Limonada

I have visited several places in Mexico, and whenever I order a lemonade, they bring me a refreshing, fizzy drink they call "limonada." For years I have tried to reproduce this delicious beverage, and I have finally figured it out! I hope you will enjoy it.

Ingredients:

• Fresh limes
• Simple syrup (heat equal parts of water and sugar in a pot over medium until sugar dissolves)
• Club soda

Directions for a 12 oz glass:

Add the juice of one lime to a glass. Add 3 1/2 Tbsp of simple syrup. Top off with club soda.

Directions for an 8 oz glass:

Add the juice of 1/2 a lime. Add 2 1/2 Tbsp of simple syrup. Top off with club soda. 

© Kaylan Dykema. All rights reserved.

My Latest Splurge

I recently ordered some new goodies from my favorite online knitting store, KnitPicks.com. While browsing their website, I found a rose gold DPN case, a knitters journal, a book of knitting patterns (100 Knits: Interweave's Ultimate Pattern Collection), and some yarn for a future project. 

I am so excited about the knitting journal - I stumbled across it by accident. I have been thinking it would be fun to keep track of all of my knitting projects in a journal type thing, but I didn't realize it already existed! There is space to document the specifics of the knitting pattern, who the project was knitted for, and sketch the completed item - or glue in a picture 😉, etc. 

I'm also excited about the yarn! It was a bit of an indulgence. 😁 The yarn is Andean Treasure, 100% baby alpaca yarn, and it is wonderfully soft. I'm planning to use it to knit the Dahlia Cardigan by Heather Zoppetti. It's a really interesting pattern. The front has a nice drape to it, and the back has a beautiful lace flower. My mother-in-law made it for herself, and it is truly lovely. I'm looking forward to getting started on it myself.

The rose gold DPN case is going to be such a lifesaver. I'm still working on figuring out how to store all of my knitting tools in an orderly way, and this is going to help. I have a bag with lots of pockets that I'm using right now, and all of my DPNs are in their original packaging and shoved into a pocket. It is not easy to find things quickly. Once I put my DPNs in this new case, I will be able to open it up like a book and look at all of the different sized needles I have. Yay! 

I have only leafed through the book of knitting patterns, and I'm hoping to give it a more thorough look soon. It looks like it's going to provide me with many years of inspiration for future knitting projects. 😂

Happy knitting!

Comment Settings Updated

I have received some feedback from readers that they are not able to leave comments on my posts. I have updated the settings for comments, so anyone should be able to leave a comment now. I will be reviewing all comments first before they appear on my blog.

Thank you, and happy reading! :-)

Quick Knits for Holiday Gifting

This year I decided to make some knit gifts for friends and family that were a little different from the usual pair of mittens, hat, or cowl that are commonly thought of. Below are some of the unique gifts I made this year. I found these patterns for free at Knitpicks.com.

A Very Danger Christmas Collection by Rebecca Danger

Penguin Ornament by Emily Kintigh

Daisy Lace Dishcloth by Jenny Williams

Spaghetti with Fresh Herbs

This year I planted my first herb garden. It has been wonderful to just walk outside and grab whatever herbs I'd like to use in the dish I'm preparing. In the past, I have tried to purchase fresh herbs from the grocery store (when I have planned meals far enough in advance to do this), but it's not the same as using fresh herbs from your own garden.

Recently I made a batch of spaghetti sauce. I used all of the Italian herbs I'm growing - parsley, rosemary, thyme, basil, and oregano. It was the best spaghetti sauce I have ever made!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of ground beef
• 1 white onion, chopped
• 1 lb of cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 2 - 28 oz cans of Hunts Pasta Sauce: Traditional
• Fresh parsley, chopped
• Fresh rosemary, chopped
• Fresh thyme, chopped
• Fresh basil, chopped
• Fresh oregano, chopped
• Salt
• Pepper
• Parmesan cheese
• 1 lb of spaghetti, cooked al dente

Directions:

Brown the ground beef in a dutch oven over medium. Add chopped onion, and cook until translucent. Add sliced mushrooms, pasta sauce, herbs, salt and pepper, and parmesan cheese to taste. Simmer for 15 minutes. While the sauce is simmering, prepare the spaghetti noodles according to the directions on the box. Drain the noodles and plate them. Spoon spaghetti sauce over the noodles. Garnish with more parmesan cheese. Enjoy!

© Kaylan Dykema. All rights reserved.

Bobbled Knit Hat

By: Kaylan Dykema

Buy a pdf download of this pattern.

Finished Measurements

15” finished circumference, and 5.5” high. Fits an infant 12-18 months.

Yarn

Red Heart (100% Acrylic; 364 yards/198g), 1 ball. 

Needles

US 6 (4mm) 16” circular needles plus DPNs, or size to obtain gauge. 

Notions

Yarn Needle
Stitch Marker

Gauge

17 sts and 30 rounds = 4” in stranded St st, blocked.

Notes

This hat is worked in the round from the bottom up. 

Bobble Stitch: Purl stitch, knit same stitch, repeat one more, then purl into the same stitch. Increased by 5 stitches. Slip first 4 increased stitches back over 5th stitch to create a bobble.

Pattern instructions

CO 72 stitches and join in the round. *K1, P1. Repeat from * for 5 rounds. Round 6, work in St stitch for 3 rounds. Round 9, bobble round. K5, *make bobble, K5. Repeat from * until end of round. Rounds 10-14, work in St stitch. Repeat rounds 9-14, 4 times, then work rounds 10-14 one more time. Switch to DPNs as needed. Decrease round, *K4, k2tog. Repeat from * to end of round. Next round, work in St stitch. Decrease round, *K3, k2tog. Repeat from * to end of round. Next round, work in St stitch. Decrease round, *K2, k2tog. Repeat from * to end of round. Next round, work in St stitch. Decrease round, *K1, k2tog. Repeat from * to end of round. Next round, work in St stitch. Decrease round, *K2tog. Repeat from * to end of round. Break yarn, and thread tail onto a yarn needle. Draw tail through remaining stitches and pull tight. Secure on WS. Weave in ends.   

Abbreviations

CO: Cast on

DPNs: Double pointed needles

K: Knit

K2tog: Knit 2 stitches together, decreased by 1

P: Purl

WS: Wrong side

Copyright Kaylan Dykema. All rights reserved. For personal and non-commercial use only.

Knitting Project - Grand Army Plaza Shawl

The Grand Army Plaza Shawl was such a fun, and sad knitting project. About halfway through knitting this pattern, I discovered I had dropped several stitches! 😥 This was the first time I used lace-weight yarn to knit a lace pattern, and I just didn't know how to fix my mistakes. So, I unraveled all the work I did. I sat and looked at my ball of yarn contemplating wether I would start the project again, and I decided I would. It was such a pretty shawl - I really wanted to use the yarn I had for that project. So, I casted stitches back onto my needle.

I am so happy that I decided to try again! I completed my shawl, and it turned out beautifully. I wear my new accessory with pride. 💞

Grand Army Plaza Shawl by Melissa Wehrle, published in Interweave Knits Presents - Classic Knit Shawls