So last weekend, the LOML and I took a mini-vacation to the Tri-State Region. We haven’t been up to see my grandparents since their 50th Wedding Celebration (a little over two years ago) and really wanted to fly up to the Garden State for a visit. We had a FANTASTIC dinner at Reggiano’s Thursday night (I really want to recreate the prosciutto and fontina wrapped asparagus) and also went to my Aunt & Uncle’s Friday night for a cook-out with my cousins.
In addition to being two kind, generous, and loving people, Mimi & Op are both really hip and “with it” (Mim is an avid Facebooker (and Blog commenter!), and although Op can’t stand Conan or Dave, he thinks Craig Ferguson is pretty funny). Friday afternoon, Mimi took the LOML and me on a tour of NJ (Montclair, Glenn Ridge, Livingston, etc.) where we drove past my grandparents’ old homes, and also stopped at a Border’s (Mim said we could each pick out two items). I don’t care if you’re 7 or 27, it’s still exciting to pick out a toy (or book, rather) with your grandmother. I picked up When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris and A Homemade Life by Molly Wizenberg.
This was my first foray into David Sedaris, but I’m sure everyone else has been reading him for years (Did you know his sister was Amy Sedaris from Strangers with Candy??). I was walking through the store, contemplating my next choice, when I told the LOML I was thinking of getting this book, because I heard he was funny. One of the Border’s employees was like “OMG, he is hilarious, you have to get this book!” so I took the plunge and picked it up. He is known for his dry, self-depricating humour and reminds me a lot of Larry David. As a bonus, Mim also gave me her old copies of Barrel Fever, Me Talk Pretty One Day, and Naked!!! (I told you she was “with it”)
Molly Wizenberg is the author of the popular Orangette food blog. I added her to my Google Reader last Fall, and although she’s taken a hiatus from blogging (as of 5/18/09), you should still poke around there for some good reading. I didn’t really know if this book was going to be a memoir or a cook book (it’s kind of both), but after the food blogging community was raving about it a few months ago, I thought I’d check it out. I read the first 4 or 5 recipes (each has a 2-3 page background story) and I’ll try and post some recipes here in the (near?) future. Also, if you’re (blog-stalkers) ever in Seattle, Molly and her husband are set to open a sweet pizza joint, Delancey, in the “late spring”??
Thanks again for everything, Mimi & Op!! We love you!!
This weekend the LOML and I went to Savannah, GA to see our good buddies, Fef, Clay & Wyatt, and also to get a little R&R before the school year starts. This was my first trip to Savannah, but after this weekend, I’d put it in my Top Five cities to live in one day.
Saturday morning, we drove over to the beach at Tybee Island. Savannah doesn’t really feel like a “beach town” and I knew it was surrounded by “marsh land,” but I didn’t know it was so close to a “real” beach (excuse my excessive quotations). It was seriously, the warmest ocean water I’ve ever felt, and the LOML did a great job documenting my first experience skin boarding (I’m sure the picture looks a lot more impressive than I actually was). Saturday night we drove around downtown, walked down River Street (Savannah’s version of Bourbon Street) and had dinner at Huey’s. I don’t know if it was the Miley Cyrus movie filming in town, but Savannah was HOPPING Saturday night!!
After church on Sunday, we left Fef & Clay and headed to the 1895 Inn. I found it on Trip Advisor, and after reading 5 Star review after 5 Star review (there were literally nothing but 5 Star reviews), I booked us a night in the “Sovereign Room” (apparently, the Mrs. and I have turned into “B&B people”). Ed, the owner, was hilarious, informative and an all around great host (he and the Mrs. talked about interior design for about 30 minutes if that gives you any idea about "fabulous" Ed). The Inn could double as an art museum, and had an original Picasso, Toulouse-Laurtrec (the LOML knew that one, not me), and Thomas Hart Benton (Jackson Pollack’s mentor) amongst others.
After checking in, we walked around downtown, took touristy pictures, any had dinner at Six Pence Pub. The food was pretty mediocre, but they did have tasty Fat Tire Ale (in 22 oz bottles!). And for all you JULIA fans, this is where they filmed a scene in Something to Talk About (I had no idea, but the LOML told me). 
Speaking of touristy pictures, the “Life is like a box of chocolates” scene from Forrest Gump was also filmed in Savannah at the Chippewa Square. The actual bench was a prop, but we acted out the scene on a random bench that looked pretty good. After dinner, we got ice cream at Leopold’s (famous for creating the flavor that inspired the song “Tutti Fruitti” . . . I got a sample, but I didn’t think it warranted a full scoop). One of the founder’s sons, Stratton Leopold, grew up to be a big time Hollywood producer, and the place is covered in REALLY random movie posters (Bless the Child, the General’s Daughter, Paycheck, Tango & Cash). 
Savannah is probably the most pedestrian friendly city and has 21 town squares with little parks and monuments, etc. The Mrs. was a good sport Monday morning while we took our own walking tour of the city. We passed by Flannery O’Connor’s childhood home, saw the fountain at Forsyth Park and walked by Mrs. Wilke's Dining Room (and the line that went out the door). We grabbed lunch at SoHo South Café, then went to the SCAD bookstore and headed back home. 
Did anyone else know SCAD is only like 30 years old?? Yeah, me neither, and the school has pretty much taken over downtown. The LOML got a SCAD t-shirt and I got some sweet SCAD sweat pants (I’m sure if they were Sean John, it would be no problem).
Woooo Whooo!!! No more crappy cell phone photos!!
Korean Seasoned Fried Chicken
For the batter/breading, you combine the egg, water, cornstarch, salt, and pepper together until just moist. I’m not sure how to combine until “just moist” because my batter was completely wet. Was there a phantom dry ingredient I missed??
After the chicken had marinated, and the sauce and batter complete, I heated the vegetable/sesame oil over medium heat, until a drop of water sizzled. Then I dumped the chicken pieces into the cornstarch mixture, and dropped them in the hot oil, making sure the pieces didn’t touch each other.
I imagined the batter would cling to the chicken a little better to make light and crispy breaded chicken, but honestly a lot of the batter came off in the frying pan. Maybe I should have kept that deep fryer JD gave me two years ago??? Anyhow, basically you fry the chicken on both sides (maybe 10-12 minutes total) and then drain on a paper towel. Afterwards, toss the chicken with your sauce and BOOM, dinner is served.
07.07.07
Here is the TMF’H Lucy grilling up nicely. I think “freezing” the hamburger for an hour or two before hand helped to keep it from over-cooking on the grill.
And finally the finished product!
What did my old roommate, lil mane Andy think??
GREAT SUCCESS!!
If I had more time to explore, I might visit 
I know people say this all the time, but the meat fell off the bone! I’m no 
In one skillet I heated about a tablespoon of sesame oil over medium high heat and cooked the chicken for a minute or two, before adding half a can of Coconut Milk and the Mushrooms. I didn’t want to have COMPLETELY raw chicken cooking in the coconut milk, but it may not have been necessary. I covered and cooked that on medium heat for maybe 10 minutes or so.
I decided to stir fry the other vegetables in a separate skillet before adding to the chicken and mushrooms (I wanted a little crunch left and didn’t want to “boil” them). While the peppers, zucchini and onions were cooking, I combined maybe a tablespoon each of Peanut Butter, Soy Sauce, and Rice Vinegar in a bowl and micro-waved for 30 seconds. Stir it around and it looks like this:
After the chicken looked good and cooked, I stirred in the peanut mixture and let it simmer for a few more minutes before adding the vegetables. At this point, I tasted it and realized it needed salt and something sweet (maybe a tablespoon of honey). 
All in all, it was a pretty tasty dish, but I definitely could have used some extra ingredients to “tie” it up (get it??? Tie/Thai).
Things I would have liked to Add:
Saturday we went to the Barefoot Contessa’s favorite Farmer’s Market (no lie), hung out at the pool, walked around downtown East Hampton, had $5 ice cream cones, and caught up on all our 
Sunday we drove up to 
Can I be honest?? The roll was the best part (hot, buttery and delicious) of the sandwich. Maybe I was expecting it to be the best food I ever put in my mouth, but the Lobster was really just alright for me, dawg. I mean, I’m glad I tried it, but I don’t get all the hype?? After lunch, we walked on the beach, took various awkward family photos, and then went for a drink and people watching at 
The thing that struck me about the Hamptons was how LUSH and GREEN everything was! It’s not like the usual beach towns you’re used to. Everything is covered in thick hedges and tall trees (no palm trees). It’s very New England-y and a bit Euro-rustic. We saw some crazy big houses (mostly covered in those thick 20 ft hedges), but I think everyone would be just as happy on the Florida or Carolina coast.
The LOML and I had a great time and loved hanging out with BLEE (along with Boston Rob and Alison!!). Thank yall again for having us and hopefully it won’t be 2 years before we fellowship again!!! OMK!!
In addition to a rousing AA baseball game (the Barons lost 1-6), we also noticed a number of “old timers” in front of us scribbling down minor league stats in spiral notebooks. Having finished about 80% of 
The e-mail chain that started last week amongst his groomsmen has now topped over 400 (we are all very diligent employees). This weekend will be fun. I know a lot of ladies will be crying in their 
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