and wet ingredients into the batter, in four parts, starting with the flour. (Do NOT start with the wet ingredients or you will break the emulsion.) Mix each part completely before adding the next.
6.) Make a paste of the vanilla, cocoa powder and food coloring. Mix thoroughly into the batter.
7.) Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
8.) Completely cook cake on a wire rack. Run a knife around the outer edge to loosen. Turn cake out. If holding overnight, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and leave out on counter until needed.
Tasty & Traditional (but not gluten free) Whipped Red Velvet Frosting
1 C Mil
5 T Flour
1 C Granulated Sugar
1 C Butter
1 t. Vanilla
1.) Whisk together milk and flour in a small saucepan.
2.) Heat over medium-low heat until thickened, whisking constantly.
3.) Cool completely. I cooled on a wire rack until just warmed and then popped the whole saucepan into the fridge until chilled. I also obsessively whisked the mixture every 10 minutes, to make sure it didn’t clump while cooling but this may be unnecessary.
4.) With a mixer cream butter and sugar.
5.) Add cooled milk mixture and cream until fluffy and well incorporated. If your frosting separates or looks grainy, continue mixing. This frosting should have the look and texture of whipped cream.
Gluten Free Alternative Frosting
You have a few choices here on how you want to handle a wheat/gluten free frosting.
1.) Mix up a batch of real whipped cream. Assemble the layers sans frosting, and coat each serving separately. It will taste amazing, but the presentation won’t look as good. Do not frost until you’re ready to serve or the whipped cream will melt into the cake.
2.) Use trusty old vanilla buttercream with a touch more milk so it’s a bit thinner. Buttercream is tasty, sturdy and versatile. It will hold your layers together without fuss, and you can frost your cake ahead of time.
3.) Make a cream cheese frosting. I think this is a bit redundant given that this is a cheesecake. But, keep your flavor additions to vanilla and you’ll get a frosting that’s sure to blend harmoniously with the flavors already in your cake.
4.) Be really adventurous and attempt a traditional red velvet frosting using potato or cornstarch in place of the flour for the rue. I have not tried this. It could be incredible….or an incredible flop. If you try it, let me know how it turns out!
Assembling the Triumphant Cake
I assume that you have all the parts necessary for this endeavor baked according to the above instructions. You should have 1 baked and completely chilled/set cheesecake, one completely cooled red velvet cake layer, and one batch of your preferred frosting. At this point I’d also grab a rubber scraper and a handy offset spatula for frosting.
1.) Release your cheesecake. Pop off the sides of the spring form pan. I always leave the bottom of my pan for serving.
2.) Plop a blob of frosting on top of the cheesecake -enough for a scant layer. Attempt to level as best you can in case your oven sits crookedly, like mine does. This will be weird as the frosting attempts to iceskate on the slippery surface of the cheesecake. Persevere and keep the frosting minimal.
3.) Unwrap your red velvet layer if necessary. Eyeball this layer and determine the most advantageous positioning for a level cake (just in case you have an un-level oven like mine.) If you have a level oven, revel in it’s glory and move on to the next step.
Look – I got it about spot on & level without trimming the cake:
Yum! See how there’s just a scant amount of frosting? Too much causes the top layer to slide across the slick surface of the cheesecake. Keep it minimal here, and pile the frosting on top.
4.) Carefully plop that red velvet layer on top of the cheesecake, bottom side down.
5.) Generously frost to the top of the cake. I didn’t frost the sides of mine as the frosting would never stick to the cheesecake layer. Plus, it looks really impressive to see that delightfully red velvet crowning the top of your cheesecake.
6.) Return your cake to the fridge to firm everything up. Eat the remaining frosting (I know you’ve been sampling it already!). Get out your rolling pin to beat your family off the cake until you’re ready to serve it. This madness ensued seconds after I finished snapping the pictures.
My job here is done!
Yarn of the month – May Flowers
May is here! You most likely have your April yarn (and if not it will be there quite soon, I promise!) And now it’s time to make your selections for May. In my neck of the woods (Midwestern America) spring is struggling to break the bonds of winter. Our hardy spring flowers are blooming, and our late spring plants are just starting to push past the earth’s surface.
I love this time of the year – everything seems fresh and renewed. The sunshine and warm breezes are so refreshing after the endless grey bluster of winter.
This month’s yarn selection is Marianne Dashwood. She is a part of our regular line up & is a 100% superwash merino, sport weight yarn. She’s sturdy and versatile, with a beguiling twist! She’ll make a pair of socks in a jiffy or look equally as enchanting as a baby sweater. The possibilities are nearly endless.
Each skein is 4 oz/ 115 grams, 330 yards / 301 meters. I recommend US size 0 – 4 or 2-3.5 mm needles. Machine wash gentle, and lay flat to dry for best results. Additional skeins $22 plus shipping.
Peony
Peonies are one of my favorite spring flowers! Awash with gentle hues of blossom pink, earthy grey, and sand. Peony is kettle dyed and will have subtle variations from skein to skein.
Spring Rain
Spring Rain is a vibrant aqua semi solid. Just what’s needed to refresh your knitting! Aqua and teal swirl around small pops of clear blue.
Ready to send your choice? Go check your email for the survey!
Yarn of the Month – no foolin’!
To all my blog readers: this particular blog post is for those who have previously signed up for the Sock Yarn of the Month Club (sign ups are now closed). Feel free to admire the yarn. The most popular colorways will be added to our regular line up in 6 months!
Ready for some yarn bling? This month you’re getting a truly delectable skein of merino, silk, and silver. Sterling Silk and Silver is luxurious with a celestial shimmer from the soft strands of silver spun right in. This yarn isn’t in our regular line, and when I got my hands on a skein I couldn’t help but make it a part of the sock club. It’s just so yummy! Both shades are sophisticated and glamorous just what every girl needs in her wardrobe.
You’ve got two amazing color choices this month – a scrumptious semi-solid for more complex patterns and an intriguing and complex multi. Since you voted on both colors, I’m sure there’s one you’ll love!
P.S. – Turtle Candy is a many hued brown….but is a bit camera shy. It seems like the flecks of silver confuse the lens a bit. So I’ve added a photo of the same color dyed on our usual Juliet base knit up with Allure. It shows the variations off much better!
Skein Specs:
63% superwash merino/ 20% silk / 15% nylon/ 2% silver. 3.5 ounces, 420 yards. Fingering weight. A limited number of additional skeins available for $24 each.
Turtle Candy
This brown is the one you’ve been waiting for – warm and comforting, sweet and satisfying. Hues of walnut, pecan, hot fudge, and dark chocolate swirl around in this sundae of a skein. The silver adds a touch of shimmer – the whipped cream on top!
Glamor Girl
This multi is a sophisticated combination of sapphire, deep aqua, dusty teal, deep silver with a pop of hot pink. She’s a glamor girl from the Art Deco era…gilded in silver!
Submit your color choice via the Survey Monkey link in your Sock Club email!
Santa, Baby!
Merry Christmas! Here’s a catalog of kiddie cuteness from today:
The Santa, Baby! hat in progress
Roman likes his Santa, Baby! hat!
Xavier - after eating chili for a “snow picnic”.
It’s been a while….
My original post title was “Its been a while….but I made a baby!”. Then my brain kicked in and I thought of all the possible weirdos who would find me via Google…..And the potential double entendre…and changed the title. Double entendre – it’s all fun & games….but Googling Weirdos, no thanks!
So you may have inferred that the sparkling chap in the photo is indeed the newest member of our family: Roman. He was born September 20th, 3:53am – one day before his due date! All my other kiddos were overdue, so this was a big surprise. I was quite thrilled not to have to spend an extra week or so being massively pregnant, even if it did mean not getting as much yarn dyed as I had planned.
We’re doing great – if spending a lot of extra time surfing the internet while holding the newest Little Man. To share the entertainment I’ve made a list of the fun stuff I’ve found in the past two weeks:
Print your own custom fabric + really amazing indie designed fabrics. One of my new favorite places to browse. The fabric is probably a little too expensive for an everyday project, but the designs are truly fantastic!
I’ve been way into her hats over the past couple of weeks. It’s probably partly the fall weather and partly her amazing hat genius. Great sizing information if you’re planning to knit up a hat, too!
Part of the CastOn podcast – anyone can join & earn badges. It’s fun & you know you wanna. Seriously – there are 3 MacGyver merit badges. How could you not join?
So there you go – 3 fun things to waste time on today!
Miss Margaret Socks – how to
My Miss Margaret Socks pattern was released last week. It was the featured pattern for Three Irish Girl’s sock club, April 2010. While it won’t be released for public sale for a couple more weeks yet, I thought I’d take the opportunity to post links to tutorials for the techniques you’ll need to knit up a pair of your very own.
Miss Margaret isn’t very difficult (I rate her a medium, simply because I use a couple techniques a beginning knitter might not be familiar with yet.) but she does pack quite a visual punch thanks to the combination of beads and cables.
Easy Peasy – how to knit beads without counting
You don’t have to count each and every bead then pre-string them onto your yarn before knitting anymore! In fact, as long as you’re relatively certain you have enough to complete the project, you can cast on and let the beads fall where they may! All you need in addition to your seed beads (size 6 or 8 recommended for fingering weight yarn) is a small steel crochet hook – size 12
See this wonderful Knitty tutorial for step by step instructions.
Cabling With Out a Cable Needle – yes you can!
Miss Margaret features two different cable patterns – one on the heel and one on the gusset. Both are fairly simple cables, but the heel flap cable when worked traditionally requires the use of two cable needles. One cable needle holds 1/2 the cable stitches while the other cable needle holds the background purl stitches. It’s not the end of the world, but sometimes you just don’t feel like juggling 4 needles while you’re working. Instead, try forgetting the cable needles all together. This Knitty article shows you how. If you’re not familiar with working cables without an extra needle, take time to read the article.
I intended to write up a full tutorial for working the heel flap cable without a cable needle, but I’m running a bit short on time today. So instead of skimping, give me a couple days and I’ll post a full tutorial on it with charts, pictures and instructions. In the mean time, feel free to play around with crochet hook beading and basic cables without using a cable needle. It’s good practice!
Coming soon:
Dyeing to Knit is switching over soon. For now, please see our content here.
I’ll see you soon!
~katie
Pretties Coming Soon!
You probably have noticed that this blog has been sorely neglected for 3/4 of year. That is about to change. Spurred on by the creativity of the Designer 101 class (taught by the excellent Shannon Okey) I’m giving the blog a complete overhaul and committing to adding regular content.
The overhaul won’t change the focus of the blog much, but will upgrade the look of it. I like pretty spaces, and I’m assuming you do, too. The new design will spruce things up around here and give us a cozy nook to chat in.
One Stop Pattern Shopping
I will be adding more information on my knitting patterns. Dyeing to Knit will be a “one stop shop” where you can find all my designs, regardless of where they’re sold. You’ll also be catching sneak peeks of my self-published patterns while they’re in progress. If you like to be he first to know the latest and greatest, stay tuned.
I have linked all my designs under the Patterns tab at the top of the page. If you scroll to the bottom, there’s even a free sock pattern. (You’ll need to be a member of Ravelry.com to download. But go ahead, it’s a great knit/crochet/weaving site and it’s free.) Get it while you can – it will only be free for a limited time!
Timely Updates
I’ll also be writing mini-posts notifying you when new yarn and patterns become available. That way you’ll know exactly what yarn is available from which retailer. That should make getting the perfect yarn you’ve been waiting for easier to get.
Want updates emailed to you? Sign up for our newsletter: enter your email into the newsletter field. (Bottom right corner of our home page.) We will never sell your information, and you can change your subscription settings any time you wish.
We’ll be talking soon!
~katie
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