My basil has gone crazy so I cut enough to fill two jars and took them to work.
I also baked The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie N' Oreo Fudge Brownie Bar,
a recipe from kevinandamanda.com. It's a long weekend, we have to work Saturday,
so this just says, Hey it's ok, you still have two days off!, but while you're here have a goodie.
I used my best pottery bowl, wrote all the entrants names on scrap paper from the recycling bin using a black fine point Sharpie. Mr. Cowboy did the honours and pulled the winning name.
The winner of my Summer Skinny Scarf is Barbara from Sparrow Ave. Congratulations, Barbara! As soon as you email your address to me I will send off your scarf via Canada Post. Thanks everyone.
I have a thing about snickerdoodles. Love the original recipe but have also tried adding chocolate. Last night I made Pumpkin Snickerdoodles and they are out of this world good. 
And when I saw the recipe for S'mores I could not resist making a batch and am so glad I did. Cookie dough on top of graham crackers with a chunk of chocolate gently embedded in the dough.
Makes going to work on Saturdays almost bearable.
This is a first for our kitchen - Mr. Cowboy made pizza today using Jamie Oliver's recipe. The thin crust pizza was soft and chewy, with lots of basil, and a really nice tomato sauce that he made from scratch.
Both pizzas were good but I especially liked the second one; loaded with artichokes, olives, roasted red peppers, and caramelized onions.
Tinhorn Creek Merlot pairs up really well with pizza.
As a thank you to all who have visited my blog and left comments, this being my 400th post, I am giving away my first ever Summer Skinny Scarf. A comment on my blog will enter your name in the draw and this is open to all no matter where you live. I will pick a winner on Monday July 25th.
The pea vines are hanging low with the weight of the many pods filled with the sweet green pearls. We sat and shelled peas this morning feeling good that come this winter we will enjoy a feast of peas while the snow blows all around us.
Mr. Cowboy is constantly tweaking and reworking his Bolognese sauce and the second time he made it this summer, it was so good that the plates were licked clean. It could have been the mixture of meats or all the fresh from the garden parsley and basil. Or it could have been the addition of peas that sent it over the top. I was so busy with my fork that I didn't even take a picture (the above photo is from the first ok sauce).
I woke up today with lots of good intentions of going down to the Market and then having breakfast by the river but what I really wanted was a quiet morning at home to bake and so I did. Oatmeal cookies are always good so when I saw this recipe for Triple Oat Cookies I knew I had to try them. The three oats are large flake, steel cut and oat bran with some dates for sweetness. Really nice with a cup of tea.
I just finished reading The Pioneer Woman: black heels to tractor wheels by Ree Drummond and thoroughly enjoyed it except the part where they go to Australia and decide to eat at McDonald's and I quote, 'for some safe and predictable American food' end of quote. But it is a cute love story. From the recipes at the back of the book, I decided to try the cinnamon rolls. If you are on a diet, forget these. They are loaded with whole milk, butter and sugar and after they are baked you drizzle the still-warm buns with icing made with yes more sugar, butter, coffee, and maple syrup.
Fantastic recipe!
Our basil has gone crazy so the only thing to do is make pesto. I always use the recipe from one of my favourite cookbooks, Cooking with Herbs by Emelie Tolley and Chris Mead. It's a very simple recipe - garlic, basil, pecans, olive oil, and lots of grated Romano cheese.
A year ago the lavender in the front garden edging the path was magical to see, the stalks of purple, violet, pink and even white lavender spilling over onto the gravel walkway, brushing against your legs as you walked along stopping every so often to watch the bees busy at work.
But,sadly, these lavender plants did not survive the winter.
In my back garden the feverfew now gets all my attention, the hundreds of tiny flowers filling the lower terraced garden with their oh so happy faces.
Early morning hike to the radio towers. It was already warm by the time we started the climb but thank goodness for the breeze that rearranged our hair every step of the way.
After that gruelling hike we couldn't wait to dig into these little babies; pumpkin-cornmeal griddle cakes from Marilyn Smith's new book called Healthy Starts Here! These are made with yoghurt and of course pumpkin so they are very soft but still have lots of texture thanks to the whole wheat flour, cornmeal, and wheat germ.
