Raining Clam Chowder

It was raining soup today at the Rustic Cafe. Aron and I had made it through the downpours to the dentist in Midland and were headed out 158. I knew where I was, even though I’d never been that way before, I am the family navigator, you see. I had checked the route on my phone’s GPS before leaving the dentist’s office.                                              Just a few miles down the road and the GPS showed me to be quite a bit past my turn-off, so I pulled off the road to get my bearings. Trucks whizzed by, rocking our heavy duty truck as the clam chowder continued to fall from the sky.                                                                    VZM.IMG_20160309_121328 From the back seat, Aron said, “where’s Papa?” I told myself, c’mon girl, you can do this, and told him, we’ll be ok! I looked at my phone, not believing it’s GPS, yet beginning to doubt myself too. I could see a sign ahead so I slowly pulled forward till I could make out the numbers….158….I knew it! I tapped my phone screen and gave it a dirty look as the little blue dot scooted over to where I already knew I was.
I checked my mirrors and merged into the waterway of highway 158, headed for 385. I could feel the water under the tires to I kept my right wheels just outside the white line and my left wheels in the center of the lane for traction. By the time we got to the 385 junction, the rain was mostly to our east and was just sprinkling.                                             We met Amanda and Tyler between Andrews and Lamesa out in the middle of nowheresville, in the sprinkles, and deposited him safely with them. They headed back to Lubbock and I headed for home, alone, and thanked God for Taking the Wheel today.

 

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Grace And Lace AS SEEN ON SHARK TANK – Leg Warmers, Boot Socks, Boot Cuffs, Knit Scarves, Arm Warmers And More From Grace And Lace Co

Amazing Boot Socks, Leg Warmers, Arm Warmers, Boot Cuffs, Knit Scarves, Head Warmers And More From Grace And Lace Co. We Offer Top Quality Women’s Clothing and Baby Clothing

Source: Grace And Lace AS SEEN ON SHARK TANK – Leg Warmers, Boot Socks, Boot Cuffs, Knit Scarves, Arm Warmers And More From Grace And Lace Co

West Texas Goliath in Pictures

Goliath on his way on December 26, 2015. Pecos Texas.

When Goliath gives you snow, you make snow cream!

The pool is the spring at Balmorhea State Park.

The snow drifts up in the windows is at my sister’s in Roswell NM.

The fire truck is in Lubbock, and the rest is in Pecos.

Avo-whopping-cado

avocado

You know how it goes; you pass by the avocado display at the grocery store and, you can’t help it, you have to squeeze one! You know you do this 😉

It’s hard as a rock, so you squeeze another, then another. You may as well be looking for a baseball. So what do you do? You pass on them. WRONG!

They’re on special for 5 for $5! They’re hard as rocks, you say? That’s ok. I mean what happens when they’re all perfectly ripe and you buy 5? You might eat 1 or 2 before you have to throw them away. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you 😉

You buy those rock-hard avocados and put them in the frig. Take 1 or 2 out and place them on the counter or windowsill and in a day or two they’re perfectly ripe and ready to eat. Keep them in the frig and take them out as you want them. They will stay fresh longer and you won’t be throwing away over-ripe fruit!

BTW these are 5 for $5 at La Tienda, so go get yourself a bag of baseballs!

It’s not a Florida orange, but it’s good anyway.

Buying oranges can be scary. You crave that juicy sweetness that a delicious Florida orange, straight out of the grove, gives. Just the right sweetness, tartness and juiciness to explode in your mouth on that first bite is what you hope for.

Then you get home and peel your first orange and 😦 it’s dry, or has very little flavor. Horror of Horrors!! You just spent $5 on a whole bag of orange balls of dryness barely worthy of chunking over the fence.

So, when you DO find a bag of ripe, juicy goodness, it’s worthy of Sharing!!

oranges

I picked these up at La Tienda and they’re not Florida oranges, but they’re good 🙂

Proceed with Caution. You are Entering the Wrap Zone!

In my quest for low carb yummies, I am constantly trying to come up with flavorful & pretty things to eat. The visual impact on your palate cannot be ignored! Food should look as good as it tastes (when possible 😉

I believe in quick, easy, simple, healthy and tasty wraps that are a snap to fix!

This is my latest concoction, inspired by by friend, Teresa Winkles, and her low-carb spinach enchiladas.

wrap1

I gathered my ingredients: whole wheat carb chopper tortillas, mozzarella cheese sticks, pepperoni slices, cream cheese, spinach, and Parmesan & Romano shredded cheese, and red pepper flakes….

Spread a heaping teaspoon of cream cheese thinly over your tortilla. Unless you’re still a kid who likes to eat dirt, I recommend that you rinse the spinach and pat it dry before applying it to the cream cheese base 😉

Sprinkle the cheeses and red pepper flakes over the spinach then lay down your pepperoni in a perfectly symmetrical pattern (for my OCD self & friends;)

Place your cheese stick on one side and begin rolling it up, burrito style, tucking in your toppings as you go.

Roll them up then secure the edge with a toothpick.

wrap9

I used my Nuwave oven to heat these wraps because it’s quick, melts the cheese perfectly without over-melting it, and crisps the tortilla too. You can use a toaster oven, conventional oven or the microwave oven, although, you won’t have the crisp crunch with the microwave oven.

wrap10

3 minutes on each side was pert-near perfect for these wraps.

Wait & watch impatiently, while your stomach growls, as your delicious wraps heat. The spinach will wilt to perfection, the pepperoni will be delicious, the cheese will be blissfully bite-able, and the tortilla will obtain the perfect crunchiness!

wrap11

Perfect Spinach & Cheese wrap, from The Wrap Zone!

Special Request Peach Cobbler

Special Request peach cobbler for my mother-in-law
this recipe turned out so good and it’s so easy to make. For my version, I used 3 -12 oz bags of freshly frozen peaches since there were no peaches in the produce department. I tossed them in about 1/3 c. sugar with 2 Tbsp of cornstarch. I followed the rest of the recipe and it took the full 70 minutes to completely bake, and I did cover it loosely with foil for the final 20 minutes to avoid over-browning. Delicious.

cobbler

Crispy Peach Cobbler
Adapted, just barely, from A Boat, A Whale and a Walrus

http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2015/08/crispy-peach-cobbler/

4 1/2 pounds (about 10 large or 2 kg) peaches, unpeeled, cut into 1-inch chunks or slices (I cut mine each into 8 wedges)
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
4 ounces (115 grams) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups (400 grams) granulated sugar, divided (I reduced this to 1 1/2 cups, and recommend the same)
1 1/2 cups (190 grams) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon coarse or kosher salt
3/4 cup milk (whole is ideal; almond will work too)
1/2 cup hot water
Heavy cream, cold, for drizzling

Heat oven to 350°F (175°C). Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, to catch drips, or regret it later.

Prepare the peaches: Place the peaches in a 9×13-inch baking pan and in roughly an even layer. Using a zester or a Microplane, finely zest the lemon evenly over the peaches and then squeeze the lemon juice evenly over the peaches, too, catching any seeds before they fall in.

Make the batter: With an electric mixer, beat butter and 3/4 of the sugar (1 1/2 cups if you use the full amount; 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons if you reduce it as I did) with sugar until sandy, about 1 minutes. Add the flour, baking powder and salt and beat until combined, about 30 seconds, then lower the speed and slowly mix in milk. Continue beating at a medium speed for 2 minutes more, until light and fluffy-ish.

Assemble cobbler: Plop the batter in a large blobs over the peaches. Using my favorite $3.20 kitchen tool, a small offset spatula, or if you don’t have one, a butter knife, carefully spread the batter evenly over the fruit so that it’s no more than 1/2-inch thick in any place. Sprinkle with remaining sugar and drizzle the hot water evenly over the sugar.

Bake cobbler: Place the baking dish on the foil-lined baking sheet and bake for 60 to 70 minutes, until the top is cracked and golden brown, and a toothpick inserted into the topping comes out batter-free. (It’s best to start checking it at 60 minutes.)

Be patient: Let the cobbler sit in the baking dish on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before serving, which will feel (and smell) like torture, but gives the peach juices a chance to slightly thicken up. To serve, scoop into bowls and drizzle with heavy cream.
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