Welcome Back to IA

so this weekend i had a fun cooking experience... yes it was an EXPERIENCE indeed (kind of an OCD experience). let me start by saying that i wanted to welcome my good friends home from florida with a meal that i knew they would LOVE. 


a little back story: the reason why i knew they would love this particular meal of carnitas is because a month or so ago i made it for us all to share.  it sounds like it would be a simple 1,2,3 and done, but NO it is a bit harder then just adding the pork, broth, and salsa in a pot and simmering for three hours... oh wait, that is all you have to do!!!! so actually it IS simple. however, it is a dish that fumigates the entire apartment in which i live. and if you know me well, you know that i do NOT like to smell like anything that isn't my body wash. i do not like to come out of restaurants smelling like whatever it is that they are cooking up. i would not be able to work at subway. so the smell that the meat leaves thoroughly disgusts me, yet its funny because the taste of it is quite YUM-O (a little ironic). i really do think i would love every aspect of it if i didn't have the smell lingering days after. OCD side note: the last time i made carnitas, and realized that the smell was more then i could handle i spent the next 24 hours washing ALL my clothes and febreezing the entire apartment in 15 min intervals. 

back to the point. so this time if i was going to make carnitas i had to have a game plan. oh and i did!!! the plan was to not wait until after the meat was made to start the febreezing but to febreeze whilst cooking. also i shut the door to my room leaving the fan on and the window open. in the living room i kept the fan on and the window open as well, along with several candles lit. (make your guesses as to how this turned out) things were going great 1.5 hours in, but i was still smelling meat, so i baked a PIE. that helped but it wasn't enough so later i made cookies. (by the way all i had for dinner that night was pie!!!! sorry mom.) 

for all of you that made a guess (Casie Fuller, I know you did!!) the measures that i took to create a smell free carnitas experience worked. it was a lot of work but it was worth the final product. so back to why i made the carnitas. after that first time i vowed not to make it again (because of the smell) but Carrie, and even Nik, asked when i was going to make it again. so what better way of saying "i missed you and welcome home" then with a meal waiting in the fridge. i learned this house warming tip from the Barefoot Contessa who would leave her friends meals with instructions after coming home from a long trip. LOVE HER! 


i know that they were surprised having a meal waiting for them, but i know that they were even more surprised having it be carnitas. they are a great family and have become such great friends. i wanted to find a way to bless them in a little way because they are such a huge blessing in my life. I am glad they made it home safe and sound. I GET TO SEE THEM ALL TOMORROW. yay!!! 

By Popular Demand

SO... i have had tens, of hundreds, of thousands of requests for the recipe from my last post (Bread, Butter, and Beyond), actually it was just one request. BUT, for me that is enough!!!! i said, and i still stand by it, "homemade bread... enough said." But to some, or ONE, enough said is not actually enough. Here it is... I got that No Knead Bread recipe from Chuck. I only say his first name because I am going to pretend we are BFFs. (his name is Chuck Hughes from cooking channels "Chuck's Day Off"-LOVE HIM) 

• 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
• 3 cups warm, but not hot water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 1/2 to 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 tablespoon coarse or kosher salt
• Steak spice blend, for sprinkling
• Demerara or raw sugar, for sprinkling

Mix together the yeast, sugar and water in a large bread making bowl and allow to bubble up and foam. Wait a few minutes until the yeast starts to work, and then add the vinegar and oil. Add the all-purpose flour cup by cup, stirring well after each addition. Then add the whole wheat flour, mixing in the salt at one point, cup by cup, and stirring well after each addition. The dough will still be a little bit wet and spongy.

Cover with a damp tea or kitchen towel, and let rise in a warm place for 30 to 40 minutes, or until it has doubled in size.

Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F.

Using a big spatula, spoon the dough out into 2 well-greased loaf pans. Using your fingers if needed, press the sides down, helping to create the perfect loaf shape. (Do not knead). With a knife, make 2 or 3 diagonal shallow incisions across the top of the loaves. Top with your favorite herbs or spices. For the savory loaf, sprinkle with steak spice. For the other, sprinkle with demerara or raw sugar.

Bake the loaves for about 50 minutes, or until they are golden brown and crusty on top, and sound hollow when tapped on the underside. Let sit, if you can wait, for at least 5 to 10 minutes before slicing and serving with butter.

So there you have it. This is the recipe that lit up my tastebuds and filled my tummy. This post is for my dear friend, Laura 'T'Senske, I hope you make it and you and Trent enjoy!!! 

Bread, Butter, and Beyond.

Bread... homemade bread... 

Do I really need to say more. Nope.