Review: CRUMBS Red Velvet Cupcake

HOLY SMOKES these are large cupcakes!  I'd heard about Crumbs cupcakes from co-workers singing their praises. Crumbs, based in NY, started out with a location in Union Station and recently opened a couple new locations in DC.  Unfortunately I made the colossal mistake of looking up the calorie count of these ginormous cupcakes.  That number alone was enough to keep me away because I really like it when my pants fit.  I came home from my trip to Savannah and Jamie had one of my favorites waiting for me.

Cast Iron Cornbread

Today was my first day at work, so this post is going to be a quick one. I just got back from my wild adventure on public transit and I am so happy to be at home finally!   A decent cornbread recipe is mandatory for a southern cooking arsenal and this recipe is my go to when I don't have any Jiffy cornbread mix on hand.  I found this recipe on All Recipes and altered it slightly after a couple of very crumbly batches of cornbread.

Anniversary Post: Black and White Cheesecake

Today I am celebrating my fourth year of wedded bliss!  I can't even believe that four years have passed.  It seems like yesterday that I thought wedding planning was the most stressful thing that I had ever done.  Boy, was I wrong!  In the last four years we've moved twice, endured law school, the bar exam, the bar exam again and the most unbearable year of unemployment for me.  The past four years haven't been all bad, though.  We try to play as hard as we work and over the past four years we've gone hiking in Sedona, swam with sharks in Hawaii,  saw the Foo Fighters and Boyz II Men in concert.  We watched the Red Sox win in Fenway and Tigers play in Death Valley.  We watched so many of our friends tie the knot and gained a nephew and an Eliza Claire.  It's definitely been a ride that I only want to share with my Jamie.  Je t'adore.

Review: District of π

District of π is a relatively new pizza joint in the DC area.  I have no idea how new it is because I only heard about it because it made an appearance on Zeynep's legendary "Restaurants To Try" list.  We went on a Sunday a little before noon and there was little to no wait and we were shocked because noon is prime brunch time in DC.  I mean they don't have brunch at District of π but if you're one of those people that doesn't like brunch this could be a great option.

Chris' Chili Dogs with Blue Cheese Slaw

I just got back from a wonderful 6 days in Charleston hanging out with some cute kiddos, soaking up the sun, taking my first tennis lesson and just enjoying family.  Of course while I was down there I had some pretty good food.  Out of all of the food (and I hate to admit there was a lot),  these hotdogs were the clear winner.

Oven Sweet Potato Fries

Making sweet potato fries at home has sort of turned into an obsession for me the past couple weeks because I finally figured out the perfect condiment.  If you're going to eat fries than you have to dip them in something.  Ketchup on a sweet potato fry is just weird (no offense to the ketchup on everything people of the world) and I don't like most mayo-based dips.     The answer to my sweet potato conundrum is simple and sweet: honey. Technically, I don't use the honey as a dip, really it's more of a drizzle that happens and  I like it that way.

Squash Cakes

Have you ever had a squash cake before?  I haven't. When Jamie and I were driving down to Orlando for that wedding, I brought along a cookbook to tag some recipes that I wanted to try out.  As far as squash is concerned we're not usually that creative, we usually just saute in a little olive oil and toss it into some pasta dish.  Squash wasn't a big staple around our house until I tried this recipe because growing up squash was enemy #1. Seriously, as a kid, the day there was squash on the table was the worst day of your life, especially if there was a "clean your plate" rule in effect.  I personally have never been a fan of it's sogginess.  These squash cakes will make you forget you're eating squash and for a lot of people that is a big deal!   By grating the squash and adding cheese the squash takes on a hash brown quality that will please the pickiest of eaters. I should know I'm one of them!

Southern Caramel Cake with a twist!

Ever since The Help came out the southern caramel cake has become a staple on southern food blogs. I admit that I still haven't read or seen the movie. I know, I know it's a good book.  I own a copy and I just can't make myself do it. The problem is that I love reading books on my iphone using the kindle app and since I already own a hardcopy of the book I can't justify purchasing it again.  Technology!  So I'm waiting for an opportunity to read this book when I can't use my iphone-- a beach vacation would be perfect.  So back to the caramel cake, the funny thing is that I can't ever remember having a caramel cake ever and I've spent a decent amount of time with formidable southern cooks and still no exposure.  When Zeynep sent me the link for this cake I wasn't sure what the fuss was about. Seriously, I would rather have a plain lemon pound cake any day.   After making that caramel frosting, I now understand why it wasn't something we ever had and why Caroline's Cakes charges $60 bucks for her 7 layer caramel cake.  This is not for the faint of heart.  Nope. Not at all.  You have to have to bring your A game to play in the league of the caramel cake.