It's Tripp

Buffalo Mac and Cheese

2012-03-15T08:41:00.000-05:00

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

I promised myself when I started this I wouldn't just use other people's recipes and share them all the time - so far, so good. But then, Jennifer found this recipe for Buffalo Mac and Cheese over at Table for Two, which you should go check out. I hadn't seen it until she showed me this recipe - good stuff. Anyway, she wanted to cook it for me - and it ain't bad! She knows that I constantly joke to people that I'm a connoisseur of both Shrimp n Grits and Mac n Cheese. She also knows that I'm probably really not joking so much. But this is great stuff - a combination of a southern classic and something good and spicy? Hard to beat. And seriously, check out Table for Two.

Helping Jennifer instead of running everything in the kitchen really took some work. But it was great and she did a bang-up job. First, you cook the chicken with garlic and hot sauce, then you start creating the roux - which also includes hot sauce. And ALL the cheese. The only thing that could make that better would be incorporating panko bread crumbs and blue cheese into the recipe. So they did. And I'm thankful. It's not as rich as you would think - meaty, hearty, and cheesy. It works great as a meal by itself. I definitely used extra hot sauce, so milk was *fantastic* with it. Let me know what you think, or share if you think you have a better recipe!

Buffalo Chicken Mac and Cheese

INGREDIENTS:

6 tbsp. unsalted butter, divided
Salt, to taste
1/2 pound elbowmacaroni
1 1/2 cups pulledchicken
1 clove garlic,minced
3/4 cup Frank’s hotsauce, divided
2 tbsp. flour
1 tsp. dry mustard powder
1 cup milk (we used skim)
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
1 cup pepper jack cheese, shredded
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup crumbled bleu cheese

Preheatoven to 350 degrees and grease a large casserole dish.

Bring a potof water to a boil, season with salt, and add the pasta and cook until aldente. Drain and set aside.

In themeantime, in a large skillet over medium high heat, melt 2 tbsp. of butter andstir in the chicken and garlic. Cook for a couple minutes then add 1/4 cup ofthe hot sauce and mix it all together until well combined. Put the chickenmixture in a bowl and set aside. Quickly rinse out your skillet and return tostove.

Melt 2tbsp. butter in the skillet over medium heat and whisk in the flour and mustardpowder until smooth. Then whisk in the milk and cream and add the remaining 1/2cup of hot sauce and stir until thick. Whisk in the cheddar and pepper jackcheese until melted and smooth then whisk in the sour cream until all combined.

In theprepared baking dish, spread half of the macaroni in the bottom of the dishthen top with the buffalo chicken mixture and then the remaining macaroni. Pourthe cheese sauce evenly on top.

Put theremaining 2 tbsp. of butter in a small bowl in the microwave to melt.Stir in the panko and bleu cheese then sprinkle over the macaroni.

Bake for30-40 minutes or until bubbly. Let rest 10-15 minutes before serving.

Wordless Wednesday - Cue Shack

2012-03-14T13:40:00.001-05:00

Southwest Salad w/ Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

2012-03-13T22:40:00.001-05:00

Southwest Salad

We had a birthday party for my mom at a family member's house a couple of weeks ago. It was southwestern/tex-mex themed, and I was asked to bring a salad. I've made a southwestern salad a few times before and thought it would be easy to do. Several people (surprisingly) told me it was their favorite part of the meal. So I decided to reproduce it here so they - and you all - could see it. It's colorful, hearty, and healthy. And it's great as a side - or if you want to use it as an easy meal, add some grilled or rotisserie chicken and you have a quick and easy meal.

Coriander for Vinaigrette

I think the thing that makes the salad great, other than the heartiness, is the dressing that I make with it. It's a simple, cilantro lime vinaigrette that gets tossed with the salad. Using fresh ingredients is always helpful - and I love using fresh spices. The dressing uses coriander. What we use as "coriander seeds" are actually the dried fruits of the cilantro plant. To really bring out the citrus flavor in them to complement the cilantro in the dressing (the leaves from the herb) and the lime juice, I toast them in a dry skillet for a bit, and then grind them with a mortar and pestle.

Ingredients

1 large bag Romaine lettuce blend

1 large red onion, chopped

1 (15oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 (11oz) can Mexicorn

2 cup tortilla chips, crushed

1 cup shredded sharp cheddar

3/4 cup grape tomatoes, halved

Layer these all in a bowl. You can use different types of tortilla chips for flavor. I like the lime- and jalapeno-flavored chips work well with them. Now for the dressing...

Ingredients

3 tablespoons fresh lime juice

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

3 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons cilantro leaves and stems, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon coriander, toasted and ground

1/8 teaspoon cracked black pepper

Combine all of the ingredients in a food processer and lightly blend them. Add oil to thin if necessary.

Pour the dressing over the top of the salad and toss it. Serve it soon.

The chips can become soggy if you leave it sitting too long before serving. The crunch to the chips is one of the best parts of the salad! And you can add some grilled or rotisserie chicken to make it a complete, healthy meal. And if you like a little heat, throw some cayenne on the chicken or sprinkle some crushed red pepper in it. Great flavor for something so quick and easy! Let me know what you think.

Wordless Wednesday - FBS Lunch

2012-03-07T12:57:00.001-06:00

Butts To Go

2012-03-01T16:07:00.002-06:00

Ribs from 'Butts To Go'

It's March, which means it's officially grilling season in the South. Not that we weren't grilling anyway, what with the 70 degree winter days and all, but now it's official. And I love grilling. Meat, vegetables, everything. And I love barbeque. I love all the different styles. I really do. All of them are great. I like judging a city based on its BBQ.

Memphis dry rub style is probably my favorite - maybe because growing up near Memphis gives a lot of character to Birmingham Q. There is also a considerable amount of Carolina-style, vinegary Q around here. And of course, the Kansas City-style with lots of thick, sweet sauce is great too. As long as you start with a good meat, it's hard to beat.

So today I decided I'd eat some decent meat since tomorrow is fish-only. Having seen Jason Horn over at The Messy Epicure stopped near my office for some road-side Q at "Butts To Go" and enjoyed it (while out for some research for an article in Birmingham magazine on food foraging) - I decided I'd give it a shot. I would link their website, but its atrocious. 404s everywhere. And just God-awful ugly. I believe woman around here would say "bless its heart".

Pork Sandwich

The food was pretty good - I got a wide variety of meats so I wouldn't be judging one mishap or something of that nature. I started with this pulled pork sandwich. It was great. It wasn't too saucy, and it had a great mixture of meats in it. And it had plenty of good char on the outside pieces - good, charred, juicy pork is probably my favorite flavor in the world. It was tender, but firm. Smokey. Definitely a taste of hickory. While I appreciated it not being oily or too saucy, it did seem like the bun dried it out a bit. They had sauce to take with you - I chose not to. Probably will next time.

Ribs from 'Butts To Go'

Next up were the ribs. I love ribs. I could eat ribs for every meal for the rest of my life. I say that about a lot of things. It's probably true. But it's extra true with ribs. They didn't have any normal spare ribs ready. He offered St. Louis ribs. Generally speaking, St. Louis-style Q is very heavily sauced. St. Louis consumes more bbq sauce per capita than any city in the country. They sometimes use a dry rub, and then slop on the sauce. What usually differentiates it is cooking it over direct heat rather than smoking. That being said, the ribs can be smoked. This is because St. Louis style ribs just have the sternum bits, cartilage, and tips removed to give it a better square shape. It allows you to cook more at a time and removes some of the less rewarding parts. These had a good flavor, but no sauce on them. The dry rub was decent - it didn't add much flavor. The meat fell off the bone... I hear a lot of people say that as a good thing. Rib meat should be firm or it's overcooked. You should be able to leave toothmarks in it. You start losing flavor if you overcook it. They also didn't remove the film from the back of the ribs. Not essential, but a bit pesky.They weren't very smokey, but the meat quality was good, so it made up for the rest of it. I used some hot sauce with them which they had bottled. It was definitely a vinegar-based, cayenne pepper sauce. Almost like a diluted Frank's Red Hot. A bit disappointed in it.

Wings from 'Butts to Go'

I saved the wings for last - and I'm glad I did. They were WOW. Really. Wow. They were just seasoned. They had several flavors. I just got smoked, seasoned wings. They were incredible. Crispy. Juicy. Flavorful. Not salty like most seasoned wings are. They had a deep, rich, smokey flavor to them. They weren't perfectly shaped - which I love to see, because it means they're cutting and prepping the meat themselves rather than ordering it that way. They're probably some of the best wings I've ever eaten. I'm not a certified Q judge (I'm doing that this summer. No, really), but I was really, really impressed.

Now I'm left with two problems. I'm dying to get my grill fired up, even though I'm not hungry. And I really don't want to wash my hands. I want to smell this in my dreams.

What's your favorite place to get Q around town? Any way you prefer it? Sauce, no sauce, sauce on the side? Share your thoughts!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-29T07:17:00.001-06:00

Bourbon Pecan Tarts

2012-02-27T11:26:00.002-06:00

Bourbon Pecan Tarts

I've had several people ask me about the pecan tarts I mentioned in my post on what to think about when you want to use bourbon in dishes. They seem to be a simple version of a favorite Southern dessert - the pecan pie. Well, it's not really a pecan pie in the way we think of it down here. It's actually a lot more similar to a butter tart, a common Canadian dish. And even more similar to a buttermilk pie (one of my favorite desserts). The basic idea is melted butter or margarine, sugar, and egg. The standard version is definitely more of a custard than what we think of as pecan pie. Adding/changing other ingredients is what makes it a more Southern dish - buttermilk or the sweet, rich, and buttery pecan.

Bourbon Pecan Tart Pastry

We all know the flavor of the pecan (which is actually a fruit, like the fruit of other hickory trees - but we'll stick with calling it a nut) is rich and sweet, and it goes well in plenty of Southern desserts. So changing a typical butter tart into a pecan-based one makes it have an inherently Southern feel. Changing the sugar to brown sugar gives it a richer flavor and a darker color (due to the molasses content of brown sugar) that we more readily associate with pecan pie.

You start with butter, cream cheese, and flour to make an easy pastry. Just place the balls of pastry in a mini-muffin/tart pan and hollow them out. I use a wooden pastry tool because it makes them all uniform and goes a lot faster. Just roll it in flour so it doesn't stick, and hollow them all out.

Fill the cups of pastry with the filling and bake them. It's pretty much that simple. Just remember when choosing your bourbon that you want to choose one that's sweet to blend with the flavor well, but not overly sweet. Including the bourbon gives it a more complex flavor. Knob Creek is one of my favorites. It's a spirit that's smooth and sweet without being overpowering.

Ingredients
8 tablespoons butter (one stick), softened
3 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup flour
1 large egg
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 tablespoon butter, melted

Directions
Preheat oven to 325°.
Beat softened butter and cream cheese together until well-mixed. Add flour, continuing to mix.
Add a full tablespoon of pastry to ungreased mini-muffin or tart cups. Use wooden pastry tool to hollow out pastry ball and line sides of cups.
Beat the egg, then mix in the brown sugar, melted butter, and chopped pecans.
Fill each pastry with a little over a teaspoon of the filling - it will expand well.
Bake for about 30 minutes or until filling has puffed up and pastry turns golden-brown.
Cool slightly in cups enough to set, but then remove to place on a cookie rack to cool completely.

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-15T13:19:00.001-06:00

Poblano Chicken Chowder

2012-02-11T07:36:00.003-06:00

Poblano Chicken Chowder

I love southern food, and the various cultural influences on it. There is definitely an undeniable Hispanic influence on our food here - rich, earthy, robust, flavorful foods are a staple of that cuisine, and it fits well with our food here. I've posted about liking spicy foods before - so when I developed my first recipe from a blank piece of paper, I decided to do something full of flavor with a little kick. Someone I was talking to mentioned wanting to make a chowder with poblano and corn. I've made plenty of soups before, but not chowders. Chowders can be incredibly flavorful and actually aren't too difficult. To start developing the recipe, all I needed to know was how to make a base for chowder. I read about that for a bit and began.

Roasting Poblanos

One of my favorite ingredients in this Chicken Poblano Chowder (and obviously an important one) is the poblano pepper. They have a great flavor. It's mild and mellow, and usually doesn't pack much heat. I decided to roast the peppers first, as roasting them adds a smoky quality to them and helps pull some of the heat to the surface - don't worry, it's hardly spicy. This is the same pepper they use in chile relleno at Mexican restaurants. If you've never roasted a pepper, I posted a short how-to over here. With that and several ingredients chopped and prepped, the chowder was ready to begin.

Chowder Ingredients

Chowder Progression

Sautéing the vegetables and herbs not only softens them up, which is important for a soup, but also really brings out a great aroma. After adding your chicken or vegetable stock, you can see the progression the soup goes through - from a thin and murky translucent liquid to the creamy, thick soup we call chowder. Adding the chicken, black beans, and corn help it to thicken a bit. You'll also add cracker meal to the soup to thicken it up (crushed crackers). Some people use bread crumbs, others use stale bread... You can use whatever you have. Just make sure it's small enough to incorporate into the liquid. Once it has thickened, you'll add some cream to it - this gives it the pale look that chowder is known for. You can sub in milk to be healthier - but it's a small amount of cream and it really isn't the same. Two notes before we get to the recipe... I used chipotle chile powder in the chowder. If you like it a bit more spicy, you can go with cayenne. I thought the chipotle powder helped bring out the smoky flavor of the vegetables. Second, I used a whole sprig of thyme in with the vegetables when sautéing them. It can easily be pulled from the soup later after the leaves have come apart. Dried thyme can be used in its place if you don't have fresh thyme.

Ingredients
1 strip bacon, or 1 teaspoon bacon fat
2 Poblano peppers, roasted, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
5 green onions, chopped (tops reserved)
1 sprig thyme
1 1/2 quarts chicken stock
1 1/2 cups grilled chicken, chopped
1 15 oz can corn, drained
1 15 oz can black beans, drained, rinsed
3/4 cup cracker meal
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
3/4 cup cream
Hot sauce

Directions
Heat bacon or bacon fat in a stock pot. Add Poblano peppers, garlic, green onions (making sure you reserve the tops for garnish), and thyme. Sauté 6-8 minutes or until vegetables begin softening. Add chicken stock to vegetables slowly. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring, 8-10 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium and add chicken, corn, black beans, cracker meal, and chipotle powder. Cook 10-12 minutes, stirring frequently. Add more cracker meal as needed to thicken chowder.
Reduce heat to low and add cream, stirring for about 2 minutes. Remove from heat.
Garnish with green onion tops, cracked pepper, and hot sauce.

Poblano Chicken Chowder Garnish

This is a great recipe for the waning days of winter. I know I'm going to enjoy it over the next couple of cold days here! Let me know what you think about this chowder - or if you have your own favorite ways to make chowder.

Roasted Peppers

2012-02-10T15:58:00.002-06:00

Charred Poblanos

After FoodBlog South a couple of weekends ago, I decided I really wanted to start developing my own recipes to share. There was a great session with Virginia Willis discussing a general how-to of recipe development (she should know - her books have some of my favorite recipes). It was a lot more complex than I originally thought it would be. It actually made me want to develop my own even more. I enjoy using other people's recipes, and will continue to do so and occasionally post about them. But I assumed that creating my own recipe from nothing other than the basic knowledge of a food type would be more gratifying than using a recipe in existence and changing it some. I was right.
I got an idea when someone said online that they were thinking about making a poblano and corn chowder for dinner. So I started working on a recipe - a Poblano Chicken Chowder. I developed a great recipe, which I will post this weekend. One of the first things I decided was that I would fire-roast my poblano peppers to give them a smoky, earthy flavor. So before I post about the chowder itself, I thought I would do a quick run-down of roasting peppers.

Roasting the Peppers

The best way to roast peppers is over an open flame. You can do it in an oven, but it is a lot easier and more fragrant over open flame. I just use the gas burner eye on the side of my grill. Use tongs to hold it - be aware that if you use metal tongs and hold the metal over the flame too long, you'll probably get burned. I wear a glove. You want to do it quickly, so don't be afraid to get the pepper down in the fire and hold it there. Get each side nice and charred. The pictures is a little washed out from the flash (it was dark outside), but you can see how the peppers begin to look as they roast. The flesh should begin to blister and peel. Once all sides have charred like the first picture above, bring them inside to cool off a bit.

While they are still warm, you can run a knife across them and the charred flesh will peel right off. Don't run them under water to clean them as this will take some of the flavor away. I slice into them vertically. The meat is really softened inside, and it's easy to take the seeds out. You can actually just pull the middle with all the seeds right out. They're very easy to work with at this point, and have that wonderful flavor added to the pepper. This is great to do with peppers that you will be using in soups or other cooked dishes. It's also really great to do if you are making your own hot sauce. It makes sure that the sauce will be flavorful and not just hot. I'm looking forward to using roasted peppers in different kinds of dishes - and you'll get the recipe this weekend for the Poblano Chicken Chowder.

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-08T13:04:00.001-06:00

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-01T15:59:00.001-06:00

Fish Tacos with Lime Cream Sauce

2012-01-26T13:12:00.000-06:00

Sometimes I get bored at home. When I get bored, I decide to cook. This often involves me looking around for what I have that needs to be used before it spoils. A couple of weeks ago, I had a few things that needed to be used and I decided to use them together. The result was fish tacos. They're really quick - and more importantly - really tasty. They're also easy to customize if you want to make it your own.

I started with some fresh tilapia - again, it's what I had. Tilapia is fairly flavor neutral as far as fish go, and is healthy. Wild-caught Tilapia are the best (nutrition-wise). I drizzled a little olive oil, lime juice, and some of the Chris Hastings (of Hot-and-Hot Fish Club and Iron Chef America fame) herb salt on it before baking it. I had recently bought some and hadn't used it yet. Any kind of your favorite fish seasoning would work just fine. The lime juice will begin to denature the protein in the fish and allow the spices to really penetrate the meat. If you leave it on too long before cooking, it can make the fish tough. Try these out and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:
1 lb. Tilapia (or favorite mild fish)
Herb Salt (or favorite fish seasoning)
Olive Oil
1/2 red onion, large diced
Tri-Color Cole Slaw (green & red cabbage, carrots)
Small flour tortillas, steamed
3 tablespoons lime juice
1/2 cup olive oil mayonnaise
1/4 cup cream
1/2 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
Cilantro, chopped

Preparation:
Drizzle some olive oil (about 1 tablespoon), lime juice, and spices/seasoning/herb salt on the fish. A pound should be 3 or 4 fillets. You should bake these for 10-12 minutes at 375°.

Lime Cream Sauce:
In a small bowl, mix together the mayonnaise, remaining lime juice, chile powder, and cream. Whisk until it begins to set some. You may want to add a touch more cream as needed for it to thin out to your desired consistency. Add salt, pepper, and cilantro to taste. If you like your food spicy, you can kick in some more of the chipotle powder, or change it over to a smoke paprika... Or add cayenne.

Tacos: The rest is simple. Flake the fish apart, and build your tacos. The amount of each ingredient is up to personal preference. Throw in the fish, the slaw mix, some red onions, and top it with the lime cream sauce.

That's it! Quick, healthy, and tasty. I've been thinking about recreating these with mahi and maybe a mango salsa. Maybe after FoodBlog South this weekend!

Wordless Wednesday - National Peanut Butter Day

2012-01-25T05:42:00.001-06:00

Buttermilk Pie

2012-01-23T22:25:00.000-06:00

Buttermilk Pie

There are so many desserts that are typically viewed as southern - peach cobbler, chess pie, pecan pie... I'm not big on sweets - I know, I know... But it's true. I do love some desserts though. Pastries and creamy types of desserts - bread pudding, crème brûlée, and custards - are my favorites. So it follows that one of my favorite southern desserts is Buttermilk Pie. Since today is National Pie Day, I figured it was a good day to profess my love for this sweet and creamy pie.

There are a million different recipes and everyone will, of course, tell you that their grandma's is the best. I've looked at a dozen different ones and did a little mix-and-match before I found the one I liked. I made two around the holidays to take to various family functions. Everyone loved them - those who would try it. Buttermilk being an ingredient REALLY turns people off. Buttermilk was used in the south a lot because it could stay fresh longer in the warmer climates - and there were plenty of people in the South who didn't have ways to keep milk cold. The recipes I read claimed varying amounts of flour or biscuit mix, and various flavorings such as lemon zest and vanilla extract. I tried baking two at one time and leaving them in longer - neither one of them fully cooked and set. Go with one at a time. You can enjoy this chilled after cooking or warm. I prefer warm.

My combined/altered version goes a little something like this:

Ingredients

In the shell

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons biscuit mix
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 stick butter, melted
1 unbaked 10-inch basic pie crust shell

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a large mixing bowl (I use a stand mixer religiously), combine the sugar and biscuit mix. Whisk the eggs into the mixture individually. Stir in the buttermilk, vanilla extract, and melted butter. Pour the buttermilk mixture into the pie shell (I love having Jennifer make a shell from scratch - the lard isn't so great for you, but they're pretty and tasty) and bake until the top is lightly browned and the center sets, about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool to room temperature. Slice the pie into individual servings. You can garnish with various things like mint for a pop of color. I love using a drizzle of sorghum syrup over the top.

Let me know if you've made it other ways, or if you try the recipe. I think you'll enjoy it.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-21T07:01:00.001-06:00

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies with Bourbon Ganache

2011-12-12T10:53:00.002-06:00

Cookie Sandwiches with Bourbon Ganache

Well, I said I was going to post the recipe for these, and today is the day I'm allowed to do it! Participating in the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap was great for two reasons - I enjoyed the cooking (my first attempt at baking) and I got cookies in the mail. COOKIES IN THE MAIL. I know. How great is that? Who doesn't love cookies, right? It was a ton of work and I stayed up pretty late one night, not realizing how long I had just committed myself to the kitchen. I've never baked anything before, so I was treading new ground.

Before I get into my recipe, a big thanks to Lindsay and Julie at Love & Olive Oil and The Little Kitchen, respectively, for putting this together. What a blast. And the cookies I received in the mail were just fantastic. I received a package of Polvorones (a Spanish almond cookie) from Suzy at Frosting for Dinner (left) and a package of Piroulines from Steff at The Kitchen Trials (right).

The polvorones were light and airy but had the perfect amount of sweetness. The piroulines were great as well - basically a toasted roll of sweet wafer biscuit. She also iced them (extra points).

Now, on to my creation... As I've mentioned recently, I've fallen back in love with southern cooking and wanted these to reflect that. I searched for southern cookies on the internet and found a lot of things I was unwilling to attempt, and several that looked terrible. I finally decided on adding bourbon to something. So where would I add bourbon? Into chocolate. Had to be. So I found a post on about.com in the southern foods section while looking around (I'll post the link when I find the original print-out) for some chocolate chip cookies. These use brown butter. I've never used brown butter before, so I decided it would be fun. And I would make sandwiches out of these by slapping some bourbon ganache on them.

Cookies
Ingredients:

Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

1 cup unsalted butter, browned and slightly cooled
1 cup packed brown suger
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 tablespoons milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/4 cups AP flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Prep:
To brown butter, cut butter into smaller pieces, and heat in a saucepan over medium heat until butter simmer and becomes frothy. Continue cooking, stirring, until butter begins to turn golden brown, 4-5 minutes. Pour off into a bowl to cool, leaving darkest sediment behind. This should give the liquid a nutty smell.

In a large mixing bowl with electric mixer, beat the browned butter and sugars until light and fluffy (this takes a while). Add egg, yolk, milk, and vanilla. Beat on low speed until well-blended.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Gradually add these to the wet mixture, mixing on low speed, until a soft dough forms. You may need to scrape the sides of the bowl down a few times. Stir in the chocolate chips, then cover and chill it for an hour to make the dough easier to work with.

Preheat the oven to 375°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray with a cooking spray. Using a cookie scoop, drop balls of dough onto the paper, allowing a couple of inches between each cookie. To make sure they get flat enough to make the sandwiches, press them down a bit (I learned this as I went).

Bake for 6-10 minutes until browned around the edges. Place on a cooling rack and let sit while cooking the other cookies. This made about 4 dozen cookies per batch.

Bourbon Ganache
Ingredients:

1/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
6 oz. bittersweet chocolate
1 1/2 tablespoons of bourbon (or your favorite liqueur)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 pinch of sea salt

Prep:
Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat until almost boiling. Add sugar and whisk to combine.

Place the chocolate in a medium bowl (I used a bar and broke it into tiny pieces). Remove the cream from the heat and pour it over the chocolate. Whisk vigorously until melted and well-combined. It may take a minute. Add the bourbon, salt, and vanilla, stirring constantly until mixture is smooth and cool.

Before choosing a bourbon, check out my post on using bourbon in cooking to make sure you don't use something you won't like.

Sandwiches

Now, just spread the ganache over the bottom side of one cookie, and slap another on the other side. Now you've got brown butter chocolate chip cookie sandwiches with bourbon ganache. And while the name is long, and the recipe is longer, it's ABSOLUTELY worth giving it a shot. One of the best parts is making sure you cook an odd number of cookies so you can just slap some ganache on one and eat it that way. Because this whole thing was about eating some awesome cookies anyway. I stole the picture on the right when Lindsay at Love & Olive Oil (one of my matches) posted it on Twitter.

I did use heavy cream in the recipe, and yes I shipped them off with heavy cream in the ganache. I did some reading, and was assured that as long as the ganache didn't get hot it would be fine. I had them in the refrigerator until I sent them out (the next morning) anyway, just to be safe. And I was shipping them north (can't go much further south) so I wasn't worried about them getting hot.

I really enjoyed doing this - thanks again to Lindsay, Julie, Steff, and Suzy - and I look forward to doing it again next year!

Bourbon Makes It Better

2011-12-06T11:16:00.001-06:00

Pastry Shells

If you've eaten with me at any holiday gathering over the last few weeks, chances are you ate something with bourbon in it. Jennifer made a fantastic bourbon pecan pie for a couple of Thanksgiving get-togethers. Last week, I made some cookies (cookie sandwiches, rather) for a giant cookie swap. They were chocolate chip cookies made with brown butter, with a bourbon ganache in the middle. There will be a post on those next week. Friday night, I made some pecan pie tarts with bourbon in the filling. They were just a basic pastry (flour, butter) with a filling made with melted butter, egg, brown sugar, pecans, and some bourbon. It really adds an incredible scent and flavor to this common dessert.

Filling

Bourbon can have a wide variety of tastes depending on aging and specific ingredients, but there are some typical tastes in the flavor profile which you will consistently find. There is usually a hint of caramel and vanilla in a decent bourbon, which makes it a good ingredient to complement existing flavors in sweet dishes. However, it also has a distinct flavor of charcoal (the burnt wood variety) and a hint of a wood flavor. This is because bourbon, legally, must be aged in charred, oak barrels. These barrels have to be new, which helps keep that consistent flavor. Old barrels may impart flavors from previous blends or might even have been used to age rum which would dramatically change the flavor. This makes it a great ingredient for both savory and sweet dishes.

Baked - Not Pretty, But Delicious

One thing to think about is how strong of a flavor you want. Lower proof bourbons will tend to be sweeter because of the lower alcohol content. Another thing to consider - alcohol has a much lower freezing point than water and other liquids. So if you use this in a frozen dessert, make sure you use an amount on the smaller side of the measurement, and a low-proof whiskey. Otherwise, your dish is likely to have a nasty bite (and it likely won't be a pleasant one). And if you don't keep bourbon around the house, you shouldn't use more than a couple of ounces in any recipes. One or two small single-serving bottles should suffice.

Do you cook with bourbon? What are some of your favorite ways to use bourbons or liqueurs? Comment below and let me know!

Slow and Honest

2011-11-28T15:20:00.001-06:00

I mentioned in my last post that I was becoming obsessed with another kind of food. Lots of talking, eating, and cooking has brought me back around to the food that my mother always made - good Southern food.

Following several southern food bloggers and planning on attending a food blog conference here in Birmingham has really surrounded me with people who are passionate about the food here - and for good reason. After sitting in on and participating in a couple of Twitter group chats about food in the south, including guests like Frank Stitt and FoodBlog South, I really fell back in love with this kind of food.

Fried Chicken & Biscuits

Everyone thinks of Paula Deen when they think of southern food - which invariably means they're thinking of "comfort food" full of fat and butter. And while I can't deny I go batty over some good fried chicken and homemade biscuits, there's a lot more to our cuisine. Chefs like Frank Stitt, Chris Hastings, Hugh Acheson, and Sean Brock are showing everyone what we're really about. Because of all the farms and livestock in the area, having fresh foods (including plenty of organic and heirloom choices) really makes it possible to have some of the best foods. Great ingredients don't need tons of preparation and meticulous work to get incredible tastes. Simple foods prepared well are some of the best foods you can eat.

I really look forward to using great ingredients and trying out some of the recipes from some of these Southern chefs and developing my own recipes. During Thanksgiving I watched on Twitter as SO MANY PEOPLE freaked out about it. Cooking, hosting, traveling... it seemed as if no one was really ENJOYING the holiday. And that's a shame. I've always been laid back. I think some people even view me as lackadaisical. My mother even pointed out this weekend that I've always just rolled with the flow and not let myself get overly worried about things. I think there isn't a better attitude to have when paired with food. Don't let yourself get so worked up and upset about food - it should be a good experience. If it isn't being that, step back and relax. Find a way to let things be easier. During one of the aforementioned Twitter chats, someone asked for words that describe Southern food. Two of them really stuck out to me and I'm making it a point to make my experiences - food and otherwise - be about these words: SLOW and HONEST.

Back, Out & About

2011-11-23T11:12:00.001-06:00

It's been a bit since my last post, but I have good reason! I recently had a lot of responsibility changes at work (for the better) and I've been swamped with that at work with less time to think about other things while on the ol' clock. Which is fine - I actually enjoy work again now. And Jenn and I just bought a house! It's just over the mountain in Birmingham to the south end of town. Quiet little neighborhood called Homewood. We're loving it, but it took ALL of our time and we were also without internet for a bit, so I have some catching up to do!

Some Like It Hot

So I was posting about hot foods, and Lord knows I love them. The next thing I did after trying a hot pizza at a local pizzeria in Homewood was make some enchiladas. They were great. Those are whole serrano peppers in the picture. I used several of those and chopped garlic, onion, toasted cumin, and smoked paprika. It was fairly hot, but not anywhere near as hot as some of the things I've been eating lately. This was kind of my last foray into spicy food in the last month or so. I've started becoming obsessed with another kind of food, which I'll get into in the next post.

Squid Ceviche

That being said, I'm going to comment on a couple of things I've eaten recently at restaurants since that's been the majority of my meal sources recently (it's difficult to cook a lot when you're without a refrigerator or refrigerated foods for a couple of weeks). The first one I felt worthy about commenting on is a ceviche dish at Sabor Latino in Homewood. Sabor Latino sounds like the typical Mexican establishment in Birmingham. While there are almost countless numbers of those eateries, Sabor is different. While they have the conventional fare of enchiladas, burritos, and tacos, they also have a wide variety of South American dishes. Specifically, they have a heavy Peruvian influence. I normally try to eat these dishes because I get tired of "Mexican" food as we know it. So I tried the Ceviche. This is a seafood dish wherein the food is only cooked via the acid of lemon or lime juices. So it's basically a dish of raw seafoods. They suggested I try the mix, so I did - fish, mussels, squid (pictured, with friend Sarah's thumb), and octopus. It was plated with softened sweet potato and toasted corn kernels. The dish was incredible - the texture and consistency I love of raw seafood with the bite of the citrus to tame some of the stronger flavors. If you're feeling adventurous, try it out - you won't be disappointed!

Shrimp n Grits

Forgive me in advance for the quality of the picture - it was dark and I tried a few, but stopped before it turned rude. At a work dinner last night at the Tavern of St. Clair in Pell City, AL, I noticed ribbon icons next to a few of the meals. I asked the server what those meant. She assured me they were award-winning dishes. She could not, however, tell me the type or origin of these awards. Shrimp n Grits is one of my favorite southern/low-country dishes. It can be cooked 1000 different ways and I've yet to find one I dislike as long care was in the recipe. If you know anything about shrimp n grits, you know this picture looks off. It's usually a cream or butter sauce on a bed of grits with some large shrimp and the occasional sausage. This looks more like a soup. Well, it had a tomato-base that was reduced with white wine. This formed the majority of the dish visually. There were huge shrimp in the sauce, along with some Andouille sausage made from local hog. It added a bit of a kick to it, but nothing intimidating. There was also lightly fried broccoli in the sauce. What made this dish unique to me was the grits. Those large fried cakes that look like hashbrowns ARE the grits. They mixed a cream sauce with the grits and fried them into those delicious lumps of crispy, creamy delight. I will definitely be ordering this again, but I'll need to tell them to back off on the salt a bit. Towards the end of the meal, the sauce became a little too much to handle.

Thanks for reading, and I'll be back VERY soon with another post about my developing outlook on food. See you then!

The Hot Chick

2011-09-28T14:10:00.000-05:00

What could you love more than a really hot chick? I took a shot with one this past weekend - so hot that my eyes even watered a bit. This happened at Dave's Pizza in SoHo (that's South Homewood for those of you not from Birmingham - and yes, we realize SoHo is a stolen name)...

Ok, so this hot chick is actually a pizza. At Dave's in SoHo, they serve "The Hot Chick" - a pizza that was listed as one of the Top 10 spicy foods/places in Birmingham. I promised I'd eat at some of these places and write about them, so buckle up for the first post! That list of spicy places can be found here at B-Metro's website (a great site for information on living in the Birmingham-metro area).

The Hot Chick

So onto the pizza... It was a little odd. I asked the waitress how how it was on a scale of 1-10. She said 11. I assumed that meant I could probably call it a 5. It's cooked on normal pizza dough. The meat is grilled chicken. And the pizza sauce - well, it isn't pizza sauce. It's hot sauce. The entire first layer of the pizza is hot sauce. There's also a good garlic butter sauce on it - not too much butter as is often the case.

Then you move into the cheese. It has their normal cheese blend on top - it's hard to tell when so many flavors are mixing together, but it tastes like a blend of mozzarella and provolone. I'm a sucker for some good provolone, so that helps my judgment of the pizza. Then on top of all of that, there are melted chunks of blue cheese. This is a great idea - not only because it's basically a hot-wing pizza and blue cheese dressing is a natural pairing. But blue cheeses are very pungent, with a sharp and salty flavor that pairs very well with other strongly flavored foods. This helps make the flavor a little more robust and keeps you from only tasting heat. I talked about this a little in a recent post, Some Like It Hot. You can see there is also a little greenery on top of the pie - those are the jalapeños that I had them add. In the second picture, you can see the peppers a little more closely. You can see the seeds on top of the pepper. This, of course, is where the capsaicin comes from, which I discussed in the previous post. Of course, these are actually one of the milder peppers in the grand scheme of things. But you don't have to add the peppers.

Peppers For Funsies

So on to the taste. The first bite kind of took my breath for a second, as well as made my eyes water a bit. I was really surprised actually. After a few more bites, I realized the sauce was an American-style sauce. These vary from Mexican-style sauces a good bit. Mexican-style is usually built more around flavor than heat. The American sauces are built around heat and usually contain a good bit of vinegar. Anyone who's had a good bag of salt and vinegar chips knows how this can open up your sinuses. So I continued on through it, and it wasn't too bad. I almost expected more. But, to be fair, this is at a pizzeria and people aren't really going there looking for super-spicy foods. And it was towards the bottom of the list. I look forward to sinking my teeth into something that makes me think twice about eating hot foods.

I'll be sure to try some of them soon and report back, and I'm also looking for some hot recipes to try out, so feel free to share! And if you're in the area, be sure to check out Dave's, and maybe even challenge yourself to The Hot Chick!

Tripp

Food and DISCO

2011-09-23T16:39:00.000-05:00

So I've mentioned before that I'm a writer (beyond the new blog). And if you've read any of the blog, you know I love food. I swore when I started the blog that I wouldn't do any advertisement or paid write-ups for people. That's lame. But I found a reason to make an exception. A great food convention that benefits young writers. It's like the perfect combination!

Old Car Heaven

Food Blog South is a food-blogging conference in Birmingham, AL. The upcoming event will be held in late January at Old Car Heaven (a pretty cool place if you've never been). It's great for beginning or experienced food bloggers. It could be great even if you don't have a food blog. Sessions include things like recipe development, food photography with your camera phone, and drink blogging (with beer tasting, of course). They're actually going to do a live re-design of some blogs. Pretty cool stuff. A really cool perk: Kat Kinsman, the managing director of CNN's Eatocracy food blog, will be the Keynote speaker. Sounding like a good time, huh? And it's relatively inexpensive compared to most other conferences (at least the ones I've been to). It could be a great opportunity to learn more about food and writing about it!


The Desert Island Supply Co.

Which brings me to my second point. Proceeds from the Food Blog South convention will go to benefit DISCO Birmingham. What is DISCO? The Desert Island Supply Company. Catchy name and acronym, and a wicked logo. What's not to love? Well, there's even more to like! It's a creative writing program for children in the Birmingham area. Their mission ihttp://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=4458557653218028996#editor/target=post;postID=716030553140790812s simply to give kids in the B'ham area more opportunities to write. Growing up and writing all the time was really great for me. I had a great way to escape and have fun with my creativity, and I still have lots of my writings to look back on and enjoy. In Kindergarten, I wrote (voluntarily) an essay - although I had no idea it was an essay at the time - about the plight of bald eagles in our country. Thankfully, they're no longer in danger of extirpation (localized extinction). That year I was selected as the youngest kid to go to the Alabama Young Author's Conference at UAB. I went every year thereafter through my last year of eligibility in 8th grade. It only started 2 years before my first year, but I remember it being SUCH a huge deal to me. I was, of course, only 5 years old. But it was a great experience. I got to listen to authors speak, meet with them, go to sessions on how to write more effectively.... It was like heaven to me once a year. And I always wished that it would happen more often. Well, with DISCO, it does. These kids get free writing workshops at libraries, museums, and other places. And it's based in the heart of the city so it provides access to lots of inner-city children who might not otherwise have an opportunity to share their talent (Finding Forrester, anyone?). They also do individual projects that include helping 10th graders prepare for state writing tests and conducting poetry slam workshops (again, way cool).

When I realized I had the ability to go learn more about blogging (and food - can't forget the food), and also be supporting something so close to my heart and past - it was a no-brainer. So I felt I should share it with you all

Check out the site to buy tickets: http://foodblogsouth2012.eventbrite.com/. And better news - if you use the code IReadTripp, you can get 10% off your registration fee for the main event. The prices go up at the end of October, so check it out. I'd love to see some of you there!

Tripp

Some Like It Hot

2011-09-17T16:22:00.000-05:00

So I really love eating spicy foods. A lot of people can't fathom why someone would want to cause themselves pain by eating something hot. I've heard so many times, "I don't understand eating something so hot. All you get is burn and pain and you can't taste anything."

I think if you have thought or said this, you have either been eating the wrong kind of spicy food (no flavor, just heat), or you're just drinking bottle after bottle of lame sauce. My guess is that it's been both. So I'm going to chat a bit about spicy foods, how they work, and why we like them (and why some don't).

Lots of people think that spicy food has no flavor - that's just not the case. There are some foods which are over-the-top spicy without enough flavor to make up for them, and sometimes people spice something overly much when there aren't enough flavors to offset it. A good example is using tons of wasabi on sushi. I have friends who swear it tastes good, but the flavors in sushi (aside from maybe eel) aren't robust enough to offset the spice of the Japanese horseradish. Not to mention - for all you wasabi fans - that this type of hot is more like a hot mustard. Meaning that there is a lot of vapor and gas which burn the nasal passages and mucous membranes, and affect the tongue a lot less. The trick is to start off with really robust and complex flavors in foods and add a little bit of spice at a time. You build a tolerance, so you can eventually get to a point that the hot foods feel less like they're setting you on fire and you taste the flavors and enjoy them more. I'd try starting with something like chili or a mild curry. There's plenty of flavor (including the various flavors from the peppers), so you get a good experience out of the entire meal - a palate party!

Something else I feel I should point out is that people like to avoid spicy foods because they think they cause ulcers. Again, UNTRUE. We know now that ulcers are caused by the bacteria H. plyori. It does look like spicy foods might irritate ulcers, so there's that.

Color enhanced on left to show caipsaicin oil

How it works, and why we love it: I'll talk about the foods that I love to eat. Most of the ones I love are foods based on peppers. I won't get into the Scoville Scale (the scale that measures the hotness level of peppers), although I do love pointing out how lame jalapeno peppers are in the grand scheme of spice. What makes a chili hot is capsaicin. This is synthesized in the chili during its development. "Chiliheads" often experience pleasure and sometimes even euphoria after ingesting higher levels of capsaicin. They (we) attribute this to the release of endorphins. Capsaicin actually stimulates the same pathways as tarantula venom - obviously without the venomous effects. This makes the brain think it needs endorphins, and we get all jacked up! The endorphin rush makes you feel powerful and in control of everything. Several drugs do this to you (in a more dangerous way), so you can see why some people get to REALLY love peppers and pepper foods. Studies have even shown that these effects of capsaicin can be blocked by naloxene, which competes for space in endorphin receptor sites.

So you've decided to try to eat something spicy - great! Remember to start mild and work your way up. So what if it's a bit much? You don't want to try to cool it off with water - it's completely ineffective. Also ineffective - and worse for the tomorrow - beer. Sadly, lots of people (including me) love eating hot foods after a few brews. So what should you drink? Milk. Cold, cold milk. The casein in milk (a phosphoprotein found in mammalian milk and some dairy products) has a detergent effect on capsaicin. Which basically means it detaches it or cleans it off of tissue, helping it to cool off much faster. This includes all digestive tissues, so tomorrow is as awesome as your spicy foods!

As a side note, check out Heat Seekers on Friday nights on Food Network. It's great watching those guys torture themselves - and for the record, I wouldn't touch some of that stuff... Maybe I would.

I've got a list right here of some of the spiciest spots in Birmingham, shared with me by Jason Horn (who also has a great blog over at http://themessyepicure.com), co-founder of FoodBlog South, which I'm excited about attending early next year. I'll let you know how these visits turn out, and I'll also be cooking some spicy foods and sharing recipes if anyone is interested. Until then, Happy Heat Seeking!

Eat, Drink, and Be Merry!

2011-08-29T21:19:00.000-05:00

Birmingham at Night

What's better than good food and drink? Nothing. Of all the great things in the world, some of the ones that have the best memories are related to taste and smell. Vacations, great nights out, Thanksgiving at mom's house... So many memories are related to taste and smell. That's why you can smell something cooking and immediately think about grandma's house. Or the smell of popcorn makes you think of the movies. Our brain encodes smells and tastes more easily than the vast amount of visual info coming in. So those meals stick around...

With this in mind (or not, but it sounds good), Jennifer and I headed out last week to experience some of Birmingham's best flavors and company at night at the Alabama Theatre. It was the kickoff party for Birmingham Restaurant Week. Local restaurants are featured and they offer samples to get you to come around (rather than those resto-chains). For a low price, you get dancing, music, all the food, hanging with the mayor, and drinks. What follows is a quick review of some of the places and food, so if you're in The Ham, you have an idea of where you can go eat!

Local Veggies

Maki Fresh is a sushi joint. They had a good cookie bar with green tea icing. The sushi... was sushi. I find few sushi places that amaze or disappoint me. It's mostly the same.

Sysco foods served up samples of a ratatouille made from all locally grown vegetables with a goat cheese crustini. It was good, although the veggies seemed a bit overcooked and had lost some flavor.

Veranda on the Highland had a pork sandwich with a jalapeno spread. It was tasty, and there wasn't much else to it.

Ted's served up Greek Boston Butt - I'm still not sure what that even means, but it was okay. They definitely didn't convince me to visit their place anytime soon.

Michael's Steakhouse had some great Gulf shrimp and steak medallions. They were definitely good; hopefully it reminds me to actually visit the restaurant soon. It's a mile from our house.

Sweet Tea is a new "meat and three" in Birmingham. I think of these much in the same regard as sushi places. They're all about the same. I was unimpressed. The "whiskey chicken" was dry and didn't have much flavor - very disappointing for an Irish kid - although the baked apples were good.

Frio en la Paz was excellent. They call themselves premium Mexican cuisine - and it is different from your normal burritos and tacos joint. Deep, earthy flavors really set this place apart. They served up a creamy black bean salsa, joined with "albóndigas" - a spicy pork/beef meatball with a smoky chipotle sauce. It almost had an adobo sauce flavor, but a bit more robust and definitely more kick. We ate at the restaurant the next night - they had a tres leches cake, and it was perfect. Milky, creamy, and sweet - with strawberries. Not a strawberry fan, but the acidity balanced the sweetness.

LOSER of the night - The Rare Martini - They served a tuna noodle casserole that was worse than anything you would buy in a can off of a shelf. I appreciate that they are trying to reopen their kitchen, but in an area like Lakeview, you better bring the heat. And come on... WHAT was that? Please, for the love of all that is foodie, stick to making martinis and playing terrible dance music.

Eggplant Brushcetta & White Chocolate Bread Pudding

WINNER of the night - Silvertron Cafe - They gave samples of an amazing eggplant bruschetta (how did they know I love eggplant?) with a rich white chocolate bread pudding with what tasted like a raspberry sauce. The sauce's flavor was faint, or perhaps the bread pudding's taste was so amazing it overshadowed the fruit. Either way, the sweetness and acidity balanced well. It was great - I guess I'll finally have reason to go visit them!

EXTRA POINT - Rush Wines - These guys are a local group that have their own private-label selection of handcrafted wines. They really have some remarkable stuff, but being new, and based in Birmingham, no one takes them seriously. But people should - I think they'll be making a mark soon! I chatted with Rush Garner, the founder, while sampling their varieties as he told me more about them. I think I tasted a few too many as the tastes began to bleed, but the Viognier was by far my favorite. Excellent crisp, fruity flavor that takes a while to really develop. When the flavor finally fully finishes (anyone for some alliteration?), it really leaves an impact. They say it goes well with spicy foods. I love spicy foods. Sounds like a reason to buy more (we've already bought some).

Remember - those resto-chains like Applebee's and Ruby Tuesday don't need your money, and don't support your local communities as much. Try out your hidden gems in town, and if you're in The Ham, make sure you try some of these - or any of the other hundreds of locally-owned places. Many only use fresh, locally-grown foods! Enjoy your food, and eat, drink, and be merry!

A Bit About Tripp

2011-08-29T19:16:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone. My name is James Warren - I go by 'Tripp'. That's because I'm a third - James Ray Warren III - and Tripp is a nickname for thirds, much like - albeit less common than - Trey. Buckle up; this is a long one! Just an intro to me, and they'll be shorter in the future. And about things far more interesting than me.

I'm a graduate of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) - Go Blazers! I have a (mostly) unused degree in Psychology. I planned on attending the doctoral program in Medical & Clinical Psych at UAB, but instead decided to pursue an MBA at my alma mater. I did this on the advice of some alumni of my Fraternity - Tau Kappa Epsilon, by damn! - who quite correctly pointed out that I seemed to have more of an aggressive, analytical, and charismatic personality. And that these traits seemed better suited for business or law than for helping people through their personal problems. So, I'm currently working on an MBA at UAB while I work.

Apropos my Fraternity, I joined while I was an undergrad at UAB - the Pi-Delta Chapter of TKE. I saw the opportunity for leadership and fun - and took full advantage of those opportunities. I was recruitment chair, member educator, philanthropy chair, and president of my chapter. I learned a lot and gained a passion for what TKE is meant to do - develop young men into successful men with an advantage in life, through academics, philanthropy, and social activities. I am now a volunteer for my Fraternity. Other volunteers call it the "magnificent obsession". I lead the state of Alabama and the panhandle of Florida as "Grand Province Advisor". I am also President of the UAB chapter's Board of Directors. And President of the Alumni Association - all among other roles. It certainly takes a lot of time, but it's really worth it. There is little greater than seeing someone I have worked with doing well in life and loving it at the same time. Of course, I had some GREAT fun along the way. I remember most of it. Speaking of having fun, it was through the Fraternity that...

I met my wife, Jennifer. She was a member of the UAB chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta sorority. We didn't really get along very well. I was president of the chapter, and she was VP of Finance for her sorority. We just seemed to clash. Next thing we know, we became best friends - and remain such to this day. We hung out daily - literally, daily - throughout our senior year. I proposed in 2009 at the Birmingham Museum of Art; I had the ring set up as part of an exhibit. Maybe I'll include that story in a post later. We're both very much into the arts, so it was perfect. She plays violin and works for a non-profit that teaches children in the city to play stringed instruments. Sounds noble, huh? She's also the breadwinner. So it's the best of both worlds. We were married in June of last year in St. Lucia. It was amazing, and I REALLY look forward to going back.

We have a furry, spoiled kid. This is him. I'm of Irish descent, she's of (mostly) Irish descent - as if you couldn't tell from our pale, pale skin. So we wanted a pup from the Irish/Shetland isles. We went with the Sheltie - my brother gave him to her for Christmas 2009. We also needed to name him something Irish. So he's Murphy. You might can tell that we're proud of our heritage. We're also huge Notre Dame fans - Go Irish! Excited that they shake down the thunder this Saturday. We also both love pro sports (isn't she awesome?!?). We love the Boston teams - and did before they were doing well. Red Sox, Bruins, Celtics, and Patriots (love the Madden 12 commercial with the Boston accent and Dropkick Murphys playing). We like soccer as well - Arsenal, FC Barcelona, and Chelsea.

I'll probably write mostly about foodie-related things, but will also post about random other things on my mind, things you want to hear about, and occasionally pepper in some of my writings for you to review. I've been writing (everything from essays to poetry to fiction) since I was a wee toddler. I also won't make them so long after this! Hope you enjoy it, and if you do, share with others! See you next time - we only part to meet again!