DIY Life

We love making homemade pizza at my house. We do it up right: homemade crust in the bread machine (easy!), gourmet toppings, and if weather permits, we cook it on the grill.

For three of us, though, we make two huge pizzas, which means a lot of leftovers. We haven't yet found the ideal way to reheat it, although about 350 degrees in a toaster oven until the cheese begins to bubble is pretty close. My only complaint is that there's sometimes still a cold spot, even when the crust is beginning to overcook.

What to do? The Chicago Pizza Club has some answers on the best way to reheat pizza.

If you've got kids, you know what a hit anything bite-sized is. My son is such a fool for anything tiny, I sometimes think he would eat liver and onions if I could make it bite-sized. (Lucky for him, I'm not that mean!) These bite-sized cupcakes on a stick are sure to be a new favorite for the kids (and adults) in your life.

The cupcakes aren't baked in a mini-cupcake pan like you might expect. Instead, the cake is baked in a 13X9 pan and then crumbled and formed into balls with either frosting or cream cheese. In addition to increasing the yum factor, this step probably makes the cakes more stable on the stick.

Part of the ball is then cut away with a mini-cookie cutter to form the base of the cupcake. The the bottom is dipped in chocolate and the top is dipped in a melted white chocolate or colored candy melts. Bakerella has instructions with photos and a video clip.

Be sure to check out all the fun varieties, then put your thinking cap on and come up with your own decorating ideas -- the sky is the limit!

[via CraftyStylish]

Nothing says Happy Father's Day like a new tie, right? You can surprise the special dad in your life by presenting him with an artistically created necktie cake. A skinny necktie cake is a lot more fun to bake, frost, and embellish than shopping for the perfect tie. Everyone will enjoy this necktie -- with a little dip of ice cream -- and there will be no sense of disappointment from Dad.

MailJust4me provides simple Father's Day projects, including directions for making a necktie cake. I took liberties with their pan recommendations and used two 9 x4 bread pans. When thinking of a design, I checked out some Armani ties to see what's new.

What you need:

• 2 9x4 baked cakes or 1 large rectangular cake cut lengthwise in half
• white frosting
• food coloring
• ziplock bag
• scissors
• M & M's or other candy
• Large tray or platter to hold finished cake

Check out the gallery to see how my cake turned out, then follow me through the break for the decorating instructions.

Although foam-stuffed felt gingerbread houses have their allure, nothing compares to a real, edible gingerbread house. Who cares if it's ephemeral, or if it's a potential target for pets and pests? It's all about the prettiness. And the wonderful smell. And the sugar. (Mmm, sugar.)

You could just buy a kit... and maybe, if it's your first time, that's what you want to do. But if it isn't, you will probably appreciate Gingerbread Lane (a.k.a. Ginger Lane Kitchens), a site with lots of ideas and advice for budding cookie house architects. Everything you need to know to be a successful builder is right there.

You'll find gingerbread and icing recipes, suggestions for which decorative candies to use, a pattern for a "beginner's" basic 8"x8"x12" house, construction and preservation tips, a gallery of creations by the site's owner and others, and plenty of links. While you're there, don't miss Ginger's Parisian street scene... featuring a gingerbread Eiffel Tower!

If you're thinking of putting together your own edible house, why not check out the Flickr Gingerbread House Showcase pool for ideas? Better yet, check out our gingerbread house gallery: it starts right here.

You probably have winter squash on your mantel, and plan to use them in your Thanksgiving centerpiece, but do you have a clue what to do with them afterward? Squash is a delicious, nutritious and wildly flexible vegetable. Cooking these vegetables (or fruit, but we'll save that argument for another day) is simple with endless possibilities. Once you know how to identify the squash varieties you can choose your favorite recipe and enjoy.

Know your squash varieties
If you're like me, choosing a squash for your centerpiece has more to do with the color scheme and size you need than it does with the cooking possibilities. Know what to look for when you're shopping for squash and you'll find some beautifully decorative varieties that also make great dishes. These are some common varieties that you'll find at the local market.

1. Banana Squash
2. Butternut Squash
3. Delicata Squash
4. Hubbard Squash
5. Pumpkins
6. Spaghetti Squash
7. Acorn Squash

Most people who aren't Jewish usually don't know what Rosh Hashanah is all about: we tend to think that Hanukkah is the big Jewish holiday, and forget about the others. But Rosh Hashanah -- New Year's Day for people, animals, and legal contracts -- is extremely important in the Jewish faith, as it begins the ten-day period before Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. This year, Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown on September 12th.

The traditional symbols associated with Rosh Hashanah are a shofar (a ram's horn, blown to "awaken" people, both in literal and figurative senses) and apples and honey (which represent hopes for a sweet new year). Round challah bread with raisins is also popular.

The great UK blog Crafty Crafty has put together a nice post with a list of links to Rosh Hashanah-themed crafts for kids. There's a little paper shofar made out of a birthday horn, instructions showing how to make apple prints for cards, and links to several different sets of coloring pages, among other things. It's all a fun way for kids to celebrate, or maybe for kids who aren't Jewish to learn a little about the culture of some of their friends.

Shana tova!