Year: 2016

Spinach Strawberry Salad with Candied Almonds & Goat Cheese

/ Jodi / 56 Comments

spinach strawberry salad with candied almonds and goat cheese 2

This weekend we celebrated the 25th birthday of a very special young lady in our lives –  our son Nick’s girlfriend, Liz.

spinach strawberry salad with candied almonds and goat cheese

For the special picnic we were invited to, I made a batch of my almost famous guacamole, a plateful of homemade chocolate chip cookies, and this YUMMMMMMY Spinach Strawberry Salad with Candied Almonds and Goat Cheese.

spinach strawberry salad with candied almonds and goat cheese 1

Drizzled with an easy homemade balsamic vinaigrette, the crispy fresh spinach, sweet juicy strawberries, crunchy candied almonds, and the creamy goat cheese just SING when tossed together!

Easy – fresh – delicious – beautiful – summery – this is a Five Star Salad you are going to want to try, and your family and friends are going to thank you for making.

Spinach Strawberry Salad with Candied Almonds & Goat Cheese*

Ingredients:spinach strawberry salad with candied almonds and goat cheese 1

  • 1 lb fresh baby spinach (approx)
  • 1 qt fresh strawberries (chopped)
  • 6-8 oz. fresh goat cheese (crumbled)
  • 1 cup sliced almonds
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 3 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • 3/4 cup olive oil
  • 3 tsp brown sugar
  • 1 large clove garlic (minced)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp coarse ground pepper

Directions:

Prepare candied almonds by combining sliced almonds and sugar in a non-stick skillet over medium heat, stirring frequently for several minutes until the sugar begins to caramelize.  Keep stirring until all the almonds are coated, and then spread in a single layer on a cookie sheet.  Cool completely.  Once they are cooled, break them into chunks for little clusters of crunchy sweetness.

Prepare balsamic vinaigrette dressing by whisking together the balsamic vinegar, olive oil, brown sugar, garlic, salt and pepper.  Set aside.

When ready to serve, combine spinach and chopped strawberries, candied almonds, and crumbled goat cheese.  Toss with balsamic vinegar, and serve immediately.

You could easily substitute your favorite greens for the spinach – perhaps arugala, romaine….  You could substitute the sliced almonds for walnuts or pecans…..  You could also substitute blue cheese or feta for the goat cheese.

Enjoy!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

*Recipe slightly adapted from Veggie & the Beast

A Stand Out in the Crowd

/ Jodi / 46 Comments

white flower stand out

What makes you stand out
amidst those that all
seem exactly the same?

You stand tall
You stand proud
You proudly proclaim

You are beautiful
Life is beautiful
You are more than just one in the crowd.

This is your life
Make the most of it.
Don’t be just one in the crowd.

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Blue Ball: A Charlie Guest Post

/ Jodi / 57 Comments

Charlie blue ball

Woohoo!  It’s Ball Season!

Some of you love baseball.
My family cheers for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

We love football too – if it is the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Right now – our Pittsburgh Penguins are in the Stanley Cup Playoffs,
and though they use a puck instead of a ball, it is still very exciting.

There is also basketball, softball, tennis, golf, volleyball, soccer, wiffle ball, ping pong, bowling, pool, and probably a million other ball games,

but my favorite ball game
(if you don’t count eating meatballs) 

is Blue Ball!

My mom brought out the bucket of blue balls the other day, and boy oh boy did we have fun!

It’s a simple game, but such a BLAST!

Here is how you play it.

Step 1:  Mom throws the ball in the grass.

Step 2:  I run and get it, and then I run back.

Step 3:  Now here is the FUN part….

Sometimes I bring the blue ball back to Mom,
but other times…..  I ZOOOOOOOM right by her and trick her!

Sometimes I bring it to her and drop it….  but (get ready for this!) right when she goes to pick it up,
I grab it first!

And then – (are you ready for this one?)
other times I bring it back – but don’t let go of it, and I make her beg for it.
Sometimes Mom pretends to cry – – –  like I can’t see a fake a mile away!

Other times I let her yank at it for a while and I ferociously (fake of course – but she doesn’t know!) GROWL!

Blue Ball is most fun when you play it by varying up the way you play Step 3 every time.

Isn’t that a great game?!

Hope you have some fun playing whatever kind of ball you like this weekend!

Woofs & Wags,
Charlie

Charlie is an adopted dog with brown eyes and a white-tipped tail who brings joy and laughter to his family and friends.  Charlie is a gifted writer, raving food critic, cat, chipmunk, and donut lover, and exceptionally photogenic model.  Some of his best friends are Mike the UPS Man, Cliff the Mailman, and ANYONE who delivers pizza to the house.   If you would like to read more guest posts by Charlie, simply type “Charlie” into the Search box at the top right hand corner of this link: https://lifeinbetween.me/.   If you would enjoy a companion like Charlie, please consider pet adoption.

 

 

Lilac Love

/ Jodi / 58 Comments
lilac love watercolor painting arches 300 lb cold press 10 x 14 diaxozine violet

lilac love watercolor painting arches 300 lb cold press 10 x 14 diaxozine violet

The purple lilacs around here are done for the season,
but the white lilac tree in my yard is crazy full of tiny white flowers
that are filling the entire yard with such an amazing fragrance!

While my poor son is sneezing like crazy from all the pollen in the air right now,
I don’t dare pick and bring a bouquet into the house as much as I’d love to….

But I was inspired to paint some lilacs (purple is more fun!)
with that sensational scent wafting through my brain down to my fingertips
as I dripped and dropped and splashed and splattered Dioxazine Violet.

Can you almost smell them?

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

I’m joining my friend Charlie with these sweet smelling flowers for his #NatureDoodlewash challenge.

Just Bloom

/ Jodi / 52 Comments
orange poppy

Jim’s Poppies, May 2016, Mars, PA

A flower
does not compete
with the flowers next to it,
It just BLOOMS.

Today,
think about each beautiful, unique, individual flower,
and be your own beautiful, unique, individual You.
Just bloom.

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Old-Fashioned Dutch Apple Pie

/ Jodi / 57 Comments

dutch apple pie slice alamode

One of my favorite things to bake (besides cookies) is pie.  And what is more “all-American” for summer holidays and celebrations than apple pie?  Not sure why it is considered so “American” really – that is just what “they say.”  (Actually there are many theories…  which you can certainly feel free to Google, but let’s talk about baking and eating this amazingly yummy dessert!)

dutch apple pie cut

I made it this weekend to take to a party celebrating the Memorial Day holiday, family get-together, and birthday treat for my BFF, Jill.

When I make a pie to take somewhere, I almost always make a second one for home.  Hubby loves pie more than almost anything, and Grandma always taught me if you are going to go to the trouble and make the mess it takes to make one pie, you might as well make 2 or 3 or…. well – as many as you can!  🙂

So here is my recipe for old-fashioned, all-American Dutch Apple Pie.  I have tweaked it a bit from an old, worn-out cookbook I’ve had for about 30 years called , “Farm Journal’s Complete Home Baking Book.”  This is one of the very few cookbooks I’ve hung on to for it’s tried and true recipes.

I guarantee you will be a superstar if you bake and take or serve this all-star pie!

Dutch Apple Pie

Ingredients:dutch apple pie slice alamode

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Prepare pie crust and place in bottom of fluted 9 inch pie stone or pan.

Mix apples, sugar, flour, and cinnamon thoroughly until juices begin to form.  Pour into pie crust.

In a bowl, combine flour and sugar.  Cut butter in small pieces and work into flour/sugar with a pastry blender until a nice crumbly mixture forms.  Sprinkle and mound all over top of apple filling.

Cover edges of pie crust with foil to prevent from over-browning and bake for one hour.  Remove foil for last 10 minutes.

Cool completely and serve with ice cream, cool white or even a slice of sharp cheddar cheese if you please.

Enjoy!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Sunny Sunflower

/ Jodi / 91 Comments

sunflower2

I found some time to splash in puddles this long holiday weekend….  Puddles of paint that is, because the sun was a shinin’ most of the weekend!

I watched a video on painting sunflowers done by Joanne Thomas, who is a queen of loose splashy watercolor.  I’ve really admired her style ever since I started watercolor painting about a year ago, so I decided to give her sunflower a try.

I painted it on a 10 x 14 sheet of Arches 300 lb cold press.  I put it in a matted frame to see what it would look like.  Such a difference it makes when you mat and frame a painting – eh?

Sunny Sunflower Original Watercolor 10 x 14 Arches 300 lb Cold Press

Sunny sunflowers is going in our McKinneyx2Designs Etsy Shop – the original painting, prints and greeting cards.

Sunny Sunflower All

Fluttering my “artist” wings, and enjoying the sunny, sunshiny summertime weather!

Sunny Sunflower Greeting Card Set

Happy Tuesday and short work week for many of us.

Cherish the moments.

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Because of your Memory

/ Jodi / 44 Comments

america the beautiful flag

A day to pay tribute
A day to remember
A day to honor

Those who gave all
those who gave their lives
Those who are our heroes

America is Beautiful
America is Free
Because of your Memory

In Honor of Memorial Day – May 30, 2016

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

Rainy Sundays

/ Jodi / 48 Comments
purple rhododendrum bud after the rain

Rainy Spring Sunday Rhododendron Blossom – 5/22/16

Rainy days

cancelled plans
messy beds
messier hair
muddy paws
dampened feathers
thunder cracking

steaming coffee
comfy jammies
old movies
new books
paint splashing
afternoon naps

nourishing the plants
feeding the streams
brightening the green
slowing us down
refueling our engines
washing the world clean

 

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi

 

 

 

Fresh Red Raspberry Puff Pastry Tart

/ Jodi / 52 Comments

red raspberry puff pastry tart 1

If you are looking for a fresh, light, simple, yet surprisingly impressive dessert to take to a holiday picnic or serve for a simple weekend dinner party, I’ve created this quick, but scrumptious and beautiful fresh red raspberry puff pastry tart using fresh fruit combined with the convenience of frozen puff pastry.

red raspberry puff pastry tart

For the Memorial Day holiday weekend (or Fourth of July or Labor Day), you could use some blueberries in this one too for a red, white, blue theme.

red raspberry puff pastry tart 2

Here’s my easy peasy recipe that is bound to to get rave reviews!

Fresh Red Raspberry Puff Pastry Tart

Ingredients:red raspberry puff pastry tart 1

  • I pint fresh red raspberries
  • 1/4 cup apricot or raspberry or your favorite jam (I used apricot, because it is what I had, and it made a nice combination of flavors)
  • 1 sheet Pepperidge Farms Frozen Puff Pastry (thawed 40 mins. at room temperature)
  • 1 Tbsp Honey
  • Powdered Sugar for Garnish

Directions:

Unfold and place sheet of puff pastry on baking stone or baking sheet and turn up edges on all sides to create a crust edge.  Poke center with fork 6-8 times to prevent center from raising up too high.  Bake at 400 degrees F for approximately 15 minutes or until golden brown.

While still warm, spread jam on bottom of baked puff pastry. Place half of fresh raspberries on top and mash with a fork.  Allow to cool completely.

Once cooled, place whole fresh red raspberries on top.  Drizzle with honey, and sprinkle with powdered sugar.

To serve, cut into 6 pieces and garnish with a dollop of whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.  

Hope you enjoy!

Cheers & Hugs,
Jodi