A Jeanne in the Kitchen

We are so blessed to be living in such a beautiful state.  There is so much beauty everywhere we go, from the beautiful mountains, to the fabulous lakes and rivers, to the flowers, and everything in between.  I believe it was John Denver who coined the phrase that “Colorado was God’s Country”.  I have no doubt in my mind that Colorado really is “God’s Country either.

We started our Guanella Pass trip just outside of Golden, where we went off the main highway and started our mountain adventure.

The Mountains.

 

 

Waterfalls, rivers and lakes.

We even caught a fisherman fishing.

The mountain flowers.

Whenever we go on our driving tours, I always end up with so many great pictures.  But hold on to your hats.  The best is still yet to come.  🙂

Stay safe and stay well Everyone.  ‘Til next time.

 

 

As you all know, we love to just get in the car and drive.  Larry usually plans the trip out as much as he can, but there is still a certain amount of spontaneity as well.  This time our “tour” took up us over the Guanella Pass.  It was a beautiful day and we saw so much wildlife.  It was also considerably cooler up in he mountains than it was at the base of the mountains where we live.  We always find fabulous little restaurants on these fun and beautiful day trips, and this day drip was no different.

This time we discovered the Riverbend Eatery for “food and fun on river”.

I just love the canoe on the roof.

Riverbend Eatery boasts of an “awesome river view” and they are not exaggerating either.  It was an awesome river view.  We were lucky enough to get a table right next to the river, which was flowing rapidly.

If dining al fresco by the river is not your thing, Riverbend Eatery also offers spacious indoor dining as well.  Although I will ALWAYS choose to dine outside, especially on this beautiful river, whenever possible.

Riverbend Eatery is cutely decorated with fun and quirky aspects of life up in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.

As soon as we walked in to Riverbend Eatery we were well taken care of by the friendly staff.  They were all so helpful and were just full of smiles, even beneath their masks.

We must have worked up quite an appetite, even though we were just driving through the mountains.  The Riverbend Eatery menu offers a variety of pizza, calzones, pasta dishes, burgers and salads. We decided to order a pizza.  We ordered a large pizza, fully expecting there to be leftovers to take home with us.  What we did not expect, however, was the HUGE size of the pizza and just how much there would be to bring home.  We ordered the “Meaty Italiano”.  As you can see, it was loaded.  It was also very, very tasty too, which is a good thing considering how much we brought home with us.   We will be enjoying this delicious pizza for at least a couple more meals yet to come.

Next time you are driving around through the mountains in the Bailey area, stop in and enjoy your meal right on the river.  Riverbend Eatery is is located at 60006 US Highway 285 in Bailey, Colorado.  They offer 14 different beers on tap and have a full bar as well.  You can reach them at (303) 838-0264 or online at Riverbendeatery.com  

Stay safe and stay well Everyone.  ‘Til next time.

 

It is that time of year again when our fabulous Palisade peaches are once again in season.  Palisade is an agricultural mecca on our western slopes of Colorado, and that is where our Palisade peaches come from.  To me, they are some of the best peaches I have ever eaten.  My friend Janet and I usually split a case every year.  They just arrived.

These peaches are so sweet and juicy.   I just absolutely love them.  I used half of my batch for some delicious peach salsa.  I have something specific in mind that I am going to use it for later.  You will just have a to wait a bit longer to see what that will be.  🙂

My peach salsa only requires a few simple and basic ingredients.

To make 2 large jars and 1 small-medium jar of salsa I used

10 peaches, peeled and diced

2 jalapenos, diced fine

1 red onion, diced fine

1/2 cup green onions, sliced thin

3 roasted Anaheim peppers, peeled and seeded, diced fine

1/3 cup cilantro, chopped fine

 

Mix everything together well and refrigerate until ready to use.  You can use it to top bruschetta, for chicken or pork or shrimp, or in a salad, or maybe even something a bit more exotic.

I peeled the peaches just like I peeled my apples when I showed you how to peel them on my latest video YouTube Video #4 – Brussels Sprout, Apple and Bacon Salad.  Then slice them by putting the knife right into the peach to the pit and give a slight turn.  Repeat until the peach is completely sliced.

And the results …… are just peachy.

Stay safe and stay well Everyone.  ‘Til next time.

 

I made video #4, hopefully for your viewing pleasure.  🙂  All the videos I have made so far have been from recipes that I have made and featured on the blog already.  This latest video is showing you how to make one of our favorite summer time salads, a Brussels sprout, apple and bacon salad.  It is cool, crispy, sweet and tart all at the same time.  It’s just perfect for the summer.  Brussels Sprouts Salad with Chicken.  I did not add the chicken for this one, but it is the same salad recipe.  Sometimes I use red onions, like I did for the video, and sometimes I use shallots.  Red onions are a bit more zesty than shallots, but both are fine.  You can also make it vegetarian or vegan by not adding the bacon too if you prefer.

I am still a work in progress, and am learning new things all the time.  This time I have figured out how to get comments on the video.  So if you like it, please, please add your comments if you like and please subscribe to my YouTube page and pass my videos on to as many people as you would like.  The more the merrier, I say.  🙂  I am also open to suggestions on what you would like to see me make.

I meant to mention it in my video, but I forgot to, but I am anxiously awaiting to see all of your apron designs and concepts.  Once the aprons are made, the winner will win a “A Jeanne in the Kitchen” apron.  Please send your ideas to my email address at ljbjej@q.com

Stay safe and stay well.  ‘Til next time.

Sheree, from https://viewfromtheback.com/, Amanda from https://forestwoodfolkart.wordpress.com/ and Sandy from https://thesandychronicles.blog/ are always coming up with some very fun and very cool photo challenges.  This is one of those.  It’s all about living life and sharing it with good friends and family.  After all, the world is a much better place with friends.  I am blessed to have a plethora of great friends, both old and new.

Some of my beautiful Mermaids.

Me with my “little sister”, Kathy, back in our much younger days.

Larry and I at Julia’s Mardi Gras party.

We’re all flyin’ high.

Just laughing it up in the kitchen.

Friends through the ages.

American Proud.

The Caramel making tradition continues.

Testing the soup.

Painting with Perri.

A toast to friendship.

Celebrating with family.

Make the most of all that life has to offer.  Friends and family make the good times better and the sad times easier.  Stay safe and stay well Everyone.  ‘Til next time.

I am cleaning out my fridge at the moment.  I have too many leftovers.  So I cannot cook anything new until I make room for more.

 

But have no fear, this won’t take too long.  More recipes and videos will be coming your way again very soon.  Stay tuned.  Don’t touch that dial.

 

 

For whatever reason foods get the “cowboy” name when mixed with beans and peppers.  I don’t know why this is, but I have seen many “cowboy” recipes that have beans and peppers as some of their primary ingredients.  I guess beans and peppers were in abundance where the cowboys roam and rustle their cattle or when they are out on the range.  But whatever the reason, I just know I love the combination of beans and peppers and use them quite frequently.  Maybe I am a just “cowgirl” at heart.

Larry had taken down a pork loin to use in this week’s meat rotation.  It’s been way too hot to have the oven on for the amount of time it would take to roast a pork loin, so I came up with another idea instead.  After marinating it in a delicious chili lime marinade, I sliced it into thinner strips and grilled it to use with my cowboy salad.

Cowboy Pork and Bean Salad

I started off by marinating the pork loin in a chili lime sauce for about 4-5 hours.  It came out so tender and it was so full of flavor.

The Marinade

3 lb pork loin

1/3 cup lime juice

2 tsp chili powder

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp aji amarillo or gold garlic chili powder, optional

1 tsp crushed Aleppo chili peppers, option

 

Mix everything together and pour over the pork loin, then marinate for at least 2 hours in the refrigerator.

The Salad

1 can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1 cup corn

2 roasted Anaheim peppers, peeled and seeded, diced

1 jalapeno, seeded, diced fine

1/2 red bell pepper and 1/2 green bell pepper, diced fine

1/2 red onion, diced fine

1 cup grape tomatoes, cut in half

1 TBSP chopped parsley

1 TBSP chopped cilantro

lettuce

spicy tomato vinaigrette

cheddar cheese, optional

fried tortilla strips, optional

avocado slices, optional

 

Spicy Tomato Vinaigrette

4 tomatoes

1 TBSP garlic

1/3 cup red wine vinegar

1/2 cup olive oil

2 tsp black pepper

1 tsp salt

1 TBSP honey

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp crushed Aleppo chilies

1 tsp aji amarillo chilies

 

Mix everything together in a food processor until it is well blended.

 

Toss all the beans, peppers and vegetables together, adding a little of the spicy tomato vinaigrette as well.

We had our friend Gabe over for dinner.  Both he and Larry wanted cheese on their salads.  So I made it nice and cheesey for them.  Start with a bed of shredded lettuce, then add a layer of cheese and top with the bean mixture.  At this point you can put it into into the refrigerator until you are ready to finish it.

When you are ready to eat, grill the pork loin until it is done, then slice it into thin strips.

While the pork is cooking, if you want to add a bit more texture to your salad, slice a tortilla into thin strips then pan fry in hot oil for about a minute, or until they crisp up and turn golden brown.  Drain the excess grease off and immediately add a little salt and toss.

When ready to eat, add the pork strips on top of the bean mixture.  If you want more cheese, add more on top of the pork.  Top with more of the spicy tomato vinaigrette, and add the avocado slices and tortillas strips if you like, to finish off the salad.  I had some leftover pesto tomato foccaccia that I used as our bread and completed the meal with a crisp citrusy chardonnay.

We had three slightly different versions of the same salad.  Gabe went for the “full Monty” and his salad was fully loaded.  Larry does not like avocados, and I am not a big cheese eater.  So as I say all the time, make it how you like it.  After all, you are the one who is going to be eating it.  🙂

Stay safe and stay well Everyone.  ‘Til next time.

 

 

 

 

 

I am coming up with a new idea for ” A Jeanne in the Kitchen” and it involves ALL of you.  As you have noticed, I am now on YouTube and am putting out videos about once a week.  And you have also seen and noticed I wear aprons when I cook.  As creative as I am in the kitchen, I am not really all that creative when it comes to drawing.  This is where ALL of you come in.  I need your help.  I am going to have a contest and I want all of you to share your artistic skills to come up with a picture for me to use as a logo for my aprons.  Somewhere in the drawing, “A Jeanne in the Kitchen” needs to seen.  Please feel free to send in as many ideas and concepts as you like.  Send them to my email address at ljbjej@q.com  The winner will get a free apron from me.  Once we get an idea and get these aprons into production, I plan on making them available to sell.   Good luck and thank you.

 

Stay safe and stay well Everyone.  ‘Til next time.

 

I took so many pictures from our beautiful stroll along the Clear Creek that I had to break it into different parts.  Nature Walks – Part 1 – Tubing Down the Creek.  The first part was the creek itself, and all the tubers who were having so much fun.  This part is going to take us back in time; back to simpler times and the days of yore.  I really do miss those days.

Cowboys and Indians and Colorado’s spirit of the West.

Living the simple life.  The typical homes of the day.

The homes were complete with root cellars and chicken coops.

And the one-roomed schoolhouse too.

People gathered together to celebrate.

And they also took time to enjoy nature and to smell the flowers.

 

Life was simple and life was hard, but through it all, they were always strong.  Strong like lions.  Hear them roar.

After lunch, Suzanne and leisurely strolled along the Clear Creek that runs right through downtown Golden.  The whole area is so pretty and quaint.  You would think you were strolling somewhere out in the woods or in a small town rather than through a North Denver Metro suburb.  It is so peaceful and surreal.

It was a perfect day for the tubers to be out, enjoying the cool, refreshing water.  I was so jealous of them all.  They all looked like they were having such a blast.

Enjoy the ride Everyone.  Stay safe and stay well.  ‘Til next time.