How does my garden grow~

                                                             A floral review of my garden past and present.

                                                                       

  

And in every garden there are always a few scary spiders~

Hope you have enjoyed my garden~

The Best Barbecue Sauce Secret~

~Barbecue Sauce Love~
 The secret to getting your bbq sauce to stick to your food!

Tired of fighting to get your barbecue sauce to stick to your food? Tired of the burnt on mess it leaves in your oven and on your grill?

Read on to learn how to get the sauce to stick to your food~

 Most people brush their bbq sauce on their meat while it's on the grill..  and all it does is drip off..
 or if you have tried baking with it.. it drips off and creates a mess.
The juices from your meat cause it to slide off..
  The real deal to a thick scrumptious clingy coating of barbecue sauce is to cook, grill, bake, ect, your meat and during the last few minutes COOK YOUR SAUCE IN A SEPARATE PAN!  Let it get good and simmery.  Allow your meat rest for just a few minutes while the sauce is *cooking* on med heat for about 3-5 minutes. This does not have to be a rolling boil.
Reduce heat on the bbq sauce and allow to gently simmer, you'll see bubbles around the edges. Take your meat one piece at a time and dip it into the sauce.. roll it around to thoroughly coat and then place on your platter. do this to each piece until thoroughly coated.. if you have left over sauce pour it over the your chicken or meat on the platter, or set aside to use as dipping sauce.
There is something about cooking the bbq sauce that makes the sauce cling better.. and remember to let your ribs, chicken, pork, or whatever rest for just a few minutes.. no need to let it get cold, but letting it rest allows the juices to stop running and therefore removing the sauce!!
 For slab ribs or large pieces of meat.. after cooking place them on a baking sheet and let rest.. pour cooked sauce over ribs.
 I use Sweet Baby Ray's brand.. delicious~

LOOKIT THAT!

The Perfect Fresh Strawberries & Cream Pie

Not too long ago I noticed a Facebook post about a strawberry and cream pie. On the surface it looked good.. but as I read deeper into the recipe I noticed the only thing strawberry about it was the slices on top of the pie. Which is fine if you aren't looking for more strawberries than cream. So today, for my birthday.. I made a revised, Perfect Fresh Strawberries & Cream Pie!

Start with the Perfect Graham Cracker Crust

(this makes one crust for a regular pie dish or deep dish)

Some recipes tell you to just crush the crackers with a rolling pin in a bag..

NO NO NO!.. 

to get a nice even crisp graham cracker crust you must use your food processor. Or borrow your neighbors.. or buy one..

Not a fan of the boxed crumbs either. Trust me.

Start with 9 full size graham crackers

5 tablespoons of butter

2 Tbsp of sugar

place all in your food processor and 

process until small and sandy, crumbly looking,

then press into your pie pan. 

Bake at 375f for 9 -10 minz.. 

watch it.. don't burn it.

 Let crust cool completely. Set aside.

*

For the Strawberry Cream Cheese Filling

1 8 oz package Cream cheese, room temp

1/3 C sugar 

1tsp Vanilla extract

1/2 cup strawberry puree ( more or less)

Place the cream cheese in a bowl with the 1/3 cup sugar, vanilla, and strawberry puree, and mix until nice and smooth. set aside.

Helpful Hint. 

I added the puree after my cream cheese mixture was smooth. I continued to beat the cream cheese mixture while adding the puree a bit at a time so as not to add so much that the cream cheese mixture lost it's ability to form. You may choose to add more or less. I played it safe.

* 

 For the cream filling

1 C Heavy cream

2Tbsp sugar

In a sep mixing bowl add your heavy cream and sugar.

 Beat until very stiff peaks form.

Helpful Hint

Place you bowl and whipping attachment into the freezer and get them really cold. Your cream whips faster and prettier if it isn't battling a warm bowl.

Assemble your Perfect Fresh Strawberries and Cream Pie

Carefully spread your strawberry cream cheese mixture into the bottom of your crust.

Next spread your whipped cream onto your cream cheese filling.

 Place sliced strawberries all over the top of your pie.

***Optional: 1/2 C melted choc chips drizzled over the top of your finished pie.***

***

Now enjoy it!

List of ingredients

9 Graham crackers

5 Tbsp Butter

2 Tbsp sugar

1 8 oz pkg cream cheese

1 Cup Heavy Cream

1/3 cup Sugar

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup strawberry puree

1lb  fresh strawberries rinsed, hulled and slices evenly

( I used a small handful for the puree)

If you want a deep dish pie simply double the recipe ... not the crust.

***

 YUM