Morning Pictures

Our porch resident decided to completely redecorate her home, and has now taken over our porch. Of course, now the light can catch the web so much more nicely.




This sunflower looks like fire...sunflowers are so cheerful.

Rouladen

I think this is one of my older son's favorite dishes. He is such a carnivore!

What you need:

2 packages of rouladen meat. (It looks like a typical round steak, but is cut into thin slices, about 1/4 - 1/3 inch thick. You will need about 6 - 8 slices.)

1 onion, thinly sliced
6-8 slices of bacon (the same number as your steak slices)
grainy dijon mustard
salt & pepper
1 carton (qt) beef broth
toothpicks
flour or cornstarch
olive or vegetable oil

Take the slices of beef, and cut them in half, making 12-16 slices. Cut the bacon slices in half, making the same number of pieces.
Take one piece and lightly salt & pepper it. Spread about 2 tsp mustard over the slice.
Now place a bacon slice along one edge.
Top the bacon with some slices of onion.
Roll the meat up, with the bacon in the middle, and secure with toothpicks.

Repeat with all of the meat pieces.

Heat a couple tablespoons of oil in a large skillet. Brown the meat rolls on all sides. Remove to a platter. Drain and wipe the grease from the skillet. Place the meat rolls back into the skillet, and pour the beef broth into the pan. Bring it to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cover. Let this simmer 1 1/2 - 2 hours.

When finished, remove rolls to a serving platter, and make a gravy out of the broth.
- bring broth to a boil, and whisk in a mixture of about 1/3 c water & 3 Tb flour. Whisk smooth.

Enjoy!

In the Yard

For your viewing pleasure....

I love the Autumn colors of these sunflowers.

Cayennes-a-Hummin'!

Cayenne peppers picked from the garden, and ready to head to the dehydrator...



and one of our very fast, and hard to photograph visitors...

Picnic Chicken

We don't "fry" foods around here very often, so we feel like we can splurge on something like this once in a while. All things in moderation.



Picnic Chicken is great on the table, and great the next day in a sandwich too...assuming you have any leftovers.

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2/3 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 c fresh bread crumbs
1 Tb parsley
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder

1 egg
2 Tb water

Olive Oil

In a flat dish, combine cheese...


Bread crumbs, parsley, oregano, garlic powder, salt...


and pepper...

then combine and set aside.

In another small dish, beat egg & water until frothy.

Set aside.

Now take a chicken breast, put it in a gallon size zip-lock bag, and pound it thin. It should be evenly about 1/2 inch thick.

Cut each chicken breast in half.

In a large skillet, add enough oil to coat the bottom, and heat.


Now arrange your dishes...Dredge the chicken in the egg wash...


and then the coating...


Brown the chicken on each side until golden, about 2 minutes per side. Place the chicken in a baking dish. Bake at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes until cooked through.



Serve and enjoy!

Another Stormy Sunset

The other day, we had another storm roll through in the evening. Of course, I took a few pictures...

Of our porch spider...



And the sunset....

Hottie & some Visitors

Okay....we have some more "hotties" in the garden. Not just hot, but HOT.

They are finally starting to turn colors.



And we have another visitor to the garden. We have seen this guy a few times, but he is REALLY FAST. I actually got some pictures this time before he vanished. He is an Eastern Fence Lizard.





Check out those scales!


So cool!

Oh, and one other thing.....have you ever seen this in action? One of our garden spiders was molting yesterday, and I actually saw it and got a picture! :-)


I know, I know...another "creepy" picture. Hehehe!

And while I was posting this...our other reptilian friend out there made an appearance.

This one is a Five-Lined Skink


He was hiding, but has the brightest blue tail you have ever seen.

Have a great weekend!

Horsey Pics

These are a few photos I took today while at the stable.

Our wonderful farrier, Cat.











These two are my favorites of the day....same photo, different effects.

Kadun Pika

This is a recipe that I got from my friend, "Mrs. Q." It is a very simple chicken & rice dish. Her husband is Guamanian, and this is a dish from his family.

About 2 1/2 lbs of frozen chicken wings
1 onion, sliced
1 clove of garlic, chopped
1/2 c white vinegar
1 c Kikkoman's soy sauce (I learned that the brand matters....who'd a thunk it?)
1 c. water

and some of these lovely little things....


They are "tobasco peppers" and you want between 4-6 of them. If you like spicy, crush them or cut them in half.

Put everything in a big pot


Stir it around, and bring it to a boil, and then put a lid on and simmer it for about 15 minutes. Then remove the cover and let it cook down until the liquid thickens, darkens, reduces and gets just plain good!

After about 30 minutes total, it will look something like this:


Serve this on cooked rice, spooning a little of the liquid over.

Mmmmmmm.



Now I have to say, I am a wimp.

I can't handle too much heat in my food, and I generally have to put "chapstick" on after I have abused my lips from this dish....but it is really good!

Thanks Mrs. Q!

My hubby will love this one when he comes home!

Hot Mama!

These are hot, Mama! :-D



Some jalapenos from the garden.