Parmesan Roasted Potatoes

These potatoes are very savory and delicious and make a great side dish to any meal. In fact I'm such a  potato fanatic, I would be happy with just a bowl of these potatoes. Please use freshly grated Parmesan Cheese. It makes a difference. I think a diced green onion would be good in this as well. I'll try that when I have some fresh from the garden.

Parmesan Roasted Potatoes 

4-5 cups cubed potatoes, Red Skin or Yukon Gold are best. 3 Tbsp olive or canola oil 1/2 tsp garlic salt 1/2 tsp salt. I like to use sea salt or kosher 1 tsp smoked paprika 1/2 tsp pepper 4 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan Cheese Instructions: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut potatoes into 3/4 inch cubes. Put into bowl with lid or zip-lock bag. Add oil and the remaining ingredients to potatoes. Stir or shake making sure potatoes are covered evenly. Pour into greased baking dish and bake for 30 minutes. Stir potatoes and continue baking another 15-20 minutes until they are golden brown and crispy. Garnish with additional shredded Parmesan if desired. printablerecipe

Linking to Mealtime Monday

Crazy for Cardinals

Cardinals are among North America's most recognizable and popular songbird. Male cardinals are known for their bright red feathers while .....

the females sport a more dullish red color. They both have coral red beaks and a crest. Cardinals are among the most beautiful birds in the world and several states have designated this bird as their state bird, one of them being my home state, Ohio.

Cardinals mate for life and stay together throughout the year. If one dies the other one will find a new mate.

Cardinals are not migratory and are easily attracted to backyard feeders all year long, and most days they are the first to arrive and the last to leave. Some of their favorite foods are sunflower seeds, safflower seeds, cracked corn and suet.

Thay love to roost in thickets and shrubs and rarely stray more than a few miles from their nest, especially if there is food available.

 Their colors sure brighten up the dismal landscape in the winter.

They keep their bright red plumage all year making them very striking against the snow.

 If I had to find one negative thing about a cardinal it would be their habit of attacking its reflection in the window in the spring. They are very territorial and are obsessed with defending their territory against intruders.

In addition to food, provide a source of water for drinking and bathing.

Many birds like to clean their feathers in a birdbath but this was a first for me in the winter.

One very frigid morning last winter, I'm talking temperatures in the teens, I just happened to see this cardinal in the water taking a bath.

I couldn't believe what I was seeing and I just grabbed the camera and started snapping pictures. I didn't have time to adjust any settings so the quality isn't the greatest but I thought it was worth sharing.

"That was invigorating!!"

Cardinals love to sing but one fact I did not know is that scientists have described at least 16 different calls for the cardinal the most common being a sharp loud "chip chip".

Butter Pecan Sweet Potatoes

Butter Pecan Sweet Potatoes 4 medium to large Sweet Potatoes 2-3 Tbsp. olive oil 2 Tbsp. butter cut into small pieces 2 Tbsp. brown sugar 1/4 cup chopped pecans course salt pinch of cayenne pepper opt. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine butter, sugar, pecans and cayenne if using. Peel potatoes and halve lengthwise. Slice crosswise into thick slices. In a bowl or ziplock bag, toss potatoes with olive oil. Pour onto large baking sheet so they are spread out. Season with salt. Bake until potatoes are tender approx.25-35 min. Turn your potatoes at least once while they are baking. Sprinkle your butter, sugar and pecan mixture over the potatoes. Bake until the sugar is carmelized and hard about 10 min. Serve immediately. printablerecipe

Sunset at Mortons

No trip to the Smoky Mountains is complete without a sunset from Morton's Overlook. This pullout close to Newfound Gap is an excellent spot to watch the sunset especially during the summer months. Arrive early because the parking lot fills up fast.
I can't even begin to describe how spectacular some of the sunsets are. All the varying shades of pink and purple, red and blue, orange and yellow. Only God can create something so beautiful.
 I can't begin to do justice to some of the sunsets we have seen, but here are a few of my favorites.

"Purple Mountains Majesty"

I never get tired watching the fog swirl in and among the mountains. I love how the sun lights up the fog.

"Fire on the Mountain"

Day is dying in the west,

Heav'n is touching earth with rest,

Wait and worship while the night,

Sets her evening lamps alight,

Through all the sky.

The Chimney's are clearly visible in this photo and Newfound Gap Road down at the bottom of the picture.

"Shaconage"

That is the Cherokee name for these mountains meaning "land of blue smoke"

I am so thankful to the Creator of the Universe for giving us this panorama of beauty for us to enjoy!!

Wild about Woodpeckers

This post is all about the woodpecker. About six or seven species of woodpeckers are found in our area, but only five of those have been spotted at my feeders.
The Woodpecker is pretty much the top bird at the feeder's. All other species of birds give way when a woodpecker flies in to feed.

The largest and most uncommon is the Pileated Woodpecker. Nearly as large as a crow it is the most impressive of the Woodpeckers. They are very shy and wary and seem to detect the slightest movement when I try to get a photo of them. On a rare occasion they will come to the suet feeder, but most of the time they forage for carpenter ants, nuts, berries, and other insects..

"Where's the Peanut Butter?"

Occasionally I spread peanut butter in this hole and that is what he is looking for. They can clean out the entire hole just as an appetizer.
 The damage they can do to trees, utility poles or even buildings is unbelievable!

Another woodpecker that visits frequently is the Yellow-Shafted Flicker. Flickers are unusual among other North American Woodpeckers in that their general coloration is brown rather than black and white. This one is a male as you can tell by his black mustache. Unlike most species of woodpeckers, Flickers forage mostly on the ground. Flickers are also one of the few Woodpeckers that migrate.

The Flicker has stunning plumage in both color and pattern. I think they are the most beautiful of all the woodpeckers.

The next few Woodpeckers are some of the more common ones found in our area. This one is a female Red-Bellied Woodpecker and they visit the feeders all year long. If you live in the eastern range of the U.S. it isn't hard to attract them. They even eat the grape jelly I put out in the summer for the Baltimore Orioles.

These two pictures show a male Red-Bellied and you can see the red on his belly.

The next two Woodpeckers are very similar in their coloration and best told apart by their size. The Hairy Woodpecker is larger (top photo) and has a longer bill,  while the Downy is smaller (bottom photo) and has a short bill. The Hairy is a shyer bird and likely to fly away when we are filling the feeders, while the Downy is bolder and will come to the feeder even when I am standing a few feet away.

Female Downy

Male Downy

Last but certainly not least is a Red-Headed Woodpecker. Unfortunately I have not had any success attracting this beautiful bird. I have seen one twice in all the years I lived here but it never stayed around much to my dismay...Sigh.   I do see them at my in-laws which is where I took this photo. 

Which species of Woodpeckers is your favorite?