Blog Winner - Writing Straight from the Heart!!!

First, congratulations to Susan at Writing Straight from the Heart! Susan is the winner of my 1st blog Give Away! Susan, please e-mail me with your mailing address and I'll send you your gift on Saturday!

Susan, I hope you enjoy cooking, breakfast, and Stonewall Kitchen! I love this cookbook, and I hope you will too! I wish I could send all 50 of you this book :-( Let's wish Susan "Happy Cooking" maybe she'll invite us all for "virtual" breakfast!

My favorite cook . . . Julia!

To me, she was charming! I grew up watching Julia on PBS television, and I remember at a young age being so impressed with her cooking skills! The photo of her on the left was taken well after she had established her cooking reputation.

Have you ever tried to talk and teach while cooking - it's not easy, and she was the first, and she was entertaining. She is the woman that paved the way and made it possible for Martha, Rachel, Ina, Nigella, Giada and Sandra, to name a few - we won't even mention the gentlemen!

Below are some of my personal cookbooks that I enjoy reading like a novel, yes, it's nutty, I know, but I also really enjoy cooking from them! I take great pleasure in selecting recipes for company, I'll read them several times over before I begin to cook, especially if it's a complicated recipe. I hope you enjoy my tribute to my heroine! Julia Child! I've also added some of her famous quotes, enjoy! Bon Appetit!!

My most prized cookbook. She signed this cookbook, and one I purchased as a graduation gift for one of my girlfriends, when I told Julia I was giving it as a graduation give, she smiled at me and said "that's so nice deary, I hope she enjoys it." I was tongue tied, I didn't know what to say, here, this cooking icon was thanking me!

"Find something you're passionate about and keep

tremendously interested in it." - Julia Child

Some of my favorites on my kitchen counter, they are kept on my book case in my kitchen

"In department stores, so much kitchen equipment is bought indiscriminately by people who just come in for men's underwear." - Julia Child

Here they are on the bookcase in my kitchen

next to the rooster pitchers!

"It's fun to get together and have something good

to eat at least once a day.That's what human life

is all about -- enjoying things." - Julia Child

Here they are up close. I did receive volume I & II for Christmas this past year!

"The only real stumbling block is fear of failure.

In cooking you've got to have a "What the hell?"

attitude." - Julia Child

Lastly, please read "My Life In France" written by Julia's nephew, after a series of interviews, it's a hilariously funny story of Julia and Paul, it's truly laugh out loud funny!

xoxo

P.S. I'm planning a blog "Give Away" when I reach 50 people!

The Pickle Poem

The Pickle

I love those crunchy pickles

That grow from the pickle bean

They are the greenest pickles

That I have ever seen

I like them with my pancakes

I like them with my lunch

A party isn't proper

Without pickles in the punch

I like them sweet and tangy

Or puckerfied with dill

I dream of Summer barbecues

With pickles on the grill

I wear those gherkin fashions

I love that kosher style

I ride my motorpickle

Through the garden with a smile

When my life is over

And I cash the wooden nickel

I won't give up the ghost

Until I have just one more...pickle

I hope this "pickle poem" made you smile, it makes canning all those pickles worth it! Have a great day!

Found this great "Give Away" check it out and become a "Follower" - I'm sure you'll love it!
http://vintagedragonfly.blogspot.com/2010/09/feeling-little-witchy-wonderfully.html

How fun is this . . .

Stonewall Kitchen mentioned my blog on their Face Book page because I did some posts about them on my blog! So exciting! You should "Follow" Stonewall Kitchen on Face Book if you don't already . . . I do!

Stonewall Kitchen We've been blogged! See what 'Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes' has to say about our recipes, gardens & cafe.

Ocean Breezes and Country Sneezes: The Recipes. . . as promised!

oceanbreezesandcountrysneezes.blogspot.com

This blog is about life at the ocean and life in the bucolic countryside! I hope you enjoy the tidbits of information that I provide!

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The Recipes. . . as promised!

Let me begin with the beautiful & free recipe cards displayed throughout the store!!! THEN, hold on to your kitchen table, it's going to be a mouth watering "Taste of Stonewall Kitchen" experience - I hope you enjoy the meals that I've "prepared" for you! The recipes that I've selected are basic ingreidents and if you don't have Stonewall Kitchen products you can improvise with what you have in your pantry - that's what I did! Bon Appetit!!

Let's start with an appetizer . . . I made this for a 40th birthday party, it was a huge hit!

Steak Crostini
Serves: 2 dozen Ingredients 1 pound beef loin boneless strip steak 1 French baguette 1/4 cup olive oil Stonewall Kitchen Blue Cheese Herb Mustard 1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese Fresh parsley leaves for garnish Directions Grill or broil the sirloin steak to desired doneness, preferably rare or medium rare. When cool, trim off fat and slice thinly. Cut the French baguette into at least 24 1/4 inch slices. Brush both sides of each toast with olive oil. Place toasts on a baking sheet under the broiler until golden on both sides. Spread Stonewall Kitchen Blue Cheese Herb Mustard over each French bread toast. Then layer a piece of steak. Top each crostini with crumbled blue cheese and a parsley leaf for garnish. Serve at room temperature.

The Main Course . . . I make this for dinner at least once a month! Love it!

Spicy Habanero Shrimp
Serves: 4 Ingredients 1-1/2 pounds peeled and deveined shrimp 1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. Stonewall Kitchen Habanero Mango Hot Sauce 1 lime 2 Tbsp cilantro leaves, stems removed and gently torn into small pieces Directions Marinate 1-½ pounds of peeled and deveined raw shrimp in ¼ cup plus 2 Tbsp. Stonewall Kitchen Habanero Mango Hot Sauce for at least 2 hours. Skewer the shrimp and grill 1-2 minutes on each side until just cooked through, but still tender. Squeeze a little lime juice over the shrimp and garnish with gently torn cilantro leaves. Serve over your favorite rice dish

And Finally, Dessert . . . I made this for Christmas, it it makes a stunning appearance at the dinner table!

Dulce De Leche Banana Trifle
Serves: 12 Ingredients 1 box Stonewall Kitchen Vanilla Cake Mix 8 ounces mascarpone cheese, softened 3 cups heavy cream 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla 1/4 cup granulated sugar 1 jar Stonewall Kitchen Dulce de Leche Sauce 3 ripe bananas 1 cup Heath toffee bits 1 cup Snickers or similar chocolate bar, chopped Directions Make cake mix in two 8-inch round cake pans according to package instructions. Cool completely and cut into 1- inch cubes. In a mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment, whisk the mascarpone cheese. Slowly add the heavy cream and whisk on high making sure the cream is incorporated into the cheese. Scrap down the sides of the bowl periodically. Whisk until the mixture is thick and forms soft peaks. Add the vanilla and sugar, mix. In a trifle bowl, measuring approximately 8½ inches high and 5 inches wide, layer 1/3 jar of SWK Dulce de Leche, one half of the cake cubes, ¼ of the mascarpone cream, 1 sliced banana, and sprinkle with 1/3 of the toffee bits and 1/3 chopped chocolate bar. Repeat these layers. Finish layering with ¼ of the cream filling, sliced banana the remaining 1/3 Dulce de Leche, then the rest of the cream filling topped with the rest of the toffee and chopped chocolate.

As for cocktails, I'd serve a nice Malbec with the appetizer, Pino Grigio with the shrimp and a Chocolate dessert wine with the trifle. Oh, don't forget to wear loose fitting jeans! LOL!!!

One of my favorite blogs is having a "give away" check it out @ http://lowtidehighstyle.blogspot.com/

Finally, please check out and "Follow" my friend's brand spanking new blog, I know you'll love it! Thank you! http://frombeyondmykitchenwindow.blogspot.com/

The Gardens . . .

Please pull up an Adirondack chair and relax, make sure you have your favorite beverage! I promised you that I'd give you some more information on one of my favorite stops in York, Maine - Stonewall Kitchen, if you haven't been to the store, or it's not possible for you to visit, you should take a "virtual" trip! Simply click on http://www.stonewallkitchen.com/ I think you'll enjoy your visit! I always do! Stonewall Kitchen has some beautiful gardens, so sit back and enjoy a brief tour of the gardens. It's such a nice place to stop, shop or relax and take a break, if I worked near Stonewall Kitchen I think I'd drive over there every day and just enjoy the grounds!

Decisions, decisions, which way shall I go . . .

lovely grasses along the paver walk way

If I go down here I can also see where the jams, jellies, and sauces are made . . . hmm

Love the windmill garden sculpture

a peek at a table with umbrella and a pergola in the background

If you look real close you can see a butterfly . . .

I love these large pots . . . I wish I had a place for them!

The front of the waterfall

The back of the waterfall, just lovely!

I hope you enjoyed this quick tour of these gardens. I have more garden photos and building photos, I'll save those for another post. Be on the lookout for the recipes later this week!!!

P.S. I just found this give-away on this blog that I thought you'd enjoy, please see link below. http://urbanfarmgirlandco.blogspot.com

Raspberry Lemon Smoothie . . . anyone?

One of our favorite shopping stops in Maine is Stonewall Kitchen! It's very seldom that we pass up an opportunity to see what'scooking - literally! Today we decided to stop for lunch, we needed an outdoor spot because we had Duke with us, it was 95 degrees outside, and Stonewall kitchen is dog friendly.

Below are some photo's from today's lunch, I hope they don't make you too hungry!

Here's my Raspberry Lemon Smoothie, it was VERY delicious!

Here's my pulled pork sandwich with a side of potato salad, sorry, I had to take a bite, I couldn't wait!

Here's hubby's triple grilled cheese sandwich with a side of pasta salad!

Over the next few days I'll publish some recipes from Stonewall Kitchen and some photo's of their beautiful grounds! Stay tuned! Have a happy day!