Sunday, July 18, 2010

Sunflowers and Salsa

It was another hot and humid weekend so pretty low key here. So low key its hardly worth blogging about yet, here I am. We didn't do too much which is kind of what the hubs needed....I've said a time or ten that his schedule has been Ka-Razy lately.

Friday night we went out with friends for Mexican food. Their oldest daughter is getting married later this summer and after talking to them I felt like I should go home and vacuum the sofa for loose change because apparently, with two daughters we're gonna need it.

Saturday morning we went to check out a local farmers market. To be honest it wasn't any better than our local farm stands of which there are many. Lots and lots of farms in this part of North Jersey so I can pretty much pick up fresh fruit and veggies any which way I turn. And I know bears and farms are not what you think of when you hear the word 'Jersey' but hey people, the nickname 'Garden State' had to come from somewhere.

I remembered to bring my camera along because I wanted to get a picture of a field that is only about a mile from our house. I don't remember this field looking so lovely last July but maybe we were still in our post-relocation fog and it just didn't register. I can't believe that could be true because it qualifies for one of my favorite words...spectacular-


And NJ Dept. of Tourism really should be paying me a stipend for all the free advertising they get on this little blog don't ya think?

In other exciting yawn weekend news...my girls got me a subscription to Southern Living as part of my Mother's Day gift and I received my first issue last week. I always love their recipes and wanted to try the blueberry salsa. It's delish...and easy...and the recipe follows. Enjoy!

Blueberry Salsa
2 cups coarsely chopped fresh blueberries
1 cup whole fresh blueberries
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
3 Tbsp. chopped cilantro (I will use slightly less next time)
2 seeded and minced jalapeno peppers
1/3 cup diced red bell pepper
1/2 tsp kosher salt


Toss together in a large bowl...


and serve immediately or chill 8 hours...


Happy Monday!

15 comments:

  1. Ooooh, I've never heard of Blueberry Salsa. Sounds yummy and I think I will have to give it a try.

    And yes, I do believe Mr Christie should be giving you some money for your advertisements, but do to budget cuts that is not possible:) :)

    What a beautiful picture BTW.

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  2. Your salsa looks so yummy and I think blueberries are on sale at the store this week. Sounds like a plan to me!

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  3. The picture of the sunflower field is BEAUTIFUL. I can't imagine how beautiful it is in person!

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  4. Thanks for your sweet encouragement this morning!

    Blueberry Salsa...hmmmm. It was colorful! I would TASTE it. :)

    Loved the field picture. Wow. You should get a stipend. We went to a wedding in June in NJ and I saw a lot of beautiful countryside. Thanks for sharing it with us.

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  5. I've never been to NJ, and I'll admit that sunflowers and farmer's markets aren't the first thing that come to mind so maybe they SHOULD be paying you!

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  6. The salsa's been on my "to make" list for a few weeks. Sadly, my blueberries are a little past cute for that recipe and are winding up as syrup.

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  7. Beautiful sunflowers! I'm so glad your magazine got there, a little taste of the south for you! July is flying by you're going to be down here is just 2 more weeks! I love you!

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  8. Love the sunflowers! I bet they are even prettier than in the picture. Low key weekends are good sometimes.
    We have some sun today, so we´re happy about that!
    Have a good day Joyce!

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  9. Those sunflowers are gorgeous! And I want some salsa!

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  10. The picture of the sunflower is beautiful. And the pictures of the salsa? You should become a food stager! (or whatever they're called)

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  11. Two things:
    One:
    I spent all day in conference with a highly visible research firm and they were only too quick to point out how useful "mommy bloggers" content is for parametric analytics. When the conversation turned to just what is valuable in a mommy blog, guess the specific blog that came to the top of my mindshare? Alas, it is quite likely that the NJ Board of Tourism IS indirectly paying for your content :-)
    B: I was told the rule of thumb for a wedding is equal to one year tuition, room and board. Perhaps you should request a direct payment from the brands that appear in your blogs!

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  12. What a beautiful picture of the field of sunflowers! Those pics of that salsa look pretty good, too:)

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  13. The field is beautiful, my favorite flower!
    Wow that salsa sounds different, I will have to try it.

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  14. Oh, Joyce! Those sunflowers ARE spectacular indeed! At one time, the ODOT had planted big patches of sunflowers intermittently in the median and in the triangular pieces of ground where there were access ramps off Interstate 71 here in Ohio. They were absolutely gorgeous. But I've not seen them for a few years. Budget cuts, I suppose. :-)
    Hmmm...I don't know about the blueberry salsa. I just can't imagine the taste BUT you just never know. I may be brave and give it a try!! I can always give it to someone as a gift if we don't care for it, hm? :-)
    Daniel and Erin went the conservative route on their wedding for which both of their families will be eternally grateful! :-) It was still so beautiful!! BUT a fortune can indeed be spent on holy matrimony! Egads!!! :-)

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