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Espresso!

Posted on January 21, 2010 | Leave a comment

So as promised I set up the espresso machine for it’s inaugural run this weekend. It was a little daunting at first, but by mid-morning on Saturday I had it up and running. I followed the step-by-step directions in the book, which led me to cleaning the machine by running water through it. I had it all set up but there was no water running through at all. I was worried the machine wasn’t working properly and consulted the internet. On the Cuisinart website they have a demo video of how to use the machine. As I watched though I didn’t really learn much about the cleaning part, but I tried again. I fidgeted with the water tank in the back and voila, it worked! I ran the water through and decided it was time for the real deal.

This leads me to the espresso. I ended up buying Whole Foods organic espresso. At Whole Foods they had several brands of espresso ranging in price from $7.99 to $15.99. I really could not discern one brand as being better than the other so I went with this one, which was in the middle of the pack at $10.99. It comes in a burgundy, round canister. Anyway, I am really pleased with how my drink came out. I microwaved 1/4 Cup of half and half and added two shots of espresso. Simple, but good!

I enjoyed it very much with my bacon and eggs. Also, as two-cup a day coffee drinker I have to say I have not felt the effects of caffeine in quite a while. The espresso was a nice change and really got me going. I am yet to mess around with the milk frother but I am sure that will come soon! This will definitely be a weekend treat as it was a little more time consuming than making regular coffee and much more messy. All in all, I love having this option at home now! Also, I realized I need to buy some espresso mugs!

NFL Play-off Pool Update

Posted on January 19, 2010 | Leave a comment

If you are keeping an eye on the very riveting match up between Greg and I on our play-off pool, here is the update!

The first game of the weekend was the Arizona Cardinals at the New Orleans Saints. New Orleans was favored by 7 points and the over/under was 57. At first, Greg and I had the exact same picks: Arizona and the over.

The second game was the Baltimore Ravens at the Indianapolis Colts. The Colts were favored by 6.5 and the over/under was 45. We both took Indy and the under.

We were not very satisfied with the lack of differences in our picks because that’s not very fun! So we decided to flip a coin and the loser had to change one of their picks. We did this twice and Greg changed two picks: He took New Orleans and the under and left his Indy/Bal picks as they were.

The results: We split the first game as New Orleans covered and it went over and the second game we had the same things so nothing happened, though we both went 2-2.

For Sunday’s games we had some good variation. The first game was the Dallas Cowboys at the Minnesota Vikings. The Viking were favored by 3.5 and the over/under was 47. I picked the Cowboys and the under and Greg had the Vikings and the over. We split again 1-1.

The second game was the New York Jets at the San Diego Chargers. The Chargers were favored by 7 and the over/under was 42. I picked San Diego and the under and Greg picked San Diego and the over. We went 1-0 and I picked up another game.

So the standings going into next week are: Greg 8, Eileen 7. Three more games to go with the victor getting dinner at Black Market Bistro!

Winterfest 2010

Posted on January 19, 2010 | Leave a comment

Greg decided to name our most recent venture in small party hosting winterfest 2010. The party was more of a small gathering and featured some NFL playoffs, homemade chili, a Christmas-tree burning, spiked apple cider, and some good ole fashion beer pong.

We started off the day with a massive 2-hour long cleaning session and prepped for the party by setting up the fire ring and removing the tree from the house.

The fire set up

You were a good tree!

Next, it was time to get the chili going. In recent years we have used the crock pot to make chili but decided to try making it in the dutch oven this time around. First Greg browned the meat and transferred it into the dutch oven.

80/20 chuck

Then went in some other good stuff- chili seasoning, tomato sauce, crushed tomatoes, and several items not pictured, including cinnamon and chocolate powder!

After baking for several hours at 250 degrees the chili came out piping hot. Greg attempted to make this chili Cincinnati style, but the meat never really got down to the consistency he wanted. However, this chili was awesome! I think the dutch oven really made a difference and the flavors were really nice and complete. The party-goers must have agreed because there was nothing leftover 😦

chil-chil

The get together also gave some of our friends time to shine in the culinary sense as well. We got to sample these excellent bourbon cream mushroom pinwheels and homemade pretzel bites with cheez whiz (in the mini crock) for dipping.

These didn't last long...mmm....

Can't beat pretzels and cheez whiz!

Other culinary creations, which I forgot to take pics of (doh!) were crab dip and chocolate-peanut butter rice crispy treats!

The fire was a big success as well.

Cool pic of Heinz

Overall this party or gathering, whatever it was, was a lot of fun! We had about ten people not including Greg and I and I think everyone had a good time. I know we did!

Recipe for Chili- Cincinnati Style