T. Rae and Co. Handpainted Dishware

02 Wednesday Jun 2010

Posted by in Pottery Dishware, Things To Do

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Robin and I have purchased several place settings of this type of dishware, among some other pieces – 8 place settings, 8 salad plates, Deviled Egg Platter, 2 medium and 1 large serving bowl and a stove spoon holder. We are extremely happy with the pieces and they are completely dishwasher safe! Connie does an awesome job. And in her own words,

Thank you for the suggesting the use of my pictures … One is called European Countryside and the other is my Cats. I have LOTS of pictures!
I will still do Art in the Park in September and see where I go from there!

Contact Connie if you have any questions, want to get on her showing list or want to purchase some of this dishware.

European Countryside

Cats

Robin’s Quinoa Salad Listed

01 Tuesday Jun 2010

Posted by in Food, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Robin Young, Salad, Things To Do

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We went to a family reunion on Memorial Day and had many requests for the recipe for Robin’s Quinoa Salad. You can get a copy of the recipe by Clicking Here. Do enjoy this salad …. It is quite good! You can also use it as a type of salsa for a dip. Cheers!

Robin’s Quinoa Salad

31 Monday May 2010

Posted by in Food, Party Time, Photos By: Bob Young, Recipe By: Robin Young, Salad

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Don’t wrinkle up your nose! Think of it like a macaroni salad. This is really an excellent salad. Enjoy!!

Robin’s Quinoa Salad

Source: Robin Young
Serves: 12
Tip: This salad can be made up to 2 days in advance. Cover and refrigerate. Serve chilled.

Ingredients:
1 c Quinoa
2 c Water
½ c Orange Juice, fresh
¼ c Cilantro
¼ c Parsley
1 c Celery, chopped
1 t Turmeric
1 t Cumin, ground
4 T Rice Vinegar
1 T Toasted Sesame Oil
1 T Ginger, fresh and minced
Sea Salt to taste
Pinch Red Pepper Flakes
1 Mango, diced
1 Jalapeno, seeds removed and diced
2 cans Black Beans, drained
1 Sweet Red Pepper, roasted and diced
¼ c Red Onion, diced
¼ c Sweet Yellow Onion, diced
½ pint Grape Tomatoes, cut lengthwise

Directions:
1). Toast the quinoa in a small dry saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until it crackles and becomes aromatic, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer to a fine sieve and rinse thoroughly. Return quinoa to pan and add water. Bring to a simmer; reduce heat to maintain a simmer. Cover and cook until the quinoa is tender and the liquid has been absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes.

2). Whisk the orange juice, vinegar, oil, ginger, salt and pepper flakes in a medium bowl. Add mango, jalapeno, grape tomatoes, celery, cilantro, parsley, roasted red pepper, beans and onions. Add the spices. Toss to coat.

3). When the quinoa is finished cooking, add to the vegetable mixture and toss to combine.

Two Restaurants Reviewed

30 Sunday May 2010

Posted by in Food, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Restaurant Reviews, Restaurants, Seafood

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Back around the first of May, I received an email from Danielle Dussult, Account Associate at MS&L Worldwide for Bonefish Grill, a marketing firm, asking us to review the Bonefish Grill and another comparable restaurant. For doing this, she sent us two $25 gift certificates, one for the Bonefish Grill and the other for Red Lobster. She also sent a nice fish spatula. We thank her for these items. Look at the review for Bonefish Grill and Red Lobster that will correspond with these photos. I will start with the Bonefish Grill photos.

Here is the Bang Bang Shrimp appetizer. This is really a good appetizer.

I had the Diablo Shrimp Fettuccine. This was very good, but I think it had too much sauce on it and it was a little spicy. I think it would have been better with less sauce.

Robin had the Long Fin Tilapia. The tilapia tastes like a fresh water fish – Gout de Terrior. And the shrimp tasted like the Song of the Sea – Chansons del Mare. That is very difficult to do in Boise.

We took pour daughter and her friend with us. He had the Fish and Chips and he said they were very good. She had the Bang Bang Shrimp Tacos and said they were spicy hot.

We shared a Key Lime Pie for dessert. I did not get the intense lime flavor, nor did Robin.

The Crème Brûlée was really very good. Smooth and creamy as it should be. The caramelized sugar was good.

——————————

Here are the photos from the Red Lobster.

For an appetizer, Robin and I had the Wood Grilled Shrimp on Brochette. A good appetizer.

I had a combination platter called Seaside Shrimp Trio. It had Walt’s Favorite Shrimp, which was a little too salty, Shrimp Scampi, good, and Shrimp Linguini Alfredo, very rich. Not as good as the Bonefish Grill, Diablo Shrimp Fetticine.

Robin had the Chef’s Grilled Tilapia. She said that the flavor of the tilapia was hidden by the soy sauce. It was not as good as the Bonefish Grill.

The Apple Crisp had very little apple in it and the cake base was overwhelming.

The Key Lime Pie was more like a NY Cheese cake. It was heavy and not light.

So there you have our opinion. The rankings?

Red Lobster – 2 1/2 Stars
Bonefish Grill – 3 1/2 Stars

Our reviews are based on the following statement and have been for many years now.

We will endeavor to critique these restaurants on (1) Ambiance, (2) Food Presentation, (3) Food Quality, (4) Service and (5) Cost. We will rate these places from one (1) to five (5) stars. A 1-Star restaurant deserves the comment, “That’s good enough for this year” and a 5-Star restaurant is superb and deserves a note home to Mom. There is nothing wrong with a 3-Star restaurant – We would take friends and relatives to a 3-Star restaurant and we will return to a 3-Star restaurant.

There was one other contributing factor to the Red Lobster loosing this contest: We had to ask for table settings and napkins. To me, this is a huge mistake and should never happen at any restaurant. But then too, the food was just OK. You can see all of Our Reviews by following the link.

Berryhill and Co, Boise

30 Sunday May 2010

Posted by in Party Time, Photos, Photos By: Bob Young, Restaurant Reviews, Things To Do

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Berryhill and Co, one of Boise’s better restaurants. Here is their Chicken and Risoto Chicken with Fresh Vegetables. We wnt there for Sunday Brunch and we were extremely pleased. Please look at the link for our Restaurant Review. The next several photos are from their brunch. If going for brunch, you may want to call for reservations.

Soup, gravy and roast beef.

Fruit, wilted spinach, French toast, scrambled eggs, quiche, bacon, potatoes, bangers and pasta.

The Goodie table!

The end result of the tables of food! A good meal for $14.00 per person.

Boise Saturday Market

29 Saturday May 2010

Posted by in Buy Idaho, Local Markets, Photos By: Bob Young

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The Idaho Refugees – Community Supported Gardens has a booth at the Market. We have our subscription, do you have yours? An excellent Win-Win situation: We get fresh produce each week throughout the summer and the refugees get an income.

Peaceful Belly Organic Gardens, one of several well known organic gardens in the Boise area, is here at the market, also. These local vendors are really great to work with and their products – vegetables, lamb, buffalo, elk to name a few – are wonderful. If you are in Boise on a Saturday morning, plan to visit the market on 8th Street between Jefferson and The Grove.

The fountains on The Grove have a cooling and peaceful effect on all who wander by. In the summer, The Grove will increase the flow to make these much higher. It’s fun to watch the kids of all ages run through the water on a hot, summer day.

For now, that is about all. My camera is acting up so I will probably have to take it to be repaired. )-: Until then, Cheers!

Grilled Baby Back Pork Ribs

28 Friday May 2010

Posted by in Food, Food Prep, Grillin' and Chillin', Pork, Recipe By: Bob Young, Recipes, What's For Dinner?

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Here is a recipe for Grilled Baby Back Pork Ribs that is just in time for the Memorial Day Holiday! Do enjoy and have a great weekend.

Grilled Baby Back Pork Ribs

Adapted From: BONNIE Q, All Recipes (dot) Com

Prep Time: 20 Min
Cook Time: 1 Hr 5 Min
Ready In: 1 Hr 25 Min

Ingredients:
½ T ground Cumin
¾ T Garlic Powder
½ T Onion Powder
1 T Brown Sugar
½ T Chili powder
1 T Paprika
Salt and Pepper to taste
3 lbs Baby Back Pork Ribs
1 c Barbeque sauce

Directions:
Preheat grill for high heat.

In a small jar, combine cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, brown sugar, chili powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Close the lid, and shake to mix.

Trim the membrane sheath from the back of each rack. Run a small, sharp knife between the membrane and each rib, and snip off the membrane as much as possible. Sprinkle as much of the rub onto both sides of the ribs as desired. To prevent the ribs from becoming too dark and spicy, do not thoroughly rub the spices into the ribs. Store the unused portion of the spice mix for future use.

Place aluminum foil on lower rack to capture drippings and prevent flare-ups. Lightly oil grate, and lay ribs on top rack of grill. Reduce heat to low, close lid, and leave undisturbed for 1 hour. Do not lift lid at all.

Brush ribs with barbecue sauce, and grill an additional 5 minutes. Serve ribs as whole rack, or cut between each rib bone and pile individually on a platter.

Hatchling Party Preliminary

28 Friday May 2010

Posted by in Food, Things To Do, What's For Dinner?

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On Friday, 28 May we are having a gathering of the Falcon Watch Team at Berryhill and Co in Boise. Here are some photos of the restaurant and the selections. You have a varied menu to choose from and can spend what you wish. This photo of the hack box was taken as we were leaving the restaurant.


We will be at Berryhill and Co from 4:00pm until about 6:00pm MDT. We can stay later. Hopefully, we will have access to the 4th Floor veranda. Bring your laptop if you have one – we will have ours. Bring cameras, binoculars and/or spotting scopes. The restaurant is located on 9th Street between Idaho and Main.

Robin and I each had this Chicken with Fresh Vegetables and Risoto. It went very well with a Merlot and a Tempranillo.

And then a Petite Verdot went very well with this Dutch Chocolate Layer Cake and ……

This Volcano Cake.

It was great to have Rico Weisman, guitar and Ken Harris, piano, playing for us.

Thank-You gentlemen! We appreciated your talent!

Hope to see you there! Cheers and Keep Looking Up!

How To Tell When Meat Is Done

27 Thursday May 2010

Posted by in Food Prep, Food Trivia, Party Time, Thought For The Day

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I had a question on the grilled pork recipe below. How do you tell when the pork is done? Do you cut into it to see how pink it is? No!

Answer: Neat trick that works well with pork or beef. Use either hand.

1). Relax the thumb and feel the muscle (on all these tests)- meat is raw (thumb muscle is loose and “pliable”).
2). Thumb to 1st Finger-Rare.
3). Thumb to 2nd Finger-Med/Rare.
4). Thumb to 3rd Finger-Med/Well.
5). Thumb to 4th Finger (Little finger)-Well done.

Remember those feelings and then touch the steak or pork. How does it feel? Relaxed thumb muscle (raw)? Cook longer! Thumb to 2nd finger (middle finger)? Maybe …. Your choice. The meat only gets dryer from here.

Try this trick. It really works. You never want to cut any meat to “see if done”. Cutting it lets all those wonderful juices out. Let the meat rest 10 minutes or so before cutting. That includes your Thanksgiving or Christmas turkey. I know it smells good and you’ve been waiting for 4 hours. Just 10 minutes more ….. Now feast! Cheers!

Grilled Cuban Style Pork Chops

27 Thursday May 2010

Posted by in Celebrations, Cooking Styles, Food, Food Prep

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Here is another interesting recipe for grilling. Enjoy.

Grilled Cuban-Style Pork Chops

From Derrick Riches, your Guide to Barbecues & Grilling

6 pork chops, about 1 inch thick
3 tablespoons orange juice
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons lime juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro, chopped
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Place pork chops in a resealable plastic bag. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over meat. Seal bag and allow to marinate for 4-12 hours in refrigerator. Preheat grill for medium heat. Remove pork chops from bag and discard marinade. Place chops onto grill and cook for 10-12 minutes per side. When meat is no longer pink, remove from heat and serve.

Pork Chops
Pork Chops have been dished up, dry and tough for many years. This is because they get pan fried, baked or broiled to death. Today’s pork products are not like those of years ago. You can actually have a pork chop cooked medium and not have any trouble. So marinate your chops, put them on the grill and take them off just as the last of the pink middle is disappearing.