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Not the blog but me! My 45 minutes (one way) commute to work has now been drastically slashes to 1 minute! (10 if I walk).
I now call the little town St Helena, just north of Napa, home.
So I have yet to actually get Internet or other basic apartment needs, so the next post might be another week or so. But no fear, I haven't forgot about my blog! I'll be more present on instagram and twitter. My only Internet access is my phone, hence no photos in this post.
Yay my own little apartment!!
<3
Julie
2 Ocak 2013 Çarşamba
Chicken & Sour Cream Enchilada's with Tomatillo Sauce, Sangria & Students!
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I went to a Spain Reunion Party for the kids and the parents of those who went on the trip over break to Madrid and Barcelona. It was fun to hear all the stories and see all the photographs. What great memories those kids will have!I decided to bake and bring a batch of chicken and sour cream Enchilada's with a tomatillo sauce to share. It's super easy to make the sauce. You dice fresh tomatillo's, chop garlic, cumin, coriander, fresh lime juice, chop fresh cilantro, green chile's and salt and pepper- place into a food processor and blend. Then saute on medium heat in a sauce pan and add water to a simmer. Use sauce to cover the bottom of a 9x13 baking dish. Place flour tortilla's filled with fresh cooked diced chicken, cheddar cheese and sour cream rolled on bottom of baking dish. Fill the baking dish with the rolled tortilla's and top with the rest of your tomatillo sauce, sprinkle additional cheddar cheese and bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.They were a huge hit. And work well for a dinner party or other pot luck.A writer friend of mine is hosting a fun party this Sunday to celebrate her husband's birthday. I offered to bring a pitcher of my Cranberry Sangria- the version I published in Cape Cod Magazine and if you do a blog search I'm sure I've posted the recipe here before. I thought it was a great way to not only celebrate the gorgeous weather we've been having but also his birthday.As for my students, I can tell they are starting to get spring fever. The sun and warmth easily distract them off the topics at hand. We are studying Robert Frost. Frost knew well the lure and complexities nature offers and what a pretty day can do for the well being of one's soul.
Caprese Salad & Back-Yard Fire's!
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"Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie."
~Jim Davis, "Garfield" Cartoonist
It's that time of year when there's so many opportunities to bring a favorite dish to a get together. There's cookouts, graduation parties and other celebrations to attend. One of my favorite salad's to make and bring especially this time of year to a gathering is that deliciously simple combination of fresh grown tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. My favorite version of it is shared below.
I love the sentiment in the quote above because it's true; when it comes down to it we really like to eat what we like.Whether you're on a diet or not. I try to keep a balance between exercise and healthy eating. But I love a slice of Lemon Cake and a really good Chocolate Chip Cookie once and awhile too. So be it. Life is short. And why not try to enjoy it?
As for back yard fire's, it's a good time for that too. There's a chill in the air as the sun sets and the mosquito's haven't arrived quite yet. My daughter's and I sat around our fire-pit Friday. And of course we had to make s'mores.
Caprese Salad
1 lb. Fresh Mozzarella, sliced thin
2 large Ripe tomatoes, sliced thin
2 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. fresh basil, chopped fine
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh Romaine Lettuce, cleaned and dried
Take a large platter and place the romaine lettuce in a thin layer. Layer the mozzarella and the tomatoes on top of the Lettuce. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Sprinkle with fresh basil and salt and pepper as desired. Chill slightly before serving. Enjoy!
"Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie."~Jim Davis, "Garfield" Cartoonist
It's that time of year when there's so many opportunities to bring a favorite dish to a get together. There's cookouts, graduation parties and other celebrations to attend. One of my favorite salad's to make and bring especially this time of year to a gathering is that deliciously simple combination of fresh grown tomatoes and mozzarella cheese. My favorite version of it is shared below.
I love the sentiment in the quote above because it's true; when it comes down to it we really like to eat what we like.Whether you're on a diet or not. I try to keep a balance between exercise and healthy eating. But I love a slice of Lemon Cake and a really good Chocolate Chip Cookie once and awhile too. So be it. Life is short. And why not try to enjoy it?
As for back yard fire's, it's a good time for that too. There's a chill in the air as the sun sets and the mosquito's haven't arrived quite yet. My daughter's and I sat around our fire-pit Friday. And of course we had to make s'mores.
Caprese Salad
1 lb. Fresh Mozzarella, sliced thin
2 large Ripe tomatoes, sliced thin
2 Tbsp. Balsamic Vinegar
2 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 tsp. fresh basil, chopped fine
Salt and Pepper to taste
Fresh Romaine Lettuce, cleaned and dried
Take a large platter and place the romaine lettuce in a thin layer. Layer the mozzarella and the tomatoes on top of the Lettuce. Drizzle with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Sprinkle with fresh basil and salt and pepper as desired. Chill slightly before serving. Enjoy!
Out of the Ordinary & What's for Breakfast?
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When we moved back to New England from Dallas, TX to settle on Cape Cod over five years ago I was surprised to learn how many year round residents took their vacations in the summer far away from the Cape. I remember being surprised at that because Cape Cod is so beautiful and offers so much in the way of recreation and rest right here.
As a full-time resident I can now appreciate the charm in going off Cape for vacation right when so many others are finding their way here.
Leaving Cape Cod in the summer offers an opportunity to do something out of the ordinary. And it offers a chance to get away from it all and see life from a fresh perspective. And spend some quality time with my kids.
The photo above is of my two teenagers this past week after hiking a trail in Ouray, Colorado. They enjoyed the change in culture and climate that a trip to the Mountains offered.
While visiting with family one morning I offered to make breakfast. Finding the right ingredients for a recipe can be a bit of a challenge in a town like Ouray that is set high in the mountiains. The closest large Grocery story is about 35 miles away.
I decided to make a trip down to the local market to see what I might find. I wanted to make a fresh baked pastry, and what I came up with was a welcome and delicious breakfast treat. Tastes great with a pot of fresh coffee on the side too. And, as always it's great to be back home.
Breakfast Fruit Bake
1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup fresh blackberries
1 cup fresh raspberries
two cans refrigerated croissants, open containers and spread flat on bottom of greased baking dish
1 8oz. container, cream cheese softened
8 oz. vanilla yogurt (Whip the yogurt and softened cream cheese until smooth in a small bowl)
Bake the flat croissant dough at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until begins to brown. Let cool. Spread the cream cheese mixture over cooled dough. Place clean and dried fresh fruit evenly on top. Let chill. Enjoy!
When we moved back to New England from Dallas, TX to settle on Cape Cod over five years ago I was surprised to learn how many year round residents took their vacations in the summer far away from the Cape. I remember being surprised at that because Cape Cod is so beautiful and offers so much in the way of recreation and rest right here. As a full-time resident I can now appreciate the charm in going off Cape for vacation right when so many others are finding their way here.
Leaving Cape Cod in the summer offers an opportunity to do something out of the ordinary. And it offers a chance to get away from it all and see life from a fresh perspective. And spend some quality time with my kids.
The photo above is of my two teenagers this past week after hiking a trail in Ouray, Colorado. They enjoyed the change in culture and climate that a trip to the Mountains offered.
While visiting with family one morning I offered to make breakfast. Finding the right ingredients for a recipe can be a bit of a challenge in a town like Ouray that is set high in the mountiains. The closest large Grocery story is about 35 miles away.
I decided to make a trip down to the local market to see what I might find. I wanted to make a fresh baked pastry, and what I came up with was a welcome and delicious breakfast treat. Tastes great with a pot of fresh coffee on the side too. And, as always it's great to be back home.
Breakfast Fruit Bake
1 cup fresh strawberries, sliced
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 cup fresh blackberries
1 cup fresh raspberries
two cans refrigerated croissants, open containers and spread flat on bottom of greased baking dish
1 8oz. container, cream cheese softened
8 oz. vanilla yogurt (Whip the yogurt and softened cream cheese until smooth in a small bowl)
Bake the flat croissant dough at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes or until begins to brown. Let cool. Spread the cream cheese mixture over cooled dough. Place clean and dried fresh fruit evenly on top. Let chill. Enjoy!
When it's (Not So) Happy Holidays & Christmas Miracles!
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Sample of our Home baked Holiday treats for Teachers, Neighbors and Friends!
I've been wanting to update a blog post the past few days to offer a little bit of Holiday Inspiration. And wishes for a Happy Holiday. The article I'd written called "Fabulous Foods As Holiday Gifts" was published locally last Friday. And I wanted to mention it here because the fact that it came out made me happy. When I wrote it my intent was to offer inspiration in some small way to those who read it.
I remember last Friday morning well. It looked like it was going to be an unusually peaceful day. I took a photograph of the sun rise from my living room window. The sky was an unusually bright deep pink. It seemed like it was going to be a good day. Life can change so quickly and not always for the best.
Yet since my heart has been aching (like so many others) as a result of the recent tragedy in CT last week I didn't feel like sharing what made me happy. It didn't seem right, at least not on Friday, to post when something so tragic had just taken place. I spent the day in deep reflection instead. I felt (still feel) deep sadness for the families and for the rest of us too. Something is not right with our world if this can happen. There's so much that simply doesn't make sense to me about this unfortunate tragedy.
Here is what I do know. I believe we still have to do our best in our imperfect way to offer a kindness or a smile to a stranger even when maybe especially when we are hurting. We have to continue to look at our own shortcomings so that we can be the best we can be for our family and friends. We have to recognize that life is short no matter what age or stage we are at and the time to live is now.
I woke up very early this morning to do some baking. Baking is something that always makes me happy. My kitchen warms up nicely, the smells travel throughout the whole house and I know those people I've baked for will feel a little happier too from my sharing with them.
I'm going to keep my holidays simple this year by focusing on spending time with my kids and trying not to worry about things that don't really matter anyway.
My wish for you is that an unexpected Christmas Miracle comes your way this season especially if you are needing one. And remember the thing about a miracle is you have to be willing to ask for (and believe in) them to receive one!
Sample of our Home baked Holiday treats for Teachers, Neighbors and Friends!I've been wanting to update a blog post the past few days to offer a little bit of Holiday Inspiration. And wishes for a Happy Holiday. The article I'd written called "Fabulous Foods As Holiday Gifts" was published locally last Friday. And I wanted to mention it here because the fact that it came out made me happy. When I wrote it my intent was to offer inspiration in some small way to those who read it.
I remember last Friday morning well. It looked like it was going to be an unusually peaceful day. I took a photograph of the sun rise from my living room window. The sky was an unusually bright deep pink. It seemed like it was going to be a good day. Life can change so quickly and not always for the best.
Yet since my heart has been aching (like so many others) as a result of the recent tragedy in CT last week I didn't feel like sharing what made me happy. It didn't seem right, at least not on Friday, to post when something so tragic had just taken place. I spent the day in deep reflection instead. I felt (still feel) deep sadness for the families and for the rest of us too. Something is not right with our world if this can happen. There's so much that simply doesn't make sense to me about this unfortunate tragedy.
Here is what I do know. I believe we still have to do our best in our imperfect way to offer a kindness or a smile to a stranger even when maybe especially when we are hurting. We have to continue to look at our own shortcomings so that we can be the best we can be for our family and friends. We have to recognize that life is short no matter what age or stage we are at and the time to live is now.
I woke up very early this morning to do some baking. Baking is something that always makes me happy. My kitchen warms up nicely, the smells travel throughout the whole house and I know those people I've baked for will feel a little happier too from my sharing with them.
I'm going to keep my holidays simple this year by focusing on spending time with my kids and trying not to worry about things that don't really matter anyway.
My wish for you is that an unexpected Christmas Miracle comes your way this season especially if you are needing one. And remember the thing about a miracle is you have to be willing to ask for (and believe in) them to receive one!
1 Ocak 2013 Salı
Happy New Year...
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So how was your holidays?Did you get your WIPs finished?Any new projects started?
Suffice it to say I was far too distracted by external influences to finish any of my WIPs. Suffice it to say I was even too distracted by external influences to make the 2 new projects that I was planning.
This external influence was so strong it even pulled me away from my recent pile of Glimma which I absolutely adore.If like me you haven't been looking after your family adequately this holidays and creeping off to sew you will probably know what I am talking about.The project taking over IG, the Scrappy Trip Along is the most addictive quilting I have seen.
Seeing Rita's, Brenda's, Katy's was enough to make me drop everything and get blocking. Thank goodness our New Year's guests cancelled their 3 day trip. It's one thing to ignore your family but quite another to ignore your guests. That would just be rude.
It is such a great anything goes piecing quilt.I haven't managed to do as much as I would like - apparently I'm not neglecting them as much as I could - but am probably half way through this one that is earmarked for Ruby. And in typically me mode I'm already thinking about all the combinations I want to do next - navy/grey/mushroom for Sam, red/white for Noah not to mention the wedding quilt option, friends moving house option. This is definitely going to be featuring heavily in 2013 both here and I'm pretty sure a lot of blogland too.If you haven't jumped aboard yet go check out the Flickr Group Brenda set up and see all the great quilts taking shape.
I may not be starting the New Year getting my WIPs under control, but I am starting it with excitement and that's no bad thing. Is it?
Happy 2013 to one and all and wishing you many exciting quilting times xx
So how was your holidays?Did you get your WIPs finished?Any new projects started?Suffice it to say I was far too distracted by external influences to finish any of my WIPs. Suffice it to say I was even too distracted by external influences to make the 2 new projects that I was planning.
This external influence was so strong it even pulled me away from my recent pile of Glimma which I absolutely adore.If like me you haven't been looking after your family adequately this holidays and creeping off to sew you will probably know what I am talking about.The project taking over IG, the Scrappy Trip Along is the most addictive quilting I have seen.Seeing Rita's, Brenda's, Katy's was enough to make me drop everything and get blocking. Thank goodness our New Year's guests cancelled their 3 day trip. It's one thing to ignore your family but quite another to ignore your guests. That would just be rude.
It is such a great anything goes piecing quilt.I haven't managed to do as much as I would like - apparently I'm not neglecting them as much as I could - but am probably half way through this one that is earmarked for Ruby. And in typically me mode I'm already thinking about all the combinations I want to do next - navy/grey/mushroom for Sam, red/white for Noah not to mention the wedding quilt option, friends moving house option. This is definitely going to be featuring heavily in 2013 both here and I'm pretty sure a lot of blogland too.If you haven't jumped aboard yet go check out the Flickr Group Brenda set up and see all the great quilts taking shape.
I may not be starting the New Year getting my WIPs under control, but I am starting it with excitement and that's no bad thing. Is it?
Happy 2013 to one and all and wishing you many exciting quilting times xx
Let's Talk About Snails & Snakes
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Snails yes, snakes no. I am petrified when comes to snakes; spiders and dogs too but that is a different story for another rainy day. I was reading something about snails and let me share this with you. There are more than 80,000 different species of snails, yes 80,000 that is darn a lot. I think I probably seen 20 the most including the one I ate. They are widely distributed on land, in the sea and in the fresh water. Land snails have two pairs of tentacles where their set of eyes reside on the lower set. Water snails have only one pair of tentacles, with eyes at the base.
Now my favorite subject - the snakes. What can I say about the snakes? They hatch from eggs - and no they are not related to the chicken. However, there are some species of snakes that do give birth to live young snakes.
Snails yes, snakes no. I am petrified when comes to snakes; spiders and dogs too but that is a different story for another rainy day. I was reading something about snails and let me share this with you. There are more than 80,000 different species of snails, yes 80,000 that is darn a lot. I think I probably seen 20 the most including the one I ate. They are widely distributed on land, in the sea and in the fresh water. Land snails have two pairs of tentacles where their set of eyes reside on the lower set. Water snails have only one pair of tentacles, with eyes at the base.Now my favorite subject - the snakes. What can I say about the snakes? They hatch from eggs - and no they are not related to the chicken. However, there are some species of snakes that do give birth to live young snakes.
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