Summer Medley

Mmmm!!

That's the first thought that comes to mind when I think of this recipe. It's a concoction that I kind of threw together using a recipe from last summer and one that my mom shared with me a few weeks ago. I must say that this experiment passed the test! It's husband, wife, friend, and gato approved, so it must be a good one!

Let's get started!

Indredients:

8 chicken tenderloins (or 4 chicken breasts)

Olive Oil

1 vidalia onion

1 medium green bell pepper

1 medium red bell pepper

1 yellow squash

2 cans diced tomatoes

1 small can marinated artichoke hearts (drained)

1 small jalapeno

3/4 cup brown rice (more or less depending on preference)

1 teaspoon minced garlic (more or less depending on preference)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preparation:

Cube and slice all ingredients.

Begin by cooking the chicken and onion drizzled with olive oil.

When the chicken is only half pink, add the bell peppers.

As the chicken nears completion, add the squash.

Cook for 5 minutes.

Add diced tomatoes, garlic, salt, pepper, and rice.

Cook for 15 minutes on low. Stir occasionally.

Mix in artichoke hearts (drained!) and jalapeno.

Cook on low for another 20-30 minutes or until rice is tender. Stir occasionally.

The finished product will look a lot like this; however, I added a little more rice towards the end. It is sooooo tasty, and I was fortunate enough to have fresh garden vegetables for this dinner! I am sure it's just as tasty with store bought produce, but I was blessed enough to not have to use any as far as the peppers and squash go! In all, this recipe took about 1 hour and 15 minutes from start to finish, but it's really easy!

Since this recipe incorporates so many food groups, I chose to serve it with rolls. It was a great combination! Andrew enjoyed "mopping" up his plate... and mine... with his rolls.

Dessert:

After a fresh veggie meal, we topped it off with our fresh fruit smoothies! I've found some new favorites: Strawberry Banana Peach and Strawberry Blueberry Banana. We've not really found a combination that we DON'T like! These chilly treats are the perfect summer evening snack, and they are completely healthy for us!

Have I mentioned that I LOVE summer cooking and eating?!?!

"Oh, see da ball?!"

I cannot tell you how many times Andrew and I heard that phrase this weekend. I also cannot tell you how precious it was!

Our little nephew, Eli is a ball fanatic! He is a busy little boy, but no matter what he's doing, almost everything relates back to his love for basketballs, golf balls, bouncy balls, you get the picture. If it's round and can roll, he's in.

Furthermore, if he's being prompted to say something else (such as daddy or please), he often responds with "The ball" or "Oh, see the ball?!" He is hilarious! As a speech pathologist in training, you can imagine my excitement when he uses his language to talk about his environment, likes and dislikes, and family.

No matter what this little guy is doing, it's a pretty good bet that he'll have at least one ball in his hand. In this picture, I think he had three altogether. Just like the last picture. Here he's cooking his breakfast eggs with Uncle Andrew. It's good to know that Andrew makes kid-approved scrambled eggs! Little Eli sure did love them!

Not only is Uncle Andrew a good cook, but he's good at sharing snacks to hold a little guy's tummy over while waiting for breakfast!

After breakfast, Andrew and I started pricing items for a yard sale. Eli was a huge help. The round stickers (shaped a lot like his beloved toys) were a huge hit. He liked to sit on Aunt Abby's lap and peel the stickers off of the paper backing and place them in a ziploc baggie for later use.

Our nephew sure is a cutie! He's an active little guy, and we enjoy watching him grow and learn!

Impatiently Waiting

Days like today (or any day recently for that matter) really make me anxious for our honeymoon. By anxious, I mean that I literally cannot wait another second. The sad thing is, I have to. As much as I want to run away from responsibility now, I know that I must be patient and only daydream of the amazing time that Andrew and I are going to have away from obligations and Missouri.

Here's a look into my daydreams...

(Thank you, Mom for the images! ... even though you didn't know that I was going to steal them!)

Fresh salmon from Lake Michigan. Smoked salmon is soooo, soooo good.

Seagulls running here and there... stealing food.

\

Marinas everywhere.

Coolest road ever. So fun to drive!

Quaint lighthouses. So beautiful to look at!

Goats on the roof of a Sweedish restaurant. Best portobello mushroom sandwich around is made here!

Sunflower fields as far as the eye can see.

Gorgeous vineyards.

Ripe cherries just waiting to be picked.

Feeling victorious after winning the (cherry) seed spitting contest.

Charming local shops.

Jukeboxes and ice cream.

Landscape dotted with steeples.

Steeples lit up in the night.

Gorgeous storm clouds.

Most amazing sunsets over the water.

Yes, these images are what fill my daydreams. I can't wait for them to become a reality.

Our honeymoon cannot come soon enough, and I cannot wait for a week of no obligations, pure relaxation, and spending time with the most amazing husband around!

Abundantly Blessed

If you are a frequent reader of my blog, then you probably have realized by now that Andrew and I love fresh summer produce. We have enjoyed lots of garden goodness this summer, but we have only had to purchase some of it ourselves.

We have been incredibly blessed this summer to have people surrounding us who feel so kind as to share their tasty fruits and veggies.

Each of these pictures were taken upon receiving produce from someone. We have gotten summer goodies from grandparents, parents, friends, coworkers, clients, and I'm sure more sources. We appreciate everything so much, and believe me, we definitely count it as a blessing!

We have enjoyed most of it, and we have frozen the rest so we can enjoy it in the months to come!

Now, what would a blog be if I didn't write about something I'm currently cooking? With all of the tomatoes we've been given, I've been in tomato heaven. I was reading a facebook status the other day about a toasted cheese and tomato sandwich. I had to try it!

First, I get everything ready. This means, I slice a tomato, top it with salt and pepper, and eat the rest. : )

After slicing the tomato, I get a large bun and lightly butter both sides (with olive oil butter!).

After the bun is buttered on both sides, I place the bottom on my panini maker. I then layer American cheese, a thin layer of parmesan cheese, tomato slice, and then top it off with the other half of the bun. I let the bottom toast, and I use my panini press to make it more compact. This helps with the eating portion of it later.

I grill (low to medium heat) both sides until the cheese is nice and gooey.

The finished product is then placed on a plate to serve and enjoy!

This is a fast and easy summer lunch. It takes me maybe 10 minutes from start to finish- and a lot of that time is spent by eating the portion of the tomato that was not used on the sandwich. It's quick, tasty, and not too unhealthy. And, it's the perfect way to utilize the sweet gifts we've been receiving!

Sweet Company

I walked outside a few days ago with my arms full. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw something flash across my foot. I looked around for what it was, and I spotted it.

This sweet baby bunny was no bigger than the palm of my hand! He was awfully scared of such a big creature flashing a horrible light in his little eyes. But, I couldn't resist taking his picture.

So, as Andrew and I were eating dinner last night, Andrew looks out the window by the table and says, "Look! There's your baby bunny... with his momma!" ... Or something along those lines. I looked out, and sure enough! There he was!

But, he wasn't alone! Soon there were two... then three... then FOUR baby bunnies hopping after their momma! We couldn't grab the camera in time; however, we did get this picture...

ALL four of the babies are under the momma feeding! If you look closely, you can see one little white puffball of a tail sticking out. It was the cutest thing I've seen in a while, and Andrew and I just sat amazed at God's creatures! What a wonderful world we live in!

Recipe on Demand

Normally I don't blog twice in one day, but I've had numerous requests for this one, and I may not have time to blog tomorrow. I don't want to leave my faithful readers hanging, so here I am... blogging.

I love cooking. I also love sharing recipes. Moreover, I love when people ask for my recipes. In the wise words of Tiana's father, "You know the thing about good food? It brings folks together from all walks of life. It warms them right up and it puts little smiles on their faces..." He also believes that, "A gift this special just gotta be shared." He said both of these things in regards to Tiana's Famous Gumbo. He's got it right- a good recipe needs to be shared... what good does it do others if it's kept a secret?!

Anyways... Onto my blog...

Andrew loves sloppy joe's. When all else fails, they are the answer. BUT, he's a fairly selective sloppy joe eater. To put it bluntly, he only likes homemade sauce. Not the silly canned kind.

So, I set out to create the perfect sloppy joe sauce. It only took me two tries before he insisted that I never try another one again. The problem was- I didn't write it down. OOPS!!

So, the next time I made the sauce, I based my ingredients off of the color of the sauce. Yes, I'm a freak like that. Mom used to take me to match paint because I have such a good eye for color. Anyways, it paid off. Once again, I had created the perfect, Andrew approved sloppy joe sauce.

I made these for dinner tonight, and many people have asked me for the recipe. So, here goes...

Abby's (Almost!) Famous Sloppy Joe's

Ingredients:

3 pounds ground beef

1 small vidalia onion, chopped

1 1/4 cups ketchup

1/2 cup Maull's barbeque sauce

1/2 cup Bullseye barbeque sauce

1/2 cup worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup mustard

Sprinkle of garlic sauce

Splash of hot sauce

Splash (very small!) of balsamic vinegar

Preparation:

Combine ketchup, barbeque sauces, mustard, worcestershire sauce, hot sauce, balsamic vinegar, and garlic salt into a large bowl. Cover and chill for at least one hour.

Once the sauce has had time to co-mingle (yes, that's my word for it), it's time to move on!

Next...

Brown the ground beef and onion in a LARGE skillet.

Drain.

Pour sauce in. Mix well.

Cover and simmer for 25-30 minutes for full flavor. Stir often.

Serve over extra large buns!

This main dish is best served with a small side dish since it's so hearty. My dish of choice tonight was parmesan yellow squash.

The squash, along with many other homegrown delicacies, came straight from my client's garden! Yum!

Anyways... Here is how I prepared the yellow squash:

Cube squash.

Spread out evenly in a greased baking pan.

Drizzle with olive oil.

Add fresh cracked sea salt and pepper to taste.

Sprinkle with parsely flakes.

Garnish with freshly grated parmesan cheese.

Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes or until tender.

Tip: I sometimes cover the pan with foil for the first 15-20 minutes of baking time.

Viola! The end result is an easy, husband approved meal!

Seriously, it's simple to whip up, and it is a huge hit any time I grace the dinner table with this meal. Try it, and let me know how it goes!

Edible Alfredo?

As I mentioned previously, Andrew helped pick the menu this week. One request he had was pasta. I make pasta quite often... with red sauce. I do not care for alfredo sauce, but I thought I would switch things up and serve tortellini with alfredo for once. Come to find out, Andrew meant he just wanted a different noodle. I think he's given up on ever getting alfredo sauce if I'm cooking.

Anyways, back to my original story, I wasn't thrilled to serve alfredo sauce, but what does one meal matter? Well, I woke up yesterday and had a complete revelation! Why not spice up the sauce and MAKE it edible?! The solution? Bacon and peas! Yes, this sounded like the answer!

I ran by Schnucks on my way home and bought 1/4 of a pound of fresh bacon- you know, the super yummy kind? The thick, tasty, delicious type? Yes, that kind.

Before putting it in the sauce, I cut it into small pieces and then cooked it. This reduced cooking time significantly.

After the bacon was done, I combined two cans of lite parmesan alfredo, 1/4 cup of peas, 1/4 pound of bacon, and a spoonful of bacon grease into a small sauce pan. Was adding the bacon grease the most healthy option? No, but it sure did make the alfredo sauce tasty! I then covered the sauce and let it cook on low for 45 minutes.

While the sauce was cooking, I started on the side dish.

These yummy potatoes are a breeze to bake! I simply cut new potatoes in half, brushed them with olive oil, sprinkled them with salt and pepper, added a touch of rosemary, and then dusted them with fresh parmesan cheese. I then baked them at 450 for 35 minutes... or until they were tender throughout.

While these were baking and the sauce was cooking, I started boiling a large pot of water for the tortellini. I wish that I could say that I made these from scratch, but it's so much easier to buy the colorful package fresh from the local grocery store. Not only are they easy to make (simply boil for 7-9 minutes), but they are very good!

Everything finished cooking around the same time. Cooking really does take some thought to make sure everything is done at once. I have a new appreciation for all of the work my mom has done over the years to create a huge family meal. It's a true science to figure out how to make sure everything is done, hot, and not burnt in time to serve it all at once. Crazy!

The finished product! Yes, this is my plate. Notice my extra large serving of tortellini with alfredo sauce?! I think I have finally found a way that I will eat (and thoroughly enjoy!) alfredo!

Tonight's dinner? Sloppy Joes (complete with my homemade sauce) and parmesan yellow squash. Speaking of which, I better get started!!

Until next time...