Colleen Marquis

All Recipes/ Appetizers/ Autumn/ Celebrations/ Comfort Food/ Garden Thyme/ Lunch and Dinner/ Side Dishes/ Slow Cookers and Soups/ Super Bowl/ Thanksgiving/ Vegetarian

Pumpkin Bisque

November 21, 2016

If you could whip up fall over the stove, it would be called Pumpkin Bisque. This is one of my favorite recipes to make in the fall. I recently made this for our Harry Potter Halloween Party last month and I plan to make it again for Thanksgiving. What’s great about this recipe is you can substitute the pumpkin purée for butternut squash. I realize that butternut squash may be the…

November 21, 2016 By Colleen

Autumn/ Celebrations/ DIY/ Garden Thyme/ Halloween/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Halloween Beer Garden

October 27, 2015

With winter on the way, that can mean one thing – most of my garden has been harvested! The only things I have left are my brussel sprouts and kale. They love cold weather and should be ready for harvest just in time for Thanksgiving! Lilies and Loafers has affiliate relationships, so we may get a small share of revenue from your purchases. Items are sold by the retailer, not by Lilies…

October 27, 2015 By Colleen

Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Blueberry Bushes

July 16, 2015

Blueberry bushes are a perennial flowering bush that can produce fruit up to 20 years. I have three blueberry bushes and I space them about 4-5 feet from each other as to anticipate their growth. You should at least have two or three bushes because they are partially self fertile which means they pollinate themselves. When you first plant them, find an area that is well drained but can be…

July 16, 2015 By Colleen

All Recipes/ Garden Thyme/ Healthy Living/ Lunch and Dinner/ Side Dishes/ Vegetarian

Garden Thyme: Green Machines

May 19, 2015

Lettuce is one of the few vegetables that is the easiest to grow, and staple green machines hardcore smoothies. This year, I’ve done kale, bib lettuce and red romaine. All of these lettuces are tolerant to colder weather, shade and can last well through the fall. You’d be surprised how well they’re easy to grow in containers. Last year, I put romaine in my garden and it brought all the animals…

May 19, 2015 By Colleen

#LoveSummer/ Autumn/ Celebrations/ Cleaning and Organization/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes/ Wedding

Garden Thyme: Wedding Cleaning

September 10, 2014

Ahhh, what a summer! Although the heat wasn’t as bad, this rainless summer was not good for my plants. While I had an abundance of almost everything I planted, I had a small window to harvest my crops before they began to wither. This summer was so dry, but I was surprised by how juicy my tomatoes were this season. Usually I’d wait until October to start cleaning up my space, but there…

September 10, 2014 By Colleen

Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Sweet Potatoes

September 3, 2014

Sweet potatoes are a great vegetable to enjoy all year long. Unfortunately, in Connecticut, the harvest time is September-October so enjoy these vegetables for your fall favorite recipes like Fatima’s Sweet Potato Pie! Sweet potatoes are great for any gardener because they are easy to setup and do not need much care. Make sure you plant them in an area with full sun exposure and lots of room. They are…

September 3, 2014 By Colleen

Autumn/ Celebrations/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes/ Wedding

Garden Thyme: Mums

August 27, 2014

As fall comes to an end, there’s always room for more planting! Chrysanthemum, also known as mums, are the most popular flower to grow and bloom in the fall and caring for them is easy. I started a bunch of pots around the yard to prep for Brian and Fatima’s wedding. We’re trying to do a little more DIY with the flowers, so here’s to hoping they’ll be ready! I…

August 27, 2014 By Colleen

#LoveSummer/ Celebrations/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Tomatoes

August 20, 2014

Tomatoes are everyone’s favorite vegetable (really a fruit) to plant during the gardening season because they are easy and bountiful! There are many different kinds of tomato seeds to start with, depending on what kind of tomato you want to grow based on size and flavor. When taking care of your tomatoes as seeds or plants they need to be watered often. I use mulch at the bottom of my plants to help keep…

August 20, 2014 By Colleen

Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Eggplant

August 13, 2014

For the past two years I’ve had an abundance of eggplant! They grow the best in sunny, well drained areas but also need lots of water. I bought 6 young plants this year and planted them about two feet apart. I can’t believe it’s August now and I already picked 10! To make sure the plant is ready to pick, the skin should look glossy and when you slice it open,…

August 13, 2014 By Colleen

#LoveSummer/ Autumn/ Celebrations/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Sunflowers

August 6, 2014

This is my first year planting sunflowers and I still have a lot to learn. My sunflowers started from seeds I bought at Home Depot and I planted them in my garden in the back row on Memorial Day. I have different kinds of sunflowers to create different heights and colors. My flowers became so tall and sturdy because I planted them in an area that gets 7 hours of sun a…

August 6, 2014 By Colleen

Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Pumpkin Patch

July 30, 2014

This is the second year I am doing pumpkins. Last year, I had the pumpkins growing in my garden but they didn’t have enough room to expand so they never produced and I think I planted them too early. This year, I have a separate area (aka the Pumpkin Patch) to grow them! Starting with the pumpkin seed and planting them into the ground is the best way to start. You can…

July 30, 2014 By Colleen

#LoveSummer/ Celebrations/ Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Citronella Mosquito Plant

July 23, 2014

Do you have a backyard, terrace, or other outdoor space? Constantly getting bitten by mosquitos? The citronella mosquito plant is great for the summer. Have you ever thought about where the “citronella” in citronella candles come from? Although the citronella mosquito plant is not a sole deterrent to mosquitoes, you can crush the leaves up and rub them on your skin for a more “natural” bug repellent. Especially areas that you hate spraying with…

July 23, 2014 By Colleen

Garden Thyme/ Side Dishes

Garden Thyme: Colleen’s Intro

July 16, 2014

Hi, I’m Colleen, Brian’s younger sister. Over the past two years, I’ve transformed our back lawn into an edible garden of Eden. Brian asked me to start a weekly post to share my gardening tips, so here’s a little intro before I get started. This is only my second year getting down and dirty in my gardens. Last year I only had one vegetable garden, and now I have four main…

July 16, 2014 By Colleen

#LoveSummer/ All Recipes/ Celebrations/ Lunch and Dinner

Colleen’s New England Clam Chowder

June 6, 2013

My sister makes a wicked delicious New England Clam Chowder. When she made it a while back, my family was in awe. Could something taste so good? We have her to make it any chance we get – like when we spend weekend afternoons at the winery. New England Clam Chowder screams summer. Pair it with lobster, scallops, hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. A delicious appetizer at any backyard picnic. Your…

June 6, 2013 By Colleen

All Recipes/ Lunch and Dinner/ Super Bowl

Pulled Pork Pockets

January 24, 2013

Hi! My name is Colleen, Brian’s much younger sister. He asked me to write up a post about my delicious pulled pork pockets to share with the world. I saw this recipe on TV one day and it showed it with chicken (which you can also use). But I decided to use pulled pork. I cooked the pulled pork the night before in my favorite BBQ sauce and used Pillsbury…

January 24, 2013 By Colleen

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