the best things: lemon & herbed roasted potatoes

Lemon Roasted Potatoes

adapted from Greek Revival: Cooking for Life by Patricia Moore-Pastides

This recipe comes from a cookbook written by Mrs. Pastides, a good friend of my parents. Most of the things in this book are traditional Greek dishes that have been given face lift, along with some fat blasted away. The particular recipe is totally easy. It calls for dried oregano, but you can definitely substitute with any other potato-friendly herb: thyme, rosemary, etc. In the cabinet, I found a cute pot of Herbs de Provence. This mix of dried herbs usually consists of savory, fennel, rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and tarragon - all depends on the brand. This recipe is all about trust, so take heed.

12 medium-size red potatoes

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons herbs de Provence

2 lemons

Sea Salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash and quarter potatoes (if you use smaller reds, then no cutting is necessary). Place potatoes on a heavy baking sheet. Pour olive oil over the potatoes and toss to thoroughly coat. (Don't be a baby, use your hands.) Sprinkle the the juice of one lemon over the potatoes, and then sprinkle with dried herbs. Don't worry about exact measurements. Use your eyes and brain. Do not salt yet. Trust.

Bake for 30 minutes. Turn potatoes and sprinkle them with the juice of half a lemon. Bake for another 30 minutes until the potatoes are golden brown. Remove from the heat and sprinkle with the juice of the other half of them lemon. Sprinkle with sea salt - so much tastier than table salt - trust me. Serves 6-8 as a side dish. These potatoes are the best if enjoyed right from the oven.

Don't be scared. I know the baby potates look a little toasty, but it's the sugar from the lemon juice that has created a caramelized glaze on the potatoes. Trust me on this one.

I have always salted my potatoes before cooking, but this is actually a big boo-boo. Mrs. Pastides tells us to NEVER salt potatoes until they are done because the salt with draw water from the potatoes as they are cooking. This will leave them sticking to the pan, and soggy. Not okay.

Left over potatoes and don't know what to do with them? Potato salad. Put slices in your salad for a Niçoise twist. Put on pizza. Mash them: add milk, butter, pepper, & more salt; or pan fry them and make baby potato pancakes. The list goes on. Like I said use your brain. Surprise yourself with tasty concoctions

sweet heat cucumber salad

Sweet Heat Cucumber Salad

adapted from the back of the MAGGI TASTE OF ASIA Sweet Chili Sauce bottle

This quick and easy salad is so fresh, it makes you wish you were a prince from Bel-Air. Ha. Because cucumbers are mostly water, this salad will fill you up but not make you feel full - if that makes sense.

2 medium cucumbers, peeled, halved, seeded and thinly sliced (to save time, it's not necessary to seed cucumbers)
1/3 cup diced red bell pepper
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
4 tablespoons MAGGI TASTE OF ASIA Sweet Chili Sauce
2 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
2 tablespoons diced red onion
1/4 teaspoon salt

Combine cucumbers, bell pepper, lime juice, sweet chili sauce, basil, onion and salt in medium bowl. Refrigerate for 1 hour.

pretty pot stickers

Keep your life easy, and buy store bought wontons/pot stickers/dumplings - whatever they're called. Your eaters love them, so make sure to make enough for seconds.

we went to thailand for dinner

Thai Chicken

adapted from Bon Appétit Magazine

I was in the mood for some serious Thai food, but didn't want to order take out. Had to keep my life complicated and cook my own food. I found this recipe on an awesome app - it's called Epicurious; it's the bomb.com if you don't know what to fix and need some legit inspiration. So, for dinner I made Thai chicken over jasmine rice; frozen, store-bought wontons; and a sweet and spicy cucumber salad. Very light, but totally filling. Dessert is suggested, but not necessary.

1 14-oz can light unsweetened coconut milk

2 tablespoons Thai red curry paste

1 tablespoon minced peeled ginger

1 cup low-salt chicken broth

2 tablespoon cornstarch

1 1/2 lb skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch pieces

2 tablespoons fish sauce (Don't be scared)

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 small red bell pepper, chopped

1 cup sliced green onions

1 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil

2 cups fresh broccoli florets, blanched

Stir coconut milk, curry paste, and ginger in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat until paste disolves, about 1 minute. Mix broth and cornstarch in small bowl until cornstarch dissolves; mix into skillet. Stir until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add chicken, fish sauce and lime juice. Simmer over medium heat until chicken is cooked through, about 2 minutes. Add bell pepper, green onions, broccoli and basil and cook 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Serves 6-8 people.

Prepare rice according to directions. Three cups of cooked rice is usually enough for three hungry people. To serve, spoon thai chicken over rice.

the best things: strawberry-banana bread

Strawberry-Banana Best Ever Bread

adapted from The Bon Appetit Fresh Easy Fast Cookbook

When I say this is the best ever banana bread, I am not joking. Super ripe bananas make this bread super moist. Only have one ripe-ripe banana? Use a carton of apple sauce as a substitution for the missing banana. The walnuts can be traded out for pecans - if you so desire. I decided to add in a cup of chopped fresh strawberries at the very end. Very last minute, but ended up making the bread totally delectable. Make sure to enjoy a slice, warmed, and with a thick layer of soft butter or cream cheese. Bon appetit!

2 ripe medium bananas, mashed

2 large eggs

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 cup chopped fresh strawberries

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon buttermilk

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325˙F. Butter and flour 9x5x3 inch metal loaf pan (Keep it easy and spray with non-stick spray). Whisk bananas and eggs in large bowl to blend. Add all remaining ingredients and stir to blend well. Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake bread until top is golden brown and splits slightly and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 20 minutes (Check at 1h10... some ovens cook faster than others). Cool in pan on rack 20 minutes. Turn bread out onto rack and cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

One at a time: This recipe doesn't double well. To make two loaves, you'll need to make two separate batches of batter.

the morning-after-quiche

I thought breakfast was going to be my last meal in Fayetteville. It wasn't. There were storms in Oklahoma - bad ones with tornados. So, I stayed another night. I had the breakfast of the century. A quiche with ham, asparagus, swiss cheese and tomatoes. It was divine. I had a wonderful soy cappuccino as well. Emily has been raving about this treasure since she's been at school, so I was very excited to indulge in some pastries, French style. Very bready and delicious. This place is called Little Bread Company - A must eat if you're ever in town.

Best quiche ever. I am so serious.

pasta faye

While I was in Fayetteville, I cooked a pasta dinner for some people. I'm sorry.. I have no recipe because I made it up and I NEVER measure. The dish had chicken, italian sausage, red bell pepper, white wine, chicken broth, tomatoes, onion, garlic, flat-leaf parsley, salt, pepper, parmesan, and a touch of milk and butter (secret weapons). Decided to call this pot of pasta Pasta Faye in honor of my friends at Ark. So thoughtful, I know.

Browning the sausage; Make sure to take the meat out of the casings.

Kind of a gross process, but it is a must.

After browning the sausage, remove and sauté the chicken in the same pan.

Cut into bite size pieces for easy chomping and quick cooking. Season with salt and pepper before.

Take the chicken out just before it is done. The chicken will continue to cook off the heat. In the same pan, add sliced onion, a can of diced tomatoes and sliced red peppers. Sauté for a while - make the onions sweat. Add a touch of salt. Then add at least 4 cloves of gaaalic.

After the veg (onion, pepper, tomato concoction) has reduced, deglaze the pan with some cheap white wine. Dry white wine is usually used in pasta dishes, but I don't think it really matters. Then add chicken broth (low sodium) and let reduce to a thicker consistency. Turn up the heat on that thing.

Once the sauce has reached the appropriate sauciness, add the chicken, sausage back in. Cook for about a minute. Add the parsley. Add the cooked pasta to the pot - NEVER add sauce to pasta, always pasta to sauce. Why? The reason is so that the flavors from the sauce get trapped inside of the starchy noodle. I used rigatoni - tube pasta; this kind of pasta is great for chunky sauces because the goodies get stuck inside the noodle.

Finished product.

Are you admiring the salad? You should. Emily made her famous fruit salad. Grapes, strawberries, romaine lettuce, and cucumbers. Italian dressing. Duh. So easy and always classy.

The eaters, missing Emily.

eatin', walkin' and talkin'

This is my driver. Her name is Emily. She drives my car 8 miles with the emergency brake on. Is that bad?

Yesterday was good. So good. Emily and I woke late and watched a few Pregnant in Heels episodes on E!, while she half-studied for her elementary math exam. It was at one o'clock that afternoon. This happened around 10am. Bagels and cereal in bed, but it ended up being far less crumby than one would think. I drove Emily to her final, and ventured across town in search for a Starbucks. I found one about ten miles away. Oh, the things I do for an overpriced iced/grande/soy/latte. So, I sat in the Sbucks for a good hour - trying to read some Nicholas Sparks novel Emily handed me before walking out the door. I read nearly 2 pages. Three times. Sorry Sparks supporters, but that shiz is bad. Overused verbs, daft dialogue. Eww. Call me snobby, but I prefer language that doesn't make my eyes roll.

Finally, Em called me to come get her. No idea how I managed to find her. We then made our way downtown Fayetteville - we had hunger pains. She took me to Hugo's. This place is known for American favorites, such as the Blue Burger (bluecheese), nachos, french fries, and of course the beer cheese soup. They also offered sweet and savory crêpes... yUm.

Hugo's is actually housed in an old speakeasy; this is an underground restaurant with glass ceilings. Em said during Prohibition, the ground level floor was covered with a rug, and then when night fell, the rug was removed so that anyone who entered could be seen from below. Just enough time to hide the gin and brew. Clever, eh?

View of ceiling from ground floor, not underground yet.

Deciding on lunch was difficult. I felt sorry for our sweet waitress. Emily and I are probably the most indecisive pair. Took us about 15 minutes to decide.

I chose the BLT on wheat, she chose the tuna melt, both came with chips and pickles; the pickles were spears. Didn't have time to take a pic of our lunches. They didn't last long on the plate. Though our choices were very boring, they were not trite. Totally fresh and original.

Reaction to the BLT.

Then we went walking. Up and down streets. These streets are different here. They are not level. They are steep angles. Hills. Yesterday, I opened my arms wide to shin splints. Oh, how I love those things. We went in various different boutiques and specialty shops. One of the favorites was Feather Your Nest (sorry, no website).

Inside Feather Your Nest

This store was adorable and evoked wistful nostalgia - all of the things were from or about France. Just another reminder of what I was getting ready for a year ago - a trip abroad. It is strange to think how fast time is flying by. When I say strange, I mean scary.

Kept walking. Made our way to campus. It was overcast, but the breeze kept the mugginess unnoticeable. Campus sort of looks like Univ AL - just without a quad and more hills, and less squirrels.

We played inside of the Chi Omega house for a while.

Look what I found inside.

This brought a lump in my throat and tiny tears. Being home, in the bubble of mundane suburban Dallas, I found myself getting upset that people around me - the bag boy, the policeman ordering tacos beside me, my favorite barista - are not heartbroken like I am. The tornado broke so many things, and they do not know this. Just goes to show that despite devestation, life will always go on. It is oblivious, just like the people in it. I must be conscious of this. But, these women of Chi Omega, they know. They have friends at Alabama and, so they know. They know about the people that lost things. Their concern does not go unnoticed, or unappreciated.

Emily and I appreciate flowers. We both have pet plants that we love very much. R. W. Emerson told us, "Earth laughs in flowers". We believe this. So, we then played in this petit garden. Emily is very savvy in the herbage department; she teaches me their real names.

Peonies are her favorite.

The closest thing to the Quadrangle (Quad) in Ark is called Old Main/Senior Walk/IDK? It is all confusing. Too many names and traditions, sound familiar? The University of Arkansas was established in 1876. The picture below shows the first graduates of the institution - there were like six. What.

All over the sidewalks around campus are engraved with the graduation year and every single graduate. Kind of cool, huh? We saw some people laying by their names, getting a snapshot taken, probably for their mothers and daddies.

Oh, okay - this is actually Old Main. "It's our, like, landmark or something. We point to it at football games when we sing the alma matter", Emily said. This was the last place we went. Then we went to WalMart and bought things. I cooked dinner for a few of the best people. More to post later. Emily just informed me that we are "going out" in a few hours. Oh, the life of college girls - too much mascara and not enough chap-stick.

reunited and it feels so good

After five hours, I made it to Arkansasassy! The drive wasn't too bad.. except for the 3 hours of disgusting construction and faded greenery in Okie. Not so pretty. But the rolling hills of Ark made up for it. Absolutely gorgeous mountain country. I now know why Emily decided to come to school here. It is so nice to get away from home. Oh, wait -- I've only been home for like ten days. Can't believe I'm finally here in Emily's natural state. Loving every minute of it. Went to a cute sammy shop for lunch called Loafin' Joe's - there's one in Fort Worth too. Fresh hoagie rolls and deliciously snappy pickles.

Em drove me around in my car for a while. Lots to look at - the downtown is adorable. Stores like Riff Raff and The Mustache totally make the town worth visiting.

Emily, TJ, this little freshman named Butters, and I tried to go to Chipotle. It was the grand opening and they were giving away free dinner for the first 500 customers... of course we were number 501-504. Thanks Emily. So, we decided to try out this new Greek restaurant called Kosmos. Delish - Teej and I both had the Chicken Souvlaki plates. Em had a Greek chicken salad.. didn't look as good as the Souvalki plates.

Okay, boys and girls.. I must admit that I am obsessed with another SEC college town. Fayetteville makes me miss my sweet home in Tuscaloosa.

familiar greetings & mum's day

Hello, one and all. If this is the first time you have stumbled upon this tacky blog - SALUTATIONS! To beat the boredom, I have decided to recreate my blog; I kept this thing while I studied abroad in France last summer. The title of my blog is: la vie au paradis; It translates into "life in paradise". Periodically, one must ask, "Is this still relevant in my life?" And the answer is, of course it is. My life is still paradise. Mostly joyful and wholly healthy.

And so, it is time. Time to write.

Because of the horrendous tornado that touched down in my favorite college town, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, I have been home since April. I want to write about the things I saw, the things I heard, and the things I did not want to hear. Takes some thinking to get the words to come out just right..

Not really sure of the direction this will go - perhaps rants and raves, pictures of weird things, cheerful thoughts and maybe even some sort of a food diary. At this point, it's still up in the air.

So, today, I start with a special shout out to the most fabulous mother out there - Hey Lynnie! Hope you enjoyed your special day!!!

My sisters and I made this outrageous basket to fill with goodies for our mommy. We filled it with treasures from Anthropologie and Central Market. Then, we put the basket by the door - pretending like the Mother's Day Bunny had come to visit. This is how my sisters and I are: completely silly, always. It was truly delightful to see my sweet mother's face when she discovered the surprise.

(the basket is empty...doi.)

More posting to come later - I must pack my bag for a trip to see sweet Emily Claire in Arkansas. SO excited. I will keep those who care posted. Ha, get it?