Lobster Night!

Last weekend I was in Camden, Maine for my aunt's wedding. It was four days of non-stop eating and drinking with my family and having a ton of fun. I have never been to Camden before but if you ever get the chance, I highly recommend going. It is right on the water, a ton of places to eat, a lot of shops, only a few of which have the "touristy" feel to it and even those are better than other tourist type shops I've been in. There are a number of ships that are available to be booked for a day cruise and there are other towns nearby such as Rockport and Rockland which have their own charm, things to do and of course, amazing places to get the highest quality seafood. Which is what was the highlight of my trip for food. Amy and I love seafood. It is among my favorite types of food, if not the favorite, lobster being at the top of the seafood chain. Unfortunately Amy could not go with me on this trip due to work, so I decided to bring a little bit of Camden, Maine back with me to Albany, especially after devouring the guy in the picture below. One was not enough to get my lobster fix!

This was my lobster dinner at my aunt's rehearsal dinner.
 Words cannot describe how delicious it was.

So in order to obtain these magnificent creatures I did the most sensible thing, asked someone in Camden where the best place to get some fresh lobster to be packed up and brought home is. My aunt and her new husband recommended a place called Graffam Bros. Seafood Market (which also owned the restaurant the rehearsal dinner was at, after having that first lobster dinner, which was incredible, I was fully confident that they were leading me in the best possible direction). So with the car packed up and ready to go, we stopped at Graffam Bros. to get the lobsters. This place was less a seafood market and more heaven for any seafood lover, the selection was amazing, everything fresh and the staff knowledgeable and helpful. I ended up buying three, pound and a half  hard shell lobsters (one for myself, one for Amy and one for a special dinner guest, my sister Pam, who had flown in from Portland, Oregon). Also worth noting is hard shell was recommended as they stay fresher longer, also the smaller lobsters tend to have sweeter and more tender meat versus a large lobster like a larger three pounder.

The reason I am going into such detail into this place, that is not in Albany, is that they ship! You can go online to their website, www.lobsterstogo.com, and order whatever seafood your looking for, including fresh Maine lobsters and have them to you in less than twenty four hours. Their prices are very reasonable for the lobsters themselves, my three lobsters and three containers of seafood chowder was under $60.00 with tax and really can you put a price on the experience of cooking and eating a fresh lobster? The answer is no, you cannot.

With the lobsters wrapped in cold wet newspapers, frozen gel packs on top and bundled into a styrofoam cooler they were good to go. The staff there made sure to tell me that the lobsters had to be cooked within 24 hours or they would go bad or die. Oh darn, had to eat them as soon as I got back into Albany.

Once home, the cooking took place, when you cook your lobsters mentally prepare yourselves for a roller coaster of an experience. The lobsters were kind of cute and on one hand it is a little sad to do the dirty work and toss the poor little guys who were a few days ago chilling on the ocean floor minding their business into a jacuzzi of death. I got over it quick.

There, there guys. It's going to be okay.

Cooking a lobster is surprisingly simple. The seafood expert at Graffam Bros. suggested that if I wanted to cook it tomorrow to half boil them, for about 7 minutes, store them in the fridge overnight and then boil them for another 7 minutes to finish them the next day when ready to eat. I am a big proponent of eating food as fresh as possible, especially when it comes to seafood, so we opted to cook them and eat them when I got back to Albany.

What you'll want to do is get a large pot full of water, large enough to accommodate however many you are doing, I had to use two separate pots because one was not large enough for all three. Place two tablespoons of salt for each quart of water in the pot and then bring to a boil. I have read about people putting herbs and freshly squeezed lemon juice in the water as well but we went the simple clean route. 

Once the water has come to a rapid boil, thank your new friends for their sacrifice, leave the rubber bands on and toss them into the bath. BE WARNED! I have never cooked a live lobster before, some crazy stuff went down right before they got dunked. Amy and I both grabbed the lobsters to get them into the pots, one of them started flapping it's tail violently to the point I thought it was going to drop, another one raised it's claws up and to the side like it was a bizarre lobster Moses trying to part the salty boiling water sea it was doomed to go head first into, and I don't even remember what the third was doing it was so chaotic. Needless to say there was a lot of laughing and shouting and then we got them in.

For this size (1.5 pounds) once they are in cover them and cook for about 15 minutes or until they turn that nice bright red color. 

If you have ever wondered why a lobster turns red, according to the Maine Lobster Institute: "A live lobster is greenish/black because of the many different color pigment chromatophores. When it is cooked, all the pigments are masked except for the astaxanthin, the red background pigment." http://www.lobster.um.maine.edu/index.php?page=22

Also lobsters do not have a complicated enough nervous system, similar to that of an insect, to feel pain according to research. The infamous "lobster scream" you hear when they are cooking, is actually the steam as it is being released through the cracks in the shell making noise. There now, don't you feel better about eating them? Guilt or not, the taste is worth it!

Once the lobsters are done, grab a pair of tongs and pull them out, I would place them on a pan or cooking sheet for a few minutes so some of the excess water gets out before you place them on plates. Once they are out and not dripping a ton of water get them on the plate. You may notice the tail has curled under, this is normal. You can leave it under until ready to separate it and eat it or stretch it out from under the body on the plate. Then, your going to want to get what in my opinion are the two essential things you need to get the most out of eating the lobsters is some fresh lemon wedges and melted butter. 

Once you have those two things you are good to go. We decided to make a salad on the side to go with the lobsters (the salad was baby spinach, grapes, chopped walnuts and a homemade pineapple orange vinaigrette that Amy and I made one night on a date, it is our favorite salad and we make it a ton, we'll post the very simple recipe for it separate from this soon!) and also heated up some of the seafood chowder I brought home. I also grabbed a bottle of wine from a winery in Maine while there as well, it was a wine with apple and pear notes that paired well with seafood, this or a nice light beer would be the best beverage options to make the whole experience come together and compliment the flavor of the lobster.

Lobsters. Devoured.

Table set we sat down and ate. I won't get into every detail of eating a lobster because to me that is one of the best parts of eating lobsters for the first time, is getting into it, that visceral feeling you get when breaking into the shell and using your hands, it's a lot of fun!

 Some basic tips are to make sure you have a seafood/shell cracker and a sturdy fork. My favorite strategy is to take the claws off, crack them open and get the meat out, take the legs off and suck the meat out of those just like a straw, then take the tail off the body and get all that meat out (argueably the best meat on a lobster is in the tail). Hit the claw and tail meat with some lemon, dip in melted butter and enjoy the ridiculously amazing flavor that will bombard your taste buds.

So that was lobster night. A ton of fun and one of the most delicious foods I ever get the chance to eat. Fair warning it is a messy affair, we had a bowl on the table for our lobster shells and it looked like a lobster graveyard.

Lobster cocktail did not go over well.

And while dinner was amazing and delicious what was best about it was who I was eating with. Special thanks goes out to my big sister Pam for flying home for the wedding and hanging out with Amy and I in Albany and to Amy for as usual being my partner in culinary crime and mischief. It was really great to have two of the most important and favorite women in my life meet and be able to spend time with them together. See you in August Pam when I come out to Portland!

Getting Through Your Daily Grind

If you find yourself in downtown Albany on Lark Street and in need of caffeine and/or breakfast for any reason, in my case because I drank an entire bottle of sake on my own at Shogun the night before while Amy and Tracey watched and made fun of my steady decline in speech through dinner, then make your way to 204 Lark Street, home of the Daily Grind.

Lark Street Cafe

When you first enter the Daily Grind, you'll be given two options, head up to the roastery where you can purchase a wide variety of all things coffee from machines to fresh ground coffee. If you head down you will find the cafe.

Up for the goods!

Down for delicious!

The Daily Grind offers a breakfast menu served all day as well as a wide variety of deli sandwiches and they now deliver lunch to the downtown Albany area. Unfortunately I haven't had the chance to really eat at the Daily Grind too much besides getting two things. Coffee and a breakfast sandwich. I'll stick to what I know.


Daily Grind serves up a variety coffees every day and rotates them frequently so I never feel bored with what is offered, I usually go for their dark roast or light roast depending on my mood. If your a coffee addict like myself, go for the dark roast, it has more flavor and more bite. Perfect way to get your day going. Daily Grind offers iced coffee as well which is quite good, but I'm going to have to give it up to Uncommon Grounds (who will be on a future blog entry) for the better iced coffee and better flavored coffee. No matter what you decide though you really cannot go wrong with any coffee choice you make at Daily Grind, they do a fantastic job with all of it.

When it comes to their breakfast sandwiches, the Daily Grind make a fantastic sandwich extremely well consistently and it is always delicious. You get your choice of bacon, ham, sausage or turkey sausage, choice of american, swiss or smoked mozzarella cheese and then you can opt to put it all on a hard roll, wheat bread, rye bread or an english muffin (bagel or croissant, add on a $1.00). They have a great deal where you get a medium coffee and the breakfast sandwich for only $5.25, don't forget to ask them for a coffee card too, for every 10 coffee beverages you purchase, you get one free, another reason I love the Daily Grind.

My favorite though, has to be the vegetable egg and cheese. This sandwich is absolutely the best breakfast sandwich I've had. It is spinach, grilled onions and tomato, I always go for swiss as it compliments the flavor of the veggies perfectly and usually I get it on a soft buttered hard roll that they grill on the flat top. I'm going to stop talking about it and let some pictures speak for themselves. If you haven't been there, hit the Daily Grind, in Albany or Troy, for some of the best coffee and breakfast around whether your looking for a great hangover food, or just plain hungry.

http://www.dailygrind.com/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

The saddest part, the last bite.

Shogun!

So, if you've been to the corner of Madison and Lark lately you've seen a new (very intriguing-looking) restaurant pop up seemingly out of nowhere. The way that this place came up out of the blue without me hearing anything about it struck my curiosity, so I had to check it out. The other day Chris, my best friend Tracey, and I all took a trip down there to see what this mysterious "Shogun" place had to offer. We walked in to a relatively corny, americanized version of "oriental" decor. This was okay though, because we were sitting outside, and who isn't used to seeing that type of ambiance in Asian restaurants? It's pretty standard nowadays.
While waiting for a table outside, we sat at the bar and took a look at their (quite limited) drink menu. Their variety of sake goes on for miles, however their mixed drink selection is made up of two drinks; the Scorpion  and the Mai Tai. We each ordered a drink, which were actually delicious and very refreshing on the hot day.

We then got our table outside, and were greeted by a very nice waiter who offered fast service. We ordered a few appetizers to get started. The first was Baby Lobster Tempura with a spicy mayo. The second, Haromaki, and we couldn't go to an Asian cuisine eatery without getting Gyoza. All three of these appetizers were amazing, and we couldn't wait to order dinner.

For dinner, Tracey and I both ordered the Hibachi chicken, while Chris went with a blackened steak with sweet potato tempura. Both of these meals were amazing (especially the steak). We ate until we were way past full.

For what we had, the price was quite reasonable. It was about $30 a person, which included tasty drinks, awesome appetizers, and meals that were definitely worth blogging about! So to summarize, I'd say don't let the tacky decor fool you, this mysterious Japanese/Chinese/American restaurant isn't just another Asian spot. It's something worth stopping in for. Shogun gets an A in my book!

****SIDENOTE***
What would make your experience at Shogun (or any restaurant for that matter) more enjoyable? Bring Chris with you, and get him drunk! When we first got there, he had a very tasty Mai Tai, he then decided to order an entire bottle of Junmia Gingo (sake). He then went on to drink the entire bottle all by his lonesome...

.........And that's how Chris got drunk at Shogun!

Go to http://www.shogunofdelmar.com/index.php for more info!

Pulled Pork Dinner Night!

Every Sunday, Chris and I have a few of our friends over. Each week it's dinner, hanging, and usually our favorite Sunday night shows (Walking Dead, Game of Thrones), or a movie. This Sunday, we decided to do a pulled-pork dinner with fried pickles. Plus, of course, no pulled-pork sandwich is quite complete without some homemade coleslaw. Everyone seemed to love it, and I kept saying to myself "if only they knew how easy it was to make!" Well, now you ALL can know exactly how easy it is to reproduce my pulled pork Sunday night dinner!

We'll start off with the pork:
*NOTE: You need a crock pot for this recipe. If your crock pot is small, you can adjust the recipe to fit the size roast you buy. The good thing about slow-cooking is that it usually comes out good no matter what!


Ingredients:
4-5lb Pork roast (we did bone-in, but boneless works too)
1/2 c. mustard (use your favorite, that's what we did!)
1 Tbsp parsley
1 Tbsp garlic powder
1 Tbsp black pepper
1/2 Tbsp crushed red pepper (more if you like it spicy!)
1 Tbsp paprika
1-2 jars BBQ sauce
Kosher salt (quantity changes with your taste)
1 large onion

Directions:
1) Line the bottom of the slow cooker with a large sliced onion (this is so the bottom is coated- to prevent burning on the bottom)
2) In a bowl, mix together mustard, garlic powder, black pepper, crushed red pepper and paprika. This is going to be your wet rub for the pork
3) Rub the mixture all over the pork, mainly focusing on what's going to be the "top" when it is in the cooker (One good technique I learned was to take a ziplock bag and use it as a glove to rub the roast with. That way your hand stays clean, and you can turn it inside out when you're done- mess free!)
4) Put the roast into the cooker, cover it in your favorite BBQ sauce (just so that the roast is covered! Too much and the cooker will fill up with unusable liquid as it cooks)
5) Set your cooker to low, time it for 7-8 hours...and walk away!
6) After the allotted time, sprinkle kosher salt over the top of the roast (I'd say 1 Tbsp is good to start)
7) Remove the pork to a large baking pan or other large dish (this recipe feeds A LOT of people). It should fall off of the bone, all you have to do is help it the rest of the way using two forks to split the chunks apart.
8) Cover the pork in the onions that are left in the cooker, along with about 1/2 of the liquid that's left.
9) Add more BBqsauce, salt and pepper to your liking
10) Smile at how proud you are, and dig in!!














I WILL NOW TAKE A BREAK TO TALK ABOUT TWO OF MY FAVORITE THINGS. (My pulled-pork would not be MINE without these two things)


1) Dakin Farm Barbecue Sauce. This barbecue sauce is made by my second favorite smokehouse in all the land. Located in Vergennes Vermont, this place is well worth the trip. Trust me, my family spends a whole day just to go to this place! The sauce has jut the right sweetness and tang-perfect for pulled-pork!

You can order it online (I also recommend checking out their other stuff too!). Just go to http://www.dakinfarm.com/SearchResult.aspx?searchPhrase=barbecue%20sauce.


2) Oscar's Smokehouse's "More than Mustard". Birthed by my (and Rachel Ray's) favorite smokehouse, once you have this mustard you will never go back. Located in Warrensburg, NY, this smokehouse really knows what they're doing when it comes to everything-especially their mustard!

ORDER IT ONLINE! You won't be disappointed! http://www.oscarsadksmokehouse.com/specialty-items/more-than-mustard

Operation Herb Garden Part I (by Chris)

For as long as I can remember, I've wanted a vegetable garden. I think it stems from a childhood memory of going next door to my neighbor's house for dinner, her mother had her own vegetable garden and I have this vivid memory of pulling a carrot out of the ground, roots still attached, covered with soil and smelling like earth and then washing it off and biting into it. It was amazing.

Yeah, they looked like this. Delicious.

Unfortunately apartment life is not very conducive to growing a vegetable garden, lack of space inside and a large yard outside puts a damper on these plans, so I am giving the next best thing a shot, an herb garden. From what I have heard and read growing herbs is relatively easy and something you can manage to do indoors without a lot of space. I had been meaning to pick up herbs but kept forgetting, then Amy spotted at Target these small little herb greenhouses, only $1 each we picked up one that had cilantro seeds, one had sweet basil and a small mini terracotta planter which will grow some daisies for the fun of it. These are going to be the test pilot herbs for our herb garden and will keep everyone updated each step of the way.

The instructions were pretty straight forward, put 6 tablespoons of water in a cup, add the two soil discs they give to you, allow to absorb water completely. The first time I did this I was completely mesmerized by what was happening, I won't spoil it for you, it's cool.

Then take the growing medium now moist and ready to go, place it in the small green house the give you, place no more than 10 seeds on the soil, lightly press down and put the top on. Keep in a sunny area and ensure it stays moist (I decided to put ours on the air conditioner in the kitchen, gets plenty of sun and I can water them easily). 

GERMINATION!

So there it is. Checked on the seeds today and they have started germinating. Operation Herb Garden has begun. Once these have grown an inch or two I'll need to transfer them to a larger planter, after that if all goes according to plan I'll be looking into getting a whole lot more and planting a larger herb garden outside on our roof. 

I purchased awhile back these vintage spoons engraved with herbs on them from www.etsy.com (one of my favorite sites in the world) to mark which herbs are which. All said and done hopefully will look fantastic and Amy and I will have some fresh herbs to make some fresh dishes. There is nothing like the smell of fresh herbs while cooking up a delicious meal with the girl you love.

Grilled Swordfish and Steamed Clams!

Remember how yesterday we bought swordfish and littleneck clams from Two Cousins Fish Market? Well, today we decided to try them out! I put Chris on Swordfish duty (it was my first time eating swordfish) and I was on the clams.

For the swordfish, Chris marinated the steaks in Newman's Own lite Caesar dressing for about an hour in the fridge.

Next, he heated up the grill plate to about medium heat (we love this thing-got it at an outlet shop in Lee Massachusetts for $20!). He spread just a tiny bit of olive oil on the grill, salt-and-peppered the steaks (we muddle our own peppercorns, but black or white pepper will do),and tossed those bad boys on. I recommend putting your exhaust fan on when grilling indoors because it tends to get a tad smokey. We learned this the hard way...more than once!

He grilled the steaks for about 15 minutes (a little over 7 minutes per side), until they had some dark grill marks and were fully cooked through
to the middle.












For the clams I did a simple steam (and when I say simple, I mean SIMPLE).
First I heated up a pan on medium to high heat and added about a cup of beer to it. I let the beer heat up and added 3 cloves of diced garlic, and 2 tablespoons of butter (I actually used Smart Balance margarine, but only because I''m trying to slim down a bit!).

Once the mixture was heated and the butter was melted, I add in the clams (but not before I WASHED them-otherwise they would get gritty). I covered the pan with a lid and turned the temperature up to high. Within five minutes these guys popped right open and were ready to eat! (NOTE: If there are ones that don't pop open, DO NOT eat them- they are bad).

 When they were all set, I pulled each one out and put them in a bowl. That way I could drown them in the sauce. Over everything I sprinkled a tiny bit of Kosher salt and everything was ready! See?-Simple!

It was finally a nice enough day to set up chairs on our roof outside. We had to do up a makeshift table, but it was an amazing lunch with an awesome view, great weather and an even greater boy!

Which Starbucks is the BEST Starbucks?

As most of you may know, we have a sick addiction to coffee. Out of all the cutesy, locally owned spots I've been to, by far my favorite is the Hudson River Coffee House on Quail and Hudson downtown. I will definitely be doing a full post about them in the very near future (because they are AMAZING). However, right now I want to talk about a good fallback for anyone-Starbucks. We have been to probably every single Starbuck in the Capital Region between the two of us, but we've agreed that a favorite is the 'bucks located on New Scotland Ave next to Albany Medical Center. Parking is a bit of a hassle, but if you find yourself in there, you are greeted with a calm atmosphere and Baristas who actually know what they're doing. It's relatively quiet in there too, so studying or a coffee date with friends is definitely doable. What I also love about this location is their outdoor seating. Although it is in a busy part of town, the patio gives you a sense of calm as the downtown hustle-and-bustle  surrounds you. Some other mentionable locations would be the 'bucks in Crossgates mall (I'm partial to this one from my years at Best Buy), Stuyvestant Plaza, and the one right off of Exit 6 on the Thruway in Latham. Where not to go? The Starbucks on Western Ave across from UAlbany. Yes, they have a drive-thru, but when you go there you are greeted with nothing but hit-or-miss coffee quality, slow service, and less than interested employees. Sorry guys, pick up your game. Stuyvestant Plaza and Uncommon Grounds (I'll post about this later as well) are both right down the road-go there instead.

 The reason I bring this up is because we stopped at the New Scotland location this morning for breakfast before we set out on some errands.

We got their chicken sausage and egg white wrap, and two iced coffees. Just this simple breakfast made me happy and ready to start our day...until I found out we were going to Home Depot (Blech!)

 New to the Starbucks thing? Somethings I think you'll love are the Iced Caramel Machiatto (I get the "skinny" version), and for your at-home coffee brewing, their Sumatra blend (they'll grind it for you too, depending on what type of coffee maker you have!).
What not to try?- Their Blonde Roast. It's a light Roast, but almost TOO light. I gets into Dunkin Donuts territory, bordering on the "dirty water" flavor.

I know I just rambled on about something that virtually everyone knows about, but we go here a lot so I figured I'd give the good locations a shoutout!

Avocados Over-Easy Recipe

Wondering what to make for Sunday morning breakfast? These bad boys are easy, and will impress your friends, significant other...or that stranger you woke up next to after your late Saturday night frolicking in downtown Albany...

Avocados Over-Easy (serves one)

INGREDIENTS

- 1 Avocado

- 2 Eggs

- 1 link of chorizo, sausage,

bacon, turkey bacon, etc

- shredded cheese of your

choice (we did smoked

Gouda)

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

1. Cut the avocado in half long-ways (there’s a pit, so dig your knife In until it hits. Then, turn the avocado so the knife is cutting around it)

2. To pit the avocado, CAREFULLY put the middle of the night through the pit (you have to be a little forceful with this which is why I say CAREFULLY). When you get a good grip on it with the knife, twist the knife and the avocado in separate directions.

3. Scoop out a little extra in the middle of the avocado so that an entire egg can fit in it. ( you can do whatever you want with the extra- I simply eat it).

4. Dice the meat of your choosing, and fry it up in a skillet

5. Sprinkle the meat over your avocado/egg combo

6. Over all of this, sprinkle your shredded cheese (as much, or as little as you want!

7. Pop the whole dish into the oven for about 10-12 minutes. *

8. Enjoy, and let me know how helpful this recipe was (or if you have questions!)

*If you like your eggs more on the well side (aka no runny yoke), it may need a little longer in the oven


Just add some greek yogurt with a drizzle of honey and a few slices of banana (Oh-and coffee, of course), and you have yourself a lovely Sunday morning breakfast!

Our Saturday, in food!

 So, at around eight-thirty I wake up to our cat, Miles, making himself cozy on my stomach. I turn to see that   Chris (my boyfriend) has started getting ready for the day. Psht...it was eight thirty! Too early for this gal, I'm going back to bed.

 I finally drag myself up at around nine to see that my handsome man has made me breakfast. An egg white omelet with turkey bacon, avocado,  and Boars Head chipotle gouda (highly recommend for sandwiches and such!). Sprinkled on top was some parmesan and Cholula chipoltle hot sauce (also highly recommended...for EVERYTHING!). Add coffee and my Beau made a delicious meal!

  After breakfast, we went to the Crossings at Colonie for the farmers market they hold every Saturday from 9a-1p. This is a great place, because not only do they have a ton of local farms, bakeries and mom-and-pop shops. They also have trails to bike/walk and hang out on a beautiful day (or a rainy gross one like today!).       We were pleasantly surprised to see that, off in a corner by their lonesome was Two Cousins Fish Market. They are definitely the place to go for fresh fish and seafood in the area (located at 596 New Loudon Rd in latham). We copped a dozen little neck clams and a swordfish steak for a decent price (and we will hopefully be cooking it tomorrow for lunch-stay tuned).

 For lunch, we headed to Maurices Sandwich Shop (We went to the one on Wolfe Rd in Colonie, but they are also located in Schenectady!) If you're looking for a sandwich that you can make at home but don't want to go through the hassle, this is your spot. The pickles are amazing, the cucumber salad is to die for, and the sandwiches are made by a tiny, no-nonsense old lady. (No small-talk, just order and leave). It was my first time there, and I'm sure I will stop there again on a lunch break from work or after a shopping trip at Colonie Center.

 When we got home, we realized the power had gone out. This would have been a travesty had it not been for the impromptu stop we made at The Chocolate Gecko. Located on Colvin Ave in Albany, this small-but-mighty chocolatier has my heart when it comes to chocolate (and I really HATE chocolate!). From their habanero-filled "ratones" to their french macaroons (available every Friday and Saturday), we'll just say that our trip there made up for us not being able to watch our new 50" plasma.
(And yes, don't judge me but I hopped on the Ffity Shades of Grey bandwagon-don't knock it til you read it, that's my motto.)

 For dinner, we were pretty spent from the day, and hadn't done any real grocery shopping. I decided to do the good old standby...Amy surprise. Adopted from my father's greater "Daddy Surprise", the term simply means finding whatever you have lying around your kitchen and make a meal out of it! In this case I used 2 of the million peppers we had (I have no Idea why we have so many peppers!), an onion, 3 cloves of garlic and a tomato. Diced those up, sauteed them in a pan with some ground turkey, and finished it off with balsamic vinegar, kosher salt, pepper, and red wine (about a quarter cup of both the red wine and balsamic. The salt and pepper, add for your taste!)

It's not every weekend that Chris and I have nothing planned and get to do stuff like this, but it's the best day I've had in a very long while. Also, I had more of those Chocolate Gecko truffles for dessert...scrumptious!