All posts by alaskaknitnat

Welcome to Alaska Knit Nat! I was born and raised in Anchorage and have always had a passion for making useful things, whether they are eaten, knit, crocheted, sewn or randomly glued and assembled. I received my bachelor’s degree in French and journalism from the University of Alaska Anchorage and work almost full time at a nonprofit and way over time as a mom.
Knit & Crochet, Knitting, Patterns

My Heart Goes out to Fairbanks Hat

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This is one of my loveliest hats to date. It’s based closely on the From Norway With Love pattern from www.pickles.no.

I first followed Pickles’ pattern exactly, but I must have bought too thin of yarn because it turned out baby.
It is a very very cute baby hat, but I wanted one for me! So I went with my gut, which I should have done in the first place, and tweaked the pattern to fit my own hat patterns. The biggest problem I had with Pickles’ pattern was the heart chart. When I thought less about the chart, the hearts turned out perfectly. I used the chart as a guide for where to place the hearts and how many stitches they were made of, but I stopped counting row by row and it worked out better. Somehow her chart didn’t seem quite right.
The hat is made in sets of 10 stitches. The base of the heart (one stitch) occurs every 10 stitches, so when you start the first row of hearts, start the pattern by knitting 4 in the main color, k1 in the heart color, k9 in the main color, k1 in the heart color, k9 in the main color, k1 in the heart color and so on. When you get all the way around you’ll see your first heart color stitch. With the heart color, k1 before that stitch, k1 on top of that stitch, and k1 after that stitch. Row by row you add one heart color stitch on either end of the heart till there are 7 stitches (so, 1, 3, 5, 7). Knit two rows of 7 heart stitches and then the rest of the heart chart will make sense.
Once you’ve finished the first row of hearts, you immediately start the second row by knitting 9 in the main color, K1 in the 2nd heart color, 9 in the main color and so on. Basically the heart pattern alternates every 5 stitches so they fit in between each other.
This pattern is a great introduction to Fair Isle patterns because you carry the unused colors along with you as you knit. In other words, if you knit 4 stitches in the main color and then switch to the heart color, you carry the heart color on the inside of the work. Here’s what the hat looks like inside out:
The most difficult thing about knitting hats like this is making sure to keep the unused yarn loose in the back of the work. If you carry over the yarn too tightly, your hat will be super scrunched up and won’t fit over your head. My solution to this is when I’m carrying yarn over more than three stitches, I place my finger under the yarn so it leaves a gap and knit a couple of stitches with my finger in place behind the work. It might look really loose, but it will tighten up when you wear it. If you’re carrying the yarn over 1-3 stitches, just try not to knit very tightly. It just takes practice, so you might end up knitting a beautiful baby hat for someone.
Whew! At long last, here is the pattern
My Heart Goes Out to Fairbanks Hat
Ingredients:
Size 7 circular needle, 16″ long
2-5 colors of Lamb’s Pride worsted yarn, one skein each
one set of size 7 double points
darning needle
Important Abbreviations:
MC = Main Color
HC1 = Heart Color 1
HC2 = Heart Color 2
K2tog = knit two stitches together
Heart Chart:
Note: I honestly believe the tan heart in this pattern is not correct. The second row from the top, on the far right, that should be a white square, not tan
Directions:
With MC, cast on 100 stitches. Place a marker and connect the round without twisting the yarn. K2, P2 for two inches, or till brim is a width of your liking.
K 2 rows
Next row: With MC, K4 stitches. *With HC1, K1 stitch. With MC, K9 stitches.* Repeat * till you get back to the place marker.
Next row: With MC, knit to two stitches before the first HC1 stitch. *With HC1, K3 stitches. With MC, K7 stitches.* Repeat * to end of row. (NOTE — this is a very visual project. It’s hard to write out the directions. Just keep in mind that once you see the first stitch of the heart, that you’ll be expanding the size of the heart in the following row. My written instructions may not be exactly correct.)
Next row: With MC, knit to two stitches before the previous row’s first HC1 stitch. *With HC1, K5 stitches. With MC, K5 stitches.* Repeat * till end of round.
Next row: With MC, knit to two stitches before the previous row’s first HC1 stitch. *With HC1, K7 stitches. With MC, K3 stitches.* Repeat * till end of round.
Next row: With MC, knit to the stitch before the previous row’s first HC1 stitch.  *With HC1, K7 stitches. With MC, K3 stitches.* Repeat * till end of round. (This row you aren’t expanding the heart. You are knitting the same heart stitches as the previous row.)
Next row: With MC, knit to one stitch before the previous row’s first HC1 stitch. *With HC1, K3. With MC, K1. With HC1, K3. With MC, K3.* Repeat * till end of round.
Next row (top of heart): With MC, knit to one stitch before the previous row’s HC1. *With MC, K1. With HC1, K1. With MC, K3. With HC1, K1. With MC, K5.* Repeat * till end of round. Cut HC1 leaving an 8-inch tail.
Immediately the next round: *With MC, K9. With HC2, K1.* Repeat * till end of round. Follow the same instructions above for creating the HC2 hearts. Refer to the chart, keeping in mind it’s flawed in the second to the last row from the top of the heart.
Create 4 sets of heart patterns. Make 5 sets if you want a tall sort of floppy hat.
K 2 rows using the MC yarn.
Decrease pattern:
First, you need to change your hat to be in multiples of 8, so in the next row, K2tog four times somewhat evenly through the row. Every 20 stitches or so I K2tog. You won’t be able to notice this row in the end. You should end up with 96 stitches.
Next row: *K2tog, K6.* Repeat * till end of row.
Next row: K one round
Next row: *K2tog, K5.* Repeat * till end of row.
Next row: K one round
Next row: *K2tog, K4.* Repeat * till end of row.
Next row: K one round
Next row: *K2tog, K3.* Repeat * till end of row.
Next row: K one round and transfer to double points while knitting this row.
Next row: *K2tog, K2.* Repeat * till end of row.
Next row: K one round
Next row: *K2tog, K1.* Repeat * till end of row.
Next row: K one round
Next row: *K2tog.* Repeat * till end of row.
You should have 12 stitches. If you have 24, repeat the last round again.
Cut yarn leaving a 12-inch tail and loop through the remaining stitches. Cinch it up and weave in the ends. I tied the heart color ends together and snipped them instead of taking all the time to weave them in.

 

Cooking, South Beach

Zesty Black Bean Salad

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Ingredients:
1 can black beans, drained but not rinsed
1/4 block of extra firm tofu, cubed
1/2 roasted red pepper, diced
1/4 cup feta
1-2 green onions, chopped
3 Tbs cilantro, chopped
1-2 Tbs olive oil
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
juice of 1/2 lime
dash cayenne powder
salt and pepper
dash Cholula

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients together. Eat right away or refridgerate (that way the salad will marinate a little more and get tastier).

breakfast, recipes

South Beach Morning Scramble

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Eggs eggs egggggggggs! That’s the central part of our morning diets on this South Beach Thing. Here’s what I came up with this morning:

Serves 2
Ingredients:
3-4 eggs, lightly beaten with 1 Tbs water
2 Tbs olive oil
1/4 bell pepper, color of your choice, diced
1/4 onion, diced
1 clove garlic, smashed
4 crimini mushrooms, diced
1/2 cup chopped frozen spinach
1/4 cup feta cheese
salt and pepper

Directions:
Heat the olive oil in a medium non-stick skillet. Meanwhile, place spinach in a bowl, add about 1 Tbs water, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave for 2 minutes. Drain out the water as best you can. When oil is hot, add the pepper, onion and mushroom and cook till onions are soft. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add the garlic and cook for about 30 more seconds. Remove garlic if you don’t like to chomp down on it while eating your eggs.  Turn the heat to med-low and add the eggs. Don’t stir for about 20 seconds, then mix it up. Add the spinach and mix it up again. When eggs have just become firm, turn off the heat, transfer to plates and top with feta. Don’t forget the Cholula!

Cooking, mexican

South Beach Taco Salad

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Stephen and I need to shape up and changing our diet is of the upmost importance. After devouring a half pound of mac and cheese in bed the other night, we decided to try phase 1 of the South Beach Diet for a week or so. This is how we trained ourselves to be healthy in the first place, but the holidays took their toll….

Here’s a recipe for taco salad that uses no rice or tortillas. Black beans are super good for you and ground pork isn’t super fatty.

Ingredients:
Baconated Black Beans
1 bell pepper, color of your choice, sliced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
2 Tbs olive oil
salt and pepper
1 pound ground meat (beef, turkey or pork)
romaine lettuce
sour cream
salsa (optional, since South Beach doesn’t recommend it)
shredded cheese (low fat preferred)
cilantro, chopped
1 lime
1 taco seasoning packet

Brown the meat and add the taco seasoning according to package. Meanwhile, slowly cook the pepper and onions in olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste. When beans, meat and veggies are ready, combine on a plate and top with cheese, lettuce, sour cream, cilantro, and squeeze on some lime juice. Top with Cholula!

Cooking

Manyghetti and cheese

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My family makes most everything from scratch. That means as a kid we never had Kraft macaroni and cheese. My dad would make a big batch of “manyghetti” — that is, all the leftover pasta shapes in the cabinet with sharp cheddar cheese, garlic, parsley, and maybe some parmesan. I’d top my mac with Tabasco sauce to ward off any little siblings who might want a bite.

To this day, manyghetti remains my favorite comfort food, but I also like to make my own version.

Since Stephen and I are going to do the South Beach Diet until Mexico next month, I wanted to say a big “GOODBYE PASTA” and make something cheesy, peppery and gosh darn delicious.

Ingredients:
About 1 pound of whatever pasta you have lying around. In this case, bowties, little O’s and elbows
about 1/2 cup milk
about 2 Tbs butter
about 1 cup of shredded sharp cheddar
1 clove of garlic, smashed
1/2 tsp dijon mustard
about 1-2 Tbs Wondra flour
salt and pepper
dash of Tabasco sauce

Directions:
In a salted pot of water, boil the pasta in order of longest to shortest cooking time. While pasta cooks, place the milk, garlic and butter in a big serving bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Mix in the flour and microwave another 30 seconds. If sauce is too thick, stir in a little more milk. If too thin, stir in a little more flour and microwave another 30 seconds. Stir in the dijon, salt, pepper, Tabasco and half the cheese. Drain the pasta. Add pasta to the bowl and combine. Stir in the rest of the cheese.

Cooking, snacks

Sweet and tangy popcorn

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No photo, but I’m sure you can imagine what popcorn looks like. OK, here’s a stock Google photo:

I wanted to make some popcorn that was super tasty but not as unhealthy as smothering it in butter.

Pop some popcorn and drizzle it with:
Olive oil
Raspberry balsamic vinegar

Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground pepper.

breakfast, Cooking

Homemade Whole Wheat Pancakes

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Makes about 8 pancakes. Folding in beaten egg whites makes these pancakes nice and fluffy.

Ingredients:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup white flour
2 Tbs sugar
2 tsp baking powder
some freshly grated nutmeg (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
4 eggs, separated 
2 Tbs melted butter
2 cups milk (I used soy milk for my lactose intolerant friend and it turned out great)
Directions:
Combine all the dry ingredients. Beat the yolks in a small bowl. In a medium bowl, beat the whites with an electric mixer till stiff. Add the yolks, butter and milk to the dry ingredients and stir till combined (there will be lumps). Fold in the whites.
Heat up a large skillet and make some flapjacks, ya hear!
Knitting, Patterns

Reknit Chunky Mitts

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In case you don’t know me, I’m somewhat of a thrift store guru. For instance, yesterday I found $378 Frye boots at the SPCA Thrift Shop for $70 and I talked them down to $20. In addition to that brilliant find, I also found a 50 cent scarf that I thought would look better as mittens.

I made up this pattern, but I would only use it for irregularly shaped yarn like the kind I used because otherwise the top of the mitten might come out with gaps (it’s not mathematically sound). But it sure knits up fast!

Scarf being unraveled

Chunky Mitts
Ingredients:
1 thrift store scarf, about five feet long, unraveled and wound into a ball
four size 10 double points
scrap yarn
darning needle

Useful Abbreviations:
M1FB — make one stitch in the front and one in the back of the same stitch, thus increasing your work by one stitch.
M1 — Make one stitch between two stitches
K2tog — knit 2 stitches together

Cast on 24 stitches (8 on each needle)

K1, P1 for 10 rows
Next round: knit the first needle, M1FB into the last stitch of the first needle. On second needle, knit 4 stitches and M1FB into the next stitch. M1FB into the last stitch of the second needle. On third needle, knit 4 stitches and M1FB into the next stitch. Knit to end of needle — 28 stitches.
Knit 3 rounds
Round 15: M1, K1, M1, knit to end of round
Round 16 and all even rounds: Knit to end of round
Round 17: M1, K3, M1, knit to end of round
Round 19: M1, K5, M1, knit to end or round
Round 21: M1, K7, M1, knit to end of round
Knit 3 rounds
Next round: Transfer the first 9 stitches onto some scrap yarn. Cast on one stitch and knit to end of round.
Knit until work reaches the top knuckle of your middle finger
Next round: *K2tog, K3* repeat * till end of round, where you will K1 stitch on the third needle.
Next round: Knit
Next round: *K2tog, K2* repeat * till end of round, ending with K2tog.
Next round: Knit
Next round: *K2tog*, repeat till end of round.
Cut work leaving an 8-inch tail. Weave in all ends.

Thumb:
Transfer the 9 stitches onto two needles. With third needle, pick up 4 stitches. Knit around and K2tog two times evenly throughout the work so as not to leave gaps in the crotch of the thumb. You should have 11 stitches. Knit around till just the tip of your thumb barely peeks out.
Next round: K2tog all around, ending with a K1. Cut yarn leaving a tail and weave in ends.

Repeat with second mitten.

cocktails, Cooking

The DevinMint Patty

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In honor of my long time friend Devin whom I hadn’t seen in ages, I created a really girly cocktail and named it after him. Behold, the Devinmint Patty:

Ingredients:
1 cup milk
chocolate syrup
1/2 shotglass of vodka
1/2 shotglass of kaluha
dash of peppermint schnapps
Ice

Directions:
Pour the milk and syrup into a shaker and stir with a spoon. Add the other ingredients and shake vigorously. Pour into a glass and serve with a straw. Grown up chocolate milk!

Cooking

Mini Meat Pies

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Fun and easy to make. And they’re mini!

Ingredients:
1 store bought refrigerated pie crust
1/2 onion, peeled and grated
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 pound ground pork
1 teaspoon fresh sage, chopped
1 egg, lightly beaten
dash of allspice (optional)
dash of cinnamon (optional)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup dried bread crumbs

Directions:
Remove 1 of the pie crusts from the box and leave out to warm up. Save the other crust for another time. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Combine all the ingredients but the dough, but reserve about a tablespoon of the egg. Grease a muffin tin with butter. Using a 4-inch biscuit cutter (or a mug with that diameter), cut out six rounds from the dough. Reroll the scraps. Using a slightly smaller biscuit cutter (around 2.5 in.), create 6 more rounds. Punch a hole in the middle of the smaller rounds using a straw. Place the bigger rounds in the muffin tin and shape them to the tin. Add about 1/4 cup of the filling to each pie. Take out the bottom crust after forming it to the tin, add the filling and then place the small crust on top and pinch the edges together all around. Place back into the tin. Use any excess dough and filling to create extra pies. Brush the tops of the pies with the remaining egg and bake for 30 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Let cool about 10 minutes before eating. Serve with a dollop of sour cream.