Dried Pineapple & Cherry Flowers

Let's just say that my husband and I are really getting into our food dehydrator this year! We've dried apples and bananas and applesauce roll ups. Yesterday I decided to try pineapple and cherry flowers. Even though I dried the pineapple rings and cherries on paper towels it still took forever for the flowers to dry. I wasn't sure the cherries would stay in the center of the rings, but eventually the pineapple dried enough to hold them. Just look at them! Gorgeous! And perfect for Bud's lunch box.

Happy day!
XOXO

Slushy

Savoury Broccoli Cakes - A blog worth sharing....

My husband and I sell antiques and vintage wares for a living. I was just signing in to check our Etsy shops and ran across this amazing guest blog by Ele of kitchenist, with a recipe worth sharing! What a cool way to pack in some broccoli! Once you visit this blog you will be hooked! FYI...clicking on blog will take you to The Storque, Etsy's Handmade Blog where you will find the recipe at the bottom of the page. Clicking on kitchenist will take you directly to Ele's blog.

Now, as a side note, we are finally finished with the Hillsville Antique and Gun Show! Hooray! Now we are exhausted and still have one more event next weekend...our annual fall Monster Yard Sale. Once that is over, we will have a little vacation. From now until the second week of October I may not have very many posts. But I will try my best to have something of interest for your, something like this recipe for Savoury Broccoli Cakes! Maybe even some recipes of my own.

So, happy daylight, while it still lasts.

XOXO
Slushy

Hoarder

Okay, so this is what I have my sites on now. Just look at this pile of crap. Sorry for the grainy cell phone picture. Believe it or not, this house is for sale! Yes, for sale! And this is just a tiny little part of the mess piled up around the place. The man who formerly lived there was a hoarder and this pile in the carport is only a small portion of what came out of the house. There is more inside that I have not seen and a barn in the back that is full. It's just like those cartoon closets that are packed full of junk. You pull one piece out and it all spills out. You open the door to this barn and your face is about 6 inches from a 12 foot wall of tightly packed junk. There is no telling what is in there. We offered to clean out the entire house, carport, yard and barn for the contents. That way the family could sell the house and the poor old man who lived there could have some money to pay for his care facility. But alas, the siblings are at odds. Or maybe their father isn't really in a nursing home, but trapped beneath a pile of rubbish in this very carport. Maybe someday we can clean it up, for his sake, for the neighbors' sakes. I mean really, can you imagine living next to this?

Happy holiday, people! And remember, just donate it.
XOXO

Slushy

Stuffed Biscuit Cups

This year I volunteered to pack a lunch for my little nine year old brother-in-law, Bud. He cannot stand school lunches except on days they serve pizza or chicken nuggets. That means that there are only about 6 days a month he wants to eat cafeteria food. This is my first time packing a lunch for a child and I wanted to avoid the typical boring bologna sandwich. That being said, Bud is not exactly open minded when it comes to food. He has been raised in a home with a single father who does not cook. So his meals have mostly consisted of canned ravioli, frozen pizza bites, chicken nuggets and frozen kids meals with junk food added liberally.

Luckily, Bud will try anything I cook myself, including all of the foods he dislikes: rice, mushrooms and beans. Still, my biggest challenge will be the fact that Bud does not live with us. That means transporting the lunches and snacks. In addition, I have to make it easy enough for Bud to pack his own lunch in his trusty new lunch box each day.

Now, back to the food! In trying to think of things Bud will like that will also taste yummy cold, I came up with a simple solution: Stuffed Biscuit Cups. I went digging through my mom's old recipes and pulled out BarB Cups, a simple biscuit filled with something like a sloppy joe mixture. I decided instead to make my fillings from what I had on hand to make ahead three lunches this week, all in one whammy. Here are my fillings: 1) Turkey and Cheddar; 2) Mozzarella and Mini Turkey Pepperoni with Parmesan and Italian seasonings; 3) Chocolate Chip with Strawberry Preserves.

I used large canned flaky biscuits and pressed each biscuit down into an unlined muffin tin to make my cups. Then I filled each cup with my choice of toppings. I baked them according to the directions on the biscuits, 12-14 minutes. I baked them the entire 14 minutes to make sure they were done inside. My husband and I sampled them and they are wonderful! I can't wait to try more fillings! Next will be apples and cinnamon!!!

Taco Stew

Tonight I took a walk down memory lane and made my mom's Taco Stew. She served this often when I was growing up and it is still one of my favorites. Give it a try. You will not be disappointed!


Taco Stew

3 cans pinto beans
3 cups cubed cooked potatoes
1 large can corn
1 pound ground beef
1 small onion, diced
2 pkg. Taco Seasoning
4-8 ounce cans tomato sauce

Brown ground beef and onions and drain. Add everything else and simmer 1-2 hours. Top with shredded cheddar cheese and serve with tortilla chips!

Enjoy!
Happy day!
XOXO
Slushy

Scrappin'

You may have watched that new show on Spike TV. It follows a group of scrappers in Brooklyn, NY as they hunt down and haul off scrap metal of all shapes and sizes. That show really gets on my nerves but if nothing else is on I watch anyway, jealous of all the trash and treasures they haul off.

You see, I haul scrap, or at least I locate it for my father-in-law. He is retired military and loves to tear things apart for scrap. It keeps him busy and generates extra money to care for his son. For me it's the thrill of the hunt. I get a mad rush finding something on the side of the road or on craigslist or through one of my ads. Yes, I place ads on craigslist and gowilkes.com, and sometimes I actually get paid to haul of crap for people. My husband and I do what we can to make a buck and we are in no way above hauling a bunch of garbage off.

Say we get $100 to haul off a big pile of junk. It might take a couple of hours to load it, but all the while we are sorting it into donate/sell, scrap, dump. We don't like dumping things into a landfill, so we scrap, donate and sell what we can. And if it costs $15 to dump the pure trash, that's not too bad. Here is a shot of my latest haul. I'm so proud!

You can imagine that not much of this stuff will fit into my Toyota Matrix, though you might be surprised at what I can get in there. Usually I have to call my hubby to come with the Ford F350, which he is happy to do. But I would kill for one of those junker little pickup trucks, the kind with multi-colored paint and massive rust patches. So if you see one cheap, let me know. Free is better!

Happy day!

XOXO

Slushy

Slushy and Jill Went up the Hill to Fetch a Grilled Cheese Sandwich - Part I

When I was growing up, grilled cheese sandwiches were a staple. I still love them just as much today cut into little triangles! But I don't just eat the classic grilled cheese; I attack from all angles.

This weekend we are visiting my sister Jill in Fuquay-Varina, NC. She has her own take on a grilled cheese that straight rocks! I've documented it here and in an upcoming post, I will share one of my own versions of the grilled cheese.

This is Jill and she's busy shredding all of her cheese: aged cheddar, smoked Gouda, Edam, fresh Mozzarella and creamy Gorgonzola. She always shreds or tears her cheese so that it will melt better. It is best to shred your cheese when it is really cold, fresh out of the refrigerator. It helps to pop your fresh Mozzarella into the freezer for about 10 minutes before you shred it.

Now, pay attention because this is key to having a fully melted and super yummy grilled cheese. After you shred your cheese, let it rest on the cutting board. Your cheese should be room temperature when you begin to assemble your sandwich.

Another important element to a fantastic grilled cheese is to use a superb bread. We prefer whole grain breads, like this loaf of extra seedy whole wheat bread I picked up at the Elkin Farmers Market.

Jill uses a grill pan to maker her grilled cheese sandwiches but any pan will do. Non stick is best to make sure that your sandwich does not stick. My mom always made hers on a cast iron skillet, which is equally wonderful, unless you have the glass cook top stove.

Next, (not pictured) Jill pours a little olive oil in the pan and sprinkles some Italian seasonings (basil, oregano, cracked pepper) on the oil. On that mixture she places her first slice of bread, which she tops with all the cheeses. On top of the cheese goes the second slice of bread.

After your sandwich is fully assembled, cover it with a flat lid. If you don't have a good lid, use a plate. 

Flip your sandwich and be sure to pour more olive oil and Italian seasonings. You will want to grill both sides a couple of minutes and then repeat. Check to make sure your bread is not getting too dark. Just look at the lovely golden color after the first flip.

Now, behold the gooey, extra yummy cheese melting out the side of this sandwich. To die for!

To accompany our superb grilled cheese sandwiches, Jill made us antipasto: salami, prosciutto, turkey, olives, pickled vegetables and more cheese! Yum!

And now for the finished product served on our Grandmother Matlock's Blue Willow china.....drum roll....Jill's grilled cheese with her home grown blueberries, jewel tomatoes and antipasto. Delish! Don't you want to reach in your computer screen and grab it?

So, what do you think about Jill's grilled cheese? Do you have a special recipe or tip for making grilled cheese? If so, please share them in a comment. Thanks for stopping by. And be sure to keep an eye out for a post about my version of a grilled cheese.

XOXO

Slushy