Its a baby shower!

So my sister, who is 9 and a half years my elder is due any day now with her fifth child. The kicker is, her youngest is in the first grade. Needless to say, it was a surprise! She really inspires me. So much so that she inspired me to make my husband get a vasectomy within weeks of her revealing she was pregnant. Seeing how she has long since gotten rid of all things baby, we decided to throw her a shower. However, we insisted that the guests gifts were hand-me-downs. So my sister-in-law, Laurie did what she does best, invite everyone and provide a clean house, and I did what I do best, the food.

I did beef and barley soup, home made rolls, and spinach and strawberry salad, and a lemon berry tart for desert. Also to drink, I did a apple slush.

If you want a nice, earthy, hardy soup, this is the soup for you. Also, this is one of the meals I was tell you about, when you use your leftover roast beef from Sunday dinner.

Ingredients:

3-4 diced red potatoes

2-3 diced peeled carrots

1-2 sliced celery

1 diced onion

1/2 c pearl barley

6-8 cups beef stock

leftover roast beef with gravy

salt pepper

1 t thyme

2-3 bay leaves

Get your beef broth boiling while you prep the veggies. Put the barley in once it is boiling. Add the veggies, thyme and bay leaves, add salt and pepper to taste (remember the beef stock is already salty). Turn to med-low and simmer till veggies are tender, then add leftover roast beef and gravy. Continue to simmer and taste.

Lemon Berry Tart

Lemon curd filling (Paula deans recipe)

3 large lemons, zested and juiced

1 c sugar

1/2 butter melted

4 eggs

Using a food processor, pulse together sugar and zest. Add lemon juice and eggs and blend. Then add melted butter slowly pulsing as you go. Then thicken on the stove over simmering water. (put in a bowl that can sit over a pot of simmering water) Stir often till thicken. Paula's recipe says 5 minutes, but it took me much longer.

Now I used a tart pan which has a false bottom so you can take it out of its tin, but you can use a pie tin or any other shape you want to bake in.

So you use a pie crust( like I said you are going to have to wait for the best pie crust ever) Bake your pie crust, then fill it with the lemon curd. Top most beautifully with berries. Serve with fresh whipped cream (cool whip is a sin in my house).

I also did a spinach salad with strawberries, goat cheese, pomegranates, red onions and a homemade balsamic vinaigrette. That recipe will be for another day.

The apple slush, huge crowd pleaser and super easy. Get some fresh apple juice (you know the kind they sell with the produce) and put it in your punch bowl and put it in the freezer. One hour before your party pull it out of the freezer and let it soften. Slice some apples and pour some sprite over it. You'll probably have to smash it with a knife a little as well. Way good.

Now the rolls, two words. DANG GOOD. However they also will be debuting in the "12 days of Thanksgiving" Stay tuned . . . .