Garlic Oven Fries

Here comes a simple one! Potatoes? check. Seasonings? check. And that's it! Thank goodness for easy recipes that don't require a trip to the grocery. I had all whopping four ingredients in my pantry so I decided to make this. I do love me some potatoes :)

I modified the basic Garlic Oven Fries recipe from the Pillsbury website by using Yukon Gold potatoes instead of red potatoes...because that's what I had on hand. This is supposed to be such a simple recipe, but would you believe that I couldn't figure out or remember how to cut the potatoes into wedge shapes?! I felt so silly. I mean, it can't be that hard! But it was for me, unfortunately. I'm sure I could have googled it, but I just went with it and just made them into as close to wedge shapes as I could. Very elementary of me. I am pretty sure I had to cook them longer than the recipe calls for. I like mine crispy, definitely cooked all the way through with a crisp finish on the outside. I don't remember the exact cooking time, but just cook it for as long as the recipe says, and keep checking on it afterwards to see if it needs longer to cook.

Garlic Oven Fries adapted from Pillsbury
Printable recipe

• 4 Yukon Gold potatoes, cut into wedges
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon freeze-dried basil
• 1 teaspoon garlic salt
• cooking spray

Heat oven to 500°F. Spray a pan with cooking spray to prevent potatoes from sticking. In medium bowl, toss potatoes with oil to coat. Sprinkle with basil and garlic salt. Arrange in single layer in baking pan. Bake uncovered 15 to 18 minutes, stirring once, until potatoes are tender but crisp on outside.

*Note: Potatoes may need to be cooked longer so that they are cooked through yet crisp on the outside.

Restaurant Review : Aynie's Nosh Box in Covington {CLOSED}

They finally got me to go back, and I was glad they did. I first tried Aynie's Nosh Box (in the Rivercenter building in Covington, KY) awhile back and ordered a breakfast sausage sandwich. It was nasty! The sausage was microwaved of course and just not good. It turned me off so much that I refused to go back. Every time my coworkers were going there, I opted for something else because of my bad first experience. They kept telling me to give it a second chance since I had ordered breakfast. Maybe this time lunch would be better. And it was. And it has been ever since. I'll save my breakfast runs for McDonald's, Waffle House, and Denny's.

So yes I had a bad first experience there. Good thing I like to give second chances. I finally gave in to my coworkers urges and went to Aynie's with them. It is located inside the Rivercenter building, on the second floor and to your left. They offer different monthly specials, and they also do daily specials which change... well.... daily! I have been back there three times since my breakfast catastrophe. Here are my experiences:

The first time I went back (after the nasty breakfast experience) I ordered a Gourmet Grilled Cheese with a combination of cheeses, and bacon on it. I think it is about $6 or so for a sandwich plus a side of your choice. You have to pay extra to add on a drink. The Gourmet Grilled Cheese was just ok to me, not very gourmet in my opinion. The cheese wasn't melted like I like mine. It had hardened and was more of a thick caked-up glob-like texture. I liked that it was on a panini-style bread though. I ordered that with a side of their dill potato salad, which again was just ok because I am not much of a potato salad lover. I wasn't blown away by their other side dish options so I opted for that potato salad, hoping maybe I could like it more. But it was just all right, nothing special. So my first trip back after the breakfast disaster was not too impressive....

 
Don't fret. I didn't give up hope again. It wasn't so bad that I didn't want to give it another try. I rationalized that I shouldn't expect a perfect grilled cheese. So I went back again, and this time ordered one of the specials at the time - a turkey sandwich with lettuce, cream cheese, and jalapeno jelly on it. It usually comes on an everything bagel, which also looked good. But I followed my coworker's lead and ordered it on the pretzel bun. He seriously eats there everyday, so I figured if anyone knew what was good... he would. I was excited for this sandwich - the lettuce was fresh looking and very green, and I was excited to try that jalapeno jelly and the pretzel bun. For a side, I ordered their potato soup. I was a little disappointed by the sandwich. The jalapeno jelly that I anxiously wanted to try was just as sweet as regular jelly. Granted, when I tasted a bit by itself, I could taste the jalapeno kick. But on the sandwich, it lacked heat. So I felt like I was eating a jelly turkey sandwich. And the pretzel bread seems like it could be good, but it just was sooo cold! I saw them microwave it, so I guess I was expecting it to be warm, which I would have liked better. But I think it was just frozen to begin with so they microwaved it to thaw it. It would probably be very good with a warm pretzel bun, or the everything bagel it is supposed to come on, and a spicier jalapeno jelly. The potato soup was superb. Absolutely delicious! But then again, like my name implies, I don't think I would dislike anything with potatoes in it. Two thumbs up for the soup, but maybe just a sideways thumb for the sandwich....

Alas, I went back again. By far the best item I have tried from there so far... their Buffalo Chicken Wrap. Um it was so divine! They cook the chicken in hot sauce so it has that buffalo-soaked taste. The lettuce again was fresh and bright. I got onion on mine, and some of their blue cheese cole slaw. It added a nice cooling sensation to offset the spicy buffalo flavor. I also got more blue cheese slaw as my side. My coworkers all agreed that this was one of the best things there! Too bad they don't have this on their menu everyday  :( 

Another thing that I am excited to try is their chicken caesar salad. If you read my Dewey's Pizza post, you know I am a sucker for a good caesar salad! I can't wait to try that next.

Aside from offering breakfast and lunch items, they also are a catering company. Check out their website for all of their catering info. If you have been to the Rivercenter building, you will know that there is seating outdoors (well, right now they are doing construction... but usually...). But usually we just get it to-go and bring it back to work to eat in our gorgeous lunchroom.

Since it is the month of October, they are offering a special of some kind... like a turkey sandwich with pumpkin butter on it. My coworker ordered it today and enjoyed it. Hmm, interesting....

Restaurant Review : Dewey's Pizza in Newport

One of my favorite pizza places in Cincinnati is Dewey's Pizza. I much prefer it to Larosa's and Donatos, but maybe that's just me. I sure do wish 1. there was one super close to me.... and 2. they delivered.  That would make my day, or better yet my life!

We usually go to the Dewey's in Clifton - it is our go-to place for birthdays and gatherings (on PJ's side of the family). His little brother, Fritz (don't you love his name?!) loves Dewey's. But this time I am reviewing the one in Newport on the Levee.

Let me start out by saying they are very smart for setting up a Dewey's in this location. It gets a high amount of traffic since it is on the Levee. Everytime we go here, it is packed. It is located inside of the building, so once you park in the lot make your way indoors. We dined in on this particular occasion, but do you know what else is great about this location? You can order a pizza and take it into the movie theatre with you! Yes, you read that correctly. I love that idea! Bye bye, expensive yucky movie theatre food (besides the popcorn smothered in butter, of course!)... hello Dewey's Pizza! I mean, pizza and movies just go together. The night did originally start out as a full on date night with movie and dinner. We had been to the Clifton Dewey's just days earlier celebrating the visit of PJ's cousin, Melissa, who came in from New York with her boyfriend. We loved it so much that we wanted to go back just the two of us days later. So we arranged to eat at Dewey's first and then see a movie (I forget which one now). However, the wait was too long at Dewey's for us to also have time to see the movie, so we returned our movie tickets and decided to just eat at Dewey's instead. Yes, Dewey's won out over the movie. Dewey's was indeed the reason for date night in the first place, so we choose food over movie. Like I said, we had to wait for a table to open up. We eventually were seated at a booth towards the back, which gave us a little privacy :)

I usually never order their salads, but I have seen others order their caesar salad before, and it just looked too good to pass up. It sure did seem like a big salad! And I liked the croutons... they were crispy, flat, buttery and seasoned well. I love me a good caesar salad.

They were having a special at the time and I had to try it - the Chicken Bacon Tomato Ranch pizza. PJ and I ordered one and shared it. It was really good. Until then, we had always ordered the Southwest BBQ Chicken pizza - that had been our favorite. We never ventured out to try any other kind, until now. That Southwest BBQ Chicken one is delish, with it's black bean corn salsa and BBQ sauce, but it was nice to try something different. We enjoyed this new kind very much, but I would probably still say that my favorite is the Southwest BBQ Chicken. Plus, they don't serve the Chicken Bacon Tomato Ranch kind regularly... it was like a special at that time.  Look at all that goodness - chicken, bacon, ranch, tomatoes, jalapenos. All of that = yum!

There is PJ enjoying his pizza, even though he doesn't look like it. He hates smiling for the camera. Just like a little boy not wanting his picture taken. His face does not depict the greatness of the food, and the fun we had. He had fun, I swear!

Oh yeah, I do remember that he kept saying it was way too hot in there though. I didn't notice because I don't get hot as easily as he does. But I guess he would say the restaurant lacked a certain comfort level because he was sweating profusely. Only downside I guess.

Dewey's is a definite keeper in my book. We don't get to eat here too often, but when we do it is always a delight.

Upcoming Review of CSN product

I have been wondering how people offer giveaways and do product reviews, and now I know! CSN Stores has contacted me and offered me a chance to do a product review. They offer tons of different household products, from cookware to bar stools and living room items, to office supplies and more!

I have my eye on several kitchen items such as some plates for displaying my food (for food photography), cake decorating sets, and a cast iron skillet. I really am just thinking along the lines of kitchen items. I can't wait to tell you guys all about my selection, once I choose! Stay tuned for my review, and hopefully one day I can provide you guys an opportunity to win something   :)

Day Ten

It has finally arrived - the last day of my 10 day blogging series. Technically, this would really be more like the 15th day since I actually started... but I took a few days off in between. I have been waiting anxiously for it to be over, and it's about to be! Way to keep it short again - only one thing to write about on my final day.

Day Ten: One confession.

I like Justin Bieber. He is a cutie and I actually like his songs. I first wanted to hate him, like the rest of the world, but once I heard his song and saw his adorable dance moves, I was hooked. I am guessing I should be a little embarrassed by that so.... shh, don't tell!

Mark Bittman's Scallops with Basil Stuffing

I'm not gonna lie. Before this challenge, I didn't know who Mark Bittman was. And since I started following the IHCC pretty late into the Mark Bittman challenges, I wouldn't say that I know much about him now. I do know that it was kind of hard for me to pick recipes of his that I wanted to create. I don't have any of his cookbooks, so I had to rely on online sources. And unfortunately I was never blown away by any of his recipe options. But I do love scallops, and anything that involves scallops. So I was happy to find this recipe - Grilled Scallops with Basil Stuffing. I didn't end up grilling my scallops, which may have been even better since I love the taste of grilled food. But I was pleased with this dish. I would make it again, but most definitely with fresh basil instead, and probably on the grill.  Just to see how Mark Bittman truly intended it. I would probably try it with some sort of sauce next time as well, but this is a good base for a simple scallop recipe.

Scallops with Basil Stuffing adapted from Mark Bittman

Printable recipe

• 1/4 cup freeze-dried basil leaves
• 1 clove garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• about 1 lb or less of large sea scallops

Mince the basil, garlic, salt and pepper together until very fine. (You can do this in a food processor, but I didn't). Mix in a small bowl with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Make a horizontal slit in the side of each scallop, but don't cut all the way through. Fill each scallop with a small portion of the basil mixture. Close the scallops. Pour the remaining oil onto a plate and turn the scallops in it. Let sit while you preheat a skillet (or grill).

Place the scallops on the skillet (or grill) and cook about 3 minutes on each side. Serve immediately.

I am linking this recipe to I Heart Cooking Clubs - it is the final week for Mark Bittman recipes. Join in next time for Giada recipes!

 

I am also linking up to Seasonal Sunday :)

Day Nine

Day Nine: Two words that describe your life right now.

1. Unorganized - My house is unorganized. There is always something that needs to be cleaned or organized. I need help with decorating! Basically I need help with making my house look like a home. Also, I am so unorganized with the whole grad school process... what to do first, what do I want to do, what school, any scholarships etc? I just feel like I need some order in my life.

2. Sick - I threw up this morning and feel like crap. I also am starting to feel the beginning signs of sickness, like a cold or the flu. Man, this happens every year. I wish I knew how to take better care of myself so I didn't get so sick every year  :(  Oh well, the show must go on. Or should I say, the work must go on....


So glad to be able to keep that short and sweet. Not in much of a blogging mood. 
Just need nap. 

And medicine. 

And PJ's arms.