Putting the Bed to Bed

 

I can’t believe the warm weather we had this weekend!!! I was just writing posts about hot cocoa and at 75* on Sunday it was nearly warm enough for lemonade. It gave me another opportunity to get the yard in order though. I cleared out the old plants, pulled out the last of the carrots and started to think about spring plantings. Now I just need to finish dealing with all those leaves.

Kate

I Heart Cocoa

Last week it finally got cold enough for me to have my first cup of hot cocoa of the fall. This is one of my favorite guilty pleasures during the colder months (or cold spring/summer nights camping). Last year, Bethany and I even had a blind hot cocoa taste-test, where we unbiasedly selected a packet of Swiss Miss as the tastiest just-add-water cocoa against two other name brands. Yeah – we know we’re dorks.

Anyway, I finally got around to flipping through my Williams-Sonoma catalog and found myself zoned out on a two-page spread dedicated to this chocolaty treat. Yumms!!  I want to buy the Froth & Pour Hot Choclate Pot this year. At $30 it's not a tough sell.

I love most anything Ghirardelli (turtle brownies anyone?!). Whenever possible milk and cream should be used to make hot cocoa. If you're mixing this up at the office, try adding 2-3 creamers after the hot water. Fluff is a great addition but can be tricky to eat. Mini marshmallows = no brainer, if you've got'em then use'em. Whip cream, whatever kind you like, is also a welcome addition.

- Kate

Fall Food and Fall Decor!

Fall food is such a great subject that I could definitely devote more than just a week to it!  With fall food falling out of favor this week (you like that alliteration?) I'll have to leave you with one last image before we switch gears…. 

CHILI!

My husband made his notoriously good chili on Sunday and it did not dissapoint.  We like things to err on the side of spicey 'round these parts and a nice dollop of sour cream and some cornbread helped to soften the effect.  He left out the beans, chose sausage over ground beef (is there a theme here) along with adding a jalapeno and a half to the pot.  He roasted some green peppers beforehand and added them in with the carrots, celery and onion. I came along halfway through, in typical fashion, and doctored it up with some seasoning. We added a bit more cumin, a bay leaf and some honey to round out the spice and VOILA!

Next up on the docket for falltastic-ness is fall decor.   I'm not super dedicated to seasonal decor, except of course for Christmas, so you can count me out for decorating the house at Halloween and Easter. But there are some quintessially fall items that make for wonderfully festive (and non-tacky) decor like pumpkins, gourds and leaves.  I found these pumpkins (you might remember me gushing over them here) at Trader Joe's and after much deliberation on why didn't get them at the time, I ran back one day during lunch and picked some up.  I brought them home and quickly arranged them on my dining room table.  I just love the pop of orange!

What do you like to use when adding falltastic touches to your home?


-Bethany

Fall Food: Cocktails!

Source: tampopopress.blogspot.com via Jamie on Pinterest

If you go apple pickin', you should definitely check out this fall cocktail made with ginger ale, fresh cider, and bourbon in a 2:2:1 ratio. Drink up, bitches. 


 -Bethany

Fall Foods: Apple Inspired

This post comes to courtesy of one of my favorite things (EVER!!), the apple. These American fruit are especially top of mind these days… what with the passing of Steve Jobs (I’m not ashamed to say the news put me in a total funk yesterday and I’m experiencing a bit of a hangover from it today), and for all the happy reasons – like fall, crimson reds, bold flavors, ciders, hard ciders (my fav alcoholic bev), crisp crunching and amazing food stuffs.

I did a little searching on etsy (what’s new?) and put together a quick cache of some lovely apple art. Great for hanging in the kitchen if you like to display seasonal art or food inspired art.

LEFT | CENTER | RIGHT

Now, my real gift to you though is my Roasted Pork Tenderloin with Apple Cider Glaze recipe. Now I’ve been making this for years, so my apologize to the originator of this recipe (be it friend, family, or cook book). I’ve long since lost that detail. But what I do have is a delicious entrée that will certainly stay in my cool-weather cooking rotation.

ROASTED PORK TENDERLOIN with APPLE CIDER GLAZE

Ingredients:

2              1lb pork tenderloins, trimmed

6              shallots, quartered

1/2 c        golden raisins

3 tbsp      fresh thyme leaves (5-6 sprigs)

Pinch       ground cloves

3/4 c        apple cider

1/3 c        dry white wine

1/2 tsp     salt

1/2 tsp     ground pepper

1 tbsp      olive oil

1 tbsp      unsalted butter

2              mcintosh apples, peeled & chopped

Directions:

1.     Rinse pork, pat dry, and place in a large zip-top heavy-duty plastic bag or shallow dish

2.     Stir together shallots and next 5 ingredients in a medium bowl. Pour over pork, cover or seal, and chill at least 4 hours, turning occasionally.

3.     Preheat oven to 375*. Remove pork from marinade, reserving marinade. Sprinkle pork evenly with ½ tsp salt and ½ tsp pepper. Cook in hot oil in a large ovenproof skillet over medium heat 2-3 minutes on each side or until browned. Remove pork, and add butter to skillet, stirring until melted. Add apples, and sauté 2 minutes. Stir in reserved marinade. Bring to a boil, and boil 2 minutes, stirring often. Return pork to skillet.

4.     Bake for 20-30 minutes, basting occasionally. Slice pork, and serve immediately with glaze.

You’re welcome.

--Kate

Fall Food: Smashed Potatoes

I'm roasting a chicken tonight for dinner and had planned on doing boiled red potatoes until I found this picture (and recipe) on Pinterest. You'd better believe these guys are now on the menu, too. YUM.

Source: americastestkitchen.com via Bethany on Pinterest

Up next… (cavity central)

Source: cookinglight.com via Kate on Pinterest

- Bethany

Fall Food: SOUP for you!

The briskness in the air warranted cravings for soup at my house tonight.  I adapted an old Bon Appetit recipe to include sausage and nixed the gravlax for a more fall-feel.  It's super simple and pretty quick, but here are a couple of small changes to include the sausage:

Brown the sausage in either butter or olive oil before you soften the leeks and fennel.  Remove the sausage and set aside, and use the pan drippings to saute the leeks and fennel later.  (I  used apple sausage from the farmers market - just made the day before from a local farm and it was awesome.  Would also work well with any kind of flavored sausage like sage or Italian. )  Continue on with the recipe, and add sausage after you've blended the ingredients together so that your sausage doesn't have the consistency of applesauce and you can get a spoonful of meat with each bite.


As for the potatoes, I didn't have Russet potatoes so I used a "medley" I had from Trader Joe's that included purple potatoes, red potatoes and fingerlings.  It worked just as well.


I used an immersion blender because the recipe said it would work better, but I think you'd have more control with a blender or Cuisinart. I like more "chunk" and less puree for this soup.


We skipped the croutons in favor of some crunchy bread.  I had some ciabatta rolls which I cut in half and spread butter over.  Add a sprinkle of Asiago and Parmesan cheese over top and place in toaster oven until crispy.  You can cube them and use as croutons or as bread on the side.


Enjoy and stay warm, ladies and gents!


-Bethany

Fall Food: Time To Start the Oven

If you’re living in Virginia like us then you’re probably stuck in the middle of the “do I, or don’t I?” debate over turning the heat on for the first time this season. I just got home from work and already I’m in sweats, slippers, a thermal and long sleeve robe. But I’m not complaining. I LOVE fall!!!!! It’s my favorite season and while some folks are sadly putting away their shorts and packing up their bbq grills – I’m gladly breaking out my sweaters and dusting off the crock pot.

It’s cool out there folks… and that means time for some delicious, falltastic treats. Here are some of my favorites that made a showing this past weekend.

Made a pot roast in my crock pot – yumms!! Pulled the recipe from Williams Sonoma’s Slow Cooker cookbook.

Baked a Streusel Kuchen for me and the hubby. I have some apple butter left over from last fall and am happily eating this on my streusel in between typing paragraphs.

Tea, tea and more tea. I love a good tea pot and cup. I have a stackable pot/cup from Crate & Barrel that a friend got me a couple years ago. It’s perfect for brewing tea for one (the hubs loathes tea). Paper Source has had some cute mugs in years past but could not track these down on their website.

- Kate

Favorite Finds: Envirosax

A couple years ago I received a collection of wonderful and simple Christmas gifts from a friend of mine. She had the brilliant idea of putting together a few of her favorite things to gift her friends, and she selected each to match the style of the girl she was giving it to. And thus one of her favorite things became one of my favorite things and I’ve been paying it forward ever since.

I love, love, love Envirosax!! They fold up super compact so I can fit them in everything but a clutch and it keeps me from bringing home so many shopping bags - whether I’m stopping at the grocery for a few items,  or hitting up Georgetown for some chic shopping. There are lots of unique items on the website, www.envirosax.com, so I recommend giving it a look.

- Kate

Instead of Ketchup (dear)

Keeping my hubby from putting ketchup on his steak for the past 2-years.

Berry Obsessed

There are a lot of things in life that I love and then there are those things that I just have a total obsession with – blueberries are one of these things. Besides tasting amazing (on top of ice cream, as homemade syrup for pancakes, in pancakes, as beer, in pies, on cereal, on their own, in muffins… should I continue?) they have a wonderful nostalgia for me. They remind me of family, summer vacations in Maine (downeast) where for a week we live(d) the most carefree existence surrounded by the people we love most. Too sappy… deal with it ;)

Let us know, what are you head-over-heals about!

- Kate

APB - A Liberia Special!

This is an all-points bulletin to all of the PW County residents . I have become increasingly enamored with two low-maintenance food establishments as of late, and want to share a recommendation if you're looking for either sweet or savory.

First up is Bella Vita Italian Eatery. They are located in the shopping center on Liberia Avenue in Manassas that includes the Longhorn Steakhouse and the Zips Dry Cleaners. You wouldn't think that an Italian restaurant in a strip-mall would be the hot-spot for down home Italian eats, but my husband and I have been there three times in the last month and have been nothing but dazzled each time. They make their own mozzarella cheese fresh daily, and it adds a layer of freshness to each of their dishes. I used to be a steadfast fan of the City Tavern's cheese sticks which touted gooey cheese and a great crunch, prior to your meal. Gone are those days! BV's Mozzarella Sticks far surpass the Tavern's.

They have excellent, fresh food, great prices and large portion-sizes. I have gotten two meals out of each entree I have ordered! I personally commend anyone who can feed myself and my husband for under $40! (and that's with appetizer, garlic rolls, salads and a to-go meal for a family member at home). The food is high quality Italian, with an extensive menu to capture all tastes. I love a good surprise restaurant - and Bella Vita has my vote. Can't wait to try the Elvis Panini next go-round.

My second suggestion is just a quick stop - Tutti Frutti Frozen Yogurt. They are also located on Liberia Avenue, in the shopping center directly across from Bella Vita. Tutti Frutti shares the philosophy of popular West Coast yogurt chain, Pinkberry, where they pride themselves on serving up a great frozen treat that is good for you. TF generally serves a handful of different flavored frozen yogurts to choose from, followed by an entire "fixins" bar of toppers. My personal favorite is the Pineapple yogurt with the assorted fruit jellies and Fruity Pebbles cereal on top. The best part is, for a half-cup it's only 100 calories! I'd recommend stopping in to grab a taste. If you are used to TCBY or other creamy frozen yogurt, you might be in for a bit of a surprise. Much like Pinkberry, this yogurt is a bit more tart. If you can stand a jolt on your taste buds, this refreshing treat is fabulous even in the dead of winter. And the priobiotic benefits of yogurt help maintain their 'good-for-ya' vibe.


Bethany