Christmas Notebook

mexican chopped salad

August 19, 2009 – 1:13 pm

Last night for supper, we had tacos, tortilla chips with sour cream / salsa, and a Mexican chopped salad. The salad was delicious and we’ll be making it again. It’s especially nice right now when tomatoes and cucumbers are so plentiful from the garden.

You can follow the above link to see the original recipe. I used that as a pattern, but changed a few things.

Instead of Iceberg and Romaine lettuces, I used spinach. My lettuce was a bit wilty, so out it went. The spinach was fresh, so I used that.

Left out the onions. DH is allergic. I know…makes cooking painful sometimes. I *can* add dry onion in small amounts to some recipes, but that’s about it. I didn’t add any to the salad.

I didn’t measure the tomatoes or cucumbers. Just put some in. I cut up four tomatoes a smidge smaller than tennis balls and used a medium sized cuke. Peeled it, discarded the seeds, and diced it.

And I didn’t add the chips. We were having chips on our plates anyway. But they would have been great in the salad, too.

I also added about 2 teaspoons of finely crumbled Feta cheese. A delicious addition!

I don’t like cilantro, so I added some parsley to the dressing. The dressing was great. I halved it and it was plenty for our salad. The dressing was very good. You could use lemon juice instead of lime, if that’s what you have, but the lime is nice.

So you see, I changed a lot, but basically, it’s almost the same. 🙂

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in cooking, Recipes | Tagged cooking, Mexican chopped salad, recipe | Comments (1)

honey peanut butter cookies

August 18, 2009 – 5:19 pm

I found this recipe while looking for cookie recipes to try out for our annual Christmas open house. I like something fancier for the party, but DD said we should make them for the open house. If I could incorporate chocolate somehow…. We will certainly make these again. They are delicious. Great honey / peanut butter flavor and perfectly chewy. So good!

I found the recipe here and she found it here (where they are rolled in powdered sugar instead of granulated) and that person found it here (where the picture doesn’t look like the same cookie at all).

Honey Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup honey
2 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
Granulated sugar for coating cookies before baking. (If you are using this recipe for Peanut Butter Cup Cookies, you won’t need this sugar.)

In a bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt, and set aside. In a standing mixer, beat the shortening, peanut butter and honey. Then add the eggs and mix well. Add the dry ingredients to the peanut butter mixture and mix well.

Form dough into 1″ balls and roll in sugar. I used a small ice cream scoop to make all the balls the same size, then rolled them in my hands to make them smooth and uniform.

Place on ungreased baking sheets and bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes [8 minutes for mine].

Remove from oven and let cool slightly on cookie sheets. I didn’t let them cool on the cookie sheet for more than 30 seconds or so. I didn’t want them to cook any more than they had. Remove to cooling rack to cool completely. Store tightly covered.

These are right out of the oven. As they cool, they collapse a little.

I tried baking them in the round and also flattened with a glass. I liked the rounds better. Bottom row in the picture below. They were a bit chewier and thicker, too. The top row are the flattened ones.

The recipe made seven dozen cookies. I plan to put a dozen in the freezer to see how well they freeze.

~~Rhonda

PS…the next day and they are just as great today as they were yesterday. They hold their shape perfectly.

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in cookies, cooking, Recipes | Tagged baking, cookies, honey peanut butter cookies, recipe | Comments (3)

menu plan monday ~ august 17, 2009

August 17, 2009 – 11:19 am

School starts this week, so the menu has to take that, and several meetings and lessons, into account. DD and I are going to make Honey Peanut Butter Cookies this afternoon. I think the protein laden cookies will be nice for a quick it’s-the-first-day-of-school-and-we-need-to-hurry breakfast snack, along with some fresh strawberries and bananas. Later in the week, I plan to make some breakfast muffins (we’ll call them cupcakes to please the youngest member of the family). I haven’t decided which recipe to try. I’ll share that later in the week. Hopefully, I’ll remember to take some pictures…

Monday
fridge food

Tuesday
enchiladas
refried beans / sour cream / salsa
chips
Mexican Salad

Wednesday
grilled pork steaks
grilled corn on the cob
grilled potatoes
coleslaw with peanuts and craisins

I plan to make the above potato recipe in foil packets instead of in a foil pan. I can individualize the packets for each of us. That means I can add onion to mine! 🙂

Thursday
spaghetti
garlic bread
corn
peas
Italian chopped salad

Friday
turkey in the crock pot
rice
corn
fruit salad
sauteed zucchini and yellow squash

Saturday
fridge food

Sunday
grilled chicken
spinach salad with strawberries
corn
green beans
homemade rolls

homemade vanilla ice cream
Fudgy Coffee Brownies

For more recipes and menu ideas, visit Menu Plan Monday.

Today, I need to make a few lists of things that need to be done before the holiday season…a little painting, a little repair, a little this and that. Time is rushing by and these little jobs need to be done. DH and I discussed some of them last evening. Seems there is always a list of some kind, doesn’t it?? And it’s time to think about trying a few new cookie recipes for our annual Christmas open house. Soon, we’ll be doing this ~

If you are wondering what some of the cookies are, click on the picture and it will take you to my flickr site. Scroll over the picture there and you’ll see the labels for some of the cookies.

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Tagged menu, menu plan monday | Comments (0)

cards are done

August 16, 2009 – 9:20 pm

I spent a lot of time this week working on our Christmas cards. I ordered the cards from Dayspring. We like to use cards that are not only pretty, but share the news of Christ’s birth, and include a Scripture verse. I chose two designs this year. This one and this one.

They are signed and addressed. Now I’m working on the Christmas open house invites. I chose a picture of a vintage postcard and added the invitation to the picture. Printed those and added some glitter details. I’m waiting for an order of embossing powder to finish those off. I’ll be putting the invitations on a background mat of red card stock that I have leftover from last year.

The above picture also shows some of the holiday magazines I’m working on (to the left). I pull the pages that have ideas I want to keep, then slip them into page protectors. They will go into the binders (under the invites and the cards).

I like to put our Christmas cards in the mail on the day before Thanksgiving. I include our open house invitations in the Christmas cards and mailing the day before Thanksgiving gives as much notice as possible for our guests to plan to attend the open house on the first Sunday in December. November is extremely busy for us as we decorate and prepare for the big party. When Thanksgiving gets here, I am going to be so thankful I have these cards ready to go!

I understand the reasons people give for no longer sending Christmas cards, and that’s fine for them. But I love giving and receiving them. It’s an important part of the holiday for me. So I plan ahead and work it in! ~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in Christmas, Christmas prep | Tagged Christmas, christmas cards | Comments (1)

garden update

August 11, 2009 – 8:00 pm

After two months of cooler than normal temps, we’re back to hot and humid weather. And when it gets hot and humid, I tend to stay indoors, except to mow the lawn when it needs it. But today, I ventured out to take some pictures, since it has been so long since I’ve done that.

There are large swathes of black eyed Susans in the yard. And they are still producing lots of bloom and color.

There are still quite a few daylilies showing off their final blossoms.

‘Carolicolassal’

‘Lavender Luxury’

This unknown daylily is in full bloom right now. It is taller than I am and is the latest bloomer in our collection of daylilies.

And one of my favorites…we gave this one the garden name of “Paprika” because we don’t know its real name.

The garlic chives are beginning to bloom. A large bunch of these is really pretty, with the stems all bending in the same direction and the buds opening a few at a time until there’s a sea of white.

The ‘Royal Standard’ hostas are blooming. A beautiful bright white, they have a wonderful sweet fragrance. This particular plant lost its sheltering redbud tree last year. We need to move it to a better location. Somewhere it won’t get so much sunburn.

I don’t remember which hosta these purple flowers were on.

The crepe myrtle is a great shrub for color this time of year.

The garden bench under the mulberry tree is a bit overwhelmed by hostas and elderberries.

Aren’t the elderberries pretty?

We had a little sprinkle of rain this afternoon, but it didn’t amount to more than a few drops on the redbud leaves.

We can see this hibiscus from the kitchen windows. The flower is about 12″ across and a beautiful rosy pink color. It’s called ‘Sante Fe.’

We don’t have many annuals or container plants, but I do love this large pot of coleus that sits by the back door.

I hope you enjoyed the garden walk. If you would like to see other gardens with beautiful blooms, click on Bloomin’ Tuesday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in garden 2009, our garden | Tagged garden | Comments (4)

menu plan monday ~ august 10, 2009

August 10, 2009 – 2:56 pm

I’ve been either too busy or too tired to post lately. Been very busy. But I’ll try to get back into the swing of things now. Here’s the menu for the week.

Monday
hamburger / buns
grapes

Tuesday
crock pot chicken
rice
stir fried green and yellow squash
tomatoes

Wednesday
pork chops
mashed potatoes
green beans
corn on the cob

Thursday
tacos

Friday
chicken / noodles
spinach salad
homemade rolls

Saturday
fridge food

Sunday
tortellini and ham with white sauce
green salad
garlic bread
corn
peas

To see other menus and recipe ideas, check out Menu Plan Monday.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Comments (0)

there’s still a lot of color in the garden

July 31, 2009 – 10:38 pm

Now that the weeks of daylily blooms are almost over, I think there isn’t much blooming until I get out into the garden. After he got home this evening, DH and I took a spin around the yard. Yup, there is still a lot of color out there.

There are surprise lilies all over the yard.

The grass ‘Morning Light’ is one of my favorites. It always looks great.

And the zebra grass is another favorite.

The crepe myrtles are beginning to bloom.

This miniature crepe myrtle gets only about 12-15″ tall. I don’t remember the name. The blossoms are just beginning to open. Soon it will be covered.

Here’s a good place for viewing the front yard.

Yup, still pretty. 🙂

Hop over to Tootsie’s and click the links to see what is blooming in other gardens.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in our garden | Tagged flowers, garden, summer | Comments (4)

menu plan monday ~ july 27, 2009

July 27, 2009 – 9:48 am

Can’t resist showing you Buttercup’s new costume, designed by DD. Who’s the coolest cat around? That would be Buttercup, the rapper cat, complete with bling!

I must say, besides being totally cool, Buttercup is totally patient! She takes it all in stride.

Monday
hamburgers / buns
chips / dip
grapes

Tuesday
spaghetti / sauce
garlic bread
green beans
corn on the cob
spinach salad

Wednesday
salmon
baby baked potatoes
peas
corn
tomatoes / cucumbers

Thursday
tacos

Friday
tilapia
steamed red potatoes
green beans
green salad

Saturday
fridge food

Sunday
Crock Pot Chinese Lemon Chicken
rice
asparagus
corn
coleslaw

The crock pot lemon chicken is a recipe I haven’t tried before. I’ll let you know how it turns out.

Check out more menus and recipes at Menu Plan Monday. And plan your own week’s menu while you’re at it!

~~Rhonda 🙂

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in menu | Tagged menu, menu plan monday | Comments (4)

friday garden time

July 24, 2009 – 9:54 pm

Just a quick stroll through the garden to see what there is to see.

We have a bed next to the blue spruce that hasn’t received much attention. It’s out of the way, in a spot we don’t regularly walk by, so it is somewhat neglected. But there is a nice tangle of flowers in it right now.

Oh, my. Just look at all that catnip (Nepeta Cataria) that needs to be ripped out. The stuff spreads with abandon!

Hydrangea ‘Little Lamb’

We planted this compact hydrangea last summer and I’m pleasantly surprised by how well it is blooming this year. The plant is still so small, though, that the flower heads weigh the stems down. Should just get better and better each year.

Miscanthus ‘Morning Light’

Pretty isn’t it?

Nearby, the daylily seed pods are maturing.

The honesty plants (money plant / Lunaria annua) are setting a lot of seeds. As usual. 🙂

The front porch in the fading light of the setting sun.

We have company coming late this evening to stay until Sunday afternoon. Lots to do yet, so I’d better sign off. I’ll check in tomorrow. If you want to see what other gardeners are doing today, check out Fertilizer Friday at Tootsie’s place. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in garden 2009, our garden | Comments (5)

beautiful weather, beautiful flowers

July 22, 2009 – 8:40 pm

DH took DD and her friend to Six Flags today. They had a nice day for it. And, according to the occasional updates I’ve been getting, they are having a great time, too. I’ve certainly enjoyed a nice quiet day at home. I mowed the entire yard. Then said goodbye to my mower as it was taken off to the shop for a checkup and blade sharpening.

In the fenced garden, the bare spots where DH took out all the over zealous lemon balm need to be filled in with something new. We’ll have to ponder that.

This bee seemed deliriously happy in the hollyhock.

The surprise lilies are popping up all over the yard. Look at all those little ones coming on. There were surprise lilies in the yard when we bought the house, but these, in the fenced garden, are from my grandmother’s yard.

The garden phlox is blooming like crazy. And it makes the garden smell so good.

The tallest daylily in our garden opened for the first time today. We don’t know the name of it. It’s a very late bloomer and extremely tall.

Ack! What’s this?? Red sassafras leaves… You know what this means?? Before we know it, autumn will be here. ::sigh::

And the little wild asters are starting to bloom, too. Another sign of fall.

But I’m going to play Scarlett for now and think about that tomorrow. After all, tomorrow is another day…

While I’m not thinking about fall, why don’t you join me as I peruse Outdoor Wednesday at A Southern Daydreamer’s blog. Let’s see what everyone else was up to today.

~~Rhonda

By ~~Rhonda | Posted in garden 2009, our garden | Tagged flowers, garden | Comments (5)

Christmas Notebook

mexican chopped salad

honey peanut butter cookies

menu plan monday ~ august 17, 2009

cards are done

garden update

menu plan monday ~ august 10, 2009

there’s still a lot of color in the garden

menu plan monday ~ july 27, 2009

friday garden time

beautiful weather, beautiful flowers

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