Stay At Home Sunday.....

I'm trying to do a little better with updating my blog. That being said, I never realized how much work it was to take pictures to along with the writing. Well...it's not like digging ditches or anything, I'm just learning to remember to make sure I have fresh batteries for the camera and knowing what angle to take the pics.

I had every intention of getting up and going to church, but my knees didn't want to cooperate this morning. So today was stay at home Sunday.  So since I was staying at home I thought it might help my week out to get some "do ahead" cooking for the week done.

Here is what I did to the Cast of Characters....

Peeled and cubed an eggplant
Sliced a zucchini and yellow squash
Quartered one container of button mushrooms
Quartered 4 roma tomatoes
Julienned a red and yellow bell pepper
Thinly sliced one onion
Minced 4 cloves of garlic
Chopped some fresh rosemary and thyme
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil

I combined all of the veggies, seasonings and olive oil in a large bowl to make sure everything is well coated. I poured it into a large foil lined cookie sheet and baked them at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Then I took the pan out and stirred the veggies and put them back into the oven for an additional 30 minutes or until everything was roasted.

The "Before" Shot

When they were done, I set them aside to cool.....except for one small plate. I had to taste test it, right? So I sprinkled on a pinch or so of some shredded Parmesan and viola! Instant goodness!

The "After" Shot

After doing the mixed veggies, I decided I would do up some brussel sprouts that I got from Trader Joe's. I did the pretty similar to the other veggies with some exceptions.

Sliced the Brussel sprouts in half

Drizzled olive oil 

Salt and pepper

Drizzled balsamic vinegar

Placed them on a foil lined baking sheet and baked at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. Took them out to flip them over and placed them back into the oven for an additional 15 minutes. 

They're not burnt...trust me

When I took them out of the oven I let them cool before I placed them into a container and put them into the fridge.   I did take some pics of these on a little plate...but for some reason all of the pics came out fuzzy....I guess my enthusiasm got the best of me. 

Then it was time for a coffee break....

Sometimes you just have to have your coffee in a pretty cup!

I hope everyone out there had a wonderful Sunday.....Hope springs eternal here in South Carolina :)

One Saturday In Spring....

Today was a really strange Saturday for me. I guess it was because Jim had to leave to go to work at 2 and won't get off til 11pm. That left me pretty much on my own for the bulk of the day.

Not a cloud in the sky

My day started off with some oatmeal topped off with some home made cranberry orange relish that I made the other day. It keeps wonderfully in the fridge for more than a week. All I had to do is take a small bag of cranberries from the freezer and put them in a small sauce pot. Cover them with some water, add about a half cup or so of the splenda brown sugar, a shake or two of cinnamon and the zest of an orange. I section the orange and cut the little wedges into bite size pieces and put them in the pot. Heat until it comes to a simmer. Cook on low until the berries pop and cook down a bit. How long you cook the fruit is probably a personal preference. It depends on how mushy you want the mixture. Me, I like it pretty mushy because I put it in my oatmeal. You can also adjust the amount of sugar you put in too. Or even use just plain Splenda...or even *Gasp!*Heaven Forbid.... real sugar.

(source)

After breakfast I was Group Fit bound for my Zumba class. My knee was still a little sore from the digging I did in my yard the other day, but I wanted to give it a shot. Plus, I wanted to see my friend Kathleen...she works out on Saturdays and it's always a pleasure to get to see her.  I only stayed for about a half hour of Zumba because of my knee...but it was nice to see Kathleen and the little bit of Zumba was better than nothing.

Like I said earlier...Jim had to go into work at 2 this afternoon, so I was left to my own devices. It was such a beautiful day and I didn't want to spend it in the house, so I went outside to "piddle" in my yard. I didn't want to do anything too major because of my knee...but I did want to get a few things done.

Dug up and potted some roses

Check out the Rosemary and Parsley already coming up with the Irises

I guess I should really clean the leaves out of the beds before I take pictures...but I wanted to get the pic and really didn't even give it a second thought until just now. Oh well...C'est la vie ;)  

All in all it was a pretty awesome day. I got some exercise and to see my friend Kathleen. I got to play in my garden and as I was writing this...I got a message to call my friend Jackie who lives in Iowa. We've been friends since the late 70's and it is always nice to catch up with her. Here's to hoping that tomorrow is even awesomer...is that a real word? Well, it is to me. 

Spring is around the corner

I was in dire need of fresh veggies so I went out to the grocery store to grab a few until I can get to Trader Joe's tomorrow. When I rounded the corner at the end of my street I noticed the Bradford Pear trees were in full bloom. So beautiful....

I'm glad I got to see these because they are calling for a freeze warning tonight *extremely sad face* And that always make the blooms look like they have mud thrown on them.  Bummer....

Baseball season is just around the corner too. I am a die hard-life long Baltimore Oriole fan. I get the MLB package from Directtv every year, and I watch all of the games.  Yuppers...every one. My husband will attest to that fact, much to his dismay.  But lets face it...there isn't anything on tv over the summer except reruns...at least the ball games are live. That's my story...and I'm stickin' to it.  

The Orioles are coming to Atlanta this year and I am hoping to be able to go to at least one game with my Dad. We usually go to Baltimore to see the O's play the Yankees, but my Dad's health isn't all that great and that's a long trip up to Maryland. So I am hoping he will be up to coming with me to Atlanta. It's only a two hour drive...so I am hoping.   Here is a pic of the jersey my Dad got me for my birthday last year. I think it is a little on the large size for me now.....but I'll wear it anyway.

I was craving some sauteed veggies for dinner, so tonight it was zucchini, summer squash, onions, garlic and roasted red peppers that I roasted yesterday myself. Yummo!

Do you crave any veggies? If so, I'd love to know what you crave and how you prepare them. Does it make a difference on how you fix them if it is cold outside or for the spring/summer months?  Lmk!


Well, the Orioles are on tv this evening...the first spring training game, and listening to the announcers (Jim Palmer and Gary Thorne) remind me of when I was a kid watching the games with my Dad...so I'm gonna scoot for now. I hope everyone is having a wonderful and warm evening.