Going bananas: 6 things to do with the bananas on your counter

Normally, this would be a post about how nuts I am lately, but I'm good on that front!  Instead, it's a helpful little post on 6 things you can do with those bananas on your counter that are close to their end date. 

I always buy too many bananas.  I buy them with the best intentions of eating one a day, but end up throwing half of them in the woods and the other salvageable half get throw in the freezer and forgotten about.  No more.  I decided to get a handle on my banana problem, and I thought I'd share. 

1) My go-to banana reducer is Banana Bread.  I'm don't have one particular recipe that I use every time I make it, but I found this well written recipe for Julia's Best Banana Bread in the March 2013 Bon Appetit Mag that worked out just fine.  It made a huge, densely crusted loaf that I whopped in half and gave away to some very happy recipients (Dad and Sister).  I added some semi-sweet chocolate chips to the batter before baking, but other than that, a perfect recipe.  

2) Banana Smoothies are my friend in the afternoon. I never can decide on a snack that won't break the calorie bank, but a banana smoothie is a sure fire way to get that energy back and keep me running (and not devouring everything in my path) until dinner.  Simple: 

1 Banana (I keep too-ripe bananas in the freezer for this or you can use just a regular banana)

1-2 tbsp peanut butter

1/2 cup milk, 

1/2 cup water

1 cup of ice, 

splash of vanilla extract

Blend. Enjoy. 

3) Banana Cookies.  I found this amazing little skinny recipe on Pinterest for two-ingredient cookies.  Of course, I had to tamper with it.  So here's a 5 ingredient somewhat skinny cookie recipe.

Preheat oven to 350.  Throw two bananas, a cup of quick oats, and a teaspoon of vanilla extract in the food processor and blend until the bananas are smooth. Put in a bowl and mix in 1/4 cup chocolate chips and 1/4 cup coconut or nuts.  Scoop out cookies (2 tbsp each) onto cookie sheet.  Bake for 18 minutes or starting to turn golden around edges.  These things are solid and really tasty. 

4) Banana mask.  I haven't tried this.  Let's call it homework.  You moosh up a banana and mix it with a tablespoon of honey and then you smooth it over your face, wait for 10 minutes and then wash it off.  It's supposed to make your skin really soft and smooth.  I'll get right on that. 

5) Skinny Ice Cream.  Freeze a few bananas and throw them in the blender or food processor.  Blend until smooth.  Dump out into a little dish and you have some skinny banana ice cream. Wa-la.

6) The winner for the coolest thing to do with bananas, by far, is making Chicken with Banana Curry Sauce.  I wanted to find something savory to do with bananas, so during a little research, I found this recipe from Food and Wine Magazine.  Luckily, I had most of the herbs on hand so it wasn't too expensive, but it took me a couple of trips to different grocery stores to find bone-in chicken breasts. Let me tell you that when it was finished, my house smelled AMAZING! AND, it was even better for leftovers the second day after the chicken had time to sit in the sauce and marinate. 

No more excuses, people!  Eat those bananas.

House of Cards, Husk, and hunting a little inspiration

Best new show: If you have Netflix and you are not watching House of Cards, you are wasting your monthly membership fee.  Hell, it's worth joining just to watch this show.  Honestly, I'm obsessed. I'm huddled over my iPhone or laptop every free second I get.  I'm even watching while I walk in the afternoons (praying no one gets in front of me or I'll totally run them over). I'm going to go into serious withdrawals when I've finished all 13 episodes of this political feast.   Kevin Spacey has slathered on the southern drawl to play a South Carolina Congressman out for revenge after he's passed over as pick for Secretary of State. (Does he have his sites on the presidency?)   Robin Wright plays his wife and she is mesmerizing.  And I am totally obsessed with Kate Mara who plays journalist Zoe Barns.  The characters are spicy and totally captivating.  I'm hooked, hooked, hooked and you should be, too.

In the know:
Husk (Charleston, SC) has landed on another Best of... list.  Bon Appetit magazine has ranked the restaurant the 3rd Most Important Restaurant in America in this month's issue (behind Momofuku in NYC and The Restaurant at Meadowood in Napa) for Chef Sean Brock's efforts to revive the very roots of Southern Food. We ate at Husk last summer for the first time and have reservations again in a couple of weeks and I can not wait.  Brock is everywhere these days. Did anyone else catch him as a guest judge on a recent episode of Top Chef?

Greenville foodie news:
Neue Southern Food Truck fans will be happy to know the chefs are in the kitchen testing recipes inspired by their Asian romp.  Word on the street is the mobile kitchen will be opening for business soon, but the chefs are resisting my stalking to find out. And coming this spring, Chefs Lauren Zanardelli and Graham Foster are teaming with Chef Aaron Manter from The Owl for a special dinner event. I'm super excited about the possibilities of this dinner, so I'll keep you posted.


Looking for inspiration:
You know that I get an obscene amount of magazines.  Finding something to cook should not be a problem for me, right?  Oh, so wrong.  I'm tired of chicken, tired of pasta, tired of Mexican...  I haven't seasoned my new dutch oven yet, so braising is sort of out for now... I flipped through recipes all night last night and finally landed on Shrimp Fried Rice.  One of the many things I've never cooked before.  How is this possible?  Finally, something simple and quick I can get behind. So I ran off to the store today for even more condiments (Sesame Oil and Rice Vinegar) to fill my pantry, but it promises to be a good dish.  Here's hoping...

Delish.

Southern Culture, birthday festivities and the Carrie Diaries

For my birthday lunch my bff took me to a new restaurant in town called Southern Culture. We pulled up to our wooden table and I feasted on Country Fried Chicken breast on a warm, fluffy buttermilk biscuit topped with peppery sawmill gravy.

And we had a warm banana pudding for dessert.  If you've ever treasured sampling a warm custard straight from the pot on the stove, then you're going to go nuts over this pudding.  It's creamy, sweet heaven. 

That's how the fare rolls at  Southern Culture, a new locally owned restaurant at Cherrydale Crossings in Greenville. It's the food you grew up with at grandma's Sunday table, but amped up a bit.   Chef Chad Gangwer rolls out Southern comfort in the form of Open Faced Pot Roast, Bacon Wrapped Meatloaf, and Pulled Pork Nachos (piled insanely high). And that's just the lunch menu offerings.  (I have reservations tomorrow night to check out their dinner, too.) 

The festivities continued through dinner and will continue on through the weekend. (Is it possible I'm getting tired of eating?) My mother came over with bubbly and I made my easy gluten-free coconut shrimp for dinner last night.  I coated these little guys in egg, coconut and a gluten-free flour (almond flour in this case) then fried them up golden brown. Mom had strong opinions about me cooking on my own birthday, but after one bite she was placated.

Like my little cake? There are cakes for all occasions, and I've ordered a coconut cake from The Hungry Drover for weekend festivities, but Publix just makes the quintessential birthday cake.  It's sugary and fluffy and everything I remember from my childhood birthday cakes. I was digging into the icing before the last candle was lit.  No self control.  

My husband gave me my very own facejug for my birthday, specifically made for me by our artist friend Greg Patton.  He makes the face mugs for Blue Ridge Brewing Co. in downtown Greenville and you can get his work at The Forest in Travelers Rest. See the little Starbucks to-go cup and little cupcakes? And she's holding a bag with journals on one arm and you can't see it, but there's a little piece of folk art under the other arm.  Greg made a jug for my husband last year and I had to have one of my own.  I think he did a pretty dang good job of capturing me, don't ya think?  I told my husband we could use them for ashes when we die. 

Warning, brain candy to follow: I have to tell you about The Carrie Diaries.  I closed my 37th birthday by watching the first episode and I'm obsessed. The show is the very much anticipated prequel to Sex and the City and follows Carrie Bradshaw as she heads to high school for her Senior year in the wake of her mother's death. For change of pace, her dad helps her get a once-a-week internship in Manhattan and she begins her intense love affair with the big NYC. I was in love with this show in the first couple of minutes. I just can't help myself. 

And the birthday festivities continue...

Monday chatter: Golden Globes, painting critters and a few new tunes

I've been cooking a bit lately.  I successfully made an Italian sausage deep dish pizza last week that got raves around the table.  The crust came from this site and was really quick and easy.  I much prefer a homemade crust to the store bought these days, but don't always have the time or inclination.  I've marked that one for a go-to recipe in the future. (I don't own a deep dish pan, so I used a cast iron skillet instead.)

Did anyone watch the Golden Globes last night?  I was laid up on the bed like a queen munching on Godiva Truffles  I would have had champagne too, if had not been for the over-exuberant birthday celebration during the weekend. The dresses were awesome, as usual, accept for Kate Hudson and that lady from Desperate Housewives who was trying to pull of an Angelina - a total fail.  HBO's Girls racked up. I was squealing with excitement when Lena Dunham won, but could she have looked any less dignified waddling up to the stage on way-to-high heals?  Twice. That's the EXACT reason I don't wear heals. Because my mother says they make me walk like I have something wrong with my bum. She should have just kicked those puppies off under the table and run for the stage in pure joy.   That's what I would have done!

So I tried Caviar for the first time.  Maybe the last time. I'm not a fan.  I tried it twice, so I can at least say I gave it a fair shake. I just can't deal with the salty, briny little boogers. Blahk! I can deal with capers, but these things were a bit too much.

This weekend I went to Columbia to spend some time with one of my oldest friends in the universe.  We celebrate our birthdays together every year and she surprised me by taking me to one of those drink wine and paint places in Cola called Grapes and Gallery.  We painted our dogs, cute, eh?  I haven't picked up a paint brush in years, but it was stupendously fun.  When we got there, the guy had our dogs outlined on a piece of canvas like a coloring book page and he walked us through mixing colors and layering to get these little masterpieces.  We were sipping on coke instead of wine.  I have no idea what this would have turned out like with a bottle of wine in me!

Hey, Justin Timberlake has a new song out called Suit and Tie featuring Jay Z.  It's reminiscent of a good ole old school romantical R&B song. Think Marvin Gaye.

Speaking of music. Have you heard Blackberry Smoke?  If you love Zac Brown, you're gonna like these guys.  (They are actually on Zac Brown's label). Go take a listen.

Someone recommended a new blog to me, too.  It's called People I Want to Punch in the Throat.   It's written by a witty mom I'd totally be friends with. You should check it out.  It will give you a good chuckle.

I think that's it for now.  It's gonna be a busy eating out week so I'll have some new restaurants for ya shortly.

Happy Monday!

Rip and file, Mason Jar swag and stocking musts

It's time for the monthly rip and file.  The monthly mag subscriptions have gotten totally out of hand.  But it sure makes for some cool ideas.

in the kitchen: Broccoli is the new Brussel sprout. Thank God cause I was getting pretty tired of seeing those little tiny cabbage boogers all over the place.  (I still have a bag in my fridge that may go bad before I can decide what to do with them.) There's a super yummy recipe for Flash-Roasted Broccoli with Spicy Crumbs (meaning pepperoni and panko) in this month's Food and Wine.  

And I'm definitely  making these pork looking eggroll things in the near future. 

And this Pasta-Chicken-Broccoli Bake. 

to buy: I'm newly obsessed with drinking out of Mason jars.  Mainly I am a total klutz and they are really great for not tipping over when I side swipe them. Okay, so now there is a Mason Jar Shaker by W+P Design.  It's been in all the mags this season.  But the coolest in new Mason Jar swag is this sippy cup top from Cuppow that turns your jar into a spill proof cup.  

Someone needs to purchase this for me for Christmas.  I am in need. 

Dear Santa: I happened upon an ad for White Chocolate Peppermint Pringles. 

  

What. The. Hell.  I think I need these in my stocking. If you see them somewhere, message me immediately so I can tell Santa.  

to give is better than sex: okay, maybe not, but it does feel good.  If I had a bow tie guy in my life, I'd totally get them a bow tie from The Cordial Churchman out of Rock Hill.  I really don't think my brother or my husband, being the non-wearing-tie males they are, would appreciate the gesture.  But maybe you know someone...

There's a party going on in my house... I'm sitting here blogging. Maybe socializing would be a good thing today?  Have a good weekend and happy Christmas shopping!

monster storm, mini-shows and monster season

My new favorite snack is roasted chick peas. Thank you How Sweet It Is!

Sandy the Storm has send some crazy winds our way.  Our power (which is iffy on a good day) was off most of today.  I spent the time organizing the last three years of Everyday Food and Food Network and Paula Deen Mags - only part of my extensive magazine collection.  And after three hours of finding stuff to do not involving power, I decided it would be a good idea to venture out of the valley and bum someone's internet  So I did.

I'm newly obsessed with this YouTube Wigs channel show called Audrey.  (It's R rated. I'd stick in the ear buds if you're at work.  Don't want this blaring around your office.)  It's like Sex and the City meets the Food Porn website and is really, really good. Someone asked me to plug it on the blog and I was like, yeah, whatever.  Sure. But I really do like it and can't wait until the next episode!

I got sucked into this show, too. Three episodes in before I could stop myself. What is the deal with these little YouTube mini-shows?  I'm so a fan. Got one you watch?  Send me a link!

Local coffee addict news: If you live in the Greenville area, the Cherrydale Starbucks is having a free coffee seminar/tasting on Thursday at 6ish p.m. to 7 p.m. so go get some free coffee!  They are testing out their new Verismo system.  I went in for a car line Pumpkin Latte today and told them I'd let you all know, so tell them Gap Creek Gourmet sent ya!

When we got home, the power had returned, we rushed to make cupcakes for my child's class before it went off again...

and I made dinner.  A version of this Quinoa Salad (I subbed wine for broth and pecans for walnuts) and baked chicken. We may have to eat it cold, but at least there will be food and you won't find our little cold starved bodies holed up in the house. I've watched too much television. Clearly.

I'm so stoked it's Halloween week.  Then will it be okay to sing Christmas songs?

Happy Monday!

bacon cookies, bazooka bubblegum and these blasted ladybugs!

My  mother came over last night to help me finish decorating for Halloween, and I made bacon bbq wrapped chicken fingers with sweet potato tater tots.  Okay, so I dumped the tots out of a bag onto a pan and baked them, but that constitutes "making" right? 

I also "made" gluten free chocolate chip cookies with bacon, toasted pecans and a little pepper on top... with a little balsamic/maple reduction drizzle.  It was an experiment.  Maybe a little flavor overkill, but yummy all the same. 

My daughter and I chomped on Bazooka Bubblegum on the way home yesterday.  Did you know you can still buy the stuff for 3 cents and it still has a comic in it?  Way cool.  And it blows killer bubbles. (note: bubble lips are not attractive)

Another highlight of the day was that my Bon  Appetit Thanksgiving issue came in the mail.  Yea me!  A magazine day is a very good day.  It's like getting a present in the mail!

Have lady bugs invaded anyone else's house?   I am not kidding when I say they have invaded.  There are THOUSANDS on my back porch!  Can you see them all over the screen? And as the sun is setting you can see swarms of them in the air.  They are even dive bombing the hubs while he is staining our deck.  

When there is one lady bug they are really cute.  When there are this many, you want to run screaming to your daddy.  (I did the first time I saw them swarm like this.  I actually called my dad in tears. He said to calm down and vacume them up. Smart man.)

Someone posted this t'shirt on Pinterest from this site.  I must have it. I immediately sent my sister a Christmas request email as soon as I saw it. 

Don't hate me, but I had a long drive yesterday morning way too early for my liking and in order to stay awake, I listened and sang very loudly to Christmas music.  I like to pretend I'm singing in front of a crowd (which I don't think I ever could and not even for karaoke but it keeps me awake). As I said, don't hate me. 

The end. 

Weekend Roundup.

 I finally started my first attempt at Limoncello on Friday (to be ready July 4th weekend).  I added the zest of 10 organic (and very expensive!!!) lemons and 750 ml Vodka to two 1/2 gallon jars.  It has to sit for almost 6 weeks and then you make a simple syrup, dump in some water or something and you're done.  I'll keep you posted.  We used the remaining carnage from the organic lemons to make the worlds most expensive lemonade which neither of us have drank any of.  I'm tempted to freeze it, but how? Baggies? Please advise.  There is a gallon of it!

My daughter and I watched the Disney movie Geek Charming and chilled on Saturday night.  Well, she watched and I didn't watch so much as play online. It was a total throwback to Can't Buy Me Love. Remember that flick?  Patrick Dempsey?  Anyone?

I have a new toy for my iPhone. The Hipstamatic App. I had to research how to work the thing.  It's like having a camera bag of all different kinds of old school films and lenses at your disposal for each pic.  It's freaky that a cell phone camera can do the same things we did in darkrooms (remember those?) in college. There's actually a darkroom app now too where you can mix your own virtual chemicals.  Seriously. It's called Swankolab.

I'm going through a semi-vegetarian phase again.  Sunday for dinner we had my Barley's Veggie Wrap (Sort of) Knockoff - minus the pesto... and without large pitas, it actually is a pizza... that you eat with a knife and fork. I can't believe I forgot the pesto!  I knew something was missing! Directions to follow:

1/2 an onion chopped, 1 zucchini sliced thin, 1/2 container of mushrooms sliced. Sauteed together in pan with EVOO, salt, pepper and garlic powder (or 1 clove chopped).  Place 2 whole wheat pita's topped with spaghetti sauce on baking pan..  Divide veggies between 2 pitas. Put handful of shredded motzerella on each pita and cook in oven on broil until the cheese is melted.  Wa-la. Healthy.  Easy. 

 

A bird just swooped down in my yard, picked up a caterpillar (or worm) and flew off again.  Must be lunchtime for him, too.  I just drank my lunch.  A smoothie with: 1 banana, two handfuls of spinach, a 1/2 c. of milk, a cup of ice, a cup of water, 1/4 cup of oats, 1 tbsp of peanut butter, 1 tbsp of honey. Blend. Straw. 

I have a jacked up hip and knee.... and right thumb.  I feel 80.  Bursitis sucks.  I have big plans for hiking, traveling and paddle boarding this summer.  I'm starting an all out war to get this thing gone, and thus making some doctors very wealthy in the coming weeks.  That'll teach bursitis to mess with me!!! 

I've been obsessed with the idea of paddleboarding at the beach since I tried stand up paddleboarding last summer for an article assignment. I'm gonna put my fear of sharks aside (or at least take a few shots to dull the terror) and paddle dad gum it! I'm gonna! 

Congrats to Martha Vaughn for snagging the first Gap Creek Gourmet Snag that Swag Euphoria gift bag.  I'm posting another giveaway late this week or early next, so stay tuned!  And if you haven't signed up to have my blog come to your email box, do that, so you won't miss the announcement!  

That's all I got today. Off to the chiropractor. 

Happy Monday all!

Moving up, southern egg rolls, Kelly and my cat

So I got a job.  Okay, I've had a job.  I'm a freelance writer.  I juggle projects all the time, but this time.... it's a really, really good project.  Hows about USA Today found my blog and asked me to do a project for them!  Shut up!  Right?!  So at first I thought it was spam.  Seriously. Nope.  No spam.  (Squeals!).  I'll keep you posted.   I took my daughter to Starbuck's to celebrate after I picked her up from school.

Then I went home and made Southern Egg Rolls.  I think my husband was more excited about these than my new project!  He told me I should post.  So here it is.  

I had leftover black eyed peas in the fridge and pork in the freezer and I didn't want to do something boring, so... I cut up an onion and about 1/8 of a head of cabbage and cooked that on the stove until the onion was a little transparent, then I ground up 3/4 lb or so smoked pork in the food processor,opened a can of collards and dumped in the black eyed peas and some shredded carrot for texture/crunch/health fa-la-la.  Then dumped little piles in the center of egg roll rappers, wrapped them up, brushed on olive oil and baked them until brown.  

 
Then I whipped up some tasty, super spicy sauce with Spicy Chow Chow (only in the South would this just happen to be in your cabinet), spicy mustard, duck sauce and honey.  We ate the rolls with butter lettuce (my new fav...) with Ginger Dressing.  We're still eating rolls three days later, but they are too good to put in the freezer!

Here's my cat.  She loves Live with Kelly. She watched for the longest time!

Two more things:  In case you didn't know, Starbucks is doing half price Frappuccinos from 3-5pm until May 13th!  A shout out to the folks at Cherrydale Starbucks in Greenville. Sup guys?!  Love ya!

 They have chocolate whipped cream now.  It is freaking amazing, so go check that out!  You're welcome.  Tomorrow's Friday people.  Don't forget those mother's day presents!  I'm still hoping for a surprise trip to Columbia's Food Truck Rodeo.  Still have no idea what to get your mom? Coffee gift cards... maybe in a new to-go mug?  Cheers!

Foodie Find: Vignette Wine Country Soda

Sometimes I find random products online while browsing.  A recent discovery was Vignette Wine Country Soda.  The folks there were nice enough to send samples of their Chardonnay, Rose and Pinot Noir sodas and I've worked my way through them during the past week.  It's a brilliant idea: a delicate, very adult pop (not syrupy) naturally sweetened with the juice of California varietal wine grapes.  Non-alcoholic.  50% juice. Nice, right?  The cool thing is you can taste the difference in the grapes from flavor to flavor.  You get a little of the complexity of the grapes, which is nice.

When I was in high school, I LOVED the blackberry Clearly Canadian.  It's been my favorite soda since.  I still have some of the blue bottles they used to come in, remember those?   I used to drink it from a wine glass cause I was just cool like that. So, that said, these sodas are my adult version.

I wouldn't be shocked to see these in the nicer grocery stores and wine store near you soon, but for now, you can order online here... or according to their website, find the soda at High Cotton in Downtown Greenville, SC.  Oh, and they are also on sale at Amazon.com right now, so stock up for the holidays! These would be a good accompaniment to a turkey dinner for those guests who prefer to stay away from the wine.

Date Night Dining: Square One in Hendersonville, NC

A sidewalk view into the kitchen of Square One
 in downtown Hendersonville, NC

Last night my husband and I ate our work week stress away at Square One, a downtown Hendersonville, NC restaurant.  I would like to say upfront, that we love eating out in Hendersonville because it's so dang laid back!  People are wearing jeans, hiking boots, and hoodie sweatshirts... as opposed to eating dinner out in downtown Greenville, where even in jeans, a nice shirt and clogs I feel out of place some nights.  It's a different vibe.  Very cool.

So dinner... we ordered a Malbec and Mojito. Simple, but nice wine list and $5 Mojitos! We started with baked brie in puff pastry with blackberry jam, served with spiced nuts on a bed of baby greens with toast.  Delish.  The puff pastry could have been left in the oven a few more minutes, but tasty all the same. When we unwrapped said pastry, gooey jam pooled out in the plate and made a nice dressing for the greens.  I think there was some honey involved too.  Who's complaining? Not I.



I want to say, I'm just now a brie fan.  I apparently had some sort of stinky, smelly cheese (not a fan) that I was told was brie when I was younger, so up until the past couple of weeks (no, I'm not exaggerating) I avoided it.

But YUM! It took my daughter's Whole Foods cheese mission on our last shopping adventure to try it again. I had to set an example, after all. I love that she gets all into the foodie thing when she sees the baskets around the cheese section with little remnants of odd and end cheeses (all for $1 or so).

Back to Square One (couldn't resist) main course: I had duck breast, grilled and paired with dried cherry gastrique (def: caramelized sugar, deglazed with vinegar), bacon and Gorgonzola cheese, all on a bed of white rice.  It was absolutely delicious.  The duck was juicy and rich... cooked medium well, with a salty, sweet outer crust. The cherries were swollen with sweet sauce.  I ate until I was way too stuffed for dessert.  Someone posted on Urban Spoon that the portions were too small and the food quality had gone down under new management.  They lied. For $19, I got way more than I usually could handle for dinner, but because it was so good. I gobbled it all up.

Daniel ordered fried chicken.  At $14, he was curious as to what their take would be on the Southern staple.  His eyes rolled back in his head with the first bite.  It was honestly some of the best chicken I've had: juicy, and well seasoned all throughout.  The sides of mac and cheese and thick slices of heirloom tomato were good, but the chicken definitely stole the show on his plate.

We both ate, with Drinks for $55 (plus tip... our waitress was super helpful and nice).  You can't beat that on a Friday night. Especially for the quality and quantity of food we consumed.  I heard there's a Groupon coupon floating around out there for this place. Be sure to jump on that! We are going back soon for the bread pudding topped with Nutella and pineapple (too full to try).

Happy eating!

grilled veggie pizza

First attempt at a grilled pizza after some research on the topic ... not so shabby!
This one has sweet peppers, mushrooms, garlic, onions and fresh basil
and then crumbled Parmesan and oregano, once it was off the grill.
(I used Trader Joe's whole wheat  pre-made pizza dough.)   

I wanted French Toast for dinner.

So I wanted French Toast for dinner.  I googled and searched around but didn't find a recipe that struck my fancy.  Dangerous territory in my house.  That's when I start experimenting.  I like to call this dish "What the hell is that?"... which is what my husband said when he saw his plate.

I started with organic Italian Sausages from Brick House Farms.  I browned them in a pan and added a maple red wine glaze.  (aka I dumped some Gnarly Head Zin and Trader Joe's Maple Syrup in the pan and cooked it down on a whim)

 Then I made cinnamon carrots in the microwave and the french toast I was desperately wanting.  I drenched the perfect, eggy, fall spiced bread in a a little date balsamic vinegar and maple syrup.  Ta-Da!  A really interesting, and tasty dinner. (Or What the hell is that?)

Balsamic Reduction...first swing.

Balsamic Reduction.  

Sounds complicated.  Not so much.

I roasted these colorful beets I found at Whole Foods

and cooked the heck out of some Trader Joe's Balsamic Vinegar.

Added some brown sugar.  Boiled until it coated the back of the spoon.  Poured on beets. Yum.

What's for dinner?

People always ask me what I fix for dinner on a “normal” night.  Tonight's dinner consisted of:  shredded rotisserie chicken (bought from Ingles), chopped onion sauteed with taco seasoning, Uncle Ben’s Mexican blend rice in a microwave pouch  all cooked together in a skillet, then piled on a tortilla with tomato, lettuce, salsa, sour cream and cilantro. And Tabasco. Ta-da!  Sierra chopped, Daniel cooked (while I wrote: deadline for the Greenville Journal)... 

and I ate!  

Fennel Salad with Peas and Soy Beans

1 Fennel Bulb
1/2 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup frozen Endamame (Soy Beans)
1 bunch fresh parsley, Rosemary and Oregano
salt
favorite salad dressing: I used Poppy Seed and Daniel used Ginger Dressing

Cut the stalks off of the Fennel bulb. Cut bulb in half and in half again. Cut out the really hard tough part of the bulb. Cut the bulb into long thin stips.
Put the peas and Endamame, some salt, a sprig of Rosemary and a sprig of oregano (both chopped up) in a pot. Stem the peas and the Endamame until warm all the way through. Do not overcook! Run under cold water. Put the peas on Fennel and spinkle with chopped parsley and salt. Drizzle on dressing... Don't drench.

What is Fennel: Similar to celery, but has a warmer flavor instead of a strong bite. Smells like licorice but doesn't taste like it at all. It has a cool fresh flavor with warm undertones. Awesome for salads! Please try this thing and let me know how my start to great recipes is going!
Chef Colie