Hungry Times Two

I'm on a doctor-sanctioned "diet," though I'd rather call it a "nutrition plan" or "Erin eats more healthy food now" or something else, anything, rather than that four-letter word. The doctor suggested I restrict carbs to around just 60 grams per day, so boo on that. Do you ever count them? You shouldn't -- it's depressing as hell. But just to give you an idea: a bowl of healthy-ish non-sugar laden cereal is around 30 grams. So I'm learning not to blow all my carbs in one meal. And no more toast for breakfast. Oh toast. I miss you like crazy. What do I eat instead? Greek yogurt like it's going out of style (it probably is), moderate amounts of raw almonds, cottage cheese, beans instead of meat in lots of entrees, and vegetables are my new BFFs. I thought I ate "a lot" of veggies before I started this path to hell plan, but it's amazing when you keep a food journal to discover what you really eat. (And no cheati...

Some swear the ballparks do it best. Others say the ones out of a box aren't half bad. Some like theirs at the movies. We like them Amish-style. We're talkin' soft pretzels, people. Credit: Michael Lorenzo/sxc For our first outing since our nasty sickness hit us on Tuesday, Scott and I decided to hit up the Dutch Country Farmers Market in Laurel, Md. A little fresh squeezed lemonade and buttery, warm soft pretzel would do the trick to get us back on our feet, yes? This place is so neat - we see it as lots of independent food stalls with offerings you might find at Whole Foods/Farmers Market/Fresh Market/Baltimore's Cross Street Market - only Amish. Indeed, it was just the right introduction back into the real world - complete with a manic hunt for a spare parking space. We learned after our first trip there that the easiest thing to do to avoid a bump-up or road rage incident in the very crowded parking lot is to park next door at Home Depot. People go nuts...

There's the bottle of Incantate red wine on my sideboard, the Venetian mask resting on top of my dresser, a few Euro coins mixed in my jewelry box,  and a linen wrap dangling from my closet door knob -- nice little reminders of an unforgettable trip to Italy My bags may be unpacked and I may have returned to work and the day-to-day routine, but much of my heart and thoughts remain dedicated to the fine occupation that is travel. A co-worker told me before I left for two weeks in Italy with my mother that she loves travel for the perspective, to know that there are other places out there, with customs, languages and landscapes that are so different. I found that in two weeks, traveling tested me - my routine, my expectations, my tolerance for crowds and noise, my tastebuds -- and I loved it. First admission: this trip was on a tour with 31 strangers and my mom, via the Globus tour group. We ate together, took ...

Gratzi in advance, y'all - My Mother Dear and I head to Italy next month for a 12-day whirlwind trip through Italy. Venice, Rome, Pisa, Florence, Assisi, Pompeii and Capri - we're coming for you!

Last night while dining at the Korean place and Washingtonian "Cheap Eats" pick Lighthouse Tofu in Rockville, a discussion came up over cooking rice. (Sidebar: I had bad Korean food once in San Francisco - beef tasted "off" and the hot tea was like licking shoe leather. Not good. Long story short, Lighthouse Tofu redeemed Korean food for me - beef bulgogi is now the jam. YUM. Get some.) I can't seem to figure it out, but ever since I tossed out my non-stick cookware and switched to my All-Clad pot (the awesome one we found in the backyard of our first rental house in Nashville, but that's another story), rice at our house continues to be a rocky deal. I've tried lowering the heat on our gas range or upping it just a tad. I've played with the water to rice ratio, now working with a one and a half cup of water to one cup rice situation. I've washed the rice in a strainer, even. Sadly, sometimes the result is too sticky/gluey. Often the rice drie...

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 ...

A "trending topic" on the Internets right now is apparently " Spaghetti tacos ." Uhhh ...no thanks. The only weird "food stuffed in a food" trick I might ever try would be a turducken . Put that in your Google machine.

Scott and I picked up a few spaghetti squash at the farm stand where we picked apples this weekend. Lovely. Only one little thing: I've never cooked one. I hear you can scrape out the cooked strand-like flesh and use it just like you would pasta, which sounds wonderful and healthy and so very fall season-y. Anyone have tips on how to use this veggie posing as a carb ?

I introduce to you our new segment, "We've Got It Made." I know, right - cheesy yet oh-so-catchy. You may now roll your eyes, and continue reading, thanks. It's..wow...almost October, and while the last of the warm weather temps are fleeting and fading, we noticed our basil plants in our communal neighborhood garden are doing the same. Scott and I wanted to take advantage of the lovely herbs while they're still present and accounted for, so on Saturday night after a full afternoon of kayaking up and down the Potomac River, we set out to make pesto. Scott inspected the plants. And picked and picked and picked - two cups worth! I checked out the huge-ass pumpkins growing in the garden. And mourned the sad decline of beautiful sunflowers. Once inside, we combined forces to blend the basil, garlic, grated Parmesan cheese, pine nuts and olive oil, using the ever-handy The Joy Of Cooking's recipe . Indeed a joy. Yum. I boiled some fettuccine regate noodles (th...

Confession: Visiting Richmond, Va. this weekend, I had a couple moments where I seemed to channel my late grandmother of fabulousness , Coxey . Whenen taken aback by a sinfully wonderful dessert or food, she would exclaim (with hand to her chest as if clutching a strand of imaginary pearls) "My my, that is almost too rich to eat." I held off from breaking out her famous little expression but if the truth be told, I would have worn myself out using it. I didn't know it before I visited, but Richmond has some pretty amazing restaurant offerings. Big ups to my friend and resident of Richmond, Victoria, for selecting unique and gobsmackingly -good places. Let's get started with Lulu's , which started our trend of visiting comfortable, intimate cafes with lots of original, local-themed artwork this weekend. Though originally we planned on visiting the Shockoe Bottoms Tomato Festival, the 106 degree weather killed that plan, so we hit up Lulu's for some A/C and co...

Presenting my new favorite kitchen item - a North Carolina-shaped cookie/biscuit/ carb cutter gifted to me by my dear pal Shelby. Shelby found this at a shop in D.C.'s Eastern Market called Hill's Kitchen. Isn't it awesome? To commemorate its total awesomeness, I used it to make Cheese Bannocks, a Scottish recipe I found on the back of an Arrowhead Mills oat flour package given to us by a friend who cleaned out their pantry while moving out of their DC apartment. (Yes, what a random explaination that was.) Cheese bannocks are like a heartier version of the ubiquitous Southern wedding/funeral/church refreshments known as Cheese Straws. They are yummy. Want to make them? Here's how. Bannocks de Fromage 1 cup oats 1 cup oat flour 1/4 tsp salt 1/4 tsp mustard powder 1/4 cup softened butter 1 cup of grated sharp cheddar cheese 1/2 c...

It's Friday, I just watched the World Cup at work with my department peeps, and I'm in a pretty great mood. Today I "lunched" on a bowl of this spectacular gazpacho recipe that I prepared and let "marry" on Wednesday night and enjoyed for dinner last night. Holy tomato, it is wonderful. Perfect and light, cold or at room temp, and loaded with veggies and all my favorite things. Interestingly enough, it calls for making a paste of one boiled egg, garlic and salt - sounds icky but it really thickened the soup up and tasted great. I enjoyed the soup with a small salad and a few Wasa crackers I found at Safeway that I've never seen before - "thin & crispy flatbread" in the rosemary flavor. I can't find a link to share so you can see what I'm talking about but they are super-thin, extra crispy, just herby enough, and a great accompaniment to my soup and even on their own or with a little cheese or some type of spread. If you like cracker...

I've made the hell out of some couscous lately! On Friday I made this recipe of beef patties with couscous and a Greek-style salad. I improvised and made a little sauce to go on top of the beef patties (more like meatballs, but whatevs) that had a little sour cream, tiny bit of milk, one clove of crushed garlic, some lemon zest and some dill. It was a big hit with my mom - she even asked me for the "recipe" for the sauce. Last night I threw together a meal of potatoes, red and yellow bell peppers, garlic, eggplant and onion roasted with olive oil, rosemary and some Greek seasoning, some leftover leg of lamb that was INCREDIBLE (I know, I'm boasting but I'd never made lamb before, and wow. This recipe is kinda "killer," as one of Scott's uncles would say), sauteed spinach with pine nuts, nutmeg and lemon juice, and some couscous mixed with chopped mint and dried apricots (which I plumped up in warm water first before adding). I like couscous because...

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 ...

Newbies that we are to the food scene here, we’ ve become savvy to the myth, the legend, and the wonder that is 2 Amys . With Scott’s dad as our co-explorer of the Greater DC the weekend before last, we convened at the steps of 2 Amys . I arrived first and learned of a 90 minute wait time for a table – I soldiered on and put our name on the list. By the time the men folk joined me, we had about 45 minutes to kill. Such was the cluster, making our way to the bar in the back area. We found a string of lucky patrons seated at the bar nibbling away at antipasto and delicious looking pizza pies. Enviously, I hovered over them, not out of jealously but out of necessity – the bar and back area was solidly packed with people. You had to hold your drink to your chest like Mama Bear protecting her cub so you wouldn ’t spill a drop when inevitably you bump into the person next to you. 2 Amys was certainly bursting at the seams on a big night, surely violating some sort of fire code. It’s so lo...

On behalf of my husband, who discovered these and never looked back: Utz Chips and Snacks . A good friend from way up North loves their Special Pretzels, too. Scott tried a bag from their "Grandma Utz " line and discovered the secret ingredient that made the kettle chips so tasty was lard . Healthy! They don't just offer the usual original, sour cream and onion, BBQ, etc. flavors, either. Why stop there when you can have: Relax - no crabby taste. They're covered in Old Bay style seasoning. Happy Friday and early Easter! May there be many eggs and Peeps in your baskets.

My granola, that is. Yep, I'm just one step away from throwing on a batik sarong, renewing my subscription to Mother Jones, and getting in on the nearest drum circle I can find. Granola gets a bad rap, I think. It's a word used to describe the more liberal, earth- lovin ' folk, but I just think it's crunchy and tasty with yogurt or as cereal. I plan on breakfastin ' it up with this granola in the morning, accompanied by sliced banana and milk. The recipe I used is great, but it didn't result in big clusters of granola, which you might find in the $5 bags at Whole Foods and other places. It's still crunchy, just separated instead of chunky. I think a lot of granola recipes call for butter and this one uses oil instead. Often granola is considered a "health food" but when you examine the nutrition info on commercial granola, you'll see a fat gram count that is sooooooo far out, man. In other baking-related news, last weekend Scott and I attend...

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 ...

Thus far in our married life routine of juggling family time, Scott and I developed a pretty awesome and efficient holiday routine - Thanksgiving with his clan, Christmas with mine. It works because it boils down to two things: Thanksgiving is about food, which the Adams Family has down to a big ol' literal gravy-covered T, and Christmas is of course about all things red, green, and white with Santa and Baby Jesus guest-starring, the lot of which my Mother Margaret smothers and covers all over the damn place. I love Thanksgiving at the in-laws because of the sheer number of them. Growing up, it was my parents and me, the only child, with widowed grandmothers and the occasional aunt, uncle and cousin thrown in the mix. I became used to the holidays being pretty intimate, but now that I have a wealth of in-laws, it's so fun to see all the personalities and the food preferences gel and collide. This year, the in-laws hosted at the family house at Sullivan's Island, South Carol...

Oh, New York, New York. The Empire of all things fabulous, diverse, high brow, and well, high-priced. This past weekend I visited the mecca of Tiffany's, Sex in the City -style shopping sprees, $15 cocktails with a penthouse view, the Subway (and I don't mean the six-inch sandwich), and lots of very important people (I'll get to my celeb spotting moment in a minute) rushing about. It's amazing. As a girls weekend in The City, celebrating two moms-to-be, the occasion called for a couple must-dos. We must find a cute place to honor the maternal ones amongst us and we must head out for one night on the town, dressed to kill (or at least dressed for something other than a night with the remote control, a bag of Doritos, and a Bud Lite). Thankfully, our seasoned and giddy expert KH, a resident of the Upper West Side, came to our aid. For our baby-shower-esque spot, KH discovered this gem, Alice's Tea Cup , a whimsical, colorful nod to Lewis Carroll's cast of char...