Tag Archives: cookout

Fourth of July Weekend Wrap Up {2015}

Posted in Life As I Know It by

It was a great weekend in Nashville, except that it RAINED on the night of the 4th, so we didn’t get to watch fireworks from our secret spot like we had planned. MAJOR BUMMER.

But I spent the 3rd with these two little ladies (and also I had to catch a glimpse of my flag dress from Red Dress Boutique)…

IMG_7926And that night, me and the hubs gave a shout out to my hometown, with each of us wearing our Wisconsin shirts:

IMG_7958The hubs had to work during the day, so I headed to a family cookout (with his fam!), and had a great time catching up with everyone: IMG_7961Me and the lovely ladies had to get a photo – two cousins-in-law and a sister-in law:IMG_7965And I just have to show off the adorable back of the OTHER dress I bought from Red Dress Boutique:IMG_7971

And finally, my adorable nephew Jack, because he is the most photogenic kid I know:IMG_7972

Calico Couscous

Posted in Daily Notes, Mmm...Food... by

I love couscous, especially in the summer mixed up with some veggies and dried fruit.  This recipe, which I found at Tasty Kitchen, is so simple and delicious.  I tweaked it just a bit–it makes a great side to take to a cookout, or just to have for dinner!

Ingredients

Couscous:
1 cup vegetable stock
¾ cups Uncooked Couscous
½ cups Chopped Celery
½ cups Chopped Carrot
½ cups Red Or Yellow Pepper
¼ cups Green Onions, Thinly Sliced
½ cups Dried Cranberries (or other dried berry…cherries, pomegranate, etc.)

Dressing:
3 Tablespoons Red Wine Vinegar
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
1 Tablespoon Dijon Mustard
¼ teaspoons Salt
¼ teaspoons Pepper

Directions

In a small saucepan, bring vegetable stock to a boil. Stir in couscous; cover and remove from the heat. Let stand for 5 minutes. Fluff with fork.

In the meantime, place celery, carrots, and pepper in a microwave bowl; pour water to cover the vegetables, cover, and microwave for 5 minutes or until tender. Drain well.

In a serving bowl, combine the couscous, cooked vegetables, green onions, and cranberries. In a jar or Tupperware dish with tight-fitting lid, combine the dressing ingredients; shake well. Pour over the salad and toss to coat. Serves 6.

Tasty Tuesday: Memorial Madness

Posted in Daily Notes, Mmm...Food... by

It was an all-in-all successful Memorial Day. I realized that we had a cookout last Memorial Day, just after we moved into the house. Hard to believe it’s been over a year! Anyway, take a look at the goodies we enjoyed…

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Want to make these little delicious treats? Just melt Hershey’s kisses onto tiny twist pretzels (275 degrees, 3 minutes), remove, and immediately press a single m&m on each. Refrigerate until eating to make sure they are deliciously solid!

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See the iced tea I brewed? To try this flavored, yet unsweetened tea, just brew orange spice, orange pekoe, and lemon teas (4:4:2) in 1 gallon of hot water. Allow to cool and serve over ice!

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My dad’s famous pasta salad. Sorry, can’t give out this recipe…but with pepperoni, pepper jack cheese, and green chilies, it definitely has a little kick 🙂

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Chicken kabobs! A summer favorite. We also had burgers stuffed with cheddar and blue cheese, but as I was on grill duty they disappeared far too quickly for me to take pictures of them. I also highly recommend grilling a few skewers of just meat and just veggies just to have them on the side…

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And though it was supposed to rain, it ended up being quite warm and humid. Luckily, Tucker found a nice cool spot in our bushes…

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