Cruise for Hunger, Play for Hunger

We participated in the Play for Hunger Cruise for Hunger Charity Event this weekend at Isla Del Sol.  This event benefits both the Daystar Life Center and the St. Petersburg Free Clinic. 

Daystar was founded in 1982 as a small parish ministry  to provide emergency assistance to individuals and families.   The mission of Daystar is to alleviate the suffering and hopelessness experienced by members of the community who are economically or physically challenged. Most recipients are living below the federal poverty level.

St. Petersburg Free Clinic is a multi-service, independent, not-for-profit agency providing  assistance with food, shelter and health care. The clinic has  been caring for the those families and individuals facing short term emergency needs since 1970.

I played in the tennis event on Saturday--Steve sat out because of tennis (or chainsaw) elbow.  The tennis event encountered some rain so it ended during the third round.  Robert, the club manager, made a huge pot of Brunswick stew for lunch after the round robin.  

The Cruise for Hunger Event was held on Sunday after noon after a huge brunch at the club.  We met our crew at lunch and then headed out for a 3 hour cruise.  There were 9 boats in the flotilla which went up to Tierra Verde and the grand canal.  

The event continues on Monday with golf and closes on Tuesday evening with a dinner at the club. 

Liam, Bridgett & Pat

Lloyd

Pat & Jerry

John & Sue

It's a Dog's World

We took the bikes over to Ford DeSoto Park on Tierra Verde.  We rode for a few miles before we discovered the pier and the surrounding beaches.  We could see several dogs swimming and decided to take a closer look to find that there is a section of the beach devoted to dogs.There were dogs everywhere--I was reminded of the book Go Dog Go!  These are just a few of the new dog friends we met. 

Compare the size of the dog with her owner--she is an amazon!

Visitor's from Home

On Saturday, Dee and her son Emory  came to visit us.  Emory competed in a Spartan race at Raymond James field in Tampa on Saturday morning.  After they made a trip to St. Pete Beach and Pass-a-Grille Beach, they came by to visit on the boat and to join us for dinner.  

I love to experiment when guests come to dinner so --guess what--I tried some new recipes.   

We had bacon wrapped quail, pork tenderloin, salad, zucchini quinoa pilaf and rice.  Emory helped me with the salad.  I let him use my new spiralizer.  

Emory was so kind to play along with me while playing out  my dream to have a cooking show on television.  He is a great kid! Best Wishes to Emory as he graduates from high school this year.  

Still loving my spiralizer.  We put the spiral cucumber slices into a salad.  

Earlier in the day I prepared the quail.  It doesn't get much easier than this recipe.  Wrap the quail in bacon.  Spray a pan with PAM, then pour a stick of melted butter over the quail.   Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.  Delicious.

We had a great visit with Dee and Emory.  Hope they can come back again!

Snow Moon in February!

Wow, wasn't that a beautiful moon on Friday?  A full moon in the month of February is often called a Snow Moon.  How fitting that the ground in Georgia is covered in snow during the full moon.  We left early this Valentine's morning to head back to St. Petersburg and hopefully warmer weather.  Steve got a picture of the Snow Moon from the boat.  

Snow Day #2

Finally the snow has just about stopped.  It is beautiful.  We are hoping that it all melts and we can get back to Florida soon.  This cold weather is just too much. We headed out for a walk. 

 Smoke is still rising from the fire Steve built over the weekend

My favorite sight of the day below!

Snow Day #1 Laziest Day Ever

Wednesday February 12 will go down in Poole history as the laziest day we have ever spent.  We watched the news of the storm all day long. Steve loves a good (bad) weather day on television.  In between news shows, we discovered Amazon Prime Video has Season One of Steve's newest favorite show--Justified.  We watched several episodes of this so that I could get the background information because Steve is already watching season 4.  

Are you guys going to do anything today?

 

Between episodes, we put another coat of varnish on the Meandering Joy plaque we are taking to the boat. 

Late in the afternoon, Steve made a run to Publix to buy milk so we could make Snow Ice Cream.  I decided it was time for him to learn a few things in the kitchen.  His first task--use the mixer.  He did great! 

 That pretty much sums up the day.  After the ice cream, we headed back to watch more Justified.

Roasted Broccoli & Kale

Roasted Broccoli is one of the easiest side dishes to make.  There are many recipes floating around the Internet for roasted broccoli--mine is simple.  I spray a cookie sheet with PAM.  I chop fresh broccoli (do not rinse with water) to get rid of the heavy stalk. Then spread the broccoli florets on the cookie sheet and spray with PAM.  Bake at 400 for 10 minutes.  Stir and return to oven for 10 minutes.  Sprinkle with sea salt and Parmesan cheese and serve.  Yum Yum--

Broccoli is great for overall health.  
1.  Broccoli is an anti cancer food because it contains glucoraphanin (?)
2.  It is a soluble fiber which draws cholesterol out of the body
3.  It has high levels of calcium which is great for our bones
4.  It is high in fiber which which aids in digestion and maintains low blood sugar, and curbs overeating.
5.  Broccoli has as much protein as a cup of rice with half the calories.

Broccoli & Kale ready to go in the oven!

A few weeks ago I was watching Hungry Girl on TV--must have been the cooking channel--before the Super bowl. The show was titled Surprises Shockers and & Swaps.   She mentioned baking Kale as a substitute for chips.  You can her recipe here.

I didn't look up here recipe--instead I sprayed the cookie sheet with Pam and then sprayed the Kale with Pam and baked with the broccoli I had already prepared.  

Wow--the kale was delicious and crispy like chips.  This would be great on top of a salad.  I ate these with sea salt and Parmesan cheese.  It cooks down quite a bit--but is very tasty.  A great substitute for potato chips.  
Kale is high in fiber, low in calorie, high in vitamins K, A, & C.  

I put the Kale in the oven with the broccoli.  They were both ready in about the same time.  

Let me know when you try out these roasted veggies!