The best and worst....Thanksgiving!

A day that is dedicated to giving thanks and over indulging in delicious food...this sounds just about perfect to me. This year, and since my mom passed away I have spent Thanksgiving in two places-- with my grandmother (mom's mum) and uncles, and with the Laiolo family (Bryn, Cara, Jana and Tone Def). I've been coming down from my food coma for a day or so and will officially declare 2 Thanksgiving's is just too much food so next year I'll probably just pick one.

I'm thrilled to write that I had the ability to eat some amazing food and will rank them is this order:

1. Granny's mashed potatoes
2. Cara's mashed potatoes
3. Bryn's deviled eggs
4. My Mac & Cheese
5. Cara's turkey
6. My blackberry cobbler

There were a million other great dishes (B's sweet potato casserole, Jana's dressing, Granny's turkey, etc) but I'll tip my hat to the ones above.

My grandmother has been making the best mashed potatoes since I can remember and they were my favorite food in the world until a few years ago (recently replaced by the egg). As she's aged and hasn't been able to cook much and my mashed potato consumption has decreased significantly but I suggested that we make them together this year so she could teach me....and boy did she.

First- she peels and boils the potatoes- and then she dumps only about half the water (she kept way more water than I would think necessary but Granny knows what she's doing). To that she adds a considerable amount of butter (1 stick for about 8 servings), a little bit of milk, salt and pepper AND THAT'S IT. No cream cheese, no cream, no parm, no nothing...turns out the trick is the starchy water-- and they were divine.

Cara also made great Pioneer Woman inspired mashed potatoes and the recipe can be found here:http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2007/11/delicious_creamy_mashed_potatoes/. She doesn't keep any of the starchy water which is why I think she feels the need to add other delicious calories to make the right texture but I'm telling you....not needed for greatness.

Bryn made a traditional deviled egg recipe that involved relish, pimentos, salt, pepper, mayo and mustard and they were super yummy but I've never been one to pass up ANY egg.

Growing up I had one bad experience with macaroni and cheese and it I couldn't eat them any longer...until I was about 25 and started to realize what I had been missing: CHEESE AND PASTA- TOGETHER. Really, how can it get any better than that?
My current recipe is pretty much on point and I have to give props to my girl Ronda Brown-Quarles for the base recipe but I've added some additions to kick it up a notch.
First you boil pasta- I prefer a mix of bow ties and elbow macaroni to give it some textural differences. After the pasta has boiled you drain it and then place it back in the pan you cooked them in and place it on the stove on low heat. And you start adding cheese...and lots of it. I add a mixture of pepper jack, mild and sharp cheddar, and American cheese. You could get fancier if you wanted but I don't see the need for a country Thanksgiving. I also add: 2 eggs, about a cup of milk, one shallot- diced very thin, salt & pepper, crushed red pepper flakes and mustard powder. Mix everything together and then put in a baking pan-- stick in the oven for 20 minutes on 350 and voila-- cheesy pasta perfection.

In the past Bryn and Cara's mom Jana has led the charge to tame the turkey but this year Cara stepped up to the plate and made that bird her bitch. She practiced the brining method on the bird-- I'll allow her to comment on the recipe for her brine but it was amazing!! Super tender, great flavor. Here's a video from the food network on how to brine a turkey: http://www.foodnetwork.com/videos/how-to-brine-a-turkey/58780.html.

Last but certainly not least- Blackberry Cobbler. It's both mine and my grandmother's favorite and cannot be beat! The best is that it's super simple and easy. First you take your blackberry's (either fresh or thawed & drained from frozen) and you add a cup of sugar and let them marinate in a separate bowl. I like to use 2.5 cups of blackberry's per 8 inch square pan. I also add the juice of 1 lemon to the blackberry and sugar mixture.

In another bowl I add flower, baking powder, melted butter, and milk and whisk until combined well. Once the blackberry's have gotten a nice syrup to them I pour the batter in the pan and then put the blackberries on top of them and bake for 40 minutes on 350 or until golden brown and the dough isn't jiggly any longer. PERFECTION. You can serve with vanilla ice cream or a fresh homemade whipped cream slightly sweetened (I like to use honey).

With all of that greatness comes some disappointments as well and this year they were all at my hands:

- canned green beans (which I'm religiously against but my grandmother loves)
- canned creamed corn (same excuse as above)
- Apple Brown Betty (this dessert actually turned out to be quite tasty but it was due to some last minute recipe changes and had I not acted on the fly this could have been a disaster.)

The bottom line is that Thanksgiving is a pretty amazing holiday. I'm personally thankful for so much in my life-- my family, my friends that have become my family, my good health, great job, and clear mind. Next year I'll do a better job of GIVING back to the community-- knowing how much I personally consumed makes me a little sick to my stomach (mentally and physically) as there are so many people that don't have the opportunities that I do. This makes me question my current level of community involvement and giving-- I've got to do better.

Signing off to go eat more leftovers,

E

And there it was...Zaytinya

I recently spent a weekend in DC to celebrate the Rally to Restore Sanity along with two of my dear friends, Cara and Lacey, and while we were there, well, we ate.

One of my good college buddies Emily lives in the city and made some recommendations for restaurants and on the top of her list was Zaytinya, a middle Eastern spot featuring small plates and big flavors....however, we couldn't come close to grabbing a reservation on this busy weekend so we thought we were out of luck. This was until we found ourselves wandering around the city on Friday afternoon; starving, feet hurting and cold. The next thing we know....we're standing right outside of Zaytinya-- and they're open-- FOR LUNCH! PERFECT.

We walk in, grab a table immediately and start our divine cuisine experience with lovely glasses of bubbly and white wine.

On the lunch menu there is a choice to do a 5 course tasting and we jumped on the opportunity to try as many dishes as possible. I can't remember exactly in what order we had what but here are some of the dishes we had: Hommus, Falafel, Fattoush, Garides Me Anitho, Kibbeh, Adana Kebab, Shish Taouk, and a heavenly dessert that consisted of the creamiest custard ever.

Each plate was phenomenal and the perfect portion-- enough for each of us to have 2-3 bites of every offering. The Garides Me Anitho were by far the table favorite-- shrimp that were sauteed in a dill, shallot, lemon and mustard seed sauce. This sauce was beyond anything I have ever tasted in regards to flavor just jumping around in my mouth. The acidity of the lemon paired with the earthiness of the mustard was a blissful marriage.

Thanks much to Emily for the great recommendation and of course to the amazing chef's and service at Zaytinya...it was the perfect way to start out a great weekend.