Good food and fun friends



After a week of being in Hawkinsville with Asa, I brought him back to Gainesville with me on Friday. David, Asa, and I started our weekend off with Mexican and the movie Bridesmaids. It was hilarious! I was crying half the time from laughing so hard! On Saturday morning, Lauren and Ryals arrived early, followed by Hollie, Meghan, and Brian. The day started off a little overcast, but once the sun came out to play, it was a lovely afternoon on the boat with friends. Abbye got here about 6:00, then the Muller-Stones headed back to the city, but the Wages (plus their adorable little Sophie) stayed for a lasagna dinner and then also headed home. We had been planning to have a bunch of people over on Sunday for a while, and even though the weather wasnt exactly ideal, we still had a great time and hope everyone comes back when its warmer! I wanted to share some of my recipes from the weekend!    

Ingredients for Frankie's Corn Salad
4 ears corn
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
2 tbsp mint leaves, torn
1/2 medium red onion, sliced
3 tbsp olive oil
1 lemon, juiced
big pinch of salt
red pepper flakes
casterlrosso or mild provolone cheese (optional) Add Cooking Step Directions

1. Soak ears of corn in a bowl or water for 10-15 minutes. Peel back husks, remove silk, and pull husks back over to cover corn kernels while cooking.
Grill corn for 5 minutes over moderately hot fire.
Remove corn from grill, and when they're cool enough to handle, peel off husks. Scrape kernels off cobs and place in a big salad bowl.
Toss tomatoes in with corn. Add mint and onions. Dress with olive oil, lemon, salt, and red pepper flakes to taste. Crumble cheese on top.
**I didn't grill my corn and shuck - too much time involved. But, I used canned corn and it was still delicious.



Ingredients for Avocado-Cucumber Soup
1 English cucumber, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch cubes (about 2 cups)
2 avocados, pitted and peeled
1/2 cup low-fat plain yogurt
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 minced small jalapeno chile (seeds and ribs removed for less heat, if desired)
1/3 cup sliced scallions
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 teaspoon olive oil
12 medium shrimp (about 6 ounces), peeled and deveined

Directions
1.In a blender, combine half the cucumber and 1 avocado with the yogurt, lime juice, jalapeno, scallions, 1 tablespoon cilantro, 1 cup ice water, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Puree until completely smooth. Transfer to a large bowl.
2.Cut remaining avocado into 1/4-inch cubes. Stir avocado and remaining cucumber into soup. Thin with 1/2 to 1 cup ice water, as desired. Season again with salt and pepper. Chill, about 1 hour.
3.In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Cook shrimp, turning once, until opaque throughout, 2 to 3 minutes. Ladle soup into bowls; garnish with shrimp and remaining tablespoon cilantro.

Southwestern Turkey Club
8 slices bacon (8 ounces)
4 turkey cutlets
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 ripe avocado, pitted and peeled
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 to 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeno chiles
12 slices whole-wheat sandwich bread, lightly toasted
1 tomato, thinly sliced

Directions
1.Working in two batches if necessary, cook bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until brown and crisp, 6 to 8 minutes per side; transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons rendered fat from skillet.
2.Season turkey generously with salt and pepper. Add to skillet, and cook over medium heat until opaque throughout, 2 to 3 minutes per side; transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate to drain.
3.In a small bowl, mash avocado, lime juice, and chiles with a fork; season with salt and pepper.
4.Spread avocado mixture on one side of each slice of toast. Layer turkey, bacon, tomato, and toast to form four triple-decker sandwiches. To serve, skewer with toothpicks; slice in half with a serrated knife.
**I used deli turkey instead of cutlets, and the sandwiches were wonderful.

It was a little chilly....

but Bax always loves the boat!

The afternoon was beautiful, but instead of subjecting ourselves to the cold just for the boat's sake, we moved to the house to stay out of the chilly breeze!

We had a great afternoon laughing with our friends and family - Abbye and Asa, Hollie, Amanda, Katie and Nathan, Trent, Alyssa and Layna, Wade and Kate, and Renee!   

Living Vicariously

Hey blogger friends!

My baby sis Abbye is living in Madrid, Spain this summer, so be sure to follow her!
http://viajesdeverano2011.blogspot.com/

And our friend Alli is living in Montepulciano, Italy too....check out her Italian adventures here:
http://vitaebuona2011.blogspot.com/

Ciao Bellas!

Mother's Day weekend

I came to Hawkinsville last Friday to celebrate Mother's Day and to see my parents off on a week long trip. So, here I am, keeping my baby bro Asa while the parents are playing.
Saturday brought the annual FriendGirls Mother's Day brunch. My mom and her best friends began this tradition 8 years ago...a time for them to get together with their moms and daughters. This year it was at Mrs. Claudette's house, and we had the best time! After a delicious lunch with chicken salad, fruit, mimosas and strawberry cake, us younger girls sat down to create memory books with photos from years past. The FG's each have their own big scrapbook, so they made pages for those. Afterwards, the yearly picture time ensued.

Morgan, Taylor and Abs working on their memory books.

It was so fun to look back on all the years since 2003 that they've had the Mother's Day brunch.

Claudette's hydrangeas looked gorgeous!

Happy Mother's Day, Mom!

Jen, Mom, Steph, Claudette, Susan and Tina

My and Abbye's completed memory books!

On Friday before I drove to Hawkinsville, I met Hollie for a little girl time. She helped me deliver some goodies to a client in Buckhead, she had her car booted, then had the boot removed (long story), we checked out some furniture showrooms and hit Golden Stella at the mart, and we even had a little fun doing our own version of Copycat Chic in Bloomingdale's. She was carrying her gorgeous snake-skin tote so when we spotted the Michael Kors version, I snapped a pic with her comparing the two. Love it!

Can you spot the Michael Kors version?

A "wow" dessert with little effort!

By request from my dear Meghan...the most delicious, simplest dessert!

 

Ingredients:

2 cups fruit sorbet

2 cups Prosecco, champagne or sparkling wine

Directions:

Using an ice cream scoop, spoon 1/2 cup sorbet into 4 glasses. Top each with 1/2 cup sparkling wine, or more if desired. Make it kid-friendly by substituting sparkling grape juice for the wine.

Family Photos

While sorting through things at my grandparents' home, I gathered as many of the old photos in frames as I could find. I brought them home with me to scan them in, to insure that nothing happens to them and we all have access to the digital copies. All my life, these sat on a tiered shelf in the living room at Mama Doris and Datee's. When I took them out of frames, MD had handwritten explanations of who it was and when these were taken. There are many of both Datee and Mama Doris' family, dating back to 1844. I wanted to share a snippett of them with you all.

A young Charles Robert Coody in uniform

Virginia Doris Woods, Age 5 months

Virginia Doris Woods in 1946, Age 18

Left to Right:
Mamie Woods - Mama Doris' Aunt
Jim Tippett Woods - Mama Doris' Uncle
Emma Love Woods - Mama Doris' Grandmother, My Great-Great-Grandmother
Willie Belle Woods Anderson - Mama Doris' Aunt
Thomas Edward Woods Sr. - Mama Doris' Dad, My Great-Grandfather

Another photo of young Datee

Mama Doris in 1949, Age 21

Mama Doris with my Uncle Bruce, My Aunt Dinah, and My Dad

Updates, better late than never

Last Thursday, my Mom came to visit. I love when she comes and stays with me, and with the Royal Wedding approaching rapidly, we were stoked to take it all in together. After work on Thursday night, my co-workers Jeannie, Rosemary and Suzanne came over for dinner. I loved having them here for a ladies' night in. On Friday morning, our feet hit the floor at 4am to watch every second of THE wedding. Mom and I curled up on the sofa - two pots of coffee and 5 hours later, William and Kate were hitched and had kissed in front of two billion people.
We then got dressed and headed to Atlanta on our annual pilgrimage to visit the Atlanta Symphony Decorators Showhouse. It is a 20,000 square foot new home on West Wesley. Man, was it awesome!
Later that evening when my Mom headed home, David and I met friends at a new restaurant - Miller Union - and then hit up The Ivy for drinks. On Saturday, my sweet hubbs helped me with an installation in Buckhead. When we finally arrived home Saturday night, we both collapsed and went to sleep excited to sleep in and be at home for David's 29th birthday!

I mean, what an adorable wedding portrait!

A spring table set for dinner with my co-workers. We had a Greek salad, an Italian sausage pasta, and mango sorbet with champagne for dessert.

Sunday was David's 29th birthday...we stayed at home and did a ton of stuff around the house. I cooked dinner for him and we celebrated with a cupcake.

This was my gift to David. I love these stainless steel coolers. And I think he was pleased too!

My parents sent new stuff for the boat...beach towels in every boy's favorite blue on blue stripe!

This is a rendering of the Atlanta Symphony Decorators Showhouse - it was amazing!

Happy Birthday David!

Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday to you, Happy Birthday dear David, Happy Birthday to you!

My hubbs is 29 today....I am one lucky gal to be able to celebrate with him every year!

I love you Babe!

Dirt roads and dusk

About a month ago after a visit with our Datee, David, Brince and I hit the dirt roads that wind through my family's farm. Its amazing how things can simultaneously change and stay the same. We reminisced about fishing in those ponds growing up, riding around them on four wheelers, and when we were younger, riding around in the back of the truck. We came across one of the ponds that is sometimes drained, but happened to be full. It was gorgeous at that time of day as the sun had just disappeared.

Cotton and China?

We had the pleasure of keeping Ben on Sunday and Monday. He was off of school on Monday, so he and his Aunt Maggie spent the day together. The little guy must have been tired because he slept until 9:30 on Monday! Later in the morning after his bath, we met David for lunch at a great new modern-Mexican restaurant in Gainesville. Afterward, Ben joined me at Office Max and the grocery. He was such a little love! It kept drizzling rain on an off, so he watched Scooby Doo until David came home. The skies cleared up in time for an afternoon boat ride!

Now this is the way to shop!

The little guy did a great job of assisting me in the grocery store!

I love to stick with tradition when it comes to anniversary gifts. The traditional gift for two years is cotton, and the modern gift is china. I knew David would love more of his favorite boxers to represent the cotton portion, however its a little more difficult in the china realm for a guy. So, I commissioned R.Wood Studios to make a gift in my pottery colors for us both to enjoy. Since David and I have been sweethearts for so long, I loved the idea of our initials carved into a tree. I think it turned out so well! Its will always remind us of our journey together.

This is one of my gifts from David. Now, before you draw too many conclusions, I have to admit he had a not-so-subtle email sent to him about this one. Its an antique suzani from Uzbekistan that is en route to our house. I thought the colors were so beautiful, and David actually thought it was pretty cool too.

And my surprise from my sweet hubbs - I get to wear a cotton robe and have a few treatments here in Gainesville at a spa I've never tried. How sweet is that? I am too pumped!

After swapping gifts, David, Ben and I headed out on the boat. It was a simply gorgeous afternoon to cruise around the lake.

David, Baxter and Ben raced to the boat!

There's not much this cute thing loves better than riding on the boat! He's a happy dog!

What a beautiful afternoon on the water to reflect on our amazing two years together!

With my three favorite boys!

After a delicious dinner of grilled fish, steamed cabbage, black beans and truffle pasta, it was time for a cupcake. Ben and I sneaked off to True Love's bakery to surprise David with them. Ben was able to pick out his own and I had a red velvet and David a chocolate with vanilla icing.  

Happy Anniversary to my favorite person! I love you David!

Can you tell this little guy is chompin' at the bit to eat his cupcake?