The Sweet Life: What's on the Menu?

Guess who is back? Back again?

I do sincerely apologize for my absentee blogger status...you know life takes priority and with so much going on in life right now, I have been savoring the family time when able.

I cannot believe my sweet, precious, little girl is starting her last year of preschool this year.

Not only am I happy-sad that she is growing up so fast into such an awesome little girl, but I am sad to only have one year left at what I consider the most awesome preschool on the planet.

Mark's been busy with the height of polo season.

A couple of weeks ago he scored three goals in a row and I was actually there to see it!

Monday: Pork Medallions with Balsamic Vinegar and Capers, Roasted Potatoes (for the Carb eaters in my house), and Spinach Salad

Tuesday: Out to Eat or Leftovers - Parent Night at the Preschool

Wednesday: Smothered Chicken, Steamed Broccoli, and Fruit

Thursday: Sandwiches for a Picnic at the Barn

Friday: Flank Steak with Herbed Potatoes and Green Beans

Saturday: Out to Eat
Sunday: Small Group Meal

Monday: Weekly Menu

Tuesday: Easy Coconut Pie

Wednesday: Back-to-School Fun

Thursday: Best steak Marinade

Friday: Sweet Thoughts

What are you guys up to this week?

I want to hear from YOU! What recipes, tutorials or projects would you like to see next week?

Ever have questions or want to request a recipe or tutorial, comment or email me at deepsouthsweets@gmail.com. You can also visit Deep South Sweets on Facebook or follow me on Pinterest!

Deep South Words to Live By: August 2012

At my church, we have a program for our college students called Catalyst.

As a part of Catalyst, we have teamed up to give each college student an "advocate".

Someone that is praying for them daily and always being a listening ear.

My student and I have really hit it off and I was looking for a verse for her before she left on a mission trip.

This verse has resonated with me since then and I hope it touches each of you as it has me!

Missed a month?

January - February - March - April - May - June - July

What are your words that you are living by right now?

Ever have questions or want to request a recipe or tutorial, comment or email me at deepsouthsweets@gmail.com. You can also visit Deep South Sweets on Facebook or follow me on Pinterest!

Deep South Eats: Garlic Grilled Tomatoes

We love to grill during the summer months. There is nothing quite as satisfying as a fantastic marinated steak with crisp summer vegetables. We are always adventurous in throwing a wide variety of vegetables and fruit (for desserts) on the grill. Moving away from our standard marinated, grilled green beans, we went wild for a new recipe of grilled tomatoes. These were jaw-dropping, drool-face fantastic. They were so simple to throw on the grill with our steaks and packed with savory garlic flavor.

Ingredients:

• 6 ripe tomatoes, plum tomatoes preferably
• Coarse salt
• Black pepper
• 6 cloves of garlic
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2-3 Tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 Tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

Directions:

• Preheat grill to high.
• Slice tomatoes in half. Use your finger to gently scoop the seeds and pulp out of the tomato. Season tomato halves with salt and pepper.
• Peel and mince garlic. Heat the oil in a small frying pan over medium heat. Add garlic to heated oil and saute until golden brown, about 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from heat and pour garlic into a heatproof bowl and mix in Parmesan cheese and fresh thyme leaves.
• Brush grill grates with olive oil and place the tomatoes cut side down directly onto the grill grate. Grill for 3 to 5 minutes, rotating them after 2 minutes 45 degrees to create crosshatch grill marks.
• Turn tomatoes with grill safe tongs to cut side up and spoon garlic-cheese mixture over the tops of the tomatoes.
• Continue grilling until garlic cheese mixture is bubbly and browned.
• Enjoy!

Original recipe from Proud Italian Cook.

Ever have cooking questions or want to request a recipe, comment or email me at deepsouthsweets@gmail.com. You can also visit Deep South Sweets on Facebook or follow me on Pinterest!  

Deep South Eats: Pan Seared Chicken with Balsamic Cream Sauce

One of my biggest fears of starting Metabolism Miracle was that I would not be able to enjoy great food. I had an irrational fear of my love of cooking suffering in a huge way. In actuality, I am expanding my cooking in leaps and bounds and trying recipes that I probably was not adventurous enough to try in the first place.

This recipe struck my fancy on Pinterest long before I was interested in Metabolism Miracle. I was ecstatic when I clicked the link to discover a entire low carb blog paradise. This a great meal for beginner cooks to expand their horizons. While a bit labor intensive, the results are worth a full days work. It was honestly one of the best meals I have put in my mouth in a long time. It well exceeded my expectations and was better than many restaurant chicken dishes I have eaten. The plates in our house needed no washing following dinner this night as we had licked them clean. I served the Pan Seared Chicken with Balsamic Cream with a Spinach Salad and Roasted Potatoes for the carbivores living in my home.

Ingredients:

• 3 to 4 chicken breasts
• 1/2 large onion, slice thinly
• 1 package sliced mushrooms (usually around 8 to 10 ounces), washed
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 1 cup heavy cream (feel free to substitute half and half)
• 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
• 2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar
• salt and pepper

Directions:

• Melt 2 Tablespoons of butter in a small saute pan over medium heat. Saute sliced onions in melted butter until caramelized and golden brown, approximately 15 minutes. Remove pan from the heat and set aside.
• In a separate large saute pan, heat the remaining 3 Tablespoons of butter over medium-high heat. Place chicken breasts in the pan and brown on both sides. Removed from pan and set aside. They will not be cooked through at this point but golden brown on both sides.
• Pour chicken broth into pan to deglaze the pan. Use a spatula to scrape up the browned bits at the bottom of the pan.
• Add the heavy cream and balsamic vinegar to the pan and stir to combine.
• Add the sliced mushrooms to the cream sauce and a little salt and pepper. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Add the chicken back to the cream sauce and turn the heat up to medium and saute for 10-15 minutes until chicken is cooked through.
• Remove the chicken breasts from the pan and plate for serving. Add the Parmesan cheese and caramelized onion to the sauce and continue stirring until the cheese is melted and well-combined.
• Spoon sauce over plated chicken breast and serve.

Original Recipe from Peace, Love, and Low Carb.

Ever have cooking questions or want to request a recipe, comment or email me at deepsouthsweets@gmail.com. You can also visit Deep South Sweets on Facebook or follow me on Pinterest!