Sunday News

First up today was our submission to the Utica paper regarding Teddy’s promotion to Sergeant.  They published it in today’s paper for all friends, family and supporters of our US Marines to see.  We are proud of Teddy and SO happy that he will be returning home within the next few weeks. 

I posted my favorite recipe for peanut butter cookies.  See it under “Sweeter Treats”.  Oh so good.

I still have to make some blondies using one of the versions from VeggieGirl’s site. They sound absolutely delicious. This young lady is quite the baker and she posts a terrific blog. Make sure to check it out. Funny thing about Veggie Girl, if you visit a lot of blogs, you will undoubtedly see a wonderful little comment from her. She really makes the rounds and offers so much support. I can’t believe she finds the time after hearing about her school schedule. Amazing people are out there, guys!

The Sun is out and It’s over 50 Degrees! 

Shane and I just had to take advantage of this beautiful day. We went to NH Town Park and took a walk around.  There were plenty of distractions, which were good for Shane. Children zooming past on bicycles, running past, leaping up and down, playing on the swings… we had it all today.  Here’s the beautiful boy, 17 month old this month, soaking up the sun on the pavilion.

On the dinner plate….

Tonight we had fresh salmon for dinner. It was on special at the grocery store. Could I possibly resist?!!!!

Salmon Braised in Red Wine

• 3 TBS Olive Oil
• 1 Large Fillet of Salmon (2 lbs+)
• 1 carrot, chopped
• 1/2 onion, chopped
• 3 green onions, chopped
• 2 celery stalks, chopped
• 3 tsp minced garlic
• 1 tsp basil
• 1 pint cherry tomatoes, sliced
• 1 1/2 cups Red Wine
• 1/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar
• 1 TBS Gourmet Peppercorns, cracked
• 1 large Bay Leaf
• 4 sprigs Fresh Thyme
• 2 TBS melted SMART BALANCE margarine(or butter)
• 2 TBS chopped fresh parsley
• salt

This recipe was adapted from “The Perfect Match” by Brian St. Pierre.  This dish was very tasty and if you have a very large piece of salmon that is fairly uniform in thickness from one end to the other, skin on one side is a MUST, you should try it.  It really is not a difficult recipe to follow.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Heat oil over high heat and sear the salmon about 2 to 3 min. per side depending on how thick and how large. Be careful when turning, it will be delicate.  Remove to a pan, turn down heat to medium high and add the carrot, onion, celery, garlic. Cook 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook 5 minutes.  Add the wine and the vinegar. Stir around to loosen anything that might be on the bottom of the pan.  Add the peppercorns, bay leaf, and thyme. Put the salmon on top of all that, cover and put into the oven.  Baste the salmon 2 x while cooking, about 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and brush with melted Smart Balance or butter, sprinkle with fresh parsley.

We served the salmon with fresh steamed green beans.

Braised Salmon in red wine

Monday tomorrow. Don’t get down – look forward to a new week, a little closer to Spring and who knows… you may get something terrific in the mail!

Night all!