WOW!!!!!  I have been nominated for the Versatile Blogger Award, by my friend over at Cosmic Observation.  What an honor.  Thank you so much.

I am supposed to give you 7 details about me.  Hmmmmm!  I don’t know if I am interesting enough to give you 7 details, but I’ll give it a shot.

1.  I was born and raised in Southern California.
2. I was the quintessential California beach bum until I got transferred to Colorado.
3. I have been living in the North Denver Metro area now for 19 years.  I still am ONE with the ocean, but have no desire to live in Southern California ever again.
4. I get my water and ocean “fix” through both my jobs and my passion for scuba diving.  I am both a swim coach, a water aerobics instructor and a swimmer.  I am also not only an avid scuba diver, but I have taken it to the level of Rescue Diver, and at some point I want to take it as far as I can and become a master diver.
5. I am very independent and opinionated and HATE being told what to do, even if it is for my own good.  🙂
6. My children all have 4 legs and tails.  I have never had the two-legged breed of children, only the four-legged ones.
7. My husband and I travel all around the world, at every chance and opportunity we can.  Mostly we dive, but there are also some vacations that are dry and on top of the water too.

The world of blogging has been opened up to me, and there are so many fascinating, interesting blogs out there, which makes it very difficult to choose my nominees.  I have learned so much since I have been introduced to the world of blogging.  I have many interests and follow a wide variety of bloggers.  It is really hard to narrow it down to just a few.  But here are some of my favorites.

1. lillyevechristie

   @lillyevechristie
2. bottomlesscoffee007
3. Michael Ogazie
   @ogaziestheory
4. Gail’s Snapshotsincursive
   @gaildorna
5. dray0308
   @dray0308
6. floatinggold

   @floatinggold
7. hethrgood
   @hethrgood
8. ChecheWinnie
   @thisischechewinnie
9. Amanda Cade
   @amandacade
10. The Eclectic Contrarian
    @thepalmettowoodsman
11. Rarenwise
    @rareity
12. Sadje
    @saadiyanadeem51
13. itsgoodtobecrazysometimes
    @itsgoodtobecrazysometimes
14. Laleh Chini
    @avoicefromiran
15. the britchy one
    @thebritchyone

I apologize for falling behind with my blog these last few days.  Life has been very hectic and crazy.  I’ve had more coaching hours, more classes to teach, and just more things in general going on lately.  I’m not complaining; I love to be busy, but sometimes, things add up and I fall behind.  Sometimes, I just need a bit more time to catch up with everything and then I am ready to go again.  After doing a specialty class in the morning, and wine tasting with my friend Elizabeth in the afternoon, there wasn’t much time to do a lot of preparation for dinner once we returned home for he evening.  We had a wine pick-up that needed to be made before the end of February, especially since we did not make it for January either, and because we have been so busy as of late, we had to do it yesterday.  Oh darn, I was forced to sample wines from my favorite local winery, InVINtions A Creative Winery. Let’s Make Wine

Elizabeth had never been to InVINtions before, so we had her taste a few.  Of course, I had to taste a few with her.  We started with whites (we asked for very small pours after this first one), had a couple of reds, and then finished with ports.  InVINtions ports are fabulous!  They offer a wide variety of flavored ports that are truly unique.

When we returned home, there was not a lot of time for a lot of thought or preparation for dinner, and the leftovers were beginning to pile up.  Just in the nick of time, the “Queen” paid me a visit to lend a creative hand.  I had some black Cubano Beans and rice, Fajitas y Frijoles, some ham with roasted green chiles and onions, Part Quiche, Part Fritatta, and some leftover tomato sauce with olives.  HMMMMMMM!  What to make, what to make?  I know ….. Empanadas!  Have No Fear, the Queen of Leftovers is Here  I had already made my basic, go-to dough, with the plan of using it for my quiche, but decided to use potatoes for the crust instead.  Everything was already prepared, so all that was left to do was the assembly and then recooking it.  Easy-peasy!

My ingredients for the filling that got all mixed together.

I rolled out the dough nice and thin, then added the filling and shaped them into empanadas.

Once the empanadas were filled and shaped, I pan-fried them in HOT canola oil until they were lightly browned and crispy.  When pan frying, I usually use canola oil, since it has a higher smoke point than olive oil, which allows it to get hotter without burning.  You want the oil to be very hot before adding the empanadas so the dough does not absorb too much oil before cooking, making them greasy.  The empanadas only take a couple of minutes to cook on each side.  They came out light and fluffy with a crispy crunch as well.  Just perfect!.  I have made empanadas both fried and baked.  I know they are not as healthy when they are fried, but I like the taste and consistency better when fried rather than baked.

I also had one avocado, that could really only be used as guacamole, so I quickly made up a small batch.  It was the perfect topper for the empanadas.  I served them with a quick, box of pasta – I know!  Food from a box!  How gauche!  And within minutes, a quick, easy-peasy dinner was served.  This was definitely not a fancy meal, nor, the most balanced meal, but it was still very tasty.  As you all know, I do my best to make everything from scratch as much as possible, however, I do keep instant foods around for just such occasions, when time is sparse and hungers are flaring.

As you all know, I love “playing with my food” and trying new things.  That’s as much fun as sharing it with all my friends and loved ones once the dishes are prepared.   When we were in Grand Junction, and had our fabulous brunch at Cafe Sol, Sol for the Soul I was intrigued by their quiche for the day.  It was a ham and green chili quiche (which they had already run out of by the time we got there).  I knew by the portion sizes of everything else we feasted upon, that their quiche would be oversized and fluffy as well.  Since we were not able to try it at Cafe Sol,  I decided to make my own version of it once I got home.   I found Cafe Sol’s recipe on line, and of course, I improvised some; but then that’s what I do.  I had some leftover ham in the freezer, as well as some roasted Hatch green chilies that needed to be used, so a ham and roasted Hatch green chili quiche was born.  This quiche is the perfect quiche for those of us who love big, bold, and spicy flavors.  It was YUMMY!

Quiche is a dish that is similar to a savory pie, made with eggs, cheese, cream and then whatever else you decide to add to it and it is all baked together in a crust like a pie.  There is no right or wrong way to make a quiche; today, anything goes.  Use your imagination and let it run wild.  Quiche Is Only Partly French  A frittata is both Spanish and Italian in origin, and is usually made with fried potatoes as well as the egg mixture.  The word fritatta is an Italian word that is roughly translated to mean fried, which was a Italian term used for any style of eggs that were cooked or “fried” in a skillet.  Up until the mid-1950’s, anywhere outside of Italy, a frittata and an omelette were generally thought of as the same thing.   The Spanish cooked their omelettes with fried potatoes added to the egg mixture, and hence the Spanish origins and influences for the fritatta came about.  Today, the term fritatta has become known as an Italian open-faced omelette.  Just like with omelettes and quiches, there are no specific or definitive recipes for fritattas.  Versatility in the recipes is greatly appreciated and welcomed.

Ham and Roasted Green Chili Fritatta Quiche

2 russet potatoes, peeled and sliced very thin

1 1/2 cups cooked ham, cubed

1/2 onion, diced fine

1/2 cup roasted green chilies, peeled and seeded, diced fine

1 TBSP garlic

1 tomato, diced fine

8 eggs

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

salt to taste

red chili flakes (optional and to taste)

olive oil for cooking

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese or cheese of your choice

Preheat the oven to 375* F

Spray either a cake pan or a pie dish with cooking spray

Peel and slice the potatoes very thin.  I sliced mine in the food processor.  Line the bottom and the sides of the pan with the potatoes.  Because I knew I was going to be making a very fluffy quiche, I used a 9″ springform cake pan instead of a quiche or pie dish, like I usually do when making quiche.  Place the potatoes in the oven and par-bake for about 25-30 minutes, or until the potatoes are semi-soft.  Then remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

While the potatoes are cooking, cut the rest of the vegetables and ham.  Saute the vegetables and garlic until they are soft and the onions are translucent.

Add the cooked vegetables and the tomatoes to the ham and mix everything together well.

Whisk together the eggs, cream salt and red pepper flakes.

Now it is time to start layering everything together to make the quiche.

Add the cheese to the potatoes.  Then add the ham and vegetable mixture on top of the cheese.

Carefully pour the egg mixture over the filling, making sure to spread it evenly and it covers everything.   If you do not have a tightly sealed baking dish, place the dish on a baking sheet so the liquid does not drip into the oven.  Bake for about 45 minutes or until the eggs are all cooked, fluffy and all the liquid has been absorbed.

This was a simple, rustic meal that I completed with a spinach salad with walnut dressing, and a glass of chardonnay.  Walnuts – The Healthiest Food Around?  It was just perfect after a very long day.  We both really liked the quiche with the addition of the potatoes.  The potatoes added a whole new dimension to the quiche.  This might just be how I make my quiches from now on.

Rules: 3.2.1 Quote Me!

Thank the Selector

Post 2 quotes for the dedicated Topic of the Day.

Select bloggers to take part in ‘3.2.1 Quote Me!’

I have been nominated for the Truth & Honesty Award by my friend over at

Bottomless Coffee 007.

I love this blog.  It is always so thought provoking and it definitely makes me think about things.  I am honored and flattered.  Thank you, thank you.

One quote I say, all the time, which has become my signature quote is “Cool Beans!” I  say this many times throughout the day, especially when I am excited about something.  Something else I say on a regular basis is “Be yourself.  No matter what, always be yourself and be true to who you are”.  There are no specific times or days when I say either of these.  They are just part of who I am and what I believe.

My nominations go to ….  They are always going to tell it like it is and keep it real.

1. Goldie over at floatinggold
2. Amanda Cade
   @amandacade
3. Sadje
   @saadiyanadeem51
4. Laleh Chini
   @avoicefromiran
5. the britchy one
   @thebritchyone

One of my favorite things to do while traveling is to visit new places.  I love to find unique and special places to eat, shop and enjoy the local ways of life.  Going to chain restaurants or shops are fine when you are at home and want something familiar, although, even at home I try my best to not frequent chain restaurants or stores to often either.  But when I travel, I absolutely refuse to eat at a chain restaurant if I have any other choices available to me.  I do my best to support small, local businesses and artists as much as possible.  One such local find and gem was Cafe Sol, located in downtown Grand Junction, at 420 Main Street.  The food at Cafe Sol is all fresh and made from scratch daily.  They have an open kitchen that features the foods they prepare fresh for your viewing.  You actually get to see the foods they are preparing for you as they prepare them.  Their goal is “to serve fresh, wholesome foods to customers who are searching for something unique”.  They are very “passionate about sourcing local, organic and high quality ingredients” to serve their patrons.  Cafe Sol offers a good selection of foods that are accommodating to all palettes.  They offer a wide variety of vegan and vegetarian dishes as well as foods to satisfy the meat-eaters too.  A trip to Grand Junction should most definitely include at least one trip to Cafe Sol as well.

Fresh ingredients prepared for you as you wait.  You can see exactly what is being prepared and how.

So many choices.  What to choose, what to choose.

We all shared a piece of this fabulous green chili cornbread.  They tempted us by having it right out in front where we ordered.  We couldn’t resist, and we are glad we didn’t.  it was so moist and fluffy and absolutely delicious.

We all ordered something unique and different.  Everything was scrumptious!  Traci ordered the Dutch pancake with bananas, walnuts and peanut butter.

Taryn’s salad with eggs and avocado toast was definitely a feast.  By the time she had finished eating, it barely looked like she had even touched her food.

Larry opted for a more traditional breakfast burrito, that was grilled to perfection.

I am always up for new ideas, so it was eggs and cornbread with green chili for me.  Who knew this could be so good?!

Our fabulous feast.  Brunch is served.  Time to eat.

Palisade, Colorado is an agricultural mecca for the state.  It is nestled in the Grand Valley Region of the Western Slope, just outside of Grand Junction, along the Colorado River.  It boasts of having 300+ days of sunshine and a growing season of about 180 days per year.  There is a wide variety of crops grown in Palisade, but it is really famous for two specific crops; peaches Peaches from Palisade and wine grapes.

About 75% of the acreage in Palisade is devoted to growing Colorado’s premium wine grape vineyards.  The most prevalent grapes grown in the region are chardonnay, merlot, sauvingon blanc and cabernet sauvignon, although there are other varietals produced there as well.  Grape growing for wines has been around the Palisade area since 1890.  When European immigrants settled into the Grand Valley Region, they brought their winemaking traditions and viticulture skills with them.  They produced wines in the region until the times of prohibition, which started in 1916 in Colorado, four years earlier than for the rest of the United States. This unfortunately abruptly ended winemaking in Colorado until 1968.  In 1968, a Denver dentist by the name of Dr. Gerald Ivancie, with the help of aspiring winemaker Warren Winiarski, from Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, founded the first modern winery in Colorado in Dr. Ivancie’s cellar.  Dr. Ivancie and Mr. Winiarski were the driving forces behind reintroducing winemaking into the Grand River Region of Palisade and Grand Junction in the 1970’s.  The first bottle of wine made solely with Colorado grapes was produced by Jim and Ann Seewald in 1978.  This was history in the making, and grapes and Colorado wines were put on the maps for a place to try up and coming wines from thence forward.  Today, in the best of growing conditions, Colorado’s vineyards produce anywhere from 2.5 -3.5 tons per of grapes per acre.  Most other wine regions of the world produce 4-5 tons per acre.  Every year tough, more and more Colorado wineries appear and more and more Colorado wines are being produced.  We are catching up to the rest of the wine world.  Watch out world, here we come!

A trip to the Grand River Region of both Grand Junction and Palisade would not be complete without at least a couple of stops to some of the local wineries.  We honored the grape growing tradition by stopping in at two of the region’s oldest wineries.  We definitely enjoyed the fruits of their vines, and of course, had to bring some home for later as well.  Our first winery of the region was Ptarmigan Vineyards, which is owned By Stoney Mesa Winery, in nearby Cedaredge, CO.   We stopped at Ptarmigan Vineyards before meeting with our friends Traci and Taryn, when we first arrived in Grand Junction.  All the wines were delicious, but I really enjoyed the Rojo del Mesa.  It was a rich and velvety red blend that was very smooth on the palette and will pair very nicely with a good, hearty steak.

Here I am toasting with our Hostess and owner, Betty, with a taste of the Rojo del Mesa.

The Ptarmigan Vineyards with a view of the valley.

Our second winery was The Grand River Vineyards.  We stopped there as we started our homeward bound trek, at the end of our stay.  “Grand River Vineyards planted their first grapes in 1987 and bottled their first wine in 1990.”  Grande River is still considered a boutique winery, but is quickly growing.  Depending on how well Mother Nature cooperates, Grande River Vineyards produce a wide selection of award winning wines, numbering between “5,000-7,000 cases of wine each year using 100% Colorado grown grapes”.

Larry and I inside the barrel room at Grande River Vineyards.

Some of the vineyards nestled at the food of the mesa.

Again, all the wines at Grande River were very good and very tasty.  Of course, I had my favorites there too.  My favorites at Grande River were the Lavande Vin Blanc (lavender white wine, infused with hints of lavender); the Viogner, hosting hints of honeysuckle, peaches, pineapple and nectarines; and the Malbec, which had the taste and aromas of cherries, plums and berries.

I also purchased a jar of some Palisade peach jam.  I just couldn’t resist.  After all, I love my peaches too and the peaches from Palisade are beyond comparison.  They are the best peaches I have ever tasted.

You can learn more about both Ptarmigan Vineyards and Grand River Vineyards by checking out their websites.

***Ptarmigan Vineyards can be reached at http://www.visitgrandjunction.com/…/ptarmigan–vineyards

Grand River Vineyards can be reached at granderiverwines.com.

Presentation isn’t everything, but it sure does go a long way.   We “taste” with our eyes long before we actually taste things on the tongue.  If something looks pretty, we already have a preconceived notion that it will taste good too, just by looking at it.   Often times, though, we all know that looks can be deceiving, and just because something looks really pretty and appealing, it is not always the case.  Years ago, long before I went to culinary school, I was working at a public relations firm in San Francisco, CA.  Most of our clients were food clients, and we had our own test kitchen at the firm.  A large part of our job was to create recipes and present them in an appealing way in order to promote them.  One of my teammates was getting married and we had a bridal shower for her.  Our boss bought this absolutely beautiful cake for the party, and I had made a cake from one of our clients’ recipes to bring along as well.  Sadly while I was traveling to the party, the cake shifted all around and got slightly mushed and wasn’t nearly as pretty as I would have liked it to be.  After seeing the beautiful cake my boss had bought, I was very embarrassed to bring in the cake I had made, because let’s face it, it looked nothing at all like the beautiful “professionally made” cake did, and in fact, it was kind a sad little thing in comparison.  However, after a lot of prodding and convincing, I eventually brought the cake in to share with the group.  Even though, it didn’t look quite so pretty, everyone said it was a much better cake than the “professional cake”.  The bride to be was very touched that I had made her a cake from scratch for her special day too.  This was a very valuable lesson to me.  Ever since then, I have always said that no matter what it looks like on the on the outside, the most important ingredient to go into any dish or recipe is  love.  If something is made with love, it will always be better than something that is not.  However, if you can make it pretty too, then that recipe will definitely be a winner all the way around.

This past weekend, my husband and I went out to Grand Junction, CO, to meet up with some friends who were there too.  I did not have any time to make anything special, and we were having our house sitter come stay with us so she could get used to the routine for all our fur babies.  I bought a Boston cream pie, which would have been totally fine all on its own, but it looked, and therefore tasted, so much better after I added a few personal touches to it to make it really stand out.

The plain version of a store bought Boston cream pie.

I quickly whipped up some whipped cream and sliced some strawberries.

Elizabeth did some quality control and approved of the whipped cream.

And voila!  Dessert was served.

I will be out of town this weekend, and therefore will not be posting anything on my blog for a few days.  But have no fear, I won’t be gone for too long.  So in the mean time, I will once again leave you with some thoughts of food from those in the know.

Serve the dinner backward, do anything – but for goodness sake, do something weird.

~ Elsa Maxwell ~

Gossip Columnist from The New York, “Herald Tribune”, 1963

The qualities of an exceptional cook are akin to those of a successful tightrope walker; an abiding passion for the task, courage to go out on a limb and an impeccable sense of balance.

~ Bryan Miller ~

Food Critic, New York Times, 2/23/1983

My kitchen is a mystical place, a kind of temple for me.  It is a place where the surfaces seem to have significance, where the sounds and odors carry meaning that transfers from the past and bridges to the future.

~ Pearl Bailey ~

Sir, respect your dinner:  Idolize it, enjoy it properly.  you will be many hour in the week, many weeks in the year, and many years in your life happier if you do.

~ William Makepeace Thackeray , 1811-1863 ~

Yesterday, I left you with a teaser.   I showed you how to make the sun-dried tomato pesto,  Spicy Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto but only showed you the sauce.  Today, I will give you the whole meal deal.  We love sausages of all kinds and eat them fairly regularly, in a variety of different ways.  Sometimes sausages just hit the spot.  I often serve sausages and pasta together.  They are a perfect combination.   And that is exactly how I served it last night, with the sun-dried tomato pesto, some garlic cheese bread and a fruity Pinot Noir from Carhartt Winery, in Los Olivos, California, sent to me by my best friend, Andrea, as a delicious birthday present.  (My birthday was last week).  Pasta is probably one of the most versatile dishes around.  I love pasta and can eat it all the time.  You can serve it with any type of sauce and any type of toppings, with or without meat, hot or cold, and you can even serve it as a dessert.  You just can’t go wrong with pasta.

So I already gave you the recipe for the spicy sun-dried tomato pesto.  I made that ahead of time, then cooked everything else and combined it all together for a delicious, yet simple meal.  There is no right or wrong way to prepare this meal.  You can use any vegetables you like to enhance the meal as well.  You can also use any type of sausage or chicken as well.  We love mushrooms, and use them in a lot of our meals.  We also love tomatoes of kinds, as well as onions.  Mushrooms, yellow tomatoes and red onions were what I added to the sauce to give us a few extra vegetables and a bit more color and texture to the meal.  Saute the mushrooms and onion slices in olive oil, adding salt & pepper to taste, and cook until the onions are translucent and soft and the mushrooms are done, about 5 minutes or so.  Cook the sausages.  You can grill them or pan fry them.   We do both.

When the vegetables are done, add the sun-dried tomato pesto sauce and the yellow tomatoes.  Mix everything together and cook just long enough to heat the sauce.  Add the sausage and top with chopped cilantro.  Easy-peasy!  Dinner is served.

My best friend, whom I have know since I was in 7th grade sent me these two great wines for my birthday.  One was a delicious Pinot Gris and the other was a mouth-watering Pinot Noir.  These wines are from Carhartt Winery, in Los Olivos, California.

**** You can find out more about Carhartt winery and many other California wineries by clicking onto the website.  https://californiawineryadvisor.com/winery/carhartt-vineyard

A vote sante!