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Archive for June, 2013

Book Beginnings

Posted in Books, tagged , , , , on June 7, 2013| 6 Comments »

Hello, my fellow book lovers and welcome to another edition of Book Beginnings hosted by Rose City Reader.  Join me, won’t you?  Today, I am sharing the first line or two from an old favorite, “Angels & Demons” by Dan Brown.  Mr. Brown has a new book out called “Inferno” and I wanted to refresh myself with the main character.  I can’t wait to read the new one!  I first read “Angels & Demons” several years ago and really enjoyed it.  In my opinion, it was just as good or maybe even a little better than “The DaVinci Code” which I enjoyed immensely.

“High atop the steps of the Great Pyramid of Giza, a young woman laughed and called down to him. “Robert, hurry up!  I knew I should have married a younger man!”  Her smile was magic.”

Doesn’t that just set a scene?  But is this reality or maybe a dream?  You will just have to read the book and find out.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

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One Word Wednesday

Posted in Gardening, Home, Photography, tagged , , , , , on June 5, 2013| 2 Comments »

Home…

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Menu Plan Monday

Posted in Menu Planning, tagged , , on June 3, 2013|

Good morning and welcome to the first Monday of June!  What?!?!?!  Is it June already?  Wow, this year is just flying right by me and I wish I could slow it down just a little bit, don’t you?  Sorry I was MIA last Monday, but the holiday weekend through me off schedule a little bit as did working in the yard for hours and hours.  I really didn’t even want to think about cooking last week and I didn’t do a whole lot.

The next few weeks should be much better.  I took the time on Saturday to sit down and tentatively menu plan for the whole month so I could make a serious grocery list.  Hopefully, I will make it to the stores this week to re-stock our shelves.  I am listing several meals today, but one or two might not get made if I have to go grocery shopping after work.

Bubble-up pizza

Grilled steak burgers with oven fries

Pineapple grilled pork chops (new) with oven fries & salad

Grilled hot dogs with chips

Grilled tenderloin with butter roasted potatoes (Sensing a grilling theme this week?)

Pizza night

Double berry scones (New for this month’s dessert challenge)

Please join me at I’m An Organizing Junkie for Menu Plan Monday.

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Strawberry Freezer Jam

Posted in Cooking, tagged , , , , on June 1, 2013| 15 Comments »

C & I have a small strawberry patch that, in a good year, produces plenty for us to eat on and a few to freeze.  Last year was a terrible strawberry year so we had none left over in the freezer.  Thankfully, the same can’t be said for this season.  Our little plants are loaded down with berries and I am picking a good sized bowl every day.  Still, that wasn’t quite enough to please us so, in the last week, I have worked up 5 GALLONS of berries bought from a family friend.

I also have a new toy in my food arsenal that has been on my wish list for a while…a chest freezer! I am so happy with it.  I bought it on Lowes.com and they delivered it for free from my local store.  How easy is that?  Now I can freeze all sorts of things.

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Anyway, back to today’s recipe.  I made peach freezer jam last year so I had to make some strawberry this year.  The recipe is from Our Best Bites, but it seems to be just the basic freezer jam recipe that is very popular.  Here goes…

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2 cups crushed strawberries

4 cups granulated sugar

1 box Surejell

3/4 cup water

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Mash the strawberries and measure out two cups.  Mix the sugar in the berries and let them sit for about 10 minutes.

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During this time, mix the water and Surejell together in a small saucepan over medium heat.  Bring to a boil and let cook for 1 minute.  Pour the Surejell into the berries and stir for 3 minutes.

Ladle the strawberries into sanitized jars leaving about 1/2 inch headspace and put on the tops.  Let these stand at room temperature for 24 hours and then refrigerate.  These will keep in the fridge for about a month or in the freezer for a whole year.  I have been loving this on a buttered bagel in the mornings.  It is so much better than anything you can buy at the store.

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