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“Mondays in My Garden”: Four Easy Ways to Save Money when starting your Garden
There are a few blogs that I just love. Household 6 Diva is one of them. Ann Marie is a down to earth Army spouse recently relocated from Germany to Texas and there are so many times that I think, “Wow, would we be good friends if our lives had ever crossed.” She started a series called “Mondays in My Garden”. Be sure to read her inaugural post here: Welcome to “Mondays in My Garden” Ah… my garden. Just the thought of it has my heart smiling. Yesterday it was 72 degrees out in NE Ohio. The back door was open all day. The front door was filled with sunshine. Smiles, laughs, giggles…
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Grandma’s Pot
This is my Grandma’s Pot. I like to imagine all the food she cooked in it. Soups for her family, pasta for guests, maybe mashed potatoes for a big family gathering or just a small brisket for herself and Pop. Continue Reading about my favorite pot, Grandma’s Pot My mom gave it to me a few years ago after Gram passed away and I have to admit it is my favorite pot. (Who knew anyone could love an ‘ordinary’ pot?) This summer alone I have made quarts of pasta sauce with tomatoes from my garden. I have cooked salsa to last all winter long. I have enjoyed simmering, sauteing, boiling and glazing, all…
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Pan Seared Steak with Horseradish Mashed Spuds
I was never sure about horseradish. It is oh so strong. I like hot peppers, but there really is nothing similar other than a strong taste. I love zippy salad dressings… again the strong taste. Then we were in Nashville and I had an order of fried green tomatoes with a horseradish dip. Whoa! Oh so good! So, I began to experiment with this new taste sensation. Mashed potatoes was the perfect playground. And with potatoes comes steak… my man is a fan!This menu is for two… a beautiful night if you can manage adds so much to the event. 🙂3 large potatoes (I prefer Yukon gold, but any large…
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Tasty Tuesday Dress Me Up Salsa Pico De Gallo
Salsa is a staple at our house, and has been for years. Tell me… WHO can live without tortilla chips and salsa? Or quesadillas with salsa? The occasional late night nachos with salsa? You get the picture. I used to have a truck load pumped into the house… back ‘er up and fill the tank. Well, not really, but if felt like that. I would wipe out a whole shelf in the commissary each time I went.So, naturally after canning a gazillion tomatoes the light bulb went off as to how to use these red beauties and the first thought: Salsa.There are several recipes for this mainstay, here is my…
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Tasty Tuesday: Shrimp Scampi Improvised
My boys have a favorite meal; Shrimp Scampi! Only trouble is Hubs HATES shrimp. SO we don’t do the shrimp ‘thing’ when he is home. However, he was in the field the past two weeks and so when I was meal planning it was easy enough to add the favorite meal to the menu! The morning of the planned-meal came along and I made sure we had a bag of shrimp in the freezer … However, what I did NOT account for was the fact that we had opened the bag before and there were about 15 shrimp left. (15 divided by 3 … not nearly enough for my boys.)…
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Tasty Tuesday: Pesto Cheesecake
After working in the garden on a perfectly ‘perfect weather’ day, the deck chairs seems to summon us, and the idea of a simple dinner with the neighbors is about as good as it gets. IN preparation for this event… this pesto cheesecake can be made from ordinary items in the back of the refrigerator. I tend to do a commissary shopping trip and load up on essentials…so having 4 packages of cream cheese on hand is not unusual. Understand we do not live close to a commissary, so when I go… I go for carts! I hope you have the occasion to sit outside, enjoy your work and enjoy…
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Earth Day 2010
I will tell you I’m not a ‘tree-hugger’. I spend probably too much money on pre-packaged foods. I always seem to forget to bring my own environmentally-friendly bags to stores – even though I do have a few of them. I don’t drive an oversized-SUV but my smaller size mini-van isn’t exactly the most economical vehicle out there. But I do care. I do know that I can make a difference. I am not going to change the hole in our ozone layer. I’m not going to save the world with some major campaign about how we are all doomed if we don’t make a change. I can hardly say…
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Tasty Tuesday: Rice with ZING! A+ Sidedish for leftover Restaurant Meal
Ever have a take home “doggie bag” of great Mexican food, like a whole chile rellano, or a couple of enchiladas? My mind always thinks I can eat all that I order, because it always looks so good… or is it the fact that the food is presented on a platter that could feed all of western Michigan at one feeding? So, I take home a foiled lined dish with more than half of my meal! When it comes time to reheat, I realize I love the side dishes almost as much as the entree.Here is a great Zesty Rice dish. The summer’s tomatoes bring this dish color, and the…
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Taking Time to Taste some Green
Destination Georgia. Departure Michigan. Expectation sun and fun and warmth and great time with hubs.The destination occurred. Departure was early and accurate. Expectations can change like the weather. Fun with Dale… you betcha! Tennessee was coated with fresh snow. Drivers were jumping with frayed nerves. Rays of sunlight were sparking and flying with clods of snow flying off of car and truck roofs, as if snowballs were being thrown at the anxiety filled folks who’s windshields had refracted sunlight that caused their braking foot to clamp down to the floor. Yet they were able to breath. They made it through curves and turns and we made it to our hotel.…
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Perfect Pasta and Fish
These fish recipes are just swimming around my head today! I have posted quite a few. But, one is just better than the next… until I go back and think… that is the one I want. They just swim past each other!I love the look of a good dish! This Pasta and Fish dish uses shells as the starch, and is so good!Serves 61 1lb box of shell pasta1/2 c chipped onion1/2 t dried basil2 T olive oil1 envelope of spaghetti sauce mix32 oz canned tomatoes1 lb fish fillets, solid white fish, cut into cubes1/2 c Parmesan cheese8 oz mozzarella cheese Cook shells according to box directions until just al…
