Blooming Valentine

Hearts, flowers, candy... love. It’s Valentine’s Day again. The quintessential Hallmark holiday. No need to fluff their coffers. Make your own Valentine to show your sweetheart how much you really care. Just a few pieces of colored paper, some fancy scissors and a little time will mean more to the love of your life than a quickly picked, mass produced Kansas City creation. This idea transforms the symbolic heart into a flower and has no shortage of syrupy sweet jargon. It’s up to you to add the words of sincerity and feeling. Have fun, but most importantly, let your loved one know how much they are

loved and appreciated.

Supplies

Red, white, and shades of pink card stock

Heart punch

Scalloped scissors

Black, fine tip Sharpie marker

Small jewel (used for Scrapbooks)

Glue stick

Double sided tape

Craft glue

Metal ruler

X-acto knife

Self-healing mat

Pencil

With ruler, pencil and X-acto knife, measure and trim red card stock to 8.5" x 5.5" on self-healing mat and fold in half so the finished size is 4.25" x 5.5". Punch four hearts from the shades of pink card stock and fold in half, set aside. Measure and trim white card stock with scalloped scissors to the finished size of 3.75" x 5" and adhere to front of folded red card stock with double sided tape. Using stick, glue the right half of each heart to the white, scalloped paper in the flower petal formation. Allow space for the center jewel. Place a small dollop of craft glue in the center of the flower and press on the jewel. After the jewel dries slightly for a couple of minutes, write message with black, Sharpie marker. I wrote, “Thinking of you...” opening inside to: “... makes my heart BLOOM!” Center a heart punch in the inside of the card to create interest and dimension. Finish with a personalize message of love.

Heart-healthy dinner for your sweetheart

Who doesn’t love Italian cuisine? This Valentine’s Day make an easy and delicious recipe that will not only satisfy the taste buds of your loved one, but will be healthy for his (or her) heart too! Starting with the organic grape tomatoes, which provide lycopene, an antioxidant that may help prevent heart disease as well as certain forms of cancer. Cooking the tomatoes in extra virgin olive oil enhances the power of the tomato’s lycopene and also delivers essential omega-3 fatty acids. Another powerhouse antioxidant, garlic, hosts an amazing compound called allicin, which may help to reduce cholesterol levels. Lastly, adding the red wine shares flavonoids, known to help prevent blood clots and plaque from building up in the arteries, and resveratrol, a compound shown to increase “good” cholesterol, which also thwarts blood clots. Enjoy with a glass of red wine and feel good knowing that this mouthwatering meal cares for your sweet’s heart too!*

serves 2

Tomato and red wine sauce with spaghetti

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 pint organic, grape tomatoes (quartered, length wise)

2 -3 garlic cloves, pealed and thinly sliced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1/4 cup dry red wine (I used cabernet sauvignon) 

sea salt to taste

1/2 pound whole wheat organic spaghetti, cooked al dente

chopped flat leaf, Italian parsley (optional)

shaved parmesan cheese (optional)

In a large skillet or saute pan, cook extra virgin olive oil over medium heat until sizzling. Gently add quartered grape tomatoes and cook until the skin begins to puckered (about 10 minutes). Add dried oregano, sea salt and thinly sliced garlic combining with a light stir. Cook 5 minutes more, or until the garlic appears soft and translucent. Lastly, add the red wine and simmer, lowering the heat, for 10 to 15 minutes. Spoon sauce upon the whole wheat, al dente, spaghetti and garnish with chopped flat leaf, Italian parsley and parmesan cheese shavings. 

©2010 Tricia Barry Biagi

*Information on this blog is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. You should not use the information on this blog for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication or other treatment.

Chocolate + Raspberries = Valentine’s Day

Chocolate and raspberries are one of those perfect combinations like basil and tomatoes, Snoopy and Woodstock, Scorcese and DiCaprio... just the right amount of tartness from the raspberries paired with just the right amount of sweetness from the chocolate.  This Valentine’s Day sandwich luscious raspberry jam between simple shortbread cookies and you’ll send your loved ones swooning for more. I used a dairy free recipe from one of my favorite bloggers and bakers, Food Allergy Mama, Kelly Rudnicki. Although, any chocolate shortbread recipe will work, such as the Martha Stewart recipe linked below. Use a couple of heart shaped cookie cutters, differing in size, to create the window where your raspberry jam can sneak a peak! 

Supplies

2 heart shaped cookie cutters, one twice as small as the other

raspberry jam (I prefer organic Cascadian Farm raspberry jam)

A delicious shortbread recipe:

http://www.foodallergymama.com

http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/chocolate-shortbread

The PURR-fect Valentine

My 8-year-old daughter loves CATS! Not the broadway musical, (although I’m sure if she knew about it, she would love that too), but the cute, little, cuddly, fuzzy cat images seen on notebooks, calendars, and stickers. Each year we try to come up with a festive, handmade Valentine card to pass out to her classmates. I’ve been tempted (and when pressed for time, caved) to crank out the pre-made, store-bought ones, but making Valentine’s by-hand gives us an opportunity to spend some time together with a rewarding, creative result. This year’s idea is inspired by my daughter’s cat-infatuation and is an easy, trifold assembly of circle and heart shapes made with craft punches and circle cutters. Craft punches provide an excellent chance for kids to build professional-looking projects, while improving fine motor skills and hand strength. I like Martha Stewart’s collection of craft punches the best and used her scalloped, 1” circle punch for the cat’s cheeks.

Supplies

8 1/2" x 11" light pink card stock

white, dark pink and black card stock

3 1/2 " circle cutter

1" scalloped circle punch

1 3/4 " heart punch

1/2 " heart punch

heart shaped hole punch

glue stick

metal ruler

X-acto knife

self healing cutting mat

scalloped scissors

Assembly

1. Using your metal ruler, X-acto knife and self healing cutting mat, trim 1" from the short side of the 8 1/2 " x 11" pink paper so the size becomes 8 1/2" x 10".

2. Fold card stock into itself, creating three, nearly equal sized panels (think business letter fold). Each 8 1/2" x 10" piece of card stock will yield two Valentines.

3. Place 3 1/2" circle cutter at the top of the folded pink card stock, 

holding securely, firmly cut a circle through three layers of card stock. 

Be sure the circle cutter extends beyond the folds to avoid cutting through them. 

4. Punch a 1 3/4" heart from the light pink and white card stock, glue back to back and cut in half. The half hearts will become the ears of the cat to be glued at the top of the inside of the trifold’s center circle.

5. Cut a 3 1/2" circle from the white card stock and glue to the back of the center pink circle on the trifold. Cut a 3 1/2" dark pink circle, trim with scalloped scissors and glue to the inside of the center circle, covering the bottom tabs of the ears. 

6. Using the 1" scalloped circle punch make 4 white circles and 2 light pink circles — these will be used for the cat’s cheeks.

7. Punch 6 dark pink 1/2" hearts for the tongues and noses, 

then 6 black, hole punch hearts for the eyes.

8. Flip card to the outside, paste pieces as shown in the image above.

9. Write message inside across three panels. Ideas include: 

“You’re purr-fect Valentine!”; “Have a purr-fect Valentine’s Day!”; and “Valentine, you’re purr-fect, just the way you are.”

© 2010 tricia barry biagi