Archive for the ‘picture post’ Category

Quick look at what we’ve got going on right now…

Inspiration (the Bon Appetit cover – not The Shining).

Bacon… glorious bacon, for the stuffing.

The best yeast rolls in the entire world.

Full post later, but I just wanted to check in and wish all my fellow Yankees a happy turkey day filled with food, fun, friends, and family.  Enjoy the day!

When I flew out to see my friend Travis in California a few years ago, he picked me up from the airport with his girlfriend and told me flat out: “Okay, we have to stop at In-N-Out before we head home. You need to experience it.” I honestly had no idea what In-N-Out was at the time… and then I was enlightened. And addicted. And lived in the Midwest. If you haven’t heard of the cult of In-N-Out yet, it’s pretty simple: perfect, simple burgers, fries and shakes, done really, really well. I mean… really well.  Like the best fast food burger you’ll ever have well.

I know a lot of people knock fast food and the evils of it and blah blah blah McDonalds breakfast will kill you. But I stand firm when I say it’s all about the production of the product which causes the bad rap. If every restaurant did what In-N-Out does, I think we’d all be singing a different tune. Yes, it’s high in calories and fat because they’re still burgers and fries, but guess what, that organic pizza or locally raised beef you’re eating? Probably has the same calories.

No freezers, no heat lamps, freshly ground beef from their own cattle, hand leafed lettuce, freshly baked buns … I mean the list goes on and on of why this place rocks. And although I now live in Colorado and only get In-N-Out when I’m lucky (oddly enough today is Friday the 13th – go figure), I still make sure to grab an Animal style cheeseburger, fries, and Neapolitan shake whenever I can.

This past weekend I went home to celebrate my mother’s birthday and have a mini vacation to celebrate autumn in Kansas City, one of my favorite things in the entire world.  I went to the Andy Warhol exhibit at Union Station, Pierpont’s for lunch, the KC Renaissance Festival (in full garb as my sisters and I used to work there), Vaughn’s Apple Orchard, Weston Red Barn Farm, and made butternut squash soup plus baked apples with vanilla ice cream for dessert. A whirlwind weekend, but perfect from beginning to end.

Special thanks to Connie from work who sent me the salmon while she works remotely from Alaska. It was (obviously) much appreciated!

So yesterday I got back from my fun little vacation to Charleston, SC. What a gorgeous place, inside and out. Just beautiful architecture, flora, people and food. Something I kept remarking on was how good the entire city smelled.  Like flowers and breakfast breads and salty air.  We had a ton of fun visiting some truly remarkable houses and sites, walking the city, eating lots of great seafood and just relaxing.  Here’s a (very) small selection of the photos I took – mostly the food since, well, that’s always my favorite part anyway.