The Best Guacamole' in the World

Thanks to everyone who has emailed asking for this recipe.

  

Many years ago having a few avocados and tomatoes needing to be used my guacamole' was created.   I am not a fan of creamy guacamole'.   I love sour cream... mayonnaise, but I don't want either in my guacamole'.   I want it chunky and full of flavor.   This is so simple and tasty, I promise.

The Best Guacamole'

3 to 4 avocados, (depending on size) chopped

1 to 2 tomatoes, chopped

1/2 onion, chopped

(a purple onion adds nice color, but I use whatever is on hand)

1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped

2 to 3 cloves garlic, chopped

A handful of fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

salt and pepper to taste

Juice of a lime or 1/2 of a lemon

Throw everything in a bowl.  

Gently toss.  You want to mix it, but not mash it.

I often use my hands.

Squeeze lime juice to coat ingredients.

I hope this does not disappoint anyone who emailed asking for this recipe.

 Calling it the "best" is actually a joke between my daughter and I.  I don't really remember how it began; I may have said something about receiving a few accolades.

It is all in good fun and continues to make both of us giggle.  

And, yes, I think my pizzas rock as well.

Bon Appetite!

I hope your week is going well!

Cleaning Out and a Cake

Yes, the ugly continues.

The stack of magazines was only the tip of the iceberg.   I have declared this the year to declutter, clean out and reorganize.  I have lived in this house longer than any other; a lot can get shuffled, stored, stuffed in twenty years.   I frequently take on organizing projects, but am guilty of keeping a lot of "stuff" for sentimental reasons.   "No more!", she screams.

I am committing to 52 weeks of decluttering.  Well, maybe not a straight 52 weeks.  I will be taking a break this spring to welcome our second grand baby.   All the more reason to simplify and get this home in order now.

I really thought I could get the laundry/pantry area cleared out and reassembled over the weekend.  I wanted to have it finished before my husband returned from New Zealand.  And, I wanted to share my success with you.  My husband returned mid-mess, but rolled up his sleeves and helped install new shelves in the laundry room.   I'm almost there...  I'm pacing myself....

I've taken a little time to write, to read, and yes, I had to make the
Meyer Lemon Buttermilk Pudding cake.  And it was divine!

I would love to hear your tales and/or woes of organizing.

I hope your week is going well.  Hugs!

Summer Supper

I have always enjoyed cooking.  I generally love all the gathering and preparations.   During the heat of the summer,  I am looking for meals which are 
quick, light and easy to prepare, with as little clean-up as possible.  

I don't know about you, but I am usually the one cleaning up the kitchen.  
My husband is an amazing cook, but when he creates he uses every pot, pan, 
dish and utensil available.  And, yep, I am generally the clean-up girl.
Seriously though, for one of his meals I'll do the dishes.

Sticking to my criteria, last night's dinner was perfect.  I decided to combine two of my favorite foods, shrimp and pizza.  Substituting a fresh pesto for the tomato sauce and using only a sprinkling of parmesan I put a bit of a light twist on pizza.

Shrimp Pesto Pizza

1 pound large  'wild caught' shrimp
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus some for the pan
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
salt and black pepper to your liking
1/3 cup pesto, or enough to generously cover the top of the pizza crust
(pesto is so easy to make,
but there are some really good quality ones in the market as well)
Parmesan cheese, freshly grated.
One pre-baked pizza crust

(I enjoy making my own pizza dough, but there are also  good doughs in the freezer section of some markets.  For this pizza, I used a pre-cooked pizza crust from a specialty market.  Check the ingredients.  I look for one using organic ingredients with no preservatives.  I want it to be as close to my own as  possible.)

Pre-heat oven to 425℉.
Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and drizzle a little bit of olive oil over the foil.  
Rinse, peel and devein the shrimp.  Place shrimp in a bowl drizzle with olive oil and toss to coat.  I like to use my hands.  Sprinkle on the red pepper flakes, salt and pepper, again toss making sure each shrimp is well seasoned (add or subtract seasoning to you taste).  Let sit while the oven is heating, to allow all the goodness of the seasoning to be absorbed.

Place shrimp on the prepared baking sheet and roast for 3 to 4 minutes.

Turn and roast for another 2 minutes.  The shrimp
should be pink, but ever so slightly undercooked.  They will finish roasting
once placed on the pizza and returned to the oven.

(For perfectly roasted shrimp I roast them 3 to 4 minutes on each side.
I really don't like rubbery and dry shrimp.)

While the shrimp are roasting, spread pesto onto the baked pizza crust. 

Place pesto covered crust into the oven and bake about 8 minutes.  

The pesto will begin to bubble.

Take the crust from the oven and arrange the roasted shrimp

on top.

  

Lightly sprinkle with parmesan.  Of course you can use any cheese (a good brie
would be fabulous), and as much as you would like. 

(If you use a heartier cheese reduce the roasting time on the shrimp.

You will need longer to melt the cheese, overcooking the shrimp.

 I used parmesan as not to over power the shrimp. ) 

Bake for one minute or until the cheese is melted.

Add a simple undressed tomato and cucumber salad,

and enjoy a simple and yummy summer supper.

I think this will be perfect for a supper after a busy day at school.

I'm adding this one to the line-up.

Bon Appetit'

Do you prefer lighter dishes in the summer?  

Do you have a favorite light summer supper?

Have a wonderful weekend!

Thanksgiving Prep

Here we are just hours away from Thanksgiving Day.
I don't know about you, but I am happiest when in the kitchen preparing a meal
for family and friends.

Favorite recipes located and reviewed.

Lists  made.

Supplies gathered.

Favorite music loaded.

Have I not shared I am a huge fan of Willie Nelson?

Who did you think was sweet Willie's namesake?

It was those eleven years spent in Austin.

Oh, a story for another day.

I've chopped, stirred and baked most of the day.

It has been the best day!

Family is just an hour away, the guest room has been fluffed and a pot of comforting
chicken soup is simmering on the stove just waiting to served.

I hope you have had the day you hoped for today.
If you are traveling, be safe.   If your home may you be surrounded with peace and love.
And, may you wake tomorrow with thanksgiving in your heart.

Happy Thanksgiving dear readers.

Eating My Way Through Literature

Literally...

Books are a gift.  Books allow travel to places I'll never go.   Books transport me back to a time long before I existed, only to whisk me into a future I will probably never see, then gently release me content and coddled where I feel the safest.  Books comfort me when I am worried,  solve problems when there are questions, keep me company when I am alone, and give me council when I have taken in more than I can handle.  Books stir and blend my fantasies and my reality.

There is nothing I have asked from a book that it has not delivered.   Books are stimulants for the brain and imagination.   Recently,  I have noticed they are stimulating something else, my appetite.   Yes, I am happily reading along, minding my own business, not thinking about food, then...

"We're in his kitchen, and he's making grilled cheese and tomato sandwiches, 
which I'm thinking are going to be about as close to my two-American-cheese-
singles-on-white-bread as his macaroni and cheese was to my Kraft special.

He slides his creation onto my plate:  multiple cheeses with cherry tomatoes 
and fresh basil oozing out of slabs of homemade multigrain bread.  It looks
and smells brilliant."
                                                                               The Art  Forger
                                                                         B.A. Shapiro

via

...and all I can think of is a grilled cheese and tomato sandwich.

As much as I resisted I was helpless in the clutch of such descriptive writing.   I had a couple of different cheeses hanging out in the refrigerator, fresh farmer's market tomatoes, basil ready for picking in the garden and a loaf of rye bread.  This would be easy, I make grilled cheese sandwiches all the time.  Slice a little of this, spread a little of that, sizzle, sizzle... shades of gold... and I am back to my book deeply involved in an art heist.

It looked good, and it did smelled amazing.  Eating it was not so easy, it sort of fell apart.  To be frank, my sandwich just wasn't as sexy.  After fully analyzing the situation I decided it had to be all about the tomatoes.  Make a note, next time use cherry tomatoes.

It was only a few days latter I had the chance to spend a few days in Chicago.  We arrived just after noon and were a bit hungry.  With dinner reservations at a nearby french restaurant we decided to avoid the crowds and slip into one of the hotel's restaurants for a small snack.  We were seated and handed menus.   Looking down the selections, looking for something lite, there it was dancing, singing, flashing red arrows screaming at me,

a grilled cheese with cherry tomatoes and...
oh my, bacon jam.



I tried to resist.  I looked away.  I ask R. if he would like to split something.  Nothing worked, it was my destiny, my obligation.  Yes, I ordered the grilled cheese sandwich.  I didn't take a picture; it was beautiful, rich and tasted amazing...trust me, I was there.   I don't even remember what R. ordered, but I shared half of my delicious sandwich.

Now, I have two things to share with you,
my latest read and the culinary cravings it creates.

Has a book ever sent you running to the kitchen craving something you just read about?

Do you have an amazing grilled cheese recipe you are willing to share?

Yes, if I don't slow down the reading I'll be spending a lot more time here.


Happy Reading and
Bon Appétit!

A Spicy Answer to a Hot Summer's Night

“I am not a glutton - I am an explorer of food” 
                                                                                   Erma Bombeck



I love my food magazines.  In fact, I can honestly say I've never met one I didn't like and need.  If I don't have a subscription, and the cover looks appealing it usually lands in my shopping cart at the grocery store or under a stack of books at the bookstore.
I also love my cookbooks, but I read them like novels.  Magazines are more for drooling
over the pictures, creating cravings and planning my next food safari.

The July issue of bon appétit  has been following me around for weeks.   I have been wanting to make the cover recipe, Sriracha Glazed Chicken Skewers since it was delivered through my mail slot.  Doesn't it look scrumptious?

Weekends are my favorite time to try something new.  R. is usually in town, everything is less hurried, fewer errands to run and more time to plan.  This has been a busy month though with traveling here and there, weddings, meetings and dinner out with friends, giving me less time for experimenting in the kitchen.  Until this past weekend.  I kept my eye on the ball dish;  I was determined, and I wasn't disappointed. 

I've read eating spicy food when the temperatures are rising is wonderful way

to cool the body down.  The warmth from the spices cause the body to 

perspire, turning on our built in air conditioning system.  If this is 

truly fact then this flavorful and spicy dish was the perfect answer to

 a hot summer's evening.

A cool tomato and watermelon salad was it's perfect sidekick.

For the beverage, I chose my favorite prosecco.

Sambal Chicken Skewers

bon appétit 

1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar

1/2 cup unseasoned rice vinegar

1/3 cup hot chili paste

1/4 cup fish sauce

1/4 cup Sriracha

2 tablespoons finely grated peeled ginger

1 1/2 lb. skinless, boneless chicken thighs,

cut into 1 1/2 - 2 inch pieces

Soak bamboo skewers for at least an hour.  

The recipe says eight, I used ten.

Prepare grill for medium-high heat.  Whisk brown sugar, vinegar, chili paste, 

fish sauce, Sriracha, and ginger in a large bowl.  Add chicken and toss to coat. 

Thread 4 or 5 chicken pieces onto each skewer.

Transfer marinade to a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer 

until reduced to about one cup, 7 to 10 minutes.

Grill chicken, turning and basting often with marinade, until cooked through, 

8 to 10 minutes.

Enjoy!

I pretty much followed this recipe to the "t".  There are a few things I might change up

 next time.  I found the thighs difficult to cut into nice consistent size pieces.  The thigh 

is a fatty piece of the chicken which is why they are so moist and flavorful, but hard to

manipulate for this dish.  I may try this with chicken tenders next time.   

The marinade is so delicious, I would suggest splitting the marinade into two batches

after reduction.  You really only need about a half of the cup for during grilling.

Refrigerate the other half for another recipe.  Once the marinade was

 contaminated by the basting brush I was fearful of saving it and ended up

 pouring in out.

I think this would be equally delicious on pork.

Oh look what just arrived!

Now I am all about some ice cream...
or maybe

pie!

Grab your whisk and let the exploration begin.
Did you take a food adventure this weekend?

Have fun and
Bon Appetit!

National Doughnut Day

via Pinterest

Today is National Doughnut Day! 

Do you love doughnuts?

via Pinterest

I love doughnuts.

They bring back memories of going "downtown" with my mother visiting the local bakery for one of these soft, sugary, melt in your mouth treats before our library visits.   She would order her cup of coffee,  a glass of cold, out of the fountain, bubbly chocolate milk for me and two doughnuts.  

Sitting across from each other we would have our "big girl" chats.

These were the best mornings.

via Pinterest

Mother made these trips to the bakery not because she liked doughnuts.  

Actually I'm not for sure she liked them at all.  She did it for me.  It was certainly a chance for us to have girl time, mostly, I think, she wanted me to enjoy some of the things not allowed at home.  My brother was a juvenile diabetic; sugary treats were seldom brought into our home.

I still love doughnuts, 

although I seldom treat myself, as I know one small indulgence

 will move that blasted dial on the scales upward, 

and I am trying my darnest to keep it moving downward.

Not an easy task with all the luscious desserts some of my

favorite blogs are known for posting....

yes, you know who you are.

Oh, please don't stop...

I am happy living vicariously.

via Pinterest

 If I were going to have a doughnut today, it would be the one

in the center of the top row.  My favorite!

Do you love doughnuts?

What is your favorite?

Go out and treat yourself today...

It's Friday!

(All photographs are from Pinterest.  I was not able to find the original link, however

you may search doughnuts and you will link to these photos.  Thank you!)

Reflections

“There are two ways of spreading light: to be 
The candle or the mirror that reflects it.” 

                                                                                        Edith Wharton

During winter I often stand in the sunroom looking out with camera at the ready to catch something new growing, in motion or just a tiny something I find amazing.  When I pull up my photographs I often find the above reflection, and I hit delete.

This morning I woke to the sound of rain and thunder.   I left everyone upstairs and eased downstair to write,  catch up and enjoy a few minutes of quiet time with my book.  I stepped out into the sunroom and saw the reflection of the fireplace in the window reminding me to stop, to breathe and take a few minutes to reflect a week past...

via

meeting a good friend for lunch,

(we stayed a bit closer to home)

  preparing for book group with my electrical power out; 

 enjoying a lively conversation both about our book and other subjects,

  looking out one afternoon to find

old friends 

 returning to the garden,

 how bringing home a simple bouquet made my heart smile,

 raindrops falling on the skylight giving me a morning of music,

of all that is sweet,

and all the sweet moments which lie ahead.

And now,  at the end of my reflection....I know I am truly blessed.

Have a wonderful week, and savor all that is good and beautiful.

Roadblocks and Chocolate Chip Cookies

My morning was less than successful.  I left the house planning to attend the used book sale benefiting the public library system.  I love this event.  It is a treasure hunt.  Rows and rows and rows of dusty used books.  Sometimes you leave empty handed...sometimes you find an amazing first edition of something wonderful or that random title that is now out of print.  It is all about the search.

I should have suspected something was going on when I first saw the orange traffic cones down the middle of a major thoroughfare.  But remember I had fabulous treasures dancing in my thoughts.  It wasn't until I hit the roadblocks just at the edge of the library entrance I realized my plans were about to be altered.  There was a "fun run" taking place and the runners and spectators had filled the library parking lot long before the library patrons began to arrive.  

Not to be dissuaded I began driving around searching for parking in and around the neighborhood.  Little did I know the real treasure was going to be a place to park my car.  After 40 minutes of driving and turning around I finally stopped, once again, at the parking lot gate to ask the security guard if he had any suggestions.  I can't repeat what he said.  Disheartened I decided to return home, unsuccessful in my quest.

Feeling defeated and down heartened my evil brain began plotting revenge. I drove straight to the grocery store.  I know what you are thinking....

Before I could stop myself, after picking up the lettuce, tomatoes, avocado and grapes, I stealthily slipped a bag of chocolate chips into the shopping cart.   I hid it under the block of cheese and box of triscuits (my planned lunch).

Okay, you are right!

Once home I soothed my disappointment in the kitchen.

I'm still disappointed my day didn't go quite as I had planned, 

but a cup of tea and a warm cookie was  sweet salve on the wound.

I'm not for sure where I found this recipe over twenty years ago.

My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 cup dark brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 12 ounce package semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 F.  I line my cookie sheet with parchment paper.  You can spray it with vegetable spray if you wish. 

Whisk flour, baking soda, and salt in bowl to blend.  Using an electric mixer; beat butter  until light and fluffy.  Add both sugar and brown sugar, beat until well blended.  Add eggs one at a time and vanilla and beat until mixture is creamy and well blended.  Gradually add flour mixture, beating until blended.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Working in batches, drop dough by generously mounded tablespoonfuls onto prepared baking sheet, spacing about 3 inches apart.  Bake until pale brown, about 15 minutes.

Cool slightly on cookie sheet.  Transfer to racks; cook completely.

Bon Appetit'

I hope you don't encountered roadblocks this weekend;

if you do the back door is always open.