Wednesday!!

Hello!  I keep thinking today is Monday because we were off yesterday due to the snowstorm hitting the east coast.  Every major news channel on tv, including the weather outlets I follow on Facebook got this storm wrong.  I just don't get it.....in any event, I'm completely thrown off into thinking today is Monday!!

I wanted to share with you a quick post today about Lowe's.  I love it there.  When I was there this past weekend, they were getting ready with all of their outdoor stuff and I found the perfect patio set for my deck.  I am in desperate need of a new one.  The set is blue (of course) and is only $500 for four pieces!  How can you beat that??  Anyway, here it is.....

Not only is it pretty, it's comfortable!!  With my short legs, it isn't too deep that my legs don't reach the floor, so that is always a plus for me.  It comes with some crazy cute accessories like these candleholders....

I am in love with these colors!!  They also had similar shaped metal tables in white and red.  I was seriously considering buying a white one and spray painting it to get the color I wanted.  I still might do that.  The tables were only $40 and were the same shape as the Ballard Designs garden stools.

They had a catalog with the outdoor decor and they also have a starfish rug, you bet I am buying that too!!

I found a new light fixture that I want to put in my dining room.  They had quite a few awesome ones, but my husband likes this one.....

 There is a blog that I follow and she has instructions for making your own mason jar light, but I think I will save myself the trouble and just save up the cash to buy it.  As I have said in previous posts, I'm lazy (lol).  Here are some other fixtures I liked.

That's it for today!!  I am hoping to move my blog over to wordpress (ourbrickcapecod.wordpress.com) but am still trying to learn the ropes over there, so I will update this one until I can figure it out.  

If you have tips for me on how to work wordpress, leave me a comment below and help a sister out.  Thanks for hanging with me today.

Super Bowl Sunday Wings!!

Football is not my sport but my husband is a huge football fan.  He said this year, though, he is not excited about the Super Bowl because he doesn't really like either team.  Tom Brady is nice to look at, but that is about all I know about either team.....of course, now that I've heard all the jokes and stuff about "Deflate Gate" (which I think is ridiculous), I do know a little bit more about the Patriots.  Still don't care though!!

So today, I thought I would share with you my Wing Recipe.  We make these all the time and my sauce is often requested when we make wings with our friends.  I just happened to make it one day after throwing a few items into a pan, but I have the measurements down PAT (ha, see what I did there?) LOL!

 First, you want to cut the wings in half, separate the "wing" section from the drumstick section.  You can leave them whole, but they are easier to eat this way.

 Ours were still partially frozen so we ran them under some warm water to thaw them a little bit.  

After you have split the wings, put them in a ziploc bag with some flour and shake to coat.  We deep fry them at 350 until they float to the top.  Keep an eye on the color, too, because you don't want them getting too dark.  Now, for the sauce....

Gather your ingredients.  Only four, but oh so yummy!!

 Melt the butter in a saucepan....(One whole stick)

I sometimes will use Smart Balance, only because it's the spread

I always have in my fridge.  I don't always have butter unless it's

on sale....and lately that doesn't happen too often.

 Add in the garlic.....

 Add in the hot sauce.....

 Add in the brown sugar....

 Simmer for a few minutes and stir to completely combine.  You can use a whisk to keep the

butter combined with the other ingredients.  It does start to separate after a little while.  

 These are wings for my daughter that we have

sprinkled with Montreal Chicken seasoning.  

She is very picky and doesn't like the wing sauce.  But then again,

she doesn't like much of anything....

This is the saucy yumminess coating the wings.  OH SO GOOD!!

Here is the recipe!

Wing Preparation:

1. Cut the wings in half, separating the drumstick from the "wing"
2. Shake in a bag full of flour to coat.
3. Fry at 350 until done

Sauce Recipe:

1. Melt one stick of butter (or whatever margarine you have - it does NOT change the flavor)
2. Add 2 teaspoons of garlic (I use jarred garlic in olive oil)
3. Add in 1/2 cup of hot sauce (Franks, etc.)
4. Add in 1/2 cup of brown sugar

Stir to combine and simmer for a few minutes.  Spoon or pour sauce over wings and serve.  My husband adds additional hot sauce, but I don't do spicy, so these are perfect for me!

So, what are YOU doing for Super Bowl?   

Leave a comment below and let me 

know if you try the wings!!

This week, I'll share what project I have going on for this space.....

Everybody say it with me.....T.G.I.F!!  Another week down and another week closer to SUMMER....it seems that the older I get, the more I cannot stand the cold weather.  I used to love it, now I long for sunny and 90 degrees.  Because my husband and I are longing for summer, I thought I would share with you our Mussels and Chicken Caesar Salad Dinner with homemade dressing.....just make sure that you have nowhere to go after you eat it because it is loaded with yummy garlic.....I can't even stand the smell of myself after I eat these dishes.....

The Mussels

First, let me tell you how much my husband LOVES this cast iron skillet.  It is, by far, his favorite pan.

Here are the steps on making the best mussels you will ever have!!

1. Put about a tsp of oil, olive, canola, whatever you have, in the pan and let it get warm.
2. Throw the mussels in (we rinsed them in cold water after we bought them).
3. Sprinkle with minced garlic (use the jar kind, saves time!), salt and pepper 
4. Sprinkle with Bookbinders.
5. Let the mussels open up and then pour about a half can of beer in the pan and put a lid on, let the mussels steam for a few minutes.
6. Serve!

I prefer this over Old Bay, I think it has less of a celery seed taste and it has a more mild flavor.  Now, lets get the Caesar Salad going.

The dressing really makes this salad.  Make sure you get out your food processor.  

The Chicken Caesar Salad

When we make this dressing, we never really measure anything, we just dump it all in to taste.  The only thing we measure is the egg.  

1. Put four egg yolks (save the whites for another use) in the food processor
2. Put in some lemon juice, white wine vinegar, worcestershire sauce, dijon mustard and the anchovy paste.  We used to use anchovies but we never used all the ones in the tin and ended up throwing some away, so my husband found this anchovy paste in a tube so we weren't wasting anything.  
3. Blend this together in the food processor.  Once this is going, start pouring in some oil until it is combined together.  
4. Then add the grated parmesan cheese (not the powdery kind) and salt and pepper.

This dressing is very thick.  You can always add a little more oil, but it doesn't get runny like bottled dressings do.  Just keep tasting it until you get the flavor you like.  Some people like less anchovies than we do, so it's really up to you.

It should look like this.....

We put it in a plastic baggie and cut a very small hole in the bottom and we are able to get more coverage that way instead of just dumping it on the romaine.  Works like a charm.

After you have cut up all your grilled chicken.....(some were just salted and peppered, others had Montreal Chicken on it.  I prefer it plain with salt and pepper).....

Washed and cut up your romaine lettuce......put the romaine into a big bowl, add the dressing and toss.  Throw in the chicken, the croutons and extra parmesan cheese.  

Summer on a PLATE!!

Let me know if you try this salad dressing or the mussels.  Leave a comment below and let me know if you like it!!  Thanks for hanging with me this afternoon!!

Snow and Soup!!

Happy Wednesday!  It's been snowing here in the North East but thankfully they are only calling for 2 to 3 inches.  Snow storms like that are really just a nuisance here in New Jersey.  Not quite the kind of storm that needs a milk and bread run!!

The weather people are calling for a possible clipper system this weekend, which is forecasted to dump a lot more snow, anywhere from 6" to 12" but since it's only Wednesday, so much could change before then.  So today, I thought I would share with you my favorite soup from The Pioneer Woman, her Italian Chicken Soup.  See her recipe here.

 

I cooked the chicken in broth for a while, then added in oregano.  Ree sautes hers in olive oil  but I usually omit that step, strictly because I am too lazy...

I keep a variety of red and green peppers in the freezer at all times.  I buy a bunch of them, wash 'em, chop 'em up and freeze 'em.  It means they never go mushy sitting on my counter waiting to be used, because as I mentioned before....I'm lazy.  The beauty of these babies is you do not have to parboil them before freezing. Saute them with a jalapeno (I only use one because I don't do spicy), dice up some whole tomatoes (from a can but keep the juice).    

Cook up your pasta.  Ree uses Ditalini.  I usually do, too, but the store didn't have them (on sale) when I went grocery shopping, so I decided to use this cute little shell pasta.  Shredding chicken is a big pain in the butt, but you have to do it for this soup.  I guess you could use a rottiserie (how do you even spell that?) chicken but you would still have to shred it......

So, the picture on the left is the soup without the cream.....the soup on the right is the soup WITH the cream.  Ree uses heavy cream I think, I use half and half.  It doesn't really alter the flavor or at least I don't think it does.  As much as we eat this soup, it's better to make it a little less fattening!!  Then we can have cake for dessert!

Here is the final product!!!  In the bowl, sprinkled with freshly grated parmesan cheese.  As I was eating it, I noticed that it tasted a little different but I couldn't put my finger on exactly what it was.   So, I checked the recipe.....jalapeno?  Check.  Peppers?  Check.  Celery?  Check.....Onion?  DAMN!  I forgot the onion!! My family didn't notice but I did.  It was still really good so if you have issues with onions, you could make this and omit it and it would still be yummy.  This soup is a little time consuming so I only make it on the weekends!!  It always goes over well in my house, except with my daughter, she won't eat any soup but Ramen.....go figure.  If you make it or if you have made it, leave a comment below and let me know what you think!   And thanks to Ree Drummond for the yummiest soup I have ever made!  Thanks for hanging with me this afternoon!

Stay safe and if you're in the northeast - WARM!

Recently Discovered and Old Love

TODAY, I thought I would share with you some blogs that I frequently check in with.  Sometimes these blogs feel like family, you visit them so many times in a day....these are just a few of the ones I love and some I have recently discovered.....(some blogs will allow you to post pictures from their sites as long as you link back to them, so only a few of my favorite blogs are accompanied by pictures.)

My Sweet Savannah

I think everyone knows about this blog.  Melanie has a pottery barn/shabby chic thing going on.  I have spent hours looking through her posts.  It's easy to do when there is so much to see!

Young House Love

Who DOESN'T follow this blog?  Sherry and John have shared the past 7 years of their lives, fixed up three homes and have had two children, all of which they have chronicled on their blog.  One of my long-time favorites.  

Centsational Girl

Kate is from Northern California and not only does she have an awesome blog, she has a beautiful fabric line that reminds me of the ocean.    

320 Sycamore

Melissa has a beautiful home and I enjoy her posts very much.  I love her space. It's just gorgeous.

DIY Playbook

A recent discovery and absolutely beautiful spaces......I love everything about both of these girls' homes. This is another blog I have spent hours looking through.  

Boxwood Clippings

Another recent discovery!  Two sisters own this blog and post some beautiful things and yummy recipes.  

The Pioneer Woman

Of course, everyone knows Ree Drummond, the Pioneer Woman.  Her recipes are amazing.  That is the only part of her blog I really follow.

Creme de la Crumb

Talk about amazing recipes.  Wow.  Tiffany is adorable, loves to cook and, let me tell you, she makes some AMAZING recipes.

Manhattan Nest

This is Daniel's blog.  He is another recent discovery and he is so open and candid and sounds like someone I would love to be friends with.  Check him out, I think you will enjoy his posts as much as I do. 

  

Tatertots and Jello

Jen's blog has a lot of contributors.  She is the mother of four kids and how she finds time to do everything she does, I'll never know.  I only have two and feel like I have no time!!

Damask Love

Strictly crafts and DIY, Amber has some awesome ideas for creating things. 

WOW.

I know there are a LOT here, and this is just the tip of the iceberg for blogs I like to visit.  I hope that I've given you some ideas today.  Leave me a comment below and let me know if there are any blogs that YOU frequent that are as awesome as these!  Thanks for hanging with me today! 

Busy, Busy Weekend!

Everyone's favorite days of the week are Saturday and Sunday (unless you work in retail or the service industry lol) and some of those weekends are so busy they go by in a blur.  This one was exceptionally quick because we had such a great time on Saturday.  The gang from the campground always gets together in the middle of winter and Saturday was the day!  Always a great time hanging out with them....There are 12 of us in that group!  

Then, my awesome husband took me to Ikea!!  We usually go to the one in South Philly because it's right over the Walt Whitman and much closer to me, but because we were up near Plymouth Meeting, we went to the Ikea in Conshohocken.  It is not as nice as the one in South Philly. There were hardly any rooms decorated and it was much smaller.  There were quite a few areas where curtains were up and new rooms were being added, but I think they were doing too many at one time.  It felt like there was nothing to see.  I was disappointed and I am NEVER disappointed when I go to Ikea.  

The whole reason we went there was the get the other pieces to my entertainment center.  Hemnes has a beautiful unit and we needed the other set of shelves and the wall bridge.  The wall bridge was out of stock so I have to go again next week (hahaha!)  Here are some of the pictures we took (and I'll take more next week when I go).  

This grey couch looks so very comfy doesn't it?  I love the rug, too.

I took this one because I really like that light.  It's just paper, so you could probably even make it yourself.  It would save you $50!  I also loved the picture on the wall, it felt like you could walk right over that bridge.  

This office space was awesome.  I have shelves on the wall in my office but it doesn't look as nice as that.

One of the very few bedrooms that we saw.  I was pretty bummed that there were no kitchens on display.  I love trying to slam those drawers shut because you CAN'T slam them!

I did really LOVE this picture so I had to take a photo to share with you.

Another bedroom and a living room.  I did really like that lamp in the living room.

Now, comes the best part of the entire trip.  This adorable table and chairs in this little dining room set-up with pink bowls.  PINK BOWLS!  They were so cute.  Now the next picture has to be my absolute favorite thing I saw all day......

LOOK HOW CUTE THIS IS!!  I just loved everything about this, the wallpaper, the cabinets, the dish rack on the wall, all of it!!  TOO CUTE!  It feels like a little farmhouse, doesn't it?

AND Finally.....Pat (my husband) got the second set of shelves all put together and then realized he had reversed the top piece in the back with the front piece on the bottom.  Needless to say he wasn't very happy that he practically had to take it all apart but it still looks fantastic.  The baskets on the bottom shelves are also from Ikea.  I can't wait to get the wall bridge to complete the look.  It only took me almost a year to get him to go back to get that set of shelves!!

My plan today was to go to Home Goods to buy more decorations for my shelves, but it was a freezing rain/pouring rain kinda day and there was NO way I was going out in that!  Maybe next weekend!!

Leave me a comment below if you love Ikea as much as I do!  What is your favorite piece?

Everybody's Working for the Weekend!!

I am SO happy today is Friday!!  We have a busy weekend ahead and I am looking forward to it.  Both of my kids will be out tonight and that means hubby and I get a date night.  It will be an early one since he is going hunting early in the morning Saturday so he will go to bed early.  That's okay though, any time I get one on one with him is worth it since it doesn't happen all that often.  Since yesterday was our 16th wedding anniversary, we went out to dinner last night with the kids.  Have any of you been to Iron Hill Brewery?  Pretty good place, really cool atmosphere and fantastic appetizers.  We had the asparagus tempura, which we ordered because my daughter loves asparagus.  It came with a delicious horseradish dipping sauce.  The nachos were also very good.  A little too many jalapenos but if you just pick them out you should be okay!  Check them out if you are in the NJ/Delaware area!  Iron Hill Brewery

Anyway, not that this picture has ANYTHING to do with Iron Hill Brewery (lol) but I wanted to share these plate hangers with you.  I got them from Hobby Lobby.  You wet them with a little bit of water to activate the glue and then put them on the plate you want to hang.  You have to wait 24 hours for the glue to dry (I only waited an hour because I have no patience).  They are a little pricey, I thought, but much easier on the plate than the wire plate hangers.  There isn't supposed to be any damage to the plate when you remove the holder because all you have to do is simply run it under hot water.  

I hope everyone has a great weekend, I have some fun plans that I will share with you all next week! 

Thank goodness it's Wednesday (again!)  The week is on the down swing toward the weekend!  Last night, my hubby and I took the kids to see Taken 3.  It was a pretty good movie.  It started off kind of slow, but you have to build the story I guess.  Then off to Applebee's for Appetizers for Dinner!  I love doing that. You get good food and it's cheaper than buying dinner for sure.  Especially when the husband doesn't get beer!!

Today, I wanted to share with you the beginning of the remodel on the side porch.  For years it was the kid's playroom, but since they are (almost) 16 and 13, hubby decided to make it a bar.  Well, the room had a ton of water damage and we had to rip it the majority of it out.  It was a mess.

The roof in the corner where the window was, was so rotten, we had to tear it down.  We ended up not being able to use two of the windows we had out there.

The light shining through was where our friend who was helping fell through!!  Thank goodness he didn't fall all the way!  That would've sucked!

Here is the roof torn down.

New framing.

New framing from the outside.

What a mess this was.....look at all that crap on the ground!  

WE HAVE WALLS!!

FINALLY!  The room is starting to come together and my husband, who can be really creative and inventive, decided to use cedar shakes on the INSIDE of the room.  It is going to look really nice when it's done.  He is using pallet wood for the ceiling and when he builds his bar, he is planning on using the corrugated metal to face it.

It is a very long process when you can only do the work on the weekends.  We haven't been able to use the room for years due to the water damage and since I usually have the holidays at my house, it will be nice to have some extra places for people to go since my little cape cod home is so tiny!

Will post updates of this project as they become available.  I keep telling my husband we have a pool at work going on whether or not this project will actually be finished.  Don't all men start things and then never finish them?  Or is it just mine?  Haha.  Thanks for hanging with me this afternoon!