SWEET YELLOW CORNBREAD

I spoke with the gentleman that had the perfect honey I was looking for.   Sun Harvest Honey, located in North Little Rock, Arkansas. Pat Cullivan has been harvesting bees since 2008.  He manages his own hives and his honey is unfiltered raw and 100% pure.  I can not wait to try this in my next batch of granola.

Be sure and take your spouse, kids and event pets as you walk around this beautiful Market.  There are many other vendors and you can grab a bite to eat from the local food truck.  I can't believe this is the first time for me to visit this wonderful market.  Arkansas is known as the Natural State not just for the amazing parks, lakes and streams but also for the Arkansas Grown Markets. 

This wonderful Market was started as an Outreach Ministry and Mission for the Church in 2010.  A wonderful contribution to the Hillcrest Neighborhood located at 2200 Kavanaugh Blvd.  Opened year round, it operates on Saturday mornings.   May - September Season hours are from 7 AM to Noon.   The October-April Season is from 8 AM to Noon.  

I will be visiting this Market regularly from now on.  However, I will go first thing so I can catch some of the wonderful baked goods!   Be sure and visit the Market's website at:  http://www.phbclr.com/about/guest-info/hillcrest-farmers-market/   to sign up as a Merchant or Volunteer. 

Margarita Supreme Pizza
 
I love to make Pizza’s in our old Antique Oven at work.  I think this is my co-worker’s favorite lunch.   This particular recipe gives you pizza and salad all in one.   It was amazing!   Enjoy!
  
Ingredients:
 
Pizza Crust – Thin & Crispy – (I use the Market Fresh Brand found at Target)
Fresh Organic Baby Spinach
Roma Tomatoes
Kraft Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Kraft Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
Canadian Bacon
Pre-Cooked Oscar Meyer Bacon
Bertolli Basil & Olive Oil Spaghetti Sauce
Lowry’s Garlic Pepper
Black Pepper
Salt
 
 
Pre-Season the Roma Tomatoes and set aside
Slice the Roma Tomatoes and top with 6-7 sprinkles of the Lowry’s Garlic Pepper
Top with 3-4 Sprinkles Black Pepper
Salt lightly
Top with Shredded Parmesan Cheese – 2-3 pinches
  
To Make:
 
Preheat Oven to 400 Degrees
 
On Pizza Pan or large Cookie Sheet:
 
Lay Pizza Crust – Thin & Crispy flat on pan
Top With 3 Tablespoons of the Bertolli Basil & Olive Oil Spaghetti Sauce and Spread around Crust  --(You want a light sauce, not a heavy sauce)
Sprinkle a Palm Full of the Kraft Shredded Mozzarella Cheese on Top
Place about 10 slices of the Canadian Bacon Slices around top of the crust mixture (if you can’t find the Canadian Bacon circles – you can use the diced ham.  However, we all prefer the Canadian Bacon
Crumble about 4-5 slices of the Pre-Cooked Bacon on top
Sprinkle another Palm Full of the Kraft Shredded Mozzarella Cheese on Top
Place in Oven at 400 Degrees for about 12 minutes (crust will be golden brown)
 
Take out of oven:
Top with about a ½-cup to Cup of the Fresh Baby Spinach
Top with the sliced Seasoned Roma Tomatoes
Top with a Palm hand full of the Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Cut – We served 8 slices with one Pizza
 
Enjoy! 
 
 

Lunch on a Budget – Series Part 1 – Great Summer Fresh Lunch Ideas
 
Like many of us I was making the quick dash out at lunch to find something fresh and quick to eat.  However, fresh and quick in most sandwich shops is not cheap!   I decided to eat the local Supermarket on my way in to work.    I purchased tortilla’s, two fresh Roma tomatoes, a bag of fresh baby spinach, Boars Head Smoked Turkey (from the deli section) and Kraft Cheddar Cheese for $10.50.   I had previously purchased some fresh salsa (made fresh at the Deli) and a small bag Parmesan cheese for $5.00.    Take the time to check out your local market in the deli area, most of them make fresh salsa in quart containers in mild, spicy and hot.  I always purchase mild because after it sits it can get a little kick in it.

You can also find great quality deli meats in the deli section pre-packaged fresh.   Boars Head is one of my favorites and is always great quality.   The smoked turkey is excellent, and it cost $5.99 and I didn’t skimp on the amount per wrap.  Each wrap I made had 4-5 slices of turkey in them.
At our office we are blessed to have a microwave, refrigerator and yes, an oven (Betsy).   This recipe I am sharing today doesn’t require an oven.

This recipe served five with generous portions of turkey in each wrap.   I made wraps for my co-workers.   If you were trying to budget for yourself, this would have covered you for the entire work week.
 
FRESH Turkey Spinach Wraps
Ingredients
1 pkg Old El Paso Four Tortillas – These have a great Zip Bag for you to use the qty you need
1 pkg Boars Head – Honey Smoked Turkey (packaged at Deli Counter)
1 pkg Kraft Shredded Cheddar Cheese (I love SHARP)
2 Roma Tomatoes – sliced
1 pkg FRESH Baby Spinach
1 pkg Kraft Shredded Parmesan Cheese
Lowry’s Garlic Pepper
Fresh Salsa (I mild)
Salt/Pepper
 
To Make:
 
Slice Roma Tomatoes – Sprinkle Lowry's Garlic Pepper,  Salt, Pepper and a couple pinches of Kraft Parmesan Cheese on the sliced tomatoes.    (This makes the tomatoes so good you can eat them by themselves)
 
On Microwave safe plate or paper plate – lay one Flour Tortilla on plate and microwave for 20 seconds
Remove and add – 4-5 slices of the Boars Head Honey Smoked Turkey on top
Top with Fresh Baby Spinach – (I use about a palm full)
Add several pinches of the Kraft Cheddar Cheese
Add on top your Seasoned Roma Tomatoes (from above)
Add 1 tablespoon of the Fresh Deli Salsa
Roll together
 
These are simply delicious!    The average cost of each one came to $2.50.   I was spending $12.00 for the same thing at the local deli!   I fed four co-workers’ plus myself for approx. $12.50 including tax.   Just think you could really eat on this the entire week for $12.50 instead of the $60.00 you would spend per week at the Deli Restaurant!

Most of today's moms are  raising their children much different than I raised mine.  When I was a young mother starting out, there was no home internet, no cell phones, no Netflix and land lines were still a very basic necessity.   WOW, I have just aged myself.  

With Social Media on the rage, mother's have the ability to connect with one another via Facebook Groups, Pinterest Groups, Twitter, Instagram and the list goes on and on.  The kids are being able to use our I-phones better than we do.  Recipe sharing is via Social Media in lieu of the old fashion rolodex cards passed down from generations.  I am so glad to see that some of today's moms still like the ole' fashion recipe exchanges, public libraries, going out for ice-cream socials and doing arts and crafts with their kids.

My first Modern Mom that I love so dearly is Shelbi.  Shelbi is beautiful inside and out.  I love to watch her Facebook feed of the photos that she shares of her family.  They are loving the basics to life.  While she may post on Facebook and Instagram,  (so that others might be able to connect) she still loves to interact with the children, keeping it simple, and enjoying the basics life has to offer.  

I admire Shelbi so much for her inner beauty.  Shelbi suffers from Alopecia Areata.  She has suffered from hair loss since she was 11 years old.  In fact, she mentioned to me that she was completely bald at some point in her teen years.  She doesn't mind posting pictures of how that autoimmune disease attacks her physical appearance. 

Shelbi and her family now practice the Vegan lifestyle.  Her husband Jacob  heard that this lifestyle has helped others with Alopecia and autoimmune diseases in general.  Shelbi decided to do some research and decided to give it a try.  A year has passed and now Shelbi has a full head of hair.   I was introduced to some of her wonderful vegan chicken when she brought to my house for our Christmas Eve potluck tradition.   The chicken was delicious!  In fact, I thought I was eating real chicken so I was a little puzzled.  I asked Shelbi and Jacob about it (since I thought Vegan's didn't eat meat at all).  They told me that it was chicken made from plants.  I seriously had no idea.  It was delicious!

Shelbi is my niece, married to my nephew Jacob.  Shelbi and Jacob met in hair school at The Salon Professional Academy of TSPA in 2011. They became good friends who enjoyed goofing off together in between classes. In January of 2012, they started dating. after about four months of dating and exchanging "I love you"'s she was introduced to Jacob's two boys from a previous relationship.  She met Ollie and Elliott.  Ollie was two and Elliott was almost a year old when she met them. Shelbi fell in love with them as soon as she spent time with them.  She knew then she wasn't going anywhere and wanted them all to be a family.   Shelbi and Jacob dated for about a year, moved into together and then decided to sneak off and eloped about six months later. 

Now five years later, Shelbi and Jacob have two boys of their own.  Gus and Ezra love their older brothers.  Both Ollie and Elliott share the love back.  This wonderful family of six makes me smile every time I see a post of them together!   Shelbi and Jacob both are in the hair and "beauty" business.  Shelbi a hair dresser for Salon Innovations, and Jacob a barber for The Art of Men's Cuts.   They both are excellent in their trades and do amazing work.

Their favorite family outing is the main library in downtown Little Rock. They have Lego day, Wii game day, Dance Dance Revolution,  and offer free snacks when you come for those events. Afterwards, that make their way to Loblolly Creamery,  where they make Vegan ice cream.  She said that Sundays are good days for these outings after church.  The main library is open on Sundays, located in Little Rock in the SoMa District along with another favorite spot,  Bernice Gardens Farmers Market, a perfect place for the Vegan lifestyle to enjoy!

Shelbi is a book enthusiast. She says she loves the beauty of words and literature. "I am most happy, when cuddled up with my dudes and reading to them.  Currently we are reading Harry Potter and I am introducing all the charm I fell in love with in my youth. They are loving it."

Recently, Shelbi had a local photographer to follow them around.   Kylie Farmer Photography  captured some of their favorite outings.  These photos are stunning and tell a story all on their own!

​XOXO
Pat