Preview

Here's a sneak peek at what we were up to last week on the farm in Kentucky.

But right now I have to get to baking a cake for a barbecue this evening.

O Tamarack on the West Virginia Turnpike

... you never disappoint.

From the Kitchen

More recipes. Because a little birdie told me that someone out there actually tries some recipes that I post. And frankly, cooking is the most exciting thing that I do, besides working and sometimes crafting.

Creamy Shrimp and Spinach Pasta. Meh. That's what I think about this recipe. It was in the "light and loving it section" of our 40 Years of Southern Living Cookbook. The second recipe from this section that fails to impress. The sauce had cream cheese and nutmeg in it. Yeah I don't know.

Tilapia with Green Beans. The fish is seasoned with oregano and parsley which was different from the salt and pepper we normally use. It wasn't anything spectacular so I was counting on the side dish, but the lemon and the tomatoes made a super tangy (?) nastiness.


Tyler Florence's Chicken Marsala. Delicious. This is evidenced by my dirty knife in the picture. I almost forgot to take the picture. Get fancy and have Italian for dinner tonight.

Chicken Asparagus Roll-ups. Yum and easy. I would have used thinly sliced chicken breasts, but Kroger was out. So make sure you pound the chicken as thin as the recipe says to. I modified the mayo mixture a little. I didn't use as much mustard and I used the Creole mustard that we have. I also added the lemon juice to taste so I don't know how much I ended up using. I didn't use tarragon and I used Tony's to taste. Probably could have used more of that. What else... oh yeah I put about 4 -5 asparagus spears in each roll-up. Make sure you don't cook the asparagus too long in the microwave especially if you like them crunchy like I do. They'll be cooking for like 25 minutes in the oven. I venture to say you could almost skip the microwave step all together.

Now let's talk about the Pioneer Woman. Have we discussed this already? It's been so long since I've been here. Her recipes are fantastic. Who doesn't love cooking with butter? And she's so funny. It's a great positive cooking experience when you use her recipes. Here are three we've tried:

Springy Shells. This was good. It made a lot and it's not really meat-for-every-meal-husband friendly. Which would explain why it's under the category "Cowgirl Food." I think I should have cooked my veggies longer before baking. So I'd make it again if I had a ton of female friends to feed.

Monday Night Stir Fry. We like stir fry. And I've been doing it all wrong. Getting the skillet hot enough is scary. (I could probably use less oil next time.) But the taste of this stir fry was so worth it. Next time I'll use brown rice and swap the baby corn for something green like snow peas. And there will be a next time. A splatter screen is so handy.

Penne a la Betsy. The only thing missing from this was a visiting sister.

And for dessert...

Brownie Cupcakes from 500 Cupcakes. Because Michael's stress from the approaching Step 2 may have transferred into me baking twice the week of the test. The first time was chocolate chip cookies from the recipe book that came with my Kitchenaid mixer. Anyway I suppose you could also call these babies "crater cupcakes" for obvious reasons. Despite their heinousness, they were tasty. The fudge icing was also yummy.

Frosty Treats

If your treat is too frosty, we suggest the oven mitt.

It might not officially be summer yet, but it sure feels like it. Here are some frosty treats you should check out:

Edy's Fruit Bars. Move over, popsicles, these bars are delicious. Maybe more expensive, but much more flavorful and less hand-numbing than Luigi's Real Italian Ice (see above picture).

Kroger Brand Birthday Bash Ice Cream. Because it's $1.99 and has a ribbon of blue icing and sprinkles. Word.

Splendora's Gelato. What? You don't live in Charlottesville? Maybe you should visit. And we'll get some gelato.

Ben & Jerry's Frozen Yogurt. Possibly available in your grocery's ice cream section.

May Book

I was a little nervous that having a real deadline (i.e. library due date) would discourage me from picking up The Kite Runner. No matter how interested I was in reading this book, the idea of a deadline threatened to leave it collecting dust on the coffee table. I picked it up and could barely put it down.

I haven't read many books in which the setting is not somewhere like the US or England. Besides The Good Earth which I had to read in high school, Love In the Time of Cholera was the first book I read and began to embrace another culture though its literature. The Kite Runner was another such book. It's a story set in Afghanistan and America. While I don't pretend to understand every nuance of Afghanistan's history and customs, the book shed some light on a people who have experienced things I can't even wrap my mind around.

It's a story about the bonds of family, friends, and those that you feel to your country. It's a story about atonement. Not the lightest of subject matter, but it's most definitely a book to put on your reading list.

On Mother's Day

Sorry it's late. Days off seem to bamboozle me.

Memories of you that I keep in my heart:

• Making every occasion spectacular by...
• Writing poems and posting them throughout the house on special occasions and...
• Putting up crepe paper streamers over my bed while I slept the night before my birthday
• Being by my side when I was in Girl Scouts
• Cleaning house on Saturdays
• Planning my wedding with me
• Playing croquet
• Selflessly helping finish last minute projects
• Saying no to cable and...
• Taking us to the library instead
• Telling us bedtime stories
• Taking us to church
• Being a shining example of a strong, intelligent and beautiful woman and the kind of mother I hope to be like one day

I love you. I miss you every day.

Smorgasbord

Yes, I cheated on that last post. Really, I intended to write it before April was over but I worked seven days last week and I've been working at least six days a week. I picked up an extra shift at the toy store yesterday to do more face painting at the Virginia Discovery Museum's second annual Discoveroo. I made a kitty ear headband and wore a cheetah print tank top to Discoveroo. I painted faces non-stop for three hours. It was exhausting but lots of fun. Kids are so funny.

Three bands played and there were tables set up with activities and raffles. One of the bands was Sarah White and The Pearls. You can listen to a few of their songs on their site. They were great and I'm hoping to catch them in concert. I just missed them! They played last week at The Southern.

In other news.

Let me tell you about these lettuce wraps.

Phenomenal. I left out the oyster sauce since the mere sound of it terrifies me. I used Boston Bibb lettuce instead of iceberg. I used ground turkey instead of ground beef. I threw in some Sriracha HOT Chili Sauce. (Yes you read that correctly, I got a little crazy and added something to a recipe.) I actually used fresh ginger. I found a perfect little piece and it cost $.03. I wasn't even sure if you could buy it all by its tiny self. I won't compare these to the Cashew Chicken Lettuce Wraps. They're different and they both hold a very high spot on our list of favorite recipes. We didn't have enough lettuce for leftovers so we cooked some rice and had it over rice. I think brown rice would be better, but it was still tasty.

Prepare to be wow'ed by how busy our social calendar has been.

On Thursday (the day after the macaron fiasco) we went to Madison House's Legacy fundraising cocktail reception (Michael was on the Board of Directors this year). We had a great time and the best hors d'oeuvres I've ever had in my life. Then on Friday I was invited to a Mary Kay type party by a teacher that regularly requests me to sub for her. It was fun to get out and be social. Then I met Michael and friends on the Downtown Mall for a birthday dinner and drinks. Last night we went to a friend's house for BBQ and cornhole.

And for the last bit of randomness, it's May 3rd and I know you're wondering what I'll be reading this month. I decided to read The Kite Runner. I also decided to walk to the library and get a card (good thing I put this off because they got new super snazzy library cards on the first). Michael and Theo joined me. Walking to the library is quite possibly just as fun as public transportation!

If you've gotten this far, thanks for reading. :) I'm trying to be better about blogging more and not all at once, but this month will be another busy one!