Front Entrance Re-Do

You know I've complained about my front entrance for years, not enough room for guests to get in the front door without stepping back down the steps, etc.  I wanted to tear it all out and redo all the brickwork, but *someone* wouldn't let me.  So I went the easy, quick way and redid the landscaping.   It's finished now (for the time being!)  Here are some before and after photos.

Front - before

Front - after

South side - before

South side - after

North side - before

North side - after

You can't see them, but behind the azaleas on either side are Nikko Blue hydrangeas which I hope will peek over the tops of the azaleas next summer.

I also redid part of the back while I was at it:

Back garden - before

Back garden - after

And do you remember my yearning for this trellis?  Thanks to my handy-dandy sons and daughter-in-law and girlfriend:

My Mother's Day trellis!

I made sure to leave space for future purchases - like maybe in Jackson this Thursday when I go to Summer Celebration!

Tarragon Pasta Salad.

I love the taste of tarragon.  I know some people don't care for it, but if you do, here's a recipe I adapted from a Cooking Light recipe.  The original called for asparagus, but (gasp) I'm kinda tired of asparagus.  Plus my wonderful husband likes "protein" in every meal, so I added some chicken.  This is a great, light and light-tasting pasta salad, not oily at all.   Here's what I did:

• Tarragon Pasta Salad with Prosciutto, Chicken, and Romano
• 8 ounces uncooked cavatappi pasta or elbow macaroni (I used rotini)
• 3 teaspoons olive oil, divided
• 3 ounces prosciutto, chopped
• 1/2 cup thinly sliced shallots
• 1 cup diced tomato
• 2 chicken breasts
• 6 tablespoons light mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon rind
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper plus more for chicken
•  Kosher salt
• 1 1/2 ounces pecorino Romano cheese, grated (about 1/3 cup packed)
• 
  
• Preparation
• 1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water; drain.
• 2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon olive oil to pan, and swirl to coat. Add prosciutto, and cook for 6 minutes or until crisp, stirring occasionally. Remove prosciutto from pan using a slotted spoon, leaving drippings in pan. Drain prosciutto on paper towels. Add the shallots to drippings in pan; cook over medium heat for 1 minute or until shallots are tender, stirring frequently.
• 3.  Add remaining olive oil to skillet.  Flatten chicken breasts to even thickness between two sheets of plastic wrap.  Sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper and kosher salt.  Cook chicken about 5 minutes or until browned; turn and cook on other side until brown.  Chicken should be just barely done.  Remove from pan, wrap in aluminum foil and let sit for 5 minutes.  Remove from foil and chop.
• 4. Combine mayonnaise, lemon rind, tarragon, juice, pepper, and salt in a large bowl; stir well. Add pasta, prosciutto, shallots, tomato, chopped chicken, and cheese; toss well to coat. 

Memorial Day in Blowing Rock

Bass Lake 5/27/12- Richard Carter's photo

We had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend with our friends in Blowing Rock.  Perfect weather, lots of good food, and great company!  Who could ask for more?

Here's Eli and me walking at Bass Lake:

Good Rules for Life

Excerpts from "How to be Perfect" by Ron Padgett Get some sleep. Eat an orange every morning. Be friendly. It will help make you happy. Hope for everything. Expect nothing. Take care of things close to home first. Straighten up your room before you save the world. Then save the world. Be nice to people before they have a chance to behave badly. Don't stay angry about anything for more than a week, but don't forget what made you angry. Hold your anger out at arm's length and look at it, as if it were a glass ball. Then add it to your glass ball collection. Wear comfortable shoes. Do not spend too much time with large groups of people. Plan your day so you never have to rush. Show your appreciation to people who do things for you, even if you have paid them, even if they do favors you don't want. After dinner, wash the dishes. Calm down. Don't expect your children to love you, so they can, if they want to. Don't be too self-critical or too self-congratulatory. Don't think that progress exists. It doesn't. Imagine what you would like to see happen, and then don't do anything to make it impossible. Forgive your country every once in a while. If that is not possible, go to another one. If you feel tired, rest. Don't be depressed about growing older. It will make you feel even older. Which is depressing. Do one thing at a time. If you burn your finger, put ice on it immediately. If you bang your finger with a hammer, hold your hand in the air for 20 minutes. you will be surprised by the curative powers of ice and gravity. Do not inhale smoke. Take a deep breath. Do not smart off to a policeman. Be good. Be honest with yourself, diplomatic with others. Do not go crazy a lot. It's a waste of time. Drink plenty of water. When asked what you would like to drink, say, "Water, please." Take out the trash. Love life. Use exact change. When there's shooting in the street, don't go near the window. Excerpts from "How to be Perfect" by Ron Padgett, from How to be Perfect. © Coffee House Press, 2007. Reprinted with permission. (buy now) From today's "Writer's Almanac"

National Poetry Month

Did you know that April is National Poetry Month?  Check it out at Poet's.org.  Plus I love the poster!

Thomas Hobbes' birthday

From The Writer's Almanac:


Today is the birthday of Thomas Hobbes (books by this author), born in Westport, Wiltshire, England (1588) who witnessed a chaotic time in English politics, with two civil wars and the execution of the king. He wrote his most famous book, Leviathan, in the midst of it, in which he argues that people need a strong central authority to keep them from collapsing into war and chaos, a world with "no arts; no letters; no society; and which is worst of all, continual fear, and danger of violent death; and the life of man, solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." He believed that because we don't share the same ideas about what's right and wrong, we need a sovereign to enforce a set of laws.


We talked about him in our Search class Tuesday night.  That class was discussing The Prince, by Machiavelli, and our instructor told us that every philosopher since Machiavelli has had his roots in him.

Sauteed Sausage and Grapes with Broccoli Rabe from Cooking Light

This comes under the heading of "sounds weird, tastes wonderful."  I made it for dinner Thursday night.  It's even better leftover, which as you know, I get all as my dear husband doesn't eat leftovers!

Sautéed Sausage and Grapes with Broccoli Rabe

This is a classic Italian combo—grapes and sausage—paired with pleasantly bitter broccoli rabe to balance the sweetness.

Photo by: Photo: Johnny Autry; Styling: Leigh Ann Ross

• YIELD: Serves 4 (serving size: 1 3/4 cups)
• HANDS-ON:38 Minutes
• TOTAL:38 Minutes
• COURSE: Main Dishes

Ingredients

• 1 pound broccoli rabe, trimmed and coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 2 (4-ounce) links hot or sweet pork Italian sausage, casings removed
• 3 cups green grapes, sliced in half lengthwise
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
• 1 cup thinly sliced red onion
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1/4 cup white wine or water
• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
• 1 ounce Parmesan cheese, shaved (about 1/4 cup)

Preparation

1. Cook broccoli rabe in boiling water 1 1/2 minutes; drain and rinse with cold water. Drain well. Place in a large bowl. Set aside.

2. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add sausage; cook for 6 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Add grapes, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper; cook for 2 minutes or until grapes begin to soften. Add sausage mixture to broccoli rabe.

3. Return pan to medium-high heat. Add remaining 1 tablespoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add onion; cook 2 minutes or until soft. Add garlic; cook 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add wine; cook 2 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Add remaining 1/8 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/8 teaspoon pepper, sausage mixture, and vinegar. Toss to combine; cook 1 minute or until thoroughly heated. Sprinkle with cheese; serve immediately.

Nutritional Information

Amount per serving

• Calories: 310
• Fat: 16.7g
• Saturated fat: 4.9g
• Monounsaturated fat: 8.9g
• Polyunsaturated fat: 1.8g
• Protein: 13.3g
• Carbohydrate: 29.9g
• Fiber: 1.4g
• Cholesterol: 21.3mg
• Iron: 2.1mg
• Sodium: 621mg
• Calcium: 164mg

Search for Recipes by Nutrition Data

Cooking Light APRIL 2012

Missing What's Right in Front of Us

Parabola

Photograph: Hans Kruse / London Media: A wildlife photographer misses his subject. The man was trying to spot deer in a park outside Copenhagen in Denmark, but missed a huge stag as it walked past him. He had his long lens pointing in the wrong direction. Photographer Hans Kruse, who captured the scene, said: "The other photographer had been staring at the woods for a while while when this rather large deer appeared out of nowhere and tiptoed past him. I was laughing so much it was quite hard to take the picture."

‎"In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks."
―John Muir 

Yarnbombing?

This is knitting, folks!

The American Needlepoint Guild is having their annual seminar in Philadelphia this year.  An amazing designer named Orna Willis lives there and is sharing off the beaten path things to do there.  She posted about Yarnbombing today - ever heard of it?  I haven't.  But it's cool beyond belief.

Read the post:  Renegade Fibers

Tony Minieri's French Ribbons - Finished!

Tony Minieri's French Ribbons


I took Tony's class on this piece last April, but wanted to finish another piece before I started this one.  So I actually got started in June of last year.  I finished it earlier this month!  That's about seven months of stitching.  Well worth it.  Here are some closeups.

This shot gives you some idea of the three-dimensionality and the bling!

What a fun project this was!  Now my group has started on Tony's Stars for a New Millenium.  I'm going to use coordinating colors so that I can hang these two together.  I'll be posting on our progress and you can see pictures of some of the many color ways at my Pinterest board.

Jean Hilton's Scott Lee

I just realized that I never posted a picture of this piece that I finished last June.  It's called Scott Lee by designer Jean Hilton.  Here it is, as a pillow.

What the Sciences Sing to Us

THE SCIENCES SING A LULLABYE
Physics says: go to sleep. Of course
you're tired. Every atom in you
has been dancing the shimmy in silver shoes
nonstop from mitosis to now.
Quit tapping your feet. They'll dance
inside themselves without you. Go to sleep.

Geology says: it will be all right. Slow inch
by inch America is giving itself
to the ocean. Go to sleep. Let darkness
lap at your sides. Give darkness an inch.
You aren't alone. All of the continents used to be
one body. You aren't alone. Go to sleep.

Astronomy says: the sun will rise tomorrow,
Zoology says: on rainbow-fish and lithe gazelle,
Psychology says: but first it has to be night, so
Biology says: the body-clocks are stopped all over town
and
History says: here are the blankets, layer on layer, down and down.
- Albert Goldbarth


thank you, Whiskey River

Luncheon for a Winter Day

I hosted a luncheon meeting yesterday for my Master Gardener committee.  I kept it very simple:  a beef stew that I've posted about here before, Beef Daube Provencal and the best and easiest cornbread ever, Homesteader Cornbread.  Since this was a meeting, we needed to get started, so Fresh Market came to the rescue for dessert with an assortment of their fantastic cookies for easy eating.  They were out of the Kitchen Sink cookies, but the ones I got were almost as good.

I made two batches of the stew, one in the oven per the recipe and one in the crockpot, on low for about 8 hours.  I couldn't tell the difference.  Since I wanted a thicker stew, I coated the beef with flour before I browned it.  There was plenty for my group of 10 plus leftovers for dinner.  My husband hates leftovers, but I told him it was new to him!  He cleaned his bowl.

The bonus?  A great meeting!  I'm so excited about what we're going to accomplish this year in Master Gardeners.  Check out our blog:  Garden Musings.

Homesteader Cornbread

HOMESTEADER CORNBREAD

Submitted by: Patricia Bergstrom

Rated: 5 out of 5 by 715 members            

Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Cook Time: 30 Minutes      

Ready In: 50 Minutes

Yields: 15 servings

"A moist, sweet corn bread with a crisp crust is the goal, fully realized with this recipe."

INGREDIENTS:

1 1/2 cups cornmeal

2 1/2 cups milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder        1 teaspoon salt

2/3 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1/2 cup vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS:

1.         Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). In a small bowl, combine cornmeal and milk; let stand for 5 minutes. Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

2.         In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Mix in the cornmeal mixture, eggs and oil until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan.

3.         Bake in preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center of the cornbread comes out clean.

This recipe appears in the Allrecipes "Tried & True Favorites" cookbook. Buy it online at http://www.shopallrecipes.com/

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED © 2007 Allrecipes.com     Printed from Allrecipes.com 9/4/2007