Easy Refrigerator Pickles

Easy Refrigerator Pickles

3 Small Cucumbers
1/2 large yellow onion
1 cup Vinegar
1 cup Sugar
2 tsp celery Seed

Wash cucumbers, slice into thin circles.
Cut onion into thin slivers
Mix 1 cup vinegar with 1 cup sugar and stir until dissolved.
Place cucumber slices and onion into jars
Add celery seed to vinegar sugar mix.
Pour liquid over cucumbers and onion.
Seal and store in the refrigerator for 2-3 months.

I've really enjoyed having a summer garden and picking small handfuls of freshness each evening. We love cucumbers, but were having a hard time keeping up with the cucumber vines! These pickles are delicious on chicken salad sandwiches and are so easy to make.

North Porch Sangria

Krystina’s North Porch Sangria

3 lemons

3 oranges

3 limes

Strawberries

2 peaches

1-2 kiwi

1 fresh pineapple

½ cup raw turbinado cane sugar

½ cup water

1 750-milliliter bottle dry red or white wine chilled

1 bottle Sprite

1-2 cups brandy (depending on taste)

Cut one lemon and one orange into wedges. Placed half of the wedges from the lemon and orange in a sauce pan; set aside remaining slices. Cut remaining fruit in wedges, slices or cubes for inclusion in the final mixture.

For syrup, add the sugar and ½ cup water to the saucepan. Add one to two strawberries and slices from a peach.  Bring to boiling. Stirring till sugar dissolves. Remove from heat; cool for 30 minutes (or until fruit is cool enough to handle). Squeeze juice from cooked fruit into the syrup. Discard cooked fruit. Strain syrup mixture to remove seeds if desired. Pulp is okay.

In a pitcher or large jar combine remaining fruit slices, syrup, wine, sprite and brandy. Squeeze some of the citric fruit to release fruit flavor. Chill for at least 2-3 hours. Serve over Sonic ice.

Pineapple Salsa

Photo courtesy of Dole.

Made Pineapple Salsa for the first time last week. It was a big hit and I wanted to archive it here on the blog.

Pineapple Salsa

2 cups chunk pineapple (drained)

¼ cup pineapple juice

½ cup finely chopped Red Bell Pepper

¼ cup finely chopped Green Bell Pepper

1 Tablespoon finely chopped green onion

2 Tablespoons cilantro or parsley

2 Tablespoons chopped jalapeno chilies

Easter Sunday

Scenes from our Easter Sunday. Family photos in Granny's backyard. (Thank you Katherine!)

 
 
 Bunny's third birthday. For a flashback moment visit this post of Marin and Bunny, Easter 2009.

 Bunny cupcakes complete with cotton candy tails. Inspired by One Charming Party's Bunny Party.

 
 
Such a beautiful, blessed day full of music, worship, sunshine and family. Thank you Jesus.

Fluffy Oatmeal Sandwich Cookies {Valentine's Day}

Sorry for the shiny food pictures. I HATE shiny food pictures. NO BODY wants to eat food that's photographed with a glare, not to mention wrapped in saran wrap. BUT, I was desperate. It was 6 a.m. and I had a nine month old supervisor carefully overseeing my efforts from her orange Bumbo seat. My photography time was limited! The project had to be complete, wrapped and ready for its recipient before he got up for the morning.


So, just imagine that the chocolate is smooth and the marshmallow cream is soft and puffy and that the oatmeal cookies (minus the raisins) are browned to perfection.

The recipe is a Paula Deen recipe so yes, the list of ingredients begins with TWO sticks of butter. A decadent valentines day desert for my valentine. Making them heart shaped was my idea. Turned out rather well. Worth all the effort (I think).

What's inside? Melted chocolate morsels, fluffy marshmallow cream and roasted pecans. 

Here is my version of the recipie. You can find it on the Paula Deen website as well:

Ingredients

1 cup butter, about 2 sticks, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 1/2 cups quick-cooking oats
Semi sweet Chocolate morsels melted
Marshmallow creme, as needed (recommended: Fluff)
Chopped roasted pecans (optional)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease 2 or 3 baking sheets or line with silpats.

In a large bowl, beat the butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the egg and the milk and beat until combined.

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. Gradually add the dry ingredients to butter mixture, beating until incorporated. Stir in the oats. Form the cookies by dropping heaping 2 tablespoonfuls of the batter onto the prepared baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet, spacing evenly.

Bake until the cookies are lightly browned, about 11 to 13 minutes. Let them cool for 2 minutes on the baking sheets, then transfer them to wire racks to cool completely.

Spread a small dollop of the fudge on the inside of 6 cookies. Spread a large dollop of the marshmallow creme on the inside of another 6 cookies. Sandwich the cookies together and transfer to a serving platter.

As a special treat for Steven, I added chopped, roasted pecans to the marshmallow cream side of the cookie before sandwiching them together.

Scented Sugar {Handmade Hostess Gifts}

A baby shower was held for me this weekend. I knew the girls throwing the brunch would go all out, so I wanted a thank you gift that I could hand make to show my appreciation. That's when thanks to the Martha Stewart website, I found Scented Sugars. This easy to make gift turned our really pretty and I was excited about giving these little delicacies as gifts.

I utilized small jelly jars and created my own lables for each of the scents: Chocolate Mint, Vanilla Bean and Citrus. This website provided the best recipes and instruction for making your own scented sugar. My favorite concoction was the Chocolate Mint. I used fresh chocolate mint leaves from Mom's garden (thank you Mom). After washing and gently drying the leaves I simply layered the mint and sugar within the jar until full.

It's best if the sugar and scented items are sealed and stored away for two to three weeks. Once the sugar takes on the scent, the scented items are removed from the sugar.

Two jars were packaged in each of these small gift bags with a custom label and an insert with instructions on uses for scented sugar and how to store it. My only regret? Not having made myself a set of scented sugars!

Peach Nectar Spritzers

Photo courtesy of Williams-Sonoma

Found this recipe on the Williams-Sonoma website but made a slight modification...Sprite. Yeah, yeah, I know...not as classy or healthy, but I had a taste testing with a panel of volunteers and they all voted to add Sprite. It was a bit hit at the Belly Brunch.

Peach Nectar Spritzers

Ice cubes as needed

2 Cans (each 12 fl. oz) peach nectar

1 bottle (24 fl. oz.) sparkling mineral water

Sprite (approximately 24 fl. oz or equal to the amount of sparkling mineral water)

1 peach, halved, pitted and thinly sliced

Fill 6 tall glasses half full with ice cubes. Pour 1/2 cup of the peach nectar into each glass and fill with equal parts sparkling mineral water and Sprite. Alternatively, fill a pitcher half full with ice cubes, pour both cans of peach nectar into the pitcher and stir in the sparkling water and Sprite.

Garnish each glass with a few peach slices. Serve immediately. Serves 6.

Raspberry White Chocolate Muffins

Raspberry White Chocolate Muffins

1 cup milk
1/2 and 1/4 cup butter, melted and divided
1 egg, slightly beaten
2 cups flour
1/3 and 1/4 cup sugar, divided
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a 12 cup muffin pan with paper liners. In a large bowl, combine milk, 1/2 cup butter, and egg. Stir in flour, 1/3 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt; stir just until flour is moistened. Gently stir in raspberries and white choc. chips. Spoon batter into baking cups. Bake for 24 to 28 minutes until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly before removing from pan. Dip top of each muffin in melted butter, then in sugar.

This recipe was given to me by my friend Libby. She's an excellent cook and her Raspberry White Chocolate Muffins are always a big hit! Trying to stretch the recipe a bit I made the mistake of filling 18 muffin cups instead of 12. Bad decision because these muffins rise so beautifully and mound so perfectly for dipping in butter and sugar IF you divide the batter evenly into 12 cups. Otherwise they are flat and impossible to dip! So, I learned my lesson and divided batch number two in 12 cups. Perfect! You can see in the picture that the mounded ones are much better looking.

Tips From My Friend Libby: Line your muffin pans with two paper liners. After baking, remove the ugly one. My oven never really browns these. I suggest cooking them only the 24 minutes, as long as toothpick comes out clean. If I cook them any longer, I tend to get a crunchy bottom that is unpleasant.

Candy Sushi

Candy Sushi

1/4 cup butter

4 cups mini marshmallows

6 cups crisped rice cereal

30-35 Swedish Fish Candy (found mine at World Market)

2 packages RIPS green, sour apple licorice belts

Grease a 12- by 17-inch baking sheet. Melt butter in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the marshmallows and stir until smooth.

Remove the mixture from the heat and stir in the rice cereal until it's evenly coated. Turn the baking sheet so that the shorter ends are at the top and bottom. Then press the marshmallow mixture onto the sheet, distributing it evenly.

Starting at one side an inch up from the lower edge, place Swedish Fish atop the mixture end to end in a horizontal line. Gently roll the lower edge of the marshmallow mixture over the Swedish Fish candy.

Then stop and cut the log away from the rest of the mixture. Use the same method to form additional logs. Slice each log into 1-inch-thick "sushi" rolls and wrap them individually with a strip of RIPS green, sour apple licorice belts.

Makes 4 to 5 dozen.

If you have left over rice crispy mixture, simply cut into "slabs" and place a Swedish Fish Candy on top!

Chocolate-Strawberry Thumbprints

Made these Chocolate-Strawberry Thumbprint cookies for the Bridal Shower. Yum! But the strawberries looked like tomatoes to me (tee hee hee). In the future, I think I'll try blueberries or maybe cherries. Despite the topping confusion, aren't they pretty?

Hurricane Grilled Peaches

I’ve noticed that peaches are abundantly available lately, and since we are currently IN hurricane season, I thought I’d share this recipe for Hurricane Grilled Peaches. Why hurricane? Well, it was during the hurricane that hit in September 2008, that I was first introduced to Grilled Peaches, so adding Hurricane to the front just seemes natural. No natural disaster required to cook these. Enjoy!

Hurricane Grilled Peaches

Ingredients:
Large peaches (apples or pears)
Stick of butter
Cinnamon
Heavy-duty aluminum foil

Directions:

Wash peaches; cut them in half and remove the pit.
Place one pat of butter on each peach half.
Sprinkle the tops with a generous amount of cinnamon.
Neatly wrap each peach half in individual sheets of aluminum foil sealing the edges so that the steam is trapped inside.
Place on the upper shelf of a gas grill set on medium heat and cook for 30 minutes.

Topping Options
Scoop of vanilla ice cream
Ready-whip canned whipped topping
Chopped pecans or walnuts

Seven Layer Sandwich

I had another taste test/food photo shoot for Escapees magazine this week. Steven and I really enjoyed this Seven Layer Sandwich, but would have reduced the amount of green onions. These would be great for a small summer get together with friends and would pair well with a dry, white wine.

Seven Layer Sandwich
2 large, thick slices of sourdough or sheepherder's bread. (Two English muffins make an acceptable substitute.)
1 ripe avocado, peeled, seeded and sliced
1 tomato, sliced
1/2 pound bacon, cooked and drained or thinly sliced cooked turkey or both
1 small can sliced ripe olives
1 bunch green onions, sliced thin (I’d only use ½ the bunch)
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
Small package shredded cheese, cheddar/Monterey Jack
Lettuce leaves and salsa–optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Lightly toast the bread/muffins.
Combine olives, chili powder, cumin and salt in medium bowl.
Stir in mayonnaise, sour cream and onions.
Put the toasted bread/muffin slices on a cookie sheet.
Using half the mayonnaise mixture, spread one side of each slice of bread/muffin.
Top with tomato and bacon and/or turkey. Spread remaining mayonnaise mixture on top of meat(s). Top with avocado slices. Sprinkle with shredded cheeses.
Bake until hot and cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.
Serve on lettuce slices with salsa on the side.

Green Chile Bake {Breakfast Casserole}

My sister-n-law Beth had a handful of ladies over to her house Friday morning for brunch. I brought this Green Chile Bake breakfast casserole. I'd have taken a picture, but honestly, it's not that pretty to look at. However, it's a favorite breakfast dish in our house.

Thank you, Beth, for a lovely get together. You're always a wonderful hostess.

Ingredients
10 eggs
4 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese (I used a cheddar/monterey jack blend)
2 cups cottage cheese (small curd)
1/4 cup butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 (4-ounce) cans chopped green chiles, drained (I substituted the chiles with Rotel)

Instructions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 13-by-9-inch baking dish. Beat eggs in a large mixing bowl. Stir in Monterey Jack, cottage cheese, butter, flour, baking powder, salt and chiles. Pour into baking dish, and bake for 35 minutes or until the eggs are set. Cool for 10 minutes. Serves 8 to 10 for brunch, 12 to 16 as an appetizer.

Navy Baby Shower {The Main Event}

The shower was held at McCardell Cottage Bed and Breakfast. The owner, Beverly Miller, was a wonderful host and very pleasant to work with. The red accents of the home were a perfect match for the shower theme. The food was tasty and beautiful. Amanda received precious gifts and the ladies seemed to be relaxed. I can't think of a better way to spend a Sunday afternoon than at a baby shower. Always fun.

The Menu

Strawberry Basil Ice Tea - Martha Stewart

Blackberry Supremes - Southern Living

Buttermilk Bites and Pots De Crème - Anne Greer McCann a Dallas author and restaurant consultant.

Raspberry Tiramisu Bites - Southern Living. (I couldn't find lady finger cookies locally, so I substiuted vanilla cake for the cookies.)

Red Velvet Cupcakes, chocolate brownies and fresh fruit.

Navy Baby Shower {The Details}

It's the details that make a party unique and I wanted this shower to be extra special for Amanda and Joe. The theme chosen for the shower was multi faceted. I wanted the emphasis to be on the Care Package for Joe but had so much fun tying the "package" aspect into the "bundle" in Amanda's belly. So, Airmail, Handle with Care, Contents Fragile, Care Packages and Special Delivery were all phrases for inspiration. Navy personnel are always on the move and extremely patriotic, so maps, packages, flags, and a color pallet of red, white and blue were a perfect fit. And as if that weren't enough, we celebrated during the July 4th holiday weekend. I just love it when things work out that way.

~The red and blue luggage tags were perfect party favors. I found them at Michael's. Two for $1! They are part of the "On the Go" collection. A simple insert, designed to match the invitation, was the only touch they needed. Beautiful, inexpensive and popular with the guests.

~I'd seen where Amy Atlas had adorned white straws with calligraphy flags and I was dying to copy her idea. These typical red and blue striped straws were a perfect fit for the shower and easy to find.

~I was dying to find a way to incorporate white paper boats into the shower food selection. I planned to serve Strawberry Basil Tea at the shower and apparently pistachios are a good pairing for the tea. Thus the birth of the pistachios boats. I had friendly family members volunteer to help with the shower, little did they know that meant folding paper boats. (Thank you, Kyle.) Hands down my favorite detail from the party.

~I wrapped packages in various sizes to use as decorations for the party. During my many google searches for "Airmail, handle with care, care package" I found "FRAGILE, Handle with Care" packing tape. I snatched a roll at Office Max for $5. It was a fun typographic touch and a nice visual for the theme.

~Lastly, I scoured google looking for vintage stork postcards. I wanted to add a "touch of stork" to the shower, without going overboard. Taking the postcard images, I made "postage stamp" cupcake picks. Easy to make and super cute.

Quacky Birthday Marin {The Food}

Below are the chicken salad and pimento cheese recipes we concocted for Marin's party. Not bad for first timers.

Chicken Salad With Apples and Walnuts

Ingredients

Juice from one ½ fresh lemon
½ cup mayonnaise
½ cup Miracle Whip
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
3 ½ cups chunk cooked chicken (about one medium chicken)
1 cup finely diced celery
1 to 1 ½ cups Apple (Granny Smith or Galla apples) cut into small cubes
½ cup chopped Walnuts
12 medium croissants

Directions
Season chicken with Tony Chachere's to taste. Boil or bake chicken. Cool. Remove chicken from bone and cut in to small chunks.

In a bowl, combine the chicken, celery and apples. Add lemon juice and mix. Add salt, pepper, mayonnaise, miracle whip and walnuts. Mix gently. Serve on croissants.

Belvia’s Pimento Cheese

On 8oz pkg of Shredded cheddar cheese
One 4oz jar of pimentos (juice and all)
Add Real Mayonnaise to taste. About ½ cup.
Mix all three ingredients and chill before serving.

Thank you Beliva, for sharing your recipe and for the phone consultation.

Swimming Party {Cutest Cupcakes!}

My sister-n-law Christy made the cutest cupcakes for Collin and Corynn's birthday party on Saturday. I just had to share these pictures. How totally cute are these cupcakes? The shark fins were a big hit with the kids. I couldn't get over the bears in bikinis. Each one was different!!! Not only were they cute, they were delicious too! Great inspiration for anyone planning a pool party this summer.

Pickled Eggs and Beets

I recently had to photograph pickled eggs and beets to accompany a recipe we are publishing in Escapees magazine. Just the sound of those four words (PE and B) kinda makes me want to gag. How can something that sounds SO gross look so pretty? I enjoy these side photography projects. It’s a welcome break from the routine of article design/layout. However, I was a bit apprehensive of the PE and B project. These were surprisingly pretty despite their unpleasant smell. I’m quite certain I’ll never eat PE and B, but I MIGHT include them as part of a large spread of food, simply for their looks. Anyone ever tried PE and B? I just couldn’t bring myself to try them.

Lavender Lemonade

I hosted book club at my house last night. We were discussing "The Unlikely Lavender Queen - A Memoir of Unexpected Blossoming" by Jeannie Ralston. Lavender Lemonade was the obvious drink of choice. Here the recipie I conconcted thanks to input from Martha Stewart and Laurie Lea.

Ingredients

3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups water
¼ cup dried lavender
3 cups fresh lemon juice (from 16 to 20 lemons)
2 cups Perrier Water
Ice, for serving
Lemon slices and fresh lavender sprigs for garnish

Directions
Bring sugar and water to a boil in a saucepan, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Stir in lavender. Remove from heat, and let stand until cool.

Once cool, place the lavender, sugar water in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight.

Before serving, strain lavender from the sugar water, stir in lemon juice and add Perrier water.

Serve over ice, and garnish with lemon slices and fresh lavender sprigs.

Lemonade can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.

Serves 12

Happy first day of May! Summer is on its way.