I was 18 that summer, the summer before I would move out east to attend college. The summer before everything would change. In the true spirit of my family we took one of our crazy  last minute road trips to Memphis, TN for some barbecue and blues. I didn't think there existed a place more muggy than St. Louis, but Memphis sure had the old STL beat. Nonetheless, the food, the music and the company were great. Walking down Beale Street and eating at BB Kings is a memory I wont soon forget, especially considering the crazy street performers that enraptured me. Fried green pickles are still one of my favorite snacks, when I can get them of course. I remember going in and out of kitschy shops and coming across a sign that said "Put some south in your mouth!" My parents quickly herded my younger brother and I along because of the obvious connotation. But when I was planning this week's meals based on our share, I knew I would be using the cornmeal to make some grits and bringing some south to our mouths here in, what I fondly call, the arctic north.

Special thanks to Lucky Penny Farm for generously providing the goat chevre  for this post!

Shrimp 'n grits
***I originally found the recipe for the shrimp in this dish on Food Network's website. I should have trusted my gut when I had doubts about the preparation because it definitely not my favorite. So this recipe represents what I should have done and will do in the future when I make this again. Because even though the shrimp was a little bleh, the grits and greens were amazing!


1 C stone ground cornmeal (Source: Stutzman Farms, FFM)
1 C water
1.5 C chicken or veggie stock (Source: homemade from the bones from our FFM chicken)
1/4 C whole milk or cream (Source: Snowville Creamery, FFM)
4 oz chevre (Source: courtesy of Lucky Penny Farm)
1 TBL butter
fresh parsley (Source: fire escape garden)
fresh chives (Source: fire escape garden)

Shrimp- try to find some big tiger shrimp, mine were a little sad
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 TBL butter
1 TBL olive oil

Mustard greens (Source: FFM)
Beet greens (Source: FFM)
2 TBL olive oil

Chevre Grits-
Bring stock and water to a boil and lower heat to medium low. Add cornmeal in slowly while whisking to avoid lumps. Stir occasionally and let grits cook for about 5-10 minutes or so. Whisk in the butter, milk, and chevre and remove from heat.

Shrimp-
Heat oil and butter in a skillet and cook onions and garlic until soft. Saute shrimp until pink. Be careful not to overcook the shrimp as they will become tough.

Greens-
Saute your greens on high heat in a skillet with olive oil. S&P to taste

Serve shrimp and greens over grits.

I'm a collector. Of recipes, of vintage and sometimes antique kitchen items and linens, cobalt blue glass, of good books, of passport stamps and memories. Growing up in St. Louis one of my favorite memories was checking out garage and estate sales with my mom and cousin during the summer. We'd always find something we absolutely had to have. I distinctly remember the day we picked up a vintage black and white pony purse (not a horse, but the pattern) and some gloves. Playing dress-up was never quite the same after that as store bought princess costumes just didn't seem to pack the same punch. My love affair with things old and "used" grew as the years went by, partially because of the frugality of it, but mostly because I love things with history. There's just something about furniture that has endured the ages or as my grandpa used to say, "They just don't make things the way they used to!"

When I lived in Scotland for a semester my senior year of college I collected china teacups from every town that I visited. I always smile whenever I use them because they bring back a flood of memories from that special time in my life. Although the photo of today's meal is less than impressive, the dish I served it in was a piece I collected from an antique mall near where I went to college. Considering one of our first dates when we first met in college was a picnic, it seemed appropriate to use this dish on a picnic at the Tremont Farmer's Market. Here's to things that last- memories and all.

Carmelized Onion Quinoa and Lentil Salad
** When I was preparing this dish to take to the market, I realized I was out of feta. An atrocity of epic proportions in our home, but I knew that Lucky Penny's stand would be there and could rescue us from our feta-less-ness.






1 C organic quinoa
1 C lentils de puy or any lentils you have on hand (I soak my lentils over night to reduce cooking time)
h2o
1-2 onions, thinly sliced 1/4" on mandoline (Source: FFM)
olive oil
butter (Source: FFM- it's the never ending butter roll!)
parsley (Source: Fire escape garden)
Chives (Source: Fire escape garden)
Cilantro (Source: Tink Holl Market)
Feta (Source: Lucky Penny Farm)
Sriracha Sauce
Lemon juice

Cook your quinoa (1:2 ratio) either in the microwave or on the stove top. Meanwhile, boil your lentils until tender and strain. Melt butter and olive oil in a skillet and toss in the sliced onions. Cook on medium heat until tender and reduce heat to medium low and continue to cook until golden. I never have enough patience for this step so I could probably cook mine a little longer than I do. I have also heard you can caramelize onions in the oven- something I will definitely try next time!

Slightly cool your quinoa and lentils and toss with a little bit of olive oil and lemon juice. S&P (keep in mind the feta will add some salt!), and a few drops of Sriracha Sauce (a little goes a long way here!). Chop up your herbs and toss with the rest of the ingredients. Crumble feta over the top and serve. This is great as leftovers either room temperature or cold, though I have warmed it up a little in the microwave before eating and it was great that way too!

I have struggled with a chronic pain condition for the last 8 years and last year I decided I was going to challenge myself to a half marathon. I started training June of last year for the Cleveland half that would be in May 2010. Unfortunately, I somehow injured my knee in October and wasn't able to run for the next 6 months. I was pretty disappointed that I didn't meet my goal but then I remembered that there was still time in 2010! So, after my knee miraculously healed I started training for the Cleveland Towpath Half Marathon in Oct. 2010. It hasn't always gone as smoothly as I would like but I keep reminding myself that life is a marathon, not a sprint. I just have to finish, it doesn't matter how slow I go to get the job done. While running yesterday I was rocking out to my jams (I love my new Ipod Nano that has a radio!) and dreaming about dinner. I was only out on a 30 minute run and it ended much worse than it started, but the thought of this delicious dinner kept me going. I love me some carbs! Also to my delight this dish photographed as good as it tasted.

Kale Whole Wheat Fettucini
**Swiss chard is another one of my favorite greens and goes well with a fatty meat like bacon. If you're meat free, pine nuts and cranberries are also delicious! This recipe made enough for the two of us to have large helpings and leftovers for lunch.





1 lb fresh whole wheat fettuccine (Source: Ohio City Pasta, FFM)
1-2 lb Kale: any kind of you like (Source: FFM)
1 large onion sliced thinly on a mandolin- 1/4" thick
3-4 cloves garlic diced
red pepper flakes
olive oil
8 oz bacon (Source: New Creation Farm, FFM)
2-3 oz chevre (Source: Lucky Penny Farm)

Clean and destem your chard. You will probably feel like you have way too much chard. You don't, trust me. It will cook down to a manageable portion. Slice up your onions and dice your garlic. Bring salted water to a boil. Cook up your bacon and chop coarsely.

Heat olive oil in skillet on medium-high heat and cook your onions 'til golden. Carefully add the chard in batches, allowing each batch to cook down a little bit before adding the next to make room in the pan. When swiss chard is all in the pan, let it wilt down about 5+ minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes S&P and cook for another 5 minutes or so until the chard is tender but still green. Cook pasta to al dente- fresh pasta takes about 4-6 minutes. Drain pasta and add to skillet with your greens. Toss in the bacon. Serve with a dollop of chevre or crumbled feta on top.

**Note about the chevre: Lucky Penny gave me a 4 oz container of the chevre about 2 or so weeks ago. I used most of it in the cheesecakes last week and it was still good this week, despite being past it's "use by date" which was a pleasant surprise!