What I'm Loving Wednesday 1.16.13

How are we already two weeks into January? This is just crazy. Before you know it, it'll be February, then Summer…then wait, let's stop. I love Summer.

1. I love this dress. You love this dress. This just screams my name. Thank you, ASOS!

 

2. Well it's no wonder I always get called a flirt. Apparently it's just part of my Southern charm! 

Isn't that ridiculous? I assumed the book was published in the 70s, but when I texted a picture of it to Sierra, she asked me to check the date. Try 2007. WHAT? This can't be right. Or normal. 

3. I nearly passed out walking down King Street on Saturday when I saw that Steve Palmer of The Indigo Road restaurant group started following me on Twitter. Seriously, I had to stop and fan myself.

4. Speaking of The Indigo Road, Carter tried an awesome beer at Oak on Friday. I ordered it the next day at The Green Door. Snatch one of these up quick -- they're a seasonal gem!

5. With the marathon being this Saturday (omg!!), it's taper week. My run on Sunday was short, sweet, and speedy. 3 more days!!

6. You should download the app "The Now." You get free push notifications with reminders to keep you fully focused on the present. I receive 3-4 messages a day and there's always at least one that makes me smile or check myself. There was even a Lululemon quote one day! The one shown here, though, is one of my favorites.

I do find it humorous that I received my mindfulness message while listening to Swedish House Mafia. There is no way one can stay calm while listening to their music.

7. This was my view driving over the bridge yesterday morning, just one day after receiving the notification above. Incredible timing, no?

Pretty, pretty Charleston. Brooke, this one's for you!

Bell’s Brewery Beer Dinner at The Coastal Cupboard

One of my favorite stores in the Belle Hall Shopping Center is The Coastal Cupboard, “the Lowcountry’s most complete kitchen store.” They’ve got all sorts of tools, gadgets, gourmet food products, and gifts. I could spend hours just poking around looking at all the fun kitchen toys. Aside from being a store, The Coastal Cupboard offers cooking classes taught by Chef Stephen Harman.

My friend Eric, another food writer, and I were both invited to select a class to attend. The Bell’s Brewery Beer Dinner appealed to both of us, so we signed up, and my “sister wife” Amanda came along for the fun. The class started at 6:30, shortly after the store was closed so we had the entire place to ourselves (and about 18 other guests).  We were seated and given the recipes with room to take notes.

We got down to business right away. And by business I mean beer. The first bottle we tried was Lager of the Lakes. I’m not much of a lager fan, but I actually quite liked this one! While we sipped, Chef Stephen started on the first dish: Maple Bacon Mac N Cheese.Look how creamy that is. Guess how. Butter, flour, whole milk, maple syrup, and cheese. Paula Deen would be so proud.

The second course was Rahmschnitzel, which is essentially veal cutlets that have been breaded and pan seared, then cooked with cream, lemon juice, and herbs. MORE CREAM!

The Rahmschnitzel was paired with a Pale Ale. I liked this one a lot too.

The next dish was sort of a bonus; the chef was braising pork for another event but let us have quite the sample…and I’m so glad he did. It was fantastic! Alongside the pork were braised mustard greens.

The third beer we tried was Two Hearted Ale, which Eric said is one of the best-rated beers. I liked it, but had to give it to him or else I would have been bouncing all over the place. ;)

Our fourth and final course was dessert of course! For this, we tried the Kalamazoo Stout. I’ll be honest – there was no chance in hell I was drinking this. It was way too heavy for me. A man beer if you will. I was much happier with the dessert.

We had a slice of Chocolate Stout Cake with a scoop of Molasses Stout Ice Cream, both of which had been prepared in advance. I’m not really a fan of chocolate cake (weird, I know), but this was so rich, I couldn’t resist eating half of it. The ice cream? Oh, that went down easily.We had a great time at the cooking demonstration. Stephen gave us great tips, let us ask questions, and was very personable. I’d love to go to another class. Eric and I both suggested they do a class on pickling. Pickles + beer = heaven.

Thanks to The Coastal Cupboard for having us! Check out more classes here.

What I’m Loving Wednesday 9.19.12

Hola mis amigas! (y  mis amigos!)

1. I’m so smitten with this Tinley Road blouse I purchased from Piperlime. I always crush hard on anything from the site. They have the prettiest clothes.

2. On Monday, Rachel brought a bag of these Werther’s Caramel Apple hard candies to work . We had just been talking about seasonal treats, and caramel and candy apples came up. These sugar-free candies are holding us over until the real fun can begin.

3. I almost lost it when I saw this GIF. It’s SO TRUE!!

WHEN I LICK THE BOWL AFTER BAKING WITH ABSOLUTELY NO REGARD FOR SALMONELLA

4. Visits to Target for “essentials.” I go in for toilet paper, I come out with things I had no idea I “needed.” It’s just ridiculous! Last weekend I chuckled at my purchases: gum, Pretzel M&M’s, Candy Corn M&M’s, and glow necklaces. You just never know when your sweet tooth will kick in…or a dance party.

5. Don’t fear Vegan treats. They are just as sweet, if not sweeter, than the buttery-laden desserts you’re accustomed to. At a recent visit to Puree in Mt. Pleasant, the owner sent me home with two delicious goodies: a chocolate chip cookie and a whoopie pie.

6. After the Super Hero 5k on Saturday, we went to Triangle for brunch. Mary Legare and I both had a really good beer: Angry Orchard Crisp Apple. The Boston Brewery puts out a killer cider beer. It was love at first sip.

7.This picture of Boding and me. I’m so lucky to call him my best friend! We have so much fun together and I’m pumped that at the end of next month we’ll be living together again.

The Friday Five–Manly Style

Hello friends! I am off for a little vaca and have a guest post (of sorts) for you.

Meet my friend Eric. Eric works at Blackbaud with me and is also food critic for the Charleston City Paper. We met through our mutual friend Rachel and bonded over a love for all things related to food and cooking. The food bond is pretty strong as we both have a slight obsession with beets and pickles. Oh, and did I mention he’s a Chick-fil-A fan too? Now you know why we are friends.

I enjoy cooking and learning about different foods, but this is where Eric and I differ. He LOVES cooking. And is really good at it. In preparation for a catering gig he was doing, he offered to let me sample some of the veggie burgers he was going to be serving.

As a new(ish) vegetarian, I was really excited to try homemade veggie burgers! Morning Star and Trader Joe’s veggie and black bean burgers have already been incorporated into my diet, but I knew it was only time before a homemade one made its way to my mouth.

While Eric played in the kitchen, I played with his pup, Copper. Look at this cutie!

Though I don’t have an exact recipe, the burgers are essentially a mix of the following:

• edamame
• red pepper
• red onion
• corn
• carrot
• spinach
• cayenne
• lime juice
• garlic
• egg
• bread crumbs
• edamame pureed with water, lemon juice, and oil

The veggies and seasonings were chopped in tiny bits, then bound together with the egg, bread crumbs, and edamame puree. So colorful!

He formed the patties,

and pan fried them.

For serving, Eric placed each burger on a mini Hawaiian sweet roll, topped them with tzatziki sauce, and garnished them with cilantro radish.

How adorable is this! Be jealous. They were flipping fantastic.

I thought to myself, “How am I going to go another day without these?” My prayers were answered when Eric offered to let me take home the leftover mix so I could make some at home.

Hash tag awesome.

Now here’s where the guest post comes in. We have the usual Friday Five post, but written by the cook himself. Enjoy!

What I'm Reading: Charcuterie: The craft of Salting, Smoking, and Curing by Brian Polcyn and Michael Ruhlman. Who doesn't love cured meats?  I'm seriously considering turning my spare walk-in closet into a meat  and beer locker. Sausages, hams, salumis, and aged beers.  Can you imagine staying in my spare room and smelling bacon?

What I'm Watching: American Idol. Don't judge me. I've never been into the show until this season. The only reason I'm watching is to support a someone I know from Charleston, Elise Testone. She's killing it right now and everyone should vote for her on Wednesday nights!

What I'm listening to: Atlas Genius – Trojans. I heard this song for the first time on Alt Nation and I'm hooked.

What I'm Bookmarking: http://www.moleculargastronomynetwork.com/ 

I've been on a molecular gastronomy kick. Making balsamic caviar, foams, basil spaghetti, mojito spheres, bloody mary candies, and more.It's cool what you can do with food and chemistry.

What I'm Drinking: Bell's Hopslam. Hops, citrus, and honey - three of my favorite things all in one beer. This stuff doesn't sit on the shelf long so I get as much as I can as soon as it's released.

Hope you enjoyed the guest post. I will tell you where I am soon..

Best Moments of the Weekend

*My healthy lunch from Ali Baba Deli: Pita bread, tabouli, fattoush salad, grilled vegetables, and pomegranate muhammara. Swing over to Daniel Island just for this muhammara. It’s one of the best things I’ve eaten.

I’m loving all the veggies I’ve been eating since I started being repulsed by stopped eating meat/poultry/eggs. It has been 5 full days and it’s so easy! I know I said I wouldn’t give myself a title, but if I did, I’d be a lacto-pesco-vegetarian, right? I’m eating some dairy and fish, but no meat, poultry, or eggs. Enlighten me.

*The lovely Starbuck’s cups.

*My facial from Facelogic. This was incredibly relaxing and my face now feels as soft as baby’s skin! I highly recommend Dina if you’re thinking about going to Facelogic.. I also purchased this Dermalogica starter kit that they used on me.

*A visit to TCBY for frozen yogurt! I had a strange, yet delicious combo. +

with

*The Vow. I thought the movie was really good, but not as passionate as, oh, say The Notebook? Does anything compare to that movie?  I shed no tears, but came close a couple times. Deep breaths and shoving gummy worms in my mouth fixed that.

*Winter decided to grace Charleston with its presence Saturday night. The cure for the blistering cold? Winter gear + beer.

Oh, and hot chocolate for good measure. I am unsure as to why I wore a hat, mittens, and a scarf, but no socks or real shoes. Clearly I was in a rush for the necessities. 

*Brunch with Rachel at Hall’s Chophouse. I love that before bartender Darryl handed me the menu, he asked me, “Beets, right?” Well, of course. I, for the 29862968th time, got the Blackened Salmon Salad with a side of beets.

*After brunch, Rachel and I went to HIP HOP CLASS. No joke. I didn’t fall! It was sooo much fun. Definitely worth laughing the whole time! Immediately after that, we did Body Pump. 2 hours of exercise on a Sunday? Heck yeah!

And just for giggles, let me tell you about the worst part of my weekend. On Saturday as I was leaning down to adjust my bike at the gym, I knocked my head into one of the handlebars. I smacked it so hard I gasped aloud and now have a bruise. Seriously, will I ever grow out of this clumsiness?!

What were the best moments of your weekend?

GIVEAWAY coming tomorrow! Hint: It’s going to be SWEET!

What I’m Loving Wednesday

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. Chick-fil-A is coming out with the new cow watches tomorrow. I’ve been waiting like a month for these silly things. See ya later Michael Kors – the cows have replaced you.

Ok, let’s be real. MK isn’t going anywhere – I’ll just wear these to the gym/while running.

2. Nancy discovered a new fancy way to transport wine on the Uncommon Goods site. Classy!

But even more amazing is the Wine Rack from The Beer Belly site. With this contraption, I can turn my barely Bs into beer-filled Ds!? 1 win for me, 1 win for my mental state, and shoot, a win for the boys too. And it’s only $29.95. That’s cheaper than most Victoria’s Secret bras.

3. Speaking of clothing, I am mildly obsessed with these ballet flats I got from Gap a couple weeks ago. They are hands down the most comfortable flats I’ve ever worn.

4. Next Monday, I get to meet Sierra from Posh Meets Pavement.

Sierra is an American girl living in South Africa with her new husband and his family. I have been reading about her adventures on her blog for a while. She’s smart, adorable, perfectly fit, and even got married in my city! Check out her blog!

5. Dom Mazzetti. Thanks to my friend Ryan, I have fallen in some type of love with a youtube sensation. I could watch Dom’s videos on repeat for an entire day. Honestly, I have watched every one he’s made. This one is my absolute favorite:

You’re welcome.

I’m also not ashamed to say that my obsession with this fake meathead has caused me to purchase these two t-shirts.

Watch his videos to understand them.

I swear I dress really normal despite what the Chick-fil-A watches and Dom t-shirts might imply…

Tell me what you’re loving lately! xx!