To Taste: Pork Breakfast Sausage + Egg Sammie w. chèvre + red bell pepper

Posted by Erin L. in To Taste ~ Recipe and tagged with breakfast, egg, eggs, pork, recipe, sandwich, sausage September 15, 2011

I had every intention of getting up at a reasonable time yesterday to get some things done around the house. Then I woke up at 12:15pm. Might as well whip up brunch for 1!

Monday night, I made The Food Lab’s Sichuan-style Braised Eggplant (which was AMAZING!) and still had 1/2lb of ground pork leftover. When I saw it in the fridge the next morning/afternoon, I knew just what to make with it – breakfast sausage. I blended the pork with a few pantry items and garden herbs (no sage since Hurricane Irene drowned my plant), formed them into patties, and pan-fried them to crispy, yet juicy, perfection. They belonged on a worthy breakfast sandwich.

I toasted some sandwich thins in the pork-greased pan, smeared the top slice w. Shellbark Hollow fresh chèvre spread and topped it w. sliced red bell pepper. On the bottom slice, I piled 2 of my sausage patties on a fried (over-medium) Sandy Ridge Farm egg. It was a delicious combination of textures – toasty + creamy + crunchy + savory + yolky – and easy!

Check out my Pork Breakfast Sausage “recipe” after the jump!

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Status: Ramen the Healer

I will forever be in awe of the healing properties of ramen.

Restaurant Rewind | Airport Edition: Paschal’s + One Flew South ATL

Posted by Erin L. in Restaurant Rewind and tagged with airport, Atlanta, bacon, Benton's, fried chicken, mac & cheese, Southern, Vesper September 9, 2011

On my way back from visiting Sunshine in Sarasota, I was stuck with a 2.5hr layover in the gigantic Atlanta Hartsfield-Jackson airport. I figured with 5 terminals, there had to be some decent food to discover. I did a quick poke around the internet and came across Food & Wine’s Ultimate Airport Survival Guide. Since I was below the Mason-Dixon, their suggestion of Paschal’s classic Southern fare seemed like the perfect choice. And why have I never heard of Bruce’s Green Hot Pepper Sauce before?!?

At Paschal’s, I threw down on some fried chicken, mac-n-cheese, collards greens, + cornbread.

After I savored my last bite, I checked my Twitter to see that Taylor from Mac & Cheese shot me a strong recommendation to try One Flew South, the other suggestion on the F&W guide. Then there was Taylor’s follow-up: Do not miss anything “Benton’s” on the menu – bacon or ham – if you do pork. Oh, I do pork and I def have to do pork recommended by someone who’s been a vegetarian for over 20 years. I hopped on the tram and headed to Terminal E – proud in my Phillies shirt on a quest for bacon.

Sweet jesus… a beautiful, fine dining restaurant serving sushi and southern fusion… in an airport. While I waited for my Benton’s selection to arrive, I sipped on a serious, perfectly-made Vesper. Thank you, bartender who’s name I forget who has a dad who lives in Philly!

And then my glorious plate arrived… crisp frisee tossed w. a pink peppercorn vinaigrette flanked by Benton’s bacon + Sweet Grass Dairy goat cheese topped w. basil poached pears. It was so fresh with truly beautiful flavor combinations and damn near the best bacon I’ve ever had.

Did I mention I was in an airport?

Quickie: Birthday Cake Pancakes

Posted by Erin L. in Quickie and tagged with birthday, cake, glaze, pancakes, sprinkles September 9, 2011

It’s official: Sprinkles make the world go ’round. I woke up one morning on my trip to Sarasota to find Sunshine in pancake mode… birthday cake pancake mode! Might as well celebrate our un-birthdays together since we’re missing real birthdays this year.

Check out How Sweet It Is for the cake batter pancake recipe and drool-worthy photos. Then celebrate an unbirthday of your own!

So I just realized there is something to celebrate… this is my 100th post!!

@ Sunshine’s: Crawfish + Summer Corn Chowder

Posted by Erin L. in @ Your Table and tagged with bacon, BBQ, chicken, chowder, corn, crawfish, Florida, potatoes, summer September 8, 2011

While my friends + fam were anticipating Hurricane Irene’s wrath in the Northeast, I was in sunny, hurricane-free Florida… oh, the beautiful irony! Sunshine, my dear friend and the amazing creative behind Blog Full of Jelly, moved to Sarasota this past spring and I was stoked to finally make a visit down to see her new home. Kelly, a baker at Whole Foods + Philly friend of Sunshine’s, was visiting at the same time so we had a killer trifecta of creative food lovers. We did our share of eating out, but Sunshine upped her wonderful hostess status by making her version of Martha Stewart’s Summer Corn Chowder. I’m glad I had my camera and the beautiful Florida sunlight to shoot our way to a delicious bowl.

And what could make a delicious corn chowder even better… crawfish!
Cornfed agreed.

I did a bit of corn kernel removal, but mostly harassed Sunshine w. my camera.

Some of the tiniest, cutest potatoes I ever did see!

Kelly (wo)manned the grill like a champ.
I can handle a gas grill, but she was definitely a pro when it came to charcoal.

BBQ Chicken + Kielbasa right off the grill – a perfect accompaniment to the chowder.

Crawfish + Summer Corn Chowder topped w. bacon + a whole lotta love!

To Taste: Fresh Ricotta + Dandelion Ravioli

Posted by Erin L. in To Taste ~ Recipe and tagged with dandelion, dandelion greens, homemade ricotta, how to, ravioli, recipe, ricotta September 7, 2011

One of my favorite parts of summer cooking is collecting my farmshare from Greensgrow Farms. Every other weekend, I get a beautiful, diverse harvest of fruits & veggies along with a local cheese and my choice of protein. Alot are basics I’m used to working with (eggplant, tomatoes, onion, squash, salad greens) but sometimes I need to do some research on how/what to prepare with an item. Early in the summer, I got a fresh bunch of crisp dandelion greens. I know they work pretty well in a salad, yet I wanted to do something a bit more fun with them. I poked around the interwebs… but the real inspiration was right there in my memory.

I was blessed with a family who made a point to expose us to great food & restaurants and encourage us to expand our palettes. One of my most ingrained food experiences takes me back to an out-of-the-way, before-its-time spot off the Manatawny River in Pine Forge, PA – Gracie’s 21st Century Cafe. As a kid, I loved the experience of just being at Gracie’s – the zen gardens Kerry & I would play in while we waited for our table, the cooky toys & games on the bar, the jokes my dad made about “writing” his name in the shaved ice in the men’s urinals. It was always a treat when we were headed to Gracie’s.

But the true beauty of Gracie and her restaurant was the creativity she put into her menu – the unapologetic art to her food. I can close my eyes and recall the first time we ate there, the first time I felt true inspiration in a dish. That day’s special was a dandelion ravioli. Dandelion? Like the flowers Gramps is always trying to kill in his yard? Well, kind of, my dad explained… dandelion greens in this case. He happily ordered and shared them with our curious palettes. Love!

So that brings me to what I prepared with my dandelion greens – a light ravioli that I’m sure would make Gracie proud. They were simple, elegant, and beautifully flavored w. a toss in melted black truffle butter. I invite you to give them a try!