BROCANTE AND ETC.

Goodbye for now

2009-11-15T13:00:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone. Sorry it took me so long to say this but I'm am quitting my blog. Anna, Bailey and I want to thank you for all your comments and friendship. Please feel free to email me, I'd love to hear from you.

I won't be deleting my blog just yet. I may post occasionally and I'll be visiting you as time permits.

Have a happy holiday season

Hugs,

Breckenridge

2009-09-26T18:44:00.001-07:00

We haven't taken a little sightseeing trip for awhile so thought you would enjoy going to Breckenridge. It is a ski town so in the winter it is packed with skiers but in the summer it's fun to go strolling around town, visiting all the little shops and having a nice lunch in one of the unique restaurants. The picture above is of Dillon Reservoir through my car window. That's me driving. These silly pictures are completely out of order so bear with me.

This is one of three houses that were for sale. The other two are further down. I tried to keep them together but.....

We thought it would be fun to take a ride in the gondola but it wasn't open. I think they may have been making sure it was ready for the ski rush so we just watched it for awhile wishing we could go for that ride. It would have been a beautiful day for it. So sunny with a pretty blue sky.

There is a lovely stream running through town.

See the snow on the mountain top? After this past week, I'm sure there is more now. We had snow over 6000' but down here we escaped the early stuff.

Dillion Reservoir is on the way to Breckenridge. It is man made and I remember when they flooded the area many years ago. There is a lot of boating and fishing there.

These are the other two houses for sale. They were all three in a nice little row. I would have loved to venture inside and dream. Mountain property is so expensive. We saw one two bedroom two bath for almost 500,000!!

It was a beautiful day and we stopped and had lunch in a lovely Bistro after trying on fur coats in a boutique. Of course I didn't buy one but it was loads of fun.

Has anyone ever matchrf up or tried to match up a b-dazzle? They sure scramble your brain. I was trying to match this one and I guess Anna decided I should just give up, so she jumped up, messed up the pieces and then just lay down on them. Geez, thanks Anna, I just may have gotten all the pieces in the right places this time. Thanks to Cheryl, I've had lots of entertainment this weekend. I am determined to match them all up. I'll keep you posted. I may not have any hair left though.

My New Love Kale

2009-09-20T09:31:00.001-07:00

When I receive my monthly Bon Appetit magazine the first article I look for is Molly's of the Orangette blog. I love her writing and recipes. She always takes you on a wonderful experience while reading her articles. Well when I saw her article titles How I Learned to Love Kale I didn't get too excited but since I love reading her I figured what the heck. Well by the time I finished, I didn't remember why I didn't eat Kale. I couldn't remember the last time I tried it or even cooked it. So decided I had to try it. I told you she was good!Her recipe for the article was Spaghetti with Braised Kale (which I'm sure is on Bon Apetite website, and I'm trying soon) but she mentioned how a friend of hers had sauteed it similar to spinach so decided to try that first. OMG I fell in love too! All you do is saute the washed, chopped, dried kale in olive oil and butter. After the Kale is wilted sprinkle with salt and squeeze a little lemon juice over the top. The first time I didn't quite wilt it long enough but the second time it was perfect. Molly described how it cracked and popped like popcorn and it really does. If this doesn't convince you, read the article. I know you'll be a Kale lover too!

I also bought the Cooking Light 101 Chicken Recipes recently which is wonderful. So many good recipes in it. To go with the Kale I decided on Chicken with Lemon Sauce which was very easy and had the lemon to go with the Kale. I also cooked Spaghetti for the sauce which I made extra of. I think I doubled it.

Chicken with Lemon-Caper Sauce (adapted from Cooking Light)
4 skinless boneless chick breast halves
salt/pepper
olive oil
Cooking Spray
1/3 cup extra dry vermouth or white wine
3 T fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 T capers
1 T chopped fresh parsley
Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in large non-stick skillet coated with cooking spray. (I used my regular saute pan and no cooking spray). Add chicken and cook until done. Remove from pan and keep warm.
Add vermouth, lemon juice and capers to pan, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until reduced about 2 minutes. Stir in chopped parsley. Add chicken back in pan to reheat a little and enjoy.
I made extra sauce to serve over the spaghetti. Bon Appetit!

I hope you are all having a great weekend. It is supposed to be a cool 60 degrees this week so I changed my bed and added a blanket. I'm also making a big pot of Chicken Tortilla soup.

Indonesia Ginger Chicken

2009-09-13T11:06:00.000-07:00

This recipe is from Ina's first book. I love her books as you all know and use them often. I had forgotten about this recipe and have not made it for a long time. Someone at work wanted her corn chowder recipe so I took the book to work to copy. She was looking at other recipes and copying them. She came across this one and asked me if I had ever made it. I made it the next weekend. I'm so glad she reminded me.

I made brown rice with parsley and scallions and roasted carrots and parsnips to go with it. The wing looks a little brown but it wasn't, just the nice brown color from the marinade. I love this recipe because it is so easy and quick. All the work is done the night before.

Indonesian Ginger Chicken (adapted from the Barefoot Contessa)

1 cup honey

3/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup minced garlic 8-12 cloves

1/2 cup peeled and grated fresh ginger root

2 chickens (3 1/2 lb each) quartered with backs removed

Cook the honey, soy sauce, garlic and ginger in a small saucepan over low heat until the honey is melted. Arrange the chicken in a large shallow baking pan, skin side down and pour on the sauce. Cover the pan tightly with aluminum foil. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Preheat oven to 350.
Place the baking pan in the oven and bake for 1/2 hour. Uncover the pan, turn the chicken skin side up and raise the temperature to 375. Continue baking for 30 minutes or until the chicken is done.

Bon Apetit!

My Beautiful gifts from Barb.

2009-08-30T09:21:00.001-07:00

I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. I had such a busy week and this weekend has turned out to be the same. I went to the Market yesterday and bought my veggies and fruit for the week then came home and made chicken broth. My freezer is so full I can't put another thing into it. I should say them because the one on the frig is packed too. I was looking for something on Friday and found several packages of chicken parts so decided to make chicken broth. I ended up with about 4 quarts for the freezer and I used the rest in my Potato Leek soup that I made for dinner last night. A nice Ceaser salad and dinner was easy and so good.

After my busy day I almost forgot to get my mail. I'm so happy I didn't because Barb's package was waiting for me. I was so excited. Isn't everything so pretty. I almost just left it all wrapped up....OK maybe not for very long.

Now see all the wonderful goodies I found in my package!! I am so happy I won!

This is everything grouped together and below close ups of all my beauty's. Isn't the rooster so very handsome?

Don't you love the pillows? I have a.....well I'm not too sure what to call it. I should have taken a picture. It's what they used to call a hall bench. Or at least that's what I was told when I bought it. It has one drawer that I keep some of my linens in and on the top I have an old old quilt. Now my beautiful pillows are there too! I have it sitting under my window in my bedroom so I can see them often and enjoy.

And my beautiful towels. Aren't they they the cutest?

Isn't it all beautiful? Thank you again Barb. I am so enjoying everything. I hope you enjoyed seeing all my new treasures and that you all have a wonderful week.

I am making Ina's Indonesian Ginger Chicken for dinner. I plan on posting the recipe later in the week.

Corn Muffins, Snowflakes and Etcetra

2009-08-24T05:34:00.000-07:00

I hope you all had a good weekend. It was sooo hot here. I kept telling myself not to complain because we have had a relatively cool summer. But 98 is just a little to hot for me. Back in the 80's this week so I'm happier. But to cheer me up last night guess what? Do you know who won Barb's giveaway? ME!! I was so excited when she told me I had won. YEAH!!! Thank you Barb!

While I'm slaving away over the weekend. This is what Anna and Bailey did!! Lots of help they were. It really was a busy weekend. I took today off and I'm doing some laundry, taking a couple of baskets to the booth and then maybe I'll find 5 minutes to relax!! I got up early after being up late last night. Isn't is amazing how you can jump out of bed when you don't have to go to work instead of procrastinating and laying in bed just 5 more minutes?

This will be my breakfast this morning. These corn muffins are fantastic. I watched Ina Saturday and she made these for breakfast. They are the best I've every made. The recipe is definitely a keeper. I thought they sounded good for dinner last night so I printed out the recipe. So light and fluffy. Our peaches are wonderful this year. I must say I've made a pig out of myself. I was going to cut it up before I took the picture but thought it looked so pretty I'd let you see it before I did.

I don't think I posted the snowflakes lately so I pulled out the last three. I look so forward to getting them each month. I'm so going to miss them. I wonder if Crystal would extend my year?

They are so pretty don't you think?

I forgot to post these when I posted my last post. I picked these up from a garage sale. The toppers were 25 cents can you believe it? The cookbook was only 50 cents. I thought with the holidays coming up someone might want a cookie cookbook. I didn't realize until I got home that it has recipes from all over the world. Geez maybe I'll have to keep it.....

I didn't go to any estate or garage sales this weekend. I wanted to spend the time pricing and labeling so I could get some things to the booth. I hope you all have a wonderful week.

Estate Sales

2009-08-18T17:00:00.000-07:00

Here is all the treasures I found last weekend. Most will go in the booth of course. I really did well and got some great deals. It wasn't the best weekend but I ended up with quite a bit as you will see. I got a lot of this on Sunday which is 1/2 price day.

I got the box of linens for $5.00!

These are yards and yards of trim. I'm going to put them all in a bag and give them one price.

This is a beautiful big tablecloth that someone put a lot of love into embroidering all the flowers.
Price $2.00. They were asking $2.50 1/2 price so I got a real deal.

The Singer was $35.00 but I passed on it but when it was there Sunday I bought it. I also asked them if I could have it for $15.00. SOLD!! The only thing wrong with it is the cord is in bad bad shape. I might put a new cord on it if it doesn't cost too much. What do you think?

The case is in pretty bad shape but I can clean that up fairly easy.

See this little red scarf that Bailey loves? Well after taking pictures of the linens I put them in a pile until I had time to wash them. Well I forgot the scarf was in the pile and yes you guessed it. My beautiful white tablecloth is now light pink!! And the red scarf is now in a million little pieces. It fell apart after ruining my tablecloth. The doilies came out OK! Maybe I can sell it cheap. Or maybe someone will love the pink tablecloth. Who knows!

This is a box of Rice Paper napkins. Aren't they pretty? You should feel them. Oh so soft and delicate.

Isn't this the cutest iron? Can you imagine ironing with this thing? It is sooo heavy.

The cute nativity scene was only $2.50. Couldn't pass that up.

I loved these cookbooks and NO I'm not selling them. They are fun to read. It's amazing how much shortening the recipes call for.

The leaf was in the McCalls Cookbook. I wonder why the owner put the leaf in it and what it meant to her. I left it in the book.

The quilt and 2 shams were only $10.00.

The hankys were $1.00 a piece. Aren't they pretty?

And the pretty doll was only $4.00. The clock beside her was $10.00 and is pretty.

And the cans and baskets were all free!! I took the baskets to carry things in. The cans have 1 or 2 nested inside of them, so there are more than it looks.

The kitchen towels were only $1.00 a piece.

I found these adorable chubby Santa too! I just love them.

The angels and some little bears were a steal too.

I thought the little pitcher was cute too.

And that is all for now. I hope you enjoyed seeing all my goodies. Hope you are having a great week.

Tomatoes Provencal and Julia's Birthday

2009-08-15T16:50:00.000-07:00

This has been such a fun day for me. I went to the Farmers Market this morning and ran into an old friend I used to work with. It was fun catching up and we are going to dinner soon. I ran into Sur La Table later and got a couple of things and they were celebrating Julia's birthday and making everyone a cappuccino and serving Le Madeline's and coconut macaroons. Such fun that was.

I came home and actually went through some boxes of holiday things and priced them for the booth. It's amazing how long all this takes but I have 3 boxes to take. One for now, one for fall and two for Christmas. I still have a couple of things to find but most are priced and ready to go.

I decided to visit a couple of blogs after dinner and found this giveaway on one of my favs French Elements. It's a wonderful giveaway so run over and check it out here.

In honor of Julia's birthday, I made the tomato Provencal recipe from her Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I don't think she would mind me sharing it with you.

Tomatoes A La Provencal
6 firm ripe red tomatoes about 3 inches in diameter
Salt and Pepper
1 or 2 cloves mashed garlic
3 T minces shallots or green onion
4 T minced fresh basil and parsley or parsley only
1/8 tsp thyme
1/4 tsp salt
big pinch of pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 cup bread crumbs from fresh white bread with body
I sometimes add parmesan cheese too but Julia didn't in her original recipe.
A shallow, oiled roasting pan just large enough to hold the tomatoes easily in one layer.

Preheat oven to 400. Remove the stems and cut the tomatoes in half crosswise. Gently press out the juice and seeds. Sprinkle the halves lightly with salt and pepper.

Blend remaining ingredients in a mixing bowl. Correct seasoning. Fill each tomato half with a spoonful or two of the mixture. Sprinkle with a few drops of olive oil. Arrange the tomatoes in the roasting pan, do not crowd them. May be prepared to this point in advance.

Bake 400 10-15 minutes until the tomatoes are tender but hold their shape and bread crumb filling has browned lightly.

Bon Appetit!!

Broccoli Salad

2009-08-15T00:00:00.000-07:00

This was a simply delicious and easy salad. As most of you know I go to the Farmers Market on Saturday mornings and stock up for the week. The broccoli was looking especially yummy so brought some home and looked through my cookbooks until I found this recipe. It is definitely a keeper. The recipe is in the Creme de Colorado cookbook. This one was published in 1987. The books are written by the Junior League of Denver. They are always coming out with a new one and I of course have several.

The recipe is so versatile. Next time I'm putting in roasted almonds.

Surprising Broccoli Salad (from the Creme de Colorado cookbook)

3 cups broccoli flowerets

6 slices bacon, fried crisp, drained and crumbled

1 cup chopped red onion

1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Dressing

1 cup mayonnaise

2 T white vinegar

1/3 sup sugar

Cut flowerets off broccoli stalks. Toss together broccoli flowerets, bacon, onion and cheese. Combine dressing ingredients and mix well. Pour dressing over salad and toss thoroughly. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Quick, easy and delicious. Salad will keep several days refrigerated in a tightly sealed container.

Hiking

2009-08-10T16:22:00.000-07:00

These are pictures taken from a couple of hikes we have gone on this month. They were both up by Evergreen. Enjoy! We sure had a good time.

Everything is so green this summer. We have had so much rain and humidity and cool weather.

If you are tired, have a nice rest in the chair that nature made just for us!

And finally a nice quiet spot for our picnic!!

Corn Chowder and Peach Pie

2009-08-05T17:38:00.000-07:00

This part of the post is for Shelly. I hope you do find the book and enjoy it. I have made pancakes, waffles, almond french toast and strata from it. It's a wonderful book with loads of variations for each recipe. It also includes soups and salads, an apricot ginger jam I want to try among other things. This fall I'm making the pear struesel coffee cake as soon as the pears get ripe. Now how divine does that sound. All the recipes are easy and she explains the steps.

I use Ina's recipe for Corn Chowder and it is divine. I had never eaten Corn Chowder before and a few years ago she made it on her show. It sounded so good I had to try it. I fell in love and now make it every summer when corn is at it's peak. For the recipe go here.

The pie is Martha's and she would totally have a stroke if she knew I used a frozen pie crust. I'm sorry Martha, please forgive me. It was an easy recipe to make and one of the best peach pie's I've had. You can get the recipe here. I just happened to have some Creme Fraiche on hand. I've been making salmon roasted with Creme Fraiche which is another post.

Enjoy and Bon Appetit!!

Freezing Fruits and Vegetables

2009-08-04T17:26:00.001-07:00

Now that we have canned and pickled and made jam and syrup we are freezing veggies and berries. And by the way we had some of my raspberry syrup on buttermilk pancakes and it was divine. I made Gale Grands buttermilk pancakes from her new book. It is a brunch book and I've used several recipes from it and it is a wonderful book. It has become one of my favs. The pancakes are light, fluffy and so easy.

OK back to freezing. I blanch most of my veggies before freezing them, cool and put in a Ziploc. I used to put them in separate little bags but now I just make sure they are cool, dry and dump them all in the same bag. As long as they are cooled and dry they don't freeze together and I just take out what I need. The only thing I don't' blanch is the corn. Just cut it off the cob and throw in the bag.

Berries are so easy. Place on cookie sheet until frozen and then put in a Ziploc. I make muffins, pancakes, etc. with them all winter.

Tomatoes I just wash, core and put in a Ziploc. They are good for sauces etc.

Herbs I wash and dry and put in a Ziploc. I use them for several months and they are just wonderful. Freezing is so easy.....try it!!

Canning pickles, beets and berry syrup

2009-07-31T18:27:00.000-07:00

I had some requests for my beet and pickle recipes so I'm posting those with a bonus. I made some berry syrup from Aug/Sept Fine Cooking Magazine tonight.

The beets were super easy. I've always made pickled beets but thought I would try something different this year.

Raw Pickled Beets (from Martha)

Scrub, trim and peel 2 red and golden beets (I used a combination)

Slice thinly and transfer to a jar. (I used my mandolin)

Split 1 fresh Thai Chile in half.

Bring chile, 1 cup Rice Vinegar, 1/4 sup sugar, 1 fresh bay leaf (I used a dry one) and 1/2 tsp black peppercorns to a boil in a small saucepan. Pour hot mixture over beets. Seal jar and refrigerate. Beets will keep for 1 month.

Tatiana's Dill Pickles (from Martha)

3 cloves garlic, halved

4 allspice berries

1/2 bay leaf

1 thin slice red jalapeno chile seeded

3 fresh dill flower or 3 sprigs fresh dill

Kirby cucumbers (just long enough to fit in jar) washed and dried

1 T sugar

2 1/4 T gray salt

1 T white vinegar

Place 1 clean 64 oz jar right side up on a rack in a boiling water canner. Fill the canner and jar with hot water, about 1 inch above the top of jar. Boil jar over high heat for 10 minutes. Remove and drain jar. Place jar on a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet.

Fill another large pot with water and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce to a simmer and add clean lid. Simmer lid for 10 minutes. do not boil as this may cause problems in sealing jar. Drain lid and set aside.

Place 2 cloves garlic into sterilized jar along with allspice berries, bay leaf, jalapeno slices, 1 sprig dill and enough cucumbers to snugly fit into jar. Bring 8 cups water to a boil in a large pot over high heat. Add enough boiling water to jar to fill to the very top of the jar (you may not need to use all the water) let stand 10 minutes. Drain water from jar.

In a large saucepan, combine 6 cups water, sugar and salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Add remaining clove of garlic, remaining sprig of dill and vinegar. Remove from heat and pour into jar until filled to the very top of the jar. Tightly screw on lid, invert jar, making sure that it does not leak and cover with a towel. Let stand overnight to cool.

Transfer pickles to refrigerator until ready to use up to 6 months.

Fresh Berry Syrup

3 cups fresh berries (raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, strawberries) I used raspberries because they were on sale

Granulated sugar

In a saucepan crush berries with a potato masher. Add 1/4 cup water, if using strawberries used 1/2 cup. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, reduce heat to medium low and simmer until the berries are very soft and juicy about 5 minutes.

Set a sieve over a bowl. Pour the berry pulp into the sieve and allow the juice to drip through. Gently press the pulp with a rubber spatula to extract as much juice as possible but don't press so hard that you force the pulp through.

Clean the saucepan, measure the juice and pour it into the saucepan. For every 1/4 cup juice add 1/4 cup sugar (I cut it a little). Bring to a boil over medium heat stirring to dissolve the sugar. Reduce heat to low and simmer until the syrup is viscous by still runny about 1 minute. Skim the foam with a spoon and pour the syrup into sterilized jars. Put the jars on a wire rack an let cool to room temperature. Screw the lids and bands on and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

I sealed my jars using standard canning directions. I doubled the recipe plus a little more.

You can use this on pancakes, waffles, ice cream, stirred into yogurt, rice pudding and oatmeal. Or brush it over a baked ham or a pork roast.

Ok that should keep you busy this weekend!! I'm getting up early in the morning and going to the Farmers Market to buy corn and make corn chowder!! YUM!!

Weekend Treasures

2009-07-27T18:08:00.001-07:00

OK that's not a treasure, but maybe it is because I will be enjoying them later. I got so busy Saturday that I didn't get much done after coming back from the Market with loads of goodies. I know have cauliflower, green beans and corn in the freezer. I also made a batch of beets and dill pickles. So needless to say there wasn't much estate sale going. I did make it Sunday to 1/2 price day and was happy with what I found.

I love these lace curtains and wish I had a window the right size. They are in perfect condition and only cost $1.00.

The plates were only 38 cents a piece. The front are three of the same pattern.

Look at all the lace!! The price tag said there was a 100 yards and I believe it. I only paid 2.50 for the whole thing. Lace seems to be flying out of my booth. Should I separate it into two or three pieces or sell in one piece?

This is German lace and in perfect condition. I just love it. I gave up trying to spread it out so you could see it. Mr and Ms Nosy were in my way. I paid $3.50 for it. I love 1/2 price days. Hopefully this weekend I'll have more time.

Anna's 4th Birthday

2009-07-25T19:10:00.000-07:00

FINALLY!! Geez, what does it take for someone (my wonderful caring Mother whom I love very much) to turn on the computer so I can post? I have waited patiently all day! Mommy got up really really early and went to the Farmers Market to buy things that I wouldn't eat but she seems to like. And then she spent all day washing, cutting, blanching, putting stuff in bags and putting them in the freezer. I just do not understand why you humans eat vegetables. They DO NOT LOOK OR SMELL GOOD!

I do have to admit she gave me a love as soon as she woke up this morning and wished me a happy birthday. I had a wonderful day. I got a new toy and my very favorite special food. Of course I shared with Bailey. Can you believe I'm 4 years old? I still look pretty for my age don't you think? I certainly hope I'm aging well.

After all the excitement we were really really tired so we all went out on the patio to relax tonight. Mom had a glass of wine and Bailey and I just relaxed.

Do you remember when I went to the Doctor in December for my yearly checkup? Well wasn't that a horrible day? He said I had bad gums and I was fat!! I was so upset, how could a beautiful kitty like me have all those problems? I have been trying to watch what I eat and Mommy has been feeding me dental kitty food. I had to go with Bailey a few weeks ago when he had his yearly checkup so our Dr. could check me too. I was so happy!! I lost a pound and my gums are so much better. I have two spots that he wants to check when I go for my yearly check up in December. He was so happy and so was I!!

Mommy, Bailey and I wish you a really happy weekend. I would like all of you to hop over and enter this giveaway if you have time. It's awesome!! Donna does some really cool things!

Look What I Did Today!!

2009-07-18T17:41:00.000-07:00

I went to the Farmers Market bright and early this morning and before I got everything put away Bailey raided one of my bags and had a good time rolling my green tomato around. I guess he thought I bought him a new ball.

After breakfast and all my goodies were washed and put away I made blueberry jam, peach preserves, blueberry crisp and put the rest of the blueberries in the freezer. Busy busy day but I had a good time. I love making goodies for winter enjoyment. I think my favorite part of the week is going to the Market on the weekends. So many things to buy and try. It's so easy to over buy but I usually eat everything I bring home.

What did you do today?

Lemonade

2009-07-12T10:36:00.001-07:00

I read two blogs yesterday about lemonade and had to make some. All I had was 1/2 lemon so this morning when I ran to the store for milk and yogurt for the week, I picked up a bag of lemons and came home and made me some. Then I went out to patio to sit and enjoy.

I use my bird bath as a little table sometimes. All I did was squeeze the juice from 3 lemons, added a little sugar to taste and filled the pitcher with water. I used a quart container. Added a sprig of mint from the herb garden and enjoyed. One of the blogs mentioned drinking from a wine glass and since I'm on antibiotics this week and no wine it sounded like a good idea. It was cool and refreshing and so good. Thank you ladies.

Enjoy your Sunday and have a great week.

My Booth

2009-07-11T14:30:00.001-07:00

I finally remembered to take my camera with me and to actually use it. I took the camera many times and left it in my purse or just plain left it at home. I'm trying to go twice a week to straighten and take new items for sale. It is a small booth and if I do well in sales I may rent a larger one next year. I had to pay part of Junes rent but I had only been opened a week or so. I've already paid July's rent so the rest is mine. Sales have been slow but I'm sure they will pick up. I've changed things around since I took these. I try to make changes every time I go. It is work in progress. Most of my items I've purchased at estate sales but some are actually mine that I've had for years and just gotten tired of.

As I mentioned before my grandson helped me set everything up. I could not have done it without him. How often will a 25 year old boy want to help his poor granny do something this boring. He jumped at the chance when I asked him. He is such a good kid. Well OK most of time. Oh and to top it all off, he took me to dinner the night before. I made him a scrumptious breakfast before we started so he'd have lots and lots of energy. We had a green chili, sausage strata with a bowl of fruit. Thanks Jonathan! Grandma loves you!

Happy 4th of July and a trip to the Zoo

2009-07-01T17:24:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th to everyone in blogland. I bet you think I disappeared into the wild blue yonder! I really didn't think I was going to be away so long but everything took a lot longer than I thought it would. I have opened an antique booth so I've been busy pricing and sorting out boxes and boxes of goodies. More about all that later.

Before I got caught up in the booth my grandson took me to the zoo for our birthdays the end of May. Our birthdays are 4 days apart so we always do something special together. He took me to the zoo and I took him to dinner afterwards. It was a very special day for both of us.

We have a wonderful zoo here and I thought you would like a tour.
Mountain lions are so beautiful and graceful. She was very interested in something. Certainly not us taking her picture.

The zebras were strutting around looking beautiful.

There were lots of giraffes and a few babies but I may have lost the picture of the babies beside Mom so you could see the difference in height. The is actually one of the babies.

We loved watching the bears and they put on quite a show for us.

The beautiful white fox looks so pretty posing for her picture.

I'm not sure what was on the alligator's mind, I hope not dinner!

The otters kept us entertained for a long time. They put on quite a show posing for us.

The tiger was pacing back and forth but we finally got a decent picture of him. He was certainly a very nervous tiger that day.

This was taken inside the cat house so it was kind of dark and the eyes were really aglow.

Oh here's the baby giraffe. It just got out of order. Aren't they the cutest?

I don't remember the name of this weird looking little animal but it sure is unusual with his long snoot. He kept foraging in the grass looking for some treat or something.

The penguins put on quite a show too. They look so cute strutting around in their tuxedo's.

The elephants are so big aren't they?

He really wanted in that door. He kept banging his trunk against it.

The baby mountain goats were so cute. We watched them a long time.

The black bear kept walking in and out but we finally got a decent picture. We thought he was camera shy.

I can't imagine meeting one in the woods can you? My son was fishing a few years ago and he saw one. Of course he slowly left the area.

And of course we all love the monkeys.

OK folks that all!! I hope you enjoyed our day. I'll try to visit this weekend as time permits. We are going to the Arts Festival on Sunday and hiking on Monday. I'll of course take some beautiful pictures of the mountain hike. I'm leaving work at noon Friday and not going back until Tuesday. I'm so looking forward to a nice long weekend. I hope you enjoy yours.

Herb Garden

2009-05-23T12:32:00.000-07:00

I hope you are all having a wonderful and relaxing holiday weekend. I was going to have lots and lots of time to relax since I took Thursday and Friday off but every day just seems to fly bye. I am getting a lot done though.

I think I've crammed all the herbs I can in my little garden. I plan on freezing and drying some this fall. I get a lot out of my little space. I was happy with the herbs I dried last fall so I'll be doing more this year. I cringe every time I have to buy fresh herbs at the grocery store. Some are so pricey.

I've had to have a few (A LOT) of talks with Bailey, he keeps eating my tarragon and chives and digging out the rosemary. You should see him cower when I catch him, you'd think I beat the poor baby or something. Their grass is growing now so in a few days they will have that to chew on. Plus they have their catnip!! So please leave Mommy's herbs alone!

Why is it that it is so nice and sunny, even hot, during the week and weekends are cool and rainy? It was actually 90 last week and this weekend it is cool cloudy and rainy again. Go figure! We seem to be following this weekend snow/rain pattern since our no snow winter. We need the moisture so I'm trying not to complain but it would be nice if it would rain during the week when we are all stuck inside.

Have a great weekend!

Brownie Cookies and Blackberry Slump recipe

2009-05-17T11:35:00.000-07:00

I hope my title got your attention when you read it! I know the recipe sure caught mine!! I received my June Everyday Food yesterday and this is the first thing I saw! I know it's on the last page but it just opened up all by itself and I knew I had to make those today. They are are like eating crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside brownies. They are to die for so I hope you try them.

Don't they look scrumptious? And I'm sure Martha won't mind me posting the recipe. I'm also making a couscous recipe for dinner that I found and I haven't even read the whole magazine yet. The couscous recipe is so easy, just cook the couscous and add sliced scallions and 2 T olive oil and 1 T lime juice. How easy it that?
These are nice and hot from the oven and I've already eaten two!!

OK here's the recipe. Oh and keep reading because of popular request I am posting the blackberry slump recipe I mentioned last week.

Brownie Cookies (from Martha's Everyday Food)

12 Oz's bittersweet chocolate chopped and melted

1/2 cup flour

1/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

6 T unsalted butter room temperature

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

3 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven 350. Melt the chocolate (I use the microwave at 30 second intervals) and let cool. In a small bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Beat butter and sugars until light in color. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until combined. Alternately add flour mixture and chocolate until just combined (do not over beat)

Drop dough by heaping Tablespoons about 2 inches apart on parchment lined cookie sheets (I used my Silpat). Bake about 14-16 minutes until toothpick comes out clean. Transfer to wire rack to cool and then please eat one or two or even three.

And just so you don't think all I'm eating this week are cookies, I made this Quinoa salad for my lunch this week. It went together really easy. Just cook the Quinoa, add cucumber, tomatoes, snow peas and scallions. I put a sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, red vinegar and soy sauce dressing on it. If you want the recipe let me know.

Blackberry Slump (from The Good Home Cookbook)

You can substitute other berries, peaches or plums. Serve with cream, whipped cream or ice cream.

4 cups (2 pints) fresh or frozen blackberries

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 cup flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup 1/2 stick) melted butter

Preheat oven to 375. Grease an 8" square pan.

Pour berries into the baking dish and sprinkle with 1 1/2 cup sugar. Set aside.

Stir together the flour, baking powder, salt and remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Mix in milk and butter, then spoon over the berries.

Bake for 40-45 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Serve warm or cooled.

Fish Without a Doubt

2009-05-12T18:00:00.000-07:00

This is a new cookbook that I am finally reading. Not that I've had it that long, just a couple of weeks. I'm trying to eat more fish and this cookbook will definitely help me do that. What I love about it is that every recipe tells you other fish that you could use. Since Halibut is good now or at least we can get good halibut now I decided to try this recipe first. It would also be good with Salmon and I love Salmon. It was so easy and went together so fast. It took longer to make the compound butter than to cook the meal. I put the rest of the butter in the freezer in individual pats so I have lots to use later. This week I'm making a lemon meyer compound butter. I have the lemons but silly me forgot the dill so it will have to wait until I to the store again.

The bread crumbs got a little brown but they were still OK. I was getting full and thought that Anna and Bailey would get there bite of fish when I was done but then I kept eating and lo and behold there was not left for them. I don't give them human food too often but when I have fish I try to save them a bite or two and they love it. Anna will any kind of fish but Bailey is very very picky. I had Cod the other night and he wouldn't touch it so Anna got 2 bites. Way to go Anna!!

This is my compound butter before I rolled in a log and put it in the frig to harden.

Broiled Halibut Steaks with Basil Butter (Also good with salmon or swordfish)

4 halibut steaks

salt/pepper

Olive oil

4 T basil butter (recipe below)

4 t fresh bread crumbs. When I have stale bread I put it in my food processor and then bag it up and put it in the freezer and I always have fresh breadcrumbs on hand. If the bread is too fresh I toast it in the oven for a few minutes. Adding dried herbs is fun too.

Season the halibut with salt/pepper on both sides. Pour a little oil on a plate and set the fish on top. Smear the top of each piece of fish with 1 T basil butter, then sprinkle 1 tsp bread crumbs and pat them into the the butter. You can prep the fish in advance and put it in the frig until ready to broil. Set an oven rack in the top position, slide in a cast iron griddle and turn on the broiler. Let the griddle heat for 15 minutes.

Set the fish onto the griddle, buttered side up. Broil for 6 or 7 minutes or until done. Remove from griddle and let it rest for 5 minutes. Salmon and swordfish cook faster.

Basil Butter

2 cups fresh basil leaves

8 T unsalted butter, softened

1 garlic clove minced to a paste

salt/pepper

Bring a saucepan of salted water to a boil. Stir in the basil leaves and blanch for 30 seconds. Drain, then shock the basil in ice water. Drain again and squeeze the basil very dry. Start squeezing with your hands then put in a clean kitchen towel or a few layers of paper towels and squeeze some more.

Give the basil a rough chop. Combine basil, butter and garlic in food processor and process until smooth. Season with salt/pepper and pulse one or two times. Scrape the butter onto a piece of waxed paper and form into a rough log. Wrap the paper around the log using it to form a log. Twist the ends and put in the frig until firm.

Meyer Lemon butter

I used 1 stick of butter, zest from 2 meyer lemons and added some dill and thyme.

It was fantastic on salmon.

And for dessert I made my Blackberry Slump. I got this recipe from the Good Cooks book. It was free a couple of years ago and who am I to pass up a free cookbook.

Happy Mother's Day

2009-05-10T10:32:00.001-07:00

Happy Mother's Day everyone!! I hope you day is happy!

Hi Everyone!! We got Mom some catnip for Mother's Day but she wouldn't eat any so we did!! Can't let it go to waste. We didn't even give her time to transplant it. We just dug in. Our human sister gave Mom the orchids...now how can anyone eat something like that. We decided we had to talk to her before next year. Catnip is much much better.

We hope you all have a nice Mother's Day.

Lemon Yogurt Muffins

2009-05-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

You probably think I quit cooking since all I've been doing is cleaning and posting some of my beautiful treasures so I thought I would share the muffins I made for breakfast this morning. I found the recipe in The Breakfast Book. It is a great breakfast book with lots and lots of ideas and recipes. Do you remember the lemon cake recipe that you poked holes in and then poured over it some kind of lemon glaze to soak into the cake? This recipe reminded me of that cake so I thought I would try them. When my daughter took the first bite this morning she said "Oh it's like the cake you used to make!! These bring back memories!! " I don't remember how the glaze was made for the cake because I haven't made it in years and years and have no idea where the recipe is. If anyone out there has it, please let me know. The muffins are very easy and yummy too!! I hope you enjoy them.

After I got all my errands done I came home and made some tea and had another muffin. My daughter had two for breakfast and I only had one so I figured I deserved another one. Good excuse anyway!!

Lemon Yogurt Muffins

2 cups flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup sugar

2 T honey

2 eggs

1 1/4 cups plain yogurt

1/4 cup melted butter

1 T grated lemon zest

Preheat the oven to 375 and butter muffin tin. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a large bowl, mix sugar, honey, eggs, yogurt, melted butter and lemon zest until thoroughly blended. Add the flour mixture and mix until blended. I didn't dirty the kitchen aid for these I just used a wooden spoon.

Spoon batter into buttered muffin tin. Bake 15 minutes or until golden brown. While the muffins bake make the syrup.

Lemon Syrup

1/3 cup lemon juice

1/3 cup sugar

3 T water

Combine ingredients in a small pan and bring to a boil. Boil for 1 minute and set aside. When the muffins are done poke the tops with a fork a few times. Drizzle syrup over the top letting it run over the top and edges.

Bon Appetit!

I found this cake recipe at Alosha's Kitchen and made it last weekend. You can get the recipe here. It is so easy and springy. We really enjoyed it.

OK that should keep you busy this weekend and I'm off the put clean sheets on my bed. I stripped it down to the mattress and washing everything today. We are having ANOTHER cool rainy weekend. I'm trying not to complain because we need the rain but it could be 70 on the weekends and 50 during the week instead of the other way around. At least it's too warm to snow. Blackberries were on sale so I'm making a blackberry slump this afternoon. Blackberries always make me think of my Grandparents. They lived in Missouri and we had a ditch as Grandpa called it (it was a really big deep ditch!!) and there were lots of wild blackberries growing so we would go pick them and Grandma would always make blackberry pie. I should add that they did most of the picking and my sister and played and hid in the bushes. We did pick some though when Grandma reminded us if we didn't have enough there would be NO PIE!!
Have a great weekend!

My Forty Shoes

2009-04-25T12:05:00.000-07:00

And no two are alike!! I collect shoes and this is where I keep them. On top I have my French enamelware but I cut off the top of the coffee pot. The middle one is a French lunch box. Way too cute!! Any way back to the shoes. When my Grandmother passed away I inherited her "boot collection" as she called it. There were probably 10 in all and as you can see I have added lots and lots to the collection. I'm always on the lookout for an unusual or one I don't have. I have a couple that are similar but no two are alike. The newer styles in the pictures were all gifts. Hallmark has a shoe collection and people thought I should include those but I like the old ones and that is what I buy. When I go somewhere new I always bring back a shoe to remember my time there. Even a special day.

As you can see I need a new cupboard to keep them in. I bought this one at a flea market a couple of years ago. It sits on top of a small bookcase where I keep some of my cookbooks. Did you catch the word some?

The green shoe is Vaseline glass. I purchased that on in Canton, TX. Believe it or not I remember where most of them were found. The little one on the left is a pin cushion.

The boots in the last row were some of my Grandmother's collection.

The glass shoes on the left are all Fenton.

The small boot on the right with the purple flower is from Cape May, NJ. The little pitcher was my Grandma's too. The sandal has a magnet top so the shoe actually is two pieces. What you would put in it would be any one's guess because it is so small.

See the shoe with the baby on top of it.

I love the one with a picture of an old lady too!

And some of my cookbooks. You notice I said some. This is where I keep Ina, Giada, Martha, Julia, Jacques and all my French cookbooks. Or at least most of them. As you can see it is overflowing and some are stacked between the bookcase and the wall. I hope you enjoyed seeing my shoe collection. I always smile when I look at them. Wonder what I'll find this summer at the flea markets and my adventures.

And last but not least is this beautiful award I received from Nancy. Thank you Nancy!! It is a beautiful award.

March and April Snowflakes

2009-04-19T11:26:00.000-07:00

Since I didn't get around to posting the March snowflake and my April has arrived I'm showing both of them. I have no clue as to how Crystal does these but I am so enjoying receiving them. I'd love to watch someone tat and see how these lovelies are created.

This is actually a good post to end the week because for the last two days we have had so much snow and rain. It's been great because this has been the driest winter on record and we so needed the moisture. If this had all been snow it would have taken us until June to dig out. There were big beautiful white snowflakes and rain Friday and yesterday it rained all day. What a slushy mess it was for awhile. Today the sun is shining and the sky is blue.

I hope you have all had a wonderful week. I'm getting a fun post together for later in the week all about my shoes!!

Happy Easter

2009-04-11T18:55:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone has a wonderful and happy Easter. Eat lots of chocolate too!! I bought my Tulips today while grocery shopping for tomorrow's dinner. I love tulips and the colors in these look so happy and Spring like so I had to bring them home with me.

My nest I got the other day from Vintage by Crystal. She was on Martha awhile back making these and since I've been so busy I knew I'd never get one made so I ordered one. I'm so happy it arrived by Easter so I could display it for awhile.

Banana Cream Pie and Antiques

2009-03-15T13:25:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone has had a good week. It has been very busy around here so I haven't accomplished much. The weather is beautiful. Still so very dry that I'm getting worried about fire season. This is the driest winter on record unless things change. It's nice having 70 degree days but this wind is awful. I'm getting spring fever early this year. I was watching Martha the other day and she made a banana cream pie and it sounded so good that I had to make one today. I almost burnt the meringue because I was getting out my taxes so I could finish them. And speaking of taxes if anyone would like to donate to help me pay mine, please let me know. But on to better and happier things now. I also made a huge batch of marinara from the rest of the tomatoes I had in my freezer. I'm trying to get it cleaned out and use everything I froze last year. I put two containers in the freezer and then added Italian sausage to the rest for spaghetti tonight.

As I've been cleaning out closets and drawers I'm trying to take pictures of some of my treasures and yes, some of my junk. This was my grandmothers fur collar. I think she used to wear it to church.

She also loved these little hats. Her hair was down to her waist and she always wore it braided and twisted in a bun at the nape of her neck. She always wore a little hat when going to church. The black one reminds me of a beret and I remember her wearing it.

I have two sewing stands. This one I found in some junk store many many years ago.

This is my favorite. When I was in Kansas and bored out of my mind I started working auctions on weekends and I got the bug so I started going to a few. I bid on this one and I didn't think the lady was going to quit. I learned to put a maximum bid in my mind and if it went over that I would quit. Well needless to say I lost a few things I really wanted. I did get this sewing stand though and I had a feeling the other lady was upset with me so I gave her one of my biggest and happiest smiles!

My hope chest was a Christmas present my senior year of high school. The upright style is the only one I've seen so I don't know if they make them anymore. I like it because I can store blankets and linens on the shelves. I should have opened it and taken a picture of the inside. I keep a lot of vintage linens in the drawer.

So my high school Christmas present is now a vintage item? Have a good week everyone.

Roast Pork, Coconut Key Lime Cake, Awards and Gifts.

2009-03-07T16:19:00.001-08:00

Happy weekend!!! Bailey would like to thank everyone who came to his birthday party. He also wants you to know that he is being very very good now that he is all grown up and he is not spoiled!!! Yeah right Bailey. I hope you have had a good week. It was springtime here and we were supposed to have snow today and it did for 5 minutes. I wish it would, it's been a warm dry winter. I know some of your are shuddering because you've been so cold and snowy.

I received this wonderful award from Penny. She is so sweet and so creative. Thank you Penny.

My February snowflake arrived too!! This is my third snowflake from Crystal. I look forward to them every month.

I made this cake today. It is in the Gourmet magazine and as soon as I saw it I knew I had to make it. The hardest part was squeezing 1/2 cup of key lime juice. Lucky for me my daughter came in the kitchen as I was grating the zest to see what I was doing and I asked her if she wanted to squeeze some lime juice for me. She said yes and I handed her the key limes. She said "Out of these little things?" I just said start squeezing honey!! The recipe is here.

I made a pork roast with roasted pears that was so good. I got the recipe from a Williams Sonoma catalog. You can find it on their website here. I must be in a roasted pear mood this winter. I made a chicken with roasted pears not long ago that I got from Mimi's blog. Mimi always takes you on wonderful trips to Paris or walks with her Grandmother. She is a wonderful story teller and writer.

All these recipes should keep you busy for the awhile. I'm making a new mac and cheese recipe tomorrow. I'll let you know how it turns out. I'm still spring cleaning but took last weekend off for my Mother's 90th birthday party and this weekend I'm just too lazy to do much. I have my bathroom and living room to do and I'm done. I just have to get back in the cleaning mood. Have a wonderful rest of the weekend.

It's Bailey's Birthday!!

2009-02-27T00:00:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, guess what? I am three years old today. Can you believe that? I am as old as Anna now!! I live with my Mommy and her human daughter and Anna. We are so happy. My mommy is the best mommy. She takes really good care of all of us. Anna is really really spoiled but I'm not at all spoiled. I'm a very good kitty and.....pause...shhhh!! Oh there for a minute I thought I heard snickering. As I was saying I'm a very good kitty, just a .....pause....shhhh....I did hear snickering. You think I'm spoiled too don't you? Well OK I am!! But most of the time I'm good. I am very mischievous though. I get into everything and sometimes I make my Mom yell at me. I broke one of her favorite cups last weekend but she had it where I wanted to go so you really can't blame me can you?
I'm napping getting ready for my party.

OK I'm all ready are you? Look at my presents!!! Aren't' they the best.

This is my favorite treat. Would you like some? I will share with you. It is soooo good but my mommy says it really stinks and smells fishy!! I don't like any other treat except these. Anna eats lots of other treats but not me...I'm very very particular.

I got some new balls too!! I love playing catch. My Mom throws the ball and I run and catch it and bring it back to her so she can throw it again. My doctor says I act like a puppy!! Isn't he silly? My Mommy read that Cats have the intelligence of toddlers but she says I'm as smart as a first grader!! See all my pretty new balls, do you want to come play catch with me?

This is me when I was a tiny baby. Wasn't I the cutest most cuddly thing you ever saw?

Anna was a LOT bigger than I was but guess who is the biggest now? Me of course.

Here we are now taking a nap together. Can you believe I got so big when I was such a tiny baby?

I love playing in bags and boxes and whatever else I can find to crawl into. My Mom always brings home paper bags because she knows how much I love them.

I sleep in some really funny positions.

This is my real Mommy. She carried me in her tummy. Isn't she beautiful? My Mommy's Grandson is her Daddy. He was moving and Gemini lived with us for a month. I had so much fun having my Mommy here. We played and slept together all the time. Anna was so mean to her. She hissed and hunched her back at her all the time. I don't know why she was so mean. I think she was jealous because she was my mommy and Anna doesn't know her Mommy. Anna was adopted when she was a baby. Someone put her in a pet orphanage. We asked the vet if he thought I remembered my Mommy and he said he doubted it but he didn't know for sure. Well I can say I do remember her. She smelled just like me and we love each other.

I'm so glad you came to my party and looked at all my pictures. I had a lot of fun and I hope you had fun too.

Turkey Scaloppine

2009-02-24T17:41:00.000-08:00

I bought another cookbook....my daughter put me on "cookbook and magazine restriction" as she calls it!! Hee hee like that is going to stop me. I have sooo many but they are all good and I actually use most of them. Every time she sees one she asks me if I bought another cookbook and I say The mailman brought it to me!! I actually buy a lot online because it's easy and convenient. I love Jacques and have several of his books. I found this turkey scaloppine recipe and decided to try it. I am so glad I did, it was fantastic. And so easy. I didn't use the dried morels because morels don't really make me happy. I used fresh cremini's because I'm in love with them. I use cremini's instead of white buttons when cooking with mushrooms.

Doesn't this look scrumptious!! It tasted even better than it looks. I served couscous with it to sop up the sauce.

Turkey Scaloppine (adapted from Jacques More Fast Food My Way)

2T butter

2 T canola oil

4 large or 8 small turkey cutlets (about 1 pound)

3/4 tsp salt

3/4 pepper

1 1/2 all purpose flour

1/2 cup finely chopped shallots

1 pkg fresh cremini mushrooms sliced

1 cup chicken broth

2 T white dry vermouth

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 T chopped fresh tarragon or chives for garnish

Heat butter and oil in heavy skillet, sprinkle turkey with salt/pepper and dip them very lightly into flour. Saute scaloppine until brown on both sides. Do this is 2 batches. Remove turkey onto plate and saute shallots for 30 seconds. Add mushrooms and saute until beginning to soften. Add broth and deglaze skillet. Cook uncovered for 4-5 minutes or until the liquid is almost gone. Add the vermouth and cook for a minute or so. Add the cream and boil a couple of minutes to reduce and thicken. Add the scaloppine with all the juices from the plate. Sprinkle tarragon or chives and serve.

A Special Award, Orchids and Presents

2009-02-01T00:00:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine sent me this in a email and I thought you might enjoy it too.
CALMNESS IN OUR LIVES
I am passing this on to you because it definitely works, and we could all use a little more calmness in our lives. By following simple advice heard on the Dr. Phil show, you too can find inner peace. Dr Phil proclaimed, 'The way to achieve inner peace is to finish all the things you have started and have never finished.' So, I looked around my house to see all the things I started and hadn't finished, and before leaving the house this morning, I finished off a bottle of White Zinfandel, a bottle of Bailey's Irish Cream, a package of Oreos, the remainder of my old Prozac prescription, the rest of the cheesecake, some Doritos, and a box of chocolates. You have no idea how freaking good I feel right now. Pass this on to those whom you think might be in need of inner peace. Can you believe I have another orchid? This one is full of buds so should bloom and look beautiful for quite a while. Remember the first orchid? I cut the last of the blooms off today so it lasted. I really enjoyed it. I have one more and I think it is yellow but it shows no sign of doing anything.

I received my January snowflake from Crystal today. I just love it and I'm already looking forward to February's.

This very nice award is from Bebe from Peaches and Dreams. She is such a wonderful friend and I appreciate this award so much.

More about the award ~ "This blog invests and believes in the Proximity ~ nearness in space, time, and relationships. These blogs are extremely charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."

I'm not good at selecting bloggers to award because I hate leaving anyone out so please all my special friends grab this award and post it on your blog.

I'm still cleaning and sorting. I finished my kitchen last weekend and now it's my bedrooms turn. I hope to start it tomorrow. I trying a new recipe for a roast tomorrow so if it turns out yummy, I'll post it so you can all try it.

A Giveaway, Lunch and Dessert

2009-01-25T11:06:00.000-08:00

Isn't this the cutest doll you've ever seen? And it is being given away here. It's about Annie is a cute blog and she makes the dolls. She has the patterns too so you can make your own. They are all so precious. Good luck everyone!! (including me)

I'm trying to make healthy lunches. Last week I made a salad from Bulghur, tomatoes, olives and feta. So good for me and so tasty too. Today I made a soba noodle salad for the next couple of days. What do you take for lunch? I'm so spoiled by being able to come home for lunch that it's hard for me to plan ahead. Since I'm only working 6 hours a day, I only take a half hour so it's easier if I take something and eat at my desk.

The recipe is from this month's Everyday Food.

Cold Soba Salad with Feta and Cucumber

1 package (8.8 ozs) soba noodles (Japanese buckwheat noodles)

1/2 English cucumber peeled into long ribbons and thinly sliced

1/4 head red cabbage thinly sliced

1 shallot thinly sliced

1 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

3 T olive oil

salt/pepper

4 ozs crumbled feta

Cook soba according to package instructions and drain.

In a bowl combine cucumber, cabbage, shallot, parsley, lemon juice and olive oil. Add soba season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until chilled, top with feta cheese and serve.

Tonight I'm having barbecue ribs, dijon potatoes and steamed broccoli with lemon and garlic oil. For dessert it's Brownie Pudding Cake. I can hardly wait for dinner. I have to idea where I got the recipe. I've had it for years.

Brownie Pudding Cake

1/2 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

4 T unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 tsp baking powder

1/4 cup milk

1 T oil

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup chopped nuts

1/3 cup sugar

3/4 cup boiling water

4 servings

In a medium bowl stir together flour, 1/4 cup sugar, 1 T cocoa powder and baking powder.

Add milk, oil and vanilla. Stir until smooth. Stir in nuts.

Transfer batter to an ungreased 1 qt casserole.

In a small bowl stir together 1/3 cup sugar and 2 T cocoa powder. Gradually stir in boiling water.

Pour the mixture evenly over batter in the casserole.

Bake 350 for 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted near the center of the cake comes out clean. Serve warm.

An Exciting Day and Award

2009-01-20T18:37:00.001-08:00

What an exciting day!! Are you all watching our new President Obama and his beautiful wife? I missed today's activities because of work but I'm making up for it tonight. It is such an exciting time.
I received this award from my wonderful friend Mandy at the Vintage Kitten so I thought I would come out of hibernation to post. Mandy is such a fun lady and I love reading her posts.
Anna and Bailey wanted to say Hi also. It's hard to get a good picture of them together but happened to catch them this weekend. Both of them looking so innocent!!

I'm taking a break for awhile. I spend way too much time on the computer and my house is a mess and I really want to get some things done. I had some dental surgery that more or less knocked me on my ass but I'm feeling better now. Thank you all so much for your concern and checking in on me. I love you all. I'll try to post more often.

My New Treasures

2008-12-28T14:00:00.000-08:00

I was so lucky to win some giveaways before the holidays. I hope you enjoy seeing all my new treasures. The above picture is part of Sher's package.

This wasn't really a giveaway. Andrea was lucky enough to have a friend who gave her lots and lots of linens and dishes. I mentioned I loved the blue bird plate an she said she would send it tom me. I was so thrilled!!! She included the beautiful hankys too!! Thank you Andrea.

Crystal had a giveway for her tatted snowflakes. I will receive one a month and this is the December snowflake. I just love it!!

Doesn't it look dainty? I have never tatted nor do I know anything about it. It looks like a lot of work though. Crystal did a beautiful job. Thank you Crystal.

Sher has a monthly giveaway and I won!!! YEAH!! Thank you Sher. This is my new favorite teacup.

I lost a picture that included everything in the package.....don't you wonder where things go sometimes? I love the tags. I will use them on special presents this year. Aren't the stockings pictured at the top the cutest things you've ever seen?

I love vintage aprons and these are so special. I will add them to my collection. Thank you Sher.

Anna's Traumatic Experience

2008-12-23T17:18:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays everyone. My Mom was going to post a giveaway post tonight but I pushed her off of the computer because I had to tell you what happened to me. It was the most awful experience. I really don't know what was so exciting about the gifts anyway. There was nothing Bailey and I could play with or eat, but she was really excited. She kept saying things like Oh how pretty or how cute or how wonderful....Women!!

Speaking of eating.....My Mom whom I love very much (most of the time) took me to the doctor last night for my yearly checkup. What a traumatic experience. Bailey and I both hate it. She puts us in our carrier and takes us for a ride in the car. I pretty much howl all the way to the doctors. He weighs me and pokes around my eyes and ears and tummy. Then he comes in and sticks needles in my butt. Well on top of all that he said I WAS FAT AND I HAD TO GO ON A DIET. I weigh 11 pounds now do you call that FAT? So do you know what I did when I got home and Mom let me out of that stupid carrier?

I ran for the food bowl and I really chowed down. YUMMY!! We also had to stop at the kitty food store because Mom had to buy us some special food. I also have gingivitis and have to eat Dental Care food and I have to go back to the doctor in 6 months. If I'm not better he will have to clean my teeth. Oh the stress I'm going through is unbelievable.

I'm sorry to interrupt my Mom's giveaway post but she said she would post it soon and to wish everyone a happy happy Christmas. Bailey and I wish you a Merry Christmas too!! If you have Crab or Lobster for Christmas would you please call us because my Mom is having prime rib....YUCKY!!!

Christmas Spirit Award

2008-12-22T17:26:00.001-08:00

Happy Holidays everyone. My lovely friend Melissa from Sunbonnet Cottage has awarded me this wonderful award. Melissa is the sweetest blogging friend. I love her because she is so thoughtful and she cheers me up. If you haven't visited her please do. She is so sweet.

I told her I wasn't really in the holiday spirit but I'd give it a try.

1. The words of Merry Christmas: I like wishing people I don't know a happy holiday when I see them in a store either helping me or just walking by.

2. The Hustle and Bustle: I'm not to sure I like the hustle and bustle anymore. I used to when my kids were young and at home with all the baking and shopping and decorating the huge and I mean huge tree.

3. Time with Family: It is always fun to have the kids and grand kids over to open packages and eat and eat and eat. We always have a special time together.

4. Decorating the Christmas Tree: I don't do a tree anymore. We always had the biggest tree we could find when the kids were young.

5. The Comforts of Home: I love being home cuddling up with my Anna and Bailey. I love quiet evenings.

I need to pass this on but since it is almost Christmas and I know everyone is super busy, I'll ask anyone stopping by to please join in.

Happy holidays everyone. Tomorrow I will try to post some wonderful giveways and gifts I've received. It was like Christmas when the mailman came.

BRRRR IT'S COLD OUTSIDE

2008-12-17T16:19:00.000-08:00

I didn't mean to take such a long break but time has really gotten away from me. I've had some things going on that took a lot of time plus trying to do some baking and wrapping etc.

It has been so cold here. We are breaking records made in 1897 and 1901.....Whooppee. It has warmed up from minus 18 to almost 40. We are suppose to have another frigid weekend too. It's been a good week to do lots of baking for the holidays. Before Thanksgiving we were breaking heat records when we were topping 75 degrees. Weird weather this year and I think I'm almost ready for Spring. We aren't getting a lot of snow just cold and more cold.

This morning on the way to work I stopped at a light and there was a teenager in shorts, short sleeved shirt and thongs. He had his hands in his pocket, I wonder if he was cold? I'm wondering if his Mother knew he was running around like that?

I hope you are all getting your shopping, wrapping and baking done. I've tried to visit a few blogs and everyone has such beautiful decorations and trees.

Have a wonderful rest of the week and stay warm.

Hugs,

Nigella's Cake

2008-12-07T11:20:00.001-08:00

I made two of these cakes yesterday. One to enjoy now and one safely tucked away in the freezer for Christmas. The recipe is in Nigella's Christmas book that is only published in the UK. I was reading on some website about the book and that this chocolate cake was in it.

I knew that Mandy, The Vintage Kitten's wonderful husband had just bought her the book so I asked her if it was in fact in it. She gratefully offered to send it to me. Well since the measurements are in grams, etc. She also sent me little "Mandy notes for Judy" so I would succeed.

It is a very rustic looking cake (thank goodness I knew that) so I wasn't upset when it cracked a little and then I kind of dropped off some of the sides taking it off the springform pan. And yes, I ate them. The second one came out a lot better. I guess practice makes perfect!!!

I took good notes for the first one so the second one was a lot easier too. I have a small scale and have decided I really need a better one. But for my first try I'm happy. And now with all of Mandy's notes (which I'm keeping for future use), I may try more recipes. It was definitely a learning experience and I think I succeeded. A special thanks to Mandy, I couldn't have done it without you. OK I'm going to go eat cake now. I wish you were here to have some with me. But since you aren't I'll just have a piece for you too!!

Leftovers Part II

2008-12-03T17:35:00.001-08:00

I meant to post this sooner but haven't had time so I guess better late than never. I used the last of the turkey except the carcass that is in my freezer for much later. These croquettes were fabulous. I got the recipe from the November Martha Living magazine.

Don't they look yummy?

It made a big batch so I kept enough out for dinner and froze the rest on a cookie sheet and then put in a Ziploc for later. I made them the night before and kept the next nights dinner on a small sheet in the frig.

Turkey Croquettes

from Martha

3 Tbspns unsalted butter

1 medium onion minced

salt/pepper

1 1/2 tsp minced fresh sage

1 1/2 tsp minced fresh thyme

2 cups finely chopped cooked turkey

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 cup mashed potatoes

1/2 cup flour

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cups finely ground fresh breadcrumbs

Vegetable oil for frying (I used Canola)

Cranberry sauce for serving if you have any left

Melt butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add onion, salt/pepper. Cook for 3 minutes. Stir in sage and thyme and cook or 1 minute. Stir in turkey and cream and cook until liquid evaporates. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool for 15 minutes.

Add potatoes, flour and egg to turkey mixture.

Drop 2 Tblspns turkey mixture into a shallow bowl of breadcrumbs, turn to coat and pat into 2" disks. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and refrigerate for 10 minutes.

Heat 1/4 inch oil in a skillet over medium heat in batches, until golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Serve immediately.

I followed the recipe except I didn't add the herbs because I had put a herb butter mixture under the skin when I roasted the Thanksgiving Turkey so I thought is was herby enough.

These were so good. My daugher said What are these, they are really good!!

Leftovers

2008-11-29T18:40:00.001-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!! It's been a quiet weekend around here just catching up on cleaning and laundry and relaxing.
This is what we woke up to this morning. It started snowing last night but I was surprised when I got up and saw the winter wonderland. It only snowed a couple of inches but the trees were so pretty.

I made a batch of Turkey Minestrone today. I have plenty for lunch this week which will be a nice take and grab in the morning.

Turkey Minestrone

2 tsps olive oil

1 cup diced carrots

1 cup diced potatoes

1 cup green beans trimmed and sliced in 1" pieces

1 clove minced garlic

chicken stock to cover

2/3 cup small elbow macaroni

1 can cannellini beans drained and rinsed

1/2 cup canned chopped tomatoes

3/4 cup cooked diced turkey

Heat oil in a heavy dutch oven. Add next 4 ingredients and saute a couple of minutes. Add stock and tomatoes, and simmer until veggies are done. Season with salt/pepper. Add cooked pasta and turkey.

I sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese.

The Thanksgiving Turkey

2008-11-25T17:27:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!! I hope everyone has a wonderful thankful day.

As some of you know I work in a Physical Therapy Clinic. One of the patients brought a gift in for everyone. I thought it was so cute I wanted to share. It is a bag of microwave popcorn with the following poem attached.

The Thanksgiving Turkey

The turkey shot out of the oven

and rocketed into the air.

It knocked every plate off the table

And partly demolished a chair.

It ricocheted into a corner

And burst with a deafening boom.

Then splattered all over the kitchen

Completely obscuring the room.

It stuck to the walls and windows

it totally coated the floor.

There was turkey attached to the ceiling

Where there'd never been turkey before.

It blanketed every appliance

it smeared every saucer and bowl.

There wasn't a way I could stop it

That turkey was out of control

I scraped and I scrubbed with displeasure

And I thought with chagrin as I mopped

That I'd never again stuff a turkey

With popcorn that hadn't been popped!!

I am behind on visiting but wanted to answer a couple of questions I haven't had time to respond to. I bought my fancy loaf pan at Williams Sonoma. It's fun baking bread in this time of year. I'll try to post a picture of it later. I have my orchids in the kitchen window which is supposedly not a good place but they seem to like it.

Have a wonderful Turkey day!!

Hugs,

Pumpkin Bread and Cranberry Ginger Jelly

2008-11-23T22:00:00.000-08:00

Look what happened today!! Isn't it pretty? I can hardly wait until the rest of the buds open. I think it likes my kitchen window even though from what I've heard it's the worst place for them because they get too much direct sun.

I made two batches of pumpkin bread today. I always get so many compliments when I make these. I put some in my freezer too. I got these recipes years ago from a magazine advertising Libby's Pumpkin.

Pumpkin Cranberry Bread

3 cups flour

1 T plus 2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp salt

3 cups sugar

1 can pumpkin

4 large eggs

1 cup canola oil

1/2 cup orange juice

1 cup sweetened dried, fresh or frozen cranberries. I always use fresh cranberries.

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour 2 loaf pans. I use the Pam Baking Spray.

Combine flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt in bowl. Combine sugar, pumpkin, eggs, oil and orange juice in large mixer bowl. Beat until blended. Add flour mixture and stir until moistened. Fold in cranberries and spoon batter into prepared pans.

Bake 60 minutes, cool 10 minutes and remove from pans and cool completely.

Orange Spice Pumpkin Bread

1 1/2 cups flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp ginger

1/4 tsp allspice

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp cinnamon
10 Tablespoon melted unsalted butter

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 tsp finely grated orange zest

3 eggs slightly beaten

1 cup pumpkin

Bake 350 for 55 minutes. Grease and flour loaf pan.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, nutmeg, allspice and cinnamon.

Beat together butter, brown sugar, sugar and orange zest until well blended about 2 minutes. Add the eggs and pumpkin and beat 2 or 3 minutes. Fold in the flour mixture in two additions.

Pour in prepared pan and bake.

These are both very good and easy recipes. I hope you enjoy.

Next I made my cranberry ginger jelly. This is a new recipe from Martha. It was in one of her special holiday magazines. Don't you just love the color?
I did sneak a taste and it is tart and really yummy!! A lot better than the canned cranberry sauce. My daughter even likes it. I can hardly wait for Thursday!!

Cranberry Ginger Jelly

2 bags fresh or frozen (thawed) cranberries

2 cups sugar

2 tsp finely grated peeled fresh ginger

2 cups water

Combine cranberries, sugar, ginger and water in a medium saucepan. Cover and bring to a simmer; cook stirring occasionally until berries have burst and softened about 10 minutes. Pass through a sieve into a bowl, pressing on solids with a wooden spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard solids.

Meanwhile sprinkle 1 Tablespoon unflavored gelatin over 1/2 cup water in a small bowl. Let soften 5 minutes. Add to cranberry mixture, stir until gelatin is dissolved. Put in air tight container and refrigerate 4 hours.

Can be made ahead 1 week.

Bon Appetit!!

Enjoy and have a great week!!

100th GIVEAWAY WINNER IS..........

2008-11-21T18:32:00.001-08:00

Good Morning, Good Morning!! I hope you all had a wonderful week. I finally got over my cold or at least almost. I'm not whining as much anyway.

I am so thrilled I had such a wonderful response to my giveaway. Thank you all so much for entering. This has been so much fun and I'm so sorry you all didn't win. I tried to pick all of your names but Anna and Bailey would not let me. So we will just have to be happy with the winners they picked.

Every one's names in the basket neatly folded.

Anna is really helping this time. Bailey is laying in his bed watching!! Anna is trying to find Anna's name I just know it. Anna NO CHEATING!!

Where is Anna's entry. I can't find it!!

Maybe if I get in here and do some reading. Anna NO CHEATING!!

I got one, I got one....did I draw Anna?? No Anna it's not and she will probably NOT be happy with you. She was really depending on you too!! The winner is Lisa at Reflections in A Gazing Ball!! Yeah!! Lisa is one of my new blogging friends. We haven't been visiting each other very long.

Oh good grief Anna, if you can't do any better than that, let me do it.

OK I've got one!!! Mommy please read it!! Yeah!! It is Randi at I Have to Say!!!

OK one more!! Yeah!! It is Lydia at Lydia's Organic Gardening.

OK you have to be wondering what is going on!! Three winners??? I've decided to have two runners up. So if you three wonderful ladies will email me your addresses I will get your goodies in the mail. Lisa will get the giveaway items and Randi and Lydia will get a surprise!!

I've got a busy busy weekend as I'm sure you all do getting ready for Thursday. I'm making some pumpkin bread and I hope to get the recipes posted this weekend. One is a Cranberry Pumpkin and the other is an Orange Spice Pumpkin bread.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. Congratulations to all the winners.

My Favorite Desk

2008-11-19T00:00:00.000-08:00

I love my desk. Whenever I look at it I smile and it makes my happy. I probably paid way too much for it but I didn't care. It is an 1800 Lakin Secretariat in really good condition.

I decided to give it a good cleaning and thought it was a good time to take some pictures because you could really see it. It is usually full of stuff. Someone put a lot of love in it. The pull down shelf was broken and repaired. If you look closely you can see it. It is under the decrorative piece. One drawer is a little different also but all this just gives it more character.
Anna likes to sleep under it so I made her a bed. They have a basket full of toys too!! The baby buggy I'll have to post about later. I think I've posted pictures of Anna and Bailey in the buggy. I was living in Dallas when I bought my desk. There is a First Monday Flea Market in Canton once a month and I went with some friends of mine. I went several times while living there. It is a lot of fun and you can find so many many treasures. The first time I went my friend told me if I wanted something to buy it because we'd never find it again. The Market is huge. I actually decided on something after leaving it behind and we found it again. I got this look but they helped me find it. I was so happy but now I could not tell you what it was. I'm sure it's around here someplace though.The desk has lots of slots and a small drawer to put things. Below is a closer look at the inside.

I hope you enjoyed seeing my desk and don't forget to enter my giveaway if you haven't already. Remember it closes Friday night.

Food and Orchids

2008-11-16T11:43:00.000-08:00

I've had a lot of questions about my tea blooms. I get mine at Sur La Table. For those that don't have one it is a gourmet kitchen shop and they do have a website here. I've seen them other places too but off hand I don't remember where.

I made this wonderful Shrimp dish last night. It is so easy and very good. I saw it on Alosha's Kitchen a while back. She had actually gotten it from Rachel which made me skeptical but since Melissa said it was good I trusted her. She has some fantastic recipes. This is one of the best shrimp dishes I've made. I couldn't believe how fast it went together. I'm not posting the recipe because I didn't change it and this will give you a chance to check out Melissa's blog. She is beginner cook and is doing very well. She comes up with some fantastic recipes.

This morning I made Gingerbread. I used the recipe from King Arthur Flour. Click here.

And I made some Twice Baked Potatoes for dinner tonight. I'm baking a chicken later this afternoon. All I'm going to do to the chicken is shove a lemon and garlic up his little butt and lay him on more of the garlic and lemon and bake. This is my favorite way of roasting a chicken. It's always juicy and it's easy so when you are getting your daughter's cold you can take it easy. Bless her little heart for sharing!! To the potatoes I added cheese and scallions. I made extra and they went in the freezer. I didn't put scallions in the freezer batch though.

And now for the orchid update. They are really getting big aren't they. Do you suppose we will have flowers by the end of the week?

I hope everyone has a great week.

Hugs,

Judy

First Snow and a Gift

2008-11-14T18:15:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone. Thank you so much for all the nice comments on my giveaway. I wish you all could win!! This has been a fast week and I'm glad the weekend is here. I have lots to do too and hopefully I get through half of my "To Do" list.

I had my massage tonight so if I don't make any sense just realize I'm very very very relaxed . I had such a lovely surprise today too!! I had a package in my mail box from Deb at Garage Sale Gal. Isn't she the sweetest friend. Look at all the lovely gifts that were in my package. There are stickers, a small notebook that is already in my purse, sticky notes which I love, tea which I have water on boiling for, a cookie cutter and see Minnesota and a beautiful hanky to add to my collection. I know I've forgotten something but if you enlarge the picture you can see it all. She wrote me a special note in the "Mary" card. Thank you so very much Deb. I love everything.

The first exciting thing that happened today was getting up to SNOW!! Not much and it was over by 9:00 but it was pretty. Nice big flakes falling slowly and softly.
I took this from my kitchen window. See the squirrels and bird enjoying the snow?

Aren't they the cutest? The closest in the picture was sitting there watching me taking the picture, I think he was posing for the camera. Now I have a Diva squirrel who lives in my tree.

We did get a little on my patio. Bailey enjoyed the snow. I think he was watching it fall to the ground.

I really like this picture. I took it right after I got up (yes I went outside in my jammies and yes it was cold). It was not that dark out though. You can see the snow really well. It looks like the stars and planets but it is really snow.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.

MY 100TH POST GIVEAWAY

2008-11-11T15:26:00.001-08:00

YEAH!!! It's finally here!! My 100th post, can you believe it? Sometimes it feels I've been blogging forever and then it's like I did my first post yesterday. I remember writing my first one and wondering how long it would take for someone to actually read my blog. I even offered a prize to the first comment thinking I really didn't have to plan anything right away because it would probably take awhile. I had been reading and commenting for about a year before I took the plunge so I figured everyone would know me as a non-blogger. Well lo and behold my friend Crystal came to visit and I had to scramble to come up with something. I was so pleased Crystal was my first because I have been visiting her for a long time.

I have met and made so many new friends and you all mean so much to me. If you don't post or comment for awhile I get worried. I want all of you to know how much you mean to me.

OK Shut Up Judy and get down to business....SHEEESH!!! Since this is the middle of the week I'm giving extra time to comment. I will close the giveaway on November 21. I think that is next Friday. Maybe I should look do you think? This is everything that will be included. Whoops sorry you can't have my babies. I was getting ready for work this morning and they were both watching me as usual so thought I would take a picture of them. So do you suppose Anna sits on the commode so I can't lift the lid and throw her in? This is an everyday occurrence. They are usually in whatever room I am. And remember these aren't part of the giveaway. I don't want anyone to be disappointed.

The 12 days of Christmas towel is though. Don't you think it's cute?

You all liked my fall spatulas so I thought you might like a Christmas one or two. The little one is awesome for getting into small jars. The large one has candy canes and peppermint candies and the small one has a reindeer.

And last but not least is the Holiday Baking book by Linda Collister. It's a great book and she gives advice on making ahead which is always nice this time of year. And as a bonus I'm giving you two of the beautiful tea flowers.

OK everyone, please comment and I will have Bailey draw a name on Saturday November 22 and will post the winner. And I looked, it's the right date!! He did such a fantastic job for the honey giveaway I thought it would be fun to let him do it again.

Another Orchid Update and a Play Along with Nola

2008-11-09T17:00:00.001-08:00

Do you think the buds are getting bigger? You can actually see the pink in them now. I took the picture this morning and I think they are bigger tonight. OK it's my imagine!! Or maybe "old age" and I'm delusional? Please don't answer that. Thank You.

I was reading Nola's blog this morning and she did a Meme from Dianne so thought I'd play along since I'm at 98 now!!! NO not my age, my number of posts!!

1. Where is your cell phone.~~ ~In my purse and off as it should be.

2. Where is your significant other?~~~Don't have one, don't want one

3. Your hair color? ~~~Well I used to be a brunette and colored it for years but one day I decided to see what color it actually was and I let it grow out. I decided I liked it so I'm very silver today.

4. Your Mother? ~~~She'll be 90 next year.

5. Your Father?~~~ He died many many years ago.

6. Your favorite thing?~~~ Cooking...Shock huh?, reading, and visiting all you

7. Your dream last night? ~~~OK now you are going to call the men in the white jackets. My dream was a continuation of the nights before and it was really weird. Do you have serial dreams?

8. Your dream goal?~~~To stay healthy and always be happy

9. The room you're in? ~~~Living room

10. Your hobby?~~~cooking

11. Your fear?~~~ Not being able to take care of myself

12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? ~~~Here

13. Where were you last night?~~~Home

14. What you are not?~~~ 40

15. One of your wish list items?~~~ to visit France where my ancesters were born.

16. Where you grew up?~~~Mostly Denver, I was born in MO and moved to CA. I came here when I was 12.

17. The last thing you did?~~~ Dishes

18. What are you wearing?~~~ Sweats

19. Your TV? ~~~~~Living room and bedroom

20. Your Pets?~~~ Anna and Bailey

21. Your computer? ~~~ My friend made it so who knows

22. Your Mood? ~~~Happy

23. Missing someone?~~~not right now

24. Your car?~~~ 2008 Nissan Versa

25. Something you're not wearing?~~~No shoes, no bra, no makeup

26. Favorite Store?~~ Macy's

27. Your summer?~~~ Serene

28. Love someone?~~~ My kittens and my children

29. Your favorite colors? ~~~ Purple, blue

30. When was the last time you laughed?~~~ Today when Anna and Bailey were being silly

31. When was the last time you cried?~~~ When my back was soo soo painful

Hope you enjoyed and please play along. It's fun!! Have a great week!!

A Weekend Laugh

2008-11-09T00:00:00.000-08:00

My daughter sent me this email and I thought you would love it too!!

How to wash a toilet. This was simply too much of a time saver not to share it with you.

1. Put both lids of the toilet up and add 1/8 cup of pet shampoo to the water in the bowl.
2. Pick up the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom.
3. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close the lid. You may need to stand on the lid.
4. The cat will self agitate and make ample suds. Never mind the noises that come from the toilet, the cat is actually enjoying this.
5. Flush the toilet three or four times. This provides a 'power-wash' and rinse'.
6. Have someone open the front door of your home. Be sure that there are no people between the bathroom and the front door.
7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can, and quickly lift the lid.
8. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak through the bathroom, And run outside where he will dry himself off.
9. Both the commode and the cat will be sparkling clean.

Sincerely,
The Dog!!

Tea

2008-11-07T06:42:00.000-08:00

I love tea. I think I've been hanging around Mandy and Debbie too long. Have you tried the ones that open up into flowers when you put them hot water? So much fun and so pretty. I love tucking them in gifts as an extra little bonus.

I love my teacup. I bought it from Anthropologie.com several years ago.

Isn't it pretty when it opens up? Ok this is my 97th post...we are getting closer and I'm planning my 100th giveaway!!! It's going to be fun!!! Maybe I'll add one of these little flowers too! Good idea!!

My Almost 100th Post and An Award

2008-11-04T15:26:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone voted today!!!

Did you know this is my 96th post? Isn't that awesome? I can't believe I've rambled on this long. I'm trying to think of something awesome for a 100th giveaway.....so stay tuned!!

Marie Antoinette Award- a real person, a real award! Thank you to Nola of Alamo North. Here are the Rules for the Award:
1. Please put the logo on your blog. Place a link to the person from whom you received the award. Nominate at least 7 or more blogs. Put the links of those blogs on your blog.

I am going to pass this on to all you. It is so hard to choose and you are all so deserving so please grab the picture and post it on your blog.

Orchid Update

2008-11-02T17:51:00.001-08:00

I actually have more buds on my orchid and I think they are bigger don't you? I've had lots of advice mostly PATIENCE!! Oh good grief please send me some!! I have absolutely NONE!! You can't see in the picture but the ends are a darker color. I wish I could remember the color but we will just have to wait. Debbie thought I should have a contest as to what color it will be. She said it would be white with yellow centers. I had a dark pink, light pink, white with yellow center and a lady slipper. That is the only one I remember the name of. I think this was a pink one, well no on second thought maybe it was the white one. I hope we find out soon.

This one actually has new leaves and doesn't look too bad. I have one more that looks kind of sick so I didn't take a picture of it.

I cooked all weekend. Don't know what possessed me but I couldn't leave my kitchen. I made a pumpkin cake that is just OK. The one I usually bake is a big cake so I don't like making it unless I know someone will be around to eat it all. I'll have to post the recipe because it is the best. I got it from Molly at Orangette a few years ago.

This one came from Martha. I changed the icing a little by making a cream cheese icing with honey. Hers was a little different.

It does look good though doesn't it and yes, I took a bite.

I also made Theresa's chocolate cookies. So easy and so good. I have seen recipes using cake mixes but never tried one until now. I will definitely make these again. I told her I was going to post her cookies and to expect extra company. I did add nuts too!!

Have a great week and thank all of you for your visits and comments. They mean so much to me.

White Chili and Chocolate Cake

2008-11-01T12:13:00.001-07:00

Doesn't this chocolate cake look delicious? It was a very easy recipe to make and very chocolaty and good. Of course what made with chocolate isn't? It is one of those forbidden recipes that I tested but since I changed a couple of things it's mine now!!!

Easy Chocolate Snack Cake

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup sugar

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp kosher salt or table salt

1/2 cup cocoa powder

2 oz chopped fine bittersweet chocolate

1 cup hot coffee

2/3 c mayonnaise

1 egg

2 tsp vanilla

Lightly spray pan 8 inch square pan with Pam.

Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda and salt together in large bowl. In another bowl, combine cocoa powder and chocolate. Pour hot coffee over cocoa mixture and mix until melted and smooth. Let cool slightly. Whisk in mayonnaise, egg, vanilla into chocolate batter. Stir mayonnaise mixture into flour mixture until combined.

Bake 350 for 30 minutes.

Let cool and serve with sweetened whipped cream.

Delicious!!

Cheryl and I were emailing and I mentioned making white chili and she said she wanted me to post it because she had never had any. I got this recipe from my sister in law years ago. It is so easy to make and leftovers are even better so make a big batch. I usually double it!!

White Chili

12 oz ground turkey

1 med chopped onion

1 garlic clove minced

1 can Great Northern Beans rinsed and drained

1 4 oz can green chili's diced

1 can chicken broth

Water

1 tsp ground cumin

salt/pepper to taste

Cook turkey, onion and garlic. Drain fat off and add rest of ingredients and enough additional broth and/or water to cover. Let simmer for 30 minutes.

If you want it a little thicker stir 2 Tbls flour in 1/4 cup water. Stir into chili and cook until thick. I usually don't thicken mine.

Orchids

2008-10-28T18:07:00.000-07:00

About a year ago I worked with a lady that grew orchids. Her house must have been a like a green house. She would go to lunch and several times a week she would bring back a plant of some kind. I asked her one day how many plants she had and said probably over a 100. I can't imagine taking care of all them or having the time. She was a single woman with not much family. I think they were her children because she was always pampering them. Well she talked me into getting an orchid. I have never grown an orchid but I do pretty well with other plants so I gave in. She went with me to help me pick one out and I ended up getting two. I wouldn't want one to get lonely now would I? They were of course blooming and doing so well that I eventually bought two more. Well of course the flowers dried up and went away and all I had were these plants that just sat there and did NOTHING!!! All winter they just sat around and expected me to water and love them with no repayment. One finally died and I was wishing the other three would too. This summer I put them on the patio thinking they might get sun stroke or something. No such luck....they continued to sit around and expect water, food and love with no repayment. When it threatened to freeze I decided I better bring them in. I put them in my kitchen window and I think they are actually happy with me now. Look at the little green thing sprouting. Do you suppose it is going to bloom? I am so excited!!! I'll keep you posted. The other two are actually growing now too but just new leaves. I guess they heard me thinking that if they didn't do something soon, the trash they were going!! So I guess I will keep them for awhile. Do you grow orchids? Have you ever grown one? Would you like to adopt one of mine?

I wish I could remember what color this one was, but I really don't care I just want a pretty flower.

Pork Roast in the Crock Pot

2008-10-28T00:00:00.000-07:00

This wasn't a recipe for the crock pot, but I made it one because I had a busy day and wanted something for dinner I didn't have to mess with or watch. It turned out fantastic and leftovers were scrumptious.

My wonderful Crock Pot. I love it. I don't use it nearly enough though. Here is the recipe.

Pork Roast

In crock pot layer on the bottom, 3 garlic cloves

1 or 2 shallots

3 carrots

Rub pork roast with salt/pepper and Herbes de Provence

Put a little olive oil in a skillet and brown on all sides and put in crock pot on top of the veggies

Add 1/2 cup white wine or water or broth. I used the wine.

Cover and let cook on low for about 6 hours or so.

The last hour add 1/2 pound of cremini mushrooms. Or you could use the white button mushrooms.

I made roasted potatoes and fennel to go with the roast. I used a 400 degree oven. Chop the unpeeled potatoes in pieces, quarter the fennel, season everything with salt/pepper and olive oil. Toss and put in the oven. Cooking time varies on how big your veggie is and I usually start checking it after about 30 minutes or so.

All in all it was a very good meal with leftovers and with little or no help from me. Which on a busy day is a good thing.

The Grand Finale!!

2008-10-26T12:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the last Farmers Market. Now I have to start buying my produce from the grocery store again. And yes, I'm whining!! I stalked up on everything that would keep for awhile. I bought extra winter squash, onions, etc. I also put some roasted chili's in the freezer for Green Chili this winter. I usually do that earlier but for some reason I just didn't get around to it. I think I have enough to last though.

You have been very patient with me in posting the last leg of our drive. With not being able to connect to the Internet last week slowed me down. I did get a lot done around here though.

This is Long's Peak again. If you look closely you can see the clouds at the top. As we drove into Estes Park we saw Elk along the side of the road. Of course we had to stop and take pictures and watch them.
These two were locking horns and making lots of noise.

Doesn't he look proud standing there?

They kept going behind the trees so it was hard to take a picture. As angry as they seemed I sure wasn't going to get any closer.

I hope you enjoyed watching the Elk as much as we did. I wish you could all have been there with us.

My Wonderful Gift From Dianne

2008-10-24T17:57:00.001-07:00

My gift from Dianne came today and I was so excited. I won her giveaway for her 100th post. I started to rip it open and remembered I had to share!! And it was very fragile too. Dianne decorated the can so pretty and wrote a special note for me.

It is so sweet. Thank you so much Dianne.
This is my starter kit. I can hardly wait to try it.

I have my very own starter kit now so I can try making my own Pysanky. She said she was going to do a tutorial on her blog or I can look one up on Google.

And this is my so very pretty Pysanky that Dianne made. It took her 6 hours. I'm not sure I have that much patience but I'm sure going to try it. Wish me luck. I haven't decided where I am going to put it yet. I have it under my cloche now just to keep it safe. I am so happy with my pretty. Thank you so much Dianne.

Second Part of The Drive.

2008-10-23T16:15:00.000-07:00

Before we start today I want to tell you about a new blogger Mamma Lalla. She lives in Africa so you can imagine the pictures you can see on her blog. I can't imagine looking out my window and seeing Zebra!! Can you? She is the Linen Cupboards Mother and I'm so glad she started her own blog.

Also that I'm sorry I've been absent the last few days. I've had computer problems but they seem to be fixed...hopefully for good. I couldn't connect to the Internet. Do you suppose my computer was trying to tell me something? I will try to catch up with you as soon as I can and see what you have been up to. In the meantime sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.

More of Longs Peak. It is so beautiful. If you'd like to learn more about Longs Peak click here.

More Beautiful Aspen and Mountains Part One

2008-10-21T12:00:00.000-07:00

I hope you are ready for some more sightseeing. I've been saving these for awhile. We started in Denver of course and drove through Golden up to Black Hawk over to Nederlands and finished our trip in Estes Park with a wonderful finale for you too look forward to.

Can you see that little black dot in the white cloud to the left? That was a hang glider. He was so far away but they were fun watching.

These were taken as we drove by Black Hawk. It is a gambling town with lots and lots of casinos. Central City is a little further up the the mountain. Central City was the first to become a gambling town and Black Hawk joined in very soon after. There is a famous Opera House in Central City. There is the face on the barroom floor and many tourists come to see her. If you click on Central City and then at the link at the bottom of that page for more information you will be able to see the face. I liked the town better before all the casinos moved in.

As you can see it was trying to rain and we did have a few sprinkles. It was pretty cool up there too. I'm glad I had my sweatshirt.

The mountain peak you can see in the background is Longs Peak. You'll see more of it later in the drive as we get closer.

That's all for today I hope you enjoyed the beginning of our afternoon.

Artichokes

2008-10-19T12:36:00.000-07:00

I've been doing a lot of baby artichoke lately and I think I'm getting it!! Finally!! I've used this recipe several times now and they are getting better, just not perfect yet.

I wasn't taking off enough of the outer leaves at first and now I boil and roast them longer than the recipe calls for.

Roasted Baby Artichokes

16-24 baby artichokes

1 lemon sliced

1/2 cup olive oil

salt/pepper

After cleaning, taking off all the outer leaves cut them in half and drop in boiling salted water for 5 minutes along with the lemon slices. Drain well and toss artichokes and lemon slices with olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange in a single layer in a roasting pan or baking sheet. Roast in 450 oven until tender 8-10 minutes.

Today I am using this recipe from Molly. She posted her recipe on October 6. I think I like the addition of garlic but I like roasting them the best so after they simmer I am putting them in the oven for a few minutes. Do you ever cook baby artichokes? If so how? I'm still looking for that perfect recipe.

ABC's of Homemaking

2008-10-16T15:38:00.000-07:00

I just visited Diane at Crafty Passions and thought this was a really fun thing to do so here I go. I hope you all join in and please let me know so I can visit.

ABC'S of HOMEMAKING.......
A ~Aprons--Do you have some? I have loads of vintage aprons. Some that my Grandmother wore. I don't usually wear one but I should because I'm always wiping my hands on my butt.

B ~ Baking--Favorite thing to bake? I love baking, it is my way of relaxing. If I had to pick my favorite it would be cakes or cookies especially a new recipe.

C ~ Clothes line? I don't have one but I keep thinking I should get one because of the utility bill. That dryer uses lots of electricity.

D ~ Donuts--Have you ever made them? I made some when my kids were young.

E ~ Everyday--One homemaking thing you do everyday? I make my bed and clean the bathroom every day.

F ~ Freezer--Do you have a separate deep freeze? Yes, I have a chest freezer and it is usually very full.

G ~ Garbage Disposer? I have one but don't use it very often.

H ~ Handbook--What is your favorite homemaking resource? I have scads of cookbooks, watch the food network and have lots and lots of saved recipes from bloggers and friends in notebooks and recipe box.

I ~ Ironing--Love it or Hate it? Or hate it but love the results? I hate it!!!
J ~ Junk Drawer--y/n? Where is it?The proverbial junk drawer...... Yes I have one in the kitchen and it is full of whatever I have in my hand and don't know where to put it or just too lazy to put it where it belongs.
K ~ Kitchen--color and decorating scheme. My kitchen is white walls with natural cabinets. My curtains are white/green/tan. My appliances are all black.
L ~ Love--what is your favorite part of homemaking? I love keeping my home clean and comfortable.
M ~ Mop--y/n? I do my floors on my hands and knees. No mops for me.
N ~ Nylons, machine or hand wash? I just throw them in a nylon bag and wash them on the gentle cycle with other things. I don't wear them much anymore.
O ~ Oven--do you use the window or open the oven to check? I don't have a window so I open it.
P ~ Pizza--What do you put on yours? Pepperoni is my favorite with maybe mushrooms and/or black olives. Most anything except anchovies.
Q ~ Quiet--What do you do during the day when you get a quiet moment? Usually play with Anna and Bailey (and yes they are spoiled) or visit my favorite blogs.
R ~ Recipe Card Box--y/n? A mess. Not really pretty organized with tabs for different recipes. My binders are so full it is ridiculous.
S ~ Style of house--What style is your house? I live in a condo.
T ~Tablecloths or Place mats? I usually use place mats but sometimes tablecloths for a change.

U ~ Under the kitchen sink--organized or toxic wasteland? Pretty organized.
V ~ Vacuum--How many times per week? Once a week but I really don't do any because my daughter does the vacuum for me because of my back.
W ~ Wash--How many loads of laundry do you do per week? I usually do a couple of loads 2-3 times a week.
X's--Do you keep a daily list of things to do that you cross off? I don't keep a daily list but a weekly list or weekend list.
Y ~ Yard--y/n? Who does what? I don't have one.

ZZZ's ~ what is your last homemaking task for the day before going to bed? Make sure the doors are locked. Anna and Bailey are usually waiting for me which makes me smile.

I saw this at, That British Woman ,who saw it at Niki's Rural Writings, who saw it at Pieces from Me, who saw it at Coffee Time At Home. Please play along on your blog!!! Let me know if you do, so I can visit.I saw this at, Diane at Crafty Passions

More Fall Decorations

2008-10-15T17:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was David's memorial and it was very nice but so very sad. They showed a video of his life. He was so cute as a baby and very very handsome as an adult. We all miss you David.

I added a couple more fall decorations this past week and thought I would post those since I really don't have anything else ready. And no the picture above is not a fall decoration, he is a permanent fixture around here. This is the way he normally sleeps. How he sleeps in those weird positions is beyond me. I'd be so stiff I wouldn't be able to move when I woke up.

I love my ghost tea light burner. This is one of my favorite Halloween things.

I added some fake fruit to my floor stand and centered the candle on top of everything. It looks so pretty when the candle is lit. I was pleased!! I think I will redo it with holly and berries for Christmas.
I put some fake pumpkins and leaves on my other cake plate for this one. Since I've got both plates filled with fall decorations I guess I won't be making much cake this month. I love decorations I can leave until after Thanksgiving.

Hot Chocolate and Tagged and Winner

2008-10-12T11:49:00.000-07:00

I'm editing this post because I just received an email from Diane at Crafty Passions to let me know I have won her giveaway. I am so happy!! I'll be posting more when I receive the package and show it off!! Thank you thank you!!

I also forgot to tag anyone for my tag below. I try to pick different bloggers each time and I'm so excited I can't think so I'll leave it up to you. Please tell us 7 things that make you happy or sad or laugh.

We didn't get up to snow this morning and I guess that was a good thing. I was a little disappointed though. It's been so warm it would have just stayed on the grassy areas. It has been cool and rainy all weekend. Definitely sweatshirt weather. I had a lot of errands to run yesterday and I had on my sweats and down vest and was quite comfortable. It is definitely hot chocolate weather. I used to make this a lot when my kids were young. They remember coming home from school and having hot chocolate. When I decided to make some for this winter I didn't remember how so I searched and found these two recipes. I'm not sure which I used though..maybe both!!

As you can see it makes a bunch and lasts for a long time...well maybe!!
All you do is put some mix in a cup, add hot water and stir. A few marshmallows don't hurt either.

I also decided that is was down comforter time so when I was changing my bedding I put it on. I slept warm and cozy last night. As you can see Bailey likes it too!!

Hot Chocolate #1

10 2/3 cups instant nonfat powdered milk

6 oz jar powdered nondairy creamer

4 cups powdered sugar

2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir gently to mix well. Store in an airtight container in a cool dark place. Makes 17 cups of mix.

For one serving, stir 3 T Mix with 1 cup of hot water until dissolved. Or for a richer hot chocolate use hot milk.

Hot Chocolate #2

1 8 quart box of dry powdered milk

2 lb box of Nestle' Quick

6 oz jar of coffee mate powder

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

Mix all ingredients together in a large container. Use 1/3 cup of mix to 1 cup of boiling water. Makes about 28 cups of hot chocolate.

I've also been tagged by Deb at Garage Sale Gal. I'm supposed to list 7 things about me that are funny or unusual or whatever. I think that since I've had kind of a sad week I'll do happy things.

1. My kids, grandson and friends

2. When I come home from work and Anna and Bailey run to meet me at the door.

3. Spending time in my kitchen (I bet that's a surprise)

4. Going for a walk

5. I cry while reading a book, watching a movie or even a commercial on TV and not necessarily sad...could just be something sappy

6. A physical therapist who told me that I was doing all the wrong exercises and showed me new ones that are actually helping my back.

7. And last but certainly not least all of you out there

Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce

2008-10-10T00:00:00.000-07:00

This is a really fun easy and delicious recipe and I hope you all try it. I got it from the new Fine Cooking magazine. I haven't finished reading it yet but this recipe jumped out at me so I had to make it right away.

I forgot to take a picture and this is the one from the magazine.
Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce

8 1/2 inch thick boneless pork chops

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

3 T flour

1 T unsalted butter

1 T extra virgin olive oil

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/4 cup heavy cream

3/4 cup low-salt chicken broth

1/4 cup stoneground or county style mustard

Season the chops w/salt and pepper and dredge in the flour, shaking off excess.

Put the butter and oil in a skillet over medium heat. When hot add pork chops and cook turning once until golden brown on both sides and just cooked through. You might have to do this in 2 batches so as not to crowd them adding more oil if necessary.

Transfer chops to a serving platter and cover with foil to keep warm.

Pour off fat and add wine and scrape up the browned bits with wooden spoon. Boil until the wine is reduced to about 2 T. Stir in cream and chicken broth and mustard, boil until reduced to a saucy consistency. Season with salt/pepper. Return the chops and any juices to the pan. Turn to coat with the sauce and transfer back to serving platter. Drizzle sauce over chops and serve. Bon Appetit!!

I had a few comments as to what the surprise gift in my giveaway was so here it is!!

And other silly picture that wants to go beserek. It is a box of Enstrom's Toffee. Wonderful wonderful toffee. If you would like to try it go to www.enstroms.com. I hope you and your family enjoy Amy.

Drying Herbs

2008-10-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

I want to thank everyone for your very kind comments on my previous post. I don't know what I would do without you. I am feeling better tonight. Keeping busy helps. A special thanks to a couple of you and I think you know who you are who were extra special sweet.

It is supposed to be cool, rainy and maybe even some snow flurries this weekend so I decided it was time for me to get the herbs in. I've been putting it off all month but when it's 70's you really can't think about it freezing. It won't be a hard freeze but for the tender herbs like basil it might be too much. I don't think it will be that bad but you just never know. I read in the Cooks Illustrated flyer that they send me every once in awhile because they want me to subscribe that you could dry herbs in the microwave. So here goes!!

I don't know why these silly pictures post sideways when they look okay when I upload them....Oh well. This is Thai Basil. Have you ever tried it? I love it with roasted potatoes. I just cut potatoes, add some garlic cloves and a few leaves of Thai basil. Sprinkle with salt/pepper and olive oil. Toss and throw in the oven at 400 and bake.

I also did regular basil. All I did was wash and dry everything. Pull the leaves off and put them on a paper towel. Lay in the microwave and turn it on for 30 seconds. Then another 30 seconds and then 10 second intervals until they were dry. Each herb was different but I don't recommend doing more than 30 seconds at a time. I did with my Parsley and I kind of had a fire in my micro...not a good thing!!
I dried sage and also froze some. All I do when I'm freezing is wash, dry and put in a Ziploc freezer bag. I leave those on the stems but I recommend taking the ones you are drying off the stems because that is what caught fire on the parsley. Live and learn!! This is the first time I have dried herbs this way and I am really happy with the results.
Sage and parsley while they were drying.
Below is the sage after I dried and crumbled it.

Finished product that I later labeled so I wouldn't forget what was in the jars. Sage, parsley (2 jars) and regular basil and the Thai basil below.
I didn't crumble the basil, just put it in the jars. I crumbled everything else. I froze Sage, Thyme, Oregano and Chives. Everything went in the Ziploc bags whole on the stems but the Chives I snipped in little pieces for adding to omelets, etc.

More Aspens and My Friend David

2008-10-07T17:59:00.000-07:00

I wasn't going to post for awhile because I am so very sad. My very good friend David passed away yesterday in his sleep. I met David a little over a year ago and he became a very very good friend. He was a crazy 62 year old guy who loved to ride his Harley!! And I might add at a very high speed. He had retired and rode his bike every day. He loved it more than I can express. David had a wonderful wife who I talked to tonight. She is such a wonderful person and he loved her so much. They were married 19 years. It was one of those May to December romances. There is 20 years difference in their ages. You should have seen them together. So considerate and so kind to each other. You could feel the love. David was always telling everyone what a beautiful and wonderful wife he had. She told me tonight that she hoped she had been a good wife to him and I assured her she had been. They married 3 weeks after they met. Can you imagine? He fell asleep and never woke up so he didn't suffer and I am thankful for that. He got up yesterday and said he was tired so he went back to bed. Before she left for work she went to tell him goodbye but he was snoring so she went to work without waking him. When she came home from work that evening she found him. I can't imagine coming home and finding someone you love so much.

I'm sorry to be sappy but I'm home alone and I guess I just needed to talk to someone. Anna and Bailey are both sleeping. Don't they know I need a hug? Bailey and I did play catch for awhile tonight so I guess he tried to cheer me up for awhile.

These are the last of the drive #1 pictures. I'll be uploading drive #2 and posting those soon. If I bore you let me know and I'll take a break. Thank you my friends for listening and for being here for me.

Aspen Drive Part II

2008-10-07T00:00:00.000-07:00

Shall we continue our trip? Thank you for all your lovely comments on the first leg of our trip. We had fun didn't we!! Now for more. We are seeing some really pretty colors now.

See the snow in the background? Must be left over from the early snow the mountains got awhile back.

This is Echo Lake. The water looked really cold but it didn't seem to bother this little fellow.

We walked around the lake. I took a sweatshirt with me in case it was cool up there but I left it in the car!! There was a cool breeze blowing so it was pretty chilly in the shade which was most of the time. We walked fast!!!

That's all for now!! I probably have one more post.

Hot Cottage Collectibles

2008-10-06T00:00:00.000-07:00

I have a new book that is fabulous!! I heard about it from Lynn at The Vintage Nest. Thank you Lynn. Everytime I open it I find something to ooh and aah about. You can read about Lynn's birdhouses that are in the book here.

I just took random pictures from the book. If I took all that I loved you'd be reading all day. I hope you enjoy a tease from the book.

I am really enjoying looking at all the pictures. They are beautiful as you can see. Thank you Lynn for telling me about this wonderful book. Oh and if anyone would like a copy check here.

Drive to See the Pretty Aspen Trees

2008-10-05T00:00:00.000-07:00

We took this little trip Monday when I noticed the sun was shining and it was such a beautiful day so unexpectedly I came down with a fake I have to go home early disease. I don't usually get those and this was a perfect day for one.

I decided to split this up into more than one post. We took so many pictures you'd be sightseeing all day and I know you have things to do!!! Plus other places to visit too!

I love all the gold and orange amongst the green. Before we continue I thought you would like to learn some fun facts about the Aspen Trees. This article was actually in the paper the other day so I'm not really that smart.

So what makes an aspen leaf "quake"?

Aspens, like other poplars, have flat as opposed to round petioles, the part of the leaf that connects the main body of the leaf to its branch. These flattened petioles allow for more movements.

Why does an aspen leaf shimmer?

The leaf of an aspen is actually two colors; the top is a dark green, while the down-facing side is a lighter shade. When the leaves quake, they turn over and over at a quick rate, making it appear as if the leaves are shimmering light and dark.

Why do I never see an aspen growing alone?

Aspens grow in colonies. Each aspen in a grove is connected to the others by a complex root system, making one large organism that shoots up various stocks. Some colonies are so large that they are among the largest single living organisms in the world.

I thought the facts were really interesting. I didn't realize they were connected to each other. And now for some more beauty!

This poor old shed looked so forlorn out there all by itself. We couldn't resist taking the picture.
We left Denver and headed for Idaho Springs and took the Mt Evans turn off. We went to Echo lake which you will see later and over the pass to Bergen Park. It was a beautiful afternoon and a beautiful drive.

AND THE WINNER IS...........

2008-10-04T08:14:00.000-07:00

Good morning everyone, happy Saturday and HAPPY GIVEAWAY WINNER DAY!!

I printed out all the comments, cut and folded them individually and put them in my bucket. I decided I really didn't want to be the one to draw the name so I thought I would let my Anna and Bailey give it a try. I didn't know if they would actually take a name out and if they didn't I figured I'd give it a go!! As you can see they both had their heads in the bucket (probably thinking there were fishy smelling snacks).
Anna got bored very quickly and left but Bailey kept playing with the pieces of paper and I sat anxiously waiting!!!
OK I think he is reading the names and picking out his favorite. What do you think?
He actually pulled a name!! I was so happy!! And the winner is Amy from Four Sisters In A Cottage. I couldn't be more pleased. Amy was one of the first blogs I visited regularly after I discovered what a blog was and got hooked.
So darling Amy send me an email with your address. I thought I had it but couldn't find it. I know it is somewhere but that could take weeks. My desk is a mess. My daughter looked in it last week and told me I should clean it. I am shampooing carpets this weekend. I did the living room last night and today it is the bedrooms turn. After I finish I will post the Aspen pictures.

Have a wonderful day and congratulations Amy, I am so happy for you. This was so much fun I may do it again soon. I wish I could send you all something. I complain sometimes about how much time I spend on the computer posting, reading and emailing but it really is fun to get to know all of you. And I've made some wonderful friends.

Giveaway Update

2008-10-01T15:36:00.001-07:00

I finally made it up to see the Aspen and will be posting as soon as I get the pictures downloaded to the computer. This is just a tease of things to come. And I went shopping today on my lunch hour to get another little Colorado goodie for the giveaway. The lady asked me if I wanted it gift wrapped and I said Sure!!! That way I can show it to you and you can start guessing as to what is in the box. Tee Hee!! Doesn't it look pretty?
I probably won't be posting until Saturday when I draw the winner!! I can hardly wait! Are you excited too?

Apples, Apples and More Apples

2008-09-30T16:11:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone and thank you so much for entering my giveaway. I decided to do this on a spur of the moment (which is me!!) when I was buying me some honey. I like to have extra for winter months when there is no markets so I buy extra. I'm already sad...4 more Saturdays!! Then what will I do? I have decided to add another Colorado goodie to the giveaway but I'm keeping it for a surprise!!
This week is the last Paris Flea Market too!! Jan told me to be sure and bring my camera and laundry baskets to this one. I can hardly wait to see what she has to show us.
Now for the Apple scones. I got the recipe here and it is the best scone recipe I've tried. It was on the 9/21 post so you have to scroll down a bit. Eileen has lots of wonderful recipes so be prepared to print out more than this one.

I received my new Cottage Living magazine and found this recipe for Caramel Apple Upside Down Olive Oil Cake and had to try it. I was very pleased. It says to serve it warm and it is best then. Leftovers are OK but it's much better the same day.

Picture is from the magazine....much prettier than mine.
I think mine looks yummy too!!
It calls for a 10" cast iron skillet and mine is 10 5/8". I think next time I will had an extra apple. The cake rose up really high so if you use a 10" you might want to put something under it.
A nice dollop if whipped cream and dig in!! I tried to find the recipe on their website but couldn't so I hope they don't get mad. And if so....too bad. I'm sharing.

Caramel Apple Upside Down Olive Oil Cake

1/2 c unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups sugar divided

3 granny smith apples, peeled and quartered (I used tart apples from the market)

5 large eggs separated

1/4 c extra virgin olive oil

2 tsp vanilla

1 c cake flour

1/2 tsp coarse sea salt

Heat oven 350. Melt butter over low heat in a 10 inch 2 inch deep cast iron skillet. Stir in 3/4 c sugar, combining well. Arrange apple quarters in skillet and increase heat to medium and cook without stirring 15-20 minutes until sugar turns golden.

Beat egg yolks and 1/2 c sugar in a large bowl of an electric mixer at high speed for 3 minutes until thick and pale. Reduce speed to medium and slowly add olive oil and vanilla until well combined. Remove from mixer and stir in flour just to combine.

Place egg whites and 1/2 tsp sea salt in a separate large bowl of electric mixer and beat at medium speed until frothy. Add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and continue beating until soft peaks form.

Fold one-third of the egg whites gently into the yolk mixture. Fold in remaining whites, being careful not to over mix. Pour batter into skillet with apples. Bake 350 for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool cake about 5 minutes then run knife around edges to loosen. Invert onto a large platter and if desired sprinkle with 1/4 tsp sea salt over the apples and caramel. Serve warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Colorado Honey Giveaway

2008-09-27T19:32:00.000-07:00

When I was at the market this morning, I decided to share my Colorado Honey with all of you. So anyone leaving a comment on this post will be entered. I will draw a name next weekend. Well lets pick a day..how about Saturday October 4th. The lucky winner will get a jar of honey, some honey sticks and a jar of strawberry creamed honey. I use the honey sticks for my tea and I bought my 2 favorite flavors for you, Orange Blossom and Lemon. The lemon is nice in the winter when you have the sniffles.

Being MIA for a week is very bad I've decided. I've received 2 awards and didn't know until last night....very very bad me!! This lovely award is from Bebe at Peaches and Cream. Thank you so very much.

Rules for this award are:
1. There are only five people allowed.
2. Four have to be dedicated followers of your blog.
3. One has to be a new follower of your blog, or live in another part of the world.
4. You must link back to the one that gave you this award.

OK here goes.

1. Debbie at Debbie's English Treasures

2. Connie at Casa Maria

3. Diane at Crafty Passions

4. Nola at Alamo North

5. My new favorite Mama Lalla

Mama Lalla is The Linen Cupboards "MA" who just started her blog so hop on over and say hello. She lives in Africa and promises pictures. Can you imagine?

The wonderful award is from my lovely friend Debbie at Debbie's English Treasures. Thank you and I'm so glad you are back.

I have to choose 7 Loyal commenter's to my blog:
1. Deb at Garage Sale Gal
2. Crystal at Fairbees
3. Brenda at Brenda Blog
4. Lynn at The Vintage Nest
5. Penny at Sew and Take
6. Cheryl at Cher Decor
7. Lydia at Lydia's Organic Gardening

There are so many of my favorites and loyal visitors it is hard to pick just a few. I try to choose different ones for each award. You are all my favorites and I love you all.

It's Nola's Birthday!!

2008-09-27T00:00:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to you!

Happy Birthday Dear Nola!!

Happy Birthday to you!

Today is Nola's at Alamo North birthday so hop on over and wish her a happy day!!

New Gadgets and Potato Recipe

2008-09-26T17:29:00.000-07:00

Good grief I didn't realize I've been MIA until I signed on tonight and realized I haven't posted all week. Truth be told I haven't visited many blogs and went two days without even turning on the computer. I guess I'll be busy this weekend catching up or at least trying.

I was shopping for a new mattress and having it delivered. I had to clean my room and vacuum really well. Didn't want the delivery men to think I was a slob!! I don't sleep well because of my back and hopefully this new wonderful mattress is going to help. It has extra support for my lumbar which is wonderful. I slept until 3:30 last night. I'm usually up by 1:00 or 2:00 and then toss and turn all night.

I've been playing with my new gadgets this week too. This potato recipe is from the Two Fat Ladies. Does anyone remember them? They used to have a show on the Food Network. I didn't watch them very often but they were so funny and always made me laugh. I think one of them died several years ago and I'm not sure if the other one is living or not. I think I'll try to find out now.

The recipe is so easy and it was very good. I put ribs in the crock pot and made these to go with. The ribs were a no brainer...brown ribs, put in crock pot pour barbecue sauce over and cook all day. I didn't even make my sauce, just poured it from a bottle. Like I said EASY!!!

Potatoes a la Two Fat Ladies
2-3 medium potatoes
2 T each chopped fresh parsley
basil, rosemary, thyme and chives
5 cloves garlic (it is really garlicky so if you aren't a garlic fan I'd cut it)
salt/pepper
2-3 T olive oil
1/4 cup chicken broth
Peel and thinly slice potatoes. Finely chop garlic and herbs. Layer potatoes, sprinkle with herbs, a bit of garlic, salt/pepper and drizzle with a little olive oil. Repeat layers. Pour stock over all, cover with foil and bake at 400 for 30 minutes, uncover and bake another 30 minutes until brown and crisp.

This is one of my new gadgets. It was the Williams Sonoma gadget of the month. It works really well and it's fun too. You put the food in the bowl and pull that green ring on top several times. Below is the garlic that took a few seconds to mince.
These are the herbs that took no time at all. See my cute little spatula? It's tiny so it's nice for small bowls or jars. It even has a little snowflake.
This is my dough whisk. I've only used it a couple of times but I was sold the first time I used it. I use the dough hook on my Kitchen Aide for bread but for a small batch this works really well. I used it for other batters and it works well too. I ordered it from King Arthur Flour after reading about it at Chocolate and Zucchini.
Isn't it adorable? I love gadgets.
And now for the finale. I had leftovers for dinner and made a lovely salad. I used leaf lettuce, pears, toasted walnut and a little sliced shallot. I made a dressing using sherry vinegar, Dijon and olive oil. Everything was yummy and now I'm going to watch the presidential debate. Are you watching? And then I'm going to see if I can talk Bailey into letting me lay on my new mattress. He thinks I bought it for him. If he disappears I can find him sprawled out in the middle of my bed. Anna on the other hand doesn't like it.

Seared Salmon w/Balsamic Glaze

2008-09-20T14:07:00.000-07:00

If you love Salmon you need to try this. I ate the whole thing all by myself. My daughter doesn't like Salmon so I try to make it when she isn't home. I've been wanting to try this recipe for awhile but keep forgetting. I went to the Sunflower Market after work last night and picked up the Salmon. It was early yet so I decided to go through my recipes and do something different. And am I glad I did. I'm having this again very soon. I cut this because I was cooking for one. I didn't want you to think I ate 4 servings!! But I probably could have it was so good.

Seared Salmon with Balsamic Glaze

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup water

1 1/2 T fresh lemon juice

1 T plus 1 tsp packed light brown sugar

4 6-oz center cut pieces of salmon fillet with skin

Salt and freshly ground pepper

2 t olive oil

Stir together the vinegar, water, lemon juice and brown sugar in a small bowl.

Pat salmon dry and season with salt/pepper. Heat oil in nonstick skillet over moderately high heat. Add salmon skin side up and sear until browned about 4 minutes. Turn over and sear until cooked another 3 minutes or so.

Remove salmon from skillet and add vinegar mixture to skillet. It will bubble a lot. Simmer for a couple minutes, stirring until thickened and reduced. Pour glaze over salmon and enjoy!!

With it I roasted some fingerlings cut into wedges. Added a couple of smashed garlic cloves and a few leaves of Thai Basil. I roasted same all the veggies I do 400 30 minutes or so. Oh and put olive oil over all and mix with hands. Salt/pepper too. I use Kosher Salt and freshly ground pepper for everything. I was going to make rice but I needed to use the potatoes and they were very good with the salmon. I also had some sliced tomatoes that needed eaten. Today was market day and I wanted to get rid of everything.

For tonight I made Corn Chowder and a chocolate zucchini cake. I'm vegging now until dinner time. All I have to do is heat up the chowder and enjoy!!

Thank you all for you lovely comments and for visiting. You make my day!!

Blogging

2008-09-19T18:02:00.001-07:00

This isn't the post I was going to do tonight but I stopped by Debbie at Debbie's English Treasures today and she is taking a break from blogging. Our friend Mandy at The Vintage Kitten was being "stalked" and so she is not accepting comments on her blog. Debbie commented on blogs to support Mandy and she is now getting not so friendly emails. I guess I don't understand why anyone would do that. I read lots of blogs and made lots of friends before I started blogging and in the few months I've been blogging my list has grown. I love all of you and think you are great. I look forward to reading and commenting and even worrying about you when things are tough and life isn't being fair. We have ups and downs in our lives and having the support and friendship of our fellow bloggers means so much to me as I'm sure it means to all of you.
I think that whoever is doing this is so unhappy and miserable that they have to try to make every one's lives unhappy and miserable. Well as far as I'm concerned they can't!!! I hope Mandy and Debbie come back to us. They are wonderful bloggers and friends who make me smile and laugh. Isn't that why we are here?

Blogging to me is somewhere I can be me. I can express myself, complain or tell you something awesome that is happening in my life. I have made some wonderful friends who I may never meet but feel so close too. I love you all and think it is so sad when our friends aren't allowed to express themselves without harrassment.

The picture of Anna and Bailey was taken when they were a lot younger but they look so serene and relaxed I thought it would be a nice picture for this post. I love you Mandy and Debbie and hope you come back to us.

New Stationery and Book

2008-09-17T17:43:00.000-07:00

I found a wonderful new book with lots of fast and easy projects in it. The patterns are in a pocket in the front of the book. I love these napkins and they are so easy. You get the directions to make the napkins and patterns for the embroidered dandelions. This is only one sample of what is inside.
Aren't they just the cutest?
Now for the stationery. Can you imagine getting a letter written on such beautiful paper? I don't write many letters with email and telephone these days but once in awhile I do. And I'll save it for special friends. This is the box that it came in.

And the page inside that tells you all about the paper. I tried to take a close up so you could read it. Below that is a picture of the whole page showing the different stationery.

Isn't this beautiful. Wouldn't you love getting a letter on such pretty paper?
Below is a close up of each page.

Now for the hard part, who should I write to first?

And a funner Sunday

2008-09-14T16:43:00.000-07:00

Is funner a word? Well it is now and just because I like it. I got up early as usual (oh how I wish I could sleep in) and went to get a few things I needed at the grocery store. We had scrambled eggs with cheese and chives, sliced peaches and bacon for breakfast. I am dreading not having herbs on my patio to clip whenever I want. I haven't started freezing and drying yet but I really need to start. It is going to be 80's this week so I will probably do some next weekend. When the weather is warm and beautiful it makes me put off what I know needs to be done. Friday was cool and rainy and snow over 10,000 feet. When I came home from the market driving West, I could see the snow capped mountains and it was so beautiful...and where was your camera you ask? At home....where else would it be. Geez sometimes I think I should carry it at all times.

Well back to my funner Sunday. I went to Williams Sonoma to get a couple of things and walked in on a cooking seminar. I knew they offered free ones but had never attended one. Well I'm hooked now. I had such fun!! She made an apple pancake which I'll post sometime because I will make one. She also made some sauteed chicken breast, one with a pumpkin curry sauce and the other with a fig sauce. I'm sure the recipes are on their website. All were delicious because we got to sample. YUM!! When she was peeling the apples she said if she had had more than two she would have used the apple peeler and asked if anyone had one. Do you? And if so can you use the stupid thing?

I said I had one and had tried to use it once and gave up. She said I should try it again. Maybe I will. I bought it a couple of years ago when I was making apple butter. All that peeling, slicing, coring would have been so much easier....or so I thought. I got so frustrated I put it away and haven't looked at it until today. I drug it out so I could take a picture of the damn thing. (can you believe I found it? Neither can I.) So if anyone out there has some hints, please let me know. She (not knowing her name I keep saying she) said she loved it, but then I found out her husband used it so maybe it's a guy thing.

I came home and made Brigette's Apple Strudel and did I use it? Hell no!! I'm not posting the recipe because Brigette was kind enough to send it to me. She posted one day about making Strudel and I happened to mention that it sounded really good and I needed to get my recipe out and make some. Brigette kindly offered to send me hers if I would like...well of course!! I must say it is fantastic. The only thing I did differently was make one big one instead of individual ones. I put a nice big scoop of vanilla ice cream on it too!!

I pushed the top crust to the side so you could see how luscious it looked. I hope you have all had a wonderful weekend and found some time to relax.

A Fun Saturday

2008-09-13T14:31:00.000-07:00

What a fun day this has been. As usual I got up early and went to the Market for my weekly fruits and veggies. I bought pears this week but haven't eaten any yet. I know they are going to be wonderful. I want to make a Pear Galette but I think I'll save that until next week and just eat them the way they are. I'm making an apple strudel tomorrow anyway.

I had lunch with some friends and we went into a jewelry store and browsed afterwards....and dreamed!! It is nice to talk and laugh with friends. We had a wonderful time.

My new Bon Appetit was in the mail yesterday and I fell in love with the cover recipe. It looks so good. It is Texas Beef Brisket Chili with Autumn Squash. My daughter got up this morning and said it looked really good and I should make it. I laughed and said read the ingredients. She does not like squash!!! So when she read the squash part she said Yuck, why can't you substitute potatoes!!! It really sounds good so I may try a different version or let her pick out the squash!!

Doesn't that look divine? Squash and all. But I love squash so it sounds good to me. I just took a pan of 5 layer bars out of the oven. so they are hot and bubbly. They are very easy to make. It is one of Paula Deen's recipes. She drives me crazy to watch but once in awhile I come across one of her recipes that is fairly good. A lady that I used to work with gave me this recipe a couple of years ago.
5-Layer Bars

1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs

1 stick melted butter

Mix together and press in 13x9 pan.

Sprinkle with in any order you wish

2 cups semi sweet chocolate chips

1 cup butterscotch chips

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 cup sweetened coconut

Pour 1 can sweetened condensed milk over top

Bake 350 for 30 minutes until they get brown and bubbly

Oatmeal Cookies

2008-09-11T17:09:00.001-07:00

I decided to make some Oatmeal Cookies and wanted to try Anna's recipe....so I printed it out and read through all the ingredients and decided I had everything so to the kitchen I went. Well it went downhill from there. I had to put 2 T of dark brown sugar because I didn't have enough light brown sugar, then I didn't have enough cinnamon so added some freshly grated nutmeg. Then...I got to the raisin part and not one raisin could I find. So I added chocolate chips and chopped pecans. I also made normal size cookies instead of the giant ones!! I think it 's not so bad if I eat 4 small cookies, but eating one giant cookie seems like I'm overdoing it. So I kind of made Anna's cookies but added and changed a few things beyond my control. Next time I'll try to do better.

Kosher Salt

2008-09-10T18:52:00.000-07:00

OK I know that isn't Kosher salt but I'll get to that in a minute. I couldn't resist taking the picture this morning. Anna and Bailey were looking through the patio door really wanting out to play. A squirrel was eating their oat grass that I grow for them. He was really enjoying it too. I was getting ready to go to work when I saw them watching something and when I realized what it was I put everything down and grabbed my camera.

OK now for the Salt. Mandy from The Vintage Kitten wanted to know what Kosher Salt is so I'm showing her what the box looks like we get here. Mandy if you can't find it there, let me know and I'd be happy to send you some. Like I said in my email all the stores carry it here in the baking area with the table salt, etc. I hope this helps.

Potato Au Gratin

2008-09-09T18:20:00.001-07:00

This is the Potato recipe I promised and had a few requests for. Thank you all so much for being so nice. This is really an easy recipe. I've seen lots of variations but most of them you have to precook the potatoes or simmer them for awhile. Just make sure you slice these really thin. I use my hand held mandolin. I've also have a big one that is probably safer or at least I haven't sliced a piece of my thumb into the potatoes. (Yet) I actually did with the hand held one. It was not a pretty site. So if using a mandolin, please be careful. This recipe is so easy to adjust. I halved it last weekend but have doubled it for a large crowd.

POTATO AU GRATIN

1 garlic clove
4 large baking potatoes (I've used Yukon Golds too)
salt/pepper
freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups whipping cream

Butter a 13X9 pan
Smash a garlic clove and scatter in the bottom of baking dish
Peel potatoes and slice 1/8" thick
Layer in pan sprinkling with salt/pepper and a little freshly grated nutmeg
Pour cream over potatoes and tamper down
Bake 375 for 45 minutes. Tamper the potatoes down a couple of times while baking. Bake until golden brown and potatoes are tender.
If the potatoes are too thick they will take longer and of course they will get really brown without getting tender. The secret is in the thin slices.
I hope you all enjoy and have a wonderful rest of the week.

Flea Market Finds

2008-09-07T12:40:00.001-07:00

Do you know what this is? It is an English tea strainer!!! And I love it. I bought it yesterday at the Paris Market I go to once a month. I think it is adorable. I also found a couple of aprons that were a steal so I couldn't pass those us.

This is my favorite. I love the blue and white. I also found this fall looking tablecloth and couldn't resist. Plus the price was right too!! The lady I buy my linens from only comes to a few of the markets so you have to buy when she does. Everything is freshly laundered and ironed. I can't imagine ironing those stacks and stacks of linens. I ironed it this morning and put it on my table. It looks so pretty.

That's all for this month. I told you I was being good!!! Today I am making a big pot of red beans and rice for dinner. All I have to do later is make cornbread and dinner will be ready. With these cool days it's fun to make comfort food. Last night we had meatloaf and au gratin potatoes. I'll have to post the recipe for the potatoes later in the week. They are so easy and delich!!! I also made some oatmeal cookies and I need to go clean up my mess. Martha would not like seeing my kitchen!!
Have a great Sunday!!

Happy Fall

2008-09-06T12:54:00.001-07:00

I hope everyone had a good week and are finding time to relax over the weekend. I just got home from my favorite flea market that I go to every month. I'll post pictures of my new treasures tomorrow. I must admit I was a good girl and didn't buy half of what I wanted to. There are a couple of big ones coming up and I want to save some money for those. Sooo I had to be good. I did get a couple of lovelies though. I finally got my wreath out last night before I went for my massage....oh was it nice too!! 1 1/2 hours of just laying there being pampered. I always look forward to them. Do you get massages? If not you should really try it, there is nothing better.
I decided to decorate my cake dome this year. I turned it upside down and put cranberries in the middle stand and leaves and acorns around it. I think it looks very pretty. I have a small chest freezer and I think it looks lovely there.

Last weekend when I was making my carrot cake and had leftover pineapple and of course I grated a little too much carrot I decided to do something I don't usually do.

My Grandmother has been on my mind a lot lately. When we were kids she used to make a lot of jello salads and one of my favorites was with pineapple and carrots so I made one in memory of her. She has been gone many many years and I still miss her. Remember the one with red jello and fruit cocktail?

When I was growing up I always wanted to be as good a cook as my Grandma!! No one in my family really cooks so I guess I got some of her genes. The last time I made a meal for her I asked her if I was as good as she was yet and she laughed her silly little laugh and said I was getting pretty good but I needed to practice a little more. She passed away a few months after her Great Great Grandson was born. Jonathan is now 24 and I always wish they could have met. When I told her she was a Great Great Grandmother, she looked at me for a minute and said "Who did that to me" and laughed her silly little laugh. I miss you Grandma!!

Carrot Cake and Fall Decorations

2008-09-01T07:32:00.001-07:00

Happy Labor Day everyone!! I hope you day is happy and safe. Especially our friends in Gustav's way. I received a message from my friend who lives in New Orleans and she is safe in Dallas. I will call her later today.

I was visiting Penny the other day and she posted about the "best carrot cake you will ever eat" so of course I had to try it and now you do to. It is really really good. Penny made a layer cake but since I had to transport it, I used my 13X9 pan.

Now where is my fork?
I decided to get out my fall flowers for my patio and put the spring/summer ones away. I am sooo ready for fall. I love this time of year with the cooler days and nights. Our leaves aren't changing yet, in fact last weekend when we went on our drive the Aspen were still green. I will take another drive soon so you can see the beautiful Aspen. They are breathtaking. Of course all this means snow is coming too and I'm not quite ready for that. But we have time before I start complaining about that. I actually like the snow because it leaves everything so white and clean and fresh looking.
When I went to Joanne's yesterday I picked up some new flowers to add to my water can. I decided my old ones needed some sprucing up.
I had a summer garland in the hanging plant holder and enjoyed it so I decided to put in some autumn leaves. Looks pretty don't you think? It is in a corner of my patio so live plants don't do too well with no sun.
One of my blogging friends was posting about candy corn a couple of weeks ago and I finally found some. I'll be making something later to show you.
I love my rubber spatulas!! I have spring, fall and winter designs that I get from Sur La Table. I put my spring spatulas away and got out my fall and Halloween designs. I'll have to show you my Halloween designs later. Too cute!!
A couple of blogs were posting about these cute pumpkins from Dollar Tree and when I was driving by one the other day I had to run in and see if they had some waiting for me. ....and guess what? They did. I think they are so cute. I have them sitting on my bookcase now until I decide how I'm going to decorate the house for fall. I have a fall wreath that I put on my fireplace I need to go find. Maybe later this week.
I am making bread this morning that I'll post about later in the week. We are having grilled shrimp and Panzanella salad later today. Some of the bread is for the croutons. A new recipe so I hope it turns out OK. If not, well you'll never hear about my bread!! And then again, you just might. A new recipe for the Panzanella too!!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies

2008-08-31T11:29:00.000-07:00

These cookies are quite good. I only ate a couple while I was baking them. Why are cookies right from the oven so good and so yummy with the chocolate kind of melty and warm and OK I think I ate four. But they were really good.
The recipe is one of Martha's and if you click here you can make some too!!
I hope you are all having a wonderful weekend. We aren't doing much around here just catching up with housework and errands and most important relaxing.
I called my friend who lives outside of New Orleans but all I got was her voice mail. I called her at home and on her cell so hopefully when she has time she will call me. She stayed home during Katrina and her house is NOT anywhere near repaired yet. She spent time with her daughter because she lives on higher ground. I hope they don't stay for Gustav.
I'm going to go to Joanne's Fabrics and browse. I'm going to make some napkins and I need linen. Have a great Sunday!!