Onion Rings

These are not your every day onion rings. These onion rings are incredible. They are extraordinary. They are sweet and spicy and crispy and are complimented by a mouth watering dipping sauce. The bonus is, they are easy. The only downside is they leave your workspace a tad messy. Make these for a weeknight dinner or triple the batch for your next bbq!

Onion Rings

2 large white onions (peeled and cut to desired thickness)
2 Cups evaporated milk
2 Cups all purpose flour
1 Tablespoon chili powder
2 Tablespoons cayenne pepper
4-5 Cups vegetable oil (for frying)
coarse salt (to sprinkle on the rings when hot)


Peel and slice onions to desired thickness. I have prepared these thick-cut and I have prepared them extra thin for onion straws as well... both delicious!! Preheat a medium cast iron skillet, add oil and heat to fry (I have recently started using 2 skillets as a double/triple batch is always in demand... these babies go fast). Pour the evaporated milk into a medium bowl and place next to your cut rings then combine the flour, chili powder and cayenne pepper in a large bowl and place that alongside the milk bowl. Dredge each ring in flour, dip in milk, then in flour again and fry approximately 2-3 minutes on each side. I like to have a large paper bag lined with paper towels at the end of my workspace to place the rings on as they come out of the oil. Sprinkle (liberally) with coarse salt and repeat until all of your onions are gone. Serve with dipping sauce.





















Dipping sauce
2 cups sour cream
1/4 Cup hot sauce
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Combine all ingredients in a serving bowl, mix well and serve chilled.

Park City Food & Wine Classic

The Park City Food and Wine Classic is "an epicurean extravaganza" held in gorgeous Park City every year the 2nd week in July. My husband and I attend every year. This year was exceptional and I wanted to share a few of our moments there with you. We attend the "stroll of main" each year and this year it happened to fall on my husbands birthday so it was extra special. This event is a blast! It's $70/person and lasts from 4pm through 7pm. The event starts you at Town Lift plaza and takes you up and down Main Street stopping at "Stroll Stops" along the way (9 of them to be exact) where you taste wines and sample small bites from Park City restaurants. Each year they add a little flair to the stroll with small cocktails, champagne, tastes of whiskeys and such. This year they had a full Stella Artois booth and High West Distillery served tiny little whiskey cocktails at their bar. Fabulous!

I'll just share a few shots here and then I'd like to mention some amazing sponsors and tasty beverages.




Stroll Stops:

1) Town Lift Plaza~Hope Family Wines, Treana, J. Wongs Asian Bistro (we had a spicy shrimp appetizer), Mercer's Wine Ice Cream (AMAZING! We tasted the merlot and the cabernet ice creams), Stella Artois, Ridge Vineyards... to name just a few.

2) Mustang~Purple Wine Co., TGIC Importers, Parducci Wine Cellars... and many more.

3) High West Distillery~Southern Wine Spirits West (Banfi, Diageo, Chateau and Estates, Moet Hennessey USA, Palm Bay International, Pernod Ricard, Shaw Ross Imports, Yabby Lake)... and of course High West Distillery.

4) Sugar Buzz~Blind Dog Restaurant (may I note here that... in my humble opinion... Blind Dog is Park City's best restaurant and one of Utah's finest sushi joints... I love it. I adore the owners and have for years... since they used to be my husbands "regulars" when we waited tables... eat there), Delicato Family Vineyards. I also adore the owners of Sugar Buzz and love supporting them. They supported my husband and I when we owned out little gourmet food and kitchen shop and we appreciate them very much! See the cute scale in the photo? They purchased that from our shop! The truffles served here were delicious that evening!

5) Kimball Art Center~Bangkok Thai, Honest Beverages, Kerrygold (delicious Irish butters and cheeses), Remy Cointreau, Salt Lake Magazine, etc.

6) Sky Lodge~Bacardi, Foster's Wine Estates, Hahn Family Wines and so many more.

7) Talisker on Main~Chappellet Vineyards, Domaine Napa, Silver Oak Cellars (side note: my husband says, as we are walking up to Will Call to grab our tickets, "If there is a Silver Oak Booth here I am not leaving it all night")... and there it was. A lovely little Silver Oak table with it's lovely broker Kathleen McLeod (www.silveroak.com). It's a lovely wine.

8) Phoenix Gallery~Riedel Glassware, W.J. Deutsch and Sons, etc.

9) Miner's Park~Bad Ass Coffee, FIJI Water, North Coast Brewery, Shabu Restaurant, etc.

There are so many wonderful brokers, wineries and sponsors not listed here but you can go to the website for all of the details and information on next years Classic.

CHEERS!

My thoughts on Eva

For my birthday ,last month, my husband surprised me with a birthday dinner out on the patio at Eva. We'd dined at Eva once before for brunch on our anniversary and loved it so I was very excited to try dinner and enjoy the darling patio behind the restaurant. Take a look at their menu in it's entirety here and I will share my experience with these items below.


Pictured first are the Parmesan fries which may not sound like too big a deal but they are! They are crisped to perfection and sprinkled with fresh cheese. Second we shared two pies; "Eva's Pie" and the "White Pie" which were both incredible and full of flavor. My husband and Father also split a "Pig Three Way Pie" and raved about it. The last photo is of the flatbread served with white bean puree and truffle oil as well as a pesto spread and olive tapenade. The spreads were so deliciously tasty I could have ordered three orders! Everyone really enjoyed that dish. Not pictured, we all shared the sauteed brussel sprouts and the lobster ravioli (2 orders of the ravioli!!!). The brussel sprouts came highly recommended by my dear friend Becky of Vintage Mixer (enjoy her review here) and did not disappoint. They are incredible and rich with hazelnut flavor. The ravioli were so amazing we went with a second order. They are handmade and delicate with lobster meat, mushrooms and a light butter sauce.


I love this restaurant and all of it's charm. I suggest you check it out this summer and then again in the fall as their menu changes seasonally.

Mactweets Challenge #9

This months Mactweets challenge was 'Sing... Sing a Song.'
PERFECT! This is a Mac Challenge for me! Anyone who knows me knows I am very into music and always have been... true, I am biased when it comes to my musical taste but the music I love... I L-O-V-E!!!
What song to choose? What artist? It's easy to narrow it down... my two truest music loves are: The Cure and Morrissey/The Smiths. My favorite songs by these artists don't have a color in the lyrics...hmmm?? I thought and thought of songs that have inspired me, touched me, changed me and there it was. My song choice for this challenge is

'This Twilight Garden' by The Cure.

"I lift my lips from kissing you
to kiss the sky
cloud soft and blue
and slow the sun melts down into
your golden words for me"
My macarons are the cloud soft and blue.

Basic shells

2 aged egg whites
1/2 Cup almond meal
1 Cup powdered sugar
3 Tablespoons + 1 teaspoon granulated sugar

Almond Cream

1 Cup whipping cream
1/4 Cup granulated sugar
2 Tablespoons almond extract

Summer Dining... part 2 (Boise)

Continuing on with our summer dining spots, I have had the extreme pleasure of enjoying the following meals and the even greater pleasure of sharing these with you.































These first 4 shots are of Rembrandts Coffee House in Eagle Idaho. This coffee house is a bakery and deli as well. They also have a great little shop up front with to-go mugs, books, aprons and coffee for sale. The building used to be a church and they have kept much of it in tact making a lovely little atmosphere. My daughters enjoyed a three layer red velvet cake while we sipped coffees. Everything is tasty, the service is super friendly and I love this place so much I could sit there all day.













This beauty is the bakery case at La Vie En Rose, in Boise Idaho. We enjoyed a lunch here of bacon avocado sandwiches, potato soup, pomegranate lemonade and lemon bars. This is in historic Boise and is beautiful. They were not very busy for lunch, which made me sad because the place is quite impressive but I do know they recently added the full menu and went from bakery to restaurant so maybe that had something to do with it. Don't you just want to sip on that lemonade? Delicious!


On our way out of town, we wanted to try another new place (although Flatbread is always tempting, as is Tavern) so we hit the city center to find something and came upon Bittercreek Ale House. It seemed like a simple pub so we were expecting simple pub food. We were pleasantly surprised by the food! Pictured here is my Green Goddess Tower. How pretty is that salad? It was as delicious as it is pretty too. They offer over 500 beers and have a very decent menu. Our table also enjoyed fish-n-chips, the house burger and mac-n-cheese.



I have been so blessed to vacation with my precious family as well as travel with my husband, while he is working this summer. I hope you are enjoying my little dining diary but more than that I hope you give these places a try if you are ever in the areas. They are all noteworthy.

Summer Berry Ice Cream

I love ice cream. It's such a childhood comfort, summer, fun treat and as an adult, I have learned how much fun it can be to not only eat... but make. It's fun to come up with new flavor combos for creams, sorbets, Italian ices, pops... it's endless. The following recipe is something I came up with last week when I happened upon a fabulous deal on berries. It's simple and creamy and fruity and makes a lovely summer dessert. Experiment with different berries and additions. I can assure you, you will love this ice cream.


Summer Berry Ice Cream

2 cups strawberries
1 cup raspberries
1 cup blueberries
3/4 cup organic sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup half & half
1 cup heavy cream

Wash all berries and remove stems. Heat all berries in a large pot for about five minutes, or until they soften and start to release their juices. Add sugar and simmer another ten minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Stir and cool about 20 minutes. Puree' in a food processor or blender and cool completely in your refrigerator. Add both creams and pour into your ice cream maker. Freeze according to manufacturers directions. You can strain the fruit mixture to remove the seeds but i didn't... I think they add texture, so I leave them in.

Hapyp 4th of July

This dip is fantastic, simple and totally delicious. It will make a lovely addition to your 4th of July spread and will leave your friends and family asking for more... and begging you for the recipe! I made it this week and am making it again this weekend. It is perfect served with sliced french bread and salty crackers.

Happy 4th of July friends!

BLT Dip

1/2 pound bacon cooked crisp and then crumbled
1 cup mayo
3/4 cup sour cream
5 green onions sliced thin (white tips only)
good grinding of cracked pepper
3 fresh roma tomatoes, diced
1/4 head of iceberg lettuce, diced

Cook bacon to a crisp, crumble and set aside. Combine mayo, sour cream, green onion and cracked pepper in a bowl, add bacon and chill for at least 2 hours. Dice the fresh tomatoes and lettuce and add to the chilled dip. Serve when desired... it gets better as it rests and all of those flavors marry each other.