08 May 2009
08 April 2009
05 April 2009
23 February 2009
15 February 2009
I'VE RECEIVED THE "LEMONADE OUT OF LEMONS" AWARD
I’ve nominated the following blogger. Be sure to check her inspirational blog.
Posted by Lily at 4:31 PM 0 comments
14 February 2009
HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY
For love has no parameters
So let us take this holiday
Posted by Lily at 11:19 AM 0 comments
10 February 2009
Zuppa di Orzo e Fagioli
Barley and Bean Soup (serves 4-6)
1 cup cranberry or red kidney beans
2 ounces pancetta or bacon, finely chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
8 cups water
1/2 cup pearl barley
Salt and pepper
Rinse the beans and put in a bowl. Cover with water and allow to sit for 4 hours.
Drain the beans and add to a saucepan with 8 cups of water.
Cook over low heat, uncovered, about 1 hour, or until the beans are tender.
Drain and reserve the liquid.
In a saucepan over medium heat, saute the pancetta in the oil until lightly browned, about 5 minutes.
Add the celery, carrots, onion, and garlic. Saute about 8 minutes.
Puree the beans and the vegetable mixture in a food mill or blender.
Return the puree to the saucepan. Add the reserved cooking liquid, barley, salt and pepper.
Bring to a simmer and cook until barley is tender about 30 minutes. Serve.
Serves 4 to 6 guests
Posted by Lily at 5:46 PM 1 comments
01 January 2009
23 December 2008
18 December 2008
10 December 2008
ADVENT WREATHS.....
Posted by Lily at 2:00 PM 0 comments
24 November 2008
WINTER SNOW......
I counted till they danced so
Posted by Lily at 8:32 AM 2 comments
19 October 2008
A FINE SUNDAY SUPPER...
Posted by Lily at 6:56 PM 2 comments
18 October 2008
WHO GOD IS.....
A Little Boy's Explanation of God...
THIS IS FABULOUS!!!
It was written by an 8-year-old named Danny Dutton, who lives in Chula Vista, CA . He wrote it for his third grade homework assignment, to explain God.' I wonder if any of us could have done as well?
... and he had such an assignment, in California, and someone published it, I guess miracles do happen! ... ]
EXPLANATION OF GOD:
'One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die, so there will be enough people to take care of things on earth. He doesn't make grownups, just babies. I think because they are smaller and easier to make. That way he doesn't have to take up his valuable time teaching them to talk and walk. He can just leave that to mothers and fathers.'
'God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times beside bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV because of this. Because he hears everything, there must be a terrible lot of noise inhis ears, unless he has thought of a way to turn it off.'
'God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting his time by going over your mom and dad's head asking for something they said you couldn't have.'
'Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista. At least there aren't any who come to our church.' 'Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hardwork, like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God. They finally got tired of him preaching to them and they crucified him. But he was good and kind, like his father, and he told his father that they didn't know what they were doingand to forgive them and God said O.K.'
'His dad (God) appreciated everything that he had done and all his hard work on earth so he told him he didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So he did. And now he helps his dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones he can take care of himself withouthaving to bother God. Like a secretary, only more important.'
'You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to help you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time.'
'You should always go to church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God!'
'Don't skip church to do something you think will bemore fun like going to the beach. This is wrong. And besides the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway.'
'If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared, in the dark or when you can't swim and you get thrown into real deep water by big kids.'
'But...you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and he cantake me back anytime he pleases.'
'And...that's why I believe in God.'
(If you believe in God, please pass this on, and may God richly bless you, too.) Have an awesome day, and know that someone has thought about you!
Posted by Lily at 4:08 PM 0 comments
16 October 2008
ARTUR VASILEVICH WATERCOLOR......
No better than spoons,
And bags full of leaves
Are light as balloons.
I make a great noise
Of rustling all day
Like rabbit and deer
Running away.
But the mountains I raise
Elude my embrace,
Flowing over my arms
And into my face.
Posted by Lily at 8:56 AM 0 comments
15 October 2008
by Linda Jackman
She will not easily surrender to the autumn
Clinging to her leaves as a child
Would cling to its mother.
Her battle begins, one she will lose
Driving winds forge a path though her boughs,
Leaves franticly dance
As if to escape their prison.
The tips of her canopy now exposed,
Revealing an intricate web
Of intertwining limbs.
She has lived many seasons.
Soon she will stand naked against the
Harsh elements that
Procede the autumn of her life
Yet she is strong.
Though winter will take its toll,
It will not penetrate her shell.
She will simply sleep, until
A new season brings fourth new growth.
Posted by Lily at 7:13 PM 0 comments
14 October 2008
TILAPIA...YumYum!
Naughty me, I slipped off to "Margarita Ville" this afternoon and enjoyed a "South Of The Border" lunch while Dave and the pooch minced on leftovers in the kitchen at home. Feeling guilty, I went to the fish monger on the way home and splurged on tilapia fillets for our dinner together. It is so easy to do a fancy fish entree in no time. I served the little fish fillets with white wine (can't live without it), la baguette and sauteed asparagus spears. Here is an idea of how I prepared the fish.
Tilapia (pronounced /tə,lapiə/) or substitute with flounder, cod, scrod.
As you may remember from my former recipes, I use French, tin lined copper for a majority of my cooking but you can surely use any shallow pan that you have in you cupboard. In your pan, brush a bit of olive oil and a squeeze of lemon. Place your fish fillets, not touching, on this oiled surface. Squeeze some lemon juice on each fillet and sprinkle with your favorite herbs. (à la grecque ) I use Penezys Spices "Sunny Paris". It contains purple shallots, chives, green peppercorn, French basil, French tarragon, chervil, crushed bay leaf and dill weed. (I have all of these herbs in my herb drawers but I can never get the same combination that Penzeys does). Lay 3 or 4 very thin slices of butter on each fillet, and sprinkle with French sea salt. Put under the broiler until done to your liking. Since I've broiled in the pretty, oval copper pan, I serve it in the same pan. I do add a sprig of an herb and a lemon wedge to to pretty it up.
Posted by Lily at 7:15 PM 0 comments
SOUP DU JOUR......
4 LARGE, WHITE ONIONS AND 1 RED ONION PEELED AND SLICE THINLY, ABOUT 1/4 TEASPOON SUGAR. ADD THESE, WITH A
EVOO AND A LITTLE BUTTER TO SAUTE PAN AND COOK UNTIL CARAMELIZED. THIS PROCESS WILL TAKE 20 TO 30 MINUTES.
CRUSH 1 - 2 CLOVES OF GARLIC AND ADD TO MIXTURE ALONG
WITH 1/2 TO 3/4 CUPS OF WHITE (OR EVEN
RED WINE IF THAT'S ALL YOU HAVE), 5 CUPS OF CHICKEN OR BEEF STOCK AND SIMMER FOR A COUPLE OF
MINUTES.
ADD A BAY LEAF (WHOLE) AND A PINCH OF THYME, COVER AND
SIMMER ABOUT 30 MINUTES. SEASON
WITH S & P TO TASTE AS YOU WAIT FOR THE SIMMERING TO BEGIN.
PLACE UNDER THE BROILER TILL CHEESES BUBBLES.
SERVE WITH YOUR WINE OF CHOICE.
Posted by Lily at 9:01 AM 0 comments
12 October 2008
A MINUTE TO APPRECIATE YOU.....
Posted by Lily at 8:16 PM 9 comments
09 October 2008
POULET AU COULIS DE CREME...
(Chicken in cream sauce)
2, 3 to 4 oz boneless, skinless chicken breasts > (poitrine)
1, Lime > (lime)
2, Cloves of garlic > (gousse)
4, Tablespoons of butter > (beurre)
1, Cup white wine > (vin blanc)
1, Large portabella mushroom > (champignon)
2/3, Cup sour cream > (Crème Fraîche)
Herbs of your choice
METHOD...
Melt the butter in a tin lined copper saute pan or stainless steel pan.
Add diced mushroom and crushed garlic and cook, stiring until tender, remove from pan.
Add chicken (squeeze lime on each side) and cook approximately 5 or 6 minutes on each side.
Add more butter if you wish.
Put the mushroom mixture back into the pan.
Add the white wine, herbs and cook 'till chicken is done to your liking.
At this point, add the cream and heat 'till hot (never to the boiling point).
PLATE...
Serve with: Lime wedges and sprigs of herbs
French bread > ( la baguette)
A nice white wine
NOTES...
I never measure when I prepare foods. You must use your own judgment when you try my recipes.
Sour Cream and Crème Fraîche are different products but you can sub one for the other in this recipe.
Watch for my recipe for French Onion Soup > (la soupe à l'oignon).
Regards,Passez-moi l'expression. Mme Lily...
Posted by Lily at 12:50 PM 0 comments
07 October 2008
PUREE SOUPS......
I MAKE A BASIC BASE OF VARIOUS TYPES OF SPLIT PEAS - 1/4 TO 1/2 CUP,
ADD,
COOK WELL AND COOL DOWN SLIGHTLY PUT THROUGH YOUR BLENDING MACHINE - ANY KIND THAT YOU USE IS FINE.
Posted by Lily at 7:09 PM 0 comments
06 October 2008
WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL MONDAY MORNING....
*****
SEAFOOD SCAMPI...
IN A TIN LINED COPPER SAUTE PAN, MELT THREE TBS. OF BUTTER. (THAT'S MY FAVORITE PAN TO COOK SCAMPI IN BUT STAINLESS STEEL IS JUST FINE ALSO.)
CRUSH 2 CLOVES OF GARLIC AND ADD TO MELTED BUTTER AND STIR GENTLY UNTIL GOLDEN BUT NOT BROWNED.
ADD THE PEELED SHRIMP AND SCALLOPS AND BEGIN TO GENTLY SAUTE, CAREFULLY ADDING YOUR FAVORITE CHARDONNAY OR ANY FAVORITE WHITE WINE AND COOK 'TILL FISH IS DONE TO YOUR LIKING.
PLACE ON A FAVORITE PLATE AND SERVE WITH LEMON WEDGES AND HERB SPRIGS.
I FREQUENTLY ADD BOUQUET GARNI (OR ANY FRESH HERBS YOU CHOOSE) IF THE NOTION STRIKES ME WHEN I ADD THE CHARDONNAY.
I FIND THAT SERVING THE WINE THAT I USE IN COOKING GOES BEST WITH THE FINISHED SCAMPI.
*****
I THOUGHT I WOULD JUST SERVE THE BREAD AND A NICE SALAD BUT AS I TYPE THIS, I JUST GOT A REQUEST FOR COUSCOUS SO I SUPPOSE WE'LL HAVE A LITTLE OF THAT TOO.
Posted by Lily at 1:55 PM 1 comments
05 October 2008
MANY NEW PAINTINGS IN MY EBAY STORE......
Posted by Lily at 5:00 AM 0 comments
02 October 2008
27 September 2008
MARIO BATALI.....
ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHEFS...
HIS TV SERIES, "SPAIN, ON THE ROAD AGAIN" IS WORTHWHILE TV VIEWING.
HIS 'SPAIN' WEBSITE IS
http://www.spainontheroadagain.com/index.shtml
"Chef, restaurateur, television personality. Born in Seattle to French and Italian parents, Batali attended high school in Spain and college at Rutgers University in New Jersey, where he was a student of Spanish theater. Always passionate about food, Batali enlisted at Le Cordon Bleu in London only to drop out soon after for an apprenticeship with London's legendary Marco Pierre White. He spent three years training in the Northern Italian village of Borgo Capanne, returning to the States to put his newfound talents to work.
Batali’s flagship restaurant, Babbo Ristorante e Enoteca, opened in Manhattan’s West Village in 1998. The restaurant received three stars from the New York Times and was named "The Best New Restaurant of 1998" by the James Beard Foundation. Subsequent Italian eateries included a Roman-style trattoria called Lupa, a southern Italian seafood trattoria called Esca (2000) and Otto Enoteca Pizzeria (2003). Batali also cofounded a retail shop called Italian Wine Merchants.
The chef and restaurateur also hosts two television programs for The Food Network, Molto Mario and Mario Eats Italy. In his signature orange clogs and red beard, Batali encourages viewers to embrace Italian cookery with gusto. He has authored three books, Simple Italian Food, Mario Batali Holiday Food and The Babbo Cookbook."
© 2008 A&E Television Networks. All rights reserved.
Posted by Lily at 6:46 PM 0 comments
AVAILABLE NOW IN MY EBAY STORE......
Posted by Lily at 3:30 PM 4 comments
21 September 2008
GOODNESS, GRACIOUS ~ I'VE BEEN TAGGED!
Posted by Lily at 1:31 PM 3 comments
20 September 2008
MARYLAND'S EASTERN SHORE DESIGN AND LANDSCAPING.....
Posted by Lily at 2:20 PM 2 comments
17 September 2008
AUTUMN, IT IS A'COMMIN......
Brierly Ashour
When the goldenrod is yellow,
When squirrels are harvesting
Posted by Lily at 11:09 AM 0 comments