Biking For Burgers

West Bicycle had changed its group greenway rides to Monday since Calhoun's http://www.calhouns.com/turkey-creek-mobile.html has $5.00 burger night.  An hour and half before we were to leave for the ride, Helen called and said, "West Bicycle is no longer doing the group rides."  What, I want a burger!!!  I have been thinking about it all day.  I played golf this morning, came home, ran four miles and was planning on biking to dinner, all so I could eat a burger and feel like I earned it.  We decided that we weren't going to let the fact that they are not going to be leading Greenway rides stop us.  We met Don and Helen up the road at the red light, then  peddled our way to Calhoun's. I was getting that burger one way or another.  Upon arrival ,we were immediately seated.  As I looked at the menu, I noticed they had Turkey Burgers.  Number one, it had been years since I had eaten a burger.  Number two, I had never, ever had a Turkey Burger.  Let me tell you, my burger was scrumptious.  It didn't take us long to devour our food since we where ravenous.  As dusk approached, we were back on our bikes with Don leading us on an alternate route.  This took us home, totaling a twelve mile ride for the end of day.  It was a beautiful evening as Helen and I stated numerous times.  I look forward to many more like this in the weeks and months to come.  

My Turkey Burger

At Calhoun's

Turkey or beef burgers?  Which would you order?

Dinner On The Porch

As of this past May, Stone and I have new neighbors.  Actually they bought the house this past fall, but have recently moved in.  The first time I met Sid, I had just returned from the golf course.  Quickly deciding the lawn needed mowing before the rain came, I went straight to it.  I didn't change cloths, just put on my mowing shoes.  Now let me give you a vision.  I had on my black golf skirt, fuchsia golf top with collar and short sleeves and pearl earrings and necklace.  I always wear my pearls to the golf course. I don't know why, I guess it's a southern thing. I also had on my white golfing hat, and lastly, I had put on my nasty mowing shoes.  Now, these shoes have holes in them, dirty, and well ,you know what shoes look like when you have worn them mowing for years, black and green.  Anyway, Sid had walked over to introduce himself and we talked for a while.  As he was leaving, he made it to the end of my driveway and turned around and said, "Oh, by the way, those shoes do not match your outfit".  When Stone came home, I recounted this story to him, stating that the current neighbor and I we're going to get along just fine. Even though they are recent to the neighborhood, we felt as though we already knew them once they moved in.  We have spoken and visited so many times just on the drive way, yelling across the street for months.  Me telling Sid, I can see clover growing in your yard. Him yelling back at me, about time you mow your yard, it's beginning to disgrace the neighborhood.    Before leaving for Philadelphia, we were chatting with Sid, somehow getting on the subject of flag poles. I had told him that I had tried to find someone, not once, but twice in the past to attach the flag pole mount to my brick wall by the front door. It didn't happen, which I don't understand.  Both said, "no problem, I'll be their tomorrow".  Sid immediately says, "you want your flag pole attached"?  I can do it.  I'm going to be attaching mine this week.  I can do it at the same time."  I immediately said, "yes, that would be great".   I told Sid as a thank you I would like to have he and Shannon over for dinner.  Now this is the funny part.  Stone and Sid are going back and forth, well maybe this project is worth more than just dinner.  Maybe a yard mowing and mulching should be thrown in.  Stone said maybe mowing for the summer.  Hey I say, not happening!!!     Honestly I would had agreed to just about anything to get that flagpole installed. We left for our trip, coming home to find the mount for the flag pole attached to the brick exactly where we wanted.  I was so exited since for a year I have wanted this.  The food has come together and the table was set.  Stone and I were ready to spend the evening getting to know our new neighbors.   Sid and Shannon walked over for dinner bearing gifts.  They brought  this beautiful orange begonia plant and a loaf of Pineapple Coconut Bread that she had gotten at the Fresh Market.  I love Fresh Market.   Anyone that has ever shopped there knows that anything you purchase is sooooo good.  It was early evening as we, along with Lucy, made our way onto the screened porch.  We began by enjoying a glass of Watermelon-Basil Lemonade. My daughter Abby Gail had recommended this drink and I was glad she did. It tasted like summer. It was sweet and tangy with an added burst of flavor from the basil.  For appetizers, I chose two different cheeses, both Italian . One was a Rosemary and Olive Oil Rubbed Asiago, an intense nutty cheese that is rubbed in olive oil and fresh rosemary.  The other,  a Fromager d'Affinois, similar to brie with its creamy, buttery flavor.  We nibbled and chatted, getting to know each other better.

Tablescape for the evening.

Watermelon-Basil Lemonade

 Servings: 6
Serving size : 10 ounces

Ingredients:
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
4 cups boiling water
1 cup lemon juice, (juice from 4-6 lemons), rinds reserved
1/2-3/4 cup sugar
3 cups pureed watermelon

Direction:
In a 4-quart bowl or  heat-proof pitcher, use the back of a wooden spoon to bruise 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves.  Add lemon juice.  Mix juice with sugar.  Pour boiling water over juice mixture, stir to dissolve sugar. Add lemon rinds and pureed watermelon.  Cover and refrigerate 2-3  hours.  Remove and discard rinds.  Strain through a mesh sieve into a pitcher.  Stir before serving. With a pick, add watermelon and fresh basil leaf and place in glass.    Makes about six (10-ounce) glasses over ice. Recipe from:http://www.recipe.com/watermelon-basil-lemonade/

Appetizers

We began our next course with a salad of greens, straight from our garden, beets, goat cheese, and candied pecans.  I love this salad, moistened with a really good vinaigrette.  I apparently was so excited to eat that I forgot to take a picture. My bad, but I can post the recipe.  This is one of my favorite salads.  I have made it many times.

Beet Salad

Serves 4

Salad Ingredients:

4 ounces Chavie goat cheese

8 cups mixed baby greens

4 small red beets, cooked and cut into bite size pieces

2 ounces glazed pecans

Vinaigrette:

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinager

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 Tablespoon honey

Divide greens between four bowls.  Divide up beets, goat cheese and pecans and place on top of greens.  Make vinaigrette by mixing olive oil, honey and balsamic vinegar until smooth.   Toss salad with vinaigrette.

We devoured our salad and I took the plates away, only to be replaced by our entree.  The evenings choice was Spicy Red Fish Stew.  It was a ridiculously simple, flavorful, and healthy dish that I served with slices of Semolina Sesame Bread from Panera.

Spicy Red Fish Stew

Makes 6 servings:

Ingredients:
1 1/2 jars (18 ounces) roasted red peppers in olive oil and garlic
5 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
12 shallots, chopped
3 cans fire roasted tomatoes
6 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 pound halibut, sliced into chunks
1/2 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 (16 ounce) box of Bantry Bay Seafood Mussels in a Garlic Butter Sauce
1 can Great Northern Beans (drained)

Preparation:
Chop red peppers and set aside.  In a heated skillet over medium heat, sauté shallots until soft, about 7 minutes.  Stir in peppers, garlic, crushed red pepper, and tomatoes with juice.  Simmer 10 minutes.  Add lemon peel, cilantro and Great Northern Beans.  Add fish, simmer until opaque in center, about 5 minutes.  Meanwhile, following instruction on box of Bantry Bay Seafood Mussels, cook them and when done, add the entire contents. Mussels and garlic butter sauce to the above stew.  Season stew with salt and pepper to taste. Adapted from:http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Spicy-Red-Fish-Stew-109491  Serve with yummy bread.

By now the sun had gone down and we were stuffed and satisfied.  We lingered at the table telling amusing stories of our past. The time had come for dessert, so we cleared the table and made room for Becky's Apple Pie, a recipe she received from her aunt.  Who is Becky?  A past neighbor, friend, my golf partner, and she and her husband, Hal, travel to all the SEC basketball games with Stone and I. Thank you for this delicious recipe Becky.

Becky's Apple Pie

Ingredients:
1 double crust for a 9" pie
1 (20 ounce) can White House sliced Apples
1 teaspoon lemon juice
2/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
5 pats butter

Place bottom crust into pie plate.  In a large bowl mix apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour, cinnamon together.  Pour into pie crust.  Top with pats of butter.  Place second pie crust on top and crimp edges.  Bake for 45 or until crust has browned.  When cool, mix up glaze by stirring together; 1 Tablespoon melted butter, 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 Tablespoon half & half and 1/3-1/2 cup powdered sugar.   Pour on top of pie.  I served this with some homemade vanilla ice-cream that I had added 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice while mixing.  This pie was just what we wanted, sweet without being to sweet.  It was just right.  The glaze was a perfect touch.
 Our evening had come to a close. Sid and Shannon take their exit through the back porch door and make their way across the street, the ending of another enjoyable dinner party.

Orange Begonia's and Pineapple Coconut Bread

As I write this post, I'm setting on my porch in my wicker rocker with a diet coke, a slice of this wonderful bread, the ceiling fans twirling, white puffy clouds against a clear blue sky background and enjoying these lovely flowers. Thank you Sid and Shannon.

Lemon Buttermilk Cake and The Forgotten Books

How many times have you borrowed a book, or numerous books and forgotten to return them?  That is so unlike me.  I'm usually very good about reading the books as soon as I acquire them and returning them promptly.  Somehow, this time it slipped my mind for months.  I'm embarrassed to say how long.  I noticed the books, yet again, laying there still not returned. I decided the time had come. It's not like I had to take them far for delivery.  My friend, Jhumpa just lives down the street.  Deciding the least I could do was to bake her a cake, I quickly made a trip to the grocery to pick up a few missing ingredients.  Back home, I retrieved a Diet Coke from the refrigerator,  turned on the music, preheated the oven, and began to add the ingredients together.  It didn't take long for my house to smell like cake and lemon combined.  Once this confection was done and cooled, I hurriedly put on the glaze.  This is the embarrassing part.  As I stood there looking at this sweet mound of loveliness, the aroma had surrounded my nose. I just had to have a piece.  I immediately cut into it, just one little slice, quickly becoming bigger.  Next thing I know, I'm returning the long forgotten books, along with slices of the heavenly Lemon Buttermilk Cake, but not the whole cake.  

Lemon Buttermilk Cake

Makes 1 (9") bunt cake or 36 cupcakes

Cake or Cupcakes:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 3/4 cups sugar

2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cup buttermilk

1 Tablespoon lemon zest

4 Tablespoon lemon juice

4 large eggs, at room temperature

Glaze:

1 Tablespoon lemon juice

1 Tablespoon water

3/4 cup confectioners sugar

Cake Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 350'. Spray 9" bunt pan with bakers spray or line 36 muffin tins with paper liners.

In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until the mixture is smooth and light in texture, about 5 minutes.  While the butter is beating, sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt, and set aside.  In a small bowl, combine the buttermilk, lemon zest, and 4 Tablespoons of the lemon juice and set aside.

Add the eggs to the butter-sugar mixture, one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition.  In 3 additions, alternate adding the sifted dry ingredients and the wet ingredients to the butter-sugar mixture, stirring on low until just incorporated.

Pour the batter into the prepared bunt pan or fill each muffin cup two-thirds full with batter.  Bake until the center of cake springs back when touched and a skewer inserted near the center comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes.  Bake cupcakes until they rise in a dome shape and spring back when lightly pressed with a fingertip, 16-20 minutes.

Remove the cake from the oven and let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack.  Release the sides and bottom of the cake from the pan with a narrow metal spatula or knife.  Invert the pan and turn out the cake.  Place a wire rack in a baking pan and set the cake, right side up, on the rack.

Glaze Preparation:

In a small bowl, combine the confectioner's sugar, the remaining 1 Tablespoon lemon juice, and 1 Tablespoon cold water and stir until very smooth.  Add a little more confectioners' sugar or water as necessary to achieve a glaze consistency (similar to that of honey).  Spoon the glaze evenly over the cake.  When the glaze has firmed, transfer the cake to a  plate.   Slice and serve at room temperature.

Recipe adapted from: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Lemon-Buttermilk-Cake-51113420

National Donut Day

The sign stated, on June 6, 2014, a free donut to all who enter Krispy Kreme.  Now who wouldn't go there?  With words like "free" and "doughnut", what's not to like?  I like doughnuts, but Stone loooooooves this sweet pastry with a hole in the middle covered with a luscious glaze.  Since he and I were going to indulge in this tasty, sugary, delectable, fattening, scrumptious, sweet treat, I suggested we ride our bikes to Krispy Kreme.  I was curious how many calories we would burn if we did, so I did a little research.  Thirty minutes of riding at 12 mph will burn 248 calories.  It's a good thing I also ran four miles this morning, burning 385 calories.  For my doughnut, I chose the Birthday Cake, which has a whopping 410 calories.  Stone had one of his favorites, the Raspberry Filled, which has 290 calories.   Here's a little bit a history;  Amid World War 1, about 250 Salvation Army officers traveled to Europe to comfort U.S. troops.  Having additives like lard, flour and sugar, they figured out a way to make doughnuts.  Salvation Army helpers, many of them female, became known as "doughnut girls".  The first National Doughnut Day was 1938 in Chicago.  Since then, it has become a national celebration of the sweet treats and the people who provided them to our soldiers in battle.  Adapted from: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2014/06/05/national-doughnut-day-salvation-army/9966619/

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts

Stone enjoying his Raspberry Filled Donut

Me with my Birthday Cake Doughnut, YUM!!!!!!

The light is always on.

Krispy Kreme was packed!!!!

All The Way From Texas

Raydean's "Homemade"

Wimberley Doughnuts 

Raydean's "Homemade"
Wimberley Doughnuts

Terry with Peachy Goodness

Raydean

Raydean's Instructions:
Have on hand canned crescent biscuits (with minimal yucky ingredients), stop by local peach stand (seasonal), peal and process about 3 medium peaches, place about a teaspoon of peach goodness in dough then roll up and seal.  Deep fry until golden (may need to finish cooking inside by baking in oven in covered dish for 10-12 minutes at 350').  Drizzle with peach pulp and powdered sugar mixture.  Eat warm so that peachy goodness escapes down both sides of your mouth.

I hope everyone had a wonderful day and ate their share of doughnuts.  I for one am going to be making Raydean's recipe.   Stone said, "why didn't Raydean Fed Ex me some"?  I'm telling you, this man loves Doughnuts!!!!!!

Heading home after biking to Krispy Kreme for a Raspberry Filled Doughnut.

Dinner At Michael and Delia's On Our Last Night In Philadelphia

Our day had come to an end, and it was our last night in Philadelphia. Michael and Delia prepared dinner for us at home. We started with an appetizer of cheeses and crackers which had been purchased at Riehls Cheese Shop http://www.readingterminalmarket.org/merchants/53-riehls-deli-and-cheese-shop in the Reading Terminal Market the day before.  My first taste was of the Coburn Port Wine Cheese.  Yes, it was very good, but let me tell you I had never, ever had Chocolate Cheese Fudge.  Wow, this stuff is AMAZING!!!!!! I had to make myself stop.  I know it's really a dessert cheese instead of an appetizer, but I just had to have some at that moment.  Why did I have that young lady cut us a smaller portion????? What was I thinking? Apparently I wasn't.

Coburn Port Wine Cheese-Chocolate Cheese Fudge-Wheat Thins

Delia and I set their "make due" table, while Michael was in the kitchen cooking.  Michael, living in an apartment with no access to a grill, has learned why the chefs in restaurants do not grill their meats, opting to cook them stove top and at times finish them off in the oven.  They tasted better!  Stone said and I agree, "the two nights the young couple cooked for us at home was the best meals that we had while in Philly".  Not that the meals eaten out were not good, they where very good, but Michael and Delia can cook.  Quickly, Delia and I put together the salad, while Stone poured the wine. Gathering around the table, we toast to the ending of another marvelous day, and glad that we were together once again.  

Shrimp

Dinner salad with mango, watermelon, kiwi and blackberries.

Chef Michael

Stone opening the bottle of wine for dinner.

The Tablescape

Donuts from Beiler's Donuts at the Reading Terminal Market

It was our last night and Michael offered us a chance to beat him in a game of Monopoly.  Well, being competitive as I am, we took him up on it.  We cleared away the dishes and set up the game, knowing we would be at it for a few hours.  I hurriedly showered so when the game was over I would be ready for bed.  Quickly into the game I was loosing and Delia was coming in behind me, though she held on much longer than I.  It looked as though Michael was going to win yet again.  Stone, at the last minute pulled through and made an amazing win as the clock struck midnight.

The Simpson's Monopoly Game

First Time Attractions In Philadelphia

I am a big fan of Rocky, so of course I wanted to see the "Rocky Statue" and the "Rocky Steps".  After watching his movies, I always felt as though I could conquer the world.  I quickly realized that it was not possible.  We hurriedly took pictures of the statue and then decided to run the famous Rocky Steps.  Well, maybe not all of us, but all did make it to the top, "99 steps",  revealing a great view of Benjamin Franklin Parkway and the Philadelphia Skyline. We took numerous pictures and descended the stairs. This was a lot easier that going up.  From hither we walked back, passing the Fairmont Water Works, now placed on the National Register Of Historic Places.  It currently houses a restaurant and interpretive center. We continue on, seeing other sites.   Philadelphia, known as the City of Brotherly Love, has a Love sign in Love Park.  Of course, I had to see this and have a picture.  There where tons of people at the park, numerous having their picture taken with the sign.  We wait our turn and snap our shots. Since there was a crowd at the square, we quickly leave, having got what we came for.  Walking back to the train, we pass John F. Kennedy Blvd, where the Historic City Hall is located. This building is impressive with beautiful architecture and colossal size.

The Rocky Statue

Rocky Steps at the Art Museum

Me and Delia Running The Rocky Steps

Delia and Michael

Benjamin Franklin Parkway and The Philadelphia Skyline

Fairmont Water Works

Michael  eyeing Boathouse Row

Love Sign at Love Park

Historic Court House

Philadelphia, The Origin Of Our Nation

Stone and I were excited to see the Liberty Bell, an iconic piece of history. We also visited Independence Hall where the Declaration Of Independence was signed.   Our first stop was to see the Liberty Bell, the symbol of freedom.  There was a long line that moved quickly into the museum that was built to house the bell.  Stone, Delia and I roamed through the institution, reading about the history, finally making it to the bell.  It was moving to stand so close to an iconic piece of history.  The inscription on the bell reads, "Proclaim Liberty throughout all the Land unto all the Inhabitants thereof".

The Liberty Bell

Delia

Me with Stone
The Famous Liberty Bell
Height of the bell 3'
Circumference around the lip,  12'
Weight of the bell, 2080 lbs.

Independence Hall

In 1776 the famous Liberty Bell was rung from the lower tower of Independence Hall.  The Declaration Of Independence and the Constitution of the United States was adopted and signed in this building.  Many decisions have been made in these rooms, among them the design of the American Flag.   Imagine standing on the same floor where  George Washington, Ben Franklin or John Hancock once stood.

Inside this room the Declaration Of Independence was signed.