No, Dad! Not another bath!

But because Baxter loves to run outside in the dirt and mud, his fuzzy white fur needs regular maintainence!

I just bought him a Goat Milk Stuff Pet Shampoo Bar and we put it to work. And it smells sooo good and leaves his coat super soft. I highly recommend it.

Anyway, we secured Bax to a tire, warmed the water and scrubbed away.

Swenson Ladies have a Garden Tea Party

Last Sunday my Aunt Laurie hosted a garden tea party at her house for the Swenson ladies and a bridal shower for me. She did a fabulous job of preparing a delicious lunch. Aunt Laurie is a wonderful hostess and plans everything perfectly - down to the gardening gloves as a silverware holder to the delicious homemade rose mints.


We had a delightful menu of iced tea and lemonade, green salad with blueberries & strawberries, a bowtie pasta salad with sunflower seeds which I now love!, pickled deviled eggs, chardonnay lemon cream cheese sandwich triangle on cinnamon raisin bread, turkey and berry triangle sandwiches and a chocolate bundt cake with chocolate wine sauce.

Here is the tablescape - set for me, my mom, my sister, my cousin and her little girl, my two aunts and my grandma.


A place setting - beautiful glass bowl and plate, fine china tea cup and saucer, garden glove silverware holer and a cute wedding dress box that held the homemade rose mints.

The drink and dessert table. I just love the milk glass pitcher and glasses. They were a wedding gift to my Aunt Laurie from her grandma, who we were also remembering that day because it would have been her birthday.

Here are the eggs, sandwiches and salad. Behind the food are photos of me throughout the years.


Aunt Laurie gave me the centerpiece. It now looks so cute by my front door. Everyone also gave me gift that were garden related because they all know how much I love gardening. I got some great tools, seeds and watercans.

Thank you to my family for a wonderful afternoon!

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Chocolate Honey Almond Tart

Well I must be on a Giada kick! I can't help it though! This is a decadently wonderful recipe. And it's especially good because I had all the ingredients except heavy cream on hand! I bought chocolate graham crackers weeks ago and little did I know I could use them for a dessert crust.

1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

9 chocolate graham crackers

2 tablespoons slivered almonds

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup honey

12 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter the bottom and sides of a 9-inch springfoam pan.

Place the graham crackers and almonds in the bowl of a food processor and process until they turn into find crumbs. Add the butter and pulse until incorporated. Press mixture into the bottom of the springfoam pan. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool to room temperature for about 20 minutes.

In a small saucepan over low heat, whisk the cream and honey together. Heat until the honey melts stirring constantly. Increase heat to medium until the mixture is just below a boil. Place the chocolate chips in a medium bowl and pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is completely melted. Pour chocolate over prepared crust. Refrigerate overnight. Run a knife along the sides of the pan to help loosen the chocolate from the pan before removing.

From the Food Network

Giada's Meatballs

For Adam's mom's Mother's Day lunch, Adam and I made these meatballs to eat with spaghetti. So delicious and the best meatball recipe I've ever made! Thanks Giada!

1 small onion, grated
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup Italian-style bread crumbs
1 large egg
2 tablespoons ketchup
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 lb ground veal
2 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2 inch cubes

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine the onion, parsley, Parmesan, bread crumbs, egg, ketchup, garlic, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper. Add the beef and veal. Using your hands, combine all ingredients gently but thoroughly. Shape the meat mixture into 16 (1 1/2-inch) meatballs and place on prepared baking sheet. Make a hole in the center of each meatball and place a cube of the mozzarella inside. Reform the meatball so that the mozzarella is completely covered with the meat mixture. Bake the meatballs for 15 minutes until cooked through.



Go here for a recipe for spaghetti sauce to go with these.

Bridal Shower Season

Last Saturday Bec threw a bridal shower for her sister Katie, who is getting married 7 days before me on July 16. The shower was BEAUTIFUL! The decorations were unique and the food delicious and quite impressive! The menu included chicken salad on mini homemade rolls, apple walnut pinwheels, lemon and spinach pasta salad, mango and black bean salsa, green salad with mandarin oranges, toffee fruit dip, and for dessert lemon and raspberry cupcakes. I just had to share a few photos!

And of course a picture of the beautiful bride!

Herb and Dijon Salmon

Ok this is a bad picture. It looks like chicken but I assure you it is not. It is but a delicious rosemary, thyme and dijon salmon filet. So good and so simple!! We ate it with rice and mixed vegetables.

I am into anything with whole grain mustard right now!

3 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves, chopped

3 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves, chopped

1 teaspoon pepper

1 1/4 lbs salmon filets, skin removed, cut into 4 equal pieces

4 Tablespoons whole grain dijon mustard

Mix rosemary, thyme and pepper in a small bowl.

In a large frying pan, heat 1 teaspoon olive oil over medium heat.

Spread 1 tablespoon mustard on the top of each salmon filet. Top with some herb mixture. Press down lightly to adhere herbs to mustard.

Place fish in hot frying pan, herb side up, and cook until done, about 15 minutes. Just keep a close eye on the filets so they don't get too crispy. You may want to cover them too while they cook. You can flip the fish for the last few minutes of cooking to cook the top as well.

This can also be done on a hot grill. Just spray the bottom of the filets with cooking spray before grilling. Grill herb side down for about 12 minutes.

From Weight Watchers Online

New Take on Tacos

Last night we tried a new twist on tacos. I just love tacos and could eat them once a week with no complaints. Adam, on the other hand, while he will eat them, doesn't like them so often. So I found a recipe that mixed things up a bit and we really liked it!

Introducing Chili Tacos!..

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1 teaspoon olive oil

1/2 small onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb ground beef

1 envelope taco seasoning

a dash of chili powder

1/4 teaspoon cumin

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

store bought taco shells, heated to package directions

shredded cheddar cheese

sour cream

taco sauce

any other taco toppings you enjoy

In a large skillet over medium high heat, heat the olive oil. Add the onion and cook til soft, about 3 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for about 3 more minutes. Add the beef and cook until done. Add the taco seasoning, cumin, chili powder, tomato sauce, and kidney beans. Reduce heat to medium low and let simmer for 5 minutes.

Now build your tacos with the chili meat mix and toppings of your choice!

I really like that this is more filling with the beans and you can add the tomato element without a fresh tomato because while I like just a little tomato with my tacos, I can't eat the entire tomato.

Adapted from Weight Watchers Online.

Sweet and Sour Pork

I made this tonight night for dinner and Adam and I both loved it! We ate every last bit - that's how I know it's a hit!

We ate it over a wild rice mix which was very tasty and gave nice texture to the dish.

This is a keeper for our go-to dinner recipes. Thank you Food Network for the recipe!

1 pound pork tenderloin, cut into 1/2-inch pieces (Adam got what was label pork sirlion and that worked well)
2 1/2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
Kosher salt
2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons ketchup
3 tablespoons sugar, plus a pinch
3 tablespoons peanut or vegetable oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 carrots, thinly sliced
3 scallions, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
3 cups snow peas, cut in half

Toss the pork with 1/2 tablespoon vinegar and a pinch of salt in a bowl. Mix the remaining 2 tablespoons vinegar, the soy sauce, cornstarch, ketchup, 3 tablespoons sugar, 1/3 cup water and 1/2 teaspoon salt in another bowl.

Heat 2 tablespoons peanut oil in a large skillet or wok over high heat. Add the pork and slowly stir until it turns mostly opaque, about 2 minutes. Remove the pork with a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate. Discard the oil and wipe out the skillet.

Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon peanut oil in the skillet, then stir-fry the garlic with a pinch each of salt and sugar, 15 seconds. Add the carrots and scallions and stir-fry until crisp-tender, 2 minutes. (Add a little water if the garlic starts to stick to the skillet.) Add the pork, snow peas and soy sauce mixture; stir until the pork is cooked through and the sauce is thickened, about 3 minutes.

Quick Cheesesteak Pizza

I am always looking for an easy weeknight dinner. Unfortunately easy doesn't always mean healthy. I know it CAN mean healthy but when we stumble across something we like, we go for it. This recipe is an example of that. Cheesesteak Pizza!!! Oh yeah!

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This recipe is from Sandra Lee's Semi Home magazine. Super easy and few ingredients. Great for a quick meal or for party bites!

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I have to admit I was a bit nervous because I am not very fond of Pillsbury pizza dough but this turned out quite tasty! p

1 roll thin crust refrigerator pizza crust

1/2 lb deli roast beef, chopped

1/2 green bell pepper, chopped

1/2 medium onion, chopped (we didn't use onion)

1/2 cup provolone, shredded

1/2 cup cheddar, shredded

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Preheat oven to 375 degrees

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On a lightly sprayed rimmed baking sheet, roll out the pizza crust to fill the sheet. Bake crust for 5 minutes.

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While crust is baking, saute bell pepper and onions in a saute pan over medium heat until softened.

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Take crust out of oven and top with the roast beef, peppers, onions and cheeses. Return to oven and bake for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust has browned.

Cheeseburger Pies

Last week I was on the search to find a recipe for dinner that used ground beef. I was in the mood for a cheeseburger but wanted to do something different. I found this recipe from Food Network on a Paula Deen show. Paula's son Jamie made these for a get together. The cheeseburger pies are great for a meal but would also be fun if they were made smaller for appetizer bites!

Jamie's Cheeseburger Pies

1lb ground beef

1 Tablespoons steak seasoning (McCormick's Montreal is our favorite)

1 Tablespoon steak sauce (A-1)

1/2 onion, chopped finely (optional, we did not use)

4 slices cheese (any cheese will do. we used provolone)

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed (let thaw at room temp for at least 30 mins - needs to be relatively thawed or else it will crack when you work with it)

1 egg yolk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line a baking sheet with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. Heat a large fry pan over medium-high heat (or heat your grill if you are making these in warmer weather)

In a bowl, mix together the beef, steak seasoning, steak sauce and onion if using. Form into 4 round patties. Cook in fry pan - or grill - until the burgers reaches medium doneness (the burgers will continue to cook when you put it in the oven).

Roll out the puff pastry to slightly flatten. Cut into 4 squares and place on the prepared baking sheet. Place a burger on each pastry square and top with a piece of cheese. Fold pastry up over the top the burger and pinch dough closed. Make sure dough is sealed and that there aren't any tears in the dough on the sides of the pouches.

In a small dish lightly beat the egg yolk and a teaspoon of water. With a pastry brush, brush the wrapped pastry on the tops and sides.

Bake for about 10-15 minutes until the pastry is nicely browned.

We ate our cheeseburger pies with sugar snap peas and white cheddar mac and cheese.