Summer Solstice Supper

This week was full of delicious and healthy food! As everyone knows the summer solstice was on Tuesday and I was lucky enough to be invited to a Solstice Super at the CSA we belong to in our town. Willow Pond Community Farm is a small farm with about 75 families that help to keep the lettuce growing and the tomatoes bug-free.

To celebrate the beginning of the summer growing season and nurture some community bonds the farm hosted a dinner where everyone brought a dish that incorporated some kind of local ingredient. My mom recently acquired a Pampered Chef deviled egg holder/tray (yes they really exist) so she decided this was the perfect opportunity to use it! We also get free local eggs from a few of her friends who have chickens(can you tell we live in Brentwood, NH yet?). We give them our newspapers and they give us fresh local eggs. It’s a pretty good deal.

Anyways, the supper couldn’t have taken place on a more beautiful day! As families wandered in with homemade dishes in hand, my mom and I sat salivating at the sight of all this delicious food. 

Doesn’t she look pretty? Finally it was time to eat and we filled out plates high with gourmet goodies and earthy salads! It was a foodie’s paradise. Everything tasted so fresh and flavorful because it was literally grown from the land we were sitting on with the hands of the people sitting across the table from us. 

I had some kale quiche, pesto and roasted veggie pasta, a cheddar and chive scone, a garden salad (literally), a deviled egg (of course), some rhubarb cake, homemade strawberry frozen yogurt and much more! I was surprisingly not that full walking back to the car, probably because everything was so fresh and healthy.

And our deviled eggs were the hit of the buffet table. We went home with an empty Pampered Chef deviled egg holder, happy bellies and a new sense of appreciation for the farm and the people in our community. 

We also went home with yet another giant bag of kale from our CSA produce share. Which we promptly turned into kale chips. This is the only way we know how to make it edible. We seriously have a kale problem in this house. It sits around for days until someone makes chips with it or throws it out.

So how do you make kale delectable? I know it’s super healthy and I want to like it. Will it ever be something I crave? Please help!

Pizza and Cupcakes…all you really need.

Hello blogworld

I am back in action! Last weekend I finally found some time away from work and dance to explore some of the new restaurants and stores in downtown Portsmouth! That place has exploded in the past few months and there is so much to see and do all of a sudden.

Shawn and I had a hankering for pizza so we wandered over to the brand new Upper Crust of Portsmouth. I had been there before, but Shawn hadn’t so it was a new experience for him. (He was obviously very excited)

The space was a bit cramped, but we really liked the pizza tins hanging from the ceiling and everything was very clean. The manager was super nice, although it took a while to get our pizza. That was probably because we had a rediculous assortment of toppings as per usual. Once the pizza came out we were ravenous and the smell of melting mozarella and sizzling garlic was mouth-watering.

We ordered half a Gepetto’s Roasted Veggie which had red Sauce, mozzarella, herb roasted eggplant, zucchini, yellow squash and fresh basil and half a Pedro’s Steak & Gorgonzola Margherita which had marinated steak and gorgonzola cheese PLUS we added red peppers and onions to that half ALL on a whole wheat curst. Oh boy, tough to write and probably even tougher to make. I have to admit we are picky pizza eaters. We just really want it to be incredibly delicious. And this pizza did not dissapoint. It was amazing! The cheese was creamy, the veggies were fresh and the crust was perfect.

We basically rolled ourselves out of there, filled to the brim with pizza and wandered down the street to check out some of the other new stores.

Not suprisingly, we soon ended up at Portsmouth Baking Company for some dessert. I have to say, their sign alone made me want to come in. It’s bright blue and quite cheery! This place is apparently brand new also and was a bit overwhelming at first. It was just like walking into Willy Wonka’s factory! There is a trains that circles the whole dining room that brings samples from the glassed-in baking room upstairs down to the guests. How.awesome.is.that.

We were still incredibly full from the pizza so after a full 10 minutes of just staring at the luscious desserts and magical appeal of the whole place we ordered a Vanilla Cupcake with Chocolate Frosting to-go.

We told ourselves that we will be back ASAP because honestly PBC looks out-of-this-world. They also have lunch and dinner so we are planning to go back for one of those very soon. I can’t wait

All in all, it was a great afternoon out in downtown Portsmouth and we rolled ourselves home to enjoy an afternoon of….nothing …accompanied by Adam Sandler’s new movie Just Go With it, which happened to be quite hilarious!

I would definitely recommend these two new restaurants to Portsmouth go-ers…and the movie too.

Who knows where we’re going this weekend, but it better be delicious! What new restaurants have you gone to lately?

Have a great Saturday!

 

The Real World…

Hello blogworld!

It has been a long few months since my last post, mostly due to the fact that I have been finishing up school and graduating! Yes its true, I am now living as a real person in the real world…kinda. What is real is that I will now be blogging here as the Social Media Coordinator for The Meat House so you can find me there!

Enjoy the almost-summer weather

Trader Joe’s Road Trip

Hello! Happy Spring

The temps are estimated to climb near 70 degrees in New Hampshire today! The sun is shining, I’m on spring break, I just got a new used treadmill, everything is GREAT! OH AND I took a much needed road trip to Trader Joe’s on my way to pick up the treadmill. I had a gift card burning a giant hold in my pocket since Christmas! Unfortunately, there are no TJ’s in New Hampshire so its a trip to get myself to one every now and then, but it makes it that much more of a treat

So yesterday Shawn and I got quite a few items at the store:

TJ’s Fiberful dried fruit bars- so sweet yet so good for you.

TJ’s Whole Wheat Cinnamon Raisin English Muffins- amazzzzzing, why does no other brand make these whole wheat??

TJ’s Fleur de Sel Caramel Sauce- nuff said.

TJ’s Dark Chocolate Covered Pretzel Thins- addicting, half the bag was consumed on the way home with the boyfriend.

Racconto Whole Wheat Potato Gnocchi- hard to find, but so delicious!

I’m so excited to have these new natural treats in my kitchen

 

Oh and don’t get too jealous, my new used treadmill is from 1997.

I’m off to enjoy doing nothing for a few more days until the second half of my semester starts!!! Ahh!

-Katie

Fun and Games

Hello there! The weeks of the semester are flying by as rehearsals and projects fill up my schedule. This weekend Shawn and I attempted to make these S’more Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies. They were sinfully delicious and super fun to make! I would definitely recommend them for a rainy day activity

In other news, I decided to have a little fun with the newest thing gong around the blog community…

It’s the ABC Blogger game!

A. Age: 22, but still feel 17.

B. Bed size: Twin

C. Chore you hate: Changing or folding sheets! Anything to do with sheets really, they are just too big and unruly

D. Dogs: Are my new favorite animal! Ever since Theo came into my life I still love my kitties though!

E. Essential start to your day: Delicious breakfast with coffee, first thing. Otherwise I’m useless.

F. Favorite color: Pink or blue

G. Gold or silver: Silver, but white gold is best

H. Height: 5’5″

I. Instruments you play: None. But I had piano and saxophone lessons as a kid- major fail.

J. Job title: Full-time student at the moment. Currently seeking entry-level marketing position pertaining to social media or brand development in the natural foods or health industries.

K. Kids: Hate teaching dance to little ones(a.k.a babysitting), but love inspiring older ones.

L. Live: New Hampshire, beautiful but quiet.

M. Mom’s name: Debra

N. Nicknames: I’ve been called Stinky, Kate, Katrinnnnn (Grandpa), Pumpkin(Mom)

O. Overnight hospital stays: None

P. Pet peeve: Loud chewing. Loud people. Popcorn crinkling in movie theaters during silence. January Joiners- we were here before you, get off my treadmill!

Q. Quote from a movie: “I gave her my heart and she gave me a pen”- Say Anything (favorite movie)

R. Right or left handed: Right.

S. Siblings: Shane, Kevin, MeriJayd and Hali-Eden

 

T. Time you wake up: Usually around 8 or 9 if I can help it.

U. Underwear: N/A

V. Vegetables you dislike: Brussel sprouts, olives (is that a fruit?), lima beens

W. What makes you run late: I’m usually never late unless something unexpected happens like I get lost.

X. X-Rays you’ve had: Teeth, foot, back, knees- dancing is dangerous.

Y. Yummy food you make: Mostly everything…or I wouldn’t eat it? Duh.

 

Z. Zoo- favorite animal: Dolphins, so smart and sleek.

Share your ABC game with me!!

-Katie