TASTY, TUESDAY TREAT...

the FALL drink menu is back!

Pumpkin Spice Latte

{I prefer to eat pumpkin pie}

Salted Carmel Mocha

{ummm... might give this a try!}

Oprah Chai Tea Latte

{I LOVE cinnamon & black tea, but don't like anything chai - can't figure that out?}

today, I had an oatmeal raspberry bar + a tall drip!

do you ever look at a word {repeatedly} & wonder if you are spelling it correctly?

L-A-T-T-E

had to check the Starbuck's website

{repeatedly} to make sure I was spelling it right!  

Think it's time to head-to-bed!

{no, I was not paid nor did I receive a free drink for this post}

GOOD. RANDOM. FUN. {WEEK 1}

 THE GOOD...

A seasonal treat at Trader Joe's!

grab some before they're gone!

a bit sweet & salty! crunchy & just plain tasty!

See the adorable Santa pitcher?

thank you, Katie & Mom for adding to my collection.

RANDOM...

Pretty RANDOM, huh?  Even more RANDOM... this was in a garden shop. 

RANDOM - part 2

"Oh, my aching head" statue!

pretty RANDOM, eh?

FUN...

Now, why didn't I think of this?

recycling a golf bag to store gardening tools... some of which have been painted with florescent colors.

Garage decor has never looked this "colorful" at my house.

FUN - part 2

recycled star - decorated with glitter, sparkles & twisty wire.

Posting this with Tamar @ Random-osity.

Consider joining THE GOOD. THE RANDOM. THE FUN. next week for Week 2

of this year-long "meme" {definition found HERE}.

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 12.8.13 + SONG-OGRAPHY

SHS 12.8.13

Wondering... how this holiday season came woooo-shing in? 

I haven't done a whole lot better getting my camera out, reading other blogs or posting (thank goodness for i-Pad's), ...

I'm planning to participate in Ashley's annual Memories, Reflections and Dreams. It will be a fabulous way to document 2013!!! Here's the LINK to get you started!!! I hope you join me - You'll be able to blog-hop while you watch the New Year's parades on TV.

WHERE I STOOD, SILVER, TINY, IN THE CUPBOARD & SHADOW.

From WHERE I STOOD in the doorway of the Apple Farm Gift Shop... this is what I saw... sort of a skinny St Nicholas!

Well, these outdoor decorations looked more SILVER when I took the picture! Pretty huh? and there's a SILVER car in the background.

This WAS actually very TINY! a TINY set of sweaters decorated with holiday characters... a Santa, Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeer.

All our baking supplies cannot fit IN THE CUPBOARD (known as the pantry at our house)... JPE used the "candy cane" melting chips to frost one end of his candy cane biscotti! YUM!!!

I took this picture the day before Thanksgiving! Taken at the charming, historic Santa Barbara Courthouse... several of the ornate lights are in the SHADOW! 

And, now for SONG-OGRAPHY! This is an archived photo! but... it's located in OUR (JPE & I  got married in this area) "special place" - Big Sur, California.

stop by Kathy's @ Don't Shoot Your Eye Out to see what others have posted!!!

This week's song is the "Big Yellow Taxi" by Joni Mitchell.

"They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot

They took all the trees
And put 'em in a tree museum
And they charged the people
A dollar and a half to seem 'em

Don't it always seem to go,
That you don't know what you've got
Til its gone"

Well, in Big Sur they left this yellow bus, painted it blue, yellow & red & turned it into a little coffee bar! Truly unique... the bus sits on the dirt parking lot underneath some huge redwoods! Lucky for us... it's only a little over two hours north of us!

I'll be posting on a more regular basis this week. I've got a little stash of photos to share, so please come back.

PEANUTTY...

A CUPCAKE (cookie) for a DOG?

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 11.18.12

ARLINGTON CEMETERY

JPE, SLE, MB, Sea-Bass (guide-dog extraordinaire) & I took the Metro to the Arlington Cemetery stop... Most of today's pictures were of the FALL leaves, but I couldn't figure out a way to make those photos fit this weeks SHS words... so, the leaves will have to wait for another day. 

This week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY words: VISION, STRONG, BUTTONS, MAP & FAVORITE FRUIT.

VISION

The museums in Washington DC & surrounding areas are simply amazing!! Inside the door of the memorial for Women in Military Service (part of Arlington Cemetery) was this tactile map for visually challenged & blind visitors. Mazen mentioned this was written in grade one Braille (letter by letter spelling)... if you want to know more about the two other levels of Braille, you can click HERE! 

STRONG

SLE & I wandered through the Women in Military Service Museum browsing the incredible displays of STRONG women who served our country. The exhibit that drew our interest --- the uniforms for each division of the military... at times, the uniform fit close-to-the-body & other times, it resembled the men's uniform, baggy & shape-less.

BUTTONS

Okay, this is a real stretch! Rather than take a picture of coat buttons, I thought I'd share this photo of JPE waiting for the Metro. Don't you think the RED warning lights, (at the edge of the walkway) resemble BUTTONS?

MAP

Friday afternoon, JPE & I took a stroll to the local coffee shop... BUZZ BAKERY & LOUNGE, a couple of blocks from where we are staying (Arlington, VA)... adorable! comfortable!! great tea & coffee... we shared an Earl Gray Tea Cookie... oh my gosh! yummy. JPE & I checked our MAP of Washington DC, so we could plan a couple of excursions during our visit with SLE & MB.

FAVORITE FRUIT

No, this photo is not from Washington DC... it's of the vineyards in California. My FAVORITE FRUIT is seedless purple grapes - sliced in a bowl with a scoop of cottage cheese or yoghurt & a sprinkling of slivered almonds on top. You might say... it's my "breakfast of choice" - I eat this every day at work. 

It was a real stretch to make this week's photos work. I think my SHS team (SLE, JPE & MB) needs more prompting to find those photo ops... But, you can check in with Ashley at Rambling & Photos to see what qualifies as STRONG for some of the other participants. 

Check back for pictures of Arlington Cemetery & the FALL leaves on Monday... on our list of excursions... Washington National Cathedral just opened a new exhibit --- "Crèche Exhibition: And Heaven and Nature Sing."

AUTUMN COOKING...

CAKE LOVE ~ author, Warren Brown
{cookbook was gift from ACE on JPE's 60th Bday}

STARTER SCONES

{recipe on pg 108}

2 cups of flour

1/2 c turbinado sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp Kosher salt

1/2 tsp salt

1 stick unsalted butter (very cold)

up to 1 cup heavy cream

1 egg

dash, splash vanilla extract

sea salt (for sprinkling)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment or a silicon mat.

2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugars, baking powder & salts. Whisk for 10 seconds and set aside.

3. Cut butter into small pieces, then cut into flour using your fingers or a fork. Once the butter & flour clump together when pinched, slowly add the cream (little at a time) while turning the dough. Stop when the dough easily forms a ball (you may not need to use all the cream).

4. The dough should feel light and barely moist. Place a handful on a lightly floured surface & shape into a 4-inch square, about 3/4 inch thick.

5. Cut square from corner to corner twice to make four triangles. Repeat with the remaining dough.

6. Mix the egg & vanilla together in a small bowl. Use a pastry brush to a dab the tops & sides.

7. Place scones on the prepared baking sheet sprinkle & the top with sugar & a tiny pinch of sea salt.

8. Bake about 15 minutes. Cool on racks for 5 minutes before serving.

PLAIN SCONE

Note: the author suggests you make this recipe several times until you get a feel for how the dough comes together. Then give it your own "spin"... by adding up to 1/2 c of dried fruits or nuts, or 1-2 tsp of freshly cut herbs.

JPE also made a crock pot of soup...

Using red lentils, fresh sweet potatoes, onions, celery, red peppers... Looks like 

AUTUMN, huh?

This has AUTUMN colors also...

There were several jars worthy of a science experiment.

OOPS!! We also cleaned out the fridge...

Missed SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY!

bummer!

will try to add them later
(but would be post dated).

A BERRY-STAINED DAY!!!

Tuesday August 14 ~ Pismo Beach ~ North Beach Campground

We "found" a treasure... along the bike path!

a REMINDER ~ watch out for thorns!!

After washing the berries, we mixed everything together!

Then, using a rolling pin, we flattened a ball of dough...

and added some berries...

next, we folded the dough ~ forming a half-circle...

& pressed the dough with a fork to seal the juices in!

We sprinkled the tops with coarse sugar...

& baked them in the oven until the dough was crispy...

then, Grandpa added a scoop of
vanilla ice cream...
"YUMMY!"
exclaimed Lydia.
"I think it's the BEST dessert ever!"

TGIF 3.16.12

cinnamon roll baked fresh by SLO-BAKED

TGIF!!!
Carpooled w/JPE to work today...

so, after work today, we had a
COFFEE DATE
at

ENJOYED

a yummy cinnamon roll & coffee latte

visited the WOMEN'S bathroom

before heading to COSTCO...

{paper towels, tp & coffee}

this was written over the mirror!!

ummm... wonder if I'll be W.I.R.E.D at 10pm?

Off to pick up MOM

at the Amtrak station!!!

Yippeee!

and it's sprinkling!!

Happy Dance!!!

A TASTE OF LEMON...

:: A TASTE OF LEMON ::

Monday evening, I baked mini-bundt cakes for 

my girlfriends... 

I've been making this recipe for a dozen years!

(recipe courtesy of sister-in-law)

it's dense & quite tasty with a cup of coffee or tea!

LEMON LOAF

1 medium lemon

2 1/4 c flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 c sugar

3/4 c butter

3 eggs

3/4 c milk

1. PREHEAT oven to 350 degrees (F).

2. GRATE 1 TBSP lemon peel & SQUEEZE 4 1/2 tsp lemon juice; then set aside.

3. GREASE a 9"x5" loaf pan; or 4 mini-loaf pans. If you double the recipe, you will get 15 mini-bundt cakes.

4. In a large bowl, MIX flour, baking powder, salt & sugar with a fork. Use a pastry blender to CUT in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. STIR in grated lemon peel.

5. In a small bowl, BEAT eggs slightly & STIR in milk. MIX until flour mixture is moistened.

6. SPOON into greased pans. FILL loaf pans 3/4 full. If using mini-bundt pans, SPOON 1/2 c of batter into each section.

7. BAKE 9"x5" loaf for 65-70 minutes; mini-loaf pans for 45-50 minutes; mini-bundt cakes for 15-20 minutes.

8. COOL in pan on wire rack. REMOVE from pan.

filled TOO FULL!
removed two teaspoons of batter from each cake

LEMON GLAZE

8. In 1 qt sauce pan (medium heat), HEAT 4 1/2 tsp of lemon juice (see #2) + 2 TBSP of sugar to boiling.

9. COOK, STIRRING continuously (until slightly thickened) about 5 minutes.

10. With pastry brush, SPREAD sugar mixture over top of bread.

11. Can be served WARM or COOL... 

NOTE: If serving the next day, consider making more glaze & spoon it warm over slices of the LEMON bread 

(& add a few raspberries & a dollop of whipped cream).

glazed mini-bundt cake

The glaze is sticky, so I wrapped the bundt cakes

in waxed paper before dropping them

into a cellophane bag! 

added a bit of ribbon & mini-ornament.... 

VOILA...

cellophane bags ~ World Market

ribbon & mini-ornament ~ Michael's

platter ~ Target 

TASTY TREAT

for my "girlies!!"

We met at Ventana Grill, overlooking the Pacific Ocean...

knowing our group of ten like to talk

(sometime all at the same time), 

we asked to be seated where we wouldn't disturb anyone... 

our waiter (Dick) was exceptional, the food excellent 

& we played our "STEAL 'EM GIFT EXCHANGE"

 without being asked to leave the restaurant!!!

HOPE YOU ENJOY THE RECIPE!!!

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY 12.11.11

SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY ~ 12.11.11

I confess ~ I'm addicted to SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY... have you given it a try? 

This week's words were somewhat "seasonal"... Less is More, Holiday Lights, Ornaments, Cup of Cheer, & Nativity. 

LESS IS MORE

Usually the fireplace mantle is covered with lights + greenery + the "Large Santas"... with JPE being gone the past week, I re-evaluated how much decorating I wanted to do... AND put away upon our return after holiday visiting... So, I went with LESS IS MORE this Christmas!

HOLIDAY LIGHTS

Oops! the camera tilted as I was taking a picture... a glimpse of our Christmas tree with HOLIDAY LIGHTS!!

ORNAMENTS ~ SANTA collage

I collect Santa ORNAMENTS... here are a few (top left, clockwise) Red Tummy Santa, Big Bear Santa (gift from JPE), Three Thin Santas, Bearded Santa... previous Santa posts can be seen hErE, HeRE & hEre!

CUP OF CHEER

Ummm... it's anything hot! Nothing better than Cranberry Biscotti dipped in a warm CUP OF CHEER. Picked up JPE on Friday evening & he spent Saturday baking multiple batches of his delicious biscotti.

NATIVITY

This NATIVITY actually belongs to ACE... I found a box of decorations that she hasn't moved to her place! During their college years, I stored the bulk of the girls "seasonal items" which they would take back with them after Thanksgiving, each year. Some day, they will both have storage for ALL their childhood treasures, including their various boxes of Christmas decorations. My parents bought this handmade NATIVITY in Mexico, and passed it to ACE when they downsized to a condo. Should I wrap this up as a Christmas present for ACE, so it'll find its way home this year?

Already thinking ahead to next week's SCAVENGER HUNT SUNDAY... the words are: What is It? Children / Fur Babies Sleeping, Joy, Window, & Half.