February Good Eats Wrap Up

I meant to get this out before I left for Mexico but alas, it wasn't in the cards. We are still working our way through Alton Brown's Good Eats Cookbooks. I am amazed with how far we have gotten (though we did start way back in June). I was a short month so we didn't get many Fridays but we did enjoy what we had!

After last month we ran in to a few snags in our cooking plans. We didn't have a grill, smoker, or pressure cooker so we ended up skipping ahead a few recipes. Don't worry, I tagged them, so when there is time/money they will be made (it wouldn't be a true challenge if we didn't actually make everything in the book).  Here's the run down.

• Fried Chicken: Probably my favorite recipe in the whole book so far. It was juicy and slightly spicy and perfectly cooked. The only change I would make would be to use less salt (it is a problem in the early recipes) but I still managed to eat basically half a chicken so I call it a success. I will warn you the paprika gets really dark and you'll think you burned it but never fear, it is fine. 
• Lobster: This was our Valentines Day dinner but it was a bit of a flop. No amount of Alton's assurances that Lobster is basically brethren to cockroaches will make me buy a live lobster and kill it. We used lobster tail and I think I've decided I just don't like lobster. Call me strange. 
• For the last Friday before we left we departed from tradition and made something new in the series. For those of you who don't follow the cult of Alton you may not know that Good Eats has ended. But, for the last episode he made the worlds best chocolate cookies, Chocapocalypse Cookies. These were amazing. Four types of chocolate, nibs and very little flour. I just couldn't pass them up and neither should you. 

We've got pot roast planned for tonight's Good Eats (another first for me) and I'm looking forward to it. 

Cheers!

Vacation Photo Dump: Part 2

After seven blissful nights in Rincon we headed up to Southern CA to see my family. It was a short trip (only two days) but it was great seeing them. I love being home. It is so quiet and peaceful. And the stars, my lord the stars are amazing.

We spent Saturday visiting the Gamble house in Pasadena and then we took a detour to the Huntington Library. I had only ever read about the Gamble house so I was really excited to take the tour and see inside. Unfortunately they don't allow photography inside but really that is ok since they had restored the original lighting to it's 15 watt glory. Not really the best for pictures. The outside was amazing enough.

It was built in 1908 for David and Mary Gamble of Proctor and Gamble. The entire place took 10 months to complete and cost 50,000 dollars (which is 1,197,871.70 now). Daniel hates when no-one gives the inflation adjusted values so there it is. 


The house is seriously huge. My house was built 4 years before and you can tell it was the cheap inexpensive version of this house. There are so many great aspects to the design of the house. I loved the front door

and the fact that every door had a screen door which is amazing if you think about the era.

Here it is lit up from the inside.



The whole house is paneled in teak which is insane.  With those 15 watt bulbs it is amazing no one went blind it was so dark inside, but, they made up for it with a ridiculous amount of windows. The other really neat feature of the house is that all of the furniture was made specifically for the home by the builders. Apparently it cost them $10,000 to furnish the place (or $239,574.34). Can you imagine having furniture that was actually meant to fit in your home instead of having to try and find things that fit? The possibilities are endless. 


Oh my, and the kitchen, it was huge!





It had a butler's pantry, a pastry room and a screened in porch for the servants to eat on (complete with Stickley furniture if you can believe it).

Basically the house was a Craftsman lover's paradise. It made me all excited to get working on our house again. I drooled over all of the built in storage and wood floors. You can check out more photo's of the house here or go on the virtual tour. If you ever make it to CA and are in to this sort of thing you should definitely take the time to see it.

Tomorrow I'll show you pics of the Huntington Library and it's gardens. Between the Gamble house and that I am pumped to get more done on our house! I love inspiration.

Anyone else tour historic homes for fun? We were the youngest people on the tour. Though I grew up in a Craftsman, they have a special place in my heart.

My childhood home

Cheers!

Photo Dump: Part 1

We had a grand old time but I didn't end up with very many pictures (ok, there are a lot but they are mostly of flowers) but these should illustrate just how beautiful it was. 

Daniel's family has been going to Mexico for vacation every year for the last 20 or so years (amazing right?) Usually they spend about 3-4 weeks in the same hotel in Rincon de Guayabitos which is a 1.5 hour bus ride from Puerto Vallarta. Rincon is a seriously laid back town that is a local travel destination. Think 72 degrees and sunny in the middle of winter, what more could you want? This was my first time on the family vacation so it was neat to see all the things Daniel remembers as a little kid and eat all of the food he is always raving about. 

The hotel we stayed at is called Los Ayala. It is a cute little collection of bungalows (two bedroom apartments) on the beach. Super secure and safe.  

We were greeted by the local security guard.

Things have definitely changed over the years. This year there was a great little coffee shop where you could get the Starbucks equivalent for 25 pesos (which is about $2). I loved the super bright painted chairs. 

 It was definitely a mix of dilapidation and new construction but that made it even more charming.

One of my favorite walks was going up to the cross on the hill. Daniel and his family would walk there 2-3 times a trip every year (it was about a 30 minute walk from the hotel) and they watched it develop over the years. One old man takes care of it and has built it up entirely on donations.  He is a pretty strict Catholic.

As you climbed the hill you walked through the stations of the cross.

It was quite the climb.

But the view from the top was absolutely amazing. 

 The beach was always full of people and birds. Everywhere was delicious food.

The flowers were my favorite part. I never knew bougainvillea came in so many amazing colors.

It was a great week with the entire family. We tied the trip in with a trip to my parents so more pictures to come tomorrow!

How was everyone else's week? I feel totally out of the loop.
Cheers!

Hello Home

As much as I enjoyed our trip it sure is nice to be home. We are settling in and unpacking and just enjoying the quiet before we start work on the kitchen again. I have lots to share and some great pictures but until then I'll leave you with something to brighten up your day.
Cheers!

Good Bye

Last Minute Updates

Our claw foot tub is one of my favorite features of the house. It is long enough I can actually soak myself in it and deep enough to cover me completely. The only thing it is missing is a shower. I could live without one but Daniel really wants to be able to shower off after a run so when we first moved we looked in to getting a shower adapter. Boy was I unprepared for that cost. We decided to go the piecemeal route and have been adding parts as we go.

 I decided to finally bite the bullet and get the kit only to find it was more than I remembered. Ugh. I hate when that happens. As he was tallying things up I noticed that between the shower head and a new handle for the hand shower it was over $200. Not happening. I fumed a bit and decided I'd do some more research and buy a shower head and hand held somewhere else. Sometimes it is good to listen to your gut.

 A quick ebay search for hand held porcelain shower heads and $25 later I got to switch from broken and cracked

to shiny and new.

Ahh the joys of the internet. Kitty found it fascinating too.

Can you believe she is only 6 months old? We think she's got some Maine Coon in her. After all she is fascinated by water (apparently that is a common trait).

I wish I could show you our fancy new shower kit but the plumbing guy neglected to tell me I needed to get something to attach it to the wall and it will take two weeks to get here. **sigh** But until then I am no longer in danger of hand lacerations while bathing. Bonus!

Anyone else manage to score a great deal online after being told they'd have to give their first born for a plumbing piece? Have a kitty who is fascinated by water? It is the strangest thing. I swear she would climb in the tub if she wasn't afraid she'd get wet.
Cheers!

Planting Some Sunshine

My daffodils are getting ready to bloom but otherwise my garden is looking pretty sad. Luckily a few .99 cent primroses from Home Depot were all it needed to stretch a little longer in to spring.

Now I have little bursts of sunshine when I look out my windows. Hopefully when I come home my daffodils will be in full bloom and there will be even more life in the back yard. It is almost time to start prepping for my first round of veggies. Sproutbot says I can plant chard, green onions, kale, kohlrabi, lettuce, mustard greens, peas and radishes mid March.  I've been doing some research on heirloom varieties and can't wait to have my own garden going.

Anyone else have a veggie garden? I'm pretty sure my thumb is hazel at this point but I'm hoping I can at least manage peas.
Cheers!