BasilandFig

Several years ago, Andy’s workday looked like this: Teach from 8 to 3:30. Bring a turkey sandwich (2 slices turkey, mustard, whole-wheat bread) and an apple for lunch. Get home by 4. Walk the dog. Prep for next class. Eat something, but not too much that it will make you [...]

I only recently stumbled across the idea of putting oatmeal into smoothies and I have to say, it totally blew my mind.  Adding a whole grain?  To a drink?  It’s more delicious than it sounds.

The first time I made this, I found out (the hard way) that my blender wasn’t quite up to the task [...]

Look, I know buttermilk is sort of having a ‘foodie moment’ right now, that it might be the pork belly of 2012.  There are these buttermilk shakes; the blueberry buttermilk shakes on special at Duck Fat; buttermilk banana bread; a new cookbook devoted entirely to buttermilk; and, of course, buttermilk biscuits which are no passing [...]

Look, I know what you’re thinking.  You’re thinking that whenever someone proclaims that something is the “best” in the “world” it can mean only one of three things: 1) Someone is trying to sell you something; 2) Someone was too lazy to open a thesaurus; or 3) You’re reading Woman’s Day in the checkout lane.

But [...]

If you have known me for any length of time, odds are I’ve regaled you with the story of the chocolate shake.  At least once, probably twice.

For those of you who’ve forgotten the regaling, or whom I’ve forgotten to regale, lucky you!  Today’s your day to be regaled.

My senior year in college I drove to [...]

It’s getting to be that time of year when hot breakfasts become—to me at least—sickening.  The blast of heat and humidity that sucker-punches you in the gut when you walk out the door—even though it’s not even 8 a.m. yet.

Hello, summer.

It’s mornings like these—when the humidity makes it feel like 85° and I can’t even [...]

We use the fancy china on Lazy Sunday.

I’m not going to try to tell you that this is the best French Toast recipe in the world and you should drop everything to go cook it.

I’m not.

Because honestly I don’t think there is a ‘best French toast recipe.’  To me, all French toast is, well, [...]

I used to think I was invincible.

Well, maybe not entirely invincible, but that maybe my immune system was.

For example: eating food off of a stranger’s plate at a restaurant? Done that.  A piece of unwrapped candy that fell on the ground of a mall parking lot?  I ate that, too.  6-month old expired yogurt?  Why [...]

There is a store in Asheville called Amazing Savings that I Lovelovelove.

It is, as the name implies, amazing.

And also full of savings.

Most everything they carry is similar to what you’d find in, say, Whole Foods or a health-food store only they sell it at grocery store ‘discontinued item’ prices.

I guess you could say it’s like [...]

I’m a little late in getting on the quinoa-for-breakfast bandwagon.

But I’m a late-adopter, anyway.  Just last year I got my first iPod (it was a hand-me-down from my dad).

Once I called tech support about a problem I was having with my laptop and the lady asked me how old it was.  When I told her, [...]