SOMETHING TO CROW ABOUT, SEWING AND SALMON!!

Been busy as a little bumble bee lately, working on some Valentine crafts for my sweethearts. Up in my new "sewing room", that is located in the relatively wasted space of our loft. Which used to be a "workout" room, until the treadmill and eliptical bike went kaput. So I claimed the WHOLE space as my very own! Well, I should clarify--it's my space second, and the cats first. They LOVE getting cozy on the old sofas we moved up there:

                                  
                                   Kind of cute and cozy, no? If I were an old cat, I'd like it, too!

On the other side of the loft, I stuck a newly skirted old farm table, and a painted corner china cabinet that's been in my mom's family for ions:

I'm still getting organized--but I think this old urn is a fabulous place for scissors!:

I can't show you much more that I've been working on except for this little Valentine's ornament and a garland in progress--too many of my sweethearts check out my blog!:

Pretty soon I plan on teaching myself to quilt--and will probably have to upgrade my old sewing machine. These fabric swatches have me SO inspired!:

On days when I want to work upstairs until my fingers bleed, I need an easy supper that comes together, lickety split! This Panko Topped Mustard Salmon does the job nicely. You really only need a few items to prepare it: salmon fillets (I keep the skin on), coarse-grain mustard, REAL maple syrup (New York, preferably!), and some Japanese Panko breadcrumbs, which are optional. You can find Panko in the Asian food sections of most grocery stores:

Heat your oven to 450 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with tin foil, then rinse off your salmon fillets. Stir together the mustard and maple syrup until blended, then spoon evenly onto salmon. Then, top with Panko breadcrumbs (you can skip this step if you don't want your salmon breaded):

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Bake for 10 minutes. It's that easy, and sooo delicious--the maple syrup carmelizes on top of the fish. I served mine with some cous cous and steamed broccoli, and we had a nice little dinner in no time:

Here's the recipe!

PANKO CRUSTED MUSTARD SALMON

1 salmon fillet (usually 1 to 1/3 lb.), cut into serving size pieces

1/4 cup coarse-grain mustard

2 tblsp. pure maple syrup

Panko breadcrumbs

Heat oven to 450 degrees. You will need a rimmed baking sheet, lined with foil. Place salmon pieces 1 inch apart, skin side down, on baking sheet. Stir mustard and maple syrup in small bowl until blended; spoon evenly on salmon. Bake 10 minutes until salmon is opaque in center.

TOP 3 THINGS I'M GRATEFUL FOR TODAY:

1. I'm grateful that I'm feeling better--yesterday I felt like S%&T!!

2. I'm grateful that it's Friday and our "date night"--even though there aren't any good movies in our local theatre that we haven't already seen. So "Country Strong" it is!

3. I'm grateful for caffeine, because without it, I would accomplish nothing. Period.