california, here we come {again}: paso robles
oh hi. remember the time we went to mexico & california & i totally forgot to finish recapping the trip? here’s the rest…
from montrose, we drove about three & a half hours north on the 101, through santa barbara & the wine country from sideways, up to paso robles.
somewhere among the winding road & high mountains near san luis obispo, we heard a local pronounce paso robles for the first time on the radio. we both looked at each other & said, “whaaaaa? paso RO-bulls????”. this whole time we had been saying “passo ro-blase” & no one said a thing, so either a) they didn’t know either, or b) they were being polite. at least we had been corrected before we made it within city limits.
we checked into the la quinta {trip advisor rated #1. our room was HUGE.}, dropped our stuff off in the room & headed back to the lobby for the complimentary happy hour…a very nice way to tide us over until dinner with local salami, cheeses & of course, wines.
for dinner, we headed to villa creek, on the recommendation of west coast blogging friend nicole‘s friend. the weather was absolutely beautiful, so we decided to forgo the taco menu, that was only served inside, in favor of enjoying the late evening sun in the courtyard.
the food was all fresh & delicious & since it was fig season, we made sure to order everything on the menu that included them.
we called it an early night, grabbing a bottle of wine from the gift shop in the hotel lobby & a couple glasses.
we had wineries to hit in the morning!
tomatillo chicken stew
i was really hoping this stew wouldn’t be all that great.
i mean, i wanted it to taste good, but just didn’t feel like the plating & the garnishing & the photographing…i was tired & hungry & just wanted to slop it in a bowl & eat. so I went over to the stove, where this stew was simmering, hoping that it was just ok, tasted a spoonful & said, “damn it. it’s really good.”
who was i kidding anyway? i never can get enough of anything with tomatillos. they’re in our favorite salsa verde sour cream enchiladas & white bean chicken chili. i just love the brightness & tang they bring to a dish & while they’re typically in season late summer through fall, i’ve seen some pretty good looking fresh ones in the stores lately. i think this warm weather we’ve had so far this winter has tricked them in to sticking around a little later than usual. if fresh tomatillos aren’t available though, there are some pretty nice jarred salsas verde that can stand in their place in this recipe.
TOMATILLO CHICKEN STEW
serves 4
TOMATILLO SAUCE
1 1/2 lbs tomatillos
2 jalapenos, stemmed & chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons lime juice
pinch of sugar
CHICKEN STEW
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes & patted dry
kosher salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
extra virgin olive oil
2 yellow onions, chopped
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 cups chicken stock
2 cups tomatillo sauce
1 teaspoon dry oregano
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
to make the tomatillo sauce, preheat the broiler to high. line a baking sheet with foil & set aside. remove the papery husks from the tomatillos & slice them in half. place them cut-side down on a baking sheet & roast for 5-7 minutes, until blackened in spots. cool enough to handle.
add the tomatillos, any juice they released, jalapenos, garlic, salt, lime juice & sugar in a blender & puree until well blended.
heat enough olive oil to coat the bottom of a large skillet over medium high heat, almost until it smokes. salt & pepper both sides of the chicken & drop it in the hot skillet. brown the pieces on each side; they don’t have to be cooked through. when the chicken has all been browned, reduce the heat to medium & add the onions. cook until softened & the browned bits from the chicken have loosened from the bottom of the pan. add the cumin & coriander & stir until fragrant. add the garlic & cook for a minute more.
once the garlic has become fragrant & delicious, add the browned chicken back to the pan. stir in the tomatillo sauce, chicken stock & oregano. bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer & cook, partially covered for 20 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. throw in the cilantro & cook for a minute more. serve.
from simply recipes
meatless monday | chipotle spiced winter chili
last year around this time, tom & i took to roasting sheet after sheet of sweet potatoes, turnips, celeriac & parsnips to try to get in some daily doses of fresh veggies. it can be kind of hard {& depressing} to try to eat well in the depths of winter when the only fresh things around are root vegetables & hearty greens.
& unlike the rest of the blogosphere, i’m not really on the kale bandwagon.
when march rolled around last year, i gagged a little when faced with the metric shitton of leftover roasted root veggies staring at me in the fridge. i couldn’t eat another bite of them, but couldn’t bear to toss them either. thankfully, i came across this recipe.
it came together as a perfect combination of leftovers, pantry staples & desperation, but big bowls of this beer-spiked smoky sweet chili have been welcome in our dinner repertoire ever since.
CHIPOTLE SPICED WINTER CHILI
serves 4-6
extra virgin olive oil
1 lb mixed root vegetables (sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips & celeriac), peeled & cut in 1/2 inch cubes
salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 heaping tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 cup dark beer
1 28oz can whole tomatoes, crushed, with their juices
2 chipotles in adobo
1/2 cup barbecue sauce (this is our favorite)
2 tablespoons worcestershire sauce
1 15oz can black beans, drained & rinsed
1 1/2 cups frozen corn
sour cream, for topping
crushed tortilla chips, for topping
preheat oven to 425°. spread the vegetables on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt & pepper & toss to coat evenly. roast for 30-45 minutes, until tender. set aside.
in a dutch oven, or other large, heavy pot, heat about 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium heat. add the onions & saute until soft & golden, 7-8 minutes. add the garlic, chili powder & cumin & cook until fragrant, about a minute more.
pour in the beer & scrape all the brown bits from the bottom of the pan. add the tomatoes, chipotles, barbecue sauce & worcestershire sauce. bring everything to a boil, reduce to a simmer & let bubble away for 15-20 minutes, until thick.
add the roasted vegetables, black beans & corn & simmer until warm. season to taste. spoon into individual bowls, top with sour cream & crushed tortilla chips. serve.
adapted from in good taste, tasty kitchen
a year in review | 2011
2011 has been a good year for the lushers, we cooked a lot of great things, ate & drank our way through california {which i need to finish telling you about} & then ate & drank our way through charleston {something else i need to get to…}. several thousand {!} of you came to visit us throughout the year & we couldn’t be more thrilled to have you join us.
so, without further ado, here are your favorite recipes from 2011…
1. pimento cheese
2. sea salt baked potatoes
3. everything soft pretzels
4. creamy blue cheese pasta with sausage & wine
5. dirty girl scout cupcakes
6. chocolate nutella chocolate chip cookies
7. life changing oatmeal
8. mexican potato soup
9. margarita cupcakes
10. tacos al pastor
those are some good ones!
but of course, being that it’s our blog & all, we had to go back & pick out what we most enjoyed eating in the past year.
1. quinoa cakes
2. crack pie
3. cherry hand pies
4. arugula salad with pomegranate, blue cheese & pistachios
5. bacon flower soup
6. life changing oatmeal
7. fresh radish baguette
8. blackberry jalapeno glazed pork tenderloin
9. pimento macaroni & cheese
10. blue cheese scallion drop biscuits
11. grilled brie sandwiches with peach chutney
12. biscuits & gravy
{we couldn’t narrow it down to just 10.}
cheers to 2012 bringing just as many tasty things to our tables & yours!
biscuits & gravy
biscuits & gravy: delicious southern breakfast food, name of our friend’s cats & our trivia team.
they’re also insanely easy to whip up, which is dangerous knowledge.
knowledge worthy of sharing.
BISCUITS & GRAVY
serves 4-6
FOR THE BISCUITS
2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
FOR THE GRAVY
1 lb sausage, casings removed (we used a hot pork sausage,that’s why the gravy in the above picture is orange)
about 1/3 cup all purpose flour
2 1/2-3 cups milk (you can even use skim)
salt & freshly ground pepper, to taste
preheat the oven to 425°. line a baking sheet with parchment paper & set aside.
in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt & sugar. fold 1 1/4 cups flour into the dry ingredients. if the dough is not easily handled & soft, fold in more cream, about a tablespoon at a time.
lightly flour a working surface & turn out the biscuit dough. mound the dough into a ball. using your hands, flatten the dough into a flat disc, about 3/4 inch thick. using a 2 1/2 inch biscuit cutter (or other round object, like a glass), cut biscuit rounds. gather the scraps, reflatten & continue cutting until you’re out of dough. dip the tops of each dough round in the melted butter & arrange on the prepared baking sheet. bake for 12-15 minutes, until golden brown.
while the biscuits are baking, brown the sausage in a large skillet over medium to medium high heat. do not drain. sift the flour over the top of the sausage & stir until the flour has turned a light golden brown. add enough milk to just cover the sausage & stir constantly until it becomes a thick gravy. add salt & pepper to taste.
add biscuits to a plate, spoon gravy over top & serve immediately.
adapted from my brother-in-law, nety, & best friend, lindsey
oatmeal, cranberry, white chocolate chip cookies
“so, you’re going to eat cookies made by strangers?”
“well, when you put it that way, yeah.”
that was the conversation between tom & the lady in front of him in line at the post office when he explained what he was there to pick up. see, about a month ago, we signed up to be a part of
where we baked three dozen cookies to exchange with people we only know on the internets.
& in exchange, we received three dozen cookies {nutty buddy bars, pink peppercorn strawberry jam shortbread & mint chocolate crinkles} from all over the country. thanks to the hard work of lindsay & julie, over 620 bloggers swapped more than 22,500 cookies all over the world. not bad for a first try 
actually, i’d say it was a pretty smashing success. if you’d like to join in on the fun next year, sign up here to receive updates. until then check out our recipe {that we shipped to virginia, florida & oregon!} for thick & chewy, holiday flavored oatmeal cookies & be sure to visit lindsay‘s & julie‘s blogs on thursday to see the full roundup of recipes from cookie swap participants!
OATMEAL, CRANBERRY, WHITE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies
3 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup butter flavor crisco
1 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs
7 oz dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips
preheat the oven to 375°. line a few baking sheets with parchment paper & set aside.
in a medium mixing bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda & salt. mix well & set aside.
in the bowl of a stand mixer, or in a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, beat together butter, crisco & sugar on medium until light & fluffy. add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each addition. with the motor still running, gradually add the oat/flour mixture until thoroughly combined. the dough will be very, very thick. fold in the dried cranberries & white chocolate chips.
drop rounded tablespoons of dough on the prepared baking sheets. pat down the tops a little, to make more disc-like shapes. bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown. cool on a wire rack.
adapted from ocean spray
thirsty thursday | autumn maple
this is one of my absolute favorite fall beers.
i searched for it as soon as fall beers starting rolling out, with no luck. we heard the only distributor in the state that carried the bruery’s beers had dropped them. i was pretty bummed. then, after resigning myself to the fact i may not get any autumn maple this year, tweets from local beer stores popped up proclaiming, “we have autumn maple!” & we ran to tasty beverage & grabbed an armful.
as you can read on the label, it’s a “belgian-style brown ale brewed with yams, molasses, maple syrup, and spices”, & basically has all the rich flavors & aromas of fall, without being a pumpkin beer. it pours a hazy, copper color & leaves a soft, boozy warmth after each sip. i preferred last year’s sweeter & smoother vintage a little more {i think. i wish i had one, so we could try them side by side.}, but overall, it’s still a solid brew. retailing for around $12 for a 750ml bottle, it may seem a little steep, but treat it like a bottle of wine…this is one you’ll want to sip.
meatless monday | cauliflower soup
i hope everyone had a fabulous thanksgiving.
i know we did & with my birthday last week too, we had cake & pizza & beer & thanksgiving & leftovers & biscuits & gravy to celebrate. & while i don’t necessarily feel guilty about that {remind me i said that next week when my pants no longer fit}, it’s time to get back on track. NOW.
{image credit}
& there is no better place to get back on track than with recipes from heidi swanson’s super natural every day cookbook. it’s packed full of wholesome, satisfying, easy to prepare, absolutely delicious recipes that, oh by the way, happen to be healthy & vegetarian.
this cauliflower soup is the perfect example of the great things within the pages of this book. the vegetables come together in such a beautiful way that it’s smooth, rich & creamy, without any actual cream, milk, or any kind of excessive fat that usually make creamy soups so delicious. each bowl just gets a little boost from some tangy dijon flavored croutons & sharp cheddar…it wont feel like you’re sacrificing a thing.
HEIDI SWANSON’S CAULIFLOWER SOUP
serves 4-6
FOR THE CROUTONS
6 oz bread, torn into bite size pieces
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 big pinch kosher salt
FOR THE SOUP
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 shallots, chopped
1 yellow onion, chopped
1 big pinch kosher salt
1 large potato, peeled & cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
1 head cauliflower, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup sharp cheddar, grated, plus more for topping
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
preheat the oven to 350°. spread the torn bread in a single layer on a baking sheet.
in a small bowl, whisk together the melted butter, olive oil, mustard & salt. pour over the torn bread & toss with your hands to coat. bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden & crunchy, shaking the pan every 4 minutes or so to make sure they all brown evenly.
heat the butter in a dutch oven, or large saucepan, over medium high heat. add the shallots, onion & salt & cook until soft. add the potato, cover & cook for 4 minutes. you just want the potato to soften a little. uncover, add the garlic & vegetable broth. bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. check the potatoes. once they’re soft, add the cauliflower. cook, uncovered for 3-5 minutes, until the cauliflower is tender.
remove from the heat. puree soup with an immersion blender, or very carefully in a regular blender, making sure the steam has a way to escape. stir in the cheddar & mustard & check for seasoning. ladle into bowls & serve with remaining cheddar & a handful of croutons.
barely adapted from super natural every day
heidi swanson has no idea who we are, we just think she does really fantastic things with food in her cookbooks & her blog, 101 cookbooks. we wouldn’t say no if she invited us to dinner.
california, here we come {again}: LA
after parting ways with our friends outside of lucha libre, tom & i set off a little ways north to spend the night in escondido. i was a little nervous about the place we had booked…a two star rating, $55 a night, the word “motel” in the name, but it was the #1 rated hotel in escondido on trip advisor & trip advisor has yet to steer us wrong.
i was still a little skeptical when we pulled up. it looked like an old school motel, sign & all,
{helloooooo 1950s, photo credit}
but we went ahead & checked in, & the woman at the front desk was really, super nice. keys in hand, we went around back to find our room, where i was {thankfully} surprised. luxurious? no. decently updated & clean? yes. $55 a night with breakfast included? bonus. thank you jesus trip advisor, because the travel & the wedding festivities had finally caught up with us & we were tiiiiiiiiiiiired.
{this photo of Motel Mediteran is courtesy of TripAdvisor}
on the way out in the morning, i snagged what i thought was a lime that had fallen from these trees right outside our room.
we hit the road to LA, which should have been a two hour drive, but we hit deadlocked traffic just outside the city at 1pm on a monday. which isn’t out of the norm for LA, so i’m not sure how anyone in that town gets anywhere on time. ever.
we grabbed some lunch, checked in to our west hollywood hotel & set off for beverly hills & sprinkles, the cupcake shop responsible for starting the whole cupcake craze. they did not disappoint.
after a quick stroll window shopping down rodeo drive, we made our way back to hollywood for some touristy stuff.
back to the hotel for a quick change & it was time to hit the town! first up, the surly goat. it’s an unassuming, dimly lit bar on santa monica that also happens to be part of the ladies of craft beer‘s west coast bar crawl on untappd. they pour some pretty amazing beers & we made it just in time to catch some of them for happy hour.
a few beers later, we grabbed a cab back to hollywood boulevard to check out a place we had just seen on drinking made easy, & another stop on the west coast bar crawl, blue palms brewhouse. they rotate their 24 taps daily & showcase the selection on giant projector screens around the room. & there isn’t a bad beer on the list. probably ever. at this point, it was getting kind of lateish, we were hungry & sitting right where all the food was passing by us. it was hard not to order something, but we were saving our appetites for our dinner reservation at pizzeria mozza.
i had been looking forward to this dinner for about a month, since that’s how far in advance i had to make the reservation. with a team of nancy silverton, mario batali & joe bastianich, i just knew that anything there was going to be delicious & after fried squash blossoms, a goat cheese, leek, scallion, garlic & bacon pizza, and butterscotch budino with sea salt & rosemary pine nut cookies, we knew firsthand that it was the truth…too dark for pictures though.
the next morning, we kissed LA goodbye & went just outside the city to meet my cousin, his wife & two gorgeous children in montrose. we all walked downtown for lunch {where their little girl has her routine down pat: ring the bell at the store, look in the window of the dance studio…} & caught up at a shaded table along the little main street.
{photo credit}
the very same street where this occurred.
it was so great to see them & we probably could have wasted the afternoon away there, but we had already interrupted nap time & had a few hours’ drive ahead of us, so we said goodbye & headed north on the 101.
