Cleaning Up, Getting Carried Away, Italian Stuffed Peppers and Big Pet Heads.....

It was time to clean out the front garden which was full of Virginia Creeper vine roots and taking over everything. A few months ago I ripped the vine down. I love vines on houses but this one was a big mistake!

The fellow was climbing up the wall. Not sure who he is, but he`s clickable to have a closer look....


The top of the "cat jump up and down" thingy broke so we stuck this press board on top, but it`s not sturdy enough. Need to find something else. I made a stone path for the pusses to get to it. The garden is now ready for the cold weather...which, by the way, I`d prefer not to have arrive. I`ll figure out in Spring what to add.

Then I hand sawed the high bush cranberries on either side of the door. They were becoming a nuisance and getting way out of hand. What a job that was. When I was finished I felt like I`d spent a good 5 hours at the gym. I would so love to have windows with window panes in them and a really nice cottagey door. Some climbing ivy to take away from the ugly siding....

I decided to try a recipe that looked delicious, the other night called Stuffed Peppers, Italian Style. I had bought some couscous awhile back and wanted to try it ....

Picked what herbs remained healthy from the pots outside, Italian Oregano and basil...

Boiled the halved peppers in water for a few minutes....

Fried up the mix....

Then added the couscous....


Filled the peppers, topped with cheese and popped them into the oven....

Voila! These were really good and I`ve added the recipe at the end for anyone who wants to try them.



Stuffed Peppers, Italian Style

6oz) ground beef (180 gr mince)
1 medium onion
3 cloves garlic ( next time I`ll use a bit more )
1 tbs olive oil
dash of dried hot chili peppers
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp dried oregano ( I used fresh )
1 tsp dried basil
1/3 cup couscous
1 can whole, peeled tomatoes, 15 oz (450 gr tin)
1/3 - 1/2 cup red wine
2 nicely shaped bell peppers I like to use 3 smallish ones
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella ( next time I would choose some sharp cheese )

Put a large pot of water on high heat and bring to a boil. Cut peppers in half the long way (try to find the best flat sides before cutting so that they will lay nicely) and remove stem end and seeds. When water is boiling drop peppers in and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove (use tongs) and put into a baking dish that will just hold them (if possible).
Finely chop onion and garlic. In non-stick skillet heat oil over medium-high heat. Add paprika, fennel and chili powder and sauté 1 minute. Add garlic and onion and sauté until transparent, about 5 minutes. Add beef and sauté until cooked through breaking it up as it cooks. Drain tomatoes, reserving juice. Chop and add to pan. Add 2 tbs reserved tomato sauce, herbs, couscous and 1/3 cup red wine to skillet. Stir well. Turn heat to low, cover and simmer until couscous is done, about 5 minutes stirring frequently and adding more wine if necessary. When ready spoon mixture into the pepper halves. Cover with foil and bake for 15 minutes at 400F (200C). Remove foil, spoon reserved tomato sauce over top and sprinkle with cheese. Bake, uncovered for another 5 minutes. Remove from oven and serve. I saved one of mine for the next day and it still tasted yummy.

Teddy will be 22 in March....

And Elvis is still as adorable as ever....

Happy weekend!

Good Books and Spring Greens Cannelloni

It`s not raining today!I got a wonderful surprise in the post from Julie over at Celtic Lady http://celticanamcara.blogspot.com/
I won the book called "Magus of Stonewylde" and she sent along this lovely herb book with it! Thanks so much Julie. I`m posting a few pages that can be clicked on to read...





I made some Spring Greens Cannelloni the other day and wanted to post the recipe because it is so easy to make. You use crepes rather than pasta. Because of this, it re-heats superbly for a lunch left-over. The only thing I would do differently is add a lot more spice and garlic because it seem a touch bland to me. Recipe will follow below.
First I made the crepes....

Chopped some green onions....

Mixed the cheese and spinach mix together....

Placed it on each crepe....

While the tomato sauce was simmering....

I rolled them up.....

Layed them in a dish and covered them with the sauce....

Viola! They stayed together really well and presented themselves great.

Spring Greens Cannelloni

Crespelle:

3 eggs
1 cup/20ml milk
1/2 cup/125ml wter
2 tbsp/30ml extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp salt
pinch of pepper
1 cup all purpose flour

Filling:

1 bag spinach
1 egg
1 tub (475 g) rictta cheese drained
salt

Tomato Sauce:

bunch of green onions
1 tbsp olive oil
salt
1 1/2 cups strained tomatoes
1 clove garlic
(remember to spice this up in whatever way if you like some pizzazz)

For Crepes:
In a large bowl, whisk eggs, milk, water, oil, then add flour.
Cover and let stand for 30 mimutes.

Heat a large pan over medium heat. Then add 1/2 cup of batter. Flip in 30 second approx. and cook until set. Repeat with the ramaining batter. Layer crepes in wax paper and set aside.

Filling:
Cook soinach in boiling water and rinse and squeeze out liquid. Chop. In a large bowl, beat egg into ricotta, stir in spinach.

Tomato Sauce:

Thinly slice green onions, and set aside the dark greens for later. In oil, fry onions and garlic until tender, then stir in tomatoes and 1/4 cup water. Simmer.

Spoon about 1/3 cup of sauce in bottom of baking dish.
Spoon gernerous amounts of cheese mixture into middle of each crepe and roll up. Place in the lightly greased and tomatoed baking dish, seam side down.
Cover with remaining tomato sauce. Sprinkle onion greens on top and pop into a 350 oven with dish covered in tin foil for about 30 minutes.


Happy weekend!!

In the Garden Braving the Mosquitoes with Some Tequila Help and an Absolutely Incredible Hot Fudge Sauce

"Yes, I`m going in for a few sniffs and nibbles. Isn`t that why it`s here?" I`ve added 3 more plants so far.

I decided to go with flowers in the pots this year. Chose some African Daisies and they looked very bare so I dug up some sweet woodruff and also bought a couple of spikes for the middle. In the samll pots are some Thai Basil and Lavender

I had two of these boxwood on either side of the arch but one never made it. I decided to dig the surviving one out and had slapped it in this pot until I could find somewhere to plant it.

To the far left is where I`ve pulled out the surviving Boxwood and planted another Mallow to match the other side. I`m going to have to do some heavy duty transplanting eventually because the small perrenial plants aren`t going to fit once they start to grow alongside the big ones.

I swear every year that this is dead.

But, the Trumpet Vine has again amazingly come to life.

Teds ventures out into the weed filled garden. Some of the bits are luckily only from the tree and can be swept away.

He ventures into the herb patch. I`ve only planted perennials here this year except for the arugula. Notice all the bits that have fallen from the tree. Thankfully they`re not weeds too.

I miss Saint Francis in front of the back door but Elvis was using the space here to get onto the lawn and flattening my plants so he`s been moved over a bit.

I put the annual herbs in pots this year. Purple Basil, Regular Basil and Rosemary.
I`m going to bring them in after summer and see what survives for cooking.

Teddy as well as the other two just love walking on the bricks. I still need to dig most of them in yet. For now they`re just sitting on top of the dirt.

It will eventually look nice once I get my butt out there and start digging.

Shocking mess, all the weeds, but Angus doesn`t seem to mind....

"Let me in"

Time to get serious and at least partially weed the garden.
First off, some Margarita fortification. Forget bringing out the proper glass, I wanted a nice big one, mind you, I`ve half drank it already. Goes down very well even on a not so hot day.

Out came the mosquito jacket for the bloody mosquitoes that are out on this overcast day. It only takes one bite near my eye and it swells closed.

Some areas have seedlings still sprouting so I don`t dare touch them yet, although the weeds are a mess.


DARK CHOCOLATE HOT FUDGE SAUCE


This is so good! Beware though because it`s very enticing to just eat it by the spoonful!

Dark Chocolate Hot Fudge

from The Gourmet Cookbook

1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder

1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 cup light corn syrup

2/3 cup heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 ounces good bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), finely chopped

2 Tablespoon unsalted butter, cup into 1/2 Tablespoons

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Stir together cocoa powder, brown sugar, corn syrup, cream, salt and half of the chopped chocolate in a 2-quart heavy saucepan and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until chocolate is melted. Cook mixture at a low boil, stirring occasionally, for 15-20 minutes until it thickens. Keep refrigerated and re-heat for sauce or eat by the spoonful cold and fudgey from the fridge :)

I`m going to serve it tonight for the boys over vanilla ice cream after our BBQ of hot Italian Sausages and sliced potatoes done up in tin foil with onions, mushrooms, corn and butter.

I Think Spring Really IS Coming.....

Elvis would like to aplologize for his mistress`s long absences but agrees with her that being winter-stuck inside really doesn`t make for anything interesting to blog about with only pics of snoozing animals.


She`s been busy reading other blogs and cooking....

Slow Cooker BBQ Meatballs

Hot Cross Buns with Fudge Icing



and working and visiting etc etc. And she asks that you don`t mind all the pictures crammed here in one post :)
This was last week in the back garden with Saint Francis...

And by golly, this is today!



Spring bulbs are coming up!

Last week was still so gloomy that a nice pot of lovely smelling Hyacinths were purchased and placed here.....

Then moved here....

They didn`t like the kitchen very well, so were again moved to here in the sun where they continue to fade away....

But the herbs that were brought in for winter are bursting with life. The chocolate mint is growing like mad!

Hope everyone has a lovely sunny weekend!