DeDivahDeals

Fashion and Fun after Fifty

Posts Tagged ‘vegetables’

Summer Salad with Jicama & Pineapple

Hello Friends and Happy Fri-Yay!  

Summer is the perfect time to eat lighter and healthier salads so when hubby brought home a jicama, I decided to try it in a new salad recipe.  A jicama is a crispy, sweet, edible tuber that looks like a turnip but has the crispness of a pear.  When choosing one from the produce department, select a small to medium one as they are sweeter than the larger variety. jimaca - medium

This vegetable is popular in Mexican cuisine and the jicama‘s unique flavor is great in salads, salsas, and vegetable platters.  Hubby read that they also inhibits the growth and spread of colon cancer to other areas of the body so I knew it would become a part of our regular diet.  

Today’s Friday Foodie Feature

Jicama and Pineapple Salad

Summer Salad with Jicama and Pineappple

Summer Salad with Jicama

Ingredients:

Juice of 1 lime or use bottled lime juice

1 medium jicama – julienned

1/3 cup of finely chopped cilantro or 1 crushed cube of Knorr’s cilantro

1 cup of fresh cubed pineapple

After washing and peeling the jicama, cut it julienne style and mix it together with the lime juice, chopped cilantro and the pineapple chunks in a large bowl. Refrigerate an hour then serve – quick, easy, and nutritious!

I also checked online and found some other great recipes so I am looking forward to trying jicama in different dishes each week.

Jicama and Pineapple Salad

Let's Chat have you tried any new foods lately?

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Stay Blessed ~ No Stress in 2014!

BTW – don’t forget to come back at 6:00 p.m. for the Weekend Wind-Down Party!


Friday Foodie Feature – Oxtail Stew

Hello Friends and Happy Fri-Yay!

This week’s Foodie Feature is Slow Cooked Oxtail Stew

Oxtails or tails of cattle is a very popular dish in *South Africa and this bony, gelatin-rich meat is usually slow-cooked.  In our Delaware home as soon as the weather cools Oxtails are definitely on the menu-of-must-haves and this is how I slow cook mine.  

 Unfortunately the cost of Oxtails in the grocery stores can be outrageous which is why I stalk Dutch Country Farmer’s Market to get them!

Ingredients:

  • Oxtails 6-8 pieces
  • Vegetable Broth
  • Ground Ginger
  • Brown Sugar
  • Vegetables: Onions/Celery/Parsley/Carrots
  • Canned or Fresh Tomatoes – optional
  • Garlic fresh or minced
  • Oxtail Seasoning
  • Dry Beans or Lentils
  • Flour
  • Olive Oil

Put Oxtails into a plastic bag and pour in enough flour to coat, adding as little or as much of the Oxtail Seasoning, Ground Ginger and Brown Sugar according to your tastes.  Seal bag and rub all dry ingredients onto Oxtails.

Pour in just enough olive oil to cover bottom of a pan, heat on low and add coated Oxtails turning to brown on all sides.

In the meantime, chop and dice veggies

I also added a little Curry to the browning Oxtails, however, this is optional.

Remove browned Oxtails from the pan, then rinse the lentils or beans. Coat inside the Crock Pot with cooking spray for easier clean up.

Put in the Oxtails…

…add lentils or beans

…top with sliced and diced veggies

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Pour in 2 containers of broth or use water seasoned with Beef Bouillon Cubes – enough to cover all ingredients

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Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 depending on your Crock Pot/Slow Cooker

I had to work late and none of my men took pictures so I don’t have the finished product, but trust me it was good!  You can add any vegetable or potato or omit the beans and serve over rice.  No matter how you make it, it’s oh so good and filling especially on a cold winter’s night!

What is your favorite Slow Cooked Stew?

* This post was written only a few hours before Mr. Mandela’s death

RIP “Giant for Justice”

mr mandela

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Crocktober – Hearty Beef Stew

Hello Friends and Happy Fri-Yay!

Today’s Friday Foodie Feature is Hearty Beef Stew made with Crock Pot Seasonings

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Ingredients

  • 1 package Crock Pot Hearty Beef Stew Seasoning

  • 2 lbs beef for stewing

  • 5 cups of veggies – potatoes/onions/carrots

  • 1 1/3 cup of water

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Dice veggies and cube beef, however, I chose not to cut beef

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Place beef and veggies into crock pot – spray with cooking oil or use liner for easy clean-up

mix seasoning with 1 1/3 cup of water and pour over veggies and beef

Mix seasoning with 1 1/3 cup of water and pour over veggies and beef

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If you cubed beef, stir all ingredients well

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, 4 hours if on high

 Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, 4 hours if on high

Come home to a fully cooked meal with a wonderful aroma

Come home to a fully cooked meal with a wonderful aroma

Serve with biscuit to sop up the gravy!

 

Serve with biscuit to sop up the gravy!

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Plants in the Back Seat

Hello Friends and Happy Sunday

I hope you had a good weekend with an opportunity to spend quality time with your family/friends and did something fun and enjoyable.  Yesterday, I took my car in for an oil change and Malik was my chauffeur so I took full advantage by having him drive me all around town running errands – it was good being Mommy!  I had him drive me to Dunkin Donuts, Dutch Country Farmers Market, Family DollarPNC Bank and then finally to Lowe’s it was fun for me, not so much for him.

We gave him Tayair’s old car, remember the 2002 Hyundai Elantra, well you would have thought it was a new Mercedes because when he realized the plants had to ride in the back seat he wasn’t happy!  I  purchased two hanging baskets, a Color Combo Patio plant, Sweet Basil, Heirloom Tomatoes, Curled Parsley and Cilantro and they rode shotgun in the back seat fully protected by a yard of plastic – it was hilarious!

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Hanging baskets – Petunias, Calibrachoa and Lobelia

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Curled Parsley – boil and drink like tea it’s great for the digestive system

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Cilantro is a wonderful fragrant herb

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Basil also keeps the bugs away from your garden

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OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA Color Combo Welcome Plant – Bidens, Licorice Plant and Trailing Petunia

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Love the handles on these hanging baskets

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Time to check out

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The plants riding in the back seat (along with vacuum cleaner)

Today I cleaned in and around the pool and cleared out my little garden which was overrun with Mint from last year.

Before

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After

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Have a wonderful evening – Smooches!

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Easy Breezy Crockpot Meal – Chicken Tenderloins

Hello friends, I hope you are winding down from a very productive yet peaceful day. I am still tired and will be heading to bed shortly, I may even miss my favorite show, “Real Husbands of Hollywood”.

Tonight’s easy breezy crockpot meal ingredients were: chicken tenders, diced tomatoes, frozen veggies, rice, and black beans

Spray crockpot with cooking spray, layer chicken, frozen veggies and top with diced tomatoes, no other liquid is needed.

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Cover, set to low and cook for 6 hours

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I added a can of black beans and instant brown rice and let cook an additional 15 minutes

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Top with a dollop of sour cream and sprinkle of mint leaves which gave it a unique flavor

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Have a good night – Smooches!


OOTD – First Day of Autumn 2012

Hello friends and happy 1st day of Fall 2012, I hope your Saturday was a good one. My day started with my sons and later we met up with a girlfriend and her son in Dover. Malik drove and our first stop was at Spence’s Bazaar. I took my Clutch Purses down because Lolita had offered to sell them on consignment in her kiosk, God is good! We walked around taking in the sights of fall: pumpkins, gourds, mums, fresh veggies and fruits. I truly love this time of year, transitioning from the heat of summer to the crispness of fall, even though it was in the 80’s today.

Our next stop was Target, I purposely did not get a cart but in the shoe section I found yellow pumps, not the florescent ones which were so popular this summer for $8.98 a pair, and when I saw them in pink and teal I ran with a quickness to get a cart! The black patent leather and snakeskin pumps were 30% off, so I only got the black pair. I will probably go back for the snakeskin’s next week. The clearance racks were filled with some great items and I found two sheer tops which will be worn over camisoles and a Merona Pencil skirt on sale for $18.00.

My girlfriend and her son met us at Target and our next stop was Beauty Max the beauty supply store. The boys veered off into CitiTrends while she and I shopped for over an hour, found some nice units, nail polish and beauty supplies, we also took time to assist others. Using our “expertise” we helped an elderly women who is scheduled for surgery and a young lady preparing for a wedding in choosing just the right wigs.

Tired and hungry we drove to Pizzeria Uno for a late lunch. The food was excellent and the waiter was outstanding. It was a perfect start to the new season and I am looking forward to the rest of the year!

Have a fantabulous night!

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