This craft is perfect for a back to school accessory or if your new years resolution is to read more!
• Thick/Sturdy Paper (e.g. cardstock, paint chips or scrapbook paper)
1. First, create the confetti! Take several sheets of tissue paper and/or colored paper and fold them together. Now use your hole puncher to create confetti.
2. Next, we need to create the bookmark border. Cut out a bookmark template from a plain sheet of paper.
3. Use the stencil that you have made to make an outline on your sturdy paper and cut out the bookmark.
4. Carefully cut out two pieces of clear contact paper, making the second sheet slightly larger than your first.
5. Peel off the backing of the contact paper and tape the smaller sheet (sticky side up) onto your work surface.
6. Now line your border up and stick on your bookmark border.
7. Choose your confetti and/or sequins and sprinkle onto the sticky surface.
8. Peel off the backing from your second sheet of contact paper and carefully stick it to your first.
9. Finish cutting out your bookmarks to give them a neat finish by trimming off any excess paper.
To add a swantastic personal touch, Odette cut out shapes and drawings and positioned them in the card before adding some sparkly confetti. She drew a Swan and then some smaller images of Speed, Puffin and JeanBob and then cut them out. After positioning them (face down) on the) contact paper, she sprinkled over the confetti and sparkle before adding the final layers so that her images had a beautiful background!
Salted Caramel Shortbread
This is perfect for anyone with a sweet tooth! JeanBob loves it when Frederick makes anything with chocolate and caramel and has been known to steal a few ingredients from the kitchen - as well as an extra serving of the final product!
Ingredients:
For the shortbread:
• 150g golden caster sugar
• 300g butter
• 100g rice flour
• 350g plain flour
• 150g dark chocolate, chopped
• Salt flakes, to decorate
For the caramel:
• Salt flakes
• 100g golden caster sugar
Method:
1. Start by making the caramel. Carefully heat the sugar in an even layer in a frying pan until it melts and begins to bubble to a golden brown color (Swirl the pan occasionally if you need to keep the melting even).
2. Now add a good sized pinch of salt flakes and carefully pour the caramel onto an oiled baking sheet that is set on a wooden board.
3. Allow the caramel to cool before breaking into chips with a rolling pin.
4. In a bowl, mix the butter and sugar together with an electric whisk or food processor until a smooth paste forms.
5. Add all of the flours and a pinch of salt to the butter paste and combine to form a dough.
6. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured board and pat it out gently.
7. Sprinkle the caramel chips over the dough.
8. Fold the dough in half and transfer to a 20 × 30cm (or approx size) tin and push into an even layer.
9. Cover the dough and allow to chill for 30 minutes.
10. Pre-heat the oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4.
11. Bake the shortbread for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and cooked through.
12. Allow the shortbread to cool in the tin for 5 minutes.
13. Use a knife to mark into fingers before allowing to cool completely.
14. Once cooled, cut along the marked lines into pieces.
15. Next, heat the chocolate in a bowl set over a pan of water (make sure the bowl isn't touching the water) until it starts to melts. Stir the chocolate until smooth then take it off the heat.
16. Lay the shortbreads next to each other, leaving a tiny gap inbetween each one on a cooling rack.
17. Spoon over the chocolate randomly in strips.
18. Immediately sprinkle the shortbread with some salt flakes (while the chocolate is still wet).
19. Allow the chocolate to set before serving.
Haggis Neeps and Tatties Dauphinoise
January 25th is Burns Night, a day celebrated primarily in Scotland to commemorate the birthday of Robert "Rabbie" Burns, the Scottish poet and lyricist. Many of you may be familiar with "Auld Lang Syne", which is traditionally used to bring in a New Year.
This Scottish recipe is a brilliant winter warmer and a great way to celebrate Burns Night in a delicious way!
Ingredients:
300ml Single Cream
450g Haggis
500g Neeps (Turnips/Swede)
750g Tatties (Potatoes)
Method:
1. Preheat your oven to 200C.
2. Wash your potatoes then slice them thinly.
3. Next, thinly slice your neep (thinner than the potatoes, approx. 1.5mm).
4. Skin before roughly chopping the haggis.
5. Take 1/3 of the potato slices and make a layer in a large shallow ovenproof dish.
6. Season the potato layer well with salt.
7. Top the potato layer with 1/3 of the neep and 1/2 the haggis, randomly arranging both ingredients to form one layer.
8. Pour 100ml of cream over the layers.
9. Repeat the layering process with the same quantities as before.
10. Finish with the remaining 1/3 potatoes, 1/3 neep and 100ml cream.
11. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes.
12. Cover the dish with foil and return to the oven to cook for a further 30 minutes.
Chef Frederick's Tip:
If you would prefer the dish to be creamier, you can easily do this by increasing the quantity of single cream to 500ml
This month we are celebrating the birthday of Lord Rogers! He has a zodiac sign of a Capricorn and the garnet as his birthstone.
Capricorns are known for being responsible, disciplined, and excellent managers of both themselves and others. They have good self control and make wonderful leaders. They also tend to have a bit of a know-it-all attitude that can make them condescending and sarcastic.
Capricorns like family, tradition, and quality in both people and innovations. Capricorns dislike, well, everything at some point. But that is what makes a compliment from a Capricorn so sincere!
The garnet is a stone that represents and attracts prosperity and abundance. Its beautiful deep red color is a powerful stone that can bring good luck in a new job or in reaching your goals.
We think this sounds exactly like Lord Rogers!
Is your birthday in January or do you just like the color red? You can purchase your
garnet gemstone locket here
About The Swan Princess
The Swan Princess is based upon the folk tale and ballet, Swan Lake. The story is transformed into a playfully fun adventure with exciting music, lovable forest friends, and of course, the handsome Prince Derek. The Swan Princess, Odette, has stayed true to the original fairy tale princess with her kindness, grace, and loyalty.
Three reasons you should follow us on social media 1) Get a behind-the-scenes look as Princess Odette and Prince Derek continue their adventures 2) Be one of the first to be notified when new products are released and 3) Share your Swan Princess stories and tales with other super fans.
1 comment
Happy new Year Odette