grits

Ah, the simple, unassuming dish known as grits. I think they are misunderstood - especially here in the midwest. Perhaps if we spoke of them as polenta - yes, that sounds so much more refined. Well, call them what you wish, they have a lot to offer and I just love them. Especially when they're cheesy.

Lately, I have been favoring grits in lieu of mashed potatoes. Top them with gravy, and oh my my, what a treat.  

I have no recipe to share, as grits are pretty straightforward. I might suggest that you add a little dollop of margarine (yes, margarine, not butter) into the boiling water before you add your grits. But other than that, I'd love to hear your favorite way to make and serve my new favorite side dish.

salad nicoise

Okay, yum! This is one of my favorite dinners. Choppers' too. It is so good. And beautiful. And I'm sure, healthy. So I best write quickly, as I haven't eaten it yet, and it is waiting for me in all it's glory downstairs...

I adapted this recipe from the Noteworthy cookbook. Fabulous in its own right. This is the only salad nicoise I'm interested in eating. Oh, I've tried others. But in my humble opinion, unless that t.v. chef, or fancy-restaurant-chef is using this recipe. I'll pass.

If I had a decent camera, I'd take a photo to share. But just imagine the most beautiful shades of green, red, cream, yellow, and black all artfully arranged on a perfect white plate.

Salad Nicoise

loosely adapted from Noteworthy

to serve 2, all ingredients can be increased or decreased to your preference

12 green beans, end trimmed (or you can use asparagus)

1 stalk celery, thinly sliced

cherry or grape tomatoes

2-3 red potatoes, scrubbed clean, and cut into bite-sized bits

Handful of Nicoise or Kalamata olives, pits removed

2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered

6-8 Hearts of palm, halved and halved again lengthwise

1 avocado, halved, then each half sliced

chopped fresh parsley

chopped fresh basil

1 can tuna, drained OR two lovely little tuna steaks, grilled

Mixed greens, romaine, or any other lettuce torn into bite-size pieces

Steam beans or asparagus until crisp-tender. Refresh under cold water. Set aside.

Steam potatoes until tender. Remove from steamer and set aside.

Hard boil eggs.

Pile lettuce on plates. Arrange beans or gus, tomato, potatoes, eggs, hearts of palm and avocado around plate in little piles. For instance, depending on the amount of each used, I pile 3-4 green beans on one side of the plate, and 3-4 on the opposite side. Sprinkle sliced celery and olives all around. Flake tuna atop lettuce (a little mound in the center of the plate is nice). Shower basil and parsley all over. Drizzle dressing (recipe below) over it all. And remember, a little dressing goes a long way. 

Dressing

2 tsp Dijon mustard

2 tbsp white wine or champagne vinegar

3/4-1 tsp kosher salt

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 tbsp olive oil

4 tbsp vegetable oil (sometimes I use all Olive)

-you can cut this with 1 to 1-1/2 tbsp water if you like

1 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried thyme

freshly ground black pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in a glass jar with a tight-fitting lid. Shake until well blended. Easy peasy!

Did I mention this tastes lovely with a Ferrari Carano Fume Blanc or, naturally, a Chardonnay!?!

i want new pants

I'm just so tired of having to rifle through the same, old pants every day! I know what I have, it hasn't changed recently. It's kind of like going to McDonald's. You know the menu, but you stand there and read it anyway. Right? That's what I do in my closet. I know the choices:  black work, brown work, casual brown, khaki, grey pinstripe, jeans, blah, blah, blah. But I stand there and move hangers as if something new is going to suddenly appear. And it hasn't.

Problem is, I just don't know what I should get. Another pair of black pants seems....well, obvious. And boring. Help! Any suggestions? Who has nice pants worthy of my hard earned dollars?!

Onto lipstick

Things have been pretty busy around the home office the past week. The company I rep for has launched a brand new product line, upped our compensation, and hit the road to promote it all across the U.S. Excellent! There's lots to do, and I love it.

it's february!?

Wow, where does the time go? And I left on mashed potatoes? Well, they are delicious, but so many other gastronomical gems have come and gone since then. Curries, stews, casseroles, and cookies! Yes, cookies is a great place to start.

I must tell you, the cookies I'm about to share are sinfully delicious. Decadent. And with Valentine's Day fast approaching, the perfect chocolate treat.

Now, look over there, to the right. See the list of blogs? The Wednesday Chef was kind enough to share this tantalizing treat, which you will find by clicking here. I highly recommend you follow her instructions carefully. These cookies are not to be messed with!

So go forth and bake. You will not be sorry.