With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, this Baileys Mudslide Truffle recipe is the perfect way to end a romantic meal with a loved one. I love the taste of sweet treats that are mixed with alcohol. They add a touch of decadence to recipes and are perfect for celebrating.  These Irish Cream Truffles are …

If you like to cook French cuisine, growing chervil is a good idea, since the fresh herb is hard to find at local grocery stores and Farmer’s Markets. Chervil is a delicate herb that comes from the carrot family.  Close cousins are dill, parsley and fennel. Chervil is a native of Southeastern Europe, southern Russia …

Plants, vegetables and trees can grow into the most amazing shapes. These oddities of nature show that twists, bends and outgrowths can turn an ordinary plant into something that looks totally different.  This inspiration for this post came from a morning breakfast jaunt. After breakfast Richard and I were driving around and we came upon …

Are you looking for an easy slow cooker hearty winter meal? This flavorful vegetable beef barley soup is chock full of vegetables in a delightfully seasoned broth that will warm you to the bones. The soup cooks for hours so you can get on with your day, and makes the kitchen smell amazing, to boot. …

There are dozens of uses for license plates if you just think outside the box a bit. The colors and designs lend them selves to loads of home decor projects, both inside and outside the home. Have you ever thought about using number plates in DIY projects?  Using recycled items saves money on the projects …

Large, showy indoor plants are a delight in the home. Growing dracaena fragrans gives the feeling of being in a corn field. The striped yellow and green leaves bring a lot of softness to any corner of a room. It is not too hard to figure out why Dracaena Fragrans is called The Corn Plant.  The …

When the weather outside is too cold for gardening, flowering houseplants bring a touch of the garden into your home.  Blooming indoor plants add color and decor to any indoor setting and are cheerful year round. My first attempt at gardening started with houseplants. I remember coming home one day to the aroma of the …

Aphelandra squarrosa, also known as zebra plant can be a real challenge to grow. But the spectacular flowers and showy striped leaves make it worth the effort. If you love to grow flowering houseplants, zebra plant can’t be beat The flowers come in late summer and autumn on a tall flower stem that is long …

Pruning forsythia requires some basic knowledge of how the plant is meant to grow. Forsythia flowers give us one of the first splashes of color in early spring gardens. But to get that color and a well shaped shrub, it’s important to trim forsythia bushes correctly. Check out this article for more information on forsythia …

No holiday season would be complete without the buttery and crisp taste of a Scottish Shortbread cookie.   Biting into crunchy shortbread cookies gives you a light as air texture and taste that just can’t be beat. The cookie is so popular that January 6 has been labeled as National Shortbread Day. Let’s learn how to …

Spaghetti recipes are always a big hit at our house. They are cold winter comfort food at their tastiest. There are literally dozens of ways to incorporate a tasty spaghetti sauce into a quick and easy weeknight dinner sensation. One of my earliest spaghetti recipes was a combination of both beef and pork that became a …

Cryptanthus Bivittatus is a member of the Bromeliaceae family of tropical plants. It has many common names such as starfish plant, earth star and Red Star Bromeliad.  The bromeliad is a plant commonly grown in terrariums. This pretty bromeliad is native to Brazil and has a lovely star like shape made of stemless rosettes of …

There are many healthy kitchen swaps that you can use all year round for weight loss success. Implementing these food swaps will make sure that those extra pounds won’t find themselves on your thighs and rear next year.  For many of us, the start of the year means making a New Year’s resolution to lose …

This DIY candy cane vase makes an easy holiday decor project that is as much fun to put together as it is to display. Since it uses poinsettia flowers it goes right along with all your Christmas plants. All you need are some candy canes and a few inexpensive supplies. Grab some peppermint sticks and …

This delicious Bailey’s fudge recipe has a surprise addition of coffee for a great flavor. It is creamy and sweet and has a lovely consistency. This year, make some Irish Cream Fudge as a part of your Christmas traditions! Who doesn’t love the taste of a glass of Bailey’s Irish cream during the holidays? It …

Liriope Muscari Variegata is an evergreen perennial that easily spreads to form a deep carpet of grass-like plants that makes a great ground cover or border plant. This form of liriope aptly has the common name “variegated lilyturf.” Variegated liriope is less invasive than the normal variety. Keep reading to find out how to grow …

This delicious one pot beef curry recipe is big on flavor but low on calories. It truly is one of the easiest curries that you can make, but don’t let that fool you.  The flavor is amazing!  This Thai curry is a gluten free and easy to make meal that will delight your family. I …

This list of 15 bulbs to plant in fall will make sure that next year gets started with a burst of color with very little effort on your part. If you enjoy the beauty of spring blooming bulbs, it takes a bit of early planning to get that look in your garden. I’ve also included lots …

Kalanchoe millotii is a member of the crassulaceae family.  It is a n ornamental succulent plant that is native to Madagascar. Since it is not particularly cold hardy, it is grown as an indoor plant in most areas of the country. Keep reading to find out how to grow this fuzzy succulent. Succulents like kalanchoe …

If you like growing indoor plants that have an exotic look, why not try growing Sago Palms?. This plant makes a great choice for those new to houseplants since it prefers drying out before you water it again. A sago palm tree – Cycas revoluta – is easy to grow indoors as long as you …

How well do you know your flower bulb types?  Do the words bulbs corms rhizomes tubers and bulbets seem like Greek to you?  Read on and you find out what you need to know to be a bulb expert. Flowering bulbs are some of the easiest plants to grow. Some of the spring flowering bulbs, …

These caramel apple recipes feature the regular toffee apple snack as well as bars, cookies and other desserts that deliver the fabulous taste of this traditional fall treat. The recipes show that the caramel apple flavor is more than just a snack on a stick. Did you know that October 31 is National Caramel Apple …

Is fall foliage at its peak where you live? Here in NC, the colors are ablaze.  Fall blooming perennials and annuals are available, but nature gives us a pop of color each year naturally. In these photos garden fences and gates, surrounded by the colorful fall leaves, tell the story of the change of seasons …

Which herbs should choose for your indoor garden?  Here are my top 10 picks for herbs to grow indoors. There is nothing quite like the taste of fresh herbs to really add a boost to your home made recipes.  Many gardeners enjoy growing herbs outside during the summer months, but winter temperatures will kill them …

This collection of apple recipes will make great use of the plentiful harvest of this popular fruit. Fall is the time of the year when the choice of fruit and vegetables is not as wide as it is earlier in the year. Some fruits come into their own in Autumn. Apples are one of those. …

This fall gardening checklist will help you get ready for the gardening off-season. Learn about autumn garden care and how to winterize your outdoor space to make things so much easier when the garden starts blooming next spring. Getting out in the garden this time of the year is a great time to look back on …