Saffron pumpkin buns and winter quilts!

With cold winter weather, I felt like baking today! These were a big hit!

A friend had given me some saffron, then I saw a chef making pumpkin buns with saffron on P. Allen Smith's show....I found a similar recipe.

In my pantry, I also had this specialty flour from Italy. The flour is made from an ancient wheat called einkorn.

I got it at our local Natural Grocery store and was anxious to try it! It has a less offensive protein than the gluten found in modern wheat!

I do not have a stand mixer, with a dough hook so I "kneaded" the dough in the big crockery bowl with a wooden spoon for quite awhile...until it was ready for it's rising time. ( watched some TV while doing this!)

After rising and being rolled up around their filling, the rolls baked up perfectly, very moist with the canned pumpkin as an ingredient!

Here is a link to the recipe: http://www.thekitchykitchen.com/?recipes=/pumpkin-saffron-rolls/

These will be our breakfast tomorrow, Saturday!

I plan to sleep in, so it is nice to have the breakfast all prepared!

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A couple of quilts have been finished lately, crib size! This (above) is a scrappy 16 patch with turquoise lattice.

I used a bright busy fabric for the binding! See a small piece of the blue background binding fabric in the lower left of this photo...(below).

It gives a very nice effect!

The other recent quilt is this one for a baby girl who is coming into the world this March!

It is called "Baby Bricks" and can be made using a fabric "jelly roll"! Mine is just from my scrap bin of 2.5 " strips!

Above our fireplace I now have a favorite wall hanging. Inspired by Sujata Shah's Cultural Fusion book!

These blocks were being tested before sewing together.....

This is Sujata's original called "Winter"! I love the soft grays, but the pink just "makes" it for me!

Here is Sujata hand quilting on another of her wonderful quilts! She is coming in October to do a lecture and workshop for our quilt guild!

I am so excited!

 

Time to find my quilt/covers for tonight...the heat is turned down and it is time for a long winter's nap!

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Sunday update.

I finished knitting my "Queen Street Sweater" using a pattern in Knitscene magazine (above) Issue winter 2015.

Mine is in yarn by NORO a blend of silk and rayon. A tweedy green as that was the only color with enough skeins at the local yarn shop!

The unusual pockets were what caught my eye in the pattern....

It actually fits nicely and I am very pleased with. It's the appearance and the feel, soft comfy and not too warm...just right! (Silk is a good insulator against cold winter days!)

 

Feeling almost OK

I tried a workout today, made it for a while on the treadmill before I surrendered.

Still a bit under the weather!

But I tried making gluten free biscuits....using the recipe for 7up Bisquick biscuits. I substituted GF baking mix, club soda for the 7up and Greek yogurt for the sour cream!

4 ingredient (melted butter is the fourth) easy, handle gently recipe!

It was pretty successful!

I didn't cut round biscuits, and some enede up with flour side up in the pan of melted butter...but the one I tried, still not with butter and honey was a treat!

 

 

I don't really need to add more carbohydrates to my diet, but it was fun to try this!

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Then our local yarn shop was having a sale, so I treated myself some more.....10 skeins of NORO for a sweater... The Queen Street Sweater in the latest Knitscene magazine.

Love the kangaroo pockets!

My yarn is green, silk cotton and viscose! Delightful!

 

I also bought some pink washable wool because 4 year old Nina wants me to knit a hoodie for her, with a pocket, pink with red trim...of course!

Her twin sister already has a navy blue handknit-by-grandma hoodie....

Speaking of the twins....

They had breakfast with Santa today!

!