Veggie Burgergers

I got this Veggie Burger recipe from Vegetarian Times a couple years back; they called them "Hot Tamale" Burgers. The base of this veggie burger is brown rice, so eating them on a bun is kind of overkill. I eat mine like a lettuce wrap with Bibb lettuce and avocado on top.

Here's the recipe:

• 1 cup short-grain brown rice
• 1 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
• 1 medium onion, finely chopped (about 1 1/4 cup)
• 1 small red pepper, finely chopped (I also add 1 green pepper)
• 3/4 cup fresh corn kernels (I use frozen white corn)
• 1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, plus 2 tsp. sauce (I just use 2 jalapenos, chopped, seeds included)
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1/3 cup instant masa harina or yellow cornmeal (I use cornmeal)
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• 1 1/2 tbs. fresh lime juice
• 3/4 tsp. lime zest

1. Bring rice and three cups of water to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer 40 minutes or until water is absorbed and rice is tender.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, peppers, corn, jalapenos, garlic, cumin and salt. Saute 2 minutes, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring once or twice. Whisk 1/2 cup of water with cornmeal in a bowl. Add to skillet mixture, cover and cook on low 10 minutes more, stirring once or twice (mixture will feel thick).
3. Remove from heat and stir in hot rice, cilantro, lime juice and zest. Cool 20 minutes. Wet hands and shape mixture into burgers. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
4. Brush burgers with olive oil and cook on the grill or in the broiler. Cook 5-7 minutes on each side or until browned.

Here are the uncooked burgers brushed with olive oil. I've also found that you can use olive oil cooking spray on each side.

Here is finished product made into a lettuce wrap with bibb letuce and topped with avocado:

Stenciled Pillows

This is a project I did in April that I'm just getting around to posting. I wanted to make another pillow after my pillow making class this past January and I had also been meaning to use the stencils Rick bought for me over a year ago. I decided to kill two birds with one stone and make a stenciled pillow.

The stenciling part was really easy. After cutting the fabric to the desired pillow size and ironing it, I used painter's tape to hold the stencil in place in the center of my fabric:

Then I used stencil sponge brushes and fabric paint (purchased at JoAnn Fabrics) and gently blotted the paint onto the fabric. I used a hair dryer to dry the paint after each of the two coats:

After the paint was completely dry, I carefully pulled the stencil off of the fabric. Then it was time to start making the pillow. Well, first I had to relearn how to use my sewing machine and then I started making the pillow :) I'm not very handy with a sewing machine, but I'm slowly learning. Making the first pillow was really frustrating however, by the time I starting making the next one, it was a piece of cake! I am proud to say that both pillows have zippers on them :) When I get around to it, I'd like to make a couple more in different sizes with different fabric.

I think the pillows turned out really cute: