Friday, November 20, 2009

Spicy Sausage and Pepper Rotini

For Foodie Friday, I offer a recipe that becomes part of the winter meal rotation at our house.  It is quick, satisfying, and just plain good.  It is called Spicy Sausage and Pepper Rotini. 
 

1 16 ounce. box rotini pasta-I like the tricolor
1 pound of Italian sausage-mild or hot according to your taste
1 green pepper cut into thin strips
1 red pepper cut into thin strips
1 small onion, chopped
2 tablespoons olive oil
5 plum tomatoes, chopped or substitute a 14 1/2 ounce can of petite dice tomatoes
3/4 cup beef broth
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons dried parsley

Prepare the pasta according to package direction.  Drain and set aside.
Remove casings from the sausage, crumble, and brown  in a large skillet.  Remove from the skillet and wipe clean.
Saute peppers and onion in hot olive oil.
Stir in broth, tomatoes, and sausage.
Simmer on low for about 20 minutes or until the tomatoes are tender and mixture thickens.
Remove from heat.  Add the cooked pasta to the tomato mixture.
Toss.
Sprinkle with grated cheese and sprinkle with parsley.

I like to serve this in a bowl because there will still be a broth.

Please come back to Applejack Lane again.  Now visit Michael at Designs by Gollum for more Foodie Friday fun.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Nothing Fancy

It's Tablescape Thursday at Applejack Lane, and today is nothing fancy-just everyday dishes that I have had since I got married 38 years ago.  My dad gave me these Bittersweet octagonal dishes as a wedding gift.  I have not used them in many years.

By adding a few things of the season...



The centerpiece is daughter's art project that went awry, but I love it just the same...
 The fruits of harvest...

Gourds, nuts, and leaves...

Mini pumpkins and cones...



Harvest figures that belonged to my mom...




Leaf napkin rings...

 Bittersweet berries on napkins from Rachel's Quilt Patch...


The silverware with straight lines was a gift from my brother so many years ago... 

Red-orange octagonal glasses.were wedding gifts...


The etched wine glasses came from my husband's mother...

As I said, nothing fancy, but I am thankful for the gifts from the family and the memories they evoke...

Thank you for stopping by.  Susan at Between Naps on the Porch has more Tablescape Thursday participants waiting for you to visit.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Help Grow Your Soup!

It's Outdoor Wednesday at Applejack Lane. Today, I want to tell you about a contest that involves our next door farm neighbors. The Campbell Soup Company is helping the National FFA and supporting the future of American farming by selecting one of ten barns around the United States to preserve and paint red in their Help Grow Your Soup campaign. This year you can help make it even better. You can show your support for the future of American farming by visiting their site, and voting for the barn you'd like for the Campbell Soup Company and the National FFA to preserve. For every vote, Campbell Soup will donate $1 to the FFA up to $250,000. If you go here, you will see a video clip about Rolling Hills, a century farm.  That means it has been farmed by the same family for over 100 years.

  Vote for Rolling Hills...

Vote for Rolling Hills...

Vote for Rolling Hills...


But you can easily see and vote for a barn in your own neighborhood that will help support the FFA campaign.  You can cast your ballot once a day until the contest is over.

Visit Susan at A Southern Daydreamer for a list of more participants in Outdoor Wednesday and consider casting a vote for Rolling Hills!



Monday, November 16, 2009

Got To Get Ready For Thanksgiving!

It's just about time for Thanksgiving here at Applejack Lane.  We're making plans for the kids to come home. There is so much to do to get ready for them.   So first things first.

Let's change the door decor...
 
One of my teacher friends made this many years ago.  It is so nice to get it out this time of the year.  Come back to Applejack Lane soon!




Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Read Any Good Books Lately?


Welcome to Applejack Lane on this Outdoor Wednesday. Today, we will take a little trip around our town  to the...



which was once Thomas Jefferson Grammar School...

and in front of the library, we have a metal sculpture of a book created by local artist Willie Ferguson...






Read any good books lately?
Thanks for visiting Applejack Lane.  Now check in with Susan at a A Southern Daydreamer for more Outdoor Wednesday features.

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Hooty Creeks

It's Foodie Friday here at Applejack Lane. I have been busy baking cookies, cookies, and more cookies for our Open House this weekend at our shop. White Chocolate Macadamia Cookies, Peanut Butter Kisses, Christmas Tree Spritz, Mexican Wedding Cookies, Raspberry Jam Thumbprints, Gingercrisps, and Hooty Creeks are all ready for my VIP ladies. Here is my recipe for Hooty Creeks-one of my customers' favorites.
1 cup butter
2/3 cup brown sugar, packed
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup quick cooking oats
1 cup dried cranberries chopped
1 cup white chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans

Cream the sugars and butter in a bowl. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until the eggs disappear. Next, add the flour, oats, baking soda, baking powder, and salt to the mixture. Mix until well blended. Stir in cranberries, chips, and pecans. The mixture will be stiff.
Using a one-inch cookie scoop, drop on a baking sheet about 2 inches apart.
Bake at 350 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes. I tend to bake for 9 minutes for a softer cookie. Cool on wire racks. Makes about 72 cookies.
And here is a platter of cookies ready to serve my VIP customers!
Come back to Applejack Lane soon. Stop by Designs by Gollum for more Foodie Friday fun!

My Favorite Pink Lamp

Thank you for visiting Applejack Lane. I am posting for Show and Tell Friday as well as Pink Saturday. I want to share a special lamp that I have had for over 35 years.

My mother-in-law gave me the bottom part of this Gone With the Wind Lamp soon after we moved into our first house. It had a thistle pattern painted on the base, but alas, no top. I was fortunate to find a lady who hand painted china and had a reputation for renovating lamps that needed some TLC.
This is the before. Only the base part was intact.


Then, the china painter created a top...and this is the finished product...
I am so happy I found my china painter!
Please visit Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday and Beverly at How Sweet the Sound for Pink Saturday fun.

Monday, November 2, 2009

A Buffet Metamorphosis

It's time to do a little tweaking of the seasons here at Applejack Lane for Metamorphosis Monday. I've been doing a little Thanksgiving transformation in the dining room and changing out the buffet.
We go from this...
to this...

Thanks for coming to Applejack Lane today. Please visit Susan at Between Naps On The Porch for more Met Monday fun.

A Blue Decorated Saltbox for a Blue Monday

It's another Blue Monday here on Applejack Lane. Today, I would like to share a piece that came from my mother-in-law that we display on our kitchen counter. It is a German porcelain salt box with a hinged wooden lid. It is underglazed with a blue decoration of canals and windmills on the front and sailboats on the sides. It has a hole for mounting on the wall. Although we don't use it for salt, we can find a number of uses for it today in our kitchen.
Stop by and see Smiling Sally for more Blue Monday fun.