oroblancos, corned beef and guinness

On the menu this morning...juicing oroblacos, corned beef with Guinness in the crock pot and my never ending need to bake cupcakes. Stay tuned.

localreview: the little brick house

After a stop at Groovacious to purchase a CD (Dum Dum Girls) and a book (The Thrill of it All - The story of Bryan Ferry and Roxy Music) we stopped at The Little Brick House for lunch. 

In the spot that used to house Ron and Chris Bakery (home of what I called the mini crack sandwiches) this eatery and antique mall hit the mark for a quick bite. I had 1/2 sandwich and soup. My sandwich, a grilled American and Swiss with apples, was nestled in the basket with a cup of Tomato Basil soup and a hand full of chips. The soup was packed with small cheese ravioli and just enough to satisfy. Dennis dined on a Loaded Pastrami on marbled rye. You can see from the pic it was a generous portion and he was all smiles. A big chunky pickle spear and chips helped, but he also added a cup of chili. All were a hit. We passed on dessert - they were out of Peanut Butter pie which was going to be the add-on...sad day.

Add two sodas and and our bill was just about $20. Given the price of "fast food" and my tendency to order a la carte - it was well worth the money.

I didn't shop (sorry folks, next time) but the "mall" looked typical of the area. I cannot speak for prices.  That will have to come on trip two. We will return.

i don't need no stinking directions.

You will come to see I don't pay attention. Typically it is by nature, sometimes it is on purpose. I twitch when I have to follow directions. I wince when a recipe is over 5 ingredients or 3 steps. Being in the kitchen with me has to be trying. Yet, I am sure I provide some entertainment factor. Yesterday, as I prepared my green salad contribution for the meal, I couldn't leave well enough alone. I grabbed a loaf of plain wrap bread and made croutons. I cut each slice, crusts intact, in 4x4 cubes and tossed them in a bowl with a few generous sprays of ... Canola oil. I was out of olive oil. I made three batches ... One had salt and pepper, one with a fine dust of cayenne and one with salt and Italian seasoning. 15 minutes on the pizza pan in a 400 degree oven and tah-dah! Just buttery enough, nice and toasty and a bit of salty bite.

what? salad?

I have been assigned...green salad for Thanksgiving. Now what? Suggestions? Dried cranberries? Dressing? Help!

mini cupcake centerpiece

It needs a bit of tweaking, but I think this cupcake centerpiece is decent for a first time. The cupcakes are Amaretto with Pink Champagne frosting. The pot is sprayed gold (thanks to my fantastic husband - it is PERFECT) and the cupcakes are on toothpicks through a styrofoam ball.

 

food pusher

Marshmallow pops were a HUGE hit! I loved giving them out and have discovered I really AM a food pusher. The individual wraps were perfect and am thinking of creative ways to display/sell.

an event not to miss...

If you are local to Southern Utah, do not miss this special holiday event. Recycled Consign and Design is an amazing store! Go and get your holiday shopping off right and pick up a cupcake by yours truly while you browse and buy.

smoup

I make things up on a regular basis. Typically just food, but if you will listen I'll tell you a tall tale. Today I cleaned out our Bountiful Basket and made smoup.

Smoup (Smooshed Soup) Recipe

8 to 10 russet potatoes, cubed/chunked

5 to 6 small to medium sweet potatoes, cubed/chunked

1 red pepper, in strips

2 small to medium yellow zucchini
6 to 7 Roma tomatoes

2 medium onions, sliced

5 to 6 stalks of celery, sliced

12 oz broth (used vegetable)

1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice

Caramelize onions and celery in pan with a teaspoon of butter, sprinkle salt and a dash of balsamic vinegar.

Place all potatoes on bottom layer of crock pot, cover with broth.

Layer onion/celery mixture, zucchini, top with tomatoes and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice.

Cook on low for 5 hours.

Spoon out the most gorgeous chunks and set aside. Use emulsion blender in crock pot until ingredients are smooshy good. Place gorgeous chunks back in to soup.

jump starting the blog...

Hard to know where to jump on the blog wagon. Here I go...

I shall begin with this weekend. 

Handmade marshmallows:The marshmallows were from a recipe I found online and will blog later this week with step by step pictures. I added some orange emulsion with the called for vanilla and they came out delish! I see holiday gifts in their future.

Soup: I combined potatoes, sweet potatoes, caramelized onions, roma tomatoes, celery, broth, and yellow squash in the crock pot and dashed it with some pumpkin pie spice. Five to six hours later I expect to have magic. Will emulsion blend half and place lovely chunks back in for fun. 

While the soup was on I had a fantastic failure with some mini cupcakes that were to be mounted on a dome and displayed in a golden pot. Attempt number two to follow.