this has to do with feta grits, y'all

I've got to share with y'all a quick recap from our cozy family weekend - mainly because Audrey makes a freaking cute picture [I promise it's coming, Madre]. The week's lack of blogging can be blamed on a somewhat busy week at the office. I even brought a little work home this evening. Where the heck did my I'm-in-college-but-I-don't-do-too-much-homework life go?

Regardless of weekday to-do lists, it's important to me to cook and for our little family of two to eat together when at all possible. We've also had lots of discussions about our desperate need for healthier eating and exercise [more to come on that]. Our newly wedded and in-office sedentary lifestyles have certainly taken their toll since August. Yes, we've heard this post-wedding stage referred to as "fat and happy." We get it, thanks.

So after some slightly painful exercise and serious out-of-shape realizations, we whipped up a dinner of grilled chicken, a whole lot of roasted broccoli, and feta and basil grits. I know. Feta grits doesn't scream, "Eat this and say goodbye to those love handles!" But we didn't eat much. It was really mainly a dinner of broccoli. Really.

I used my parents' easy and awesome go-to chicken marinade [below], that roasted broccoli recipe that is very popular in the blogosphere, and my own little experiment for the feta grits since I have this incredibly beautiful vat of feta cheese [thank you thank you, Sams].


Feta Cheese and Basil Grits
[Note - feel free to add more feta. My husband doesn't like a really strong feta-y taste. Yes, this does put a strain on our marriage.]
1/3 cup instant grits
1 1/3 cup water
Cracked pepper
Salt
1 Tablespoon olive oil
2 Tablespoons dried, crushed basil leaves [or half the amount of fresh]
1/2 cup feta cheese [or more]

Prepare grits with water according to the package. I microwaved the grits and water on high for five minutes. After they are prepared, immediately mix in pepper, salt, olive oil, basil, and feta cheese. Stir until your feta it is fully mix in to the grits. That way, those you are feeding are totally floored by the flavor of what they thought were just plain ol' grits. Totally floored. I mean, if they share my love for this cheese.


Chicken Marinade
1 part Zesty Italian salad dressing
1 part soy sauce
Salt
Pepper

Salt and pepper the chicken to your tastes. Combine the salad dressing and soy sauce in a baking dish [be sure there is enough to almost cover the chicken]. Add chicken. Flop the chicken around so it's covered in the mixture [excuse all the technical lingo]. Cover with plastic wrap and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least two hours. Eight is better. We grill on the George because we're newlyweds with a little apartment that doesn't allow you to use a grill on tiny porches.


You're welcome, taste buds. You too, inner thighs.

ringing in 2012

With a late-working husband, a lot of our crew out of town, other plans falling through, and an opportunity for incredibly rare alone time, Dustin and I had a New Years Eve date. Before he left for work that morning, we devised a little plan for our night in, and he built the bones of this:

Our lovely little haven for the night.

And I devised a New Years menu after some research. I'm pretty sure you're supposed to eat all this business on New Years Day. I think we probably snacked on some leftovers after the midnight countdown. That definitely counts. I tried to memorize what each of them meant so that I could give D a nice little menu presentation, but the brain was still on vacation. So, to redeem myself, here it is...

Black eyed peas - In the South, they are thought to bring prosperity
Pork [there was bacon in the fritters] - Pigs represent progress by the way they root forward in the ground
Cabbage - In Germany, Ireland, and parts of the United States, cabbage is associated with luck and fortune
Noodles - In Asian countries, they are meant to bring long life
Pomegranate - In Turkey and other Mediterranean countries, they are associated with abundance and fertility [hello!]
Champagne - because its New Years, duh

After dinner, we shared some goals for our second year of marriage. They were certainly encouraging. And grace was promised while doing our best to hold one another to them. Because I can't pass up an opportunity, we did a little craft project in which we wrote and framed our said resolutions. In front of our faces daily is much better than in the notes section of our cell phones.

And then we listened in slight fear [me] as our mid-city apartment complex sounded like a war zone.

Happy New Year!

home for the holidays

Even though I'm slightly mourning that my favorite weekend of the year has come and gone, the memories of our first married Christmas are great ones.

I loved spending time with my sweet grandfather.

And worn out little girls.

How fun it was to watch Daddy Brandon and Uncle Dustin piecing together that Disney Princess bike.

Which was obviously a success.

 
 The impossible even happened [Brandon is the biggest Auburn fan I know which means he also really hates Alabama].

We spent the entire day in our pajamas.

And tucked ourselves around the dining room table for my absolute favorite part of Christmas day - brunch and reading the Christmas story. My cream cheese apple tart is a recent addition.

I absolutely wish I could eat Christmas morning casserole, Mama Dot's cheese grits, cinnamon rolls, and apple tart every single day. But then I guess it wouldn't make it quite as special.

I truly hope your Christmas holiday lived up to all its expected excitement. I hope that, whoever you were with, you laughed until your sides hurt. I hope that you were reminded of the grace and mercy that was born to us in the most humble of ways. And I hope that it will continue to be new and astonishing to us every morning when our feet hit the floor.

grilled pizza

Though I sometimes feel like I see my husband about 36 minutes weekly, I have actually gotten to cook for him a few times. And use all those shiny new gadgets that we feel undeserving to have. But our tiny little kitchen is very grateful. I think it makes it feel prettier.

Let's talk about how much I love grilled pizza. It's a new found love. It didn't take long, and I didn't hate myself like I do after most pizza-gorging. And, yes, it can be done on a George Foreman.

You will need:
Pizza dough [I used Pillsbury that I got with a coupon]
Fresh vegetables - rustically chopped
           Tomatoes, zucchini, garlic, onion, and more!
Sliced or shredded mozzarella
Pesto
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Parmesean
Fresh basil

As little of chopping as possible gives that great rustic texture. And a little S&P when grilling.

I cover them in tin foil and set them inside the oven until needed. The oven isn't on, so I'm not really sure how it helps. It's just what my grandmother has always done. And, when it comes to cooking, you don't question Loyce. 

The pizza dough could not have been easier. Make sure to keep it refrigerated until you are ready to grill. Shape it into the size of your grilling area. Brush the grill with EVOO and place the dough on top. I closed it in the George for 1-2 minutes. The top will begin to look puffy. If the dough releases easily from the grill with tongs and is decently stiff on the underside, it's ready to flip.

It makes the most delicious dough. Soft center, slightly crunchy outside, and that grilled taste. YUM. 

It should look something like this...

The other side of the dough will grill after you add the toppings. This also helps to press them down and somewhat stay in place so you don't look like a total monster attempting to eat it.

This was after I tried to strategically slide the pizza onto my platter. The garnish serves two roles: makes it more delish and hides the travel scars.

And if you happen to have your entire [and AMAZING] wedding cake topper that you only had the will power to save until you made one month of marriage, it pairs nicely.

Enjoy!

pie for four

On Tuesday night, Caitlyn and Eric Guiffreda invited us over for dinner. We had such a great time. The night flew by and was full of great conversation, laughter, Caitlyn's awesome chicken parm, and this pie with this crust [thanks to Martha].

It's good. It's pretty. It's easy. I'll be making it again, and possibly even serving it with a little homemade vanilla.

The pie bakes for a total of 50-55 minutes. I baked it for 30 without the braided crust and added it for the remaining 20-25 minutes.

I also used blackberries and blueberries which were a little tart. So I added a little more sugar than called for. Nothing wrong with that!

no recipes allowed

This Friday turned into a cook-without-recipes date night. I'm sharing because it was a surprising success!

You can add grocery shopping to the "Every day things I love doing with the boyfriend" list.

D got the recipe idea ball rolling by saying, "Can I shoot something up?" Love it. Translated into Top Chef lingo, that means injecting the meat with marinade before you cook it. In this case, Tony's creole butter marinade. Yes, please!

From there, we mainly used what was already sitting on the pantry shelves, picked a favorite cheese and stuffed it all in a pie crust.

This creation is currently nameless and suggestions are being accepted. Think creole...spicy...cheesey.

Bake at 450 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. And if you are like me and feel as though every meal needs dessert, keep the oven at the same temp and try this awesomely easy thing. And fall-ish, too!

The "cream cheese mixture" is just cream cheese (a little bit softened), sugar (I prefer brown) and cinnamon. Just taste as you go. "You can't hurt it," as the women in my family would say. Enjoy!

BONUS:
If you are uber sensitive to onions and cry your eyes out at the thought of them, then these are your new best friend.

They work. Promise. Check them out here.

As D always says (and teaches me) when he prays, "Thank you, Lord, for this food and the means to buy it."

And thank you, Lord, for taste buds!