Archive | Notes RSS feed for this section

Massey Creek Chili Wins by a “Lamb”Slide

30 Jan

Salutations, after a very busy weekend. I say “salutations,” as Charlotte, the spider, greeted Wilber, the pig, in one of my favorite childhood books, Charlotte’s Web. Winning the Greensboro Farmer’s Chili Challenge sort of reminded me of the fair in Charlotte’s Web. I mean that in a fun spirited way –  can’t you hear that goose singing “A fair is a veritable smorgasbord orgasbord orgasbord?” It also reminds me of how our city can feel more like a village when it comes to supporting efforts we hold true and dear.

It took a village to win the Challenge – so thanks to everyone who pitched in from helping make all the chili Friday night to coming out to vote Saturday morning. It was wonderful seeing so many of my friends, co-workers and readers at the market. I also can’t thank the McCollum Family at Massey Creek enough for all their enthusiasm, pep and support of the competition. They truly feel like family now.

Most importantly, through our promotions, we were able to highlight the good work of both the Greensboro Curb Market and Massey Creek Farms. All the proceeds of the competition will leverage the marketing of the Market – bringing more faces to the market and dollars to all of our hardworking local famers and food producers. And while this blog can be naturally self-indulgent from time to time, I hope it can be a form of Charlotte’s Web for our community – shining light on all that is “terrific,” “radiant,” and “humble” in our region.

January Martini Night

22 Jan

I know most of you are still still attempting to stay true to those resolutions you made three weeks ago – counting calories and trying to limit your big nights out. And in most cases, I’m with you – I had a wild holiday season and am in need of some down time, too. But, the high is 39 today in Greensboro and we were in need of a good meal and strong cocktail to warm us up. There is only so much hot yoga!

I had some close friends over at the last minute for dinner on Saturday night. I’m believer that there is always something to celebrate and put together a nice meal from ingredients from the Greensboro Farmer’s Curb Market (bread, beets and yellow cauliflower), the Fresh Market and the Super G Mart (which has a very nice and inexpensive selection of mushrooms). We indulged probably too much for an odd January – but isn’t that what makes life so fun?

I’m excited to post four new recipes this week – so stay tuned! These are all seasonal and delicious for your next gathering during these very cold months ahead.

January Martini Night Menu: 

  • Andy’s Dirty Martinis
  • Roasted Beet, Avocado and Grapefruit Salad
  • Potato and Local Yellow Cauliflower Gratin
  • Filet Mignon over Sauteed Oyster and Cremini Mushrooms with Garlic and Green Peppercorns
  • Loaf Bread and European Butter
  • Apple Sharlotka

lots of red wine..

Busy Times: Sneak Peek of Massey Creek Farm Visit

8 Jan

20120108-181919.jpg

It may seem slow on Mod Meals – but really, I’m so busy! This January I’m hosting a Cuban Cooking Class at the Greensboro Children’s Museum and competing in the Greensboro Curb Market Chili Challenge with my friend Garland at Massey Creek. With all the planning and prepping for these big events, I’ve had no time to cook any everyday meals. So, please mind my absence and come out and visit this month. The cooking class is booked but we need a strong showing on January 28th to help us win the Chili Challenge!

Here is a quick preview of my visit to Massey Creek Farm today. It was a beautiful January Sunday to visit Garland’s farm. His family, friends and farm were all so welcoming. I can’t wait to tell you more soon!

Happy 2012! My NYE Recap

3 Jan

20120103-073534.jpg

20120103-073602.jpg

2011 in review

1 Jan

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 37,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 14 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.

Happy New Years Eve & 500th MMoM Post

31 Dec

20111231-174819.jpg

I’ve been so busy prepping for my New Years Eve Party on Mendenhall I havent had anytime to share a recipe for my 500th post on MMoM! But as this holiday celebrates the many things to look forward to in 2012 – it’ll include many many more recipes. Wishing ya’ll a happy, healthy, warm and safe New Year’s Eve from Mendenhall Street!

 

Happy Holidays, Merry Pomegranate

19 Dec

20111219-073727.jpg

This morning, I found myself waking up from a holiday coma while wearing all my clothes inside out at the gym. It’s that season- full of food and (too) much festivity. And, once again, I’ve gone slack with cooking and recipes while eating and drinking my way from one holiday party to the next. Yesterday afternoon while sipping a mimosa in a friend’s front yard huddled over a fire, someone said “the blog has really slowed down these days.” Internally, I said “whoops.” So before officially checking into Betty Ford, I decided to give ya’ll an update and share a couple easy recipes that maybe helpful for your own holiday survival.

Saturday night I was pleased to get back into a kitchen and have some downtime away from Bing Crosby and Wham Christmas Carols. I spent a quiet evening with a friend (and a pack of dogs) testing some new twists on easy recipes. We made a new variation on brussels sprouts with balsamic vinegar and pomegranate seeds, some extremely simple hassle-back potatoes with rosemary and North Carolina shrimp cooked in butter, lemon and garlic. While these recipes were perfect for an impromptu night in, they would also be great dishes to accompany your holiday meals in the weeks ahead. I’ll share the recipes this week.

PS: How festive is my photo of this pomegranate? I’ve never associated pomegranates with the holiday season but they sure are pretty and bring a splash of nutritional value to an otherwise deadly time of the year!

Birthday Love

1 Dec

Yesterday marked the countdown to 30 – my 29th birthday! I took the day off to relax and play – which included some shopping, a pho lunch, a crazy Living Social massage/sauna adventure (which brought a new view on a “low” oven of 160 degrees) and an incredibly fun birthday celebration with many of my favorite people. Words don’t describe how amazing my friends are (both near and far) so I won’t attempt to conjure up a synopsis of their skills, and talents or measure their impact on our communities and our lives. To sum it up, they make an incredible mark on my life and my birthday is another reminder of it.

Over many pizzas and many many (count that many) glasses of wine at Sticks & Stones (nope! I did not cook!), I made everyone jump into my iPhone IncrediBooth for a quick snapshot. These photos make me so happy. When we’re 80 we’ll they will be glad I forced everyone to document our fun times. Thank you all for your well wishes. I’m looking forward to making 29 the best year yet.

 

Thanksgiving on Mendenhall 2011

27 Nov

Another Thanksgiving on Mendenhall has come and gone. My mother insisted on taking our traditional Thanksgiving dinner table photo despite the fact that we were all missing my sister Maggie (who was drinking bloody marys, frying turkeys and riding bicycles in Denver). Without the complete crew, we kept things simple this year scaling back the usual cooking extravaganza. No worries, we still ate very well! I look forward to sharing the recipes this week.

In the meantime, I’m enjoying (and very thankful for) a very clean and spiffy house that my parents helped me with. A big thanks to both of them!

Thanksgiving on Mendenhall 2011 Menu

  • Garlic, Mustard and Honey Crusted Crowned Pork Roast
  • Potato and Brussels Sprout Hash
  • Salted Dark Chocolate and Pecan Pie

Happy Turkey Day

22 Nov

Happy early Thanksgiving from Mendenhall. In all honesty, we have no idea what we are cooking for Thanksgiving this year. I know that my new hat will be the only turkey around though. I use this holiday as an excuse to catch up with family and prepare the house for winter. My parents will be up from Florida today with lots of citrus and seafood (crossing my fingers for smoked mullet) which is surely welcomed! Between lots of leaf raking and paperwhite arranging, I’m sure we will prepare something festive on Thursday. I look forward to sharing next week. In the meantime, have a happy happy Thanksgiving. If there is anything (and there is actually a lot) that this blog does for me – it is a constant reminder of how much we have to be thankful for.

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,846 other followers