Hungry Times Two

I just saw this and thought - now THIS is funny! Marmite is the UK's origin of Australia's Vegemite - a truly bitter, yet somehow pleasing substance of yeast extract that's pretty good when spread with butter on toast.

Or is it just my warm Rosemary Walnut Loaves? Yep, I've tried my hand at baking bread, and it looks like I successfully completed my mission! Exhibit A: Before the oven Exhibit B: After the oven A recipe from Cooking Light , it's something one really should take the time to read the entire way through before one proceeds. I scanned the ingredients list and began at 2pm today, while had I read the recipe, I would have known I'd stand in my kitchen four hours later , slicing the bread. A couple of things: Bread takes time, effort, and patience. I know this now. The latter is always my downfall, so this was practice for me. BIG practice. There's the rising of the yeast. Then adding the flour and the rest of the ingredients and letting it rise more. Then kneading - despite the stickiness of the dough, you have to knead it for 10 minutes - that's forever in Erin Time, but just right in Bread Time. I punched it, I poked it, I wrangled with it, and scattered the stubborn ...

As promised, Philadelphia. Two words: Cheese steaks. That's how our co-foodies on the trip prefaced our Philly trip. It was our ultimate goal, the Holy Grail of Good Eats, if you will. Drive an hour and a half for a sandwich? Oh hell, why not ? Turns out, there's MUCH more to the City of Brotherly Love than just tasty beef smothered in cheese. Let me just spell it out for you below. First, yes, the cheese steaks. Scott's dad, a fan of the Food Network's Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives , found a place, Cosmi's , in South Philly on 8th that he thought we should try. It seemed like a great idea, as we'd heard the big boys of Pat's and Geno's on dueling corners at Ninth Street and Passyunk Avenue are overrated. Those joints are strictly for tourists. Just by looking at the Cosmi's exterior, it seemed like a solid choice. No fancy lights, signs, or huge crowds extending out the door - just two long tables with chairs for "dine-out" seating. We en...

I have some BAD groceries in my house. Know the culprit who bought them? I'll give you one clue - he's the dude with the penchant for pinching pennies! Sometimes I myself will shop in a thrifty/frugal/cheap-ass mood, and wind up reaching for the generic brands, examining the cost per unit prices, and even scouring that back table where they put the expired cat food, dented soup cans, old condiments and whatnot. BUT I never buy food that I know is probably crappy just to save a couple nickels and dimes. I cherish my dear sweet mate and love that my husband grocery shops, but some of the things he comes home with are troubling. Allow me to give several examples. 1) The generic brand "Fruit On The Bottom" individual yogurts. This kills me. First off, buy the big cartons of yogurt and spoon them into containers if you want to save money - the individual ones are more expensive and wasteful. Also, that "fruit" on the bottom is less fresh and more funky. It's ...

I don't really love sandwiches. It's always mystified me that some people crave Subway or Quiznos , 'cause all Subways smell like burned rubber to me and most commercially made sandwiches use crappy pressed lunch meat that taste like poo and the bread is usually overly large and dry. My one exception is a tomato sandwich in the summer, homemade, with soft white bread, or when in South Carolina, the almighty Captain Derst Bread , with some Duke's Mayo. (Speaking of which, new post coming soon re. a Duke's development. I know, get over it already .) Wraps, however, are entirely a different story. I can get into those. Stuff them with good things like sprouts, cucumber slices, salad greens and more, and we have ourselves a deal. I recently hit up Phillips Cafe , right across the street from my office & offers my workplace a 5 percent discount. I discovered they will turn a BLT into a wrap - and you can do add ons for free. SO I got up on that today, with a spina...

I love the vegetable zucchini - its green color, the firm flesh, the way it can easily be cut into strips, discs, shredded, etc. But, I get tired of eating it in stir fry, and my recent zucchini patties turned out mushy and gross, and deep fried zucchini just isn't the proper treatment for such a lovely vegetable - leave that mess to mozzarella or *this is So Southern of me* pickles. Thus, what does one do with zucchini when you have a crisper drawer full and wishes to fulfill? This. For Breakfast or Brunch. Or This . For dessert, or Lunch. (Alright, no Dr. Seuss am I.) If sweets aren't your thing, do this: use a veg peeler to carve the zucchini into strips. Make a sauce of a teaspoon of sesame oil, rice vinegar, a couple shakes of crushed red pepper, a little sprinkle of brown sugar, and a dash of lime juice. Crush some roasted peanuts and chop a little cilantro (or mint, or Thai basil), and sprinkle over the zucchini "noodles" and sauce it up. This is a crude appro...

Like, duh, it's a given - anywhere we go, Scott and I will seek out the food and drink opportunities to the hilt. Our recent adventure in Colorado did not disappoint in that regard. Whether you're coming off the hiking trail and need recharging, trying to escape the magnifying-glass sharp sunshine, or ready to quench your thirst, you won't run out of options in Boulder. What did we like best? Here's our top 5. 1) Celestial Seasonings - a different kind of brew. Yep, CO is known for its beer but as an Anglophile, Scott is a big tea drinker, and as for me, well, I like it to cool me down in the summer, to warm me up in the winter (or at my office, where the frigid A/C is always on full blast), and to calm me when my emotions need a little tea party break. Luckily, the Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder beckoned and we didn't resist its charms in the slightest. With three family members, we signed up for the tour - receiving packets of Sleepytime blend as our ...

Our Shout Out this week is a sad one: Carol Fay Ellison, known to many in Nashville and those who just love a good hot, flaky biscuit, died on Monday . Her biscuits made those who ate them just flat-out happy. On one of our first visits to the Loveless, we came in late for dinner, about an hour before the place closed down. After we finished our meal, our waiter said "Y'all want some biscuits to take home? We're just gonna have to toss them out otherwise." We never turn away free biscuits. Especially Carol Fay's. We took them home and toasted them up the next morning for breakfast. A couple months before Scott and I left Nashville, we were in a Wal-Mart (forgive us, but we had to go) purchasing a vacuum, and we spotted Carol Fay in one of the aisles, pushing her cart, smiling and laughing with her shopping companions. I felt a little better about being in Wal-Mart, knowing the Biscuit Lady was there too. I hope there's a biscuit heaven, Miss Carol Fay. If ...

Now that the Nashville Public Library has released it from its annoyingly-long hold/reserve list. I'm presently reading Ratio by Michael Ruhlman. The book's tag line is "Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking." But what it really should say is "The Math Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking." Scott and I are both liberal arts graduates, meaning we don't do the math real good. Like, at all. Anytime the two of us discuss something remotely related to science and math, be it why the defroster in my car won't work or how to divvy up the credit card bill this month, we wind up with the foggiest answers. It's hilarious and mildly disconcerting/alarming at the same time. The first chapter of Ratio delves into the "simple" measurements of making dough: five parts flour, three parts water. I see the words "measurements" and "parts" and I am already worried about having to remember my multiplication tables and long ...

Home bound today with a cold and sore throat, I thought I'd recap our holiday gift making bonanza that started up in mid-fall when I, inspired by my canning with a friend, decided to leap into canning for Christmas. In addition, an unfortunate slam by the down economy" made Scott and I realize we could save a lot by not hitting the mall or big box retailers and instead, show our love for friends and family with gifts made by our own little downsized but not downtrodden hands. In addition to the pear chutney and the Spicy Red Pepper Jelly (which didn't jell, but became a nice sauce for pork and the like) my friend and I made, I canned Apple Butter and Sweet Potato Butter. If I chose this endeavor again, I would only do one at a time - not both. I quickly realized that I don't have enough counter space or stove burners for two recipes at once. After hunting unsuccessfully for some cute retro-style canning labels, I took Scott's suggestion and used name badges. Funny ...

Introducing, in limited markets, KFC's Double Down Chicken Sandwich. A co-worker alerted me to this monstrosity; yet another reason us Americans cain't get no respect when it comes to our cookin'. Behold: two fried chicken fillets swathed in bacon, cheese and KFC "Colonel Sauce." Wow. I didn't think US waistlines could get any bigger, but I think this might help us all achieve our dreams. Aim for the stars, fatties, and grab you some Pepto Bismol while you're at it.

Bread. It's tasty and it's always around to tempt you. Example: the two sleeves of Thomas English Muffins that were a Buy One Get One special at Kroger this week, now displayed proudly on my kitchen cart right now. Good lord, their delicate nooks and crannies are delicious, especially when smothered and covered with a little butter and jam. Nothing wrong with carb love. Unless you're my mom, who (bless her, she'll read this post) confessed to me that she had two yeast rolls at lunch today. Her hushed tone in telling me about the scarfed rolls made it sound like she'd bumped and rubbed a Benz AND a Beemer in a parking lot. Actually, she used the same tone of voice when she admitted to me that she'd watched The Bachelor this week. I'll try not to judge you on that TV misstep, Mom, but I don't think you should admit any guilt over those paltry yeast rolls. Bread is tasty and filling and no one's gonna give you the hairy eyeball for eating it. The women...