Team O'Connor...

...bringing the heat (and hurricane-force winds) to the *Tight Ends* tonight. First draft pick in my girls Fantasy Football league. Watch your ponytails, ladies. Woo hoo! 

Crabs & Campbell

Saturday Jimmy had class and then we headed over to Mike and Brittany's for a blue crab feast! Joining us were some good friends of Mike and Brittany's, Ben and Lindsey. We've hung out with them before and Jimmy has surfed with Ben a couple of times. Anyways, they have a 2, almost 3 year old, who we had yet to meet. His name is Campbell and he's freakin' adorable. We played "bolleyball" together. At one point he said to me, "I think I'll call you Kate." Whatever floats your boat, Campbell. Later in the night, he played some guitar for us and then took some self-portraits with my camera. Too cute. Oh and the blue crabs were delicious.

Dinner Club

A couple months ago, I had an idea for a monthly get-together with girls. I bounced that idea off one of my colleagues and Amie who had done something similar in NY and so the Dinner Club was born. Everyone takes turns hosting and providing the entree. Each guest either brings a salad, side dish, bread, dessert, appetizer or a signature cocktail. Each month the dinner theme changes. Everyone brings recipe cards for the dish they made, so we all walk away with new recipes each night. Oh and we're totally stuffed. It's a win win.

I hosted the first dinner this past Thursday and it was a big success! Here are the details. I apologize in advance, but I was a little too preoccupied with hosting to take pictures. Plus, I was in the company of some newer friends, so I didn't want to wig them out with my obsession with blogging and taking pics of food...

• Theme: Southern Eclectic
• Menu
• Appetizers: Fried Green Tomatoes with Cajun Remoulade & Mini Sloppy Joes
• Signature Cocktail: Raspberry Lemonade Mimosas
• Entree: Shrimp & Grits (from Crooks Corner in Chapel Hill, NC)
• Side: Mac & Cheese
• Bread: Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread
• Salad: Spinach & Strawberry
• Dessert: Peach Cobbler

Too bad we couldn't have taken a field trip to Charleston for this dinner club. Oh well, we were there in spirit...

Recent Recipes

While Jimmy was away at class last night, I made this pasta for us to have for lunch today and tomorrow and I must say it was pretty tasty. I subbed some of the milk for chicken broth and added a little swiss and leftover cream cheese I had in the fridge. I also opted to use a whole bag of fresh spinach - it wilts to nothing the second the hot cheese sauce hits it - instead of frozen spinach. Lastly, I used whole wheat shells. Not exactly super healthy, but a must try nonetheless...

Speaking of not super healthy, I made this cobb salad for dinner tonight. What? It has the word salad in it. And I used a vinegarette instead of blue cheese dressing. That counts for something. Anywho, I think cobb salads are great because you can pretty much add whatever veggies you have lying around as additional "layers" and/or switch out the protein to include turkey, ham, etc. Using a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken made this a very quick meal to pull together. In case you can't see, our salad included hard-boiled eggs, bacon crumbles, chicken, tomatoes, green onions and (of course) lettuce. Should have also used an avocado, but couldn't find any good ones...

Surf House

Last night Jimmy and I rode our bikes to a new surf shop/cafe on the island for dinner. The location is actually the old Cove Surf Shop, which was owned by our next door neighbor. On Friday nights the Surf House does live music and plays a surf movie on a projector screen. The menu is just salads, sandwiches and tacos for lunch/dinner and a few pastries and sandwiches for breakfast, but everything is organic and really fresh. In the Fall and Winter they also have clam chowder, which actually took the blue ribbon in the Pleasure Island Chowder Cook-Off last year. All in all, Jimmy and I give Surf House two thumbs up! Below are a few shots of the place. Unpictured: turkey cuban with homemade potato salad for Jimmy, grilled mahi mahi sandwich with marinated chickpeas for me, almond joy cupcake and key lime pie cupcake. Yummy!

Carolina Beach is kind of a big deal...

It might not seem noteworthy to our readers, but it's big news for us. Carolina Beach is getting a.... DRUMROLL PLEASE... Harris Teeter! For anyone who doesn't know what Harris Teeter is, it's a nice grocery store with a legit deli, fresh produce, good beer & wine selection. They are all over Wilmington, just never in Carolina Beach.

The Sea Merchant is currently where I do all my shopping on the island.

I kid. I kid. While this place is awesome in a retro, old beach town, your teenager cashier is barefoot and pregnant in a tube top kind of way, I usually venture the extra mile to our local Food Lion - the pond scum of the bigger grocery store chains.

Anyways, I've said enough. Let's just leave it at, we're excited.

Blueprints - Subway Tile

I love, love, love subway tile. Kitchens, bathrooms, white, colored, big and small. I just think it's really classy and a great investment for any house, as it really never becomes outdated. You'll see it in my house someday. That's a promise. Oh and I'd adopt these little boys if Jimmy would let me...

Reminder

Make me with all the leftover Thanksgiving turkey you can find in a couple months. Until then, enjoy me with shredded chicken at lunch tomorrow.

Thanks,
Brown Rice Casserole with Leftover Turkey, Mushrooms, Sour Cream, Cheese & Thyme

P.S - I'm relatively light, but still super delicious...

Paying His Way

I feel like an elated parent... Jimmy got two As this semester which means both classes went entirely on Castle Branch's tab. Getting an education is great, but getting a free one is even better!!

Weekend in Review

This past weekend we were graced with the presence of Chris Gregory, one of Jimmy's best friends from high school. Chris lives in Tampa, FL, but has friends in both Myrtle Beach and the Wilmington area (us!), so he decided to make a 2-for-1 trip. Jimmy actually had the week and weekend off from school, so it was doubly fun!

First there was a little of this...

Then some music and dinner at the Tiki Bar...

Then we took Chris out to some other local spots. Chris was cracking us up...

Sunday was way low key and then Chris left early this morning. I feel like the weekend went by really fast, but all in all it was great. Now back to the grind...

Donovan McEgg Scramburglar alert!

In honor of the Redskins victory over the Buffalo Bills, Kaylie cooked a breakfast egg casserole and we named it after Redskins QB, Donovan McNabb (with a little help from Spencer on the name)...

RIP

Another one bites the dust, hey hey, another one bites the dust...

That's right, folks, Jimmy's ole' Montero is done for. Without a new engine, she's just scrap metal. Stinks that she had to give up now, but we knew it was going to be sometime soon anyways. Wish us luck in our search for a used, reliable and affordable truck for Jimmy...

In happier news, Jimmy's friend Chris Gregory is coming for a visit this weekend from Tampa, FL. Should be a very good time...

Blueprints - Kitchen Office

I have very fond memories of my grandparent's house where as a child I spent at least one week a summer (sans my parents and siblings) and weekends here and there for other visits. I can remember it like it was yesterday, sitting at the desk in their kitchen doodling and making calls home to tell my parents all the fun I was having on my summer vacation. Throughout my life, most other "offices" I've known have also been in the kitchen or direct extensions of the kitchen - the heart of every household. Who needs a big, grandiose office for paying bills and minimal record keeping? Not me. I much prefer something like seen below.

Congrats!

Congratulations to my master, the pack leader, the alpha dog, my best friend...You're 2/12 aka 1/6 the way through grad school today. I hope I can be half the man you are someday. I think the new duds are a good start. Hurry home so we can celebrate!

Love,
Malloy

Best Mac and Cheese

Jimmy had to study all weekend, so it was pretty much just me the last couple days. I enjoyed some much needed rest and relaxation on the beach and otherwise took it pretty easy all weekend. Saturday night I made a green curry dish for dinner (I had so much lemongrass, kaffir leaves, etc left over from the first time). This morning I made edamame hummus and then whipped up a yummy veggie sandwich for myself. I've read a couple times on Peanut Butter Runner about Great Harvest Bread Company and come to find out I drive by our local Great Harvest Bread Company everyday on my way to work and had never really taken notice. I'll definitely be a frequent customer from here on out...

For dinner tonight, it was a side dish that was the star of the show. My brother sent me two mac and cheese recipes that he thought looked good and I pulled my favorites from each to make what I swear is the best mac and cheese I've ever had. Thanks for the recommendations, Colin! Initially caveat, this recipe is not for the faint of heart or the health conscious. Once you commit to making it, you've just got to go for it!

Combination of Lucky 7 Mac and Cheese and Homestyle Mac and Cheese Recipes

3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup sharp cheddar
1/2 cup bleu cheese
1/2 cup colby
1/2 cup swiss
1/2 cup monterey jack
1/2 cup cream cheese
1 lb elbow pasta
1 tablespoon dijon mustard
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Cook pasta per directions (minimum length)
3. Meanwhile, add butter and flour to saucepan to create roux. Next add the heavy cream, all the cheeses, dijon mustard and salt and pepper and stir until melted and combined. 
4. Combine the elbow pasta the cheese sauce. Put in a greased 9x13 baking dish. 
5. I choose to top mine with panko crumbs that I tossed in a little melted butter. 
6. Bake for 20 mins

Note that you can use any combination of cheeses, as long as you end up with 3.5 cups. So bad but so good...

TS Colin is good to us

Time to head to campus and hit the books...tropical storm colin brought chest-head high waves this am! Perfect conditions, zero wind and glassy!

Blueprints - Built-in Bookshelves

This is the first in a post series I'm going to call Blueprints. Blueprints is my way of cataloging aspects of house design that catch my eye. While I love, love, love my house and feel very fortunate every day for our slice of Heaven by the beach, I also have a natural wanderlust for things 700 S. 5th Street just didn't come with. I figure if Jimmy and I ever remodel a room in a house or build a house someday, I'll always have my Blueprints, my inspirations, big and small, to refer back to. I hope I don't bore you too terribly. So here we go...

Hi, I'm Kaylie and I'm a book hoarder. I love getting books as gifts, buying my own books and being loaned a book. I don't like book-for-book exchanges or, God forbid, just flat out loaning someone a book - what if they don't give it back?!?! I don't like libraries because then you have to return the book. And my Kindle, as cool as it is, definitely goes against the grain of my obsession. All this babble aside, it's always been a dream of mine to have big built-in, best case scenario, floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. I especially love when they straddle doorways and windows like pictured below. We already have my hoarded loot, so now all we need is a wall and a little wood, right?

Another First

Not much to report from these parts. Jimmy is busy studying for exams and I'm just consumed with feeding him! We had a single NY strip in the freezer from a bachelor meal never made (I was in Charlotte with my favorite girls when he bought it), so I sliced that really thin and did a beef, broccoli and mushroom stirfry. It was very yummy. Of course, I was too hungry to pause to take pics.

For lunch (BOOORRRING, I know), we're doing our own rendition of these buffalo chicken wraps and this watermelon feta salad. I can't tell you how many times I have seen watermelon, feta and mint salads in magazines, cookbooks, etc lately and I've yet to try one until now, well tomorrow at lunch really. Looking forward to it. Hopefully I have something non-food related to talk about soon. It's a Heintzelman thing. I think with food if that makes any sense. Happy Hump Day tomorrow!

Kitchen Time

This afternoon I spent some time in the kitchen making some things for our  lunches this week and dinner tonight and I thought I'd share the recipes...

First up, lunch on Monday and Tuesday of this week will be "grown-up" turkey sloppy joes on wheat buns and cream & vinegar cucumbers.

"Grown-Up" Turkey Sloppy Joes

1. Saute 1 chopped onion with a little vegetable oil
2. When onions are translucent, add 1 lb ground turkey and cook until turkey is no longer pink
3. Drain turkey and onions, then return to pan
4. Add 1 cup ketchup, couple dashes of garlic powder, couple dashes of worcestershire, couple dashes of red pepper flakes, 2 tbsp. brown sugar, 1 tbsp soy sauce, pinch of salt and pepper
5. Mix and let simmer for a couple minutes
6. Serve hot on wheat buns

Cream & Vinegar Cucumbers

My mom made these growing up and I always loved them. Very refreshing side dish for the Summer!

1. Peel 4 cucumbers and slice into thin rounds
2. Combine the cucumbers with 1 cup cream (sour cream, half and half or heavy cream will work), 1 cup vinegar (red wine or apple cider), 1 cup white sugar, pinch of salt and 2 tsp. dill
3. You can eat immediately, but they're far better when left to sit. 

I had a hard time menu planning this morning for dinners this week.  For some reason, I wasn't feeling anything. I was looking through the refridgerater and saw that I had about a half pack of corn tortillas left over from the other weekend and suddenly it came to me - that Mexican chicken casserole thing my mom used to make with tortillas. I called my mom and she gave me the recipe, which happened to actually be a recipe she got years ago from my Grandma Heintzelman. I'll call it...

Mexican Chicken Tortilla Casserole

1. Combine 4 cups shredded cooked chicken, 8 oz. sour cream, 9 oz. diced green chiles (I doubled the original recipe because I love green chiles), 1 can low-fat cream of chicken soup and 1 can low-fat cream of mushroom soup
2. Add to this bitesize pieces of tortillas. My grandma's recipe says to use 12 flour tortillas, but I had the little corn ones, I think I used maybe 15 of them?!?
3. I also opted to add to this mixture about a tsp. of cumin and a tsp. of Emeril's Southwest Essence
4. Add chicken and tortilla mixture to a greased 9x13 baking dish and top with 1 cup of low-fat milk and 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
5. Bake uncovered at 325 degrees for 1 hour

Bel Far Niente

"Bel far niente" means the beauty of doing nothing in Italian. I learned it from a book I'm reading and I thought it was an appropriate title for my Sunday AM post...

There was a lot of beer drinking going on in Carolina Beach yesterday... just not by me and Jimmy. Jimmy had class so it was just me during the day. I did a quick P90X workout in the AM and then decided to head down to the beach. Every Saturday, Carolina Beach has a Farmer's Market at the lake that I had yet to go to, so I took the long way to the beach to swing by and see what it was all about. It was just okay. I can admit though that I'm completely biased since I have the Santa Monica Farmer's Market as my benchmark. Oh well, it was definitely worth checking out...

Here's me on the beach with my Carolina Beach Kindle cover - a ziplock freezer bag. What?!? It works. I just finished reading The Help, which I thoroughly enjoyed, and now I'm reading Eat Pray Love. I never really had any interest in reading Eat Pray Love and then I saw previews for the movie with Julia Roberts and it kind of sparked something in me. So far, so good. 

Saturday afternoon Jimmy came home pretty tired from class so we opted not to attend the first annual Carolina Beach beerfest. We could, however, hear the bands and all the action from our porch and it sounded pretty fun. We decided instead to just go out for dinner and take it easy, so we rode our bikes to Michael's, a good seafood place on the island. We had 4 small appetizers for dinner instead of entrees, ahi tuna & buffalo shrimp (not pictured - too hungry) and crab dip & a black and bleu crab pizza. Yummy!

Here's me trying to take a picture of Malloy when we got home. I didn't zoom. That's just how close he gets to the camera every time I try to photograph him. He totally doesn't get the concept of just sitting there and acting natural...

Today it's a little grocery shopping, laundry and cooking. Happy Sunday!