REMEMBER WHEN....

JUST IN TIME!

Remember back in October I posted about my "little" green tomatoes, my organic "lasagna garden" just kept producing these and I could not just throw them out. I wrapped them all up in newspaper and placed them in a dark cool spot hoping they would ripen in time for Thanksgiving. Well these little tomatoes did just that, checked them today and I found red ripe tomatoes! This will be a special surprise for some folks when we sit down to eat our "Turkey" dinner tomorrow.

Hope everyone has a "HAPPY THANKSGIVING" and GOD BLESS YOU ALL!

I NEED YOUR HELP!

LOOKING FOR A GOOD PUMPKIN RECIPE.........

Like cookies, cake or bread........mainly cookies right now. You see our little grandson Caleb (3 yrs old) asked a special friend, Ms. Sandy, to cook his pumpkin that I grew for him and and he brought it to our house last night for me to fix something with it. I think he will eat it if it is baked in cookies, so if you have an easy recipe please send it to me on FB or email or you can leave it in the comment section. Thank You in advance!

BEAUTY FROM HEAVEN!

EARLY MORNING COLOR!

I looked out my windows and saw the most beautiful colors casting down from the Heavens! I grabbed my camera and started shooting, knowing it would only last a few minutes. To me this is one of the great gifts given to us early in the morning by our Heavenly Father! 

The beautiful colors of blues, pinks and oranges from above, high in the sky were casting down such a soft blanket over everything below.

As I was shooting I spotted this deer, she was spooked by the clicking of my camera, I managed to get this shot before she ran into the woods.

 I am so glad to be an early riser to be able to capture this kind of beauty, you never know when this is going to appear. I think God likes to surprise us with his paintings, he knows it puts a smile on our face and lets us preview a "hint" of beauty that will be in our Heavenly Home someday!

A FULL POT

AN ABUNDANCE OF ACORNS!

I went out today to gather acorns to make a project I found on Better Homes & Garden website. I discovered that we have been blessed with an abundance of these nuts this year, I think I know why, the acorns got to produce and mature this year (some of them are huge), because the Squirrels were so busy eating all of our peaches, apples and pears.

Just getting started, they are everywhere, I was stepping all over them, under leaves in the dirt, I mean everywhere.

It was cold and the wind was blowing, for a minute I thought it was raining "Acorns", they were falling all around me. I am very surprised I did not get hit in the head, the wind was blowing them out of the trees so fast, faster than I could pick them up!

 It did not take me long, about 10 minutes, to get a Full Pot. These are going to be used for projects, will be posting them soon so come back to visit!

NEW TO ME!

DO YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS? 

Do you know what this is, have you ever eaten it? It is Chayote (Chah-YOH-teh).....yes it is edible. I have grown several different kinds of squash but never heard of Chayote (Spanish) until the other day. It is native to Mesoamerica where it is a very important ingredient to the diet. A friend gave some to my mom and she passed one onto me, cooked it like I cook yellow squash, it was very good and tasty. I told my husband that it looks like an "old grandpa smiling with no teeth", ha, ha, I don't think he enjoyed the humor too much, since he is a grandpa, but a young grandpa! Anyway Chayote belongs to the plant family of melons, cucumbers, squash and gourds, it has to have lots of room to grow. It can be eaten raw, not for me, and cooked, when cooked like summer squash, it is generally lightly cooked to retain a crisp flavor. Chayote can also be eaten raw, I think I said this already, in salads and salsas, and it is often marinated with lemon or lime juice. Whether you cook it or eat it raw, it is a good source of amino acids and vitamin C.

IT'S ALMOST TURKEY TIME!

TELL ME HOW YOU PREPARE YOUR TURKEY OR ................

whatever you serve for Thanksgiving. In our house it is generally Turkey & Dressing, mashed potatoes, candied yams or sweet potato casserole, you know with all those marshmallows on top, green beans, rolls, purple hull peas, deviled eggs, green onions and of course sliced cranberry sauce. I have to have cranberry sauce when I eat Turkey & Dressing, they go together like.....peanut butter & jelly. And to top it all off, if you have room, dessert, it might be my home-made chocolate pie, my moms home-made pecan pie, my home-made zucchini bread, my mom's home-made banana pudding, or whatever anyone else decides to bring, it might be all of these! The main thing is to be THANKFUL for each and everyday and the many blessings God gives us. 

It makes me hungry just writing about it......leave a comment telling what you are planning to have for Thanksgiving!

ANOTHER GREAT GOOD EARTH PRODUCT

TUSCAN CHICKEN with PENNE PASTA

By now you can tell we like chicken....this is about the third chicken dinner we have tried by GOOD EARTH...and we have loved everyone of them. The best thing about their dinners are that they are all natural and no additives and no artificial flavors and 100% whole grain pasta. The other thing I like about them is they are so simple and quick to fix.

I HAVE FALLEN IN LOVE AGAIN!

WITH FRIED PEAR PIES....

It was late last night but I decided to go ahead and make my Fried Pear Pies, I am glad I did, my husband and I taste tested them and they are absolutely positively delicious! I have a whole new perspective about Pears, I did not know they could taste so good. I am so thankful for everyone that has been so generous giving me pears, since the squirrels ate all of mine, the little stinkers. After peeling and slicing, cooking for a pretty long time, adding granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and a stick of butter (smart balance), they were ready to cool and be turned into home-made little fried pies. My pie dough is made from self rising flour and buttermilk, buttermilk gives it such a wonderful unique taste. I now prefer Fried Pear Pies over apple, peach or chocolate, I still like the others but the Pears are at the top of the list!

"JUST AROUND THE CORNER"

WHO IS GETTING READY TO DECORATE FOR CHRISTMAS?

ME.......I am planning to start early....getting the trees up this week. I think I am going to let our 2 grandsons help decorate the small tree this weekend when they come down to visit. Christmas is my favorite Holiday, celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ, the music, I love Christmas music. Matter of fact starting today Christmas music will be playing at our house! I love the memories of past Christmas's, oh the joys of playing "Santa". All the Christmas Eve's staying up til 3 AM putting toys together and getting everything under the tree just to see the excitement in our kids on Christmas morning, oh how I miss those days!

This is a pic of my Christmas Tree last year.......

THE GREEN STUFF NO ONE LIKES!

"SPINACH"

I know what you are thinking.....Spinach is yucky......it's all in the way you season it when you cook it. I buy the frozen chopped spinach, it keeps longer and you can cook only the amount you need without wasting. When I cook my spinach I get my water, just enough to cover the spinach, to boiling and then pour in the frozen spinach. I let the spinach cook a few minutes then I add a little sea salt, black pepper, onion powder and a spoon full of extra virgin olive oil. I don't have a certain measurement of ingredients, I usually guess according to how much of spinach I am cooking. 

I found some nutritional information on the web to pass along...Spinach is low in calories and contains high amounts of minerals, vitamins, antioxidants and flavonoids. The various flavonoids in spinach protect us against cancer. The antioxidants protect against free radical damage and help prevent degenerative diseases.

Spinach contains high amounts of vitamin K along with calcium and helps build good bones along with magnesium. The high amounts of iron in spinach is good for women, the iron in spinach is called non-heme iron. Sounds good so far!

Spinach contains oxalic acid, also called oxalates, which combines with the iron and inhibits its absorption. Oxalic acid also binds with calcium, creating calcium oxalate and inhibits the absorption of calcium. If there is not enough calcium in the diet, the oxalic acid will combine with the calcium in the kidneys and form kidney stones. Therefore, eating raw spinach on a regular basis increases the risk of kidney stones. *Cooking spinach breaks down the oxalates and prevents the formation of un-absorable mineral complexes in the body.

Spinach also contains goitrogens which interfere with the functioning of the thyroid gland. Therefore, people with thyroid problems should avoid spinach.

1 cup cooked spinach contains:

  155 mg Magnesium............244 mg Calcium.............830 mg Potassium.............6.4 mg Iron

   17 mg Vitamin C.............14700 IU Vitamin A............4.3 gm Fiber..................5.3 gm Protein

The high protein and low carbohydrate content makes it a good food for diabetics.

Cooked spinach goes well with Omeletts, Grilled Meats, Green Salads and also with Vegetarian Lasagna. 

So give it a try, who knows, you might actually like it!

COULD NOT HELP MYSELF!

I MUST BE NUTS..................BUT.......

I could not leave these pears on the tree. Went to visit my daughter and her family and their pear tree was loaded. A neighbor was suppose to have gotten them, but I guess they did not get a chance to, so I brought a bunch home with me. If you are thinking that the pears look over ripe, looks is deceiving, it is what is in the inside that counts. I am going to try to make "pear fried pies", never done this so it is an experiment, but I think they will be delicious. I discovered that the longer the pears are on the tree, if you don't have critters eating them, the sweeter they are. I peeled a couple of these and shared them with my grandsons and let me tell you these are the sweetest and juiciest pears I have ever eaten. I will be posting the results when I am finished and give you the details, wish me luck!