If you're bored and it's snowing

Clap your hands {clap, clap}.

That is probably true for anyone reading this on the East Coast. I don't ever remember getting back to back snow storms this far south. But here it is, the 2nd Friday in a row where it's snowing and we are stuck inside. We aren't accustomed to this kind of weather. I'm sure if we were in the North or Midwest we would be out driving around, going about our business. But since I live in the South and just the mention of snow cancels school and sends everyone running to their nearest grocery for milk and bread, I am inside going STIR CRAZY.

And what to do when you are stir crazy and can't don't want to go outside? Catch up on homework? Nah, that's for nerds. Finish home projects? Bah, that's for the birds. Cook, bake, and eat your way out of boredom? Now you're talking!

Last week I came down with a terrible stomach bug and couldn't eat a real meal for FIVE days. So, when it started snowing Friday night and we were stuck inside all day Saturday, I took that as a sign to make up for lost time. I went into the kitchen around 10 a.m and came out sometime around 7 p.m. covered in flour, sugar, and grease.

Some of the things that came out of the kitchen were:

Ina Garten's Tri-Berry Muffins*

Meyer Lemon and Ricotta Pancakes w/ creme fraiche* (adapted from the Fairmont in San Francisco)

French Chocolate Bark (adapted from Ina Garten)

that we turned into s'mores (that goes great with red wine!)

And last, but not least...Oreo Balls*

I snapped this picture before they were dipped in white chocolate, which I forgot to take b/c I was too busy stuffing my face full of sugar. Can you tell I had a sweet tooth last week? That's what happens when I can't eat for FIVE days. And also why I don't get diets. Telling myself I can't have something only makes me want it more.

With snow in the forecast for this weekend, we thought we would try something other than cooking to keep us from getting bored.

Drinking!

Markus came up with a great concoction of Tequila**, lime, and ginger ale. It's delicious and smooth goes down.

*e-mail me if you would like recipes I didn't link to. I was too drunk lazy to type them up.

**I'm not allowed to drink Tequila unless under constant supervision and away from the general public, so this is a real treat!

An Apple A Day {will make you sick of apples}

Last weekend Markus and I drove an hour west to Charlottesville, VA and visited the Carter Mountain Orchard, where it's apple season. It was the perfect fall day. The air was crisp, the sky was blue, and the apples were ripe for pickin' (some of them a little too ripe). It was nice to have an entire day to ourselves with no chores or errands to run.

We arrived in {tractor} style and was handed two bags so we could do our own picking. But first we hit up the concession stand where they had everything imaginable made from apples. I opted for an apple slushy and apple donuts while Markus stuck with the traditional cider. All were delicious.

Then we hit the orchard for some apple picking. There were all kinds of varieties but most of the apples from the bottom of the trees had already been picked. So I was designated apple picker. Markus would point to the ones he wanted (being the apple eater in the family) and I would throw them down to him to bag. Our system worked well. We came home with almost 50 apples! Hence the title of this post. Markus called today to say that he had eaten 10 apples in 3 days and was a little over apples. Guess that apple pie I planned on making tonight will have to eat itself :o)

See below for Grandmamma Chenault's applic pie recipe:

My Plate

I have had to get pretty creative with food since getting my braces on. The first weekend after I had my teeth pulled I ate nothing but smoothies and soup. But that got really boring after 3 days. I started looking online for creative foods that were soft. My main criteria was obviously to be able to chew it, fresh, in-season ingredients, and easy enough that I could make it for just me (with leftovers). I came up with some pretty good stuff and I have to say I haven't missed meat at all.

First up was a Mexican tortilla soup with jalapeno cornbread. I searched the Internet to get the basic ingredients and then made a variation with stuff I had around the house and could eat. You could easily add meat to this by picking up a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken.

Mexican Tortilla Soup
1 small yellow onion chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes

1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed chicken broth

1 1/4 cups water

1 can corn, or 2 cooked corn on the cobs

1 (4 ounce) can chopped green chile peppers

1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained

chopped fresh cilantro

1 avocado

shredded soft cheese (I think I used Monterey Jack)
Totrilla strips

1. In a medium stock pot, heat a little olive oil over medium heat. Saute onions and garlic in oil until soft. Stir in chili powder, oregano, tomatoes, broth, and water. Bring to a boil, and simmer for 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Stir in corn, chiles, beans, and cilantro. Simmer for 10 minutes.

3. Ladle soup into bowls, and top with crushed tortilla chips, avocado slices, cheese, and chopped cilantro.

And for the cornbread, who better than the Paula Deen, the queen of butter? Go here for the recipe. It was delicious!

I found the next recipe on The Kitchen and again varied it slightly for my taste. Quinoa is becoming one of my favorite grains. It's hearty enough and full of protein that it can substitute meat and yet delicate enough that you can add a ton of flavors to it. Here is the original recipe for Quinoa Tabbiouleh. Instead of cooking the grain in just water I added vegatable stock and lemon juice for flavor. I left out the mint because I'm not a fan of it in my food and I added toasted pine nuts. I didn't soak the red onion in water because I didn't find it necassary. I think the key here is to make sure the quinoa has cooled to room tempature so it doesn't soak up all the vinaigrette. Another key is very fresh ingredients. My favorite feta is a brand I get at Fresh Market that is imported from Greece and made from sheep's milk. It really does make a huge difference.

And to beef up this meal, I served it with a piece of baked Salmon that I cooked in an aluminun foil packet. I added a little extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice and zest, sea salt, pepper, capers, minced garlic, and some parsely and baked it at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

I haven't had a chance to make this recipe, but it is next on the list for sure. I found it on my favorite food blog site - Eat, Make, Read. Kelly is always cooking up something amazing in her tiny Brooklyn kitchen. I would love to be a fly on the wall (or maybe a guest at the dinner table!). I cannot wait to try her spicy corn cakes with fresh salsa. If the name of the recipe doesn't entice you than the pictures sure will!

This recipe is perfect for me because it's soft AND it has corn on the cob inside the cake. Corn on the cob is one of my favorite summer treats but with these dang braces it's impossible to eat!

Bon Appetit!

Have you TasteSpotted today?

This is one of my favorite "blogs" to read and I go on it at least once a day. It's actually a collection of food blogs that has great eye candy and even better recipes. My friend, Susan turned me on to this site and I have been addicted ever since. Thanks, Susan!!!

Today I was looking for a smoothie recipe and came across this delicious sounding concoction created by ourbestbites.com. I've been fighting a cold all week and thought a smoothie might be a good way to get all those antioxidants.

Blueberry Pomegranate Smoothie
8oz pomegranate juice
1/2 C frozen blueberries
1/2 C roughly chopped strawberries (3-4 berries)
1/2 orange, peeled
1 C crushed ice
optional: honey

Place all ingredients into a blender in the order listed. Process until smooth. If it's too tart for your liking, add a drizzle of honey!

Have a great weekend and enjoy!!!

Bon Appetit

Markus' one request after being gone for 15 days was a home cooked meal. He was tired of airport food and eating out and I love to cook so I was happy to oblige. But as I mentioned in the earlier post, it's been 90+ degrees the last few days. Who wants to stand in a kitchen and cook when it's that hot outside, especially in April! So last weekend I dug through some cookbooks and came up with a few recipes that didn't require much heat. I thought I would pass them along in case you are in the same boat. If you happen to be in a part of the country that is experiencing normal April weather, save these for late August when it's nice and hot.

I can always go for cold gazpacho when it's hot out but wanted to try something different. I came across a cold cucumber soup in Ina Garten's latest cookbook that sounded delicious so I thought I would try it. It was very refreshing and went great with a cold glass of white wine. The fresh dill on top came from my new garden!

I made Mediterranean Farro Salad from Giada's Kitchen as our main meal. It's the perfect cold pasta packed with veggies, olives, and parmesan cheese. The recipe calls for farro pasta, which I couldn't find so I used orzo. I think any small pasta would do the trick. I also had some red onion left over from the cucumber soup so I threw that in too. There are endless possibilities to this recipe. It's great as a vegetarian dish but next time I might add shrimp to beef it up.

And for dessert I served the pound cake my grandmother and I baked on Sunday. I topped it with berries and homemade whipped cream. The perfect ending to a semi-healthy meal!

If you would like recipes for any of these delicious foods please let me know. I would be happy to pass them along!