Apple Culture

                                             Served with homemade whipped cream. Yum!

                       Nothin like spiked apple cider (freshly pressed) to warm ya up...

                             Sweet Potato Apple Beet Hash (Rainbow potatoes)


Very very loosely based on a recipe from Rachel Ray, it's safe to say this kicked her big ol' Italian ass. (really the only similarity was that there were some type of potatoes and apples in both recipes.) And it looked purrdy, too!

A huge sweet potato
An equally huge russet potato
2 beets
2 or 3 apples
white onion
kale
carrots, sliced thin
salt, pepper, dash of cumin, cinnamon (and the last of my supple of feve tanka, a semi-sweet Ethioian spice)
Parsley butter (or boring old plain butter. Or oil works, too.)

Cube and boil the potatoes first (Rachel tells you to microwave them, but I don't have a microwave, so fuck her.)  Chop up all the veggies and apples into chunks. Heat up the butter in a big frying pan. Toss the potatoes in and let 'em brown up. Add the apples, onion, carrots and beet. Add the kale towards the end. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, cumin, possibly a little cinnamon, and any other spice you want (go kind of light on the spice though, the sweetness of the flavors speak for themselves). I tossed in some chickpeas when I reheated the leftovers the next day, and that was delicious too!

                                 Crispy apple crisp, served with vanilla ice cream, of course!

You should really floss more.

 Taste-testing the Apples in their purest form, straight off the tree. Serious business, as you can see from Dylan's expression.

                                         We used McIntosh, not Empire. But Empire is another kind of apple. It is also delicious (as are Delicious apples. And Gala. And Granny Smith. And Pink Lady... Many varieties were represented.)

Our apples came all the way form Shelburne Orchards to King Street.

Apple Stuffing
Bacon-Wrapped Apples in Thyme Brown Butter
Brie, Apple &Walnut Crostini
Bri, Apple(&Ham) Sandwiches
Apple Curry
Apple Pineapple Pasta Salad
Sweet Potato & Apple Fries
Apple Cupcakes w/ Cream Cheese Frosting
Apple Crisp
Apple Pie
Apple, Spinach, Onion &Goat Cheese Flatbread
Pork Tenderloin w/ Apples

Alcohol Culture

 Was anyone sober enough to remember what we ate? No? Ok then. I'm pretty sure it was delicious. And good times were had by all.

Whiskey Cauliflower Cheese Bake

Just about anything can be made scrumptious by baking it with cheese and topping with nuts and breadcrumbs. Especially cauliflower with honey whiskey, because both of those things are pretty delicious on their own.

Preheat to 350. Steam chopped cauliflower florets to soften 'em up. Shred a ton of cheddar cheese and melt it with heavy cream, a tbsp of flour, and a healthy helping of honey whiskey. I believe I also added carrots, onions, and according to the photo, something green (peppers?). I intended to add mushrooms as well, which I'm sure would be really good (because mushrooms are really good), but they were hiding in a paper bag on the table while I made this and only noticed them once I had put the extremely-full pan in the oven and topped it with the cheese sauce & nuts &breadcrumbs and all, so I skipped the mushrooms. Did I mention alcohol was being consumed at the time?

Toss the steamed cauliflower and other vegs in a big baking pan and pour the cheese/whiskey sauce over it. Top with breadcrumbs and chopped mixed nuts and bake for 30 mins or so, until the cheese is brown and bubbly.

                                     Some chickens like beer up the ass. I'm not judging.

Bananas Foster French Toast

Clams in White Wine Sauce

Drunk-Ass Chicken

Rum Cake

Chocolate Stout Cupcakes

Cheddar Ale Dip

Dark N' Stormies

Vegetarian/Alyssa's 21Birthday!

In honor of Alyssa finally turning 21, we enjoyed a scrumptious herbivore feast. And for once, Alyssa and Erika ate everything and didn't even have to ask what was in it first. It was glorious. There was ping pong volley baseball on the porch (on a real ping pong table!) And Alyssa was iced. Twice.


Mama's Mexican Lasagna


So this isn't exactly my mama's recipe. She uses chicken (not vegetarian) and Doritos, which I transformed into tofu and tortilla chips. Plus I added a bunch of other veggies and spiced it up. Cater to your tastes.

Tofu
Tomato sauce
taco seasoning, cayenne, spices
cottage cheese
sour cream
cheddar
Chips (I used Garden of Eatin Red Hot Blues and Pico de Gallo flavors)
veggies- kale, corn, peppers, onion (and any other you fancy)
black beans

guac to top, if you like

Cube tofu and saute for approx. 20 mins with spices til crispy. Meanwhile, heat up the tomato sauce w/ taco seasoning/any other spices you like and chop up all the veggies and grate the cheddar. Mix 1 c. sour cream and 1 cup or so cottage cheese together.

Preheat oven to 350. In a large dutch oven or deep baking dish layer crushed up chips, tomato sauce, the cottage cheese/sour cream mixture, veggies, cheddar, then more chips and more of the same. Top off with whole chips and top with the last of the cheddar. I recommend serving with guac & sour cream if you like it spicy, like I do. And if the top falls off of Dan's super-hot spice mix when you're dumping it on the tofu (Always pour into your hand first!).

Cheese Straws
Zucchini Cakes
Devilish Eggs
Vegetarian Chili
Cous cous sweet potato salad
Green salad
Southern Grape Surprise
Hummus
Pesto Walnut Cheese Dip & Fries
Lemon Tart
Pumpkin Pie
Cheese&Pepper Enchiladas in Mole Sauce