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i’m not one for pre-packaged, processed food. but have you seen these? when b brought them home from the store a few weeks ago, my heart skipped a beat. no fuss, no muss. and healthy to boot! ok, so maybe not healthy, but as healthy as a pre-made cookie can get. this new simpler recipe is immediate gratification for my cookie dough cravings with only partial guilt for not making them from scratch myself!

…or maybe the best FALL idea ever. As we have been up to our eyes in apples (and pears) lately i think this is a FANTASTIC way to preserve some of the goodness and also a very thoughtful, handmade gift. This is definitely one of those… “why didn’t I think of that!”
Found originally by this lovely blogger, but for the full tutorial go to the horses mouth here.
The sneak peek:

We spent the afternoon apple picking yesterday. There was a nice break in the rainy fall weather, so we took advantage of the opportunity. I can’t think of a better way to say hello to October.




{We used our booty to try our hand at apple dumplings, Mmmm…..}
so much going on in my life right now that is out of my control. experiencing moments like this bring me peace.

it doesn’t look like summer is over. or at least as seen at the local farmers market which provided me with ample color & cheeriness today. (& we will definitely be eating good tonight.)




you would think it’s fall around these parts. with highs only in the low 60’s i have been getting the itch for autumn flavors and smells… and the kitchen has been my outlet. on sunday Brad and I made an apple pie from scratch and tonight before we headed over to a friend’s house for dinner i whipped up a peach cobbler that was oh-so-yummy if I do say so myself! i got the recipe from this book which i have mentioned before. and i couldn’t not share this delicious comfort food goodness. peaches are in season here so get to your local farmer’s market and make something wonderful. if it’s hot where you are a sherbet or sorbet might be in order, but on this rare summer day i had to go with something warm.
Double-Crust Peach Cobbler
8 cups sliced fresh peaches (about 5 lbs)
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon almond or vanilla extract
1/2 cup butter
pastry for double-crust 9″ pie
Stir together first 4 ingredients in a dutch oven; set aside until syrup forms. Bring peach mixture to a boil; reduce heat to low, and cook 10 minutes or until tender. Remove from heat; add almond (or vanilla) extract and butter, stirring until butter melts.
Roll half of pastry to 1/8″ thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut into a 9″ square. Spoon half of peaches into a lightly buttered 9″ square pan; top with pastry square. Bake at 475 for 12 minutes or until lightly browned. Spoon remaining peaches over baked pastry square.
Roll remaining pastry to 1/8″ thickness, and cut into 1″ strips; arrange in a lattice design over peaches. Bake 15 to 18 minutes more or until browned.
Yield: 8 servings (or 4 very hungry gluttons!!)

{Post Script I totally cheated on the lattice top because my pastry was too crumbly to weave. I used a recipe that used only shortening for the pastry and I would NOT recommend it. I had better luck on Sunday with one that used butter.}
I know. I’m obsessing about food. But when it’s a thousand degrees outside, what else are you going to do other than stay inside and eat? Visiting my family always delights my palate in a way no other place in the country can. You mix a little nostalgia with unexpected spices and a little humidity and you’ve got a fantastic meal. Friday night we celebrated being alive and together at a fabulous restaurant called Suga’s and Saturday we topped off a movie with martinis and tapas at a laid back old house.
Friday: Pan-Seared Tilapia stuffed with Lump Crab, topped with a Shrimp Cream Sauce, served with Herb Risotto and Seasonal Vegetables; cheesecake; white wine
Saturday: Grey Goose L’Orange Cosmo; ceviche – shrimp & fish, marinated in lime juice served with homemade chips; fresh hummus on homemade pita chips; goat cheese medallions of cheese drizzled with basil pesto, cayenne honey and mango poblano sauces
There may not be much landscape, and it’s too damn hot, but the best part of SE Texas is the food. Imagine the best of Southern, Cajun, and Mexican cuisine and you’ve got a culinary cultural explosion manifested on your plate. Visiting here always makes me want to cook too a little more too. And mostly I love that food itself is used in SE Texas as a verb. It’s healing, it’s hospitality, it’s love. And most of it is to die for!

photos via
I’m so excited that tomorrow I’ll be in the motherland and I’ll get to have my most favorite ice cream ever: Blue Bell.

{This photo courtesy of a fellow BB lover rubbing in his immediate access.}
see for yourself




I love tea. I love all sorts; so when I found a tea I had not tried a few weekends ago I had to find some more. What initially caught my eye was the lovely tea tin sitting on the counter. And then I actually tried some. I knew right away that the Ethos blend would be one of my favorites. It is a “tranquil blend of chamomile, mint, and rooibos”. Yum! You can see more on their website here.

Could my carbohydrate cravings get satisfied any better?? Check it out here at The Knead For Bread.


fresh
food
tomatoes
and avocados
together with ciabata
summer farmer’s market bringing color to my plate
I was feeling inspired by my recent book review, Easter sunday and my friend’s table she set for a dinner party. I would like to make a print for her, but I can’t decide which one I like better. I of course like the black and white because well…it’s b&w. I like the color one because it really captures that moment in her dining room. Maybe I should switch fonts or something else… Hmm… What do you think?


…that I enjoy so much. Today I sent a note to a friend and included a lovely little poem about spring. I also made a recipe card for a different friend. I’ve been doing that a lot lately. On Saturday we made the most delicious Cavatappi dish and so I snapped a photo of it cooking. I then used that photo as a watermark for a recipe card. I think I’m going to try to do a series of those for a family member that’s getting married in May. Too bad for me that I will now need to make my favorite meals and then print out the recipes. Looks like I’m eating good in April!


after last week’s craziness, i’ve decided to catch my breath a bit. tomorrow i’m going to stay home and catch up on some much needed crafting. i will however, head back over to the attic to finish the tile job that I began last week. i tiled the entire shower by myself and now i need to grout it. my hubby is kind enough to give me the day off; well, after he saw all the trouble i went to last week for his party. i of course made it more work than what it should have been, but it’s what i do i suppose.
here are a few photos from the big day.


I worked on my mini some more. There are some pages I like more than others, but I think for now I’m enjoying the process. (Mostly because I get to do something crafty every day.)







last week i was confined to the indoors because I injured my back. I officially feel like an old lady now. my back is feeling much better and I was able to leave the house a bit this weekend. it snowed almost constantly from friday to sunday night. it was quite lovely to watch it fall to the deserted streets. my sis came into town for a spur of the moment get-a-way and we pretty much just read, played games, and watched a movie. it was perfect. (except the part when i slipped on the ice…not so fun.)
this picture doesn’t do this meal justice. we cooked “stuffed steak pinwheels”. it’s flank steak with spinach, feta, bacon, thyme, & tomatoes. yum. email me for the recipe; it’s a little long. i know i shouldn’t eat red meat, but who could resist something this good????
My first award…granted to me by the always-kind OH!. This lovely little thing is an inspiration award. I am terribly flattered that anyone finds anything I might say or do inspiring. I still find myself a bit perplexed as to why I’m even doing this ‘new, hip thing’ — blogging. But for now it still tickles my fancy and I always enjoy seeing what others are doing in their lives and having a chance to learn something new. So apparently I am to nominate 7 others for whom their works stand out from the rest. Lately I can go to these places for inspiration:
For Me, For You … for all around fabulousness
Katie at doodlesprouts has always got something going on and can get me to dust off my needles. (check out her shop too.)
Scott Smith, a.k.a. The Sartorialist for capturing life on the streets
Mandi for doing some cool things with paper and embracing being 23.
Ez over at Creature Comforts for always having the prettiest layouts and pointing me to things I don’t always need, but always want.
Amy at Eggs on Sunday. Food. Need I say more? (Photographed so damn well too!)
And Kate the Great for kickin’ ass and taking names. This lady has got whatever “it” is. You’ll find visual and audio inspiration where she is.
Well it’s officially fall around here. Yesterday we made apple crisp from freshly picked apples, watched a scary movie and kept the windows open. Today it rained and stayed in the 60s and my hubby was inspired to make a fall meal. Each year when the leaves begin to turn, I reach for one of my favorite cookbooks. Well, it’s not actually a cookbook. It was a “best of” from Cooking Light in 2003 (or 2004). This little book-lett holds 119 recipes of the best soups and stews. And today proved to be no less memorable than in fall’s past. We had the Crab & Corn chowder and Oh-So-Help-Me. Yum. We originally invited my in-laws over, but I’m glad they couldn’t make it because now we have left-overs!
(too lazy to type the recipe. email me if you want it typed out!)
So I decided to make a new cake… well actually it was a new chocolate frosting from last month’s Gourmet magazine. Whoa… it is RICH! The recipe is simple:
1 1/2 lbs of semi-sweet chocolate
3 cups heavy cream
Put choc. in large bowl. Heat cream to simmer and then pour over choc. Stir until melted. Let cool then chill overnight & thaw before use.
For the cake I just used a basic yellow cake recipe from the Southern Living Cookbook of choice. And I decorated with the a basic butter-cream recipe from Wilton. As Michael Kors might say, I think I over-worked it. I should have left off a few dots and flowers…but I couldn’t edit myself when I had all that sugar.















