Happy Meat!

Not the prettiest cuts but it sure tasted great!!!

I know you've all probably heard me on my soap box about the tainted meat that we are being forced to eat from the supermarkets. All the meat that is pumped full of atibiotics and hormones to allow the animals to grow at a speed very unatural to them. I think I stopped eating meat from the "big guys" around February. I have found several ways around it...costly, yes, but I think that buy eating less meat but a higher quality meat (happy meat) we are seeing extra benefits from it. Quality or quantity is what we are going for here.

A couple of months ago the CSA that I belong to (Worden Farms) sent out an email about beef shares that you could buy into through Crescent C Ranch. All of their beef is grass fed, no hormones or antibiotics, free range beef. I finally talked T. into after about 3 months with no beef. We decided to just get a small order of about 20 lbs where we would get 30 % steak, 30% roasts and 40% ground beef, just to try it out to see if this was the route we wanted to go.

We picked up our order on Saturday and were we ever excited. We also opted to buy some left over meat that didn't get packaged up. So we bought 5 packs of rib steaks and she asked if we wanted any liver...I jumped at that and she threw in 3 livers for no cost!!! I had just bought a new cookbook and wanted to try out a recipe that was in it so it was very good timing!!!

Saturday night we were having souvlaki. That was already planned but on Sunday it was steak night!!! We wanted the full flavor of the steak so we only salted and peppered it and threw it on the grill. We served it with a simple tomato mozzarella salad and the meal was incredible in it's simplicity!!! They are going to be doing another order come the fall so if anyone in the area wants some info on this just email me for it!

Tomato, Mozzarella and Basil with Balsamic Vinegar.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Peter's Souvlaki Rocks!

Yummmmm...

I have always loved souvlaki. Growing up in Toronto we had many, many Greeks around us so we were able to get some really good stuff. Since moving here we have 3 Greek restaurants run by 2 different people. Not a whole lot of variety. At one I really like the Greek Salad but their tzatziki sucks. The other one's tzatziki is great but their Greek Salad is bad! And unfortunately their souvlaki is pretty flat. I like mine full of flavor so just imagine how happy I was when Peter of Kalofagas - Greek Food and Beyond, finally posted his Souvlaki recipe!!!

I had some trouble finding pork to do it with but I was finally able to get my hands on some good pork steaks (no hormones or antibiotics etc.). I marinated them all of Friday night and Saturday. T. could not wait to get into this! Can't hardly blame him. It was incredible. The best I have ever had. We had it with some nice crusty bread and tzatziki sauce (bought from the restaurant that has good stuff. I know it's easy but I had no time!).

Thanks again Peter!!! I wouldn't change a single in this recipe it was absolutely perfect!!!


Pork Souvlaki

1 boneless pork butt (shoulder)
1 medium onion, grated
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1 heaping tsp. salt
1 heaping tsp. black pepper
1/4 vegetable oil
1 heaping tsp. dried Greek oregano
wooden skewers (soaked overnight)

1. Trim excess fat from your pork butt and cut into uniform pieces.
2. In a large bowl, add your remaining marinade ingredients along with the pork pieces and toss to mix and coat all the meat. Place in the fridge for at least 5 hours and for best results, overnight.
3. Place your wooden skewers in a shallow baking dish that's filled with water. Allow the wooden skewers to soak overnight (so they don't disintegrate when grilling).
4. The next day, a couple of hours before you are going to grill your souvlaki, allow the pork to come to room temperature and then start skewering your meat (it's easier when your meat's at room temperature).
5. Pre-heat your gas grill (or prepare your charcoal grill) and when you have a medium-high heat, grill your souvlakia for 3-4 minutes a side and then keep warm until all the souvlaki are cooked.
6. Squeeze fresh lemon juice on your souvlakia with a sprinkle of fine sea salt and dried Greek oregano.
7. Serve with some crusty bread and Tzatziki.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Do I like brussel sprouts? Yes, I do!!!

The brussel sprouts served with parsley potatoes and salmon en papillote!

I have gone all of my life up til now hating brussel sprouts. I mean to the point that when I was a child and had to eat the nasty ass things I would pop them in my mouth and swallow them whole with a gulp of milk. I've tried making them several times, several different ways.

When I went to the farmer's market the other day I saw some there and for some unknown reason I bought them. I tend to think that the foods we are drawn to or crave are the ones that our bodies need at that given time. Regardless I came home with them. I hid them from T. He hates them more than I do. I emailed my friend Jenn as I had remembered that she did a post on them back in the spring. She sent me the link.

As I got ready to print out the recipe I realized that I didn't have hardly any of the ingredients besides maybe the brussel sprouts???!!! I need to try this one next though!

I ended up trying this one and I liked them, I mean I really, really liked them. T. even ate 4 of them???!!! The girls it will take a bit of time but they did try them!

Brussel Sprouts with White Wine and Thyme (from Domino-The Guide to Living with Style)

The Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound Brussels sprouts, stems trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 7 to 8 fresh thyme sprigs
• ½ cup vegetable stock
• ½ cup white wine
• coarse sea salt
• freshly ground white pepper

Coat a large sauté pan with the olive oil. Add the Brussels sprouts, arranging them cut side down in one snug layer. Turn the heat to high and sauté until the cut side of the Brussels sprouts are lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme. Sauté for about 2 minutes, or until the garlic is fragrant, stirring to evenly distribute the garlic and thyme. Add the vegetable stock, wine, and 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and stir well. Immediately lower the heat to low, cover, and braise until the Brussels sprouts are tender, about 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and remove the thyme stems.

Season with additional salt and white pepper to taste and serve hot.

As Always

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Spinach with Raisins and Pine Nuts

I went to the market this morning and the only thing that looked good to me was the spinach. Everything else had that sort of non-glow that comes from being around just a little too long. Now remember, I am not like everyone who lives up North and this is their growing season and they have a plethora of fresh fruits and veggies at their whim. I am in the hot, miserable, "whanna buy some swamp land" called Florida.

Our produce sucks this time of year. You may not even know this about me if you are a new reader and if you are one of my old friends you will know this only too well...I want local produce!!! Organic if I can get it. Well I can't get it right now so I am relying on produce that is organic and generally shipped to my loving hands from California!!!! While I am relying on this we are definitely eating more meat then we ever do during the winter here. So tonight I decided to roast a chicken (yes, it was 95 our today but the a/c works whether I have to oven on or not!) and make some spinach to go with it. I am so tired of the same old sauteed spinach so I wanted to shake it up a bit. After doing a quick search I came across a recipe on chow.com that would work and I had all the ingredients.

Spinach with Raisins and Pine Nuts (CHOW-food, drink and fun)

INGREDIENTS

• 5 to 6 tablespoons golden or dark raisins
• 2 packages (each 10 ounces) fresh spinach or 2 medium-size bunches fresh spinach, tough stems discarded
• 3 to 4 tablespoons fragrant extra-virgin olive oil
• 6 to 8 whole small peeled garlic cloves, lightly smashed
• 5 tablespoons pine nuts
• Coarse salt (kosher or sea) and freshly ground black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Place the raisins in a small bowl, add very hot water to cover, and soak until plump, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain well and pat dry with paper towels, then set aside.
2. Rinse but do not drain the spinach. Place the spinach in a large saucepan over medium heat and cover the pan. Cook the spinach until wilted, 4 to 5 minutes, stirring a few times. Transfer the spinach to a colander, and squeeze out the excess moisture by pressing on the spinach with the back of a spoon. Chop the spinach coarsely. (The spinach can be prepared a few hours ahead up to this point.)
3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet or wok over low heat. Add the garlic, pine nuts, and soaked raisins, and cook until the nuts and the garlic are light golden, 3 to 5 minutes. Increase the heat to medium, add the chopped spinach, and cook for about 1 minute, stirring to combine evenly. Season with salt and pepper to taste, transfer to a serving bowl, and serve.

This was a definite hit in our house. I wish I had of had more as this recipe was gone in no time at all!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

My sister went to Italy and all she got me was...

this really yummy olive oil (and some really great purses too)!!! Thanks sis! This is really delicious tasting stuff. For information on what makes an olive oil good or really good click here!

Last night we made pizza which we do at least once a week. I use my bread machine (which broke when it fell off of my counter Sunday morning???!!! I had to buy some store bought pre-made dough.) to make a really nice whole wheat dough.

Anyway, I haven't really had an opportunity to use the new olive oil but we used it on the pizza last night and what a treat. I never realized how big an impact really good olive oil will make. I plan to use is in a spinach recipe that I am trying. Should turn out really good!

See the fancy bottle?

Thanks a million sis...now I have to go next summer don't I???

On a side note one of our fellow food blogger's is having an issue with a large food magazine...check out her post and add your 2 cents! Aloshaskitchen.blogspot.com . Crazy stuff!!!


As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Bees, Bees and more Bees!

Who said that there was a shortage of honey bees??? Whoever it was I need to call them and let them know that I found them!!! My house is infested...

We arrived home from vacation last Wednesday and I found a whole pile of dead bees in front of my doors that lead from my bedroom to my pool. In my crazy state of exhausted I did a quick "hmmm" and vacuumed them up! Didn't give them too much thought but everyday I seemed to be sweeping up some dead bees. I never saw them alive and have been really too busy to care too much about them. Then Sunday night there was one buzzing around my bed.

Well that was enough for me. I called my pest control service and they arrived within and hour (when you have a daughter who is allergic to fire ants and bees are an unknown they rush). Apparently I have a hive in the concrete wall right behind my bed???!!! WTF and why my house????

At least now I have no more bees coming in but I am sure there is a great big gooey glob of honey comb and a bunch of dead to dieing bees behind my bed...

Unfortunately in my delicate state I did not get any pictures of any of this but this video shows the crisis issue...



Dinner last night was a simple on off marinated grilled chicken and grilled beans.


For the chicken marinade I just used up a bunch of vinaigrette salad dressing bottles that have been cluttering up my fridge. Now that I make all of our dressings these have just been sitting there. I marinated the chicken for about 3 hours in the fridge.

For the beans I used my grill pan. First I blanched the beans then tossed them in sesame oil, peanut oil, soy sauce, garlic powder and salt and pepper. I threw some mushrooms in as well.

This made for a quick delicious meal for another busy evening!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

And then he smoked pork butt...

Don't be turned off by the blackness. That is the "bark" and is always fought over!!!

We returned from our 2 week vacation tired, road weary, badly needing some rest but that was just not to be. There were skating lessons to catch up on, karate lessons to make up, groceries to be bought and dinners to be cooked, laundry to be done (thanks sis...I didn't have that much), and bags to be unpacked. We still needed some rest.

T. came home Wednesday night with the big news that his office was have a company luncheon and that he was smoking pork butt. Now this is T.'s "almost famous smoked pork butt". He actually starts it the night before and lets it smoke ALL night long and then into the next day. Until now he has never given me the recipe that he uses for the rub on the pork shoulder, "butt" is just more fun to say!

So off we went to Costco and grabbed one of their mondo packages of *pork butt. They have 2 boneless in a package and we headed home.

*This does not fit into my ethics of only eating meat that is not factory farmed so I did not eat any of this myself. It is impossible here to get pork in large quantities that is not from the big guys out there. Had we had more time and money I could have ordered it but this was not to be! We have used wild boar for this and it is incredible.

Anyway about 12 hours before the rub get "rubbed" into the meat. The longer the better but 12 hours is good.

This was a lucky picture. Some of the "bark" was still in there. It was gone immediately after I took this picture. See how juicy the meat is?

Rub for Smoked Pork Butt

1/2 cup kosher salt
1/2 cup granulated garlic
1/4 cup paprika
2 Tbs cayenne pepper
1/8 cup fresh ground pepper
1/8 cup ground black pepper
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp granulated onion
2 tsp savory

This all gets "whizzed" together in the food processor to blend the ingredients. It is then applied to the pork and placed in the refrigerator for 12 or more hours.

Once this is done the smoking can begin. Now I am not a smoking aficionado. In fact I Never even see the whole process occur. Magically all of the wonderful meat appears before me ready to be pulled. So at this point I will refer you to here!. If you have any questions about it and would like more info you can email me for it and I am sure T. can help answer them.

Don't be afraid to try this if you have never smoked meat before. It is an easy procedure and can be done during the night with very minimal babysitting. It has always been a huge crowd pleaser and is often requested as a meal item!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Parsley Potatoes?

Sounds pretty bland huh? Well I thought so too until I tasted them!!! T.'s Mom made these for us when we were in PA on our vacation and we recreated them when we were in Toronto at my families then again last night. Yummmm. I like potatoes but I don't LOVE them the way some people do. I could pass a baked potato for rice or a salad any day. But I LOVE these potatoes!!! Really simple to make and compliments just about any food. We had these with some fried chicken and a salad last night and they worked great. The kids love them too!


Parsley Potatoes

Ingredients:

1 1/2 -2 lbs of small red skin potatoes, cut in quarters. (I'm sure any white fleshed potato will work)
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 stick of butter
3/4 of a lg bunch of parsley, chopped
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

• Cook potatoes.
• In small pan melt the butter and add the chopped garlic, salt and pepper. Allow to simmer gently for about 5 minutes.
• Drain potatoes and place in a large bowl. Add butter sauce and toss gently. Add parsley and gently toss all together.
  
• Serve immediately.

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Just trying to get back into the swing of things...

Food Blogging is the best and Food Bloggers are even better! This is Jenn-The Leftover Queen and I in St. Augustine!

We got home late Tuesday night from our 2 week vacation of visiting family and some wonderful new found friends. Get this...not only did T. drive 2 kids and 2 dogs through the country from from south to north and then back again but, he also made time for me to meet some people that I so desperately wanted to meet!!! Isn't he the best?

I posted my last post about meeting up with Peter of Kalofagas-Greek Food and Beyond for a day when we were in Toronto. That was an incredible day that I will not soon forget but I also got to meet up the the Queen!!! The Leftover Queen that is! How lucky am I???

I have been talking to Jenn for several months now and when T. and I had firmed up our vacation plans I knew that we would be passing near St. Augustine on the 15th. I let Jenn know and she said that she would love to spend a bit of time with us on our way through.

Unfortunately we did not have the luxury of too much time and the kids were wild and the dogs were wild...But we did get to at least meet and know that we want to get to know each other better! After spending some incredibly crazy and hectic time in Jenn and Roberto's beautiful condo we decided that it would be safer and better if we took a short walk to get some of our favorite food...Gelato! Yep, they live right in the historic area of the oldest city in the nation and within walking distance to some really, really good Gelato. Pretty neat if you ask me!!! Amid some chaos we eventually made it to their favorite place and we were able to sit and talk for a bit before it was time for us to get back on the road. We still had about 5 hours to go on the journey home!

When I think about all of the wonderful people that I have made connections with through food blogging it helps me to see how blessed I am in my incredible life. If not for our like mindedness none of us would have had the opportunity to be enriched by all of these wonderful people!

I can't urge you enough to get out there and meet other food bloggers (with safety always in mind!). Maybe you think you are too shy, or too busy or it is just too inconvenient- push yourself a little and get out there and meet them. I am so glad that I did and you will be too!!! I feel that I have made 2 life long friends through this and I wouldn't trade that for the world!

Now for something completely different...Food and a recipe!!!

During our drive from here to Pennsylvania for the first leg of our trip I grabbed myself the July copy of Food & Wine. Usually I don't have time to read too many magazines but with nothing else to do besides refereeing my children's back seat battles this was a perfect chance to catch up on things to read. While I was checking out some of the articles I came across several recipes that would be great for feeding larger groups of people. I had the perfect opportunity to make one of these during our week long stay sister's beautiful house in a suburb of Toronto! Thanks Sis for putting up with us!!!

The puppy (5 mos old and the size of a horse) playing in the sprinkler! My sister's yard backs onto a beautiful ravine filled with wildlife. We saw a mother deer and her two babies just about everyday!!!

Green Bean-and-Tomato Salad with Tarragon Dressing (adapted from Food and Wine-July 2008)

ingredients

• 2 pounds green and yellow string beans
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 medium shallots, minced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 2 tablespoons chopped tarragon
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

directions

1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the beans until just tender, about 4 minutes. Drain the beans and spread them on a large baking sheet to cool. Pat dry.
2. In a small bowl, whisk the olive oil with the shallots and tarragon and season with salt and pepper. Place the beans and tomatoes in a large bowl, add the dressing and toss well. Transfer to a platter and serve.

MAKE AHEAD The cooked beans and dressing can be refrigerated separately overnight. Bring to room temperature before tossing.

This was such an easy salad to prepare and make ahead. I love things like this when I am cooking for people that I want to spend lots of time with!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Okay so it's been a while...

Peter - (Kalofagas-Greek Food and Beyond) and I at his secret favorite food spot!

We are currently on vacation as I said in my last post and boy have we been having fun. We spent 4 days with T.'s family in the Pittsburgh area of PA and we are now in Toronto spending some badly needed time with my family. Has it ever been a blast.

Toronto is probably one of the best foodie towns in all of North America!!! Go ahead challenge me on this... I make this incredibly bold statement with authority! Here you don't have to rely on Whole Foods or any other type of chains to get yourself good, healthy and fresh food. We have Markets throughout the whole city. My favorite has always and will always be the St.Lawrence Market but yesterday I had the opportunity to explore another great foodie market that I had not been to in years (probably about 25 but hey who's really counting?) with a fellow foodie that I had the great opportunity to meet up with while I was here.

This is the rear parking lot for the St. Lawrence Market

Some of the deliciuos fresh produce that we got at St. Lawrence Market. I'll post some recipes when I get home.

This was T. buying some Proscuitto and Serano ham to go with the cheese we bought for dinner!

See the delicious ham and the homemade Portuguese sausage that we got from a bakery that I used to go to when I was a little girl?

Nice dinner huh?

Just a small portion of the produce that is for sale at various different vendor's throughout the market!

T.'s favorite thing at the whole market and one of his favorite Canadian foods. Peameal Bacon Sandwiches. Peameal is a sweet pickled pork shoulder rolled in peameal. Fried up and put on a nice tender bun with some mustard...Yummmm!

We got to spend yesterday afternoon with Peter from Kalofagas-Greek Food and Beyond. He very graciously agreed to meet T., myself and the 2 children at one of his favorite food sites in the city. It truly was a hidden gem and someplace that I would probably have walked by a hundred times without ever stopping in. Good thing we were in the know...the food was incredible!!!! We very wisely went with the daily specials that they were offering (on Peter's recommendation!!!). The food was incredible. I am not sure if Peter wants his hidden gem being made public so if you are in the Toronto area and want the name of this place send me and email and I can give it to you.

We are going to be leaving here on Monday so I am not sure if I will have enough time to post between now and then but I have a ton of recipes to post!!!

Peter's lunch of Lamb Shank on a bed of braised lentils!

T's lunch of Osso Bucco with fries and poutine!!!

My lunch of shitake encrusted halibut on a bed of asian noodles!!!

Peter also very kindly took us for a tour of Kensington Market which is in an older area of the city but was incredibly wonderful. He took us to his favorite Greek fish store and we were able to buy 7 nice sized yellow tail snapper to cook up for our dinner tonight!!! Thanks again Peter and Happy Birthday!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy

www.nofearentertaining.com

Happy Birthday Love...and Happy 4th of July to All!

Today is wonderful day for us. Not only is it one of the nations biggest holidays it is alsomy oldest daughters birthday. She turns 8 today and I have no idea where the years have gone!!!

We are currently on vacation and will be spending her birthday in PA where T's family is. She is going to get tobexperience a northern 4th of July for the first time. No mosquitos,90 degree heat, thunderstorm delays... You get the picture!!

I am posting this from my iPhone and can't figure out how to get pics on here!!!

Have a great day everyone and stay safe on thus long holiday weekend!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
http://www.nofearentertaining.com

Mascapone-Filled Cake with Fresh Berries!

Gourmet's Mascapone-Filled Cake with Fresh Berries!

I sooooo love blogger scheduling! I was able to sit down and write before we left for vacation and schedule it to post today...how cool is that???? We are going on an epic drive from one of the southern most areas of the country (South Florida) to the Pittsburgh Area of Pennsylvania and then onto Toronto, Canada. Yep were driving. Along with 2 kids and 2 puppies???!!! I can't wait to be in one of my favorite foodie cities again...my hometown of Toronto!!! Anyway onto the post...

This was a cake that I knew I just had to make. The only thing was I was going to make it for my daughter's sleep over so I couldn't do it the way they did it in Gourmet Magazine now could I??? So sadly I had to do an alcohol free cake but...I will make this again!!!

This was the recipe as written but here's what I did.

• I used some of the mascapone filling to top it as well as fill it (there was plenty)
• I used fresh berries and 1/4 cup of sugar which I allowed to sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes to help sweeten them up instead of macerating them in Sherry.
• The next time I make this I will be using Limoncello to sweeten the berries and the mascapone!
  

Mascapone-Filled Cake with Sherried Berries

Ingredients:

For cake:
2 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before measuring)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk

For berries:
1/2 cup Fino (dry) Sherry
1/2 cup sugar
4 cups mixed berries, cut if large

For cream:
8 ounces mascarpone (1 cup)
1 cup chilled heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar

Garnish: confectioners sugar

Directions:

Make cake:
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan (2 inches deep). Line bottom with a round of parchment paper, then butter parchment.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Beat together butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until pale and fluffy. Beat in vanilla. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. With mixer at low speed, beat in buttermilk until just combined. Add flour mixture in 3 batches, mixing after each addition until just combined.

Spread batter in cake pan, smoothing top. Rap pan on counter several times to eliminate air bubbles.

Bake until golden and a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool in pan on a rack 10 minutes. Run a knife around edge of cake to loosen, then invert onto a plate. Discard paper and reinvert cake onto rack to cool completely.

Macerate berries:
Bring Sherry and sugar to a boil in a small heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Put berries in a bowl and pour hot syrup over them, gently tossing to coat. Let stand 15 minutes. make cream and assemble cake: Beat mascarpone and cream with sugar in a large bowl using cleaned beaters until mixture just holds stiff peaks.

Halve cake horizontally with a long serrated knife. Carefully remove top half and reserve. Put bottom half on a plate, then spread evenly with all of cream and replace top half. Serve with berries.

Cooks notes:
•Cake, without cream, can be baked 1 day ahead. Wrap in plastic wrap once cool and keep at room temperature. •Berries can macerate at room temperature up to 2 hours.

Would I make this again? This cake was incredible!!! I served it with more of the berries and some of the sugared juice on each slice. My girl's loved it...so did we!!! I would definitely and can't wait to try it with Limoncello!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com

Am I ever lucky to be living here!

Yah, I know I bitch like crazy about the horribly oppressive heat here, but I have to say that after 16 years here it's not that you get used to it (no one gets "used" to 90+ degrees every day) it's that you just learn how to best deal with it. Before I had kids I spent all summer inside. Either my car, my house or my place of work. With kids it's a bit harder but at least we have the pool and plenty of out door water type things to do. This is really not what this post is about so I'll get on with why I am so lucky to be living here...

Check this out!!!

Steamed clams with a garlic, herb sauce...It really doesn't get much fresher or better than this!!!

Yep...more of that great tasting corn!!!

We got these incredible looking clams from my favorite fish market Andy's Island Seafood. Click here to read my post about them! The fish is always excellent and this was no exception. We originally went in to get some fish for T. and I for dinner. The girls were having some friends in to sleep over and we would be ordering pizza for them but we knew that wasn't what we here eating. For our dinner we got 2 Hogfish. But my youngest daughter wanted some clams in the worst way. We left with Hogfish and clams!!!

I didn't get any good pictures of our Hogfish meal as I had a houseful of screaming little girls watching Disney's Camp Rock...It was true chaos!!!

Remember the teeth on the Mangrove Snapper? These are even worse!!!
Now check out the way it's jaw hinges!!! That is one scary fish!!!

As Always...

Happy Entertaining!!!

Judy
www.nofearentertaining.com