tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-111983452008-05-10T23:26:22.080-04:00Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comBlogger279125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-34718024813242812862008-05-09T08:33:00.003-04:002008-05-10T23:26:22.124-04:00

It was a completely perfect day. Seventy two degrees, sunny, my 27th birthday. Angela was coming in to town because her birthday is just two days after mine and we try to celebrate together when we're close enough to do so. I took the bus into the city to meet with some folks about an exciting possible writing opportunity, walked home along the parkway, taking a few pictures along the way. Then I

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-71457721760412658392008-05-08T14:10:00.000-04:002008-05-08T14:58:18.045-04:00

On a recent Sunday I got a last minute invitation to an impromptu BBQ. Because it was a nice day and I didn't want to heat up the kitchen, I decided on a quick and easy no bake bar recipe similar to a Nanaimo Bar. For the chocolate graham crust: 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter 1 1/2 ounces of unsweetened baking chocolate 1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs 1 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts) 1/4 cup

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-5211670538999403702008-05-01T10:24:00.000-04:002008-05-01T10:26:04.073-04:00

Last night was Wednesday night and Wednesday night at my house means Top Chef night. Liz recently returned from Mexico with a nice bottle of Tequila to share with us and though that having a Salsa party on Top Chef night would be the perfect occasion at which to consume some fine Mexican tequila. This was a really fun idea because salsa comes in all sorts of variations. It was easy to use an

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-89221435839848286492008-05-01T09:37:00.004-04:002008-05-01T10:02:56.124-04:00

All the entries are in! Nick, Kristina and I had a terrible time picking our top three choices from all the creative and delicious sounding peanut butter cookie entries. You all deserve a round of applause. And a thank you, for making the first ever peanut butter exhibition a success with 16 entries! And the winners are... 1st place HolyCrapTheseAreAmazing Cookies by Susan from Susan at Sticky

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-90091194115208481432008-04-29T09:55:00.002-04:002008-04-29T13:23:38.830-04:00

More than a few days ago I was lucky enough to play host to the Philadelphia Food Blogger Potluck and Meet-Up. This was the third such meeting since we started the get togethers at the end of last year, and I for one had a wonderful time. I took a few pictures you can see in this Flickr set of the goodies everyone brought and the silliness that ensued as the night wrapped up. This post is about

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-14259167057486356992008-04-23T23:40:00.004-04:002008-04-24T23:55:31.950-04:00

This recipe is my entry for the first ever Peanut Butter Exhibition! The Peanut Butter Boy and I got to talking one day about starting a new blogging event devoted to peanut butter, The Chocolate Peanut Butter Gallery jumped on board, and here we are! For this flagship roundup the theme is cookies. I decided to borrow elements of my most successful cookie recipe ever, Coconut Toffee Almond

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-83298462029744711312008-04-22T22:24:00.002-04:002008-05-01T19:44:25.003-04:00

Having Japanese food with a vegetarian and a non-fish eater can be a bit of a challenge, but Hikarai restaurant on Liberties walk always makes what could be tough a litle easier. Friendly waitstaff and a gorgeous interior design add to the appeal of this restaurant and sushi bar. As always, we over ordered. I blame myself. I like to order lots of dishes not only to experiment with new things,

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-52003335723784416092008-04-15T12:54:00.005-04:002008-04-15T13:16:26.464-04:00

A new blogger friend, The Peanut Butter Boy, and I got to talking recently about how awesome it would be to create a blogging event devoted solely to Peanut Butter. I'm a huge fan as you can tell from my many sweet peanut butter recipes, and well, the Peanut Butter Boy loves it so much he decided to name himself the Peanut Butter Boy! We've also gained support from The Chocolate Peanut Butter

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-69393904246319870292008-04-13T21:47:00.004-04:002008-04-15T16:14:30.180-04:00

I stumbled across a recipe on Bakerella for Red Velvet cake balls made with a red velvet cake mix and a can of frosting. I thought I'd try my hand at them because they looked fairly easy and I was interested in making a unique dessert for a co-worker. I used this Red Velvet Cake recipe, but if I were to make these again, I'd use a box mix just to save some time and food coloring! Bake the

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-41592751450554741632008-04-08T01:00:00.002-04:002008-04-10T13:10:26.506-04:00

It took me years to eat at Jamaican Jerk Hut on South Street. It's on a strange part of the South street just west of Broad, with a vacant space on one side and the Hut's own yard and picnic area on the other. The restaurant is small, only five tables are available inside, and one menu lines the wall next to the counter. Notice the lack of prices, we did too, but hopefully they'll fix that soon

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-60774237041810274722008-04-01T08:36:00.002-04:002008-04-01T16:59:55.839-04:00

In honor of Shannon's birthday I combined two of her favorite things for the ultimate birthday treat. She's an avid eater of my Oatmeal Cream Pies, and is also one of the many peanut butter fanatics in my life. After a little brainstorming and a trip to the store, I came up with these Oatmeal Peanut Butter Sandwich cookies. I'm not a huge fan of rolling and cutting out cookies, it just seems

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-5450835614100684972008-03-25T07:25:00.002-04:002008-03-25T07:28:25.348-04:00

Are you a food blogger? Do you live within a reasonable distance of Philadephia? If you answered yes to both of these questions, let's get together for a Philadelphia Food Blogger Potluck! Spring is here and Philadelphia Food Bloggers are looking forward to another satisfying potluck dinner. This time my gracious roommates and I are hosting at our house by the Art Museum. If you consider

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-84362403541300960742008-03-23T10:07:00.006-04:002008-05-01T19:45:26.096-04:00

Just down the block from the great cafe where I bake two days a week, a new BYOB restaurant named Swallow has opened. It took a few extra months due to unforeseen circumstances, but the brown paper is off the windows and Cindy and Jason are now both behind the line at Swallow. Liz, Shannon and I visted Swallow on a recent weekday night. Liz and Shannon had both seen the inside of the restaurant

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-57968540088258003202008-03-16T15:38:00.003-04:002008-03-16T15:51:15.312-04:00

I've mentioned before the numerous peanut butter lovers in my life. They're easy to please, but I like trying to find the ultimate in peanut butter awesomeness. These were a good effort, but I was hoping for a chewier cookie than I got from this recipe. They were rich and the peanut butter flavor was intense, so if you have as many peanut butter lovers in your life as I do, you may want to give

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-56663297350923516512008-03-13T18:24:00.004-04:002008-03-15T16:32:05.528-04:00

As much as love my Elvis cake, sometimes I like to experiment with different flavors and types of cake when I bake at A Full Plate. A co-worker mentioned his mother making an Irish Cream Cake around St. Patrick's Day, and while the recipe never came through, I took the idea and made a traditional two layer butter cake spiked with Irish Cream in both the cake and frosting. For the cake: 1/2 cup

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-57112126722713964962008-03-13T10:42:00.006-04:002008-03-13T15:43:23.254-04:00

If you're a fan of beer in even the smallest capacity, the past week has been a busy one here in Philadelphia. On this particular night we met at the Foodery in Northern Liberties to sample some brews from a line called "Heavy Seas" brewed by Clipper City Brewery out of Baltimore, Maryland. I tried a few of the sample from Heavy Seas, but none really caught my attention. Since we were at the

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-64121198747300188802008-03-08T09:13:00.002-05:002008-03-08T09:23:30.161-05:00

Hey Philadelphia! If you haven't heard any of the press about Beer Week in the past month, where have you been hiding?? Seriously, a full ten day of events kicked off last night here in Philly. While I didn't attend any beer events last night, I did go out to dinner near Rittenhouse and noticed a few places hosting events with fairly decent crowds. Any and all events are sure to please, so

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-52571441517497185692008-03-06T12:01:00.001-05:002008-03-23T12:47:18.114-04:00

An old friend from the early days at the cafe recently scored a hostessing job at one of the most popular new restaurants in Philadelphia, Osteria. I'd seen great pictures on Philafoodie and read amazing reviews in all the local food sections, so I was very excited when my friend said she could get us a reservation on a slow Tuesday night. The dinner menu is split up in various sections, and we

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-5587265417364189512008-02-29T09:07:00.005-05:002008-03-01T09:15:37.992-05:00

From Drew Lazor of the City Paper: In honor of Philly Beer Week, City Paper has organized THE CP BEERAMID, a little bracket-style competition that'll settle which area brew is tops. Yeah yeah, everyone does brackety things this time of year. But come on, y'all — it's beer. Local beer to boot. The competitors (aka The Sloshed 16): Yuengling, Appalachian Brewing Company, Troegs, Sly Fox, Iron

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-43335311275858915512008-02-24T09:16:00.000-05:002008-02-24T17:04:28.280-05:00

I picked up a dessert recipe calendar from a local bank at the beginning of the year. It contained more than one recipe that caught my eye, including this peanut butter pie with pretzel crust. It's easy to put together and only needs to chill for a couple of hours before serving. I made this pie for A Full Plate Cafe, but might make it again at home for a friend who is a peanut butter lover. 3

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-22179560297287239262008-02-21T08:45:00.003-05:002008-02-21T09:01:26.655-05:00

I really love to bake. But even those of us who love to spend time in the kitchen, don't always have unlimited time to spend there. This is a blondie bar cookie that is quick and easy to whip up, and because it's so moist and chewy, even those who don't particularly like coconut find themselves eating one or two. The original recipe came from Epicurious, but I'm re-posting it here with small

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-76535249048611738262008-02-19T08:19:00.002-05:002008-03-23T12:48:33.430-04:00

Weekends are made for breakfast. You can get up early and start the day off right with and eggy breakfast and excellent coffee, or you can sleep in late and do the exact same thing. That's my favorite way to enjoy weekend mornings. Not too long ago, on a tip from a friend, I ventured to the Aramingo Diner, and it's now my go-to breakfast spot. The breakfast menu isn't huge and it isn't fancy,

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-18561971356843148932008-02-17T10:02:00.003-05:002008-02-17T10:09:35.336-05:00

Every single time I sit down at this table to map out my research proposal, I end up writing a 5 line poem called a Cinquain. I blame no one but myself, I've developed a short attention span since leaving college. Would my dissertation be easier to write if it could only contain 22 syllables? Presto Pasta Night I asked You came to eat penne a la vodka and spilled pink sauce down the front of

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-4703882595009197292008-02-14T17:09:00.003-05:002008-02-14T19:10:14.860-05:00

I have lots of peanut butter lovers in my life. Mix it with chocolate and even more people enjoy the flavor and texture of peanut butter, I count myself among them. If you like peanut butter or know a peanut butter freak, you're going to love this cookie. When I saw this recipe on Cookie Madness, I moved it to the top of my pile of recipes to make. It requires more candy ingredients than I ever

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11198345.post-14654647517956293252008-02-13T20:07:00.006-05:002008-02-13T20:50:20.680-05:00

My buddy J-Rye was up for a visit this past weekend and we hit a few great spots around the city. One of which was Sazon, a Venezuelan restuarant between 9th and 10th on Spring Garden Street. We were actually headed to eat at Vietnam Restaurant, but due to auto show traffic around the convention center, we went further north, and I'm glad for the detour. We started with a queso empanada, a corn

Ehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13074949515498662453noreply@blogger.com