Nonnah's

While the fiancé has been buried in work for the past two weeks I took the opportunity Wednesday to break out of the house and try Nonnah's on Gervais.

We started off with the caramel brie which consisted of a piece of brie covered in caramel with crumbled pecans on top. Talk about decadent, its like every time I order brie at a restaurant I think to myself: I could never finish that massive loaf of cheese and then ten minutes later without noticing, I've demolished it. Anyhow, back to the cheese. The caramel went perfectly with the brie and sliced apples were the chosen shoveling device. The added crunch of the sweet pecans was fabulous. The roasted red pepper & buffalo mozzarella salad came next. Yes, I know, shame on me for ordering tomatoes in the dead of winter. The tomatoes were fine and I feel sorry for them, they had a really long truck drive from California to here. The salad was strangely topped with capers which was a tart and unpleasant surprise to my pillows of mozzarella.

We ended with the peanut butter pie. I can comfortably say that this was the best dessert I have had in a while. It’s described as light an airy, which I have to disagree with, but the filling was subtlety peanut buttery and it came with the most memorable graham cracker crust! It was huge and looking back I can say for sure that we should have skipped dinner and gone straight for the dessert. I think even your mother would allow it at this place.

The atmosphere was Miami Vice and meets the Metropolitan but still very cozy and obviously eclectic. The space was filled with local artists and the seating reminded me of being on the set of the Golden Girls. But still, I would definitely go again just for the pie....

All and all (Best *****) (Price $$$$$)
Food **
Service ***
Atmosphere ***

Drink List **
Price $$$

Eating Locally vs. Organic in the Midlands

It is a constant struggle with me, eating locally vs. organic. See, I know I shouldn't be making excuses but my favorite hot yoga class on Saturday morning conflicts with the Farmer's Market at Yo Burrito so sometimes, I hate to say it, I miss it. But my little heart knows that I should be there, getting produce and not buying organic products that are shipped from California.

We all try to be good, but it's not always that easy! That being said, there so many unbeatable farmers in the area, please check them out and see all the fabulous products the Midlands has to offer!

Here are a few:

Cottle Strawberry Farm (Columbia, SC)
Crooked Cedar Farm (Blythewood, SC)
Five Leaves Farm (Blythewood, SC)

A Devine Evening

Ohhh don't you just love this time of year.....Just when the bloating of Thanksgiving has finally diminished and the guilt of a 5,000 calorie meal has been forgotten here comes Christmas. As if I care, the average American gains seven pounds between Thanksgiving and Christmas so people, it's time to get going.

I will be posting some of my favorite Chistmas foodie activities in the coming month and get excited because I LOVE Christmas. But really besides the Grinch and people that work in retail, who doesn't?


5-9 p.m. Thursday. Shopping, entertainment, Santa, dining on Devine Street. To benefit Harvest Hope Food Bank. (803) 254-4432, ext. 113; www.doorsofdevine.net

Sweet Seasons in Forrest Acres

Could be yummy....?

6-8 p.m. Thursday, Midtown at Forest Acres mall, 3400 Forest Drive. A rooftop festival featuring desserts, a tree-lighting ceremony, music, face painting, more. Free. (803) 240-9318

The 2007 Holiday Market - Wine Tasting

Drink some vino for a great cause!

The Junior League hosts the 2007 Wine and Ale Tasting on November 30, 2007.

Happy Thanksgiving Folks!

Cornbread Sausage Dressing

I have memories as a child of sitting at the dinner table after everyone else had long gone because I refused to eat my stuffing. I didn't like the way it looked, its texture, or smell. Nowadays, I realize that if I still had such an aversion to stuffing I likely would have much less junk in my trunk. That being said, this is a delicious recipe for two of my favorites rolled up into one, cornbread and sausage.

Cornbread Sausage Dressing

Grocery List

1 medium onion, chopped
2 ribs celery diced
2 TBSP butter
12 oz. sausage
16 oz. cornbread stuffing (recipe below)
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup fresh parsley, chopped
Salt and pepper to taste


Cornbread Stuffing
1 (16 ounce) package dry corn bread mix
2 TBSP butter



Directions

1. Prepare the dry corn bread mix according to package directions. Cool and crumble.

2. Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat; add onion and celery. Sauté until tender.

3. Remove from skillet, add sausage to skillet and cook, stirring until it crumbles and is no longer pink; drain.

4. in a large bowl mix cornbread stuffing and chicken broth. Stir in onion and celery, sausage, and parsley. Mix together until moistened.

5. Spoon into a lightly greased 9-x-13 baking dish.

6. Bake covered at 350 for 30 minutes.

Yields 12 servings.

Brining a Turkey

"I love Thanksgiving turkey... it's the only time in Los Angeles that you see natural breasts."
-Arnold Schwarzenegger

As do I Arnold, as do I. I love that massive bird so much in fact that the idea of drying her out like a California raisin is blasphemous.

I was told that brining a turkey was really the only way to go and I fully agree except for maybe giving her a fry daddy deep fry, but I feel it's my civil duty not to recommend something that could cause the next huge wild fire.

Here's a recipe adapted from allrecipes.com and an Alton Brown recipe:

1 (14 to 16 pound) frozen young turkey

For the brine:
1 cup sea salt
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 gallon vegetable stock or whatever your have
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon allspice
1/2 tablespoon ginger
1 gallon iced water
For the aromatics:
1 apple, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 cinnamon
1 cup water
4 sprigs rosemary
6 leaves sage
Canola oil

Combine all brine ingredients, except ice water, in a stockpot, and bring to a boil. Stir to dissolve solids, then remove from heat, cool to room temperature, and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled.

Early on the day of cooking, (or late the night before) combine the brine and ice water in a clean 5-gallon bucket. Place thawed turkey breast side down in brine, cover, and refrigerate or set in cool area (like a basement) for 6 hours. Turn turkey over once, half way through brining.

A few minutes before roasting, heat oven to 500 degrees. Combine the apple, onion, cinnamon stick, and cup of water in a microwave safe dish and microwave on high for 5 minutes.

Remove bird from brine and rinse inside and out with cold water. Discard brine.

Place bird on roasting rack inside wide, low pan and pat dry with paper towels. Add steeped aromatics to cavity along with rosemary and sage. Tuck back wings and coat whole bird liberally with canola (or other neutral) oil.

Roast on lowest level of the oven at 500 degrees for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cover breast with double layer of aluminum foil, insert probe thermometer into thickest part of the breast and return to oven, reducing temperature to 350 degrees F. Set thermometer alarm (if available) to 161 degrees. A 14 to 16 pound bird should require a total of 2 to 2 1/2 hours of roasting. Let turkey rest, loosely covered for 15 minutes before carving.

This is a sure fire way to keep your turkey roasted on the outside and succulent in inside. No need to douse this puppy with gravy, well you can if you want it does make it delicious.

SPECIAL EVENT: Beaujolais Nouveau Party

THE event of November is Vino 100’s celebration of the 2007 release of Beaujolais Noveau. This is not the junk wine you find around town this time of year! You can taste “Estate-grown/Estate bottled” Beaujolais Nouveau from Chateau de Pizay at Vino 100 flown directly to Columbia from our importer, Ingrid Chambas. Ingrid will pour the wine while you taste it with the perfect Thanksgiving pairings of Turkey & Ham, plus lots of other food, desserts and wines.
Cost: $5/person ($2.50 for wine club members).
Thursday, November 15, 5:00 – 7:30 p.m.

Thanksgiving at the homestead

The time has finally come for me to host my first Thanksgiving. Do I feel up to the task you ask? Do think in any way, shape, or form I can equal up to the cooking finesse of my gourmet chef mother? Doubtful, but I am excited to put my own little twist on the most famous family fat day of the year. It is finally my turn to rollout the red carpet for my family and welcome them into my humble abode only to stuff them like a turkey before Thanksgiving dinner.

I have compiled a list of my own and my mother's tried and true Thanksgiving specialties. These are easy, fun, and impressive to the fam.

Salt Brined Turkey
Cornbread Sausage Stuffing with Sage
Goat Cheese Mash
The Boathouse's Sweet Potato Soufflé
Cranberry Salsa
Bleu Salad
Pumpkin Cheese Cake


So there you have it. Having agonized over the perfect choices this is the outcome. Over the next week or so I will work to share them all with you so that you can give them a try as well.

And shop early, there are just some things that you can't do without on Thanksgiving, aka a turkey.

Happy Cooking!

Frontier Soups

It seems that even in South Carolina the weather has finally cooled. We did, finally, turn on our heat. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining, I know that our civil war era home, ok I'm lying, World War II era, is insulated similar to that of the tent we put up in our backyard in my childhood, and will likely hold in 25 percent of the heat we pay for. Point being a the gourmet soup that I recently discovered was a welcomed addition to my cooking repetoire. It's called Frontier Soups It comes packaged with all the dry ingredients including the spices, beans and such necessary; you simply add a few ingredients. I made the fiesta soup and added home chicken, andouille sausage, chicken broth and tomato pieces. Then you just let it cook for about 3 hours in all. With 6-8 serving you're set for a few days and best of all its delicious and super healthy too. It comes in a number of varieties including chili, white bean chili, and wheat berry chili. If you choose, you can make the soup vegetarian by not adding meat and using vegetable stock.

Garlic Pesto Salmon Cakes

Crab cakes have been done and done again. Not that I don’t enjoy some lump crab deliciousness once in a while, but they can be a bit overplayed. For a change try these:

Grocery List

1 lb Alaskan salmon
2 large cloves garlic
2 TBSP pesto
¼ cup bread crumbs
2 eggs
Salt and pepper to taste
Handful arugula

Directions
1. Season the salmon with salt and pepper and grill the salmon to your liking
2. Beat eggs and put aside
3. Cusinart salmon, garlic, pesto, bread crumbs, and egg into a fine mixture
4. Form the mix into tight patties
5. Pan fry in a good olive oil
6. Serve on good rustic bread with arugula or atop grits

Mascarpone and Pecan Stuffed Dates

Grocery List
20 dates cut lengthwise
Mascarpone cheese
1 bag salted and roasted pecans

Directions

1. Preheat oven on bake at 350 degrees
2. Stuff each date with mascarpone
3. Place one pecan on top
4. Bake for about ten minutes and watch pretty closely

This elegant little appetizer is not too overly filling right before the main course.

Foodie Gift Ideas

These adorable melted wine bottles are thoughtful and creative gifts for all the foodies and winos in your life. You can take one of your own bottles and melt it down or you can just order one online. They are great as cheese plates and to hang on the wall.
Vintage Glass Gifts has tons of different styles to choose from so that you can take care of some host gifts and Christmas gifts all at once.

Dinner Tonight- Peanut Chicken

Oldy but a goody. This is so easy, healthy, and delicious.


Grocery List

peanuts (I vote salted but it's your chicken, do what you like)
bread crumbs (I make mine but you can buy them as well)
1 cup fat free buttermilk
salt
pepper
cayenne pepper
1 egg
boneless, skinless chicken breast tenderloin strips

Directions

1. Marinate the chicken all day in buttermilk, if you forgot before you leave the house, just do it when you get home, no worries.
2. Preheat the oven on bake at 350 degrees.
3. Cusinart the peanuts and bread until there's well ground, but leave a few chunks for appearance sake.
4. Season the chicken well with salt, pepper, and cayenne (remember cayenne is hot, not too much).
5. Beat egg in a bowl.
6. Dip and cover chicken tenderloin strips in egg and then nut/breadcrumb mixture.
7. Place on a cookie sheet and bake until chicken is done (about 20 minutes depending on your oven, don't over cook or it becomes dry).

Happy Cooking!

Yo Burrito

The fiancé spent a summer in Charleston and there, Yo Burrito or rather their ritas, became a staple is his life. Last night we went to the Columbia location for dinner and of course I had a rita. I am a bit of connoisseur of the rita, both from my college days and from happy hour in DC. These taste good, but they are not really my style for one distinct reason, lack of liquor. Good flavor, no booze and as I said above my hay day of the rita was college where flavor was somewhat of an afterthought and the booze was what made the night.

I have grown up in some sense of the word but still, I like my booze just that, boozy. This was not.

However, the meal quickly turned up when we ordered the salsa bar. It was fresh and had an extensive choice of salsas, many of which I could really eat with a fork (but I love salsa). One had huge chunks of tomato, cilantro, and onion, another was pureed with a smoky, adobo flavor, both had quite a bit of depth for the price. Next, I ordered the fish tacos. The dish came with two soft tacos stuffed with yummy white fish flavored with a citrus vinigerette. I was a was definitely a fan.

The service was good; the servers were super nice but not overly in your face at all. The laid back friendly attitude went well with the various jam bands playing in the background. I have heard this place is hit or miss depending on how busy they and this day they weren’t busy at all.

All and all (Best *****) (Price $$$$$)
Food ***
Service ***
Atmosphere ***
Drink List **

Can’t seem to get it right?

Fleur de Lys Home Culinary Institute can help you with everything from chicken pot pie to beef wellington. Offering $40 classes nearly daily, you only have to commit to one day and one dish. They offer gift certificates and so you can celebrate your special day whether it be a birthday, anniversary, or you just feel like sipping on vino amd cooking some gourmet fabulousness.

The Gourmet Shop Wine Tasting

I love The Gourmet Shop! Typically on Saturdays I like to drop in for a chicken salad sand on a croissant with provolone and stop by the wine tasting afterward. Quite a steal at just a buck...

This week:

Saturday, November 3, 2:00-5:00 pm
Kem Martz will be in the store to taste some super stuff.
• Taltarni Brut Tache $19.99/btl
• Dom. du Tariquet Sauvignon '06 $9.99/btl
• dArenberg Stump Jump Red '05 $9.99/btl
• Vieux Chateau Gaubert Graves Rouge '01 $16.99/btl

Reserve Your Turkey at Earthfare

Turkey day is coming right up and as you know those puppies sell out. For the best in town reserve your bird from Earthfare. This is just a friendly reminder to plan for your Thanksgiving Holiday so you don't end up at Denny's. Many more turkey day posts to follow.

Total Wine

I dropped by Total Wine at lunch to check it out today upon a recommendation of a friend. Total Wine is totally HUGE, rather a warehouse of every wine and liquor that you can possibly imagine. They boast 8,000 wines, 2,000 spirits, and 1,000 microbrews. I was focused on the wine.

At the door you’ll find a complimentary wine printed similar to that of an expensive magazine. I was almost concerned that it wasn’t free it was so nice.

Each employee picks their favorite wines with a picture next to their choice, putting a face to the recommendation. This makes choosing a wine less intimidating. There’s also best sellers listed as well as vineyards that have been successfully making wines for a while listed.

For a great Christmas gift checkout Donder & Blitzen Chardonnay and Dasher and Dancer Merlot. The bottles are rather elegant, not tacky at all.

Wine of the week for me, Franciscan Chardonnay. It’s buttery, thick, and creamy, a white wine that satisfies you even when it’s cold outside.

Simply Savory

Over dinner my friend mentioned this great new place called Simply Savory right beside Birds on a Wire on Devine. She brought me this heirloom tomato sauce and it tastes like they were just picked off the vine in the middle of November! So satisfying.

Have you'all been there yet? I'll will hit it up this weekend for sure.

FREE Wine Tasting every Friday at Simply Savory

Awesome Olive Oil

This you have to try. Mcevoy Olive Oil will change your mind about the product as a whole. I never knew how rancid the olive oil that I have been dipping, sauteeing, and dousing my food with for ages could be until I tried this heaven in bottle.

You're supposed to use it as a finishing oil, but I use it in everything! You can order it online or visit the retail shop in the beautiful ferry building in San Francisco.

A Quick Homemade Fig Jam

With fall just around the corner I wanted post a down home delicious and relatively healthy recipe courtesy of my friend Susan in San Francisco.

1 pint figs, diced into 8ths
1 lemon
handful of sugar

Directions
Juice one lemon into a skillet on low heat
Add large handful of sugar
Cook on low until sugar is dissolved
Add figs and cook on low for about 20 minutes



Great on good bread and also atop a good triple cream brie.

Serve as an app and really impress your guests!

Gervais and Vine

So last night a group of us went to Gervais and Vine for some vino and apps. This is the only tapas bar that I am thus far aware of in Columbia. As most of you know the owner also owns Solstice Wine Bar and Mr. Friendly's.

We started with the Eola Hills Pinot Noir, Oregon 2004 with the below description:
Velvety smooth and loaded with strawberry jam and fresh raspberry flavors.

It was delicious, smooth, creamy and easy to drink and went down a little too easily.
Next, I ordered the Tapas Combo. This was impressive. I am a huge fan of manchego cheese and this was even better than usual. A harder cheese yet still creamy, with the addition of a delicious glaze of olive oil and herbs (maybe rosemary, salt, pepper). The almonds were a good crunch but that's really all so as not to overpower the cheese and the super salty plump arrangement of olives.

Next, I ordered the Seared Pork Tenderloin. The pork was cooked just right, still extremely tender and charred on the outside and great presentation as well. It came with a sort of bitter tzatiki sauce that complemented the pickled onion slaw on top. I was thrilled with the dish.The prices are just right if you don't over order and they didn't seem to force you to as many tapas restaurants often do.

The atmosphere was warm and cozy, with comfortable chairs and a darker oak feel. It was difficult to talk because of the tremendously drunk 60 somethings to our left. They thought they were making the political points of a lifetime between their slurring words, however stll a must visit.

All and all (Best *****) (Price $$$$$)

Food ****
Service ****
Atmosphere ***
Drink List ***** (Wine list)
$$$

Lamb's Feast Vege Vegan Cafe and Juice Bar

Across from the city hall we found a delicious treat for lunch today. This renovated gas station turned adorable cafe, has a daily changing menu with four vegan proteins and your choice of two or three sides. They have some non vegetarian specials as well but they are kept separate from the vegetarian options. I found this to a be a very nice touch for all of those true vegetarians and vegans out there.

I ordered the stuffed cabbage with yucca and a side salad. The fiancé had the vegan barbecue chicken with collards and a sweet potato mash. They offered all organic food including the soft drinks, I had orange divine (glorified orange soda) and the fiancé had ginger ale.

The stuffed cabbage was simply decadent. A huge portion stuffed with a well-seasoned soy protein. I couldn't eat half of it. The yucca was a cross between mashed potatoes and cooked bananas. Very well done. The salad was pretty standard, nothing to write home about, with a tasty but uninventive balsamic dressing.

I tried the fiancé's barbecue fake chicken which was full of flavor. He is FAR from a vegetarian and he loved it. The sauce was sweet and tangy. The sweet potatoes had the taste of fall built right in with a hint of cinnamon.

The atmosphere had a lot of character and you could really feel the personality of the owners. The walls were covered with wall hangings, batiks and african motif. It smelled of yummy nosh made with love and maybe a little incense as well. We enjoyed the eclectic mix of jam and classical music playing in the background. This place took you somewhere else on your lunch break.

The restaurant was a bit overpriced however, $22 for the two if us to have a quick lunch.

All and all (Best *****)(Price $$$$$)

Food ****
Service (n/a)
Atmosphere ***
Drink List (n/a)
Price $$$

Tsunami Sushi Restaurant

I find it a necessity to have a decent sushi restaurant on hand for whenever the craving pops up.

Saturday we went to Tsunami for sushi and drinks. I started off with a delicious glass of (Hardy something chardonnay). It was light, not too creamy, just what I was looking for that night.

To satiate my serious hunger to we ordered edamame for an appetizer. It came out salty, crunchy and well down. Not too wet which is always a disapointment. Next, I ordered a salad roll and a dynamite roll. Justin ordered the teriyaki chicken as he wasn't in the mood for sushi.

The salad roll relatively flavorful, very healthy with avocado and crab if I recall.
The dynamite roll on the other hand was scrumpious. The tempura was well done and the sauce that came on the roll was thick and creamy, with just the right amount of salt.

Justin enjoyed his teriyaki chicken, covered with sesame seeds on a soft pillow of fried rice.

The atmosphere was fun and loud, a place where you can have a pretty sophisticated meal and watch football if you so choose.

Our service was fine, but not great, she forgot my first drink and brought our edamame out after the sushi. I am usually not bratty unless I am starving which I was this evening.

All and all (***** is the highest)($$$$$ is the highest)

Food ***
Service **
Atmoshere **
Drink List ***
Cost $$$

Thai Lotus

Upon a recommendation from a friend we went to Thai Lotus last Thursday for dinner. We were certainly not rushed or rather the service was slow, but to be honest I think it was not because they were moving slow, but because they didn't want to disturb us. The wine list was not extensive but very reasonably priced. We got an obvious bottle of Kendall Jackson but it was only $22.

My fiancé ordered the duck curry and I had the laab (basically ground chicken sauteed with purple onion, garlic, cumin, etc.) over lettuce.

The sauce in the duck curry was delicious. Creamy and rich with tons of pineapple and huge chunks of tender duck. We both really enjoyed it. It wasn't too hot, but if you like it hot, you can easily request it as such. The waiter came around and served simple white rice with it.

The laab was also delicious. Very flavorful, a bit spicy, and a little too greasy. There was no peanuty flavor to it at all which I often find to be the case with your standard lettuce wraps.

The ambiance was wonderful. Intrigately decorated with stunning wood carved tables. We sat in an area that resembled a hut within the restaurant.

All and all a great experience if you have quite a bit of time on your hands, also very reasonably priced.

All and all (Best *****) (Price $$$$$)
Food ***
Service **
Atmosphere ****
Drink List **

$$