So tender…
…tender, tangy and oh so tasty. But, the rich taste of the chicken shines through it all.
This is one of those dishes that we devoured until it was gone. And, requests for a repeat performance were immediately requested. I’ll be adding diced red potatoes next time. And, I’ll probably tinker a bit with the amount of vinegar. But, this dish is incredibly delicious as is. Period.
… like tomorrow.
Adobong Manok Sa Tomato
(Or, Chicken Adobo with Tomato)
makes 4-6 servings
1 large onion, diced
1 Tablespoon flour
28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 cup palm vinegar (or rice wine vinegar)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup dark brown sugar, or to taste
8 cloves garlic, sliced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp black pepper, freshly ground
salt, to taste
1 whole chicken, cut into pieces
Dice onion. Place in dutch oven with butter. Sauté until just barely golden. Add flour. Stir and cook briefly. Then, add everything except for the chicken. Bring to a boil while preheating the oven to 375 degrees F. Add chicken. Cook with dutch oven lid on until the chicken is cooked through, but still tender (about 55-75 minutes, depending on the size of the chicken pieces).
Serve with buttered rice (or boiled potatoes).
Fresh
Drying
(On The 8th Day)
An Orange A Day
We love to buy Cuties and Halos by the box. We’d rather eat one of these cute little oranges than drink a glass of juice any day. They’re a perfect quick snack, too. So, I thought I’d experiment with the peels. It turns out that they dry beautifully.
Make sure that they are well washed before drying them. Then, space them neatly on a baking sheet. Let them sit on a sunny window sill for a day or two. (They added a lovely fresh orange scent to the kitchen on those days, too.) Then, store in a large glass jar (lid off) until they’re completely dried. the orange color remains bright and vivid for quite a long time. Once they turn brown, toss them into the compost. With a nearly endless supply, just dry more when you need or want to… even if you just want to add the scent to your kitchen.
Snacks are every bit as important as a real meal. You could even say they’re more important. How often do your snacks turn into that days lunch? The best of intentions get swept to the wayside when there are things to do. So, what do you eat for your snack/possible meal when your day goes sideways? Whatever it might be that you choose as your go to, it should have (at the very least) a small portion of protein. A well-rounded snack should have one part fruit or veggie, one part carb, and one part protein. But, if you’re going to all that effort, you could make it a meal.
My Favorite Small Snacks
Bite-sized tomatoes
Mini peppers
A slice of extra sharp cheddar
—
Green apple slices
Bleu cheese
drizzle of honey
handful of grapes
—
Melon Slices
Proscuitto
—
Empire apple slices
drizzle of honey
almond butter
—
Green apple slices
smoked cheddar cubes
—
One small handful of smoked almonds
5 Frozen grapes
—
One small container of blueberry yogurt
(For a cold treat, freeze it.)
—
Wicked Treat
Strawberries Dipped In Nutella
—
Cinnamon Granola Bar
Add a schemer of Nutella
—
Croissant
(Toast in 425 degree oven for about 5 min.)
Add a light brush of Nutella
—
Pretzel Sticks
Dipped in Nutella
Rolled in chopped hazelnuts or almonds
(Freeze)
—
Meal Substitute “Snacks”
One banana
A handful of smoked almonds
—
One slice of provolone
Roll it around a slice of smoked ham or salami
—
Wheat Thins
Topped with white cheddar and green apple slices
—
One Banana
A glass of milk
One cookie
—
Banana slices
Top with a tiny dot of peanut butter
Dip in crushed peanuts
(Freeze for a frozen treat)
—
Chicken breast Cut into slices
Brush with grainy mustard
Wrap in Swiss cheese
—
Granola Bar
Add a schmear of peanut or almond butter
I’m in love with these cherry blossoms.
Cherry Blossom
makes 2
3 ounces brandy
3 ounces tart cherry juice
tiny splash simple syrup, if desired
cherries, to garnish
In a cocktail mixing glass, combine ice, brandy and cherry juice. Taste. Add very tiny splash of simple syrup if it pleases you. Taste again. Then, strain and divide between two chilled martini glasses. Garnish each glass with a cherry or two.
Cheers!
It was a gorgeous day.
(Even if that stubborn little duck refused to pose for our picture….)
The last of the blossoms have fallen and the leaves are filling in beautifully. Don’t those vibrantly bright green leaves call to you and demand attention even with pollen in the air?
Get out there and enjoy!
There’s one thing to remember when you make your pitcher of sangria. Buy your favorite wine. Period. End of story.
Strawberry & Peach Sangria
makes 1 pitcher
1 bottle of your favorite white wine, chilled
1 pint of strawberries, well-washed and sliced or quartered
1 12 oz. bottle Stewart’s peach soda, chilled
1 cup Grand Marnier
Chill your favorite pitcher in the fridge. Add wine, strawberries, peach soda and Grand Marnier. Stir gently. Pour into chilled glasses. Serve immediately with strawberries and a slice of orange (if you like).
Cheers!
One Gorgeous Day
Sometimes, you just want a cold beer to sip as you sit and linger. Other times, you want to remember that day that you had a beer on the lake’s edge on the first truly gorgeous day of the year. This beer cocktail brings fresh, happy memories to life. And, we want more.
…more memories and more cocktails.
Orange Brew
makes 2
2 American pale lager
(Dream Machine, Magic Hat)
2 ounces Grand Marnier
2 ounces orange juice
orange twists or wheels, to garnish
In two tall glasses, pour one ounce of Grand Marnier and orange juice in each. Then, top with pale lager. Garnish with orange twist or orange wheel.
We had a lovely day at Lake Keowee from start to finish.
A misty day on Lake Lanier…
In the distance, the mist is like a watercolor fantasy. Up close, the land is vivid and alive.
Have you ever read The Mist by Stephen King? The 2007 movie version is more than a little bit creepy, too. But, the book will really get to you. It’s dark, moody and ripe with vivid imagery. Read it on a misty day. We’ve been having a few of those lately.
Aperol Mist
makes 2
2 ounces lemon juice
2 ounces Aperol
2 American pale lager
(Dream Machine, Magic Hat)
lemon weges, to garnish
In two chilled tall glasses, add one ounce of lemon juice and one ounce of Aperol to each glass. Top with beer. Is there beer left in your bottle? Drink it! Then, go chill with a friend as you sip your cocktails.
Cheers!
(Cocktail recipe from Bon Appetit, July 2014)
This was a beautifully surreal day.
Apricot Blossoms
They’re always the first to bloom in our back yard… maybe we need a cherry tree, too.
It’s a fleeting beauty.
Today, half of those petals carpet the floor and new blossoms take their place.
What’s that?
This scraggly little thing is our little blueberry bush. Finally, it’s big enough to qualify for bush status. We’re just happy to see that it’s still alive and kicking. The raspberry sprouts have grown nicely and they’re sprouting leaves. Several blackberries are sprouting leaves, too. We’re really happy to see that so much plant life made it through the winter.
The white princess peach is budding. But, it’s just too early for peach blossoms.
A Gorgeous Broccoli Display At Our Local Whole Foods
I love broccoli. But, it takes a little bit of love to make it properly. You can’t just throw it in a pot of boiling water and forget about it. Well, actually, i suppose you can. But, you won’t enjoy the results. Give it a little bit of love and you will be rewarded for your efforts.
Roasted Broccoli With Garlic
about 4 large servings
1 head of broccoli
4 cloves garlic, diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
5 Tablespoons butter
red pepper flakes, to taste
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
about 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, or to your taste
1 lemon, halved
1 teaspoon lemon zest, if desired
1/4 cup pine nuts
Wash broccoli. Cut off woody end stalk, if necessary. Slice into long strips. Blanch in boiling water for about 3-5 minutes in a large dutch oven filled with boiling water. Drain and place in a large bowl of ice water. Return dutch oven to the stovetop. Add about 1/2 cup water and 5 Tablespoons butter. Melt butter over low heat. Add garlic, pepper, and salt. Drain broccoli and toss in the butter mixture. Then, spread broccoli pieces flat on a baking sheet. Roast at 425 degrees F. After 15 minutes squeeze lemon over broccoli. Top with pine nuts and a delicate sprinkle of lemon zest. Roast until golden edges appear. This will probably take 25-30 minutes depending on the size of your pieces. Broccoli should be very tender touched with golden brown edges.
Serve with grilled or roast chicken (or salmon).
It’s almost spring. That means it’s time to start cleaning out the freezer. As usual, there was a leftover bag of cranberries and a couple bags of frozen raspberries (I love a raspberry and mixed berry smoothies.) So, I tried combining the two. It’s a winning combination. From start to finish this took about 15-20 minutes. I love washing, prepping and freezing fruit for smoothies. It makes life so easy. Now, I have another great use for those ready to use bags.
This jam is absolutely incredible on a sliced chicken breast or smoked turkey sandwich. And, tomorrow, it will be the condiment of choice on a grilled cheese (brie) sandwich.
Just a couple stirs and the raspberries begin to melt away.
Cran-Raspberry Jam
makes just under 4 cups
12 ounces cranberries
12 ounces raspberries
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
Combine water and cranberries. Bring to a boil. Add sugar. Simmer until cranberries start to pop and break down. Add raspberries. Simmer gently until the mixture reaches the consistency you desire. Pour into a large bowl, crock and/or containers of your choice and refrigerate.
(It’s disappearing at light speed. We’ve been spreading it on roast chicken, smoked turkey, and roast beef sandwiches galore. And, we’ve added more than a few big, artfully swirled schmears to a couple cheese plates. And, we’ve topped more than a few bowls of Greek yogurt with a little spoonful, too…instant breakfast! We’ve managed to find uses for it… breakfast, lunch, and dinner.)
To be exact, it made just over 3 2/3 cups.
Psst… They don’t call it a spoon sweet for nothing. Warm up a couple of spoonfuls and serve over a little scoop of vanilla ice cream and top with a dollop of whipped cream.
Effortless weekday dessert… divine!
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