Posts Tagged "Family"

Dinner for Mother

Posted on May 14, 2012 | 4 comments

But I chose an easy spread of foods and did most of the prep work in the afternoon.

We had salad with strawberries, blue cheese, and walnuts with a simple dressing of olive oil, balsamic, honey, and mustard.

Rice made with half basmati and half of Trader Joe’s lemongrass rice (so delish).

Naan from the Whole Foods bakery.

And chicken and vegetable curry from Kat’s fabulous recipe! I actually doubled it to ensure we’d have enough for the men. I didn’t quite have enough curry paste for the double though, so the flavor was a bit less bold than I would have liked. It was popular with the fam though!

Dessert was a sampling platter from Whole Foods along with some chocolate dipped strawberries I made. The samples included key lime pie, pumpkin whoopie pies, and an old fashioned cupcake. It was a very nice evening.

Today’s rainy cold weather has been perfect for nursing this cold and knocking out a lot of report writing for work. It felt great to get the hard work done this morning, so I’m debating a gentle gym session this afternoon. We are grabbing dinner with friends tonight and I’m looking forward to getting out of the house.

Happy Monday.

Bleu Burger

Posted on May 8, 2012 | 4 comments

Happy Tuesday.

After a failed day of babysitting (kid got sick = I went home), I tackled my to-do list and got in some extra relaxation. Matt and I leave for Atlanta in three weeks, so we paid a visit to Hillsborough to see my parents and have dinner. I had also hoped to vote, but when I let it slip that I live in Durham now, I wasn’t allowed to vote in Hillsborough where I’m registered to vote (duh, should have known this). I caught myself when I started to state my address, but just couldn’t tell a lie when I realized my mistake. So sad.

We brought the leftover sangria to my parents house and finished off what was left. It tasted even better after 2 days. My dad ate every single bit of fruit from the bottom of the pitcher!

We walked down to the Saratoga Grill for the best burgers in the Triangle! They also have amazing scones.

For just $8.50 on Tuesdays, you can get a burger, salad, and beer and it’s a hellaofa burger at that. This guy is thick and the middle is stuffed with blue cheese.

It’s not always pretty, but it’s always tasty. This was Matt’s first time and he declared that the burger was definitely one of the best he’s ever had.

I wish I could stick around and chat, but bedtime comes so fast on school nights:( Tomorrow’s a big day and I’m really feeling the pressure of the end of the school year. Adios.

Funtastic

Posted on Apr 22, 2012 | 4 comments

This weekend was so.much,fun. I know I say that every weekend, but really, this one was just one of those go-with-the-flow, eat, see friends, and relax in between kind of weekends.

Not many people showed up to Fuqua Friday, so we ended up going out to dinner. Sometimes Fuqua Friday can be overwhelming because there’s soo many people to talk to, so it was nice to just eat dinner while chatting with two of our good friends. We tried the new G2B Gastropub and enjoyed the contemporary, but funky vibe. They had an awesome beer and wine list on tablets and colored lighting (thus, the weird pictures).

We split this bottle of wine with our friends – a recommendation from the bartender after I described my taste in wine. Oh my goodness, this was one of the best reds I’ve had in a loong time. It was so full with a smooth, velvety finish. Tons of flavor, but not too peppery.

I had a grilled salmon filet with sunchoke puree, sauteed spinach, and chili oil. The fish itself was one of the best filets I’ve had in a while, as it was perfectly cooked (medium instead of well) and practically falling apart. The flavor was great too, although there could have bit a bit more bulk to the dish.

On Saturday, we joined friends at Fullsteam Brewery for a birthday party.

Though I’ve been to Fullsteam before, this was the first time I’ve gone and just spent the afternoon hanging out at their picnic tables. I probably spent about four hours there and it’s such a great place to go with a group (or babies or dogs!)

The girls! Thanks to Rachel for the picture.

We all drank way too much and ended up at the Federal for a late dinner. Though we scored a perfect table on the patio, we had to run inside just as our entrees arrived due to a thunderstorm. I got the veggie sliders again and they are still fabulous. We also shared some of the fresh cut fries among the table and I’m still thinking about them.

We rounded out the weekend with lunch with my family in Hillsborough, as my sister is in town for a wedding.

My mom made a great spread of food and we sat around the kitchen chatting. It was a nice way to fill this cold and rainy Sunday, as I don’t feel like doing much except sitting around.

I did manage to put some laundry into the washing machine. Though it’s only at the end of the hall, I struggle with the task every single week. If that’s the worst of my complaints right now, I’d say the weekend was a giant success.

PS: I’ve been feeling a zillion times better since taking those antibiotics, so I’m thinking something was up. It felt amazing to feel normal these past few days.

Easter Eats

Posted on Apr 8, 2012 | 5 comments

Hola, Happy Easter. I’m currently blogging from bed, where I’m in a cake coma. A glorious cake coma. Let’s rewind though and I’ll tell you about my weekend.

It started like any weekend – a spinning class and dinner at Fuqua Friday. Matt had a soccer game on Friday (Duke beat UNC), and I watched [freezing cold] from the sidelines with the other lovely Fuqua partners. It was a low-key Friday, because…on Saturday, Matt’s parents came to visit from Maryland!

My parents met us in Durham, and we all headed over to Tyler’s Tap to drink beer.

I stuck with Belgian beers, as I’m moving away from darker beers now that it’s warm out.

Matt’s mom loves a good stout any day of the year!

Dinner was pizza at Mellow Mushroom. Despite hearing about this place for years and years, I don’t think I’ve actually eaten at one before. Well the pizza is fantastic, especially the crust. I couldn’t stop eating Matt’s crust. We had a bacon and pineapple pizza, artichoke and sun-dried tomato, and an old fashioned cheese and tomato.

Luckily, we all recovered from the massive dinner in time for church this morning. The obligatory Easter-on-the-porch picture:

We strolled and picnicked in the sunshine this afternoon and I started a new book and watched some of the Masters. My mom prettied the dinning room and we feasted on ham.

And chocolate and jelly beans in between bites.

I had some of both wines – it was fun to have a Virginia Riesling after last weekend.

The ham was rounded out with green beans, corn pudding, and brandied pears.

But this beautiful Easter cake stole the show! Matt’s mom shares our love for cake and special ordered this one from my favorite Durham cakery!!!

It was huge and dense and awesome.

I obviously had two pieces because I love this stuff. Thanks Candace!

I’m sad the festivities are over, but will be glad when I’m no longer stuffed silly. Oh yeah, and spring break is over too. But the school year ends in June!!! I still cannot get over this fact. Off to the home stretch I go. Night.

Take A Hike

Posted on Apr 5, 2012 | 3 comments

Despite some looming showers, my mom, dad, and I made it on a hike today. We did a damp three mile loop at Umstead Park and emerged from the woods to sunny skies! It was nice to be out in nature and there sure weren’t many other people out hiking on a chilly Thursday morning.

We were hungry for Mexican food afterwards, so we went to Dos Perros in Durham for lunch. I’ve only been once before, but I loved it! ‘Upscale’ Mexican food is one of my favorites.

My mom and shared a Pacifico (on draft!).

And the table shared the sweet potato empanadas with fig jam. I had this last time and enjoy the combination of sweet jam and cilantro. My dad is one of those ‘cilantro tastes like soap’ people…glad I didn’t inherit that because I love it.

I wanted to order a salad with a taco on the side, but the waitress informed me that they actually ran out of taco shells! I was disappointed, but just asked her to throw the taco on the salad. Taco salad was born. This was braised beef over spinach with roasted peppers, queso fresco, and pumpkin seeds, in a roasted tomato and serrano vinaigrette. I didn’t like that the beef made the spinach warm (my fault), but the flavors were great. The chips at Dos Perros also come with a really thick and flavorful salsa verde which I ended up drizzling over my salad.

After lunch, I went on a mad cleaning spree because I recently got a new vacuum. Once I started cleaning, I couldn’t stop until every room was clutter free. It looks soooo much better. Then I got an email from Matt suggesting we go out for a bite to eat!! Yay. We walked to Bull City Burger in the cold night air. I can’t believe I was ever able to walk in 30 degree temperatures. I’m such a wimp now.

Enter the beer sampler with stout, brown ale, and a golden ale.

And a juicy burger topped with green chiles. I wish this didn’t go down so fast:( Guess I’ll have to go back sooner rather than later.

Tomorrow marks the end of this nice break in work, but I have an exciting Easter weekend to look forward to. Is anyone expecting a visit from the bunny?