Thought I would post this early as beautiful fresh tomatoes in our neck of the woods are not too far away. With an abundance of heirloom tomatoes making stewed tomatoes is a great way to use them up.  Although for weeks on end we just eat them fresh off the vine. We do not do […]

We are huge lovers of pesto in this household.  Each year I make Organic Garlic Scape Pesto which we freeze to have throughout the year.  This is the first time I have made Tomato Pesto and Oh My Goodness, do we ever love it. As mentioned in previous posts, every year, we buy our local […]

This is a recipe where you could certainly use cream cheese, however, in this household I always make Yogurt Cheese - or dripped Yogurt.  Recently, I discovered there is a company in California called Green Valley Organics that makes lactose free dairy products including sour cream and cream cheese.  Oh heaven!  It is very difficult […]

This easy pan fried fresh gray cod was a lovely dinner enhanced by a tasty Tarragon Parsley White Wine Sauce.  When using a white fish such as cod, halibut, or snapper just about any herb sauce will enhance the delicate flavors of the fish. (make the Tarragon Parsley White Wine Sauce first, and keep on […]

A while back....(end of July/August?)  I made my Homemade Apricot and Peach Jam - only this time, I made extra: It is by far my most favorite jam.  Regular Apricot Jam would work nicely here too.  We found some beautiful Gray Cod Fillets at the market and with this Apricot/Peach glaze - it was a […]

This year we grew all of 3 zucchini's.  It is definitely becoming more of a challenge to grow vegetables in my garden.  We do appreciate anything we do get...so hopefully everyone has not had their fill of zucchini and can take one more yummy dish. Our neighbor gifted us with freshly caught shrimp - so […]

Mercy...this was heaven on a plate.  Seriously, seriously supreme deliciousness happening here. Recently, I met a lovely woman who mentioned she was getting ready to harvest her garlic, and would I like to buy some?  Oh yes indeed!  Just check this out: In my world this is a thing of true beauty.  Then this kind […]

Oh how I live for summer!  This is such a simple, beautiful, and tasty salad to have during the summer.  Using yellow and red tomatoes gives this salad such vibrant color. The key to this salad is to marinate for at least 4 hours in the refrigerator, then remove from the fridge to come to […]

This is the second cauliflower from our garden!  Who knew we could grow cauliflower in our ever challenging garden?  Now I wish I had planted more - next year.  As it turns out, DH is not all that crazy about cauliflower, but he did say it is much more sweeter and tastier than store bought.  […]

We have fresh Garlic Scapes at our local farmers market - time to make Garlic Scape Pesto - yum!  I have used Garlic Scapes fresh in a salad and stir fries, so I thought it would make a fabulous Pesto - and yes it does! This is a picture that makes me a very happy […]

This was one juicy, flavorful Pork Tenderloin.  Although, I was pretty sure it would turn into a hardened piece of leather!  My oven DIED!  Dang!  It has always been a finicky oven - it always seemed to fluctuate in temperature, never being consistent.  Well tonight, it finally died it's slow death. Normally, a 1 lb. […]

If you follow my blog, you know from time to time I become a "Curry Freak".  It's true.  Usually, it happens right out of the blue, with no warning, then next thing you know?  My kitchen is a disaster zone, but we do indeed sit down to a lovely, heavenly Curry Meal. I asked my […]

Have you seen Erin's Indian Fry Navajo flat bread recipe?  Mercy!  This was so so delicious.  When I first saw Erin's recipe - I immediately wanted a Greek Style Chicken Kabob.  For this wonderful flat bread recipe please check Erin's post at My Asperger Girls Adventures - it does not disappoint. I did not have […]

Dang...this chicken was unbelievably flavorful and super tender.  Plus, this was such an easy dish to make too! I wish I had remembered to weigh the chicken breasts - they were quite large.  The larger one was devoured by my DH.  I could barely finish the smaller one, it was that big.  We had this […]

Have you ever used wild dehydrated Mushrooms?  They are mighty delicious.  This was a blend of Morel, Shiitake, Porcini and Chanterelle dehydrated forest mushrooms.  We did have this sauce with lovely pork chops, but this recipe is really about the mushroom sauce, which would be exquisite with Lamb or Beef too! 2 bone in naturally […]

Have you ever cooked with fresh picked Chantrelle  Mushrooms?  This was a first for me....merciful heavens.  If you ever get the opportunity to cook with fresh Chantrelle Mushrooms, grab them, run for your lives to the kitchen, and cook them immediately....you will not regret it.... so delicious! My daughter arrived home the other day from […]

I know this is yet another chicken recipe...I still have an abundance of them, but... I just had to share... Christmas came a wee bit early in this house the other day.  I am having a lot of fun with my new toy... I have been looking at this baby for about 3 years now, […]

Before I get into this recipe....with the coming weekend, do you plan to watch the Royal Wedding?? I can not wait.  And I will explain why.  You see, my children are just a few years older than William and Harry. I too, lost my mother at a young age, 16 years old.  When I saw […]

This picture might not show it...but this was a 3 lb. turkey breast...it was huge! At our local grocery store they had on sale previously frozen organic turkey breasts. This dinner was a myriad of flavors. What a great treat to have a little turkey, instead of a whole bird! And the leftover turkey will […]

Who knew a simple salmon salad could taste so good?  I was pleasantly surprised.  We are still having different kinds of salads ever since the Curry Chicken Salad Post.  So here is another grain free meal, fresh salad we have been eating in our endeavor to cut back on Carbs and Grains.  This salad would […]

There is much talk these days in the blogging world about diets.  Paleo, SCD, Primal, Macro-Biotic and the list goes on.  I see much I like about each and every one of these diets. Could I do one or the other? Probably not.  However, at this stage in life, or rather, ahem, age in life, […]

While at the grocery store the other day, I came upon some organic, local, green house grown herbs.  They will never taste quite as good as in summer, but honestly, they were wonderful in this dip with fresh vegetables. Over the holidays, I received some much coveted kitchen tools I had been eying for some […]

It is hard to believe Christmas is here, it arrived so fast, didn't it?  This Christmas marks the first year I have ever made homemade Cranberry Sauce.  I was not going to post it, but DH insisted.  You see, I'm just not a cranberry sauce fan.  Never have been.  I thought I might like it […]

I have recently discovered a lovely blog called Sophie's Foodiefiles. So worth checking out!  Sophie's dishes look and sound so yummy, plus she lives in the lovely city of Brussels, Belgium.  Well, she recently did another lovely food post, as well as mentioning she had been "tagged".  At first, being new to this blogging world, […]

Wow, the last time I had fish and chips was about 15, 16 or 17 years ago...I'm losing count. This was also the first time I have ever made homemade Fish and Chips. Huge success. What a treat this was. DH was ecstatic - said he wanted this meal once a week. Once a week […]

Have you ever gone to a Restaurant, paid the big bucks, only to be sooo disappointed knowing full well you could go home and make something way better?  Well that is what happened to me the other day.  Dang!  We seldom ever eat out.  It is a rarity - which makes it even more disappointing.  […]

This was a quick, lovely meal. Wow, Jamie Oliver never ceases to amaze me, even when I don't have all of his ingredients.  I used small lamb chops that we seasoned well with pepper, and a quick high heat on the grill till cooked through.  The main star of this recipe is the Salsa Verde […]

We are headed to our Island Getaway this weekend, not sure if we will get Internet Access, but hopefully, and this time I won't forget the camera!  Note:  with this dish, it was surprisingly good served cold the next day with a salad, although any leftovers could easily be re-heated in the oven too. KEBABS […]

Our first bowl of ripe tomatoes....this was a long time in coming.  Despite me bemoaning our poor summer here on the West Coast, I realize we were lucky to have grown anything at all.  This year certainly presented it's challenges. And, hoping this bowl of tomatoes will ripen nicely.  The rains are coming, so I […]

You know, I am discovering that rice and pasta dishes just do not photograph very well!  Oh well, I have discovered a new Tinkyada Pasta - mini Shells!  They are lovely for a pasta salad, better than other pasta shapes, because they are small.  I used what veggies and herbs were from the garden, as […]

Just thought I would mention - this is so exciting -(if you don't already know about this yet), I just read a post on The Gluten Free Girl and The Chef Website that their new cookbook will be available for ordering - can hardly wait to get my hands on that little gem!  This cook […]

Can a salad be sinful?  Well, I think this one was.  Holy Mama!  I had to force myself to save some for my Daughter who was on her way for dinner from a hard days work.  I could barely do it.  This salad will forever remain somewhere deep in my memory banks....even if that is […]

Have you ever had Chimichurri Sauce?  This was a first for us, and with all the fresh herbs in the garden, what a great way to utilize all that fresh goodness.  This recipe is somewhat based on Emeril's recipe, page 188 of Emeril At The Grill.  I did not have 3 of his ingredients so […]

Wow, that recently picked red cabbage from the garden is humongous!  Lord have mercy, we will be eating red cabbage for months!   It was really sweet tasting  and such an easy simple recipe, but honestly, I am guessing the amounts.  I just cut the very top of the red cabbage off, and I think it […]

We had the most beautiful Free Range/Antibiotic/Hormone/Free Sirloin Steaks the other night.  See that one there...my daughter and I shared it which was plenty....and guess what it cost? $7.00.  That is $3.50 each!  Believe me it was enough meat!  DH was away on business, so we did not fire up the BBQ, (I am still […]

This is such a healthy and versatile salad.  You can use any vegetables you have on hand…really anything would work.  This would also be a lovely salad with Pasta or Quinoa too.  It is a wonderful side dish, or a great lunch. We have been eating salads every day with all the lovely fresh produce […]

Our local grocery store had Fresh, Wild Coho Salmon Fillets!  And next to "White Spring Salmon" which you rarely see, Coho is my absolute favorite.  These were not thick, but there was actually a lot of fish on these fillets.  My all time favorite way to have salmon is with Pesto, which I have been […]

With our hot weather, it sure has been nice using a BBQ instead of heating up the house!  I have been making this Marinade for Years...it never dissapoints!   This is a simple marinade, that is good on all meats, and great for salmon too.  Some Terriaki marinades burn easily, but this one does not, […]

Wow.  This recipe exceeded my expectations, so delicious. Sorry this was not a great picture, it does not do the kebabs justice.   This is a great way to make use of all the fresh herbs in the garden. This is the 2nd time I have made Kebabs – first post will be down the […]

This is a lovely, light, refreshing salad dressing.  Once you start making your own salad dressings, there is no going back to store bought.  There is just no comparison.  I actually think there might be one bottle of store bought in the fridge left from a while back ....its new home will be in the […]

I have not had Barbecue Sauce since my early 20's.  As with anything homemade, wow, sooooo good.  Word of warning though:  see that McCormicks Chipotle Chili Pepper?  I have never had Chipotle in any form.  So what did I do?  I poured some onto a spoon, stuck my finger in it to taste.  I thought, […]

Normally, I would put the chicken on a platter, and then take the picture.  This was so tender, I knew it would fall apart..hence it is still in the roasting pan. I am on a Chicken roll every body…ever since my hideous experience, then switching to Free Range Chicken we will never go back to […]

We had dinner at a Restaurant the other night…this is what I ordered.  Oh wow, was it good.  They used a skirt steak….which I could not get in our grocery store, so I used Hormone Free Beef Strip Stir Fry.  My dressing was not exactly like theirs, but it came real close…sooo good. Vinaigrette: 1 […]

AND A LESSON LEARNED..... I love poppies of all kinds.  This rare beauty takes  2-3 years, usually 3, to bloom.  The "mother" plant grows, but lies dormant for that period of time, then you get 2 to 3 lovely flowers.  Interestingly, the "mother" plant then puts out a new shoot - a new plant at […]