No I am not talking about the guy with the long blond flowing locks who got smacked in the face with a goose on an amusement ride and made "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter" ads. And for those of you who knew me back in the day I am also not talking about my Himalayan cat with the long blond flowing locks, big blue eyes and a squished face. I am talking about Fabio Viviani who is the part owner and Chef at Cafe Firenze and who was a contestant on Top Chef. This weekend my girlfriends and I decided to take a cooking class with Fabio. And as many of you know I love soup so when I heard he was doing a soup cooking class I definitely had to con some of the ladies into going with me.

Potato and Fennel Soup

Lobster Bisque

I expected to have a good time, learn a thing or two about soup, have a glass of wine with the girls and probably laugh a little at his broken English. However, let me just say he is hysterically funny. I never expected to laugh as much as I did but never fear I did learn a few things about cooking. So we made 4 soups-gazpacho, which was so incredibly easy as its served cold and its done in the blender. The 2nd soup was a potato, fennel and apple soup and as many of you know fennel was one of my 2012 goals. The soup tasted great but I couldn't really pick out the fennel. We did learn that potato can be used to make a soup creamy in lieu of cream which is a good way to save fat and calories. Then we learned how to make a traditional tomato soup and finally lobster bisque.

Gazpacho

Tomato Soup

Now this cooking class was different as all of the recipes are available on-line so if you are inclined to make any of the soups go to: http://fabioviviani.com/category/general-recipes/soups-and-soupy-dishes/

So let me share with you some random soup/cooking knowledge that I gleaned from Fabio:

1. The #1 cooking search for January is soup hence the inspiration for the class. This was pretty funny as it was 77 degrees outside.
2. You can't digest pepper so its just for flavor and it goes through your system. 
3. To make lobster bisque the lobster meat and shell goes into the blender. The shell gives the soup more flavor and once its blended the soup is strained so you don't get pieces of shell in your soup.
4. Onion, carrots and celery are the holy trinity in Italy. These 3 vegetables are used in everything from soup to sauces to pasta dishes. 
5. And my personal favorite lesson is that a pinch (like a pinch of salt or pepper) is not 2 fingers like we all do its a 3 finger pinch. And he described a pinch as a "game changer." He gave the analogy a little something like this however picture this described by a dark Italian man with a thick accent. So you are cooking breakfast in the morning in your chonies and your significant other grabs your tushy and gives you a 2 finger pinch and you think damn did I get something on my chonies. However, if your significant other gives you a 3 finger pinch well thats a game changer and breakfast can wait. 

Purple Paradise

Ok so my love of football ended last year after the Brett Favre texting scandal. You may be thinking oh she is disappointed in his behavior and all of the other scandals in the sport and gave it up. However, if that is your thought you are dead ass wrong and don't know me at all. I am disappointed in Brett because I sat by my phone for weeks waiting for his text messages of his naked body and I never got them. And I figured really you want me to support your career and your sport and I am getting nothing in return. So there!

However, I know that a lot of America really enjoys football and this whole Super Bowl thing. Therefore I am trying to be supportive in my food blog by making some food recommendations for your Super Bowl Party. I however will be running 13 miles on that day in Huntington Beach and hoping to beat my personal record and maybe drinking some beer afterwards. And if I do happen to be around a tv which is projecting the game I will only be watching the commercials. Haha.

So if you are having a party or you are just looking for a good soup recipe that has a lot of good flavor and is kind of different-Buffalo Chicken Soup is my recommendation. Or if you live somewhere other than Southern California because it was 75 degrees here today and you want a warm comfort food this is a great pick.  It is really creamy due to the cheeses (Parmesan, blue cheese and mozzarella) and the flavor of the hot sauce really compliments the blue cheese flavor. The recipe is super easy as well because the chicken comes from a rotisserie chicken and it has very few ingredients. Saute the onion and celery in butter until tender. Once it is tender add the chicken broth, milk and hot sauce.  Add the 3 cheese and flour mixture that you had combined in a separate bowl. Finally once the cheese is melted add the chicken. I put additional red hot sauce on the top of my soup because I love the kick. I served the soup with a chardonnay but I also think it would be great with an IPA while you watch the game.

And yes I know that I am on some wacky buffalo flavored kick-first the cheese and now this soup. Ok I think I am done. Really how many more things can I find with that flavor...sure I guess I could go traditional and make buffalo chicken wings but they are just so easy to buy why hassle with making them from scratch just saying. Hope everyone is having a good week. Cheers!

So this morning I am going into work late because I have to work late. And one of the gifts of being salaried is schedule flexibility...ok lets be honest that is the only gift of being a salaried employee. And as I sit here drinking my coffee and reading my Bon Appetit magazine with a batch of cookies in the oven I started thinking to myself damn this is pretty heavenly. From there my mind started wandering and I thought ya know I could really see myself living a life of luxury...one in which I didn't have to get up early every morning, one where I could cook everyday, spend time at the gym, blog, shop, travel and stop and smell the roses. And so I thought of how I could accomplish this and its simple I pretty much have 2 options....become a reality tv star which could be a challenge since I am not a Kardashian or a train wreck or find myself a Sugar Daddy who really just wants to pay for me to do whatever the hell I please. Please don't get me wrong I am not interested in being a trophy wife or a puppy mill for someones brood of children I just want someone to finance my lifestyle. Ah yes that might be challenging you may think to yourself but seriously who would not want to fork over some cash to someone who is funny, entertaining, athletic and in pretty good shape. Right?

This morning I don't have a glorious recipe to share with you all, however I do have a few cheese recommendations because as you know cheese is my downfall. I got both of these at Fresh and Easy and I have found recently that they have some high end and different cheeses...this may have been their new years resolution because I don't remember a cheese selection like this before. I have found that they started carrying some cheeses that are challenging to find like mascarpone, imported parmesan, gruyerre and ricotta salata.



The first one would be perfect for a Super Bowl Party-Buffalo Wing Cheddar Cheese! And it truly tastes like buffalo wing sauce. It has a kick to it and the spice and the creamy texture of the cheese is great! I tried it with crackers and salami and it was the perfect snack. I would recommend this cheese as more of a snacking cheese because I would be afraid it would be too overpowering in a dish unless it was the focal point in something like Mac N Cheese.



The 2nd cheese is a wine infused cheese. It is similar in texture to a monterey jack but it is infused with Merlot wine. This cheese is great paired with a good glass of red wine because it really brings out the Merlot flavor and the creamy nature of the cheese. I also served this cheese with crackers and wine obviously but I would prefer to eat this cheese on its own rather than incorporate it into a dish where the subtle wine flavor would get lost.

Ok so granted I haven't met a cheese that I haven't liked but these 2 are definitely on the top of my list right now. I also found this great web site www.igourmet.com for hard to find cheeses and meats. I have found that it is hard to find Spanish Chorizo and this web site has it and its only $5.99. They have a lot of great specialty food and I definitely recommend it if you are looking for something out of the ordinary.

Well hope you all have a good day. I need to finish my article in Bon Appetit...I am reading about how you can lease lobster traps in Maine...yes you can pick your own traps and they have GPS on them so you can track them...and then during the harvesting season you get your lobsters. Hmmm not sure how I feel about the idea but it does intrigue me a tad bit...I will keep you posted. Cheers!

It decided to rain today and ruin my image of sunny southern California...also stressed me out a tad bit as I am supposed to drive to Carlsbad this afternoon and run a half marathon tomorrow. And this wind and rain just isn't my idea of a fun run. So I decided to bake to try and relieve some stress and get me psyched for another big run...little concerned about this one as I haven't been training...we shall see how it goes.

As many of you know I always have a collection of recipes in the back of my mind that I want to try. You just never know when you may need a recipe for Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Bacon Cookies, right? I decided today would be the perfect day to try these...figure they will either be really really good or really really bad...just figure there is no middle ground for something like this.



So the recipe starts by combining the dry ingredients and there are a few ingredients that are a little out of the ordinary. With the flour, baking powder and baking soda you also combine cinnamon, ancho chile powder and kosher salt....hmmm ok. Then you cook the bacon and as you all know I love bacon...made the house smell so good!! Then mix the butter and 2T of bacon fat together...oh yes did I mention how low fat these cookies are....uh yeah no. Then add peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar, vanilla and egg to the butter mixture. Add the flour and then mix in the accoutrements-honey roasted peanuts, chocolate chips and bacon.

One of the things that I liked about these cookies is that they don't spread in the oven. I always question whether or not I am making my cookies too big but the recipe was very specific that you roll the dough into a ball and then flatten them out on the pan and they will not grow. Once the cookies have been flattened you sprinkle them with additional bacon and chocolate chips.



And let me just say these cookies are pretty much a PMS dream-salt, sugar, bacon and chocolate. Forget the Midol I am going to market peanut butter chocolate chip bacon cookies in a bottle. All joking aside these cookies have a great flavor and although it is out of the ordinary with the hint of spice from the cinnamon and chile powder, the bacon flavor and the chocolate it truly does work.

I also just read an interesting article about the shelf life of baking staples. Did you know that flour is only fresh for 6-8 months, baking powder unopened has a shelf life of 6 months and 3 months if its opened and baking soda is only good for 6 months once it has been opened. Hmmm so I am thinking the baking soda that I have had for the last 5 years might be a little old, what do you think?



And finally if you are looking for a good and easy weeknight meal try this Shrimp Fra Diavolo recipe. I served it with Caesar salad and it was perfect. The sauce was a little spicy and the acidity of the marinara sauce went really well with the shrimp. I definitely recommend it.

As a side note has anyone else noticed that as you mature your "drink of choice" changes. When I first started drinking at the ripe 'ol age of 21...not before because that would be illegal...I was a tequila girl. I loved tequila because it wasn't classy, you felt it by just looking at the bottle and it was cheap. Then after a bad tequila experience I moved on...going for the sweeter drinks...the appletinis and the white russians. When I first started as a Dispatcher the white russian was my drink of choice. The group I worked with always had watch parties after our graveyard shifts and while they drank copious amounts of beer I would drink my white russian...sure that was back in the day when I had the metabolism of someone in their early 20's so the full fat cream didn't go directly to my ass like it would now. From there the guys started to teach me how to drink beer...I remember thinking initially it was the nastiest thing ever...it just tasted bitter, made me burp and was just yuck. However, they slowly wore me down starting me off slowly drinking Rolling Rock which was pretty mild and then educating me from there...I even got to a point in my late 20's when I could do Irish Car Bombs...however that phase has since passed. I still love a cold beer on a warm summer day but as many of you know I am pretty much a wine girl. I love a good class of wine with good food and good company. I love the vast amount of varieties out there, the different flavors and tastes and the discovery of new wines. Just wanted to take a moment and say thank you to all of you who have educated me in my alcohol consumption throughout the years and those of you who are continuing to enhance my knowledge. Cheers!

For the last 3 weeks my life has been consumed by a reality show I found on Netflix entitled Jockeys. It is a show well obviously about horse jockeys and although it was only filmed for 2 seasons I found it to be all consuming. Sure I have always been a fan of betting on the ponies...my addiction starting as a teenager when my uncle took me to the horse races every year at the Humboldt County Fair at the Ferndale Fairgrounds...yeah can't even begin to try and describe it. Ok let me try...it is a small dirt track in a rural small town and the grandstands are all outdoors, wooden and bleacher style with peeling dark green paint. Every year when the fair happens the horses come to town and people gather from all over the county to wager on the horses....wearing their cowboy hats, Wranglers and with chew in their mouths.  I remember he would let me pick my horses which were always done based on the color of the horse, the color of the jockeys attire or the name of the horse. I remember winning $50 once and just thinking I had died and gone to heaven. Sure this was before I was of legal gambling age but they were fun summer, childhood memories.

As I got older and I discovered the Vegas sports books where you can sit for hours, bet on multiple tracks and multiple horses oh and drink cocktails my addiction grew. When I moved to So Cal I discovered the joy of Santa Anita...ahh a table with a view overlooking the tracks, cocktails, good food and ponies pretty much made me a believer. And of course there was my trip to Atlantic City where I met my horse betting mentor. My husband had left me in the sports book while he went to find a restroom and I started talking to the 65 year old tall Italian man sitting next to me...he had the great East Coast accent, he had papers spread out in front of him for miles analyzing every aspect of the sport and he had that sense of calm which meant he was winning some serious money. And of course he owned his own cigar store...it was either that or be a member of the mob, right? So I did the cutsie thing and struck up a conversation...we became close friends and spent the next 3 hours "betting on the ponies," together. He taught me how to "exacta box," how to understand the odds and how to have a good time with the ponies. I also learned that on the West Coast we call it betting on horses and on the East Coast they call it "playing the ponies." Anyway to this day I bet on the ponies a couple times a year...nothing crazy...but its fun and entertaining...sometimes ya win and sometimes ya lose.

Anyway now that I watched all 2 seasons sure I got my life back but now I need a new hobby...because seriously what am I supposed to do once I have cooked for the night. So tonight I decided to make Cranberry Bread. It sounded like an easy recipe and the thought of cinnamon, sugar and cranberries sounded like a great combination. As a kid I loved cinnamon toast and that is kind of what the recipe reminded me of...however of course since I had a health conscious Mom I actually had cinnamon and honey...equally as good but slightly different. So you take dried cranberries and mix them with orange peel. I have to admit that I am horrible about using the orange after I zest the peel...it seems like those oranges always end up getting dried out and being thrown away. Then add sugar and cinnamon in another bowl. The recipe calls for refrigerated dinner rolls which I couldn't find...I found refrigerated pizza dough, breadsticks, cinnamon rolls and crescent rolls but not dinner rolls. So I settled for round crescent rolls which I figured would be close enough until I tried to cut them and since they are rolled up they tended to kind of fall apart...however after they baked they seemed to be ok. So you take the rolls and cut them in quarters then throw them in a bowl with melted butter and the cinnamon/sugar mixture. Create a layer of rolls on the bottom of the loaf pan and then put a layer of the cranberries and repeat. Bake the loaf and the pieces of rolls meld into a load. While the loaf is warm put the glaze on it which just consists of powdered sugar and milk and there you have it....cinnamon cranberry loaf. This recipe came from Pampered Chef and I do have to say sometimes they have really easy and tasty recipes that look like you spent a lot more time than you actually did.


Cranberry Cobblestone Bread

1/3 cup dried cherries
2 tsp orange zest
1/3 cup sugar
4 tsp ground cinnamon
2 pkg (11oz each) refrigerated dinner rolls
4 T butter or margarine melted

For glaze:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2-3 tsp milk

Preheat oven to 375. For bread, combine cranberries and orange zest in a small bowl; mix lightly. In a separate bowl combine sugar and cinnamon. Unroll dinner rolls and separate into 16 rolls. Cut each roll into quarters. Place half of the dough pieces and half of the butter in a bowl and toss gently. Sprinkle with half of the sugar mixture and toss to coat evenly. Place dough pieces in loaf pan to cover bottom of pan. Sprinkle with half of the cranberry mixture and repeat layers. Bake 40-45 min or until golden brown. Cool in pan 15 min. Loosen bread from edges and remove to cooling rack. For glaze, combine powdered sugar and milk in small bowl. Drizzle over warm bread.


As a side note today is the first day I got my sense of taste and smell back...and yes the cinnamon and sugar bread smelled really good baking. Oh and by the way I had a volunteer, unpaid, unbiased and healthy taste tester try the chile and I was told the chile is unbearably hot and in order to eat it he had to drink a quart of milk...and he said that now he is bloated...but he thinks that is from so much milk...oops so maybe you may want to stay away from the chile recipe with the 3/4 cup of chile powder...just saying....unless you are having dinner with someone you don't really like.

And since last time I made a request on my blog I got my wok I thought I would try again. I want this!!!

So I had a vision of my holiday weekend and for some reason it did not include Vicks vap-o-rub, 2 boxes of Kleenex and throat lozenges but alas that is my reality. And although I have continued to follow through with my planned cooking adventures they just aren't quite the same without my sense of taste and smell. I haven't paid attention in the past to how awkward it is to try and cook when you can't really smell or taste and it is strange blindly going by others judgments....is there enough salt? Does it need more pepper? Is this too spicy? Oh you say it smells good? Oh really you think this tastes really good?

I have also found that right now I have an affinity for some foods that I don't normally enjoy...like my super spicy chili I made the other night or IPA beer...usually the flavor is too intense but right now its mildly hoppy and the bubbles feel pleasant on my throat. And I have found that I have been putting salsa on everything...scrambled eggs, english muffins, avocado, etc. However, there are also some activities that would just be lost on me this weekend such as wine tasting, olive oil tasting or high quality restaurants...just wouldn't appreciate them with a vengeance like normal.



Last night I decided to make Risotto with Porcini Mushrooms and Mascarpone. I have never used porcini mushrooms or mascarpone cheese so I thought this would be a nice little food adventure. Unfortunately the recipe called for dried porcini mushrooms and after trying every grocery store in Moorpark I had to settle for Shitaki mushrooms...they were good but I don't know how much this switch changed the recipe. However, I do have to say even though I couldn't totally taste it I loved the mascarpone cheese its like a cross between Irish butter and cream cheese and the creamy texture was heaven with the mushrooms and risotto. Did you know that mascarpone is actually Italian cream cheese? The mascarpone is actually placed on top of the risotto and it kind of melts due to the heat of the risotto...great compliment to the woodsy taste/texture of the mushrooms, the salt of the beef broth and the flavor of the white wine.

So I love risotto because its easy to make in one pot, you can pretty much add anything you want to it and its just warm comfort food. Here are a few risotto facts I thought you all might enjoy:

• Risotto is traditionally Italian
• The most common type of rice used is arborio which is a short grain rice that is named after the town of its origin. It also has a higher starch content
• Risotto is cooked in broth (can be meat, fish or vegetable broth)
• Traditionally it has parmesan cheese, butter and onion

"Cooking is therapy for me. Now I'm going to have to have therapy from cooking." -Coolio (yes the rapper)

Never thought the day would come when I quoted Coolio in my blog, but I was watching Celebrity Cookoff this weekend and yes Coolio is a contestant and honestly he actually knows how to cook. And even better he has a cookbook called Cookin' with Coolio....and I do not own it but my curiosity may get the better of me and I may have to purchase it. Or at least try to find one of his recipes on-line and see what this Coolio is all about in the kitchen. Yes, this is from the girl who also purchased and read the Snooki book and surprisingly it was horrible. I know you are all gasping in surprise, right!!! I know you all thought it was going to be a work of literary brilliance but alas it was not and that was time I wil never get back...sigh.

So I have been a little under the weather and come to find out its hard to cook when you can't really smell or taste...ahhh the joys of a cold. However, since this is day 2 of laying on the couch I decided I had to do something at least slightly productive and I thought to myself hmmm what can I taste? So I decided spicy food would be my best bet and since I don't have a ton of energy I opted for a crock pot chili recipe. This recipe for Texas Chile is from Food Network and you know me I buy all of the ingredients without reading the recipe.

So I am browning the meat before it goes in the crock pot, chopping my onion and dicing my garlic. I start to saute my onions all fat, dumb and happy and then the recipe says I need to add cumin, garlic and chile powder....well this is where my panic sets in. The recipe calls for 3/4 cup of chile powder...and I start sweating profusely at the very thought of that much chile powder. I triple check the recipe, pull it up on-line to verify the book doesn't have a typo and low and behold the recipe calls for 3/4 cup of chile powder. My contemplation then begins...should I put less in the recipe? Should I just go for it? Should I just panic and sit on the floor and cry? Well I opted for lets go for it...hell Food Network knows their food, right?



I pull out the measuring cup and dump the chile powder into the measuring cup and 3/4 cup of chile powder even looks worse in a measuring cup then it sounds in the recipe. So I close my eyes and dump it into the pan and then quickly add the diced tomatoes and water to try and hide the immensity of the chile powder. Turn on the crock pot, cross my fingers and let my chile cook for 7 hours....hoping that the chile powder doesn't burn off my taste buds.


So the chile powder doesn't quite burn my taste buds off but this is one spicy chile. This is not for those individuals who do not like spicy food. The sour cream is definitely a welcome component and serving this chile with beer is also recommended. However, overall yes the chile is spicy no doubt about it but it is very flavorful. It has a nutty flavor from the chile powder and cumin and since the meat has been cooking for 7 hours it truly melts in your mouth. The flavors are really robust and this is a great comfort food recipe.

Ok so here is my first featured 2012 food product. So as you all know I love Trader Joe's....for me its almost like Disneyland...ya know the happiest place on Earth. Don't worry I don't put on my princess dress or mouseketeer ears to go grocery shopping but I do get a feeling of elation when I pull into the parking lot.



Last time I was there I found a coffee cake mix that I decided was a must try. And wow let me just say I am really impressed...it tastes as good as homemade if not better. I was a little worried when it was baking because the exterior definitely looked done but when I put a toothpick in it there was goop on it. So I put it in for another 5 minutes and decided I was just going to have to take my chances because I didn't want to set off the smoke detector or char it beyond edibility. However, it was perfect when I cut into it.

The mix is easy to make. You just take the cake mix and add milk, melted butter and an egg. Then take the crumb mixture mix and add chopped cold butter...I used my hands because as you all know I like to get intimately involved in my food. And it was fun!! The recipe says you have 2 options you can do a layer of batter, a layer of crumb mixture and then repeat or you can do all batter and then all crumb mixture on top. I opted for the layering method and it was yummy!

My only word of caution is that it does require nearly an hour of baking time. So if you are looking for immediate coffee cake gratification this is not the recipe for you. But most of the time I am not in starvation mode first thing in the morning so I can see that this would work for me the majority of the time. I guess worse case scenario if you are in starvation mode snack on something else while your coffee cake is cooking.

And since its 2012 I decided to start reading some of the articles about Food Trends for the coming year. I have truly decided that this is going to be a good year and here are my top 5 food trends that I stole from all the articles I read.

1. Custom French Fry Bars-holy yum!! Ok so this may be a fattening year but that sounds like the best friggin restaurant idea I have heard of in a long time. Where oh where can I find me a french fry bar? A cold beer and a french fry bar sounds pretty damn close to heaven.

2. Grilled Cheese Infused Vodka....gosh that would have made those childhood lunches of grilled cheese and tomato soup way better if they were served with a grilled cheese bloody marys...Random thought has anyone been down the vodka aisle at Total Wine? The amount of infused alcohols is completely insane and overwhelming.

3. Asian Dumplings-WTF!!! These have been around longer than dinosaurs have walked the Earth and now someone is trying to claim them as a food trend of 2012. I mean I love the dumpling whether we are talking about pot sticker or dim sum they all work for me but seriously.

4. Macaroons-Another random trend. And I am a lover of coconut so I do truly like this trend but very odd. They did specify that it is trendy right now to do macaroons in creative colors and flavors...but seriously how can you improve on perfection....cause I love the traditional gooey coconut macaroon especially the ones that are half dipped in chocolate. But maybe this trend will give me the inspiration to actually try and make them

5. And last but not least Retro Fare...ok I love the idea but what exactly are they calling retro. Are we talking 1985 TV dinners or are we talking about 1955 pot roast and mashed potatoes. Or oh hell are we talking about the 1990's Top Ramen cause that will really depress me. I would like to think that they are referring to the comfort food of like my Grandparents era but seriously what if they are not...does this mean I am old if they are creating trends after my childhood?



And last but not least tonight I made Tortellini with Peas and Prosciutto. I did truly think that was going  to be breathtaking and it was not quite that good. But it would be a perfect work night meal as its quick, easy and tasty.

"...techniques are all we cooks have for transforming beautiful ingredients into seductive, thrilling, memorable flavors and textures. If recipes are the sheet music of our kitchens, then mastered techniques are our way of making them sing." -Rick Bayless

Is there truly anything better than having a meal that absolutely makes you want to die and go to heaven? I have memories of each of those meals that truly touched my life, my taste buds and were not only about nourishing my body but were an experience in and of itself. Most of the time this was due to the ingredients and the preparation however there have also been meals that were experiences due to location or company or just general sensory adventures. I thank my family for teaching me at a young age how to enjoy and experience these types of meals.

Today I am melancholy as I know my family got together for an Italian meal last night and I know it was a meal such as I described above. I tried to find a way to be there because I not only wanted to experience the food I also wanted the love and support that comes from sharing a meal with them. I love the way they pass food, wine and laughter from person to person. I love the way they talk about everything they put in their mouths and break it down trying to share and describe their appreciation of each of the ingredients, flavors and textures. I love the stories they tell about the recipe, where they got the ingredients or the inspiration for the dish. I love the way they share their own history over a glass of wine and include everyone in the room whether its an old friend, new friend, family or someone they never met before. I love the joy they all get from bringing food, eating food and preparing the food. It is truly a spiritual experience that warms your heart to eat with them. You all were in my thoughts last night and I hope you had a meal filled with miracles!!!

So tonight I decided to conquer Bacon and Egg Soup. I know it sounds strange but I figure I love the components-bacon, eggs, Parmesan cheese. And I love soup! So put it all together and what do you get? Bacon and Egg Soup! When I initially read the description I thought it might be a kind of play on Chinese Egg Drop Soup but it is not. The eggs are poached in the chicken broth base and the Parmesan and bacon add the contrasting flavors and textures. It is truly a comfort food and an easy way to make breakfast work for dinner.



The recipe is extremely easy as the hardest part was trying to poach the egg in the broth. However, that wasn't even so challenging that it was unattainable. I do have to say I love salt and I truly think that is one of the reasons I enjoyed this soup because between the chicken broth and the bacon this recipe is not for the sodium faint of heart. It has a great flavor with the sauteed garlic and Parmesan as well and with the homemade bread croutons it truly was heaven in a bowl.

So you start by cooking the bacon in a pan...the recipe says 7 minutes but they wanted the bacon crispy so it took me closer to 10-12 minutes. Then you take the bacon out and get rid of all of the bacon fat with the exception of 2 tablespoons. Cook the 2 garlic cloves in the bacon fat. The recipe says 1-2 minutes but I found the bacon fat to be so hot that the garlic cook almost instantly. Meanwhile you cut the 4 pieces of bread into cubes and toss it with olive oil, salt and pepper and cook on a baking sheet in the oven for approximately 8 minutes. To the garlic you then add chicken broth, water, parsley and the rind of Parmesan cheese....ahhh yes another reason why you should stay away from the green Kraft can...no rind for your soup. Boil the broth and then let it simmer for 10 minutes. Then you break the eggs into a small bowl and lightly put them in the broth while its simmering. The recipe says you should cook the eggs for 2 minutes but I like my poached eggs a little more well done so I cooked them for a little longer. Remove the eggs with a slotted spoon to your serving bowls then pour the broth over the eggs. Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese and parsley into the broth and combine. Then pour on top of the egg and sprinkle the bread cubes and bacon on top. Holy heck!

This soup truly knocked the melancholy right out of me...sure I would have loved to have someone to share this soup with but it truly was perfect for a cooler night when you just needed to be nourished.  I know it sounds weird but seriously give it a try. Cheers!

In general I am not a traditionalist as most of you know. I like to try new places, new foods and have new experiences. However, sometimes there is something very comforting with sticking with what you know. Which is why tonight called for a night at home making traditional chocolate chip cookies and seriously if you want tradition you go to the Nestle chocolate chip bag recipe which is exactly what I did. This recipe is probably the first recipe I ever followed as a kid because I remember making chocolate chip cookies as a little girl with my Mom (I'm sure many of you have the same memory...well not with my Mom but with yours). And I am sure we all share the memory of that orange chocolate chip bag.


However, with my Mom I am sure we added something wacky to make the cookies healthy, more wholesome and having "nutritional value." And although I am not sure what the hell she added to my cookies I am sure she used whole wheat flour, natural sweeteners or some such. Tonight I went traditional traditional not hippie Mom traditional.

Do you also remember eating the batter? Yum! My love of cookie dough definitely started at a young age. And I remember adding the chocolate chips to the batter as being my favorite part of the process...ahhh yes 3 chocolate chips for me and 1 for the cookie dough. That is a tradition that I still maintain...ok I am a little more generous with the chocolate chips...but there are some nights when I am craving something sweet and I go straight to the chocolate chip bag for a hand full of semi-sweet morsels.

In case you wanted some random chocolate chip facts I have a few that I will share with you all. Did you know?

• Most chocolate chips are 1cm in size
• Chocolate chip cookies were invented in 1937
• Nestle started selling chocolate chips as we know them in 1941 prior to that people chopped up chocolate bars to make chocolate chip cookies...seriously could you even imagine
• A morsel is a small amount of solid food which a chocolate chip is so hence the name
• Nestle makes 250 million chocolate chips a day...could you even imagine...would love to jump into a giant vat like that

• I want to do some articles on food products like feature a new product I tried from Trader Joe’s or Bristol Farms and give it a thumbs up or a thumbs down
• Write more regularly! I find it to be a huge creative outlet and I need to make more time for it
• Never cry and look like a baby on national television like the blogger named Jenna on this season of The Bachelor. She truly gives bloggers a bad name
•  Cook for more people…it is definitely my way of expressing love and so be prepared for invitations to come over and eat
•  Try fennel…time to face that fear
•  Do more restaurant reviews….perfect excuse to eat out and that way when you are debating where to go for dinner you can pull up my blog and let it be your guide