Uncategorized – Page 8 – This Old House 2

Spring on the farm and a Happy Mother’s Day to all –

This is truly the most glorious time of the year for farms, even a small one like ours. Fresh green grass in the hay fields, blooms on the fruit trees and ornamentals, the garden plants beginning to grow, perennials have made their reappearance and even multiplied, even the animals demeanor is uplifted. This particular Spring season took it’s sweet time arriving, but here she is in all her glory –

The beginnings of a Kale crop, below…

Dragon Tongue Bean plants in abundance, hooray!

These beans are a very tasty string bean, and

very attractive too, yellow and purple striped.

My son’s patch out in one of the fields –

Pumpkins and melons

These zinnia seeds were planted in a long double row

on the edge of my vegetable garden this morning after horse and chicken feeding –

we’ve got rain on the horizon.

A gift from Hilary 💓

The only tulip that bloomed this year, out of at least 50 originals.

Damned voles and grubs.

This is the look I get from the girls if I take too long

opening their coopyard door…

So they can do this…. Bug hunting

My glorious, most treasured ancient pear tree…

half hollow, with lost limbs in the recent

ice storm – Still Standing.

The behind-the-porch-lantern Purple finch babies…

Two days later –

Now – an empty nest.

Speaking of Empty Nests….

Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there –

Being a mother is truly my most treasured role in life.

I feel blessed every single day to have

my two children, both of whom I am so very proud of

for so many reasons.

AND…

for my mom, who is truly my best friend in life.

Who Woulda Thunk it… back in the days of

my mouthy teen aged self.

AND… for my aunt, who gave me a huge opportunity

to move to and reside in this part of the world

where I was eventually able to make my dreams come true.

And.. for my sister, who not only raised her own daughter

to be a smart and fearless young woman –

New Uconn Graduate! Hooray S!

… but raised someone else’s three children as well.

And.. for my mother in law –

a genuine, generous person to all.

AND.. for my children’s significant others, also a blessing,

a second set of children. I’m grateful to feel that too.

And.. how could I leave these guys out?

They complete my world, for sure.

What would Regis Do?

I was in the gym two days ago bitching to myself about how I had slacked off on my better health goals this winter, how I had not lost the extra weight yet, how I could be in better shape than this if I had more will power when it comes to food, blah blah blah…. and then in that very same moment of bitching and self anger I heard some news from a good friend that spun me around real quick 💔. Someone I worked with years ago at Unilever, a woman who had known real hardship but was a friend to everyone, regardless, who was always upbeat and had a wicked laugh that would make you instantly laugh along with her despite any struggles she had – died suddenly, too young. How I will miss her straight forward, no nonsense political banter and hearty zest for friendships and life. I am so mad I didn’t visit with her last time she was in town, or the time before that.

Sometimes in those hard places in life, besides the pain of the loss, we are reminded of what really matters. As I sat on the weight bench beating myself up over yet another thing – I thought of Regis’s outlook on life and I knew what our departed friend would say – LIFE IS SHORT. Every minute of every day is a new opportunity to get it right. Let go of the baggage and any negativity. Embrace the gift of life and don’t waste any more time on anything or anyone that will bring you down. Rise up and live your best life, in all the little and big ways that have the most meaning to you. And, finally- those you love? Tell them. Tell them today.

I had a good cry, shared a few conversations of disbelief with other friends of Regis, and set myself back on track with my health goals, right then and there. Indeed – each minute of each day a new opportunity to get it right, and to appreciate all that is good.

Rest in Peace, Regis –

If there is a Heaven,

you are certainly in it bringing them

all up to speed on current events

with a big dose of humor thrown in.

Chris and Jeter, of course, by your side.

The Elephant Trunk Flea Market

Yesterday was a drizzly grey experience here in New England, the typical Spring day we are actually happy to see now that the Big Chill has left the area. Holy hell, that was one long cold winter….

Anyway – the Mr. and I went on a little rainy day junk hunting adventure about a 1.5 hour drive to the South West of us to The Elephant Trunk Flea Market in New Milford, CT. The “ET” has been in operation since 1976 , open Sundays from March to October, rain or shine. In over 40 years time, the market has grown from just 15 vendors to over 500 on a good day – with food trucks galore from all over the East Coast. It is a popular filming location for Lara of Good Morning America, Flea Market Flip. We saw the film crew in action, rain didn’t deter them at all. For more information, visit www.etflea.com. If you live within a few hours drive and it’s a nice sunny day, I highly recommend the road trip. Due to the rain and very muddy isles, the crowds were small and some vendors didn’t show up – things were a bit soggy, but I can see that on a sunny day, the place is a booming goldmine if you love treasure hunts like this.

Metal sculpture above – I almost bought a fish for Stella.

Why didn’t I? *sigh

The headboard below is a very unique mix of wood varieties.

My only treasure for the day was a sphere of flourite from this vendor –

I hope I convinced this fellow below to join our Artisan Market at Parmelee Farm in September. More on that in a future post.

I’ve asked this fellow to join us as well…

These weathered chippy old sage green doors would be a beautiful backdrop for something – portraits, even!

Here’s Lara’s film crew working through the rain.

On the way home, we had lunch at Maggie McFly’s – a great chain restaurant here in Connecticut that has an extensive American fare menu and prides itself on using local sources for produce, etc. to help support the communities around it. I love that concept. I think they’ve just branched out to New Jersey also – if you’re near one, I recommend the dining experience. On the menu it will tell you where the honey in your dish came from (Three Sisters Farm, Essex, CT), and there are many other examples such as that.

Have a good day, All – and thank you for stopping by.

Seaside Gardening

Last year was *renovation year *for Stella – we had a lot of work to do, the smaller details had to wait. Because the entire 300 acre parcel of land that these cottages sit on used to be home to many cows, still is on a portion inland, the soil is rich. Many of the cottages on island have little gardens, right now the daffodils planted along the little roads and in cottage gardens are in full bloom, some tulips too.

Stella’s street side…

This year I want to concentrate a little more on the garden spots around our cottage. The past few days have been in the 80’s – wow! .. and that allowed me to get some serious gardening done. I went to a nearby garden center and picked up a flat of hot pink geraniums for the pots around the place.

Those two chubby toads came with the place..

I didn’t have it in me to kick them out.

On the street side, I planted a few varieties of Iris and purple balloon flower to blend with the Astilbe, hosta, hydrangea and something with a name I can’t remember but given to me by our dear friend, BJ, just down the road. I also bought a bird bath which Momma Robin up in the porch has been using frequently. She’s not happy we’ve returned.

There’s a perfectly good and quite charming birdhouse installed just 15 feet away in the large oak tree. For whatever the reason, the birds ignore it completely, go figure.

Below is Stella’s waterfront, as seen from our neighbor’s yard.

We’ve got a grub situation, so the Type A husband who likes the perfect

lawn is a bit frustrated with the patchy look.

I say life’s too short to care about perfect lawn.

He’s having none of it and is down there

this morning tackling the grubs.
May the force be with him.

In the firepit garden I have planted some Speedwell and

Red Jewel to blend with the daisies I took from This Old House

and Alium and native cranberry bushes.

Within a few years this should all fill in nicely, with something

always in bloom throughout the summer.

Sage and Lavender grow in a little patch on the other side

of the patio.

I also spent the last few days washing down surfaces, mopping floors,

running throw rugs and towels etc. through the washer,

making beds and dusting furniture.

We’re still waiting for the new couch and recliner to be delivered –

And the refrigerator is stocked with water, gatorade, coke, dove ice cream bars, hotdogs, hamburgers, cheddar, condiments and beer, just the bare necessities to get the season started. We also have enough toilet paper and paper towels for the next generation of inhabitants. Notice a globe missing from the light in the ceiling. Yep, sometimes, you think you’re doing a good thing, and then you drop the globe in the sink just to add some excitement. Fingers crossed they still make replacement globes for what I call the spider light.

Sharing a few summer recipes I am going to serve

on Stella’s deck this summer

– found them on pinterest

(not my photos or recipes!)

We’re all trying to make healthier food choices –

these fit the bill and are refreshing on hot summer days.

Summer Corn Avocado Black Bean Dip

Garlic Parmesan Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Watermelon Spa Smoothie

Found on Pinterest

Ingredients

- 1 cup chopped watermelon
- ½ cup chopped peeled cucumber
- 6 ice cubes
- Squeeze of lime juice
- 2 teaspoons agave nectar (optional)
- 1 tablespoon mint leaves for garnish

Directions

1Combine watermelon, cucumber, ice cubes, lime juice and agave (if using) in a blender. Puree until smooth. Garnish with mint, if desired.

Mom says it best

Lately I’ve tried to stay out of the political fray because I am so very tired of the bickering amongst we the people, let alone our governing forces. Who would have ever thought we’d see such a polarizing POTUS….or that he could get away with so much utter crap. (how about that forged doctors letter! – that is just bizarre). One small comfort I take is – our government needed a shake up. It needed a reality check – we the people were not being represented in our best interests for a variety of reasons and in several big arenas. TR*MP isn’t wrong in calling out some of the very big issues we have faced for years and have not fixed. The following came up and I want to share it, even though I’ve been enjoying the hiatus – which I’m returning to after this post, lol. I welcome opposing views as long as comments are respectful.

I’ve spoken here before about living in a house politically divided. I’m not affiliated with a particular party because I’m one of those who walks the middle ground in my views on a lot of issues, so that helps just a smidge. Until the election of DT – because TR*MP. So, in order to avoid World War 3 on a small scale up here in this house, we don’t talk politics often. The other day, the Mr. thought Dr. Charles Kra*thammer shared an opinion that should please us all and he sent it to my mother and I. Turns out the piece is falsely credited, the author was actually another political columnist. If you’re interested in that piece.. you can find it HERE. with the snopes correction.

Since he threw down the gauntlet and started the conversation, we both replied politely (really!) on what we thought of the piece. My mom said it best – and I’ll share it here with you. In it’s simplest form, the piece calls TR*MP a pragmatist, not a republican or democrat, who is just what this country needed. It was clearly written by a conservative republican, because while it lays blame on both parties for the ills of our society today (I agree!!) it labels Cl*nton and Sanders as Crazies trying to out crazy each other and speaks of being liberal as if it’s a disease. While I didn’t agree with Cl*nton and Sanders on all points, nor do I think Cl*nton was a stellar choice for President, they certainly aren’t lunatics in any sense of the word and being liberal is no more a disease than being a conservative republican. There’s another little blurb about those of us who haven’t achieved greatness or -done anything ! – we apparently can’t understand or appreciate true greatness and the confidence 45 displays because we haven’t achieved anything – (wow, dude).

Anyway – my mother’s response to the piece in the link above……

I agree that Trump is not a Conservative. He is a pragmatist in the
sense that what is good for him is what he wants. He is also a
pragmatist in the sense that he will keep on the issues that he feels
will keep his base loving him. There is no question in my mind that
both established parties have left the mass of the people behind,
sometimes out of ignorance, sometimes out of arrogance,often just to
ensure they got rich.

We need a new paradigm for the new age we are
facing. Globalism is not going away unless there is a planet wide
catastrophe. I see that as being a viral or bacterial pandemic, nuclear
war, or the more gradual effects of unaddressed global warming.
Pragmatism and straight talking is helpful, but that is not what we are
getting and I think the author of the piece knows that. What we’ve got is a bull in
a china shop thrashing around. He may break some things that need to be
broken but he is not discriminating. Breaking the Justice Department and
the FBI will have consequences. Encouraging the dog whistles of racism
will have consequences. Hyper-divisiveness will have consequences.

We are hopefully in for a sea change in our political life over the
next decade and if it is more pragmatic, transparent, and genuinely
aimed at strengthening the economic position of the middle and working
class, then we will all be better off. The other possible changes of
which there are signs around the world are less democracy and more
fascism. We are at a tipping point and could go either way. Trump by his
very nature leans fascist.

Well said, mom. Thank you –

Glorious Day!

Glorious morning turned to a glorious day! – even the chickens were excited when I turned them out for a few hours while doing barn chores. Bugs everywhere ! – a chickens dream come true.

It feels so darn good to MOW THE LAWN again! I wasn’t sure mother nature was ever gonna let that happen , like.. ever.. again! I don’t mow the lawn here at the farm – it’s acres worth so I leave that up to the menfolk. But Stella – well, her little postage stamp grass plot is totally doable – even with a manual push mower – you remember those, don’t ya? I get a lot of satisfaction out of that little chore, believe it or not.

Once the water is turned on for the season (any day now) we’ll spend more time down there giving her a thorough Spring Cleaning and some repair work to the cement dock/launch pad.

I did this again too –

I actually felt guilty sitting down at waters edge for no more than 15 minutes, knowing I had chores waiting for me here at home – how silly is that? Truly – we all need to grant ourselves permission to stop and smell the roses – for more than 15 seconds. The recharge is necessary for our well being, our sanity. Why all the effort if we can’t relax and enjoy the fruits of our labor? Does it sound like I’m trying to convince myself here? Yep and yep again.

I discovered there are now FOUR eggs in the porch nest at the cottage – and they are Robin eggs, not a catbird. Momma Robin was there today very annoyed with the racket I was making.

Meanwhile, back at the farm – this picture taken just minutes ago of the Purple Finch babies in the nest behind the lantern porch outside my office door. Can you believe the difference in just a few days? Birds are amazing for so many reasons.

Do you like to cook? I ordered this cookbook on Amazon, have already made three recipes out of it, and it is my favorite already. This is gooood home cooking from scratch but not too complicated.. absolutely delicious, fresh food. I am not paid to say anything on my blog, no ads here, just honest recommendation when I find something I love.

So far, the Parker House Rolls (so damned good they oughta be illegal – you know, that buttery, crusty, salty combination of a good roll that melts in your mouth – so good it’s bad! ) , Beef Chili and Chicken Cacciatore are divine! Delish! Picky Husband approved! And there is everything in this book, from apps to soups to salads, dinners, desserts and even drinks…

Some moon shots I took the other night – still learning some of the more technical settings that would require manual reading – bleh, not a strong suit of mine, map reading, ditto – thank the lord for Nav in the car. …. .

Today – My husband just returning home from a long day of work, and this is what I saw –

Apparently sometimes those last 30 steps to the house are just too much….

So go… sit for a spell – somewhere that brings you peace of mind. Someplace that lets you breathe deep and exhale slowly. Thank the powers that be and your own power – for all that is good. Don’t forget to record the moment and take a selfie without worry of no-makeup and unbrushed hair and wrinkles and fat rolls .. and.. and. Because we’re just so damned lucky to be alive and relatively well. That’s the cake – The rest is icing.

Till soon –

Cottage Days

Yesterday was glorious – the sun shown bright and it’s warmth on our skin was a much needed reprieve from what has been a very long, cold winter into spring.

M and I went down to Stella and cleaned out the rest of the little perennial beds and raked the lawn yesterday. What’s truly awesome about a little place like this is, it takes very little time to winterize, and open her up for the season. Little accents like fresh annuals in the pots, now refurbished with new soil, and a few more perennials to fill out the beds will come around Mother’s Day – the usual ‘safe date’ for spring planting in New England. Come Mother’s Day, the garden centers around here are bustling with people itching to get out in the garden and add some color to the ‘scape.

The forsythia is finally blooming, daylilies making their way up….

And the hosta is returning, having multiplied some.

We have a Catbird nest and so far, one egg on Stella’s porch…

I am so happy to see how very clear the water has been this year in our cove, therefore the Sound and out to the Atlantic. The Save The Sound efforts of the last 20 or so years have been successful. Any improvements in our environment are something huge to celebrate.

After this winter’s ice storms, we need to repair our cement “deck” down at the waterfront. The ice broke it up pretty good – those repairs will happen soon and a hand rail will be installed so swimming and kayak launching will be a little easier. The water was so clean and the temps warm enough to tempt me to test the waters, so to speak.

These were Happy Feet –

for about 30 seconds.

We came home to find our son out in the garden, planting the artichokes he had begun from seed. Kale already growing in two rows. I joined him, soaked some Dragon tongue beans in water while I sowed two rows – and planted those seeds as well. Are we a bit hasty? I hope not. As you can see, the leaves aren’t even out on the trees yet – just the red haze of buds that are a promise.

This morning, rain again.

Frasier, Sally and Bailey have the right idea, I think.

I’m going to try like hell to resist

the urge to bake something.

Because the eating of it would come next.

Will power of a flea, truth.

I’m also trying to ignore the urge to rant about
that egomaniac who can’t shut his own mouth
long enough to pay decent tribute to Olympic athletes
without insulting them.
*hard to watch ….
actually, my description for this entire 45 Presidency
can be described with those three little words.

Have a good day, All – thanks for stopping by.

A Sense of Place

According to wikipedia, that term has several meanings, a sense of place. I relate it to a feeling of belonging, of being comfortable, contented where you are. While I enjoyed my childhood neighborhood and Staten Island upbringing, I knew from a young age it was not where I was meant to settle. As soon as I was old enough, I hightailed it to where I wanted my roots to take hold… in a more rural setting. The rub in the want for “rural” is that I also couldn’t imagine being too far away from the water. I had family in Connecticut I could live with temporarily so I was very fortunate to land in a good mix of a country setting near shore life. 34 years later, I’m still here… just a half mile down the same road from where I came in for a landing all those years ago. I’ve had no regrets.

I loved reading your comments yesterday, learning a little about you and where you’re from, where you find your sense of place, and in a few cases, where you long to be. It’s clear in many of your answers, you have also found your sense of place, in some instances right where you’ve been all along. It’s a good feeling, a settled feeling, one that helps balance out all the other aspects of a life.

I also find my sense of place in the act of caring, always have. It started with my childhood pets, then an abandoned race horse I adopted and brought with me to CT… Every nickel I could rub together with another back then went to the care and comfort of my horse and gas in my car, let me tell ya. Wasn’t the most sensible thing to do but I managed alright regardless.

Shortly after, we started our family, my husband grew his business and we built a small horse farm – and I’ve been tending family and farm needs ever since, sprinkled with part time jobs and volunteer work, a short stint as an Artisan store owner, and 7 years as editor of our small local news source. I am forever grateful that I was able to raise my children as a stay at home mom. It occurs to me that I could have done more with myself by other people’s standards. I haven’t closed the door on that possibility yet – although being 3/4 deaf makes a few things much more difficult. But what I have been doing, what I do now… well, I feel at home, I feel I’m where I’m supposed to be, I feel productive – and that’s a gift, a real blessing I appreciate whole heartedly, will not allow myself to undervalue or overlook. I’m wishing you the same.

This morning I was reminded of all this as I worked my way through morning chores – Cloud, our rabbit who lives next to the Chickens got a freshly raked yard and was thrilled to be out in it after yesterday’s rain.

Old Max, Below – now 32 years old!… got a good shedding out, too.

Owned by a friend, he has been here with us for 7 years now.

He can no longer chew hay, his teeth ground down to almost nothing.

He gives it the old college try but it inevitably ends up

clumped around him, so we pump him up with three different grains and

grass out in the fields, which sustains the old boy pretty well.

The side porch that we all use most of the time to come and go from has an interesting new development. See the trellis with gate? It’s covered in New Dawn roses now, just a beautiful sight when it blooms. Robins are not the smartest of birds, I’ve concluded over the years. We often find Robin nests in less than desirable places, clearly they are confused by their Sense of place.. or lack thereof. A pair are currently building a nest right in the busy traffic lane here at This Old House.

They are undeterred by our comings and goings from the gate in the center of the trellis, inches from their nest. I’ll keep you posted on their.. tenacity? Stubbornness? Stupidity, but that’s such an unkind word.

Meanwhile, just a few feet from my desk out the window here on the front porch – the purple finch babies behind the lantern have hatched!

Speaking of birds and nests, the girlchild is coming home to our nest tonight

to have dinner with the ‘rents. I love when that happens.

I’ve got that Mountain Dew (Sprite) cake

on the counter just waiting, because Mama Bird I will always be.

Till soon, friends –

Thank you for stopping by 🙂

What’s Soda got to do with it?

A long time ago we were big soda drinkers. A staple on my husband’s family’s dinner table when he was young – a bottle of orange or coke or rootbeer soda. We smartened up years ago, and only occasionally enjoy the original Coke or a good Root Beer. But.. there are some fun recipes that are thoroughly enhanced by the addition of soda, like this cake below, using (my teeth ache just thinking about drinking this stuff) Mountain Dew! This is a nice light cake – not good for you at all in the healthful eating sense, but sometimes you just gotta give yourself a treat that has no other benefit than the YUM factor. Because CAKE.

Mountain Dew Bundt Cake

Ingredients

1 box Duncan Hines Lemon Supreme cake mix

1 (3.4 ounce) box Lemon Jell-O instant pudding mix

4 large eggs

1 (12 ounce) can Mountain Dew (equal to 1 1/2 cups if you’re pouring from a bottle of pop)
** I used Sprite instead of Mountain Dew

1/2 cup oil

Glaze

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 cup sugar
10. 1/2 cup Mountain Dew

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. (yep, 325) Grease and flour a 10-cup Bundt cake pan/tube pan
. In a large bowl, combine the cake mix with the pudding mix. Add the eggs and oil, then
slowly add the Mountain Dew. Mix at medium speed until blended. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 45-50 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in
the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for five minutes, then transfer cake to a wire rack.

Glaze directions: While cake is still slightly warm, melt 1/2 cup unsalted butter in a saucepan over low heat.
Add 1 cup of sugar and 1/2 cup Mountain Dew to the melted butter. Turn up heat and bring to
a boil, stirring often. Boil for two minutes and remove from heat.
8. Poke holes in cake with a wooden skewer or the tines of a fork, then spoon hot glaze over
cake. Cool completely before serving.

This photo, taken at Barbara Bush’s funeral services, makes me smile for several reasons. And that’s all I’m going to say about that.

*yesterday he was admitted to the ICU, doesn’t surprise me that he

might go so shortly after her passing. They were a team in every sense

of the word. Life without her must be unimaginable for him.

I’ve been debating changing blog platforms to WordPress, simply because Blogger is free and powered by Google and therefore there are no guarantees it will be around forever – think of seven years of blogging all gone should they decide to fold. Anyone out there have experience with WordPress? Opinion? It seems like it might be more technical than I’d like. I am NOT tech savvy, and blogger has been relatively easy.

Another blogger with a much larger following posed the question – where are you from? I enjoyed reading the answers and learning where her many readers hail from and live now. So, I’d like to do that here. Years ago this blog had a lot more traffic as we documented the resurrection of The Old House. Now, on average, approximately 150 readers stop by here daily as you browse blogs and a handful of you leave comments on occasion, which I enjoy reading. If you’re so inclined, in the comments, leave your city or state or town of origin, other areas you’ve lived and where you live now (just what you’re comfortable with). I’d love to hear from you.

It’s a new day, all – let’s make it a good one. PS – the sun is SHINING here again today – Amen!

Here Comes the Sun

Little darling, it feels like years since it’s been here
Here comes the sun
Here comes the sun, and I say
It’s all right

Star magnolia tree in our side yard,

a mother’s day gift from my daughter

a few years back 💗

We are rejoicing in the reappearance of the sun. Temps are still on the chilly side.. but we have green. We have warmth, we have that golden glow in the sky. Amen.

The chickens are sun and dust bathing again…

The horses grazing…

We have a little side deck off the kitchen sliders – the wood heats up when the sun is out and ooh, does it feel good to lay out there, back pressed to the wood, soaking up the rays – which we did quite a bit of yesterday, me and the dogs, and for ten mintues, even the husband.

The grass is greening up, the horses are shedding their winter coats and birds are nest building with some of that horse hair. Egg laying has commenced.

Purple finch eggs behind our porch lantern

The forsythia is just beginning to bloom, weeks late, ever so hesitantly – and daffodils that are not planted in the shade are blooming. The others still need convincing. The seeds my guys planted are out in the little greenhouse sprouting away, too soon to safely live out in the garden plot, so we wait. These below are purple peppers I ordered from Bakers Heirloom Seed Co. I look forward to tasting this new-to-me variety come summer.

I was never overly fond of the Bush Family, but I have certainly admired Barbara Bush for her strength and tenacity, dedication to literacy of our children, her devotion to her family and to the grace and dignity she brought to her position over the years. May she rest in peace –

Let me tell ya – we can laugh about the following little ditty… but it’s absolutely true up here in this house.

Sharing this Good-For-You meal found in Family Circle, perfect for Spring and Summer –

Zucchini Noodles with Asparagus, Peas and Bacon

1/2 pound asparagus

1 yellow pepper, seeded

8 ounces bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces

2 pounds spiralized zucchini

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 cup milk

2 large cloves garlic, grated

1 cup frozen peas, thawed

1/4 cup basil, very thinly sliced

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1Trim woody ends from asparagus and peel bottom 2 inches if needed; slice on the bias into 1/4-inch-thick pieces, leaving tips intact. Cut pepper lengthwise into 8 pieces, then slice crosswise into 1/4-inch strips.

2Heat a large stainless skillet over medium. Add bacon and cook until crispy, 8 to 9 minutes. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate. Pour off bacon fat, then return 2 tbsp fat to skillet.

3Meanwhile, heat a large nonstick skillet over medium and cook zucchini and 1/4 tsp salt, covered, until crisp-tender, 5 to 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. Drain zucchini.

4Add yellow pepper to bacon fat; cook 1 minute. Add asparagus; cook 1 minute more. Sprinkle vegetables with flour and cook 30 seconds, stirring well.

5Stir in milk and garlic. Add peas and half each of the bacon and basil. Cook until sauce thickens, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat.

6Add zucchini, 1/4 tsp salt and the black pepper, and toss to coat. Transfer to a serving dish and sprinkle with remaining basil and bacon. Serve immediately.

Have a good day, all – and thank you for stopping by.