Goat cheese grits

My oh my, so much cheesiness to catch up on from the last few months!  Back in October, my husband and I took an impromptu trip to Asheville, NC.  It was a destination on our never ending list of places we want to go.  Life was getting to be a bit much, so we decided to escape for a couple days.

We had dinner our first night at Tupelo Honey Cafe.  I had the veggie plate where I got to pick three of their side items.  The minute I saw them on the menu, I knew I had to try them, and I was not disappointed.  The goat cheese grits were a delicious surprise.  Now that I'm home, I can't stop making them for breakfast.

 After dinner, we meandered downtown for some window shopping until we reached Onyx Orchard Cheese.  We purchased a local North Carolina hoop cheddar and a cheese which will forever be unidentified, as I cannot find the slip of paper where I wrote down its name. I recall that the shop owner told us it was a cheese that was sold as young, aged a few months and also aged many months, and we had something in the middle.  Both became part of a lovely picnic overlooking the pond at the Biltmore Estate.

Bruleed Goat Cheese

Just do it. You can thank me later.

Crepes

I love crepes. Whenever we have the good fortune to travel to Europe, I constantly keep an eye out for crepe stands or restaurants. For some reason, there seem to be so many more places that serve crepes there. Are we less aware of their deliciousness? I digress. My cousin, with whom we stayed while she was studying in Paris, visited for a few days during the Christmas holidays this year, and we reminisced yet again about my first crepe experience with her that summer in Paris. It was love at first bite. I created reasons to have one nearly each day. Now I own a crepe pan and can make them whenever I so desire.  I started by making sweet crepes but later branched out in the realm of savory crepes.  Spinach sauteed with onions and mushrooms and a little goat cheese are a flavorful combination.

Life of Parm, part 6 - Sauteed spinach

Fresh sauteed spinach + olive oil + grated Parm = perfect side for a grilled steak

Pizza in Baltimore's Little Italy

I recently met up with a couple long-time friends for a girl's weekend in Baltimore and Philadelphia.  While exploring the harbor in Baltimore, we had a wonderful pizza in the Little Italy area.  We went to Isabella's and had the Pizza Bianca, which is made with ricotta, feta and mozzarella.  It was incredible - definitely a memorable pizza for me!  I love a brick oven pizza (seriously, I'm convinced it does something magical to the crust), but this was a great mix of cheeses - tangy, sweet and incredibly flavorful.

Life of Parm, part 5 - more pasta

Fresh pasta + fresh assorted squash + olive oil + grated Parm = delicious dinner. Sometimes the best things are also the simplest.

Life of Parm, part 4 - Parmesan Crisps

I'd seen them made on several cooking shows, so I decided to grate some of the Parm to make Parmesan crisps.  I found a recipe that sounded tasty, appeared easy, and required only ingredients that I had on hand.  They were incredibly easy to make, but I opted to use wax paper on the cookie sheet in hopes of making cleanup quick and easy.  I think that decision was my downfall.  They baked perfectly, and the smell from my oven was incredibly enticing.  However, they were impossible to get off the paper when they came out of the oven. Cooling didn't help.  Now, I may or may not have eaten a little waxed paper in trying to sample them.  Eventually, I surrendered and tossed the remainder in the garbage, but what I had tasted was really good.  A little sweet and nutty, but also herby and very peppery.  Next time, I'll bake them directly on the cookie sheet and hope for better results.