Hi there, well another month has rolled around and with September upon us comes the gentle slide (or is it a march) toward Christmas. Not that one should wish the year away by any means as there is still far to much to accomplish!

However, all good festive sewing projects do require a little advance planning if one is going to avoid late night machine maneouvers during the week before Christmas. It is a good thing that we have plenty of patterns, fabrics, and inspiration available for items that you can make to decorate your home or give as gifts.

We have just received these fun Mickey Mouse and Snoopy fabrics. These would look super cool as summer pyjamas for the little people in your life (or the bigger people who are serious Mickey Mouse fans!)

Dr Suess is back with the Grinch making an appearance in the form of this fun Christmas Advent Calendar ($29.00). This is a good way to get the kids involved sewing on some buttons and sticking on some glitter and sparkles to bling up the advent calendar. If you don’t want to quilt it, you could always trim it up and pin it onto a piece of cork board. The decorations can be made quite simply by cutting out the shapes, vliesofixing them onto felt front and back, and placing a little gold safety pin at the top of each one so that you can add them to the tree as you count off the days in December. Learning to count is an added bonus!

Another great deal are the 8” Fiskars scissors which are just $20.00 per pair. Fiskars are one of my favourite brands, as the scissors are designed to fit your hand with long lasting sharpness. They can be re-sharpened (yes, we do this here at Annie’s CQS) and they are designed to last! Check these out on the website.

By the way, the winner of the $50.00 voucher from Annie’s for August is Karen Elder from Christchurch. Congratulations Karen, your voucher is here waiting for you!

If you are out and about there are a couple of events coming up that are well worth checking out. “Embroidery Matters” is on at the Christchurch Art Centre from 14-18 September. Check out the Christchurch Embroiderer’s Guild Facebook page for more details.

If you are up in the Nelson area, the Waimea Quilters are having their Quilt Show 24-25 September in the Wakefield Hall, and as usual I am sure there will be lots of beautiful work on display to inspire.

Now, onto the recipe.

Chicken and Leek Pie

• 2 c chicken stock
• 600 g chicken breast fillets
• 1 large leek thinly sliced
• 2 stalks celery, finely chopped
• 2 tbsp flour
• 2 tsp fresh thyme
• ½ c milk
• 1 c cream
• 2 tsp wholegrain mustard
• Ready rolled pastry
• 1 egg (to glaze)

Bring stock to the boil in a medium saucepan and add the chicken breasts. Simmer for about 10 minutes until the chicken is cooked. Remove from the heat and leave to stand for a further 10 minutes. Remove the chicken from the liquid and roughly chop. Save 1/3 cup of the stock and then set the rest aside to use as the base for a soup or risotto.

Heat 1 tbsp oil and 40 g butter in a pan and cook the leek and celery until it softens. Add in the flour and thyme. Gradually stir in the reserved poaching liquid milk and cream. Cook until the mixture boils and thickens. Stir in the chicken and mustard. Season to taste. Transfer the mixture in a large oven proof dish or several ramakins and let cool while you prepare the pastry. Place a pastry lid on the top of each pie, trim to size and glaze with the beaten egg or a little milk. Bake at 200C for 15-20 minutes or until the pastry is cooked and golden.

Happy stitching,

Rachel

Annie’s CQS