Happy New Year!

Hello!!!! This wraps up 2010's bloggin' posts! I took a week off to hang out with family, hubs, and pups. We got some major todo's done- all without thinking about snapping photos of eats or worrying about how many calories were burned.  2010 was bittersweet with the loss of a dearly loved dog, but adoption of 2 sweet pittie girls- we couldn't imagine our house without their puppy paws running around!  We took a couple trips to Portsmouth Island- our own deserted paradise.  The first trip was windy- beyond windy.  The second trip brought on a torrential downpour of rain and lightning show that rivaled any fireworks production to date- and destroyed our beloved North Face tent! We spent September- November working on home improvement and had a custom deck put on- the perfect spot for Spring gatherings galore! To ponder the past, and look to the present, we spent a day this week hiking up Crabtree Falls! Now that the holidays are about done it is time to put efforts into continuing the things that made 2010 great- and adding goals to 2011!  We have house decorating aspirations-i.e. paint, tile projects, and finding the perfect art for the dining room-, race goals + fitness goals, and financial plans!!   2011 will be busy from jump! To ring in the New Year we celebrated at home with a holiday dinner of our dreams. Everything was grilled- lightly seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic, and lemon.  All was enjoyed alongside a bottle of Cooper Vineyards Norton Reserve- my fave!!

                                                                                                                                                                   tomato + fresh Mozz + balsamic glaze 

 clams getting ready for the grill

 wine on the deck admist the last evening of Christmas lights

 all done and ready for some hot sauce

New York Strip- post grillin' 

Happy New Year! 

I am not a baker...

baking is not my thing- the  butter, the sugar... it kills me, every tastey little bite...alas the only real food eaten today was pizza- from Leonardo's... it was amazing! After a whole day of baking I didn't want to even think about cooking dinner- enter the nom-tastic Super Delux...

Last year I made healthy treats for the holidays- people weren't having it! So now, once a year there is a dessert indulgence- and I've come to terms with it!  Today's cookie baking bonanza started around 10 AM.-read, I started eating cookies at 10 AM!!  I set to work with my coffee, kitchen companions, and began making treats for neighbors, friends, and family. 

 Ramsey was right in my corner, under my feet- occupational hazard- powdered sugar on the nose!

Pumpkin Spiced Walnut Cookies with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

 Last night we unveiled the wrapping paper. Our paper choices are a bigger surprise than the gifts themselves. Each roll gets a special hiding spot in each respective closet, until the wrapping and sharing.  A Christmas tradition we started back when we were dating, it gets better and better each year. I look forward to wrapping gifts, knowing it holds such a special part of the season for us- end mushy segment.  We each ooohed and aaahed the selections. I went with a retro teal, blue, sliver and white style for the hubs. He totally loved it.  He knows I adore paisley more than 1985 and found paisley Christmas paper- bonus points for style!


Snickerdoodles



Snickerdoodles and brownie bites

 There was a lil' something special  from the ladies to me! How sweet... funny they found a couple sweet 22 oz bottles of beer for their Daddy- both IPA's.  From Whiskey there is the Dogzilla black IPA, and Ramsey the Alpha Dog IPA.  Pitbulls really are a thoughtful breed!
Rumor has it there is a Dogfather Imperial Stout in his stocking, but don't believe everything you hear...
I leave you with cookie recipes for all of the tastey treats being delivered in the morning!
(in each goodie bag is a treat for the neighbors dogs... er cat in one instance... for dog treats see this post- ahhh and check out Blitzie photos!!!)

Cheatin' Brownie Bites- ABSOLUTELY not from scratch

1 box of brownie mix + oil, eggs, and the water the directions call for

Preheat oven to 325

Spray mini muffin pan with non stick spray

put about 2 tsp brownie mix in each muffin spot ( I added heath bar to the middle of mine)

Bake for 20 minutes

Let cool

Run knife around edge

twist bites out and eat...

Go run 3 miles :)



Snickerdoodles

3 cups flour- felt so naughty using white all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup softened butter

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla

Cinnamoon Sugar Dusting

1/4 cup sugar

1 tsp cinnamon

Mix the dry ingredients together well.

Beat together butter and sugar until creamy. Add eggs- beat some more.  Add vanilla- beat again.

Stir in dry ingredients 1 cup at a time.

Cover dough and put in fridge for 1 hour.

Pre heat oven to 375.

Once chilled roll dough balls into about a 2 inch circle- roughly. Roll the dough ball in the cinnamon sugar dusting and place on baking sheet- 2 inches apart.

Bake for 11 minutes.

This makes roughly 4 dozen- try not to eat them all- it will test your forititude for sure!

Pumpkin Spiced Walnut Cookies with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

Preheat oven to 350. Toast 1 cup Walnuts for about 5-7 minutes in oven while getting all of the ingredients set.

2 cups flour-again all purpose white flour

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp ground ginger

1/8 tsp ground cloves

1 cup sugar

1 cuup softened butter

1cup pumpkin puree

1 tsp vanilla

1 cup roasty toasty walnuts

Icing

1/2 of a 8 oz cream cheese package- I used the light version

1 cup powdered sugar

3 Tbsp maple syrup

Mix together dry ingredients

Beat butter and sugar togther until fluffy- using a hand mixer or stand mixer makes it much easier (unless you've got guns!!!) Add egg, pumpkin and vanilla and keep beating!  Stir in dry ingredients, one cup at a time. 

Cookie dough will seem wetter than typical cookie dough- but these bake into softer cookies!

Drop dough (roughly 2 tsp amount) onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 15 minutes.

Allow your cookies to chill.....

Prepare icing by mixing confectioners sugare, maple syrup, and cream cheese until smooth, creamy, and blended.

Okay-not being a baker I rig my "piping bag" using a ziplock. Fill it with icing. Twist the end. Snip a tiny... super small... corner off the end of the bag.  Decorate at until your heart's content..

Even with this amount of frosting I had a TON left over- you could probably 1/2 the recipe and still be fine!

If I even look at another cookie I will lose it... but then again I am NOT a baker!

Merry Christmas!!

Welcome back, GYM...

So sometime in September I decided that paying for the gym and not going- while I figured out a new curriculum, took a couple of classes, and spent way too much time at work.... so I put  my membership on hold.  Things have settled down a bit since September, and now I have the time and desire to get back into my routine.  Enter today's hour long weights class- and jello arms!  So pumped to have it back!!

my how you've grown...

I am a home body... no lies a HOME BODY!!! I love my house, my dogs, my husband, my kitchen- coming up with whatever I want for dinner and only paying for the materials needed... love it!


bloggin' wih my favorite girls!!! ignore the pj's after 12pm and bed head... I'm on vacation




This homebody loves an occasional night out on the town every once in a while, however my every weekend, plus Wednesday and Thursday nights of painting the town red have long been put to rest- thank God... it gives ya wrinkles and bags under your eyes...

While my club days have been moved to my kitchen, I'll still a bust move to whatever we're listening to- again whatever we want to be listening to...

My drinks are ALWAYS top shelf, and my tab is minimal...

Life is good as a grown up! 

Tonight this grown up and her better half wanted seafood- without heading downtown, we brought seafood to us!
Enter Coconut Curry Mussels- the appetizer that started this music playing, Christmas lights having, course after course of food and drink  evening to our doorstep!
1 Tbsp coconut oil
2 cloves of garlic minced
2 whole chopped green onions
2 tsp Sriracha
dash of fish sauce
1/2 cup fish stock
1-2 tsp Curry powder- depending on taste
1 lb. Mussels- cleaned rinsed and ready to go
1/3 cup light coconut milk


Saute the garlic in the oil (which is a solid- that will liquefy with heat).  Add all of the ingredients and cook till mussels open- if using previously cooked and frozen mussels cook until warm.

Easy- but delicious!!!



favorite table at our favorite spot




And then this character showed up...



I knead the bread!

This morning's conversation started like this- me- let me know when your game is up, I've got pics to show you.
Hub- Pics of what?
me- Hamburgers, sexy hamburgers!

Some might find the thought of hamburgers- repulsive! I totally get it- the whole meat is murder thing, but this meat eater LOVES a good hamburger (and I'll totally bust out a black bean burger on a whim as well, but last night was beef!).

Don't shy away if your strict veggies only kind of eater, this post isn't about the beef, it's about the buns! Being immobilized by 4 inches of snow having extra time with a snow day, I decided to make my own sandwich buns.  Bread (without a bread machine) walks a fine line of being great or dear God I wouldn't serve this to an enemy bad... the latter being my first attempts with bread!  Persevering through some whole wheat bricks, I made peace with the yeast and have produced some edible loaves, rolls, pretzels, pizza crusts and- Sandwich Buns!!!
With any good recipe, comes humble beginnings, learning from your mistakes- and in my case purchasing a cookbook- The Mixer Bible.
And while I  won't plagiarized the recipe- I will offer my tips to making edible sandwich buns.

1. whether or not you are using active dry yeast or Highly active dry yeast (which I opted for this time) use a thermometer to get the temps on your liquid just right. Too cool- yeast won't work, too warm- yeast won't work. 

2. Active and Highly Active yeast are different- they require different TLC. I studied this website when I first attempted bread and still made mistakes.

3. Start early. Not only does it take hours to make fresh bread, if your  buns don't turn out right, at least you have time to go to the store to pick some up!

4. Use the right flour- I attempted 100% whole wheat- very unsuccessfully. Now I use white wheat flour- but have a stock pile of white bread flour too. I have some very special flour from a farmer's market I'm saving- well I'm saving it until I pick up Vital Wheat Gluten- it always escapes me when I'm grocery shopping!

Making bread is hard- a frustrating and slow process. These tips don't even scratch the surface of bread how to's- there are websites devoted to it! If you find  yourself in the position of wanting to make fresh bread- GO FOR IT! If it frustrates you beyond belief- I KNOW what you're feeling!!!  I could devote an entire entry on the topic of "Temper Tantrums in the Kitchen- when things didn't quite go my way!"

After an afternoon of mixing, kneading, and risings plus an evening of "Snow Grilling"- dinner was served! Grilled burgers, Grilled sweet potato wedges, and Weston Farm Rosso- a delicious VA wine!!! 

All was well with the world- well our piece of the world anyway!

With that I am making my way back to the gym- with hopes of not being recognized as the girl that hasn't come in 3 months! 

Family Heirlooms

Last night we ate braised pork tenderloin with asparagus, smashed potatoes and pan sauce!  Tasty? Yes!  Healthy? Absolutely! Quick? Sorta! It wasn't the end result that was so special, it was how I got there. I have always loved reading cook books- I mean sitting down, cover to cover, studying cook books. Lucky for me I grew up in a home where my mother- an only child- inherited her Dad's cook book collection. By collection I mean somewhere between 40 and 50 different cookbooks ranging from Hungarian cooking to southern American cuisine. There is a cookbook for any possible occasion needed. My first experience diving into one of her books was The Seventeen Cookbook- first published in 1964! What 12-14 year old girl doesn't oogle recipes, food photos, and potential menus? So maybe I've had this "kitchen problem" for longer than I'd like to admit..

Which brings me to last night- on a recent trip home I systematically started sneaking cookbooks from my mom's and bringing them here! I'd like to think I am sly- however on the drive home I called to make sure it was okay. Always a goodie goodie....well....

My first acquisition was Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I flipped to pork, gained a basic idea of what flavors I wanted- loving the simplicity of flavors- onions, Dijon, wine, salt and pepper. With appreciation to  the no BS concise and directly stated wording, I set out to braise my pork in the dutch oven. 

As I flipped through the time capsule I gained a better knowledge of how our personalities, life goals, and characteristics are partially molded by experiences and exposure, but also instilled in our souls having been passed down from generation to generation.  I never met my grandfather, however I have been given the chance to explore my roots through his cookbooks. For that I am grateful.

Snow Day part II

Before the snow:

What are the chances we'd have 2 snow days in a week... a week before a scheduled 2 weeks off! I'm not complaining- that will come later in the year when we are made to work a holiday or two! If the predicted 5 inches isn't gone by tomorrow, it'll be a super short week-

So what's a girl to do on a snow day- the chips, salsa, beer, wine, and chocolate are all stocked up! 8 AM would be pushing it to open the vino, so after topping off the gas in the hubs' SUV, making sure we have gas- for snow grillin' no doubt, the puppers and I headed out for a MUCH NEEDED walk. These ladies have been feeling a bit couped up- as apparent by their wild romps through the hallways.

We walked a chilly 1 1/2 miles before coming home to play with the tug-o-war, balls, and sticks that litter the yard. The snow started to come down- adding a dusting to the crunchy leftovers still on the grass!

After a warming bowl of  pumpkin oatmeal- with pureed pumpkin, RAW almond butter, agave, and cinnamon- it's time for more Christmas Baking (this time for the neighbors and their pets)!

Stay warm!