My posts have been shorter since this is our high season, but I finally figured out after almost 3 years of blogging, I can share 1 photo with a quick description.
Duh, Julz! Every blog post doesn’t have to be a long detailed or emotional piece.
Oh, believe me, there are still plenty of those to come when we can come up for some air.
This is already turning out to longer than intended. 🤣
Behold, the photo of the sandwich above, such a simple, healthy, and delicious creation which was inspired by an Instagram image.
Toast topped with pesto, spinach, scrambled eggs, a slice of tomato, thinly sliced mozzarella cheese, freshly picked basil, kosher salt and pepper.
So stinking good! This is healthy, clean eating. Yum.
Good morning! ☀️ It’s 7:30 am on a lovely Saturday morning here in Vermont. When I was little, I loved soft-boiled eggs with toast. As an adult, I’ve been making soft-boiled eggs for decades with mixed results.
I learned how to make them using my 1950s Betty Crocker cookbook. There are a lot of variables that can over or under-cook them using the method of placing eggs in cold water and boiling for two minutes.
With this method, you have to babysit the water and begin timing as soon as it comes to a boil. If you miss even one minute, your eggs won’t be perfectly soft-boiled. Does it really matter? To me, it does. Yeah, I am that person.
I stumbled upon a different method last week; the eggs were perfect! Yay! There was just the right amount of runny yolks with solid whites, no white gooey stuff, and no pale yellow yolks partially cooked.
This is the method I tried:
Over medium-high heat, bring a medium-sized pot of water to a boil. Use the number of eggs you like straight from the refrigerator. This is important. Turn the water to a gentle boil. This is also important.
Using a slotted spoon, lower the eggs into the water and set a timer for 6 minutes. When the timer goes off, remove the eggs immediately. Again, this is important.
Place the eggs straight away into a bowl of cold water with ice. Chill for 2 minutes. Finally, either peel, cut in half with the shell on, spoon out of the shell, or cut just the top off and place in an egg cup. I cut mine in half and scoop out the egg halves.
The 6 minutes when the eggs cook is enough time to make toast. I wasn’t stressed if the eggs would be over or undercooked. Again, I am that person. I know most people don’t give a shit if their eggs are cooked correctly.
Even though the cooking time is 6 minutes, I’ve also made 7-minute eggs with slightly firmer yolks that can be peeled and cut in half.
Unlike softer-boiled eggs, which are eaten in a bowl or egg cup, these can be placed on a platter and eaten with your hands. They are also delicious and perfect for brunch or on the go.
If you like soft-boiled eggs, I hope I posted this method early enough so you can make some this weekend.
*** Shortly after I published this post I got a text from my friend Maria Wulf of http://fullmoonfiberart
10 minutes later she sent this photo with this text “Perfect! Yoke juicy and whites hard!”
I saw this on my friend’s Facebook page on Monday morning, and it’s been on my mind ever since.
I realized I needed to check my own actions before getting upset at all the hate in our country and world.
I’d be a fucking hypocrite if I felt like that, but walk around in a snit because of the situation next door.
I received a comment on my Coming Clean blog post that I am so grateful for. The reader told me she sends love and light to her neighbor who is similar to mine. Thank you C.
Of course, dumbass, I thought! How can getting angry over a situation bring any kind of good to it?
I still have a lot to learn about myself and the lessons presented to me.
I’ve been calm and at peace with almost everything except for this situation.
I immediately started sending love and light to the house and its inhabitants. Maybe they need a little love and light, I wondered.
I don’t know if the love and light will help, but at least it has softened my heart, and I am no longer mad and angry.
Its hard to go on social media right now without getting sucked into negative posts so I may be taking a break from it for a while.
I decided today there is so much hate and anger in our country on both sides that I can avoid a lot of it by not partaking in it on social media.
I’ll still share my blog posts on Facebook and check our business accounts.
My Julzie Style Instagram is filled with gardening, food and other things I love. I only follow things I adore.
This is the right decision for me right now and I’ll save my sanity and have more time doing things that bring me joy.
My gut is still adjusting to clean eating. I am not using any supplements to improve my gut health I am relying on the right kinds of foods.
Since I started eating clean I have either a bowl of vanilla yogurt and fresh fruit or a bowl of cottage with a dab of preserves.
It turns out that cottage cheese and yogurt play a big role in gut health, and I didn’t know it!
I’ve been following my gut (yes, a pun) about clean eating and have just started researching it.
I have to admit while it’s easy to eat clean and light in the summer, I have no idea yet what I’ll make for fall and winter meals.
There is so much information out there that I have plenty of time to find recipes and do more research.
I’ll be sure to share what I find with you. I’m sure there are plenty of ways to convert my traditional comfort food fallback recipes to autumn and winter clean eating.
M€ta keeps updating and changing Facebook, which has affected my blog to the point that I am just short of having a hissy fit. Okay, I had one.
My blog will no longer automatically post on my Julzie Style FB page and has removed those readers from my total readers count.
Its not a big deal to anyone but me, but I am happy I have 419 readers and not just 155. I
t’s hard to even acquire new reader so please share if you know someone who likes reading blogs like mine.
I work hard to keep my readers interested even after losing about 100 when I wrote about my psychic gifts.
Some people just couldn’t hack the authentic me and my life, which really is fine with me.
I just wanted to say thank you to my readers for sticking with me and to those of you who support my blog.
Every penny helps maintain the blog since it isn’t free for me, in fact it’s quite pricey paying for the host site and other things needed.
All things aside, I love writing each blog post and sharing my life with my readers.
I never knew how many people love my blog until they tell me when I see them in person. I am always humbled and overcome with joy whenever I hear this.
End of rant. Thank you, my friends! I appreciate each and every one of you. 💜
I hinted a few weeks ago that we were starting another backyard project—the last one, for now, anyway. Here are the before photos.
Before.
We got a lot of bang for our buck with mulch we ended up getting for free using our old Chase credit card’s bonus points.
Marty and I realized by early summer that I overplanted my Vegtrub raised garden beds and would need to expand.
After.
I have to give credit where credit is due; Marty is one lucky son of a bitch when it comes to finding sales, deals, and markdowns.
I always joke that we don’t pay full price for anything. He found leftover small Vegtrub beds for a ridiculous price.
He also found these gorgeous metal beds, where we will grow a year’s worth of garlic and a big root vegetable patch next spring.
This is the time to look for end-of-season garden items. It’s also a great time to rescue some poor veggie plants and flowers.
Long story short, I thought I got 2 San Marzano Roma tomato plants. It turns out one is an heirloom variety; I was really upset😫
How in fucks name was I supposed to make sauce now, especially since my one San Marzano plant was growing miniature tomatoes! Ugh!
Here are the tiny clusters of San Marzanos about the size of grapes.
Even though it’s late in the planting season, I decided to search for some or any Roma tomato plants, even if they were not true San Marzanos.
I picked up a 6-pack of Roma tomatoes called Health Kick for $1. I also got a 6-pack of cabbage which was also $1 just for the pure hell of it. I’m learning to garden after all.
I also saved two sad-looking superbena plants that were on sale which I picked off the dead leaves.
I finished off my purchase with a six-pack of parsley since mine had already gone to seed.
I love how our lower garden came out complete with an outdoor shower!
We had one when the boys were young and have really missed it.
The outdoor shower is perfect after outdoor projects or swimming since I always shower anyway to get the chlorine out of my hair.
Oh, how we love the outdoor shower! I just have to remember to look up at the sky while showering.
I’ve always wanted a rain showerhead, and this one is amazing! They sell outdoor shower plumbing kits, and many are on sale.
I am very lucky Marty is so handy and that we are both hard workers. We completed this project in less than three afternoons.
Marty used every piece of leftover wood and decking he had tucked away, dug up pieces of slate to create stairs, and picked up some simple cement slate-looking pavers to complete the paths.
I laugh and call him a packrat, but the things he keeps are always used for some kind of a project.
He did an amazing job making my vision a reality. Thank you, Hunny. 🩷
The rest of the beautiful blue and tiny natural cedar beds will be used for end-of-summer fall crops. I’m so excited to plant more things!
Pavers still need to be straightened and leveled today.
I’m heading outside to water my garden this morning. I love the tranquility early in the morning listening to the birds chirp away.