Happy Memorial Day!

Hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend! I meant to get this out yesterday but that darn family kept asking for things... the nerve, right?

We had a fantastic weekend filled with train rides, carousel rides, picnics with fried chicken (yes, made by me!) a bar-b-que with friends, fun in the water and Mr. O even smoked a pork shoulder for dinner on Monday. All it all it was a perfect family weekend. 

Of course the most important aspect of the weekend was remembering and honoring the men and women who fought and continue to fight to protect our country and our freedom. We attended a memorial ceremony honoring Alexandrian's who fought in Vietnam. It was a beautiful service and I was particularly moved by so many former military men and women who attended, many with their families and young children.  

Here are a few paintings that come to mind when I'm feeling patriotic. I hope you enjoy! 

On the Hudson at Newburgh, Gifford Beal, 1918

Avenue in the Rain, Childe Hassam, 1917

Soldier and Girl at Station, Alex Colville, 1953

Servicemen receiving care packages from Adopt-a-Platoon

Lastly, and most importantly I'm including a link to Adopt-A-Platoon. Its very simple. You contact the group and they assign you a specific platoon and give you a list of things most troops appreciate or miss from home. Then like any care package you fill up a box with goodies and ship it to your assigned platoon contact, usually the platoon chaplain.

I have only done this once, but it was one of the most rewarding things I've done. I don't know if this always happens but I received a beautiful thank you note from the platoon chaplain, which included photos. To think he took the time to thank li'l ol me was a gift in itself. 

Happy Memorial Day!

Cheers, 

Ouiser

Life in Pleasantville ~ Del Ray's Art on the Avenue

I know I often bore you with stories about my idyllic neighborhood so if you hate those posts you'll want to out click and move along with your day. However, if you love the charm of Main Street I hope you'll enjoy this post.

This weekend was the 15th annual Del Ray Arts on the Avenue. It seems to get bigger and bigger every year (though doesn't every festival?). It is about 6 or 8 blocks of artwork, crafts, food, music and kiddie activities. Basically my perfect afternoon plan for entertaining the littles.

I chuckled at my sweet and slightly sarcastic neighbor (we call him the mayor of our street) told me that the first couple of years no one would dare come to "this part of town" for any reason and now you have to stake out parking by 8am! Apparently Del Ray was once a bit less idyllic. But like most towns established nearly 120 years ago it's probably seen good and bad times.

We spent a good two hours walking up and down the avenue looking at great art work, I have my eye on one artist in particular, Don Ripper. I love his work and one day I'll buy a piece. Take a look at his gallery if you have the time, I don't think you'll be disappointed. Don Ripper Gallery

Here's a good example of his work. He does landscapes and portraits.

I've digressed. As you might imagine with a two and a half year old and ten month old we didn't exactly browse. We targeted our efforts on food, balloons, singing and romping. Enjoy the pics I took and maybe next October you can join us!

people, kids and LOTS of strollers

If this is the ride you get as sheriff I'm SO in! 

Singing a good ole country fav! 

We LOVE Steve the butcher and Jill at Cheesetique

New mural along the community center

Whats a festival with out balloons, lemonade and funnel cake? 

Cheers, 
Ouiser

Two Friday Favorites ~ Jewelry & Wine

Happy Friday Yall!!

Both kiddles are taking a brief morning nap, so I thought I'd get out a quick post for today....

I want to share with you things I'm head over heels in love with right now (aside from said kiddles and DH, natch).

First is this fabulous, gorgeous one of a kind necklace. You all know I'm a firm believer in the power of lipgloss and a stylin necklace. And by now you should know all about my obsession with Esther Designs. My dear friend Tanis makes the most beautiful and timeless jewelry!!!

Today I'm wearing this necklace with a navy sailor inspired Lilly tee and capris. Feeling very naughty, err I mean nautical. Yes, yes that's what I meant!

Don't you love it!? Please go take a peek at her site (click HERE) and then come back and let me know which is your favorite! Oh and you can click HERE for her latest creations that are not yet up on the Etsy site.

And I'd be remiss for not thanking a certain reader/friend/mom-spiration Ms. Marilyn. A little birdy told me you were the first to request this particular necklace and were gracious enough to let me have it anyway. As always I love and adore you!

If you know me at all you know how I love my wine! And you also know how much I love my little neighborhood wine shop, Planet Wine Shop in Del Ray. If you find yourself in this neck of the woods, please please stop by!! They've got such a great collection. I usually get our weekly stash from their "Under $15" section but I also wander the racks and pick up a special bottle or two every now and again. Today's wine is from the former, and is absolutely delicious!

Anton Bauer is an Austrian vinyard that produces a variety of wines. Although I've only tried two, Gmork and the Rosenberg I would happily try their entire line!

I'm a very seasonal person and right now as we make our way from spring to summer I'm all about the white wines. I'm completely smitten with their Rosenberg wine. Its light enough to sip alone but complex enough that it doesn't get overwhelmed if pairing with a meal.

As I'm NOT a professional or even really a sophisticated wine connoisseur I'll avoid embarassing myself by describing it for you. Instead here is a bit directly from the Anton Bauer website. Oh and click HERE to browse their site for yourself....

Grüner Veltliner 2008, Rosenberg

Beaming yellow with straw-gold reflexes: in the nose fine apple tones. Pear, quince, aroma of dried fruits with an exotic hint, exhibits pleasant spice; on the palate nutty-spicy-peppery, piquant fruit acid, juicy and stimulating; elegant, lively finish.

Cheers to Fridays, Beautiful Jewelry and Fabulous Wine!!!

xoxo, 
Ouiser

Expedition for Essentials...

Just back from the Great Tundra where I've been out foraging for food and other essentials.... And yes "essentials" include Glitter Heart Fairy Wands, Butter and Beer..

En route to 7-11 *cue heavenly harp music* I made a stop into the Dairy Godmother for brownies, cookies, frozen custard and some heart shaped fairy wands, natch.

Imagine hearts instead of stars. Can't find a pic of the hearts & my son is sitting on me, preventing me from taking a pic of the ones I bought. 

After some fun snow-bantering I trudged on to 7-11. While I assumed they'd have all sorts of fun grocery items DH was a little less sure. He's such a pessimist, okay okay "Realist".

So what do you think? Did I get the good stuff? I gave a half second thought about getting a slurpee but decided to go for the sparkling water instead.

Off to make a dinner of "Snacks" think nachos and popcorn. Perfect for watching the Super Bowl.

Geaux Saints!!!!!

Cheers, 
Ousier

Obligatory Valentine's Day Post

Whether your tastes run toward the sappy and sentimental...

or to the sarcastic and sardonic...







Remember the day is about celebrating those you love!

Valentine's Day is one of those holidays I appreciate but have never relished. I mean for a number of my adult years I spent the evening with my very best girlfriends drinking wine, snacking on cheese and laughing... belly laughing. It's pretty hard to top that in my book, no matter what the people at Hallmark tell you.

So once DH and I started dating it wasn't as if I expected flowers (Note: flowers are always appreciated~ not just on holidays and special occasions) chocolate and smaltzy poetry. In fact I prefer to skip the overcrowded restaurant scene on Valentine's Day and instead have DH make dinner that night. He really is an amazing cook, slow and methodical but amazing nonetheless. He has the patience to make things I'd never attempt.

I thought I'd share a few fun gift ideas for your special someone or heck for yourself! When I was in college I instituted a rule that I always gave myself a special gift if I was single on Valentines Day. One year it was a pair of Feragamo heels, another year a David Yurman ring. Both of which I loved and clearly still remember even if I did leave the ring in a woman's restroom counter years later. Arrg!

Okay, so a leather bound book of love letters might be a weird gift to give one of your girlfriends but I am a sucker for Smythons and I thought this was so pretty and romantic. I wish I knew what letters it includes but nevertheless I think it's adorable and would make a really really sweet gift! Just imagine snuggling up to your special someone and reading to each other. Click here to purchase.


A day at a nice spa will certainly make that special someone glow inside and out!  A gift certificate to a nearby spa is a fun idea but if you want to go that extra mile, try booking the day for your sweetheart. You don't have to know what her favorite treatment is, just the fact that you took the time to pick a few treatments for her and scheduled them is a gift in itself! If you're in the DC area I highly recommend checking out Sugar House Day Spa. They are located in a beautiful old townhouse in the heart of old town and offer a wide aray of ways to pamper!

And if you allow for a little shopping afterwards check out Bellacara for fabulous makeup, skincare and candles and then stroll on down to Bloomers, an adorable little shop that sells underware, sleepware and loungeware. All of which is cute and flirty without being overly sexed-up (not that there's anything wrong with that). All three shops are within two blocks of each other.

If you're planning to spend the evening at home (like I am) why not pick up a special bottle of wine. Do you have a particular wine that you both love? Or had on a special occasion? DH and I do and I always gush when he surprises me with a bottle of ... mmmm, I'm not going to tell you. Some things just shouldn't be shared. :) But if you are in the Del Ray area, I implore you to stop by Daily Planet Wine. The staff is very friendly without being pushy and they are always up for talking wine and giving great recommendations.

And what is a Valentines Day with out dinner? Try taking a cooking class together! Sur La Table offers several different courses. I think the Southeast Asian Street Food Favorites looks delish! DH and I took the "Baby It's Cold Outside" class several years ago and I loved it! Not only did we have a great time it also showed me how much I enjoy cooking with DH ~ and a bottle of wine, natch.

I hope you've got a few good gift ideas from this post. And boys, (cause I like to pretend that boys sometime read this blog.. ha ha ha) girls like to know you put in some real thought and perhaps even a little effort. That matters much more than the amount of money you spend!

Happy Shopping!

Cheers, 
Ouiser

Tigers, Radishes and Apples ~ oh my!

DH, the little one and I had one of those weekends you really don't want to end. Alas, Monday morning has arrived along with a cold blast of wind, thankfully we have the better part of a delicious apple pie in the kitchen... mmm, can I have pie for lunch? I'm getting ahead of myself.

Sunday afternoon we took the little one to the Del Ray Halloween Parade. We had planned to watch but somehow got caught up in the excitement and found ourselves marching along with the hundreds of other families in costume. I think I've mentioned that we recently bought our first home in a neighborhood that I would describe as being one part Austin circa the 1980's -- small, eclectic and artsy-- mixed with one part Norman Rockwell painting. We have kids and dogs everywhere. On our very tiny block alone there are three family's expecting a baby this winter.

I'm not one for exposing photos of DH or our son online but I couldn't help but add this one picture. He's dressed up as a tiger. The costume, which is on loan from a friend is absolutely precious and when you squeeze the paw, it raaarrrs. How cute is that? Yes, I think both DH and the little one were tired of mommy squeezing the paw every 5 minutes but thankfully they are both pretty patient with me.

We had a great time at the parade and party afterwards. I was shocked by how many adults got into the spirit as well. There were strollers, wagons and dogs all dressed up. It was quite a site. We even ran into friends whose daughter was dressed up as a frog and they'd constructed a lily pad platform on top of (I'm guessing) a wagon complete with a pink floral chair on top for her to sit. I mean wow! That's dedication. I hope they won for best decoration!

Once we got home, it was time for me to get cooking! I think by now you know how much I love to cook, especially when I can play around in the kitchen with new ingredients. This weekend's "experiment" turned out to be a very tasty success so I thought I'd share it with you.

While I mostly stick to family favorites or things I can whip together in under 30 mins during the week, I love to take some time on Sunday to make dishes requiring a little more focus, effort and time. We'll see how this goes once baby deux arrives ~ 2 weeks to go ~ but I'm sure once we get back to a semi-normal routine with him we can resume our Sunday night dinners.

During our weekly trip to the neighborhood farmers' market I picked up some of our regular favorites-- green beans and apples but I also grabbed a bunch of Diakon Radishes. I didn't even know what they were and had to ask the farmer what they were called and how he'd recommend using them. While he was very friendly I didn't get a good idea of how to use them other than pickled or in a slaw, neither of which I particularly like.

I looked around in my cook books and online for suggestions. I found one recipe for Korean short ribs with diacon radishes and there was my inspiration. Now, I didn't have a tenth of the Korean ingredients needed nor did I have the 8 hours needed to prepare the dish. Well I guess technically I had the time, but realistically that was never going to happen.

Come Sunday I started playing around with my favorite Braised Short Ribs recipe from the Joy of Cooking and came up with the one I'm sharing with you today. It was delish! (hat tip to Tia for my new favorite word-delish).

And to top it off, since I had about 8 lbs of apples --- yes yes I sometimes get a bit carried away at the farmers market-- I decided to make an apple pie. I'm sharing this recipe with you too because it's soooooooo easy.

I would like to note for the record I'm a horrible baker! Seriously, awful! Baking requires mathematics, exact measurements and following directions. Frankly, none of these are skills I possess. I much prefer cooking where I can play around with a recipe or forgo it altogether in lieu of tasty ingredients I find in my pantry. So when it comes to baking I need all the shortcuts and "easy" recipes I can find. This one DEFINITELY fits into the easy category. And yes, this is an actual picture of my pie from last night!

I hope you are able to try either one or both of these recipe's this fall.

Braised Short Ribs with Diakon Radishes

Serves 2-4

3lbs Bone-in Short Ribs, trimmed of excess fat

2 TBS Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

Dried herb of choice (I used sage)

3 medium Diakon Radishes, peeled and chopped into bite size cubes

2 medium sweet onions, sliced thin

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 bay leaves

3/4 C red wine

1-2 Cups water

Season Ribs with salt & pepper and a dash of herb. Heat dutch oven over medium high heat, add olive oil. Once hot, brown ribs on each side till they get a nice crust. Brown in batches if necessary to avoid over crowding the pan.

Remove ribs and set aside. Add onions, garlic, diakon radishes, dash of salt & pepper and herb to the dutch oven. Cook over medium for about 10 mins or until onions are translucent and begin to brown. Add wine, water, bay leaves and ribs to pot. Bring to a boil then lower heat to simmer for 2 - 2 1/2 hours till the meat is falling off the bone.

Once cooked, set aside ribs to let cool for a few minutes. Return pot to a boil and let sauce thicken for about 10-15 mins. Remove visible fat and connective tissue from meat and then return to pot once sauce is desired consistency. Serve over orzo, mashed potatoes, grits or rice.

Super Simple Apple Pie

Preheat oven to 450 degrees

Pie Pan (9-9 1/2 inches)

Pie crusts (I bought mine at Trader Joe's - 1 pkg has two pie crusts)

3 lbs apples, peeled cored and sliced (I used granny smith and honey crisps)

1 C Sugar, plus extra

3 TBS flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

2 TBS butter

2 TBS milk or cream

Mix sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt together and sprinkle over apples, mixing well.

Place one pie crust on the bottom of pie dish. Add Apple filling and dot with small pieces of butter. Top with second pie crust, crimping edges the top and bottom pie crusts together along the rim of the pie dish. Brush the top of crust with milk/cream and sprinkle with a couple of TBS of sugar. Using a small knife, make 5 or 6 slits along the top center of the pie crust to allow steam during cooking.

Cook for 15 minutes on bottom rack. Remove pie and cover edges with aluminum foil. Lower oven temp to 350 degrees and return pie to oven, cooking for about another hour or until crust is evenly golden brown and apples are tender. Cool before serving.

Happy Cooking!

Cheers,

Ouiser

Del Merei Grille ~ Restaurant Review

I fully recognize even as I begin this post that the wonderful few friends and family members that actually read this blog do not in fact live in the immediate area and thus will likely not fully appreciate this review but if you find yourself visiting my dear family or just in the Washington DC area I do hope you'll consider adding this little gem to your dinning experience. That is if we haven't already forced it upon you during previous visits.

Del Merei Grille (pronounced del-Mary) is a wonderful little restaurant tucked into a small corner of restaurants and shops, about a quarter mile from our home. However, it's truly not just a great "neighborhood spot" we have close friends who regularly travel from the district to Del Merei just as frequently as we do, maybe even more. I think they are smitten with the frickles. Mmmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about these little delicacies, fried pickle slices served with a delicious dipping sauce. An appetizer I order ever single visit.

We decided to take Mamere here on Saturday night for an early family dinner. Since our little one goes to bed around 7pm he eats dinner at 5:30 pm thus making us the definition of "early bird" diners when we go out. Having never eaten this early in my life I continue to be surprised by how many specials restaurants offer during the 5-6pm hour. That coupled with my temporary limit of one glass of wine per day has really made our dinning tab quite reasonable where ever we go.

Happily, Del Merei is always willing to accommodate our family and as I learned during our last visit the owner, Mary has a little boy of her own about the same age as our son AND another boy on the way. (Boys are obviously the in thing these days.)

The restaurant describes itself as Southern-inspired with a modern yet inviting setting. I would heartily agree. I've tried almost the entire dinner menu and while I think that their biscuits and cornbread starter could use a bit of tweaking I have never been disappointed with anything I've ordered, especially the desserts! But I'll get to that in a moment.

There are a few items that I think particularly stand out and that I would highly recommend. First, are the frickles appetizer. As I mentioned above this is a delicious Southern delicacy that you should not pass up no matter your apprehension.

Second, is the Lolla Rossa salad which features blue cheese, raspberries, spiced pecans and a classic vinaigrette, pretty much my ideal salad. All of their salads are quite large for starters, I've often split mine with DH if I'm ordering an entree as well. And you can order any of their salads as your entree and add any one of several delicious proteins. My favorite is the grilled salmon. It's always perfectly grilled with a wonderful crust and cooked through to a perfect medium.

They offer a number of proteins-- beef, chicken and seafood that you can have grilled and paired with a wide assortment of sides. I'm partial to the petite fillet but the buffalo hanger is excellent as well. And by far and away my favorite sides are their smashed potatoes with truffle oil (usually only offered in the fall), garlic cheese grits, and their sauteed spinach.

I really can't speak to their kids menu because we've only ever ordered one thing- the grilled cheese with tater tots. There is nothing special or high brow about it, just absolutely delicious and because of which we've never bothered to even look at the other options. Both DH and I inevitably steal a few of our son's tater tots while he's not looking.

Last, but certainly not least is their dessert menu. I used to have no problem skipping dessert, as I never really had a sweet tooth. Sadly, since the moment of my first pregnancy I've become quite a fan of dessert. Especially chocolate desserts! They have the most scrumptious seasonal brownies which are paired with ice cream. On this visit I tried the cheesecake brownie with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce. Sounds incredible decedent and rich right? Well it was, every last bite of it! Of course my favorite is their mint brownie served with peppermint ice cream but I'll have to wait a few more months for this to return to the menu.

Although, to me this next dessert seems just a bit too decedent, I feel I must mention their Grilled Glazed Donut. If a grilled donut isn't enough for you, they've topped it with vanilla ice cream, pecans and an apple caramel sauce. On the rare occasion DH or one of our guests will order this and usually they enjoy it so much there is very little sharing, so I know it must be fantastic!

So, I hope you are now just as hungry as I am. Unfortunately I don't think my egg whites and toast are going to be quite as delicious as anything I've just described but a brownie for breakfast is not acceptable... right??

Happy Dinning!

Cheers,

Ouiser

The Evening Star Cafe

Had dinner with darling husband and son last night at The Evening Star Cafe in our new neighborhood. I'd really been looking forward to trying the restaurant ever since we moved to the Del Ray neighborhood a few months ago. This was the site of my first official date with a fore mentioned darling husband. It's hard to believe that was 7 years ago this summer. Well, I have no idea what I ordered back then, probably just endless glasses of wine and no dinner. Oh how times have changed. But last night I had the duck salad and this amazing spinach gnocchi with bacon, tomatoes and creamy truffle cheese. I believe they call it "BLT Mac n Cheese". Both dishes were outstanding although I could have passed on the pickled cipollini onion in my duck salad.



I have found through this pregnancy that knowing I can only have one glass of wine has made me a much pickier drinker than I once was. After pouring over their incredible wine list (it helps that they are affiliated with and next door to Planet Wine, a fabulous specialty wine shop) I decided on an Italian Prosecco. It was bubbly, creamy and delicious all the qualities one likes in a sparkling beverage.



Check out their menu and if you find yourself in our neighborhood please call us, we'd love to meet you for dessert at the Dairy Godmother. I'll talk about that wonderful spot in an entirely new post.




Cheers,
Ouiser