Fried Green Tomatoes

I had one of the best days ever this week!  It started out with two lovely Master Gardener volunteers sharing their knowledge about gardening and life with some of our residents at Florence Crittenton. I was able to spend extra time with the volunteers after class and learned about how to propagate basil and mint, a book that everyone needs to read, and which Asian Market was the best to visit in Charlotte.  I had a fabulous time and was really inspired by these amazing women.  One of them especially seems to just exude knowledge and wisdom with every word she says!  She's almost 3 times my age, but with her energy and spirit you would never know it.

During the class, a few of our residents mentioned that they wanted Fried Green Tomatoes, so that afternoon we made them.  It was awesome!  I had about 5 or 6 ladies with me in the kitchen and we had our own little slicing, seasoning, flouring, egg washing, and breading assembly line going on.  We used Brandywine Heirloom Tomatoes that we grew from seeds and they turned out perfectly!  I was in heaven.  Not only did we make something delicious that everyone was proud of, but our ladies who have been going through so much were smiling, laughing and having a good time.  I'm hoping that this will be a memory they carry with them and pass on to their children.  Here's the recipe.

Our Masterpiece

Sisters in the City

While my husband was gone on a weekend man trip, I decided to have fun ladies' nights at my casa.  One of them included a sister's night with cocktails and a trip to the Dandelion Market.  With my latest simple syrup kick, I decided to try a Strawberry Rhubarb Cocktail and it turned out pretty good!  I used some fun ice spheres (ice balls just sounds wrong) that the Kelly & Aaron got me for Christmas...or my birthday.

Me showing off my bartending skills.  Please notice the gorgeous

peony in the lower left-hand corner.

My beautiful sisters Megan and Erin.  

Kelly wasn't present in the body that evening as she was in Liverpool, 

but she was definitely present in spirit (I don't know what that means but it sounds right).

Fournal (Food Journal)

I think I'm going to write on here more so I actually remember what I cook/eat.  Sometimes I put it in my paper journal, but that's not easy to reference.  So here are a few things I've made lately that maybe I'll write longer posts on one day:

- Beef Short Rib Pot Pie - This was AWESOME!  Jeremy was gone one weekend, I think on a guys NASCAR weekend filled with thick accents, trucker hats, and racecar (I heart palendromes) worshippers.  I added mushrooms because I love them and then decided to make my own crust using coconut oil.  The short rib part was so so so good, the crust was crumbly and not really good at all.  I wonder if there's a way to make a successful coconut oil crust?  I felt like I was on Game of Thrones eating this.

- Bischcleery Dinner Party - My in-laws were in town, so I invited my parents over as well to have a fun parent party.  I was pretty certain everyone loved pasta, so I decided to make Meatballs with Pappardelle Pasta (from Pasta and Provisions) and Ricotta,  Roasted Asparagus.  We started out with Asiago Cheese Bread my mother-in-law brought dipped in Dipping Spices with Olive Oil.  We then had a Mixed Green Salad with a Simple Balsamic Vinegaigrette.  After the main course we had Flourless Chocolate Cake with "Creme Fraiche" and a Raspberry Syrup.  It turned out so great!

- McCleery Mother's Day - We had scones with Devonshire Cream and Quiche Lorraine.

Food Stories to look forward to:

- Honeysuckle Cordial!!!

- Peanutbutter Cheesecake

- Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

- Dinner Party Fiesta - Margaritas, Drunken Chicken Tacos with Honey Slaw, Homemade Tortillas, Refried Beans and Chipotle Flourless Chocolate Cake

- Kovach Pesto with Pasta - Basil/Parsley/Cashew Pesto with Pappardelle Pasta, Mushrooms and Ricotta...later I headed up the Ricotta and squeezed some lemon...even better than when we first ate

- Kovach Skillet Pancake/Dutch Baby

- Jeremy's Sick Chicken Soup - Rosemary, thyme, chicken thighs, butter

- Leftover Pizza - Everything was leftovers - Ricotta, Artichoke, Mozzarella, Tomato Sauce, Onion...and it was so good.  I ate almost all of it.

Orange Peel Candy

Today I remembered the jar of Orange Liqueur I made back in November.  I wanted to make some flavored liqueurs and found the recipe on Pinterest.  It's supposed to set with orange peels in it for one month, then you're supposed to remove the peels and let it sit for one month more before it's ready.  I missed the 1 month mark and just removed the peels today, two weeks late...whoopsies!  I think it'll be fine.

As I was straining out the liquid, I remembered seeing orange peel candies somewhere and thought I'd hit the internets to see if I could find a simple recipe.  I loosely followed this one I found.  They turned out great!  I'm thinking I'll use them to make a fun drink or to garnish some dessert...or to just eat with chocolate.