Kathy's Heart, Last Booties, Thai Scarf and Two Recipes

Happy February!  I hope you had a good weekend.  I got a package in the mail from my blog friend Kathy from "Runs With Rocket" blog - she is a fabulous seamstress and made me this super gorgeous heart as a gift!  I adore it!  I think I need a "heart tree" to hang my hearts on.. don't you?  Thank you, Kathy!

Kathy works at a post office and loves cards and postcards and stamps.  She sent a card that she wrote a note in with a wonderful watercolor of Multnomah Falls Lodge.  One of the best watercolors of the lodge I've ever seen - and enclosed a blank card for me to use.  How generous!  I love it!  

We went to visit our son Shawn and his family on Saturday to hear about their trip to Phuket, Thailand.  Beth showed me photos of the wedding they attended there and a lot of the sightseeing they did.  Their hotel room was on a hillside and the whole front of it opened to a view of the ocean and their own private pool!  We sent photos from her iPad to me to post but they never showed up for some reason.  Beth brought out this gorgeous cashmere Pashmina as a gift for me - and it's just perfect with my favorite jewel tones.  Thank you, Beth!  They are continuing plans to move to Southern California.  

While we visited with them on Saturday I got one more pink bootie made and this is a photo I took of it on Sunday as I began the second bootie.  My rainbow "Lucy" bag on my lap.  I like to give credit to Lucy at Attic24 blog for inspiring me to get back into crochet and to use bright colors.  Dayle and I watched "A River Runs Through It" on TV in the afternoon.  What a wonderful movie.  

These booties are for my niece Johanna and her husband Andrew - they have a wonderful son and just welcomed a sweet little baby girl to their family.  :-)

We have had a couple really delicious meals here and I wanted to share the recipes with you.  This is an old family favorite of ours, Dayle makes them.  Sweet and Sour Meatballs over rice.  Our little grandsons gave us the thumbs up and enjoyed them immensely.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

2 lbs ground beef

4 (or more) TBS bread crumbs (Italian seasoned is what Dayle uses)

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

1 cup chopped green pepper

1 cup chopped onion

4 TBS butter

2 cans of Campbell’s condensed tomato soup

4 TBS brown sugar

8 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 TBS regular yellow mustard

2 TBS vinegar

2 small cans of crushed pineapple

Directions:  Mix beef, crumbs, egg and salt together, roll into small meatballs (1 inch in diameter), brown in frying pan until cooked through, drain on paper towel. 

Cook the green pepper and onion in butter until tender, stir in the rest of the ingredients and simmer for 10 minutes, add the meatballs into the sauce and pour all into a shallow baking dish and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  While it is baking, cook 2 cups (raw) rice, and to serve the meatballs over the rice.  Ladle the crushed pineapple over the top for the final touch.

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Yesterday Kristi tried out a new recipe in her sheet pan dinners cookbook and it was a huge hit so I thought I'd share this recipe too.  YUM!

Honey-Orange Shrimp with Baby Bok Choy

1 1/2 pounds raw shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed

1 tsp grated orange zest

1/4 cup plus 3 tbsp freshly squeezed orange juice

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsp hot sauce

1 tbsp dijon mustard

2 cloves garlic, minced

olive oil cooking spray

2 tbsp butter, melted

2 tbsp honey

1 tbsp soy sauce

pinch of red pepper flakes (I didn't use)

1lb baby bok choy, sliced lengthwise in quarters

1. Place the shrimp, orange zest, 1/4 cup of the orange juice, the olive oil, hot sauce, mustard, and garlic in a medium sized bowl or gallon size ziploc bag, and toss to combine (or seal bag and shake gently). Cover the bowl and marinate the shrimp in refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees with the rack in the center position. Mist a sheet pan with cooking spray.

3. Whisk together the butter, honey, soy sauce, red pepper flakes, and the remaining 3 tbsp orange juice in a small bowl. Place the bok choy on the sheet pan, drizzle with the dressing, and toss to coat. Spread out the bok choy in a single layer.

4. Roast the bok choy, rotating the pan halfway through, until it starts to brown and sauce begins to thicken, about 25 minutes.

5. Add the shrimp and it's marinade to the pan in a single layer over the bok choy, and roast until the shrimp are bright pink and just cooked through, an additional 8 to 10 minutes.

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Well.. a new day, a new week and a new month.  I'm off to swim soon.  What's new with you?  ((hugs)), Teresa :-)