Smokin' Hot....

Today it is ninety four degrees in my neighborhood...  

Hot enough to fry an egg 

on the hood of a car...  

Hot enough to slide around in your chair at school, 

or so my kids told me...  

Stifling...  

Oppressive...

Smokin' hot...  

Mr. Skilling says that the temps will fall 

to only eighty degrees tomorrow...  

He'd better be right...

As we head into this holiday weekend, 

I thought I'd share the perfect iced coffee recipe 

for you to enjoy as you watch your family frolic in the pool, 

as you sway on your porch swing

 or as you watch your fave 

guilty pleasure on the boob tube...

Mine would be "Extra Virgin"  

on the Cooking Channel...  

Super babe, Debi Mazar, 

 

and her hot Italian husband,Gabriele 

cook up a storm in their villa in Tuscany 

or at their apartment in New York...  

They are glam, in love 

and great cooks...  

   

Anyway, this iced coffee recipe, 

courtesy of Pioneer Woman, 

is very easy and worth the wait 

for the grounds to steep...  

Perfect Iced Coffee

Prep Time 8 Hours

Servings 24

Difficulty Easy

Ingredients

• 1 pound Ground Coffee (good, Rich Roast)
• 8 quarts Cold Water
• Half-and-half (healthy Splash Per Serving)
• Sweetened Condensed Milk (2-3 Tablespoons Per Serving)
• Note: Can Use Skim Milk, 2% Milk, Whole Milk, Sugar, Artificial Sweeteners, Syrups...adapt To Your Liking!

Preparation Instructions

(Adapted from Imbibe Magazine)
In a large container, mix ground coffee with water. Cover and allow to sit at room temperature eight hours or overnight.
Line a fine mesh strainer with cheesecloth and set over a pitcher or other container. Pour coffee/water mixture through the strainer, allowing all liquid to run through. Discard grounds.
Place coffee liquid in the fridge and allow to cool. Use as needed.
To make iced coffee, pack a glass full of ice cubes. Fill glass 2/3 full with coffee liquid. Add healthy splash of half-and-half. Add 2-3 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk (can use plain sugar instead) and stir to combine. Taste and adjust half-and-half and/or sweetened condensed milk as needed.

Have a wonderful Labor Day Weekend!!

Summer Report...

Geez, did summer fly by, 

or what?!  

When summer vacation gets reduced by two weeks,

 it makes a big difference...  

The kids are back in school a week early this year 

and they let out for the summer a week late, 

so vacation was over in a blink...  

August is when we visit the grandparents, 

and given the choice to hang at the pool 

or post blogs, 

my absence of writing reveals my decision...  

Now that I am back among my friends,

 "Reality" and "Routine", 

it is high time I submit a report 

of what happened this summer...

1. Camps:  I wish I was a kid solely because of the incredible summer camps that are offered now.  The kids attended basketball, tennis, sewing, circus, golf, dance and overnight camps.  Years ago, my choices for camps was park district camp and, um, park district camp.  I would ride my bike down sixty-degree hills to get to the tennis courts by the river.  In searing humidity, we would slog the tennis ball back and forth, trudging to the rusty water fountain every few minutes, before eating our mushy peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch.  Exhausted and minutes from heat stroke, I would pedal up those hills and through a huge cemetery, I might add, home...  Good times...

2. Baseball:  Starting with sleet, and ending in scorching heat, Jack's baseball team survived a long season of tough losses.  There was not much to cheer about except that the field backed up against the best bar in Lincoln Square...

3.  Floods:  After a particularly torrential rain, my parent's basement filled with twelve inches of dirty water.  While the event was a catalyst for parting with clutter, it was a messy, emotional situation.  It is hard to see cherished items covered with mold and wet.  Now their basement is cleared out and perhaps the positive feng shui is the silver lining...

4.  Pies:  Dang if I didn't get on a pie jag this summer!  Apple, blueberry, shoo fly, lemon meringue were some of the gems my family enjoyed.  Maybe that is why my clothes are too tight!

 

 5. Florida:  Every year we spend a few weeks visiting the grandparents in Florida.  We are blessed to have such a fabulous place to relax and play.  The great thing is that kids are now old enough to swim in the pool without hanging on me.  After all, have you tried to hold a pina colada in the pool with a kid on your arm?  It's a challenge!  The kids made plenty of new friends at the pool, which gave me time to catch up on People Magazine...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

6. Shrimp:  Fernandina Beach is a big shrimping destination, so we filled up on as much good, fresh shrimp as possible.  One day, we took a tour on an educational shrimping boat.  They cast the big net three times and then unloaded the catch on a pan at the back of the boat, to show everyone what is caught in the estuaries of Southern Georgia...  We saw tons of shrimp, puffer fish, gar, horse shoe crab, blue crab, and all kinds of fish...  We were followed by a massive cadre of sea gulls, who feasted on the sea life the kids tossed their way...

 

7. Shark Teeth:  This part of Florida seems to collect a large number of fossilized shark teeth on the beaches.  For years, I have hunted them with ZERO success.  One of my friends on the island can spot a tooth a mile away and I have watched her, with envy, snatch up five teeth in a two minute stroll on the beach.  Those damn teeth eluded me until this year.  Jack and I headed to the beach to search for shark teeth and to my amazing luck, I saw a gleaming, black tooth staring up at me, right away.  I squealed with girlish glee and showed my prize to Jack.  He was none too pleased at my finding a tooth before he did and he began to scan the sand with vigor.  Within five minutes I found five more teeth!  Jack looked like he was about to cry and I tried to console him, but inside I was so pumped about finally being able to "see" the teeth amongst the millions of shells in the sand.  Soon, Jack found a tooth and then the race was on for him.  All told, I found 30 shark teeth while on vacation, but Jack found 62.  He beat his mom and I think that was more important than the actual discoveries.  You do get addicted to searching them out;  they gleam black and shiny, in their pointy T shapes...

8: New/Old Friends:  Facebook is many things, good bad or otherwise, but sometimes you become reacquainted with people from your past.  I'm not talking about old boyfriend hook ups, because that is never a good thing.  An old high school classmate and I became friends, mostly through a mutual friend.  Although I didn't know her well in high school, I began to like her over Facebook.  She has a wicked sense of humor, which I prized, a really nice family, and the fact that she was friends with my old friend gave her instant street cred.  Well, we decided to meet up over a weekend and it was so much fun.  I feel like I made a really great new friend and to that I thank Facebook...

9: Food:  I can't post without talking about good eats!  I made this, 

and this 

and THIS 

over the summer....  OMG!!!!  Super tasty....Try 'em!

10: DIY:  Yep, this old house was on a fixer upper tear this summer.  

 Although not close to being finished, I pretty much painted 90% of the interior myself.  

 The process was tough and my hands looked like I was in a war, but the results were pretty satisfying. 

 

 

This money pit of a house has a lot of needs, 

but we checked a few things off of the list 

such as a new kitchen back splash, 

redone floors and new sliding doors...

It's been a wonderful summer... 

The kids have grown like the proverbial weeds, 

Jack has matured so much it's scary 

and Kate is becoming such a little lady...  

When Tom the Traveler was in town, 

the family had fun together,

 shooting off fireworks

 or playing a round of golf...

  

 

 

Friends and family are all that matters, 

as we were painfully reminded this week 

at a funeral for a friend taken too soon...  

 

 

 

 

So I cherish the summer 

and look forward to a crisp, happy autumn, 

full of fun times and apple cobblers... 

Hope your summer was one to remember, too!

I'm Done...

There are things you do for the important people in your life 

because that's what loving them is about...  

I have shivered through the most inclement April weather 

to watch Jack play baseball,

Tom will reluctantly watch "Top Chef" with me on the couch 

even though he thinks the show is stupid...  

You know, the stuff we don't necessarily like 

or want to do, 

but do anyway for the relationship...  

Tom loves live music...  

I think he secretly wishes he was a roadie 

so he could tinker with the lights

and sound equipment...  

He can listen to the same concert, 

night after night, 

and find subtle nuances in each show...  

Oh, and the groupie chicks would be a bonus, too...  

Just sayin'...  

Anyway, the guy loves concerts 

and it is killing him 

that we are not going to Lollapalooza 

this weekend...  

Hopefully next year we can afford to attend...  

To assuage his dismay at missing Lolla again, 

he purchased tickets to see Thievery Corporation, 

a band we listen to on Pandora 

all of the time... 

They are also playing at Lolla this weekend...

Their music is very danceable, 

with a world music beat to it, 

but the band still seems to be obscure...  

Given that the show was sold out 

at The House of Blues last night, 

maybe Thievery more well known 

than we had thought...  

After last night, I have decided that 

when it comes to small, night club venues, 

I have become the "Concert Curmudgeon"... 

Take me to see U2 at the United Center 

or OAR at Soldiers Field, 

and I am happy...  

I have a seat to use when I want to....  

People are nicely organized in lines 

in front of their assigned seats...

I like order...

Or let's go to Ravinia, 

where you may set up a civilized picnic, 

listen to Lyle Lovett, or the Bodeans

 in a setting that is peaceful and roomy... 

When you smash me into a club, 

with no seats and there are six drunk suburban girls 

gyrating one inch from my face, 

routinely splashing beer onto my sandals, 

I sort of stop having fun...  

You almost need to wear steel-toed boots 

and body armor to prevent getting injured

 from the morons who have no body awareness...  

Apparently several cosmopolitans, 

followed with a shot of JagerMeister 

will promote the loss of public courtesy...  

T$ so wanted me to have a good time, 

so he stood in front of me, 

in an attempt to shield me

 from the sloshy girl party 

of lurching females...

 Every few seconds they would drunkenly toast 

their plastic cups in the air, 

sending their cocktails cascading over us...  

One girl thought it was cool to scream 

and yip yip like an injured terrier 

to express her joy with the band...  

Her giant, inebriated wannabee boyfriend 

took every opportunity to dirty dance behind her 

while shoving T$ aside...  

I dunno... 

Perhaps this is a signal that the old people (me) 

need to stay home and enjoy their music

 in the privacy of their own home...  

Maybe if I was twenty years younger 

and had arrived at the concert trashed, 

I might not have cared that the 200 pound man next to me, 

who was dancing like a bad impression 

of Elaine Benes from Seinfeld, 

was repeatedly stomping on my toes...

To be fair, despite the terrible sound system, 

the band was really great...  

They were lively and enthusiastic 

and we loved the music...  

It's the people I could do without...  

When two fights broke out during the first encore, 

I slipped out the side exit faster than you can say, 

"Drunk Asses Go Home!"  

That may have been my swan song

 for the House of Blues... 

Interestingly enough, 

I would love to attend Lolla for one day, 

because there you can walk around and experience different music 

and then go listen to a different band... 

 Being stuck in a hot, crowded club 

with idiots 

is a special experience all together...  

Next time I ask T$ to see Los Lobos at Ravinia, 

I will have to keep in mind 

that he would rather eat ground glass...  

It's all about the give and take, right?

And now I am going to give you something....

Maple Bacon Ice Cream!

That's right, Friends...  

Ice cream with BACON in it... 

 I am making this today for a weekend dessert...  

Here is the recipe...

Maple-Bacon Crunch Ice Cream

Recipe courtesy Bob Blumer for Food Network Magazine

Prep Time:
2 hr 25 min
Inactive Prep Time:
--
Cook Time:
15 min

Level:
Easy

Serves:
1 quart

Ingredients
For the ice cream:

3 large egg yolks
1/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup whole milk
1 cup maple syrup, preferably grade B
2 cups heavy cream

For the bacon brittle:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for the baking sheet
3 strips smoked bacon, preferably Nueske's brand
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon chipotle chile powder or a pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions

Make the ice cream: Whisk the egg yolks, sugar and salt in a bowl until pale yellow. Transfer to a saucepan and whisk in the milk. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until almost simmering (the mixture should be thick enough to coat a spoon). Stir in the maple syrup. Transfer to a bowl and refrigerate until cold, about 30 minutes.

Make the bacon brittle: Butter a rimmed baking sheet. Cook the bacon in a medium skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 5 minutes per side; transfer to paper towels to drain. Let the bacon cool, then very finely chop.

Cook the sugar in a saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until it melts and turns golden, about 4 minutes. (If lumps form, remove from the heat and continue stirring until melted.) Continue to cook, stirring, until light amber, about 2 more minutes. Remove from the heat and immediately stir in the butter. Carefully stir in the baking soda, then the bacon and chile powder. Pour onto the prepared baking sheet and let cool until set, about 15 minutes. Break into bite-size pieces, then smash about one-third of the brittle into shards with a meat mallet or heavy skillet. Reserve the remaining brittle in a container for up to 3 days.

Stir the cream into the chilled custard. Churn in an ice cream maker. Stir in the bacon brittle shards. Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours.