Felt Like Knitting

The Best Trip Ever! (Part 2: Food)

One of my favorite things about Asheville was the food.  From the B&B to the restaurants, I did not eat a single thing that didn't taste wonderful.  And apparently I felt compelled to document what we ate because I have lots of food photos.

Each night we were treated to homemade chocolate truffles.  Delicious!

The B&B had a tea time (which was a little more like happy hour) with yummy treats I did not photograph.  Someday I'd like to recreate the cupcakes with lemon curd coconut icing.  Mmm...  Their breakfasts were wonderful!  Homemade scones (best I've ever had), fresh fruit with whipped cream, a lovely strata one day and Bananas Foster waffles the next.  Can you see why I did not want to leave this place?!

  
The first night we ate at a restaurant called 9 Mile.  I think this is the first time I've had Jamaican food but it won't be the last!  Steve had Soon Come which had lots of fruit and a wonderful sauce.  I had tilapia with a coconut chipotle sauce.  So, so good!

We needed just a little something after we toured the Biltmore so we ate at the Arbor Grill.  The Ploughman's Lunch was yummy.  I was so happy that Steve liked it because now I can make this at home.  I already have!

Last but not least was a wonderful meal at Rezaz.  This may have been the best thing I ate.  They were definitely the most delicious sea scallops I've ever had!

Sea scallops over polenta with corn/pablano hash, spinach and some wonderful sauce.

Steve had gnochhi with the best parmesan cream sauce and balsamic vinaigrette.  I took flat bread from our appetizer and dipped it into the sauce to try it.  I couldn't stop!  What is it about sauces?  They really make a dish, don't they?

I wouldn't be able to live in Asheville because I would put on too much weight from eating at all the great restaurants!  But I do want to go back someday to try a few more.

 

FO Friday - Hats for Haiti

I woke up this morning to read/hear about the terrible earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan.  What does one say in a knitting blog when this happens?  It seems a little odd for me to ramble on about what I've knit or cooked or read.  So I will just leave you with the photo above of some of the hats I'll be sending to Estella.  Doing something for those in need (even in a different part of the world) in a time like this feels like a good thing to do.  Prayers going to all those in Japan and around the world who are affected by this latest natural disaster...

 

 

 

Naturally

Yesterday Lydia posted about color.  I do love color!  But right now I'm into naturals, too...

           
                   Seeds for sprouting broccoli, alfalfa, and mung beans

I think the colors are so pretty and would make good yarn colorways, especially those broccoli seeds.  There are many good sources for directions on sprouting at home but my favorite so far is Sprout People.  Right now I have broccoli and alfalfa in process and I'll let you know how it goes.

While we were at the natural foods store, we looked around and found lots of cool things we may try later.  We mostly just left with the seeds. I'll let you guess which purchase was Emma's.  :)

 

Rosemary Shortbread Cookies

Are you looking for something different to serve guests?  Try these rosemary shortbread cookies.  They're delicious!

Pumpkin scones

I have so many things I'd like to share with you - FOs, costumes, decorating - but I have no time to write.  So I'll just share this quick thing - pumpkin scones.  I made them for my Bible study group because

1) Mary first told me about the yummy pumpkin scones at Starbucks and she's in the group.

2) She and Vanessa have both made delicious treats (maple oatmeal scones and butternut squash muffins) and I felt I should do the same.

I liked the scones a lot and will make them again, maybe for Thanksgiving or Christmas breakfast.  They weren't hard to make and didn't take much time (even with two types of glaze on them).  The only change I made was to use 2% milk because I didn't have half-and-half or whole milk.

I hope you're all doing well.  I've been trying to stay up with my blog reading but haven't gotten to them all or left many comments.  Just a few more weeks of this and things will calm down!

Summer treats

I missed Ten on Tuesday this week but the topic was a good one - 10 Ways to Celebrate Summer.  Here are two of my favorite ways:

making ice cream 

 and growing vegetables.

We called the ice cream Almond Joy because we used a coconut ice cream recipe and added chocolate covered almonds to it.  I toasted the coconut first but that's not a requirement.

I hope you're having a wonderful time celebrating summer!  It's half over here - several school systems start back the first week in August.

Ten on Tuesday: 10 Things You Love to Eat/Drink During The Holidays

Since there is no official Ten on Tuesday topic this week, Carole and Hillary have decided to talk about their favorite holiday foods and drinks.  Sounds good to me!

1.  Sailor Duff - This is a steamed pudding (cake) that is covered with warm vanilla sauce and whipped cream.  My grandmother made it and I think of her every single time I make it.  The recipe is even in her own handwriting and I feel blessed to have it. 

2.  Sauerkraut - Because of my German heritage, we eat sauerkraut for good luck on New Year's Day.  This is the only day of the year that I get to sit down to a serving of sauerkraut.  Yum!  (On a side note, I had the best dip at Saturday's party.  It was like eating a reuben sandwich.  I'll share the recipe with you when I get it.)

3.  Stuffed shells - And because of my Italian heritage, we have Italian food for Christmas Eve each year.  My favorite is stuffed shells.  The best part is having leftovers the next day.  It's always a relaxing Christmas day!

4.  Spiced anything - I love the taste of spiced cider/apple juice/whatever.  Here's a recipe I don't make very often but I love to drink:

Hot Cranberry Punch

2 tablespoons whole cloves
1 tablespoon whole allspice
12 inches stick cinnamon, broken
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 cups hot water
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 cups canned unsweetened pineapple juice
2 1 lb cans jellied cranberry sauce
a few pats of butter

Tie cloves and allspice in cheesecloth.  Combine spice bag, cinnamon, brown sugar, 1 cup water, and salt.  Bring to a slow boil.  Add juice and 3 cups of water.  Crush cranberry sauce with fork (or put in blender with some of the water).  Add to mixture and bring to boil again.  Simmer 5 minutes.  Remove spices.  To serve, put in warmed punch bowl and float butter on top.  Decorate with clove-studded orange.  Serve with stick cinnamon.

When I make it, I skip the punch bowl, butter, and clove-studded orange.  And I don't serve it with stick cinnamon.  I usually let it simmer on the stove but a crock pot would work great, too.

5.  My grandma's candy - This is something I don't get to eat anymore.  My grandma's family had a candy factory when she was young and she was well versed in how to make hand dipped chocolates.  When I was little, she would make and sell her candy at Christmas.  Our family would get a box of it for a present.  My favorites were the chocolate covered cherries and the peppermints, but it was all the best candy I've ever eaten.

6.  Microwave toffee - This recipe came from Southern Living  magazine many years ago.  It's easy and delicious!

7.  Peppermint stick ice cream -  So delicious!  Since I can only find it this time of the year, I stock up on it.  But with Emma also loving mint, the ice cream doesn't last as long as I'd like.  :)

8.  Trader Joe's Candy Cane Joe-Joe's - These are fabulous!  I love the minty taste of the cream filling.  And they're more like DoubleStuf Oreos because they have lots of the filling.

9.  Candy Canes - I only like Bob's.  Other kinds don't taste right to me.  Do you know that fake peppermint taste?  Hate it!

10.  Christmas cookies - It wouldn't be the same without some Christmas cookies.  And they can be so pretty!  I'm not even sure that I have a favorite because they are all so good.  What's your favorite?

Monday Morning Potato Rolls

I wish you could have been here last week.  On Thursday I baked a loaf of bread and a pan of rolls.  The whole house smelled so good!  I'm not proud to say that I ate four rolls with honey soon after they came out.  In my defense, I hadn't had lunch.  But still...I had no restraint.

The Monday Morning Potato Rolls recipe is from the latest Cooking Light magazine.  It's easy and delicious.  This is the first time I've kneaded dough in my KitchenAid and I wish the manual had better guidelines for the amount of time needed.  The recipe called for ten minutes of kneading by hand and I used the dough hook for four minutes.  What has worked for you?

                                       

Here's my menu for the week:

Monday:  Scalloped potatoes and ham

Tuesday:  Venison pepper steak (One of these days I'll remember to get it out of the freezer!)

Wednesday: --

Thursday:  Turkey & Pasta

Friday:  Sloppy joes, carrots, applesauce

Saturday:  Parmesan tilapia, roasted sweet potatoes, veg

Sunday:  Flank steak with cucumber-pepperoncini relish

Menus are already up at orgjunkie.com.

Sweaters for a cold day

There was a prediction for snow and cold weather here in Georgia and we got both.  The snow (about 0.5 inches?) was beautiful while it was coming down.  I didn't get pictures, but Leslie did.  She also lives in the south, so her pictures show you what it was like here.  Today it's cold but it will be in the mid-60s by the end of the week!

Since it was going to be cold and snowy, I decided I should knit some sweaters.

                                    

Okay, so they won't be keeping anybody warm, but they will make great ornaments for my nieces and nephews this Christmas.  Three down, four to go!  (Goals are great things.  It occurred to me on 2/27 that I hadn't completed a Christmas gift this month.  Two sweaters were completed on 2/28 and one on 3/1.  So I'm covered for February and March now!)

                                    

Here's my menu plan for this week.  I feel like we eat the same things each week so I'm trying a new recipe from the Menu Plan Monday site.  The site is a great resource for lots of recipes since 300+ people post their weekly menu plans.

Monday:  Homemade chicken noodle soup, tomato soup (my DH is allergic to chicken), grilled cheese sandwiches, apple slices

Tuesday:  Meatloaf, roasted cauliflower, Parmesan crusted mashed potatoes (doesn't that sound delicious?!), salad

Wednesday: ---

Thursday:  Venison pepper steak, rice (I finally remembered to buy peppers at the store!)

Friday:  Grill out!  Probably brats, potatoes with carrots, baked beans, salad

Saturday:  leftovers

Sunday:  Stir fry, rice

This week we're eating more food from the freezer because it really needs to be emptied and defrosted!  The end of this week will be a good time to do just that.

Hope you all have a great week!

No Bake Cookies

Earlier this week, my knitting neighbor J gave us some oatmeal cookies. These weren't ordinary oatmeal cookies. These were oatmeal raisin nut cookies and they were the best oatmeal cookies I'd ever had. Unfortunately, I was a pig and finished them so none are left to pack in my lunch for tomorrow. And I'm out of eggs to make the pumpkin muffins I thought I'd bake. Then I remembered one of my favorite cookie recipes from my childhood. These were the cookies I hoped would be the snack at Vacation Bible School each day. :)  They're really more like candy!

                                                                 

No Bake Cookies

2 cups sugar

4 tablespoons cocoa

1/4 stick margarine

1/2 cup milk

Add together in medium size saucepan.  Bring to a boil.  Boil 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat and add together:

1/2 cup peanut butter

2 cups oats

1 teaspoon vanilla

Stir together quickly and spoon out on waxed paper.  (I stir in the peanut butter and vanilla first.)