Happy Thanksgiving!

I can't believe it is already the holiday season! I feel like I have been so busy it has crept up on me! We decided to have Thanksgiving at our new abode this year. I thought it would be a good change of pace for everyone. My grandmother passed away in May very unexpectedly and a few years ago so did my grandfather and uncle. Celebrating in a new environment I thought would be good for everyone. We've only been in our new house for just 2 months so we have been working on lots of preparations. My sister and her gang rolled into town late Tuesday eve and were a great help! 

My niece is so stinking adorable and a master chef in the making! She made a buttermilk pie from scratch!  She even carved pie decorations out of her homemade crust! 

Apparently I forgot to take pictures of the food...but I took plenty pictures of the pies because pie at Thanksgiving is what is most important...aside from family of course. We had a buttermilk pie my niece made, I made a pumpkin cheesecake, my sister made a rustic cherry tart and chocolate Bourbon pecan pie, and my aunt brought the most delicious chocolate pie from the Black Rooster Bakery. Yum.

My mom came over and helped with getting the table decor down.  I wanted a simple rustic theme this year. 

My brother in-law is super handy and made the place card holders out of sassafras. My sweet niece made the place cards!

Hosting Thanksgiving sure was a ton of fun and it was lovely to have my family in my new home. I feel like now they have all been here... and my in-laws have been here too...it feels more lived in and more our own, more like our home. I lived in my other house for 8 years. It was comfortable and familiar. Moving into another place full of uncertainly is quite a transition. But, I am thankful. I am thankful at how fortunate I am to have such great family and friends.

Cheers and Happy Thanksgiving! 

Now That Is A Big Ol' Hunk Of Beef!

I am so thankful that we have our own rock star celebrity chef here in Funky Town. Yes folks, Mr. Tim Love himself belongs to my town. If you find yourself in town and want a festive atmosphere with delicious food, head on over to The Woodshed. If you want a dang good burger, head on over to the Love Shack. AND, if you want a fine upscale dining experience, go to Lonesome Dove in the Fort Worth Stockyards.

The Woodshed really is my favorite of all 3 places. But, call about a week ahead for a weekend reservation, otherwise you will find yourself waiting about an hour and a half to be seated. Mr. Lucas has a birthday today. He is 33. Apparently that means you are an adult in Hobbit years. So, in order to celebrate...we went to the Woodshed on Saturday with my brother-in-law and sister and ordered the beef shin like any good Hobbit would. You can order off their dining with friends menu where there are about 4 different dinner choices that will feed 4 people. Get ready for this. The beef shin. Served on a wooden board with tortillas, beans, ricotta cheese, and kale salad.

You can eat it all individually but we chose to put those tortillas to good use and made the ultimate taco! The beef is so tender and just falls right off the bone. 

Bonus, they wrapped the shin bone up for us to take home to Penelope.

She was in love. 

And we are in love too because it actually so much food we had left overs for dinner the next day.

Cheers! 

Let's Take A Trip On A Flying Carpet

For my birthday we tried out a new restaurant called the Flying Carpet Cafe. It was fabulous! They have a small, but brilliant menu and the food was out of this world. It is BYOB so we brought some wine to enjoy over dinner and conversation. The place is very warm and inviting. They have Turkish rugs hanging on the walls and also displayed in the front room for purchase. Two sisters run the place, which I think is lovely since I am one of two sisters. One of the sisters, Devon, who is a pastry chef and the general manager greeted us during dinner which was a special touch.

We started out with the Meze sampler with dolmas, hummus, pitas, tzatziki sauce, tabbouleh, and toasted pita bread (which all was devoured before I could get a pic in)

After our appitizer my dad and I enjoyed the cucumber salad.

Mr. Lucas and my mom enjoyed the citrus salad.

Then, for the entrees. Wow. The men folk had the braised Australian lamb shoulder and the women folk had the roasted free range chicken breast. That was the juciest chicken I have ever sunk my teeth into. Yum.

We had a rather difficult time deciding what desert we all wanted. So, we ordered 3 and shared. They were all fabulous. I had a hard time choosing my favorite but I am a baklava lover through and through. The almond pudding was a close runner up!

We finished dinner with Turkish coffee and my mom had the Turkish tea. They came in little tiny cups, so cute!

Such a lovely little place and our waiter was great too. We will be back and I can't wait!

Cheers!

Getting Fancy In The Kitchen...Sort Of

I often find myself cooking the same things over and over again becuase I know how to make them, have mastered the recipe, and know exactly the amount of time it will take to make it. I opt for the least amount of time always. Now, I have been trying to broaden my horizons a bit and will branch out to make something out of the comfort zone. So, I went with Apple and Rosemary Pork Roulade from Cooking Light. I love cooking light because not only are the recipes amazeballs they are well put together and you are given the exact amount of time it will take to prepare and cook. What I love even more about Cooking Light is that I now can download it to my iPad. For some reason, reading a magazine is so much more fun on the iPad. This was fun becaue I have never "butterflied" anything, much less stuffed it with yummy goodness. So folks, I give you my first attempt!

Make it if you are a carnevor. It is pretty nice and very conducive to the Fall food category. :)

Impromptu Pigs

So, Sundays around the Lucas house hold consist primarily of football. I, however, do not partake in this event. I have learned that I do not speak in the living room while football is on and walking in front of the TV is forbidden. I have also learned that when bad words are spoken they are not directed at me. Rather, only directed at the TV station and the computer station where the fantasy football is monitored regularly throghout the day. I have learned to carry on my day with no question. I have learned that I am free to do whatever I see fit on Sunday, as long as I do not disturb the system of manhood in the living room. I am okay with that. I have also learned that the man being in the living room will eat pretty much anything I feed it since it does not get off the couch at all during this sacred time.

As I was chatting with my sis via skype, she suggested that pigs in a blanket fair well as a nice sporty appitizer. I didn't really have the makings for it...so I thought. No little smokies and not the proper ingredients to make a nice dough. But, alas, I discovered I did have some turkey kielbasa and some grands biscuits. The man beings tastebuds will likely respond to this! I just cut the turkey keilbasa down to somewhat of a little smokey size, added some great cheese from Trader Joe's and wrapped those suckers up with the buiscuit dough and there you have it. Impromptu pigs in a blanket. That equals a happy manhood system in the living room.

Cheers!

Austin, TX

Austin is such a great city here in Texas. It's only about a 3 hour drive for us so that's a bonus. They have a great music festival there every year in the fall and we have been going for a while now and look forward to it every year! It has been a few weeks since we got back but as usual had a great time with friends and saw some great bands too...and there was one really awful band with a consistent pattern of explicatives. That was unexpected and even more unexpected that they scheduled that band to go on next to the kids stage. I think the children watching what was going on at the kids stage may have added a few new words to their vocabulary.

We found a great studio apartment that we rented which was walking distance to the festival. That beat years past for sure. So long La Quinta, you will no longer subject us to high transportation rates with a reckless driver leaving me wondering if I will survive the ride.

The food at the fest is always excellent. Tim Love represented too. I got down on that Love Shack burger. Of, course we can never resist a Boomerangs Guinness steak and potato meat pie.

Pies sooooooo good they require several trips to the register. Go to their website now and order some. It will be more than worth it. Plus, come to think of it, come on down to Fort Worth and go to one of Tim Love's restaurants.

Well, enough about food. The weather was great. In Texas, the weather is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get. It rained on Saturday with a brief...yet heavy...down pour. Other than that It was really nice.

On Saturday, we left the fest a little early. Our dear friend that was at the fest with us is a Sommelier and just recently passed his test for Advanced Sommelier. He is pretty fantastic and can sniff or sip a wine and tell you what frigging year it was made. I am pretty dumbfounded about that one but yet he says it's easy. Anyhoo, his friend that passed the certification with him just opened up a very cool wine cellar where we spent the evening.

We also celebrated our anniversary that weekend. We stayed in Austin a few extra days after the fest to relax and enjoy the town.

We went to 24 Diner for lunch. It was delicious! Jeff had Chicken and Waffles, yum.

I had the pulled chicken breast sandwich. It had goat cheese on it. That's all I needed to know.

We walked up an down South Congress which has tons of shops, restaurants, quaint hotels, and coffee shops. There is the coolest antique store called Uncommon Objects. We were in there forever. They had tons of cool and strange things. I had to resist the urge to take pictures because of all the "no camera" signs. I saw other people do it but I guess I am too by the book, darn it. I just imagine sirens going off and the authorities tackling me if I do something bad! Ha!

We happened across a great hat shop called Goorin Bros. Jeff picked up a spiffy new hat.

This store is awesome. The minute you walk in it is like you have walked back into time. I could picture myself shopping for a hat in the early 1900's in there. I love how they wrap the hats up too! Check this place out folks!

We also happened across The Impeccable Pig. Super cute store! I got myself a nice new winter coat.

All the shopping worked up a thirst so we stopped at Jo's Coffee. Best coffee ever folks! I haven't had someone make coffee that good since I was a barista at a little old coffee shop in my under grad days called Coffee Haus. Word.

Then, it was back to the studio for a little relaxation to end our vacay and to crack open the bottle of wine our Sommelier friend gave us 2 years ago on our wedding day. Ah, the simple things in life!

 Thank you Austin. You delivered as usual.

Cheers!

It's Pumpkin Time!

I went to Central Market after work on Friday to pick up a dinner for two for the hubs and me. I felt like I was walking into a pumpkin wonderland. I was almost knocked over with fall decorating ideas. Pumpkins of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Then, Fall set in. Is it really Fall? I managed to survive suffering thorough 100 plus degrees for the 33rd year in my life? The torture, why do I do it? I do love my town but the heat can take a hike. But, Fall is finally here. Ah, my favorite time of year. Well, any time of year other than Summer is my favorite in Texas but Fall is numero uno. This time of year means pumpkin everything, including waffles with a side of leftover turkey sausage from yesterday. Hello pumpkin waffles...yes please.

Cheers! 

A Girl And Her Grill

It's hot here in Texas right now and I don't like to be hot (and still dream about moving to the Pacific Northwest). So, in order to keep things nice and cool inside my house I cook outside so I don't have to turn the oven on. I absolutely love to grill. I'm not saying I'm a pro at it but I have fun when I do it. My first grill I purchased several years ago. Unfortunately...it got a little rusty which I am not certain is the safest to grill on. I am still on vacation..my last day...so to help cope with that I decided it was time to move on. Out with the old and in with the new...Infrared Grill is where its at! 

Mr. Lucas LOVES when I purchase things that take hours to put together...I am sure you sense my sarcasm here right? But, no matter what project I have him piecing together he always does it for me willingly and does a mighty fine job I might add! I'm a lucky gal.

I present, my new infrared grill! 

I have been very interested in grilling pizzas. Now, I have the proper grilling equipment so that is exactly what I did. 

I made whole wheat pizza dough in the bread oven. It is a very simple recipe and the bread machine does all the work. 

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Recipe:

1 1/3 cups water

2 tablespoons olive oil

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup all purpose flour

3 cups whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons yeast

finely chopped garlic (as much as you want)

Put all the ingredients in that order making sure to put the liquids in first. When you add the yeast make a "well" with your finger in the center of the flour (making sure not to breakthrough to the liquid) and add the yeast in the well. It mixes better that way. Then, put your machine on the proper dough setting.

Once my dough was done I divided it into 3 parts and rolled out to make individual sized pizzas. You can make one big pizza or several small ones.

 

 I coated the dough with an olive oil and garlic salt mixture.

 

Place on the grill. I cooked 2 minutes per side. Infrared grills cook a few minutes faster so if you have charcoal or a regular propane grill you may need to cook longer. You don't want the dough to be fully cooked at this point because you need to put your toppings on then place back on the grill for a few more minutes to complete cooking.

You have to be quick when cooking the dough/pizza so its good to go ahead and have all your toppings outside with you. Once the dough is almost done, take it off the grill and add your toppings. I made a mozzarella, garlic pesto pizza; veggie pizza (I sauteed the veggies prior to cooking the dough) with goat cheese, and pepperoni herb pizza. If you want sausage or anything else that needs cooking, do that prior so you can have it ready to go. I also had my citronella candle burning to keep those pesky mosquitoes away! 

There you go, that's it! The pizzas are so much fun to make, super easy, and super yummy! It is amazing how different the dough tastes when its grilled. It has a great flavor!

 

Cheers!

R&R

A little rest and relaxation can do a person some good.  I loved being tucked away in the Ozarks with not really much to do except relax. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty to do in the Ozarks where my sister lives but...I just wanted to chill out and that is exactly what we did! I just got back this evening. I had the pleasure of flying first class both ways (sorry, I had to brag about that even though to most people its probably no big deal). I pimped my flight! I have never flown by myself and I really have not flown that much before either but I think flying first class helped (well, psychologically anyway)! I was able to get in the quick security line and I was able to board the plane first. Plus, trail mix a plenty! Sweet deal...oh, and a glass of wine on the flight home. 

Of course I had to take a snapshot of my snack mix and OJ (my flight there was in the morning otherwise that would have been a snapshot of snack mix and a cocktail).

Once my plane landed in the teeny tiny Little Rock Airport...well, teeny tiny compared to DFW anyway, I saw my sister waiting at the Starbucks sucking down the rest of her caffeine...she had to drive 2 hours to the airport to pick me up! 

Our first stop was Target to stock up on some resources...since she is tucked away in the Ozarks and all. I bought Violet a new sheet set for her new bedroom. My sister and her hubby are working on building their house, from the ground up, by themselves and help from some really talented friends and family. Violet's room is done and super cute too!

After Target we had to take care of serious business...stopping at Oscar's Liquor store. They sell moonshine. Ha! In a Mason Jar in fact! I think since it is in a mason jar that must make it authentic. :)  

Then, a few hours later we arrived to our peaceful Ozark destination. The house is covered by lots of trees and is nestled down in a mountain hillside so it is about 20 degrees cooler...that's what I'm talkin' about!

During my visit we surprised Violet with decorating her room while she was gone fishing. When she came back she was very surprised about her new sheets! It was too cute.

I also got a tour of the garden. It was fabulous. I even managed to keep all the mountain ticks off me. :) They are growing so many things and it is amazing to see how huge the veggies are.

They were growing zucchini 4 times the size of this one! You can't get them like that in the stores folks. This is home grown right off the vine.

They also have loads of peach trees! Peaches aplenty! They are wonderful and juicy. So, what better way to enjoy my garden tour than to enjoy a peach daiquiri along the way? 

On Saturday we went into Mountain View for the Farmer's Market. I can never pass up a good Farmer's Market! We came away with lots of goodies and I cannot believe no pictures were taken! After a bit of shopping and a trip into Ritsy Rags...

....the best little sewing/quilting shop in the Ozarks....

Of course shopping worked up an appetite so we went over to Woods Soda Fountain for lunch. I had a grilled pimento cheese sandwich. Sounds kinda strange...yes...but is kinda good...yes!

After lunch I came across this sign. Pretty much sums up the little town. :)

On Sunday my BIL smoked ribs for a fathers day feast. I caught up with his family and ate some good food, incliuding fried zucchini from the garden and green beans from the garden too. 

I had such a nice time and I can't wait until my next visit! 

Cheers!