My Garden (Dogan Bahce) Part 1

MY GARDEN (Dogan Bahce)

This year we kept our garden smaller in the backyard .......... with the HOT and HUMID summer we have been having no matter how we water or fertilize they don't seem to be so vibrant like the years before. Also the reason for less plants is that the backyard was interlocked and lots of flower beds were gone. With the clearing of lots of shrubs and some plants......I noticed that "Rocky" the Raccoon has moved next door and I don't see Alvin all that much. BUT the SKUNK is still there nightly......almost. Love to open the windows at night for some fresh air but with the aroma of the skunk it doesn't happen. 

 Basil

 Hosta's.

 Petunia's.

 Geranium's.

 Hostas and Petunia's.

 Dusty Millers.

 Dusty Millers and Impatiens.

 Gargoyle face.

 Day Lillies.

 Impatiens.

 Garden Gnomes......very old from Austria.

 Mint...Turkish 'nane'.

 My lil' 'cupid'.

 Teesha (RIP).......I miss you.

 Alvin the Chipmunk is still breaking my things.....he is so bad.

Lillies.



Thanks for stopping by!!!!!!!

Zucchini Pie

 Chopped zucchini and sauteing in some Olive oil.

GREEK ZUCCHINI PIE 
Slightly adapted from Peter’s Kalofagas blog
SOURCE: azcookbook.com

1/2 cup olive oil
1 cups finely chopped green onion
3 zucchinis (Mexican or Italian), about 1 1/2 pounds, diced
5 large eggs
1 cup of strained Greek yogurt (if not available, use plain yogurt, drained of its liquid on a cheese cloth)
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 cup Feta cheese, crumbled
1 cup Kasseri or Mild Cheddar cheese, grated (If none is available, use mozzarella)
1 cup chopped fresh parsley
ground pepper to taste
sweet paprika to taste (and for garnish)
slices of zucchini rounds (for finishing)

 Ready to be baked.

 Baked.

Grease a 15 X 10 baking tray with vegetable oil.


In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onions and diced zucchini, sprinkle them with some salt and saute over medium heat for about 20 minutes, or until soft (but not mushy, they should hold their shape at the end!) and have most of the liquid evaporate (should reduce to about half). Take off the heat and reserve.


Preheat the oven to 350F.


In a large bowl, whisk your eggs with a wire whisk or a mixer for a couple of minutes until mixed well. Add the yogurt and stir in to mix. Add the flour and baking powder and mix in.

 Cut into squares.



Add the crumbled and grated cheeses and sauteed vegetables and mix to incorporate. Add some ground black pepper and sweet paprika. Have a taste and adjust seasoning (probably will not need any salt).


Stir in the chopped fresh parsley and pour the mixture into your greased baking dish.


Top with round slices of zucchini and sprinkle some sweet paprika over the entire mixture.


Place on the middle rack of your pre-heated oven and bake for approximately 1 hour, or until golden on top.


Allow to rest for about 15 minutes and then cut up into slices.


Serve warm or at room temperature. It makes a perfect snack appetizer when cold, too.


NOTES: I used plain yofurt, 4 x-large eggs and cheddar cheese. Turned out yummy.

 Thanks for stopping by.!!!! Enjoy your weekend.

Linking to;/http://www.designsbygollum.blogspot.ca/

http://simplelivingdianebalch.blogspot.ca/

Toronto CN Tower

CN Tower Toronto Ontario Canada

A few months ago as we were driving in downtown Toronto going shopping I noticed the beautiful "BLUE" sky. It looked like the pointy needle on the CN Tower was touching the sky and just lit it up a gorgeous few shades of "BLUE"..........

........this CN Tower for 34 years held the record as being the world's tallest-free-standing structure. It is 1,815.4 feet high. There is a restaurant on the very top...but what is cool about this restaurant is that in 1 hour it spins around the whole city......good it's not faster or it would be hard to keep the food down.

On a clear day you can see Buffalo, New York across Lake Ontario......the views are amazing.

When there is a storm with lightening that needle on the CN Tower gets hit so often with a big bolt of lightening. Quite amazing to watch. During different seasons it is lit up with different colours.

I've been up so many times as it is a big tourist attraction...anyone who comes to visit has to go up.........what is scary for me is the glass floor you can walk on and see the city below. I always think that the glass floor will crack and down I'll go...eekkks!

Today I'm linking to; asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com

Linking to;  Smilingsally.blogspot.com



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Devil Eggs or Stuffed Eggs

 Devil Eggs...........

Devil Eggs have been around a long time...since the ancient times in Rome.The term "deviled" dates back to the 19th century, referring to the use of particularly piquant spices in cooking.

I grew up with these devil eggs...I remember my Mom whenever we had company over theses devil eggs would appear.

I too like my Mom (RIP)also make these quite often..not so much for our regular meals at home but mostly when we have company over or for some special occasion.
For some reason I collect devil egg dishes......I have them for every occasion.....which makes a good excuse to make them.

Mostly now for my nieces and nephews I make 'special' Spider Deviled Eggs for Halloween decorated with Olive decorated spiders......spooky. But it gets them eating those eggs...and considering some of them hate eggs they sure do eat those though.

Devil Eggs

12 eggs, boiled and peeled
6 Tbsp. Mayonnaise
2 or 3 tsp. mustard
2 green onions, chopped finely
2 Tbsp. relish (opt.)
Kosher salt
Freshly ground Pepper
sweet Paprika...for sprinkling.

Add eggs to a pot of cold water ...turn heat up high till the pot of water comes to a boil.
Cover..remove from heat and set aside for 15 to 20 minutes.

Pour the water off and place eggs in cold water (may add ice if needed).
When cool...peel and cut in half and take out yolks and put into a bowl...setting the egg white halves into a devil egg tray.

Mash egg yolks with the mayonnaise, mustard, green onions, relish and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Fill each egg white half with the mashed egg yolks
Sprinkle with some paprika on top or any kind of decoration you desire....sometimes I add chives, or grated carrots....etc.....

Cook's Notes; I have made these the night before and kept them refrigerated.

 Thanks for stopping by.

linking to http://www.designsbygollum.blogspot.ca/

Postcards Stairs

"STAIRS"

This is another Postcard collection from my Mom's family that was brought over from Eastern Europe.

It was dated sometime in the very  late 1930's to my Mom from a school friend who knew they would probably  never see each other due to the war uprisings.......writing to my Mom wishing her a good life and maybe they can meet sometime someplace when the world was a little better and peaceful. To my knowledge my Mom doesn't know if she made it out to another country or what happened to her. She was one of my Mom's good school girlfriends. This brings me to mind...that we don't understand how fortunate we are to live in North America.

This postcard reminds me of  someone going for a Sunday walk or stroll......during summer time in some nice weather. These two ladies look like they bought some flowers along the way.....or maybe just walking and  thinking about  their lovers or husbands who are at war and they are just walking around and thinking about missing them terribly.

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Grilled Kielbasa Kabobs

 I love Kielbasa anyway it is cooked, being of Ukrainian background we have Kielbasa weekly sometime during the week when I was growing up.....so for my daughter's Grad Barbecue party I made these on the grill as one of the grilled meats. We also had Hamburgers, Chicken Shish Kabobs and Hot Dogs on the grill but these went the fastest. My husband being of Turkish background always has to have some kind of Kabob on the grill. I brought back with me these beautiful brass Kabob sticks on one of my trips to Turkey....and have used them many times over.


These were fast and easy to make ...just cut and skewer. You could also use almost any veggie you like or have on hand. I love these Kielbasa kabobs...the taste of the charred and smoky flavours and moist inside. Summer meals are my favourite...friends and family over for a barbecue and eating in the garden and building new memories.

KIELBASA KABOBS

Kielbasa (cut into 1 inch chunks)

Red and Yellow Pepper (cubed)

Zucchini (cut into 1 inch pieces)

Red Onion (cut into chunks)

2-3 Tbsp. Canola oil

1 1/2 tsp. Dijon Mustard (I use Grey Poupon)

1/2 tsp. soya sauce

1/2 tsp. fresh lemon juice

salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

 Skewer Kielbasa and veggies on sticks.....alternating.


Mix canola oil, Dijon, soya  sauce, and lemon juice together: and add salt and pepper to taste.
Brush on the Kielbasa Skewers.


Cook the Kielbasa Kabobs 4 to 6 minutes on each side til' nicely browned...and enjoy.


****I use Beef or Turkey Kielbasa.
        Sometimes I just don't use any sauce or marinate..... they are already cooked and have been seasoned and have a great taste when grilled by them selves..

 Thanks for stopping by.

Linking to ;http://www.designsbygollum.blogspot.ca/

Barbie Bridal Shower Cake

 This was my niece Victoria's Bridal Shower Cake.......

set up on a pretty BLUE napkin.

 .
Today I'm linkng to Happy Blue Monday; http://smilingsally.blogspot.ca/




Thanks for stopping by....and HAPPY BLUE MONDAY!

Post Card #2 Girl with Long Hair.

AFTER MAX NONNENBRUCH 

 (German 1857-1922) 

Bien Otre--Wellness--circa 1900 Oil on canvas.

This is a post card my Mother and Aunt (RIP) had in their collection. It was brought over from the Ukraine by my Grandmother. It always fascinated me when I was a child.....the long hair on this lady.
It's very old because on the back of it it said printed in St. Petersburg, Russia. Which the name of the city St. Petersburg was changed to Leningrad in 1924. I'm sure that someone in my Grandmother's family had traveled to St. Petersburg at the turn of the century and picked this up....they were an affluent family before the Revolution. 


I was excited to learn of the Artist who painted this picture in my later years.......it's such a different pose for a portrait. I love the vibrant red that is peeking out of her top. Sort of looks like some oriental type of clothing.






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Tomato Crumble

Since summer is around the corner I thought I would post this recipe....for tomatoes. This is a recipe from my Foodie friend Becky (RIP) from a Foodie Board that I belong to. But with sadness she crossed over last year......a very wonderful and kind and helpful person. I always loved her recipes......she posted old recipes that were handed down from her and her husband's family....and a story followed. I must add she was an expert on Fiesta dishes...she had them all and always set a beautiful table.

As most of us we have gardens in our backyards and grow our own tomatoes......this year we only have one potted tomato plant. We usually have a garden planted with several tomatoes...but this year my husband didn't because we had that part of the garden interlocked and now we ran out of space...well what I mean by that is that where the most sunny spot was. Plus the Raccoon's were having their midnight snacks on those tomatoes....and there would be a big mess in the morning. 

TOMATO CRUMBLE

Olive Oil

2 1/2 to 3 1/2 pounds ripe  tomatoes

3 TBSP. basil, fresh chopped, plus some sprigs for garnish

1 tsp. salt

black pepper,  freshly ground

3/4 fresh bread crumbs, made from day old white bread

3/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1/2 cup pine nuts

 Breadcrumbs...I used a food chopper.

Fresh basil.....chopped.



 Directions;


Arrange a rack in the center position and preheat oven to 375 deg. F.
Grease a shallow 2 quart baking dish and set aside.


Stem tomatoes....then half horizontally. Cut in wedges.
Spread the tomato chunks in the baking dish.
Add the basil, salt and black pepper, and toss to mix.


Mix together the breadcrumbs, Parmesan Cheese, and pine nuts in a large bowl.
Spread the mixture on top of the prepared tomatoes.....and drizzle with a couple of tablespoons of Olive Oil.


Bake the tomato crumble till topping is crisp and slightly browned...and juices are bubbling, 30 to 35 minutes.


Garnish the center with fresh basil and serve hot....this is an excellent side dish and a good way to use up your tomatoes.


Notes**** This crumble can be prepared 3 hours before.....cool and leave at room temperature.
Reheat in a preheated oven at 350 deg. F  for about 15 minutes till warmed up.


I have used just regular Italian seasoned breadcrumbs and they were quite good with he seasonings.
Have made these in smaller individual baking dishes and when cooled have frozen to re heat for later.

 Topped and ready to go into the oven.

 Baked a golden brown and ready to eat...yummmm.

 Someone took out  a chunk. :-)

My cherry tomatoes.....I get bushels every summer. I've done this recipe with cherry tomatoes and they turned out yummy also.


Thanks for stopping by......I appreciate any comments.

Red Radish Salad

All winter I haven't bought any radishes........but as I was in the supermarket I noticed they had these nice red radishes. Haven't had this salad in so long that I thought this would be a good side dish for burgers that we were having that night for dinner. Plus this is my daughter Jackie's one of her  favourite salads. She learned to eat this salad when my Mom would make it for my Dad, he loved any kind of radish. This salad would appear regularly at our dinner table in the summer.


Growing up in my parents home I decided one year to plant some in the garden.....didn't work out to well as my dog for two straight years would dig them out before they even matured. I use to wonder why she would attack those radishes and if you gave her one she would munch it up. Maybe she could smell them in the ground being a dog with those 'noses'.

 

Red Radish Salad

1 bunch red radishes, stems removed, washed and sliced thinly

2 scallions, sliced thinly

Olive Oil or Canola oil (I use Canola oil)

Salt and Pepper to taste

Cut radishes into thin slices and place in bowl.


Add sliced thinly scallions to the radishes.


Add Olive oil or Canola oil along with salt and pepper to taste and mix thoroughly.


Cover and refrigerate........can be served chilled or at room temperature.

Notes**** I have sometimes added lemon juice, and zest to taste and or substituted scallions for chives.

Today I'm linking to:  http://www.designsbygollum.blogspot.ca/ for Foodie Friday.

A Day in the Park

A Day in the Park

This Post card I have from my Mother's family collection that my Grandmother, Aunt and my Mom collected since the turn of the century.

I believe this was brought over from Europe in the 1930's. Looks like the parents are discussing something and the daughter is just listening. It looks like the Mother isn't feeling too good, maybe a headache of sorts. Kind of reminds me of my family for we just have one daughter and are always very close the three of us.

Today I'm linking to;
http://thebestheartsarecrunchy.blogspot.ca/


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