Look at this!  I got these old boxes, filled them up with dirt, tucked in a packet of radish seeds and voila! Radish sprouts!!!

 

Aren't I clever?

 

One of the great things about living here is having a pass to The Biltmore Estate.  The other day we wandered over and, though it was chilly, strolled through the Conservatory.  Spring was in full swing inside, warm moist air coaxing the early blooms.

 

With so many things going on here I can't remember if I told you about our special sandwich of the day. If you're not swooning over our deli case's offerings, give the day's special sandwich a try.

 

Here's the weekly list:

 

Monday - Chipotle Turkey Club with house-roasted turkey, applewood smoked bacon, lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, Lusty Monk Chipotle Mustard and mayonnaise

 

Tuesday - Grilled vegetables served hot on a ciabatta roll with provolone cheese, garlic basil mayonnaise, lettuce, tomato, and a splash of olive oil and balsamic vinegar

 

Wednesday - “The Shazamwich”:

Crispy buttermilk fried chicken served hot on a ciabatta roll with jalapeno-lime cole slaw and a touch of mayonnaise

 

Thursday - Open-faced turkey sandwich

with mashed potatoes and homemade gravy served hot on sourdough bread with cranberry chutney

 

Here are our dinners for this coming week.

 

Monday, March 28 Chicken Cordon Bleu 8.95

 

Tuesday, March 29 Pasta Primavera with Snow Peas and Asparagus 6.25

 

Wednesday, March 30 Balsamic Steak, Onions, and Potato Fritters 8.95

 

Thursday, March 31 Shrimp Scampi with Rice 9.25

 

Friday, April 1 Pan-fried Catfish with Hushpuppies 7.75

 

Order by noon and we'll have your dinner ready to pick up by 3. Our new winter hours are in effect so we're now closing at 7.

 

Salad and bread can be added if you wish. Salad is 3.25 and bread is 1.25 per person.

 

We make a special casserole and a special lasagna each week.

 

Order by noon or so. Order a half if you have around 4 folks. If you have a bigger group, or you just like leftovers, order a full-sized one.

 

Then come pick up between 3:00 and 7:00.

 

The casserole this week is for Wednesday, March 30:

Chicken Pot Pie with Fried Green Tomato Crust

Full: 35 Half: 17.50

 

The lasagna is for Friday, April 1:

Local Beef with Fresh Herbs

Full: 58 Half: 29

 

These boys were a lot happier before I started snapping.  I'm not sure you can see, but they are all enjoying (really!) their lunches: a roast beef sandwich, a peanut butter sandwich and a grilled cheese sandwich. 

 

"Grilled cheese is my FAVORITE!" one boy declared, waving it at me.

 

If you're looking for a fun event this afternoon, wander over to the Grove Park Inn to get your fill of Cupcakes.  This is the 2nd Annual Cupcakes for Cures contest and I get to be a judge - again.

 

Last year I tasted about 50 cupcakes. This year, with even more competitors, I get to judge the championship round, meaning I ONLY have to sample 18 cupcakes. 

 

Poor me.

 

This week everything turned even more green.  Ah. 

 

The hillsides on the way to my house are filling in so beautifully.  Right over my back deck a huge Tulip Poplar grows.  Yesterday I noticed the buds opening.  My lilacs' leaves are beginning to emerge, as are my Weeping Cherry's.  I live in a little pocket, a micro climate that lags behind almost everywhere else.  What this means is that everything in my yard is a little bit behind. 

 

March 26, 2011

 

G’morning.

 

It certainly feels like a Saturday here. From the kitchen I hear the clink of spoons and knives, the opening and closing of refrigerators, the beep of timers, the hum of ovens. It’s a grey day here in Asheville, chilly and early spring-like. Makes me happy to be inside. When it’s gorgeous outdoors I can be grumpy about needing to work. Not so today.

 

Earlier this week we had a big thunderstorm. My pup, who usually sleeps in her own bed, though who sometimes joins me on my bed, wasted no time in hopping up as the thunderclaps neared. Sometimes those storms come right over my house and this one headed right for us. Each lightning burst and each thunder blast brought her closer and closer until she was tucked tightly against the curve of my legs. We huddled together as the storm boomed up to us and passed along to the East. Neither of us said anything to each other but both were happy to have the company and the comfort of that other warm body.

 

The morning light, earlier and earlier each day now, streams into my windows most mornings. I’m an early waker, though not necessarily an early riser. The sun, which just a month ago rose behind the corner of my house, now crests the ridge in the center of the main window in my bedroom. I lay in bed, dizzy, feeling the whirl of the Earth, the spin of time.

 

And here on my street things are in full gear too. The parking lot behind the shop is complete and is now filled with visitors' cars. Just a month ago the lot contained scrubby old buildings. Up the street that parking lot is being transformed into a new building. It was a shock to see all the old trees lying in a pile the other day. I can only hope that the new buildings will be a good addition to the neighborhood. I’ll miss those trees. The sign on the Hot Dog King is now down and that building is going to be torn down soon. Below me, in my old office, the construction team for the new building is creating the project management space. Swoosh. Swoosh. On it goes.

 

This week I travel to the central part of the state to talk about the Chefs Move to Schools program. Next week I go to Washington, DC to film some cooking videos for the National Honey Board. Last week I taught a cooking class to heart patients. I have a class for senior citizens coming up and I’m in the planning stages of a class for cancer survivors. And I’m still doing some videos for kids. It’s hard to keep track some days, though it’s all good, all fun, all good to do.

 

And in the meantime I’m very happy that we are legitimately in Spring now. Winters are not so great for me. I much prefer the emerging colors, the softer smells, the coming in rather than the going away, the lightening rather than the darkening of the days.

 

And so it is today.

 

Last Monday, on my day off, I was able to give a thorough look inside my beehive.  Ah me, things are not as good as I would like.

 

Seems that either I don't have a Queen or, if she is there, she's not doing a very good job.  Whereas a strong Queen fills the hive's cells with an orderly pattern of eggs, the pattern on my frames is sporadic and chaotic.  Drone cells prevail and that's not a good thing.  You want lots of worker bee cells.  This hive doesn't have them.

 

Once I am SURE that there is no Queen I'll go about getting a new one either by buying one or getting some "brood frames" from a fellow beekeeper.