In the mood for jam ~ Star Fruit jam that is!

I have a beautiful star fruit or carambola tree in my back yard.  It gives me two pickings every year.  This season, my tree is loaded with huge, sweet, juicy, delicious star fruit. I am not sure if it's the rain (or I kind of remember giving it some fertilizer a while back) or the heat, but I have fruit galore!



I bring bags of it to the office, give to the neighbors, my mother, my sister, and anyone else that want it.  Every season, I make delicious jam with my star fruits.  It's super easy and so delicious. Here's how to make this delicious concoction:

For about 2 cups of jam, you'll need 12 - 15 medium to large star fruits, 2 cups of granulated sugar, and 1 vanilla bean (very important) cut into 2-3 pieces.

After cleaning the star fruits with a brush under running water, cut the ridges of the fruits (that's usually more stringy and green), then cut lengthwise into quarter and then cut again lengthwise.  Dice everything into small  pieces and place in a large pot on the stove.

Add your sugar and your vanilla bean.  Simmer on low heat for 2 1/2 to 3 hours to reduce the juice produced by the star fruits.  You'll have a thick and fraguant jam.  Let it cool and refrigerate.  It's delicious with plain 0% fat Greek plain or vanilla yogurt, vanilla ice cream, or simply on a piece of toast.  

While I will not give you the nutritional information of the star fruit, I can tell you that they are rich in antioxidants, potassium, and vitamin C.

A word of warning:  people with kidney disease and kidney stone should stay away from eating star fruits as they contain oxalic acid.  Patients that also take statins for cardiovascular illnesses should not consume star fruits as they can increase the statins dosage within the body.

Summer Vacation

School is about ready to start again and like many parents the year revolves around the school year.  Because I work for the school district, it still applies to me.  Even with the Florida heat, I love summer.  It's time for swimming in the ocean (yes I am a Floridian and from November to March, I don't swim in the ocean), going boating in the Keys or elsewhere, and evening picnicking on the beach. It's really not nice in the evening.  The cool breeze comes in from the ocean and it's wonderful.

 Delray Beach has their Fourth of July fireworks off the ocean and it's the best.  We get there early with a picnic, set the towels or chairs, go swimming for a while, play on the beach, and then we lay back and enjoy the light show.


I still enjoy taking summer vacation and this year was no exception.  My husband and I are newbie sailors.  We have a small sailboat that we can trailer and go around the State of Florida.  We  have gone to Tampa and Ana Maria, the Florida Keys, Stuart and Ft. Pierce, and Biscayne National Park.  It's real camping I tell you, no luxury.  The boat is small and cramped inside without a stove.  We cook everything on the outside BBQ, and take our showers outside (I keep my bathing suit on thank you very much...)  It's really great to get away for 2 or 3 days.

This year, we took a big leap and chartered a 38 feet catamaran in the British Virgin Islands for ten days.  Our sons came with us, including one of the girlfriends.  A nice size boat, it had 3 bedrooms (berths) inside kitchen (the galley), 2 bathroom (heads) and an inside shower.  It was really great to sail from island to island.  The water is so clear and blue, so much sea life everywhere and the dramatic landscape of the islands.  We went snorkeling at the Indians, Dead Man's Bay, The Caves, and White Bay.  Explored the salt lakes, climbed Monkey Point, and hiked the Bath at Virgin Gorda.  We did little shopping except for food as everything is so expensive but it is so beautiful over there.  I love being able to chart our path and say "hey let's check that island over there!"

Now that we are pros...... hum hum, we can start planning the next trip (minus the kids though, but friends are welcome).  Where shall we go???

Beautiful Sunsets

I love the magical changes in the sky colors during sunrises and sunsets.  Unfortunately, I get to see sunsets much more often than sunrises.  I do love to sleep a little in the morning on weekends.

Anyway, here are some pictures that I've taken recently, just when it's that time of the day, when the rays of the sunset reflects onto the clouds, as if a brush has been dipped in paint and just stroked onto the sky its canvas.

                                                             Biscayne Bay National Park

                                                              Cane Garden Bay, BVI

                                                                   Virgin Gorda, BVI

                                                               British Virgin Islands

                                                                British Virgin Islands

                                                                Key Largo, Florida

                                                             Lake Worth, Florida
Ok the last one is a really cool phenomenon that I thought was a strange rainbow and sometimes it's called a fire rainbow.  But really this is a "Circumhorizontal Arc".  This occurs when the sun is very in the sky and there is a cirrus cloud which contains plate-shaped iced crystals.  It seems to be a rare occurance but that was the first time that I have ever seen it.  Isn't nature wonderful?


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