All-American Apple Crumble

I hope you had a very happy Independence Day and spent it like me: celebrating our wonderful country, enjoying all of the freedoms we have, and eating delicious barbecue fare. You gotta love being an American! What's more American than a good ole apple pie? In our household, we love apples in all shapes and forms. Apple pie, apple fritters, caramel apples, spiced apple cider, apple doughnuts, and of course, apple crumble.  

I put together a couple of these crumbles for my coworkers, neighbors, and our 4th of July Pool Party. The Mr. loves Dutch Apple Pie but is not a fan of crust, so this crumble is everything he loves and nothing more. This is adapted from a recipe I got from a family friend (Man Bait Apple Crisp) and tweaked the ratio of sugar to flour and added a combo of chopped nuts and now it is sheer perfection. 


INGREDIENTS (for two 9" round crisps, or one heaping 8x13")
Topping:
     1 and 1/4 cups chopped pecans
     1/2 cup chopped walnuts
     1/4 cup sliced almonds
     2 cups flour
     2 cups brown sugar
     2/3 cup quick oats
     1 teaspoon cinnamon
     2 sticks sweet cream butter (1 cup), softened

Filling:
     12 Granny Smith apples
     3 tablespoons Sugar in the Raw
     3 tablespoons white sugar
     1/4 cup flour
     3 teaspoons cinnamon

INSTRUCTIONS

• Preheat oven to 350
• Peel, core, and slice apples
• In a large mixing bowl combine all ingredients for the filling and toss
• Grease the baking dishes with butter or cooking spray
• Pack the apple mixture into the dishes (pile it up as it will decrease in volume)
• Add all of the topping ingredients to one large bowl
• Using a fork or your bare hands if you're like me combine the ingredients until crumbly and slightly crumbly
• If it gets too soft, place in the fridge to chill for 10-15 minutes
• Generously sprinkle the topping over the apples
• Place in oven and bake for 45-50 minutes
• Spoon into mini mason jars for a perfectly portable treat that is great for BBQs, picnics, or just tomorrow's lunch at work. Serve with whipped cream and a dollop of vanilla ice cream for extra mouthwatering goodness.

     Enjoy!

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Stars and Stripes: Grand Finale Table Runner

Thanks to the Mr.'s dad, we have an chic white dining room table. It's the perfect blank canvas for everything from delicate salt and pepper shakers to pretty table runners. We've got quite a few (runners, not shakers), but we were lacking one with July 4th flair. I had considered using some striped and starred fabrics, but since I look forward to seeing the fireworks every year I thought this would be a different take on All-American. 

Materials:

• Raw Canvas (length of table + 2 feet) -- use an existing table runner as a guide
• Pencil
• Pinking Shears
• Acrylic Paint
• Fabric/Textile Medium
• Iron
• Round Paint Brushes (various sizes)

Directions:
1. Take your existing runner and lay it over the canvas to act as a template

2. Using your pencil, draw a line running parallel to the runner on the canvas with about 3/4 of an inch between them

3. Cut ALL edges with pinking shears, be sure to cut away from the pencil markings. (I chose not to do so, but if you'd like, you could stitch all the way around in a matching or contrasting thread to further prevent fraying)

4. Iron out any prominent wrinkles

5. Mix fabric medium (2 parts) with acrylic paint (one part) and paint various designs/shapes/colors to emulate fireworks. While I seem to stain everything with acrylic paint and cannot believe that it would ever wash out, going the extra step with the fabric medium ensures that despite any stains or spills, the runner will be perfectly washable.

6. Let dry for 24 hours, then set the paint with a hot iron or a toss in the dryer AND YOU ARE DONE.

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DIY Showoff | S3 | Classy Clutter | A Little Tipsy | I Heart Nap Time | Mine for the Making | Flamingo Toes | Craftomaniac | Shabby Creek Cottage | Somewhat Simple | Saved by Love Creations | My Simple Home Life | My Girlish Whims | Stone Gable

Stars & Stripes: Wooden Flag Art

Last weekend as I was browsing HomeGoods, I found the cutest gnome ever tucked on a random shelf. As I eagerly scooped him up, I noticed a distressed patriotic frame on the lower shelf. It was perfect for the summer holidays with it's flag motif but I had no use for yet another frame especially one that I probably wouldn't use so I walked away. Later on that night, I ran across this Painted American Flag at Pottery Barn and figured it was a sign from above; both pieces served as the inspiration for my first Stars and Stripes project for the 4th of July: Wooden Flag Art.

Materials:

• Finished Wood Slab (I used a 6"x8"x1" cutting board. But if you want to replicate the monumental size of the PB piece, just use something larger)
• Painters Tape
• Rotary Cutter
• Acrylic Paint (Plaid's Satin Cream, Crimson, Barn Red, and Too Blue)
• 1" Bristle Brush or Sponge Brush
• Sand Paper
• Star Stickers
• Sepia Decoupage Finish

Procedure:

1. Sand lightly and then coat with 2-3 coats of cream paint; allow brush strokes to show

 2. Cut painters tape to cover all areas that need to remain white (the stripes and the top left portion for the stars). We only had 2" painters tape handy so I cut the strips 2/3 of an inch wide with my rotary cutter for the stripes. For the stars area, I overlapped tape to form a 3" x 3.5" rectangle.

3. Cover the areas as shown below. Apply firmly, but do not press too hard, you actually want the paint to bleed a little bit.

4. Mix the two reds in equal parts and paint all of the exposed areas

5. Remove tape and apply star stickers. (Don't count mine... I definitely couldn't fit 50 on there)

6. Affix the tape to create boundaries for the blue paint. Apply the blue in 2-3 coats.

7. After the paint has dried, remove the star stickers. Don't worry when it gets a little messy, that's exactly what you want. Tip: Use tweezers! (If you though applying them was the time-consuming part, this trumps that easily. This took forever -- You can see all of the teeny tiny pieces of stickers in the back and only 5 came off in one full piece.)

8. Use sandpaper to distress the edges and finish. This is optional but I think it made all the difference.

9. If the colors are too bright for you (they were for me), add a coat of sepia decoupage finish. It dulls the colors and "dirties" it up just right.

Here it is on display in my craft room with other red, white, and blue goodness.

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DIY Showoff | S3 | Classy Clutter | A Little Tipsy | I Heart Nap Time | Mine for the Making | Flamingo Toes | Craftomaniac | Shabby Creek Cottage | Somewhat Simple | Saved by Love Creations | My Simple Home Life | My Girlish Whims | http://www.stonegableblog.com/