Orange Cornmeal Cake

I've been sick since we got back from Florida last weekend, so all of the cooking has been falling to The Husband (as evidenced by our posts).  We had a friend of ours coming over for dinner earlier this week and decided to go with a Mexican theme.  Hubby was handling most of the dinner, but I said I would take care of dessert. I considered making a tres leches cake, but decided that would be way too heavy after a filling meal. 

The in-laws had sent us back with tons of oranges, tangerines and grapefruits and so I started looking for a recipe that could incorporate one or all of those fruits.  When I came across this recipe in the blog, Linden & Rosemary I knew it was just what I was looking for - something light and not too sweet.

A Modified Cote d'Azur Cure-All Soup

The Wife has been under the weather all week with a sinus infection, and being "in the family way" she can't take any anti-biotics for it. Looking for healing recipes, I came across this recipe on CHOW, and modified it only slightly - adding a large can of tomatoes.

Fried Avocado Bites

Genius. Pure Genius.

I can't remember exactly where I first saw a recipe for these little morsels of goodness - one of the many food emails that I get with pictures that make your mouth water at 10:30 in the morning. But, like so many great recipes, it was something that should have been so obvious - but I had never thought of.

Eggplant Lasagna

As of late, The Wife has had an aversion to noodles and pasta - but I had left over meatloaf, and it was Sunday - so lasagna seemed like the logical option. She loves eggplant - with a passion, so that was the substitute. I got the Italian fix and she got eggplant.

Homemade Ricotta

We had to do something with the left over meatloaf. I opted for an eggplant lasagna - not only because it would give us a different taste from the meatloaf than the night before, but because it afforded me the opportunity to make ricotta.

I've made goat cheese before with success, and the only difference I spotted between making that and whole milk ricotta, was the milk. And that you add the acid before cooking instead of after.

Elk Meat Loaf

Do you ever watch TV and see something that inspires a meal? More often than not it's something on the Food Network that will make something click. The Wife and I were watching "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives" and Guy was interviewing someone who had meatloaf as a specialty.

That made The Wife's ears perk up "I want meat loaf" she said -and I filed that away in the future brownie points department.

I woke up earlier than she did Saturday morning and set out a two pound pack of ground elk that The Father-in-Law sent us from a hunting trip in Missouri.

Before we go any further, I should tell you I've never made meat loaf before. This is my first attempt, but to paraphrase a bad comedy routine "I've seen it done on TV".

Southwestern Chicken & Corn Chowder

One of the things I love about a simple soup recipe is the flexibility it gives you to really make the recipe your own.  I came across a Chicken Corn Chowder recipe in Cooking Light and instantly I knew that it could be the bones to a dish that the Husband and I would love!

The Husband I recently returned from Florida and have been fighting allergies, etc. since we got back.  Both of us were really under the weather yesterday, so a soup was right up our alley.

Review: Boom Boom Burgers

It's a chilly Friday afternoon, and I just finished my first boom boom burger. A BBQ Boom Boom to be exact.

If you haven't yet heard of Boom Boom Burgers, tucked away on Franklin Street in Shockoe Bottom near Juleps, you soon will. I know, because some publication was in today taking pictures - so I'm sure an article is forthcoming.

This is the kind of place you naturally want to support. All of their ingredients are fresh and local. The beef is all grass-fed. The bacon and cheeses are made at local farms and the bread is from Flour Garden Bakery.

Tiki Tiki Restaurant

Maybe you've passed by this place on Patterson Avenue in the far West End. It's in a stand alone building, red with a green roof - and a Tiki god standing watch by the door. It's easy to miss, in between a strip mall and a barbecue joint that looks like a car garage.

The Wife and I stumbled onto Tiki Tiki a few years ago because it reminded us of a place in Roanoke (The Wife's hometown) - Fiji Island.

Cocoa Brownies

This by far is the easiest brownie recipe I have come across - and one of the most delicious. There is no reason to ever buy a box brownie kit again when you can make these.

I found this super simple recipe on Handle The Heat,  but the original recipe can be found in Bittersweet by Alice Medrich.

Stuzzi on a Monday Night

To answer The Marinara's question - Yes.

The Wife and I had plans to try Stuzzi last night - a colleague of mine and I had been talking about it for a while, and the $1 pizza (at the bar only) enticed us enough to make the trip.

A little before 6:30 we came in through the side door on Ellwood and saw two bars full of people who already knew what we would come to know by the end of our meal.

The bars were packed, but the restaurant was empty - and none of the bar patrons were leaving anytime soon. We agreed to wait until the other couple arrived and if no seats opened up, we'd take a table and chalk it up to bad timing. At this point, there were now two parties behind us also waiting for bar seats rather than sitting at one of the many available tables (they too knew what we would soon find out.)