We are so thankful the monsoon has arrived!

We are so thankful the monsoon has arrived! Yes, it’s humid and the “swamp cooler" doesn't work very well, but the forest and garden are sucking it up. Some of our clients at the boutique shop tell us their arthritis is painful this time of year. So use your hemp CBD and life will be bearable.

My niece and nephew from California will be visiting this month for a few days. I want to have some special meals for them. Cooking is not one of their “long suits" so they will probably appreciate some home cooking. My niece, Kristine, still remembers being at my mother’s house and the wonderful country dishes she served. So, when she visits me, she will say, “This smells just like Grandma’s house.” Of course, I prepare a lot of dishes my mother used to make. But, I have also added new food favorites to my growing recipe book.

Mexican food was unheard of in our Midwestern kitchens. Many of the dishes we love today, my mother would probably think were a bit unusual. She was an excellent cook, like a lot of women in the “old” days. However, she would try a new recipe like chop suey and scare my Dad. He would look at the dish with bean sprouts swirling every which way and say, “Are you sure we should be eating these things, they look like worms?”

Since we raised chickens and rabbits during the depression, pork and beef were a treat for us. Chicken and noodles, chicken and dumplings, chicken pot pie, fried chicken, roasted chicken and dressing, chicken salad, cold, hot, we knew our chicken and we loved it! Oh, we still do.

Along with chickens, come the eggs. (Which came first ?) The egg came first at our house. Breakfast consisted of eggs, bacon and toast. Lunch might be egg salad or a fried egg sandwich. Dinner could be fried chicken, green beans from the garden cooked with bacon and onion, sliced tomatoes all summer long at every meal. I’m making myself hungry.

I promised you a recipe for Lime Pudding. This is a new recipe we are loving this summer. Easy, cooling, quick and you won’t over heat the kitchen.

LIME PUDDING: In a saucepan, bring 2 cups of heavy cream, 2/3 cup granulated sugar, 1 Tblsp finely graterd lime zest and a pinch of kosher salt to a boil. Cook, stirring often (I say constantly) until reduced to 2 cups, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in 1/3 cup lime juice. Cool 20 minutes, then strain through a fine mesh sieve into a liquid measure cup. Divide evenly among 6 glasses (I use stemmed wine glasses) Refrigerate until set, about 2 hrs. Top with whipped cream and broken graham crackers at serving time. See! Easy and impressive. Until next time, take your CBD, sit down, put your feet up and enjoy the oohs and aahs you deserve!

Till next time.