Monday, June 18, 2012

Oh Snap! Father's Day Food Fest



My hubby T, super dad to our two awesome children, did not want anything for Father's Day. He had just one request for his special day: homemade deep dish pizza. He refused my offer to take him downtown for Pizzeria Uno pizza, his favorite. Too crowded, too much traffic, too expensive. He gave me all the excuses, so I gave in. Then, he suggested we take a trip to the Elburn Market for fresh Italian sausage for said pizza, and here's where the Father's Day food fest begins.

One does not make a special trip to a quality meat market and leave with just Italian sausage. Oh no! There's pork chops, ground beef, chicken, deli meats, and of course, steak - t-bone steaks. Change of menu? Nope! Because he is such a great father and loving husband, T had his deep dish pizza, and ate his steak too. And there were muffins - not store bought, not from a mix - homemade raspberry muffins accompanied by his fav hot beverage: chai tea latte. We are the best wife and kids ever! Well, at least in our minds we are.

So here in photos, is the Father's Day Food Fest featuring three good meals which actually started on Saturday night with . . .

2. Homemade deep dish sausage and mushroom pizza







3. Made-from-scratch raspberry muffins for Sunday's breakfast







1. T-Bone steak dinner with baked potatoes, grilled veggies, baked beans, and salad with fresh lettuce from our garden, with a Leine's Summer Shandy











Oh, let's not forget dessert - ice cream from Brenda's Frozen Custard in nearby Sandwich, IL. There's always room for dessert!





               Please pass the Tums.

Friday, June 8, 2012

Fabulous Summertime Fruit!

Knowledge is knowing the tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it in your fruit salad. - Miles Kington
But a fruit salad is a good thing, especially in the summer months with fresh, just-picked fruit. Not so good with bad fruit like the baby watermelon and a couple of pounds of cherries we bought recently at a nearby superstore. No taste at all. We ended up throwing most of it away, which really honks me off, as Brian would say.

Brian also said this to me on IM the other day: I'm eating a peach. They just hit the store this week. The local strawberries are done now. ohhhh... so good.
He was trying to make me smile during an otherwise serious conversation about my health. He succeeded.


Sweet, juicy, fresh peaches make me smile. They are a good thing. A few summers ago, we went peach picking in Michigan with the kids (that's them peach picking (or maybe eating) there in the photo) So much fun, and tasty too! With that in mind, today's post features our favorite summer fruits, and how we like to eat 'em.

Sue

2. Watermelon! My most favorite summertime fruit. When I was pregnant with Miss O during the summer, I couldn't stop eating it. I prefer slices or chunks, seedless please. It's also pretty yummy in a fruit salad especially when someone else makes it in one of those fancy carved watermelon baskets.

3. Cherries! BK, not Burger King, but Before Kids, T and I went on a road trip along Michigan's west coast. We stopped at a farmstand and picked up a pint or two of cherries. We ate them right there in the car without bothering to wait to get to our destination. As a child, my famiy would go cherry pickin' in Door County, Wisconsin. Good times! I prefer my cherries chilled, straight up, or perhaps in a pie. With vanilla ice cream.

1. Avocados! They have pits like cherries, peaches, or plums, so I'm calling them a fruit. I absolutely adore avocados. Remember when Brian came to my house last summer and he made his famous guacamole. Guacamole is my fav way to eat avocados, but I also like them sliced on sandwiches or burgers. Here is another excerpt from Bri and I's IM the other day, Me: We had some yummy bacon avocado burgers last night. Brian: mmmm, bacon avocado! As you can see, we enjoy talking about food - a lot! And now it's Brian's turn:

Brian

2) Strawberries: These beauties are what I ate for breakfast on Wednesday. Depending on where you live, you get local strawberries for a couple of weeks in the late-Spring or early-Summer. 20 Years in Michigan conditioned me to Strawberries near my birthday in early July. Here, near Philadelphia, it's the couple of weeks after Memorial Day. These are small, incredibly flavorful and not be be confused with the watery behemoths from California and Florida.

3) Peaches: To cling, or not to cling - that is the question! Whether 'tis preferable to have the flesh of the peach come-away easily from the stone, or to suffer the slings and arrows of an outrageous clingy peach. But then, you get to suck the meat off the pit. mmmmmm

1) Blueberries: Blue on the bush, purple on the plate, there's no blue food! My fruit-picking experiences are not limited to blueberries, but they are a favorite. You have to be careful not to eat too many while you're picking. Let's just say that there are consequences. Dire. Consequences.

Ignorance is like a delicate exotic fruit; touch it and the bloom is gone. - Oscar Wilde




Monday, June 4, 2012

Book Giveaway Winner

Just one good thing for today:

Leslie G. is the winner of the book, "Don't Sweat the Small Stuff for Moms"

That is all, carry on.