The Wine I Paired with Classic Summer Fare #WinePW

Summertime and the Livin' is Easy.  Here on the Farm our days consist of lounging in the pool and grilling dinner for whoever happens to stop by.  I always try to have a variety of wines available to please any palate, but for my palate, I prefer this hearty red blend from Decoy, especially when it is burgers on the grill.

We are pairing wines with Summer Fare this month......

BYO Chef Salad Bar #SundayFunday

Nope, you do not have to Bring Your Own to this Salad Bar....this BYO stands for Build Your Own.  You provide all the goodies and let folks make their salad exactly to their liking.  Add some fresh breads and/or dinner rolls and you have a complete meal without ever turning on a stove, grill or oven.

The Sunday Funday Bloggers are sharing Salads today.......

Avocado Salad with Fresh Herb Dressing #SundayFunday

 Salad does not need to contain lettuce. This salad is chock full of avocados, cucumbers, tomatoes and onion tossed in a light oil and vinegar dressing that is flavored with fresh herbs.

The Sunday Funday Bloggers are sharing Side Dishes perfect for your Memorial Day BBQ.......

Watermelon Mojito #SundayFunday

This refreshing, delicious drink is the perfect summertime cocktail.  

The Sunday Funday Bloggers are sharing Melon recipes with you today......

Sipping Rosé and Enjoying Summertime

Do you have a favorite Summertime wine?  I discovered Rosé several years back and it quickly became my favorite summer sip.  There is nothing nicer than a glass of chilled Rosé while sitting on the deck or lounging in the pool.

Especially when that Rosé is made by one of my favorite winemakers, our own Lori Budd of Dracaena Wines.

A Portable Orange Chardonnay Seltzer Perfect for a Picnic #WinePW

 Ahhhhhhh....Summertime and the livin' is easy....

I love summertime in Michigan.  A lot of people like to vacation in the summer.  We may take some small trips, mostly in different parts of Michigan but for most of the summer there is no place I would rather be than in my own backyard.

The Pool is FINALLY open, the Bathroom Remodel continues and the Weekly Menu

The pool liner was finally able to be installed and the pool filled on Monday.  Of course, that meant that cold weather came in and the high Tuesday did not even reach 70*.  Frank spent Tuesday installing and hooking up the slide. Yesterday he got the heater turned on and hopefully the weather is nice for this weekend so we can enjoy our pool.

The new liner and slide with a guest appearance from Cocoa.

The bathroom is ready for tile installation. Unfortunately the timing was a little off and our tile guy is on vacation.  We hope to get started on the installation early next week and he said it should only take a few days to complete.

We have a very busy weekend coming up.  Saturday we are taking the Angel Face to Jurrasic Quest.  It is a drive through exhibit that I understand is supposed to be pretty astounding.  We are all looking forward to it.

When we are done with the exhibit we are heading over to our great nephew's (Frank's Godson) graduation party.  He has grown into a fine young man and I'm sure has a great future ahead of him.

Sunday is the Teen's birthday and we are having a gathering here at the house.  She, of course, wanted Chicken Enchiladas.  I will make up a couple of trays and I'm also grilling up the fixings for Steak Fajitas.  Beans, Rice, Margaritas (virgin for the underage and drivers) and dinner is served.

Kirsten's twin sister, Katrina, and her husband are in town so we will have them, John and Kirsten's Mom over for dinner one day during the week, depending on their availability.

The rest of the week will be spent on the bathroom remodel and enjoying our pool.  I am planning a lot of al fresco meals.  What's on your menu this week?

Saturday

Dylan's Grad Party

Sunday-Birthday Gathering

Chips with Salsa and Guac

Chicken Enchiladas

Steak Fajitas

Refried Beans

Mexican Rice

Birthday Cake

Meatless Monday

Vegetarian Buddha Bowl

Tuesday

Char Sui Pork and Noodles

Wednesday

Steak Stacks

Potato Puffs

Thursday

Asian Pork Satay

Steamed Rice

Cucumber Salad

Fish Friday

Sweet and Spicy Scallops

Grilled Pineapple

Summertime, Summertime, Sum, Sum, Summertime Weekly Menu

We got the Angel Face yesterday and get to keep her right through the weekend.  Last night we hung out at Michelle and Mark's so we could play in the pool.  I took my fish and all the fixins' over to their house and we had dinner together.

Tomato and Blue Cheese Salad #SundayFunday

 

What is umami? 

Taking its name from Japanese, umami is a pleasant savory taste imparted by glutamate, a type of amino acid, and ribonucleotides, including inosinate and guanylate, which occur naturally in many foods including meat, fish, vegetables and dairy products. As the taste of umami itself is subtle and blends well with other tastes to expand and round out flavors, most people don’t recognize umami when they encounter it, but it plays an important role making food taste delicious.  (source: Umami Information Center)

Welcome.  The Sunday Funday Bloggers are sharing recipes with Umami today..............

Summer Spaghetti Salad and The Weekly Menu

Summertime in this household means lots of entertaining.  This is especially true during the month of July when my brother and his family come in to visit from California.  Luckily vegetables are abundant during the summer and my refrigerator is filled with finds from Farmer's Markets and Roadside stands.

This year, however, we had a very crappy June and our local produce is late getting to the markets. Nearly constant rain and below average temperatures this Spring wreaked havoc on our farmers and their crops.

That didn't stop me from making this Spaghetti Salad using what summertime veggies I had on hand.

Filled with seasonal vegetables and dressed with a store bought robust Italian, this salad can feed a crowd and is ready in minutes.

Summer Veggie Chili #SoupSaturdaySwappers

Chock full of your favorite summer vegetables this delicious chili is quick to make and makes an amazing Meatless Monday meal.  Delete the toppings and you have a perfect vegan meal.

Welcome to Soup Saturday Swappers...........

Beer Braised Hot Dogs and Sauerkraut #HotDogDay

Hot Dogs braised in Dark Beer until they are nice and plump, then cooked on the grill until browned and caramelized topped with Sauerkraut that has been lightly sweetened with brown sugar and braised in a fruity beer.....

Join us as we celebrate National #HotDogDay!!

Murietta's Well Virtual Wine Tasting and the Pairings We Have Enjoyed

I was very excited to receive these wonderful samples of Murietta's Well wines from Snooth with a request to join in a Virtual Wine Tasting.

They requested no other action from me other than participation in the Wine Tasting.  I have chosen to write about the experience today.  All opinions, thoughts and content are completely my own.

Peach Gazpacho Shooters #KitchenMatrixCookingProject

These fun summer Gazpacho Shooters are filled with fresh peaches and vegetables.  You can add some vodka for a festive, adult version.

They are the perfect start to your next al fresco dinner party.....

The Last Week of July!! How is that possible?? Oh Well, here is the Weekly Menu

Wow this month has flown by in the blink of an eye.  We have been having a blast, entertaining and being entertained.  It has been a lot of fun and this week is going to be another whirlwind.

Last night, our niece, Stephanie, and her husband, Tom, hosted another family party.  It was a great gathering.  All the siblings, most of the kids and most of the grand-kids were there.  It is the last time we will all be together before Larry heads back next Saturday and Mary heads back on August 2nd.

Today, Nicole and Pierre are working a craft show for their Petoskey and Pine products.  We are going to go take a walk around and check out their competition. Tonight, Frank and I, Larry and Mary, and Dick and Jackie, are going out to dinner.  Tomorrow is Larry and Mary's 51st Wedding Anniversary so we will celebrate this evening.

Sunday, Mary's sister, Susie and her husband, Tony, are coming to stay for a day or two.  Our sister in law, Rebecca, will be joining us for dinner as well.

Monday we are meeting Nicole, Pierre and Anthony for an early lunch before they go to work. Between being in the restaurant business and the soap business, they were not available for either of the family gatherings.  We are meeting Mary's cousin, Michelle, and her husband, Jerry, for dinner in the evening.

Monday would have been my Pop's 101st birthday and my brother, Dan's, 64th birthday.  My brother, Dan's longtime partner and mother of his two youngest children, passed away on Thursday morning. I find comfort in knowing that they are together again.  They loved each other very much.

Tuesday we have our Angel Face so Grampy will make her spaghetti. This seems to be our weekly routine.

Wednesday is clear thus far.  Thursday night we are going to Roz and Ron's for dinner.  Friday night we are going to dinner with our friends, the Greens and the Lents' at a new restaurant that has opened in the area.  One of Rob's friends is the chef and we will be celebrating John's birthday and retirement both of which occur on Friday.

So, as you can see, there are not many meals at home but I will share what we will be enjoying on those few days.

Saturday
Out for dinner

Sunday
Rum Glazed Pork Tenderloins
Baked Russet and Sweet Potatoes
Corn on the Cob
Summer Squash with Lemon and Basil
Dessert by Rebecca

Monday
Out for dinner

Tuesday
Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Wednesday
Casimer Rice

Thursday
Dinner at Roz and Ron's

Friday
Dinner out

Here's What's Happening on the Farm

Followers of this blog know that Frank and I have been blessed with many foreign exchange students that have become an integral part of our family.  You mostly hear about our Chinese daughter, Tingting, because she lives here with us in the USA and has blessed us with our granddaughter, Melody.

But Tingting wasn't our first exchange student.  In fact, she was the third and was introduced to our family by the second, our Danish son, Dian.  Dian returned to Denmark after his year with us but has kept in touch.  In fact, our fourth exchange student was his sister, Zoey. While Zoey was with us, Dian and their mom, Cindy, came for her graduation ceremony and stayed for a visit.

Dian has grown into a fine young man and met a very nice girl.  They gave us a grandson, Jordan, 10 months ago and had been sending us photos and updates regularly.  You can imagine how jump out of our skin excited we were when he asked if he could bring his family home for a visit.

They arrived 10 days ago and life has been a whirlwind around here.  We have been having so much fun.  Helena is a doll....I don't think Dian could have chosen a better person with whom to spend his life and start a family.  We have gone to Eastern Market, Belle Isle, the Detroit Zoo, the Mariner Titanic Museum, Frankenmuth, the Algonac Pickeral Festival, and the local parks. In between, Dian, Helena and Jordan went to Niagara Falls for a couple of days.

We have spent time catching up and getting to know each other.  Dian has bonded with our Angel Face and, after one full week, Jordan now allows Grammy and Grampy to hold and cuddle him.  We have been entertaining and we have been spending time relaxing poolside, catching our breaths from the constant activity.

We have had a lot of fun and a lot of excitement but the most exciting moment is this one that I am sharing for you from Youtube.

It was such a touching moment and we are so overwhelmed that Dian chose to share this moment with us.  We are thrilled to welcome Helena to the family and are keeping our fingers crossed that Dian's dream of finding a job here upon completion of University comes to fruition.  

Dian and Helena left last night to stay at John and Kirsten's for the remainder of their stay in the USA as Larry and Mary are arriving for the month. Some of Mary's dear friends are also going to be here from CA for a few days and we are looking forward to spending time with all of them.  Big party here on Sunday so stay tuned to hear all about it.  Dian can't wait to introduce his family to Larry and Mary with whom we spent time in California while he was here the first visit.