Until it cools off, I am going to be lucky to get one post up each week. Between my work on Harmony Boards, driving around town with deliveries and family commitments, I have zero energy or desire to cook. That’s the greatest thing about living alone, you don’t have to cook if you don’t want to!

With that in mind, I haven’t cooked for weeks, so I had to go back nearly two months to Father’s Day to dig up this recipe and photos.

Of course, there was a Father’s Day Harmony Board. I kept light and fairly healthy since steak was on the menu.

I wasn’t certain what I was going to make for Father’s Day dinner until I went to Costco and saw the special Father’s Day Roadshow they had in the meat section. It was there that I found this beautiful U.S.D.A. Prime cut of meat.

To be honest, I’d never seen or heard of a Beef Ribeye Cap Steak before but it looked beautiful and impressive, so I snatched it right up.

The helpful and kind butcher told me it was his favorite cut and recommended that I grill it over medium-high direct heat for about 7 minutes for this thickness. “Thank you, will do!”

Remember: Be sure to always rest meat before cutting. Especially when using it in a salad like this was. Resting the meat gives time for the juices to get back into the meat. You will lose less juice when you cut it and when you eat it the meat will be juicier and tastier. If you cut it too soon, the juices, which will look like blood, will flow out and that is not a nice look on a salad!

I made this cake for Father’s Day. Isn’t it lovely?

But, as usual, I had a problem while baking. Seriously, what’s new?

This time around, I took extra precautions and not only greased the pans but also lined them with parchment rounds and floured the sides.  I was sure that everything else would work out perfectly. Nope.

The original recipe, which I am not going to reference here because there were too many problems with it, did not indicate the diameter of pans to use. Much of my bakeware is packed away. I had two 8-inch diameter pans and three 9-inch diameter pans at my disposal, so I decided to go with the 9-inch. That was a mistake numero uno. Since I wasn’t sure of the pan size, I should have checked the cakes much earlier than I did to see if they were cooked through. As it was, the original recipe called for the cake layers to be baked for 35 minutes. I checked them after 24 minutes and they were already overcooked and dry as the Sonoran desert.

Mistake numero dos was to not then soak them with some sort of orange liqueur or orange juice. I’m certain that would have helped. Instead, I figured that the frosting (there is a lot of it!) would be enough to compensate for the dryness. Again, no.

It’s a pretty cake and if you keep an eye on it while it’s baking, I’m sure it’s a delicious cake too. I served up the 5 pieces to my dad, Connor, Dave, Sloane, and myself and then I tossed the rest of it in the trash (after I picked all the fruit off the top and had that with my breakfast the next morning).  I believe I’ve made the corrections and compensations for this to be a tasty cake. If you decide to give it a try – let me know.

In the meantime, let me say, this is just another example of why …

I Hate To BAKE

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The meat from these baby back ribs is fall-off-the-bone tender and oh so flavorful!

Dave requested vinegar-based ribs as his Father’s Day main course. Done! Although the ribs were delish, they weren’t the best part of Father’s Day.

On the Thursday night before, I received a text from my sister-in-law, Teresa, saying that she was on her way to town for an unexpected visit.

Teresa and my older brother divorced over 20 years ago, but she and I have always been close… since high school actually. She and my four nephews moved to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho some 19 years ago. Sadly, we rarely see each other.

My dad gets up to Idaho to see his grandsons and Teresa every couple of years, but we haven’t been there since 2003.

Teresa wanted to know if she should call Dad or if I thought she should surprise him on Father’s Day instead.

Surprise, of course!

So Teresa, her sister Jennifer, and their mom, Judy, walked in about a half-hour before dinner and surprised Dad. He was overjoyed and has been talking about it every day since. There is nothing better than seeing and catching up with family!

Jen, Judy, and Teresa are pictured above. Love them! xoxo

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This is a healthy, refreshing and easy-to-make summer salad, and a great way to use up some of the zucchini bounty from your garden.

It served as one of our side dishes for Father’s Day dinner on Sunday.

Carpaccio is the international name of a typical Italian dish made with very thinly sliced raw meat.

Nowadays the term carpaccio is used for any preparation made with thinly sliced raw meat, fish, vegetables or fruit.

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Yesterday morning, Connor pitched in to help me make a simple Father’s Day breakfast for his dad.

I was already working on an early afternoon dinner for 8, so I didn’t want it to be some big elaborate morning meal. These pancakes are about as light and fluffy as it gets.

Plus, with the two of us working together, it was a breeze to get on the table in less than 20 minutes.

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Happy Father’s Day…

… to all of you wonderful dad’s out there.

Photo: Me with my dad, Gene Otter, on our way to a family wedding in 1986.

Especially big wishes for a super-duper day to my own dad and my husband, Dave.

January 1988 photo of us at Marissa’s baptism.

Dad with his eight grandchildren in 1992, on Connor’s first birthday. Standing: Benjamin, Joel, and David. Sitting on chaise: Marissa, Dad, Connor, and Raina. Sitting on cool deck: Race and Jeremy.

Dad and me making Christmas dinner in 1996.

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When we left for Hawaii on May 22, the peaches on my tree looked as if they would be ripe any day.

Connor would be coming home on the weekends while we were away and Marissa was home one short weekend for the wedding shower of her college roommate, Paige.

The wedding is in August and Marissa is a bridesmaid.

I told both the kids and my dad to keep an eye on the peaches and to please please please pick and eat them. I hated the thought of the luscious fruit going to waste.

If not picked, they’d either fall off the tree and rot or more likely, the bugs would get to them as soon as they ripened. The idea of it made my stomach actually ache.

When we arrived home on June 3rd, surprisingly there were still peaches on the tree! My dad said that they were always hard as rocks when he checked and I never did remember to ask the kids if they had any.

The little fruit flies, gnats, or whatever those nasty little bugs are, had already been to work on more than 2 dozen of the peaches, but I was able to pick a decent boxful! Joy!

I made a delicious Peachy-Chicken entree one night (coming soon to a post near you) and today I am using the last of the peaches for this dessert.

It’s a partially-make-ahead dish. I’m starting it today and we will be enjoying it on Sunday for Father’s Day.

Of course, I had to make one serving from start to finish so I could photograph and post it for you today.

The things I do and the sacrifices I make for you people!

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