A Bit of Blue

When I was small, my mother didn't dress me in blue.  It just didn't seem to be a part of her color wheel.  Now that I am a bit older, blue is one of my favorite colors. Here is a bit of blue from my corner of the world at Applejack Lane.

A Happy New Year Soup

Happy New Year from Applejack Lane.  In honor of the day, here is a way to eat your black-eyed peas that is light and delicious.  This recipe comes from the 2001 Christmas with Southern Living series.

Black-Eyed Pea and Sausage Soup

1 pound smoked sausage, sliced
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
3 carrots, coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 celery ribs, chopped
1 large green bell pepper, chopped
2 (15 oz.) cans black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
3 (14 1/2 oz.) cans beef broth
1 (14 1/2 oz). can diced tomatoes with basil, garlic, and oregano, undrained
1 (16 oz.) jar chipotle-flavored salsa*
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Cook sausage in oil in a large Dutch oven, stirring until it browns.  Remove sausage, reserving drippings in pan.  Add onion, carrots, bell pepper, garlic, and celery.  Saute' over medium-high heat 8 minutes or until vegetables are tender.  Stir in sausage, peas, broth, and tomatoes.  Bring to a boil.  Cover;  reduce heat, and simmer 35 minutes.  Stir in salsa, salt, and pepper.  Simmer 10 more minutes.  Yield 10 cups.

*If desired, a milder salsa can be substituted.

The Faces of Santa at Applejack Lane

Good afternoon from Applejack Lane!  Before Christmas 2012 gets packed into the bins, I made a collage of my favorite Santa faces.

Happy New Year!

PicMonkey and PicFont

I have been playing around with two new free programs called PicMonkey and PicFont.  I want to create a new header in the future, but for now I am making simple collages and watermarking pictures. Here are some of my experiments.

It's going to take me a while to get the hang of things.  And I am sure that one day my son will have to bail me out of some computer problems.  But, I will persevere!

ARRRR! Talk Like A Pirate Day!

Jo Ann, one of our Applejack Lane friends, constructed a calendar that she gave to friends at Christmas.  Loaded with her favorite photos for each month and birthday reminders of special family and friends, she added one special day in September-Talk Like A Pirate Day.  I thought it was a joke so I asked her about it.  Sure enough, September 19 is the official day to talk like a pirate.   

Ahoy me hearties! No swabbin' the deck today.  Spice the mainbrace instead!  Fairwinds, me buckos!

An Autumn Affair at Applejack Lane

Last Sunday, seventeen friends attended An Autumn Affair at Applejack Lane.  It was a beautiful day for an afternoon party with the girls.  There was only one glitch.  I didn't take any pictures to amount to any thing!
Mr. Scarecrow Man made himself comfy on the dining room table...

 A sample of the goodies I made...

Pretty fall Caspari napkins...

 An Autumn Affair at Applejack Lane Menu

Chicken Salad Croissants with Cranberries and Pecans

Southern Pimento Cheese Sandwiches

Savory Palmieres

Tomato-Mozzarella-Basil Appetizers

Fruit and Cream Mini Tarts
Cheese Straws
Raspberry Jam Thumbprints
Sour Cream Sugar Cookies
Cranberry-Pomegranate Spritzer
Wine
Southern Sweet Tea

Looking forward to An Autumn Affair 2013!

The Boss

Sunday, I took Kahlo for a little outing at the school.  When it was time to go home, he plopped down at his new resting place...