photos from williamsburg, virginia

I went to Colonial Williamsburg, Virginia last November (2010) with my grandparents and my cousin, Devon. We stayed at the cutest house and had a great time.

Nana and Papa took my sister Ashley, Devon and I to Williamsburg almost every year when we were little. We have so many happy memories there.

I was looking back through some pictures and wanted to post ones I had looked over before, but now see how beautiful they are.

This tavern is a restaurant, and a darn good one. They make spoon bread that is to. die. for.

Devon told me before we went, "I don't want anything but spoon bread for dinner tonight. I want to eat spoon bread until it's coming out of my ears ... and then I want to eat some more."

Happy Wednesday, everyone! You're almost to the weekend. Love.

mushroom gravy patty melts

This recipe is a great one to have on hand. It's a quick meal with very few ingredients that you probably already have in your pantry. I've made it twice this month!

It's also cheesy and delicious.

By the way, I love patty melts. I had no idea.

It starts with mushroom gravy, which is incredibly easy. Just saute mushrooms in a saucepan.

 When they are nice and brown, add a can of beef broth.

Let the broth simmer until it reduces to about half. I thickened it with about a tablespoon of flour, then whisked it with salt and pepper to taste.

It's so perfect for this. You don't want anything too over-powering for the sandwich. It does need to be thick because I spread it on the bread like butta, baby.

Now for the burgers. I used extra lean ground sirloin. I love how the beef flavor comes out in the burger when there is not much fat to compete with. I didn't use any seasoning for the meat except salt and pepper.

Make the patties thin and long so they fit on the bread slices nicely. Cook for about 5 minutes on each side, or until they are done according to the way you like them.

After the burgers are cooked and the gravy is ready, it's time to assemble the sandwiches.

I know you're excited.

Put some butter in a skillet. Not a bad start.

I used rye/pumpernickel swirl. I wasn't trying to be fancy, I just like the flavor.

Okay I was trying to be fancy.

I like to use an extra half a slice of cheese to make sure the whole slice is covered. I used provolone because it's delicious. Cheddar or swiss would be great too!

I can hear Giada in my head when I think about provolone cheese. Pro-vo-loan-ay!

Plop a freshly grilled burger on top of the cheese.

Then spread that delicious, thick mushroom gravy on the top slice and put it in its final resting place on top of the burger.

I basically just told you how to make a sandwich. Do you feel like I insulted your intelligence? I hope not.

Let's put it this way: I taught you how to make this sandwich.

Now that we all feel better, flip the sandwiches!

It's a beautiful thing. Add some more butter to the pan for extra crispy bread.

It's warm, flavorful, cheesy... so good. I love the authentic, fresh flavor from the burgers. You don't need a ton of steak seasoning to make good quality ground beef taste great. The natural flavor is incredible.

These would be great served with baked vegetable chips. It's a fantastic week night meal to keep in mind when you are in a hurry, but you want something delicious and homemade.


Here's the recipe!

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Mushroom Gravy Patty Melts

(makes 4 sandwiches)

1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 14-oz can beef broth
1 or 2 tablespoons flour
1 pound extra lean ground sirloin
6 slices provolone cheese
8 slices rye bread
1 tablespoon butter
Salt and pepper, to taste

Saute mushrooms in a saucepan with oil over medium heat about 5 minutes. When mushrooms are brown and soft, pour in can of beef broth and stir. Let the gravy simmer until it reduces to half, about 7 to 10 minutes. Add flour and whisk until combined, until desired thickness. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

Assemble the ground beef into 4 long, thin patties. Season with salt and pepper. Cook in a skillet over medium high heat for 5 minutes on each side. Put the burgers to the side when they are done.

Over medium heat, melt butter in a skillet. Assemble the sandwiches: bread, cheese, burger, gravy, bread. Spread the gravy on the top slice of bread. Grill sandwiches until the bread is toasted.

lauren and evan's engagement pictures

My dear, sweet, hard working (handsome, sexy, loving...) boyfriend spent hours editing photos this weekend. He is very particular about his working conditions when it comes to editing photos. I know all of you have spent time editing a photo, then had it developed to find that the print looks completely different than what you saw on the screen.

Well, that won't happen to Michael Beard Photography anymore! My love invested in a sweet photo editing monitor. I don't understand it the way Michael does. I know that it is big, it has a matte finish, and no matter where you are in the room the image looks the same... which is a lot different than a normal monitor. He also has "color calibrating software" that he uses to be SURE that the image on the monitor is exactly the same as the digital image. It's all very technical.

That's what makes our little photography business so beautiful. My self-given title as the "Creative Director" allows me to pose our models, figure out the setting, make sure little cutesy moments are happening, make sure they feel comfortable in front of the camera, do some hands-on arranging of stray hairs and hands... That is where I shine. Michael knows the ins and outs of his equipment and he shines in post-processing.

I know you all have been anxiously awaiting these photos! I have too. Michael's patience is infuriating. But I love him.

I want to share some of my favorites from our shoot in Central Park.

Her ring! Good job, Ev.

By the way. I was totally there when he gave it to her. Well, it was a couple minutes later... but still.

I love what Michael did with the color here, and their faces are too cute for words.

This one has been a favorite from the beginning. There was a little stone bridge over a small stream. I remember saying to Evan, "Is there a place where you can sit on the stones? Is that comfortable??"

Good thing he found a spot. I probably would have asked him to sit there anyway, just to get this shot. I love how leaves are dusting the ground, and the rock on the right frames the whole photo.

This one is so sweet. I love that Michael zoomed in on Evan's arms around her.

 

He was holding her for SO long. It was hysterical. But this shot was worth it! I love the tree in the background.

Perfection with a yellow antique tint. Go, Michael.

This one is so cute!

Haha! So classic Evan and Lauren. I love her laugh.

I adore this one. I love the way she is looking at him.

I don't think Evan saw the vision in this pose. But I knew it would be cute.

The stones on the ground were interesting and perfect for this shot. I love the traffic lights in the background.

This one needs to be framed, put in a magazine, blow up and made into a poster... Just kidding. But really. I love it.

Thank you guys for being such great sports!

Michael and I learned so much from this shoot, I don't even think I could write it in a couple sentences. It was such a huge learning experience for us. We are very grateful.

Lauren and Evan, you two are so in love. It's adorable.

I obviously can't wait for the wedding. I'm excited to be a bridesmaid of course!! But I'm also thrilled to see you too vow to be with each other for the rest of your lives. It's a beautiful thing.

my first thanksgiving with a boyfriend

It's true. There have only been a few boys in my life that have actually held the title "boyfriend" and they have somehow all been meaningless summer flings. My relationship with Michael doesn't even compare to any of them, so in my heart Michael is the first boyfriend I've ever had. The only one that matters. The best.

I'm sure you all know that I love him something fierce. It's obvious in my other posts about him, and it's obvious when you talk to me. I want to be around him all the time and share every part of my life with him. The same is true for the holidays.

I am a creature of habit in the worst way possible. I hate change. HATE. When my Mom changes her living room furniture around, I walk in and exclaim ,"WHAT DID YOU DO?!" I am also a bit territorial. I was very uneasy about new friends in my "group" in college. When my sister started dating her husband a couple years ago, I wouldn't even speak to him until I knew he was good enough. Is that wrong? Probably... Sorry, Anthony. This is a trait about myself that I don't exactly like. I wish I was more easy going about traditions.

Michael is the same way. He is very traditional. When I mentioned Thanksgiving, he wouldn't even consider doing anything but the same thing he has done every year. He wanted to be with his family. I wanted to be with mine. We tried to compromise, but in the end we ended up spending our Thanksgiving apart.

For me, it put a cloud over my Thanksgiving. That morning, we actually fought on the phone about it. Our selfish hearts were undeserving of anything good that day. I also spent the day alone because my parents decided to do yard work all day (they would). My sister is married and wasn't home this year. My Aunt Debby's family decided not to come to dinner. It was all too much and I threw myself the biggest pity party ever.

Then my dear sister called. I rambled on and on about how stubborn Michael was being and how sad I was. After I was finished she said, "Can I tell you something?"

"Sure."

"No really. Are you ready to hear it because you won't like it."

Umm... at that point I was just curious. I was obviously not in a place to hear anything constructive. But I listened anyway.

"You are both being selfish. He may be wrong, but that doesn't matter. What's really important is removing strife from your life. Whatever it takes to forgive him in your heart and move on, is what you need to do. You cannot go through life worrying about getting your needs met. Think about how much he enjoys Thanksgiving with his family, and just be glad that he is happy." She said.

Wow. Speechless. Angry. Sad.

She was right though. I love him so much more than I could ever put into words. My selfish heart was wrong that day. I was looking at the situation and only considering myself... how not being with him affected me, how my needs were not being met.

I am learning that relationships are about choices. I don't believe in soul mates. I believe that life happened, Michael and I found each other, fell in love and are now choosing to be together. If our relationship was only based on feelings and emotions, it would be weak. We are strong because we understand that we choose each other, no matter what.

After all, Thanksgiving is about being thankful. It's about family and friends. It's not about being selfish. It's about looking outside of your self and seeing what is really important.

Thanksgiving was very different this year, but it was good. I enjoyed being with my family and after dinner was consumed and the dishes were done, I drove to Michael's grandmother's house to spend time with him and his family. I swallowed my pride. I chose him.

sausage ravioli with asparagus cream sauce

I've been browsing around on other food blogs for the last couple weeks. Everyone has wonderful ideas for Thanksgiving - I've seen about 30 different recipes for cranberry sauce. I think this one is my favorite because you bake the cranberries in the oven, which means no messy stove top! Win: Jane Deere's Cranberry Sauce.

Since I am a newbie food blogger, and I will have Thanksgiving recipes coming out of my ears after Thursday night, I want to share a totally non-related recipe.

I think this may be my favorite recipe that I've shared on my blog so far. Not in terms of the preparation (it's a little tricky!) but the FLAVOR is out. of. control.

The sausage adds a wonderful flavor to the ravioli, then you cover it in a creamy asparagus sauce. It's so delicious. Mom and Michael had a hard time deciding if their favorite recipe so far is my cashew chicken lettuce wraps or this. I think this one was the winner.

Start by making the cream sauce, which doesn't have cream at all! I made a light version, that is still incredibly rich.

Grab a bunch of asparagus, break off the tough ends and rinse them in the sink.

Chop the asparagus into small pieces, and put them in a skillet with some olive oil. Let them cook for a good 10 or 15 minutes, so they get soft. Add minced garlic to the pan and let that cook for 3 or 4 minutes.

Add 1/4 cup of chicken stock, salt and pepper. Let the stock reduce for a few minutes, then remove from heat and let it sit until the stock stops bubbling.

Pour the whole thing into a food processor. Blend it until the asparagus is broken up and a thick paste remains.

 Add sour cream and blend again, until a thick sauce is formed. It's a little too thick at this point, but we are going to add hot pasta water right before we serve it. That will warm and thin it = perfect.

It's a beautiful, rich green sauce. It's slightly tangy from the sour cream.

Now it's time to make the ravioli filling! Exciting.

Cook one pound of sausage. I used sweet Italian turkey sausage. Break it up as much as you can. I learned afterward that the sausage should be smaller than the above picture, it is easier to fill the ravioli. Trust.

Chop up fresh sage and rosemary. Smell. Smile. Add it to the pan.

Next comes ricotta and Parmesan cheese. That's it! You have a perfect, flavorful filling.

 Lay wonton wrappers on a cookie sheet, cutting board, your counter top - whatever works.

Now is the time to learn from my mistakes. Here are some tips I discovered while making these:

1. Break the sausage up as much as possible. The large chunks were splitting the ravioli open = disaster.

2. Use way less filling than in the above picture. Just by looking at it, you can tell the sides did not fold over evenly and the raviolis were coming apart in the boiling water = disaster.

3. It worked the best when I went around with some water and moistened all four sides of the ravioli first, then picked up each one with wet fingertips to form the raviolis.

4. Let the water stay at a gentle boil. A rolling boil is a little too rough for this.

5. Make them in small batches, about 5 or 6 at a time.

6. They only need to cook for a few minutes. I overcooked my first batch. They got too soft and when I tried to scoop them out, they broke apart in the water = disaster.

Basically, by the time I was done, my pot of boiling water was the color of milk. Lesson learned.

Despite the complications of this recipe, I really do hope you try it... because the flavor combination works together so well.

(Lauren, thanks for the plate! I love.)

Here's the recipe!

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Sausage Ravioli with Asparagus Cream Sauce

For the sauce:
1 bunch asparagus
1 tablespoon oil
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup chicken broth
1 8oz. container of light sour cream
Salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 cup left over warm pasta water

For the ravioli:
1 pound turkey sausage
1 tablespoon fresh sage
1/2 tablespoon fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup part skim ricotta cheese
30 wonton wrappers

To make the sauce, wash asparagus and break off the tough ends. Chop into thirds and put in a skillet over medium heat with oil. Stirring every few minutes, cook for 10 to 15 minutes, until the asparagus is soft. Add minced garlic. Cook for 3 or 4 more minutes. Add chicken broth, salt and pepper. Let the broth reduce a bit, then remove from heat. Let the pan sit until the broth stops bubbling, then pour it all into a food processor. Blend for 20 seconds or so, until the asparagus is pureed and forms a thick paste. Then add container of sour cream. Blend for another 10 seconds, or until it forms a thick sauce. Pour into a bowl and set aside.

To make the ravioli, brown sausage in a skillet over medium heat, about 6 minutes. Break up the sausage as much as possible, you don't want large pieces. Chop sage and rosemary, add to pan. Add Parmesan cheese, stir. Remove from heat and add ricotta cheese, combine. Filling should be thick.

Spread the wonton wrappers out on a cookie sheet or large cutting board. Put one teaspoon of filling in the middle of each wrapper. Put some room temperature water in a small bowl.  Moisten all four sides of the ravioli, then with wet fingertips, fold the wrapper in half over the filling, forming the ravioli. Pinch the sides together, set aside.

Once all raviolis are formed, carefully place them into a large pot of gently boiling water, in small batches of 5 or 6 at a time. Cook for 3 or 4 minutes, until they come to the surface. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Once they all are cooked, add 1/2 cup warm pasta water to the asparagus sauce. This should thin the sauce and make it easy to pour over the ravioli. Add more water if necessary. Serve ravioli on a plate drizzled with sauce.

sweet meat with peas

This title is from my friend Evan. He loved it, and it actually got him to eat his peas! After dinner, I asked my friends, "Guys. What should I call this on my blog?" Evan happily said, "Sweet meat." He was so matter-of-fact about it, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

You're right, Evan. This meat is sweet.

And now his fiance and my dear friend Lauren knows she can get him to eat peas if they are covered in soy sauce and brown sugar.

Hey, whatever works!

This whole thing happened randomly. I was visiting my friends in the city last weekend, and wanted to thank them for their incredible hospitality by cooking dinner for everyone.

That Saturday morning, Michael and I ventured over to a local Bronx grocery store. I found some beef strips on sale, and thought about making a delicious sauce to serve with it, poured over brown rice.

I wanted it to be easy, but still delicious. I grabbed a can of beef broth, a bottle of soy sauce, and a box of brown sugar. Makings for a ridiculous sauce.

Start off by browning the meat. I needed to feed about 7 people, so I cooked up 3 pounds of beef strips. Pour a little oil in a screaming hot skillet. Let the strips cook for a few minutes on each side, only until just browned. The hot skillet sears the little strips.

You want to use canola or vegetable oil. Olive oil doesn't hold up to high heat very well, and may burn before you are done cooking all the batches of beef strips.

By the way, there are lots of things that would work for this. I believe the store where we were called them "beef strips" but you may also see "fajita strips". Also, you could get flank steak and slice it yourself! Just use a sharp knife, cut thin strips at a slight diagonal against the grain of the meat.

After all the meat is browned, drain some of the oil if you need to and lower the heat. Then throw in 2 cloves of minced garlic. Cook it for a few minutes.

Pour in the can of beef broth, 1/2 cup of soy sauce, 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 cup of water. Stir it around and let it simmer for a few minutes. The sauce should get thicker, but not too thick.

Oh! Don't forget to make some brown rice. Or white rice. Or whatever kind of rice floats your boat.

Notice how I cheated and used the 10-minute boil-in-bags. That's just the kinda girl I am.

Once the sauce has been simmering for a few minutes, add in the beef and peas. Stir it around and let the peas warm through.

Now look over at all your friends who are drooling in the living room.

I served the beef over rice, followed by an extra spoonful of sauce. The warm, sweet sauce soaks into the rice.

This one is easy and feeds a crowd. I hope you try it!

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Sweet Meat with Peas

2 or 3 pounds of beef strips
3 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 14oz. can of beef broth
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 cup frozen peas
Salt and pepper, to taste

Heat a large skillet over high heat. Pour in oil and cook the beef strips in batches, about 10 strips at a time. Only cook them for a few minutes on each side until browned. The hot skillet will sear the juices into the strips. Between each batch, put the strips on a plate or a bowl, then set aside to make the sauce.

Lower the heat and remove any extra oil you may have left over from browning the beef. Then add 2 cloves of minced garlic. Cook for a few minutes. Pour in beef broth, soy sauce, water and brown sugar. Stir until the sugar is dissolved. Continue cooking on low heat for 5-7 minutes, until the sauce thickens a bit.

Season with salt and pepper. Then add cooked beef strips and peas. Cook for a few more minutes on low heat, until the peas are warmed through. Serve over rice with extra spoonfuls of sauce.