Our Favorite Stuffed Banana Peppers

Hi gang.  Had to share this with you guys.

Every year, we have an abundance of banana peppers.  Both sweet (for Dom) and hot (my favorite).

This is our favorite way to make 'em....

Cut your peppers like this

Mix together sharp cheddar and minced onion

Stuff 'em

Wrap with bacon, secure with toothpicks, then throw them in a 350 oven until bacon starts to firm-up  (about an hour in my toaster oven)

Broil until crispy

One Final Batch of Pics.... PCB

This was a great couple of weeks.  For 4 or 5 days, there was a Para-Glider Convention going on nearby.  The sky was full of 'em.

The water was pristine, but a chilly 79 degrees.  I can't believe that when we first bought this place, I'd swim in March!

As usual, spent Happy Hours at The Liq across the street.

More sightings of hammerhead sharks off Panama City Beach

This was the other day.

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla.

There have been more sightings of hammerhead sharks off Panama City Beach.

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) officials said they spotted a school of the sharks at the county pier this weekend, a lot like the group viewer Tina Rudisill snapped a picture of last week.

Research biologist Dr. John Carlson said this is not uncommon as the Gulf of Mexico is currently very clear and more people are getting out on the water. As for why they're coming so close to shore, he said that's natural instinct.

"They're just looking for bait. They're looking for food, like everything else. Some of them may be on a migratory pathway, basically the same pathway that the cobia are following right now. They're moving along shore, down the edge to the west side of Florida," Dr. Carlson said.

Carlson suggests people don't swim at dusk or dawn when it's harder for both people and sharks to see in the water, near people fishing as the bait attracts sharks, nor with jewelry on because it can look a lot like the shiny fish sharks eat.

He also added it's best to shuffle your feet while walking in the water because your chances of stepping on a stingray and being stung are far greater than being bitten by a shark.

Fun on the Intra Coastal Waterway

I just got back from PCB yesterday.  Had a great 2 weeks.

This was the highlight of the trip.  Dear friends Keith and Lauren have a houseboat on a slough of the Intra Coastal Waterway.

They live in White City, Gulf County Florida..... 55 miles from the condo.

Last Sunday, I met Keith at his business in Mexico City Beach then followed him home.

Lauren had all of our overnight supplies ready.  We hopped in their 19 ft. boat and zipped about 3 miles to the houseboat.

I was in heaven!

When we weren't fishing off of the houseboat, we were zipping around the waterway and exploring little sloughs.  ("sloos")...  Headed down to St. Joe Bay and up to Lake Wimico.  Gorgeous.

Spent 2 nights and had a great time. This was the first time that they had spent the night on the boat.  It won't be the last!

Monster Salt Water Catfish

He caught an eel

Sunrise and Mist on the Slough

A visiting Gator

Bald Eagle

Flowers Galore

Intra Coastal

Waterway Approaching Lake Wimico

Huge Lake Wimico

A Great Recipe- Greek-Inspired Quinoa

Hi gang-

I had to share this recipe with you.  It's one of our new favorites.

I've been on a Quinoa kick for the past couple of months.  It's a grain that's packed with protein and very versatile.  It's great for a meatless dinner once or twice per week.

GREEK QUINOA

Ingredients:

3 1/2 cups chicken broth
2 cups quinoa
1 cup halved grape tomatoes
3/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/2 cup sliced pitted kalamata olives
1/2 cup minced red onion
 Sliced pickled pepperoncini
1 can of garbanzo beans- drained
4 ounces chopped feta cheese, or more to taste
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 lemon, halved
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions:

Bring broth and quinoa to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer until quinoa is tender and water has been absorbed, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer quinoa to a large bowl and set aside to cool, about 10 minutes.
Mix tomatoes,garbanzos, pepperoncini, parsley, kalamata olives, onion, feta cheese, olive oil, vinegar, and garlic into quinoa. Squeeze lemon juice over quinoa salad, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Chill in refrigerator, 1 to 4 hours.

(I marinated my veggies separately for a couple of hours before mixing it in with the Quinoa.... wanted to get my garbanzos tasty!)

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As it's just the two of us, I only cooked 1 cup of Quinoa, (Use half as much chicken broth) but basically used all of the original measurements.

This was out-of-this-world.