Girls Day / Fearless Foodie Tour of Cleveland

On Friday, S, C and I all took the day off and headed east to Cleveland! Because nearly every place we stopped had something to do with food, I thought it would be appropriate to share details of our adventure here. We had a wonderful time. The weather even cooperated and we had a perfectly sunny fall day. The only thing that could have made the day better, would have been the addition of two (or possibly four, including the little ones!) amazing women who were not able to join us...

We started our day on the east side at Penzeys Spices, a spice and herb store that C has been raving about forever. We now understand why she did - it's a fantastic place! We loaded up on all the necessary (and some just-for-fun) spices and herbs. To see their complete collection, which includes everything from your basic dried basil to their own concoctions of spice/herb blends, check out their site: http://www.penzeys.com. You can order online as well!

From there we also checked out Sur la Table which was right next door. C found a food mill (!!) and S and I got ideas for the no-longer-so-far-off holidays.

After a quick pit stop at Trader Joes for some much needed treats for the mommy-to-be, we were on our way once again!

These are $2 and delicious. C bought them at TJ's and the three of us nibbled on them all day long. Super light and cheesy. Mmm!

Our next stop was at Lakeview Cemetery in Cleveland, where lots of famous people are buried including John D. Rockefeller! Here we visited the Wade Chapel, designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany. We stayed for a presentation given by the docent, and we were able to learn quite a bit about the significance of the chapel. (Side note, this is where CJ wanted to get married, but didn't...now maybe S is considering the space!!!)

After all of that education we needed snacks! We drove down the hill into Little Italy, where we visited Presti's Bakery.

We all ordered cannolli, which are amazing in Little Italy. Additionally we tried various other delights including a Peanut Butter Fudge Brownie, Pignoli Cookies and... cole slaw.

We continued headed back westward along Euclid Ave and made our next halt at Gallucci's Italian Market (http://www.gustgallucci.com/). This place doesn't look like much from the outside, but the inside is filled with European goodies from floor to ceiling. They have a deli counter with meats and cheeses from Italy, an enormous wine collection, shelves filled with various pastas and canned goods, and a lot more. We had fun looking around. We came away with items like fresh pizza dough, imported pasta, and canned chestnuts!

Next stop, West Side Market!! We started with the produce aisles and then headed into the inside market. We wandered through aisles of fresh meat and seafood, fresh breads and cheeses, and specialty items like pierogi and flavored pastas. S and C took home some of the last two items, which looked quite tasty as they were going into their bags.

We also checked out the Hansa Import Haus, which is a store filled with German imported goodies from candy to cheese to beer and wine. I took home some necessities from here! (http://hansaimporthaus.com/store/). Photo taken from car so it shows the side of the building (I forgot to take one of the front while we were there!).

Across the street is Farkas Hungarian Bakery, where we oooed and aaahed over the fresh pastries. (http://www.farkaspastries.com/). This picture was taken as the car was moving, so it isn't as clear as it could be!

We bought Pumpoleans, which are Napoleons with pumpkin custard instead of vanilla. We filled a box with treats and then continued onward!

We stopped at Phnom Phen, where C order spring rolls to take home for her and B. We will have to schedule a trip back here to check out their full menu.

Our last stop of the day was at Bier Markt where we sat and relaxed with drinks and some warmed olives. It was Friday Happy Hour, but we were there before the after work crowds showed up. It was nice to sit outside in the sun and watch the people go by.

The day was AMAZING and I wish that we could do this every Friday (with the additional four girls, of course!). It was a lot of fun to explore the city, find many of the best culinary delights that Cleveland has to offer, and just to spend time together. We will have to schedule another day very soon and continue our exploration of the foodie treasures that Cleveland has to offer!

Neely's Spicy Corn Chowder

Fall is in the air and I found myself reminiscing about our progressive supper last year! I wish I could recreate the whole event, but I'm going to settle for cooking up the corn chowder I made for my portion of the evening. I never added it to the blog so here it is!

Ingredients

* 4 pieces thick-sliced bacon, chopped
* 1 medium Vidalia onion, finely chopped
* 1 medium red bell pepper, chopped
* Salt and freshly ground black pepper
* 1 small jalapeno, chopped seeds and ribs removed
* 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 4 cups chicken stock
* 2 large red potatoes, well scrubbed and small diced
* 1 cup heavy cream
* 16 ounces frozen corn
* 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
* 1 bay leaf

Directions

In a small saucepan over medium heat, saute the bacon until crisp and browned and the fat is rendered. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towel and reserve. There should be about 4 tablespoons of bacon grease in pan.

Add the onions and red pepper to pan. Saute until tender and translucent, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add the jalapeno and garlic and saute until fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in the flour until thoroughly combined. Cook the flour until it reaches a slight blonde color, about 1 minute. Stir in the chicken stock and the potatoes and simmer for 10 minutes; potatoes will become soft. Add the cream, corn, cayenne and bay leaf. Simmer for 15 more minutes. Pour into a serving bowl and garnish with the reserved bacon.

Sauteed Chard

I am loving all of the Foodies action!!!!

We have been getting chard in the farm share almost all season and this is my favorite recipe. I went a little heavy on the lemon the first time around (I think I may have double or tripled the amount) and thought it was awesome. Brett didn't like the lemon as much, so on subsequent rounds I have laid off of it a bit. I can't remember which website I found this on, oops.

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 small red onion, diced
1 bunch Swiss chard, stems and center ribs cut out and chopped together, leaves coarsely chopped separately
1/2 cup dry white wine (I used cooking sherry)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, or to taste
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt to taste (optional)

Directions
Melt butter and olive oil together in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the garlic and onion, and cook for 30 seconds until fragrant. Add the chard stems and the white wine. Simmer until the stems begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chard leaves, and cook until wilted. Finally, stir in lemon juice and Parmesan cheese; season to taste with salt if needed.

Raspberry Buckle

Ingredients
2 cups and 1-2 Tbsp of sifted, all purpose flour separated
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
2 cups raspberries

Topping ingredients:
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup sifted all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Method
Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease an 8x8x2-inch pan (or 9x9). Set aside.

Sift together the 2 cups of flour, the baking powder and the salt. Set aside. Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg. Add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with the milk. Toss the berries with the remaining 1 to 2 tablespoons of flour (to separate and scatter evenly throughout the batter) and fold in. Pour batter into the prepared pan. Set aside.

Combine ingredients for topping with a fork to make crumbly mixture. Sprinkle this over the batter.

Bake for one hour, then test by gently inserting a fork. If it does not come out clean, give the cake another 5 to 10 minutes to bake.

Best served warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Midtown Memphis Cuisine

So, I haven't really been cooking at all. Between not really having my kitchen set up to my standards (until this weekend) and not feeling like being on my feet, I've been relying on my mom's great cooking and all the fantastic restaurants within a mile or two of our new house. Here are three of the restaurants you'll have to try when you come to visit us!

Huey's

Huey's is our local burger joint. In my opinion, it's better than the Feve. They also have great potato soup, salads, and other sandwiches. You have to shoot your toothpick frills into the ceiling using your straw while you're there. And don't forget to graffiti the walls so everyone knows you were there!

Central BBQ

Central BBQ is classic Memphis barbecue. We're famous for "dry rub" ribs, but you can also get wet ribs or slather on sauce afterwards. They have delicious homemade barbecue chips and a great big porch for outdoor sitting.

Soul Fish
Mississippi Delta catfish, anyone? Soul Fish has the best hush puppies ever! They also have fabulous Southern veggies and amazing desserts.

Nathan's Hummus

A few weeks ago when Christina and I had lunch, she had a container or hummus from the grocery store and I had just finished making hummus for my lunch. After tasting the homemade stuff and realizing how simple it was to make, I think I sold her on Nathan's recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 can chickpeas
1/3 cup sesame butter (tahini)
1/2 cup lemon juice
1 garlic clove, crushed
1/2 tsp. salt
1 T olive oil

Optional additions--zatar spice, or cumin or hot sauce.

Blend in the food processor until smooth. Serve with pita and crudite!

Mama Dee's Saurkraut

Well, ladies, the saurkraut is cooking away in my crockpot as I type this - and it smells like heaven! This recipe is not for the fermentation of the cabbage; it is a "doctoring up" of purchased saurkraut. My mom has worked for years to make it just right for our family, so I hope you like it (otherwise, feel free to modify it to suit your taste).

Ingredients
2 bags of refridgerated saurkraut
2 pork chops - bone in
1 baking potato
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 bay leaves
1 cup water (use the saurkraut bags)

Directions
1 - Roast the pork chops in the oven at 325 degrees for an hour or until they are cooked through.
2 - While the pork is roasting, pull out your trusty crockpot.
3 - Add both bags of saurkraut, the brown sugar, and the bay leaves to the crockpot and start cooking it on low. Also add one cup of water to keep things juicy (I used this as an opportunity to get every last shred of tasty kraut out of the bags).
4 - Thoroughly scrub the potato (this will remove some but not all of the skin) and then shred it (I used my food processor). Add the shredded potato to the crockpot.
5 - When the pork is cooked; remove it from the oven and allow to cool enough to be handled. Remove fatty portions and bone. Shred the meat and add it to the crockpot. Stir thoroughly
6 - Cook on high for two hours and stir occassionally to make sure that it is not browning on the bottom.
7 - Remove bay leaves before serving.