Dinner With The Hawthornes.

I'm too sexy for my plate.

My plate being a chicken wing

and Jasmine rice, black bean,

 fresh corn, roasted red pepper,

and cilantro salad.

I'll start on the Rice/Corn/Bean Salad.

Cooked Jasmine rice

Cooked dried black beans

Sautéed fresh corn kernels 

Roasted red peppers

Unsalted butter

Sugar

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

I sliced the kernels off the cob

and sprinkled a little sugar over.

Tossed to coat.

Drop the sugared corn into hot butter.

Sauté until corn is slightly browned.

The sugar helps caramelize the corn

Add the corn to the rice and black beans.

That's some of Mr. Hawthorne's roasted red peppers he cans.

My blooming cilantro in the background. 

Action shot!

I love this salad.
It's so pretty and colorful.
I added cilantro to mine.
If you're not in the cilantro camp,
add fresh parsley, or basil for a little sumpin'sumpin'.

Next up - baked chicken wings.

First, I marinated the wings in buttermilk and Texas Pete.

Next, I made a spice rub for the wings.

Dry Rub

2 TB brown sugar

1 TB dried minced onions

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp oregano

1 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp cayenne

1 tsp dry mustard

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp freshly ground pepper

Mix all together and rub into wings.

Bake at 350° for 45-50 minutes.

Add some cilantro leaves and flowers.

Chicken wing in the fetal position.

Bon appétit!

Welcome Once Again To Rosie's Beloved Garden.

It's June.

Come and see what's happening in Rosie's Garden.

Lilies are a-bloomin'.

Sunflowers just opening up.

Yellow lily in foreground.

Larkspur in the back.

My very first gladiolus.

With pink hollyhock and white larkspur in the back.

WORK, little bee!

Shasta daisy.

Gaillardia/blanket flower.

Datura (moonflower plant, NOT vine) in front .

Larkspurs in back.

Solar chandelier in tree.

Larkspur underneath.

Go forth and pollinate!

Youngest Hawthorne Requests Apple Empanadas.

Youngest Hawthorne asked me this morning

if I would make apple empanadas for him.

His work was canceled since his boss was sick

and he wanted Mommie to make comfort food for him.
So I did.

Rosie's Apple Empanadas For Her Boy

1 refrigerated pie crust,

 cut into as many 3 1/2 inch - 4 inch circles as you can

1 Fuji apple, cored, peeled, and sliced into sixteenths or so

zest and juice of 1 lemon

1 TB sugar

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/8 tsp grated nutmeg

grating of allspice berry
1 egg, beaten
Bits of Brickle

homemade caramel
Here's my recipe for the caramel.

confectioners sugar for dusting

Heat oven to 425°.

Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.

When you slice the apples,

drop them in the lemon juice and zest, turning to coat.

Combine sugar and spices and sprinkle over apples.

Cut out pastry rounds and place on parchment-lined sheet.

Places apple wedges on the rounds

and sprinkle Bits of Brickle over apples.

Brush edges with egg,
fold top half over making a half-moon shape,
 and seal, crimping the edges.

Brush tops of empanadas with egg.

Drizzle melted caramel over top

and bake for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.

Sprinkle with confectioners sugar.

Slice apples and coat with lemon juice.

Mix sugar with spices.

Toss with sugar and spices.

Cut out circles in pie crust,

then roll out remaining dough and cut more circles.

Add apple slices and Bits of Brickle.



Fold over, seal, and crimp.



Brush with egg.



Drizzle with melted caramel.

And bake.

Sprinkle with confectioners sugar.

Asparagus, Pesto, And Fettuccini With Rosie's Homemade Kale Pasta.

Not too long ago, 

I made homemade and homegrown kale pasta.

I made ricotta and spinach stuffed ravioli with two sauces -

 a fresh tomato sauce and a fried sage butter sauce.

  

I had extra pasta dough so I made fettuccini and spaghetti for later.

It's later now.

I picked some asparagus from that one huge plant in my rose bed.

Choppychoppy the asparagus.

My lovely kale fettuccini.

Homemade pasta cooks in a fraction of the time as store bought pasta.

I brought salted water to a boil,

dropped in the pasta for about 3 - 4 minutes

and the asparagus for a minute or so, until al dente.

Drain and toss with unsalted butter.

Then I went into my special stash -

the pesto from my last Hurricane Harvest of basil.

Whenever a hurricane is a-comin',

I harvest my basil and make a huge amount of pesto which I freeze.

I grew the kale, the asparagus, and the basil.

I made the fettuccini.

Life is good.

This meal is good.

So good, in fact,

I made it again, with the spaghetti, for lunch the next day.

Freshly cracked black pepper and Parmesan cheese.

And yes.

I used the Kraft cheese in the green can.

Takes me back to Little Rosie's Childhood.

And that was coconut fried shrimp in the picture up there, in case you missed it.