A friend just turned me to on a website that features Naked Food Juice. Check it out: http://www.nakedjuice.com/iwant_superfoods.php

I was immediately drawn to Naked Superfoods Blends that includes drinks called the Blue Machine, the Green Machine, and Red Machine—all packed with powerful nutrients.

My potted herbs are thriving and I can’t seem to keep up with the basil, Greek oregano, lemon thyme, and rosemay. I’m certainly not complaining, but I’ve become quite creative with my herb crop. Of course, the basil is fantastic with garden-fresh tomatoes. And I’ve found the other herbs are great with chicken…
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My two grandsons, who are visiting from Austin, Texas, have bottomless stomachs. We did pizza last Saturday, Sunday we had grilled burgers, Monday was vegetarian day (gazpacho, grilled zucchini, squash bread, and blueberries with cream), last night was hot dogs. The boys were very creative with their dogs. Let’s see, they made Tex-Mex dogs (salsa, chopped jalapenos and grated cheese), garden dogs (chopped tomatoes, onions and parsley) and my favorite—dogs dressed with grilled onions and grilled bell peppers, slathered with Dijon mustard.

When the figs come into season, my brother-in-law is at the ready. He doesn’t have any fig trees in his yard, so he is always counting on the kindness and generosity of neighbors and friends to issue invitations to pick their figs.

This morning at 6:30 a.m., he called. “Fig patrol,” was all he said.
He told me to meet him at the Robicheaux farm. Within 10 minutes, we were armed with buckets, a step ladder, insect repellant and rubber gloves. It was a glorious morning, and the dew was heavy on the young sugarcane in the fields.

We headed for the grove of fig trees! Paradise! The Garden of Eden! The smaller trees were loaded with the pink-purple and much loved Celeste figs. Within 30 minutes, we had filled four buckets! We couldn’t wait to get to our respective homes to make fig preserves!
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Tropical Storm Cindy just brushed by New Orlean and now everyone along the Gulf of Mexico is keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Dennis. Whenever there’s a hurricane lurking within several hundred miles, my husband makes a mad dash to the local supermarket and stocks up on batteries, bottled water AND several cans of Vienna Sausage, potted ham, a quart of pimento cheese, and lots of crackers. I, on the other hand, choose Spam, canned fruit cocktail, canned tuna, and tins of sardines and smoked oysters. We NEVER have this stuff in the house unless there’s a hurricane heading our way. I wonder what other people stash when a storm is on the horizon?

The truth is that many people in the late 80’s and the early part of the 90’s had claimed allergic reactions to food prepared with Monosodium Glutamate (MSG). Reactions included nausea, headaches and general feelings of discomfort. Although there is proof that a small segment of the population does suffer from an adverse reaction to MSG, it is also a little known fact that mushrooms are filled with natural MSG, and most people do not have any problems with them. MSG is a salt alternative that is used commercially as well as in a lot of Chinese cooking. It’s a lure that you can use to accent other flavors, without making them seem too salty.

Storing purchased bread in the refrigerator will prolong the life of it. So, if you plan on using it at a later date then storing it in the fridge would be a good idea. However, this really just prevents molding and does not preserve “fresh” quality. So, it’s best to using bread as soon as possible after purchasing or baking it.

My husband and I have two grandchildren (Cameron, 11 years old and Mason, 14 years old) visiting for a week. They’re not picky eaters so I’m not too worried about what to serve them. In fact, the older child is pretty handy in the kitchen. He suggested that we make homemade pizza dough for Saturday night supper, and he and his brother have come up with ideas for toppings…
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You can call it sole, turbot, fluke or flounder—they’re all flatfish and are good eating. The flesh is delicate, sweet, flaky, and usually firm (halibut is an exception). Halibut usually appears in choweders in the Northeast. Down South, flounders stuffed with crabmeat is a local favorite. Use sole for amandine or Veronique presentations. Most flatfish can be easily prepared—baked or broiled with lemon butter sauce.

On the day before the 4th of July, my husband and I went for a ride in a rural area of Vermilion Parish (we have parishes rather than counties in Louisiana), and spied a sign “Soft-shell crabs for sale”.

We turned down a bumpy lane covered with oyster shells and arrived at a sprawling shed-like structure from which emanated the sound of rushing water. There were twenty or so water-filled troughs where the soft-shell crabs are kept during their molting period. While we waited for the owner to assist us we amused ourselves by watching several crabs creeping out of their splitting shells.
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