Whole Foods & Etiquette Dinner (Louisville)

Since the last two posts have been from my Louisville trip last weekend, I figured I’d finish up the visit today.  (Oddly, I did these posts completely backwards as the first day was the day I took all these pictures and the second day was the day we went to Wild Eggs, Sister Bean, and The Fresh Market!)

I arrived in Louisville on Saturday.  Carolyn and I were both hungry for lunch so we headed over to McAlister‘s.  Carolyn took me here last year when I came to town to see New Moon with her and some coworkers.  I really enjoy McAlister’s.  I don’t think I’ve ever had anything I haven’t liked at this restaurant.

This day, I opted for the Chicken Tortilla soup and the club sandwich.  They were pretty yummy, though the soup was a little too creamy in my opinion.

Carolyn, as part of her 30 Days as a Vegetarian challenge, went with the Greek Salad (no chicken) and the Spud Ole (with veggie chili) I believe.  I’m going by pictures here, so I could have potentially gotten that wrong.

She also ordered an ice tea, which apparently they are famous for.  Or at least Carolyn just really likes them.

After lunch, we parted ways.  She had a class to attend and I wanted to check out Off Broadway and Whole Foods.

I have only been to Whole Foods a handful of times, and many of those times were several years ago when I lived in Lexington, KY.  The closest Whole Foods to me is about 30 minutes away.  Yes, it’s not that far, but it’s not really convenient either.

I spent some time here, walking up and down each aisle.

Strolled through the produce:

Gawked at how many bulk bins they kept filled:

Inhaled the wonderful fragrances wafting from their prepared foods section:

What a great store.  I picked up some Justin’s Chocolate Almond butter and some 365 City Blend Coffee.  (Note:  I took this coffee home and made a small pot one morning.  I drank the whole pot, which is not unusual.  The next morning, I went back to my Dunkin Donuts French Vanilla coffee…and it tasted like sludge.  I couldn’t even drink a whole cup!  I ended up dumping it out and remaking the pot with the WF coffee!)

After doing some light shopping, I headed back to Carolyn’s to relax and get ready for her MBA dinner that night.   Her class is halfway through with their program, so they had an “Etiquette Dinner” to celebrate.

The dinner was held at Churchill Downs in their Kentucky Derby Museum.

In the class she went to while I was shopping, they were taught about various topics relating to etiquette and were given a list of tasks they were to accomplish that night at the dinner.

One thing they had to do was introduce their guest in a professional manner to two other people.  I met several of Carolyn’s classmates and ended up talking most of the night with a handful of them.  Very interesting group of people!

After a couple glasses of wine and some tray passed hors d’oeuvres, we sat down for dinner.  First up was the salad.  It was simple, with bibb lettuce, herbed goat cheese, craisins, and a vinaigrette.  So simple, yet so delicious! I inhaled my salad, which I’m sure was not proper, but I didn’t really care.  It wasn’t my etiquette dinner after all.

(OK, Mom, I’m just kidding.  I was very well-behaved as I was taught while growing up.  No need to be embarrassed!)

With the salad, we were served rolls with butter.

For the main course, I received steak with pan sauce, fried chicken with some sort of yummy sauce/gravy business, green beans, and sticky rice.  It was Oh My Gosh good!

Carolyn requested a vegetarian meal and received a veggie pasta of sorts.  She said it was pretty good if I remember correctly.

Lastly, we were presented with dessert.  I was stuffed at this point, but when I saw the Mini Chocolate Lava Cake and the Chocolate Shell with Strawberries and Whipped Cream, I made some room.

Look at that strawberry goodness!

Afterward, we were allowed to meander through the museum, so we took that opportunity to snap some artistic derby-inspired shots.

Finally, we headed home and we both were in bed within thirty minutes of crossing the threshold.  The next day we went to Wild Eggs, Sister Bean, and Fresh Market.  But you can read about those here and here.

Sister Bean’s Coffee House & The Fresh Market (Louisville)

Continuing on our Louisville journey (a week later) brings us to a place that only exists for me in my dreams…Sister Bean’s Coffee House. Well, OK, not really just in my dreams, but not in reality until I make the pilgrimage back to Louisville.

As you probably know, I love coffee.  I have a mega slight addiction to Starbucks and usually cannot function in the morning until after at least one cup of coffee.  (Slight side note:  picked up Whole Foods’ City Roast coffee while in Louisville and am now addicted.  What gives?)  When Carolyn mentioned there was a place in Louisville that made Starbucks look like “a short, fat, bald man” (Friends anyone?), I was all in.

The drive to the coffee house took us past Iroquois Park, one of Carolyn’s favorite places to run in Louisville.  In fact, the location of said coffee house was right across the street from the park!  We both decided that would be great motivation for her to go running there on days she had time.  You know…run a bit, get a coffee!  Sounds like a winner to me!

Carolyn mentioned the frappuccinos were amazing and, since it was 90+ degrees outside, I decided a frosty, cold beverage was the way to go.  They had tons of options from which to choose.

I went with the Coconut Mocha Frappuccino.

Oh. My. Amazing.

Indeed as I was slurping this bad boy down, I was picturing short, fat, bald men running around the store holding Starbucks coffees while sneering. (The little men do not like being replaced.)  Starbucks doesn’t hold a candle to Sister Bean.  The smoothness of my beverage was remarkable.  Starbucks’ frappuccinos have bits of ice in them, almost as if they didn’t spend enough time on the blender.  Sister Bean’s frappuccino tasted like a milkshake.

The shop was so cute, with lots of great artwork hanging around.

They also had an extensive amount of baked goods (some vegan!) and ice cream!  What more could you ask for?

Comfy chairs?  Check!
Fireplace?  Check!

I could sit here and read my book for hours.  It’s definitely going on my list of Must Visit places when I go to Louisville.  At this rate, I’ll have to start going for three or four days at a time just to fit all the places in!

Another place I fell in love with was The Fresh Market.

After seeing Carolyn’s post, I knew I had to go.  This is a foodie’s paradise.  Well, sort of.  If you want to talk about places a foodie could live in for years at a time, you need to mention Jungle Jim’s.  Carolyn and I ventured there a few months ago and it was so huge I felt overwhelmed.  I will definitely have to do a review on this place!

Anyhow…Fresh Market.  It’s similar to Whole Foods, but it just feels different.  It feels more cozy, like you’re in someone’s home.  Don’t ask me why I felt like that…I just did.

The minute we walked in the store, the smell of these cinnamon scented pine cones smacked us in the face.

I loved the lighting combined with all the wood in this store.  Like I said…cozy.

And orchids are my favorite flower, so seeing them upon entrance was a nice little touch.

Then I saw it.  Barrels and barrels of coffee beans!  I stood in the same spot for several minutes inhaling the sweet, wonderful fragrance.  (Man, if this store doesn’t play on your senses!)

In addition to the bulk bins of coffee, they had bulk spices,

bulk seeds, grains, granolas,

and bulk dried veggies.

I loved all the different pastas too.

Finally, they had a wonderful cheese display.  Don’t you just love the little faux shop canopy above?

What a great day.  Two new discoveries!  And bonus…Fresh Market is a chain and there are two in Cincinnati!  Score!

What’s your favorite local or chain grocery store?

Wild Eggs (Louisville)

My best friend, Carolyn, lives in Louisville.  Whenever I come to visit, there are always two things I must do:  visit Off Broadway Shoes and eat at Wild Eggs.

Wild Eggs is a breakfast/brunch/lunch place that I fell in immediate love with the very first time I visited.  It could have been the atmosphere, it could have been the cute little egg salt and pepper shakers, but I believe it was in fact the Bananas Foster waffle.  Oh. My. Yum.  (As I didn’t order it this time, I have no picture for you.  But isn’t this picture of eggs cute?)

Carolyn and I have gotten into a routine where we each get an entree and then split a waffle.  We got the Bananas Foster waffle the first time she took me there. Let me paint ya a little picture here.  Start with a crisp, yet buttery waffle.  Top it with some cinnamon sugar.  Then add a butter rum caramel sauce and some sliced bananas.  (I’ll wait while you wipe your mouth.)  To finish, serve with a giant scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

I think I could stop there and everyone would be happy.  Without a doubt, this is my favorite thing they serve at the restaurant.  But it’s not the only good thing.  In fact, I don’t think I’ve ever had a bad meal there!

Today, I chose to reprise my last meal I had a few months ago, which was the A.C.E. of a B.L.T.  It’s a yummy sandwich made up of Avocado, Cheddar cheese, fried Egg, Bacon, Lettuce, and Tomato.  Get it?  So very good.

Carolyn got the Veggie Bennie Florentinie, which was a Mediterranean egg sandwich thing that was supposed to be vegetarian, but oddly included something that looked suspiciously like sausage…  Good thing her “30 days as a vegetarian” experiment was over.

We, like every time in the past, opted to split a waffle.  We went with the Bonnie O’s Espresso waffle:  a crisp waffle topped with caramel coffee sauce, chocolate dipped espresso beans, and whipped cream.  It was good, but it was no Bananas Foster waffle.

To drink, we each had coffee (mine hot, Carolyn’s iced).

Wild Eggs is such a fun place.  I wish we had one in Dayton, but I’ll just have to live with dining there when I visit Carolyn.  If you live in Louisville and haven’t tried it yet, GO!  I promise you won’t regret it.

Just to entice you some more, here is the restaurant’s menu (sorry some are blurry…my hands were shaking with hunger!):

Question:  Where is your favorite breakfast spot and why?

(Side question…I have been taking pictures of the menus from the restaurants I review.  Are they helpful?  Do you like them?  Should I continue?)

Wild Eggs on Urbanspoon

Happy Anniversary!

Many of my readers are friends and family that attending our wedding, but for those of you who didn’t, I would like to share some pictures with you.

Our wedding was one of the best days of my life.  The entire weekend was such a relaxing, happy time.  (I never thought I’d use the word “relaxing” and “wedding” in the same sentence, but I was pleasantly surprised!)  I think you can see evidence of this in our pictures.

Once again, Happy Anniversary, Jeff!

The past 3 years has been a great, albeit challenging ride.
But I’m buckled up for the next 50!

Disclaimer:  All photos are courtesy of Eicher Photography Studio in Springboro, OH.  They are a wonderful couple to work with.  They do a fantastic job and really listen to their clients.  If you are in the Dayton area and are looking for a photographer, I highly recommend them!

Corn & Black Bean Salsa

When I get an idea for a blog, I create a new post in WordPress and then hit “Save Draft” so I can remember to come back to it when I have time.  This way I don’t forget about a post and I can take some time to write out exactly what I want to say instead of just getting my idea down on the computer.

Unfortunately that results in something like this:

I get so many ideas for recipes or restaurants to review or just things that happen to me that I want to share, but I don’t have time to do it.  Working retail plus entertaining my husband takes up a lot of my time.  I don’t apologize though.  I am thankful to have a job in this economy and I am doubly thankful to have a husband who actually wants to spend time with me.  When I get a morning off, I take full advantage of the situation and try to catch up with my posts.  SO…with that being said, I give you a very quick, very easy recipe my coworker, Julie, made yesterday.  Enjoy!

Corn and Black Bean Salsa
Makes 8 cups

2 cans whole kernel corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 red onion, finely diced
1 green pepper, finely diced
1 bottle Italian dressing

Mix all ingredients together and serve with tortilla chips.

This is the easiest recipe I have ever put on my blog, but it’s also one of the most delicious!  I don’t know why the Italian dressing works so well here, but it does.  In my opinion, you could use just half a bottle of Italian dressing and be OK, but the original recipe calls for a full bottle, so that’s what I wrote.  (The label below reflects the salsa only and does not include any dippers.)

I’d also like to mention yesterday was my three year anniversary with my wonderful husband, Jeff.  We had a great time staying in and relaxing after each having extremely stressful days at work.  Love you, honey!

Buffalo Wing Dip

If you read my post for Buffalo Chicken Casserole, you know Jeff and I love buffalo wings.  So, it’s no surprise one of my favorite (and most requested recipes) is for my Buffalo Wing Dip.

The first time I made this was for a party at our condo.  I had read about it online and thought it sounded pretty darn good, so I whipped up a batch.  Being a chronic over-preparer, I tend to have way too much food left after a party.  This dip, however, was the exception.  My friends gobbled it up so fast, I barely had time to try the dip myself!  OK, that’s an exaggeration, but it DID go quickly.

I promise you, you will be asked for this recipe.  Be prepared!

Buffalo Wing Dip
1 pound chicken breast
1 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
2 8oz packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup ranch dressing
1/2 cup hot sauce (or more if you prefer)
1 package cheddar cheese, shredded

To begin, you will want to roast your chicken.  I preheat my oven to 400*, coat the chicken with a thin layer of olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  You can also take this time to add garlic powder, onion powder, etc if you prefer. (I used a spice rub from Dorothy Lane this time.) Bake for 20 minutes, or until the juices run clear and your chicken breast is no longer pink.

Remove from oven and diced up into a very small dice.  You don’t want to have huge chunks in your dip.  In a saucepan, combine chicken, cream cheese, ranch, hot sauce, and cheese.  Mix well.  Cook over medium heat until the mixture begins to boil.

Mr. Lobster likes it too!

To serve, transfer to a small crock pot set to low heat. You can serve whatever you like as dippers.  I prefer slicing a baguette into 1/4 inch slices and toasting them in the oven, but I have also used carrots and celery before.

Make it.  You won’t regret it.  Just remember to share!

I’m Stuck in a Food Rut

Confession:  I may have gone to Sammy’s El Pueblo.  Again.

OK, here’s the thing.  When I find food I like, and especially when that food is in burger form, I tend to revisit the scene of the crime again and again.  And again.

I have been to Sammy’s three times in the past few weeks and I have been a happy customer each time.  The first time (when I reviewed it), I got the Bourbon Burger.  The second time, I got the Mushroom Burger.  This time, listening to my friend, Angela’s, recommendation, I got the Guacamole Burger.  While it wasn’t my favorite burger I’d had there (that would be the Mushroom burger), it was still quite tasty.

Having arrived famished and unable to wait for my meal, I tucked into the chips and salsa.  Between Jeff and I, we polished off nearly two whole baskets of chips.  Uh, bad healthy food blogger! Excuse me while I go bury my head in the sand.  For shame!

BTW, Jeff got the Quesadilla Chipotle for the second time, so that tells me he’s a fan.  I still haven’t tried a Mexican dish, though I got closer with the Guac on my burger!

Another bad food blogger move:  I did not snap one single picture the entire time.  My thoughts were of nothing but the food.  Eh, oh well.

At least I didn’t hit up Graeter’s after!

Oh, wait!  I lied!  I took pictures of the menu for those of you interested:  (OK, so I took home the to go menu and snapped them here, but you get the picture)

Snickerdoodles

“It tastes like fall!” Jeff exclaimed, with a giddy, boyish grin on his face.  He returned his attention to the open container of cinnamon-scented cookies, stuck his whole head in the opening, and inhaled deeply.  “Ah…fall!”

Rewind 24 hours.  I was talking with my coworker, for whom I had been promising to make cookies.  When asked what his favorites were, he responded “Chocolate chip…or Snickerdoodle.” Perfect, I thought.  I had been craving Snickerdoodles, so Snickerdoodles would be made!

I don’t know about you, but I think Snickerdoodles are one of the best cookies on the planet.  The smooth, buttery cookie coated with a mix of cinnamon and sugar makes my knees week.  Just the thought of the cinnamon cookies tucked away in the kitchen makes me nearly want to stop typing this post and run, wild-eyed for the container.  But I won’t, because then where would you get the recipe for yours?

I find the majority of my recipes online, with my favorite online recipe website being Allrecipes.com.  They have an extensive database with tons and tons of options and choices for searching for your perfect recipe.  My favorite is the ability to sort by rating.

I typed “Snickerdoodles” into the search engine, sorted the results by rating, and looked for the highest number of rates.  Sometimes you have to skip over the ones with five stars, because, yes they have five stars, but they only have 2 ratings.  The recipe I chose was given 4.5 stars with 2580 rates.  Sounded good to me!  So without further ado…Mrs. Sigg’s Snickerdoodles!

Snickerdoodles
(adapted from allrecipes.com)

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened (NOT IN THE MICROWAVE!)
1.5 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract (the real stuff, please)
2 3/4 cup all purpose flour*
2 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp white sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 400*.  Cream butter and together until just combined.  I learned from Jenna that over beating your butter and sugar can make cookies spread and not stay fluffy.  I never knew what did that.  Thanks for the explanation, Jenna! After your butter and sugar are nicely creamed, add your eggs and vanilla and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together your flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.  Combine slowly with the butter mixture.

*You would think there would be a picture of the prepared cookie dough here.  Guess I got a little anxious to put the cookies in the oven…

In a small dish (I used a cake pan), combine the sugar and cinnamon.  Confession…I didn’t actually measure out the sugar and cinnamon.  I just dumped a bunch of sugar in the dish and then added enough cinnamon to my liking.  I wet the tip of my finger, dipped it in the mixture, and tasted it.  I was looking for a sweet, yet spicy flavor, and I was pleasantly rewarded.  It’s your choice: measure or don’t measure.  But make the cookies.  Your friends, family, and stomach will love you for it.

Using a mini ice cream scoop, I scooped the dough into balls and dropped them in the cinnamon sugar.

I rolled the pan around, even doing the little frying pan chef wrist flick (you know what I’m talking about) at times.

Just make sure the dough balls are evenly coated, then transfer them to a cookie sheet.  Don’t forget to either line your sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper, or spray with cooking spray.

I fit 16 mini balls on my cookie sheet.  I baked them for exactly 8 minutes in the 400* oven and they were PERFECT!  My ovens have generally yielded fantasticly moist and golden brown cookies after 8 minutes.

You want to avoid overbaking.  That will leave your cookies too chewy.  Well, that’s my opinion anyway.  You may like your cookies like that.  Who am I to judge?

I got over 5 dozen of these bad boys out of this recipe, but my cookies were smallish.  OK, quite reading this.  It’s over.  Go set out some butter so you can make these cookies!

*I only had about 3/4 cup all purpose flour, so I substituted bread flour for the rest.  The cookies (as you can tell) turned out great!  According to a little research, all purpose flour and bread flour can be interchangeable, though I think I’d prefer to use AP flour when it’s called for.

Simple Roasted Chicken Breast

Roasted chicken is one of those comfort foods I associate with fall.  The smell reminds me of Thanksgiving and evokes visions of pumpkins, red, orange, and yellow leaves, and napping in front of the Browns game.

Roasted chicken is so versatile.  You can change it up however you like, use whatever herbs you have on hand, and add any vegetables to the dish to round out your meal.  It’s one of those things you can throw together after a busy day at work, add some sides, and badabing you’re done.  In a word, it’s perfect!

Simple Roasted Chicken Breast
1 whole chicken breast
olive oil
salt & pepper to taste (or other herbs*)

Preheat your oven to 400*.  Line a sheet pan with a Silpat or spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Put your chicken, top side down, on the sheet pan.  Spread with a little olive oil and rub to coat.  Sprinkle liberally with your desired seasoning.  Flip your breast and repeat on the opposite side.  If you like, you can slice some root vegetables (onion, potatoes, sweet potatoes, etc), peppers, lemons, or any other produce you desire and create a “bed” for your chicken to sit on, but it is not required.

Bake at 400* for approximately 20 minutes, or until juices run clear.  Pair the chicken with some quick sides for a simple meal!

*One of my favorite seasonings to use on my meat is Dorothy Lane‘s steak rub.  It is a wonderful blend of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and many, many other herbs.  If you leave near Dayton, I suggest you try it!  It’s somewhat pricey, but it lasts forever!

(Yes, in case you were wondering, I was kind of a slacker with the camera during this recipe.  My sweetie was hungry and I was cooking as fast as I could!)

Red Raspberry Vinaigrette & Walnut Oil Bruschetta

A while back, I made a recipe for Citrus Green Beans I found on the Whole Foods website.  I didn’t include the recipe in my post, but you can view them as well as the Pizza Casserole recipe I accompanied them with here.

One of the ingredients in the post was Walnut Oil.

When I brought the oil home from the grocery store, my husband asked me what ever would I use it for.  Turns out, lots of things!  Here, in addition to the citrus green bean recipe above, are two recipes using Walnut Oil:

Red Raspberry Vinaigrette
(adapted from the “Harvest Salad” recipe found at allrecipes.com)

2 tbsp red raspberry jam
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 cup walnut oil*
salt & pepper to taste

Combine the jam and the vinegar in a bowl and wisk to combine.  Slowly drizzle in the oil so it can emulsify.  Add salt and pepper to your liking.  I used this dressing to top a salad made of baby spinach, craisins, walnuts, and bleu cheese (as the Harvest Salad recipe states).  It was pretty great!

*I found the original call for 1/3 cup oil to be a bit too much, so I cut the oil back to 1/4 cup.

Walnut Oil Bruschetta
(from the La Tourangelle website)

1/2 pound prosciutto, thinly sliced
1/2 pound brie, cut in thin wedges
2 pears, cut in slices
3 tbsp walnut oil
1 baguette

Cut the baguette on the bias (meaning diagonally) into 1/4″ thin, cracker like pieces.  Top with prosciutto, pear, and brie.  Toast in a broiler or in a toaster oven until the cheese has melted and is starting to brown.  Drizzle with the walnut oil.  Serve warm.

This would be a fantastic appetizer to serve at a cocktail party.  It is quick, easy, and you can prep the ingredients ahead of time.  I think it would make even Rhodey Girl‘s list of winners!