Black Crowder Peas

We got some Black crowder peas at the farmers market to put up and they are a little different than the regular crowder peas we usually get they are smaller.(wife prefers the other or regular ones just what she grew up with) They were very good and as you see we have some put up in the freezer. We cooked thes like our last batch of the oldfashioned crower peas the recipe can be found on the side bar.

Southern Dinner

Well summer is fading and boy will I miss the tomatoes. The last ones we got were not so good. This was a bunch of fried food which I know we are not supposed to eat much of but once a month we just can't help ourselves.
Pork chop,okra,and yellow squash with crowed peas and rice, sliced tomatoes and ice tea. And of course a biscuit.
okra and squash
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon pepper
we added a little zaterans to the mix.
1 egg well beaten
cooking oil
wash and cut up vegetables
in bowl stir flour,cornmeal salt and pepper and zaterans
pour egg over okra and squash and toss till coated dredge in flour mixture
heat oil and fry till golden brown drain well on paper towels.

Sunday Cats

Aren't we cute. Two of us can squeeze into the box where Stinker can barely fit.

Stir Fry

This is an easy dish to do when it is hot outside and one we did back when it was so hot, also a good way to get veggies.
1/2 cups water
4 teaspoons cornstarch
1 Tablespoon chicken bullion
1 Tablespoon sherry
1 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 Tablespoon oyster sauce
ginger to taste and red pepper to your preference.
chicken in bite size pieces( we like a thighs about 4)
can of water chestnuts
can of straw mushrooms or regular
broccoli
cauliflower
carrots
really anything you want to put in there.
Its a good way to clean out the frig. squash also works.
Brown your chicken and remove from wok or skillet
add onion and other veggies and saute a few minutes.
Add sauce mixture and chicken and cook till sauce thickens and add over rice.

Sunday Cats

This is our biggest cat Stinker who has taken over the box. They are so easily amused. Forget all those fancy toys just throw down a box or paper sack and let the fun begin.

Squash

It is finally getting a little cooler and so nice last week end we had the window open to get some fresh air. Only bad thing is the summer bounty will be gone soon. This year we do have some stuff put up for the winter and hope to do more next year. We did a little yellow squash and this is one I really like.

Just cut up some bacon and fry a little onion and cook till tender add salt and pepper to taste. I like to add some feta cheese on top.

By the way I hate them screwing around with the blog. I have a hard time placing my pictures  now. and this is the third time to do it. I just left out the other pictures because I could not get them to line up right.

Strawberry jam on toast

We showed the jam we made and this is the first thing we tried it on. Toast some french bread with goat cheese and a drop of the jam. ummmm ummmmm good.

Figs and Strawberries

There has not been enough time in the day. Here we did some figs and strawberry preserves in one day.

This was real simple just cook down with some sugar and put in sterile jars.

Sunday Cat

Here are all three of the smitten for their Friskies commerical.

Chicken Artichokes and Pasta

This was really tasty and easy and quick to fix it also made a lot.
16 oz of pasta
1 pound of chicken breast
1/4 teaspoon salt
dash of pepper
(we added some red pepper flakes.. as much as you want)
3 tablespoons olive oil divided
4 to 6 oz sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup chicken broth
4 tablespoons lemon juice
3 cloves garlic sliced
1/4  cup onion
2 cans artichoke hearts drained and chopped
1/2 cup roasted red pepper(we used a little green as we did not have the red pepper)
3 medium plum tomatoes (we used a few home grown)
1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaf
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
Cook pasta according directions rinse and drain
cut chicken in narrow strips and sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper
In saucepan heat 2 Tablespoons olive oil over medium heat add chicken  and saute stiring until cooked about 5 minutes.
Remove chicken and set aside add remaning olive oil and mushrooms,onions and bell opepper stiring until tender. Add broth. lemmon.salt and pepper to taste, garlic and artichoke hearts. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Stir in tomato wedges, basil, chicken and pasta and heat through.
Toss with parmesan cheese before serving.

Sauteed Spinach

Along with the dish yesterday we had sauteed spinach. This really cooked down to nothing compared to how it started
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
5 cloves garlic chopped
2 lb spinach
salt and pepper
Heat oil in skillet over med heat.
Place garlic in skillet and cook till golden brown add spinach in handfulls and season with salt and pepper cover and cook till spinach releases its liquid stirring till wilted and water has evaporated.

Lemon Chicken

This was very tasty and a winner in our book. We did make it in half as its just us two but recipe is for 4.
2 lemons
4 chicken cutlets pounded thinly into scallopin
salt and pepper
flour for dredging
6 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 tablespoons butter
2 cloves garlic
16 capers
10 green olives(we left this out)
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 cup chicken broth
2 Tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
Squeeze juice from one and half of the lemons and reserve. Cut remaining half in very thin slices removing seed and set aside.
Season chhicken with salt and pepper. Dredge in flour and place in heated 3 tablespoons oil and 2 tablespoons butter on medium heat. Place as many pieces of chicken with out touching and cook until golden brown. Approximately 3 minutes flip and cook on other side, remove and drain on paper towel
Wipe fat up with paper towels and add remaning olive oil and butter. Scrape bits from bottom of pan add sliced garlic and lemon juice to skillet. Cook till garlic is golden brown. Add capers and olives stiring for about 4 minutes. Pour in wine and bring to a boil. Cook until wine is reduced by half. Add chicken stock and boil until slightly syrupy. Return chicken and coat with sauce add parsley and swirle into sauce.
Add to plate with sauce spooned over chicken and slice of lemon on top

Sunday Cat

This is Trouble waiting for dinner. Don't you think it would make a good Friskies commercial?

Cranberry Almond wild rice

Along with the dish yesterday we had this and we thought it was better than the salmon and will fix this again.
1/2 cup wild rice cook according to directions.
1/4 cup dried cranberries or craisins
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/4 cup diced celery.
salt and pepper to taste.
When rice is almost done add celery and almonds. When cooked add craisins.

Sweet Potato Crusted Salmon

We had one lone sweet potato in the pantry and two salmon fillets left. So wife went searching for a recipe to use. She found this at Tuckers restaurant on the web. (she misses her Zaar where you could put what ingredients that were on hand and a bunch of recipes would pop up.) It was ok but we have had better recipes with our salmon.
salmon fillets
1 medium sweet potato
1 teaspoon butter
1 teaspoon marshmellow cream
salt and pepper to taste
Peel sweet potato and cut in pieces and boil until tender, strain and whip potato with marshmellow fluff, butter and salt and pepper.
Bake salmon or pan sear it and place on top of salmon the sweet potato