Mixed Baby Greens

A Sweetheart of a Dinner, Part 1

Over the weekend I made a special Sunday Dinner for the family.  My daughter, Ms. A, was so very helpful and made the entire experience so much fun.  I experimented with new recipes and luckily, everything turned out well. 

Mixed Baby Greens

We started with a salad of mixed baby greens, carrot shreds and tomato wedges.

Next there was Coconut Soup.  I found the recipe in a 2005 issue of Better Homes and Gardens Appetizers magazine.

The ingredients.

The crab legs were cooked in a tablespoon of oil.  This was probably the strangest part of the process for me.  I usually steam them. 

Then, the fresh vegetables were added and everything cooked a few minutes longer.  Next, I added the coconut milk and clam juice and let it simmer for 20 minutes.  Afterwards the crab legs were removed from the pan and the soup was strained through a fine sieve into another bowl.

This is the pile of cooked crab legs my daughter and I had to crack and pull the meat from.

And here are the individual containers of soup with the crab meat inside.  A little cilantro is sprinkled on top.  My husband (Steeler Fan), my son (Mr. B), and daughter, Ms. A cleaned their bowls.  Mr. B even wants to learn how to make it. 

Next we had BBQ Shrimp.  This recipe was found in the April 2000 issue of Cooking Light magazine.

The dry ingredients.

Inside the pan is a mixture of worcestershire sauce, fat-free caesar dressing, hot sauce, margarine, the dry ingredients pictured above and of course, shrimp…the peels were kept on for flavor.

The shrimp was saucy, spicy and really good.  The french bread was put to good use with the sauce.   

Want to know what was on the dessert menu?  Read about it here!

 

Foodie Friday

I’m participating in the Foodie Friday potluck party hosted weekly at Designs by Gollum.  Click the button and join the fun!

tiramisu7

Tiramisu Just Because

I have to admit that I have a little sweet tooth and I’ve been craving a taste of Tiramisu for quite some time.  I finally broke down and went to work on this…

toasted ladyfingers

I used two packages of ladyfingers…toasted one package and left the other plain.  They smell soooo good when they’re toasted.

Then I combined granulated sugar and egg yolks in a double boiler and placed it over simmering water for about 10 minutes.

Afterwards, I folded whipped heavy cream into the egg yolk/sugar mixture.

The plain ladyfingers were brushed gently with a mixture of strong coffee and amaretto and placed around the sides of a glass dish.  The toasted ladyfingers were quickly dipped into the same coffee mixture and layered in the dish with the cream.  Then I impatiently waited about four hours for it to set.

Before diving into it, I grated some bittersweet chocolate and sprinkled it generously over the top.

It was so totally worth the effort.  Mmmmm.

Love Bunny

Bunny Love with Balloon

Love Bunny

It’s another beautiful Wednesday and we’re seeing RED! This adorable plush is our favorite Etsy Confection this week. 

This Love Bunny is made with 50% upcycled materials and comes with her own sweet heart balloon that can be removed from her hand. Her face is hand embroidered and she has a super soft, fluffy tail.  She was made with no pattern… so she is wonderfully unique!

Love Bunny is $30 and is available in Design Lab 443’s Etsy Shop. 

Brunch Buffet

1st Saturdays

Brunch Buffet

On the first Saturday of each month, some of the ladies in my family gather together to share brunch and some great conversations.  At each gathering we typically decide who will host the next event and the hostess chooses a theme around which to plan the meal.

This year we skipped our brunch in January and had almost bypassed February until I received a call from one of my aunts Friday night.  She had been contacted by one of her nieces.  They wanted to know where we were meeting this month.  I wasn’t sure what to do.

Since no brunch menu had been prepared and no location had been previously chosen, we decided to “brown bag” it and my little sister agreed to host.  It turned out perfectly.  We packed our own lunches and, instinctively, we each packed a little more to share. 

The brown bag offerings were as diverse as the topics that hovered over the table. 

Chicken Salad Croissants

Jello

Jello

Potato Salad

After it was all said and done, we worked out the calendar for the rest of the year and now have something fabulous to look forward to every 1st Saturday.   This is one of the best times I experience each month.  As I share the details of future events, I hope it will inspire other women to carve out similar moments in their lives to do the same. 

Thanks for stopping by! 

A Little Froggy

My Best Shot Monday: A Little Froggy

A Little Froggy

My niece and her tiny little backyard find.

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