Our Grass Is Browner: December 2010

Thursday, December 30, 2010

2010 In Review, Part 1

As 2011 approaches, I've been reflecting on all that's happened in 2010. It's been an interesting and busy year for us- here's what we were up to in the first six months of the year.

January

Memphis skyline

Late in the month, we traveled to Memphis, Tennessee to see the Grizzlies play the Oklahoma City Thunder. It was a exciting game that resulted in the Grizzlies winning with a buzzer shot.

FedEx Forum, home of the Memphis Grizzlies

We stayed at the gorgeous Peabody hotel, where a front desk clerk desperately tried to sell us on a larger room. We caught the ducks marching to the fountain in the mornings and had a lovely brunch before we left.

The lobby fountain at the Peabody

Our nights were spent trekking around Beale Street in pursuit of a fried chicken restaurant, which we eventually found but didn't dine at. Instead, we ate barbecue at Rendezvous (best dry ribs ever) and Interstate BBQ (enormous portions) and had too many hurricanes at Rum Boogie.

Food, drinks, and blues.

March

I returned to Tennessee to attend a Muse concert with my BFF Amy. There was a lot of debauchery, but the real highlight was when I tried to jump a security gate to get to the floor seats! Johnny remembers this trip because I drunk dialed him after the show.

Amy (left) and I enjoying some drinks in downtown Nashville.

April

For lack of anything better to do, Johnny and I spent Easter weekend in Topeka, Kansas, visiting the state capitol, Brown vs. Board Historic Site, and pizza restaurants. We stayed at the very nice Capitol Plaza Hotel.

View of the Capitol Building from our hotel room.

Half the building was under construction.

We also rode the kiddie train at a local park, which was both awkward and fun. Plus, we found this cool rhino there, and Johnny was able to continue his tradition of posing with weird statues wherever we go.

That's what Johnny really looks like.

May

May found us camping at El Dorado State Park in El Dorado, Kansas. The weather was beautiful, our campsite on the lake was serene, and the hot dogs we roasted on the campfire were great. The only problem was a really sketchy SUV that pulled into the campsite across from us, parked there for half an hour, then left. The gusts of wind that swept through the park all night didn't help either; I was pretty sure sketchy SUV was full of serial killers and the noisy wind made me think they were ripping at our tent.

Johnny sets up the tent.

Memorial Day Weekend found us in Texas, visiting Johnny's parents and riding everything possible at Six Flags Over Texas. We got season passes, which sadly, didn't get used again. (Tears)

Get there early enough and there are no lines!

June

Johnny met the entirety of my extended family at my cousin's wedding in New York this month. Aunts, uncles, cousins, third cousins, family friends- everyone was in attendance. There was an open bar at both the rehearsal dinner and the reception; I went a bit overboard on the gin & tonics, but luckily, Johnny kept me in line.

Lesson learned: Stephanie doesn't need an open bar.

We stayed at the super-chic Hotel Indigo near the Albany airport and when we weren't doing wedding stuff, we had a grand time eating our way through the city.

Neat hotel lobby.

Orchard Tavern- it's been in business longer than OK has been a state.

Emack & Bolio's Ice Cream

What did you guys do during the first half of the year?

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Merry Christmas (now with strata!)

I wish this was our Christmas card. Next year?

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope you're all having as much fun as Johnny and I are; I'm at work and he's on a 3+ hour ModNation Racers bender. I also hope everyone got what they wanted. We received candy and toiletries overload from my mother! Best Christmas ever, amiright?

For those of you that received a free ham from your place of employment (like Johnny did), you're probably cooking it for a festive holiday meal this afternoon or evening. You might think that you love ham and will eat tons of it, but trust me, an eight-pound ham goes a long way between two people. Never fear; I have a solution: put together a delicious strata for breakfast tomorrow! It's assembled ahead of time, rests in the fridge overnight, and will make a tasty breakfast or brunch meal in the morning. (And if there are only two of you, you can eat it for days.)

Ham, Egg, and Cheese Strata

Prep Time: 20 mins; Cook Time: 1 hr; Total Time: 9.5 hrs (sits overnight); Serves: 6

12 slices white bread, cubed

1 c. cooked chopped ham (note: other meats can be used, like bacon or sausage)

2 c. shredded Cheddar cheese

1.5 c. sliced mushrooms

12 eggs

2.5 c. half-and-half

1 tbsp. Dijon mustard

Toss together bread, ham, cheese, and mushrooms. Spread evenly in a 9x13 baking dish.
Whisk together eggs, half-and-half, and mustard until smooth. Pour over bread mixture.
Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit in refrigerator overnight.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Remove plastic wrap and bake strata for 1 hour or until top is golden. Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving.

Thursday, December 23, 2010

Monthly Cheese Roundup

It's the third week of the month, and you know what that means! It's Cheese Roundup time! As you may have heard, Johnny gave me a cheese-of-the-month club subscription for my birthday. I received my first cheese pack in November and totally meant to write about it, but forgot. (To be fair, they were pretty boring cheeses- Parmigiana, Gouda, and Gruyère.) So, from now on, you'll be treated to Cheese Roundup on a monthly basis.

This month's cheese shipment was considerably more exciting than November's. I received Roquefort, Pinconning, and Purple Haze Chèvre. (For those wondering, yes, I did laugh at the last cheese.) I'd never heard of Pinconning and never tasted any of the three.

Pinconning, according to my cheese newsletter, is an aged yellow colby-style, semi-soft whole cow's milk cheese. Developed in 1915 in Pinconning, Michigan, it's typically eaten instead of Cheddar or Colby. This is by far this month's favorite. It tastes very similar to Colby cheese and has a mild flavor. The cheese newsletter recommends using it in macaroni and cheese dishes, but I think I'll probably just eat the whole quarter pound with Triscuits in one sitting. (Where are my elastic waistband pants?)

The Purple Haze Chèvre is the most interesting of this month's cheeses. It smells strongly of fennel, but tastes like a typical goat cheese. (By which I mean tangy and tart.) It's soft and spreadable and is recommended as an accompaniment to kalamata olives, bread, and Zinfandel wine. The Purple Haze derives its name from the lavendar buds added to the cheese.

Roquefort (pronounced "ROKE-fore") is hands down the most disgusting cheese I have ever tasted in my life. Seriously, it's nasty. Made of sheep's milk, aged in a cave, and containing veins of green mold, this cheese tastes like my Sperry Topsider shoes smell. People are apparently in love with these cheese, proclaiming it excellent for consuming on salads, during fine dining, or after smoking. Now, to be fair, I tried it on its own, without any food, wine, or cigarettes, so perhaps a recipe like Steak with Roquefort Sauce will better use its salty flavors. However, I'm not holding out hope for something that can be used to treat gangrene.

That's it for the December Cheese Roundup- I hope you've enjoyed it. I'll keep you posted on uses for these cheeses and let you know if that Roquefort ruins the steak or not.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

Pizza dough recipes haunt me. They seem to take an extraordinary amount of time to prepare (24+ hours of chilling/proofing), require ingredients I don't have (I bought instant yeast in bulk, oops), or never come out tasting right (I'm looking at you, Cook's Illustrated).

That's why I'm super pleased to announced I've found an excellent pizza dough recipe and put it to good use making a barbecue chicken pizza! The whole process takes 45 minutes to an hour, which is faster than you can get a pizza delivered out here in the boonies. (Are you reading this, Mazzio's?)

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

Time: approx. 45 minutes, Servings: 2

Dough

3/4 c. warm water
1 tbsp. instant yeast
2 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. olive oil

Add water to dry ingredients in bowl of standing mixer. Using dough hook, mix for 2 minutes on medium speed (4) and 2 minutes on low speed (2). Dough will be firm and easy to handle and smooth, not sticky. Grease medium bowl with 1 tsp. olive oil. Form dough into ball and place in bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for approximately 30 minutes.

Freshly formed dough ball

Sauce

1 clove garlic, grated or minced
1/4 c. barbecue sauce (we recommend Stubb's!)
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
5 dashes of hot sauce like Tabasco (or to taste)
1 tsp. salt

Combine ingredients in small saucepan over low heat. Simmer for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until flavors combine.

Simmering sauce!

Topping

1 chicken breast, cooked and chopped
1/2 c. red onion, sliced
1/2 c. fresh tomato, chopped
1 1/2 c. Gruyère cheese
1/2 c. Parmigiana cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease baking sheet with olive oil. Roll dough into rectangular shape about 12" x 9". Spread sauce evenly over dough, leaving a 1/4" to 1/2" border around edge. Top with cheese, chicken, tomato, and onion. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until crust is golden.

Toppings

Cheese

Formed crust

Sauced crust

Topped pizza, pre-oven

Pizza, post-oven!

Some notes
After proofing (the technical term; hey, I worked at Domino's in college!), the dough should be nice and soft. It may have some air bubbles, which you should pop. The dough should be very easy to work with- it will be slightly elastic, so when forming the crust, push gently. If you rip the dough, just patch it up with extra dough from a thicker part of the crust. No harm done! You also don't have to use fancy cheese like Gruyère and Parmigiana. I happened to have lot of both on hand thanks to cheese-of-the-month club. You could easily substitute Swiss or mozzarella; whatever your personal preference is what works. The crust is a great base for any type of pizza, so feel free to go crazy with your own sauce and topping combos. Don't forget to share!

Friday, December 10, 2010

Giving

The holidays are all about giving, right? (And receiving, and sometimes religious celebrations, and frequently obnoxious radio stations that play nothing but Christmas songs for a month.) After you take care of all the people on your list (see gift guide post!), consider adding someone else.

I was excited to find the Salvation Army has partnered with JC Penney to offer an online Angel Tree. You can find it here. You can search for a person by age, gender, and area. You can shop online and mail the gifts to the appropriate Salvation Army branch for free. It's an easy way to get involved in giving.

People not really your thing? Consider donating to a worthy animal-related charity, like Best Friends (donations are matched during the holidays!), your local animal shelter, or a local animal rescue group. (You can use Petfinder to find local organizations.)

There are dozens of other groups in need of donations for the holidays, like the American Red Cross, World Wildlife Fund, Nature Conservancy, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, and Agriculture In The Classroom. Any organization that you care about deserves assistance!

So if you have extra funds this year, please think about helping out someone or something less fortunate than you- that's what this holiday season is really all about.

Monday, December 6, 2010

Gift Guide, Stephanie Edition

Hello, hello, and season's greetings! I can't believe Christmas is nearly upon us; where has the year gone? If you're like me, you didn't head out for Black Friday and found the deals on Cyber Monday to be relatively lackluster. And your mother just informed you that you're responsible for getting your family gifts this year because you're an adult with a job. You're in a frenzy of gift-shopping and puzzling over what to get Cousin Jennifer or Uncle Tom. Never fear- yours truly is here with an avalanche of budget-friendly ideas!

For Obscure Aunts

These earrings from OBXJewels are an excellent choice for Obscure Aunts. Since you don't know this relative very well, you want to stick with something that's not too personal, like a sweater (what if you get the wrong size?), but still says that you care more than your other cousin who got her a $10 Target gift card. With prices starting at .10¢ (yes, cents!) and a variety of colors and styles, you can afford to splurge, get several pairs, and secure your spot as the favorite.

For Cool Uncles

Really, any sort of sauce set will do, whether it's hot sauce, barbecue sauce, or this Sierra Nevada Mustard set. They're hip, delicious, and won't break the bank at $11.99. Your cool uncle, who also loves sandwiches, grilling, and beer, will thank you.

For Distant Cousins

Ah, distant cousins. You have vague memories of playing together as children or attending their weddings (and perhaps spending more time at the open bar than you should have), but don't really know them well enough to get them something deeply personal. These recipe bookmarks from Anthropologie ($10) are perfect for your female cousin- she'll feel domestic and will make an effort to stick to her New Year's resolution of cooking more and will adore the cute designs. Your male cousin, assuming he is old enough to shave, will like the look and smell of this whiskey shave jelly from Portland General Store ($12). Hipster Male Cousin will love it because it's organic and vegan, while Outdoorsy Male Cousin will like it because it says "whiskey".

For Your Mom

Man, what to get your mom? She gave birth to you. She helped you with your science fair project. She calls you every Sunday and updates you on her cats. (Maybe that's just my mom?) And you still have no idea what to get her for Mother's Day, her birthday, or Christmas. Stick with an old standby: soap. This set from Paper Source is pretty deluxe: 8 large soaps in a variety of scents come wrapped in gorgeous paper. It's a bit on the high end for $18, but for the woman who spent hours of her life expelling you from her womb, it's totally worth it. Or you could just get her a book on cats.

For Your Dad

Dads are tricky to shop for. They seem to already have everything and always tell you they want something like "hugs" or "more visits" or "grandchildren". These personalized linen handkerchiefs from J&R Designs ($15) are good for dads and are practical and personal. Your dad can use them to dab his eyes at your wedding or blow his nose when he's ill or even use it to wipe the automotive grease from his forehead! (Again, this might just be a Stephanie's-parent thing.)

For Your Boyfriend

This is what I got Johnny! What? Everyone loves party hats. It automatically makes any time party time!!!

For Everyone/Everything Else

If you don't see anything you like or can afford here, don't fret. There are lots of sales happening all around teh intranets and lots of homemade options too! Bake some cookies, bread, or brownies for family/friends/your postman or freeze some of your famous chili and give it to your friend who can't seem to boil water. Hunt for gifts year-round at bargain sites like Groupon, Rue La La, and Gilt Groupe. Set up a coupon email address and subscribe to mailings lists from your/your friends & family's favorite stores. Most send an introductory coupon and will continue to send you exclusive coupons and specials. You can always find fabulous gifts and you don't have to break the bank to do it.

Sale Roundup

Need something? Here are links to a few sales happening around the web at some of my favorite places:

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