Photo courtesy of Pinkerton Photography

My cousin and my friend, Michelle Lorts, gave me a tin of Red Rock Lavender Lemon Pepper. Michelle owns Studio Fiore and is the florist who created the stunning flowers for Marissa’s wedding.

Photo credit: Red Rock Ranch & Farms

A few weeks ago, Michelle and a few girlfriends took a day trip to visit the lavender fields at Red Rock Ranch & Farms in Concho, Arizona.

Concho is in the White Mountains, about a 3½ hour drive from Scottsdale.

Photo credit: Red Rock Ranch & Farms

I’ve always thought about going for the Lavender Festival, but never pulled the trigger on it, maybe next year.

I used her gift to make a delicious chicken dish. You can make it too, even if you don’t have a tin of the Red Rock Lavender mix because I’ve included the proportions to make the herb and spice mixture on your own at the bottom of this post.

I also used one of my favorite local olive oils, Queen Creek Olive Mill Meyer Lemon Olive Oil. You may use regular olive oil as a substitute. Of course, you if want to make this recipe using the unique Arizona spice mixture and olive oil, the links are here for you to order those items online. Enjoy!

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Photo courtesy of griffithimaging.com

For the last post of the week, I have another fun wildlife story to tell and Howard family photos to share. Plus a recipe for chicken tacos is thrown in for good measure. Rest assured, more wedding recipes will be posted next week along with beautiful photos of the gorgeous couple.

Late on Friday afternoon, while in the kitchen alone, another visitor came by. This majestic elk. He didn’t seem to care about the food, he was just walking by. No harm, no foul.

Paul and Kim’s fabulous four.  Photo courtesy of griffithimaging.com

Fast forward to Saturday. Kim had hired three servers for me for Saturday night, two women and a man. They were all in their late 20’s.

While the ceremony was happening on the hill above the kitchen, the four of us were busy loading my car to take down the hill to the reception site, which was in front of the three camping cabins on level ground.

First, we loaded up the signature cocktail mixtures, a huge stock pot full of boiling water that would be used to fill the seven chafing dishes, along with the nearly four-foot-long Harmony Board I created for the appetizer/cocktail start of the reception. As you might imagine, it was slow and steady driving down the hill with the boiling water in the front, between the male server’s feet, and the fully assembled Harmony Board in the back.

Photo courtesy of griffithimaging.com

Chanté had a long table set out in front of the “Bar Cabin” for me to place the board on.

It was on the far edge of that area and just behind it were two pine trees that had a curtain of twinkle lights strung between them. I was busy setting up the board while the servers unloaded the cocktail mixtures and filled the chafing dishes with boiling water.

Photo courtesy of griffithimaging.com

We were just about to hop back in my car and go up the hill to load all the taco bar food when one of the band members, who was on the porch of the cabin next to the Bar Cabin, alerted us to the elk.

The same elk that I had seen the day before was now standing on the other side of the curtain of twinkle lights between the two pine trees with his eyes dead set on my Harmony Board!

I instructed the male server to stay behind to guard the food and reception area. I was too busy to ask how that went or how he scared him off but it easily could have been one of those horrible wedding stories that get told over and over … “Yeah, remember that time when the huge elk destroyed the food at our wedding reception.”

Photo courtesy of griffithimaging.com

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I love this dish! Spaghetti squash is subbed in for the classic noodles.

Spaghetti Squash-Chicken Pad Thai

Chicken

• 1 teaspoon cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced jalapeño pepper flesh
• 1 large boneless skinless chicken breast half, finely chopped

Pad Thai Sauce

• 2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons water

Pad Thai

• 1 small to medium spaghetti squash (about a 2-pound squash)
• Peanut or olive oil
• 1 small yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
• 6 green onions, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 2 large eggs, whisked
• 1 cup bean sprouts
• 1/4 cup chopped peanuts
• 1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
• Red pepper flakes
• 1 lime, cut into wedges

Chicken: In a medium bowl, whisk the cornstarch into the soy sauce, and then stir in the garlic and jalapeño.

Add the chicken, cover, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 6 hours.

Pad Thai Sauce: Whisk together the rice vinegar, fish sauce, brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons in a small glass bowl, microwave on high heat for 30 seconds and whisk until everything is combined into a thin sauce.

Pad Thai: Cut the squash in half lengthwise and use a spoon to remove the seeds. Place the halves, cut side up in a large Pyrex dish, add 1/4 cup water to the dish, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave on high for 8 minutes or until tender.

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This deliciousness was Tuesday night’s dinner. Peggy not only manned the grill but was master of the kitchen as well.

Since it was my night off, it didn’t even cross my mind to take any preparation photos. Sorry, but I’m on vacation! I will try to do better when Anne takes over the duties tonight.

We spent Tuesday afternoon having lunch at Stone Brewery and wine tasting at Orfila Vineyards & Winery, with a little T*J*Maxx on the side.

We were ultimate Maxxinistas. Peggy was looking for a swimsuit and I was looking for a barstool. The Carlsbad patio has only two stools. There are three of us. I had no choice but to find another stool!

I was successful, Peggy was not. I picked up this industrial-style barstool for $29.99. I’m keeping the tag on it in case I decide to return it after the week is over, although I’m leaning towards keeping it for future visits. Decisions, decisions.

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Peggy, Anne and I are at my timeshare in Carlsbad, CA for the week.

We arrived on Saturday afternoon.

Upon our arrival, I opened the hatch of my car … and this happened. We may have over-packed a tad.

My intention was to post daily. Turns out that the WiFi is easily overworked here at the resort. This is the first day I have not been kicked off before I could at least load the photos. I’ll post as often as the network will allow.

We had a planning session before we left town, each taking a night or two to cook dinner. I was up first with a ravioli dish that I was inspired to make from an Instagram photo my friend, Gwen, posted last week. Gwen has a gorgeous blog called Pen & Fork. You can always get to it over in the “Foodie Blogroll” on the right side of the page.

For the mushroom ravioli, I used the Trader Joe’s brand. It comes with truffle sauce, which you do not want to use in this recipe.

These are the truffle sauce frozen squares. They are easily picked out and removed from the ravioli squares. You can throw them back in the freezer and use them for another pasta night or you can throw them in the trash. That’s what I do because I’m not a huge truffle fan. I’ll eat it if it’s served to me but I don’t go out of my way to put it in my mouth.

The spinach is cut into thin strips. When cutting leafy greens, the technique to do so is called chiffonade. It is easy to do, just stack the leaves, roll them up tightly and slice. The word is French and translates to “little ribbons.”

“Brothy Situation” Mushroom Ravioli with Shredded Chicken

• 4 cups chicken broth
• 2 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced
• 8 to 10 sprigs fresh thyme
• 5 sprigs fresh oregano
• 5 sprigs fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 3 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
• 4 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms; cleaned, stems removed and thinly sliced
• 1 cup baby spinach leaves, chiffonade
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced
• 1 pound package frozen mushroom ravioli
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, garnish
• Roughly chopped fresh herbs (thyme, rosemary and oregano)

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This is the chicken that we enjoyed while my dad and Dave ate liver at Dad’s birthday dinner.

One note, in my hurry to get dinner on the table and while busily making the gravy, I left out the last step of boiling the chicken pieces to get them browned. As a result, the chicken I served looked a little anemic. It still tasted good and it was crispy but quite bland in color. Oops.

Since the last thing I want you to see as the lead photo on a post is anemic chicken, I made it again last night and did it right. That is what you see above. Below is the not-so-pretty, but still tasty, stuff.

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I made this slow cooker stew for a girl’s night with my BFF’s, Peggy and Anne, a month ago, when it wasn’t 93 degrees outside like it is right now! We enjoyed the fireplaces, each other’s company, the Jacuzzi, and the correct seasonal weather.

What the heck?!? Here it is mid-March and already in the ’90s in Arizona! I just heard my upstairs A/C turn on again! I hate it! I know that the mid-west and east are suffering through a blizzard and freezing their behinds off. And as ridiculous as that is, this heat is just as bad. It’s expected to be 96 degrees this Saturday! What happened to spring? Who do we send our complaints to? Rant over. For today anyhow.

I used chicken tenders, which meant that I needed to remove the tendon from each.

It’s easy to do. Use a fingernail to hold on to the end of the tendon. Then slide a paring knife to scrape it off. See, easy.

I thought the stew had just the right amount of heat. Anne found it too spicy for her taste. Even Peggy thought it was a little too hot. If you like spicy, keep the recipe as is.

For a milder stew, simply eliminate the jalapeños.

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Hello friends,

I’ve put off this day for far too long. I’m going through some life changes. As such, blogging about food and entertaining and putting on the “everything is just fine” face has felt disingenuous.

After trying several times over the past five weeks to get a post up and stopping short each time, I have decided that today is the day.

My last post, on January 13th, was a recipe from our 2016 Holiday Appetizer Pot-Luck. I figure that is as good a place as any to pick up where I left off and get on with it!

These chicken cheeseballs were a big hit and could not be easier to throw together. They can be assembled, lined up on the baking sheet, covered with plastic wrap, and then refrigerated the night before or in the morning, and then baked off just before your guests arrive. They are even delicious at room temperature. I’m certain they would be great the next day too, but there were none left, so I can’t swear to that.

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I was inspired to create this soup because I had a nearly full can of coconut milk, less only 2 tablespoons, that I’d used for this recipe.

Ginger-Lemongrass Coconut Soup with Chicken

• 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, roughly chopped
• 3-inch piece of fresh lemongrass, smashed
• Cheesecloth and kitchen string
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely minced
• 3 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup coconut milk (regular or lite)
• 2 tablespoons fish sauce
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/2 pound sugar snap peas
• 6 large basil leaves, divided
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced on a diagonal, divided
• 1 cup finely shredded breast meat from a rotisserie chicken
• 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
• 1 small red chili, thinly sliced for garnish
• 1 lime, thinly sliced for garnish
• Cilantro sprigs

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Here is a recipe that I forgot to post from a few weeks ago when Kim generously gifted me with fresh Mission figs.

I have a beautiful fig tree of my own but I adore Mission figs and unfortunately, mine is a Kadota fig tree. So Kim’s figs were a real treat. Thank you, Kim! xoxo

You’ll need only a handful of ingredients for this delicious and quick “anytime of the week” dinner.

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