Where I'll Be Until Further Notice

Its that time of year again!

Family Beach Trip!

Everything's better at the beach, OIB that is!

This year 17 people in one 5 bedroom house, 1 dog, lots of laughter, lots of love, lots of food and lots of good memories await!!

Zucchini Noodles with Italian Sausage and Basil

Our garden has been exploding with cucumbers, yellow squash, broccoli and herbs this summer. I've enjoyed cooking straight out the garden immensely. There's something deeply satisfying about walking out your back door, picking food that you grew and cooking it up fresh.

Now the tomatoes are starting to come in! The zucchini has been a bit slower going and I finally had enough to use in a meal.

Backing into the GAPS diet this year, we've been cutting down on grains, which I haven't missed too much. Expect for pasta.

The last time I made zucchini noodles was years ago. We really enjoyed them, so I decided to give it another try especially since I just got a mandoline slicer!

This recipe was such a big hit! I wanted to write it down fast before I forgot it!

Zucchini Noodles with Italian Sausage and Basil

Zucchini Noodles with Italian Sausage and Basil

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 5-6 medium zucchini, sliced on a mandoline, french fry cutter for wide or julienne for thin (Don't worry if you don't have one, just use your vegetable peeler, pressing harder than you normally would on all sides of the zucchini until you get down to the seeds)
• 1 lb. italian sausage, casing removed, diced into 1 inch pieces. ( I used sweet sausage and added some heat with crushed red pepper flakes. If you use spicy sausage you can omit the pepper flakes.)
• 1/2 yellow onion, diced
• 1 TBS Coconut oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 TBS Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 2 TBS fresh basil, finely chopped
• 1/4 cup good white wine
• Parmesan Cheese
• Sea Salt and pepper
• Crushed Red Pepper Flakes (optional)

Instructions:

Melt coconut oil over medium high heat in large frying pan. Add sausage, season with salt and pepper. Saute until golden brown and slightly crispy on the edges.  Transfer to a large serving bowl. Add onion to pan, saute until tender. Remove to the large bowl with sausage. Pour 1 TBS EEOV into pan and half the zucchini noodles. Season with salt and pepper. Saute until tender about 2 minutes or less. Add half of minced garlic and half of basil. Saute 30 seconds. Add to the large bowl. Repeat with remaining EEOV, noodles, salt & pepper, garlic and basil. Place last batch of noodles in the big bowl. Pour wine into hot pan carefully. Scrape bits loose from bottom of pan letting wine reduce down by half. Pour wine broth over noodles and sausage. Toss together. Sprinkle with fresh grated Parmesan Cheese.

Buon Appetito!

Now to figure out a substitute for lasagna noodles!!

Motherhood Is a Calling (And Where Your Children Rank)

"The question is not whether you are representing the gospel, it is how are you representing the gospel."

 Read the rest of this inspiring post here:

 Motherhood Is a Calling (And Where Your Children Rank)

Hometown Heroes on the Food Network!

During this busy holiday weekend, be sure to catch

Sunny's All American Celebration : Food Network Specials : Food Network.

The show is a tribute to the men and women in our Armed Forces who have sacrificed their time and in some cases their lives to preserve our freedom.

It aired once on Saturday, but you can see it again on Monday, July 4, 2011 at 6PM.

The final segment of the show is a tribute to Spc. Christopher Barton who was killed in action on May 24, 2010. Chris was a friend to all my children. They have felt his loss deeply.

In memoriam, Chris' family established a scholarship fund. His mother and some mothers of other soldiers decided to publish a cookbook, Hometown Heroes, with all proceeds going to the scholarship. I don't know the whole story, but someone told the Food Network about the cookbook. They decided to include Chris' story in a special with Sunny Anderson and you can watch the moving results on Monday, July 4 at 6PM.

Summertime and the livin's easy

Lunch today came from my very own garden

Insalata Caprese

• Homegrown Tomatoes, sliced
• Fresh Mozzarella, thinly sliced
• Large, Fresh-picked Basil, rinsed and patted dry
• Minced Garlic
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Porcini Olive Oil,(This is purely optional, but gave this salad the extra "Ummm, Ummm!" factor)
• Sea Salt
• Fresh cracked, Tri-colored Peppercorns

Arrange tomatoes on a plate, first. Top with Mozzarella and Basil. Sprinkle Garlic. Drizzle Olive Oil over everything. Finish off with Sea Salt and Pepper.

Buon Appetito!

Want to join me?

Next up: Homemade Pesto!

In the meantime, please enjoy some photos of our Square Foot Gardens.

Early morning sun

Basil, Tomatoes, Brussels' Sprouts, Green Beans

Red Cabbage, Zucchini, Dill, Tomatoes

Cucumber, Pickling Cukes, Crooked and Straight-neck Squash

Container Herb Garden
Oregano, Parsley, Chives, Mint, Thyme, Lavendar