Outdoor Wednesday ~ # 33

Hosted by the lovely Susan on her blog "A Southern Daydreamer".

Please click the logo above to go to Susan's blog to see all of this weeks participants.


Thank you Susan!

For this weeks entry, I chose one of my garden photos from one year ago.

I love sunflowers so I plant them every year; all kinds.

I had the camera with me as I was out gardening in early September last year.

It was a beautiful late-summer day, the sky was gorgeous as I walked around this sunflower and snapped a shot.

It's one of my favorite, and I enjoy looking at it in the midst of winter when summer is a distant memory.

Happy Outdoor Wednesday everyone!

Let There Be White ( ... and Silver) !

Kathleen at Cuisine Kathleen is hosting Let There Be White, Part II, featuring all white tablescapes ~ Please click the logo below to be transported to Kathleen's blog.


Thank you for hosting us Kathleen.







Along with cooking, I love to play with dishes!

My home is now located in a heavily wooded forest area, and let me tell you, it takes a leap of faith to do a white table scape beneath a Douglas Fir tree which is frequented by the many, many birds (and squirrels) who visit our property.

Knock on wood, nary a "catastrophe" this time! :)

I went with a "Beachy" theme ~ all my life I've lived within an hour or so of the Pacific Ocean and beaches are dear to my heart.

Sources for most everything are listed at the bottom of the post.

Ahem, Ms. Kathleen...

I didn't get "the memo"... may I use "Silver" as my second color? :)

Along with cooking and playing with dishes, one of my other passions is gardening...

so to go along with the color scheme I just had to sneak in a shot of the rose "Sally Holmes".

Later, at dusk:

Thank you for stopping by today.

I hope you enjoyed our visit ~

please leave me a comment so I can come visit your blog, too.

~*~*~*~

Sources:

Iron and Glass Table and Chairs ~ Vintage, from a local Antique Shop

Tablecloth and Napkins ~ "Bistro" 100% cotton, from Beds Baths & Beyond

Glassware ~ French; Perigord, wine glasses. Polish; Williams-Sonoma at Home

Stainless flatware ~ "Hotel" from Neiman-Marcus

Silver Soup Spoons ~ King Richard by Towle

Woven Chargers ~ Originally brown, I spray-painted white

Dinner and Salad plates ~ Gibson from Big Lots (placesettings for 6 ~$19.95 on sale!)

Shell Bowls ~ Portuguese from TJ Maxx (if I recall correctly)

"Mercury Glass" candle holders ~ Big Lots

Clear Glass "Tulip" Votive Holders ~ Big Lots

Soup Tureen ~ I've honestly forgotten, I've had it for nearly 25 years but possibly Macy's.

Postcards from the Garden ~ The Queen and The Imposter

Please come sit and visit! Our weather has been surprisingly pleasant the past couple of days.

The milder weather is most welcome as the temperatures are usually pushing the century mark and beyond in August.

The roses continue to bloom ~

But not much else except a clematis here and there, a few sparse perrenials and a couple of annuals.

Unfortunately, the hydrangeas had an absolutely miserable year, with very hot days early on ~ they fizzled.

The roses are real; the incredibly prolific "Queen Elizabeth" tea rose.

The hydrangeas are imposters, but let's not tell anyone, okay? :)

Have a wonderful week friends!

Infused Vinegars ~ Make your own!

Fun and easy to make; homemade infused vinegars can add variety to salads, as well as a piquant finish to sauteed chicken, fish and chops.

This time (from left to right) Lemon & Garlic, Basil, Red Pepper, Bay Laurel, and the smallest bottle contains Sage-Rosemary & Thyme. You can easily use this same method with many fruits and flowers ~ just make sure to always use organic, unsprayed fruits and flowers.

Garlic has a tendency to float, so I skewer the peeled cloves before inserting them into the bottle. I slice the lemon slices very thinly, roll them gently, then slip them into the bottle. I always add some tendrils of lemon rind as well, since it contains intense oils-- the thin tendrils will settle on the bottom of the container. (You can thread the lemon slices on a skewer as well, roll them and gently work them into the neck of the bottle, but I don't bother ~ it's fussy work.) :)

I keep my eyes open for unusual bottles, and wash them thoroughly before use. This little bottle with the wooden stopper originally held imported Italian Balsamic vinegar.

You can use any vinegar you like ~ I prefer using a lighter vinegar rather than dark. The most economical vinegar to use is plain white distilled vinegar, it is perfectly acceptable.

For the Bay infused vinegar I just pluck some young leaves from one of the bay bushes. If you don't have access to fresh you can use dry Bay leaves instead. I like to add a couple of whole Allspice berries (Juniper berries work well too), and a couple of whole Cloves to add a flavor twist to the Bay vinegar.

I thread the dried red peppers on a skewer as well but you don't have to use a skewer, you can just drop them into the bottle and add the vinegar; just shake the bottle gently once or twice a week as the vinegar ages to distribute the pepper throughout.

If you don't want to find or save bottles, you can usually find them for a reasonable price sometimes they will come with their own dispensing spout~ like this Italian bottle by Quatro Stagioni. The hand painted pepper bottle came complete with the metal spout ~ for $1.99 (from Ross). I bottled the Bay Laurel & Spice vinegar in a small Sake bottle, from dinner out recently ~ I used a sparkling wine cork for the stopper.

Once you bottle the vinegar, allow it to age and infuse in a cool dark place for at least a month ~ it will last indefinitely.

Fresh or dry Bay leaves hold up very well, but tender leaves such as fresh Basil will soon discolor and wilt in the vinegar during the aging process, so you may want to age it in a jar then strain out the fresh herbs after a month, then place in a pretty bottle with a label.

Important note:

Red pepper vinegar will be very spicy within a few days ~ so you may want to strain and re-bottle far short of the 30 days

(Or just use it as a decoration in the kitchen area ~ it's pretty!) :)

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If you would like a printable copy of these ideas, they are on my recipe blog ~

you can find them by clicking HERE.

Thank you for stopping by, and for any comments you would like to share.

Capellini with Olive, Artichoke and Tomato Sauce

Here's a delicious vegetarian friendly pasta dish you may like as much as I do. :)

My recipe was inspired from one of Giada De Laurentiis' using spaghetti, I swapped capellini for the spaghetti, and added artichokes to the sauce.

I also streamlined the method for making the sauce. You can make the sauce ahead and refrigerate, then reheat as the pasta is cooking with no loss in quality.

I usually have all of the ingredients on hand year round so it's a handy recipe to keep in your repertoire ~ Of course in summer when tomatoes are at their peak you may prefer to use fresh, diced tomatoes.

If you try this one, I hope you love it as much as my family does.

If you would like a printable copy of the recipe, you can find it on my recipe blog by clicking HERE.

Thanks for stopping by today ~ have a lovely weekend friends!

Grilled Shrimp, Grapefruit & Spinach Salad with Sweet Curry-Ginger Dressing

An unusual combination of flavors, for sure.

(This is my entry for Foodie Friday. Brought to us by our darling host Michael on her delightful blog "Designs by Gollum". Please click the logo to visit Michael's blog!)

Now ~ on to the details about the salad and how it came to be:

Many times, rather than make a run to the store, I'll look in the fridge and pantry to find pleasing flavor combinations from what is on hand.


Yesterday, with the mercury climbing to 107 degrees (F) was one of those occasions when going down into the heat of the town was out of the question.

We really liked this one!

Light, fresh and low in calories~ perfect for dinner on a hot, hot day.



Grilled Shrimp, supremes of grapefruit (pure fruit, no pith or chewy membranes), toasted pecans, sweet red pepper rings, baby spinach and the interesting sweet curry and ginger dressing made the salad light, but bursting with a good balance of flavors and textures.

It's a good one to make all year round, but especially refreshing in the summer.

The dressing is simply grapefruit juice, a very little bit of oil, honey or agave syrup, freshly grated ginger, Madras curry powder, a touch of dry mustard and sea salt are whisked together.

Again, this is another one of my flexible recipes, you could easily substitute orange segments or sliced fresh pears for the grapefruit supremes.

Of course the dressing can be adjusted to your own taste; if you'd like the general proportions I used in a printable format it can be found on my recipe blog by clicking

HERE.

Thank you for stopping by today!

Please leave me a comment, I love to hear from my visitors!

I try to visit every blog and comment within a day or two. :)