THE COOK, THE GARDENER & THE FUSSY READER

Hello everyone!  It's good to be back.  As much as I aim to post more often, my schedule gets wonky and I don't complete the things I want to show you fast enough to whip out a post.  For example, I was grocery shopping Friday and I saw so many beautiful apples,  into the cart they went with plans to make some apple pie and turnovers.  You won't see them yet.  And I uncovered a gorgeous mirror in our garage with a garish gold frame that I intend to paint...not on this post!  So I'll give you what I have since last week.  Oh, I wanted to mention, this is my 500th post!  I'm really amazed at myself.  It means a lot to me to write, to get my thoughts on paper, get things in order...and this has been a wonderful way to do it.  And I guess I'm amazed because it all comes without a lot of effort... I can visualize all of you, my friends, and the words just flow.  So thank you, if it weren't for you I would still be sitting at my kitchen table in my robe with my coffee, scribbling away in my journal.

I picked up a little bouquet of flowers at the grocery store, the colors are just perfect for getting in the mood for fall.  I haven't started doing any sort of decorating though...okay, I picked up two very cute pumpkin candles.  They are darling.  It's those one of a kind things that get to me when I try to curb frivolous spending.  Anyway, about my bouquet...

...this is the flower frog jars in a basket thingy I found at Tattered Tiques last month when I met up with Kris from Junk Chic Cottage.  I really love it, the old wire, the zinc lids and the wooden handles.  It makes flower arranging a breeze!

Okay, while I should have been making apple turnovers, I came across a recipe that really got my attention.  One of the many reasons I love to cook is that I just love experimenting.  It's beyond trying new recipes or new foods, I like putting  a twist on things and getting out of the sandbox.  Middle Eastern cooking has been so interesting to me lately, how using spices that I've barely tried in so many different and intriguing ways adds a whole new level of flavor to our everyday fare.  Look at that ginger (above).  I wish you could smell it!  Now follow along with me.  Grate up 1 tablespoon of this heavenly stuff, and don't worry about wasting it, toss it in a plastic bag and you can freeze it for whenever.  Mix it up with a cup of plain yogurt, 3 minced garlic cloves, 1 T. curry powder, 4 t. paprika, 1 1/2 t. turmeric, a little cayenne and salt and pepper.  Isn't that easy?  You don't have these spices?  Get them in small jars so there's little waste, but after you've tried this marinade, you'll want to try it on everything!

See how that mixes up so creamy?  Oh, the fragrance!

Now add 8-12 chicken drumsticks that you have pierced a few times with a fork, to a zip lock bag and spoon that marinade over.  Zip it up and work it all into the chicken.  Now you can leave it overnight or use it as soon as 20 minutes.

Now you know the patrons to Blondie's Kitchen have a thing about seasonings.  Of course I'm not going to force spices on them that they can't even pronounce, so those bare naked drumsticks are for them.  Feel sorta bad for them?

Bake these babies on a pan that's been sprayed with cooking oil at 425 for 35 to 40 minutes, turning once.  I saved the marinade to brush more on when I turned them.  Once you take them out of the oven, sprinkle some chopped green onion on them.  Don't skip this because it added a lot of flavor. I made cole slaw to go with it.  Yum!

The first question from The Husband was, "Why are yours so much better looking than mine?"  Well, because they are.  And sometimes you have to try new things...get out of the sandbox.  And he did.  And he was happy.

You can find this recipe in the October issue of Redbook magazine. 

I was back in the garden toward the end of last week.  It was still hot but I was determined to keep at it.  I returned the garden hose I didn't need back to Home Depot and used my refund to pick up a few more plants.

Russian sage.  I see this in commercial landscaping all the time so I think it can be neglected a bit.  Funny that I think that way,  can you see me in a garden nursery asking an employee, "Can you point the way to the plants that can be neglected please?" ;-)

I want to also show you my "new" old trellis, or rather wrought iron twin headboard.   A neighbor was throwing it out a few years ago and we grabbed it.  It's just been sitting on the side of the house, camouflaged by ivy.  So I lugged it over here and I think I'm going to grow some clematis on it next spring.  And do you see that little square covered opening in the wall on the bottom right corner of the picture?  That's the entry to the crawl space.  It's a little unsightly so I have a small trellis at the lake that I'm going to bring home and try some sort of vine on that, too.  

Across the yard in front of the fence, Black Eyed Susan's.  I love anything in the daisy family. 

This is how that space is looking now.  I order tulip, crocus and hyacinth bulbs every year from Breck's and they should be here soon.  That will be the end of my work.  And for the spring, I ordered seeds from Renee's; Alyssum, Cosmos, Four o' clocks, Morning Glories and miniature Sunflowers.

As I continue putting off making those tarts and painting the mirror frame, I've been doing a bit more reading.  I started a book last week and I was so disappointed.  It was about a 30ish young woman who decides to rent a house in the Hampton's with a group of young single people, all strangers to one another.  It was supposed to be a laugh a minute, sort of Sex And The City humor.  As always, my brain wavers back and forth...should I keep going, I paid $$ for this book.  Or...this is a total waste of my time, my time is important.  Well, I just stopped.  You know what you do with books like that?  You keep them in your purse and pull them out in waiting rooms, long lines and at the bus stop.  You're so grateful you have something to read that you don't mind that it's the worst book ever written.  Anyway, this is the new book I started last night (also on my sidebar), The Provence Cure for the Brokenhearted by Bridget Asher.  "...an unflinching portrait of a grieving young widow, tempered by a powerful dose of humor and an unforgettable cast of characters."  "...will have you canceling dinner plans, staying up all hours and flat~out ignoring your family so you can keep reading."  Ooh, love it!  I'll let you know how I like it.  

Not much planned for the rest of the week, dental check up tomorrow, major haircut Thursday.  Yes, I am getting it cut back up to my shoulders, I think that will be about a good 6 inches off.  My breath catches a little at the thought of it, it's sort of like a curtain I can hide behind.  But I want something more chic, something I can style easily.  As long as I can fit it up into a ponytail, I'm happy.  That's me, everyday.  And then I really, really hope we make it to the lake this weekend.  In another month we will be putting everything away until the spring.  I haven't been there since mid July.  How can that be?  Last weekend we had a fund raiser to go to which was very important to us and we had a great time.  The Husband won an autographed football by Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears.  He was one happy guy.  And after we went to one of our favorite restaurants.  So while it was a good weekend, I just want to spend a few days outdoors doing nothing, maybe even hop into the old fishing boat with the captain and take a slow trip around the lake!  Have a great week everyone!

Joining in with Tracie at Fishtail Cottage for her Thursday Garden Party.