Zada Jane’s Corner Cafe

On Sunday, Wine Girl and I were looking for a casual yet yummy breakfast. Usually at this hour, WG is making herself (somehow) even more beautiful, and I struggling vainly to look presentable, so that we can go to services. But on this morning, not so. We were out late Saturday night, showing out-of-town friends around town, and where else to show but bars and restaurants? More on that in a later post.

A good friend had introduced us to Zada Jane’s Corner Cafe (site may be offline), so our mouths were salivating even as we looked for a parking spot. Nope, none available in the lot. Not on the first block. or second. or third. Finally we park, and I test WG’s patience as I take pictures of some lovely trees. I especially enjoy light-dappled tree leaves, and while I was becoming more absorbed in my deciduous delight, other diners were passing us towards the restaurant.

Zada Jane's Corner Cafe

We walked toward the entrance, first hoping that there would be an open table in the outdoor patio area, then hoping that the wait wouldn’t be too long. In the event of a long wait, coupled with a fit of energy on our part, we could play shuffleboard or cornhole outside.

Cornhole at Zada Jane's

Happily there’s a spot for two at the bar, and we’re seated immediately. The surroundings take several moments to sink in. First, it’s the funky and eclectic decor (and staff), replete with albums ranging from Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass to Hendrix to Southern Culture on the Skids. Oh, and a big chicken, too. The columns are covered with art from local artists, and Wine Girl delights over the mismatched coffee cups.

I’m feeling conventional, and I sampled the biscuit with bacon, egg, and cheese. That sounds like something fast food, but instead, I’m greeted with actual food!

Man-sized Biscuit

After our food comes, we break out the D90 and begin the ritual. Our server (who I think is also the owner) stops and asks:

(He) Taking pictures of your food?
(Us) We take pictures of all our food.
(He) That’s cool. Do you write or blog?
(Us) We blog.

Even now, I’m struck by the casual pretension — we blog — this is the first we’ve outed ourselves as bloggers in “real time”. An amiable chat ensued, and he recommended a few food blogs, including RoadFood.com. That’s right, gentle reader, ours is not the first food blog on the Internet. For a more established set of reviews, you should follow the Charlotte Food Snob.

Wine Girl orders the Amaretto French Toast with bacon and orange butter on the side. She declares madly: “French toast made on any other bread besides challah is just wrong!”
Challah French Toast
Now that’s breakfast!

Beer Guy

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I Heart Oatmeal…Now

My usual breakfast is a lovely little combo of Fage 0% Greek Yogurt (“yogret” as my niece would say), topped with 1/2 a cup of strawberries, and a tablespoon of sliced almonds with 2 slices of Canadian bacon on the side.  The Greek yogurt tends to have more protein than regular yogurt, so with that plus the Canadian bacon and sliced almonds I usually get enough protein to tide me over until lunch.  The strawberries are for sheer yummy deliciousness and to get in one of the recommended 5 daily servings of fruit and veggies.  I really enjoy this breakfast it would generally keep me satiated from ~7am to noon.  That is, until recently…

In addition to my usual daily workouts I’m now training for a Susan G. Komen 3-day walk.  That means that for about 3/5 weekdays I’m walking an extra 3-5 miles and on the weekends I’m now walking 6-8 miles.  The weekend distance will continue to grow as I get closer to my 3-Day walk in October, during which time I will walk 60 miles in 3 days.  So I guess I’m burning a lot more calories because, lately, the lovely yogurt and berries combo is just not cutting the mustard.  By 10am I am STARVING!  My stomach is NOTICEABLY  growling during my therapy sessions, and I have to remind myself that it would neither be professional, nor sanitary to sneak bites of the things I’m feeding to my dysphagia (swallowing) patients.

So, I am searching for a yummy, healthy, breakfast that’s gonna have a little more “stick-to-it-ness” (yes, I made that up) than my typical breakfast.  You’ve noticed in my blog roll and by a couple of my posts that I am a fan of Kath Eats Real Food.  It’s a blog that began as a twenty-something girl’s weight loss journey and through her journey decided that she wanted to go back to school to become a Registered Dietician.  It’s all about healthy living.  Kath, the author, is a HUGE fan of oatmeal and makes more variations of it that I would have ever thought possible.

I have never eaten oatmeal.  It looks like a gray, lumpy, pile of mush.  I will admit, though, that smelling someone cooking up a cinnamony bowl of it would pique my curiosity but then I’d take a look at it and think “Nope.  Just can’t do it.”  But since I’m trying new things and oatmeal is generally regarded as a heart-healthy, relatively low calorie, protein-rich breakfast…and I am on the lookout for such a breakfast…I thought, “Why not.  Let’s give it a shot.”  If I’m going to do this, it’s got to be yummy.  So I went to the Oatmeal Master…Kath.  She has a video on how to make her Kath Classic Oatmeal on her site followed by recipes for numerous variations.

And, what do ya know… I liked it!  So much so that I looked down at my bowl and realized that, while perusing my favorite blogs over breakfast (second breakfast, actually since I was starving after walking 8 mi this a.m.), I had inadvertently eaten my Kath Classic Oatmeal into the shape of a heart.

(Side note – Kath’s video recipe leaves out salt, but both her written recipe on the site and the instructions on the back of the Quaker Old Fashioned Oats container call for a little salt.  The salt is needed and I’m definitely going to add it next time.)

The moral of this story – Trying new things won’t kill ya, and you might even like what you try!  Needless to say, I’m looking forward to many more oatmeal adventures!

Cheers!
Wine Girl

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We don’t have kids…

that doesn’t mean we don’t have babies!  We have two, ages nearly 11 (in 2 weeks) and 9 yrs.

Internet, meet “The Girls”…

There’s our oldest (she’s a “Prissy Pup” even if she’s giving the camera her grumpus face in this pic)…

and her baby sister (she’s more of a “Sporty Pup” but is SO cuddly when she’s sleepy)…

Of course, we try to take them with us whenever we can.  But sometimes mean ol’ hotels and resorts say “Pups Aren’t Allowed.”  So, what do we do with these pretty girls when we are on the road and they can’t come too?  We let Michalle from Gopher Dogs look after them for us.

We’ve been using Michalle’s services for over a year now and can’t be happier.  She comes three times a day to feed them, walk them, and play with them.  The Girls are much more relaxed than if they were boarded.  Beer Guy works from home, so he usually walks them in the middle of the day.  But when he travels, I’ll have Michalle come take them for a mid-day walk, just to make sure I don’t have any surprises when I get home! 🙂

The price for Michalle’s pet sitting services is about the same as if we boarded them,  but the difference in finding them waiting nervous and expectantly for us like this…

or chillaxin’ such that we get all the way up to the third floor before they realize we back in the house like this…

is priceless!

(Please pay no attention to the ugly, undecorated office complete with dying plant…just the cute pups cuddling on the ugly old couch. The rest of the rooms in our house are much prettier, I promise!)

So if you are in the Queen City or the surrounding area and looking for a pet sitter, we highly recommend Gopher Dogs! Thanks, Michalle, from us AND The Girls.

Cheers!
Wine Girl

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Lobsterfest 2010

“Kitchen doesn’t travel.  You must eat it where it’s born.”  I’m taking that seriously these days.  The Beer Guy and I have been at the coast.  Guess what’s born at the coast?

SEAFOOD!

And what is the Mac Daddy of all seafood?

LOBSTER!

So, when in Rome (or Hilton Head, but you get the point)… eat LOBSTER as part of a Surf ‘n Turf special at Topside at the Quarterdeck…

(can you tell part of the lobster is stuffed with crab…and that’s a 4oz filet mignon on the side)

and you eat it in a better round of paella than you made the first time…

and you eat it steamed served with sides of grilled corn and a three potato medley as the evening special at the Surfside Grill.

(I’m in heaven!)

Of course you will need the proper tools for cracking into and devouring said lobster…

and you’ll need to wash it down with something equally yummy…

Then, just to make sure your beach eatings don’t get too homogenized, you round out your week by eating your weight in a Shrimp Boil (that’s a Low Country Boil to all my Carolina friends) that your baby sister made.

(Check out Kath’s  recipe – from Kath Eats Real Food – for a Low Country Boil here if you want to make one yourself.

I told y’all I had a healthy appetite!

Cheers!

Wine Girl

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Palmetto Lager

We’re hot and sweaty at the Quarterdeck in Harbortown, Hilton Head. WineGirl and I have been riding bikes around the resort for the last 3 hours.
HarborTown, Hilton Head

We rolled up to the cafe, racked the cycles, and the first bottle was gone before I had a chance to review.
So, round 2!

The lager is pale in the bottle (no glass for pouring). No distinct flavor … Not smooth, not bitter, and a little nutty, says the WineGirl. A little bite at the end, says I.

I’ll give it 3 kegs.
3 of 5 Kegs

Beer Guy

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Beach Brunch for the Fam

So I mentioned that my best breakfast ever was the one the Beer Guy and I had our first morning at The Farmhouse Inn during our Wine Country 10th Anniversary Trip last year.  It was this Oat Griddle Cakes topped with strawberries, homemade whipped cream, candied walnuts, maple syrup, and the best bacon I’ve ever had.

Well, maple syrup was available, but the griddle cakes were so yummy and flavorful with all the other toppings that I just never got around to adding the syrup.

About 3 weeks after our return the Beer Guy’s brother and his wife made the trek from Memphis to Charlotte for a visit with us.  I decided to try and recreate it for our guests.  Through diligent internet searching I found this Rachel Ray recipe for Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes.  You’ll notice that the recipe calls for raisins, which makes perfect sense if you are aiming for pancakes that taste like oatmeal cookies.  I like raisins, but since my original breakfast did not have raisins and I was aiming for a recreation, I just didn’t add those into the batter.

Now, please do not fool yourselves into thinking that I attempted homemade whipped cream to top this deliciousness like The Farmhouse.  I am secure enough to admit that I did not and Cool Whip worked just fine.  I did, however, sort of whip up my own recipe for candied walnuts.  I didn’t really measure things out. Basically, I melted a couple tablespoons of butter, stirred in about a tablespoon of brown sugar, added cinnamon until it looked right, poured that over about a cup of walnuts, stirred to coat, spread them out in a single layer on a baking sheet, then popped them in the toaster oven for a couple minutes.

Not half bad for a makeshift candied walnuts on the fly.

Breakfast was so well received by our guests, that I decided to make it for my own family last year while on our annual beach vacation.  We were there over Father’s Day and I thought it would be a nice way to treat the dad’s in our family.  So I garnered a little help for my, then 3 yo, niece…

and whipped it up again.  (Please excuse the “bed head” on each of us.)

Once again, it got rave reviews.  So, I’m not sure, then, why I was surprised that when planning for this year’s trip my sister posted this comment on my Facebook wall – “I know you are planning to make those banana waffle things again this year.”  (In case you haven’t checked out the recipe, there are mashed bananas in the batter.)

Um, well.  I hadn’t planned on it, but I guess I am now… So I gathered the ingredients, packed my handy dandy Cuisinart Griddler (love this thing, but that’s another post), and whipped it up yet again.  This time I enlisted the BG’s services as the official griddle cake flipper.

Have griddle, will travel.

Not a bad recreation, huh?

Cheers!

Wine Girl

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Get Me, I’m Sporty

I’ve told you that the Beer Guy is outdoorsy and adventurous and I’m not, right.  One of the things he loves to do is go biking.  Here at Sea Pines there are miles and miles and miles of bike trails.  It didn’t take BG long to discover that we could rent bikes from The Bike Doctor for a $25 for the week.  That offer was too good to pass up.  So, since I’m trying new things, I acquiesced and allowed him to rent one for me too.  In fact, the whole family rented bikes so that we could have some family excursions as well.

The sand here in Hilton Head is not as fine and sugary as the beach sand I’m used to on the Gulf.  It’s more grainy and firm.  Monday afternoon I discovered that it’s really fun to ride bikes on the beach.  I also discovered it’s a lot easier when the wind is behind you!

Since the BG is always begging me to go ride bikes with him in CLT, I decided to grant his request and go for a little biking outing with just the two of us.  We intended to just be out for ~45 min-1 hr.  For efficiency’s sake, we decided to combine our outing with running an errand to pick up the tickets for the boys pending golf day.  Well, we rode for 8 miles, and when we were about 5 min from our destination, realized that I had left the necessary paperwork to procure said golf tickets in the trunk of my car…which was parked at our villa…where we started…8 miles back.   Long story short, our 45 min outing turned into a 4.5 hr excursion, during which time we biked more than 25 miles.  (Mind you, until Monday, I had not been on a bike since I was about 10 yrs old.)  For you serious cyclists and sporty types that may not seem like a lot.  But for someone who hasn’t been on a bike in 20+ years, that was A LOT of biking, definitely adventurous, and exhausting.  Get me, I’m sporty!

Of course, no adventure is complete without lunch and the appropriate refreshments to cool you off and rejuvenate you.

But I’ll let the Beer Guy tell you about that later.  Suffice it to say, I was pretty proud of myself for stepping out of my comfort zone and opting to something adventurous (for me at least).  I forgot how much fun it was to ride a bike, and I had a great time just being out and about with my hubby, taking in the beautiful scenery, not having a particular schedule.  Don’t tell BG, but I may be willing to do that again before we go.  4.5 hours and 25 miles on a bike – not bad for a city girl who spends most of her time in stilettos!  Get me, I’m sporty!

Cheers!
Wine Girl

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Beach Bound!

Beach packing list:

Bikinis, beach towel, big hat, books, sunscreen and sunglasses…

all I’m missing is a margarita and my packing is done!

The Beer Guy and I are off to Hilton Head Island, SC today. Sadly, after 5 years of living in North Carolina, this will be my first trip to the Carolina Coast. Better late than never, right?

And, by the way, this puppy wants to go too…

Can you see that she all but put herself in my beach bag?  Sorry, Little One.  The resort says “no pups allowed.”  Clearly they would change their minds if they saw this pitiful picture.  Maybe next time…

Stay tuned! We’ll keep you posted on all the food and fun!

Cheers!
Wine Girl

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Nessa Albari̱o РUncorked!

Welcome to the first installment of what will also become a regular spot on this blog – Uncorked! This is where I will review new wines I’ve tried or just give you my thoughts on tried and true vintages I love.  Please keep in mind that, while being a sommelier sounds like heaven to me, I have absolutely no training in this and have no “wine expert” credentials.  But, I do know what I like and am continuously working on refining my palate. 🙂

Tonight’s Uncorked! varietal is the 2009 Nessa Albariño

I picked it up because I wanted a Spanish white to go with the seafood paella I made yesterday.  I was perusing the Spanish wine section of my local Harris Teeter and noticed that this one had been granted 88 points by The Wine Advocate, so I thought I’d give it a try.

As you can see, it has a lovely golden color.  It looks beautiful and kind of bubbly in the glass, doesn’t it?  It has a bouquet of apples and pears, is dry but not too dry, and has a light citrusy aftertaste.  It was light enough that it didn’t compete with the heavy flavors of the paella.  After making my notes for this post, I Googled this wine to see what other folks thought about it and how easily accessible it is.   Check out commentary from The Wine Cellar here.   I found a couple websites, such as LaTienda (a great site for all your Spanish cooking needs), that are selling it for ~$17-18.  My Harris Teeter had it for $12.  You can’t beat that!

All in all, I’d consider it a lovely, light, and crisp summer wine.  Uncork a bottle yourself and see what you think.  When you do, come back and tell me about it.

Cheers!

Wine Girl

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Spanish Cooking Saturdays – Paella

Today, I introduce what I intend to be a regular spot on this blog – Spanish Cooking Saturdays.  I do not promise that it will be a weekly spot, but it will be at least a monthly spot, possibly a little more frequently than that. I’ve got a big cookbook full of Spanish recipes, courtesy of Mario Batali, which will serve as fodder for many future blog entries.

Since I have this handy dandy new paella pan, I shall start this adventure by trying my hand at paella.  Apparently, before actually using the paella pan, it must be properly seasoned.  I don’t remember all the rationale as to why this needs to be done, but I think it’s got something to do with keeping the pan from rusting.  Anyway, seasoning the pan involves wiping it down with canola oil and placing it on my stove burners until it changes from the pretty, shiny, silvery steel color to a golden brown throughout the surface of the pan, like so:

Being generally persnickety and liking for things to always be clean and new looking, this sort of distresses me.  However, I choose to look at the seasoning of my pan as evidence that it is being put to good use, not just getting “messed up.”

And speaking of good use…

Now, Mario and Gwyneth made this on a open fire in Valencia with a well “seasoned” chef.  Not having access to a space for an open fire in the heart of Charlotte, I asked the Beer Guy to fire up the grill for me.  I’m not exactly sure how to go about doing that myself.  We made a”rule” when we got married – I’m in charge of indoor cooking, he’s in charge of outdoor cooking…and he who does not cook it is in charge of cleaning it up! (That’s works out pretty well for moi as most of our meals are made indoors. 🙂 )

Making paella isn’t difficult, it just has several steps.  The whole process took about 1 1/2 hrs, but it was well worth it in the end.  I chose to make a seafood paella since I will likely be making this for my family at the beach next week.  I grabbed some lobster tails, shrimp, tiger prawns and the like from the seafood department at my local Harris Teeter.  First you throw those in the pan to brown them and establish the seafood flavored base for the dish.

Looks good enough to eat by itself, right?  But we must press on…Remove the shellfish, add the onions, and cook until soft.

Next add pureed tomato, sweet Spanish pimentón, and saffron.

Add the Bomba rice and the stock.  If I was super cool I would have made my own stock.  But when there’s no time for that, store bought stock works just fine.

Cook until the rice has absorbed nearly all the liquid

Add the shellfish, any other uncooked seafood, and some peas into the mix and cook until the remainder of the liquid is absorbed and the rice is all brown and crunchy around the edges of the pan.  Mario says to cook it until the pan starts to make a funny “crackling noise” and you are starting to worry that it’s burning.

Voila-The finished product!

(And yes, I’m aware that I used a French term to punctuate the completion of my Spanish dish, but I am unaware of the Spanish equivalent.)  Since the paella needed to “rest” for 10 min or so before serving, there was ample time to snap some “finished product” shots.

Next up, crack open a great Spanish wine…

eat it right out of the pan (‘cuz that’s what real Spaniards do)…

and enjoy your Saturday evening!

I can think of no better way to eat in on a Saturday night, can you?

Cheers!

Wine Girl

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