Roast Chicken and Mashed Potatoes

Agnes Devereux from the Village Tea Room in New Paltz is my dinnertime hero when it comes to feeding Dan. Her first blog post was for her famous Roast Chicken; I have made this three times now and every time it comes out perfectly. Tonight I was a bit lazy and didn't make the accompanying gravy, just the chicken. I'm using the leftovers to make her chicken salad...more on that later...almond, cilantro, lime...sounds crazy but it's delicious!


The second recipe of hers that I've used is her mashed potatoes; are they healthy...absolutely not...are they the best mashed potatoes that you have ever had...YES!


Needless to say, Agnes' roast chicken and mashed potatoes have become our Sunday night supper staples so if you are coming to visit us on a weekend you can expect to find this dynamic duo.

Spring has Sprung

So, I've decided to start out small with my gardening this year. We planted a selection of herbs, strawberries and tomatoes in containers on our deck and then we are working on a fenced plot, preparing the earth for next season (we may plant a crop of beans for soil improvement but nothing more).

Also, there is a guy that I work with who helps manage a local organic farm, so next month I'll start helping them on the farm for more hands on learning.

Above is our strawberry plant; I didn't expect the lovely white flowers that are on the plant, quite lovely.

We were told by our local gardening center to plant our mint in its own container; this is apple mint but I think that we may also plant spearmint as well.

Next is fennel; I just started using fennel this year (thanks to Agnes, who showed me how to prepare it properly).

Above we planted parsley, cilantro and dill; I have no idea if these are compatible, we just crossed our fingers and we are hoping for the best. I have since been looking at our local library for a good container gardening guide for some help!

Our final pot contains sage, thyme and rosemary; we fully expect to have to re-pot these babies as they grow for I know rosemary along can grow to be rather large. I am assuming that plants, like goldfish, grow according to the size of their container...we'll see...if you know otherwise, please let me know!

G has done a great job with the landscape around the house; the beds are full of daffodils and tulips and the property is full of lovely flowering trees. Dan and I are in awe of the wonderful fragrances that we are greeted with every morning.

We spend most evenings on the deck or on the swings just breathing in the fresh air.

If we move back south I will miss Spring and Fall up here in the north.

Upstairs Lambie/Downstairs Lambie

Last week I asked Dan to stop by the pet store for a few items for Remi, mainly dog food. We had a little incident with Remi getting a bacterial infection when we switched his food and the vet could not conclusively tell us the infection was related to the food and not to him eating something from the yard so we went back to the old food. The only problem is that the old food is hard to find (which is partially why we switched anyhow!)

When Dan arrived home he came bearing a new Lambie; (Lambie is Remi's favorite toy, we have been through four I believe).


However,when Remi received his new Lambie I noticed that he kept one in the living room and one in the bedroom (downstairs no less); one is shiny and new and the other has patches of missing fur.

I was instantly reminded of the TV show "Upstairs Downstairs" and in honor of the PBS program, I thought a little Lambie photo shoot was in order. (PBS Masterpiece collection recently did three 60 minute episodes of a new version of Upstairs Downstairs a classic hit from the 1970s. My boss, who grew up watching the original in Ireland, told me about the series and I subsequently watched all three new episodes and now want the boxed set of the new and old for those who are looking for a good birthday present for me ;P)

Dan commented that I clearly have settled into the mostly unemployed life when I am photographing Remi's toys...I think it just shows my vast creativity...or maybe I just have too much time on my hands.




For those of you who have not seen the show (or who don't want to follow the link to read more about it...I know who you are) it is set in the 1930's and it is a drama about the wealthy and the hired help (to be blunt).

As droll as it may seem, we have upstairs and downstairs Lambies in our house and I just wanted to document such for my own amusement. Aunt B is likely rolling her eyes at this point but I'm okay with that, I have quite accepted my own ridiculousness!

(In case you were not able to discern a difference the top photo is "upstairs" Lambie and the two bottom photos are of "downstairs" Lambie; I found "downstairs" Lambie on the the floor one morning by the window...hence the second photo, he posed for the third.)