Hiking Snacks & Beach Picnic

Last Saturday we went for a hike at Cape Lookout State Park. The plan was to pack a picnic lunch and eat on the beach if it was sunny but, as we all know, the weather at the Oregon Coast can be unpredictable at times so we had a backup plan. It was decided that if it turned out to be cold, windy,rainy or possibly all of the above, we would find food and shelter at a restaurant in town.

The sky was overcast when we arrived, however, the clouds eventually burned off and we enjoyed a beautiful sunny day.

We finished our hike around lunch time, then hopped in the car and headed down the road to the beach.

As you can see the weather was absolutely perfect, however, we decided to skip the picnic and instead ate outdoors at a beachside restaurant which was a lot of fun. The picnic lunch I had packed ended up staying in the cooler in the car but did not go to waste as we enjoyed it the following day.  

My Beach Picnic Menu included:

 chicken salad croissant sandwiches, individual serving sizes of quinoa salad and black bean mango salad, grapes, bananas { not pictured },  individual cups of trail mix and Hershey Kisses. 

The homemade Spicy Trail Mix was a hit, especially the bacon.

For dessert I made a batch of our favorite oatmeal cookies and loaded them with pecans, coconut, dried cranberries and raisins. 

I made them extra big for the hungry hikers. 

It was a fabulous day for some family fun!

Have a terrific Tuesday!!

A bit of Beauty for your Weekend

Our hike at Cape Lookout State Park.

Haystack Rock ~Pacific City

Summer at the Oregon Coast!

Have a Wonderful Day!!

Mango Avocado Salsa

Last weekend I picked up a couple of perfect mangos, one to try in salsa and the other to use later in the week in one of my favorite salad recipes. 

For the salsa I chopped up one mango, an avocado along with some diced red onions and red pepper. I added fresh chopped cilantro, a jalapeño pepper { both from our garden } a little fresh squeezed lime juice and a pinch of kosher salt. I mixed it all together and served with tortilla chips as a snack before Sunday Supper. 

This is so easy to make and can easily be adjusted to suit your taste. YUM!

Have a great day!

fruits & vegetables fresh from the garden

One of my favorite things about summer is having fresh fruits and vegetables right at our fingertips. My farmer keeps the crops shipshape and even does nearly all of the harvesting as well as some of the preserving. 

As for me, I like to stroll around the yard and graze on warm tomatoes and blueberries.

The birds build their nests each year in the Kiwi where they are hidden by the big leaves.

We have a new peach tree and are excited to have several peaches this first year. 

These big green peppers come in handy when we are cooking. 

Pumpkins are a must and in all sizes. 

We like to spice things up with hot peppers and planted several varieties.

This is our new Braeburn Apple tree with a small but really nice first year crop of apples. 

This hummingbird feeder was a  gift from my farmer and it is between the lavender and the Braeburn Apple Tree. 

The old pear tree is loaded with fruit this year and we also have a new Bing cherry tree which has tripled in size but did not produce any cherries. Hopefully we will have a good crop next summer.

Happy Tuesday!