A Sultry Day

We live in a wonderful world full of beauty, charm and adventure.

There is no end to the adventures that we can have

if only we seek them with our eyes open.

by Jawaharial Nehru

While the pluses do outweigh the minuses of living Up North not having air conditioning has recently proved to be a real negative. We have entered into a long stretch of warm and very humid days. Escaping our warm house to go on a Home and Garden tour was a perfect outing for the day. And one of the bonuses was air conditioning in all the homes we visited!

The gardens were stunning displays of beauty but they all left me puzzled. Why aren't the deer disturbing these plants I asked myself??? Several of the buildings on tour were quite interesting. I especially liked the home where the owners strove to remain true to their Scandinavian roots. On their property they had turned a building into a very cute garden shed complete with a grass thatched roof. Behind it was a sauna created out of a large barrel. As we were leaving one home we passed by a small lake where the water lily flowers were in full bloom. Enjoy the photos (one photo shows how you can make a bench out of old doors). Lucky for me I spent some time yesterday making dinner. The Barbecued Pulled Pork recipe makes a lot of sandwiches and was perfect for our outdoor dining.

Barbecued Pulled Pork Sandwiches

serves 8

Ingredients:

• 2 TB. barbecued seasoning mix (dry) divided
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 3- lb. Boston butt or pork loin center rib roast (I used a prepared Hormel package with no bone)
• 1-15 oz can chunky tomatoes (basil, oregano, onion)
• 1 onion cut in slices and separated
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• ¼ cup tomato paste
• 2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 TB. spicy brown mustard
• ½ tsp. black pepper
• 1 cup prepared Kansas City Barbecue Sauce (I used honey, cider, vinegar)

Directions:

• Combine 1 TB. barbecue seasoning mix and 1 tsp salt
• Rub evenly over pork
• Stir rest of ingredients together with the other 1 TB. barbecue seasoning mix
• Place in crock-pot, add onion rings, add roast insert meat thermometer into pork
• Cover and cook 6 hours on low or until meat registers 180 and meat shreds easily
• Shred meat on cutting board using 2 forks or hands
• Put meat back into crock-pot that has been turned off, mix well-let sit for 10-15 minutes
• To serve use a slotted spoon since there is a lot of liquid and place meat mixture into buns