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Yesterday I met one of the queen bees who will moving to my “Bee Yard” next weekend. I was invited to join my bee mentor, Mr. Floyd for another inspection of his hives. I was pleased that he offered an extra bee suit to adoring husband, allowing him to see what all the […]

Hello Orange Bee readers! I am writing today to let you know I will be taking a break over the weekend to travel with my family. I will be back next week with more delicious recipes and interesting (hopefully) stories for your entertainment. Meantime, check out my “Bees & Honey” page for a new story […]

Garlic has been used as both food and medicine in many cultures for thousands of years, dating back to when Egyptian pyramids were built. Garlic is mentioned in the Bible and the Talmud. Garlic was consumed by ancient Greek and Roman soldiers, sailors, and rural classes as a cure-all. The practice of hanging garlic, […]

Last night we followed our Valentines evening tradition and headed to Keller’s drive-in. As I mentioned in my Valentine’s Day post it is an old timey drive-in complete with car-hops who still look like they did in the 80’s. They call you “hon” and “sweetie” and they don’t even know you. It’s a composition […]

February 14, the day of love. I was challenged with deciding what to create to show the love to my family on Valentine’s Day. It’s not that I don’t have a zillion yummy dessert recipes to choose from or half a zillion that I’ve never tried but want to. No, that was not the problem. […]

Yesterday began at 6 am. This time of day is not my favorite. I like it best when the alarm has a 7 in front of the other numbers, whether they are :00 or :20 or :45. But yesterday it was 6:00 straight up. Miss T was required to be at her school by 6:45 […]

Did you know that Brussel Sprouts are an ancient vegetable? Possibly grown in what is now known as Belgium in the 13th century, Brussel Sprouts could be America’s most disliked vegetable. The first recorded writings about Brussel Sprouts date to 1587. Brussel Sprouts are one of the few vegetables to originate in northern Europe. They […]

After I posted the gumbo recipe my Mom, who is quite familiar with the business of making gumbo called to say she wanted to clue me in on a change my Dad had made to his gumbo recipe, which had not been added to his book. Here’s the story. My Dad had a taste for” […]

If you are not from Texas you may laugh at us Texans’ totally shutting down every time we get ice and or snow. Laugh all you want but apparently we are not equipped to handle too much of the white stuff so we close our schools to the joy of all students, deplete our grocery […]

Isn’t that beautiful? Fresh shrimp ready to be peeled, cooked and eaten. As you know by now these shrimp are destined for the Super Bowl of Gumbo. That is not truly the name of this gumbo but it seemed so fitting to turn it into a puzzle. None of you guessed – nor even attempted. […]

S_ _ ER _ _ _ L _ _ _ _ _ _ _ The puzzle above is a “same name” puzzle, like a “Wheel Of Fortune” puzzle. Did you ever watch that show? I do, some evenings. It is the only program I can watch during dinner – the whole family gets […]

I’ll start by saying, “I did not win any ribbons”. Actually there weren’t any ribbons given out, there was a quick announcement of the winners and everyone went back to stuffing their faces with chili. There were over 60 entries in the cook off and 2 winners were selected by a method not known to […]

The headline says it all. Today I am entering my first ever cook off of any kind and it’s a chili cook off. Cook offs are not new to me although entering one is untried. I’ve attended my share of chili and gumbo cook offs. Never heard of a gumbo cook off? Well, where I […]

Today is an oatmeal day. Temperatures dipping markedly below freezing, winds are still blowing through and the world of The Orange Bee remains covered in ice. After a quick jaunt on the treadmill I made a steamy bowl of oatmeal with raisins, nuts and brown sugar. It warmed me up through and through. I am […]

The Orange Bee is home-bound today. Thick ice covers the roads, wind is whipping through at 30-40 mph, temperature a frigid 21*and dropping. While watching the birds at the feeders today I’ve noticed them being blown from one spot to the next as their tiny feet slip and slide across the icy ground. It is […]

Today I was privileged to spend about three hours with Mr. Floyd, my bee mentor. Mr. Floyd has been raising bees and making honey for over twenty years. He knows an astounding amount of info about bees. First he told me I needed to know the basics of the hive itself. We examined frames, foundations, […]

The birthday celebration was fabulous. In fact it was so fabulous that we didn’t shoot many photos. We were immersed in party mode. I am sorry to say I won’t be posting pictures of the evening. I will tell you that the meal prepared by our friends the Flanigan’s was superb. Bone-in rib eye grilled […]

Ahhhh…..cake and champagne. Is there any finer food or beverage with which to celebrate a birthday? I think not. I wrote previously about my oldest daughter and her birthday cake request. LuLu’s birthday will be celebrated tonight. The cake is made, the champagne is chilled and the gifts are gaily wrapped. Stay tuned for photos […]

Today was one of those glorious days. Chilly, well actually downright cold this morning. A frosty 28* that evolved to a sunny 65* matchless day. It reminds me why we all welcome “spring” when she blows in. Meantime it is still January and we have a birthday to celebrate at The Orange Bee. FYI: The […]

Comfort cookies…again! These cookies border on healthy – not what usually comes out of my oven. I was in the mood for oatmeal cookies but was craving chocolate and cranberries. Don’t ask me why, because I haven’t an answer. After mulling this over for a few hours I decided to throw them all together […]