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Gina DiMartino

~ finding beauty in pain

Gina DiMartino

Monthly Archives: June 2012

mary & steve’s tango

24 Sunday Jun 2012

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I’m up to my ears in weddings!

A wise woman once said “Those who can’t wed, plan”…well J Lo said that and i guess she’s not wise and haha ok, terrible quote, but that’s what I feel like is happening this summer! Weddings galore! Yay! Between sewing, painting, baking, painting, cookie making, crafting, cutting, pinning, gluing, … yeah…weddings.

Here are some photos of the 7 clutches and napkin holders I made for my friend Valissa’s wedding. It was a beautiful night and I was glad to be a part of it. I’m headed to North Carolina next for my sister’s wedding! So excited!

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periphery

20 Wednesday Jun 2012

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I can’t even put into words all that these past few weeks have been. My life has been a crazy conglomeration of weddings, working, not sleeping enough, crying, stressing, exercising, reading, and being completely unsure how to get a bajillion things done in a small amount of time.

I did a ton of wedding stuff, almost quit my job. Got in a fight with my boss. Ended up having to have a confrontational meeting with someone I work with. More wedding stuff. My grandpa got sick, so everyone was stressed about that. 600 cookies to make…(weddings)…lost 16 pounds, (yes 16) conflict with another person, had to have a confrontation with them also…I am TIRED!

If you know me at all you know how much I hate confrontation. Hate. Avoid. Do not do. At first I wanted to refuse. Cancel, not show up. Seriously, confrontation gives me anxiety. I think my stomach has been upset 6 out of the last 8 days.

But Hebrews has been kicking my butt this week. So much stuff about enduring discipline, keeping the faith even if you don’t see the promises fulfilled, and one verse popped out at me whilst reading yesterday: Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy, without holiness no one will see the Lord. Hebrews 12:14

I had no desire to repair the relationships or show love to these people. I just wanted to walk away and never see or talk to them again. But I knew that was wrong. I knew I had to “make every effort to live in peace”…ugh!

Two confrontations later, I’m still alive. I stood up for myself, remained kind and professional, and with so much help from my Savior, patched things up the best I could. But it doesn’t stop there. The next verses gripped me and pulled me along. Because in confrontation it is SO easy to become bitter, resentful, unforgiving. I know when people wrong me or are mean to me, the farthest thing from my mind is kindness and forgiveness.

But yes, back to Hebrews: See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. Hebrews 12:1 No bitter root… Ah how quickly I am to become bitter. Why does it have to be SO hard? When people act wrongly towards me, I first of all internalize everything and don’t tell them how they are making me feel. But then, I let it fester inside of me and I become so bitter. And so hurt. I think these verses are some of the hardest for me to live out. Ok I can live at peace with people, but that bitter root…this will be something I need to work at.

Every. Single. Day.

So yeah, I haven’t posted a real post in forever, and this is a mash-up of what’s been going on. Things are a little crazy but they are winding down. In 5 days I hop in a rental car and drive down to North Carolina to spend 2 amazing weeks with my beautiful sis before she gets married! SO EXCITED. I’ll definitely be putting up pics of stuff I have made for all these weddings, just some things are surprises so I can’t talk about them yet!

raspberry ricotta mousse

11 Monday Jun 2012

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I made this mousse for Kim’s shower. It was a HUGE hit. Everyone came back for seconds, maybe thirds, uhm…and yes fourths. It is so light and creamy and fresh and delicious. Not healthy at all, but definitely worth it!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ingredients

1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese (drained overnight. I wrapped it in cheesecloth and put in a strainer in the fridge)
1/2 cup raspberry jam
1 cup whipping cream
3 tablespoons powdered sugar
1 cup fresh raspberries

Directions

In a food processor, blend the ricotta cheese until light and fluffy, about 20 seconds. Add the jam and pulse until combined. Transfer to a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, using an electric hand mixer, beat the cream until thick. Add the powdered sugar and continue to beat until the cream holds stiff peaks. Make sure they are stiff! Working in batches, carefully fold the cream mixture into the ricotta mixture. Spoon the mousse into serving bowls and refrigerate for 1 hour. Garnish with fresh raspberries and serve.

chicken satay with spicy peanut Thai sauce

09 Saturday Jun 2012

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chicken satay, spicy peanut Thai sauce

This is a dish I first served for my sister’s bridal shower, but I can tell you it will definitely be made repeatedly. It is SO good. The spicy peanut sauce is really what makes it.

Chicken

4 chicken breasts cut into 1″ strips
Goya Mojo marinade (this is located in the international section at Wegmans)
2 limes cut in half and juiced
2″ of ginger root cut in thin slices

Cut chicken and place in a bowl. Cover with the marinade, add the limes, lime juice, and ginger root. Marinade 2 hours-overnight. Put chicken on skewers and grill. About 3 minutes on each side.

Spicy Peanut Sauce

3 tablespoons reduced-fat smooth peanut butter
1/4 cup light coconut milk
2 teaspoons fish sauce
1 to 2 teaspoons chili-garlic sauce
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon agave nectar

Combine all ingredients in a bowl with 1 tablespoon water; whisk until smooth.

Dip grilled chicken in peanut sauce and enjoy!

“Up” themed bridal shower

08 Friday Jun 2012

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bridal shower, up

My sister’s bridal shower was a great success. The food was AMAZING (thanks to everyone who helped), the decorations were so fun, and the company was a blessing! We had such a good time.

I decided to throw the shower with an Up theme. I love the movie Up, it has such a beautiful love story and it is so colorful and fun and I thought it would make a lovely theme for a bridal shower. I am happy to say it was a great success. I painted an old doll house to replicate the house from the movie. We attached helium balloons to the roof. (My mom thought we were really trying to make it float!)

The menu consisted of bruschetta, chicken satay with spicy peanut Thai sauce, cucumber boats, popcorn, raspberry ricotta mousse, vanilla almond cupcakes, watermelon hearts, and old-fashioned sodas. I’ll post some recipes next! Everything was a huge hit and we all ate, talked, laughed, and then ate some more.

Here are a few select pictures from the shower. All taken by my good friend Rebecca. She is an amazing photographer! There are also additional pictures on my Facebook page. Several people have recommended that I go into the party planning business. I don’t know if that’s really something I want to pursue, but I certainly had fun planning this! If you want a custom made mailbox like the one in the photos, hop on over to my etsy page and shoot me a message! I’d love to make you one! If you want to make your own, here’s a similar mailbox!

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All photographs courtesy of my dear friend Rebecca at Ondrey Photography

homemade ginger ale

06 Wednesday Jun 2012

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There is a restaurant in Chicago called Big Bowl. I went there with my sister, Allie, and this wonderful older woman named Suzanne. My sister used to work for her and she was just fabulous. Ok, so Big Bowl is a great thai/chinese restaurant and I have no idea what I ate there, but they had homemade ginger ale and it was simply to die for. Whenever I go back, even if we aren’t eating there, I walk in and order ginger ale to go from the bar. (I’m sure no one else ever does that!) It is fresh and not too sweet and super gingery. Delicious! I’ve never had anything like it. Until the other day. I was visiting my brother at his new bar, The Next Door Bar & Grill, and he handed me a drink and didn’t tell me what it was. Ginger ale. Homemade. DELICIOUS! Just like Big Bowl. So Good! So of course I freaked out, drank it so fast, asked him how he made it, demanded the recipe, and decided to make it right away.

Its super easy, an I’m still tweaking the recipe. My brother really helped me with it so he might have some more input, but here’s what I’ve got so far.

Ginger Simple Syrup

1 C sugar
1 C water
1 large fresh ginger root (about 2 C rough chopped)
a few cloves
small cinnamon stick
pinch of cardamom

Put all ingredients into a saucepan and simmer for about 1 hour. Stir occasionally. Store in a jar or airtight container.

Ginger Ale

1 small can club soda
4 T ginger simple syrup
6 ice cubes
tall glass

In a large glass combine soda, ginger simple syrup, and ice. Stir. Enjoy! You can add a few fresh mint or basil leaves if you like a tad of savoriness.

feta black bean dip

06 Wednesday Jun 2012

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black beans, corn, feta cheese

This is one of my favorite summer-time dips. My sister introduced me to it a few years ago and its her fault I’m addicted! Believe me, once you try it, you will not be able to stop eating/making/thinking about it!

Feta Black Bean Dip
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup oil oil
1 (15 oz) can of black beans, drained and rinsed
1 (15 oz) can of Shoepeg corn, drained and rinsed  (I couldn’t find Shoepeg so I just used regular, white corn)
1 bunch of scallions, chopped (I skip these because we don’t love them)
1 bunch of cilantro, chopped
1 (8 oz) block of feta cheese, crumbled

Whisk sugar, vinegar and oil in a large bowl.  Add the black beans, corn, scallions, cilantro, and feta and mix well.

Chill until serving time.  Serve with tortilla chips or corn chips. There will be some extra liquid at the bottom of the bowl so I usually drain it before serving, but if you do that its best to make it the day before and let it soak in all the flavor and goodness!

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This recipe can also be viewed on my recipe page

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