In lieu of hot veggies, I like to make side salads to go with dinner in the summer. Hubby isn’t a big fan of green salads so I switch it up now and then.
This bright salad combines the sweetness of ripe watermelon with the salty tang of feta and kalamata olives. The sweet/savory dressing brings it all together for yumminess in every bite.
Variations: Any tomatoes will do; I like the yellow for the contrast in color. You can use an English cucumber and leave the skin intact.
Chicken wings don’t have to be a guilty pleasure. I’ve found that baking them is as delish as deep frying, and far more heart-healthy (not to mention less messy).
You can take the easy-peasy route and simply make a batch of basic wings and then serve a variety of dipping sauces on the side. Or you can go a bit more fancy and flavorful by tossing them in one of the sauces below near the end of the cooking time. I usually serve with a platter of raw, cold veggies.
Variations: Recipes for my basic wings and two favorite flavors are below: Buffalo and Ginger-Soy. You can toss the wings in a multitude of sauces of your choosing and finish in the oven. Oil based salad dressings are a good option. Stay away from cream-based sauces as they will burn; offer them for dipping instead (ranch and bleu cheese are a favorite). An easy way to create your own dipping sauces is to start with a base of 1/4 cup sour cream and simply stir in herbs and spices of your choosing.
A dear friend gifted me with a literal armload of fresh herbs from her garden. I used them in daily recipes for a solid week, keeping them wrapped in damp paper towels in the fridge, and then needed to find another use before they turned brown. There are a plethora of ideas such as tying them in bunches, hanging by their stems and letting dry, making pesto or chimichurro sauce, and freezing in ice cube trays. I opted to make simple syrup, compound butter and infused oil.
Both of my parents were born in Belfast, Northern Ireland and the majority of my family lives in the United Kingdom. I am first-generation American and proud of my Orange-Irish heritage and can’t wait to one day sail “home” into Belfast Harbor.
Many who know me well have been schooled on St. Patrick’s Day and the difference between being Orange and Green Irish. I DO NOT wear green on St. Patrick’s Day as I am absolutely sure my father would look down with horror. One year, my father caught me sneaking out of the house with a bit of green on and said sternly, “Get back inside and take off that green and put on your orange. No daughter of mine will be caught wearing green on St. Patrick’s Day!” He didn’t care that we might get pinched by our school mates … his loyalty to his Orange Irish roots ran deep. I passed on the same traditions to my children and now my daughter ensures that the Grands wear their orange as well as green.
The Orange Irish celebrate Orangemen’s Day with bonfires kicking off the festivities on July 11th and parades on July 12th. Homes and buildings are adorned with bunting and people crowd the streets waving the British flag. Read on for a wee bit of history about the holiday.
Kugel is a well-loved staple of Jewish family meals and can be made sweet or savory, with noodles or potatoes. Although I’ve seen some fancy schmancy recipes, traditionally it’s a baked pudding or casserole with simple ingredients, served as a starch side or dessert. It can be made in a regular casserole pan but I like the presentation of a round pie dish.
Potato kugel is made with grated potatoes, but when I’m making a special holiday dinner with many components such as Passover, the use of frozen hashbrowns makes for an easy side that can be prepped in the morning and popped in the oven an hour before serving. It can also be baked, cooled, frozen and reheated if you want to pre-make it.
Merrow packed her overnight bag thoughtfully. This getaway coincided with the Lover’s Moon. She would welcome a masculine presence, real or mystical, yet she wasn’t expecting any revelations as her morning tarot reading was unclear. The Star card served as a reminder to keep the faith and the Moon card predicted the existence of illusion. The Lover’s card showed up in reverse, which could be interpreted as conflict and the need to make a decision. She pondered the complicated meanings of the cards as she prepared for her journey.
“Got the survival kit packed: wand, broom, cauldron, chalice, crystals. Need to pick and bind new sage. Candles? Damn. Have to stop for a fresh pack.”
Merrow’s organizational voice carried on a conversation with itself as she placed clothing and toiletries alongside her spellcasting tools. She was an old soul and many ancestral spirits coexisted within her, each rising to the occasion when summoned and more often of their own accord. They had started as whispers and as she learned to listen and heed their advice, they had revealed themselves in signs and thoughts. Great Aunt Zelda, always the romantic, encouraged her to pack a pretty nightdress so she tucked a seafoam green silk chemise next to the altar cloth.
It had been a long night filled with people crowding our house and talking all at once. My mother alternated between crying and wailing, giving me a headache. The television blared the local station, flashing scenes from the Rockford Files with the occasional news update interrupting the program. Everyone jumped when the kitchen phone rang and hushed to hear who was calling. The cacophony returned when it was determined to be someone wanting to know if there was any new information. There wasn’t.
Outside, the storm raged. Branches blew from the trees into the pool, the patio chairs were on their sides and the umbrella was gone, but no one noticed except me. I sat alone in my father’s home office, looking out at our huge backyard overshadowed by a hill. Lights from the house illuminated the ripples on the dark water; a sharp contrast to the mild evenings of the past week.
Hubby is most definitely a meat and potatoes kind of guy but we have been trying to limit our carbohydrate intake so often dinner just features a protein and large portion of a veggie side. Sunchokes, also known as Jerusalem artichokes, look similar to potatoes when diced or sliced and have a similar texture, but feature a sweet, nutty flavor similar to an artichoke, that only needs a few herbs and olive oil. I served these with Easter dinner (turkey ham basted in mustard, honey and brown sugar and roasted asparagus).
Sunchokes are also good raw; crunchy and a great addition to a green salad when sliced thinly. Some people prefer to peel them, but with their odd shape it can be quite a task. I prefer to wash off any dirt and give them a good scrub with a textured sponge or veggie brush and leave the skin on.
They are rich in iron, potassium and vitamin B1. And the really good news for diabetics is that they have have a lower glycemic index score than potatoes as they store their carbohydrate as inulin (not to be confused with insulin) rather than starch. And for all of us, they aren’t fattening (one cup of raw sunchokes has approximately 110 calories and zero fat)!
It was New Year’s Eve and I was cruising up the Pacific Coast Highway in my Dodge Colt. On a whim, I’d decided that morning to ring in 1987 back home in the Bay Area instead of San Diego, where I had been stationed in the Coast Guard and still lived. My SoCal girlfriends would be whooping it up at the Country Bumpkin, our dive bar of choice, two-stepping and shooting tequila and kissing every cowboy within reach at midnight. A year ago I was matching them shot for shot and kiss for kiss, but not this year.
I was pregnant.
This wasn’t part of my plan. I was 22, carefree and looking forward to a long military career as a Radioman. Children weren’t anywhere on my radar. I’d just started dating a Navy Gunnersmate after ending a relationship with a fly-boy. It seems I had a thing for sailors even back then.
