A Taste of Wilmington, NC

Everyone who knows me knows the way to my heart is through my belly and a five star restaurant (Pete picked that up VERY quickly). Wilmington has a bajillion things to offer....amazing food, a gorgeous beach, a surprisingly fun night life (bars, clubs: raves if you will….etc), and wonderful shopping boutiques (don’t go before 1 pm on Sundays…uhh umm PETE!) Within 20 minutes of my arrival, I knew the next 5 days were going to be absolute paradise. I wasn’t able to photograph all the food consumed, but I’m positive the pictures below will do the city justice.

Some food not pictured includes: (all of which Pete constructed) Fresh Salmon covered with 100% maple syrup and walnuts, bow tie butter and garlic noodles (yes, they must be bow tie) and steamed broccoli. He also makes a pretty banging dippy egg I must admit.

First and foremost, it was Mr. Foradas’s 27^th birthday. It’s very un-like me not bake for a birthday, but the baking supplies were very limited (boys I tell ya). I knew I needed to find a bake shop that was somewhat comparable to mine and homemade baking. I stumbled upon a little bake shop called Hot Pink Cake Stand.  The Orea cookie cake immediately caught my attention and it didn’t stand a chance to our belly’s.

I kept hearing all about the "Causeway Cafe" and figured it was overrated. You see, when someone brags about a cafe I get timid because most cafe's offer the same boring menu options. For once, I was wrong!

Causeway Cafe
 (we waited 40 minutes, I would've waited 4 hours)

                          Neptune Eggs Benedict               Chocolate Chip and Blueberry Pancake                            Fresh Seafood Omlette

Words can't possibly descirbe how amazing this breakfast truly was. 

After a day of watching the Brownies get stomped by the Bengals at a Browns Backers bar, we realized we needed something to cheer us up. We decided to walk into a fine dining restaurant with browns attire on. Classy, we know. We ordered a bottle of wine (sauvignon blanc, my fav) and all cares of being underdressed were diminshed.

Circa 1922 for Dinner

Sushi...well what was left of it

Beef and Noodle Tapas

Shots of Cheesecake and Keylime Pie...yom nom nom

All in all, it was a wonderful trip and I can't wait to go back. I highly suggest a visit!

Urban Gardening

Gardening is one of those things that comes off as looking very simple, but we will refute the argument until the day of death. Hot weather one day and cold the next, too much rain or not enough, too much or not enough sunlight, feeding the plants regularly... it never ends! Thankfully, we did find our niche here in the urban life!


The Clintonville Farmer's Market is FILLED with amazing herbs, vegetables and plants at a great price and locally grown, which in our pass attempts at growing seem to be much much better vs. purchasing them from a mass chain store (Lowe's, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, etc). They are more hearty and you know they have not been sitting at a store being neglected for who knows how many days!

Basil

We have decided to plant Cherry Tomatoes, Tomatoes, Pineapple Mint, Apple Mint, Basil, Oregano, Jalepenos, and Banana Peppers! So far, over the past month, they are growing like your first born... very quickly! They are all currently potted plants and we have continuously had to pick the herbs in order to continue the growing process. When one is able to have fresh herbs and vegetables at their fingertips, makes a world of a difference when cooking! We have used our mints in our adult beverages, our basil for pizza, and once the tomatoes are ripe, we will be using those for everything underneath the sun!

If you are like us and find it to be very difficult, we have found these chosen herbs and vegetables to be extremely simple to maintain. They require constant sunlight, which makes it easier so one does not have to worry in the back of their mind whether your plants are getting too much sun. During the summertime they need to be physically watered every day. Missing one day seemed to be fine to do every once and awhile, but they all require a regular amount of water.

Our next purchase will be cilantro (Katy's Favorite) and Chocolate Mint (New to us)! We will also be posting updated pictures of the growth of our "children" to show you that it is possible for many of you to grow your own herbs and vegetables!

Amazing Tastes in Baltimore: Part 2!

And it gets even better in Part 2 of Baltimore! Two Words: Woodberry Kitchen. This is THE restaurant we would tell anyone and everyone to try when in Baltimore. It is around 5 miles outside of downtown in the outskirts near Druid Park. It seems like it should not belong in the area, but once you get there it all comes together and makes sense. It has a very cozy outdoor area, with a fireplace and romantic hanging lights. The building itself looks like an old mill and has seating downstairs in front of the kitchen as well as an upstairs loft area, which is where we were seating in a booth.

Woodberry Kitchen creates all their meals through local products; i.e. Locally grown vegetables, locally raised meat, local wines, etc. One of the top rated places to dine in Baltimore, it met those expectations easily starting with their tea! They served their tea with a side of simple syrup, which we have never seen before.

Woodberry Kitchen has a special menu they change every so often on top of having their set menu. The southern style dinner options were endless, but we finally came to making our decisions which were the best ones we could have made!

Braised Pork Chop

We began with their home made French Onion Dip with fresh home made potato chips. It was a small portion, but a good way to start. We then chose the Braised Pork Chop on a bed of Polenta and Collard Greens. The mind went directly to remembering the times in Charleston, SC. It was full of flavors and the combination could not have been anymore perfect!

Woodberry Kitchen

2010 Clipper Park Road

Baltimore, MD 21211

http://www.woodberrykitchen.com

Amazing Tastes in Baltimore: Part 1!

This summer we have been at large with the Cincinnati Reds, already partaking in 5 games, even though Heather roots for the dark side (::cough:: Cleveland Indians ::cough::)! We have begun traveling around to visit new cities and even re-visit other great cities within the United States to see the Reds and enjoy what all the cities have to offer, and it has been a very TASTEFUL experience!


Naturally, the first thing we gravitate towards besides food, is their local drinks; an Orange Crush is a extremely well-known local drink made from Fresh Squeezed Orange Juice, Orange Vodka, and Triple Sec over ice. We could have sat at M&S Grill from the time we got there, 3:00pm until they closed drinking "Orange Crushes."

Crab Cake with Cole Slaw & Fries

Baltimore was not one of the major cities in our minds for foodies, but they certainly proved us wrong... beginning with, of course, their famous crab cakes! Taking on the characteristics and first timers in Baltimore, it was a definite MUST to eat lunch at the Inner Harbor. We took the Inner Harbor ferry boat to a popular restaurant called The Rusty Scupper. Reading the reviews on Opentable.com and searching through many other travel oriented web-sites this seemed to be the most simple and quickest way for us to get our fix for crab cakes. The reviews hit the nail on the head; their crab cakes were memorable, as well as their warm Spinach & Crab Dip served with pita chips! The only disappointment we truly had was, the platings were not desirable, but thankfully, the taste and flavors of the food made up for the layout(s).

Warm Spinach & Crab Dip with Pita Chips

Crab Stuffed Shrimp with Fries & Coleslaw

Rockfish

We also ordered a local fish, known as Rockfish and was typically grilled. This was a white and mild fish served with greens and wild rice with a seasoned melted butter on top. Above is also the Crab Stuffed Shrimp, which was very good in taste, but a small portion (Only 3 Shrimp) which was not worth the price.

All in All, we got our fill of Crab and other forms of Seafood and I don't think we will need anymore for a good couple of months! It was a standard restaurant with a large tourist base, but if you are ever in the area, I recommend the Rusty Scupper for a quick and easy place which has a good view, good service, and good food.

The Rusty Scupper (Inner Harbor)

402 Key Highway

Baltimore, MD 21230

(410) 727-3678

www.selectrestaurants.com/rusty/

TASI'S CAFE: breakfast with hipsters.

Julianna, Trisha and I tend to wake up on the weekends hungover, buuuuut this past weekend was an exception. Un-hungover, we decided to spend a sunny Sunday morning shopping around short north (surprise surprise). We didn’t realize that not a single shop opened until 12pm or later (Trish is a trickster) Sooo we decide to get some breakfast first. We were thinking NorthStar (which I highly recommend) but we eat there on the reg, so we wanted something different. We decided to “hit up” a small breakfast, lunch and dinner diner called Tasi Cafe. It’s hidden in short north and located on North Pearl Street. Tasi’s Cafe has an upscale, hip, and casual atmosphere, so we were absolutely loving it. The ordering routine reminded me a lot of NorthStar. You order your food at the front counter, receive a dog laminated ticket (we were a dash hound), pour your own drink(in stem less wine glasses, classy I know), and fight for a picnic table to eat on. Needless to say, the food was “off the charts.” They didn’t have the typical options of breakfast food, which made us all super happy. Choices ranged from huevos rancheros with queso fresco tortilla to café frittate’s. We decided to munch on the following…

Eggs Benedict over Ham and Toasted Sourdough with fresh fruit

Poached Eggs with Black Bean Cake and Jalapeno Butter Sauce and fresh fruit

Toasted Croissant Sandwich, Fried Egg,
Canadian Bacon, Swiss Cheese and fresh fruit

For more information and menu options see: 
http://www.tasicafe.com/index.php


680 North Pearl Street
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 222-0788

p.s. We skipped shopping and hit the pool!

Haiku....a dinner for 2.

Well it's safe to say, we have FAT appetites (hence the huge platter for 2). After dodging a couple different restaurants in the Short North due to the lack of outdoor seating, we decided on Haiku to celebrate Kris' 29th birthday (I know, super old right?). Columbus is saturated with sushi bars, but the atmosphere of Haiku definitely wins our vote. Eating on the patio with waterfalls, bridges, and ponds filled with goldfish (at least that's what Kristopher refers to them as) definitely is a rarity in the city. Not only is the atmosphere amazing, but the sushi is on point. We decided to start with spring rolls then move onto the spider roll, salmon and tuna nigri, spicy tuna and many more as you can see. All in all, I definitely recommend it, especially on a nice summer evening.

Before                                                           After

Spring Roll

Haiku Poetic Food & Art

800 North High Street

Columbus, OH 43215

(614) 294-8168

http://www.haikupoeticfoodandart.com

Thank-You Martha for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Cookies!

We wanted to Thank Martha Stewart for being the Modern 2011 Home Maker! From Crafts, Cooking & Baking, Entertaining, Weddings, Gardening & Pets, she seems to know it all & loves to share the information with everyone!

It has rained here in Columbus, Ohio for what seems like a Month straight, which leads to why we give Martha a shout out in the beginning of our blog. Rain decreases the activities and opportunities that one can do, so we began to skim through Martha's Recipes online to bake something different and we came across Peanut Butter-Chocolate Chunk .With a name like that, we definitely had to make a batch of them!

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup peanut butter (smooth or chunky)
• 4 tablespoons ( 1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup packed dark-brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, cut into chunks (We used Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, whisk together flour and baking soda; set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat peanut butter, butter, and sugars until light and fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla, and beat until smooth. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined. Stir in the Chocolate Chips.
2. Drop dough by heaping tablespoons, 1 inch apart, onto two large baking sheets. Bake until golden, 13 to 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer cookies to wire racks to cool.

Easter has passed, but the Leftovers Remain!

The Title of this Blog is very self-explanatory. Another great Easter with Spring in the air, being close with friends & family has passed, but the leftovers are still lingering! Besides Halloween, Easter is the second most popular holiday for CANDY. Instead of us stocking up on candy we decided to have some fun in the kitchen with cupcakes & of course, Easter Eggs!

There is only so many hours in the week, so we decided to make this a quick and efficient bake session and make some altercations! Yes, we did go the American way this time and use boxed cake batter for the cupcakes! We promise you we will mix up homemade cupcakes next time! But, like stated above, we changed the recipe on the box by replacing the measured water amount with buttermilk. By replacing the water with buttermilk made the cake batter much more moist, which always makes a cupcake even better! We did the replacement with the yellow cupcakes and the chocolate, but the chocolate did not rise as well as the yellow; the chocolate flattened out. If you are not going for 'looks' then continue with the buttermilk within the chocolate batter because they still tasted great!

We did make homemade icing which is very simple to make, the ingredients and measurements are as follows:

• One 8 Ounce container of Cream Cheese; Room Temperature
• 1 Stick of Butter; Room Temperature
• 3 Tablespoons of Milk
• 16 Ounces of Confectioners Sugar

All these ingredients can then be mixed together until smooth. This is a more creamy and soft frosting, so it would not be recommended to create designs and do other techniques. We used the gel style food colorings to get the perfect colors. After sharing these with co-workers, friends & boyfriends they were a hit!

After spending the entire evening on cupcakes we took the next evening to color eggs! This was just the traditional way we wanted to celebrate Easter! Who doesn't want to color Eggs for Easter? We added 2 Tablespoons of Vinegar to brighten the colors and we began the coloring!

We hope everyone had a wonderful Easter and enjoy all the great food and friends as much as we did this year! And if everyone is like our families, we have enough extra food & desserts to feed a small army!

Greatest Past Time= Hot Dogs & Baseball

Just like Peanut Butter & Jelly coincide, baseball and hot dogs certainly go hand in hand! With the few and far in between warm & sunny days, we took advantage of another one of those days. Sunday consisted of the warm weather, baseball on the big screen and grilling out. One of the top ways to unwind and mentally prepare yourself for the dreaded Monday.

With baseball beginning and previously going to the local Minor League Home Opener we decide to create the ball park style dog. This consisted of the Skyline hot dog Chili sauce (Located in Local Groceries), topped with shredded cheese and onions. If this does not take you back to any baseball memories, then you need to come to us so we can show you the true American experience! Add some Sweet Potato Fries and Corn on the Cob on the grill and your Spring meal is ready to be enjoyed.

 Unfortunately we did not get a 'W' from our personal favorite baseball team on Sunday, but we got to enjoy the beautiful day eating and being with close friends which made up for the loss. Let us know what your favorite Spring/Summer meal on the grill is!

What goes better with Baseball than this?

Chocolate Chip Cookies "Gone Wrong" Experiment

We truley thought that it was absolutely impossible to mess up a basic chocolate chip cookie (Especially when following a recipe), until I came in contact with one in particular. Today, We were looking through our million and one baking books trying to get some ideas for the day, when we came across a recipe that clearly called for not enough flour and a 10-12 minute bake time. Absurd, we know. So we decided to "experiment." We followed the recipe perfectly for the first 12 cookies, and then tweaked it for the next 12. Without a doubt (In our neighbors mind), our tweaked cookie not only tasted better, but looked better. With this experiment we realized that baking is a true gift, small tweaks work wonders, and following recipes can leave you with some unpleasant cookies. It takes time and dedication to perfect a recipe, along with TONS of experience. So all you non bakers or recipe followers out there, BEWARE!

Ours is clearly on the left

Original Recipe

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 package semi sweet chocolate chips (6 oz)

Baking directions: rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart for 10-12 minutes @ 375 degrees

The only possible "fix" was to add items because the mix was already made

Tweaked Recipe

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour  1 3/4-2 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips (6 oz) 1 1/2 cup at least!

Baking directions: rounded tablespoons 2 inches apart for 10-12 minutes @ 375 degrees

                                                              9 1/2 minutes. MAX

Chocolate Peanut-Butter No Bake Cookies

 First baking post = most basic cookie....the no bake. If your just starting to bake, this is hands down the "easiest" cookie to start with. It is also a very good way to determine if you should find a new hobby! If you have an obsession with peanut-butter (like me), they could very well be your favorite.

Essentials

2 cups sugar

4 tablespoons cocoa (preferrably hershey's)

1 stick butter

1/2 cup milk

1 cup crunchy peanut butter

1 tablespoon vanilla

3 cups oatmeal

waxed paper

Directions

1.In a heavy saucepan bring to a boil, the sugar, cocoa, butter and milk. (I recomment putting the butter and milk in first to ensure the sugar won't stick to the bottom of the pan)

2. Let boil for 1 minute

3. Add peanut butter, vanilla and oatmeal.

4. Turn off burner, and stir until mixed completely

5. On a sheet of waxed paper, drop mixture by the teaspoonfuls, until cooled and hardened.

Cooling & Hardening

Finished Concoction

When Mother Nature supports Sunday Funday.

If you are from Ohio, or anywhere in the midwest for that matter, you know that sunny 85 degree weather days are few and far between (esp. in April). It was only obvious that we would take full advantage of Mother Nature and her kindness. So, we decided to grill out....in our bathing suits! I don't know about you, but nothing screams warm weather like shish kabobs, corn on the cob and a major sun burn. Perfect idea turned out perfectly.

Veggies:

Mushrooms

Cherry Tomatoes

Green/red peppers

Onions

Zuccini

Meat:

Marinated Chicken

perfection at it's finest



Surely You'll Visit Surly Girl Saloon

"Eat. Drink. Rock. & Raise Hell" is the quote Surly Girl Saloon lives by. With the trendy, relaxed atmosphere and good friends, it easily becomes a great place to stop in to and enjoy one of their signature cocktails, organic wine, or even one of their 24 beers on draught to wind down. Not only do they have their signature drinks, but they have some amazing food creations that we certainly recommend tasting! 

Their popular dish; the Frito Pie, which is also well known from the show 'King of The Hill' involves your choice of their house-made meat lovers or  vegetarian style chili,  a three pepper mix that adds a kick, monterey jack cheeses, sour cream and of course, fritos! We had the chance to indulge in their Chips & Queso, which was made up of mexican cheeses and their chunky salsa and was very fulfilling and easy to polish off.

Chips, Fritos & Queso

Next on the list was to try their intriguing Pulled Pork Tacos and the Salad From Hell. The tacos has their slow roasted pork with a cilantro-citrus salsa including mandarines, and fresh slaw wrapped in soft shells. Tacos are not too difficult to mess up, but they nailed these on the head with the hint of spice and pepper and the sweet taste of the mandarines combined was excellent. These were very unique and worth trying, as well as the Salad From Hell; a bed of greens topped with jalepenos, roasted onions & peppers, chili pecans drizzled with a spicy chipotle ranch dressing with a side of mashed potatoes.

Pulled Pork Tacos

With a baroque chandelier, the bizarre yet interesting photos on the walls and the occasional live music, this is a great place to put on your list of restaurants to dine at! If one does get an opportunity to visit Surly Girl, attempt to arrive early, because reservations are not an option and there always seems to be a crowd. Be sure to try their 'Spring Fling' while waiting at the bar for a table! It is a refreshing cocktail with infused ginger vodka; you can't just have one!

Spring Fling!

Surly Girl Saloon
1126 N. High Street
Columbus, OH 43215
(614) 294-4900
Hours: 11:00am-2:00am Daily
http://www.surlygirlsaloon.com
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