Happy Easter

  I was MIA at Paint Party Friday last week, one of the very few times I've missed...because I was at the beach!! Not once did I look on a computer so it was a nice break to be "unplugged". My girlfriends and I mostly went to do a thorough Spring cleaning of the house, and we worked very hard but also took the time to walk on the beach each day, and enjoy fabulous dinners we took turns cooking in the evenings.

          It was so wonderful to be able to have breakfast and coffee on the deck each morning.

  After some hours of cleaning we took nice walks on the beach and found a few special treasures:

  There were many horseshoe crab shells-mostly baby ones which we hadn't seen here. Kinda sad. They must have been swept ashore by stormy waves and weren't able to make their way back to the ocean.

 We ate very well each night, had a bottle of wine with our dinners, and then champagne on the last night to celebrate all our hard work in making this gorgeous house sparkle and shine again.

 I made a Panko Mustard Crusted salmon, green beans with lemon vinaigrette and red quinoa with spinach and mushrooms one night.


      (RECIPES AT END OF POST)

   And on the last night I made Chicken Piccata, sweet potatoes and spinach sauteed with garlic, white wine, olive oil and lemon.






 And best of all we didn't gain a single pound because we worked it all off during the day:)

 I did manage to get some simple lettering practice pages done in my journal but that will have to wait til I photograph them. In the meantime this is my April calendar spread done as prompted by the Draw Your Awesome Year class.

  The initial Pitt pen layout:

  and with the watercolor paints added:

                              I am caught up and the days are journaled in up to today.

  

  To all who will be celebrating the Easter holiday this Sunday, I wish you and your loved ones a joyous day. I will be hosting a small, very casual dinner for some family and a dear friend. But I will be stopping by to see as many of you as I can in between preparations. Thanks to EVA and Kristin for hosting Paint Party Friday, along with all the inspiring artists who share their creativity with all of us!

                   " April hath put a spirit of youth in everything."     William Shakespeare

                                               Panko Crusted Salmon (serves 4 )

   2/3 c. panko breadcrumbs       2 Tbsp. olive oil          4 salmon filets        salt, pepper

  1 tsp. grated lemon zest      2  Tbsp. Dijon mustard       2 Tbsp. olive oil      parsley

    In sm. bowl mix together panko, parsley, lemon zest, 1/2 tsp. salt, 1/2 tsp. pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and stir til crumbs are evenly coated. Set aside.
    Place salmon filets in a baking dish. Generously brush tops of salmon with mustard then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Press panko mixture thickly on top of the mustard on each salmon filet. Bake in 375 F preheated oven 10 - 15 min.


                                                   Chicken Piccata (serves 2 )

  2 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut in half, pounded into cutlets      1 tsp. minced garlic

  flour      1/2 c. low sodium chicken broth     2 Tbsp. oil       2 Tbsp. lemon jc.     parsley

  1 Tbsp. capers        1/4 c. dry white wine       2 Tbsp. butter      fresh lemon slices

   Season cutlets with salt and pepper; dredge in flour. Add oil to pan, heat and sauté cutlets 2 -3 min. one side. Flip and sauté covered 1 -2 min. Transfer to warm platter. Deglaze pan with wine and garlic about 2 min. Add broth, lemon jc. and capers. Return cutlets to pan and cook on ea. side 1 min. Transfer cutlets to warm plates. Finish sauce with butter and lemons. Pour sauce over cutlets. Garnish with parsley and serve. Note- I use Smart Balance instead of regular butter


                                   Red Quinoa with Spinach and Mushrooms (serves 6)

  2 tsp. olive oil        1 c. finely chopped onion       2 c. low sodium chicken broth    1/2 tsp. salt

  2 c. chopped spinach      1 tsp. minced garlic     1 c. red quinoa, rinsed well    1/4 tsp. pepper

  1/2 c. chopped mushrooms     1/4 c. grated parmesan cheese

   Heat oil in saucepan. add onion, cook 5 min. Add garlic and quinoa and cook 1 min. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer 12 min. Mixture will be brothy and quinoa almost done. Stir in spinach and mushrooms and simmer 2 min. more. Add cheese and season with salt and pepper.