I’ve been meaning to share these photos for a few weeks now but got busy (hmmm, wonder why?) but I’m getting around to it now! For Christmas, Kyle’s (amazing) parents gave us the gift of a new backyard. They paid for someone to come in and dig up the old, lumpy, rocky lawn, amend the soil, and bring in sod! We also built raised beds, are in the process of relocating the patio we put in two years ago, etc. It’s been a huge project that has mostly been undertaken by Kyle since I was pregnant and now am on baby duty and have an injured foot. Kyle’s done an amazing job. Here are some before photos and some progress photos!
Our backyard spent most of the spring looking like this! The black plastic was covering the soil that Kyle had tilled and added compost to in anticipation of raised beds. The mulch against the house was covering about one hundred heads of garlic that we had planted.
.jpg) PIN .jpg) PINTwo years ago we put in the patio, but this year we realized it was a little too small and if we put our grill on it the smoke would go right into our bedroom and our neighbors bedroom! So, we decided to move it and put the raised beds where the patio had been.
.jpg) PINOur original lawn was so lumpy and rough with lots of rocks, dips, and bare spots.the first step was to tear up the old lawn, remove the rocks, amend the soil, put in irrigation, and then sod. While the workers were tearing up the lawn, Kyle built beautiful raised beds. Then they left him a couple of weeks to do the irrigation, which his Dad helped him with, then the workers came back and laid the sod. While the guys were trenching and irrigating, Kyle’s mom and I planted the veggies in the raised beds.
The sod was in and the beds were planted when Lulu arrived, so we were able to relax and water the backyard for a couple of weeks. The garden has grown so quickly over the past two months. We’ve eaten so much kale, greens, zuchinni, cucumber, radishes and garlic from the backyard. Our tomatoes are starting to ripen and our beans are growing!
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In the last couple of weeks Kyle has framed the patio, brought the sand in and is starting to lay the pavers back down. Finishing the patio is our next project, then laying weedmat, building pathways, bringing in gravel… it’s all really coming together!
.jpg) PINWe have been slaving away in the garden, working hard to get the patio ready for summer barbecues… Hopefully we will get it done this week so we can relax with our friends who are coming to visit this weekend. At the end of a day taking care of the kiddos, playing in the sun, and working outside, nothing is better than this midday snack… a ripe mango topped with a little lime juice and a pinch of fleur de sel. The tart lime and bitter salt balance out the incredible sweetness of the mango. It’s one of my favorite things. It simple and refreshing.
MANGO WITH LIME AND FLEUR DE SEL
Ingredients.
1 ripe mango
1 lime
fleur de sel or maldon sea salt
Directions.
To cut the mango, place the mango on it’s side so that the pit is vertical on the cutting board. Using a sharp knife, slice down on one side of the pit, then the other. Then, one side at a time, run the knife through the flesh of the mango, scoring horizontally, then vertically, but not slicing into the skin.
Squeeze lime juice over the mango, making sure it runs into the cracks between the fruit segments. Sprinkle the mango with a pinch of fleur de sel.
At this point you can invert the peel and either slice the fruit from the peel into a bowl, or you can simply eat the exposed fruit. I prefer the latter, it feels a bit more indulgent somehow.
PRINTABLE RECIPE.
MANGO WITH LIME AND FLEUR DE SEL
.jpg) PINAfter taking a few weeks of from cooking, thanks to the generous flow of donuts and dinners provided by our friends, I’m back in the kitchen making dinners and loving it. The grocery shopping aspect is challenging, but once the ingredients are home, I’ve been thouroughly enjoying cooking again… even if we eat quickly and in shifts!
There’s nothing better than sitting down with your friends in the summer, turning on the grill, and making burgers for dinner. I put this burger together for the summer issue of our local magazine, for which I’m the resident food writer. I was inspired by a photo I saw on Instagram (I wish I could remember who’s feed!) and jotted down the basic ingredients. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s really, really good! My husband and friends were a little skeptical, but in the end, completely won over by this recipe!
BURGERS WITH SPINACH, AVOCADO, BRIE, CRANBERRY AND BACON AND ONION RINGS
Ingredients.
2 lbs ground beef
shallot, finely minced
1 tablespoon Worsteshire Sauce
1/2 red onion, cut into rings and separated
6-8 slices bacon
baby spinach
sesame seed buns
ripe avocado, sliced and peeled
whole cranberry sauce
brie cheese
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 egg
cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
flour
plain bread crumbs
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
vegetable oil, for frying
Directions.
Start by seasoning the beef with 1 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, 3 tablespoons minced shallot, and 1 tablespoon Worsteschire Sauce. Allow to sit for 15 minutes. Pin the slices of bacon into rings using toothpicks.
While the burgers are marinating, make your onion and bacon rings. Whisk together the buttermilk, egg, large pinch of salt, 1/8th teaspoon cayenne, and baking powder. Heat 2 inches of oil in a skillet over medium high heat, it should be hot but not smoking. One at a time, coat the onion rings in flour, dip them in the buttermilk mixture, shake off the excess coating, then coat with bread crumbs. Fry the onion rings in small batches for about 3-4 minutes each. Carefully remove them from the oil when they are golden brown and set them aside to drain on a cooking rack or paper towel. Then repeat the process with your bacon rings (remove the toothpicks once they’re cool).
Form into 6-8 burger patties. Heat your grill and cook the burgers, flipping halfway through. Toast the buns. Now you’re ready to assemble the burgers. Start with a couple slices of avocado, then a small bunch of baby spinach, then the burger, the cranberry sauce, the brie, and finally, top with a couple onion rings!
PRINTABLE RECIPE.
BURGERS WITH SPINACH, AVOCADO, BRIE, CRANBERRY AND BACON AND ONION RINGS
I’ve talked before, many times in fact, about my love for a Hot Toddy. Well, this year, when summer rolled around, I wasn’t quite ready to let my Hot Toddy sipping go. Since I make my Hot Toddy with fresh ginger, it is, at it’s core, a tea (with plenty of whiskey added of course). So, I decided to try making an iced version of my hot toddy with the tea as the base and a bit of ginger ale to add a little sparkle for summer. It turned out so well and I’m thrilled I can now enjoy my very favorite cocktail year round.
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ICED (HOT) TODDY WITH GINGER
Ingredients.
6 cups boiling water
1 lemon, sliced
2 lemons, juiced
3 tablespoons grated fresh ginger
1
/4 cup honey
2 cinnamon sticks
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg, grated
ginger ale
ice cubes with quartered lemon slices
bourbon or whiskey
Directions.
Place the sliced lemon, lemon juice, grated ginger, honey, cinnamon sticks and nutmeg in a large glass pitcher. Pour in the six cups of boiling water and allow it to cool to room temperature. This creates an intense ginger tea. Pour through a strainer into another pitcher to filter out the seeds, cinnamon sticks, and ginger.
Pour two ounces of each: the ginger tea, ginger ale, bourbon. Stir. Add ice. Enjoy.
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