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In: In The Kitchen

Warm summer days are finally here bringing the bounty of your garden with them.  Here is a delicious alternative to the usual green salad.  Colorful, tasty and easy to make, they also add a stunning presentation to your buffet table. Stuffed Tomatoes Take fresh, firm tomatoes and cut the pulp from them with a sharp knife, scoop it out with a spoon.  Mix together chopped cucumber, cabbage, bell pepper, celery, onion to taste, some of the tomato pulp and salt (I like to use pink Himalayan or sea salt).  Fill the tomatoes with this mixture and garnish with a small dollop of mayonnaise.  Served on aRead More →

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In: In The Kitchen

Before Brad and I moved to Idaho we lived in a small community outside of Yakima.  There is a little community church there and the Pastor’s wife was just the sweetest lady.  Kaye was kind enough to share this recipe, I think you’ll like them as much as we do. Kaye’s Macaroon Cookie Bars Crust: 1 box Devil’s Food cake mix or the dry ingredients of your favorite recipe 1/2 c. butter, softened 1 egg Pre-heat oven to 350°, grease and flour a 9 x 13 pan.  In a large bowl combine crust ingredients on low speed until well combined, mixture will be crumbly.  PressRead More →

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In: In The Garden

Our unusually wet spring and mild temperatures have created the perfect environment for many garden pests.  My biggest battle is with big holes eaten in my rose buds and the leaves of my hollyhocks are riddled with holes.  I always have some kind of bug hanging around but usually a blast with the water hose takes care of most of them.  My preferred method of treatment is dousing my plants with soapy water.  This usually takes care of the majority of pests but as much as I hate to, I’m thinking it may be time to resort to some insecticide.  The problem I encounter with insecticidesRead More →

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In: In The Kitchen

Poppy Seed Bread is a family favorite and has been a holiday tradition for as long as I remember.   We have it every Christmas morning, or when the mood strikes.  I like it warm with butter, oh my gosh it’s good.  It’s so good my sister is even having it made into her wedding cake!  The recipe calls for chopped nuts, I think pecans are best however, my son doesn’t like nuts so for the last 17 years I’ve been leaving them out.  This recipe came from my Grandma Sarah, she was a wonderful cook. Poppy Seed Bread 1 box yellow cake mix 1 small box instantRead More →

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In: In The Garden, Reflections, Thoughts and Ideas

The calendar may say June, but Mother Nature still has Northern Idaho stuck in spring.  Or, maybe it’s fall already, I hope not!  It’s a toasty 56° and cloudy right now.  We have a short growing season up here anyway, I’m worried if we’ll get much to harvest.  One weather forecast shows back to normal temperatures in the 80’s for next week, but then right back in to the 60’s and 70’s the following week.  On the good side, it’s keeping my water bill down! By the calendar, time to prune the lilacs is quickly coming to an end, but they are still flowering so hopefully I won’t miss theRead More →

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In: In The Kitchen

I am a huge fan of anything lemon; lemon chicken, lemon cookies, lemon cake, lemon meringue pie, lemonade, lemon drops and especially lemon bars.  There’s just something about them that reminds me of summer.  Boxed lemon bar mixes are great…but…homemade is so much better and is just as quick to make plus there are no artificial colors.  I like to switch it up sometimes and use lime instead of lemon, they are so yummy too. Lemon Bars 1 c. softened butter 1/2 c. powdered sugar 2 c. flour Mix together, a pastry cutter or clean hands work great for this.  Press into a greased 9Read More →

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In: In The Garden

I have been told that my husband’s Grandma Gertie always grew the most beautiful irises.  I wish I could have met her, I’ve heard so many wonderful things about her.  A few years ago, I bought two variegated iris that I have completely fell in love with.  They have gold and green striped foliage and the most beautiful lavender blooms.  They have grown and spread amazingly, I couldn’t be happier with them. Irises like a sunny spot and well drained soil.  Don’t over water or the rhizomes (roots) might rot.  They need room to spread so plant them about 2 feet apart.  Mulching is not recommended as itRead More →

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In: In The Kitchen

Remember a while back I shared my recipe for our Branding Time Casserole?  Well, here’s the chocolate cake recipe the we usually made for dessert.  This was given to me by one of our neighbors, she has been making this cake since she first got married in 1958.  It’s quick and easy, the chocolate isn’t heavy or overpowering and it’s good with buttercream frosting, chocolate frosting, cream cheese frosting, whipped cream or just dusted with powdered sugar. Sharon’s Easy Cocoa Cake 1 1/2 c. flour 1 c. sugar 1/2 c. dark cocoa, or whatever kind you have on hand 1 t. baking soda dash ofRead More →

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In: In The Garden

If your peonies are starting to bud out chances are that the ants have moved in.  The peony bud is covered in a sugary nectar that the ants just love to eat.  I was told, and always believed, that the buds would not open if the ants didn’t eat the nectar off.  Now, that theory seems to be up for debate.  Some are saying that the ants do nothing for the peony and to spray them or wash them off before bringing cut peonies into the house.  I am not an advocate of spraying, I don’t like using insecticides, especially if soapy water will work just asRead More →

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In: In The Kitchen

For several years, in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, we would travel to Greenleaf Lake State Park in Oklahoma to celebrate my Grandpa Mannon’s birthday and have a huge family reunion weekend.  We would all pitch in and make some fantastic food, play games and do a lot of catching up.  One of my favorite dishes was my mom’s cousin Ronda’s taco salad.  She would make huge batches of it and there were never any leftovers.  It’s great for feeding a crowd because you can easily adjust it to make as much as you need. Ronda’s Taco Salad 1 lb. hamburger, browned 1 headRead More →