Say Cheese!

After reading this post on on of my favorite blogs, Cup of Jo, I really got in the mood for cheese.  Well, to be honest, I'm always in the mood for cheese.  This just made me re-motivated to learn more about it (I have a time-insensitive goal of learning all about cheeses, coffees, and olive oils), and of course want to do that in the best way, by eating it.

 

In her posting, Joanna Goddard, the author, talks about her favorite cheese shop, Murray's. Coincidentally, I've looked at their great website before for cheese info.

One nice bite-size step (hehe) for my cheese learning might be to learn the 7 types of cheese Murray's uses to categorize their many many cheeses.  Here are Murray's descriptions, and I've attempted to find a matching (I hope!) picture of cheese from igourmet to fit each:

Fresh
Think: Young. Tart. Tangy. Lemony. Smooth. Moist. Creamy. No rind. Find: Fresh goat cheese ("Chevre), Mozzarella

Bloomy
Refers to the snowy, fluffy, "blooming" rind. Think: White. Buttery. Decadent. Pillowy. Fluffy. Rich. Mild to Mushroomy. Edible rind. Find: Brie, Camembert, Triple-Crèmes (Cremeux de Bourgogne, St. Andre)

Semi-soft
Think: Pliable. Earthy. Wet straw. Hay. Leaves. Melting. Find: Fontina, Garrotxa, Morbier, Tomme de Savoie

Washed
These are washed during aging, in brine (salt water), beer, wine or spirits. Think: Pungent. Stinky. Fruity. Meaty. Intense. Aromatic. Vibrant pink to orange edible rind. Find: Epoisses, Livarot, Pont l'Eveque, Taleggio

Firm
Think: Dense but supple. Grassy. Eggy. Fruited. Sharp. Thick, natural rind not typically eaten. Find: Cheddar, Gruyère, Manchego, Ossau Iraty

Hard
Think: The super-aged big guns. Dry. Crunchy. Caramelly. Butterscotchy. Grainy. Find: Aged Gouda, Dry Jack, Parmigiano-Reggiano

Blue
Think: Mold! Veins. Craters. Big. Sharp-edged. Punchy. Complex. Find: Gorgonzola, Roquefort, Stilton

PS: In my internet hunt for local cheeses...


I found out that a local Asheville cheesemaker, Looking Glass Creamery, was one of only 6 artisanal  cheesemakers in the country to be chosen by Williams Sonoma to be highlighted and sold for the first half of 2011 (see here)!


I also found out about Spinning Spider Creamery, which is only a half hour away.  I hope to try their cheese soon!

Best Brownies Ever!!

I have come up with a recipe/brownie mix that makes the most delicious brownies. Yummm.

I think there are two things that make these so dang good:
1) All natural, simple ingredients (the mix has like 4 ingredients and they are all natural and organic)
2) Extra chocolateyness with the chocolate chips, which become gooey, the coffee, which makes the whole thing darker and richer, and the already chocolatey brownie mix.


You start with this brownie mix:

Use the ingredients it requires (eggs and melted butter) and add pecans, chocolate chips, and a little finely ground coffee (I use about a tablespoon of Chris's coffee ground for the espresso machine).  OMmmmmmmG.      So. Good.

♪ ♫ Heaven.... must be missin' some brownies.... ♪ ♫

The best card.

The other day I was looking through pictures on the computer and I came across a real gem!  When Chris and I got engaged, my friend Ashley had her class of 3rd graders make tons of gluey, glittery, painted, drawn, you-name-it-craft cards to congratulate us.  They were soooooooo cute, and this one was especially adorable:

How sweet and funny is that?

How cool is this?

My friend Emma created an amazing resume.  Check it out on her blog here.

Lightening up for Spring!

This past weekend I rearranged the living room furniture and made some Spring-y decorations.  I used fun paper (designs with purples, navy, greens, and silver) and my heart paper-punch to make a garland to hang from the columns between the living room and dining room.  I also used fun paper (blues, blue-greens, greens, gold, and a bit of feathery flowery white) to make a hanging decoration above the mantle.  My parents gave me a sweet circle cutter for Christmas,so it is easy as pie to cut out perfect circles now!

I also through a cute quilt over the black couch to lighten things up, and put the new baby plants (we got lettuce, broccoli, and onion starters) on the window sill near the big green plant.   Our living room is so cute and cozy in Winter, it took some extra effort to lighten it up for Spring.  It was worth it. I love the new look!

PS: You can see Chris's awesome new bike in the pic!  It is 70's model Schwinn!

Cold Creamy Deliciousness

New bad new habit:  

I bought a pint of ice cream at Marble Slab Creamery a few days ago. Oh boy.  It is delicious.  

Fresh banana ice cream with oreos smashed into it. So. Dang. Good.

And the price of a cone there is so expensive that you're either spending way too much for a large serving or getting a great deal on a pint.  Not sure which.

Cedar Rapids

Earlier this week, we went to see Cedar Rapids.  I'm really wimpy with scary and stressful movies, so this light comedy was a welcome midweek treat! I thought it was super funny, and a step up from the usual cheap-laugh comedies that are so plentiful these days.

I mean, it was full of cheap laughs, but something about it seemed a bit more refined or well thought out. We saw it here, and next we want to see Today's Special:

No Balcony Garden Yet...

I thought by now I'd have a blooming balcony garden, but it hasn't happened yet.  Last week I was too pooped to go to home depot to get garden stuff, and then I realized it was too early and too cold, and then I realized that I didn't really know what I needed anyhow.  I've submitted to the idea that for my first garden I will probably need to start with some plants that are already babies - not seeds.  I feel kind of lame about this, but I also want a successful garden! Plus, seedlings are awfully cute...

  

So, I guess I'll go buy some started plants and figure out what additional containers I need after that. I'm pretty excited that this place is in walking distance. If nothing else, they have a great logo (although on the website it's one piece, not 3!):



Here's what I want to grow on the balcony:

lettuce

spinach

big tomatoes

small tomatoes

strawberries

peppers

herbs (especially basil!)

Tea in the afternoon

Is my new habit.  Maybe.  It's happened twice so far, in a row.  I'll keep you posted (literally).

I heart pizza. Big time.

Seeing the pizza Katie got to eat in Italy made me think about how much I love pizza.

Here's a walk through some pizza that's become a special part of my life...

The pizza Katie ate in Naples:

The delicious pizza at my wedding made by Fired Up:

Pizza from Tony's Pizza Napoletana (that's Tony himself! He won the world pizza competition in Naples in 2007!), one of my favorite restaurants in San Francisco:

Another favorite pizza spot in SF, Delfina Pizzeria:

Tomasso's, one of the first restaurants I went to soon after moving to San Francisco. Love. This. Place. 

Can't go wrong ordering the spinach pizza, lasagna, and house red:

 

Pizza from Ritrovo in West Asheville. My parents took us there soon after we moved here:

And, of course, pizza from Sette Bello, where I bartended the summer before moving to SF. Sadly, it has since closed:

 

I loved my Chicago pizza at Giordano's during my trip a few years ago:
 
And more tasty deep dish pizza at Little Star Pizza in SF (and also their garlic bread is to die for... warm sourdough served with a bulb of roasted garlic. OmmmmG):

MMmmm.  I love you, pizza.