Dana Marie's Country Living Blog

Look what I did! One has ham filling, the other has chicken filling. I made them up as I went. Oh so good! When it comes out of the oven, it only has to cool for five minutes, then dig in! Serve with a nice salad, and you've got a wonderful meal. ~ Dana  Ham and Potato Bake Ingredients 2 cups cubed potatoes olive oil as needed for sautéeing 1 cup chopped tricolor or regular carrots 2 cups sliced mushrooms 1 leek sliced thinly 2 cups cubed ham 3 tablespoons butter 3-4 tablespoons flour 1/2 cup whole milk 1/2 cup chicken broth 4 slices white American cheese     or any good white melting cheese spices to taste:     garlic powder     onion powder     salt & pepper 1 sheet puff pastry 1 egg for egg wash Cooking the ham & potato filling  Instructions 1 . Start by preparing the vegetables. In a hot skillet with olive oil, sauté the cubed potatoes and carrots until they have a nice brown color on all sides. Turn the heat down to medium o...

One of my best tricks at Halloween is to make spider cookies. They're peanut butter cookies with little peanut butter cups on top. Here's how I do it - Halloween Spider Cookies Step 1 . Bake a batch of peanut butter cookies using your favorite recipe. Step 2 . While the cookies are still warm, put a small peanut butter cup on top of each one and let cool. Step 3 . Melt some chocolate chips, and using a piping bag or a plastic sandwich bag with a hole cut in the corner, draw some legs coming from each peanut butter cup. Step 4 . Pipe two dots onto each peanut butter cup and apply sugar eyes. You can find them in the baking section of your local store. And here's my favorite peanut butter cookie recipe from my newest cookbook, Vintage Cookie Recipes , available on Amazon® . Have a yummy, creepy Halloween! ~ Dana   Peanut Butter Cookies Ingredients 1/2 cup salted butter, softened 1/2 cup peanut butter 1/2 cup granulated white sugar 1/2 cup brown sugar 1 egg 1 teaspoon vanilla ...

Here are some fun Halloween candles I worked on this weekend. I used little plastic bones and glass bowls I found at the dollar store. They turned out super duper cute! When you're burning your new candle, as the wax starts melting, the bones float around a little, adding to the creepy effect. It's fun to do unique projects like this. You can make things that no one else has but you!  Happy Haunting! ~ Dana   Halloween Skeleton Candle Supplies candle wax a glass bowl 20 drops essential oil made for candles 3 pre-made candle wicks small decorative plastic bones coffee grounds image for the sign cardboard Mod Podge® hot glue gun double boiler Instructions 1 . Melt the candle wax in a double boiler. You can use whatever brand you like. I like organic soy wax because it burns nice and clean. Add the essential oil and remove from heat. 2 . Pour the wax into a glass bowl. Add the candle wicks right away. Be sure to use wicks made for candle-making. You may need something to support ...

Look how cute my latest project turned out! Little trick or treat pails made from cans. I made them out of my dogs' food cans, some paint, some cinnamon to make them look rusted and old, Mod Podge® and some printables I found on the Internet. Super cute fun project!! ~ Dana Little Trick-or-Treat Pails Supplies used tin cans acrylic paint ground cinnamon, etc. vintage labels Mod Podge® raffia tissue paper candy vintage tags Instructions 1 . First, remove the original labels from the cans and wash them thoroughly. Dog food cans are a nice size, but you can use whatever size you have. I run mine through the dishwasher.  2 . When the cans are clean and dry, paint them with whatever color you want and let dry. Usually they will need 2-3 coats of paint. 3 . Select some vintage images for your labels.  You can find them on Pinterest® by searching for "vintage Halloween printables" or "vintage Halloween labels." And you can buy them on Etsy here . For dog food-sized can...

I made the most yummy simple biscuits the other night. They're great as a side dish at dinner or for a delicious snack. These are semi-homemade, because you start with a couple cans of refrigerator biscuits. I used Pillsbury®, but any brand will work. Enjoy! ~Dana Garlic & Cheese Pull-Apart Biscuits Ingredients 2 cans refrigerator biscuits 1/2 cup salted butter 1 tablespoon chopped parsley chopped fresh chives, to taste garlic powder, to taste garlic salt, to taste ground pepper, to taste 7 ounces gouda or mozzarella cheese Instructions 1 . Using kitchen shears, cut the opened biscuits into pieces, about 3/4 inch. Place them in a large bowl. Biscuit pieces and herbed butter 2 . Next, melt the butter. I used my homemade garlic-chive butter - the recipe is here on the blog if you would like to make it. Otherwise, you can use regular butter and add the parsley, chives, garlic powder, garlic salt and ground pepper. As for how much to add, just season to your taste. Melted butter w...