have a great summer!

Dear my blog readers,

Thank you so much for reading and I just want to say it was really wonderful to be able to interact with many of you because of that. I loved hearing what you were eating and your stories. And thank you for supporting me in doing something new. I'm done writing I think. I just feel like doing other things. If you didn't know I believe I get restless real easy. I'm obviously still going to be cooking, don't worry! I can't help myself. And I will still be having the same food adventures, and if you see me or hear from me, you better believe I'm going to chat your ear off about it. I will tell you one of my favorite summer times is going to the Farmer's market. Any Farmers market any where will do. But I especially love the State Farmers Market right now. I hope you enjoy your summer and all the great food that comes with it! That's my goal, and I think it's a good one.

This is where I'll be.

 

Bye from blogging! Thanks for everything.

Love,
Liza lou

kitchen transitions and the traveling pots

Liza lou's "Kitchen"
(click)

There is more than one Liza lou in this smallish big world. And it seems we both have a love for kitchens. I may be able to whip up something in a kitchen, but she single-handedly made that kitchen from scratch. Completely out of beads. I can only imagine how big my smile would be if I had the chance to stand in the middle of it. My eyes would sparkle like those tiles I bet.

I have had plenty my share of kitchens. And in each one I have cooked up a storm. After my rents,  I've jumped from one kitchen to another in Raleigh, never leaving a minute outside of downtown. 

But it was across the street from the Golden Gate Bridge that I really started cooking, in my one room apt kitchen, that had it's own corner. I went to cooking school by day, and at night I cooked. I took the doors off the cabinets and painted them turquoise to match the one in Monica's kitchen on Friends. I'm not joking. (I'm laughing.)

My Friends kitchen on Alvarado St. in San Francisco

After that, there were two more to come on the west coast total, and one was in Canada. Canada eh!? Then across the country my pots and pans went, finding two kitchens in Carrboro, NC and one in Chapel Hill. A tree fell on the Chapel Hill kitchen, again I'm not joking.  So I packed up, and headed home to Raleigh. I found a tiny "one and a half Liza sized" kitchen on Hargett Street. I climbed on the sink to reach things, a Lazy Susan atop the fridge twirled my spices, and the oven was so small that even "Grandma" couldn't fit me in it. Cooking there was such a dance!

Now, the "nicest" kitchen I've ever cooked in was the one at my last apartment, the one that came after the tiny kitchen. Let's call it the Apartment Complex Kitchen.  But I hated, "extremely disliked" it.  The glass top stove made no sense to me at first, the cabinets were too tall to even reach on my stool, and there was only one corner to chop. I was always in the way, even in my own way.

So thank God for this kitchen. 

I may not have made it like Liza lou did, but I sure as heck will make this kitchen!

See a year ago I would of snubbed it. It's electric! There's no counter space. But, this is my new home, because really my home is in the kitchen. In the next few days I will be moving my pots and pans in. Let me get settled in and I will be back in about two weeks, and here's will I will be cooking. I guarantee I will be smiling, and I can't wait to share it all with you. And I'd say finding a jar of pickled okra in the pantry...is a very good sign!

the great burger off of 2010

much to say about apples

What you have, eat.

And I always have apples. Never granny smith. I guess I just don't care for the pucker, I actually dread a granny smith apple. Apples always come home with me from the grocery store. And I am one of those shoppers that touches them. Not just a simple pick up, but, I poke them. I'm laughing right now, at myself, I laugh at me, with me, with the best of em. So if one day, you find that you brought home an apple with a finger size dent mark, well, you can point your finger at me!

 The apple. It may not be as cool as the mango, as pop worthy as the grape, or as special as the peach.  But it is the forbidden fruit! The fruit of knowledge! And it's definite crunch-able and slice-able. Take your pick.

I do all sorts of things with apples. It's perfect for getting rid of morning breath with just one bite (try it), I've eaten the whole thing on more than one occasion, leaving the seeds and stem behind, and I day dream about making apple pies and apple sauce. But, I love the Braeburn. It has the most crunch. On any given day, sometimes for breakfast, sometimes as a midnight snack, you can catch me slicing it into quarters, leaving just the core. And I usually concoct some sort of peanut butter dip.

North Carolina has the best apples! On Sunday, I got a "peck" of apples at the Farmer's Market. I love lingo for all sorts of things, and as for apples, there are 4 pecks in a bushel. A bushel is 40lbs, meaning I got 10lbs of apples! They are for more than just apple and dip this time around. I'm using them for a very special occasion. One of my bestest friends Callie, her sister is getting married, and this Saturday night, I'm catering the reception. 

The brides to be love my apple popovers.

In black apron, 3 days, 180 popovers. 

Just like apple pickings, it's a labor of love I tell you. Popover love. Apple love. love. love. love.

These are best if made ahead of time, they bake better frozen, and keeps you sane the day you're serving them!

Ingredients:

(makes 32 popovers)

1 box puff pastry sheets (contains two), thaw according to instructions

4 apples of your choice, sliced into match sticks, then diced

1 bag shredded cheddar cheese, the finely shredded kind

1 branch rosemary, minced

1 t. honey

1 T mayo

tiny dash paprika

1/2 t. salt

pepper

small bowl with water

Method:

Thaw puff pastry according to instructions. I like to open the box and lay it on the counter, flipping it a few times til I can tell it's getting soft.

A little advice on cutting your apples (this is for you Kim and all the other go for it cooks out there!). Quarter the apples like I do, then cut those quarters into thin slices. Then take those slices and stack them into a pile about 4 high. Now, carefully cut them into thin sticks. You will have lots of them, aka matchsticks! Now line them all up and cut them into cubes. It's all about moving the apples around on the cutting board to get the cut you want.

Add the apples, cheese, rosemary, honey, mayo, paprika, salt, and pepper to a large bowl and mix well. WITH YOUR HANDS! Crunch it all up, get it nice and mixed.

When the dough is thawed, I like to sprinkle some flour on the counter so the dough doesn't stick. I roll the pastry sheet lightly with a rolling pin, just twice, one vertical roll and one horizontal roll. Then with a sharp knife slice the dough into 4 rows and 4 columns. If I explained that correctly you will have 16 squares to work with.

WITH YOUR HANDS again, take a tiny spoonful size of apple-cheddar mix and squeeze it in your palm. Place the tiny wad in the center of a dough square. With the small bowl of water, dip your index finger in and lightly rub the edge of two connecting sides of the square. Fold into a triangle and press down sides. Press edges with the tip of a fork. Viola! Done. Lay on parchment paper or a baking pan or casserole dish. 

Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. etc. Then wrap with saran wrap and freeze til ready to serve. Prob not much longer than two weeks. 

Cook at 400 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Take a peek at twelve. Should be golden brown with cheese dripping out the sides.

this week's box

It's been kinda a long week for me. The kind where you notice the minutes in the day. Has it felt the same for you?  Maybe it's been that blanket of pollen and the wait for it's washout.

Aside from making pollen bombs, which I can't give you too much more information about over the blog site, I did something new.

For the past few days, I've been doing my usual, and everyone that saw me would probably agree. But in the midst of my routine, something out of the ordinary happened...

A friend of mine turned me on to this website, US Wellness Meats. Now, if you haven't noticed already by reading my blog, I love meat. And the idea of it arriving as a package just for me...I started clicking away! It started with just a beef stick. It looked way too interesting to pass up. I mean, come on it's like a meat power bar. A meat power bar! But they wouldn't let me check out until my shopping cart had reached 7lbs! So I added a lb of butter and 2 salami sticks. Still not heavy enough. I clicked snacked sticks, and beef bones. And after 6 of those "power bars", I made it!

So this week, I woke up to my alarm, I set my alarm again, I worked, worked, worked, I cooked, cooked, cooked, I weighed out hundreds of things in my head. But none of them were as much accomplished and exciting as the 7lb box of meat that was on my door step Wednesday afternoon.

(this is a reenactment)

Looking back, it stands out greater than those long minutes. Happiness in a box, delivered to me.
Oh and when it arrived, you know I had a bite of everything, minus the bones. But not minus the butter!

What would your happiness in a box, the highlight of a long week, be?

the real kind

Happy Easter.

 

     (left: the handsome boy is my brother, Adam, and right: me and my big sister, Katie)

And that baby there, with the precious cheeks. That's my little sister Tessa. It's funny though, I never think of her that way. She has more height than I could ever dream of, and a boldness, that makes her stand out from all the rest. The last of four, then six, to grow up, but the first to be herself. Anyone that knows her, understands. If you don't really know Tessa, and just briefly caught a glimpse, you may have misjudged her, unaware of what she is capable of. To me, she is daring. She says yes to the unknown.  A week ago, half joking-half serious, I sent her a text asking her to make homemade Cadbury eggs.

And what did she do... 

She made them!

So this post is a special one. We are celebrating Easter. We are celebrating family. And we are celebrating this, with real treats. Not the cr*p you find at the drug store. When you make something homemade, not only do you know what's in it, but you get an experience that is just for you. And sometimes, it makes you feel a little bold, daring. Now, we can only wish that we could experience Tessa's homemade Cadbury eggs. But what an Easter to know that they were made! And by a sister, that I am lucky to have...and Brooklyn, you're lucky too!

When I was that little girl in the hat, Cadbury eggs were my absolute favorite. Now thanks to Tess we can make em' ourselves...

Ingredients:

1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 t. vanilla
1/4 t. salt
3 cups powdered sugar
yellow food coloring
red food coloring
1-12 oz bag of milk chocolate chips
2 T. shortening

Method:

Combine corn syrup, butter, vanilla, and salt in a bowl. Mix with an electric mixer until it looks creamy. Then add sugar by hand, one cup at a time, continue to mix.

Separate filling into 2 or 3 (she made three different colors) different bowls and add  few drops of yellow and red food coloring to one bowl and add just yellow to the other, one drop at a time. Mix together til color is even, then cover and chill in fridge for up to two hours.

When filling is firm, roll a small ball from each bowl and then roll them together to form one egg shaped ball. Lay on shortening brushed sheet pan, and repeat with rest of the filling. Refrigerate for 3-4 hours.

Once firm, combine chocolate chips in glass bowl with 2 T. shortening and microwave on high for 1 minute. Then stir and microwave another minute. Stir again til smooth. Use a fork to dip each "egg center" into the chocolate. Place candy on parchment paper to dry, once dry, dip again.

Ready to chill and ready to eat! What an Easter egg.

taxes and tacos

gone fishin'

It felt like that kinda day today. 

Everything was completely in its time. 

And I loved every minute of it. 

I happened to get my taxes done, did some hammock laying,
and made some fish tacos...!

I hope you find a nice and easy day this week too.

Ingredients:

1 lb fresh flounder, or any other white fish (tilapia, etc.)

lemon thyme seasoning (store bought, any seasoning you like will do)

5-6 carrots, peeled, chopped into 1" rounds

6 purple potatoes, diced into 1" cubes

olive oil

salt and pepper

small handful of dill, chopped

6 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped

2-3  garlic cloves, up to you, minced

1/4 red onion, diced

2 avocados, diced

1 mango, diced

1 red pepper, diced

1/2 jalapeno pepper, minced

3 limes, juiced

1 cup black rice, or white, whatever

2 T. butter

1/4 t. honey

1 lemon, sliced into rounds

tortillas

(the best way to get the seeds out of a tomato, is to scoop it out with a spoon.
And an avocado, with a knife.)

Method: 

When you get in from the store, unwrap your fish and season it on one side, belly side up. If you are ready to start cooking dinner, leave it out on the counter, wrapped back up. If you are going to cook it later on, put back in the fridge. 

Ready to cook? Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a large bowl, toss potatoes and carrots together with a few drizzles of olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. Best way to mix it is WITH YOUR HANDS. Spread out on parchment lined baking pan and put in oven. Set timer for 30 minutes and check. Should be ever so lightly crisp on outside and soft on the inside. If not as "quite there" as you think they should be, put back in for 5-10 more minutes. Allow to cool to "not so hot" on pan and then in a large bowl gently toss together with dill (a rubber spatula is best for this one).

before                                                          after

Cook your rice. Heat 1 T. of butter on medium high in bottom of small pot. Add rice and saute for about 1-2 minutes. Add water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, cut down to low and cover with lid for 40 minutes. 

(1 cup of rice, to 2 cups of water.)

Salsa time, simple. In large bowl, mix together tomatoes, garlic, onion, avocado, mango, and jalapeno pepper, and lime juice. Season with salt and pepper.

As for cooking the fish, when you pull out the carrot-potato combo, bump the oven heat up to 425 degrees. Melt other tablespoon of butter in the microwave and dissolve in the honey. Brush on the fish, and place in the oven for 10 minutes. 

Shred fish with a fork and make tacos. On tortilla layer fish, then rice, then salsa. It's messy eating, but it's real good. Serve with a side of dill purple potatoes and carrots.

the lunch series

"Now that's a loaf of bread!"

If you could hear me say it out loud, you would be able to hear the stress on the words "Now" and "That's".   Imagine it this time, "Now thaaat's a loaf of bread!" 

My Pa, my grandpa, taught me how to talk like that. We were talking about babies one day. Talking about how some babies are cute, and well...how some babies aren't so cute.  But never, ever, would you, ever, admit, out loud, that a baby.is.not.cute. He said to me, if I ever do see one of those babies, all I gotta say is,

"Now that's a baby!" 

And tonight, when I pulled the loaf of bread out of the bread machine, I laughed when I saw it, because that is exactly what I thought. It wasn't as good looking as a loaf of bread could be. It was too dark and about 3 inches too short. Every now and then, it happens this way. And it's no big surprise. It is even half always to be expected. For I am no baker. 

And only Liza lou would mess up a loaf of bread, that was made in a bread maker. When it comes to baking, it's not that I'm horrible, I just self will it. To self will it, basically means, you take it into your own hands. An old boss of mine used to tell me I had a problem with that. And he always kept an eye on me when I made the sweet potato biscuits!

As much as I hated to hear it, he was right about me. I believe that self willing is down right okay...in life, yes. In baking, never! Baking is an exact process, and it does not need my free for all style. But to be honest, sometimes, I don't even know that I'm doing it.

So thank goodness for my bread machine, a much loved birthday present. It still gives me the satisfaction of making bread from scratch, it makes the house smell like a small bakery, and for some reason, it seems to slow time down. And with it, quite possibly, is the only baking that I do.

 It is only because fresh baked bread is so good.

And a homemade sandwich on it is even better.

For bread machine Challah recipe,

Ingredients:

1/2 cup + 2 T. water

1/4 cup unsalted butter, in 1/2 inch pieces

1 egg, at room temperature

3/4 t. salt

2 T. +1 t. sugar

2 1/4 cups bread flour

2 t. yeast

Method:

Place ingredients, in the order listed, in the bread pan fitted with the kneading paddle. Place the bread pan in the bread maker, and make appropriate selections according to your machine. Press Start to mix, knead, rise and bake. Ah so easy! When cycle is completed, removed bread from machine and transfer to wire rack to cool. Bread slices best when allowed to cool. 

(Here is where I think I self willed and didn't precisely follow the instructions, causing my "Now that's a loaf of bread" comment.  I cracked the egg straight from the fridge. I didn't let it come to room temp. Oopsie.)

Tip: gently and safely warm cold eggs by placing whole eggs in a bowl and covering with moderately hot tap water for ten minutes.

on eating alone

You taste what you're made of...

(...and Irish Bangers, Apple-mash, with an arugula salad)

I have been working on my confidence.  I don't mean to get all self-help on you, but I will tell you last night, I helped myself to a delicious meal. And I ate it all by myself.

I don't think it is possible for me to cook for just one. I don't know how. Well, sure, I could easily buy one of those trays that feeds one person. It does make some sense, I do like to eat in front of the tv. Who am I kidding, I have never had one of those in my life, and food you actually cook, just doesn't come in single serving sizes.  And my nature in the kitchen isn't capable of such a task. I prefer to share.

I haven't been sharing as many dinners as I used to. And let's just say it's change. different. a bit lonely. Every night that I cook, I make a call, or send a text, saying, "Hey, want to eat dinner with me? I've got enough for two." And I don't have to feel empty or have an empty spot at the bar (or on the couch). I get to share a meal again.

Last night, my request was answered with, "I am sick." "I already ate." While chopping the apple, there was a moment when I realized, "I am eating dinner alone." "Okay, I am eating dinner alone!" I usually get satisfaction, or we can call it an ego boost, when I cook a real good dinner for someone else. Last night, I gave that to myself.  I settled into the kitchen and really made myself proud.  Confidently, with fork and knife in hand, plate on my lap, I ate. Not lonely, but just alone. Well, not completely alone, if my friends from Melrose Place count? And hey, there is still a plate of leftovers in the fridge! And that I can share.

 

One night, make a meal for yourself and eat it by yourself. If you don't know what to cook, make this one...

Ingredients:

2 T. butter

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 apple, chopped

1 celery root, peeled and chopped

water

2 T. half and half or milk

salt and pepper

Irish Bangers, bratwurst, any sausage

foil

2 handfuls arugula, or salad greens

your favorite dressing, or mine

Method:

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. 

Saute garlic in 1 T. butter on medium-high heat for about 1-2 minutes, stirring so it won't burn. Add apples and celery root, and just barely cover with water. Bring to a boil, then cut heat down to medium, and allow to cook for about 30 minutes, til mushy, stirring occasionally. When done, drain, return to pot, add half and half, a pinch of salt, two shakes of pepper, and blend with hand mixer, or mash with potato masher. Leave on stove with lid to keep warm til everything else is ready.

In a skillet, on high heat, melt butter and sear sausages about 3-4 minutes on each side. You want them to be brown on all sides. Then wrap in foil pouch and put in oven for 20-25 minutes. Slice one in half to make sure it is cooked all the way (a little pink is okay).

While sausage is in oven, prepare your salad. If you want to make my dressing, whisk together 2 cloves minced garlic, 2 T. chopped dill or parsley, juice of one lemon, and 2 big spoonfuls of mayo. Season with salt and pepper. With your dressing or mine, to dress the salad, start with the dressing in the bottom of a large bowl. Then add your greens on top, and WITH YOUR HANDS, toss together. 

Plate everything side by side, grab your knife and fork, and proudly eat, where ever you want. Alone.

over easy

Ingredients: an egg, a spoon, and a big mouth!

liza lou's cut above the rest

just how I like it.

rare.

I'm not just talking about how I like my steak cooked, I'm also thinking, chances are pretty rare that you know what cut of steak I like best. See, I jot down on index cards, blog ideas. Most posts emerge from what I cook and how I eat on the regular. But I have been holding out on you. Because this one in particular, a weekly staple in my grocery cart, has been on the card for weeks...

I grocery shop in sections. I am in the produce department, I look around, what do I want? A few things green? Always carrots, an onion. If I am into sandwiches, a tomato. And a lemon or two always comes in handy. I then turn the corner and push past the fish department, I just can't commit to eating seafood during an average week. But when I arrive at the meat counter, all I see is red, and my buddies behind the case, all they see is a little lady with a smile on her face.

Even though I act like I am deciding what to take home, it's always the same. I am a Mae Farm girl, and I stick to getting my pork at the Farmer's Market. So, it's just chicken, thighs or the whole bird. And it's beef, ground, or chuck roast, and on any given week, it's Flat Iron. 

Flat Iron is for the dinner nights you don't feel like cooking. Flat Iron is for the rotten days and you just need a good steak. It takes no skill, and no time, just salt and pepper, and high heat. You aren't chewing beef bubble gum all night, that you discreetly discard into your napkin. And when you serve it, you can slice it with a butter knife. It impresses, make it for yourself and others, and see what I mean.  It is way leaner than any NY Strip or Ribeye, and it is the second most tender cut to Tenderloin, fillet mignon, they call it. And compared to all three, it costs significantly less.

It's delicious and now you know,

it's my favorite.

It goes with any sides you like. Potatoes, broccoli, and my brother Adam's top choice, spaghetti squash with blue cheese sauce, which I promise I am sure I will leak out before the winter's through...

Where to find it: I get mine from Whole Foods, if there is a guy behind the counter with a cowboy hat, tell him Liza sent you, he will love it. Also, a tasty marinated version can be found at the Raleigh Trader Joes. I don't know about the other superstores.

Ingredients:

1lb flat iron steak (feeds 2 generously)

salt and pepper

oil or butter for searing

Method:

First, salt your flat iron. Preferably when you get home from the store, get into the habit of salting your meat (chicken, fish, beef, yep). Just a nice thin layer will do, wrap it back up and put in in the fridge. This will make for a juicier piece of meat, more flavorful, and it will keep for a day or so longer than you intended for it to.

Thirty minutes before you are ready to eat, pull it out and set on the counter. With a paper towel dab off the moisture, you want a dry piece of meat, so you can get a real good sear. Pepper the steak and let it warm up a bit before cooking. It's best not to cook meat straight cold from the fridge (the muscle tightens, and makes for a tougher chew).

When you are about ready to eat, in a cast iron pan or skillet (or even better, a grill), turn the heat up to high and allow for it to get really hot. Add a pat of butter or 1 T. of oil. Let it smoke for a few seconds, and then, for rare, sear for 4 minutes on each side. For medium rare, about 6 minutes on each side. For well-done, well, I-don't-know.

Allow it to sit, to "rest", for a few minutes before slicing, and the juices will redistribute. 

Now, let me know if you start putting it in your cart every week, and if so, it's up to you now, to share it with other people!

"EAT. drink. bowl."

What is greater than bowling shoes and sliders?

 

Only that at The Alley, you can eat one while wearing the other. I recently went on a date. As it usually goes, the question asked is, 

"Where do you want to go for dinner?" 

My answer: The Alley. 

It wasn't a bowling date, but a dinner date. Going out to dinner at a bowling alley? I know, I know, sounds very unlikely, especially for a girl's choosing. But little Liza lou had heard they had reopened the restaurant in The Alley, and with a quick google, came to find out, that this bowling alley in particular, has a killer menu. 

Any menu containing a Caesar salad, must be tried. You heard me correctly ladies, salad at a bowling alley. And I will admit, I will judge a place by it's Caesar. This one, thumbs up. Just like I give the menu, which  is pleasantly priced, simple, yet creative (grill cheese bites with tomato soup, come on, how cool). It is true to the South, and from what I tasted, real good too. 

 

It was unlike any other date destination.  As we pulled into the parking deck (that alone, a rarity on Hillsborough St.), the rumbles of bowling balls could be heard above us. And as we walked through the doors, I was all smiles. It is a big place with lots to take in. All kinds of people were hanging out-enjoying themselves, Michael Jackson was playing, and it was more fun than I had seen all week.

 

What I loved most, is it has an old school charm that is hardly around anymore. It can be seen down the lanes, on the walls, even the bathrooms. And every romantic bone in my body adored the checkered covered tables in the restaurant. 

That, the sliders, the salad, the atmosphere, it all said...this is my kinda place. And it really is making Raleigh a better place. I credit the venue for such a hit date, and I even got a lil typs on a beer, okay, two. We didn't bowl, but that's the thing...

You can go to The Alley to EAT, to drink, or to bowl.

 

But with all three, it's a definite strike!