cookbook giveaway! {UPDATE: winner announced}
October 5, 2012 § 7 Comments
The winner of the my two-part giveaway with Belle Chevre is…
Carrie Allen Tipton! Thanks for entering and sharing the giveaway, Carrie. I’ll pass your name onto Belle Chevre, and they’ll pick a final name after October 14. I hope you win!
Thank you ALL so much for entering! It was very exciting to participate in the virtual potluck and giveaway with an amazing company that makes awesome chevre.
I used random.org to generate the winning name!
As I told you yesterday, I’ve had the opportunity of participating in a virtual potluck with Belle Chevre to celebrate the release of Tasia’s Table, Tasia Malakasis’s new cookbook. (Did you miss my entry? See it here!) Now you have a chance to win your own signed copy of the cookbook!
This is a beautiful book with tons of tantalizing photos and creative recipes. If you’re a goat cheese lover like me, you’ll probably be ooing and ahhing over all the new and exciting ways to incorporate chevre into everyday dishes.
I’m offering four possible ways to enter:
1. Subscribe to cactus & kudzu by email. (Make sure you’re on the home page, and find the text box on the right side where you can enter your email address. If you’re already subscribed, leave a comment letting me know.)
2. Leave a comment below answering this question: What’s your favorite kind of cheese?
3. Share this entry or my potluck entry on Facebook. (Be sure to either tag me on Facebook or leave a comment letting me know you’ve shared it.)
4. Share this entry or my potluck entry on Twitter (handle name is @brettjaillet—be sure to include it!).
I will choose one winner, and submit it to Belle Chevre (each potluck participant will do so) and then Belle Chevre will choose a winner from all the blogs’ submissions. My segment of the giveaway closes at 8 pm central time on Monday, October 8.
But hey, if you just can’t wait, order a copy of the book here!
Celebrate Halloween!
September 18, 2012 § Leave a Comment
Guess what’s on newsstands!
This is such a beautiful issue. Even if you’re not big on Halloween, it’s still full of fabulous entertaining and decorating ideas and amazing recipes. Go pick up your copy now!
nutella cookies
November 29, 2011 § 4 Comments
Let me introduce you to my new friend Nutella. Oh, you’ve already met? And you’ve been friends for practically forever? Well, somehow Nutella and I went our whole lives without ever getting to know each other, and now we’re seriously making up for lost time.
I bought Nutella right before Thanksgiving to try something I learned from the test kitchen at work—a chocolate-pumpkin-Nutella pie. I only ended up pulling the last two off components of that pie. And it basically ended up being a pumpkin pie with microwaved Nutella drizzled over the top. YUM.
Ok so I don’t sit around craving sweets. It just isn’t my style. My palate favors savory flavors—what can I say? But there is something truly addictive about this hazelnut-cocoa spread. I keep eating it on pie, on toast, on a spoon. Sunday night I was having one my cravings, so I searched Pinterest for “Nutella Cookies.” I found a recipe from the Tasty Kitchen blog. It looked so easy, I had to satisfy my sweet tooth.
So here’s my adaptation. These little tweaks were mainly a result of realizing a little too late that I didn’t have enough of the ingredients. For instance, I ran out of Nutella (what a shocker), and I forgot to halve the egg in my process of halving the recipe. They still turned out wonderfully!
Nutella Cookies adapted from Tasty Kitchen
Makes 12 cookies
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup Nutella
1 egg
Preheat oven to 350°.
Combine ingredients in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer or wooden spoon (dough will be thick).
Place 1-inch balls of dough onto ungreased cookie sheet. Flatten balls slightly with a fork or spatula. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, or until set. Let cool on pan for 5 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on a wire rack, or serve warm.
PS: Driving to work this morning, I saw someone with a license plate that said: NUTELLA. Omg — I wanted to tell him about these cookies, but then I imagined his response: OH, I know. Believe me—I know.
mid-morning hunger: superb sandwiches
September 12, 2011 § 2 Comments
Thinking about lunch? Who doesn’t love a good sandwich?
Lobster Roll — Smitten Kitchen
B.E.L.T (Bacon, Egg, Lettuce, and Tomato) — Kiss My Spatula
Tomato Sandwich (ah, simplicity) — Food 52
Crispy Shrimp Sandwich — How Sweet Eats
Croque Monsieur — Simply Recipes
Open-faced Steak Sandwich with Red Onion Jam and Blue Cheese (ohh my gosh yummm) — Food 52
PW’s Favorite Sandwich — The Pioneer Woman
That’s all folks! Go eat.
Great Grandma Gibbs macaroni and cheese
September 7, 2011 § 1 Comment
This is the version of mac ‘n’ cheese that I ate growing up.
Wouldn’t you like to know the secret ingredient to this ooey gooey mac? Well, unfortunately I cannot share that with you. And if you are fortunate enough to be in the know—keep it a secret!
I never saw my Grandma Gibbs make this. In fact, when I spent time with her (she passed away about four-and-a-half years ago), she was usually relaxing in her easy chair in her TV room, surrounded by sisters, daughters, grandchildren, and great grandchildren who loved her. To be honest, it’s hard to picture her out of that chair, let alone standing at a hot stove making this warm, comforting goodness. But every time my mother prepared macaroni and cheese for us as we grew up, this is how she made it. And this is always what she called it. When I’ve made this for friends, some act a bit hesitant to try it when they hear that I’ve added a (ssh!) of (it’s a secret!). But no one I’ve given it to has ever been disappointed. (Oh, a secret I learned from my cousin Emily — drizzle some balsamic vinegar over it.)
Contemplate this deliciousness in loving memory of my Great Grandma Gibbs.
Do you have a family recipe that involves a secret ingredient? If you do, tell me about it. Of course you don’t have to share a secret ingredient. That is, of course, unless you want to.
subscription addiction
August 23, 2011 § Leave a Comment
How much is too much? I can’t seem to stop.
mid-morning hunger: pizza
August 22, 2011 § Leave a Comment
I’m back from sunny, breezy, not-humid-at-all California. My trip was wonderful. I spent time with my family, and even got to see my high school friends at my friend Katie’s wedding! But it was much too short, and it was rough getting up for work this morning.
Anyways, I’ve been craving pizza lately. Specifically an absolutely fabulous pizza from Bettola. So here are some yummy recipes to tantalize your taste buds:
Pizza Margherita — Saveur
Balsamic Caramelized Onion and Blue Cheese Pizza — Food 52
Grilled Potato, Gorgonzola, and Prosciutto Pizza — The Kitchn
Spinach and Pepper-Jack Pizza — Food & Wine
CPK’s BBQ Chicken Pizza — The Pioneer Woman
And now for something a little bit different….
Breakfast Pizza — The Kitchn
mid-morning hunger: City Cafe
August 15, 2011 § Leave a Comment
Today, what I really want for lunch is City Cafe in Downtown Northport. Unfortunately, that is about an hour away from where I live/work. So I guess that won’t be happening.
(Image credit: Dusty Compton, The Tuscaloosa News)
A meat-and-three joint (that’s one meat + three “veggie” sides) was a novelty to me when I moved to Tuscaloosa six years ago, but now I can’t imagine my life without a charming hole-in-the-wall that serves up classic Southern comfort food the way City Cafe does. Only open on weekdays from the early morning to 3 pm, it always has a line of hungry customers that winds throughout the restaurant and out the door.
Every once in awhile, I meet someone in Tuscaloosa who has lived there for quite a few years, but has never ever been to City Cafe. “Well, shame on you,” I say to those people.
Here’s a roundup of recipes inspired by what I would order were I sitting in a booth at City Cafe right now. The reality is that I would probably order macaroni and cheese in place of one of the following (probably the fried okra), but if you’ve been keeping up, you know I’ve covered that topic recently, so I’ll take a break from that, ha. Enjoy!
Fried Chicken – Paula Deen
Mashed Potatoes – Southern Living
Collard Greens – Simply Recipes
Fried Okra – All You
(OK– since I’m not actually eating at City Cafe, I am going to pretend that I would order two deep-fried items. Besides, fried okra is a Southern staple, and I have to mention it. I would also ask for some ranch on the side. I like to dip my fried okra in ranch. I think some Southerners might find that to be blasphemous.)
Sweet Tea – Saveur
Oh, my tummy is rumbling. Life isn’t fair. Why can’t I eat there today???
