April Came in Like a Lamb....I Guess

Hi there everyone. Well, it's the first day of April and April Fool's day.....nope, no one played a trick on me...and I did not play tricks either....guess I am not that much into trick playing. AND, April seemed to come in like a lamb....at least for today. Guess there is snow coming over the weekend, not much I don't think. 

So, today's post is about the cards I have made recently. The rose card and cross card were both made at Betty's card class two weeks ago....see how slow I am in getting things posted??? I love that Rose card.....as I told Betty, I think I will send it to "myself" when my birthday comes around....lol!

The cross card, I thought came out really nice....amazing, I do have this stamp and probably will make a few more....maybe use it for a "sympathy card". I usually don't have sympathy cards on hand, so this would be a good one to have....or it could be an Easter card for next year. The color on the card is chalks and then a fixative spray was used to keep the chalks from smudging.

The following cards are my "vintage lady" cards.....aren't they gorgeous??? A few years ago Betty gave me these pictures that were printed on plastic.....I never used them. At my last class, Betty had some cards made up and I bought a few for samples. She borrowed me her die cut for the frames. Actually the one below is mine....I just bought it the other day at Hobby Lobby. It sure turned out beautiful, I think I will send this to me also....lol!!!

The purple vintage lady below.....gorgeous again....the die cut frame is Betty's. I have made about 10 extra frames so I can make a few more cards using this frame as I need to get this die cut back to her.

The blue vintage lady is another frame I picked up at Hobby Lobby....she turned out lovely too.

In the picture below are the "Steak Tacos and Mole Verde with Radishes and Avocado" from Blue Apron. I made these a few weeks ago....then made them again with flank steak.....goodness these were good. I love the Mole Verde sauce on the steak which was made with tomatillos, spice, chopped pepitas, cilantro and juice of a lime.....gosh, so deliciousness!!!!

My next 3 recipes came yesterday from Blue Apron and they are "Steak and Eggs with Quick Kimchi Fried Rice", "Chicken Fried Chicken with Baked Sweet Potato & Collard Greens" and "Dukkah-Spiced Cod with Warm Beet, Carrot & Arugula Salad"

I have decided to get these meals once a month, so whatever they are.....it will REALLY have to be superb in their presentation and ingredients!!! We'll see what happens. I still enjoy making these meals and learn so much from them, it's like going to culinary school once a month for $60.00...guess that is pretty cheap when I look at it that way.

Well, tomorrow is SATURDAY.....yay, how I love Saturday's!! It's  supposed to rain or snow, I think I will go downstairs and make some more cards....Hospice meeting is next Friday....so I need to get some cards put together for that. You may see another post with cards I made and probably one of the recipes from Blue Apron.

Time to close....it's getting late and I need to start thinking about JP coming home and what to make for his dinner. Probably leftover spaghetti and chicken, toast, fruit...maybe a salad too. I guess this is why I always have dishes in the sink, I can never quite catch up with dirty dishes.

So you all have a great weekend and keep looking up....better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

Pizza and Tacos....Yum!!!

Hi there everyone. Hope you are having a good week. We are half way through October already and can you believe it? It will be 6 weeks this Thursday that I had surgery on my hernia....yes, I have felt MUCH, much better.....but still get around slowly, but that could be my age too. Turning 69 in November....geez we certainly are a vapor, here today and gone tomorrow!!! Hahaha....aren't you glad you dropped by????

I received my Blue Apron box last Thursday and made this scrumptious pizza....here is the link to their site.  "Spinach and Fresh Mozzarella Pizza with Lemon and Chili Honey. Oh my, this was so good. I wondered how the honey and lemon zest would tie in, but it was oh so good. The box came with the pizza dough already made and all I had to do was roll it out. The tomato sauce consisted of a sliced red onion and garlic cooked together then spread on the dough. The spinach was cooked down and layered on the sauce then topped with the mozzarella cheese and lemon zest. After the pizza was cooked then the honey and chili's were drizzled on the pizza. Yep....I would make this again.


Tonight I made "Mixed Mushroom Tacos with Crispy Avocado and Cotija Cheese" The recipe says, "Mushrooms, one of the staple ingredients of autumn, make for a wonderful taco filling. Flavored with authentic Mexican spices, they're hearty and incredibly delicious. We are using two types of mushrooms, button topped cremini and ruffled maitake and pairing them with an array of tasty toppings. Quick pickled red onion provides tangy brightness, while battered, pan-fried avocado slices add crispy texture on the outside and creaminess within."

In the above picture is the pickled onions already cooked and the mushrooms sauteing. The next step was coating the avocado in rice flour and dropping them into the hot oil. 

Here is the finished product.....oh my, this tasted soooooo good. I ate two tacos and saved the other one for tomorrow. JP will have his 3 tacos tonight along with some fish from his dinner last night.

Here is another shot of the tacos with the recipe.....yes, I would do this one again. I am enjoying these meals and getting so many good ideas. I have decided to get one or two boxes a month.....that way I can keep up with the payments. A person can get a box every week if they so desire, guess it depends on the life-style. Blue Apron now offers a box of wine (6 small bottles) that pares with the meals that are sent to you.

I still have one "Free box" invitation that was sent to me to give to a friend....if you would like an invitation, let me know by a comment (all I would need is your email address) I can sign you up for ONE FREE BOX OF FOOD. Blue Apron people will contact you from their end. You don't have to sign up or anything, just try the box of food, All the vegies, meat, spices etc. are included in the box to make 3 delicious meals.

Well, time to close this post....I still have time to go make a few cards....I am trying a new technique with water coloring, and may use this technique for my Christmas cards this year.

Have a great evening and keep looking up! Cheers ~ Louise

Coming Today!!!!

Hi there everyone. Just a short little post today. Today, I am looking forward to these two great meals from Blue Apron. The 3rd meal, could not get a good picture without doing it justice. When I make it, then for sure I will take a picture. These two pictures are from Blue Apron.....so no, I have not made these two lovely dishes as yet.

The top picture is a spinach and mozzarella pizza....now that is right up my alley, looks like it is seasoned with some kind of oil and spice with lemons. That should be tasty.

This second lovely meal is mushrooms and avocado tacos......I think this one might be on a regular weekly menu....don't you think so??? I like that this uses two different mushrooms......yum!!!

The 3rd meal is a cauliflower salad with a fried egg on top. Will be interesting to see if the 2 eggs make it in the shipping from New Jersey and don't break in transit.

I always love when my shipment comes from Blue Apron. Here is their site. So far, I have been very happy with this product and the fact that the food comes to your house is a big plus. I don't have to go hunting for anything. Although when I find something I like from any one of the recipes.....I end up going hunting anyways, just trying to find that product. Like polenta, where you make your own, instead of using the already made polenta....another one was "Cracked Freekeh" a traditional grain of the Middle East. I found the polenta at Copps and the Freekeh at Festival in the health food section. Yeah....I have to do the hunt....but that is part of the fun, isn't it???

The other night I made chicken the way Blue Apron did it, using Panko crumbs, flour and egg....it turned out wonderfully tasty....then I fried up some corn on the cob (shaved off the cob, of course) in olive oil, salt and pepper, a little garlic and sliced up little tomatoes with the corn and put that on top of the chicken along with some mashed potatoes. Oh yum.....a very good meal, inspired by Blue Apron.

Today, seems like one of those days (cloudy and rainy) where I need to spend some time in the basement and make some cards. I have an idea for my Christmas cards this year...so it will take time to put the idea together. After I do this post, I shall head down there. Maybe tomorrow I will post a few of the cards and my pizza from Blue Apron.

You all have a good day and keep looking up, better days are coming. Cheers ~ Louise

Saturday is 4 Dutch Apple Pie's

Hi there everyone.....how did your Saturday go?? Mine was quiet, still taking it easy from my hernia surgery September 3rd. I still tire easily, but at least there has been no gut pain, Hooray for that miracle!!!! I do sleep a lot....but maybe that is part of the healing process.

My exercise consists of walking Kylie every day around the block, shopping at the stores, walking around the house, getting up and down from the chair etc. One of these days I shall have to start doing some yard work and get the house and yard winterized for the long cold winter......uge!!!!

So today I made a Dutch Apple Pie.....found this recipe at www.cooks.com one of my favorite recipe sites to visit. My go-to for many of my recipes.

I usually use a pre-made crust....not very good at making real crust, not sure I have even tried, maybe one of these days I shall try.

The pie filling consisted of about 10 apples, a combination of Mollies, Cortland and about 4 McIntosh apples. (Mollies and Cortlands, we bought from the apple orchard last Sunday) Mixed them all together in some lemon juice so they would not brown. Then I drained them and mixed in 3/4 cup Palm sugar, 1/2 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg and 2 teaspoon cinnamon. Mixed the apples altogether by hand then poured them into the pie crust.

I over did it on the apples and had enough for a little pie.......sad to say...these two pies may not even last the week-end if JP has his way.

The crumb topping consists of 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup butter and 1/2 cup Palm sugar. Mix it altogether till crumbly....if more flour is needed, continue adding till the topping is crumbly.

Note: When I added Palm sugar, it is actually called, Organic Coconut Palm sugar, I bought it at Sam's club and have been using that in place of sugar and brown sugar....works fine.

So here is the final touch.....a little bit of Cool Whip on a cooled down piece of pie......yum, was this delicious!!!

After I finish this post, I shall head down stairs and do a bit of card making and stamping.....guess my mojo is coming back and "making things" is coming back into my life again.....Hooray for small miracles!!!

You all have a great weekend and Lord willing, I will see you in a few days. My week is pretty much open, guess that means another week of rest and getting my strength built up. Never realized how much surgery can knock one out......I forgot!!!

I have another order of Blue Apron coming this week.....this one should be fun, a gourmet pizza, mushroom tacos and a cauliflower  salad.....looking forward to these recipes.

You all keep looking up and better days are coming!!!!
Cheers ~ Louise

Monday Musings......

Hi everyone, how is your day going??? According to my computer, the temperature is 55 degrees outside....WOW!!! Kylie was barking at a kid walking down the street with NO jacket on....a couple of days ago, he might have been wearing a jacket....this is Wisconsin weather. We think it is summer now...hahahahaha!!!!

I put out the bird feeders a couple of months ago. FINALLY had a couple of visitors the past week or so. Mr Cardinal and his lovely lady came by for some seeds. Always fun to watch the birds visit.

I made some Vegie Burgers last night, this is not exactly what they looked like, but this is the recipe I used with a bit of critiquing....of course, who follows a recipe to the "T"......not I, that is for sure!!!! No fun in that!!! Anyways....these burgers were actually very good!!!

Greek-Style Lentil Burgers

½ cup dried lentils
2 Tbs. olive oil, plus more for brushing patties
1 small onion, chopped (1 cup)(I used frozen onions/peppers)
½ red bell pepper, diced (½ cup)(I used frozen onions/peppers)
4 cloves garlic, minced (4 tsp.)
1 15-oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained (I used 1 can refried beans)
1 cup loosely packed parsley leaves(used dried parsley 1 tablesp.)
½ cup pitted kalamata olives (didn't have)
2 large eggs
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander (didn't have, used terimac instead)
1 tsp. salt (used 1/2 tsp.)
½ tsp. ground black pepper
1 cup plain breadcrumbs (2 c. seasoned breadcrumbs, there is a lot of moisture)
¾ cup grated carrots
½ tsp. baking powder

Tzatziki Sauce (ummm....did not make this, maybe next time)
2 cups plain low-fat yogurt
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, shredded, and drained
2 cloves garlic, minced (2 tsp.)
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. chopped fresh mint
1 tsp. chopped fresh parsley
1. To make Burgers: Cook lentils according to package directions. Drain.

2. Heat oil in skillet over medium heat. Add onion and bell pepper, and sauté 7 minutes. Stir in garlic.
3. Blend chickpeas, parsley, olives, eggs, cumin, coriander, salt, and pepper in food processor 2 minutes, or until smooth. Stir chickpea mixture, breadcrumbs, carrots, and baking powder into lentils. Shape into 8 patties. Layer patties between plastic wrap, and freeze.
4. To make Tzatziki Sauce: Combine all ingredients in small bowl.
5. Preheat grill to high. Brush frozen patties with oil, and cook 6 minutes on each side. Serve Burgers with Tzatziki Sauce.
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So now I have lots of this vegie burger stuff in the frig. My next experiment will be to make tacos and patties to freeze (as mentioned above in the recipe). See how that works for a quick meal for JP when he comes home from work at 1am in the morning!!!

Well, time to close here for a bit....
I was going to go to the store today....did not make it. That is okay though, tomorrow perhaps. Have to get my list together first. Pay some bills and get JP ready to go to work. Then I have the rest of the day to bum around. Perhaps I will take Kylie for a long walk, she will like that.

You all have a good day and keep looking up.
Cheers ~ Louise