Tuesday's Tip...Eating Seasonally

 Summer afternoon - summer afternoon; to me those have always been the two most beautiful words in the English language.  ~Henry James

I love eating vegetables and fruits in season.  Not only are they more affordable but they always seem to taste sweeter, fresher and look better.  It is probably because I live in Florida where seasonal vegetables grow in abundance but I just honestly don't feel like a strawberry shipped from out of state tastes the same as a strawberry grown in season in Florida.  Sorry I think I'm a little biased because while I would trade you the Florida heat any day I definitely wouldn't trade the Florida produce farms!  Recently I was browsing RealSimple.com (one of my favorite magazines/websites) and found this amazing article on produce that I just had to share.  Due to the fact that I do not want to steal anyone's information you can find the article by clicking here.  They also have some amazing recipes for each ingredient!!

Tuesday's Tip plus baked Zucchini Fries and Marsala Turkey Burger

Cookies are made of butter and love.  ~Norwegian Proverb

Today's tip is very simple and concerns cookies.  Now I'm not sure if you're like me but when I make cookies I cannot keep them at home after I make them.  If I do I will eat them all so most of the time I'll take them to work, or the husband will take them to work, or we'll take them to our Bible study groups on Sunday morning.  However, a few months back I learned a great tip for storing and shipping cookies... bread!  Now if you've heard of it you know what I'm talking about and if you haven't heard of it then you probably think I'm crazy.  Either way next time you make a batch of cookies when you put it in your Tupperware to store until later pop in a piece of bread.  It will keep the cookies moist and tasting like they just came out of the oven.  This is a great use of the heel of the bread!  If it doesn't work for you feel free to message back but I promise it is one of the best tips I think I've ever learned.  Now on to some recipes!!!  Last night I found lean ground turkey breast on sale and decided to cook up some quick turkey burgers.  I also had some zucchini in the fridge but I was craving something a little crunchy so I mixed a few things together and found 2 winning recipes.  I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!

Tuesdays Tip - Cutting Meat

“Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans”

John Lennon

Beautiful Etsy Turquoise Platter

What a perfect quote for me right now.  I haven't been blogging as much lately because I have been incredibly busy.  For those of you who don't know me personally I work full time as an event coordinator for a student ministry at a local church.  Seems simple enough right? Until you take into consideration that our church student ministry is so large that we have to put on our own camps during the summer.  Due to this I am pretty much in non-stop work mode from mid-May through the middle of July.  Unfortunately this means I come home from work and either finish more work, like I'll be doing tonight after I finish this post, or I'm so mentally drained I don't get around to sharing my thoughts and recipes on here.  However, I do still cook during this time.  For me cooking is almost a calming ritual of sorts.  I drive home, feed and walk the dogs, and then immediately start working on dinner while watching some of my favorite TV shows (yes I'm lucky enough to be able to see my TV from my kitchen).  However, tonight I am catching up with one of my girlfriends at my favorite local coffee shop.  She's the overachiever who is sitting here studying for grad school while I type a quick blog before I start working on camp expectation manuals (sounds fun huh?).  So needless to say I'm not cooking tonight, instead I'm writing about something that I really feel makes a difference in your cooking... cutting your meat.  I know seems simple enough but so many of us get it wrong all the time and ruin what would have been a tender, juicy cut of meat.  

Tuesday's Tip... Your advice

“To accept good advice is but to increase one's own ability”

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

Ok, so today's tip is a little different.  I know that I can tell you what works best for me in cooking but honestly it's different for everyone.  So today I'd love for you to share your best tip that has to do with cooking.  It can be something your grandmother taught you, something you learned in a class or something you just figured out by trial and error.  Just comment below and I'll post them back up into the post after.  I can't wait to find out everyone's best tips!!! 

Tuesday's Tip, Saving Money and Eating Good... (at the same time)

“If you want to feel rich, just count the things you have that money can't buy”

anonymous

Perfect shopping purses - Vera Java Blue

For those of you who don't know me this week I will be celebrating my 1 year anniversary.  I honestly can't believe it.  For so long in life everything seems to be so predictable, you go to elementary school, middle school, high school, then you graduate, go to college, graduate college, start a job... you know the drill.  I however, had no clue how fast things would change when you get married.  Gone are the days of predictability now you can't predict how your life (and the lives around you) will change within a short year.  I've watched friends move away, get new jobs, get married, start having children, all within a year.  I can say that this first year was so much better than I expected.  Maybe it is just because so many people freaked me out with the "the next five years will be the worst years of your life" line, but hey if this is the worse I can't wait until the best!  I've been very blessed to have an amazing husband who has made this the best year yet!  Anyway, on to today's tip.  During this first year of marriage I had to learn to live with a budget, which was not a fun thing to do.  Since I love cooking so much it was really hard for me to figure out how to fit the dishes I wanted to cook into my budget.  Thankfully

Growing herbs to use in dishes...

Better is a dinner of herbs where love is than a fattened ox and hatred with it.

Proverbs 15:17 

If you have been cooking for any length of time you probably know that a love for cooking can be a very expensive endeavor.  Being a newly wed and having to share a budget for the first time I have discovered this firsthand.  However,  there are some ways you can save money on your groceries.  As for me I use coupons (I'll be doing a post about this soon), stock up on meat when it's on sale, and try to come up with creative meals that use what I already have.  However, one of the things that I have found myself spending a lot of money on lately is fresh herbs.  Buying fresh herbs from the supermarket can be very expensive especially since they don't last very long.  While dried herbs can add the flavor there is something about fresh herbs that I just love.  So my newest challenge for myself is going to be to plant an herb garden on the very small porch of our condo.  Growing up my mom always had a huge garden every year where we would get everything from beans and lettuce to corn and okra.  Unfortunately I do not have the space to cultivate all of my veggies but I thought I'd start with the easier herb garden.  So for today I thought I'd share some inspirational photos, tips on planting herbs for your area and get some feedback on success and failures you've had with gardening.

Below are some beautiful herb gardens that would in no way, shape or form fit on my porch but they are so gorgeous they inspire me to start a garden.  I would love to just wander through one of these dreaming up new recipes!

Tuesday's Tip - Cooking Pasta

"I wouldn't exactly call it 'cooking' but I can make noodles. That means I can boil water, put the pasta in and wait until it's done"

- Devon Werkheiser

fun bowtie pasta

For those of you who don't know my alltime favorite magazine is Real Simple.  I also love to follow them on twitter because they post so many great tips throughout the week that are short and simple but really great ideas.   A while back they posted some tips for making pasta well.  Pasta is such a versatile food and can be used as a quick way to put together a meal.  Most everyone knows how to make pasta but if you follow a few simple tips you will get perfect pasta everytime.  I thought their tips were wonderful and wanted to pass them on to you. 

Tuesday's Tip - What to buy organic?

Do vegetarians eat animal crackers?  ~Author Unknown



grow your own organic veggies
with this cool veggie holder



What a cute quote!  So my question/tip for the day is do you buy organic food?  I know some people who are all organic and others who are only organic fruits and veggies and even more that are only organic "products" (such as hair care and makeup).  I however do think that there are some things that taste better to me if they are organic, such as eggs and milk, but I am not a total organic girl.  However, one of the best tips I've found yet is that there are some things you should buy organic and some you shouldn't.  I came across this great list of the "dirty dozen" of fruits and veggies.  Basically these fruits and veggies really hold on to pesticides (some are obvious as to why - strawberry seeds) so you should attempt to buy these organic whenever possible.  Another good rule of thumb is if it has a peel (bananas, mangoes, avocado, etc...) you don't need to spend the extra money, after all the peel protects the fruit from the pesticides.

Tuesday's Tip - Chicken Stock

"I love chicken. I would eat chicken fingers on Thanksgiving if it were socially acceptable. "

What a cute quote and I have to admit that I too love chicken.  Especially today, as I'm home sick and nothing sounds better than chicken noodle soup.  I don't have the energy to make a pot of it but I thought discussing chicken stock would be a great tip for today.  One of the best money saving tips I have learned in cooking so far is that of making your own stocks.  It is much cheaper to buy the whole chicken, use what you need for your meal and save the bones for a stock to be made at a later date.  Not only is it so much cheaper it is also a lot healthier, you can moniter the salt and fat amounts and adjust according to your diet.  Since learning this I don't throw anything away. 

Tuesday's Tip... Cooking with Love

“There is no spectacle on earth more appealing than that of a beautiful woman in the act of cooking dinner for someone she loves.”

cute little cake stand from etsy

Today is the husband's birthday and in honor of that I am going to discuss one of the most important cooking tips I've ever learned.  I think I may have learned it from my grandmothers or maybe even my mom, but as cliche as it may sound love is one of the most important ingredients you can add to your spice rack.  There's something about cooking in a non-selfish way, whether it be for someone down the street or your own family.  When cooking is selfish we have a tendency to get an attitude of "I made it, you'll eat it" but when the cooking is all about the other person even in the imperfections we can still feel pleased with what we make.  Not only that but it is such an easy way to please your husband, children, neighbor up the road or friend in need.  So this week's tip is to try your hand at catering a whole week worth of menus around other people, attempt to make their favorites and show them how much they mean to you.  

For my husband's birthday he had one request for me to make Airline Chicken.  I know it sounds like something you would get aboard a plane but I promise it isn't. 

Tuesday's Tip - Slow Cookers

“The time to relax is when you don't have time for it.”

I couldn't find a picture of a turquoise slow cooker but this recipe is so easy you can sit back and sip your coffee while it cooks.  So, I thought the coffee maker would be appropriate.  Plus it was just too darn cute to pass up!  On a side note make sure you take time weekly to relax.  Cooking shouldn't be a chore or a stress maker, think of it as a stress reliever.  Turn on your favorite music or your favorite TV show and enjoy them while you cook.  Pay attention to the repetitiveness while you chop and don't let the small "mistakes" stress you out.  A mistake for you might just turn into a wonderful new recipe.  Today's tip is for slow cookers. If you are married you probably have one somewhere as I know I was given 3 at my wedding showers.  So the first tip is to find the slow cooker if you never use it and clean it up.

Tuesday's Tip

 

I don't like gourmet cooking or "this" cooking or "that" cooking. I like good cooking.

I have decided to start a new weekly post.  I've decided to post it on Tuesdays... thereby earning the name of "Tuesday's Tip".  Basically this will be a weekly tip I've learned about cooking.  For those of you who are looking for simple ways to make cooking more efficient this will probably be one of the posts that you'll find most helpful.  Over the past few years I've learned that if I make sure to follow a few simple guidelines when I'm cooking it helps prevent "lost dishes".  You know those dishes were you end up messing them up when you tried so hard and you finally get to the point where you just tell the husband to "order pizza"?  So here goes the first tip... one of my favorites... zesting.