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family dinner
It’s not often that I cook dinner for my parents ~ this is mostly because until recently, I very rarely cooked. But today, my parents, and my mom’s brother and sister both came to our humble abode, and we enjoyed watching the final nail-biting moments of the PGA tournament, and I fed everyone, all by my onesies.
We had chicken (cubed, sprinked with paprika, stuffed into a greased glass dish, and popped in the oven for 20 minutes at 375 … my rule of thumb is that when the juices run clear, the chicken’s cooked ~and I let it sit for a little before serving it, to make sure it stays as juicy as possible…), sausage (popped into oven at 375 for 25 minutes), curry dipping sauce, mandarin orange salad, and pull apart bread.
Mandarin Orange Salad Ingredients:
1/2 bag of baby spinach
1/2 bag arugula
1/2 cup parmesan
1/4 cup EVOO
1 tbsp lemon juice
3/4 cup drained mandarin oranges
1/4 cup crunchy chow mein noodles
1/4 cup crumbled Feta cheese
What to do:
1. Put the lettuces in a bowl. Sprinkle parmesan, olive oil and lemon juice on top. Mix.
2. Add oranges, feta cheese and chow mein noodles. Toss. Serve.
Simple, right? 🙂
Pull-Apart Bread Ingredients:
1 package Grands biscuits (Pillsbury, or generic ~ it doesn’t matter); cut into quarters
1/4 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup melted butter
What to do:
1. Preheat oven to 375. Grease a large bread pan.
2. Dip each quarter of biscuit in butter, and roll (somewhat sparingly) in parmesan. Push all pieces into the base of the bread pan.
**I find doing one layer ends up producing the most evenly cooked loaf of ‘bread’ … but if you want to get crazy, you can do two layers!
3. Cook for 18-20 minutes. Should be golden brown on top. If not, cook until the top starts to brown, pull out of oven, and let sit for 5 – 10 minutes before serving.
It was a truly great dinner, rounded out by Cheesecake Stuffed Stawberries. Yummers.
driving in the country
our favorite part of the ride
This afternoon we are heading south again, to have dinner with my uncle, recently arrived from the UK. My mother, one of the best cooks ever, has promised succulent lamb chops on the grill, fresh grilled garden tomatoes topped with goat cheese (one of John’s favorite side dishes) and some baby new potatoes.
We’re gonna hit the road soon, and I’m hoping to get some good snaps of the Southern Chester County countryside to share with everyone.
The weather seems practically perfect (again!) and even though the Steelers managed to lose their first pre-season game, I’m looking forward to a nice weekend with the man and the family, and Jorge Dos.
Driving …
it sort of makes me want to ride a bike ... sort of
Dinner …
Thickly sliced garden tomatoes, spread evenly on an aluminum foil lined tray, topped with salt, pepper, basil (dried or fresh, if you prefer) crumbly goat cheese and balsamic syrup (reduction). Cooked in the oven at 375 for about seven minutes. Yum.
Thick-cut lamb chops from the Country Butcher, seasoned with a little pepper, garlic powder and Worcestershire Sauce, cooked expertly on the grill by the GrillMaster himself, my dad.
Dinner is served ….
My delicious plate …
#10on10
This morning, while we were driving to work, I saw the MOST amazing license plate ever. It was my initials, followed by the year I was born. I have a very (I can’t believe I’m actually writing this) weird fascination with finding patterns in license plates. I blame this on my parents, who used to have us play the ‘license plate game’ on our 12-14 hour drive to Hilton Head every summer. Taking all this into consideration, IMAGINE the epic levels of excitement I felt (at the very early hour of 7.23am) when finding a license plate that perfectly represented me. (Later, the very same pic of the license made its debut as my #1 picture on my very first #10on10. )
Intense.
Additionally, I knew it was Wednesday. And as we all know, the best part about Wednesday is that when it’s over, there is less week left to go than has already been done. PLUS (I know, it’s amazing how much better it seems to get) it was WeHangsDay today.
John made his famous Tuna Melts. (I’m addicted). 
PS. Can I just add how nice it is to have him home? So nice!
What he used:
4 tins tuna fish in water
Mayonnaise
Frank’s Red Hot
Salt & Pepper
Hickory Smoke Salt (optional)
Oregano
4 English Muffins
16 slices of Deli Style White American Cheese
Two large tomatoes, sliced (eight slices minimum)
What the man did:
Preheat oven to 350.
1. In a large mixing bowl, he mixed the tuna fish, two heaping dollops of mayonnaise, a generous shake of Frank’s red hot, salt & pepper to taste. 
2. He toasted the English muffins after splitting (just to break it down, we’re dealing with 8 individual muffins ~ 4 tops, 4 bottoms). 
3. He lined a cookie sheet with tin foil, and placed the eight toasted muffins on the sheet. Then, he put a slice of cheese on each (he split a single sheet into four, and quasi-layered them to fit the muffins). 
4. On top of the cheese, he placed a slice of tomato and sprinkled a little Hickory Smoke Salt. (Be sparing ~ Hickory Smoke Salt is very strong!)
5. (My shining moment!) I sculpted perfect little mounds of tuna fish atop the tomatoes, and sprinkled some oregano on each.
6. Then I topped each with another slice of cheese, and popped the whole tray into the oven for about 5 minutes (to melt the cheese, basically). 
7. While I was working so diligently with the tunafish and cheese, John was contructing our side dish of a bed of baby spinach, a dollop of cottage cheese, a few mandarin oranges and chow mein crunchy noodles. Delish.
Simple, delicious. Easy.
Best. Sammie. Ever.
Seriously, stop the presses.
A miracle occurred tonight (!!!) ~ and in the face of my blatantly not forwarding a chain email that guaranteed me terrible misfortunes if I didn’t share with 10 of my closest friends to boot! Whoo hoo! 
Fresh loaf of pane!
So here’s the thing. When cooking for uno (which I’ve been doing for the past few weeks), a person can accumulate a lot of material for repeat meals. I mean, let’s be honest. You can’t buy half a loaf of bread. And for someone who doesn’t eat a lot of bread (add it to my list of ‘weird food quirks’) a whole loaf can be daunting. And usually ends up in the garbage, half-finished, and growing a lovely variation of mold.
Last week I had a down week. Every day felt like a huge struggle ~ always climbing up a hill, with the wind blowing full force in my face (it’s that story your parents tell you as a child … you know, how they walked to school up hill, both ways, with no shoes, in four feet of snow … blah blah bleh!). So to combat that, I had people over or went out every night of the week. It turned out to be a good week (other than work, which is a learning experience every day, but an exciting one).
I made a much better version of the South African Green Curry. It was a doozy. I finished it for lunch today, and was bummed out!
I made Plum, Pesto & Fontina panini sandwiches. Twice, if I’m confessing my sins. I tend to be that person who falls in love with something and then drowns in it. Nothing was quite as satisfying as last night’s re-indulgence of that succulently decadent sammie. (Yeah, I call them sammies. I like it. So there.)
But I couldn’t quite justify making the sandwich again tonight. I mean, I wanted to, but I had all these garden fresh tomatoes speaking to me from my produce bowl on my kitchen table. A girl can’t waste perfectly perfect garden fresh tomatoes.
An an heirloom? That’s a sin. For real. There’s otherworldly judgement for that, I’m sure.
But the sandwich press was still out, and speaking to me (perhaps it’s all my time alone?). I thought to myself, why not just use up all the little dribs and drabs and scraps and make a Monday sammie.
Feed me, Seymour!
Oh Monday sammie. You are a goddess.
Here’s what I used~
2 slices of sun-dried tomato bread, buttered on the outside
Homemade pesto, a la Iowa Girl Eats, spread on the inside of bread
Medium heirloom tomato, thickly sliced (About 4 slices)
Fresh mozzarella, sliced ( I used 5 slices; 3 for the sandwich, 2 for the Caprese)
Asiago cheese, sliced ( I used 3 nearly shaved slices)
Salt & Pepper
What I did ~
I layered the tomato on top of the pesto, and the mozzarella on top of that, and then the asiago shavings on top of that. Then I ground some salt & pepper, and put the whole shebang together, and on the sandwich press. 
With the extra tomato & mozzarella, I assembled a Caprese side salad, with a wee drizzle of EVOO and a sprinkle of S & P.
I cooked the sandwich until it started to sizzle. Then I got myself all set up with knife & fork & napkin & vino (obv!). And then I took a bite.
And my world stood still.
And I tweeted about it, because everyone (well, y’know the people who follow me) needed to know.
I sent John a message taunting him with the deliciousness he is missing while he is a away.
I contemplated making another sandwich, because it was so unbelievable. But I wasn’t hungry (truth be told, I was stuffed). 
All I’m saying is, this thing was magical.
I’m definitely making my Monday Sammie again!
** PS. I took so many pictures, but I’m using my old camera, because the man took the good one with him on his business trip ~ I’m trying my darnedest to get some decent images! Most of them come out blurry, and not focused on the close up shots. Super disappointing … but at least the insanity of the sammie made up for it!
baking with angie
A few years ago, I worked at an apartment complex, and the very first person I ever showed an apartment to was a single mother. Her adorable young son was with her, and I loved that she treated him like a grown up person, asking for his thoughts, and if he felt that the rooms they were exploring could be home. He was a little over three years old when I met him, and still qualifies as the cutest kid I’ve ever seen.
I didn’t work for the apartment complex for long ~ the call of the restaurant industry lured me back, and I left my mind-numbingly boring desk job behind to go back to the intensity of food service. But for the time I worked there (and lived on site) that single mother and her son were my next door neighbors.
Today, his school picture is on my fridge, and even though we only live about twenty minutes apart, we don’t see each other often. Earlier this week, I received an unexpected text message and the heads up that there would be an imminent delivery of banana chocolate chip muffins.
I have to tell you, no one bakes like Angie. No one. I mean, her cookies and brownies are like crack, but those banana chocolate chip muffins … nothing has ever come close to winning my affections away. They are sublime.
While Angie was delivering said muffins last Tuesday, I told her about my humbling attempt to make homemade brownies. She immediately nodded and said, “Yeah, brownies are tricky.” (PS. Did everyone know this, and I’m just late to the party? Or is it because I’ve only ever made box brownies? Either way … I was not aware that brownies were such a finicky baked good to produce!)
So we tentatively made a baking-day date. And that day was today.
Ange had the terrific idea of making sangria, so the first thing we did when she arrived was make a nice batch of fruit-filled wine. Her recipe (it was delish!) ~
1 bottle red wine (we used what I had ~ Pinot Noir)
1/2 cup Alize
1/4 cup Blue Agave syrup
1 cup Club Soda
1 cup fresh squeezed orange juice (** I don’t have a juicer, so Angie just squeezed one full, large orange into the concoction)
1 medium sliced orange
2 sliced lemons
1 peach, cored & diced
The remnants of my Sangria
While we sipped our Sangria, we had ‘Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone’ on in the background (blasphemy of all blasphemies, Angie had never seen one or read a single HP book! Eegads!)
Because she’s a baking goddess, Angie brought her recipe books for me to thumb through. She asked if I wanted to make cookies or brownies.
“Both?” I replied sheepishly. She smiled as if to say, “Of course you do.”
We made cookies first. Having never actually made chocolate chip cookies before, I kind of stood awkwardly to the side as Angie began confidently dumping ingredients here and there, chatting the whole time. She’d also assumed that I had no ingredients at my house (a correct assumption by someone who hasn’t really spent a ton of time with me since 2007 when I could barely scramble eggs). I surprised her by being more than a little prepared. 
What we used:
*** We cut the recipe in half, because really, does a person home alone missing her man need 6-7 dozen cookies? No, I didn’t think so!
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 egg
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
What to do:
1. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.
2. Cream together butter, sugars (brown & white!) and vanilla extract until light. Add egg. Mix ’til well-blended. Add sifted ingredients and mix until well combined.
3. Fold in chocolate chips. 
4. Roll into tablespoon-sized balls, and place on well greased cookie tray. Three across, four down. 
5. Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Let stand for one minute on cookie sheet, and then place onto cooling racks. ** Don’t forget, if they look almost done, and you like your cookies chewy, remember that once you pull them out, they’ll keep cooking for a little bit! I learned this the hard way with my first batch of brownies last week.
Yummers.
On a roll, we moved to brownies next. Couple pearls of wisdom Angie shared as we assembled ingredients.
1. If the recipe says softened butter, that’s what it means. The same goes for melted butter, etc. There is a reason that the recipe calls for butter a certain way. Respect it. Your brownies will thank you.
2. When making the finicky brownies, don’t over mix. Just stir the ingredients until they are combined, and then leave them alone. Over-mixing is not a good thing.
Once I had noted these very important rules, we commenced the making of brownies.
What we used:
1 2/3 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup butter, melted
2 Tbsp water
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/3 cups flour
3/4 cup cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup semi sweet chocolate morsels
Sifted powdered sugar
What to do:
1. Stir together granulated sugar, melted butter & water in a bowl. Stir in eggs and vanilla. 
2. Combine flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt in a medium bowl. Once combined, stir into sugar & butter mixture. *** Remember!! Only stir til it’s combined!!! No more than necessary! 
3. Stir in chocolate morsels.
4. Pour into greased 13 x 9 pan (I never thought that the size of the pan mattered much … fyi peeps, it totally does!). 
5. Bake at 350 for 18-25 minutes. (My easy-bake oven isn’t calibrated properly, so it was an exercise in patience on Angie’s part but the 18-25 minutes is the time quoted in the recipe we used).
Enjoy with a big ole glass of milk!
We also had Plum, Asiago & Pesto sandwiches on sun-dried tomato bread. It was a deliciously satisfying day.
And yes, that’s a Steelers pint glass. It’s almost football season, peeps!!
dinner for one
This is what I could have had for dinner … and very nearly did because by the time I rolled in (along with the wicked storm clouds) it was pretty late. 
This is what I did have for dinner, because the zucchini was taunting me from its perch. So there I was, totally conflicted. But … I made the fritters. The recipe is from Josh and luckily, it was pretty simple. I don’t think I could have done something uber complex.
What to use:
2 -3 small zucchini, coarsely grated (I grated two large slices of the Liechtenstein Zucchini)
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
2 eggs, beaten
2 garlic cloves, pressed (flying solo means totally enjoying garlic in epic quantities!!)
a bunch of chopped up herbs (I used basil cuz it’s what I had)
Salt & Pepper to taste
How to get it done:
Preheat oven to 400.
1. Thoroughly squeeze grated zucchini until it’s as dry as possible.
2. Beat eggs in bottom of large mixing bowl.
3. Add squeezed zucchini and garlic to eggs. Mix.
4. Add bread crumbs, Parmesan, herbs, salt and pepper. Mix gently until completely combined. 
5. Form into patties.
6. Place on cookie tray (I covered mine with aluminum foil and *forgot* to spray it with cooking spray. Don’t forget!!)
7. Bake for 10 minutes on one side, and ten on the other. (I approximated this ~ just make sure that when you press on the fritters, they are firm).
Yum Yum delish.
PS. Told you I could eat fresh corn every day! Still not a corn on the cob … yet!
PPS. For anyone who was curious, Joel Grey’s daughter is Jennifer Grey, she of “Dirty Dancing” fame (and “Dancing with the Stars” Champion ~ but I forget the season!)
Nobody puts Baby in the corner. 🙂
onward and upward
I did not want to get up this morning.
So, for awhile, I didn’t.
But I’d planned for this, and I had a whole agenda of things to do to distract myself from turning into a pile of emotional goo. Distraction is an excellent strategy when you’re feeling a little blue.
On my list ~
A. I was leaving the house immediately to get Starbucks. Staying in the house all day only leads to a feeling of disconnect. I kicked myself in the pants, made the bed (an essential to the start of any day) and headed out to get some chai tea. It soothes a sad heart.
B. I knew that I had a ton of prep work to do for work to hit the ground running tomorrow. I opened up every document on my computer, and knew that I couldn’t close it until it was done. Since I am a neat freak, and like to have everything tidy and in its place, this strategy is highly effective for getting me to finish things.
C. I knew that at some point, Shaun T and I had to have a date.
D. I made plans with my aunt to have dinner tonight. In order to be a good guest, I wanted to bring some yummy stuff. Since I have a zucchini the size of a small country (think Liechtenstein), the idea of zucchini bread sounded delish. One for me … one for my lovely aunty. And as an added bonus, I was gonna bring garden fresh broccoli to crisp in the oven & eat with dinner.
I know it probably sounds silly, but I know myself well enough that I knew I had to have a plan of attack. I hate when John goes away, and the first day is always the hardest.
I hit a wee roadblock when I realized that the recipe I was using for zucchini bread (from my very first food blog experience, and still one of my top favs, Smitten Kitchen) called for three cups of flour. What with all the cooking I have been doing, I was suddenly (after two years) running very low on flour. Now, after a quick trip to the store, I am in possession of just under 10 lbs. Should be good for awhile!
Zucchini Bread Extraordinaire ~
(This is pretty much verbatim from Smitten Kitchen, and it’s delish!)
Ingredients:
3 eggs
1 3/4 cup sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups grated zucchini
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups all purpose flour
3 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1. Preheat oven to 350. Liberally grease two loaf pans (I used the only two I had, but Smitten Kitchen recommended 8 x 4).
2. Grate zucchini. Can you even believe that such a small fragment of the gi-normous zucchini yielded not two but three cups? The third is in the fridge waiting to become a fritter tomorrow! 
3. Beat eggs in mixing bowl. Stir in oil and sugar. Once fully mixed, fold in zucchini and vanilla extract.
4. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder and salt.
5. Stir in egg mixture. Divide batter between pans.
6. Bake for 60 minutes (give or take 10 minutes ~ the tester should come out clean from the center). I baked mine for about 42 minutes and they were done, but my oven is a freak of nature.
I still have about 3/4 left of my Liechtenstein-sized zucchini, so tomorrow I think that Zucchini fritters are in order (a recipe received from J & J). Perhaps zucchini french fries to go with a veggie burger (the man is a meat & potato kind of guy, so when I get a bee in my bonnet to go vegetarian, its best I do it while flying solo). So many options …. So much blog material.
Until I decide, I’m going to enjoy my zucchini bread and a big tall glass of milk.
Sweet dreams!
a very fulfilling WeHangsDay
So…. a little backstory before I dive into my culinary adventures of today.
I spent the majority of January 2008 in South Africa. The trip was a turning point for me on many levels, and there were some amazing highs and some pretty low lows.
But … as my parking attendant mentioned to me today ~ we should always be focusing on the positive (if I haven’t mentioned it, one of the best parts of my work day is seeing my parking attendants ~ they are amazing people and never fail to make me smile).
One of my fondest memories of my time in South Africa was the food, and among the many dishes I enjoyed was Green Curry. As you may have read, I was thrilled beyond belief to receive Green Curry paste and biltong when I visited my parents (mailed to me by a friend from S.A.). And I was saving the experience of re-inventing the Green Curry I remembered for WeHangsDay.
Additionally, I JUST COULDN’T WAIT until tomorrow for Homemade Brownies. So this evening I undertook two completely unknown dishes. Yowza.
Let’s start with dinner.
First, I assembled my ingredients. Having never even looked for coconut milk before (let alone bought or used it) that’s where my nerves began.
It continued throughout the making of dinner.
First, I prepped my ingredients. I defrosted and cubed up a breast of chicken (I somehow overlooked the fact that I only had one breast left). I cubed the gargantuan zucchini procured from Levinwood Gardens (our great friends and WeHangsDay partners-in-crime).
I followed the directions on the packet to a tee (well, sort of).
Ingredients:
1/2 packet Green Curry Paste
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups coconut milk
1/2 cup water
1/2 pound protein (I used 1/4 pound chicken)
1/4 pound veggies (I used 1/2 pound zucchini)
1 1/2 teaspoon sugar
*** 2 tsp. flour
Pasta:
1/2 box linguine (cooked for approx 10 minutes in boiling water, then drained).
I definitely estimated my conversions from the package directions (given in grams and mL, which we frequently use in the good ole USA), and it turned out A-okay! (Although I really think that there’s a secret ingredient I’m missing … I have some ideas, so I may re-post an updated version).
1. I combined 1/2 packet of green curry paste with 1 tbsp veggie oil over medium-hot heat, and after it mixed together sufficiently, I added 1 cup of coconut milk.
curry paste & veggie oil
curry paste, veggie oil & coconut milk
2. When all that was combined, I added my diced up chicken, and continued cooking.
3. I added another 1/2 cup coconut milk and 1/2 cup water, and brought to a boil.
4. After it bubbled a little, I added my 1/2 pound cubed zucchini, and cooked it all until the veggies were soft. 
5. ***At this point, I realized that my sauce was separating. Having only had it a few times three years ago ~ I started to panic. Luckily, John, Josh and Jess were there to talk me through my crisis (yes, if you noticed, I’m the only one whose name doesn’t begin with a “J”). We drained some of the sauce and whisked in two teaspoons of flour, then re-added the thickened sauce back into the saucepan. Voila, problem solved!
Finally, I stirred in 1 1/2 tsp. sugar. I didn’t use any seasoning, but feel free to season away! (Since meeting John I have become much more intimately aquainted with salt and pepper, prior to which I never really used). **I might suggest that seasoning the chicken a little before putting it in the saucepan would be a great idea. I just am not sure what seasoning would be best. The Green Curry has a definite kick to it!
With the delish Green Curry, we served a diced garden fresh tomato combined with diced fresh mozzarella, chopped fresh basil, a grind or two of salt and pepper and a drizzle of EVOO.
Minda's dinner (hers looked the prettiest!)
For dessert, I brought out the brownies. They were definitely yummy, but I think I have a challenge ahead of me ~ experimenting until I create the most deliciously moist, chewy, chocolately, melt-in-your-mouth decadent brownie ever.
Tonight’s were good, but my tendancy to panic definitely affected their baking.
Assembled ingredients:
1 cup butter (2 sticks)
2 1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups cocoa powder
4 large eggs
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup flour
2 cups semi-sweet morsels
*** optional: 1 tsp espresso powder
Pre-cooking: Pre-heat oven to 350, and grease a 9 x 13 baking pan.
1. Melt butter completely over low heat in medium saucepan. Once completely melted, fold in sugar, and stir constantly for 1-2 minutes (making sure not to burn sugar).
2. Once the sugar and butter are combined, transfer to mixing bowl and beat in cocoa, eggs, salt, baking powder (** optional espresso powder), and vanilla extract.
3. Once the mixture is smooth, fold in flour and chocolate morsels.
4. Pour mixture into baking dish, and cook for approximately 30 minutes. (The edges should be done, and the middle should look moist but cooked. A toothpick should come out mostly clean). Cool on wire rack.
5. I panicked, and left the brownies in a little too long (the toothpick just wasn’t coming out clean!). But … John, Jess, Josh and I enjoyed them anyway. (John and I enjoyed the batter, too!).
All in all, a great food, wine and company night. Jess also wrote me a running plan for the gym ~ to help with training for a 5K. Since she’s a rockstar, she’s agreed to let me share it. Which I will do … manana. Right now, I’m gonna go enjoy the end of the evening with my man.
Happy Wednesday!
**Thank you to Jess & Josh for being on my blog and allowing me to document some of their time and efforts, too. Jess & Josh also have the most amazing pup-ster on the face of the planet, and soon will be joined by a new member. Very exciting business! Mucho love always.
the fruits (& veggies!) of summer
Today, after mass, we headed down to have a leisurely afternoon with my side of the fam. It was blazingly hot, but luckily, not as humid as it usually is. My parental units live about an hour from us, and I was looking forward to spending some Q.T. Plus, they have an amazing outdoor patio with water fountains, colorful flowers, and some shade (provided by umbrellas). Sitting out back and sipping on some adult cocktails sounded like just the thing for day like today.
We swung by my family’s favorite road side produce stand on the way down. There’s nothing I love more than fruits & veggies in season. I had specifically asked for roadside stand corn and tomatoes, because the stuff from the supermarket just doesn’t compare.
Check out the colors and yumminess of fresh corn, berries, 
peaches, squash and peppers.
Paradiso!!
Huge surprise when we arrived ~ booty from South Africa! I can’t wait to make some Green Curry Chicken. Mmmm! And biltong, South African jerky, is mouth-watering. I’d be jealous of myself if that made any sense!
Jorge Dos came with us as well. He enjoyed quite the day ~ and even had a Jorge Dos-sized corn on the cob. Hilarious!
Some pics just need to be full -sized to appreciate the full extent of Jorge Dos’ adventures (I realize that I had a little too much fun this afternoon thinking of places a bobble-headed turtle might wander if given the time … and ability!).
checking out the froggy competition
"Do you come here often?"
a new way to travel
After I had sufficiently exhausted all resources for Jorge Dos’ adventures, we were ready to sit down for dinner. My Mama Bear and her lovely twin sister prepared a very fresh and delish meal to take full advantage of summer produce.
We had steaks on the grill (cooked to perfection by my dad), marinated in my Mama’s special marinade. (I’ll share the recipe soon ~ I totally love it and feel like my steak is naked without it!) We had a Tre Colore Salad a la my lovely aunt, and we had corn on the cob (and no, as of the last time I checked, I haven’t become a corn on the cob … yet).
prepped for the grill
Tre Colore a la Aunty Lenny
ready for some peeps to sit down & mange!
It was a total summer feast (enjoyed indoors, because after a few hours out in the heat with my dad creating his own mister with the hose, we decided to dine in the comfort of the cool kitchen).
Tre Colore A la Aunty Lenny
2 garden fresh tomatoes (which were cut up before I realized I didn’t have a pic!)
2 ripe avocados
1 ball fresh buffalo mozzarella cheese
Olive Oil
Freshly ground Salt & Pepper
Balsamic Vinegar
Fresh basil leaves
~ Slice tomatoes, and line a large dish (decoratively if you are inspired)
~ Halve avocado, remove pit, and cut into slices longways ~ arrange on top of tomatoes
~ Slice mozzarella cheese into thin pieces, top avocado with cheese
~ Drizzle olive oil and balsamic vinegar evenly over entire dish
~ Add freshly ground salt & pepper to taste (use sparingly, because the flavor of the toms is so amazing)
~ Top everything with fresh basil leaves
~ Serve!
Hope everyone had as relaxing and enjoyable a Sunday as we did! ‘Til tomorrow!
oh happy day!
I have been very into watching Secretariat recently. ** As a side-note, I can watch the same movie over and over again ~ for days, sometimes weeks on end (Field of Dreams comes to mind). ** But, to the point, there is something so uplifting about the story of a woman who believed in her gut instinct and knowledge, and fought tooth and nail without much support, to fulfill a dream. And what a reward at the end of it all ….
The story of Secretariat is remarkable, and to this day, he is considered one of the best athletes that ever lived. It’s incredible, really.
Watching the recreation of the Belmont Stakes of ’73 in the movie, I can’t help but feel my heart flutter with excitement as Secretariat rounds the final corner, and continues surging for the finish line. His time and margin of victory, to this point, have never been matched. No one has even come close. If nothing else, that’s amazingly impressive. 
(** For anyone who feels that movies gloss over reality, and paint prettier pictures than actually existed – which is more often than not, true – you should check out the words of Penny Chenery’s youngest son here.)
That’s the thing about sports ~ and any kind of sport, really. The wonder it inspires in those of us who aren’t amazingly skilled, to watch those who are excel in ways that sometimes defy imagination. It’s breath-taking, adrenaline-pumping … one of life’s daily miracles.
Speaking of miracles … another movie that I have over-played is Miracle, the story of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team and -this is shocking, I know- the end of that movie (real audio from the actual game) gives me shivers.
“Do you believe in miracles?… YES!” Thank you Al Michaels, for one of the best sound bites in the history of sports. Not just hockey. Sports. Full stop.
Sports’ triumphs, often depicted in movies, can lift a country during a time of need (Jim Braddock, The Cinderella Man, Seabiscuit in Seabiscuit), support civil rights (Mohammad Ali, Ali) embody the morals of a people (the 1980 U.S. hockey team defeating the Soviets at the height of the Cold War, Miracle), reinforce womens’ struggle for equality (Penny Chenery, Secretariat) … really, do any number of things. Including uniting a group of people, and teaching us to believe. Because sports exist in black and white, as so little else does in our ever-evolving culture, and in times of trial, or worry, having answers gives people security. Sports give people hope.
Sixty minutes. One team wins, one team loses. And that depends on the level of performance and strategy during those constantly ticking seconds. Trust me, after this past Super Bowl, I’m intimately familiar with how important those 60 minutes are.
Nine innings. Eighteen holes. Mental toughness. Physical skill.
At the end, the score says what you accomplished, and it’s either good enough, or it’s not. There is no middle ground. It’s refreshing. It’s a relief. There’s a finality that is comforting to sports.
I am a big fan. Clearly!
That’s why it’s such a bummer I’m not better at them! However, Shaun T. and I once again had a fairly successful workout. It was the “bad workout” (aka, the one the always summons the Doozer)and not only did the Doozer not arrive, but I felt really good about my progress. Truth be told, I’m nervous to admit that – for fear that tomorrow, I will crash and burn. Ah well, we will see.
I feel it's important that you all meet Shaun T., too. Say hello.
He’s smilin’ because he loves it! (If you ever endeavor to do the workouts, you’ll find that pretty funny).
Last night’s WeHangsDay was a doozy. Our friends’ surprised John with a bag full of great BBQin’ loot to celebrate his 30th. I’m a little jealous, I have to admit! And dinner was great ~ pork tenderloin on the grill, mango salsa with a kick, and mushrooms (need I say more… really!), tomatoes, zucchini (mmmm….) and cauliflower on the grill. Yum. And … pretty good for a person, if I do say so myself! We also enjoyed some very delightful vino (keep an eye out for it on ‘in vino e verita’). All in all, a slice of perfection. Thank you, Man Cave. 😀
Also, they brought me back a present I have to share as soon as the camera is charged. Everyone, please wait with baited to breath to meet Jorge Dos. Adventures to follow. 😉
Tonight, because I’m a socializing diva (ha!), our neighbors came down to dine. We served white wine (obv!), baked salmon with an avocado cream sauce (told you I can’t resist that little green fruit), fresh broccoli from our landlords’ garden (totally flavorful ~ muchas gracias to our lovely land-people!), and little red baby new potatoes boiled and served with a drizzle of EVOO, salt and pepper. Here’s how I did it ~
~ First, I filled a saucepan with water and added the potatoes (baby red bliss). I brought the water to a slow boil, and let them cook happily away while I composed the rest of the dish. I checked on them periodically, and when they were soft (I tested by poking with a pointy knife), I pulled them off the burner and let them sit.
Meanwhile …
~ I separated the huge head of broccoli into bite size pieces, and then put them on a foil covered cookie sheet, sprinkled a little sea salt and EVOO and then popped them into the oven which was preheated to 375 for about seven minutes (note: when the broccoli starts to make audible noise from sizzling, it’s done ~ there were some crispy bits, but that added to the deliciousness).
~ Next, my fresh salmon filets. I seasoned with salt and pepper and a little white wine. Then, I baked them at 375 for about twelve minutes ~ the flesh had turned a nice light pink color, but the fish was firm to the touch.
~ While the fish cooked in the oven, I quartered two avocados, and with a whisk, smashed them up with two dollops of mayonnaise, some S & P, and a splash of soy sauce. Pretty much guacamole ~ only this time, I had a heavier hand with the mayo.
~ When the salmon was plated, and the avocado cream sauce plopped on top, I drained the potatoes, and drizzled them with EVOO, salt and pepper and some parsley flakes (green is such a lovely color … oh wait, that’s right, it is my favorite!).
I also braved making angel food cake to serve strawberry shortcake (for John’s b-day I used store bought ‘dessert cups’ and I was not a fan). Even angel food cake from a box is challenging. Just FYI.
my teeny work station
Either way, it was pretty good (sans burnt bottom).
A triumph Mrs. Cratchit! A triumph! (I will use this many times, so it’s probably a good thing to advise that this expression will make frequent appearances).
I love dinner parties. If only I could afford to entertain every day …. Ahhh.
Dreams.
D5 Creation