Sunflowers and Annabella

After a hot, humid, morning picking sunflowers and photographing barnyard animals in Haymarket, I went grocery shopping.

 

Pollinators were in full force but they didn't bother us!

 

 

 

 

 

Hello, beautiful!

almost ready to say hello

 



gorgeous moth

My "Redskins" sunflower



Loved this dude! So laid back and cool. I swear he was posing for me.
 

 



As I suspected, the grocery store was pure chaos but I had no choice.

Sometimes we just have to make sacrifices.

 However, turning the corner and seeing a nice lady giving out free samples of cheese seemed to make the chaos bearable. I tried a type of swiss from Vermont that was spectacular!

If she hadn't told me it was a swiss I would have never guessed.

Of course, I had to buy a small block to take home to enjoy!

  

 

Well, now that I had a block of cheese in my cart, I surely had to go find a bottle of wine.

 Even though my wine rack and my wine fridge at home are full, I still sometimes want to try something inexpensive and new.

This was definitely one of those times.

 



While perusing the wine section, nothing seemed to jump out at me until.... I saw something I recognized, or at least I thought I recognized. You might even say I was drawn to it.

 

2012

Annabella

Chardonnay

 

 

Special Selection

Michael Pozzan Winery

Napa Valley, California

 

 

I wanted something light to go with the cheese and when it is hot and humid outside I long for something refreshing. Usually, I don't have a taste for wine at all on a hot day, but today I needed a little happy juice.

(At $12.99, I couldn't pass it up!)

 

Why did this wine seem "special" to me? Like I had had it before but I couldn't place it?

Suddenly, it hit me.

 

The day we buried my cousin, Bobbie, in June, the family went to lunch at Overwood in Old Town Alexandria. I was the only one drinking wine and decided I just wanted a glass. I didn't recognize anything on the wine list but there was a Napa Chardonnay listed. When in doubt, I always choose a Napa Chardonnay and I'm hardly ever displeased.

 

Annabella!

 

This was THAT wine!

Annabella Chardonnay is a lemon chiffon color and its aromas follow that same delicate form.  With fragrance and flavors of green apple, hazlenut, pears and a subtle hint of oak, this is a very uncomplicated simple wine. 

Michael Pozzan named this collection of wine, Annabella, to honor his beloved grandmother -

"a woman of remarkable grace and spirit whose love of family, friends and home-cooked meals are celebrated to this day."

 

 

Simple, delicate, easy to drink, grandmother, love of family and friends, home-cooked meals.

 

It's almost as if Annabella knew when I was walking in the wine section that she needed to find a way to make sure I bought "her" wine.  Perhaps it was a sort of conspiracy of "grandmothers" - Annabella, my grandmother and Bobbie (who was also a beloved grandmother).

 

 

In staying with the simple and delicate theme, I chose to sautee fresh squash, zucchini and tomatoes in olive oil over angel hair pasta for my meal.

A no-frills meal with a no-frills wine.

 

Excellent!

 

 

 

"The pleasure of good wine is not just about balanced flavors, a fragrant nose, or lush colors.

It’s also about the moment when that first sip is taken, with family or friends, over favorite foods or during special occasions."

- Michael Pozzan

 

My San Fran Treat

 

Sing along with me, everyone!

 

To the tune of rice-a-roni!

"Chris D. Voorhees - Val's San Francisco Treat!"

Every once in a while you come across someone in your life and you just "click".

There isn't always a rhyme or reason; it just happens.

Almost five years ago, I met Chris at work. He is our account rep for the live streaming software that we use to broadcast Board meetings over the internet (among other things).  We hit it off and became  instant friends. I only see Chris once a year (sometimes twice) because he lives in San Francisco, where the company is located. However, we keep up with each other in the down times through social media and texting.

 

However, when he comes out to the East Coast for work, we always make it a point to spend time together. In the past, we've frequented a sushi place in Alexandria and caught up with a few other friends. This time, Chris decided to just chill with me and Pface and hang out at my happy place for the first time!

 

A few years ago, I started referring to him as "my San Francisco Treat" (sometimes just "San Fran" for short) and it's just stuck. It truly is a treat to have him visit!

 

San Fran is like a little brother to me. I'm relaxed when I'm with him. I can be professional or goofy; depending on the environment we are in. But regardless, I am always myself and he accepts me just the way I am.  We both talk nonstop about any topic under the sun and just really have a connection that most people wouldn't, especially given the situation in which we met (heated work meeting where he's trying to sell something and I was only a month into this new job!).

Chris loves food and drink as much as I do!! He also is a very tall, thin, young man, so he can eat like there's no tomorrow! He was also sick of eating Panera and Chik-Fil-a for four days, so what better place to visit than my happy place!

 

San Fran got to meet my sweet Sarah, crazy Tara and my darlin' Peg. Tara thought that he said his name was "Grace" when he introduced himself, so from that moment on, he became known as "Grace" and he quickly owned it! Arthur, Jeanne and Connor were also there. I was really lucky to see them all on a non-weekend evening! The stars all aligned!

While telling him the history of Giorgios and Winestyles, we perused the wine selection and decided upon the

 

2012

Black Stallion Estate

Chardonnay

Napa Valley

It was a super hot July evening and both of us agreed a light Chardonnay would be just what we needed. Trying a new one based on the description and the fact that it came from Napa, we were pleased. A nose of green apple, lemon and vanilla was followed by flavors of citrus, brown butter and pear. 100% French Oak but without food it would have been too "citrus-y" for me. 

 



(A little tidbit of information for you:  The name Black Stallion pays homage to the rich history of the 32-acre estate which was once home to the Silverado Horseman’s Center in the Oak Knoll District.)

First, we shared the crabcake portabella mushroom appetizer with pesto marinara sauce. He must be a special dude if I SHARED this with him!! Usually I hoard it all to myself. Of course sopping up the sauce with pita squares was called for. Well, that or using our fingers or just plain licking the plate. It was a Thursday and not very busy......

Who am I kidding? I'd do that any night of the week. It's THAT good.

 

I was going to order the Aegean Seafood Salad as my entree and then San Fran suggested we split that too!

 (Ahhh, a man who enjoys wine AND sharing food!)

 

Calamari, shrimp, scallops over a salad with tomatoes, onions and feta cheese cubes.

Olives - ick - those were tossed on someone else's plate, of course!

 

 At this point, I was definitely indulging and had already eaten just about more than I could handle, but nope, San Fran wasn't having any of that nonsense!

 

As my darling, Peg, put it quite succinctly,

"Grace is a hungry girl!"

 

Grace, uh, San Fran, uh Chris, chose the pork chop entree for his meal.

Now, keep in mind, NO ONE ever finishes this meal.

It was once referred to by a fine older South Carolina gentleman as "half a hog". 

Oh, how I love my sweet "Poppy"!

 

I chose the chicken picatta which used to be my "go-to" meal at my happy place when I first started going there. I literally took one bite of the rich saucy scallopini chicken and mushrooms in a lemon caper sauce over angel hair pasta and couldn't eat anymore!!

Good news is I now had dinner for the next night!

Self-discipline was definitely thrown out the window this evening!

While we only had one bottle of wine, we were definitely food gluttons!!!

To my surprise, Arthur had two fancy chocolates brought to us to share -

a haystack and orange cream.

Heavenly!

 



Receipt says "Thank you soooo much Grace! (Val is the best!)"

Don't ya just love "my people"?

 

Grace has to doctor it up so that it says "Grace is the best."

Poor Val, never gets any love.  ha!

 

 

I always love it when San Fran is in town. I love it even more that he was able to come to my happy place and actually appreciate every aspect of it. Didn't take him long to realize why I call this phenomenal establishment my "happy place"!

 

Gluttony is definitely the word that comes to mind.

An over indulgence of food, fun and friendship!

 

Til next time, my dear San Francisco Treat!

 

 

 

 "That's the difference between me and the rest of the world!

Happiness isn't good enough for me!

I demand euphoria!”

― Bill Watterson

Moonshine + Grenade = Empowered Wine Girl

Empowered

Confident

Determined

Exuberant

Fulfilled

 

 No, I'm not talking about what wine does for me.

Well, ok, maybe wine does that for me too... the right wine.

 

But I'm talking about seeing Bruno Mars in concert a few weeks ago.

 

 

 

From the moment the lights went down and the stars came out, I could feel it in the air.

Something exciting was about to happen and it wasn't just hearing Bruno live for the first time.

It was something internal that was happening.

 

It was definitely a sign when Bruno opened with the song, "Moonshine".

By far one of our favorites off of his cds; one that was not released and is not even recognizable probably unless you are Hooligan.

 

Time stood still during that song. Magic filled the air.

We were in for a night we'd never forget!

Oh how I needed this!

Little did I know.......

 

 

 

 

Treasure, Natalie, Just the Way You Are, It Will Rain, Locked Out of Heaven, 

When I Was Your Man, The First Time, Gorilla, Marry You, Nothin' on You, Runaway....

the hit list goes on and on.

But then THE song came on that resonated with me.

Anyone who has ever heard of Bruno Mars knows this song.

Shoot, if you've watched American Idol or The Voice you know this song.

I actually got tired of it because it was played on the radio so much when it first came on.

Still, it's a great song and I know every word.

However, it wasn't until this moment, hearing him sing it live, that I had that "aha moment"!

 

Grenade

 

"Easy come, easy go/That's just how you live/Take, take, take it all/But you never give"

 

(As I sing every word, it's starting to sink in. Some lyrics are more meaningful than others.)

 

 

"Gave you all I had and you tossed it in the trash/You tossed it in the trash, yes you did/
To give me all your love is all I ever asked...."

 

(I'm starting to get pumped up at this point. Yep, this is it. This is definitely the song I needed.)

 

I'd catch a grenade for ya
Throw my hand on a blade for ya
I'd jump in front of a train for ya
You know I'd do anything for ya

Oh, I would go through all this pain
Take a bullet straight through my brain
Yes, I would die for you, baby....

But you won't do the same.

 

BAM!

 "But you won't do the same."

Closure. Right then and there.

"But you won't do the same."

The lyrics. The power and emotion with which Bruno sang those lyrics. 

 I felt it deep inside of me and for the first time in over two years, the nonsense that I have tolerated and accepted and tried to disregard, hit me right smack in the face and at that instant.....

I was done! 

 

Amazing how a song can be so powerful that it literally empowered me and provided me with a confidence and assurance that I have never felt but definitely needed to finally put this specific relationship behind me and move on. 

 

I knew I'd love Bruno live.

I knew that he would excite me and make me smile and bring out emotions.

I knew that my heart would be racing and I'd be a dancing and singing machine.

 I knew his band would "take me back" to a time when music was "real".

All of that happened ten fold.

What I didn't know is that Bruno would bring me closure to a part of my life that I have needed for way too long.

 

 

Okole maluna, Bruno!

 

 Thanks for empowering this wine girl with your music!

 

All I needed was a little "Moonshine Jungle" from my favorite little kick-ass Hawaiian boy!

 

 

 

 

"And the night shall be filled with music,
And the cares that infest the day
Shall fold their tents like the Arabs
And as silently steal away."
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Day Is Done

 

 

 

 

Mango bubbles, pesto and almond puffs!

In 1984, the Wu family started Happy Eatery Restaurant and Bakery as a traditional Chinese restaurant with its own in-house bakery.  Within a year of expanding their dessert menu from just fortune cookies and oranges, their phones were ringing off the hook for birthday and wedding cakes!

 

In July 2002, the restaurant/bakery was transformed into a full-service bakery in Centreville and renamed "Cakes by Happy Eatery".  In October 2009, Cakes by Happy Eatery opened a second location in Manassas and in 2010, when I began working for Prince William County, I was lucky enough to stumble upon this little local gem!

While I haven't ordered any cakes, I ironically fell in love with their gourmet sandwiches! When I first found out about this cute little cafe I decided to keep it a secret. I did not want everyone finding out about my new sandwich place. After all, we are limited to where we can go during the day for lunch since we have to drive everywhere. I took my mom there for lunch one day because she knows how to keep a secret. I also use to frequent it quite often with two former co-workers who are also two former friends. (Yeah, don't ask). At least they kept this cafe secret if nothing else!

 

I hadn't been in a while and yesterday, I took Big Daddy (that's what I call my boss - explanation to come in another post - maybe) there for lunch. The night before he so graciously took me shooting so this was my "thank you" to him.

 

 

 

We were the only patrons there aside from a few people coming in to pick up special order cakes, cookies, and cupcakes.

 

We placed our order and then sat down to wait for our special made sammiches (that's what I call sandwiches when they are absolutely delicious).

 

 

I ordered a strawberry banana smoothie which was so refreshing.

 

 

 

I was asked if I wanted to have mango bubbles in my smoothie. Bubbles? I asked the nice lady what exactly were the bubbles and she laughed and said she had no idea. I asked her why on earth I would want "bubbles" in my smoothie and did they turn my smoothie carbonated. She said I would want them because they are fun and delicious, but not carbonated.  I decided to stray from adding them to my smoothie but she did bring out a few for me to try on their own.

 

 

Very interesting. They are like little soft pearls that when you put them in your mouth they pop and a light juice and flavor comes out. I don't know how I'd feel about them in my smoothie but they were interesting. Mango juice in a little bubble. Okey doke. Whatever works.

 Learn something new every day.

 

 

 

 

Big Daddy ordered the roast beef and brie on rosemary focaccia sammich.
He was very happy.

 

 

 

I ordered pesto chicken salad on rosemary focaccia.

 

Chicken salad made with pesto mayonnaise, with thinly slivered almonds, tomato, cucumber and mixed greens on amazingly soft yummy focaccia!

 

I swear I get happier with every bite of this sammich. 

 

 

I cannot leave this adorable little cafe without taking home an almond puff. As you can see from above, I was so excited that my hands were shaking and the photo is totally out of focus.

 

They don't always have almond puffs and for a while they were selling out quickly. But today, there were four and I'm surprised I didn't buy all four. I used restraint and just bought one of them and saved it for breakfast. Yep, breakfast. What a great way to start a day!

 

Flaky pastry crust with a soft, heavenly vanilla lemon-like filling and the same slivered almonds from my sammich on top.   I feel so bad when I eat the whole thing!!!

 

This was taken from Cakes by Happy Eatery's website. Almond Puffs!!!

 

So, if you live in the area and want to try my secret cafe I just might tell you where it is one day!

 

Again, a simple little place that has a whole lot of goodness going on!!

Because I know you have been wondering....

... what I look like when I'm at home alone cooking......

 

Ha! Perhaps in my dreams!

Or after a couple of glasses of wine!

 

My simply beautiful and elegant idol, Audrey Hepburn!

 

 

"Let's face it, a nice creamy chocolate cake does a lot for a lot of people; it does for me."

Audrey Hepburn

 

 



Today's post is sponsored by the letter "P"

Feel like you have been taken to a Sesame Street episode?

Yep, the letter of the day, or ....uh... er... the letter of this post is.....

 "P"

2011

Primus

Cabernet Sauvignon

Maipo Valley, Chile

This intense ruby red-colored wine is 100% Cabernet Sauvignon from Chile.

You read that right; not California as I am typically fond of, but Chile. 

Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are the top red grape varietal grown in Chile that flourishes in warmer drier climates such as the Maipo Valley. 

I had heard of Primus before, and I had enjoyed their Carmenere recently, so thought why not try their Cab!

 

Such a Pretty wine, and while it's not Palermo or an Oregon Pinot Noir, it was still quite enjoyable.

With aromas of damp, dirty laundry or sweaty sneakers, I was immediately excited about the Potential of this wine.  Complex flavors of strawberry, Plum, blueberry and a slight touch of vanilla blended with supple tannins made this wine very Palatable!

Best of all, guess what pairs well with Primus!

 

Pastichio and Sunday gravy with rigatoni, meatballs and Pork!

Perhaps the photo above is a little out of the ordinary.

To the left is pastichio and to the right is the Sunday gravy pasta dish served up at my happy place. Pastichio is in my top three favorite specials and when I arrived this particular weekend there was only one left!!  Being the gracious friend that I am (and because I had talked it up all day long), I decided to share the last Pastichio with the Evil Red Genius. As a result, we shared another special on the menu as well. Such lucky girls to have the waitress and kitchen split it up for us!

Both went perfectly with Primus!

What else is good to have on hand after a day of...wait..... an evening of, wine drinking?

a Pitcher of water!



Quote of the night, by Arthur, which accompanies the photo above:

 "Val, why is your Dad milking the wine?"

Prototypical!

(ok, maybe I've gone overboard with the "P" theme now.

 "Classic" would have sounded much better, but it doesn't start with a P!
Synonyms are fun!)

Wine gives great Pleasure, and every Pleasure is of itself a good." -Samuel Johnson

Not your momma's stuffed peppers!

I've always like stuffed peppers but I wanted to jazz them up a little by replacing the typical ground beef with ground lamb, orzo instead of rice and a tastier sauce with a little bit of "oomph" instead of tomato soup.

 

 

 

Prepare half a box of orzo according to package directions.

Basically, once water is boiling, put half a box of orzo in and cook for 9 minutes.

 

 

Brown a pound of ground lamb with diced onions with black pepper and a bit of minced garlic.

 

 

 

 

I can almost smell this "deliciousness" as I look at the photo below.

 

 

 

 

Drain lamb and combine with the cooked orzo in a mixing bowl.

Add crumbled feta cheese to the mix.

This already smells and looks good enough to eat on its own!

 

 Put water on to boil for the green peppers.

 

I bought these at the local farmers market this past weekend and they were beautiful!

When you are purchasing green peppers, look for ones deep green in color and rather large and roundish ones so there will be enough room for the stuffing. Do not buy ones with soft spots or bruises. Tall skinny ones may work but I tend to prefer the rounder shorter ones for stuffing.

 



 

With the pepper on its side cut off the top with a sharp knife. Cut as little as possible. Then take the knife and cut around the inside so that the "core membranes" can be removed.  Be careful not to cut into the side of the pepper though. Scoop out the insides and seeds.

Below is pretty close to what they should look like before you boil them.

 

 

Once the water is boiling, gently place the peppers in the water for 4 minutes. Immediately remove them with tongs. Do not dump the water. The peppers will be fragile.

 

Place them on waxed paper so that they don't stick and can cool down before stuffing.

 

Meanwhile, you should be making your tomato sauce. I never use Prego or Ragu or any grocery store jar sauce. I suppose if you want to you can but in my opinion it's full of salt and using jarred sauce will ruin the taste of the meal.

 

 I typically get a salt free fat free can of crushed tomatoes as the base to the sauce.  Then you can add whatever spices you want to add. In this case, I only add black pepper, nutmeg and cinnamon to taste. Those spices all go well with lamb. Many use allspice which I presume is fine but I haven't been brave enough to try that out yet. How much spice to use? Well, I hardly ever measure. I season to taste. So start a little at a time, let it simmer and combine with the tomatoes and then try it! You'll know what you like and if you think it needs more of something, then add it. Just add it a little at a time. You can always add more; you can't remove it once you've put it in there!

 

At this point in the summer, it would be fun to buy a boatload of fresh tomatoes and make my own sauce as well. Perhaps that is an upcoming project for me!!

Stay tuned.

  

Spray a Pyrex glass dish or some sort of shallow casserole dish. (I use olive oil spray - better for you than Pam!) Spoon some of your sauce along the bottom of the pan - not a lot.

 

Put the peppers upright in the casserole dish and, using a spoon (or your hands), fill the peppers with the lamb/orzo/feta mixture. This amount would be enough for four stuffed peppers but I only made two. Regardless, you will have extra "stuffing" and should put that around the peppers in the dish.

It's always good to have extra "guts"! 

 

Next, spoon the sauce over the peppers but do not smother them. You just want it to be on top. Also spoon some sauce over the stuffing that is surrounding the peppers.  Then sprinkle some crumbled feta cheese over top of everything.

 

Loosely cover with foil and put in a 375 degree oven for 30 minutes.

(45 minutes if you have 4 or more peppers)

 

When done, the peppers should still be a tad crunchy. I hate soft peppers!

 

Remove the foil and let it set for a few minutes.

 

 

Put one of the stuffed peppers on a plate and scoop some of the extra stuffing to put on the side. This recipe takes some time to put together but the end result of "yumminess" is definitely worth it!

 

While I didn't pair with any wine last night, I have paired with wines before. A light red wine would go perfectly with this dish - a Pinot Noir is my suggestion. This is not a "big" dish so it shouldn't have a "big" wine but you definitely want to go red.

 

  Kalí óreksi!

(That's bon appetit in Greek)

 

 

 

I am not a glutton - I am an explorer of food.
― Erma Bombeck

You say Freh-tay-tah. I say Freh-tah-tah!

A coworker gives me a gigantic zucchini. What do I do with it? That's A LOT of zucchini!

Saute it with olive oil and squash and have a light meal. 

Make a fresh veggie and spicy tomato sauce and put it over pasta.

 

Then... the best of all - a breakfast frittata!

 

 

 

 

When I left the City of Alexandria after 14 years, the City Clerk and City Council aides gave me a breakfast goodbye party.  My favorite Councilmember's aide made my favorite dish of all - a breakfast frittata. I had never had a frittata before nor did I even really know what it was. After trying it that day, I was hooked and have made it numerous times since.  I'm not a huge breakfast fan but honestly, this could be served at any time of day.

 

 

Sautee a box of sliced mushrooms and a small onion in olive oil with black pepper.

 

 

 

Saute 2-3 small sliced zucchini or 1/3 of the monster one that I had on hand.

 

Set the veggies aside and cube some type of rustic bread. I tend to use some sort of sourdough or ciabiatta. This time I used rosemary and olive oil sourdough.

 

In a shallow casserole dish (usually 9x12 or something similar), which has been sprayed, place the sauteed veggies. At this point, add a bit more black pepper and a tiny bit of crushed red pepper for a little kick.

 

Top the veggies with the cubed bread pieces.

 

Sprinkle with a very generous cup or two of grated gruyere and parmesan cheese. 

 

 

Beat 12 eggs, add 1/2 cup of heavy cream, and fresh chopped rosemary sprigs.

 

 

 

Pour over the casserole. Add more cheese on top and refrigerate over night.

 

In the morning, bake for 45 minutes to an hour at 350 degrees.  Check to make sure it has "gelled" and it is not runny. If it is still runny, put it back in the oven for 5-10 more minutes.

Let set for about 10 mintues after it's done.

 

This was just the recipe that I use. You can use any veggies that you want - even potatoes - and you can also substitute the herbs for whichever ones you have on hand or enjoy. I highly recommend using fresh herbs though and not the dried kind you get in a shaker. This would be a great dish with cheddar, jack or fontina cheeses as well. I have found the combination of zucchini, onion, mushrooms, rosemary, gruyere and parmesan (again fresh shredded - not the powdered kind in a can) is absolutely delicious.

 

 

Recently, I made a smaller version which works best for me.  Bottom line is cut everything listed above in half if you use a smaller casserole dish.

 

I have prepared this for brunches and when I have guests from out of town. It's easy to make the night before and then pop in the oven the next morning. It's always a big hit and, to be honest, I think it tastes best a day after it's been cooked.

 

Enjoy!