A Recipe for a Happy Marriage
Date Night with IZ. Flowers for the table. Not sure how much longer dahlias will be available. But overjoyed to have some on the table tonight.
Dining al fresco. And, shut the front door, I made all that food. No, really, shut the door, it’s buggy out.
This guy is my date. I can tell you, that after 22 years, he’s still the man I want to spend time with. . . as much as possible, in fact. He’s that rare blend of amazing listener and fabulous conversationalist. No, I’m not biased. Everyone thinks that.
On the menu: Grilled Chicken with Peaches and Blackberries. The recipe is here: I subbed out Rosemary for Lavender.
Peach, Bourbon, and Rosemary are amazing together. No really, such a pretty drink. I didn’t garnish with Rosemary, because, well, I didn’t. But it’s still just as lovely. Sitting on the porch on such a warm night, close my eyes and we’re transported south. Dreaming together is a good thing.
Warning: the drinks might make you flirty.
We should do this more often? We should do this more often! (and that folks, is a recipe for a happy marriage.)
Completely Legal Mac and Cheese
IZ’s Fabulous Mac and Cheese
I’ll confess, I’m not a huge fan of mac and cheese. As a rule, I can’t stand the stuff. It falls in the same category as lasagna for me. Great in theory, but in real life, not something I enjoy eating. Which is odd. As they both involve pasta and cheese and well, I have nothing against either of those things!
And like lasagna, I’ve met dozens of people who, through the years, have sworn by their recipes for Mac and Cheese. “Oh, you just haven’t had MY Mac and Cheese” when I confess I’m not a connoisseur. No, I haven’t. And I’m open to try yours, but please don’t be sad when I don’t like it. It’s nothing personal.
But unlike lasagna, (no, really, your great grandmother’s recipe written in Italian won’t make me like lasagna, I promise) there have been a few exceptions to the no mac and cheese rule. The first is my sister-in-law Cheryl’s recipe for mac and cheese. I swear, that stuff is addictive. I have no idea what she puts in it, but I suspect it’s crack. A third serving? Yes, please! Want to take some home with you? Don’t mind if I do. No, no I will not be sharing this huge portion of cheesy goodness with you. I don’t care if YOUR sister made it. I will cut you.
That good. I’d sell out my own kin for it.
Linen Spray Recipe
Linen Spray Recipe: Laundry is always a chore, but is should be a sweet one.
I spent most of yesterday helping Geo deep clean his room. Foolishly, I thought I would get to my chores as well, but his room proved to be a bigger project than I had anticipated. Isn’t that always the case? Geo is a social cleaner. Send him to his room to clean it on his own, he’ll tidy up his floor and then be there for hours wondering what he should do next. He’s always been this way, and I’ve learned to supervise the work and direct his next moves. Then I come in and “help”. And then he says, “Thank you” every 10 minutes, he’s so relieved to not be alone in the endeavor!
See, I wasn’t kidding… the kid is an engineer. Those are zip-lock bags with hand-drawn diagrams for labels.
So today, I’m focusing on the rest of the house and those chores that are worth the effort, though tedious to do. I always feel so much better when our house is clean. I don’t need it to be perfect all the time, but I’m a huge fan of it being disinfected! Clutter I can stand, grime not so much!
There’s something about clean sheets and softly scented rooms that appeals to me. Cleaning is a chore, I’m not sure anyone really enjoys it. But that smell, when I’m finished, is such a reward. I’m throwing open windows and doors and letting the fresh air in. And I’m cleaning with a vengeance with the promise of a sweetness when I’m done!
The sachets are filled with lavender and you use them in your dryer! Just toss them in with your wet clothes for an extra layer of “ahhh”.
One of my favorite “rewards” of cleaning is linen spray. I adore the stuff. It’s easy to make your own, and it makes your sheets smell so lovely. I just sleep better in softly scented linens. Since I was out of linen spray and needed to whip up a batch, I thought I’d share the recipe on the blog as well.
It really is a breeze to make. The recipe is below the jump:
Just Beet It
Oh, ‘fess up, if you’re going to be stuck with an ear worm all day, Michael Jackson is a good choice!
Our CSA box arrived with beets in it. BEETS! I have a long history of detesting this particular root vegetable—straight back to infancy where I was famous for spitting them spray style at any person brave enough to feed them to me. You’d think after one such assault people would wise up and switch to sweet potatoes or something.
So, I need your help, big time. Redeem this pretty, though much maligned, root for me? Post your fabulous beet recipes (or links to them!) in the comments. Because the only thing I can think to do with them is to boil them into dye. And IZ says we’re supposed to eat the contents of the CSA box not do crafts with them. Prove him right, people!
**If you live on the North Coast of Oregon or Southern Washington, Green Angel Farms has the best CSA! We love their boxes.
