snow day comfort food...

the weather in st. louis is erratic, to say the least. i didn't actually believe that we would get the monumental 6-11 inch snowfall that was promised--too many let downs in recent years. but, just in case, i got the fixins for comfort food.

to my delight, i woke to a winter wonderland and, as the snow quickly accumulated, i started pulling together this chicken pot pie. it's the easiest pie EVER. 

a bag of mixed veggies

one pound of chicken breast

one can of cream of potato soup

two pillsbury pie crusts

and the seasonings of your choice

line a pie pan with one of the pie crusts and bake at 350 for 10 minutes

cook chicken with seasoning in a covered pan till just to browning and pull from heat to cool

in a bowl, mix together veggies and potato soup--add about a fourth cup water

take chicken and chop, then mix into the veggie mixture. add a touch of salt and pepper

pour mixture into pie shell and cover with second pie crust--i brush the crust with a little olive oil and sprinkle sea salt on top. 

pop into the oven at 400 for 30 minutes

pull from oven and let set for about 5-10 minutes.

trying out the tomatillo...

the stonecutter mentioned tomatillos last week. hmmm. i've never cooked with tomatillos. 

i felt inclined to explore this ingredient, but with something somewhat simple at first. i dug up a pretty straight forward scrambled egg recipe, invited the stonecutter over, and gave it a whirl. (and i put him to work, of course!) 

the eggs were super yummy, and i served them with sausage and fresh apricots. i'm no longer afraid of the little tomatillo, but am interested in more ways to use this tasty veggie... ideas?

figgy butter love...

i had a couple of parties this past saturday. instead of trying to make two different dishes, i found one awesome treat and doubled the recipe. 

the awesome recipe was a fig jam. after i made it, i renamed it figgy butter because it has hazelnuts blended into it and it just seemed to be more nutty than figgy. next time, i'm dialing back the hazelnuts, yummy as they are. 

this is Giada De Laurentiis' recipe: 

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup water
• 12 dried black mission figs
• 3 tablespoons brandy or apple juice
• 1/2 cup hazelnuts, toasted * see Cook's Note

Directions

For the jam:

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, water, figs, and brandy (orapple juice) over medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, andsimmer for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved.

Remove the pan from the heat and allow the syrup to cool slightly, about 10 minutes. Pour into a food processor and add the hazelnuts. Blend until smooth and thick.

*Cook's Note: To toast the hazelnuts: preheat a 350 degree F oven. Arrange the nuts in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until lightly toasted. Cool completely before using.

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how to hide an egg...

i have a good friend who isn't opposed to eating eggs, but prefers that they are hidden. hmmmm. sure, you can wrap them in a breakfast burrito or hide them under salsa. those are excellent options.. but then THIS occurred to me... here's my suggestion... french toast!

egg? what egg?

just add "you"!

before i shoot anything... a portrait, pin up, family, wedding, event, food... really anywhere that i've been hired to shoot... i like to go ahead of time and scout the location.

i've got a wedding this weekend at the gateway center in collinsville. the location for the formals and wedding party shots has not been picked yet, so i took the liberty of exploring. i found a spiffy little put-put golf place across the street, some really cool walls on main street collinsville, and of course, the willoughby heritage farm.

what i tend to do is run around looking for "back drops". i will take a photo and imagine your fabulous face in the picture. 

i've been asked about this before, so i thought this was a perfect opportunity to share with you a little of my process. 

take a look at these photos and see if you can "see" a wedding couple in them. 

to me, this is like going out for ice cream.... a creative, mental treat!