Sky Watch London

I am keeping my eyes on the London skies

You just never know what will fly by...

This is my first adventure with Sky Watch Friday.  It is kindly 

brought to you via Old Wom Tigley...check 'em out!

Happy Birthday Baby "B"

Cousin "B" turned 20 something this week ...

(cousin "B" feeding cousin "E")

Her boy toy (teehee) gave her something so she would always remember him! 

And her friends gave her something she may want to forget!

Either way, 

Happy Birthday 

"B" 

ABC Wednesday

Waahoo...it's ABC Wednesday!!!

Ok boys and girls, the letter for today is....

(drum roll please!!) 

Sydney you will be missed

Silly

Spaghetti Squash

Shrimp and...

Shennanigans!

(while I stayed @ my brother's home when my 

dad was in the hospital, I had to entertain myself, 

so I decided to adorn his Ficus tree with a few 

of his daughter's things...tee hee) 

Click on photo and see what you can find????

Thanks Mrs. Nesbitt

Dream On...

"The future belongs to those who believe 

in the beauty of their dreams." 

Eleanor Roosevelt

Over Your Head on Friday

Yea, this is a special post for MPM and TSANNIE

This is what I saw out my door on this fine Friday before Memorial Day...

just in time for the BBQ

(Photo courtesy of Google images)

I think I will have a little wine with my swine...

I'm just sayin'

Memorial Day BBQ

Ok, it's time...get your grilled cleaned for the season and fire it up! 

Here is a great crowd pleaser....BBQ ribs!! 

Yea baby, lip smackin' good I originally published this on my son's blog 

Connor Chronicles (via mommy)

I think this recipe worthy of this blog...

I'm just sayin'!

Ribs,

Jules Way!

*Baby back ribs...enough for your crowd and a little extra.

*Penzey's Bavarian Seasoning

*Kosher salt

*Fresh coarse ground pepper

*Liquid smoke (optional)

Preheat oven 250...low and slow...

-Line a cookie sheet with foil

-Place ribs on foiled sheet

-Liberally sprinkle with Bavarian, Salt and pepper

-Sprinkle/spray with liquid smoke (optional)

-Cover with heavy duty foil-seal tight all sides of sheet

-Place in oven and bake for 3 hours

Remove from oven and smack on your favorite BBQ sauce 

(store bought or make your secret family recipe!)

The gooey-er the better....we want it "finger lickin' good", 

hmmm, heard that somewhere before.

Now get the grill going extra hot, grill ribs on both sides till the sauce starts to caramelize

Have a great holiday weekend!

Art on a plate

I love, love, love this Balsamic Blaze Glaze, so I had to share.  

This is like art in a bottle, it makes just about anything look great!

On fresh mozzarella, tomato and  basil

on steamed asparagus

I'm just sayin'...this is nectar of the gods!

Say a little prayer for me.....

Just about 4 weeks ago, my dad suffered a stroke...A couple of my brothers and I flew to the Midwest immediately to meet up with our  3  other siblings.  When we arrived it was quite late so we poked in on our dad only to find him  in a "coma" state to help stabilize him.  Deciding there was not much to do until the morning, we looked for a place to lay our heads until then...the sweet nurse suggested we stay in the family center of the hospital..

it had a pull out love seat and a chair.  

Ok, I love my brother and all but at 6' something and 250+lbs, I said, Ahhh, I don't think this is going to cut it.  We quickly found a Holiday Inn Express!

The first 72 hours were the hardest...we played the waiting game. Fortunately, I have many siblings, aunts and uncles who cared as much. 

The nurses and doctors really didn't know what they were getting into...we took shifts going in to his room to talk with him while he was hooked up to every apparatus you can imagine...

they asked often...how many kids did your dad have??

Every day we experienced new emotions of sadness, 

of hope, of uncertainty....I was very lucky to be surrounded by diversions..

to help remember a certain time of life, to make me smile and to eat something sweet...

my sister-in-law made these to die for short bread cookies that just melt in your mouth.

Diversions come in handy during a time like this...

my sister and I found a mall nearby and did a little retail therapy!

Today, my dad is recovering in rehab and works diligently every day to speak and walk again...

 our prayers and thoughts are with him.

I'm just sayin'

Sunday with Shakespeare

"Age cannot wither her, nor custom stale

Her infinite variety: other women cloy

The appetites they feed, but she makes hungry

Where most she satisfies."

William Shakespeare, 

Antony and Cleopatra

Carry on my blogger friends...

Tar Beach and Tea

Finally, a beautiful day with not much to do...

so I decided to stock up on some 

Vitamin D to ward off the evil C. 

Why not a dip in the pool?...Oh wait, I don't have a pool...had one last year?? 

You see my lovey decided that we needed a bigger, better pool last fall, so we ripped out the old pool the surrounding deck too, to make room...

Only to find out that he may not have a job in 3 months. 

So we waited through the winter months looking out at our frozen mud hole till spring. 

Alas, it's spring...the job is gone, the hole is filled and 

our lawn has just increased an additional 20' x 40'....

But hey, I am a Sagittarius for F's sake...I need sun! 

Then I remember our early days of marriage 

no kids, living in a swank condo in the city...

What did I do then?? Tar beach of course! So I grabbed my chair, oil and tea 

and off to the driveway I go...the only thing missing is my reflector...perhaps Mentalpause will let me hang at her pool in exchange for shooing the ducks off..or milking her cows...

I'm just sayin'

Have a sunny day,

Jules

Another Culinary Concoction Follow-Up

This dish turned out to be more of a Veggie Bouillabaisse...

it was quite tasty 

so here is my version of the recipe...or lack there of...

Tomato Sauce

Sorry old family recipe..Ha! Not really, there is no real recipe, 

I just make it up as I go, here are the basics:

2-3 cloves of garlic

2 shallots

4 Tbs Olive Oil

7 plum tomatoes 

(you can cheat and use a couple of cans of 

petite diced tomatoes instead)

2-3 sun dried tomatoes (optional)

1/2 cup Locatelli Romano cheese (finely grated)

1 cup of Italian parsley (chopped)

1 cup of basil (chopped)

1/4-1/2 tsp fresh nutmeg

Fresh ground pepper (to taste)

Kosher salt (to taste)

Heat olive oil in a skillet.

Add garlic and shallots cook till opaque.

Add plum and dried tomatoes cook for 4-5 minutes.

Add cheese, parsley, and basil cook for 3 minutes.

Add nutmeg, pepper and salt cook for 2 minutes.

Pour mixture into a blender and pulverize for a couple of minutes.

Set aside.

The Veggies

4 Zucchini

4 Yellow Squash

4 baby eggplants

~~~

Food processor with 1/4" blade.

Process all of the above and keep veggies separate.

~~~

3-4 cups Shredded Cheddar/Jack cheese

(I have issues with cheese...the more the merrier!)

Locatelli Romano cheese

Fresh ground pepper

~~~

The Assembly

In a casserole dish line the bottom with sauce.

Artfully place zucchini around the dish.

Add a handful of shredded cheese and generously sprinkle with Romano cheese

Next, artfully place yellow squash around the dish. 

Add a handful of shredded and Romano cheese.

The last layer is the eggplant, place around the dish.

Cover eggplant with the remaining sauce.

Then add the rest of the cheese over the top.

~~

Cook uncovered @ 350 for about 40 minutes or until bubbly..

if it starts to brown too much cover with foil.

I served this with spaghetti squash and a slice of focaccia 

(store bought..I'll share my recipe on another post;)

Ciao'

Jules

Move over for Dover...

I made Dover Sole for the first time last night...

of course with the help of tsannie, 

the dish was delish...so I thought I would share...

So easy and so good!

5 fillets of Dover Sole

1/4 C Flour

Fresh Ground Pepper

Kosher Salt

~~

3 Tbs Butter

1/4 C Olive Oil

1/4 C Vermouth

1 Lemon

Heat Butter and oil in a skillet (I use a cast iron)

Mix flour, pepper and salt.

Rinse fillets in water and shake off excess water.

Dip fillets in flour mixture.

Place floured fillets in hot butter/oil mixture 

till brown on both sides.

Remove from skillet to a plate lined with 

paper towels (helps soak off excess oil)

~~

Continue to heat butter/oil mixture pour in 

vermouth cook until alcohol burns off.

Whisk mixture with the juice of 1 lemon, salt and pepper to taste

Served with Rice Pilaf and a balsamic broccoli slaw 

Bon Appetit,

Jules

This little piggy...

Since my eldest is home from school, she requested 

a home cooked meal...her fav, Parmesan breaded chicken cutlet...

so I obliged...only to be told it looked a little porky! 

Check it out...

...I'm just sayin'

Hey All You Mommies!

God could not be everywhere, 

so he created mothers. 

~Jewish Proverb~

Happy Mother's Day!!

It's a Woot Off!!

Check out Woot today...

Another Culinary Concoction

I'm tired of the birds...remember that movie "The Birds" 

(an Alfred Hitchcock classic)

...scared the crap out of me when I was young

I bet you think I am going to share my 

black bird pie recipe with you...Ahhh, never...

Wednesday morning I caught a glimps of Rachel Ray...she was preparing some sort of ratatouille that looked mighty fine...I am sure her site has the recipe. I was bored last night, so I had me a nice glass of vino and started to cook..remembering her segment but not going to her site, I thought I'd give it a try...well I got a little bit out of control and my ratatouille turned out to be more of a casserole or veggie lasagna...it looked pretty...

check it out!

It's in the oven now...smells good, 

if it tastes good, I will share my version

TTFN

Window Treatment

Since I have squirrel issues....

my finches prefer a little window treatment!

Fluttering Finches or Not!

Come on girls...tsannie and MPM...did you really expect me to post about my yard birds...

I don't think so Lucy!...The joke is on me...

I put up the sock of food and all I got was a big fat furry headed squirrel!

So instead of marvelling at their beauty, I found humor in their fluttering....

I'm just sayin'

Wild Kingdom.....it's for the birds!

So....my cocktail corner friends, mental and tsannie, did a post re the birds they are attracting to their yard...la, la, la, so I decided OK,  fine,  I'll put something up in my yard and see how it goes.  So, off to the store I go...got the Shepard's hook, a hanging feeder, a sock full of seeds, a window feeder and bird food that I can eat as trail mix in a pinch.  

At first, I thought oh how sweet...

look at the little birdies, aren't they cute

Then...wait what's that big fat furry tail hanging upside down from the feeder... squirrels!!  How do they get up there? Well apparently, those lovely creatures have the ability to jump 4 feet from the ground 

and 8 feet from a roof or wall.

Why do I know this information?

 

Anyway, I spent the majority of the past 3 days chasing and screaming at the squirrels to leave...like they could understand~~most of the time the squirrels would saunter up the hill and look at me like "WTF lady, you put it out there...someone gots to eat it"~~that's squirrel speak...Did you know that squirrels must eat constantly or their teeth will over power their head? (speaking of teeth, check out Noble Pig today...hmmm, I'm just sayin')

...more useless information...

Back to the store I went....apparently, I am a baffoon....

these bird feeders also require a squirrel baffler..

the baffler is designed to make it impossible for the squirrel to get to your feeder

...Ahhhh, doesn't seem to be working all that well..

I tried to get a picture of the squirrels however, they all ran off 

and all I was left with was this..ewwwww

GOT 'EM!

...I'm just sayin'

Cinco De Mayo

In honor of Cinco De Mayo, I thought I would share 

one of my favorite Mexican meals...

Flank Steak Fajita Bar

The Steak/Marinade

1 1-2 lb Flank Steak

1/2 c Worcestershirer sauce

1/4 cup tequila (optional)

2-3 limes (juiced)

Penzey's Seasonings:

Fajita, Northwoods, Lemon/Pepper, and Bavarian

Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

Flank steak is a relatively tough cut of beef, however, a good marinade 

and cutting the steak properly will give you a succulent piece of meat.  

Mix Worcestershirer, tequila, lime juice and seasonings in a large Ziplock, 

add flank steak and let sit on counter for an hour.  When ready, grill meat over medium to high heat about 4-5 minutes each side.  Cover with foil and let sit on a grooved cutting board for about 4 minutes...the steak will continue cooking.  Now here is the tricky part, position meat so it is horizontal on the board.  With a v-sharp knife, slice meat at an angle across the grain in thin strips.  Cover with foil on board until the rest is prepared.

The Sides

3-4 red peppers (remove seeds and cut in strips)

1 large onion (cut in 1/4 inch rounds)

2 Tbs butter or margarine

Melt butter or margarine in a skillet 

(I prefer a well seasoned cast iron skillet),

 add peppers and onions and cook over medium heat until 

onions and peppers are caramelized. 

Remove from heat and set aside.

~

1 can of refried beans

1 c Velveeta cheese (cubed)

Place beans in a sauce pan with Velveeta, 

cook over medium heat until cheese is melted

(tsannies Fav)

~

Box of your favorite Spanish rice 

(Old El Paso is pretty good)

The Condiments

White or wheat flour tortilla's (I use the large size)

Home made* or store bought Salsa

Shredded Lettuce

1-2 bags of Shredded cheddar cheese

Sour Cream

*3-4 tomatoes chopped (retain juices)

1 medium onion (chopped)

1/2 cup Fresh Parsley (finely chopped)

1/2 c Fresh Cilantro (finely chopped)-optional

1-2 limes (juiced)

1 Tbs Olive oil

Place above ingredients in a bowl, 

mix together and set aside.

The Bar

To set the fajita bar place items on a 

table or bar in this order...

Plates/utensils

Flour Tortilla's...fill with the following...

Refried Beans (spread on the tortilla)

Flank Steak

Red peppers and Onions

Shredded Lettuce

Shredded Cheese

Sour Cream and Salsa

Spanish Rice

Add a pitcher of margarita's (check out the yummy recipe on Noble Pig) 

and I'm just sayin'...Ole'

Words to live by.........on any given Sunday

Be silly, 

Be honest,

 Be kind.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Run for The Roses....

Remembering our animal "athletes", their spirit, their physique,
their awesome inspiration

Let's all hope we get the chance of a lifetime!

Happy May Day!

As a child we would honor May 1st, "May Day" by bringing flowers 

to our elders some we knew, some we didn't, 

some we would surprise, some we didn't...

never the less, they were so touched to be remembered.  

So today I am honoring this day with a bouquet to you and yours...

May 1st, often called May Day, just might have more holidays than any other day of the year. It's a celebration of Spring. It's a day of political protests. It's a neopagan festival, a saint's feast day, and a day for organized labor. In many countries, it is a national holiday.

by Shmuel Ross

ps...This is also my daughter Lauren's 20th birthday..

love and hugs to her...

now go study for finals;)