April 11th, 2011
Earth Day, or as it used to be called, Arbor Day is on April 22nd. In reality, the whole month of April is considered to be Earth Month. As we all try ways to live an eco-friendly lifestyle, I could not help to think about one of my advertisers, Coastal Chem-Dry.
Coastal Chem-Dry of Sussex & New Castle Counties is independently and locally owned. Their telephones are: Sussex 302-645-2800, New Castle 302-234-0200. Website? www.chem-dry.net/coastal.de
As spring gets underway; by the way today is a perfect example of a nice spring day. You can smell it in the air. My friends are all getting yards ready, gutters cleaned, power washing this or that, spring cleaning of closets and carpet cleaning.
Coastal Chem-Dry is a green carpet cleaning company and green certified. The products are non toxic; the carpets dry quickly. Their primary cleaner, The Natural, is safe and non-toxic.
If you have pets in your house, I don’t care how “good” they are, there are accidents to attend to. Chem-Dry has a specially formulated product to eliminate stains and odors. It is called P.U.R.T., which stands for Pet Urine Removal Treatment. If you need this treatment, once the carpet is treated, plastic is put over the spots for 24 hours. Then, all you do is vacuum over the treated areas. That simple.
If you call the Sussex County number above mentioned, you will talk to Angie. A few of my friends have already met him. All it took was one call and he was there immediately. Personalized service is something to be said about. And by the way, he is very friendly and thorough.
Have a great day!!!….It is warm, finally….
March 29th, 2011
Raison d’etre = “reason for existence”. I have not thought about that phrase in a long time, but seeing Checkers’ portrait at the fundraising event Paws for the Cause Foundation, I could not help thinking about it.
This little dog whose passing has given its owner a reason to not sit back, has now a non-profit foundation. As I just mentioned, the foundation is Paws for the Cause. The website is www.pawsforthecausefoundation.org. The Foundation has also partnered with the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine’s Chase Away Canine Cancer Program. Website? http://www.acvimfoundation.org.
Sunday was the event. It was a beautiful day. The 1st Annual Chef’s Challenge was from 2 to 5 p.m. The venue? The Cordrey Center located at 30366 Cordrey Rd., Millsboro, DE 19966. For more info., please visit their website www.thecordreycenter.com.
The Cordrey Center is situated among plants, flowers, shrubs. It is also the home of East Coast Perennials. Gorgeous flowers were already abundant.
I arrived a few minutes early and then at 2 p.m. the place started filling up. I have lived at the Delaware Beaches for many years, and granted, Millsboro is about 1/2 hour inland, but still I really did not know many people, at all.
Lite fare was served courtesy of Fish On, from Lewes.
There was a silent auction with so many items. A few caught my attention.
Pet Portraits by Jerry Dahl, 103 Brookthorpe Ter., Broomall, PA 19008. Tel. 610-356-4943.
The Delaware Dog Book. In Three Words. It is also a fundraising event for Paws for the Cause Foundation. I will be getting more info. but basically it consists of your dog or dogs, sitting for a photo shoot and in 3 words your description of your pet. For more info., please visit www.pawsforthecausefoundation.org.
Another was the Twin Lakes Brewing Co. from Greenville, DE. Their website is www.twinlakesbrewingcompany.com. The Twin Lakes Farm has a long and prestigious history dating back to our found fathers, George Washington and Caesar Rodney. The beer is all natural, brewed using whole flower hops; unfiltered and unpasteurized. Considered to be “all natural” beers.
The Chef’s Challenge:
Three restaurants with their chefs were on one side of the building. We were all asking questions and they were prepping. The restaurants were Fish On, www.fishon.bz, Abbott’s Grill, www.abbottsgrillde.com, and Luca, www.lucaristorante.com.
Getting ready for a food challenge takes some preparation, and here are a few pictures. The aroma was amazing.
Three judges were selected to sample the delicacies, which included scallops, fish, and lamb.
Even though I had to leave early, I did find out that the winner was…..
The Live Auction
There were about 6 items in the Live Auction. The auctioneer that lent his services for this worthy cause was Richard (Dick) L. Bryan. Dick is a native, a real estate broker, and an auctioneer with a specialty in residential and commercial real estate. His e-mail is rbryan@dmv.com and his tel. is 302-645-4800.
It really was such a nice afternoon. I congratulate Bonnie Benson for a job well done. She really should be proud on how smoothly everything went.
The fundraising does not end there. Everyone that has a pet knows how attached we become to them. They bring so much joy and love into our lives. There will be other fundraising events and I will be passing them along to you.
Have a great day!!…talk to you later…
March 2nd, 2011
Risotto is usually served as a primo, or first course. I like it as a main course; yes, it is pretty filling. Usually, I like to cook it when I have had enough chicken, beef or seafood. Served with a green salad, it does make a nice meal. Add your favorite wine; and then it is not just a nice meal, but the perfect meal.
This Italian dish of rice cook in broth in a creamy consistency is also perfect on chilly nights. That is has a lot of carbs? Well, that’s true; still good, though.
Arborio is the rice used for risottos. It is a short gran rice, named after the town of Arborio. The round grains are firm, creamy, and chewy. Also, this rice is used in rice pudding.
The other night I fixed a very simple risotto with a little Asiago cheese, green onions and peas. I know, it is sort of a pain to stir the rice until the broth evaporates, but it is worth it.
A Simple Risotto
1 cup uncooked Arborio rice
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup green onions
3 cups chicken broth (low sodium)
1 cup small peas
1 cup Asiago cheese, grated very thin
Saute onion and butter on medium heat for a few minutes; I did 5 minutes.
Add rice and also stir for a minutes, as well.
Stir in 1 cup of broth and keep on stirring until the broth is absorbed. If the medium heat is too high then lower it a bit. You want the rice to keep absorbing the broth; be patience. Cooking cannot be rushed.
Gradually, keep adding the rest of the broth, 1/2 cup to 1 cup at a time. I did it 1/2 cup at a time. You want the broth completely absorbed before adding the next 1/2 cup.
Taste it and if you feel it needs more broth, well you know what to do. Then add 1/2 cup of the Asiago cheese and stir. You can add more, if you want to.
Then the peas should be added. Stir it all together.
Serve and garnish with more Asiago cheese. Add a salad and you will, definitely, have a meal.
Note: Serves 4. By the way, this recipe is gluten free.
Enjoy and make it your own….talk to you later….
March 1st, 2011
I am embarrass to tell you that just until a few years ago, I did not know what the Children’s Beach House was. Afterall, this organization has been in existence for over 70 years. Having children, their families, and the overall community in mind, Children’s Beach House was started by Lydia Chichester DuPont. Known as “Miss” Lydia, her interest was children with special needs in mind. She felt she could take these children to the beach to experience the same healing qualities of the coastal environment she herself had found.
Upon her death the Lydia Fund was formed. It was created for the benefit of the Children’s Beach House located 1800 Bay Avenue, Lewes, DE 19958. Tel. 302-645-9184. Website? http://www.cbhinc.org.
The mission has always stayed the same; to focuse on the needs, medical care, treatment and education of underpriviledged children throughout the State of Delaware. To have these children reach their highest potential as functional members of their families and communities.
The building sits right on Lewes Beach, in this historic town. The setting? What can I say? It is breathtaking. If you go on http://www.cbhinco.org you will be able to check out the events that will be held this year and really see what they are doing in the community and the State of Delaware. You might even want to get involved.
The first event will be the Children’s Beach House Golf Classic on Thursday, May 26th, at The Peninsula. A great way to kick off the summer season while participating in this event that, actually, draws plenty of participants from across Delaware.
You can register by going on their website and on the right hand side you can see the events posted.
This is the opportunity for 128 golfers to play an exclusive course; The Peninsula. This is a private 7,200 yard, par 72, Jack Nicklaus signature golf course. 7 holes of the golf course are set dramatically along the Indian River and Lingo Creek. The location? 26939 Bay Farm Rd., Millsboro, DE 19966. And the website? http://www.peninsula-delaware.com.
So, Thursday, May 26th the event will start at 11:30 a.m. followed by a poolside BBQ buffet.
The cost is $175 for golfers and if you do not play golf but would like to attend the BBQ, then your cost will only be $50.
To register, please call 302-645-9184 or visit www.cbhinc.org.
All proceeds from this event will benefit the operational budget for Children’s Beach House.
I am putting this up now so that you can make your plans, but I will keep reminding you as the weeks go by.
Have a great day….talk to you later….
February 23rd, 2011
Phad Thai is one of Thailand’s national dishes. It consists of stir-fried rice noodles with eggs and fish sauce; other combinations can be added like bean sprouts, beef, shrimp, chicken or tofu. Crushed peanuts is the garnish that finishes the dish.
Last night I was in one of those moods. A simple recipe that would not take long and pretty much a one dish meal. Most of Thai food is gluten free, so this was a no brainer. I added tofu, but it is not necessary.
Phad Thai with Tofu
1 package (13.2 ounces) of rice sticks. I bought Sun Luck
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 garlic clove, minced
4 eggs
5 tablespoons of fish sauce (or, to taste)
3 bunches of green onions cut into 1/2 inch lengths
1/4 cup or a bit more of chicken broth (low sodium)
2 tablespoons of sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons of paprika
1 cup of bean sprouts
1/4 cup ground peanuts
1 cup of extra firm tofu cut in pieces (optional)
In a large bowl soak rice sticks for about 45 minutes, until tender, but firm.
In a skillet put 1 tablespoon of oil and fry the tofu pieces until they brown but do not burn. Take them out and put them aside.
In a large frying pan, large enough that the noodles will fit when added, put the 3 tablespoons of oil in a medium high heat. Add the garlic and then the green onions; stir fry for a few minutes.
Add the eggs and scramble them until done.
Drain the rice sticks well and add to the egg mixture. Even though it looks like a lot in the pan, they will cook down. Keep stir frying until the rice stick become translucent, at the same time adding chicken broth to the frying pan. Stir fry away. You might not need all the chicken broth. I usually do use that amount of broth, though.
When the rice sticks begin to stick together then add the fish sauce, sugar and paprika and bean sprouts. Then, add the tofu if desired or shrimp, beef, chicken, or nothing at all.
Continue to cook until dry; add crushed peanuts and serve. This particular dish is not spicy. If you would like to add a little kick to it, just add a chili pepper or your favorite “heat”.
Please note that this recipe will serve 4 hungry people. Otherwise, leftovers will be great the next day.
Please enjoy this recipe and make it your own…
Have a great day!!!……talk to you soon….
February 3rd, 2011
To plunge or not to plunge? I have never done it. This is an event that brings so many people to our beaches. It is for a worthy cause; The Special Olympics Delaware. The whole week-end will be filled with activities starting tomorrow, Friday, and then end with the much awaited culmination of the Polar Bear Plunge in the frigid waters of the Atlantic.
Besides the Polar Bear Plunge Festival, there are other activities in town, as well. If you are visiting the Delaware beaches this week end, you will be surprised as to how crowded our beaches are getting during the week-ends. It is almost like everyone is so sick of the snow that they have to get out of town. We are happy to have you. Come on down!!
Friday, February 4th – Sunday, February 6th – Dirty Blonde at the Clear Space Theatre Company located at 20 Baltimore Ave. Friday and Saturday shows will start at 7:00 p.m. and Sunday’s show will start at 3:00 p.m. Tickets? On line at www.clearspacetheatre.org , or by phone 302-227-2270, or, just visit the Box Office Friday from 9 until 5 p.m.
Dirty Blonde intertwines 2 stories – Mae West’s life and a contemporary love story between two die-hard Mae West fans.
Saturday, February 5th – 2nd Run to the Plunge 5K Run/Walk – at 1:00 p.m. Whether you are a serious runner, casual jogger or would just enjoy a brisk walk for a good cause the Run to the Plunge is the perfect way to warm up. If you want an application just go to www.seashorestriders.com. In the website you will find everything you need to know about the Run to the Plunge.
Registration will be available on Friday and Saturday. Friday’s registration will be open from 5 – 8 p.m. in the Atlantic Sands Hotel. On Saturday, registration will open at Noon until race time in the 40 x 40 tent on Rehoboth Avenue next to the Bandstand.
The course will be the same for runners and for walkers. Really, go on the website mentioned for more info. You can also contact Tim@seashorestrider.com. Tim Bamforth can also tell you how to join the club.
This organization, Seashore Strider Running Club started in 1988. It pretty much serves Rehoboth Beach and Lewes, Delaware. Because we are in a resort community, for visitors from Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia and beyond Seashore Strider Running Club offers its activities to all of our visitors that share a common interest in running and fitness.
Please check their website and most of all their calendar. They offer so many running events throughout the year. You might want to come to the beach just to participate in one of them.
Getting back to the “coolest” event of the year in more ways than one I can tell you that I don’t know if I could jump in. You see, my ideal water temperature in more like 75 degrees. Last year there were 2,683 Bears that plunged in water temperatures of 42 degrees. The air temperature was 48 degrees. And over $500,000 were raised for Special Olympics Delaware.
 No Polar Bear Plunging in the warm waters of Delray Beach, Florida For all the festivities concerning the Polar Bear Plunge please go to http://www.plungede.org. This event is actually called the Lewes Polar Bear Plunge. It is just that they plunge in Rehoboth Beach. This year they are celebrating 20 years and they will keep plunging away as long as all of us participate.
The official Lewes Polar Bear Plunge will be Sunday, February 6th at 1 p.m. but on Saturday, February 5th from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. is the Polar Bear Cake Off. This particular event will take place at the Rehoboth Beach Convention Center right in town. Again, I urge you to visit the website to get all the particulars. It sounds like it will be a lot of fun plus it is free and the spectators will be able to vote for their choice of Best Polar Bear Cake. Cake Boss: Next Great Baker contestants are coming to Rehoboth to plunge. I am telling you, check the website.
All of it is for a great cause, Special Olympics Delaware. They have been changing the lives of people with intelectual disabilities. “Through sports training and competition in 20 sports, over 3,500 athletes with intellectual disabilities have proven that, given the chance, no disability is too great to overcome.” For more information on Special Olympics Delaware, their history, how you can help, please visit www.sode.org. Questions? Please e-mail info@sode.org or 302-831-4653.
Note: Money raise from the Lewes Polar Bear Plunge has made such a dramatic difference. They have tripled the number of athletes in the past 7 years from 1,100 to 3,500. From 9 events to 35 events.
There are 17 states the hold Polar Bear Plunges to benefit their own programs. Delaware’s Plunge remains one of the most successful.
Have a wonderful week-end….I will talk to you later…
January 31st, 2011
If you are on Facebook, you know that there is a “wall” where you state your status. Well, I can tell you loud and clear that my status is “I love Scrapple”. No, they did not have it in Puerto Rico when I was growing up. They still don’t have it but that would be the perfect place to introduce it. It might go well with their “morcillas” which are blood sausages.
I ate scrapple for the first time here, in the States, and fell in love with it immediately. Today someone told me that she needed to acquire a taste; not me. Another one, Colleen, told me that she did not like to eat something with that much fat. Well, it has less fat than bacon.
I like it in different ways. One being as a side dish; crispy and thin. The other one is a scrapple sandwich. I like thin, white bread and I again, will have the scrapple very thin, crispy and a dollop of ketchup. Hey, that’s my taste.
 Scrapple just starting to cook
 Scrapple, thin and crispy I few of my good friends get together from time to time for breakfast at Crystal in Rehoboth Beach. They don’t mind me mentioning their names, Roberta, Debbie, Missy and at times Alice will join the group. I always say I am not having scrapple. I need to be on a diet; but the moment Missy asks for a side order of scrapple I can’t help it. I immediately order it myself, as well. No willpower, really.
When I heard that Dirty Jobs was doing the show on scrapple I could not believe that my favorite Rapa Scrapple was not the one. Then I read than the nephew submitted Hughes Delaware Maid Scrapple, located in Felton. That is where the show will take place tomorrow on the Discovery Channel at 9 p.m.
A good friend, Tyler, sent me the promo link http://www.delawareonline.com/article/20110128/entertainment/101280304.
Giant is the market where I buy pretty much my groceries and they sell Rapa Scrapple, Milton, and Kirby & Holloway.
Rapa is my favorite but that is my personal opinion. Rapa Scrapple has been in business since 1926; Ralph & Paul were the two brothers that started this pork product. The location is Bridgeville, Delaware and it is the largest producer of scrapple in the world. Please visit www.rapascrapple.com. The website is full of information including a recipe for Scrapple Breakfast Burrito.
Every year the town of Bridgeville hosts the Apple Scrapple Festival. Every year I say I am going but never go. It celebrates the town’s heritage of apple orchards and scrapple manufacturing. It is usually held in October. Maybe this year Missy and I will make it.
The Delaware News Journal mentioned some of the restaurants in Delaware that take scrapple seriously. But, one of those mentioned, Helen’s Famous Sausage House in Smyrna, takes it to a different level; a Scrapple Sub for $7.20 that has 4 slabs of scrapple, accompanied with lettuce, tomatoes, onions, pickles, hot peppers, sweet pepper, mayo or oil.
I am writing Rapa Scrapple. Because of one ingredient, wheat flour; anyone with a gluten allergy cannot eat this delicacy. I hope they can make one substituting the wheat flour for rice flour or any flour that is gluten free for that matter.
Cannot wait for the show tomorrow. Should be interesting.
Talk to you later….you know I will…..
January 30th, 2011
I did not know what heading to give this post but I think the one I finally gave it was perfect.
I was driving north on Rt. 1 today and the combination of a cold winter’s day, the snow geese and all the vast farmland reminded me how lucky I am that I can call Delaware home.
I grew up in the island of Puerto Rico but I have now lived in Delaware longer than I lived in the “Isla del Encanto”.
Delaware is a Small Wonder. It is also one of those states that have everything. It is small, that, it is, but I like it that way. Delaware has so much to offer, the arts, museums, hotels, Dover Downs (NASCAR), entertainment, medical facilities, air force, beaches, bays, the Lewes Ferry, historic towns, fishing, surfing, crabbing, quaint coastal towns, farmland, poultry, low property taxes, no sales tax and even gambling.
I love the idea that I have so much space. Delaware is pretty much flat; more so where I live, in Sussex County. You can see for miles. Todays was such a day. While I was driving I came upon a gigantic flock of snow geese. For a moment you would have thought it was snow.
The snow geese breed in Greenland, Canada, Alaska and the northeastern tip of Siberia; winter in warm parts of North America.
They mate for life, feed in flocks, nest in colonies, migrate in large flocks, and females will return to the place they hatched to breed. The young feed themselves but will stay with their family until they are 2 to 3 years old.
I pulled to the side of the road and got out and then they were all over. Here are the pictures of these geese.
A few hours later, at dusk, I saw one of the big airplanes of Dover Air Force base coming back to the base. The scenery at that time of the evening was just so pretty; a day’s end.
Peaceful…have a good one…talk to you later….
 
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