Food Fun Friday- Boursin

I'd like to tell you about the joy's of using this cheese.

Boursin

I always have this cheese on hand... not for using it as a 'cracker spread', but for making a nice quick dinner.

example:  We had some fish to cook.  I put the fish (talipa) in a baking pan and added dollops of the cheese on top.  During the course of baking, the cheese got all gooey and added such a nice flavor.

I've used this in a simple pasta dish.  You can add almost ANYTHING along with the pasta and cheese: small tomatoes, or mushrooms, or salmon, or chicken, or artichoke hearts, or olives or spinich or kale... 

Last week I cooked some chicken breasts (kind of like the fish) in a backing pan with a light spread of the Boursin over it.

YUM!!

It is a great staple to have on hand.

It is a little on the expensive side for cheese, but it is very versatile.  FRANKLY I didn't really know it could be used as a spread until I started looked up the picture on the Boursin web site. I really had no idea that it's purpose was for a spread!!!

Nope, I'll use it for cooking; for the great seasoning it adds to almost anything.

AND DON'T FORGET MY BIRTHDAY GIVEAWAY HERE

ENDS SATRUDAY 10/1

It is consuming a lot of my time- Pinerest

IT was BOUND to HAPPEN

I have a pretty good (and simple to use) filing system on my computer for all my ideas, and pictures etc...but NOW there is an extremely addictive way of keeping (pinning) pictures and articles and ideas and designs and dreams and recipes and thoughts.   
With the help of pinterest you can find EVEN MORE (if that is possible and believe me it IS possible).

I am trying to keep my time down to a minimum because frankly I barely have time to read my email and maybe blog, let alone 'pin'.
BUT let me tell you that just one taste... and you are hooked, like a fish (haha get it fish.. remember I work for a fishing rod company!!)
Don't believe me?? try it for yourself.  Click on my pinterest button or I can send you an invite and you can start your dream list of colors, or houses, or backyard decks or little baby parties.  Any idea you can think of can be pinned!  
Here's just a couple of examples of Great Ideas found and 'pinned'.

 

            

Wednesday Wisdom - my new mantra

Find the wonderful in today

thank you for all the birthday wishes and don't forget to enter the contest here (ends Saturday)

It's my Birthday *GIVEAWAY*

Happy Birthday to me...

Ah those were the days! so young, no worries.  I really did have a wonderful childhood!(Thanks to my mother and dad)
    Celebrate with me...

    I have a great giveaway...  I've made MORE Domino Necklaces

 Or beautiful lavender

There are going to be three winners!!!!!
Which necklace would YOU like to win...

pumpkin - bat&moon - lavender stalks - lavender & bow

YOU choose your prize  

Thanks for celebrating my birthday with me by reading my blog.  I really appreciate ALL my readers!!!  so much!! 
*I share what I've been making, and teach YOU how to make it/them.
*I let you know about 'cool' stuff I've learned (catching fruit flies 'cool'??)
*I give you great recipes.
*I try to tickle your funny bone... come on, laugh with me!
*making friends and sharing my life with them - how cool is that.

Leave a comment (which necklace YOU want to win).  I'll keep this contest open until Saturday 10/1 8pm... (you know when you have a birthday you get to celebrate it ALL WEEK! yeah)  I'll pick three names with random.org.

A crafty weekend... a contest tomorrow

I love it when my weekend ends on a crafty note.  After cleaning, washing, vacuuming and taking my mother places.. I got to 'make stuff'.

I saw this wreath on pinerest and KNEW I had to make it.
It really is rather easy.

*wrap a straw wreath
*cut out music circles
*sew a red seam around the edge
*glue the circles in a cone shape
*glue to wreath (about 3 rows)
*make felt flowers:
 -cut a circle-cut it around in a circle like the picture-start at the outside edge and roll it-glue it together on the bottom.
*glue flowers to the wreath-on the inside edge.

You can add little moss stuff to the inside edge of the wreath to hide the layers of paper.

AND there you have it:
a beautiful wreath.

Now tomorrow is my Birthday and I am thinking of having a BIG giveaway...are you in?
Here is a sneak peak:

linking up here:

 

wishing -

Food Fun Friday- Spicy Chicken Stew

I'd first like to say that I love my crockpot.  After working all day, THE last thing I want to do is chop, and saute and fix a dinner.  I don't mind so much in the morning... but at the end of the day YUCK-O.

This is a great dish.  It's a variation of others I tried, but no beans! (hubby can't stomach them).
(You can adjust the seasonings to suit YOUR taste I would add more seasonings next time.)

SPICY CHICKEN STEW
found here http://sixsistersstuff.blogspot.com/2011/05/spicy-chicken-stew.html

this is not my picture.  We gobbled ours down so fast I forgot to take pictures-yummy

Spicy Chicken Stew
2 baking potatoes (about 1 1/2 lb.), peeled and cut into chunks (3 1/3 cups)  ( I only used one potato)
1 (10 oz.) package frozen sweet corn
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks (1 cup)
1 onion, thickly sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 (12.5 oz.) jar salsa
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 skinless, boneless chicken breast (I put them in frozen because the crockpot was going to be on all day, about 9hours)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth

Place the potatoes in the crock pot first.  Then place the frozen chicken breasts in the crock pot.  Mix everything else together and pour over the top.  After you get home from work take the chicken and shred it with two forks and make sure everything in the crock pot is all mixed up.

This is wonderful topped with cheese, avocado, sour cream and cilantro.

Invasion Of The Fruit Flys

At work we were bombarded with an avalanche of Fruit Flys.

I remember what my friend Emily did... and viola! I made a couple of wonder fruit fly traps
You need a 'flavored' vinegar, I used Red Wine Vinegar, you could also use balsamic vinegar

and just a little squirt of honey too...
I even caught the flies in the warehouse kitchen.

All in all in a two day period our fly problem was gone!  Who knew I was so clever!
I wonder if there is a bonus in store for the fly killer?

Wednesday Wisdom

LIFE

Life is easier than you'd think; all that is necessary is to accept the impossible, do without the indispensable, and bear the intolerable.

(sounds like a mother's motto!)Kathleen Norris

My Mother's Birthday-

My mother's birthday was last week.  Her Birthday is 9-11. She now says "they ruined my birthday".
I told her she should do what Peggy does.  Peggy has changed her birthday to Pirate Day (a day in September which changes every year).  
My mother does not like to have her picture taken.  There are very few photos of my mother.  I found an envelope in her garage with pictures of her.  Have I mentioned that my dad was a photographer?
Here is a photo of my mom and dad on their wedding day in 1950, San Francisco.

When she finished college, my mother came to San Francisco in 1948 and lived with her aunt and uncle.   Since my mother hates her picture taken, and most of the pictures are either ripped up or look like this:

 ah ah I found one that she didn't scribble on... guess she's about 25/26 here.

it's the 50's all the way

 then she had kids:

and this one is 1972

this is in 2006 at our wedding

and this was this month at Kieri's wedding.

I'm sad to see by pictures how old she looks.
But then she just turned 84 years.  and still going strong.

The Pacific Northwest Sky

I just love the Pacific Northwest sky during the final days of summer.

... if only the summers up here would last a little bit longer.

... soon these 48 degree mornings will turn into 38 or 28 degrees

 Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.. I will enjoy the beautiful skys while they are here.
Speaking of enjoying... we enjoyed visiting with Mr. Produces 91 year old mom.  The visit wasn't long, but it was sweet.

Think about this:

:) I know you just said it

Food Fun Friday-Antipasto Skewers

WHAT A FUN PICNIC FOOD  and easy too

and maybe even gourmet?  nah, that would be asking tooo much.

I knew when #1 twin came to town we would be totally too busy to cook.  I also knew that we would go to the 'beach' (up here in the pacific Northwest that term is used loosely because you can bet the weather will be cold, and rainy and overcast) 
These can look as fancy as you want, (for fancy you'd use a beautiful plate) but they are so easy and so delish!  You could also make this as a fun appetizer for a dinner party (you can make it ahead and just pull it out of the fridge!)
I saw this on Hungry Housewife but changed a few things to suit our palate.

The possibilities are endless.. you can get as creative as you wish.  The amounts of each ingredient depends on how many people you are planning to serve.  (we had left overs and they were GREAT to take to work the next couple of days.. I love me some salami)

You will need to prepare the tortellini:
Cook the tortellini according to package directions.  Then pour on your Italian Salad Dressing and marinate for a few hours or overnight.  When the tortellini has been marinated for the appropriate time, it's time to skewer.

I used:
Olives
Salami
Artichoke Hearts, Pickled, in oil
Cherry Tomatoes
Cheese (I used chunks of Cheddar and Jack
Three Cheese tortellini 
  Italian Salad Dressing

You are only limited by your imagination

 and taste buds!

Wedding Decor- Red white black

Yes all this work... just to show you my blogging friends... No wait, I mean to decorate Kieri's weding and have it be a beautiful (under budget) wedding.

So first I'm going to talk about the name cards, because frankly I though this was a great idea and it took a lot of effort... to get all the names and tables correct.  Also it was something that if changes were to be made at the last minute, since I was NOT home, or anywhere NEAR home, this could be corrected, no problem.

Here are all the cards as you came in the door.

On closer inspection there are ribbons stretched across the frame and the place cards hang from them! (I was worried that there wasn't enough table room to display/arrange all the cards so I decided to go up.)

Each table was a different color patterned paper.   

Each table had a colored 'tent' (see the one below is red).

As long as we are at the tables:  The beautiful centerpieces were Russell's idea.  He had creative control over the centerpieces. Rocks and shells in the bottom, rose and floating candle.  Russell and his groomsmen came down and decorated the tables before the wedding.  Way cool.  And the girls helped with the rose petals and jewels.

The tables with the favor boxes looked great! (black and white card table above).

I had my VERY creative niece in charge of the arbor.  An arbor that we had never seen and had no idea what size it was going to be.  I brought a big box of ivy, netting, a spray and lots of wire.  Para did an amazing job of decorating it on the spot!

Next up were the red sashes (the hotel had the black ones) I made 22 red chair sashes.  I also made 20 black and white paper cones.  We took 3 red roses and prepared them in foil.  At the last minute we put the roses and ivy in the cones and hung them from the sash's (we.. meaning Mary!)

The chairs were a funky shape and after they were decorated, ALL the sashes slipped down the slippery polyester fabric and were at the seat area, oh well!

Here was the entry table as you entered the dinning room:

Here is the head table:  LOVE the 'rose' ribbon we found to wrap the short vases.

and the cake table.... can't forget the beautiful chocolate covered strawberry cake:

Now that it's over and most things are put away... I find I have more time on my hands... go figure!!