Outdoor Beauty and a Gourmet Burger

Moonflowers

I am sure Moonflowers are a fairy flower favorite. Its delicate, fragrant flowers are  trumpet shaped. Their petals unfurl in late afternoon and early evening and stay open until sun rises. 

It would be the perfect spot for fairies to curl up inside the petals during the day resting before their evening work as the flowers open in late afternoon. After watching these flowers which seemed like magic open up before my eyes last evening at my neighbors I decided this flower would be a great addition to patio gardening. They bloom late in the summer and are a close relative to the morning glory. Moonflowers are well adapted climbers and require some type of structure to help then grow. They are heat and drought resistant and quite easy to grow from seeds. I've put Moonflowers on my Spring gardening list. 

  

A walk in the woods seemed to lead me right toward what looked like a fairy home at the base of this tree. Look carefully on the right under the mushroom for the entrance. These four mushrooms reminded me of awnings for fairy windows. 

Now this sight stopped me right in my tracks. A maple tree turning and its only August!! Everyday more and more color appears in the woods. Must be the same reason why my pumpkin went from yellow to bright orange so early in the season. I fear a long-long winter:)  

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Kentucky-Style Bourbon Onion

Gourmet Burger

Cook's notes:Sometimes a burger needs to elevated from just plain and ordinary to something more spectacular in taste and looks. This is just the recipe that can do it.  The unusual list of ingredients really caught my attention. I wondered how can this work and what will it taste like. The recipe does take more effort than just placing burger on grill  adding sliced onions, cheese and tomato. 
Serves 4
Recipe adapted from magazine Real Food Summer 2012 (Byerlys and Lunds)

But the end result outweighs the bit of extra time and can be refrigerated till burger cooking time.    

Ingredients:

• 2 pieces of bacon
• 1 large onion halved and thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup bourbon
• 1/2 cup strong coffee
• 2 tsp. molasses
• 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. Dijon mustard
• 1 TB.cider vinegar

Directions:

• In a large fry pan cook bacon pieces on medium high heat adding sliced onions and a sprinkling of sea salt
• Cover and cook 15 minutes, stirring occasionally till onion are browned and well caramelized
• Remove bacon  
• Pour bourbon into the onion mixture and cook uncovered till bourbon is almost evaporated
• Turn heat down to medium stir in coffee, molasses,mustard, vinegar and Worcestershire sauce 
• Stir and bring to a boil until liquid is nearly evaporated and onions well coated 
• Make beef patties and cook on one side
• Add 1 heaping tablespoon to top of each burger and complete cooking