There is nothing like a homegrown tomato fresh off of the plant. Last year I had some success with a couple of tomato plants so I thought I would try again this year. I planted 6 plants of 3 different varieties in pots just outside of my back door so here is hoping for lots of fresh yummy tomatoes to go with the basil in my herb garden! I planted the plants 3 weeks ago and I have been taking pictures every Thursday to track the progress.

Day 1 All the plants freshly planted.

Week 1 growing and a few blossoms!

This is the container with 4 plants. It is hard to see but the middle two plants are just twig like. That is because they were eaten—not by a bug but by a dog. Daisy likes to chew on greenery; she really misses the grassy yard that we had in Texas.

 

Week 3, growing and looking good.

You can only see one of the two semi-eaten plants here but they are both growing and looking pretty good. I guess time will tell.

I made an new herb garden to celebrate Spring.  I like to use fresh herbs but they can be so expensive to by packaged in the grocery store so I decide to make my own garden.   I orginally saw this idea on Home Made Simple .  Lots of good ideas on that site.   I can’t find the directions for the herb garden on the web site anymore though.   For the large bottom pot I used a plastic planter so that the garden wouldn’t be too heavy to move.   For the actual plant pots I used terracotta pots.  I spray painted all of the pots white and then taped off an area and used chalkboard spray paint for the label area.      

I’ve been watching the new show on Food Network–Worst Cooks in America.   In last week’s episode Anne’s team made a Pork Milanese that sounded good so I gave it a try.   I didn’t make the same salad that the recipe calls for.  I did my own thing and sauted shallots in a bit of oil and made a warm italian dressing with romano cheese.  It turned out good.

Pork Milanese with baby green salad and warm vinaigrette

 

I know it is late for Christmas dishes but I haven’t swapped them out yet. 

Here is the link for the recipe I used for the pork.  Pork Milanese

 
Earlier in the week I need a quick dinner so I used a go to recipes for sloppy joes.  Rachael Ray’s Super Sloppy Joes is the best recipe I have come across for sloppy joes.  It is quick, easy and I always have all of the ingredients on hand.  It also freezes well.

Here it is in the pan on my stove just after mixing it. 

Super Sloppy Joes

A little hint that I use when a recipe calls for less than a can of tomato paste.   I plop tablespoons of the extra paste on wax paper and freeze it and then put it in a plastic container.  This way I have premeasured amounts easily available.  I find that this is much cheaper than using tomato paste in a tube.

Roasted Pork Rack:

I thought that it might be kind of fun to write about new recipes I try throughout the year.  For me the traditional food for New Years Day has always been pork and sauerkraut; Mom and Dad always said it for luck.  I’ve never been a fan of sauerkraut so I don’t make it.  This year I made a pork roast using a recipe I found on Food Network from Michael Simon.  It was delicious.   I also made iceberg wedge salads. 

Here is the recipe for the pork roast:

Roasted Pork Rack

• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 orange, zested and juiced
• 1 lime, zested and juiced
• 2 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 center cut rack of pork (berkshire)
• 1 tablespoon cracked coriander seed
• 1 tablespoon cumin seed
• 1 teaspoon ancho chile powder
• 2 teaspoon kosher salt

Whisk together honey, juice and olive oil and pour over pork in a re-sealable plastic bag . Add seasoning and zest and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place pork on roasting rack and roast for 10 to 15 minutes or until rack turns a deep golden brown. Reduce heat to 275 and roast for an additional 35 to 50 minutes or until pork reaches a internal temperature of 140 degrees F. Remove pork from oven and let rest for 15 minutes.

The pork was very flavorful and moist. 

Michael Simon suggests serving this with zucchini fritters and provides the recipe for those as well.

testing google reader

About a week and a half ago, I hosted a card making party that I posted about.  I posted the cards that I planned on us making here.  We didn’t use all the paper that I had cut.  I didn’t want to have to put it all away so I challenged myself to make cards using just the supplies that I still had out.  Here are the results of that.  I still have more left so I am going to continue challenging myself.

Stamp:  A Flower for all Seasons

Ink:  SU Basic Brown

Paper:  SU Whisper White, Certainly Celery, So Saffron, Bashful Blue, DSP

Accessories:  Certainly Celery Twill, Watercolor Crayons, water brush, Scallop border punch

Stamps:  Fifth Avenue Floral

Ink:  SU Basic Black, Rose Red, Ballet Blue, Going Grey, YoYo Yellow

Paper:  SU Whisper White, Rose Red, Ballet Blue, Going Grey

Accessories:  Blender Pen, Half Pearls from Pretties kit, Scallop border punch

Stamps:  Fifth Avenue Floral

Ink: SU Basic Black

Paper:  SU Whisper White, Vellum, Pixie Pink, Rose Red

Accessories:  Rose Red Marker, Blender Pen, White Grosgrain Ribbon, Pretties Kit

Stamps:  Sentiment Unknown

Ink:  SU Lovely Lilac

Paper:  SU Lovely Lilac, Vellum

Accessories:  Manhattan Floral Embossing Folder, Cuttlebug, White Organdy Ribbon, Pretties Kit.

I completely CASE’d this card but I can not remember where I saw to give credit.  If you designed this originally please let me know I can credit you.  Mine does differ from the original in that I added the decorative stick pin.

Tomato Update:  I think we will be having a fresh tomato tomorrow or Tuesday!  I can’t wait.  The biggest decision to make is should I share with Scott or not?

Ever since I moved from Pittsburgh, one of the things I miss most about summer is fresh, juicy, homegrown tomatoes.  The tomatoes in the grocery stores all taste the same, or rather have no taste.  Organic heirloom tomatoes are good but at $6-7/pound they are rather pricey.  I tried to grow tomatoes in Texas—the plants grew beautifully for me but now tomatoes!  Some years I didn’t even try.  Our first summer here, I didn’t even try.  I had no idea what summers here in the desert would really be like.   Last year I thought I would get brave and plant a couple of plants in pots.  One problem that I didn’t anticipate was Daisy eating my plants!  She ate my tomato plants, and for good measure ate the parsley and basil that I had in pots outside!   I think she missed having grass in our yard like we did in Texas.  She used to eat grass once in a while.  So Scott and I planted some sod in a baby swimming pool for her.  Crazy I know but now she had some grass to munch on if she wanted and some cool grass to lay on.  Fast forward to this year, I didn’t want to plant tomatoes again only to have her eat them.  Last month when I was in Costco I saw large, mature tomato plants.  I thought they were a little to big for Daisy to eat in one sitting so I thought that I might have a chance!   I bought two plants—a beefsteak and a week later a heirloom purple tomato plant.   Daisy hasn’t bothered them and they have been doing well.  One tomato is ripening and I think in a week or so I will have my first tomato!  Daisy better not decide to try it first.

The beefsteak is on the right and the heirloom on the left

 

Getting close!

I hosted a cardmaking evening for people from work the other day.  These are the cards that I had planned for us to make:

Stamps:  A flower for all Seasons

Ink:  Basic Black

Paper:  SU Bashful Blue, DSP, Certainly Celery, Whisper White

Accessories: SU Certainly Celery twill, watercolor crayons, waterbrush

Stamps: Flower Fancy, Oval All

Ink:  SU Rose Red, Pretty in Pink, Certainly Celery

Paper: SU Pretty in Pink, Whisper White, DSP

Accessories: SU grosgrain ribbon, Large Oval Punch, Scallop Oval Punch, Scallop  Border Punch

Stamps:  Fifth Avenue Floral

Ink:  SU Rose Red, Going Grey Brocade Blue, Whisper White

Paper: SU Rose Red, Going Grey Brocade Blue, Whisper White

Accessories:  SU Brocade Blue grosgrain ribbon, SU punches

Stamps:  Botanical Blooms

Ink:  SU So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery

Paper:  SU So Saffron, Bashful Blue, Certainly Celery, DSP

Accessories: SU So Saffron Ribbon

Stamps:  Manhattan Flower Embossing Folder

Ink:  Lovely Lilac

Paper:  SU Lavender Lace, Vellum

Accessories:  Organdy ribbon, cuttlebug

Here is a thank you card that I made recently.  I have had this stamp set for a year and hadn’t inked it at all.  I finally used and am pleased with the result.

Stamps: Morning soft

Paper:  SU Lavender Lace, Whisper white, vellum

Ink:  SU Basic Black

Accessories:  SU markers—Lavender Lace, Lovely Lilac, Certainly Celery; Certainly Celery Twill.

I saw these on a blog when I was blurfing last week.  I thought they were so cute.  They look so much like real eggs don’t they?

I can’t remember where I found them and I don’t know where the original idea came from so I can’t give credit.  They are super easy to make.   Melt white chocolate chips.  Put the melted chocolate in greased plastic egg halves and let set.  Melt yellow candy melts, mix in some rice krispies.  Place a teaspoonful on each half.  Sprinkle with red sugar.  The hardest part was finding plastic eggs that are split in half lengthwise.   They looked so real that when I took them to work and left them on the table in the breakroom I put a note on them saying that they weren’t real eggs.  Folks were concerned that the eggs had been left out of the refrigerator.

Here are a couple Easter cards that I made:

Stamps:  Serene Spring

Paper:  SU Bashful Blue, Basic Black, Watercolor

Ink: Basic Black

Accessories:  Watercolor crayons, water brush, flowers from SU Pretties kit, unknown ribbon, Fiskars border punch, Cuttlebug swiss dots embossing folder

Stamps:  Serene Spring

Paper: SU Whisper White, YoYo Yellow, Old Olive

Ink: Basic Brown

Accessories: Watercolor pencils, Blender Pen, Oval punch, eyelet, Cuttlebug border embossing folder