Wonderful Weekends

Now that I am a working woman...Woohoo!...I love my weekends!  And this happened to be a fabulous one!  

Friday... Dinner with friends we haven't seen in a while which included nursery talks with our beautiful prego friend, one bouncy baby girl, a bonfire, s'mores, and lots of fabulous friend time.

Saturday... Paisley woke up at 5:30 despite the fact she always sleeps until at least 6 if not later.  So my gorgeous husband took her out while I slept in...did I mention how amazing my husband is?  

Then we watched college game day and made pancakes.  With Chocolate Chips! 

I was a little low on syrup though so I decided to make my own.  YUM!...if I do say so myself.  It was so easy.  Here is the recipe I used...

1 1/2 c. brown sugar (packed)

3/4 c. water

1 tbsp. butter

Dash of salt

1/2 tsp. maple flavoring

Mix brown sugar, water, butter, and salt in saucepan.  Heat to boiling over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Stir in maple flavoring.  Serve warm.  

Be care not to overcook.  I think I cooked it too long because after it cooled all the way, it was more like thick honey than syrup.  But it was very good and it was great on the pancakes.

I totally recommend trying in it.

In the afternoon, we finally got around to picking our sweet potatoes.  Boy was that fun!  No really...it was like digging for gold!  They were huge!

We are so excited about them!  As you can see we also had 2 baby watermelons left.

Sunday was a spirit filled day as we celebrated our 3 year birthday with our church.  The way God moved was truly indescribleable as we were moved to awe watching God move his people to give to Charity Water and be baptized.  You can celebrate with us at www.awakenamovement.com.

I hope you had a fabulous weekend as well!  Try some homemade maple syrup!  Visit awakenamovement.com!  Make your Monday feel like the weekend!

Snap Its Cold!

Wooo!  It got cold folks! Well it comes and goes, but its all starting!  Guess what that means...  Time for soup!  All kinds of soups!  My favorite time of the year for food.  Well...every season of food is my favorite but I really love this season of soups and football foods.  I've already made white chicken chili, vegetable beef, and potato soup.  Was September too early??  Cringe.  Maybe.  But I don't care.  I LOVE SOUP!  

The big question really is....What kind should I make next?  Broccoli Cheese, Traditional Chili, Chicken and Rice, Lentil and Sausage...the possibilities are endless.

One of my favorite ones from last year is Rachael Ray's Veg-Head Three-Bean Chili, so I'm planning on making it this week for friends.  I am so far from a vegetarian, but I LOVE this chili!  Who am I kidding? I love ALL types of chili!

Here is the amazing and easy recipe!
Its in the 30 minute meals cook book...so it has to be right.

Ingredients:
2 tbsp olive or vegetable oil (who measures?  not me. just wing it)
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 large red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large green pepper, seeded and chopped
1 large jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
4 garlic cloves, crushed and chopped
1 cup of pale bear or vegetable stock/broth
1 (32-oz) can crushed tomatoes
1 (14-oz) can black beans
1 (14-oz) can dark red kidney beans
1 tbsp chili powder
2 tbsp cayenne hot pepper sauce (a few drops)
1 cup spicy vegetarian refried beans

Toppings:
8 oz (2 cups shredded) spicy monterey jack or smoked cheddar
(whatev just use your favorite shredded cheese)
Chopped scallions, white and greens
Diced fresh seeded plum tomatoes
Blue and red corn tortilla chips or black bean tortilla chips, for dipping

Directions:
Over moderate heat, add oil to a deep pot and combine onion, peppers, and garlic.  Saute for 3 to 5 minutes to soften vegetables.  Deglaze pan with beer or broth, add tomatoes, black beans, red kidney beans, and stirring to combine.

Season with cumin, chili powder, hot sauce, and salt.  Thicken chili by stirring in refried beans.  Simmer over low heat about 5 to 10 minutes longer, then serve up bowls of chili and top with shredded cheese, scallions and tomatoes (or so Rachael says).

It really is easy!  It is a nice spin on original chili!  And I would like to think, its healthy!

Hope you are enjoying our yo-yoing weather with your favorite soups on the downswings!

I like it HOT!

I don't have a lot of fun exciting news today; 

EXCEPT THAT I'M GRADUATING FROM PT SCHOOL TOMORROW!  What?!!  I know.  F-I-N-A-L-L-Y!  But for today, I will share a random, tiny something personal about myself.

Truth:  I like to eat things with a little lot of spice.  

Always have.  Not too hot, mind you.  Wouldn't want to ruin my meal with a jiggling belly full of water but I like my food far from bland.

So when I was at my favorite local bulk grocer, I had a life changing moment when I saw this...

"What?,"  I said,  "Did God make this especially for me?"

Tears!  Fireworks!  Excitement, oh my!

My dreams come true...bulk hot sauce!

I'm sure many of you are gagging at the thought of a gallon of hot sauce but not me.  I've just been refilling my regular sized bottle blissfully!  I will not be ashamed of my spiciness!

One of my favorite hot sauce recipes:  Buffalo Chicken Dip
8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
(neufchatel cheese for a lower fat version)
1/2 cup of blue cheese or ranch salad dressing
1/2 cup of Frank's Redhot sauce
1/2 cup of crumbled blue cheese or shredded mozzarella cheese
2 cans of chicken breast, drained
(or just 2 cups cooked chicken if you don't like chicken that taste like tuna)

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Place cream cheese in baking dish in oven.  Stir until smooth.
Mix salad dressing, hot sauce and cheese.  Stir in chicken.
Bake 20 min or until heated through; stir.  Serve with crackers, chips or veggies.
(Please we all know we want it with chips!)

I'm telling you this dip will make you want to slap your Momma!  It is YUM!

Fruits of Our Labor

I know what you are thinking.  No really I do.  I'm an idiot.  I broke my blog.  Yes it is possible.  I did it.  I will slowly be restoring it to his full glory with the magical assistance of the beautiful and talented Caity Shinnick.  I'd be lost in this big ol' blogland without her.

__________________________________________________________________________________

Can you believe it is the end of July!  Summer is flying by.

But with the heat of summer, comes the full bloom of our garden.  All of the hard work finally pays off with dividends...and maybe some more work too.  Picking is exhausting and back-breaking; oh well, at least the veggies are good.

Flowers are in full bloom!

 Veggies are coming in like crazy!  So I snapped a quick pictures a couple of weeks ago of my picks.  

Squash and Garlic.  Tomatoes and Onions.  Zucchini and Green beans.

Speaking of green beans...

They are crazy!  We've already picked 3 times and we need to pick again.  Its nuts!

 Here is part of my first pick.

Now onto the snapping.  Removing the ends and "snapping" the beans into your desired size.  I usually snap smaller beans for good old southern green beans and longer beans for green bean bundles.  Its not particularly necessary to snap longer beans for bundles but I find it to be much easier to bundle beans when they are longer.

Next, it's time for canning.  Canning is not difficult and is a great way to preserve your garden favorites.

Left:  My southern green beans.  Right:  My green bean bundles.  I was so proud of my stacking.  Can you tell?!

Next a half of a teaspoon of salt for every pint of green beans (a full teaspoon if canning quarts).  I prefer to do most of my green beans in pints because I have found it is the perfect amount for two people.  I often put up my green bean bundles in quarts due to their size and I usually make them for company.

 Then you fill the jars with boiling water to cover the beans.

Place the sterilized lids on and screw on the band.  Place the jars in a pressure canner and process as recommended by your owner's manual.

TADA!!!!!!  Dinner is served!  AND...You have green beans for the whole year!

Putting vegetables up and having them to eat for the rest of the year is one of my absolute favorite things about gardening!  It is so nice.  And I SAVE so much money!  Yay!

Our favorite new way to cook green beans is on the stove with some chicken base (bouillon), seasoning salt, pepper, and sugar.  Cooking for as long as I can...45 minutes-ish on a light simmer.  It's even better if you have a strip of bacon or fat back.  Yes, you know you are in the south when someone uses the word fat back.

What is your favorite way to cook green beans?

A Good Ol' Southern Holiday

I know another 4th of July post 3 days late... but what can I say, I'm a blogaholic.  Yes that is a real thing.  And No I am not currently seeking treatment.

We spent the 4th of July in the Big Murray, KY as we often do.  That's tobacco country you know.

Brandon's favorite brother, Wes, was born on the 4th so the festivities are extra special!  Our weekend basically consisted of family time, swimming, eating, family time, football, swimming, eating.  Rinse and Repeat.  We had so much fun getting to finally spend some quality time with Brandon's family.  It's been a while since we've been able to go and stay a while but one of the not so fun aspects of being an adult I suppose.

Here is our weekend in pictures:

(quality varies as most were taken on my phone.  bad blogger i know.)

Shooting guns in the corn field.

 Wes has a 357 Magnum, snub-nosed something or another pistol.  Big name for a little gun.  However, size does NOT matter when discussing guns.  That little puppy was the loudest thing I've heard in a very long time.  My ears are ringing literally just thinking about it.  I only shot once and let the boys do the rest.  It was almost a bit much.  We were shooting at styrofoam cups in the back of a corn field.  Check out the destruction this baby produces:

Crazy!  The picture of the right is the entrance hole and the picture of the left is the gaping exit point.

Although fun, not sure I was competent enough to feel safe with it.  Everyone handling such weapons should take a safety course, myself included. 

One of a several backyard football games.

 The boys loved throwing and have quite the guns like their "Gunner" Uncle B.  Yes, having your shirt off does make you a better athlete.  The boys have learned this young.

Everybody loves a ride on the 4-wheeler.

Fireworks! Big Hit with 3 and 6 year old boys.  I know can you believe it?  Safety?  Questionable.

Look at those faces of amazement!  I love it.

Grilling Out!

The boys are learning to use my camera.  I think Caden took this one.

Yes we had like 16 of these gynormous steaks!  Delicious!  Brandon's cousin is quite the chef and made an absolutely amazing bourbon butter.  It made the steaks taste like you were eating at your favorite uber-expensive, have to wear nice clothes, and use the correct fork steak places.  YUM!

Here is a recipe I found on world wide web so you can make your own!  Brandon's cousin edited the recipe he found to his taste and I suggest you do the same.  You won't regret it!

Bourbon Butter:

2 sticks of unsalted butter, softened

2 shallots minced finely, soaked in 1 shot of bourbon or whiskey

3 teaspoons minced parsley

1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

3 teaspoons of bourbon or whiskey

1/2 teaspoon of sea salt

white pepper to taste

Make butter at least 3 hours in advance.  Combine butter, shallots soaked in bourbon, parsley, Worcestershire, mustard, bourbon, salt and pepper.  Mix well.  On a piece of plastic wrap, drop butter in spoonfuls to form a log.  Roll butter in plastic wrap to form a smooth round log.  Refrigerate until ready to use. 

Then just grill a fabulous steak and place a large dollop on top!  Yum!

Return To My Country Girl Roots

This week I returned to my country girl roots.  I went blackberry pickin' on the farm.  Although I went all by my lonesome I had a lot of fun.

First things first...Turn off the electric fence.  Especially important for me, because I've always been a little afraid of it and it had been raining A LOT.  I didn't want to test the relationship between electricity and water.  I hear they are really close.

 Second, put on some boots.  Clay mud is nasty.  So I wore Momma Jackie's boots.  I don't have any farm boots anymore.  I need some.  I can remember as a child going to The Tractor Supply Company and getting to pick between the red and yellow rubber boots to wear on the farm.

Isn't the queen anne's lace beautiful!  I love it.  We used to pick it all the time while we played on farm while my Dad worked.

My mom's domestic blackberries weren't as ripe as I thought they were, so I went on the search for our wild berries.

I used to love swinging on these as a kid.

Found them falling into the pond.

The problem with wild blackberries are the THORNS!  Ouch!

And let's not even talk about the chigger possibilities.  I immediately showered after my pickin' to avoid those little boogers.

Blackberry picking is fun but painful work, but the pay-off is well worth it...Blackberry Cobbler!  Yum!

Photo found here.  Sorry forgot to take my own picture.  I was busy eating.

Here is my recipe:

 2 cups blackberries   

(Or whatever you have.  I don't measure.)

1 cup sugar

1 cup self-rising flour

1 cup milk

1 stick (1/2 cup) butter

I cook the blackberries on the stove in a small pot with a little bit of sugar and a little bit of water just to make it a little saucy.  Bring it to a boil then turn it back and let it simmer just a bit.  Maybe 5-10 minutes.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix equal parts sugar, flour and milk.  Melt stick of butter in oven in the pan.  Pour mixture into the butter greased pan.  Pour blackberry mixture into the center of the pan.  

(Confession:  Last night I forgot the butter.  I know what a terrible cook and blogger.  And honestly, It tasted delicious.  Better than usual.  Take that for what it's worth.)

Bake on 350 degrees approximately 30 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with Purity vanilla ice cream.

Delicious summer treat!  Enjoy!


(Sorry guys and gals.  I can't get the fonts etc. to work correctly.)