Scraps to Turn a Square

I had lots and lots of small clementine sized balls of yarn left over from my granny square project.  They were piling up everywhere.  It is a perfect scrap busting project.

So I turned to one of my favorite hat patterns of all time -- Turn A Square.  I followed the pattern -- except that I did not do the increase after the starting rib section.  I love how it turned out.  

I used two balls of yarn at a time -- changing after three or four rows -- and joining new yarn with the Russian Join.  

Inspired by Inspira!

It has been a seriously long time time since I finished a knitting project.  But when I saw the Inspira cowl on Ravelry -- I was inspired.

It is a very quick and addictive knit and a good introduction to stranded knitting.  I also love that with my coupons from Joann's -- this project probably comes in under $10.00.  I also find my model adorable.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

What do you do on a rainy day when you have a surplus of zucchini, a sweet tooth and a kid home from school on the couch?  Well you make cake -- of course!

I used with this recipe from allrecipes -- but made a couple of changes.  I subbed applesauce for the butter and low fat sour cream for the sour milk.  And it omitted the cloves.

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 3/4 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup sour cream -- low fat
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 1/2 cups grated zucchini
• handful ground walnuts
• handful semisweet chocolate chips