Sunday Summary

Monday:  Another day in paradise.  I mean another day off from work.  And this time I got out of Phoebe’s dermatologist appointment for under 100 bucks.  That’s a win, for sure.

I made Easy-Street Oven Fried Okra from The Complete Southern Cookbook.  I had some asparagus hanging around; so I threw it in there too.

Tuesday:  I spent the afternoon in Magistrate Court.  I hope you never have to utter that sentence.

The doctor said Phoebe can go back to her homemade diet.  I was a little reticent at first; it’s so much easier to scoop out some kibble.  But since I try to stay away from processed food for myself I suppose that’s the least I can do for her.  So, once again, I am the crazy-lady-that-cooks-for-her-dog.

She can’t have much variety because we’re in the testing phase of her alleged food allergies.  I opted for Beef and Bulgur from the Feed Your Best Friend Better book.

Zuchinni, a can of diced tomato, and half a leftover orange pepper that I probably wouldn’t have used anyway.

Wednesday:  I love my job.  I had to make two trips to Buckhead for two no-shows.  I love my job.

I treated myself to a trip to the Ballard Design store.  Well, I guess the real treat was this new mat.

Let’s call it an early birthday present.

Thursday:  Look what came in the mail today.

My mom sent me her old canning books.  This one is from 1977.

And this one is from 1974.  Notice the $1.00 price tag.

This is the back cover.  This one made me smile.  I guess my mom didn’t follow this.  My parents got divorced in the ’80s.

Friday:  We had Malted Chocolate Milkshakes from Cooking Light’s Crave! for dessert.  When I was growing up we used to have popcorn and milkshakes every Friday night while watching Dukes of Hazzard.  Those were the days.

Saturday:  I didn’t do any work today and we didn’t run any errands.  We did go for a nice long walk along the Chattahoochee.  We saw a warning sign for alligators.  I’m glad we didn’t run in to one.  I don’t think Phoebe would have handled it well.

Drink of the Week:  Strawberry Daiquiri.  Thanks to my hard work with the Strawberry-Watermelon Rum.

We had Chicken Pasta with Pesto Cream Sauce for dinner.  Again, thanks to my hard work with the Basil-Pecan Freezer Pesto from Southern Living’s Little Jars, Big Flavors.

Sunday:  Do you know what today is?  It’s my birthday!

We went to brunch at Canoe.  I had the Fried Green Eggs Benedict.  Delish.  I took a picture for you, but for some reason I can’t get it off of my phone at the moment.

I made Double Chocolate-Oatmeal Bars from Woman’s Day, circa September 2003.

My mom used to make M&M cookies for me to take to school for my birthday; so this seemed like a good choice.

This was a low-key year for me.  At the moment we are watching Gone With the Wind.  It’s always been a favorite of mine.  I read the book for the first time last year and bought the DVD too.

If it weren’t for the new patio install I would be in Ireland right now.  My cousin tried to make me feel better by saying that the patio will last longer than the vacation memories.  Of course she’s right, but of course I had to mention this year’s excessive rainfall.  Next year:  Hawaii.

Good Deed of the Week:  Add money to an expired meter.  I’m just a few weeks out and I’ve had my first fail.  In my defense, there aren’t a lot of meters in Atlanta, at least not where I park.

Eat Well and Savor.

 

 

Sunday Summary

 

Monday:  There’s nothing like starting the week with a 1:00 job.  I love having the time to peruse the Web and make my latte in the morning.  It’s especially nice when the job is over by 2:00.  I did do some work from the couch, though.

Tuesday:  Off today.  I never really want to work, but I have to.  You know what I mean?   You have to support the shopping habit . . . and the grocery bill.  Today was nice because I did have to do some editing.

I am also proud to say that I renewed my library card today.  It expired a year ago.  Obviously I have gotten out of the habit of visiting the library.  I need to stop spending money at the book store; so this will work out nicely.

Wednesday:  The good thing about freelancing is you have time during the week to go shopping when you don’t have a job.  The bad thing about freelancing is if you don’t work you can’t afford to shop.

Apparently that didn’t stop me.  I picked up this beautiful book at Anthropologie.  I’ve looked at it several times before.  I told myself I didn’t need it because I already do a lot of the stuff in there.  Insert pat on back here.

I don’t want to be too much of an overachiever; so I’m going to try to make sure to hit one a week.

I also made Braised Red Cabbage with Apples, Onions, and Raisins from the Weight Watchers 50th Anniversary Cookbook.  Here’s  a secret:  I used currants instead.  No big diff.

I may be not so thrilled when it comes to radishes, but I do love cabbage.  My mom used to make green cabbage with ham and lots of black pepper.

Thursday:  I think we know each other well enough; so I don’t mind telling you that I had a hot dog for breakfast.  I’m sure I’ve established that I’m not really a morning person; so by the time I got up and woke up and actually had breakfast it was close to 11:00.  Besides, my job was at 1:30, which means I had to be there at 1:00, which means I had to leave at 12:30, and it was easier to pack my cereal.

I’d like to say the hot dog was the highlight of my day, and it kind of was.  I had to stop at Williams-Sonoma to pick up some Olio Santo aka Best Olive Oil Ever.  There’s a new Michael’s next door; so I stopped in.  I couldn’t have been in there more than ten minutes, including a stop in the bathroom, and I had at least 8 different salespeople ask me if I needed anything.  Two of them offered twice!  One even approached me from behind; so I ignored him, and then he still cornered me by a display case.   By the third time I was approached I actually stopped making eye contact.  By the seventh I started getting testy.  In my book, it was tantamount to harassment.  All of this for a lousy tube of super glue.

Friday:  After a nice morning at home with my latte I went off to Van Michael for a cut and color.  And when I say cut, I mean cut . . . I think my hair is five inches shorter.

My friend Lily came over for dinner, which consisted of Tex-Mex Beef and Bean Dip from Cooking Light’s Crave!

We also had a Southern Pimm’s Cup from Garden & Gun for the Drink of the Week:

Saturday:  I was in heaven for the afternoon:  AJC Decatur Book Festival.

I discovered Mirabelle the Boston Terrier.  She looks just like my Phoebe, and there are books, clothes, and greeting cards!

On top of that, Decatur is home to my favorite little book store:  Books Again.  Let’s just say they were having a sale.

Uh, only two of those belong to Jake.

Afterwards we went to The Iberian Pig for dinner.  I didn’t love my cocktail, the Aviation, but everything else was superb.  Don’t ya just love tapas?  You can sample so many dishes.  Variety is the spice of life.  We had Bacon Wrapped Dates, Albondingas, Veal Ravioli, and Croquetas de Queso.

Sunday:  What. A. Day.  It started out slow, but then we went to Costo, Pike’s Nursery, and Whole Foods.  Then we came home and planted our new blueberry bush and did yard work.  I. Am. Pooped.  But here’s hoping we are blessed with many blueberry muffins, cheesecakes, pies, and jams.

We haven’t had much luck with fruit in the past.  We have an apple tree that self-pollinates, but we didn’t realize that; so we bought another one to go with it.  Well, let’s just say that someone, not me, didn’t drill holes in the pot and the poor thing drowned with all the rain we’ve been having.  Then, just a week or so ago, I bought a patio peach tree that apparently produces inedible peaches.  Just my luck.  That has since been returned.  Thank you very much.  I have had a little success with the lemon true, although no lemons have actually turned yellow yet.

Good Deed of the Week:  Smile at a Stranger.   How easy is that?  I do this every day.  I see a lot of strangers when I’m walking the dog and in and out of office buildings.  I’m not perfect, though.  I’m only going to smile (and I say hi) if they’re looking up and willing to make eye contact.  I’m not into accosting strangers for the sake of being friendly.  See above remarks about the Michael’s employees.

Eat Well and Savor.

Sunday Summary

Monday:  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:  I hate when my job gets in the way of my cooking.  I spent about 9 hours in the car last week over a two-day period.  I’m really sorry if you have to do this on a regular basis.  I think I’ve finally recovered.  Fortunately I had an easy day today because the witnesses decided they didn’t want to appear.

I made these Mango Coconut Striped Popsicles from Pastry Affair.  I recently saw some popsicles somewhere on the Inter Webs (Jake will be so glad I said it that way) that used mango (one of my favorites these days) and coconut milk (a can of which I have leftover in the fridge), but I don’t think these were the ones I saw.  I think I’m going to stop right there and apologize for not making any sense.

Tuesday:   I finally made it to the nail salon today for a much awaited pedicure.  I took my new snazzy clutch that I got from Butter.  It was only $18 and I convinced myself that I could use it as a clutch for going out.   The reality is that my cell phone doesn’t even fit inside.  It does hold the base, the color, and the top coat, and now I don’t have to rummage through my purse.

I also made from this 2-Ingredient Pineapple Bliss Cake from Hungry Girl.  It’s just 1.75 cups of yellow cake mix and one 8-ounce can of crushed pineapple with juice.  Bake at 350 for 18 to 20 minutes.   Seriously, y’all, anyone can cook.

It doesn’t look like much, but it is moist as all get-out, whatever that means.  And if you put a thin layer of Nutella “frosting” on there it becomes a divine little treat.

Wednesday:  Sometimes I just don’t know where the day goes.  I mean, I only worked until noon, and then what?  Chat on the phone, check.  Run to the grocery store, check.  Work for an hour or so on the couch, check.  Make Dark Chocolate and Marzipan Ice Cream, check.

I wasn’t too sure about the ice cream.  There’s five egg yolks in there.  I’m no ice cream expert, but I’ve made quite a few amazing ice creams without them, so I’m beginning to wonder if they’re really necessary.  Any doubts I had were assuaged by the incredible fudge ripple sauce.  I think this must be Hershey’s top-secret chocolate sauce recipe.  Remember the one in the can?  Do they still make that?

Thursday :   Marnie and I had a nice little lunch at Café Intermezzo.  I guess technically we both had breakfast since there were eggs and croissants involved.   I hope you’re lucky enough to be able to have a 3-hour lunch with your BFF once in a while.

Friday:  I may have had to work today, but I was still able to make these awesome Philly Cheesesteaks from Cooking Light’s Crave!

The cheese sauce was perfectly creamy and very flavorful, but even I had to add an extra slice of provolone on there.

Saturday:  Can you believe I had a deposition this morning?  Of course it was a doctor.  I desperately needed a drink after. . . of course it was a foreign doctor.

Drink of the Week:  The Royal Warrant.

I wish I could say that this was in honor of the royal baby, but it was actually from Garden & Gun.  Shake an egg white with 3/4 ounces lemon juice, 3/4 ounces honey, and 2 ounces of gin.

Sunday:  I had a lot of work today but I had enough energy left to make this Whole-Wheat Bread from Williams-Sonoma’s Bread.

Oh, yeah, I will be eating toast and jam every morning this week with my latte.

Eat Well and Savor.

Potato-Peanut Cakes

I’m going to try to really focus and tell you about these little patties, but the truth is the memory of the prep is a little fuzzy, thanks to the sangria and the presence of my Lovely Assistant, Lily.  Not to mention I’m very distracted by the coverage of The Royal Baby.

This recipe is from Cooking Light’s Annual Recipes 2003.  I always find it amazing that I can keep a piece of paper around for ten years.  Even though I do have this book, I actually pulled the recipe out of the July 2012 issue of the magazine.

You should know that there’s a very important word missing from the title.

It’s also missing from this picture:  bacon.  First you crisp up a slice of bacon and then you sauté all of the above in the grease.

Here’s the best part — and I never thought it would work, but you cook the whole potato for 15 minutes, and then you shred it with a cheese grater.  I really was surprised that the whole potato cooked so well.  Seriously, it shredded like butter.  It really makes me wonder why I spent all of my teenage years cutting up the potatoes for my mom to make mashed.

Toss in the peanuts and some scallions, and an egg to keep it all together.  Next time I make these I will actually form them into nice little patties.  I used the ice cream scoop and the second batch kind of fell apart a little.

You should also know that these are only 110 calories each.   That’s a Happy Ending.

Eat Well and Savor.

Sunday Summary

Monday:   I made these Peanut Butter Nanaimo Bars to take to the office today to celebrate my three-year anniversary.

I saw these on Brown Eyed Baker and I had to have them.   I will note that the recipe said to cut the 9×13 pan into 24 bars.  I actually cut them into 36, and when I got to the office my manager cut those in half because they were so rich she didn’t want people getting lethargic, i.e., slowing them down.  I’ve been eating a sliver every day since then and highly recommend you give them a try.

Tuesday:  I didn’t have to work until 5:00 p.m. today, so I made a nice little brunch:  Bacon-Banana Pancakes with Buttery Bourbon Maple Syrup.

These are basically pancakes that you put a little bacon on after you pour the batter on the griddle.  Seriously?  Is this the most amazing idea?  Where has it been all my life?  Actually, I’ve seen it done with fruit, but I plan to try it with sausage some day.

Wednesday:  Another easy day; 3:00 to 5:00.  I can’t complain.  I had time to make these Steamed Green Beans with Tomato-Garlic Vinaigrette from Cooking Light’s The Food Lover’s Healthy Habits Cookbook.  Man, that is a mouthful.

This picture was actually taken when I made these back in February for Jake; they totally passed his test.  This week I made them with beans from my garden and it was a much smaller serving.

I also finished reading The Things I Do For You by Mary Carter.  Her books are always so much fun.  This one left me wanting more, which made me realize that I just didn’t want it to end.

Thursday:  I  made these Red, White and ‘Ol Blue treats for Phoebe from The Organic Dog Biscuit Cookbook.  They have strawberries, and blueberries, and cinnamon in them and smell way better than they look.   Full disclosure:   by Saturday we were at the vet with an allergic reaction.  I’m not convinced it’s the treats, but, as the vet said, it’s suspicious.  She’s been off her amazing homemade diet since January and in the last few weeks I’ve incorporated a few different treats.   Live and learn.

btw – my witness today was a female plumber.  I was very impressed.   She started as a file clerk and worked her way up.  She now owns the firm with 42 employees.

Friday:   I had to work again today!  It was a pretty easy doctor, which is unusual,  but it lasted until 3:00 p.m.  I tossed together this little shrimp and pasta with pesto and an heirloom tomato.  The only thing missing is some toasted pine nuts.

Saturday:  Marnie came over for lunch today!  I sent her packing with some leftovers:

I am so proud of my retro Tupperware.  I feel like my Gramma.  You’ll have to wait until tomorrow to see what’s inside.

That evening I went for the old appetizer for dinner:  Blueberry Chutney over Brie from the Fresh Market’s Cooking in Season.  Yeah,  I’ve looked at it 100 times and finally had to buy it.  I’m a sucker for a seasonal cookbook.  What can I say?

Sunday:  I made this Puffed Peach Omelet from Kelly Alexander’s Peaches.

I’m here to tell you that this picture doesn’t do it justice.  In my opinion, it’s more like a soufflé.  Just one peach and a couple of eggs, so good.

Today was my favorite kind of Sunday:  I did some work and some laundry and treated myself to a second glass of wine, which means Phoebe got a second treat, hypoallergenic, of course.

Eat Well and Savor.

Baked Couscous

With Summer Squash and Herbs.

No, that’s not a lemon.  When I saw that this recipe called for fresh oregano I knew I had to try it.   The cheese doesn’t hurt either.

I decided to go crazy and throw a zucchini into the mix.  The recipe specifically said yellow squash.

So you sauté the vegetables and cook the couscous.  Then you mix them together and put more broth in there.  I was a little skeptical that it was too much liquid, but it ended well, and cheesy.

On the scale of likelihood that your vegetable-hating kid/husband/dog will eat this I give it a 6.  Jake was only willing to go for one serving, and no leftovers.  That makes it edible, but not worth repeating.  On the other hand, I’m eating leftovers two servings at a time.  There’s just no accounting for taste.

Eat Well and Savor.

 

 

 

Sunday Summary

Monday:  Thankfully, I had today off.  I decided to take a trip to IKEA.  Am I the only one who finds that place overwhelming?  I was looking for some rectangular planters and they didn’t have them.  Of course that didn’t stop me from picking up a few bargains.  And when I say bargains you should know that I bought five items and my total bill was $8.91.

I also made some Peach Iced Tea.  In case you’re wondering, the peach has currently replaced cherries in my house.  I got the recipe from Kelly Alexander’s book, Peaches.  Honestly, the tea flavor wasn’t very strong and neither was the peach flavor.

Tuesday:  I was home from work by 1:00 today.  I didn’t really accomplish too much, unless you count this ice cream.

Peach Cobbler Ice Cream from Cooking Light:  Cool Whip, sweetened condensed milk, and peach schnapps?  Count me in.  Don’t forget the Bourbon-Caramel Sauce.

Wednesday:  I had to do some top-secret transcription this morning and then I was lucky enough to drive home in the pouring rain.  I did manage to snag this awesome tray at Williams-Sonoma, though.   On sale and another 20% off.

And I made these Butter-Roasted Carrots from Cooking Light’s Pick Fresh Cookbook.

Just roast in the oven for 15 minutes at 425.

Thursday:  Happy Independence Day!  Jake wanted me to make sure to pass along that the 4th of July is just the date.  And he recommends that you read the Declaration of Independence.

I recommend that you make your own Barbecue Potato Chips.

I followed the recipe in Edible DIY by Lucy Baker.  I’ve made baked chips before and been unimpressed.   These were deep-fried, amazing, and worth every minute of prep, but it’s something I won’t repeat on a regular basis; frying in batches is time-consuming.  Still, two potatoes made a lot.  And I had some of the barbecue mixture leftover, so I coated a strip steak with it for Jake’s dinner.  I think the little bit of brown sugar in it made a nice caramelization resulting in a crust that Jake was over the moon about.

Friday:  Look what came today.

That’s right.  I got a dehydrator with the Amazon card I won from Pioneer Woman.  Thanks again, PW.  I haven’t used it yet.  Honestly, I’m a little intimidated.  I’ll let you know how it goes.

Cooking Light’s Crave! is quickly becoming a Friday night fave.  Hmm, I feel like I’ve made this rhyme before.

Anyway, Apricot and Prosciutto Thin-Crust Pizza was a hit with my non-fruit-loving husband.  I suppose the prosciutto had a little something to do with it.

Saturday:  Jake and I were going to go to the movies today.  He was unmotivated by my choice of the Lone Ranger and I was unmotivated by the extremely rainy weather.   We went to Costco instead.  I can’t help but think that the movie would have been cheaper.

Here’s the Drink of the Week:

Cherry Pucker:  2 ounces cherry brandy, 1 ounce vodka, 1 ounce amaretto, and 2 ounces of cranberry juice.  I’m so happy I found something tasty to use up those little jars of cherry brandy leftover from my Brandied Cherries.

Sunday:  I made whoopie pies today.  What’s the occasion you ask.  Well, me, of course.  I love to celebrate me.  Today is my three-year anniversary at my job and I’m going to take treats to the office tomorrow.  I made the Classic Chocolate Whoopie and the Coconut Cream filling from Whoopie Pies by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell.

They’re not so pretty once they’re wrapped up, but it is necessary to keep the obscene amount of filling that I put in there from oozing out.

Eat Well and Savor.

 

 

Sunday Summary

Monday:  Just your average 10:00 to 2:00 workday today.   I was at an office that used to be a garage.   You know, like where mechanics work.  It was beautiful with the exposed brick and the cement floor, and it was impeccably decorated.  In the lobby alone there is an Alexi Torres painting of Abraham Lincoln and these superfab benches that are hairy.

And I made this Almond-Raspberry Jam from Cooking Light’s 2006 Annual Recipes.

Canning is not something I would normally attempt on a weekday.  However, this is only stored in the fridge for six weeks, so no processing necessary.  It has amaretto in it, so it may not last six days, if you know what I mean.  I do love this combo.  In fact, the top layer of our wedding cake was almond cake with raspberry filling.  Come to think of it, that didn’t last six days either; we ate it on the honeymoon.

Obviously I wasn’t blogging back then.  If I was I surely would have made the photographer take a picture of the inside.

Tuesday:  I was supposed to work 10 to 5 today in Buckhead, but it canceled last night.   Oh, well.  Then the office tried to call me at 4:30 to race to some doctor’s office by 5:30.  Unfortunately, I missed the call.  But, fortunately, I was able to make these muffins:

I had some raspberries left, so I think it was fate that I saw this post on theKitchn.  I knew I had to make these Jumbo Raspberry Chocolate Chip Muffins from Sally’s Baking Addiction.   I love it when I have everything on hand for a recipe.  Sally said semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips.  Dark sounded amazing, but I used semi-sweet; however, I can’t help but think that white chocolate would go perfectly with the raspberries.   I also feel that I should disclose that I am now addicted to Sally, but not in a creepy way.  I’m just after her recipes.

Wednesday:  I had my last dentist appointment today.  Well, for the foreseeable future, that is.

Then I went to my new favorite salon for a pedicure.  Sugarcoat in the Vinings Jubilee.

So cute.

And a bargain compared to the Remede spa.

And I made broiled bok choy.  I was inspired by the recipe in BHG’s Eat Well Lose Weight, but I didn’t have all the ingredients.

Toss with a little oil and broil for six minutes then flip and broil for another seven or eight.  My version of the sauce has OJ, ginger, honey, and mirin.  Honestly, next time I will just give it a spritz of soy sauce and call it a day.

Thursday:  Lucky me.  I got to go to Gainesville today, and I don’t mean Florida.  Two hours in the car is not my favorite way to spend the day.

Friday:  We went to see Man of Steel today.  My new favorite way to see a movie is at noon on Friday.  There is usually only one or two other couples in the theater.   I don’t want to spoil anything if you haven’t seen the movie, but I will say it made me want to watch the Christopher Reeve version again.

I also made Bittersweet Chocolate Pudding from Cooking Light’s Crave!

Saturday:  Before we set out on our one big chore for the day (going to the garden center) I made Lemon Crepes with Cherry-Ricotta Filling for breakfast.  I got the recipe from the Drop 10 Diet Cookbook by Lucy Danziger.   This was the first recipe I’ve made, but if the rest are like this I think I’ll be using it more.  Besides, there’s a lot of cherry recipes and I still can’t stop buying them.  I think my days are numbered, though.

Also, my new centerpiece came from NapaStyle today.    I just couldn’t resist the chicken wire.

I was hoping to put hydrangeas in them, but these little purple flowers still had some shine, so I settled for the vase from Whole Foods, which you can’t really see anyway.

I’m proud to say that the hydrangeas are from my yard.

Sunday:  Today we went to the Grant Park Farmers Market.  I had ordered some bug spray from Small Batch Garden and they said I could save shipping if I picked it up.   I wish I could say we had a great time checking out all the vendors.  But we had a limited amount of time and of course we parked on the wrong side of the park to begin with, but I got my bug spray.

I made it home in time to plant my shade garden.

I hope it doesn’t die.  I can’t help but think that we could have achieved the same result by burying a $100 bill in the clay.  I’m going to spruce it up some with a little more mulch and maybe a stone border.

I’m wiling away the time until Mad Men starts by watching Viva Las Vegas.  It’s nice to the old sights, and a lot that are still around, not counting Elvis, of course.

Eat Well and Savor.

 

 

 

 

Sunday Summary

Monday:  Well, I started off with no job today.  By 10:30 I had a 1:00.  At 1:00 I was informed that the start time was actually 2:00 because the attorneys were calling in from Iowa, which is a different time zone.   My witness happened to be an attorney too, a tax attorney.  When was the last time you spent an hour talking to a tax attorney?

I was home by 4:00 and enjoying a coffee and an HG cupcake on the couch by 5:00.  At 5:30 the office called to send me 30 minutes away where the parties were already waiting for a reporter.  We’re pretty much super heroes.  One day I swear I’m going to get a cape.  Anyway, the attorneys didn’t want to risk that I would be in traffic for 45 minutes, so they decided to do the deposition over the phone.  Lucky me.  Best part:  one of the witnesses was a famous basketball player.  Sorry.  I can’t tell you the name.  I guess it doesn’t really count since I was in my home office and he wasn’t, but still.

Tuesday:  I didn’t have to work today.  Well, I didn’t have to leave the house, but I did have some work to do .  It didn’t last very long, so I made this Sour Cream-Blueberry Bread from Williams-Sonoma Bread.

There’s a lot going on in this bread:  pecans and bananas, to name a few.  Also, I should disclose that I used Greek yogurt in place of the sour cream.  I guess that means I can say “adapted from”  and then take credit for the recipe.  Not so much.

Wednesday:  I’m always a little groggy in the morning when I walk the dog.  I make it a strict rule that we don’t leave the yard until noon.  Today I noticed little white pellets on the lawn and patio area.  I thought it was strange that if it hailed it hadn’t melted in the 73 degree weather.  But the yard is shaded until noon, so what do I know?  I’m not a meteorologist.   I even picked it up and couldn’t quite figure it out.  I also went the extra mile to google hail in Atlanta in June.   Well, when we went out again at noon it was still there.  After walking around the neighborhood I realized that the company the HOA hires to spray for weeds had been here.  Mystery solved.  I guess it’s a good thing I didn’t try to taste it.

I made these Cherry-Blueberry Trifles to make myself feel better about the possible exposure to pesticide.  I got the idea from Eating Well.  They suggested using ladyfingers and topping them with almonds, but I totally improvised and used leftover amaretti cookies instead.  Toss your fruit with a little brown sugar and then layer with yogurt.

Thursday:  I had a job today at a hospital.  It was in a room that they called the library.  I was foolishly expecting a spacious classroom.  Instead I got a small conference room with an underachieving air conditioner.  Did I mention that there were ten of us in the room and a light brighter than the sun, compliments of the videographer.  I am always cold.  Right now, my feet are cold and my AC is set to 75.  I usually say to the attorneys that if I’m hot they must be REALLY hot.  It was so stifling I swear I almost started drooling.  I’m not sure what the relationship is, but I don’t usually drool during my jobs so I’m sure there’s a connection.  I swear I was one mumbled medical term away from passing out.

I was exhausted by the time I got home, but I managed to make this Chilled Cherry Pasta Salad with Arugula and Bacon.  I am proud to say that the arugula was harvested from my very own garden.  I really thought the bacon would be the shining star, but it is four stars for the cherries.  You’ll never guess where I got this recipe from, so I’m just going to tell you:  Publix.  The dressing is 1/4 cup each of olive oil and white balsamic vinegar, two tablespoons of basil, 1 tablespoon of honey, and the zest of one orange.

Friday:  I had a fabulous cut and color today a Van Michael salon in Buckhead.  That pretty much took up the bulk of my day.  I did mange to pick up these cute little flowers, though.

They remind me of back in the day on the farm when I used to pick wild violets for my mom.

I also made Loaded Nachos for dinner.  Cooking Light’s Crave! is my new Friday night fave.

Saturday:  I was supposed to have a little soiree here at the house to celebrate our new patio, but this got in my way:

Seems harmless, doesn’t he?  This is George.

I like to call him G-man.  He’s my friend Marnie’s new baby and he is in the process of being housetrained and can’t go it alone for too long, so I brought dinner to her house on the lake.  It was my plan to take some scenery pictures so that I could brag about her awesome locale, but Georgie boy is way cuter than trees.

I’ve been wanting to try these Cheese-Wrapped Olives since I saw them all over the Internet a few months ago.  Little did I know that I have the recipe in Gena Knox’s book Southern My Way.

I also couldn’t resist this Tipsy Watermelon Salad from Virginia Willis and Bon Appetit, Y’all.  Not only is there vodka, but there’s also crème de cassis.

I have a confession to make:  I can’t stop buying cherries.  The bag I have isn’t close to gone and I still pick up another one.  That’s happened twice so far.   So of course I had to make this Honey-Soaked Quinoa Salad with Cherries and Cashews from Better Homes and Gardens new book, Fresh.   There’s apricots in there too.

So far everything was a success.  And then this happened:

Are these the whitest baked beans you’ve ever seen?  These are Aarti Sequeira’s Root Beer Baked Beans from Food Network Magazines’s June issue.  I was tempted by the root beer, obviously, and they have ginger and garam masala too.  They’re edible, but just not amazing.

Last but not least:

Lemon Icebox Pie.  OMG.  I didn’t think anything could make sweetened condensed milk taste any more amazing, but lemon juice can do it.  This is worth the price I pay for Garden & Gun.

I think this guy deserves one more shout out.

Sunday:  Not much energy today, but I did manage to set up my new plant stand.

And I discovered some baby ladybugs on my tomato plant!  At least I hope that’s what they are.

I’m going to have some leftover pie now.  Too bad you’re not here.

Eat Well and Savor.

Pineapple Teriyaki Salmon

I may have taken some liberties with this recipe.

But I think it turned out okay.

The sauce called for 6 ounces of pineapple juice, but I had some tidbits in the fridge that were leftover from something else and I just couldn’t bring myself to waste them and/or put an unwanted bottle of juice on the shelf.   I realized in retrospect that I probably could have given them a spin in the food processor and achieved a less chunky result, but what the hey; right?

I was a little concerned about the cook time:  3 minutes in the pan and another 4 in the 400 degree oven.

As usual, all’s well that ends well.

I should mention that this is a Cooking Light recipe.  I actually pulled it out of the May 2006 issue and somehow have kept it floating around all this freaking time.  Obviously the stars were aligned and the time for salmon is now.

Eat Well and Savor.