I’m already ready to go back to Asheville. We had so much fun and enjoyed so many great eats! You can check out my Asheville posts by clicking here to go to the first one. Then, look for the “Next” link at the bottom of the post, after the comments, and click on that link to view the next post, etc. Or, click here to go to my last post, and check out the list of links to the others.

Now, onto the rest of my vacay week…

We headed to my family’s house after leaving Asheville. It’s about one hour away, so it seemed to make sense to stay in the area and spend Easter with them. I’m still in seek-relaxation mode, so all I really wanted to do was spend some QT with the fam, rest, and enjoy tasty eats. That was easy enough…

Dad made his famous breakfast potatoes the first morning while mom was at work.

My mom actually ended up working two 12-hour shifts while we were there, so we decided to keep things extra low-key for Easter dinner. We had plans to cook a big turkey, but my parents forgot to take it out early enough to let it defrost. It ended up working out okay, because I think everyone was pretty tired for various reasons. Hubby and my dad ended up purchasing two already-cooked rotisserie chickens from the grocery store.

While they were out shopping, mom and I harvested almost all the leaves of this swiss chard plant from their garden.

We had a big bowl full, but I knew they’d shrink down.

I sauteed them with olive oil, garlic, chicken broth, salt, and pepper.

The Easter spread – rotisserie chicken, saffron rice, steamed green beans, sauteed swiss chard, and cranberry sauce.

The next morning, I woke up to a treat. Sis was baking. Not only was she baking (trust me, anything she makes is delish), but she was baking something extra-cool (to me, at least). She recently told me she’d adapted my Green Monster Muffin recipe to something new – Acorn Squash Muffins. These were exactly what was going in the oven as I walked downstairs to pour my morning cuppa joe.

I wish we had a way to share smells through computers, because these smelled wonderful. Fresh-baked muffins are a frequent occurrence at my parents’ house and really smell like home to me.

{The breakfast spread}

Sis wrote down her adapted recipe for me, so I’ll share it on the blog sometime if you’re interested.

And our last meal of the trip – teriyaki shrimp, zucchini with onions, steamed rice with a drizzle of soy sauce, and my sis’ famous miso soup. I really wish I had this for lunch again today!

As you can see, the food of the long weekend was stellar. As for relaxation, hubby and I watched the whole first season of Game of Thrones, plus we got to see the first episode of the new season. Sometimes there’s just nothing like totally vegging out in front of the TV. We also managed to eat BBQ at my favorite joint in town, play disc golf, sleep in, and visit my favorite G-Vegas coffee shop.

Reader question: How was your weekend? Did you celebrate Easter? Did you do anything special?

Wednesday’s photos were awkward in numbers. I debated on whether I should break them into two posts or three, but 38 photos in one post seemed excessive, so three it is!

If you’re catching up, here are my previous Asheville posts:

• Asheville and the Piano Man at Vincenzo’s
• Breakfast and Books & Breadboard
• Biltmore Gardens – Spring 2012
• Jerusalem & Dobra Tea
• Visiting Biltmore & A Box of Wine
• Homegrown & French Broad Chocolate

We had another tasty breakfast at the B&B, starting with a baked apple topped with a dollop of vanilla yogurt and cinnamon. I’m going to have to try re-create this one for the blog sometime – it was really good!

Here’s hubby trying to swipe all of the blueberry muffins.

And we had tomato quiche for the main event with sausage and potato. It was a great, filling start to the day.

My dad really wanted to see the Grove Park Inn, so we took a quick trip over for a peek.

Grove Park reminded me of a mountain-themed Disney resort. It was huge and had tons of themed decorations around.

Mom really wanted to take us to the terrace to check out the view.

She had a dinner here once after a work conference and remembered how gorgeous the view was. Just look at it!

Dad gave us pennies to make wishes into the waterfalls and pools behind the main building.

I had considered staying at the Grove Park Inn when I was researching places for Asheville, and though it was pet-friendly, I was looking for something a little smaller and personable. Has anyone stayed here? I bet it’s really nice!

After our trip to Grove Park, we headed to Biltmore Village for lunch.

Of all the places I researched and had heard about when I asked others for recommendations, The Corner Kitchen came up over and over again. I was really excited to try it.

The inside was small-ish, but very bright, open, and airy. It was very refreshing.

I liked the fresh flowers on the table.

Hubby had the crab and corn chowder and shared a bite. It was really good (as was the biscuit, which I also got to taste).

I had the chicken pot pie. Probably not the best choice for lunch (pot pie makes me think dinner for some reason), but I really wanted to try it, and I knew we wouldn’t have time to go back for dinner this trip.

The filling was really, really creamy and had a slight orange tinge to it. My dad thought maybe it was from tomatoes? I thought it was really tasty, as was the side salad that came with it.

Sis had the sorbet with blueberries. I got to try a bite of this one, too, and it was really good and had an excellent after-taste that was almost better than the original bite!

Overall, I really liked The Corner Kitchen. I’d definitely like to come back here for dinner next time we’re in town…and possibly for lunch to try their lavender chicken salad. That one sounded really interesting. Oh, and they do a souffle dessert, but it’s only available at dinner – I’d really like to try that sometime, too!

After lunch, I headed out to downtown Asheville with my sister for shopping. More on that next time!

Reader question: have you been to Asheville before? Where did you stay and would you recommend it? Has anyone out there tried the Grove Park Inn?

Catching up? I’m blogging about my vacation to Asheville, NC, and here are some of the posts so far:

• Asheville and the Piano Man at Vincenzo’s
• Breakfast and Books & Breadboard
• Biltmore Gardens – Spring 2012
• Jerusalem & Dobra Tea

I’ll return to recipe blogging next week, so if the vacation/life posts aren’t your thing, check back then.

Tuesday began at the B&B.

Since we had so many people, we enjoyed breakfast inside.

We had fresh fruit, cranberry muffins…

…and an egg souffle-type thing that reminded me a bit of one of my egg bakes with Canadian bacon and a croissant.

After breakfast, we relaxed at the B&B for a bit and then headed over to the Biltmore house to see the inside of the house (since we saw the gardens yesterday).

{Alphie?}

Dad wanted to go on the architect’s tour, which wasn’t available for another hour and a half after we got there. So, we decided to go ahead and have lunch. We had originally planned to have lunch outside of Biltmore, but since we were already there, we decided to stay.

We ended up going to the Stable Cafe at Biltmore, which was right next to the house. I’d read about the place on Yelp and heard that it was pretty good, but touristy. It was definitely touristy, reminding me a bit of Disney.

Sis and I had cheeseburgers, which were made with grass-fed Angus beef from the Biltmore house.

We had to wait about 30 minutes for our table, and the environment was a bit crowded and loud for me, but considering the convenience of it all, it was a good choice. Our waitress took great care of us, ensuring my dad’s entree was expedited since he was the one who had to make a tour. She was also really friendly and made sure we always had what we needed. Even though the place was touristy, our food was really good. Dad really liked his chicken salad sandwich, and Sis and I enjoyed our burgers. I can see why people recommend going to Books & Breadboard (which we loved and really is just next to the Biltmore entrance/exit), but since it can take awhile getting in and out of Biltmore (parking, plus a shuttle or 5 minute-ish walk to the house, plus the winding road in and out), the Stables are a good choice, too.

After lunch ended, we came outside to see it was raining. We all ran to the house and went on tours to wait out the rain. Dad really loved the architect’s tour, which I’d love to do next time I visit.

After a quick shopping trip, we decided to head to Antler Hill for more Biltmore fun.

{Shuttle line}

We went to the place I was most interested in visiting – the winery. We went on a tour.

{Clock tower}

{WIP – wine in process}

And the tour ended in my favorite room – the tasting room.

Here you sampled some of the popular Biltmore wines (premium wines being available for tasting for a price in another room). I really liked how they gave you a list so you can add remarks and check the ones you wanted to buy.

I sampled several of the whites and reds and discussed favorites with hubby so we could decide which to purchase. I warned him that I wanted to leave Biltmore with a box of wine.

The last time I came here, I was a broke college student and couldn’t afford any of the wine (a friend even bought my ticket). I remember watching the people load up their cars on their way out with boxes full of delicious Biltmore wine (I remember really loving them when I sampled them the first time). So, I promised myself the next time I went, I’d leave with a box.

Voila!

Okay, one box is for my parents and one box is for hubby and me. Still, mission accomplished!

Reader question: What is your favorite wine or who is your favorite wine maker?

Cheers from Asheville! We’re winding down from our first full day of fun here at the bed and breakfast. I think I took a few too many photos (I’m having so much fun with my new camera!), so I’m going to try to break our activities up into a couple posts per day.

Catching up? You can check out my first post from our Asheville trip by clicking here {Vincenzo’s & the piano man}.

Today started with our first ever bed and breakfast meal. Check out our amazing and relaxing view. Can’t you just hear the birds chirping?

We started with coffee, water, juice, and fresh fruit.

For the main event, we had french toast, which was topped with a sprinkling of sliced almonds, coconut, and a slice of bacon…plus whipped cream on the side. The french toast was nice and custard-y.

After breakfast, hubby and I headed back to our room to relax and wait for the arrival of my family. We’ve done a big family vacation with hubby’s family the last few years, so it seemed like a good idea to spend a couple days of our Asheville vacay with mine.

My family arrived ravenous, so we quickly headed out to one of the restaurants I researched that I was really anxious to try and thought my family would enjoy – Books & Breadboard.

The restaurant is combined with an independent book store.

My book worm dad was in his element.

I managed to find a couple good reads for hubby and I.

After perusing the bookstore for a bit, it was back to the restaurant area.

I had the mixed berry mimosa with muddled fresh berries to drink.

Our entrees were beautifully presented…on breadboards. Dad had the smoked trout sandwich with a pickle, Terra chips, and Deco Slaw.

I was torn between the turkey sandwich, chicken salad, and the quiche of the day, so I asked the waitress which she suggested. She said their quiche was the best around, and that was a sure-fire bet.

So, I had to try it, of course. Do you see it in this photo? It was a BIG slice…and why they call it “mile-high.”

Our waitress said the quiche was light and fluffy. She was right…about the quiche being the best around and being light and fluffy. It was both…and delish! I’m a big quiche fan.

Here’s a quick pic of Sis’s lunch – the ham sandwich with the mustard on the side.

And since we were sitting close to the dessert display, we had to order a little bit to taste.

Dad really wanted to try the carrot cake, especially after our waitress said this was the best carrot cake around. I was skeptical since they already had the best quiche, but she was right about this one, too! I really did think this was one of the best carrot cakes I’ve had. Not only that, but my dad, who is an experienced carrot-cake eater, proclaimed this to be the best he’s ever had. We really liked how they kept the texture of the fruits and nuts a bit on the chunkier side.

Sis really wanted to try the chocolate bread pudding, and she was not disappointed. I tried a bite of this one, too, and it was good…but not as good as the carrot cake. Though, I’m not sure Sis would agree. She was in love with the bread pudding.

Books & Breadboard was amazing! I highly recommend checking this place out if you’re ever in Asheville. It’s right next to the entrance to the Biltmore House, so it’s pretty conveniently located. But location aside, the food is great, they support local artisans & local food, and the people who work there are super friendly. It’s a must-see!

Up next – our trip to the Biltmore Gardens.

Sometimes I say I don’t have time to read, but that’s such an excuse, ya know? We each get the same 24 hours/day, but we choose to use that time differently. Saying “I don’t have time to <insert activity of choice>” is one of the most cringe-worthy excuses in my mind, though I do find myself saying it from time to time. *sigh* I always remind myself about the “same 24 hours” idea, though…it helps keep me in check.

Anywho, I’m hoping to start making some time at least once a week to start reading again. I also have some vacation coming up, and I’m taking one whole week off of work. Woohoo! So, I’m hoping to enjoy some relaxing downtime and get some reading QT into the agenda (or non-agenda depending on how the vacay goes).

As most of you guys probably already know, I’m much better at starting things than finishing them. Here are some books I’ve started and would like to finish sometime soon:

My Life in France

The Happiness Project

Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office

Finding Your Own North Star

The Art of Racing in the Rain – I actually haven’t started this book. I don’t even know what it’s about. My sister bought it for me for Christmas, and I trust her judgement in selecting some quality reading material. I’m actually kind of excited to read a book that I don’t know much about.

I know some of you have requested I post more of my daily eat photos, but they are truly so boring, you really don’t want to see them. I’ve been eating a whole lot of sandwiches and noodle bowls, including the above meal from the other day. I had a turkey/havarti sandwich with sliced bell pepper (the vegetable side of choice for the lazy/busy girl).

And tonight, I had to eat dinner solo, so I picked up a white wine rotisserie chicken breast at The Fresh Market, which I had with sauteed kale and leftover farro. By the way, not sure if you guys have tried the farro recipe I posted the other day, but you know how I don’t like leftovers? This stuff tastes better re-heated! Yes, it’s a leftover I love! I put mine in a small pot with a splash of vegetable broth to keep it from sticking. Yum! I also morphed some of the leftovers into a breakfast dish (recipe on the way).

Thanks for reading!

Reader questions: What books have you read recently and loved? Are you better at starting things or finishing things?

I woke up at my parent’s house to this awesomeness…

a handwritten note from my mom. She woke up before 5 am this morning to get ready for work and still prepared a pot of coffee for the family. I didn’t care as much about the coffee, but I did love the note. She used to write us notes all the time growing up, and I miss them.

Mom got some samples of the new Starbucks Blonde coffee, so we had that with breakfast.

Sis woke up in the mood for cooking. She made us waffles using the waffle iron she got for Christmas two year ago.

She found a special recipe online for extra-fluffy waffles. The trick is whipping egg whites and then folding them into the rest of the waffle batter. From the looks of the waffles, I think she’s onto something.

It’s been awhile since I’ve had from-scratch waffles. Actually, I don’t think I’ve had them since the last time Sis made them.

I asked my dad to tell me about his early life again over breakfast. He’s told us the stories hundreds of times over the years, but they never get old. I guess part of the reason is because I never really knew my grandparents, and they’ve all passed, so I like to get to know them through my parent’s stories. And every time dad tells a story, I learn another gem of information. For example, recently, I learned that my grandmother’s favorite color was light turquoise (like TCL-blue!) and that she studied fashion design at the Moore College of Art & Design. She even designed and sewed her own clothing. I wish she was around still so we could have sewing sessions together and talk fashion.

***

My sister decide to make lunch for us, too.

She made ginger-soy chicken with rice and one of her specialities…

Miso soup {with onions and potatoes}.

It was all delicious, and I ended up eating too much. But, I did save room for dessert.

My sister {who actually hates most vegetables} has recently fallen in love with winter squash. She made us roasted acorn squash with maple syrup and butter for dessert.

I know it sounds a little odd, but it was actually good and made for a great dessert. I told her she could save any leftovers to make a squash oatmeal for breakfast like this one I made awhile ago. Sounds weird, tastes great!

***

As for all that menu planning talk from yesterday…interestingly enough, hubby suggested we work on a meal plan on our car ride home. I don’t think he actually read yesterday’s blog post, but maybe he did. Either way, I agreed it was a good idea, so we worked on a draft on our way home.

I don’t love it, but it’s a start. I’ve realized that sometimes I don’t menu plan because I don’t think I’ll do a good enough job…so, I just do nothing at all. But, I suppose a so-so menu plan is better than none at all, right? Plus, perhaps menu planning is like most things – it gets better with practice? I like to think so.

What are your menu/meal planning tips? I loved the one Jackie left the other day saying to use categories or themes. My family (mom, dad, sis) actually likes to do that when they menu plan, and it definitely seems like a great idea. And reader Dione suggested having lazy/easy dinners and freezing batches of food. Hubby and I were actually just talking today about how we used to eat easier meals back in the day and that we should start doing so again. And I’m a big believer in freezing food – especially soup! Any other ideas, guys? Share your meal planning tips in a comment.

EIM Eats

We’re enjoying a relaxing weekend with my family, which means lots of down time with lots of good food, too.

We had eggs, biscuits/rolls, bacon and my fave – my dad’s potatoes.

Do you make your dog sit away from you when you eat? We do. We usually make him go on his bed, but when he’s at my parent’s house, we just make him sit away. I definitely had to give him the “I’m watching you” sign a la Meet the Parents. I think he knows what it means, too.

Sis and I wanted to spend some QT with my mom for her birthday, but she didn’t really want to do anything except hang out around the house. It’s been forever since I had the chance to just veg-out, so today, with nothing to do, we ended up watching TV. We got caught on the Investigation Discovery channel. Man, that channel really sucks you in…just like Lifetime! lol

We heated up leftovers from last night for a quick lunch with some fresh-cooked veggies.

For dinner, we had dad’s chicken noodle casserole with steamed broccoli & carrots, and a biscuit.

***

Menu Planning

I will be the first to say that I suck at menu planning. I think it’s because I’m always so busy running around, that I find it hard to sit still long enough to think through the week and actually plan something out. I also find that I like to decide on dinners based on what I feel like eating that day. I know – excuses, excuses.

Anywho, I think menu planning can be very effective for not only Eat in Month, but every day living. I keep meaning to start doing it, but I usually only make it a week or two before falling back to my slacker ways. So, since I can’t offer any advice on meal planning, I turned to one of my favorite resources – you guys!

I asked for your personal and recommended sites and blogs (via my Facebook wall and yesterday’s post) for meal planning and here are some you shared:

• Jackie of That Deep Breath posted a link to her Menu Planning category on her blog
• Emily at Relishments posted her tips on menu planning
• Athena shared I’m an Organizing Junkie’s Menu Plan Monday
• And Nicole mentioned finding good inspiration on Pinterest (PS click here to see my Pinterest profile and click here to go straight to my “Entree Chic” board )
• And lastly, I found a cool resource by Real Simple – a PDF you can print and use for menu planning (click here to view) along with a couple quick tips

Do you have any more meal planning sites/blog posts to add? If you’re a reader without a blog, you can just share your meal plans and/or tips in a comment if you want (here or on my Facebook wall).

The cold/flu season has hit me already, so sorry for the lack of posting the past week. I had one of those I-feel-terrible-but-not-bad-enough-to-take-a-sick-day kind of weeks.

You know…where you feel like total crapola but you don’t really have a fever and don’t feel like paying the doctor $50 or whatever for them to tell you that they don’t know what you have and to come back if your symptoms get worse.

It’s like being quasi sick.

So, I just pushed through.

I fought back with lots of my Mom’s Get Well Soup (a Filipino family recipe), hot tea, and some hippie medicine.

I seriously love this soup whether I’m feeling bad or not. You may note on the recipe that it says to add 1 to 1 1/2 cups of rice while cooking. If you do 1 cup, you’ll get a more brothy soup. Go 1 1/2 and it’ll thicken up like porridge.

Note Day #2 texture. I guess the rice just soaks all the liquid up. I suppose you could add some chicken broth to the soup while it’s re-heating, but it’s tasty regardless of the texture. I even ate it for breakfast one day, and I really liked it prepared that way.

Oh, and you know what else is pretty great when you’re sick? Oatmeal. I haven’t been eating as much of this for breakfast, but did you know oatmeal actually helps your immune system? It’s true…whfoods.com says so:

“…starting your day with a bowl of oatmeal may boost your immune response in addition to your morning energy levels.”

***

Anywho, I’ve been resting up this weekend, catching a few Lifetime movies, brainstorming holiday recipes (cookies and pot luck dishes!), and trying to generally chill out. I’m feeling much better today, so I’m hoping to be 100% sometime this week.

I’m hoping to get some holiday decorations up soon, too. How are yours coming along?

Hope you’re all staying happy and healthy!

We enjoyed a slow morning with family the day after Thanksgiving. No Black Friday shopping for us.

Rose had pancakes, bacon, and coffee waiting for us when we woke up.

And she even made me some of her special oregano elixir since I’m feeling a cold coming on.

{Heidy, Mario, Sis, Rose, me, Ben}

We bid adieu to the family, and a smaller group of the young crowd headed out for our favorite Atlanta tradition – dim sum.

{Leo, Lindsay, and Sis}

We trekked over to the Oriental Pearl (where Sis and I went somewhat recently) in search of dumplings and other deliciousness. The last time I came here with cousins, a few years ago, the restaurant had converted from the amazing dim sum restaurant to a run-of-the-mill buffet. We were so sad to think our tradition had disappeared. It wasn’t until Sis and I made our trip to the OP in May that we discovered the dim sum was back in action! Hazzah!

The restaurant was far less busy and had a smaller selection since it was a weekday, but the carts were swinging by within just a couple minutes, and they proved to have most of our favorites.

We quickly snapped up some har gow, steamed BBQ pork buns, and shui mei.

We got one of the long shrimp dumplings (and a beef one – not pictured).

Crispy shrimp balls.

Chinese broccoli in oyster sauce.

Love their plates by the way!

Baked BBQ pork buns.

With a plate full of my favorite eats, I was one happy eater.

So was Leo.

And sis and I tried a new dessert – a sort of mango jello-type dessert with evaporated milk poured on top.

(I believe this is a photo from a dim sum trip from the early ninties – and do you recognize the girl to the far right?! )

As I mentioned earlier, we made many trips to visit our cousins over the years. Each trip ended with a family trip to the Oriental Pearl for dim sum.

The adults were busy this trip, so the new dim sum crew held down the tradition for this adventure. It’s interesting to think about the transition that is already under way – from the old crew to the new crew. And it’s fun to think about this table being filled in a few years with our children, who will be the next future dim sum crew!

sometimes the food is the best because of the context

The trip reminded me of something Anthony Bourdain said in that show I saw recently. When asked about finding the best food, Anthony said that sometimes the food is the best because of the context. He’s so right! I mean, the food at the Oriental Pearl is delicious, but what makes it so special is the company, the familiarity, and the sentimentality of the experience. We’ve been eating at the Oriental Pearl for about 20 years now, and I hope we get to enjoy at least 20 more years together.

I didn’t grow up with a lot of family nearby. Most of my dad’s family lived in the North and most of my mom’s family lived in the Philippines.

(photo from the family album)

Our closest family members, who we referred to as “cousins”, were somewhat distant relatives. I believe the mom of the family, Rose, is my mom’s third cousin.

(photo from the family album)

It never really mattered to us how they were related – they were simply family, and they also lived in the South, just a couple hours away.

(photo from the family album)

We spent many holidays together when I was growing up and grew quite close over the years. I actually like to think of my cousins, Leo and Marlon, as the brothers I never had. Over the college years, the trips to see our cousins grew infrequent, but we visited when we could.

***

This year, for the first time in many years, we decided to visit cousins for Thanksgiving. Hubby and I left Thanksgiving morning from Charlotte and were meeting my parents and sister in Atlanta.

I thought this text message conversation with my mom (sent during our road trip) was particularly hilarious…and telling.

After about 4 1/2 hours in the car, hubby and I were greeted by Rose and some surprise family members – Rose’s sister, Amy, and her family, Rose’s brother, Ben, who came all the way from the Philippines, and Ben’s daughter, Joy, and her family. We were also greeted with a kitchen full of delicious Thanksgiving food.

We had a bit of a Filipino-fusion style Thanksgiving – many of the traditional Thanksgiving fare paired with some traditional Filipino eats: turkey, mushroom gravy, macaroni and cheese, brussels sprouts, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, plus pancit…

…avocado popsicles…

…and a Filipino dessert I’ve always wanted to try – suman.

Suman is a sticky rice made with rice and coconut milk that is wrapped in coconut leaves and steamed. When it’s ready, you unwrap it and eat it with sugar.

It’s a wrapped version of the “sweet rice” dish that I love so much. It was good, but I think I like the sweet rice dish better because you cook the coconut milk with brown sugar and the flavors really develop together.

Anywho, as we were finishing up our first round of Thanksgiving eats, Rose, Amy, and Joy decided to whip up a giant batch of lumpia, which is like Filipino spring rolls.

These were made with pork, garlic, green onion, and water chestnuts.

After finishing up dessert, I headed out with the younger crowd to go visit my cousin Leo who got stuck working on Thanksgiving. Boo! He’s a bartender, so it made it easy for us to visit him and have a couple drinks. We also brought him some Thanksgiving eats.

After relaxing for a couple hours, Sis and I headed back to the house for more Thanksgiving food: turkey, gravy, cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, pancit, broccoli salad, and lumpia…

And more dessert: suman (with brown sugar this time), pumpkin pie, a piece of my sister’s chocolate chip/oatmeal bar, fruit, and flan.

Leo came home shortly after with the rest of the gang, so we could enjoy the rest of Thanksgiving day all together. We had plenty of food, laughs, family, and friends, which is exactly what I love on Thanksgiving.

Reader questions: how did you spend your Thanksgiving this year? What was your favorite food?