Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Recipes. Show all posts

Friday, March 28, 2025

Golden Cottage Garden & a Recipe

Greetings, Gail-Friends!

Mr. Green Jeans and I have been working in the garden.  The weather here has been glorious! With highs in the mid seventies, we are making hay while the sun shines, as they say, to get things growing before the oppressive heat sets in.  Spring only lasts about a month in sunny central Florida

So, Golden Cottage Garden is coming along nicely.  We even have a new bunch of bananas on two of our trees.  This is unusual because we just had one in this past summer, so the trees are bearing twice in a year now.  I think it's because we've been fertilizing them with banana peelings.  Works good!  AND, we have two new trees that have come up.  These are called pups! 

 


Did you know that Dollar Tree sells vegetable and flower seeds ?  And they are only 3 packages for $1.25?

We planted lettuce, peas, green beans, squash and cucumbers.  AND we finally found some Everglades tomatoes (on Etsy) and they are doing well.  I had searched high and low locally  to find those plants/seeds with no success.  This tomato is a variety that thrives in hot weather and it also reseeds itself.  We're excited!   They are small, like cherry tomatoes, and are great in salads.  Believe me, we'll be savings those seeds, too, because one package of twenty-five seeds was $4.00.

Last post, I mentioned doing a post about our Purim celebration, but that will have to be later.  I'm pressed for time today, and I want to make it over to my friend, Sarah's, Homemaking Party (see below).  I will tell you that we were part of play at the synagogue.  Jem was Haman and I was Esther!  It was fun.  Pics in next post.

Passover is almost here, and I'm preparing -- getting rid of the leaven in my house, gathering matzah and other food for that week, and pulling out my recipes that are free of leaven.  This is one of my favs.

Lime Cheesecake (sugar-free)

CRUST:

1 c. almond meal
1/2 c pecans, chopped fine
1 T. Stevia in the raw
4 T. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/8 tsp salt

FILLING:

8 oz. cream cheese (at room temperature)
1 package of sugar free instant pudding
1/2 c. lime juice (these were fresh off our own tree, hand-squeezed on my mama's antique juicer)
1 cup skim milk

TO PREPARE:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Mix together the crust ingredients and then press into a lightly greased pie pan. (I used a square glass one).  Bake the crust until the edges are slightly browned (about 10-15 minutes). Place the dish on a rack to cool.

FILLING:

Mix all of the filling ingredients  with an electric mixer until well blended. (Use a deep bowl, or you'll make a big mess like I did).  Pour the filling over the cooled crust.  Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours.  

Enjoy! 

My husband and I loved it, and I hope you will, too.  Let me know if you try it.

*** I'm sharing this at the Classical Homemaking Party  I hope you'll stop over and meet some new friends.

Wednesday, September 4, 2019

Thankful Thursday - Hurricane Praises & Chocolate Truffles!

 


THANK YOU FOR THE PRAYERS. We are praising God because Dorian passed us by last night and today (DOWN FROM A CATEGORY 5 TO A 2) and we had very little rain, no yard or home damage from wind. AND, we didn't lose power!   There was lots of damage to the beaches and the sea turtle nests, but not to people or homes. He's riding close to the coast a he goes north, so keep praying friends.   Our prayer was for him to turn east and to lose strength!  Haleluyah!

My dear husband and our son-in-love worked like Turks to get ready for the storm.  We couldn't have done it without dear William.  After William finished boarding up their house and helping his parents, he came to help Jem with the new generator.  They worked for hours on it  setting it up, adding oil,  and letting it run. Then when it was time to drain the oil, the nut where the oil drains would not come off because the tool to release it was not in the box.  They tried all of Jem's tools and asked a neighbor if he had one -- but no luck.  William finally found a tool somewhere, somehow and they got it done!!  


I was amazed at the endurance and strength of my sweet husband - who just turned seventy-three.  He worked from morning till night on Monday boarding up and moving plants and moving the stuff on the patio to the shed. At the end of the day, his poor feet had huge blisters. But, even as tired as he was, he saw our neighbor struggling to move something and went across the street to offer his help.   He's a hard-working man and I admire him so much.  He never gives up and never gives in until the jobs is done -- and done well.  All of this is done with NO complaining.  What a man! Can you tell I love him?  I love my son-in-love, too.  Men like those two are very rare and I'm thankful for them both.

We started preparing for Dorian last Wednesday - that's a whole week, Gail-Friends!  While organizing the shed and cleaning off the patio, I realized we still have too much STUFF!  This, after cleaning out and donating three van loads of STUFF before, during, and after the garage re-do.  So, the van is filling up once again.  We both worked hard getting ready in the house and the yard, and I told Jem, "This is why old people move to condos."  

God was so good to us in not letting anything happen to us or our neighbors and we give him all the praise and thanks.  

The weatherman is talking today about more storms in the Atlantic that could be headed our way.  I told him, "Shut your mouth!"  (Yes, I talk to the TV.) Those memories of three back-to-back hurricanes in 2004 are still very fresh!  It could happen, Gail-Friends, so,we came through Dorian with resolve to do two things:

1.  To talk to our neighbor about cutting down the three pine trees adjacent to our front yard, one of which leans toward Golden Cottage.  That was our biggest concern.  

2.  To purchase storm shutters that stay on the windows all the time.  Putting plywood up is a tough job.

While we were waiting for the storm to arrive and then move north, I was struck by a burst of energy and a burning desire for ORDER!!!  I cleaned cabinets and closets like a mad woman.  I organized my office files and decades of  family photographs, records, and cassette tapes.  So, thanks to Dorian, I'm super organized.  

I also decided to color my hair and give myself RED highlights.  Then I decided to cut it.  All of this was NOT a good idea, so I'm not sharing any pictures.  My daughter, Amanda, is going to try to  help me tomorrow.  

While we waited (and listened to the weather people go on and on)  I went through recipes and found  a wonderful treat I have to share with you.  During hurricanes in the past, I ate crunchy junk food and chocolate -- but not this year!  I loaded up with raw veggies with hummus, triple zero yogurt, and THIS Trim Healthy Mama treat:  



Easy-Peasy to make, too!

 the picture and recipe makes seven large marble sized truffles

TWO MINUTE CHOCOLATE TRUFFLES from My Montana Kitchen

I'm telling you, Gail-Friends, I could kiss the feet of this woman.  Jem ate Snickers and I ate these wonderful treats, which are sugar-free, low-carb, gluten-free, dairy-free, keto, and THM-S.  You have to visit her blog because she has tons of good, healthy recipes. The blog post has the ingredients and instructions and, like she said in her post, don't be ashamed if you eat it with a spoon right out of the bowl.  I asked Jem if he'd like to try it and he loved it.  So, I made a double batch the next day.  (The Trim Healthy Mama books are available on their website. They also have a Facebook group that's very helpful.)


I was determined to stay on track with my health goals through the hurricane and I praise Hashem for giving me the strength to eat right.  I've lost sixteen pounds over the past four months and I feel fabulous!  I've been exercising four or five days a week, too.  I do two pool days and two gym days weekly, and then walk on the weekend.  I've been working with a personal trainer and she has taught me so much.  I told Jem I think I'm getting addicted to exercise because I really missed going over the past week. I still haven't experienced those endorphins people talk about, though.

Please continue to pray for those in the path of Dorian as he heads north.  Let's just pray he heads further east and fizzles out completely.  And pray for those in the Bahamas,too.  The reports are horrific - people were killed and thousands of homes are completely destroyed.  They're going to need lots of help, so let's pray about what we can do to assist them.



Blessings and have a good week.  Let me know if I can pray for you.

~~~~~

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Two Desserts and a Spatula

Sugar-free Lime Cheesecake

I promised you a recipe for my sugar-free lime dessert.  Isn't it beautiful?  I actually have two desserts for you today, and a funny story along with them.  

My sweet hubby's birthday was earlier this month, and I made his favorite, a German chocolate cake.  The recipe is pretty simple, just two boxes of cake mix and two tubs of icing, plus extra pecans for the top layer.  That's how I roll, and it really has been a long time since I baked a regular cake.  I don't eat sugar, and it's too tempting to make something I can't have, so I usually just buy him a cake.  

Well, I made the first layer (in a 9 x 13 pan), cooked it, and put it out to cool while I started on the next layer.  I mixed it up, and put it in the oven while I put my feet up for a bit.  After about fifteen minutes, I started washing the dishes, and much to my dismay, found this:




What in the world to do?  It was way too late in the day to bake another cake.  If I tried to find it in the cake, I'd tear it up.  Oh, I forgot to mention, that the cake mix also had chocolate chips in it, which  would make it near to impossible to find that missing edge of the spatula.  So, when Jem got home we made the decision to let it go and tell everybody to be careful while eating it...

At the party, Jem said, "How many of you have ever been to New Orleans?"  Some raised their hands and gave him funny looks.

"And how many of you have ever had the King Cake?"  Some raised their hands and looked at each other quizzically.  (Not sure about that word, but it fits this situation.)

"Well, tonight we're introducing the Jewish version."  More funny looks.

"My dear wife has baked a wonderful German chocolate cake for my birthday, but there's one small problem."  I am turning red with embarrassment at this point.  "It seems that a small corner of her spatula has disappeared into the cake batter."  By now, I am truly, completely mortified and red as a beet.

"So, we've decided that whoever finds the spatula gets a prize!"  He beamed, while everybody roared with laughter.  I laughed, too, but I was totally done in because everybody turned to me to see if this was another one of his jokes.  (He's famous for being a jokester.)

I nodded my head, "It's true...and I haven't baked a cake in so long, my spatula dry-rotted!"  Everybody roared with laughter and I did, too.

So, everybody was very careful as they ate the cake, which they all said was fabulous.  After a few minutes of munching, the stray spatula corner was found by LaVonne, and she won the prize -- a styrofoam ice chest full of used golf balls. (You guessed it -- that was the jokester's idea.)  We all cheered, and after that, everybody relaxed and enjoyed their cake and vanilla ice cream.

It was a fun party and it was a birthday cake that will live on in infamy. Here's a picture of the cake, and the birthday boy.



Now, here's that recipe I promised you:

Lime Cheesecake (sugar-free)

CRUST:

1 c. almond meal
1/2 c pecans, chopped fine
1 T. Stevia in the raw
4 T. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/8 tsp salt

FILLING:

8 oz. cream cheese (at room temperature)
1 package of sugar free instant pudding
1/2 c. lime juice (these were fresh off our own tree, hand-squeezed on my mama's antique juicer)
1 cup skim milk

TO PREPARE:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Mix together the crust ingredients and then press into a lightly greased pie pan. (I used a square glass one).  Bake the crust until the edges are slightly browned (about 10-15 minutes). Place the dish on a rack to cool.

FILLING:

Mix all of the filling ingredients  with an electric mixer until well blended. (Use a deep bowl, or you'll make a big mess like I did).  Pour the filling over the cooled crust.  Refrigerate 3 to 4 hours.  

Enjoy! 

My husband and I loved it, and I hope you will, too.  Let me know if you try it.



~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 I sometimes share my posts  with  friends at :





Charlotte at Spiritual Sundays
Janis with Sunday Stillness

THE SUNDAY COMMUNITY – #GIVE ME GRACE @SEE SPEAK HEAR MAMA

 Kathy’s Return to Loveliness at A Delightsome Life 

  All Things Bright and Beautiful Link-Up


 Jennifer Dukes Lee Tell His Story
Thursday  Favorite Things

Friendship Friday 
  Faith Filled Friday at Missional Women
 Fellowship Fridays at Christian Mommy Blogger

STILL SATURDAYS @SANDRAHESKAKING
PLAYDATES @LAURABOGGESS

 My Fresh Brewed Life with Barbie – Weekend Brew

Sunday, December 21, 2014

8 Days of Chanukah - Day 6


This post is a part of the series 8 Days of Chanukah.

Tonight is the sixth night of Chanukah, and so we light the sixth candle of the menorah.
Food is big part of most Jewish holidays.  One of the things I love to make is my menorah dip, which has evolved over the years.  This is great on crackers, but also makes a great sandwich spread, especially on rye bread.

Here's my recipe:

2 8 oz packages of cream cheese
2 cans of water-packed tuna, drained (you could also use one large can of salmon)
2 tsp smoke flavoring (this makes the tuna taste like smoked salmon...and it's cheaper, too)

1 small bag frozen asparagus, steamed
1 jar of pimientos
1 small yellow pepper
1 jar of large olives
1/2 bag of sliced almonds

Combine the first three ingredients till smooth.  Spread the mixture into a circle shape on a plate  

Sprinkle the almonds over the circle and press them in with your hands.  Surround the circle with olives.

I used frozen asparagus to make the menorah.  I steamed it in the microwave till slightly soft.  Don't cook it too long or it will lose the bright green color. 

The flames are made from the pimientos in a jar.  I cut one in strips about 1/4 inch wide and then in 2 inch pieces to make the flame shape.  For the yellow part, I took a fresh yellow pepper and cut  a piece in 1/4 inch wide strips and then in 1/2 to 1 inch pieces. 


This is easy, and a real crowd pleaser, both in taste and in the "wow" factor.  Everybody is always impressed!  

Tomorrow, I'll share how we decorate for Chanukah.

************
I'm linking up today with:

Sunday, November 24, 2013

Hanukkah Recipe


This is an easy-peasy recipe for your Hanukkah celebration, and it will really wow your guests. 

2 containers of whipped cream cheese
1 cup ground pecans or almonds
fresh asparagus (lightly steamed)
red peppers in a can or bottle (or if the olives are stuffed with red peppers, you can use those)
olives

Mix the cream cheese with half of the nuts, and spread on a plate in a circle shape.
Sprinkle remaining nuts on top of the cheese
Place the lightly steamed asparagus in the shape of a menorah as pictured
Cut the peppers in strips and place around the tips of the asparagus as pictured
Surround the circle with olives.

Serve your choice of crackers or toasted pita pieces for dipping. 

Enjoy, and Happy Hanukkah to you all.

Friday, March 22, 2013

Passover Recipes

Kugel  (without cherry topping)

As we prepare for Passover next week, I'm thinking of what dishes I'll cook.  During this holiday, we remove the leaven from our homes as well as our cooking. To learn more about Passover, just click on the subject index on the left side of the blog. 

In the past, I've always prepared my old stand-by - kugel.  I do a sugar-free version that is delish, and I wanted to share it with my Gail-Friends.



1 12-ounce package egg noodles
1 large package of light cream cheese
18 ounce light or fat free sour cream
1 16-ounce light or low fat ricotta
3/4 stick butter
8 eggs
3/4 cup granulated sugar substitute
Spices:  1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp vanilla (or add nutmeg, etc)
1 can sugar free cherry pie filling (or whatever you like)


You’ll need 3 separate bowls for mixing.

While noodles are cooking, let your cream cheese, sour cream, butter, and ricotta stay out at room temperature to soften. Mix them together in separate bowl.

Cook noodles, drain and put in large mixing bowl.

Whisk eggs until fluffy in separate bowl. Add both mixtures to noodles and mix well. Add sugar substitute and mix together. Add spices to taste. I add cinnamon and vanilla.
Spray 9" by 13" pan and add combined mixture. Bake at 350°F for 45 minutes or until slightly browned.
Remove from oven, top with cherry pie filling and put back in oven for fifteen to twenty minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Refrigerate.
ENJOY!
 
If you have a favorite Passover recipe, please share.


I'm linking up with:
Weekend Whatever Link-up
Let's Get Social Sunday
 Spiritual Sundays
  Monday Musings

Gratituesday at Heavenly Homemakers!
Homestead Abundance Tuesdays #4
Titus 2 Tuesday 
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Women Helping Women
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A Wise Woman Builds
WholeHearted Home
 Thought Provoking Thursday
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