Smooth Like Buttuh

"On our toast or on a muffin, 

Butter's what we spread.

It can go on popcorn too,

Or vegetables instead."

 ~Barney

Yes folks, I quoted Barney. Let's move along. What's better than butter? It goes in practically everything and Paula Deen even fries it. But, since the real stuff is not that great for your arteries, I try to stay away from it and use olive oil when cooking instead. But, sometimes yah just ghotta have some buttuh. So, to compromise, I use Smart Balance. I like it. So that works. I present, "healthy" herbed butter. Easy as pie and almost as good :)

All you need is: 

Butter (or a healthy butter option of your choice)

Freshly Chopped Herbs

Butter Jar

I took fresh cuts of Rosemary and Thyme from my garden and finely chopped them. You could use any combination you would like. I almost added garlic chives but decided just to keep it simple since Rosemary and Thyme are so potent anyway. After you chop the herbs churn together with the butter to make it nice and whipped. Put it in your jar or container and you are good to go! You can spread it on just about anything. Mr. Lucas and I spread it on the steaks we cooked tonight for a nice kick in flavor. Spread it on your toast or biscuit in the morning for breakfast, cook with it, add it to your favorite cut of meat or even tofu (with a vegan butter). Possibilities are endless.

Cheers!

Garlic Grillin'

I love roasted garlic. Yum. The smell of it roasting and the yummy sweet savory taste when it is roasted to perfection, oh man. Since I have my trusty new grill...I decided to grill it. Worked perfect. 

Materials:

Whole Garlic

Olive Oil

Sea Salt

Foil

Cut the top of the garlic off. Drizzle with EVOO and drizzle with salt. Wrap up in foil. Grill for about 30-40 minutes depending on how hot your grill gets. There you have it. Grilled garlic. Bam!

Cheers! 

Potting Plants In Paint Pails

I really need to give my outdoor decor a lift. Disappointed that my cucumbers did not grow this year put me into a gardening depression so I started to ignore my back yard. But, I do have some ideas on how to give it a little face lift so I can enjoy it a bit more. So, I started with a little creative potting. I love succulents, can't get enough of them. Plus, you don't have to water them everyday and they are very heat tolerant which I appreciate living in Texas.  There is a succulent/sedum nursery in town I just found. I plan to drag Mr. Lucas there next weekend. I want to plant one of those HUGE Agave Americana plants, my neighbor has one and I am jealous. I figure digging hers up in the middle of the night would be inappropriate. But...enough of my love for cacti. Here is my very simple and cute little project.

Materials Needed:

*Empty Paint Pail-you can find them at your local hardware store for about $5.00

*Soil

*Succulents/Cacti-several to arrange in your pail

*Hammer

*Large Nail

*Tongs-to handle those pesky cacti!

First, you will need to make holes in the bottom of the pail so when you water the soil it will drain. Take the hammer and nail and make several holes.

Fill your pail about 3/4 of the way (or a little less). Arrange your succulents and then fill to the top with soil so the plants are well secure.

Give it a little water and tah-dah, your done! You can make it your centerpiece for your backyard table or hang it like I did.

Happy potting. Cheers! 

Happy 4th!

How are you spending your 4th of July today? I am fortunate to be off of work. I slept in, drank several cups of coffee watching Bravo (my shameless addiction), and went shopping for supplies for a little project I will post very soon! We are going to a friends house for a fiesta later this afternoon. But, here is a little refreshing drink recipe to help you celebrate the holiday!

Watermelon Cucumber Granita:

Its so very simple. Since the watermelon and cucumber naturally have a lot of moisture in them, you won't need to add water AND...since they both have naturally great flavors you won't need to add sugar either! So, this is one guiltless pleasure of a beverage!

You will need:  

One small seedless watermelon-cut into small pieces

One cucumber, seeded, and skinned-cut into small pieces

The zest of one lemon

Lemon juice to taste

In a blender put your chopped watermelon, cucumber, lemon juice (about 2 tablespoons of the pre-squeezed kind) and lemon zest. Blend until liquid.

Pour in a baking dish that is safe for the freezer and place in the freezer for about 3 hours or until completely frozen. About every 45 minutes or so scrape with a fork so you don't have one solid block. 

When it is completely frozen and nice and fluffy pour into a glass and enjoy!! If you want to jazz it up to make a refreshing cocktail you can add a shot of rum or your choice of liquor.

You can make many different variations. My sister and I messed around with a recipe on my visit. We made Watermelon Basil Granita and it was delish! If you want to be festive you could half the watermelon, scoop out the contents to leave the watermelon shell and pour it back in when its frozen. Tons of ideas!

Cheers and Happy 4th! 

Spinning! (That's Meant To Be In The Tune Of Winning!)

I cannot believe it has been a year since I have spun yarn. Yes, a year. The same yarn I was spinning in Santa Fe last year is still on my spindle and is collecting dust. It's not that I'm not passionate about it anymore. Frankly, I'm not really certain what happened. Maybe there was just too much going on last year, my lovely little family did go through a lot. I love spinning. The sound of the wheel is comforting, the motion of spinning is calming, and the art of creating something is so very satisfying. Maybe I am just mourning not being in New Mexico! My poor little wheel has just been sitting, waiting for me to do something...anything. I have so much roving that still needs to be spun. I have so much wool that still needs to be carded (thank you so much Taos Sunflower!). I am excited about it. I am excited about spinning again, carding again, and even learning to dye wool...the proper way. I think sometimes it is easy to get in a slump. Not that you have lost passion...but just a plain ol' slump. However, I have come out of that slump and I plan to spin, card, dye, and learn as many new things about spinning and wool that I possibly can!

Cheers! 

A Girl And Her Grill

It's hot here in Texas right now and I don't like to be hot (and still dream about moving to the Pacific Northwest). So, in order to keep things nice and cool inside my house I cook outside so I don't have to turn the oven on. I absolutely love to grill. I'm not saying I'm a pro at it but I have fun when I do it. My first grill I purchased several years ago. Unfortunately...it got a little rusty which I am not certain is the safest to grill on. I am still on vacation..my last day...so to help cope with that I decided it was time to move on. Out with the old and in with the new...Infrared Grill is where its at! 

Mr. Lucas LOVES when I purchase things that take hours to put together...I am sure you sense my sarcasm here right? But, no matter what project I have him piecing together he always does it for me willingly and does a mighty fine job I might add! I'm a lucky gal.

I present, my new infrared grill! 

I have been very interested in grilling pizzas. Now, I have the proper grilling equipment so that is exactly what I did. 

I made whole wheat pizza dough in the bread oven. It is a very simple recipe and the bread machine does all the work. 

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Recipe:

1 1/3 cups water

2 tablespoons olive oil

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup all purpose flour

3 cups whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons yeast

finely chopped garlic (as much as you want)

Put all the ingredients in that order making sure to put the liquids in first. When you add the yeast make a "well" with your finger in the center of the flour (making sure not to breakthrough to the liquid) and add the yeast in the well. It mixes better that way. Then, put your machine on the proper dough setting.

Once my dough was done I divided it into 3 parts and rolled out to make individual sized pizzas. You can make one big pizza or several small ones.

 

 I coated the dough with an olive oil and garlic salt mixture.

 

Place on the grill. I cooked 2 minutes per side. Infrared grills cook a few minutes faster so if you have charcoal or a regular propane grill you may need to cook longer. You don't want the dough to be fully cooked at this point because you need to put your toppings on then place back on the grill for a few more minutes to complete cooking.

You have to be quick when cooking the dough/pizza so its good to go ahead and have all your toppings outside with you. Once the dough is almost done, take it off the grill and add your toppings. I made a mozzarella, garlic pesto pizza; veggie pizza (I sauteed the veggies prior to cooking the dough) with goat cheese, and pepperoni herb pizza. If you want sausage or anything else that needs cooking, do that prior so you can have it ready to go. I also had my citronella candle burning to keep those pesky mosquitoes away! 

There you go, that's it! The pizzas are so much fun to make, super easy, and super yummy! It is amazing how different the dough tastes when its grilled. It has a great flavor!

 

Cheers!

R&R

A little rest and relaxation can do a person some good.  I loved being tucked away in the Ozarks with not really much to do except relax. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty to do in the Ozarks where my sister lives but...I just wanted to chill out and that is exactly what we did! I just got back this evening. I had the pleasure of flying first class both ways (sorry, I had to brag about that even though to most people its probably no big deal). I pimped my flight! I have never flown by myself and I really have not flown that much before either but I think flying first class helped (well, psychologically anyway)! I was able to get in the quick security line and I was able to board the plane first. Plus, trail mix a plenty! Sweet deal...oh, and a glass of wine on the flight home. 

Of course I had to take a snapshot of my snack mix and OJ (my flight there was in the morning otherwise that would have been a snapshot of snack mix and a cocktail).

Once my plane landed in the teeny tiny Little Rock Airport...well, teeny tiny compared to DFW anyway, I saw my sister waiting at the Starbucks sucking down the rest of her caffeine...she had to drive 2 hours to the airport to pick me up! 

Our first stop was Target to stock up on some resources...since she is tucked away in the Ozarks and all. I bought Violet a new sheet set for her new bedroom. My sister and her hubby are working on building their house, from the ground up, by themselves and help from some really talented friends and family. Violet's room is done and super cute too!

After Target we had to take care of serious business...stopping at Oscar's Liquor store. They sell moonshine. Ha! In a Mason Jar in fact! I think since it is in a mason jar that must make it authentic. :)  

Then, a few hours later we arrived to our peaceful Ozark destination. The house is covered by lots of trees and is nestled down in a mountain hillside so it is about 20 degrees cooler...that's what I'm talkin' about!

During my visit we surprised Violet with decorating her room while she was gone fishing. When she came back she was very surprised about her new sheets! It was too cute.

I also got a tour of the garden. It was fabulous. I even managed to keep all the mountain ticks off me. :) They are growing so many things and it is amazing to see how huge the veggies are.

They were growing zucchini 4 times the size of this one! You can't get them like that in the stores folks. This is home grown right off the vine.

They also have loads of peach trees! Peaches aplenty! They are wonderful and juicy. So, what better way to enjoy my garden tour than to enjoy a peach daiquiri along the way? 

On Saturday we went into Mountain View for the Farmer's Market. I can never pass up a good Farmer's Market! We came away with lots of goodies and I cannot believe no pictures were taken! After a bit of shopping and a trip into Ritsy Rags...

....the best little sewing/quilting shop in the Ozarks....

Of course shopping worked up an appetite so we went over to Woods Soda Fountain for lunch. I had a grilled pimento cheese sandwich. Sounds kinda strange...yes...but is kinda good...yes!

After lunch I came across this sign. Pretty much sums up the little town. :)

On Sunday my BIL smoked ribs for a fathers day feast. I caught up with his family and ate some good food, incliuding fried zucchini from the garden and green beans from the garden too. 

I had such a nice time and I can't wait until my next visit! 

Cheers!