FEATURED AT MUST LOVE JUNK...THE BLOGGER BEHIND THE BLOG

Happy Saturday, everyone!  No post today but I wanted to let you know my guest post is up at Susan's from Must Love Junk.  It is her new feature, The Blogger Behihttp://mustlovejunk.blogspot.com/2013/08/saturday-spotlight-jane-from-blondies.htmlnd The Blog.  I really hope you enjoy it!  I'll be back early next week...I finally have that home tour of Emily's new house all ready!  See ya! :)

XO,

Jane

A FEW RECIPES, MEETING SOME GREAT BLOGGERS & A BOOK REVIEW

First of all, I want to apologize if I haven't been a visitor at your blog.  The days just seem so busy and short and I sometimes ask myself at the end of the day, why didn't I get more done?  I know you all might think I'm a whirling dervish all the time, I am in fact, quite laid back and slow moving.  A real turtle so to speak.  It takes me FOREVER to get the simplest of things done.  But I will be by soon, pinky promise!  And another thing...I'm a hopeless case when it comes to Google+, I've tried to leave emails for some of you that now use this and I just can't find your addresses.  Help!

As you can see, I went foraging for Chinese Lanterns this past week.  Yes, I had on my camouflage outfit so my neighbor wouldn't see me (although actually, I think that the ones that have grown under the fence into my yard are rightfully mine).  I opened up a few of the riper ones and sure enough, there is a little tomatillo inside (please don't eat these until you have researched them), and yes, there are seeds in the tomatillo, just like in a tomato.  So I squeezed these out and had them drying on a paper plate and lo and behold, someone tossed them.  I guess I need to label my little scientific experiments!  Well, there are plenty more.  And these, above, I'm drying for fall decorations.

I promised you Rosemary Salt in my last post and that's what you're getting!  This was so very easy and if you have a rosemary plant or want to buy some of the fresh stuff from the grocery store, you will love this!  I have a large topiary plant that I've shown you before, and it was so ready for a trim to keep it in shape so this was a great time.  I filled the bowl pictured above.  Now, I tripled the recipe I am giving you so that I could get three bottles which hold about 8 oz. each.  To begin,  take your sprigs of rosemary and "strip" them of their leaves by holding them at the tip and pinching as you pull down.  You will want a half cup of leaves.  Heat 1/2 cup of olive oil over medium heat and let the rosemary sizzle in it for about 1 minute (you'll know the oil is hot enough when you drop a leaf in and it sizzles).  Do not let the leaves brown.  Scoop them out with a slotted spoon and let drain on a paper towel until cool. 

The "sizzle process!"

As you can see I tripled everything because this stuff will keep for several months and you'll find a number of ways to use it.

Once the rosemary has cooled, chop each half cup up finely and combine it with 1 cup of kosher salt.  Mix well.  You will see that some of the olive oil mixes in with the salt so you get a really nice flavor throughout.

I stored the salt in 8 oz. bottles that I bought by the case quite inexpensively.  And the kosher salt set me back $3.50 for 3 pounds!  Now, what can you do with this?  Well, I already tried it on homemade french fries and I was in rosemary heaven!  And of course it's great on all sorts of roasts, veggies and even sprinkled on a loaf of fresh Italian or French bread, (personally I love pita bread) that has olive oil or butter on it and is ready to be popped under the broiler.  I also add a pinch to the oil we use for dipping our bread in.

And speaking of dipping oils, what to do with that fragrant oil I cooked the rosemary in?  I added a bit more olive oil to the pot so that I had enough to fill 3 additional 8 oz. bottles and tossed in a few whole sprigs and let that cook for 5 minutes.  The sprigs turn brown (ugh) and so you should toss them.  I dropped a fresh sprig into three bottles and filled them with the remaining oil.  Now again, use your imagination with this oil; incorporate it into salad dressings and basically anything you use oil for.  It's a healthy alternative to vegetable oil and rosemary is so versatile for flavoring so many dishes.  Have fun!! :)

I had the wonderful opportunity to meet two fantastic bloggers yesterday.  First, it just seems that in the 4 years I've been blogging, the number of bloggers in my area, in and around Chicago, has just multiplied.  I find that I want to take things one step further as I get to know a blogger of like mindedness.  I have a handful of ladies that I carry on "conversations" with through emails, and a lovely, smart and just a treasure of a person to me that I  poured my heart out to on the phone recently (you know who you are, sweet friend).  And this is so new to me.  I've always considered myself shy and socially awkward, (aka, S.A.)  Not that I'm a wallflower, I just have to really force myself to be open with strangers.  But I never feel that way with the bloggers I meet.  Yes, a little nervousness, but then we have that common thread of being in the blogging world and everything else falls to the wayside.  That's how I felt when I visited with Kris and Anne at Kris's home.  Daughter Emily also came along...she was the navigator as she attended school and received her bachelor's degree in interior design in this area, and I knew she would appreciate seeing Kris's beautifully decorated home and maybe, just maybe, we could entice her into starting a blog!!  Anyyyyyway, we were greeted by Kris's cutie pie of a dog, Libby.  She is the most beautiful Basset Hound I have ever come across.  It was love, for all of us, at first sight!

Emily took a picture of us...L to R, Kris, Anne, me.  We should have gotten a picture of Em, maybe with them or me.  She had such a great time and never stopped talking.  I'm so in love with her bubbly personality.  She doesn't have S.A. whatsoever. 

After a tour of Kris's house (and I am being a sly fox by making you go to her blog to see pictures of it and hopefully follow her, she's a doll and you're going to fall in love with her home!), we drove to Tattered Tiques, a shop that specializes in shabby, cottage, farmhouse and industrial decor.  These are just a few pics I took.  I've never been to a place that carries the much revered Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, and since I have only painted three pieces of furniture in my life (with three awaiting my magical touch), I just couldn't buy any.  Leave it for the talented and curious.  I did pick up some of the wax to use and a few other things that I will share later.

Some sort of wheels?   I was just intrigued by how they were presented in the carrying case.  Everything looked arranged so interestingly!

And the blue mason jars...look no further!  They are so popular, I love seeing new uses for them.  I have a few but I truly love my clear Ball jars with the original time worn galvanized lids.

Back at Kris's...she spread out a wonderful lunch in her charming dining room.  Bacon and broccoli quiche, a bowl of fresh fruit and a basket of blueberry muffins.  Everything was delicious and we ate and talked and laughed and talked more.  Then she served a delectable fruit tart and afterwards gave us little favor bags she made and decorated with tissue flowers.  They were filled with candy, a flowery pen wrapped in ribbon, a mini chalkboard and a few things I know I'm missing!  Thanks so much, Kris!  And I can't forget to mention that Anne from White Lace Cottage was just such a sweet gal...pretty, talented (visit her blog) and a rising star in the blog world with her shabby chic/vintage sense of style.  She's starting a shop soon!

The food!

The BEST blueberry muffins!

Back to real life.   I finally opened up a book the other night after 2 months of reading magazines.  Do you do that?  Read magazines when you are exhausted and know that you can't give a book the proper attention?  And as Claudia (Mockingbird Hill Cottage) and I have ruminated on, sometimes it's hard to let go of an exceptional story line and endearing characters that you want to keep alive for while, and  move on to a new story, new people.  So I chose to read a book in my library called The Husbands's Secret.   This is also on my sidebar for your reference.  The overview starts out catchy (much more catchy than the somewhat lame title):

My darling Cecilia, if you're reading this, then I've died...

Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter to be opened after his death...the letter contains his deepest darkest secret-something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well.  And you discover this letter while your husband is very much alive.  Three women; Cecilia, Tess and Rachel do not know each other, but they are about to feel the earth shattering repercussions of the husband's secret.

As one well known writer wrote, "In The Husband's Secret, Liane Moriarity has created a contemporary Pandora, whose dilemma is spellbinding.  Shocking, complex and thought provoking...a knockout!"

I agree with this review totally... there was nothing frivolous or redundant about this novel.  I'm excited to read more by this talented Australian author, who is fast becoming popular in the States.

So, that's what I have.  I am trying to work on a post for the feature on Susan's blog next Saturday that involves the blogger behind the blog, as in Jane behind Blondie's Journal.  What more can I share?  Writing comes easily (unlike the problem of the S.A.), so I have been pretty much  an open book.  At the risk of sounding vain...are there any questions you might have for me?  Something you might want to know that I might possibly have never brought up before? Do you want to hear deep dark secrets? I looked at some old pictures that I thought I would scan and I exclaimed to The Husband several times, "These pictures are just not telling the story of my life!"  So, if you'd like to give me some prompts, let me know.  I have just a few days to write it.

Sorry, sorry, sorry for such a long post.  I hope most of you skip over the parts you are not so interested in.  When I'm free of S.A., I tend to drone on.  Maybe the S.A. is not so bad after all! :)

XO,

Jane

A LITTLE OF EVERYTHING

Happy Saturday!  I hope all of you are having some good weather.  We are in the mid 70's and the sun is shining.  There has been absolutely no humidity so it's the perfect weather to get out and enjoy this last month of summer!  My flowers that I showed you in my last post pooped out and I plucked out the ones that were still doing well and here you have them.  I feel like I have summer inside and out.

I had an incredibly busy week, but I will admit that last weekend was the most boring weekend in the history of weekends.  Although it's long been a habit of mine to not do much on those two days after a busy week,  sometimes I look forward to Monday when I can hit the ground running...I know, that seems weird.  Monday morning found me working on making my own roasted red peppers.  If you've ever had them, you'll know why I have become obsessed in making my own.  It's very simple.  Really.

Broil or grill clean red peppers, turning with tongs so they char on all sides.  Once they are pretty much blackened, drop them in a plastic ziplock bag and let them steam for about 15 minutes.  Remove, let cool and then remove the blacked skin, stem and seed.  Slice the peppers into long thin strips (try to refrain from licking the fragrant juice from your fingers!).

Then just pop them into a 16 oz. canning jar and pour olive oil over them until they are covered.  I used two peppers here. Now from here on, it's all up to your imagination.  They are delicious on sandwiches, in pasta, added to salads and  to any vegetable side dish.  Get your peppers when they are on sale and buy a case of jars at the Dollar Tree.  The money you will save is fantastic!

Now, on to some fun stuff!  Don't you love this dress?  Don't you love this model?  She is definitely not one of your skinny mini's and I love that.  Anyway, I order a lot of clothes from websites that have sizes that range from  10 to 6X.  And the added plus is that these clothes have been designed to enhance your curves and downplay your trouble spots.  As you can see, this dress is an empire style that flairs out and down in pleats and for me, my trouble spot is my tummy.  The color here is charcoal so I'm giving up the basic black I usually wear.  So, it has shipped and I'm so excited to see it.  Emily and I went shopping for shoes the other day.  Have you ever been to DSW (Designer Shoe Warehouse)?  I just love it.  The prices are exceptional.  I found shoes for this dress that I think I like, but I also found a pair on Shoedazzle,  So I'll have to choose between the two.  I'll let you know how that goes...maybe we can have a vote!

Now, I do want your opinion on panty hose.  I am aware that the younger generation abhors wearing them, even during the cold Chicago winters.  Just by chance, I haven't had to wear much more than a sundress and sandals for many recent summers.  In the winter I almost always wear black pantyhose with my usual black dress.  So, I'm wondering, are you the type to go au natural in a dress like this, or would you wear, say, nude pantyhose as I am thinking?  I have no tan...zero color on my legs, and these legs of mine have been around for a long while so other than shorts once in awhile or capris, I really don't go around flashing them. 

Let me have your thoughts.

Another day, Emily and I hit the mall as she had some gift cards.  Then we just couldn't hold back on stopping in Old Navy to see what was new and cheap.  I saw these flats and fell in love.  Emily declared that pointed toe shoes are back in vogue big time.  I never really cared for the rounded, ballerina style flats.  I think they belong on someone tall and thin.  Angelina Jolie could pull them off.  I remember having something like these back in the early eighties, sans the ankle strap.  Well, I love them and had to have two pairs!

Mornings, afternoons and early evening are spent on the patio while the dogs laze and doze in the grass, sometimes jumping up to chase the squirrels in our yard.  And there are many as the Black Walnut trees that surround the border of our backyard are dropping their nuts.  They come down in a lime green casing, a little larger than a golf ball.  They even smell a bit like lime.  Then they start to deteriorate (or the squirrels gnaw them open) and  you can see the brown walnut inside.  

My point in telling you this as they have been found to be toxic.  A few years ago Milo started having seizures.  He'd have a few lasting about 3 minutes, over the course of a few weeks.  We Googled "dogs-seizures-causes", and we were amazed when black walnuts popped up as a culprit.  The connection was first made when bedding for horses was made up of 5% black walnut shells, and the horses began having convulsions and seizures.  Further investigation showed this happened with dogs as well, but not cats.  To make a long story short, my vet had never heard of this connection and told us the only thing we could do would be to medicate Milo and this would cause him  lethargic and tired.  We decided against that.  A few nights ago Milo had about three seizures in a row.  It was so sad.  All we can do is hold him tight and stroke him.  Since the walnuts are everywhere, in all states of deterioration and their mold and oils everywhere, there is not much we can do as far as clean up.  And they will fall from August to October.  Cutting down the trees is not an option due to the cost.  At this point we have been keeping disposable cleaning cloths at the back door and we wipe his feet and underside really well.  We are sure he is getting these toxins into his system by cleaning and grooming himself.  So...please say a prayer for our sweet little guy.

My rosemary plant is huge and has more leaves on it then I could ever use.  So, like my adventure in making Red Pepper Oil, I am making Rosemary Salt next week.  I'll show you how I do it in my next post. 

So, the long, slow, easy days of summer seem to be winding down.  End of summer usually hits home after Labor Day.  At the lake, homes that are not built to be year round are closed up and it becomes less crowded and very quiet.  I love fall up there, the changing colors, sitting by the outdoor fire with a blanket over my shoulders and a cup of hot coffee (maybe with a shot of Bailey's in it!) in my hands.  If weather permits, we may take a few last boat rides before we put all the summer toys away for the winter.  It's been awhile since we've been there, The Husband has had some complications from his surgery and still has a lifting restriction and he would be bored silly if he couldn't do more than tinker around his work bench.  At least here we have constant company...in fact he and Jeff and Abby just went out for frozen yogurt and brought me back some so I'd better run before it melts!  Then my exciting Saturday night plans are to take a long shower and  hop into bed with my book and the latest Lifetime movie on in the background.  One of them always wins out!  :)

XO,

Jane

FLOWERS, SALADS, WREATHS...

Happy Sunday!  I don't know about you, but my camera goes everywhere with me.  I basically document my life and share it on my blog, but I guess you already know that.  When I'm ready to write a post, I usually go through my pictures and they lead the way.  This was a crazy week, however, I had a list of all these  great projects, ideas, recipes and things I wanted to do...and then they all seemed to fall to the wayside.  I put off writing a post because I left you with some of the things I wanted to show you, a little tour of daughter Emily's home, my new vintage window hung in my living room and a wreath I was making.  It didn't all get done but I did my best...  I'm definitely a "biting off more than I can chew" person!  Then I uploaded my pictures today and I realized I DID do a few things!!  So, here's a post!

Tuesday I was in the area where there is a Trader Joe's.  I have been on the hunt for bread, crackers and something crunchy to snack on that doesn't have sunflower oil in it.  Have you noticed that it seems to be in everything?  I'm allergic to sunflower seeds so I read every label.  What really kills me is when the label says:  May have sunflower and/or safflower oil.  Okay, lets see if I'm gasping for breath and turning blue to find out which it is!  Anyway, I did find some bread, but nothing else. so I bought enough to freeze, too. And I did find these pretty flowers and a couple of bottles of Two Buck Chuck.  I like to keep the Cabernet stocked for the kids.  I was reading a flower arranging tip in an old issue of Jeanne D'Arc.  Divide your flowers into three groups, randomly or by flower type.  Cut each group a different length and then arrange.  I did that in the picture above.  I have always cut my flowers the same length.  This looks much better I think.

 

If I've done too much of anything this week, it has been cooking and trying new recipes.  This is from the June 2013 Better Homes & Gardens.  Grilled Zucchini Salad with Mozzarella and Dill. 

 Very quick, easy and good.  I cooked the zucchini on a ridged grill pan I have right on the stove.  Other than the dill I had everything.  You might want to cut back a bit on it, The Husband said it tasted like seaweed (but he has an aversion to herbs that aren't carefully hidden in the food...sort of like a 4 year old).

Here's my version.  I think they may have Photoshopped their picture, their zucchini looks really yellow.  I think it was just awesome and would love to make it as a side dish for company, maybe with seafood?  Check out the magazine website for the recipe if you'd like. 

Layla has a new napping spot (yes, she gets mistaken for a cat quite a bit!)...

This is the basket next to the couch where I keep extra pillows and throws.  She just discovered what a comfy spot this is and she's in it now as I write.  Cats do this stuff all the time, so when we dog lovers see something cute like this, it's blog worthy!

The other evening I was sitting out on my patio reading and having a glass of Pinot, when something along the fence caught my eye.  Upon closer look, this is what I found.  I immediately recognized it as Chinese Lantern, even though I've never seen the real thing.  This is growing on each side of the fence that my neighbor and I share.  And there is a lot of it. 

For those of you not familiar with the plant, these little "lanterns" are paper thin.  They will dry up skeleton-like and you will be able to see the little fruit inside, a tomatillo, which is edible.  You can also cut stems of these and dry them for pretty fall arrangements (and you can bet I will!).  I don't know if my neighbor planted these, this is the first time I've seen them.  We also share Bleeding Hearts and Lily of the Valley.  I did a little research on my favorite gardening website and I found out that these can grow from seed in very poor soil and spread like crazy, so you may want to do them in pots, even one planted in the ground to contain it.  I left a question for the little virtual gardening answer man as to whether or not there are seeds in the pod (I assume so), or if you can divide them.  As usual, I want more!

As I mentioned in the beginning of my post, I had wanted to make a wreath.  This is a rather poor picture of a rather poor looking wreath.  I am SO not crafty!  That's a bird there on the left, it looks like it may have once been alive.  And I tried to follow a tutorial on bow making and I just made a mess of it.  You don't even want to see the other side.  As soon my fingers have recovered from the first degree burns of the glue gun, I'm going to try to fix it.  One thing is, I never give up!

I wanted to get pictures of Emily's house this past week but she came down with some sort of flu.  I went grocery shopping with her and then helped her put it all away.  That night I went back over as her hubby was working late and we laid in her bed watching reruns of Modern Family while I gave her hand massages.  You owe me, Emily!!!  Bright and early the next morning, I took her to a doctor for antibiotics and Friday she was well enough to drag me along to the mall to buy her a dress and jewelry for a wedding..."Mom, the gift alone is putting me in debt!".  My kids are at that age where all of their friends are getting married and they spend most weekends in the summer going to weddings.  Shower and wedding gifts are so expensive,  weddings are expensive, I definitely know that!  So, since Em was under the weather, we didn't so a photo shoot but we will next week.  And I will make those herb infused oils.  And that peach tart.  And that homemade salad dressing.  And finish organizing the linen closet.  Get my car washed.  Do my nails.

Before I go, I want to tell you about two blogger friends of mine that have started a new feature.  Kris from Junk Chic Cottage, and Susan from Must Love Junk, have started a new thing they each post on their blogs on Saturdays called Spotlight: Life Behind The Blogger.  I think they are right on target with this.  Each week a blogger does a guest post on Kris and Susan's blogs all about themselves...not so much their blog, so you really get to "meet" and better know who's writing your favorite blog.  Or maybe even learn about someone you find you really like and visit their blog.  These sweet girls invited me to do a post in a few weeks for their feature (as if you need to know more about me), but I hope to find and scan some older pictures and tell you a little more about Jane's pre-blogging days.  But check out yesterdays posts at their blogs, two every week.  In fact, Kris lives in the Chicago area and we are getting together on the 22nd of this month!  I can't wait to meet her!!

I hope all of you have a great week! :)

XO,

Jane

SEASONS

Right now everyone is having such crazy weather.  We have been so lucky here with the cool temps and rain every couple of days.  I could use a bit more sun, but otherwise it's just perfect.  My garden is loving it!  I turned my small patio into a virtual jungle!  See the table somewhere in the middle of this picture?  The Husband refuses to come out and have coffee with me in the morning for fear of a shoot or vine clamping around his ankle and working it's way up.  When I had the  splendid idea of growing a few plants in containers here, it really sounded brilliant.  And then they grew and grew and grew some more.  I see a children's book in the works here.

Anyway, it makes me happy and I don't think I'd change a thing next year.  Well, I may ask The Husband to enlarge the patio.  ;-D

I've yet to sit out here at night in the soft glow of my pretty lanterns.   Last call for the dogs is about 8:00 p.m., and then the vampire hour starts.  Bats!  I sit facing west as the sun goes down and the silhouettes of the brown bats darting and swooping and feasting on bugs is entrancing.  Well, it was until a few years ago.  One swooped right under the umbrella of my table, just inches from me.  So now I watch the show from inside.

Milo loves his backyard, but for some reason, if there is no one out with him, he does his thing and then sits on the back porch and barks to come in.  So I have been going out with him about 5 times a day, 15 minutes a shot, and we both get some fresh air.  I do a little weeding or grab a magazine at the back door and lose myself for awhile.  He's content to stalk squirrels and  I love having my quality time with him.

I had plans to make bruschetta the other night.  Then I realized I would have to blanch, peel and seed my precious tomatoes so I made blt's instead!

I've really been enjoying the Mediterranean cookbook that I recently bought.  One of the things I am really interested in doing is making some flavored cooking oils.  The author gives proportions for making oils flavored with herbs and spices with an olive oil base.  These can be used for drizzling  over vegetables or pasta, brushing it on good bread and broiling it, or just for dipping.  So I loaded up on some Mason jars, smaller than the ones we usually see since you are only using about 1/2 to 1 cup of olive oil.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

I was very surprised at the grocery store the other day to see pears, nectarines and apricots in the produce department.  It seems so early!  Too early!  Seems we were just feasting on berries and citrus fruits and nothing says fall to me like pears.  Thursday, Emily and I went to Michael's and fall decorations were everywhere.  I remember last year downsizing a bit so I wasn't the least bit interested in what they had.  I'm in the middle of making two wreaths, hopefully they will be finished soon so I can show you.  They don't take long to make, it's just finding the time to do it...so I did pick up a few odds and ends.

I know that school has started in many areas.  That's a sure sign summer is coming to an end.  My kids always started the 3rd week of August and that was perfect.  Daughter Abby starts student teaching in 2 weeks.  She's very excited and begged me to take her shopping for "teacher clothes"!  So off we went to the mall and I have to say, we had a great afternoon.  In my mind I kept thinking...this will be the last time I take one of my children shopping for school.  .  My kids will always need me, in one capacity or another, albeit new needs, new experiences.  It's the things I've repetitively done for so long that make me feel a little empty inside.  Setting the same scratched  wooden table for dinner in the evening, one plate less every few years.  Three toothbrushes in the bathroom instead of six, a small carton of milk in the fridge instead of a gallon.  Well, it seems I'm getting a little melancholy (baby). I know we've discussed the "empty nest syndrome" a few times, but feel free to add your thoughts.  Was it hard or were you looking forward to it?  What do you do with the extra time (if you have it), and do you feel twinges of not being needed or sort of in the background now?

So, I will have two wreaths to share next time.  By the way, the boxwood dried up and withered away.  I think I procrastinated a bit too long.  We are almost ready for another clipping and now I know to work quickly so I can enjoy it for 2-3 months.  I also have the hooks for The Husband to attach to my new window, of course I could do it myself, but because it's glass and I don't want it to come crashing down on anyone, best to leave it to him.  And finally, I'm going to be allowed into Emily's new home with my camera (gasp), so I'll be sharing some of her gorgeous rooms and decorating ideas.  So stay tuned! :)

XO,

Jane