Guest Bloggers Ryan & Kate

First off- Congratulations to my Future- in-Laws Kate & Ryan!

This week Tom S. (my other fiance- shhh, it's a secret) came out with his Fall Dining Guide. On the list is Vermilion. Tim and I haven't been, but have been anxious to try it after reading that Anthony Chittum, the former chef of Notti Bianche, is its head chef. We had the best gnocchi ever during one restaurant week at N.B. Ryan & Kate went to Vermilion on Saturday night, and here's what they had to say:

Kate: "Well we started with the diver scallops with russet potato gratin, black truffle & leeks 2 ways – these were fantastic and I usually don’t even like scallops very much. Then we both opted for the roasted pork loin with garlic sausage, alsatian cabbage, pistachios & fig gastrique – we both liked it but weren’t big fans of the fig mixture inserted in the middle of the meat.
For dessert Ryan ordered the trio of sorbet (cranberry, green apple & d'anjou pear), which he thought was a little overpowering at first, but after a few bites he began to enjoy it. I thought it was pretty tasty myself. I ordered the nutella bombe (hazelnut anglaise, salted filberts & chocolate sorbet). I thought it was quite tasty, although a little too much chocolate on one plate (which I never thought could happen). The cake was very good – Ryan really liked it too – but it was very rich. I thought it would be better paired with one of the fruity sorbets instead of the chocolate. Although I guess I was a little biased from the outset because I am not a real fan of chocolate sorbet in general – I like my chocolate creamy and smooth.
All in all it was a good time. I was a little thrown off because the last time I was there the menu was different and had a few more mainstream items. Also, we didn’t get it on Saturday, but I have had the cheese plate in the past and would recommend it."
And Ryan added: "It was a good place. The fig insert in the pork was not quite what I expected but the pork was good. The center of the pork was much rarer than i think you are supposed to eat pork but the fig part might have made it tough to get to temperature. The ambiance and waitstaff was top notch. I felt a little out of place in jeans. The appetizer rocked! and the wine I picked which I have now forgotten was solid."

My Triumphant Return!

I'm still trying to figure out how to do everything I want to do. I've done so much good eating in the last couple of months, but my focus has been on getting my Brownie troop running for the year.
I'll start with a little bit about this weekend and see if I can hit some other highlights. Tim & I spent Saturday touring Richmond- we saw The Jefferson hotel (where Tim was a fancy pants waiter), toured the VCU campus, checked out the shops in Carytown and managed to work in a couple of meals. First stop- lunch at the 3rd Street Diner. Solid diner food- I had a grilled cheese with bacon and tomato.

After touring (and making some room), we had an early dinner at the Strawberry Street Cafe. I ordered the chicken pot pie to make up for the abysmal pot pie I had at the Birchmere during Henry Rollins (I really should have known better).

A few notes on what I've left out over the past couple of months. Hot as all hell Houston with gigantic-sits-like-a-brick Pappas burgers and then, Papas BBQ. I only wish I had a picture of the kolaches. Two weekends ago- our "cute" tailgate before the Georgia Tech-Maryland Game. Chik Fil-A nuggets and pimento cheese were highlights- along with Elizabeth's "Go Jackets" M&M cookies.
I don't want to breeze through dinner at Proof last week- anyone want to guest post about what we ate?

Something to Tide You Over

While there's still good produce available, why not whomp up a "Lazy Woman Cobbler." Yes, that's really the name of the recipe.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt one stick of unsalted butter, then pour it into a glass 13x9 baking dish.
Next, mix together the batter:
1 cup SELF-RISING (that's key) flour
1 cup of milk (skim works fine)
1 cup of sugar
Pour batter on top of butter.
Then, add fruit until it looks fruity enough. Last time I used 4 large peeled peaches cut into chunks, but a combo of peaches & blackberries is nice too-whatever your little heart desires.
Bake for 1 hour.

Finally, eat for dessert every night (reheated) with a scoop of vanilla ice cream until it's gone. If you have a two person household, this means at least 4 nights of cobblery goodness.

Alternatively, share with a larger group to avoid some of the guilt you feel by about the 3rd night.

A Low Key Weekend at the Neck in pictures

We made the food rounds at the Northern Neck this weekend- for fresh tomatoes, peaches & melon:At Faunce's we bought salmon for Sunday night's dinner & a pint of oysters:

This weekend's cheese- Grafton's maple smoked cheddar, which I had hoped would taste more like bacon or pancakes than it did- a mild smoky chddar which was tasty, but not a replacement for the smoked cheddar Erin & Tu used to serve from Eastern Market. Served here with Marcona almonds and Old Bay spiced Virginia peanuts we picked up at Sisson's produce.For dinner on Saturday, we went to the historic Tavern in Heathsville. I enjoyed my meal more than I thought I would upon seeing the menu- way too wordy! While I like to know about the secondary ingredients served with an entree, I don't want a full recipe. Everything from the garnish to the reduction was listed with each offering. It seemed that my entree doth protest too much, but surprisingly my hanger steak was cooked to specifcation and the fingerling potatoes had both a crispy exterior and tender flesh. For dessert, Rosemary and I shared a peach napolean, made with whipped cream, white peaches and crispy filo dough. On Sunday Tim & Ben rented kayaks at Westmoreland State Park.

After the park, we headed to Dairy Freeze for soft serve cones. Best of luck to Co Balderson!

Quarterdeck

Most of my big plans for this weekend didn't materialize- which was great. I was able to spend some time finishing up part of a project that's been hanging over my head for awhile now (the never-ending massive photo reorganization project). Tim thinks I'm a big dork when I scrapbook. One plan I kept was dinner at the Quarterdeck with the Watson sisters & friends. It's a borderline sketchy place in general. I wouldn't go there for any reason other than crabs- but that's something they know how to do well (especially when you can get the jumbo crabs that we ordered). Along with pitchers of Miller lite, melted butter & onion rings.

After dinner we headed to Carvel for a few Carvelanches (pronunciations may vary).

(PS- Scroll Down to see a recap from last weekend.)

Link Heavy List of Excuses

I still owe y'all an update from last Saturday night (with pictures!)- here's a list of my good reasons for being behind.
Monday night- bad mood. Wanted to read "Bust" instead.
Tuesday night- Old Town. First, we had dinner (finally) at Eamonn's where we each had cod & chips- with the Chesapeake & Kitty O'Shea's sauces (thoughts: good fish & chips, but how often do I really crave fish & chips? I'll go back again sometime, but no rush). Then, we saw Dave Ihmels play at 219 Restaurant, followed by drinks at O'Connell's.
Wednesday- my eyes were still dilated from my eye dr. appointment- so really, there was nothing I could do except watch "So You Think You Can Dance."
Tonight- Legg Mason Tennis Classic
Tomorrow- Arlington Yard Sale prep & Nationals Game
Saturday- Arlington Yard Sale and dinner at the Quarterdeck (woo!)
Sunday- Serious blogging. Just wait and see.

After All the Stops and Starts - Sparkling Toast at Erin & Tu's

Erin and Tu were generous enough to share the booty from their California wine tour last weekend (and toast our engagement at the same time!) I'll need to touch base with Erin to confirm the names of what we sampled- 3 sparkling wines from Mumm- but I know I liked the third one best. To pair with the wines, they offered a variety of appetizers- including proscuitto-wrapped melon and fresh summer rolls from Tu's favorite Vietnamese restaurant from Capitol Hill. The original plan was to head to Eat Bar after we had tried all of the wines, however, as is wont to happen at Erin & Tu's- they couldn't kick us out. We settled in for an evening of singing soft rock hits and later placed an order for room service for pad thai, satay & sushi.


Summer Rolls:
REO Speedwagon or Peter Cetera & Cher?
Room Service!