Travel Often

“I see my path, but I don’t know where it leads. Not knowing where I’m going is what inspires me to travel it.” — Rosalia de Castro

Love Deeply, but Laugh Along the Way

"Happiness is only real when shared." - Jon Krakauer, Into the Wild

View Marriage as an Adventure

"Love is a flower which turns into fruit at marriage." ~Finnish Proverb

Fuel your body with GOOD (It's the only one you get)

He who has health has hope; and he who has hope has everything. - Arabian Proverb

Open your Soul to Motherhood

A Grand Adventure is About to Begin - Winnie the Pooh

A New Kind of Love is Born

Mothers hold their children's hands for a short while, but their hearts forever.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Thirsty? Two of my favorite cocktails of the month

Summer is hot and it's time to cool off
I couldn't only pick wine this month. I know... What can I say, summer has been HOT (at least the past couple of weeks) and I have two favorite drinks of choice for the month of July. See below.

Moosehead Light Lime and Riesling
Last month I was craving red wine. This month I'm totally digging white. The reason I like Great Loop Mosel Riesling is it's not as sweet as your usual Riesling. It actually has a little bit of a sour (probably the wrong word) aftertaste, which I love. The wine distributor said it's because the wine was made with 30 percent of the grapes past harvest (meaning some of them had mold on them and looked ugly) but the juice is special. Yes it is!! Go on out and by yourself a bottle. We got ours at Marketplace Liquors in Savage where there is FREE wine tasting every Friday and Saturday (yeah!).

Also one of my new wino friends and favorite 'pourer' at Marketplace told me about this amazing wine guide and now I'm telling you. A must buy for all you tasters and wine lovers out there - De Long's Wine Tasting Notebook.

My second favorite beverage right now is Moosehead with lots of limes. I have always been a fan of Miller Chill, until they made it all light and similar to Bud Light Lime. Moosehead is different and tastes exceptionally well in a frosty mug. So go out and by yourself some of that too!!!

Enjoy! What are you drinking this summer?

Rhubarb Cake

What can I make with rhubarb?

You're not alone if you find yourself asking the above question. I ask myself this all the time in the summer especially after I leave my grandparents with a brown bag filled to the brim with fresh rhubarb. Have no fear, Karl and I have found more than one use. We currently have rhubarb wine racked, homemade jelly waiting to be canned and the best cake you'll ever eat!

And in honor of my 100th blog post, I thought what better way to celebrate than make my mom's rhubarb recipe and post it for all of you to make and enjoy? I mean, rhubarb is healthy, right? According to Livestrong.com, one cup of rhubarb supplies 105 mg of calcium, which is about 10 percent of the 1,000 mg of calcium average adults need in their daily diet. Read more here.

My mom also swears she found this recipe in the Rockford Register Star back in the day, but isn't sure.

Rhubarb Cake

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Cream together:
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 cup flour
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cup chopped rhubarb
1 tsp vanilla

Pour into a 9 x 13 pan.

Topping: Sprinkle 1/4 to 1 cup brown sugar and 1 tsp sugar and 1/2 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts).

Bake for 35-40 minutes and cool. Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy!

Second day: still delicious!
Karl's reaction: "You know. I've seen you cook but I've never seen you bake, babe." *timer goes off and hubs digs in.* "Oh man...this is good. I need another piece. Yum. Mmmmm. The cinnamon and nuts on top is so good. I need more of this deliciousness."

WooHoo! I can bake!