Morning Glory!!!!

I remember when I was a little girl, my sweet daddy would say, "morning glory" when I entered the kitchen to have breakfast before going off to school.  Of course, I did not know at that time, that "morning glory" was actually a flower. In the last 5 years or so, I have had more time to spend in the yard.  One of the things that I added to the flower beds were Morning Glories. I love them!! They are climbing the fence all summer long, and even now into the early fall. Each morning upon waking and opening the blinds, they welcome me to a new day. Their color is so beautiful. I believe that they do come in other colors like purple and pink, but I do not have any of those.....not yet anyway.  Sometimes I look out at them and say...."morning glory".  That's a nice memory for me.

Molasses Cookies

The fall breeze is in the air, and with that comes inspiration to cook, at least for me it does. I was blog hopping and came across a group of bloggers that are posting about "cookies". They are posting 12 weeks of cookies, with the idea that when they began, there are 12 weeks until Christmas. (Now that is hard to believe.) Well anyway, I found a cookie here called Molasses Cookies.  She mentions that they are just like Starbuck's, but I am not familiar with their cookies. I decided to give them a try, because they sounded like the "fall-like" treat I was looking for.  I was thinking that permeating the house with the scent of molasses, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, etc. was the perfect thing to do.

Well let me tell you, they were "delicious" and they turned out perfectly.  You might want to give them a try.  Here is the recipe, compliments of http://bakingandcreatingwithavril.blogspot.com. I urge you to go visit her website and check out her delicious postings and to see all of the other cookies the other bloggers are posting.

Molasses Cookies

3/4  c  unsalted butter

1 c  brown sugar

1 egg

1/2  c molasses

2 1/2  c  flour

2  tsp baking soda

1  tsp cinnamon

1/2  tsp salt

1/2  tsp  nutmeg

1  tsp ginger

Directions                                      

Cream together butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Add in egg and molasses and beat about a minute.

Add all dry ingredients to a separate bowl, and stir with a fork until well blended.

Add dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until well combined.  Cover bowl and refrigerate for 1-2 hours or until the dough is firm.

Preheat oven 350. Roll a tablespoon sized ball between the palms of your hands (clean of course..ha), then into a small dish of sugar. (Use about 1/3 cup of sugar to roll in)

Then put on a cookie sheet. (I did not grease mine or use parchment paper, which she suggested, and they turned out great. Bake 10-15 minutes. Don't over bake or they will get too crispy.  You really want them to be crispy on the edges and a bit chewy in the middle.

Happy baking and happy fall!!!!

Garden Goodies.....So long for now!

Well now that Labor Day weekend is here, it's time to say goodbye to summer garden produce.  Farewell to lots of fresh pico, cucumber salads, eggplant parmesan, squash and tomato saute, eggs cooked with lots of fresh veggies, and so many other delicious meals and sides that were created.

This picture shows a "big haul" from the garden after being away from home for a few days in July. The white cucumber in the front of the picture is called "white wonder".  It was a very prolific grower, but a little bitter to the taste. When I tell you that I had cucumbers coming out of my ears, I mean every word of that. It was unbelievable!! I have made a "note to self" for next year......don't plant so many cucumbers, don't plant more than one kind (they do cross pollinate....ugh), and don't plant white wonder.

This was my second garden ever, and it was a good one.  I started last year with 2 beds about 3' x 15'.  Then this year added 2 square foot gardens using the plan from the book titled: All New Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew. I loved the whole concept presented in the book. If you are looking for a way to get started, I suggest checking out this book.

Gardening is not only fun for the family, but you know where your food is coming from. Now that's something "pretty special". 

Happy Labor Day! Bye Bye Summer!

Get Out of the Supermarket, Whenever You Can!

Today's post comes from my new book: Food Rules, An Eater's Manual by Michael Pollan.  It is the "coolest" little book with short little rules to help you decide what to eat today, because as he says: "Eating today has gotten complicated." I chose this little rule, because I have really enjoyed going to the Farmers' Market this summer, and it's almost over until the fall. : (
Have you visited your Farmers' Market?  It's fun. There are nice people to meet and see, great healthy produce and other baked goods, music, fresh warm summer air, and lots of other things to make you happy.
This is what Michael Pollan has to say about this topic of staying out of the supermarket.

"You won't find any high-fructose corn syrup at the farmers' market.  You also won't find any elaborately processed food products, any packages with long lists of unpronounceable ingredients or dubious health claims, anything microwaveable, or perhaps best of all, any old food from far away.  What you will find are fresh, whole foods harvested at the peak of their taste and nutritional quality--precisely the kind your great-grandmother, or even your Neolithic ancestors, would easily recognize as food.  The kind that is alive and eventually will rot."

I don't know, but this seems like a good idea to me. You may also want to check out the book too. Michael Pollan gives some great advice in a short concise way, making it an easy read.
Stay away from over processed foods, because they are really bad for you. Eat more fresh vegetables and fruits, and try to do more of your shopping at the farmers' market and small produce stands. As he says, "Get out of the supermarket, whenever you can."

Banana Pancakes and Ice Cream

I just found the most amazing recipe for banana pancakes.  Well actually I found it yesterday, and I made them this morning.  They are made of 1 banana and 2 eggs!  There is absolutely no flour, so this makes it good for anyone who has gluten intolerance.  It's also good for people who are trying to avoid breads and flour products. I am quite sure that children would love them, but so would grownups. They are quite sweet just like they are.  I guess if you HAVE to put something on them, I would suggest local honey or real maple syrup. You would not want to ruin them with a bunch of sugary high fructose corn syrup, that is so BAD for you. Here is the link to the website where I found them. She has the directions for making them and a photo....which I don't have....sorry.  On the same page she also tells how to make banana ice cream with just bananas....WOW!! I can't wait to try this.

http://www.scdkat.com/2010/08/hot-banana-cold-banana/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+KatsFoodBlog+(Kat's+Food+Blog)

Hummingbird Feeder

Do you have a hummingbird feeder?
A hummingbird feeder is great fun to watch.  They are so cute and very interesting.  Several of them will try to approach the feeder and then chase each other away.  When one finally does get a chance to drink, he will sit on the edge to take several drinks and then fly away to a nearby tree limb to watch for the others to come back.  They will go on like this for hours. Mine is placed close enough to the kitchen so that I can watch while cooking, doing paperwork, or working on the laptop.
If you would like to make some nectar for your feeder, you will need to boil 4 cups of water along with 1 cup of sugar. You will need to let it cool to room temperature before pouring it into your feeder.  Do not use the red dyed nectar that is sold in stores.  The red dye is not good for them. (Red dye is not good for you either.)
Be sure to keep your feeder clean.  If you see mold or lots of bugs in your feeder, you will need to clean it. Don't use strong soaps and cleaners.  Keep your soaps mild and let it dry before adding your new nectar.

If you would like to learn more about hummingbirds, check out the site below.

http://nationalzoo.si.edu/scbi/migratorybirds/webcam/hummingbirds.cfm