We Took A Little Vacay...(Part I)

Last week, The Hubs & I took a much needed vacation (and therefore....no cooking & no blogging). We drove over 1,200 miles and visited over 10 cities! It was a long, but wonderful trip. Want to know where we went? I thought you might. Here we go...

Day 1:

We started by flying into Greensboro, NC and heading to Durham where The Hubs' trip could have ended and he would have been a happy man. We got to tour this place...


And even go down on...

For those who don't know, The Hubs is a HUGE Duke basketball fan. He's always dreamed of visiting Cameron Indoor Stadium and he finally got to. (If only there had been a game going on...). K Academy was in session, so we got to see Coach K & several former players. I may or may not have almost asked Grant Hill to take our picture before realizing who it was. Needless to say, he was a happy, happy man.

We also toured the beautiful Duke Gardens...


And caught a Durham Bulls game...


Day 2:

We took another trip over to Cameron Indoor to tour the Duke Basketball Museum...


And the rest of the Duke Campus, including the beautiful Duke Chapel.




We then drove to Raleigh where we visited the Natural Science Museum, had a wonderful lunch at a little brewery/pub (more on that in another post) and visited the most AMAZING farmers market. That evening, we drove east to the quaint town of New Bern to stay the night. Our day ended with a perfect dinner on the water (more on that later, too).

Day 3:

We woke up early to make the drive to Cedar Island where we were to catch the 10:00 ferry to Ocracoke Island in the Outer Banks. The drive took a lot longer than we anticipated and we pulled up to the ferry landing 5 minutes before departure. Whew! We spent the 2.5 hr ferry ride napping, snacking & watching for dolphins.


We arrived in Ocracoke around lunch time and grabbed a quick bite to eat before checking out our first lighthouse...


We also made our first beach stop.


We spent the rest of our day driving north up the islands, making stops along the way at the Hatteras Lighthouse...


the house from "Nights in Rodanthe" - (I heart Nicholas Sparks)...


and the Bodie Lighthouse...


By the time we made it to our hotel in Duck, we were exhausted. We decided to order room service (fish & chips - yum!) and spend the evening on our balcony instead.


To Be Continued...

Scout Salsa

The Hubs & I spent Memorial Day weekend at the lake with our friends, M&E and all of our pups. We had a great time relaxing, eating & letting the dogs run wild. Cannon even got to go for a boat ride & swim...

(She loved the boat ride...especially the wind blowing in her face. The swim on the other hand wasn't her favorite).

As I was throwing together the menu (very last minute - at least for me), I decided I wanted to make some homemade salsa. I knew my mom had a simple recipe for a salsa that my dad just loves, so I emailed her to get it. I found out why my dad loves it so much - it's a recipe from one of his Boy Scouts. Hence the name, Scout Salsa. It could not be more easy to make.


Ingredients:

• 2 15 oz. cans stewed tomatoes (Del Monte Original Recipe)
• 2-3 dried chile arbol
• 2 jalapeño peppers, seeded & quartered
• 1/2 bunch cilantro – just cut off the bottom 2” or so of the stems
• 3/4 t. Kosher salt
• 1/2 t. garlic powder

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender. Process for 20-30 seconds, stir. Process until peppers & cilantro are evenly chopped.

2. Serve with tortilla chips.

3. Store in the refrigerator & use within 3-4 days.

I told you it was easy!

My Tid-Bits:

* Dad likes this best on the day it’s made. Luckily, its really fast to make.

* Mom says she sometimes holds back a few tomatoes from one of the cans & add them at the end to give the sauce a little more body.

* You can also drain off some of the juice for a thicker salsa.

* The heat varies with the jalapeños. Leave in a few seeds if your peppers are too mild.

Coming Soon: Photo Upgrade!

I know! I know! I haven't shared any new recipes lately. My best excuse is that life has been hectic. I've done plenty of cooking, just nothing worth sharing that I haven't already posted on here. However, I do have something non-food related to share...

The Hubs (who is amazingly wonderful) heard my (not-so-subtle) requests for a new camera for my upcoming 1st Anniversary of my 29th Birthday (I'm still in denial that I'll be 30 in July). Earlier this week he surprised me with a Canon EOS Rebel t3i!! My birthday isn't for almost 2 more months, but we have some upcoming events that he knew I'd really want a good camera for, so he gave it to me early.

See??


I'm SUPER pumped because this means I can take MUCH better pictures for my blog recipes! Perhaps I should clarify...they photo quality will be better, I can't guarantee that the photography will be. I hope to eventually take a class to learn all the tricks of my camera & how to use it better, but for now I'm excited just to have such a nice, quality camera.

I've been taking pics around the house of random things to test it out like....

Flowers....


Our Globe....


And my baby girl, Cannon. Isn't she adorable?


I'm pretty sure she's tired of having her picture taken already. Luckily this weekend I will have plenty of other people & things to test my camera on.

I hope you all have a fun (and safe) Memorial Day weekend filled with friends, family & lots of yummy food, but more importantly - I hope you take time to remember what Memorial Day is truly all about. THANK YOU to all of those who have served our nation - especially those who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

Red Wine Braised Short Ribs

Ever since I made this Short Rib Ragu, I've been in love with short ribs. The Hubs is, too.

Last night I made The Pioneer Woman's Braised Short Ribs & they were delicious! (Or in the words of The Hubs - "These things are freaking awesome!").

They are pretty easy to make, but you have to have some time & patience. The prep work (chopping, dredging, browning, sauteing) took about 45 minutes - granted I was taking pictures along the way. After you get the ribs in the pot, they still have to bake for 2.5 - 3 hours. But it is well worth the time & effort. I promise!

Ingredients

• 8 whole Beef Short Ribs (bone-in)
  
• Kosher Salt and Pepper To Taste
• ¼ cups All-purpose Flour
• 6 pieces Pancetta, Diced (or 4 pieces of bacon, diced)
  
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 1 whole Medium Onion, Diced
• 3 whole Carrots, Diced
• 2 whole Shallots, Peeled And Finely Minced
• 2 cups Red Or White Wine
• 2 cups Beef Or Chicken Broth (enough To Almost Cover Ribs)
• 2 sprigs Thyme
• 2 sprigs Rosemary

Directions:

1. Trim, salt and pepper ribs, then dredge in flour. Set aside.

2. In a large dutch oven, cook pancetta (or bacon) over medium heat until complete crispy and all fat is rendered. Remove pancetta (or bacon) and set aside. Do not discard grease.

3. Add olive oil to pan with the pancetta (or bacon) grease, and raise heat to high. Brown ribs on all sides, about 45 seconds per side. Remove ribs and set aside. Turn heat to medium.

4. Add onions, carrots, and shallots to pan and cook for 2 minutes.

5. Pour in wine and scrape bottom of pan to release all the flavorful bits of glory. Bring to a boil and cook 2 minutes.

6. Add broth, 1 teaspoon kosher salt, and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. Taste and add more salt if needed.

7. Add ribs to the liquid; they should be almost completely submerged. Add thyme and rosemary sprigs (whole) to the liquid. Toss in the bacon, too.

8. Put on the lid and place into the oven. Cook at 350 for 2 hours, then reduce heat to 325 and cook for an additional 30 to 45 minutes. Ribs should be fork-tender and falling off the bone.

9. Remove pan from oven and allow to sit for at least 20 minutes, lid on, before serving. At the last minute, skim fat off the top of the liquid. (Can also refrigerate mixture, then remove solid fat from the top.)

10. Serve 2 Ribs with mashed potatoes, polenta, veggies or the like.



My Tid-Bits:

* These ribs are AMAZINGLY juicy & fall-off-the-bone tender. See??

I literally had all of the meat fall off the bone of two ribs before I even pulled them out of the pot.

* I didn't want to spend $5.00 on a 3oz. package of pancetta, so I just used bacon instead & it worked just fine.

* These ribs will make your entire house smell wonderful!! I'd recommend making them when you have company coming over - that's if you're willing to share.

*Lastly, THANK YOU to The Pioneer Woman for yet another tasty recipe.

Cinnamon Pancakes

Sometimes, when I'm lazy & out of food at the house, I make pancakes for dinner. They're easy & I always have the ingredients on hand. I'll spice them up by adding blueberries, pumpkin, cinnamon, etc.

Earlier in the week, I found a recipe for Cinnamon Pancakes on Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen site & decided to give them a try. We have a keeper! They were SO GOOD!

Ingredients:

* 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
* 3 Tbsp white sugar
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 4 tsp baking powder
* 1 Tbsp cinnamon
* 2 whole eggs, beaten
* 1 cup milk
* 2 Tbsp corn syrup
* 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
* 1/4 cup butter, melted



Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, salt, baking powder & cinnamon with a whisk. Make sure it is all well combined.


2. In a separate bowl, combine the eggs, milk, corn syrup & vanilla.


3. Stir the egg mixture into the flour mixture.


Stir in the melted butter. The batter will be really smooth.


4. Heat a lightly greased griddle over medium/low heat. Pour about 1/4 cup batter onto the griddle for each pancake.


5. Brown on both sides.


6. Serve warm with maple syrup (or a cinnamon roll type icing - yum!).

Peach Melba Shortbread Bars

If you're in need of a SUPER easy, but yummy dessert, these Peach Melba Shortbread Bars from Southern Living will not disappoint.

My only piece of advice: don't make them unless you have people to share them with. I could have eaten the entire pan.

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup cold butter
• 1 cup peach preserves
• 6 teaspoons raspberry preserves
• 1/2 cup sliced almonds
• Garnish: powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Combine first 3 ingredients in a medium bowl.


2. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until crumbly.


Reserve 1 cup flour mixture.


3. Lightly grease an 11- x 7-inch or 9-inch square pan. Press remaining flour mixture onto bottom of prepared pan.


4. Bake at 350° for 25 to 30 minutes or until lightly browned.


5. Spread peach preserves over crust in pan.


6. Dollop raspberry preserves by 1/2 teaspoonfuls over peach preserves.


7. Sprinkle reserved 1 cup flour mixture over preserves. Sprinkle with almonds.


8. Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool 1 hour on a wire rack.


9. Cut into bars. Garnish, if desired. Serve or store in an airtight container using wax paper to separate each layer.


My Tid-Bits:

* As with most shortbreads, these were even better the 2nd & 3rd day!

* I didn't really measure the peach & raspberry preserves. I just eyeballed it and added some extra raspberry because its my favorite.

* If you don't have a pastry blender, don't be dismayed. A pastry blender isn't really necessary to make these. Just use two butter knives or a fork to cut in the butter.

Enjoy!!