Food Friday

Food, glorious food!!!  As you know, I'm always surfing the web to find various information...umm research is what I call it!  :)  While doing my surfing, I mean my research...I've come across quite a few blogs dedicated to recipes.  Since it's Friday and I have a severe case of writer's block, I'll share some food blogs with you today.  Let me know if you try any of the recipes.  (Some of the links are under the photos, otherwise just click the photo)

                                                         

        http://www.skinnytaste.com/

                      

 http://nancysrecipes.wordpress.com/

                                 

 

     

                                    http://www.familyfriendlyfood.com/

Family Fav!!

Wow...July is an important month in my family!!  Many birthdays are celebrated....starting with my first born, Prissy, then comes my nephew, DJ Man, then my dad, LD, and last comes my niece, Songbird,(she celebrates today)!!  We get together to celebrate as a family and this year is no exception.  We'll be heading to my mom and dad's house for a Lowcountry Boil this year.  Anytime we get together, the family requests I make a Seven Layer Salad.  It's a favorite...so I thought I'd share the recipe with you.  It's super simple to make and gets gobbled up in no time flat!!!

Seven Layer Salad                           

Ingredients:
1 head shredded lettuce
1/2-1 cup chopped celery
1/2-1 cup chopped green pepper
1/2-1 cup thinly sliced onion
1 large can small garden peas, drained
1 cup mayonnaise
2 Tablespoons sugar
4-6 ounces Cheddar Cheese, grated
12 strips cooked bacon, crumbled

Directions:
Layer ingredients as listed: lettuce, then celery, then green pepper, then sliced onion, then drained garden peas.  Next spread mayonnaise on top of peas; sprinkle sugar over mayonnaise.  Add cheese on top of mayonnaise then sprinkle crumbled bacon on top.
Cover tightly and let chill for 8-24 hours. 
Serves 12
*You can add tomatoes for another layer, diced chicken, boiled eggs...etc. to change it up!*

From Grandma's Lace!!

Last weekend our Harley Group headed to the mountains of NC for the annual Station's Inn trip.  It's a time for food, fun, fellowship and riding.  This year Harley Man was the Road Captain for one of the group rides and we decided to head back to Floyd, Va with 25 of our H.O.G. friends.  We wanted the chance to share all we found in Floyd on our first trip!

The first time we visited Floyd, I entered a little shop, New Mountain Mercantile, full of pottery treasures and more.  I fell in love with the lace-impressed stoneware pottery displayed in the store but didn't purchase any...why, I have no clue!!!  I found the pieces to be so beautiful and reminiscent of the lace patterns my grandma had around her house.  Once we returned home, I regretted not owning a piece of that pottery.  Hindsight, as they say....

This time I was determined to purchase at least one piece.  Actually, I wanted to purchase several pieces but space was limited on the motorcycle so I settled on a small pottery piece...a coffee cup.  To me it is just unique pottery and I plan to return one more time...in a car...so I can purchase a few more pieces plus a piece of two from another potter.

My photo doesn't do it justice!!

The stoneware is from Blue Heron Pottery and made by Jayn Avery in Floyd.  The clay actually looks like cloth and Jayn uses lace (many of which belonged to her grandmother) to make impressions in the clay.  When I first saw the pieces, I thought they were actually cloth made to look like lace!! The way this potter molds and folds the clay is so unique and if you didn't look closely you'd swear it was cloth!  This is pottery made to display.  Even better, her pieces are food, oven and dishwasher safe.  Just beautiful craftsmanship!!

If you'd like to see her pottery, go to http://blueheronpotterystudio.com/ or go to Blue Heron Pottery on Facebook.  I can't wait to return because these are two more pieces I so wanted to buy!  Maybe one day I can commission a piece made from my own pieces of lace!



Doing The Happy Dance!

Yep, went from "Aarrgghh" to doing "The Happy Dance"!!!  I have a new laptop and I am so excited!!!  No more overheating, no more short battery life, no more broken optical drive!!!  Yep, my old laptop was a hand-me down from Harley Man and it was barely capable of hanging on!!  Hey, it worked...well somewhat worked.  Lol!!

But now..now I have a beautiful new Toshiba Satellite Laptop all my own!  Great battery life, crystal clear screen, 640 GB hard drive, webcam and double layer optical drive, Windows 7, Microsoft Office 2010, fast...fast...fast and much more!!!!  Now I'm ready to "rock and roll"!!!!  Even better...18 month payment plan with no interest!  Can you say "heck yeah"!! 

Off to explore all the things my new laptop will do!!!  Oh yeah, doing the "Happy Dance" this morning!!!!

Argh!!!!!!!!!

This is how I'm feeling this morning!!!

Why, you ask?  My laptop has given up the ghost!!!!!!!  I turned it on and it won't work!!!  I've tried safe mode but nope it just goes right back to the same darn screen.  I am totally frustrated.  Now I have to go buy a new laptop.  Oh, I know what you are thinking...so what's the problem!!!  Geez, a new laptop...what are you complaining about???

It's not that I'm complaining/whining...I just have things on my laptop I need.  So I called Bubba, the tech magician and computer whiz, and he is going to see if he can get all my important stuff off the crashed laptop.  Thank goodness for him!!!!!!!

Anyway....I'm off to research laptops.  Hopefully, I'll be the proud owner of a new laptop by tomorrow!!!!!!! (Oh, I'll also get a boat load of thumbdrives to backup all my stuff!!)

Heck Yeah, I Can Pack Light!!!

There are times when I ride on the back of Harley Man's motorcycle...especially when we venture into the mountains.  Why??  I really am not comfortable with riding my motorcycle in the mountains.  I've done it many times but I just can't get comfortable with it just yet.  Go figure!!

Anyways...we travel on the motorcycle on short weekend trips to various locations.  When we first started these trips, I had no clue how to pack for a weekend.  I mean- a girls got a lot of important stuff to take on a trip, right??  There's clothes, hairdryer, curling iron, makeup, shoes, jackets...you get the idea.  Well, lots of that important stuff has to stay behind when packing for a motorcycle trip.  Geez..it's not fair!!

Cartoon from  http://carzy.ca/.

I had no clue how to pack "lightly" the first time and Harley Man was not a happy camper!  So I decided I better use my researching skills to find out how other "biker babes" packed for a trip.  Low and behold, there are actually sites where a girl can learn the fine art of motorcycle packing!!!  It's an art, okay maybe not an art, but that's how I think of it.  Rolling clothes is the way to go when packing. 

So now when I pack for a weekend bike trip...this is what I actually take!!!  Go Deb!!! :) 

 Yep, a pair of jeans, a pair of shorts, three shirts, lingerie, socks, makeup, shampoo/conditioner, toothbrush/toothpaste, perfume/lotion, brush/comb, hair dryer, straighting iron, 2 bandannas!!!  That's plenty for a weekend stay.  Amazing, right???  LOL, okay maybe not amazing but "Heck Yeah, I Can Pack Light"!!!

What Is That????

Have you seen a really weird transportation device around town?  It's red, low to the ground and has a flag sticking up on the back!!!!  Well, if you've seen it then you've seen Harley Man!  LOL  Nope, it's not a motorcycle....although he does use that mode of transportation quite often.

Give up??  Okay, I'll tell you...it's a recumbent trike.  Yep, we have one of those at our house and Harley Man makes regular trips around town on it.  Talk about a conversation piece!  Now Harley Man is all about maintaining a healthy lifestyle and for  years he's been riding a bicycle.  He decided he needed something a tad more challenging so we went looking and found a recumbent trike he thought would fit the bill!!

So early in the morning or late in the afternoon, he heads out to get in some physical activity on his trike.  He's been looking for others who ride a recumbent around the area but alas...no one has been found thus far.  So the next time you see this:

give a wave because it's my Harley Man cruising the area!!!  Lol!!!

Post-It Note Tuesday-Suggestions??

Oh, check out:

Fun, Food, Fellowship!

The H.O.G. group got together this past weekend and we ventured to Florence, SC to finally try a restaurant we've planned going to for several months!!  This time the sky was cloudy with a sprinkle of rain but we were determined not to cancel the ride again.  So with 13 motorcycles in staggered formation, we rode Highway 52 to Florence.  The rain never came, the sun pushed away the clouds and we enjoyed beautiful riding weather.

Our destination was Redbone Alley in Florence.  The restaurant is amazing...two floors designed inside an old JC Penney building to capture the feel of Charleston.  Our resting place was in the bar area....plenty of room for 18 motorcyclists to enjoy a delicious lunch.  The menu was varied and not a single person complained about the food!!!

Interested in the restaurant?  Just click this link http://www.redbonealley.com/ and you can read all about Redbone Alley's beginnings, view the menu and more photos of the restaurant.  We had a great trip and as always loved not only the food but the fun and the fellowship!!

Seriously 2!!



Seriously???! This heat has got to go!  It is just wayyyy too hot!!!

Seriously???! I read two books last week- Last Kiss and The Help!  Whoo Hoo!  And they weren't related to education....can you believe it??  Yeah, I know...they've been out for a while...what can I say!!

 

Seriously???! I want to try Mary Kay's "Lash Love" but I don't know anyone who sells Mary Kay!!! 

Seriously???! My teacher buddies now know why I was so anal about End of Grade Testing and the procedures being followed to the letter.  Enough said!!!!

Seriously???! Parents losing custody of their children because of obesity??  Come on people...let's educate children (and parents) on proper nutrition and exercise so they can be healthy in the years to come!  http://abcnews.go.com/Health/parents-lose-custody-obesity-children/story?id=14062898.

Love Those Summer Veggies!!!

Harley Man has some garden connections!!  For the past two weeks he's brought home some beautiful squash!!  Now when Harley Man brings home squash that means only one thing...he's anticipating Squash Casserole in a short period of time.  That man can eat some squash casserole!!!

As for me, I've requested his garden connections send some tomatoes.  I love homegrown tomatoes.  I do love a yummy BLT sandwich from time to time!!  I also love making (and eating) Dutch Club Broiled Tomatoes.  Mmmmm...my mouth is already watering.

Anyway, I thought I'd share those two recipes with you since there seems to be an abundance of both those veggies right now.  Of course, if you have other recipes for squash or tomatoes...I'll be glad to give them a try as well!!!

Squash Casserole 

Ingredients:

2 lbs. yellow squash; cubed or sliced
1 small grated carrot
1 small chopped onion
1 8oz. carton sour cream
1 can undiluted Cream of Chicken soup or Cream of Celery soup (your choice)
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese
Salt
Pepper
1 stick magarine
1 small package of Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing

Directions:

Place squash, onion, carrot in pot and cover with just enough water to cook until tender (about 10 minutes).
Drain squash, onion and carrot.
Add sour cream, cream of chicken soup, cheddar cheese to cooked squash, onion and carrot.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Mix well.
Melt margarine and add Pepperidge Farm Herb Stuffing to melted margarine.
Line casserole dish with 1/2 the stuffing mixture.
Pour squash mixture on top of stuffing.
Add remaining stuffing mixture on top.
Bake 30-45 minutes at 350 degrees.

Dutch Club Broiled Tomatoes

Ingredients:

1 medium ripe tomato
2 teaspoons chopped onion
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons grated Parmesan cheese
Salt
1 teaspoon paprika

Directions:

Cut tomato in half, cross-wise.  Place in cooking dish.
Put 1/2 of onion on each half.  Sprinkle with salt. 
Put mayonnaise on tomatoes and shape to a peak.
Sprinkle on paprika and Parmesan cheese.

Brown in 400 degree oven until skin comes loose.

Post-It Note Tuesday