Not Yo Granny’s BLT {Amazing BLT Sandwich}

July 27, 2012 by Logan 1 Comment

This may look like a standard issue BLT to some, but trust me….it’s not. I have created a sandwich so completely incredible, I’m fairly certain that it’s served in heaven. It’s so good it kinda makes your eyes roll back in your head….THAT level of goodness…but simple goodness too, just kinda amped up.

So, to make this amazing sandwich which I’m dubbing…

Not Yo Granny’s BLT

You will need:

Incredible bread – I’m into hearty, grainy, seedy, whole grain varieties….but pick your fav. No Wonderbread for this one, it will disintegrate. It can’t handle the truth, and this sandwich is the truth!
Homegrown tomatoes – And if you can get homegrown heirloom tomatoes, then consider your sandwich “next-level-ified”
Palmetto Pimento Cheese with Jalapenos – If you don’t live in the south or your grocery store doesn’t carry it, then you’re missing out, but you can always make THIS recipe for pimento cheese and use it. It’s pretty stellar albeit more labor intensive than opening up a tub of other-person-homemade creamy goodness.
Fresh lettuce – Had I any arugula though, that would have taken it over the top even more.
Extra crispy bacon – Applewood Smoked is the bomb, I also love Smithfield Peppered Bacon, just make sure whatever you choose, it’s cooked to crispety crunchety perfection (My new fav bacon cooking method is on a foil lined cookie sheet in the oven…about 375 for 20-30 minutes…just til it’s perfect. In My book, the cleanup is way better than a splattery mess too!)
Avocado – I like the Florida Slimcado, but whatever kind you have will be great as long as it’s ripe
Fresh Ground Pepper – Crack some of that goodness right on top of your tomatoes.
Drizzles of Truffle Oil and Thick, Super-Aged Balsamic Vinegar – These additions may have just put this thing into a whole new category for me. My favorite balsamic vinegar is a fig balsamic, so it has a little more thickness and sweetness….killer on this sandwich. And truffle oil….seriously…if you don’t know it, then get to know it…YUM! Oh sweet happiness….do this. It’s incredible.

Friends, I’m telling you…this might even be better than the Fried Green Tomato BLT with Fresh Goat Cheese that I had a couple of years ago on our trip to Blowing Rock, NC. I love me some fried green tomatoes, but you just can’t beat a killer homegrown heirloom. Lord, have mercy on my metabolism….I’m gonna be eating these things every day until the vines are no longer yielding!

Feast or Spoil? {Allume}

July 26, 2012 by Logan Leave a Comment

Our freezer stopped working on Saturday. Our deep freezer. You know, the one chocked full of meats bought in bulk, extra spaghetti sauce, the casseroles I doubled for a “rainy day”, a handful of Kashi and Healthy Choice frozen meals for when my Hubs is gone, giant bags of fruit for smoothies, veggies, and more. Yeah….that freezer. The one that was packed to the gills. It seems to have died, or decided to take a break from cooling for awhile in this sticky, South Carolina, summer heat.

All of the meat thawed. It was amply cool, but completely thawed.

So, after a few moments of panic over the thought of losing a few hundred dollars worth of food, we decided to make lemonade out of lemons.

We sent an email to a boatload of friends this morning, and tonight… we had an emergency feast.

And a feast it was too. I roasted pheasants, grilled pork tenderloin and chicken breasts, made fruit cobblers, and yellow rice. Our friends brought more amazing sides and desserts…Tomato Panzanella salad, fresh fruit, green salads, pasta salad, banana cream pie, and more. We probably had 30 people over…on a whim…an emergency whim. And it was fun!

And as we cleaned out the freezer, I got to thinking how this process today reminds me of life so often.

* * *

Read the rest over at Allume!

If I Lived In Boston…A Ridiculous Impersonation

July 25, 2012 by Logan 3 Comments

Some people have suggested along the way that I should do a vlog. For those of you who, like me until recently, didn’t known what a vlog is…it’s a video blog.

I feel like an idiot on camera, and I think my voice sounds weird. Apparently though, my voice typically sounds like my actual voice to other people….which in itself to me is weird.

In this video though, I don’t really sound like myself….because I’m a dork of the greatest proportions and I’m impersonating (rather successfully I think) my roommate from the Haven Conference I went to in Atlanta in June. Her name is Jessica, and she blogs at Four Generations One Roof. She’s from Boston…as in, she sounds like she’s off of the movie Goodwill Hunting. I had even more fun with the impersonations because I got to say names like Tony, and Vinny…and Nuch (pronounced New-ch). These are all real people in her life.

We made several videos, but this one to me was the funniest. For the record, sometimes I think it feels weird to say that I think I am actually funny…but let’s be honest, at 2 am, pretty much everything is funny.

I cleaned up language of the the actual conversation I overheard for my impersonation, but I figure if some of you want a vlog…here you go.

I have the lovely Jessica introducing my 30 seconds in the spotlight…just so you all know, not only was she on board with my impersonation of her at 2 in the morning…but she was actually the one recording it!

So without further ado…I give you…Jessica sharing a bit, and then of course, myself….acting like a complete doofus!

Being a Southerner, it absolutely cracks me up that in a totally loving and supportive conversation, someone would cuss at their spouse like the real version of this conversation went. I was laughing so hard, because if I ever dropped an f-bomb in a conversation with my husband, he’d get ticked, and of all things not feel supported. It’s my understanding that Tony felt very loved after this exchange. I love it! Ahhh….the differences in cultures even within our own beloved US of A.

Beach Fun

July 23, 2012 by Logan 4 Comments

We just spent a week at the beach in Florida. Hence the need for the road trip mix that I recently shared. It was gorgeous weather and a huge blast. My youngest has finally reached the age where he just has a ball at the beach, so the whole trip was that much more fun since the boys played so well. I actually got a tan, and according to Suzanne Fawsett from high school, “tan fat is better than pale fat.” So right Suzanne….so right.

I thought I’d share a few of my favorite pictures with you, as well as a couple of MUST-GO places should you ever find yourself on Anna Maria Island, Florida.

The Star Fish Company is a hole-in-the-wall fishmarket with an open air restaurant along the fishing docks outside. They serve up the freshest seafood there, and the blackened grouper sandwich is melt-in-your-mouth amazing. It is hands down one of our favorite places to go. In fact, we love the same stand by restaurants, that I can honestly say we just don’t deviate. Ever. Why mess up a good thing?

Duffys Tavern is THE place we go for lunch nearly every day at the beach. We don’t really ever dine out at dinner, but lunches for us are a different story. Generations of my family have come to Duffys, and I am no exception. In fact, I love Duffys so much that thanks to at least one (and sometimes GASP….1 1/2) of their world famous cheeseburgers nearly every day…washed down with a beer so cold it forms ice crystals on the top, well, I gained about 3 pounds….IN A WEEK! No lie, I eat more burgers in one week at the beach than I do the entire rest of the year combined. It’s just THAT good!

photo via Duffys Tavern

I love the beach, and the Gulf Coast has the whitest, softest sand, and the most crystal blue water. The sun gets crazy hot in the middle of the day, and this girl gets sun poisoning if I’m not careful….but ahh….it’s just wonderful there. My mom grew up in Florida, so that’s where we go. Love me some traditions too.

And speaking of traditions, my husband and I spent part of our honeymoon on Anna Maria Island as well. Some friends pitched in and gave us a gift card to an amazing restaurant on the island called the Beach Bistro. It’s pricey, but worth repeating every year. Once my sister got married, she and her husband joined us, and then once my brother was pretty much a grown up, he started coming as well. So now, it’s a sibling thing….and one we all look forward to every year. The Beach Bistro earns the highest Zagat rating possible year after year, and has also received some happy nods from the James Beard Foundation consistently as well. It sits right on the beach, and by that I mean that the sand comes all the way up to the full glass windows lining the beachside of the restaurant. It’s a treat worth treating ourselves to every year.

photo via the Beach Bistro

photo via the Beach Bistro

Who doesn’t love the beach?! Seriously! I’m a mountains girl for sure, but I love, love, some time at the beach. Summer just doesn’t seem like summer without it!

Happy Summer!

Peach Muffins with Streusal Topping {Peach Muffin Recipe}

July 20, 2012 by Logan 7 Comments

We’re smack in the midst of our luscious peach season here in South Carolina. It’s bliss. What’s not to love about peaches?!

On Tuesday this week, I took my children to a local dairy farm for a tour. It was hot as crap outside….and since it was a dairy farm, it smelled like crap too…literally. It was so hot that it was one of those days that the whole day feels like someone is standing in your face breathing hot breath on you. I hate that….hot breath in your face. Makes me feel like I might suffocate.

Anywhooo…the dairy farm had a little store that sold other local yummies, and I cannot walk past a basket of fresh peaches when there are none on my counter ripening at home. So I bought the biggest basket they had and feel happy just looking at my counter covered in juicy sweetness ripening! Mmmmmm!

Today my super fun friend Laura was coming over to hang out with her kiddos, and I thought I should put some of those peaches to good use. One of my all-time favorite cookbooks practically flew off the shelf into my hand as soon as I was thinking “peachy goodness.” Fosters Market never disappoints…and neither did these fabulous muffins!

Feast your eyes on this…and then make them and stuff your face! I’m calling it like it is though…these aren’t for breakfast so much as for dessert! I love whomever the person was that invented a tiny cake and decided to call it a muffin. MUAH to you! Dessert for breakfast by another name!

Sweet Peach Muffins w/ Brown Sugar- Walnut Streusel

Yield: 12 large muffins

Prep Time: 25 min

Cook Time: 30 min

Ingredients:

MUFFIN BATTER:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups peeled, pitted, chopped fresh peaches

STREUSEL TOPPING:
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped walnuts (or pecans)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a (12-cup) muffin pans with paper liners and spray the top part of the pan lightly with nonstick spray. Or simply spray the whole muffin pan with nonstick spray.

2. Sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, allspice, and salt in a large bowl and set aside.

3. Whisk eggs, butter, sour cream and vanilla in a separate bowl until well-blended. Fold in the peaches.

4. Add wet mixture to flour mixture and stir just until blended (don’t over mix).

5. Scoop batter into the prepared muffin cups with a large ice cream scoop. The batter should come to the top of the paper liner. Mix streusel ingredients in a small bowl until crumbly. Sprinkle muffin cups with the streusel topping and lightly press it into the muffin batter.

6. Bake 20 to 25 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins spring back when pressed lightly and a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean.

7. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before attempting to remove them from the pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Nothing Never Happens {Allume Devotional}

July 16, 2012 by Logan Leave a Comment

Marlon – “It’s not ok! I promised that I would never let anything happen to him!!!”

Dory – “Hmmm….that’s a funny thing to promise.”

“What do you mean?”

“You can’t never let anything happen to him, because then nothing would ever happen to him.”

We drove home from vacation today and were in the car for 11 hours. For about four of those hours, we allowed our kids to watch movies. “Finding Nemo” was the first choice, and from time to time, I’d catch a few silly one liners. Then I heard the above exchange and it made me stop and think.

And if you really want to pause about it, the conversation between these two little fish happened from inside the belly of a whale.

. . .

Read the rest of this post over at the Allume blog, HERE.

Top 100 Road Trip Songs

July 10, 2012 by Logan 12 Comments

So, I just made a big ol’ road trip with my kids…and without my husband. It was about an 11 hour drive, and that’s not including stops for a 2-weeks-potty-trained two-year-old, an overnight stay along the way, or the additional delay for the traffic ticket I got for “failure to switch lanes near an emergency vehicle” on the interstate. (I knew that applied to police cars, firetrucks, and ambulances in route, but didn’t realize that when there are 3 cops parked in a row on one side of the interstate, and 2 parked on the other, that I should get out of the left lane and move to the right. So, Tifton, GA….this ragged feeling mommy after a full day of driving, does not dub you “Friendliest City” even though that’s what you like to call yourself.)

I’ll tell you what helped along the way though to pass the time….a good old fashioned mix tape. It wasn’t an actual cassette tape (which would have been gloriously old-school) , but I had a great time on Spotify the day before I left creating a mix of songs that made the time fun. So I thought I’d share with you my…

Top 100 Absolutely Necessary Road Trip Songs

In no particular order, and I’m confident that I’ve forgotten a few additionally necessary ones, so you’ll have to please add your own few “can’t be missed” road trip songs in the comments section below.

1234 – Feist
All For Believing – Missy Higgins
Ants Marching – Dave Matthews
Any Way You Want It – Journey
Be Ok – Ingrid Michaelson
5 Years Time – Noah and the Whale
Barely Breathing – Duncan Sheik
Bittersweet – Big Head Todd and the Monsters
Brown Eyed Girl – Van Morrison
California Dreamin’ – The Mamas and the Papas
Call Me Maybe – Carly Rae Jepsen
Cecelia – Simon and Garfunkel
Champagne High – Sister Hazel
To Be With You – Mr. Big
Cherry Pie – Warrant
Closer to Fine – Indigo Girls
Come Away with Me – Norah Jones
Come to Jesus – Mindy Smith
Cowboy Take Me Away – Dixie Chicks
Dixieland Delight – Alabama
Drops of jupiter – Train
Dust on the Bottle – David Lee Murphy
Eternal Flame – The Bangles
Fast Car – Tracy Chapman
Free Fallin’ – Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
Margaritaville – Jimmy Buffet
Geek in the Pink – Jason Mraz
Go your Own Way – Fleetwood Mac
Green and Gray – Nickel Creek
Heaven is a Place on Earth – Belinda Carlisle
Here I Go Again – Whitesnake
Hey Now – Dave Barnes
Hold On – Alabama Shakes
Hook – Blues Traveler
Jacaranda Tree – Josh Garrels
Jessie’s Girl – Rick Springfield
Jezebel – Red Molly
Jolene – Mindy Smith and Dolly Parton
Killing Me Softly – The Fugees
Kiss Me – Sixpence None The Richer
Leaving on a Jet Plane – Peter, Paul, and Mary
Life is a Highway – Rascal Flatts
Little Goodbyes – SheDAISY
Look Away – Chicago
Love Story – Taylor Swift
Lovers Lane – Squirrel Nut Zippers
Manic Monday – The Bangles
Material Girl – Madonna
Misguided Angel – Cowboy Junkies
November Rain – Guns N’ Roses
Only Wanna Be With You – Hootie and the Blowfish
Picture – Kid Rock and Sheryl Crow
Put Your Records On – Corinne Bailey Rae
Ready to Run – Dixie Chicks
Rumor Has It – Adele
Run Away – Sarah Jarosz
Sample in a Jar – Phish
Send Me On My Way – Rusted Root
Strawberry Wine – Deana Carter
Summer Nights – John Travolta and Olivia Newton John
Shiny Happy People – R.E.M.
Something Like That – Tim McGraw
Sparrow – Audrey Assad
Sweet Emotion – Aerosmith
Sweet Jane – Cowboy Junkies
The Joker – Steve Miller Band
The Show – Lenka
The Way I Am – Ingrid Michaelson
The Wind – Zac Brown Band
These Are The Days – 10,000 Maniacs
These Arms of Mine – Otis Redding
Thieves – She & Him
Uptown Girl – Billy Joel
Used to Be – Daughtry
Vogue – Madonna
Walk on the Ocean – Toad The Wet Sprocket
Wanted Dead or Alive – Bon Jovi
We Are – Kari Jobe
We Are Young – Fun
What Makes You Beautiful – One Direction
Wildflowers – Tom Petty
Wolfman’s Brother – Phish
You and I – Ingrid Michaelson
You Know I’m No Good – Amy Winehouse
You’re Beautiful – James Blunt
You’re the Inspiration – Chicago
Complicated – Avril Lavigne
Ironic – Alanis Morisette
This Love – Maroon 5
If You Want Me – Glen Hansard
Billie Jean – Michael Jackson
My Prerogative – Bobby Brown
Mack The Knife – Bobby Darin
Wouldn’t It Be Nice – The Beach Boys
Depende – Jarabe De Palo
Stronger – Kelly Clarkson
I’ll Be – Edwin McCain
It Must Have Been Love – Roxette
Hey Ya – OutKast
Beautiful Things – Gungor

Original Image Source – unknown

Celebrating! {National Sugar Cookie Day}

July 9, 2012 by Logan Leave a Comment

I woke up this morning, and remembered that there were just a couple of cookies left in the tin…goes great with coffee….kinda like a biscotti, right? And then, I learned from my friend that today, of all days, is the perfect reason to have a cookie with my coffee….especially a sugar cookie!

Today, my friends, is National Sugar Cookie Day!

Who knew?! Really, who knew?!

“It’s National Sugar Cookie Day! Today, we honor a cookie that is simple and straightforward, but totally delicious. Traditional sugar cookie recipes call for just six ingredients: sugar, flour, butter, eggs, vanilla, and baking powder.

Although sugar cookies by themselves can be quite plain, they are incredibly versatile. Use cookie cutters to create shaped sugar cookies, and top them with frosting or sprinkles. You can also make cookie sandwiches with two sugar cookies and fillings like marshmallow, melted chocolate, ice cream, or jam.

To celebrate National Sugar Cookie Day, make a batch of homemade sugar cookies to share with friends and coworkers. Provide a variety of interesting decorations and let everyone personalize their bite-sized dessert!” – from www.punchbowl.com

We made 4th of July sugar cookies last week….stars decorated with red, white, and blue…and I’m still eating them for breakfast. Still awesome too! So i figured I’d break out my most favorite sugar cookie recipe for you again in case you are in need of random holiday celebration reasons, here you go!

These cookies are amazing! Flaky like shortbread, hold their shape when cut with cookie cutters, and amazing whether you like them thin and crispy, or thick and soft. Hands down, the best recipe I’ve found. So good in fact, that my own mother has abandoned her life-long sugar cookie recipe in favor of this one.

Amazing Sugar Cookies
yield: about 75 medium cookies

24 ounces butter (softened)
20 ounces powdered sugar (sifted)
3 whole eggs, plus
1 egg yolk
1/2 ounce vanilla extract
1/4 ounce almond extract
6 1/2 cups flour

Directions:

With paddle attachment, mix butter for 30 seconds. Add a 1/3 of the powdered sugar, mix on first speed for 1 minute. Add another 1/3 of the powdered sugar, mix another minute. Finally, add the last 1/3 of sugar, mix 1 minute.
Combine eggs, vanilla, and almond extract together, add to butter/sugar mixture. Mix for 30 seconds.
Add a 1/3 of the flour, mix 1 minute.
Scrape.
Add the next 1/3 of the flour, mix 2 minutes.
Scrape.
Add the final 1/3 of the flour, mix 3 minutes.
Refrigerate until able to be rolled out and cut into desired shapes. (if you’re using the dairy free version i told above, I’d refrigerate it AT LEAST 24 hrs before rolling out to make sure it really sets up.) Bake at 350 for 9-15 minutes depending on the size you cut them!)

Photo Source – I didn’t use our own cookie pictures, because I failed to take pictures since my kids decorated the entire batch, and red, white, and blue oft turned purple and less patriotic looking. You get the idea…

People Watching

July 6, 2012 by Logan 2 Comments

Well I’m just people watching
The other people watching me
And we’re all people watching
The other people watching we

– Jack Johnson

I LOVE to people watch!

Airports, markets, malls, shops, other countries, other cities, fairs, work events, conferences…Seriously…I should have been an anthropologist for as much as I love to watch people. It is just fascinating to me…other people…the way they walk, the way they act, the way they look, the people they’re with….it’s honestly a smorgasborg of fun.

I forget though that other people are people watching as well….and I may sometimes fall into the group of people they are staring at, picking apart, or analyzing.

My hubs and I went on a date this past weekend. We were in the mood for something casual, so we went to a local restaurant/ sports bar sort of place downtown. It was hoppin’ with people! Primo people watching locale, I tell you. I was making up stories, personas, lifestyles, and pasts for the people we were seeing. It was so much fun. My hubs thinks I’m sort of a dork when I do that.

The place we went has tons of ginormous tv’s all around. They had the olympic gymnastic trials on a few tv’s, some horse racing on a couple, and one of the tv’s closest to us was showing the X-Games extreme skateboarding. That stuff fascinates me, but it freaks me out when they fall off and basically plummet down this giant hill that’s probably as tall as a 5 story building.

I’m an expressive person…and apparently other people notice that.

Turns out that I made a few faces. And people were watching…

Maybe kinda like this….

or maybe like these…

or what if I looked like these?!?!?!

And last but not least…what if I’d looked like this?!?!

If Jay Leno were a girl, and that girl was me…this is how he’d look. Weird!

Sorry, I clearly got a little carried away with the Photo Booth on my computer. But what I really wanted to say was that at one point during dinner, I looked up and realized that I must have been making some horrible face, because a couple across the bar was laughing, and the woman, a complete stranger mind you, waved at me. I knew immediately that I was totally busted.

I was being people watched!

What can you do but laugh at yourself? And then have a hilarious laugh across the room with a complete stranger?! And then, if you’re me…you go over and have a laugh in person with your new friends, Tricia and Michael… who were completely hysterical, and also subject to our people watching earlier in the evening. Fortunately for us and them, turns out we’d each voted the other couple…best looking couple in the place. ROCK ON with my weird-face-makin self! For real though…ridiculous!

So Tricia and Michael, it was a scream! And to everyone else out there…remember that you’re not the only one who may be people watching!

Tricia and Me…the people watchers!

Proud to Be An American {Happy 4th of July}

July 4, 2012 by Logan 3 Comments

My brother ended a 7 year stint in the Navy in January of this year. I wish that I could say that prior to having my brother in the navy I always swelled with pride over our country, but that’d be a bit of an exaggeration. I love our country, and I am so thankful for the freedoms that we have, but I tell you what….until I stood on the docks of a Virginia naval base and watched an aircraft carrier lined with soldiers in whites on the deck, returning from 8 months at sea be united with loved ones, I didn’t get what it means, like I do now, to be an American.

I hugged a random woman beside me and we professed our love for one another and our country as tears streamed. The Star-Spangled Banner played, and the tip of the first boat of a fleet of ships, full of soldiers fighting to keep America free, came into view. My heart swelled with pride and love for my country and the people who keep America the “land of the free and the home of the brave.” And ya’ll….

I’m just so darn proud to be an American!

Happy 4th of July!

I thank my lucky stars,
to be livin here today.
‘ Cause the flag still stands for freedom,
and they can’t take that away.

And I’m proud to be an American,
where at least I know I’m free.
And I wont forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me.

And I gladly stand up,
next to you and defend her still today.
‘ Cause there ain’t no doubt I love this land,
God bless the USA.

– lyrics from Proud to Be An American by Lee Greenwood

Image source