1 cup fresh corn kernels
1 tsp olive oil
2 Tbsp. chopped green onions
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro
3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 diced peeled avocado
Cooking spray
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 tsp honey
1/4 cup light sour cream
8 (6-inch) corn tortillas
1. Preheat broiler to high
2 Combine corn and oil in small bowl; toss gently to coat. Arrange corn in an even layer on jelly-roll pan; broil 6 minutes or until lightly browned. Combine corn, onions, cilantro, 1 tablespoon juice, salt, pepper and avocado in medium bowl; toss gently.
3. Heat a large grill pan over medium high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Combine shrimp, 1 tablespoon juice, and honey in a medium bowl; toss to coat. Add shrimp to pan, cook 2 minutes on each side or until done.
4. Combine sour cream and remaining 1 tablespoon juice in s small bowl.
5. Warm tortillas according to package directions. Place 2 tortilla on each of plates. Top each torilla with about 1/4 cup corn mixture, about 4 shrimp, and 1 1/2 teaspoon sour cream mixture. Enjoy!!
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 Tsp. pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin
3 oz. dark chocolate, melted
2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp shredded orange peel
2 to 3 Tbsp. milk or orange juice
1. Preheat oven to 350. Coat a 9×5 inch loaf pan with nonstick cooling spray.
2. In a large bowl whisk together flour, spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl whisk together eggs and sugar. Add butter, buttermilk, and vanilla. Whisk until combined. Fold in pumpkin.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients all at once; whisk just until no lumps remain.
5 Divide batter in half. Add melted chocolate and cocoa powder to half the batter; sir to combine.
6. Alternately add batters to pan. Using a knife, swirl through batter. Bake 55 to 65 minutes until cake has risen and crackled, and a toothpick inserted near center comes out clean. Remove; let cool 20 minutes. Invert onto a wire rack; cool completely.
7. For orange glaze, in a small bowl sir together powdered sugar, orange peel, and milk, Spoon over cooled cake. Very tasty, Enjoy!!
Make a scary house or paint your pumpkins, fun, fun and more fun!!
Halloween 2015
Now we get to paint the big orange pumpkin that has been sitting on the porch. This is the time of year when the kids chase each other around. They go from house to house pushing the doorbell and Saying, ” Trick of Treat,! and they get treats for doing this. They don’t do any tricks for their Mom and Dad, like I do.
My favor is rolling around in the sand! I love it! After doing that, I run for the big bedroom and sleep the day away or until Mom gets another project for us to do!
Before we paint the pumpkin Mom and I have to clean it off and dry it. Then we get the paints set out and Mom draws a picture on the paper of what we are going to put on the pumpkin. Since we live in the South and on the Outer Banks we decided to do shells.
Bernie’s stripes
Oh I forgot we also have to paint on my stripes. That is a lot of fun! Mom takes the paint brush and paints on the black stripes on my face. She doses a great job, they really look real!
In the month of October the trees begin the dancing of colors of which we all enjoy. We all know the cold weather is soon to be upon us. Here in the south most everyone try to get the last barbecues in before we can not enjoy the outdoor weather. That is exactly what we did this weekend! What great weather we had, the temperature was at 65 degrees. Just right for shorts, which I hate to give up, and pants later in the day. What a great day we had, with family and friends who came to enjoy our wonderful delightful foods from salads to barbecue.
October BarbecueOctober Barbecue
The smells of barbecue ribs and chicken cooking on the grill, along with some fresh homemade salads make a great meal for a afternoon of fun. The laughing and story telling can make a afternoon just fly by. We had family and friends that live here locally, along with friends from New York stop by to visit and catch up on what’s happening in our life. It was a great day all in all!!
Our food menu included Tri-color Cheesy pasta salad, Fresh Spinach – Potato salad along with hot Shrimp/Crab drip and Buffalo Chicken drip. Barbecue chicken and ribs. Special Memphis Style BBQ Dry Rub Chicken cooked on grill to perfection. This is my own personal Dry Rub I have put together and it has been a hit this summer at a few BBQ’s. I enjoy experiencing in using fresh herbs and dry spice to come up with new favors. I hope you enjoy some of these recipes and as always just enjoy life! Enjoy!!
2 Tbsp. olive oil, plus more for grill
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 Tbsp. Ketchup
1 Tbsp. Dijon mustard
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts ( about 1 1/2 lbs.)
2 slices thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 ears od corn, kernels cut off ( about 2 cups)
1 bunch Swiss chard, chopped ( stems and leaves separated)
2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
3 scallions, sliced
salt and pepper to tasted
1. Preheat a grill to medium and lightly brush the grill grates with olive oil. Whisk the olive oil, vinegar, ketchup and mustard in a small bowl. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and brush all over with the vinegar mixture. Grill until marked and cooked through, 5 to 9 minutes per side; transfer to a plate.
2. Heat a cast-iron skillet or Dutch oven over medium -high on the stove or place directly on the grill. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until browner and crisp, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the corn kernels and Swiss chard stems to the skillet. Cook stirring occasionally, until the corn is tender and lightly brown, about 5 minutes, Add the butter , scallions and chard leaves. Cook until chard is just wilted about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Slice the chicken and serve with the corn mixture. Enjoy!!
2 Tbsp. Vegetable oil, plus more for grill
4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
4 scallions, quartered crosswise
2 red bell peppers, sliced
1 pineapple, peeled, cored and sliced crosswise
1 Tbsp. jerk seasoning
1 green squash and 1 yellow squash
1. Preheat a grill to medium heat and brush the grates with vegetable oil.
2. Toss the chicken, scallions, bell peppers and pineapple in a large bowl with the vegetable and jerk seasoning.
3. Arrange the chicken on the grill; cook until marked, 7 to 9 minutes. Flip the chicken and add scallions, bell peppers and pineapple to the grill. Also add the squash. Cook until the vegetables and pineapple are marked and tender and the chicken is cooked through, 7 to 9 more minutes. ENJOY!!
Carolina Barbecue Chicken is great on the grill and for those hot nights when you do not want to turn on the oven.
Prep: 30 min. Serves:4
Total: 40 Min.
1/2 cup yellow mustard
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp. mustard powder
2 tsp. hot sauce
1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
8 skin-on, bone in chicken thighs
Oil for grill
1 large tomato, sliced
1. Preheat a grill to medium. Whisk the yellow mustard, vinegar, brown sugar, mustard powder, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, 1/2 tsp. salt, and pepper to taste in a bowl. Whisk in the melted butter.
2. Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then toss with about one-third of the mustard sauce in a large bowl until coated. Let sit at room temperature, 10 minutes.
3. Brush the grill grates generously with vegetable oil. Put about 1/4 cup of the remaining mustard sauce in a small bowl for basting and serving. Grill the chicken covered, basting occasionally with sauce, until well marked and a thermometer inserted into the thickest part, 170 degrees, 10 to 20 minutes per side.
4 Serve the chicken with the reserved mustard sauce, sliced tomato, add macaroni or suddenly salad. Enjoy!!
When I walk out on to my porch, the scent of chives blossoms hits me first, then thyme, then lavender basil: I am so happy that my porch is full of herbs pots. I’ve always loved fresh herbs in my cooking.
In the morning, I always check my garden and herb pots on the porch for any bugs that may have found a home during the night. Whether you grow your own or pick up a bouquet at the market, herbs are at their best in summer, which means now is the time to use them with wild abandon. There are so many favorite summer recipes made even better by the addition of fresh herbs- a juicy burger, a colorful grain salad, fragrant roasted potatoes, and a cornmeal-flecked pound caked. Even your cocktails and desserts feature fresh herbs.
When warm weather hits, I even take to stirring my lemonade with rosemary sprig a delicious luxury I forgo in winter when the rosemary at the supermarket comes at a steep price and in a tiny plastic container. My herb garden yields more herbs than I can use during the fleeting season. By summer’s end, I’ll be hanging brunches of thyme and sage to let them dry. Then I’ll use these “fresh” dried herbs throughout the winter. Ball puts out 4 ( 4oz.) jars you can use to store dried herbs.
2015 Garden herbs
But for now, I will revel in the fragrance and flavors of just picked herbs. You should, too!
cutting herbs
When life gives you herbs it time to make herb oils, butters, syrups, and more.
Flavored butters– Mash chopped herbs ( chives, parsley, basil, dill and thyme, for example) plus salt and pepper into a stick of softened unsalted butter. Wrap the butter well in plastic and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 1 month. I used only dill for example for my Chicken cutlets with tomatoes and basil for our company that came from Canada for a week. I use a loaf of bread and heated it up and made herb butter to go along with it. The herb butter was just dill and a stick of unsalted butter mixed together. Well, needless to say we did not have any left overs. But the herb butter was a big hit.
Picture to follow.
There are some many different way to use your herbs. Here are a few I have tried:
Simple syrup, Herb oil, Herb vinegar, Herb stock, and Fried herbs. If you are interested in any of thee recipes just email me and I will be glad to sent your my recipes.
FILLING
3 lbs. fresh (take the pit out) or frozen dark sweet cherries, thawed and drained
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
BISCUIT TOPPING
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 salt
6 Tbsp. (3/4 stick), cut into small pieces
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2/3 cup buttermilk
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees
2. Combine cherries, 3/4 cup sugar, cornstarch, lemon juice and vanilla in large bowl; toss to coat. Spoon into 9-inch square baking dish.
3. Combine flour, 1/2 cup sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda and salt in medium bowl; mix well. Cut in butter with pastry blender or mix with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sir in chocolate chips. Add buttermilk; stir just until combined. (Do not over mix.) Drop topping, 2 Tbsp. at a time into mounds over cherry mixture.
4. Bake 40 to 45 minutes or until filling is bubbly and toothpick inserted into center of biscuit comes out clean. Let stand 30 minutes before serving. Serve warm. Enjoy!!
4 celery ribs, finely chopped
2 cups mayonnaise- I use Duke’s-no sugar in it.
4 green onions, chopped
1/4 cup lime juice
1/4 cup chili sauce
1/2 tsp. seasoned salt
8 cups cooked fresh or canned crabmeat
6 hard-boiled eggs- chopped
48 slices whole wheat bread
1/2 cup butter, softened
48 lettuces leaves or spinach leaves
1/2 tsp. paprika
green onions, cut into small strips
1. In a large bowl, combine the first six ingredients; gently stir in the crab and eggs. Refrigerate.
2. With a 3-in. round cookie cutter, cut a circle from each of the slices of bread. Spread each with 1/2 tsp. butter. Top with lettuce and 2 rounded tablespoonful’s of crab salad; sprinkle with paprika. Garnish with onion strips if desired and watch them disappear. Enjoy!!
Recipes, Gardening ,and Fun Projects to make. all homemade!
Fun Recipes to make and enjoy!! 