pickled progress...

I have really been wanting Pluckers fried pickles and Mr. T, great husband that he is, got all the supplies to make his version of my favorites at home this weekend!

Ingredients included: 

smashed corn flakes, buttermilk with eggs and Louisiana hot sauce, flour, pickles, and canola oil

{While the oil was getting hot, T dunked the pickles in the milk, then the flour, and finally the corn flakes. His fingers were also well coated for frying!} 

{Our first batch cooked quickly and turned dark brown in what seemed like an instant - maybe the peanut oil would have been worth the $21 they were selling it for - but with more of a watchful eye, the second set was juuuust right! A little ranch for dipping and I felt like I was sitting on Bluebonnet in Baton Rouge enjoying my favorite fried pickles!}

Other cooking adventures of the weekend:

Beer Bread that we used for grilled cheeses

Black Bean and Cheese Dip with chorizo tacos

Oven Roasted Tomatoes at family dinner

Of course nothing tops Mom's work in the kitchen. For family dinner this Sunday we had teriyaki grilled chicken, zucchini boats, homemade guacamole dip, oven roasted tomatoes, roasted red potatoes with onion, and a fruit pizza for dessert!

{Hudson tried on his dad's glasses- doesn't he kind of look like the Jerry Maguire kid here?}

-post title inspired by this blog-which is now siddathornton-

blueberry picking...and a little baking!

A few days ago Mama, Lauren, the kiddos, Mrs. Gerry, her friend visiting from France and I went to Frierson, LA to pick blueberries at Shuqualak Farms. It was a hot day so we waited until right before sunset to drive out there, but after finding bushes in the shade our buckets were quickly filled to the brim with blue gold.

Hudson got the hang of it very quickly :)

When you're done with your bucket, they measure your pickings and give you a free blueberry popsicle. It is to-die-for! It was a lovely way to spend an afternoon. Next is deciding what all to make with all of your berries. I decided to make blueberry muffins for my book club on Thursday. I found the recipe found here.

Delicious! Anyone have any recipes for blueberries they would like to share?

making a house a home...

Things are beginning to settle down around here- post wedding and honeymoon. I am excited to share all of the stories and photos with you detailing our beautiful wedding day and adventurous road trip! If you know me at all, you know that I took a gazillion pictures of the trip and I just haven't been able to organize them yet into a blog post. However, that day is coming soon. What I have been doing is organizing our little house and making it cozy with all the wonderfully generous items our friends and family gifted us with over the last year.

When we got back from our honeymoon and picked up all the boxes from my mom's house, I was so anxious to set the table with our new placemats, napkins, plates, and silverware that once I did, we scheduled two dinner parties! I have christened the bread maker and the pistachio green kitchenaid mixer with pizza and a strawberry cake. I am looking forward to making popcorn with our whirley pop gadget and experimenting with our new ice cream maker! Mr. T is in the process of growing some watermelons and I am kind of hoping to make homemade popsicles out of them. I feel so inspired by all of these new kitchen accessories! My grandmother was a home economics teacher and my mom is the queen of the kitchen, so surely there is some of that in my genes, right?

My new role as a wife is different than a girlfriend or fiance, there's a lot of weight in that title -but the day-to-day stuff is a lot of the same- in a good way! I continue to ask myself, "What can I do for Tison today? How can I show him I love him right now?" This next chapter in our lives has so much potential and is filled with an ocean of possibilities. Talking with my husband about our future goals- sharing our dreams and encouraging one another to reach them...these are the things that make life worth living. This creative, positive, loving energy that is alive in our conversations inspires me daily. Can you tell my love language is quality time??

(yes, I still have some work to do on my baking techniques...but it was tasty!)

*photos from this weekend

after ballooning...

{Saturday: birthday weekend}

I was up so early for my ballooning adventure on Saturday that I wasn't even sure what to do with myself at 7:45 am when I was done. I went and had coffee with my parents, then met with Chessi and Stafford for a champagne breakfast. We picked up Another Broken Egg to-go, played with Stafford, and did some yoga. {my hamstrings are STILL sore!}

He is such a ham ;) After I left Chessi's house, Lauren and I went to Hollywood Nails in Pierremont Mall for pedicures. The electricity when out in the middle of it, leaving the massage chair punching into my back and my feet in cold water, but my toes look pretty in purple! When I got home, Tison asked me what I wanted to do for the evening and "lasagna" burst out of my mouth. Soon we were on the way to the store to get ingredients for homemade lasagna and a bottle of wine, of course.

Blame it on my age or on my early wake up call, but a tv tray with my favorite dish and complete control of the remote is my idea of a good night.

Thanks for the excellent service, Tison. Dinner was delicioso! Do you like my outfit? Fancy, right! And yes, I have Strawberry Abita in my hand and wine on my tray. After all, it was my birthday weekend!

uh oh...risotto!

My great friend Chessi recently returned from Costa Rica, where she furthered her yoga training at the Nosara Yoga Institute. Experiencing yoga during sunrise on the beach must be absolutely exhilarating!!! Anyway, I am getting off point here. I am so glad she is back and has been sharing all her wonderfulness with me! One of her many talents is knowing her way around anyone's kitchen. I had one taste of the risotto she made for friends and that was it. I HAD-TO-HAVE-MORE! I asked for her assistance in attempting my own risotto dish. She came over to my place for a night of wine and cooking. Here's our night in slowmo:

Step 1:

Start your stock cubes in a large bowl over medium heat

{we used 3 cubes - follow the instructions for H2O amount}

Step 2: Cut, chop, or grate all your veggies.

{Risotto can be made with any vegetable- so pick your favorites!}

Step 3: Sauté your veggies over medium heat with the "appropriate amount of butter."

{When Chessi said that I just stared at her! What does that mean!? It means about 2 tablespoons.}

Once you add these veggies, you will not stop stirring until it is done. So have your hair back, a glass of wine next to you, and get ready! 

{The carrots take the longest to cook, so add them to your hot buttery pot first. This is the order we placed things in the pot: carrots, onions, mushrooms, a little salt and pepper, stir, stir, stir, then zucchini shavings, and 2 minced garlic cloves.}

 Step 4: When the veggies are cooked down, add the box of arborio risotto rice. Continue stirring the rice over medium heat for a couple of minutes. This is called "toasting the rice."

Step 5: The first liquid you introduce to the pot is white wine or white wine vinegar - just a splash.

Let it absorb (or reduce). Don't stop stirring!

Ok- remember step one? The chicken stock? It should be dissolved and simmering by now...

Step 5: Add chicken stock to risotto rice* 2 ladles at a time* until liquid is absorbed. Then you add 2 more. This, I learned, is extremely important. By adding the stock slowly you create a creamy soft rice.  

Step 6: Have you tasted it yet? Try it! Does it need salt or pepper? Is the rice creamy and done? If not, keep stirring and adding chicken stock.
If it tastes great, grate fresh parmesan cheese over the pot and stir it in.

Step 7: Grab a bowl and enjoy this amazingly delicious meal! You will have leftovers for days. Don't feel like having it over and over again? Try this.{risotto cakes}

This dish took us about 1 1/2 hours to complete. It is a labor of love for sure, but boy is it worth it!

mystic pizza

What do you need to make a mystic pizza??

You need Diane, Daci, Lauren, and a focused Linz!

{Roll out the dough, mix the sour cream and dijon mustard together}

{Cut the leeks and tomatos, say hi to Daci, and cook leeks over stove}

{Add leeks and tomatos to the dough}

{Put it in the oven and play with Titus for 25 minutes}

{Remove from oven and add the goat cheese. Voilà- you're ready to dine with Julia! It's Mystic Pizza time!}