How-to: Create a Simple Magnetized Container

The more we recycle, the more often I find myself looking at 'trash' with an eye to how it might be repurposed.  A used spice tin seemed to be full of possible uses but it sat tucked away at the back of the counter for a good long while before inspiration struck.

Inspiration came in the form of my fruitlessly searching for five minutes for a pen to jot a 'quick note', and realizing that I do this all the time.  I keep a magnetized notepad on the refrigerator, so it seemed like the obvious answer was to keep pens with it.  I considered and rejected attaching one to some sort of string, and then saw the dry mustard can.

I had some strong magnets on hand, and applied two of them with a small dab of Super Glue - trust me, for a container you want two because otherwise, as soon as you put anything into it, it will spin in a circle and empty the contents out onto the floor.


With these two magnets, it stays put and neither flips or slides down the refrigerator even when it is filled with small items.

While this could be covered with decorative paper or fabric, I quite like the cheery yellow label, and have my eye on a couple more spice tins that aren't empty yet.

If I didn't already have a notepad, I'd be happy keeping a stack of scratch paper in a tin for notes, and I also think this would be a nice container for frequently referred-to recipe cards.

Other than the drying time for the glue, putting this together took far less than the time it took to find my wayward pens to tuck into it, and I'm very pleased with the results!

***

 Have you checked out our current giveaways?  You can enter to win a lovely hand-crocheted beanie from Golden Hands Design until Monday, March 3rd, or a copy of the Let's Potty Boardgame that will help prepare your child for potty-training, until March 11!

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Giveaway: Golden Hands Design Crocheted Beanie

Happy Monday!  I don't know about you, but I have had just about enough of winter for this year! Between the slippery roads and snow-buried sidewalks and the wind (did I mention cold? And wind??), I have been feeling a bit beseiged.

Fortunately for me, I received a ridiculously cute and extremely warm hat a couple months ago from Golden Hands Designs and it has made all the difference for me!

Since I first reviewed it, I've been enjoying my lusciously warm elf hat all winter (it truly has seen me through a couple of polar vortexes and several hours sitting in the snow around a fire with friends).

So, it makes me very happy to announce that she's agreed to share one of her adorable unisex crocheted beanies with one of our lucky readers and we get to host the giveaway!

This slightly slouchy beanie is made in a soft stretchy acrylic called "Patchwork" - chock full of neutrals and soft colors that will take its new owner through the rest of winter and into the blustery days of spring to come.

Golden Hands Designs ships worldwide. The value of this beanie is $20.00 and a winner will be selected on Monday, March 3rd.  Good luck!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Gyro Mini Meatloaves and Roasted Broccoli

I love Mediterranean food! I could eat garlic, olives, feta, pita, hummus and wine for the rest of my life and be content. Probably not healthy. . . but content.

One of my favorite things to eat if we have the luxury of visiting a Greek restaurant are Gyros! I adore well-seasoned gyro meat on fresh pita with tsatsiki and cucumber. I'm drooling just thinking about it!

A few weeks ago I was looking for a way to spice up my cheesy mini meatloaf recipe. I dug through the fridge and discovered that I had feta and garlic stuffed olives and I began to formulate a plan. The result was this amazing recipe for meatloaf that tastes just like gyros! I hope you'll try it!

First, gather your ingredients. For the meat, I used one pound of lean ground beef and one pound of ground pork. You will also need seasoned bread crumbs, kalamata or garlic stuffed olives, feta cheese, oregano, milk, egg and plenty of extra garlic!

Take 1 cup of bread crumbs and place in a large bowl. To that add one cup of milk, 1 tsp oregano, 2-3 cloves of minced garlic and your egg.

Mix it all together!

Mmmmmm, looks like parritch. Plunk your meat on top of that mixture. . .

Followed by a generous cup of feta and about 1/2 cup of chopped olives (I've used kalamata and stuffed. We prefer the kalamata but you'll see green olives used in this case.)

Gently fold this all together. You don't want to over mix it or your loaves will be tough.

Divide the mixture into 6 equal portions and form into mini loaves. Place on a foil lined baking pan that has been oiled lightly. Place in a 425° preheated oven and set the timer for 25 minutes.

Wash up and prepare your broccoli. For this recipe I used 2 small heads of fresh broccoli.

Chop into florets and place in a large zip bag. In a small bowl, whisk together 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 2-3 cloves of minced garlic and 2 tbs grated parmesan cheese. Pour this mixture over the broccoli.

Seal the bag and shake the living daylights out of it. Your family will likely walk into the kitchen at this point and wonder what the heck you are doing, but HEY cooking is fun! Shake the broccoli out onto a foil lined and well oiled baking sheet.

When the meatloaves have about 12-15 minutes left, place the broccoli in the oven to roast. Shake pan to toss and redistribute the broccoli about 8 minutes in if you so desire.




All those lovely browned bits are crunchy and delicious! I could eat this whole pan on my own!

When your meatloaf timer goes off, check your loaves with an instant read thermometer. You'll want them to be a 140°. Allow them to rest for about 5 minutes before serving. We serve ours with the broccoli and a side of cous cous!

In hindsite, I recommend cooking these loaves elevated on a rack of some sort so that the drippings can fall through. The beef is very lean but the pork will leave off quite a bit of fat. You may skip the pork and just use 2 lbs of beef, however the pork is so tender and flavorful. I highly recommend keeping it in!

Cheers! I hope you enjoy my recipe! Please feel free to share, pin and reblog as you see fit. Just remember to link back to RCH.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please check out my personal blog My Slightly Silver Lining.

Thanks so much! Lauren

Gyro Mini Meatloaves

1 lb very lean ground beef
1 lb ground pork
1 egg
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1 cup milk
1 tsp oregano
3-4 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup chopped olives such as kalamata or garlic stuffed green olives
1 cup feta cheese crumbled

Preheat oven to 425°
In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, milk, oregano, garlic and egg. Add both meats, feta and olives. Gently combine. Form into six equal loaves. Prepare a baking sheet by lining with foil and spraying lightly with oil or cooking spray. Place loaves on baking sheet and bake in the oven for about 20-25 minutes.


Roasted Broccoli
2 small heads of broccoli, chopped into florets
2-3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tbsp grated parmesan
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
large zip bag

Place broccoli in zip bag. Wish together remaining ingredients in small bowl. Pour over broccoli, seal bag and shake until coated. Prepare a baking sheet by lining with foil and spraying liberally with olive oil. Spread broccoli onto baking sheet. Roast at 425° for about 12-15 minutes.

***
Have you checked out our giveaways?

Enter to win a months' free 3-meal box of homecooked Indian recipes and beautiful gifts from India from Tiffin Trove - ends on 2/24/14.

Then, check out this lovely hand crocheted beanie, being given away by Golden Hands Design - ends on 3/3/14.

Don't miss out!

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