Date Honey

We're starting the Daniel Fast in my household this week. I confess to being slightly addicted (my husband will say completely) to sweets, as you'll find out with the progression of this blog. The lack of sugar confections in my diet will be my greatest sacrifice for the next 3 weeks.

Since the use of sweeteners is not part of the Daniel Fast (even Stevia is out) I had to find out if there was anything I could use instead. There's nothing worse than bland oatmeal in my opinion. I did my research and found various mentions of dates as a source of natural sugar during the fast, and some people even making honey/spread from them. In my search I found this amazing blog called Ultimate Daniel Fast where there's a recipe for date honey as well as a good amount of Daniel fast recipes for those interested.

So without further ado, here's my recipe for Date Honey

Ingredients:

1. 10 onz package of pitted Dates (I got Medjool dates at the supermarket)
2. 3+1 cup water

Directions:

Place the dates in a medium saucepan and cover with water. In my case it took about 3 cups to cover them completely.

Cook on medium-low heat for 40-50 minutes. The water will evaporate and the dates will look very plump as shown in the picture below.

Place dates in a high power blender (I used my Magic Bullet since I don't have a Vitamix) and blend. If the mixture becomes too thick, add hot water as necessary. I ended up having to add about 1 cup of hot water since I worked in batches.

Place date honey in a glass jar and store in the refrigerator. The date honey can last  up to 3 weeks in the fridge. 

I hope this was helpful, even for those who are looking for a more natural sweetener and not necessarily following the Daniel Fast.

Springtime Wreath

Springtime Wreath

I had been meaning to make or buy something for my front door, to update the look from what we had during Valentine's to a Springtime or Easter decor. I was out shopping when I saw a wreath with Easter eggs all around and said to myself, "I can make something like this for half the price!" 

Thus the creation of this wreath happened.

Here's a list of the materials I used to create the wreath:

1. Glue gun and glue sticks
2. Ribbon- different colors gives it a unique look. I did use a wider ribbon for the main loop and bow.
3. Chipboard letters- I was really fortunate and found a SPRING door hanger at Target for a couple of dollars. I just disassembled it. I was able to save time painting the letters, but had to live with a couple of extra holes on some of the letters. 
4. A fake flower branch. Pretty much anything that's not really bulky and will help fill the gaps.
5. Small Easter eggs. I got mine for a dollar at the Dollar Store. They are foam, but plastic will work as well.
6. A bunny ornament or any other focus ornament. My bunny was on sale at Joann's.
7. Floral wire and shears.
8. Branch wreath. Using a foam wreath won't really work on this project.

I started by placing the bunny first on one of the sides of the wreath and securing it with a loop of floral wire.

I love the look of my burlap bunny

I then laid the wreath down and placed all the letters on top, making sure my spacing was right before using floral wire to secure each to my wreath.

                        

                    I added a branch because I wanted to see how the colors were working together

Once all the letters were secured, I started adding the eggs by gluing them unto the wreath. I left a significant gap on the top of the wreath for the ribbon loop. I did place a trio of eggs on either side to fill the space. I then filled some areas of the wreath with sporadic eggs, making sure I did not use the same patterned egg consecutively  Once all the eggs were placed, I moved unto the flower branches making sure I placed enough on the inside as well as the outside circumference of the wreath.

With the different types of ribbon I formed a couple of bows which I glued throughout the wreath, adding another splash of color to the finished product. For the loop, I simply cut a long enough piece of ribbon, looped it on the wreath and tied it together. Once the loop was complete, I moved the tied part to the back and with some hot glue secured the ribbon to the wreath. I finished the wreath by adding a finished bow to the front part of the loop.

I'm so happy with the finished product. In the end, with a couple of basic crafting tools, some creativity and springtime craft decorations I was able to create something pretty adorable for about 10 dollars.