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LP Supper Club Pulls Out All the Beakers

Deconstructed fish tacos

Ah cooking! What a therapeutic hobby with all of the dicing, kneading and stirring. Sometimes, however, when the meal is done and your tummy is full, you step back into the kitchen only for your blood pressure to spike. How many times has your kitchen looked like a science experiment gone wrong? I have found drips and splashes in places that defy gravity, and often wished I had a chemist on speed dial for treating those grease baths, er, stains.

When the LP Supper Club resumed meeting last month, we wondered, What would happen if we embraced our inner scientist and turned our actual dinner into the experiment?  Continue reading →

Stir Crazy: Finally a Bakery in Southside!

Okay, I admit it. I’ve been holding out on you. There’s a bakery within a bike ride’s distance from my home. Yet when Stir Crazy opened its doors a couple of months ago on Daggett (just off Main near the old location for Trinity Bikes), the selections were going pretty fast. So I held back while I did some reconnaissance work to make sure the bakery was as good as I thought. After dozens of cupcakes, I’ve decided this place rocks. So, I’m telling you now. No hard feelings? Go get yourself a cupcake. Continue reading →

How I Avoid Planting Grass

SucculentKevin and I moved into our 1930 craftsman-style house 6 years ago. It’s hard to believe that after all that time our restoration of this house is far from complete. Lately I’ve had my fill of indoor improvements and have started roaming outside for inspiration. We haven’t done much in the way of landscaping, mostly because we’re afraid of planting grass only to watch it fry in the hot Texas sun. So I decided to try my hand at flower beds. Luckily, these beds have been wildly successful.

Continue reading →

Father’s Day: Doggie-Inspired Sandwich Cookies

Doggie sandwich cookiesThis morning Abbey, the hound, woke me up at 6 a.m. Because I hadn’t gone to bed until 12:30 a.m., and neither had she, I was astonished and angry. But then I realized that today is Father’s Day and we had already talked about making Grandpa some doggie-inspired sandwich cookies to thank him for all of the pool parties and mid-afternoon visits while Kevin and I were at work. Also these cookies would’ve been great for their dad as well, if he weren’t in California digging trenches on the beach with the Marines. Continue reading →

Anniversary Trip Part II: Wining and Dining Napa Style

Napa vinesBefore Kevin and I planned our vacation to Napa, we thought we knew a lot about wine. After all, wine has been our drink of choice for many years. We both love bold reds, although Kevin was not as big on California reds because of the fruit forward flavors of most of these wines. I prefer the earthy vibrance of Chilean reds. So we were eager to experience a true wine country, but our knowledge of Napa Valley wines was severely limited. In fact, the one reason we chose Napa is because it is home to Cakebread Wine Cellars, and we drank but did not remember the taste of a Cakebread Cabernet Sauvignon on our wedding day. Continue reading →

Anniversary Trip Part I: Wining and Dining Napa Style

Napa StyleOur recent anniversary trip to Napa, Calif., could just as easily be called the Thomas Keller Pilgrimage. After all, most people go to enjoy the wine—we were no exception—but we were just as excited to try out our favorite chef’s famous restaurants. But the real question is, did we do a better job of vacationing in Northern California than we did on the sunny beaches of Puerto Rico? Check out these stats and then decide:

  • 2 of 3 Thomas Keller restaurants visited (+ the bakery for a third trip)
  • More than 120 wines tasted
  • 9.3 combined miles run through the pouring rain at Artesa Vineyards
  • 30-minute 5K PR set by moi
  • 16 combined miles mountain biking through wine country and the wetlands
  • 2 cases + 2 bottles of wine shipped back to Texas Continue reading →