sausage, snow, & bubbles

okay, enough with the snow. and that's all i have to say about that. :)

let's warm up to a quick tour of a few "cool" hits from the net:

• nerd alert! sure, there, there are gloves that help you access your iphone in the cold and snow...but what about sausage??
• apparently, my northern kinfolk have never heard of snow cream. well y'all, it's a southern-thing. if you don't believe me, just ask paula deen!
• what do you do while you're snowed in AND it's valentine's weekend? enjoy a little bubbly, that's what! might i suggest something that tastes top-notch and it's $ friendly - gruet blanc de noirs. sooooo yummy!!
• if you're thinking of doing some cooking this weekend for your sweetie, you're not gonna find any better recipes than those in thomas keller's newest book - ad hoc at home. (finally got my holiday back ordered copy! thanks, richard!) and if you're not familiar with keller's ad hoc concept - go here.
• and some chill music to play us out...airplanes by local natives

Airplanes

Local Natives | MySpace Music Videos

"om nom nom nom"

today is the 40th anniversary of everyone's favorite children's show - sesame street! one of my favorite characters on the show is cookie monster (it was always a toss up between him and grover). so i was delighted to find this video posted on seriouseats today. enjoy! (and you might learn little something too!)

dinner out

if anyone is taking part in jose garces' progressive dinner tomorrow night i MUST get details!

just check out the menu. yum.

and if you're not familiar with garces and his goods - check out his website.

one particular bakery

i love everything about bouchon bakery. after my first visit to their outpost in yountville, ca i knew that it would be a lifelong love affair. and now, i see this?? whooooooa, nelly. i think i need to take the train up to the city this weekend.

(photography courtesy of newyorkseriouseats.com/robyn lee)

they might leave one heck of a carbon footprint...

but we love them bananas.
happy friday!



for another take on bananas, check out this book.

cupshake? tastyshake?

not too long ago i mentioned that stephen starr was opening a burger shack in philly. unfortunately with my summer schedule putting me all over the map, i have yet to try said shack. however, word has the cake shakes are beyond words.

now i hear tale of another decadent creation - the cupshake. whhhhhhhhhhhaaaaaa? these cats out in utah are dong big things. in the words of my girl tiny fey, "i want to go to there."

(note: i'm not even going to post a picture. you must see for yourself. also, just for fun, google "cakeshake." we are not alone. )

wtf?

really??? for more on the "story"...

mmmm...cupcakes

if you're around philly on friday you might be lucky enough to catch the "debut" of the buttercream cupcake truck! (you can also purchase the goods at pumpkin market.) and i'm sure you might already had your fill of the cupcake-craze of the past few years. but when you take a look at these little bits of heaven and whimsy you'll forget all the madness and just enjoy the sweetness. and isn't that what life is all about?

(photo courtesy of buttercreamphiladelphia.com)

scuppernongs!!!

there are a few ways i can always tell that summer is drawing to a close:

1) a few of the leaves at the top of the trees begin to fade, fall, and drift towards the ground,

2) mums start popping up in the garden centers,

AND...

3) it's scuppernong time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

now some of you may ask, "kiki, what's a scuppernong?" well, my friends it is just one of my most favorite things! as a kid, i used to eat 'nongs straight from the vine in my granny's yard. and they always seemed to taste best right before school started. maybe the sweet taste of the 'nong is why i never minded going back to school in the fall? (that, and the fact i'm kinda a nerd.)

not only is the 'nong delicious, but the it is also the state fruit of my home state - north carolina.

the most important thing to know about the 'nong is how to eat a 'nong. or at least, how i eat a 'nong. the most desirable part of the grape is it's sweet juice. so, here we go:

first, find a quart at your grocery store or farmer's market...

next, pick a nice big juicy one...

then, pop the 'nong in your mouth and suck out the middle (photo not available)...

here's the final result!

it may sound a little strange, and heck it may look a little strange when you have several grape hulls lying in a pile, but trust me they are yummy! go ahead, you know you wanna try!

sunday brunch

everyone needs a little "chicken" 'n' bacon on sunday morning! (for those of you puzzled by "chicken" - that is one of peyton's many nicknames.)

but seriously, this morning (in the pouring rain) mike and i went to brunch at sabrina's cafe down in the italian market. wowzas!!! so delightfully yummy! i had the egg white turkey bacon frittata and it was scrumptious! mike got special green onion griddle cakes with pepperjack scramble eggs and black bean salsa. also aaaaaaaaamazing! and no, i did not see reese and jake while we were there. however, it seems witherhaal (hehe!) is fond of alma de cuba too - maybe we can all enjoy a few black cherry caipirinhas sometime. and of course paul rudd can join too. :)

in another life...

photo courtesy of eattoblog.com

i want to drive around in a food truck and serve up yummy food to the masses. sounds weird, i know. but there is something so simple, yet urban, about walking down the street and eating the best taco/cupcake/ice cream/whatever of your life from a little truck parked on the corner. and i know that this trend that has been going on for quite a while, but i'm still intrigued. maybe it's because when i was growing up the ice cream man never made it out to my house. (i lived waaaaaaaaaaaay back in the woods and honestly thought that the ice cream man coming to your house only happened in the movies.) and then when i was in portland and seattle last month there were entire city blocks that were occupied by glorious food vendors. admit it, even you are curious now.

but today, i saw this. the newest food truck in la - frysmith. where was this in my 20s?? hungry yet? i am. what kind of truck can we start?

(and i apologize for not posting much lately. but sometimes, i just don't have much to share. i think my friend said it best on her blog recently. while you're there, you should check out her blog - she's much cooler than i am!)

life is good - in the summer

here we are. smack dab in the heart of summer. and it's about time. (i'm looking at you philadelphia weather.) so i thought today would be a great day to share a few favorite summer '09 must-haves for kiki! so here we go!

nail polish:
i don't know about you guys, but a good pedicure is key in the summer months. but this summer, "budgeting" for a pedicure every 2-3 weeks just isn't happening. so i found the perfect way around it! meet mambo. mambo is a easy, neutral color by essie. it is absolutely fabulous for summer toes because not only does it go with everything, but even if there is a chip - you'll never notice because it blends in so well! so if you're looking for a color to stick around for while, do a little mambo next time you visit the nail salon!

shoes:
i am loving a pair of gold matiko sandals i purchased from my favorite store in wilmington, nc - island passage. they are sooooo comfy and i can take them from casual to a night out with the greatest of ease! along with my go-to havaianas, i only need two pairs of shoes this summer.

music:
oh, my! this is a tough one. this summer i have been listening to a lot of passion pit and zee avi. groovy stuff! (maybe tomorrow's blog could be a summer playlist? ah-ha!)

cocktail:
oo-la-la. one of the best parts of the summer months is enjoying an end-of-day cocktail on your porch or patio. as i mentioned a few days ago, my florida vacation last week rekindled my love of rum. all types of rum. and let me tell you, it gets no better than pineapple juice (real pineapple juice) and malibu rum. that's it. it may sound too easy (and girly), but who needs complication when all you wanna do it sit back, relax, and enjoy the evening? i didn't think so. :)

eat:
tomatoes!!!

enjoy your thursday everyone!

it's been awhile

good morning! sorry i've been mia for a week or so. i took a little vaycay down to sunny florida with my girls from da 'burgh. oh such fun! nothing like happy times drinking cocktails (how did i ever forget how much i adore rum?!), sitting by the sea, and watching the food network with those you love. happy times indeed!

and when i found this website on one of my favorite food blogs it just made me happy all over again! the tasty kitchen is kinda like a food and recipe social networking site. (think facebook, but yummier!) you can find me one there - my username is delightfullykiki - of course! i don't have any recipes up yet, but i will. if there is one thing i know about my friends and family, it is this - we love food! better yet, we love to cook and share our kitchen creations! so this website sounds like a good idea to me! even if you don't cook all that much, it a great place to find a little inspiration from people just like you and me!

plus, one of the most popular search topics on tasty kitchen right now is "cheese." i like these people already!