SHRIMP FAJITAS

 I've always been a fajita fan....both the traditional beef or chicken variety.  But, when I ran across a shrimp fajita recipe, I knew I had to give it a try.

Not only does this have a great flavor, but it really is super simple to pull it together. 

INGREDIENTS: 

2 tsp. chili powder

½ tsp. cumin

½ tsp. smoked paprika

¼ tsp. garlic powder

¼ tsp. onion powder 

2 Tbsp. cilantro

2 cups sliced pepper (yellow, green, red, or combination)

1 onion thinly sliced

1 lb. large shrimp (peeled, deveined, tails off)

1 Tbsp. oil

lime wedges

flour tortilla

assorted fajita toppings of your choice

DIRECTIONS:

Heat the oil in a skillet over high heat.  Add the onions and peppers, and cook stirring occasionally until they're tender and charred on the edges.  Add salt and pepper.

Combine all the seasonings in a small bowl.  Add the shrimp to the skillet and sprinkle the seasoning mixture over while cooking.   Stir well, to coat the peppers and onions with the seasoning.  Cook covered for 4-5 minutes, until the shrimp are pink and opague.  Sprinkle the cilantro and a bit of lime over the top before serving.  

Serve with tortillas and lime wedges.  Don't forget fajita toppings like sour cream, shredded cheese, and avocado.

Enjoy!

recipe c/o: www.dinneratthezoo.com

BLUEBERRY BUTTERMILK BREAKFAST CAKE

 I have a number of different blueberry recipes on this blog, and they're all yummy in their own right.  This one ranks near the top due to the intense blueberry flavor, and how quickly you can pull it all together. 

INGREDIENTS:

½ cup (8 Tbsp) room temperature unsalted butter

zest from 1 large lemon

*1 cup sugar (set aside 1 Tbsp. for sprinkling)

1 egg, room temp

1 tsp. vanilla

2 cups flour (set aside ¼ cup to toss with the blueberries)

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. kosher salt

2 cups fresh blueberries

½ cup buttermilk

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Using a stand mixer or hand-held mixer, cream the butter with the lemon zest along with the 1 cup (minus the 1 Tbsp. of sugar) until light and fluffy. 

Add the egg and vanuilla and beat until combined.  Meanwhile, toss the blueberries with ¼ cup flour, then whisk together the remaining flour, baking powder and salt.  

Add half the flour mixture to the batter, and stir with spatula to incorporate.  Add all of the buttermilk.  Stir.  Add remaining flour, and stir until flour is absorbed.  Fold in the blueberries ( leave excess flour from the blueberry bowl behind). 

Spray a 8 or 9 inch square baking pan with non-stick spray.  Cut a parchment paper sling and press down into the sprayed pan.  Spread the batter into the pan.  Sprinkle the batter with the remaining sugar.  Bake for 35-45 minutes.  A 9-inch pan should be done closer to 35 minutes, an 8-inch pan usually needs 40-45 minutes.  Check with a toothpick for doneness.   Let cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

*NOTE:  I had decorative sugar crystals in my pantry, so I opted to use those on the top of my cake versus the granulated sugar.  Also living in high altitude I always use King Arthur's Hungarian flour in my baking.....this recipe as is, works great....no adjustments needed.

Enjoy!

recipe c/o:  www.alexandracooks.com

BACKYARD XERISCAPING

Back in 2018, we began an effort to remove some of our lawn and do some serious xeriscaping.  What prompted the project was a couple of things.....first, since moving into our house in 2015, we began to see many issues develop due to the poor job the landscapers had done in putting in our yard.  I won't go into all the nasty details, but year over year more and more issues were uncovered.  Clearly, any prep they had done to the soil, as well as any topsoil they may have added seemed to be minimal if any.  This was causing us huge issues with large brown spots and the use of lots of water to try to keep a green lawn.  Neither of which were acceptable.  Secondly, we really just had way too much lawn, especially in the backyard.  With only the two of us, there was no need and our water bill was was too high!  Third, for those of us who have lived in Colorado for a long time, the summers are getting hotter and hotter and drier and drier, so it was evident this was only going to get worse.

Step 1.....remove the lawn nearest the patio and add in lots of rock, ornamental grasses and drought resistant plants.  This particular area was downright stupid due to the serious incline.  So trying to mow it was a joke.  Being that this was such a huge undertaking, we contracted someone to help us out.  Below was the finished project as of 2018.                      Step 2.....I decided my vision for this area was really more of a "dry river bed" and this wasn't quite what I had in mind.  So, in the fall of 2020, I took to adding additional edging and moved a whole lot of rock out while also adding in some mulch to sculpt it into something more appealing.  It's fun seeing how much the plants grew in just two years time!                                       Step 3....eliminate the large section of grass between our two maples that looks just awful.  Every summer by about late July this section is totally brown.  It was such an eyesore.  So, why not xeriscape another chunk and add in another garden to enjoy?  Below is a picture of that area of the lawn that we just couldn't keep green.  Last fall, we removed a large circle of lawn knowing that we'd tackle it come this spring.  Over the last couple weeks, I got her finished.    The pictures show the progress along the way.                                                      

                                                                                                                     

Now just like with Step 1, the plants look a little scrawny, but give it just a couple years and this should look fantastic!  The feather reed grasses will be about 3x their current size, and the other perennials will have also filled out.  The perimeter rock is "recycled", meaning it was what I had removed from the other section last fall when I added in the mulch areas.  I'd like to add in some boulders (not quite as big as those in the upper garden) and we also want to add in plenty of bulbs this fall for some spring color.   Will there be a Step 4?  Who knows.

WALTZ LENGTH VEIL

 I love when a bride contacts me through my Etsy shop requesting a special order.  In this case, I had a bride who loved one of my waltz length veils, but needed some customization.  First, she needed it in ivory, and secondly she wondered how the lace appliques would work with her gown.   

She sent me a couple pictures of her gown which is a strapless lace overlay with a fit and flare silhouette.  I knew I could find a better match to her gown, so I suggested she let me source some lace appliques with a motif that better matched her gown's motif. 

I found a great match for her gown that has large swirls, as well as some florals and leaves similar to those on the gown itself.  

                          

                        
The first set of appliques begins just below the waist, leaving just the plain cut edge tulle to show off her neckline and shoulders. The set at the center back will hit at about her calf, which has less lace.                        

I'm so pleased with how this came together.  The veil truly looks like it was made for the gown!  I can't wait to get pictures from the bride on her big day!

ORANGE JUICE CAKE

 I had a friend forward this recipe to me a couple years ago, and simply forgot I had it all this time.   I needed a dessert that would travel well for over an hour in a warm car, so I didn't think my four layer frosted cake option was really the best choice.  Fortunately, I found this recipe in my archives and I opted for this simple bundt cake.  

I have to say, she definitely traveled well....but, better than that, she was super tasty!  A refreshing burst of citrus taste, with a moist crumb.  It was nice and light, not to mention picture perfect!  With the exception of chopping the pistachios the day before, I put it together the morning of our dinner since it was a super easy recipe.   The kitchen smelled like a creamsicle.  

INGREDIENTS:

1 (15oz.) white box cake mix

1 (6oz.) box orange jello mix

1 cup orange juice

3/4 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs

Frosting:

2 Tbsp. OJ

1 cup powdered sugar

1/3 cup  chopped pistachio nuts

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a bundt pan, set aside.

Combine cake mix, orange jello, orange juice, oil, and eggs in a large bowl and mix using an electric mixer until ingredients are well blended. 

Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan.  Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until cake tester/toothpick comes out clean.  

Remove cake from oven to rest in pan for 5-10 minutes.  Remove the cake from the pan to cool completely on a wire rack.  

Mix powdered sugar, with OJ and beat until smooth.  Drizzle over cooled cake.  Sprinkle with chopped pistachios.  

Enjoy!

Notes:  For us high altitude folk, I added 1 Tbsp. of flour to the batter.  The recipe called for a full cup of pistachios......there was no way, I probaby used 1/2 cup and I think it looked great.  

recipe c/o: www.12tomatoes.com

BREAD DUMPLINGS

 I wanted to share a recipe from my Dad's heritage with my daughter and her boyfriend, realizing as she approaches her 30th birthday that I've never made this for her!  So, it was pork, dumplings and cooked cabbage.  A true Czech Sunday dinner for us growing up.  

Dumplings were an important element in many of our dinners, and there were quite a variety (bread, potato and fruit to name a few).  Bread dumplings were my favorite and they taste great with pork gravy drizzled on top.  

As for the pork....Frankly, our pork roasts were never my favorite.  They always seemed really dry.  I tried a stuffed pork loin for my dinner.  It was better, but not great.  The bonus was having lots of additional stuffing as a side....and who doesn't love stuffing?

Finally, the cooked cabbage was a favorite of my Dad.  It's so simple, but so yummy.  It's a head of cabbage shredded and simmered on low for hours with a little bit of water in the bottom of the saucepan, caraway seeds and a dash of sugar.  It cooks down and turns a golden brown after hours on the stovetop (the side nearest the utensils in this photo).                    

  Here's my family's dumpling recipe in case you'd like to give it a try.....

You need a very large pot for the dumplings. After the water begins a rolling boil, they take about 20-30 minutes.  My favorite part of this dinner was watching my Grandmother slice them with a length of thread.  I do the very same thing, since it works like a charm!  Slide it underneath the dumpling, bring the lengths up each side and criss cross them while pulling down.

INGREDIENTS:

2½ cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder 

2 eggs 

½ tsp. salt

1 cup milk

3 slices of bread, cut into cubes (original recipe calls for white bread)

DIRECTIONS:

Sift flour, baking powder and salt into a medium size bowl.  Beat eggs, add to milk. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the milk mixture.  Mix well by hand; using a wooden spoon, or even your hands,

Add the bread cubes once the mixture has come together.  Form either one large or two smaller spheres using a lightly floured surface to bring them together. 

Cook for 20-30 minutes in boiling water.  

In case you're wondering how my daughter enjoyed the meal.  She ate it....I don't really see her requesting it again, but her boyfriend had two full helpings of everything.  I love the way that man enjoys a meal!  It makes all the effort worth it.  And, I will tell you, this is a significant effort.  My husband commented how the prep was much like a full out Thanksgiving dinner.  And, there are a whole lot of dishes/pots/pans to clean up too!  

For me, I enjoyed it....I've realized I'm just not a huge pork roast fan.  It brought back wonderful memories for me and a little heartache as well, since my parents and grandparents have all passed....but it's another reason why I like to share these meals, and the stories I shared at the dinner table.  I want to be sure our family heritage is passed along to the grandkids.  

FINGERTIP VEIL WITH LACE TRIM

 Generally, when I have a bride that requests a custom veil, I'll order extra of the trims to make another one or two for my shop.  It won't be exactly like hers, since hers was a "one-of-a-kind", but it will be similar.

In this case, my bride wanted a waltz length veil.  I found her this gorgeous venice lace trim for the perimeter to finish off hers then decided to make a fingertip length veil with the same lace for my shop. 

  It's about 2 inches in width at the widest point and has beautiful clear sequins throughout so it shimmers beautifully in the light.  I finished this particular veil with a very delicate thread accent from the comb to the where the lace actually begins.  It was just the right touch to lead the eye from the bride's face to the lace trim.         Fingertip length veils are the most popular, so I know there will be plenty of brides who will fall in love with this one!