Coctail Sauce Recipe

This is easy and quick.

ingredients:
1/2 C. ketchup
1 tsp. prepared horseradish (can be found in fridge section of store, Usually in the dairy area. I know it is an odd place.)
1/4 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 smidgen of ground cayenne or 1-2 drops hot pepper sauce.

Mix and serve or store covered in the fridge. Double and or triple the recipe for serving more people.

Updated note: If you get burnt out on this and still have leftovers. Add some mayo to it and you get a smooth creamy tarter or thousand island like sauce. Yum.

I like to eat this with what I call pho crab. They are made into sticks like the string cheese except they are not stringy. You eat them cold. There is real cooked fish and or shrimp in these. So if you have allergy to shellfish, read the ingredients. They are a great protein and have omega-3's too. The best part is that they are filling and very low in calories. The pack I got was 1.00. The store sells these in larger packs and different brands. Look in the fish area of market. They are a fridge item in the store.

Try this sauce with other fish and or shell fish. Try warm or cold to see how you like the sauce or fish best.

I have read that you can freeze the pho fish for later use. I have never done that. I do know that the best way to defrost fish/shell fish is by placing in bowl of cool water for about 15 minutes or so depending on how much you are thawing. Serve or place in fridge until serving soon.

Sesame Coconut Crispy Chocolates

I made my son some white chocolates in kitty cat molds I bought from Amazon. They are for Valentines day at school. I do not measure the chocolate when melting because I am not sure how much chocolate it takes to fill all the molds. I am getting closer though.

After filling the molds, I had extra chocolate. This chocolate would be for me. My little stash. There was only an oz. or 2. I like to use filler to make the chocolate go farther and be less sweet and more healthy. I add some raw unhulled sesame seeds, shredded dry unsweetened coconut and crushed rice crispies. I kept adding until the mix was thicker, fuller and had a wet paste quality to it. I spooned it into another set of molds and tapped to fill and flatten as best as I could. Let sit on the counter then unmolded.

I have no set number for how much ingredients, but I put mostly sesame seeds, then less dry shredded coconut and even less crushed rice crispies. mixed and molded. I did get six chocolates out of the leftover chocolate. This turned out so good with the white chocolate. I am sure these would be just as tasty with a milk, double or dark chocolate.

The weather here is beautiful right now. in the low to mid 70's, sunny. I just want to lay on a carpet in the rays of the sun that enters the room.

 

Painting My Front Door

 

This happened in November of last year. When we moved in to this house a few years ago. The front door was painted black. Like chalk paint. No glossy to it and the sun sets on the front yard and door. OMG. Talk about attracting the heat. I wanted a color that would compliment the house and vise versa. I did not want white or tan. Blah. So, Clary Sage was my choice.

I chose the exact color by first looking on-line at doors with house exteriors that were similar to mine. Then went to the paint store (Home Depot for me) and took several paper color samples that might be a consideration. Then I taped those sample papers to the door and left them there for about a week. Viewing them as I came and left the house at different times of the day.

 I found just the right color and confirming with my husband, for his opinion was important too. Now it was time to clean and dry the front of the door. I sanded the front of the door, scraped edges of inside window with a straight blade. Took brown outdoor caulking and caulked the outer glass window frame. Let that dry for 24 hours. Then taped all around the inside of the window and door handles and hardware with tan paper like tape (I think masking tape is the name). I waited for a warm dry day and a day I could be home for 8-12 hours. Put down painters plastic under the door and on top of my wood floor. I had bought paint with primer in a small can. I got a satin and not gloss. Those were the choices. I asked the guy how much I needed for a door and he gave me a little can and it was plenty. It was pricey, but I wanted this door painted.

I had a paint brush that was about 4 inches wide and a very small water color paint brush for touch ups later. I painted one coat with my son. He insisted on helping. He used one of his kids thick water color paint brushes. The first coat was messy, but having my son help priceless. I told him thank you and I let that coat dry until dry to the touch. That took about 3 hours. Then I painted the second coat. Yes, even with a primer I had to do a second coat. This is usually the case for any color I have had to painting over. Though I have noticed primer helps with painting over dark colors in general. The paint brushes washed out with warm soapy water very easy. I washed out the brushes and layed them out to dry each time I finshed a coat. My brush was not perfectly dry for the second coat, but close and it worked well.

The door felt dry about 4 hours later. Not a complete dry, but enough to take off the tape. (you could use the blue painters tape it is very similar and probably stronger). Now I took my very small paint brush and did tough up around areas where the tape had been.

Finally evening came and I shut the door. I love the color with the black trim. Now I need to motivate painting the trim a better black coat. It is old and coming off. There is also sap seeping out of the wood too. I bet chalk paint was used on the trim too. I will have to get some nicer paint on that at some point.

I noticed today that there is a scratch on the door and it scraped the paint off to the black. Ug. That is what I get for painting a steel door and well this was not a professional paint job. It was a mommy has a day at home and the door is not coming off the hinges type of job. Will have to paint over that again. The worst part is that after I painted and the first freeze came, I noticed the window fogging on the inside. Just in one corner. It is an older home. I am just going to have to live with it for now because I like my green door.