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This weeks giveaway is for a Silicone Basting Brush.
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The winner will be announced on July 23, 2009.

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I’m sure everyone has seen the Slap Chop infomercial on TV.  Do you own one?  Is it any good?  I’ve never tried it, but I can’t stop laughing at this new remix of the Slap Chop commercial.

Take a look…

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My Aunt forwarded me an e-mail with a bunch of useful tips and tricks for around the house.  Here are some of the ones I found helpful.  Do you have any household tricks of your own?

• To easily remove burnt on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stove top.
• Spray your TUPPERWARE with nonstick cooking spray before pouring in tomato based sauces and there won’t be any stains.
• Wrap celery in aluminum foil when putting in the refrigerator and it will keep for weeks.
• When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn’s natural sweetness.
• Don’t throw out all that leftover wine:  Freeze into ice cubes for future use  in casseroles and sauces…
• Use Empty toilet paper roll to store appliance cords. It keeps them neat and you can write on the roll what appliance it belongs to..
• To remove old wax from a glass candle holder, put it in the freezer for a few hours. Then take the candle holder out and turn it upside down. The wax will  fall out.
• Permanent marker on appliances/counter tops, rubbing alcohol on paper towel will help remove it.
• Whenever I purchase a box of S.O.S Pads, I immediately take a pair of scissors and cut each pad into halves. After years of having to throw away rusted and unused and smelly pads, I finally decided that this would be  much  more economical.  Now a box of S.O.S  pads last me indefinitely! In fact, I have noticed that the scissors get ’sharpened” this way!
• Candles will last a lot longer if placed in the freezer for at least 3 hours prior to burning.
• To clean artificial flowers, pour some salt into a paper bag and add the flowers.  Shake vigorously as the salt will absorb all the dust and dirt and leave your artificial flowers looking like new!  Works like a charm!
• Clean a thermos bottle.  Fill the bottle with water, drop in four Alka Seltzer tablets, and let soak for an hour (Or longer, if necessary).
• Unclog a drain.  Clear the sink drain by dropping three Alka Seltzer tablets down the drain followed by a cup of  Heinz White Vinegar.  Wait a few minutes, and then run the hot water.

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A few weeks back I started my vegetable garden. I am growing a variety of tomatoes, peppers, zucchini and squash. Things started good, but I’m having pest problems. Bugs began appearing on my plants. Leaves were getting holes and turning yellow or shriveling up. In addition, when flowers opened up on my zucchini plants, something came along and ate them all overnight. I live in Long Island, NY in a residential area. It is common for us to have rabbits, birds, and squirrels.

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I wanted to take a moment and describe my garden pest problems, tell you about the solutions I tried, and to ask for some suggestions. First, I’d like to show you some pictures I took today of my problem plants. I apologize for the blurry pictures, I need a new digital camera badly!

You can scroll through the photos by using the arrows below each picture.

Zucchini - Curled Leaf

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Picture 1 of 11

Curled leaf on my zucchini plant. (sorry it's blurry)

My garden problems:

• Something is eating the leaves on my pepper plants.
• I have aphids all over my plants.
• Slugs are going after my zucchini and squash plants.  By the morning I find my buds on the ground.  Slug trails all over the leaves.

Here are some of the remedies I tried:

• Lady Bugs – They say lady bugs are the gardens best friend.  They hang out and eat most of the bugs you don’t want like aphids.  I purchased a bunch of live lady bugs and released them at night as directed.  They stuck around for awhile, but after a few days they were all gone.
• Fence – I put a wire fence around the garden to keep out rabbits and especially my dog!
• Marigolds – They say Marigolds are good for keeping some bugs away.  I planted a ring of them around my garden but did not notice much difference.
• Beer – Yes, beer,  if you leave a shallow container of beer near your garden it will attract and kill the slugs, but you must change the dish daily.
• Constant Attention – Whenever possible, I try to observe my plants and hand pick any pests off.  At night I’ll go out with a flashlight and flick off any slugs I see on my plants.

What experiences have you had with your garden ?

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2 medium California artichokes
lemon juice, as needed
2 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp minced shallots
1 Tbs olive oil
1 Tbs butter or margarine
2 cups sliced zucchini
1/4 cup  dry white wine
3/4 tsp  thyme
1/2 cup  peeled, seeded, diced tomatoes
salt, to taste
black pepper, freshly ground, to taste

Bend back outer petals of artichokes until they snap off easily near base. Edible portion of petals should remain on artichoke hearts. Continue to snap off and discard petals (or reserve and cook to serve as an appetizer) until central core of pale green petals is reached. Trim outer dark green layer from artichoke. Cut off stems and top 2 inches of artichokes; discard. Trim outer dark green layer from artichoke bottoms. Cut artichokes in half lengthwise. Cut out center petals and fuzzy centers. Vertically slice each artichoke half into very thin lengthwise slices. Dip or rub all surfaces with lemon juice. Saut‚ artichokes, garlic, and shallots in olive oil and butter until artichokes are tender. Add zucchini, wine, and thyme. Cook 1 to 2 minutes or until zucchini is tender. Add tomatoes, salt, and pepper; cook until tomatoes are thoroughly heated.

Serves 4

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I must say, I had a very enjoyable weekend with my girlfriend Katie.  We went out to Splish Splash, a water park here on Long Island.  Had a blast even though it was a little chilly on Saturday.  Sunday we visited a few East-End farm stands and I picked up some goodies!  Made a little salad today with my fresh Long Island grown veggies.

1 head Romaine lettuce
1 zucchini
1 ear bi-color corn
2 tomatoes
Italian dressing (or your favorite salad dressing)

Wash and chop the lettuce into bite-size pieces.  Use a knive and cut the corn off the cob.  Use a peeler to make ribbons of zucchini and cut into 1-inch strips.  Slice the tomatoes into wedges.  Place all the vegetables into a bowl and toss.  Serve with your favorite salad dressing.

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This recipe was passed on to me…and I am passing it on to you all.  I am not a huge seafood fan, nor do I like curry.  My friend says this recipe is amazing though.  It is high in sodium I might add.

Vegetable cooking spray, as needed
4 scallions, white part and 1″ green, thinly sliced
3 large garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 Tbs Indian curry powder
2 cups bottled clam juice
2 large baking potatoes, peeled, cubed
3 carrots, peeled, sliced
2 small zucchini, diced
1/2 tsp grated lime zest
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
2 lbs boneless skinless firm white fish, cubed (such as monkfish, halibut, grouper, or red snapper)
1 1/2 tsp fresh lime juice
3 Tbs fresh cilantro, with extra for garnish
1 Tbs unsweetened flaked coconut, (optional)

1     Lightly spray a nonstick covered pot with cooking spray. Add the scallions, garlic, and ginger. Stir and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add the curry and stir for 1 minute.
2     Add the clam broth, stirring to incorporate. Stir in the potatoes, carrot, zucchini, lime zest, cinnamon, and cloves. Partially cover and simmer for 20 minutes until the potatoes and vegetables are cooked.
3     Add the cubed fish, lime juice, and cilantro; simmer, stirring occasionally, until the fish is cooked through, about 10 minutes.
4     To serve, place the stew in a serving dish. Garnish with the coconut and extra cilantro.

Servings: 6

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I was experimenting with some fresh POM Pomegranite juice this weekend when I came up with this great cocktail.

2 ounces POM Pomegranite juice
2 ounces citrus punch
2.5 ounces Vodka
lime wedge
ice

Fill a tall glass with crushed ice.  In a shaker, mix together the pomegranite juice, citrus punch and vodka.  Pour over ice and garnish with a lime.

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So…  What do you have planned for the July 4th weekend ???

To help kick off the July 4th weekend, I would like you all to download this free grillmaster barbecue cookbook.

Grillmaster- Barbecue Recipes Cookbook

http://cheftomcooks.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/Grillmaster-Barbecue-Recipes.pdf

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Here is a new BBQ sauce I tried out that got wonderful reviews.  Try it out at one of your BBQ’s this weekend!

1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup Bacardi White or Gold rum
3/4 cup ketchup
1/2 cup orange juice
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp chopped garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne

In a saucepan, over medium-high heat, melt butter. Stir in Bacardi rum, ketchup, orange juice, honey, lemon juice, garlic and seasonings. Cook, stirring occasionally, about 40 minutes or until thickened.

Makes about 1 cup.

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