A Little Piece of Home

While we were at Whitestone on Saturday, we were talking with our friend, Ben, about pizza, specifically different places here and how it took us a long time to find pizza that we liked in Austin.  He was telling us about a few places we hadn't tried yet and we brought up St. Louis style pizza.  He told us about a place in Georgetown that had provel on its pizzas and we knew immediately where we'd be heading for dinner.  Despite being pretty full from lunch, we headed out to George's on the Town.  After browsing, the menu, we determined that everything sounded fabulous, but we haven't been home since Christmas, so we had to get some St. Louis staples. 

For an appetizer, we ordered beef toasted ravioli.  This is the first time we've found it in Austin.  Sometimes a rare place will have a cheese "fried" ravioli, but its just not the same.  These were among some of the best t-ravs I've ever had.  They were obviously handmade versus frozen and the sauce had a little Texas kick to it.  I probably could have ordered this for my meal and been a happy camper.  We noticed that serveral items on the menu had provel cheese listed as an ingredient and inquired to our waiter about how provel cheese came to be at a place in Georgetown, TX.  He was pretty sure that the chef was from St. Louis, so we were in good hands.  Next, we ordered our meals with Mike selecting a pizza and I went with the BLT with provel and a pesto mayo.  My sandwich was delicious, but huge, so I saved half for leftovers.

Mike's pizza was good, but not quite what he was looking for.  The provel cheese was obviously a home blend and was a little heavy on the mozzarella, so it didn't melt quite right.  The crust was also not quite as crispy as a St. Louis thin crust pizza.  It was good, but not perfect.  We were quite full after eating, so we should have stopped there, but dessert sounded pretty amazing. 

We ordered the ice cream sandwich sliders.  They were homemade chocolate chocolate chip cookies with homemade peanut butter ice cream.  They were set in homemade whipped cream with a salted caramel dipping sauce.  So indulgent, so fabulous.  Thank goodness we were drinking water because this meal was a lot of food!  Everything was delicious and very reasonably priced.  George's also had a cute atmosphere, so we will definitely be back to get our t-rav fix and try more amazing items off the menu.   

Food Truck Rally

On Saturday, Whitestone was having a Food Truck Rally with 3 different food trucks, a snow cone truck, and in the evening, a band.  We decided to head there for lunch and we were glad we did.  We skipped trivia this week because I was hot and crabby and apparently, we were missed.  Some of our favorite staff and a friend of ours commented on how many of the regulars were gone this week.  We are hoping it cools off soon.  Of the three food trucks, two were new to us, so we had to give them a try.  Mike preread the menus and decided to order from Cafe Ybor.  There were many sandwiches that sounded like his style.  The sandwiches were Southern inspired and Mike had a hard time choosing one.   Eventually, he picked the Ybor with pork, ham, salami, Swiss, mustard and pickle chips with a side of fruit salad.  It was toasted to perfection and Mike was happy with his choice.  We definitely hope to see this truck back at Whitestone in the future.

Mike's sandwich from Cafe Ybor  

We wanted to try both new food trucks, so I got to try Missi J's, the grilled cheese food truck.  I love a good sandwich and grilled cheese is always a great choice.  I looked at their menu and everything sounded yummy.  I asked them for a recommendation and they told me to try the grilled cheese with a scoop of mac and cheese on it.  I got to pick my bread (sourdough) and 3 cheeses (provolone, pepper jack, and American).  It came with a bag of chips and they brought it to me at the bar when it was finished.  This ooey gooey grilled cheese was pretty amazing and definitely filling!  Our friend, Ben, had a grilled cheese with chicken sandwich that sounded yummy, too.  Hopefully, this is another truck that becomes a regular at Whitestone.  We spent the afternoon enjoying a few brews and hanging out inside the bar.  After several weekends of laziness or work, it was nice to get out of the house for a little bit and enjoy great food, beer, and company at one of our favorite places. 

My grilled cheese from Missi J's

Dream Dinners: Sizzling Sirloin Beef Fried Rice

After a busy day, I was super glad I had a Dream Dinners meal in the fridge defrosted and ready to make.  We were super excited to try the Sizzling Sirloin Beef Fried Rice.  I started off by adding the rice and 1 1/8 cup of water to a small saucepan and bringing it to a boil.  Once it was boiling, I gave it a stir, put on the lid, turned the heat to low, and let it cook for about 20 minutes.  After my rice had cooked about 20 minutes, I added my beef to a pan and cooked it through.  I drained the grease and then added the peas and rice to the skillet, cooking it about 2 more minutes.  Finally, I added the sauce to the pan and cooked it down, about 2-3 minutes.  After about 25-30 minutes, dinner was served.  We really liked this meal.  The flavors were great and it wasn't so heavy on a hot Texas day.  We rated this meal 5 stars and will be definitely choosing any Asian meals that Dream Dinners has to offer in the future. 

Oh By Gosh, By Golly

Friday was set to be the hottest day of the year thus far.  Naturally, I had several errands to run after work.  I knew if I went home for lunch I wouldn't want to leave the AC, so I walked over to Caffe Yolly after work for a quick bite and coffee.  I knew that they made great coffee, but it was my first time eating there.  I was just going to pick up a premade cold sandwich, when I was told that they made hot sandwiches, too.  I can't turn down a great grilled sandwich, so I gave the turkey pesto sandwich a try.  My sandwich was delicious!   Turkey, pesto, cheese, and tomato on grilled sourdough bread, it was a sandwich created for me!  My iced vanilla latte was the perfect pick me up and I was ready to conquer my day.  I'm really glad that Caffe Yolly is so close to work.  I have a feeling that I will be stopping by often.

Pin a Day: Chicken Gyros

The past few days I have been trying to make Chicken Gyros.   On Tuesday, I realized that I need to make the tzatziki sauce and marinate the chicken ahead of time.  Tuesday, we ended up with leftovers and on Wednesday, we went out for a quick bite.  Last night, I got my stuff together and was ready to go.  Yesterday afternoon, I made the tzatziki sauce.  I peeled and deseeded the cucumber and threw it in the food processor.  I pulsed it and added Greek yogurt, garlic, vinegar, lemon juice, salt and pepper. I pulsed it again until it was well mixed.  I poured it into a small bowl, drizzled with olive oil, and put it in the fridge to chill.  Next, I made the marinade for the chicken by mixing together garlic, lemon juice, Greek yogurt, oregano, salt and pepper.  I added in the chicken and let it marinate until dinner.  At dinner time, I had Mike chop a red onion and a Roma tomato.  I heated up a skillet and added my chicken to cook, flipping it every few minutes.  It took forever to cook, but it finally got done.  We assembled our gyros by taking a pita and adding sliced chicken, red onions, tomatoes, and tzatziki sauce.  They turned out really good.  I was a little disappointed by how long it took to cook the chicken, but the results were yummy, so I guess I can't complain too much.  Mike really enjoys Greek food, so I will probably make this again.    Next time,  I will remember to wear my patient pants.

Dream Dinners: Sweet Korean Pork Tenderloin with Asian Vegetable Quinoa

Last night, despite a near oven disaster, we had our favorite Dream Dinners meal yet.  We love Asian inspired meals so we were really looking forward to the pork and quinoa dish.  I heated up the oven to 425 and prepped a roasting pan for the pork tenderloin.  I think I failed in letting too much liquid from the pork go on the pan and then over glazing the pork tenderloin.  I put it in the oven to cook for 30 minutes.  After 15 minutes, I noticed a burning smell.  I turned on the oven fan.  After 20 minutes, I noticed a bit of smoke, so I pulled the tenderloin out and switched to a different pan minus all the burnt juices.  Things went much better from there.  When the pork was done, I removed it from the oven and let it sit about 5-10 minutes.  Meanwhile, I poured the Asian vegetable quinoa in a pan with a little bit of water, heated it up, and cooked it with the lid on for about 5 minutes.  Mike sliced the tenderloin and we were ready to go.  We served the pork with the quinoa and put a little bit of glaze on the pork.  The pork was perfectly cooked and the flavor of everything was quite delicious.  We give this meal 5 stars and look forward to repeating it again. 

Dream Dinners: Charhouse Chicken Sandwich on a Pretzel Bun with Parmesan Garlic Steak Fries

Thursday was another Dream Dinners night.  I'm really enjoying the meals and trying them makes it so much easier to offer suggestions and opinions to customers.  We were really excited to try the Charhouse Chicken Sandwiches.  I had a recommendation from another girl at work to try the Parmesan Garlic Steak Fries, too, so I added those as a side.  I started with the fries because they were going to take longer to cook.  I preheated the oven to 475 and prepared a pan for the fries.  I sprayed the pan, added fries, and sprayed the fries.  I put them in for 10 minutes and then flipped them.  I cooked them another 12 minutes, drizzled them with olive oil, sprinkled them with the season mix and tossed them again.  Next, I started on the sandwiches.  I heated up my grill pan on the stove and cooked the chicken breasts for 6 minutes on each side.  I turned down the heat and added the cheese on top of the chicken.  I let them cook until the cheese melted.  While the cheese was melting, I put the pretzel buns in the oven to lightly toast them.  Once the cheese melted, I removed the buns from the oven and assembled the sandwiches.  I spread some seasoned mayo on each bun, added a chicken breast, and we were ready to go.  We really liked the sandwiches.  You can't go wrong with a pretzel bun and the seasoned mayo added a little kick to the dish.  The chicken was seasoned well and cooked great on my grill pan.  We were not as impressed with the steak fries.  They needed to cook longer and maybe needed more seasoning.  We finished them, but we may not try those again.  It may be a personal preference, as we don't always love steak fries.  So far, I have enjoyed my Dream Dinners meals and the leftovers have been yummy, too.  I am looking forward to next week's meals and signing up for my next session to make more meals. 

Pin a Day: No Bake Reese's Fudge Bars

Yesterday was Trivia Wednesday and I needed to bring a winner because I skipped making a dessert last week.  I decided to try these No Bake Reese's Fudge Bars.  They looked simple and didn't involve heating up the kitchen with the oven.  I started by lining a 9x9 pan with aluminum foil and sprayed it with cooking spray.  Next, I unwrapped and lined up 16 regular sized Reese's cups in my pan.  I heated up a medium pot with a can of sweetened condensed milk (I used fat free to be slightly healthy) and 3 cups of chocolate chips (I used semi sweet).  I stirred that over low heat until it was completely melted.  I spread the chocolate mixture over the Reese's cups and sprinkled with 6 chopped up Reese's cups.  I let it set a little bit on the counter, but it was pretty hot here yesterday, so I put it in the fridge for several hours.  Right before it was time to leave for triva, I pulled out the fudge and cut it into pieces.  I immediately started serving to all my friends at trivia because it was going to melt fast on the patio.  We didn't win last night, but this recipe was a winner.  It was rich, fudgey and peanut buttery.  It was a big hit and while it might work better served in cooler temperatures, it was a delightful treat anyways.  I was drinking hefeweizen last night, but this fudge would have paired great with a porter, brown, or stout.  This is definitely one I will make again, but probably not for another 95+ degree day!

Dream Dinners: Mexican Meatballs and Almond Green Beans

Last night, I made the 2nd of our Dream Dinners meals.  The meal we picked was Mexican Meatballs.  I bought a few sides, so I added the Almond Green Beans.  I had also cut up some strawberries, which were a nice addition to the meal.  For the meatballs, I opened the ground beef and mixed it with the season mix.  I used my portion scoop to make them into 16 meatballs.  I placed the meatballs in a greased glass baking dish.  I poured the BBQ salsa sauce on top, covered with aluminum foil, and baked at 375 for 35 minutes.  After the initial bake, I uncovered the meatballs and baked them for another 10 minutes.  During this time, I heated up a skillet and toasted the almonds for two minutes. I added the butter/spice mix and green beans and cooked them 5 minutes.  Everything finished at the same time and we were ready to eat.  I liked the meatballs, but it felt like they were missing something.  I thought they might be spicier.  We decided that the meat would be great as taco or nachos.  I did love the green beans.  The almonds and seasoned butter gave them a great flavor.  This was another good meal and I look forward to trying more. 

Dream Dinners: Summer Time Pasta with Chicken

Recently, I started a new job and it is going to influence the way we eat and cook a little bit.  I am working at a place called Dream Dinners.  This is a place where people come and prepare a month's worth of meals, freeze them, and cook them at home as needed.  My job is to help guide people as they are making their meals, clean up the stations and prepare ingredients for the stations.  Last Thursday, I got to go in and make some meals for Mike and I to try.  It was interesting to be on the customer side of things and I got to make some really yummy meals.  Yesterday, I made the first of our frozen meals.  I thawed it in the fridge and it was ready to go.  Our first meal was the Summer Time Pasta with Chicken, which required very little prep work.  I preheated the oven, poured some sauce over the pasta mixture, and covered it with aluminum foil, cooking it for about 20 minutes.  After the initial cook time, I removed the foil, stirred it, and cooked for another 10 minutes.  We added a side of strawberries and salad.  This pasta was really tasty.  I wasn't sure how it might defrost, but it was really tasty.  It had excellent flavor and with a 3 person sized meal, we had enough for the two of us with an extra serving leftover.  After trying this meal, we are definitely looking forward tasting more great meals.   

May-ito, May-ito Not?

Last night on the way to HEB, we stopped at Mayitos for a little bit of Mexican food for dinner.  We walked in and it was obvious that there was a birthday party going on.  Later we realized that we likely had crashed the party, as the open sign was no longer lit up when we left.  Oops!  Mayito's was a tiny little place, but the food was decent and the waitresses were helpful.  We started with chips, salsa, and queso.  The salsa was pretty mild and not chunky at all.  The queso was smooth, creamy, and also mild.  The chips were crunchy and not overly salty.  We had a hard time deciding what we wanted to eat and eventually made our decisions.  I chose the chicken flautas served with rice and beans.  Mike picked the quesadilla, also served with rice and beans. 

Our food came pretty quickly and was tasty.  My flautas were nice and crunchy with the added bonus of sour cream, lettuce, and guacamole.  The rice and beans also had a great flavor.  The best part of our meal was definitely Mike's quesadilla.  It was cooked perfectly and the chicken was well seasoned. 

It was definitely an interesting dining experience for us.  Had we known there was a private event, we would have gone somewhere else.  Everyone was nice though, so it wasn't a bad evening.  The food was good, but not great.  I definitely want to try their tacos at some point to see if that is their specialty. 

Ranch and Chile Chicken Enchiladas

This week I have a few days in between Blue Apron and Dream Dinners meals, so I am making some old favorites, but also taking time to try a few new recipes.  Last night, I made Ranch and Chile Chicken Enchiladas.   We love enchiladas and these included many of our favorite things.  I started by cooking some chicken in a bit of broth-I probably should have bought already cooked chicken or cooked it ahead of time to make things go a bit faster, but this worked ok.  While the chicken was cooking, I preheated the oven to 350 and sprayed my 9x13 pan with cooking spray.  I mixed together ranch dressing, sour cream, chilies, and cheddar cheese.  Once the chicken cooked, I shredded it and mixed it in with the ranch dressing mixture.  I separated the mixture into 9 tortillas and placed them seam side down in the pan.  I covered them with green enchilada sauce and cheddar cheese.  I baked them for about 15 minutes.  We let them cool a few minutes and were ready to eat.  The ranch gave the enchiladas a great flavor.  These were probably some of the best enchiladas I've ever made.  I will definitely be making these again.

Blue Apron: Fresh Basil Fettuccine with Sweet Corn and Cabanelle Pepper

Last night, we made our final Blue Apron meal.  There were a couple of reasons for this decision, but the main reason is that I got a job with a competing company.  At the end of June, I started working for a company called Dream Dinners and this week I will make my first set of meals with them.  I definitely didn't need two meal services, as I do like to cook from scratch and go out to eat, as well.  We were not disappointed with the final meal and it definitely inspired me to make pasta with a variety of different vegetables.  While I started a pot of water boiling, Mike worked on getting the produce ready.  First, I cooked the tomatoes in oil with some seasoning (I ran out of pepper, so I grabbed some random seasoning out of the pantry), cooking them for 2 minutes and setting them aside.  Next, I cooked the pepper for about 2 minutes and added in the corn, cooking it another 3 minutes.  When the corn and pepper finished cooking, I added them to the tomatoes and set the veggies aside.  I cooked the pasta for 3 minutes, separating the strands, and draining it.  Then, it was time to make the spinach.  I drizzled the pan with oil, added spinach, garlic, and red pepper flakes, cooking until the spinach was wilted.  To the spinach, I added pasta, cooked veggies, and half the pasta water.  I cooked that about a minute and then turned off the heat.  I added in the creme fraiche, half the basil, and a drizzle of olive oil.  We plated the pasta, garnishing it with more basil and parmesan cheese.  This was a nice light meal on a hot Texas night.  I enjoyed the special pasta and the various veggies and plan to keep that in mind when I am doing my menu planning and groccery shopping this summer.  I think Blue Apron got us out of our comfort zone and taught us to try new things.  I plan on hitting up some farmer's markets and trying out new ingredients in the future.

Blue Apron: Seared Chicken and Pasta Salad with Lemon Caper Sauce

Last night, we made another tasty Blue Apron meal.  This time the recipe was Seared Chicken and Pasta Salad with Lemon Caper Sauce.  Mike got the produce ready while I boiled water for the pasta.  Once the water was boiling, I added the pasta and cooked it for 14 minutes.  After cooking it, I drained it and returned it to the pot.  Next, I worked on the vegetables by heating oil in a large nonstick pan.  I added the squash and cooked it for 4 minutes, adding in the peppers and garlic and cooking another 4 minutes.  I set the veggies aside and cooked the chicken for about 7 minutes on each side.  I allowed the cooked chicken to cool a little bit while I made the sauce.  To the pan, I added butter, capers (I don't like them, so I only used half.), and the juice of 2 lemon wedges.  I cooked it until the butter had completed melted.  To the pasta, I added the veggies, sauce, and half the parsley.  I plated the chicken next to the pasta and garnished with lemon wedges and parsley.  This was a really tasty dish.  We absolutely loved the pasta!  It was really interesting and we talked about a couple of different ways to make it again in the future.   

Blue Apron: Bulgogi Beef and Soba Noodle Stir Fry with Marinated Vegetables

In our final week of Blue Apron meals, we made some great choices.  Our meals came a little bit late this week due to the holiday, so we made the first one on Friday.  Mike really liked a soba noodle dish at Panera, so I decided we should try the Bulgogi Beef and Soba Noodle Stir Fry.  Per the norm, Mike washed and prepped the produce while I worked on the rest of the meal.  I started water boiling in a medium pot.  Once the water boiled, I added the noodles and boiled them for 3 minutes.   I drained, rinsed them, and added sesame oil.  I marinated the beef in salt, pepper, and yakiniku sauce for about 10 minutes while the radishes and cucumber marinated separately in salt, pepper, and vinegar.  I heated up the rest of the sesame oil in a large pan and added the beef, cooking it about 2-3 minutes.  I added the carrots and scallions and cooked until the beef was cooked through.  To the pan, I added the noodles, yakiniku sauce, vinegar, water, and  gochujang and cooked it another minute.  I turned off the heat and added in the cilantro, salt, and pepper.  We plated the stir fry with the marinated veggies, garnished the stir fry with scallions and the veggies with mint.  This was a very tasty meal.  I skipped the cucumbers myself, but the radishes were yummy.  This meal also made plenty of food, with enough extra for leftovers, too.  We really liked this one and will likely try to make something like it again in the future.

Pin a Day: Thai Chicken Salad

This summer, I haven't tried as many new recipes, as we have been enjoying Blue Apron meals.  We have decided that we are done using them after this upcoming week, so I am looking forward to cooking more new meals.  Summer in Texas is super hot and I try to find meals that aren't too hot.  This week, I tried a Thai Chicken Salad.  Mike and I worked together to make this recipe, in a way similar to our Blue Apron meals.  Mike washed and prepped all the produce, while I worked on the chicken and the dressing.  I used olive oil instead of coconut oil and heated that up in a large pan.  To the pan, I added the onion and garlic, cooking it for about 2 minutes.  Next, I added in the chicken, which I decided to cut into bite sized pieces to cook faster.  I cooked the chicken until it was cooked through.  I let the chicken cool, while I made the dressing.  I combined lime juice, fish sauce, red pepper flakes, and ginger.  To that mixture, I wisked in olive oil, forming a dressing.  Mike layered the cabbage with carrots, red peppers,  basil, and cilantro.  I added in the chicken and onion mixture and the dressing, giving it a gentle toss.  We plated the salad and topped it with chopped cashews.  I really liked the salad.  I felt like it had nice flavors and was a cool meal on a hot day.  Mike thought it was okay, so its not something I will likely make all the time.  

Blue Apron: Spicy Elote Style Vegetable Tostadas with Summer Squash, Poblano Pepper, and Cilantro Rice

Last night  we tried another Blue Apron meal.  We love Mexican and Tex Mex foods, so we were excited for these tostadas and cilantro rice.  However, due to a mishap, we ended up with tacos and rice instead.  They were really tasty and we really didn't even miss having meat as our protein with all the delicious flavors in this meal.  We started off by preheating the oven and prepping the produce.  I added water, rice, and salt to a small pot and brought it to a boil.  I boiled the rice for 12 minutes.  When the rice was done, I fluffed it and added in lime zest, half the cilantro, and the juice of two lime wedges.  Next, I cooked the squash in a pan for about 7 minutes, seasoning with salt and pepper.  Then, I prepared a baking sheet and drizzled olive oil on the tortillas along with salt and pepper.  I followed the directions and cooked the tortillas for about 7 minutes and they burnt.  Fortunately, we had back up tortillas and decided to make tacos instead.  While the tortillas were burning, I cooked the onions and peppers in the pan for about 5 minutes, adding chili powder, garlic, salt, and pepper.  I added the cooked onions and peppers to the cooked squash along with the mayo, lime juice, salt, and pepper.  We put some rice mixture on the tortillas along with the veggie mixture and garnished with cilantro and cotija cheese.  The results were fabulous!  We really enjoyed the excellent flavors and its always nice to have a tasty vegetarian meal in the books.

Beer Train Part 2: Riding on the Ale Trail

After having so much fun on last year's Beer Train, we decided to do it again this year.  We see the trains for Austin Steam Train on a weekly basis parked behind our beloved Whitestone Brewery, so its usually on our mind to go on another train ride.  This year was another trip from Cedar Park to Betram and featured beer from Whitestone Brewery.  The restaurant paring with the beer was Greenhouse Crft Food out of Round Rock.  Adding more excitement was the addition of a special guest, Olly from Olly's Ale Trail, a Travel Channel show based out of the UK.  While onboard, Olly greeted all the passengers, filmed a spot for his episode, and the team collected footage of passengers enjoying their beers.  We were told that the episode will air between December 2017 and March 2018, so we can't wait to see our favorite brewery on tv!  The train ride was nice and relaxing with the added bonus of musicians adding a little atmosphere this year.  We also felt that Greenhouse did an excellent job pairing with the beers, so we will definitely be going to visit them again.   The only disappointment on this year's train was that we were on a different car and we didn't have tables, so eating and drinking was a little bit difficult.  We lucked out and Mike only ended up wearing a little bit of juice from his taco.

Bruschetta

The first paring was the Cedrela Hefeweizen with bruschetta.  I always enjoy a good hefeweizen and Whitestone has a great tasting one!  Greenhouse created a tasty bruschetta to pair with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, basil, a citrusy marinade and bacon.  

Cedrela Hefewizen

Nipsy Daiser IPA

Our next course paired the Nipsy Daiser IPA with a pork taco and tortilla chips.  The Nipsy Daiser is a seasonal USA IPA made with special hops for the holiday.  I am not a fan of IPAs in general, but I drank this up because it did go well with the taco.  The tortilla chips were homemade and had delicious seasoning on them.   The pork tacos were topped with a jicama slaw and field greens.  The pork was super tender and tasty.  This course made me really want to go try more of Greenhouse's foods.

Tortilla Chips and Pork Taco

Chocolate Mousse with Mixed Berries and Sponge Cake

For the dessert course, the pairing was the Grand Daddy Bourbon Porter along with a Chocolate Mousse with Mixed Berries and Sponge Cake.  This was another great paring.  The Grand Daddy is a strong beer, so I was only able to drink part of mine, but it did go great with dessert.  The chocolate mousse had a bit of coffee to it which went well with the beer.  The berries were nice and fresh and the sponge cake was fluffy and moist.  Overall, this was another great beer train trip and we look forward to another beer train adventure next year! 

Grand Daddy Bourbon Porter

Blue Apron: Pork Chops and Honey Mustard Pan Sauce with Creamy Barley Salad

We've had a busy week with buying a new car and with me getting a new job, so we just got around to making our 1st Blue Apron meal of the week last night.  We knew we'd be short a cucumber because it sort of exploded in the box during shipping.  I don't love cucumbers so I opted not to replace it.  I started by bringing a pot of water to boil while Mike cleaned and prepped the produce.  Once the water was boiling, I cooked the barley with the lid off the pot for 25 minutes.  After it was done cooking, I rinsed it with cold water and put it back in the pot with a drizzle of olive oil, salt and pepper.  Next, I cooked the vegetables by heating up oil in a medium pan and cooking the carrot for about 3 minutes.  I added in the onions, salt and pepper, and cooked for another 4 minutes.  I removed the veggies from the pan and put them in a bowl while I cooked the seasoned pork in oil.  I cooked the pork for 5-6 minutes on each side.  After the pork chops cooked, I let them rest about 5 minutes while I made the pan sauce.  I used water, mustard, honey, vinegar, salt, and pepper to make the sauce, cooking it for about 2-3 minutes.  I mixed together the barley, cooked vegetables, tarragon, almonds, and yogurt.  I added in a little bit of honey, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper to make up for the missing cucumber marindade.  I plated each pork chop on a bed of the barley salad and we were ready to eat.  The pork chops and pan sauce were delicious.  The barley was just okay.  We've come to the conclusion that its just not our favorite grain.  We just wish it had a little more flavor to add to the yummy pork chops.

Pin a Day: Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins

While this has been a busy week, I still made time to bake.  Trivia is always a good venue for trying new recipes, so I made these Cinnamon Sugar Donut Muffins.   These reminded me a bit of snickerdoodles in a muffin form, so I knew they'd be tasty.  I opted to make a single batch since it was a new recipe, but a double batch would have been eaten up.  I started by melting the butter and letting it cool for a little bit.  I mixed together the dry ingredients of flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  To the butter, I added sugar, milk, and egg.  I mixed the wet ingredients and it was still pretty lumpy.  I added the liquid to the dry and stirred until just moistened.  I divided the batter evenly among 12 muffin cups and baked at 350 for about 18 minutes.  While the muffins baked, I melted more butter and made a cinnamon sugar mixture.  I let the muffins cool for a few minutes after baking and then brushed butter on each muffin and dipped them in the cinnamon sugar mixture.  I let them set on a cooling rack to cool completely.  I packed them up and off to trivia they went.  The muffins were a hit-I shared them with my team, other teams, our beer tenders, and our quiz master.  They may have been a good luck charm too, because we definitely had a winning night!  If you are a fan of snickerdoodles, these are a great choice and fairly simple to make.