If there's anything that makes me smile since we moved to Arizona in 2018, (I can't believe it's been three years!), it's cactus!
So ...
Steve and I took a drive in our area this past week to enjoy the outdoors in a safe-as-possible manner during Covid. (As in, we stayed in the car most of the time and were around no other people when we did get out of the car. Water bottles in tow, and masks with us.)
My hubby is 6' 2" tall, so you can see how tall some cactus grow! The blooms on top have long since faded from flowering, but you can still see the leftover buds for quite some time once they die. Just consider this a little cactus public service announcement. :)
BTW, Steve's pink-ish "shoes" are really non-slip pool/beach slippers and if you need a pair there's a coupon with them right now. I bought a pair for me too but they were too tight in my usual size, so you might want to size up one size if your feet swell at all in heat. Look at the gorgeous colorful patterns!
The other thing that always amazes me about these things is that just like trees, (and people!), they are their own size, shape, and style of quirky. Ya gotta love that, right?!
You have to watch these, I hear. A woman told me when she was in grade school and they'd go on "cactus field trips" that they will "jump" at you and stick to your jeans. I think that might be a tall cactus tale, but I'm not taking any chances on that so I stay far away from these cuties.
Steve seems to be really pondering this one. :) The blooms on these are sometimes bright red and absolutely gorgeous when they are, but this one is doing its own thing, I guess, and looks a little worse for wear. But then, it's very dry in AZ this year, so I am not surprised.
This cactus is very prickly, so don't touch! If Steve looks grumpy, well please forgive him as it was about 110 degree heat here, so who wouldn't look at least a little grumpy?! (Or maybe he looks grumpy because this is about the fifth cactus I've asked him to pose by for a pix. He never complained though so I can't be sure.) :)
See how tall that tree is? Well, yeah, that's a tall cactus, huh?! And what fascinates me most about these things is that those holes up at the top of this cactus are "birdhouses." Clever of those birds, don't you think?!
Okay, the Arizona cactus tour is over, my dears, and we're back home to try our cabbage casserole that was cooking in our new beloved cooking toy while we were gone.
Oh my goodness, you have to try this as it's so easy. I adapted it to be vegan from an old recipe of my Grandma's that had hamburger in it. (We no longer eat meat and here's pretty much why and how.)
Here's my vegan-version recipe that's less expensive too due to no meat.
CABBAGE & SAUSAGE CASSEROLE
Slice four plant sausages in fairly thin half-moon slices and lay in bottom of baking pan. (I use Beyond Meat brand Brat Original sausages and they are delicious!)
Cover all the sausages with one or two bags of shredded coleslaw cabbage (No chopping!)
Sprinkle some dry onion and garlic and any other spices you like over the cabbage
Cover all the cabbage with a jar of Marinara sauce
Cover the pan with foil and heat for about 3-5 hours on high, or you can set it on low before you go to bed and eat this for breakfast if you wish! (Seriously.) If you want to bake it in the oven I think an hour at 400 degrees would be plenty of time and test to be sure it does not get over or under done. Poke with a fork to test.
Serve it with a biscuit or some other favorite bread of yours. Our fave bread. Our fave biscuits.
I hope you enjoyed this post; I thought it was time to take a break from home-everything and get outside in the sun a bit!
Kathryn :)