Just Stopping By...

...to wish you all a very Merry Christmas (or Happy Hanukkah!)

In just a few minutes, Jeremy and I will be packing up the car and our puppy so we can head up to my parents' home in Bellingham.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and travel safely!

One last thing...

if you're looking for one more dish to complete your holiday meal, I highly recommend The Pioneer Woman's Brussel Sprouts with Balsamic and Cranberries. I made these sprouts last night and they turned out perfectly. Very simple and very delicious.

Not to mention festive red and green!

Until next week!

xoxo, Merry Christmas.

summertime.

Hello again!

I'm so sorry I haven't been blogging as regularly as I should.

Summer has arrived (thank goodness!) and we've been busy spending time on our balcony, playing softball, and seeing our family and friends.

This past weekend I had the chance to see Randy Travis in concert. My Mama and I headed over to the Emerald Queen Casino near Tacoma, and celebrated her birthday with a girls' night.

It was a blast and Randy's still got it!

This week is full of adventures.

One of my best friends in the whole world is flying all the way to Portland from New York for a visit. Maya and I met freshman year of college when we both joined the swim team.

Here is a tribute to our friendship.

From it's very beginning...

...until now...almost 6 years after we met!
We will definitely need to take some new pictures while Maya is here...we look approximately 15 in all of these.

Oh college, I miss you!
I can't wait to show her (and share with all of you!) everything the Pacific Northwest has to offer.

Maya and I have been shooting emails back and forth with ideas for her trip and so far it looks like we will be doing a bit of hiking, heading out to the St. Paul rodeo, and eating and drinking our way through all of Portland's amazing restaurants and breweries.

If anyone has any Portland must do's leave me a comment!

With all the craziness the past couple of weeks I've had less time to share with you what I've been doing in the kitchen. The past week it seemed like we had friends over every night for dinner and there's just something a little odd about pulling out the camera and taking pictures of your guest's dinner before they're allowed to eat it.

But I promise I'll try to make it up to you with some great recipes this week!

Last night Jeremy and I had Chicken Pot Pie.

Not your typical chicken pot pie, but a delicious version I discovered on Joy the Baker.

This one was made in a long casserole dish and had homemade chive biscuits on top.

I've never had pot pie quite like this one and it turned out to be worth the time/effort...

Jeremy said it was Top 5 meals I've ever made material!

Chicken Pot Pie with Chive Biscuits
Inspired by Joy the Baker

What you'll need:

Biscuits--

2 1/2 C all-purpose flour

1 T baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

1 tsp granulated sugar

1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper

1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

1/4 cup (2 ounces) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes

4 ounces (half of a brick) cream cheese, cold

3/4 cup buttermilk, cold

Filling--

4 T unsalted butter

1/2 C all-purpose flour

2 C low-sodium chicken broth

1 1/2 C whole milk

4 ounces (half of a brick) cream cheese

salt and pepper to taste

the juice from 1 lemon

1/8 tsp fresh ground nutmeg

3 C shredded chicken meat (from a rotisserie chicken)

2 T butter

1 small onion, diced

1 small garlic clove, minced

1 1/2 cup thinly diced carrots

1 1/2 cup frozen peas, thawed

What you'll need to do:

Biscuits first.  In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, black pepper, and chopped chives.

Add butter and cream cheese to the dry ingredients.  Use your fingers to combine butter, cheese, and flour. You want to keep mixing it together with your fingers until you have small pieces (pebble size or smaller).

Make a small well in the center of the dough and add the buttermilk.  

Using a fork, combine the wet and dry ingredients.

Dump the shaggy biscuit dough onto a lightly floured work surface.  Knead together until dough forms a disk about 1 1/2 inches thick.

Use a round, 1 1/2-inch biscuit cutter to cut biscuits (or use a 1/4 C measuring cup like I did). 

Place biscuits on a small cookie sheet and place in the fridge until ready to bake.

Now for the filling. Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Dice onion, garlic, carrots, and thaw the frozen peas.  Set aside.

Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.  Whisk in the flour.  (Mixture will be very thick.)  Heat for 1 minute.  Turn flame to low and add the chicken stock.  Whisk until no flour bits remain.  Whisk in the milk and add the cream cheese.  Heat over medium low heat, stirring often, until cream cheese has melted.  

Add chicken, lemon, and nutmeg.  Stir.  Add salt and pepper to taste.   Remove mixture from heat and set aside.

In a medium skillet over medium heat, melt butter.  Add onions and saute until translucent, about 3 minutes.  Add minced garlic and saute for one minute more.  Add carrots and peas.  Cook for about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and add vegetable mixture to the creamy chicken mixture.  Stir to combine.

Spoon filling into a 9×13-inch pan.  Remove the biscuits from the fridge and place them on top of the filling.  Brush the tops of the biscuits with heavy cream, buttermilk, or egg wash.

Bake for 20-23 minutes, or until biscuits are puffed and golden, and the sides of the pot pie are bubbling.  Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly before serving.

Enjoy!

brussel sprouts.

Happy Wednesday!

I have a very special treat for you today.

I know I'm always experimenting with weird (disgusting to some) ingredients in the kitchen...but this time even I was shocked at the tasty outcome.

I did it.

I made and liked brussel sprouts.

I didn't think it could be done.

Let me share with you the brief history of my relationship with these little green demons.

Experience #1: circa 2003. I was in high school. Laura's mom, an amazing Italian woman who cooked for us kids non-stop, had us over for dinner. Zelyne, Laura, and I sat around the table excitedly awaiting the arrival of what we were sure would be a mountain of pasta and meatballs.

Enter the plate of brussel sprouts.

You might not believe it, but up until that point I had never had a single brussel sprout in my very long 15 years of life.

They smelled like a fart. I put one in my mouth.

Long story short...tasted like a fart too.

Experience #2: circa 2011. Earlier this year I went on a trip to Lake Tahoe with some friends. I had successfully avoided a recurrence of the brussel sprout episode of 2003 up until this point. But when our good friend Andrea offered to cook up dinner with her boyfriend Zeph, how could we resist?

Enter the bowl of brussel sprouts and bacon.

I don't know what she did to those little sprouts, but with the addition of bacon they suddenly became edible. Enjoyable even.

Experience #3: circa Monday. I'll admit...even after the successful brussel sprouts and bacon experience I was nervous. But I figured there's no time like the present to tackle the seemingly impossible. I gave myself a little pep talk, promised Jeremy if they turned out disgusting I'd never make him eat another brussel sprout again, and began cooking. I found this delicious recipe on The Little Red House blog and since nothing Sheena (author) writes about ever tastes anything but delicious...I gave it a go.

This was the result.

It was amazing and delicious and I didn't even need to add bacon.

Here's the really simply recipe:

Mix up brussel sprouts, 1 or 2 T olive oil, salt and pepper. Place on baking sheet and roast for 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees. You want the sprouts to be a little brown.

Add roasted sprouts to salad greens. Put in a little avocado, onion, a fried egg on top and voila!

If you'd like to add some dressing. Mix up a honey mustard dressing or use your favorite store bought. I mixed honey, white wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, and olive oil.
Plus some S & P.

Shake it up in a jar and pour over salad.

Yum.

Last but not least, serve it with whatever else you like. In our case...that happened to be steak with blue cheese crumbles on top!

Delish in a dish.

Hey Good Lookin'

Hey good lookin', whatcha got cookin'?

How's about cookin' somethin' up with me?

Each week I assign myself the fun job of coming up with the week's grocery list.

Some people really can't stand grocery shopping, but honestly for some odd reason Jeremy and I love it.

We look forward to our weekly excursion...discussing which market to go to, what we need to pick up, and then carefully and slowly working our way through each aisle.

Maybe it's because we both love shopping and we both love food. So I guess it makes a bit of sense that this "chore" is one of our favorites!

For me, grocery shopping begins with the list. I rarely go into the store empty handed.

I like to be prepared.

Everyone has their own list making style, but I like to break mine down by day/meal.

For example:

Monday

Flank Steak and Roasted Brussel Sprouts

-flank steak

-mixed greens

-brussel sprouts

-avocado

-eggs

This helps me to plan out what I'm going to cook during the week ahead. And since I usually try out new recipes each night, I hold on to my list to remind me what I had planned as the week unfolds.

So what's on the menu this week?

You'll hear all about each recipe in the coming days, but so far this is what I have planned!

Monday: Flank Steak and Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Tuesday: Dinner out for my Mama's birthday (mmm Podnah's Pit!)

Wednesday: Chicken Sandwiches, Sweet Potato Fries, and Heirloom Tomato Salad

Thursday: Fish Chowder and Soda Biscuits

Friday: Matzoh Ball Soup pre-softball game, something yummy and bad for us after!

I'll let you know how it all goes as I try out each recipe!

For now, I'd like to leave you with something we actually made up last week for dinner.

Greek Tuna Salad

(inspired by 5 Ingredient Fix on the Food Network)

What you'll need:

2 albacore tuna steaks (you can use Ahi, but it's much more expensive)

3 lemons

1 C red grapes, washed and halved

1 C plain Greek yogurt

1/2 C toasted walnuts

What you'll need to do:

First, toast your walnuts by placing them in a skillet over a medium-high heat, stirring until you can smell them.

Then, preheat oven to 350.

Thinly slice two lemons and lay out the slices so they overlap on a piece of parchment paper. You want to create a bed for your tuna steaks. Then salt/pepper the steaks and place them on top of the lemon slices. Zest your third lemon and sprinkle zest on top of the steaks.

Now, wrap up your steaks by folding the parchment around the tuna. Tucking the ends of the parchment under like an envelope. You are trying to create a little package for your tuna to bake inside.

Place in the oven and let bake until the tuna is no longer pink and you can flake the fish easily. (The original recipe said 18-22 minutes, but I found this took closer to 40 minutes--must depend on the thickness of your tuna.)

Remove from the oven and open the parchment. Let cool until you can handle it comfortably.

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl, including flaked tuna.

Add the juice of that third lemon and salt/pepper to taste.

We ate our tuna salad as a lettuce wrap for dinner, then on bread for lunch the next day.

This is a delicious and unusual alternative to traditional tuna salad.

The best part?

No mayonnaise or unhealthy ingredients!

Olé, Olé!

Ever since our salmon taco night a couple weeks ago I've been craving more.

More Mexican food.

More salsa.

More spicy deliciousness.

The other thing I love about cooking Mexican food...it can be pretty darn easy.

Take the quesadilla for example.

Too often people believe the quesadilla is nothing but a tortilla and some cheese.

Well, let me fill you in.

It can be so much more.

Stuffed and Grilled Quesadillas

What you need:

flour tortillas

grated extra sharp cheddar cheese

1 big heirloom tomato, chopped

1/2 red onion, diced

juice of 1 lime

1 jalapeno, deseeded and diced

1 avocado sliced

2 T cilantro, chopped

salt and pepper

Toppings:

guacamole

sour cream

the pico de gallo you prepared

What you'll need to do:

1. First make your pico de gallo. This will be used as a topping and as stuffing for your quesadillas. In a small bowl mix together your chopped onion, heirloom tomato, lime juice, jalapeno, cilantro, salt and pepper to taste.

2. Slice your avocado lengthwise.

3. Use two tortillas. Place one flat on a plate. Lay out the avocados, pico de gallo, and then top with grated cheese. Cover it up with a 2nd tortilla.

4. Place your quesadilla on the grill. When the cheese begins to melt flip it. This won't take very long...2-3 minutes on each side.

4. Enjoy! We served ours with the extra pico de gallo, fresh guacamole, sour cream, and some lime juice, plus some grilled corn on the cob.

Wednesday's Bonus Edition

I wasn't sure how to fit peanut butter in with the bachelorette party entry.

So, here's a bonus entry for today!

Last night I decided to make some peanut butter and I think you should try it too!

What you need:

3 cups peanuts*

food processor

*I bought bulk organic peanuts from Whole Foods, already deshelled and ready to go!

Can you believe that's all you need?!

Directions:

Put the peanuts in the food processor and turn it on! It'll need to run for a little over 5 minutes. But if you just let it work it's magic and have a bit of patience...you'll end up with your very own homemade peanut butter!

You can even add a little salt if you'd like.

Now you know how easy it is.

No more excuses for buying Skippy...and all that hydrogenated oil...

Classic Cooking

Up there next to roasting a chicken, making homemade jam has always seemed like something you just must know how to do.

I know, I'm ridiculous.

That being said, last night I made strawberry jam and it was so easy and so delicious.

Way better than that store-bought stuff!

Strawberry Jam

All you need:

4 C strawberries, washed, diced and mashed

1 C sugar

pectin

Follow the recipe included with your pectin, but basically you just bring the mashed fruit to a boil, add the sugar and pectin, then bring it back to a boil. Remove from heat and voila!

Let it cool and you've just made jam!

I had a problem last night though. Once the jam was made and jarred, I realized we didn't have any bread to put it on.

So I whipped out my delicious Paula Deen The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook and made some delicious Southern Tea Cakes.

The perfect solution to my jam dilemma.

Here's the recipe.

Southern Tea Cakes

Ingredients:

4 C all-purpose flour (I used unbleached white)

1 tsp baking soda

2 tsps baking powder

2 C sugar

2 eggs

1/2 C buttermilk (can substitute 1/2 C milk + 1/2 T vinegar)

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl sift flour, soda, and powder together. Add remaining ingredients and blend well. Dough should be soft. Roll dough out onto a floured surface until approximately 1/4 inch thick. Cut dough into desired shape and bake on a slightly greased sheet for 10-12 minutes.*

*I used parchment lined baking sheets and I also noticed I needed to add additional flour. The dough was too sticky at first.

This recipe will make around 4 dozen tea cakes. I shaped mine with a 1/4 C measuring cup. Just press down to cut out shape and roll away excess dough.

Delicious!

Also thought I'd share with you some photographic evidence of our totally awesome softball skills.

See Jeremy pitching?

And there I am catching and batting!

Proof.

And P.S. I got my tooth fixed this morning :)



Family Taco Night

Who doesn't love tacos?

Last night we fired up the grill and made fish tacos.
They were perfect.

Here's how to make the easiest/most delicious fish taco dinner in the world.

What you'll need:

2 salmon fillets

1/2 head of cabbage

3 tomatoes

1/2 an onion

1 avocado

3 limes

cilantro

salt and pepper

corn tortillas

black beans

1. Make up a bowl of toppings. This wasn't exactly salsa (we had some fresh salsa on the side), but this was great for beefing up your tacos. I cut up some of the leftover cabbage from last night's dinner, diced 3 tomatoes, 1/2 of an onion, 1 avocado, 1 TBL cilantro, added the juice from 1 lime and a bit of salt and pepper.

2. Take two salmon fillets and place them each on a square of foil. Fold the foil up around the salmon, forming a boat. Pinch the ends. Add a drizzle of olive oil, the juice of half a lime, salt and pepper. Then seal up your foil and place on the grill for about 10 minutes. You want your salmon to be light pink and flaky. I've had a lot of trouble getting salmon cooked just the right amount, whether grilled or baked...but grilling it in the foil turned out perfectly!

3. When your salmon is all done, build your tacos! Corn tortilla...topped with some black beans, the cabbage/tomato/avocado mix, some extra cilantro, lime juice if you like and extra salsa if you have it on hand and want some extra spice.

We ate ours with some grilled corn on the side. It was a perfect summer dinner and we will definitely be grilling our salmon this way in the future!

Time to get back on track...

I don't know about you, but Memorial Day weekend always seems to mean hamburgers. Even with the weather being pretty lousy this past weekend, Jeremy and I managed to squeeze in some mini adventures and lots of yummy food.

Saturday we took a little trip out to Sauvie Island. Located just a few minutes outside of Portland, this little island is full of farm land. In the fall Portlanders head out there for corn mazes and hay rides...this time of year we enjoy lots of farm produce stands and the pretty little beaches. I definitely recommend taking the drive out there if you want a very close escape from the city.

I also had the chance to try out and play around with a new Challah recipe. I highly recommend it and with all the leftovers you can make amazing french toast for breakfast the next day!

Challah
Recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 1/2 packages active dry yeast
1/4 C honey
1 TBL plus 1/2 C sugar
1/2 C olive oil or vegetable oil
5 eggs
1 TBL salt
7 1/2 - 8 C unbleached white flour (or all-purpose)

Directions:
1. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1 TBL sugar in 1 and 3/4 C warm water.

2. Whisk oil and honey into yeast. Then beat in 4 eggs, 1 at a time, with remaining sugar and salt. Gradually add flour and mix together. When the dough holds together you've added enough flour and it's ready to knead. I did all of this in my stand mixer which helps a lot, but I still kneaded the dough after it was mixed by hand to make sure it was nice and smooth.

3. Put in a greased bowl and cover with a damp dish towel. Place in the oven to let rise. I turn on the oven light to make the oven a bit warmer. You can also turn on the oven to 150 degrees and then turn it off. Let rise for 1 hour, then punch the dough down and let rise for 30 more minutes.

4. Take your dough and divide it in half. Braid each loaf. I did a traditional 3 part braid. For each loaf you will need to divide the dough into three balls and roll out into 12 inch strands. Pinch together the three pieces at one end and then proceed to braid. After braided put the dough in the fridge and let rise for another 3 hours. If you're in a rush you can put the dough in a warm spot (the oven) for another hour.

5. Whisk the remaining egg and paint onto the loaves. Make sure you get all the nooks and crannies. Challah is supposed to have that nice thick golden crust.

6. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes. Make sure the loaves are a dark golden brown before removing from the oven. Let cool for 30 minutes, slice and serve!

 So that was Saturday in a nut shell! 

Sunday we embarked on another adventure. As a kid my family would always take our summer vacations in the Northwest. Driving, camping, and hiking our way through the state and national parks that spread throughout Oregon and Washington. One of my favorites was Mt. St. Helens.

 The mountain and surrounding forest is incredible to see, but what makes Mt. St. Helens so unique is its recent history. The volcano erupted in 1980...taking out almost 250 square miles of forest and spewing ash that covered cars all the way in Southern California.

Jeremy had never seen the volcano so we decided to head up there. In shorts and sandals we took off, but as we climbed the mountain we began to realize we had definitely miscalculated. Starting around 2,000 feet elevation the fog was so dense you couldn't see 50 feet in front of you. Not to mention the 3 feet of snow that still covered the ground.

Unfortunately we couldn't even see the mountain that was right in front of us. I guess that means we will have to go back if summer ever comes to Portland!

Monday, on our last precious day of the holiday weekend, we headed up to Angels' Rest with our neighbors Matt and Carrie. As soon as I get the pictures from Carrie I will add them to this entry. It turned out to be the most perfect day! Sunny and beautiful, when we reached the top of the hike we had a panoramic view of the entire Columbia River Gorge. I highly recommend this hike!

All in all it was an amazing weekend. Only problem...we stuffed ourselves so full of food that Jeremy and I have had to hit the reset button on our healthy eating this week. I have lots of veggie-packed meals planned for the coming days, starting with our meal last night inspired by my favorite blog The Little Red House.

Here's the recipe for these delicious Chili and Lime Bowls. You must try these...best part is you get to build them yourself! Makes you feel like you're 5 years old, but who doesn't like playing with their food?

Chili and Lime Bowls
Recipe from The Little Red House

Ingredients:

1 TBL soy sauce

1 TBL lime juice

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp dried oregano (or fresh if you have it)

1 tsp olive oil

2 medium sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes

1 15 oz. can of black beans

1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced in half

1 cup edamame

1 avocado, diced

1 head of cabbage, leaves washed and removed

1/4 cup sliced green onions

lime wedges

Directions:

1. Put together your Yogurt Lime Dressing. Mix 1/2 C plain low-fat yogurt, 2 TBS lime juice, 1 TBS soy sauce, 1 TBS chili powder, 1 clove minced garlic, 2 TBS chopped cilantro, 1 TBS chopped chives. Whisk in 1/4 C olive oil until combined.

Put in fridge until ready to use.

2. In a small bowl, mix together soy sauce, lime juice, chili powder, oregano and olive oil. Toss with sweet potatoes and then roast in oven at 425 degrees for 35 minutes.

3. Put all your veggies out and then build your own lettuce bowls! Place the green onions on top, add the fresh lime, and drizzle on some of the dressing!

This was a delicious meal and ended up being surprisingly filling! I recommend using The Little Red House if you ever are looking for some healthy recipes full of yummy fresh ingredients. Thank you Sheena for a great dinner idea!

Stay tuned...tomorrow I'll be back to fill you in on Taco night.

Farmers' Market Soup

I have an obsession with the farmers' market. I have also recently started experimenting big time with all sorts of fruits and veggies I used to avoid like the black plague (read: kale? collard greens? rhubarb?!).

I've got to admit, I think I keep experimenting because it feels really good to pick out some random produce item that I have no idea how to use and then find ways to turn it into something delicious! So far everything I've experimented with has turned out to be really yummy...and when in doubt just add bacon.

Bacon can turn brussel sprouts into something edible! :)

It's time I confess though.

I've been going a bit overboard during this new full-blown produce shopping spree.
You can't open the door to our fridge without a bunch of mustard greens or bag full of fresh mint falling on the floor.
I mean seriously I needed a solution to this problem fast.

That's when I decided to take everything I needed to use up and put it in a pot.

Ta-da! Let me introduce you to Farmers' Market Soup. You can honestly use whatever you've got in your fridge or pantry. Here's how I made mine work.

Farmers' Market Soup

Ingredients:

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 T olive oil

1 bay leaf

5 stalks celery, chopped

5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" pieces (approx)

1 can cannelloni beans (or whatever you have in the cupboard)

1 bunch collard greens

ripe tomatoes sliced in half (just use the ripest tomatoes you can find)

fresh or dried, rosemary, oregano, sage (chopped if fresh)

salt and pepper
8 cups low-sodium chicken broth

Directions:

1. Heat up the olive oil in your pot and then saute the garlic and onion until soft and tender. About 5 minutes.

2. Add the broth, bay leaf, and herbs. With the herbs just add them to your taste preference. I probably added a 1/3 C of finely chopped fresh herbs. Then let your broth come to a boil, turn down the heat and let simmer for 10 minutes or so.

3. Add your hard veggies...in my case those included: sweet potatoes, celery, carrots. You could also add or substitute zucchini, summer squash, red-skin potatoes, yams, etc. Just use what you've got! Simmer for 15-20 minutes or so.

4. When the potatoes are still a bit too hard to consider the soup done, add your tomatoes, beans, and collard greens. Simmer for 5-10 more minutes. The skin will likely fall off the tomatoes and your collard greens will wilt a bit (both good things!).

5. Taste the soup/try the veggies...if everything is to your liking, discard the bay leaf and serve the soup with a couple pieces of delicious fresh bread (toasted!).

This soup was seriously one of the easiest and most delicious meals I've made in weeks. Change the recipe/adapt it to your liking...but my one must do recommendation is to keep the sweet potatoes in. They really added something unique to this soup...just a hint of sweet flavor combined with all the fresh herbs and vegetables.

I hope you get adventurous and try this out!

Jeremy returns to Portland...and brings the rain with him!

Happy Wednesday!

Dear friends and family,

I'm writing to report that the rain has returned to Portland. The beautiful sunshine that has blessed us on and off for the past few days has disappeared.

{The blanket of grey has returned}

I'm going to try really hard not to dwell on the weather, but let me tell you that's easier said than done!

Instead, let me share with you a little Portland gem Jeremy and I experienced yesterday afternoon.

After hearing the name dropped here and there. Driving by once or twice. We just had to stop by.

Welcome to Dockside.
The very shack-like bar and restaurant just a mile up the road from our home.
The food is delicious. Dive bar atmosphere.
Wonderful staff and just about the most non-Portlandy place we've ever been inside the City limits.

And if you need more convincing you should try this place...two words...

Taco Tuesday.
$1.50

gets you three whole tacos!

Heaven does exist. And just because it's a cool story. Dockside's claim to fame...

the incriminating handwritten note Tonya Harding wrote detailing Nancy Kerrigan's practice schedule was found in the garbage outside Dockside.

Who knew?

I'll also share with you a photo of the delicious lunch I packed for Jeremy and me this morning.

Yummy right?

Inspired by the Little Red House, I toasted up some fresh bread (drizzled with garlic olive oil). Added some fresh tomato, basil, sprouts, and mozzarella.

Then add a few drops of balsamic vinaigrette and you're all set!

Is 9:30 too early to eat lunch?

Adventuring

This was a weekend full of adventuring. If that's not a legitimate word, it should be.
Saturday morning began when I rediscovered Portland's amazing Farmers' Market. I've been wanting to experiment with various greens, so I figured I'd pick out some fresh options and then test them out for dinner Saturday.

I went home with
kale,
collard greens,
mustard greens,
and Swiss chard...

...along with these peonies and some fresh mint, asparagus, and rhubarb.

I might have gone overboard,
just a little bit!

After the farmers' market I went hiking with a friend in Forest Park. I will fill you all in on this Portland gem tomorrow or Wednesday.
When I came home from the hike it was time to start experimenting with all of these fun new ingredients.

Let's start with the kale.

Baked Kale Chips
Inspiration from The Little Red House

Ingredients:

one bunch of kale, washed, dried, and torn or chopped into 3 inch pieces

lemon zest and a little bit of lemon juice if you'd like

1 T olive oil

sea salt and pepper

Directions:

Toss your kale in a bowl with the other ingredients. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 30 mins at 250 degrees. (Light and crispy is the goal, no soggy pieces!)

I ran a little experiment by putting a bowl full of these next to Jeremy while he was working on an assignment.

He devoured them and then asked for more!

Looks like I'll be buying kale from now on.

A few hours later it was dinner time. Here comes experiment #2.

I found a recipe via foodgawker.com for Collards, Bacon, White Beans and Quinoa.

A pretty safe rule of thumb...anything with bacon will be good.

Collards, Bacon, White Beans and Quinoa
Inspired by Vita Nostra

Ingredients:

6 slices maple bacon

1 yellow onion, diced

1 and 1/4 C low-sodium chicken broth

1/4 C apple cider vinegar

2 T granulated sugar

1 bunch of collards, remove stems and coarsely chopped

1 can Northern White Beans, drained

1 C quinoa

2 C low-sodium chicken broth

Directions:

In a large skillet, cook the bacon until crispy. Set aside on a paper towel.

Saute the onions in the bacon grease until translucent. Add 1 and 1/4 C chicken broth, vinegar, and sugar. Stir over low-med heat to dissolve sugar.

Add the collard greens and stir until slightly wilted. Add bacon. Reduce heat so the mixture is just simmering and then let it simmer for 30 minutes. Stir every couple of minutes.

Add the beans and simmer another 30 minutes. The goal is for most of the liquid to cook out.

In a separate sauce pan, boil 2 C broth and then add the quinoa. Stir. Cook for 20 minutes, until liquid has mostly disappeared. Quinoa will absorb all the broth.

Serve quinoa in a bowl and add the collard/bacon/bean mixture on top.

Delicious!

Another major kitchen success using interesting ingredients.

Stay tuned. Tomorrow I will fill you in on my trip to Seattle Sunday to see my Momma and little sister. I will also be experimenting tonight with the chard, so if that goes well I'll be sure to share.

Happy Monday!

Easy as Bolognese! (That sorta rhymes right?)

Happy joyous Friday everyone!

Today is one of those days. When I woke up and everything felt good. The sun is shining in Portland. We are supposed to hit 70 degrees. And tonight Jeremy and I are going to a concert!

Woo hoo!

I told you guys it's concert season now.
I warned you!

Tonight we are driving out to Spirit Mountain Casino to see the 90's country superstar
Jo Dee Messina!

Heads Carolina, Tails California...somewhere greener somewhere warmer...
...up in the mountains, down by the ocean...
where it don't matter
long as we are going!

If you can't tell I'm really excited. But enough about that.

Today I have a lovely recipe to share with you.

Recipe: Spaghetti Bolognese
Ingredients:
2 T olive oil
1 C onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
dice up some carrots and green bell pepper (or use red/yellow for more color!)
a few thyme sprigs (slide your fingers down the sprigs to pull off the leaves into your sauce)
chili flakes (to taste put start with 1 tsp)
2 lbs. ground beef, turkey, or pork
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 C dry white wine
1 28 oz. can crushed tomato (add as much as you like until you get the consistency you want)
1/2 C veggie broth
Parmesan cheese for topping
Pasta (I used spaghetti but pick your favorite)

Directions:
Cook your veggies, garlic, onion, thyme, and chili flakes in a large sauce pan over medium heat until softened (5 or 6 minutes).
Add your ground meat and brown. Takes 5-7 minutes or so.
Add salt, pepper and more chili if you like.
Add the white wine and then let it simmer until the white wine has almost evaporated.

Add your tomatoes and veggie broth and simmer until your sauce is the consistency (as thick) as you want it. I simmered mine for around 15-20 minutes.

Cook your pasta, then drain and and mix the pasta and sauce all together.
Add a little cheese.
Spin around in a circle and poof!
You're done.

Delish in a dish.

Rat-a-tat

Did anyone else see that Disney/Pixar movie Ratatouille?
Well I did and it inspired me to find my own ratatouille recipe!

First, I had to figure out what ratatouille is:
ra-ta-touilleNoun: A vegetable dish consisting of onions, zucchini, tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers, fried and stewed in oil, sometimes served cold.

Hmm.How about we don't fry it, instead we saute it? And rather than only using eggplant and zucchini, let's use all the bountiful and delicious squash we can find?
Much better.

Here is my recipe for ratatouille. I've been making it for a few years now (read: ever since the movie came out) and it is always a huge success. The herbs add amazing flavor and it's seriously healthy. Just look at all the veggies in this dish!

Allison's Very Own Disney Worthy Ratatouille
Ingredients:
2 C cubed eggplant
1/2 tsp. salt
1 C chopped onion
1 med. green bell pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 T canola oil
1 1/2 C diced zucchini
1 1/2 C diced yellow squash/summer squash/whatever squash you like :)
2 T minced fresh oregano
2 T minced fresh parsley
1 tsp. dill weed
pepper to taste
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
Parmesan cheese
hot cooked pasta

Directions:
Place eggplant in a colander over a plate, sprinkle with salt and toss. Let stand 30 minutes; rinse and drain well.

In a large non-stick skillet, stir fry the onion, green pepper, and garlic in the canola oil for 2-3 minutes.
Add the eggplant, zucchini, and summer squash.
Cook and stir for 5-7 minutes or until the veggies are crisp and tender.
Stir in parsley, oregano, dill, and pepper. Heat through.

Sprinkle with tomato and Parmesan cheese.
Serve over pasta.

*I recommend once you've chopped and placed your eggplant in the colander, spend that 30 minutes getting all of your other ingredients chopped and ready to go. It makes life so much easier when things start to heat up and you're adding ingredients every few minutes.

I hope you'll try this recipe! It's absolutely delicious. We had a nice evening last night (70 degrees!) so we ate our ratatouille on the patio. It's a great eat on the porch kind of dish!

xoxo.

Bread and Butter

Blogs and photos go together like bread and butter (creative post title right?). A good blog must have good pictures to go along with each entry. I mean who's going to try a new recipe if there isn't a delicious looking picture to go along with it. Not me, that's for sure.

Unfortunately for me (and all of you) I'm no photographer. I wish I was and I hope to get better, but until then you'll have to put up with my less than perfect photos orrrr when you're lucky I'll include some photos Jeremy takes. He happens to do much better than I do with all those funny camera settings :)

Take for example these lovely photos he took last night.

Yes, I'm posting photos of Buoy again.

He happens to be a very photogenic subject.

Andddd isn't he just the cutest?

I also figured I'd share with you my latest adventure in the kitchen.
It involves a chicken and chicken parts.
The gross parts.

Sunday I decided that this would be the week. The week when I roast a chicken for the very first time.
I know some of you are thinking why? or who cares? or maybe that's disgusting?

But it was time and roasting something always felt to me like one of those kitchen must-knows. I mean come on Martha includes a whole chapter on roasting in her Cooking School book!

I bought the chicken.
Pulled out all the guts inside.
Jeremy gagged and then I said, "I thought men were the tough ones." Ironic, considering what will follow in this story.

How to Roast a Chicken
Wash. Pat dry. Place in roasting pan or Pyrex baking dish.
Rub with butter/lime/red onion/salt/pepper/jalapeno mixture.
You can fill in with any rub you want, just add something to the butter...herbs, lemon, garlic and onion. Whatever your heart desires.
Put in oven at 400 degrees for about an hour.
Thermometer should read 165 or so.
Let the chicken "rest" since roasting is such hard work for about 10-15 minutes.
Carve and enjoy.

{Insert fancy photo of the chicken here}

Everything went according to plan.
I did it! Yay!
Add THAT to my cooking resume.

And just when I was feeling pretty darn good about roasting a chicken and not giving Jeremy or myself food poisoning...I decided to do the dishes.
That's when I sliced my finger with the sharpest, biggest knife we own.
Blood went everywhere.Blinds. Sink. Counter.

And suddenly in that moment I was the least tough chicken roaster in the history of chicken roasters.
Jeremy had to come save me from an almost certain fainting episode followed by lots of tears.


What a night!