Nutella Stuffed French Toast with Mixed Berry Sauce

Happy Friday! I hope you caught Justin Bieber on the Today Show this am. It was hilarious/awesome. Other awesome things about today include:

1. This will be our last night in a hotel.
2. We are moving into our apartment tomorrow.
3. This amazing nutella stuffed french toast.

I made it several weeks ago in Tennessee when I was trying to use things up from the pantry/fridge/freezer. It is delicious weekend food. And the weekend is upon us, friends.

Nutella Stuffed French Toast with Mixed Berry Sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients

4 slices bread
Nutella to taste
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla

Heaping cup of mixed berries, any combo (I used strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries)
1/4 cup sugar (more to taste)
Just enough water to mix up berries and sugar

Get your french toast on

1. Mix up the berries, sugar, and water in a small saucepan. I used berries that were going bad but you can use any, frozen berries would work too. Bring to a boil and then turn down to medium and simmer.

2. Whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. I like using a pie plate because the bread can lay flat in it.

3. Spread two slices of bread with nutella. I like it a little thick, but make it as thin or thick as you want. Top each piece with another slice of bread.

4. Heat up your griddle. Soak the bread in the egg mixture. Melt some butter or oil in your hot griddle and throw the bread in!

5. This could be the finished product. A little syrup, a little powdered sugar. Yum.

6. Buuuuut if you want that yummy fruit sauce, make sure it's cooked down so the fruit is broken down and most of the water is gone. Taste it. Add more sugar if you want.  Add some cornstarch if it is too thin for you. Strain the fruit out if you don't like chunks. But I do. So I didn't do that. Pour it over your french toast. (So basically cook some fruit however you want and it will go deliciously with your french toast!)

7. Eat it. Be happy. Go to the gym later.

Enjoy the weekend!

Kingsport Faves: eateries

Hey friends. Have I mentioned that I like to eat? I know, it's hard to believe. But I do. Kingsport had some amazing little places that I loved and don't want to forget! I'm going to start with breakfast and then work my way through the day, ending with dessert. Mk? Get ready for serious deliciousness.

1. Jan-Mar Restaurant: This is the best old school diner breakfast food, ever. The biscuits and gravy are magical. The pancakes are light and fluffy and the size of your head. The omelets are huge. And the hash browns. Oh the hash browns are the best of all. Also, you can buy all this food for like 94 cents.

2. The Mustard Seed: Alas, I have no pics of this. I don't really know why, since I went there a ton. They have super cute southern decor. Their chicken salad is yummy, tomato soup is velvety, their caramel cake is amazing. They also have a sandwich called the Micah's Smash, which is a panini with turkey, bacon, cheese, and some other stuff=my fave.

3. Korner-Copia: Another great lunch place that recently started serving dinner. They have tons of great sandwiches but the reason that I love the Korner is their chicken salad. To Die For. It has curry in it and the flavor is ah-mazing. I could eat this chicken salad every day. Of my life. I like it in a spinach wrap. Too much bread gets in the way of the chicken salad-y goodness. I begged for the recipe before I left. I was denied.

4. The Courtyard: This little place is open only from 11-2 on week days. It has a fountain in the middle of the restaurant and lots of fake ivy and flowers everywhere. Adorable. There are two reasons I love this place: the peach tea and the salad dressing. I probably drink a gallon of the peach tea every time I come here. I don't know how they make it, but this is magical nectar. The salad dressing is some kind of strawberry poppy seed goodness and they put it on a strawberry spinach salad. I could just put a straw in the dressing and drink it like the tea. But over spinach is the more normal choice. They also make some great quiches, the one below is chicken pecan quiche. Yum.

Stephanie, my fellow peach tea addict.

5. T.K.'s Big Dogs: this is the just straight up hot dog goodness. This guy gets classic hot dog combos from ball parks across the country, orders ingredients from where the parks actually get them, and serves them up to local Kingsportians. There is honestly every hot dog combo you could ever imagine. But we get only two: the West Coast dog, a hot dog with guacamole, sour cream, and chili in a pretzel bun, and the Chicago dog, pictured below. My mouth is watering.

6. Pal's: this is a fast food chain that is not Kingsport exclusive. But we don't have it in Kansas and I love it so I'm including it. My favorite food is probably a good burger. This place has huge juicy burgers. When you unwrap them, grease has already soaked through the paper. Judge me if you will, but it is good artery clogging food. The fries have some kind of delicious seasoning on them. And the peachy tea rivals #4's. Also, the front of Pal's just makes me laugh.

7. Stir Fry: Just a block from our loft on Broad Street, I have probably been to this restaurant more than any other non fast food restaurant ever. We ate there so much that we ate almost everything on the menu: sushi, stir fry, noodle bowls. After we got tired of eating these things, we switched to the American menu of burgers and fries. It was all good. Stir Fry also had delicious cocktails and insanely amazing carrot cake.

8. Zaxby's: I'm throwing this one in for my husband. Fast food chicken that we do not have in Kansas, honestly this was not my fave. But my man craves this like clockwork on Sunday afternoons. I will give them one thing: their fried white cheddar bites. So good. But who hates fried cheese?

9. Sweet CeCe's: this is a new frozen yogurt place and we only went there once. But it is definitely worth a mention. I had the pomberry sorbet with wide variety of toppings. Perfect for summer.

10. Babycakes Cupcakery: this place was right next door to my loft and my downfall. Amazing cupcakes, a free cupcake on Wednesdays, the reason I gained lbs. Lemon crumb, chocolate ganache, red velvet, carrot, fresh strawberry, blackberry, birthday cake, wedding cake, nutter butter...I could go on and on.

Lemon crumb. My favorite.

So there it is. Excuse the mix of instagram and other photos. But this is the good stuff. I loved discovering Kingsport through food. Check these places out if you are there!

And now I go to work off the damages done by all this goodness.

Happy Tuesday!

How to cook an Easter ham in a hospital

Well, really you could cook this ham anywhere. But I cooked it in a hospital. And to be completely honest with you, it was insanely delish.

What you need for your Easter Ham (Adapted from All Recipes):

- a spiral cut ham (mine was about 9 lbs, bone in)

- approximately 2 cups brown sugar

- a crock pot

-a *60cc syringe (or a for-real baster)

- tin foil

*a cc is a now unapproved abbreviation for ml. Just fyi.

My crock pot was small than my ham. So the lid didn't fit well. But a little jimmy-rigging fixed it right up. I put most of the brown sugar in the bottom of the crock pot, jammed the ham in there, patted the rest of the brown sugar on the ham, and covered it tightly with foil.

I cooked it on high for about an hour, than turned it down to low. After a total of almost 4 hours, I uncovered it to see this. Mmmm. (I did NOT uncover it for the first several hours, this is important when using a crock pot.)

I stole borrowed a (clean) 60cc syringe and basted my ham with the amazing brown sugar liquid from the bottom of the crock pot. In case you haven't seen me for awhile, you can see that I now have 20 chins. And no hair.

But don't worry, I still have high cheek bones. I basted it about every half hour for the next hour, still covering tightly with foil in between.

It smelled insanely good. Insane.

After a total of about 5 hours cook and basting time, I finagled it onto this awesome Crate and Barrel serving platter that I got for my wedding. (That I have used a total of three times now.) I syringed approximately 180cc of brown sugary liquid onto the ham. I also may have drooled on it at this point. (I kid, coworkers.)

It was basically falling off the bone. Ah-mazing. It served about 15 people with leftovers to be had.

And we ate basically for the rest of the day. All the good things you should eat with an Easter ham: deviled eggs, hash brown casserole, green bean casserole, coleslaw, rolls, and chess bars. I felt slightly ill in my workout this morning. So worth it.

My favorite quote from the weekend, after dead-lifting a man off the floor with my coworker: "You girls should do wrestling- you could tag team it."


Yep, I'm that awesome. And yes, I did fill out a full fall report. Second favorite quote? The next day, the same patient says, "I thought about getting out of bed by myself, but then I remembered what happened yesterday." Thank you, kind sir. I appreciate your thoughtfulness.

As much as I hate spending my holidays in the hospital, I know that I am right where I'm supposed to be.
I am so blessed to cook a ham for coworkers, pick people up off the floor, and serve a risen Savior.

"He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come and see the place where he lay." Matthew 28: 6

Happy Easter!

Bacon Pasta aka Pasta Carbonara aka Happiness in a bowl

Highlights of last week:
1. KU winning in the Final Four
2. Seeing the Hunger Games (obsessed)
3. Shopping in Knoxville
4. Fun birthday party with Kiewit friends
5. Mimosas with coworkers

Low lights:
1. KU losing in the National Championship
2. Being really really tired and grouchy the next day. Dang it, Eastern time zone.

What makes losing the National Championship tolerable and gives you the energy to make it through a rough work morning? Bacon Pasta. Carb madness and bacon goodness combined in cheesy glory.

Let me introduce you to something awesome. Caleb calls it Bacon Pasta. The rest of the world knows it as Pasta Carbonara. I learned how to make this a very long time ago when we were dating and it's one of those recipes I keep in my back pocket. I have it memorized, so it's slightly different every time. Adapted from Paula Deen, goddess of all things comfort food, this was comforting on a sad, sad night.

Bacon Pasta aka Pasta Carbonara (Adapted from a Paula Deen Classic)

- 1/2 lb center cut bacon (or more, too much bacon is really impossible)
- one small onion
- 1/4 cup cream
- 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
- 4 large eggs, yolks separated
- 12 oz pasta such as penne or rigatoni
- splash of white wine (optional)
- salt and pepper to taste


The A Team. Plus our senior prom pic in the background. Aww. Pour yourself a glass of vino and get cooking! (Sorry for the yellow-ness of these pics, I cook at night people!)

Heat up a skillet to medium heat and start some boiling some salted water. Dice up the onion and cut the bacon into small pieces.

Throw your bacon in the hot skillet and get it frying.

 Once the bacon is chewy and starting to brown, throw the onions in there. If you want to deglaze the pan, pour a little of your wine in there and scrape those little bits off the bottom. Yum.

Once your bacon and onions look like this and your house smells like heaven, turn the heat off and set aside. If your water is boiling, go ahead and throw the pasta in.

While the pasta is cooking, make your sauce. Separate your eggs and discard the whites. Or save them for something. Like meringue. Or egg white omelets. But I never make meringue or egg white omelets,  so I tossed them.

Separating eggs is easy, just crack open the egg and transfer the yolk back and forth between the shell halves until all the white is out. 

 Add 1/4 cup of cream to the egg yolks. Oh, did I mention this was healthy? Because it's not.

Add a liberal 1/3 cup Parmesan cheese to the egg mixture.

Add some pepper. I usually wait till the end to add salt, because the cheese and bacon can be pretty salty. Whisk it all together.

Once the pasta is ready, you have to work quickly. Drain the pasta and then put it back in the hot pan but NOT over heat. Add in the egg mixture. The heat from the pasta will cook the eggs just enough but heat from the stove top will scramble the eggs. (Not good.)

Add in the bacon and onions.

Toss all together.

Serve it up.

Be happy and full of comforting goodness. Do some running the next day to burn off all those carbs. Cheer for KU. Love others.

This pasta inspires you to do good things. Make it this weekend! Happy Friday! (And Happy Easter!)

Breakfast Salad

So on my days off, I like to make delicious breakfasts. Maybe because when I work, breakfast is some crappy hospital coffee and a few saltine crackers. This breakfast is awesome and helps you get some good veggies and protein in right out of the gate. I'm not sure when I started my love affair with spinach, but it is amazing. Pretty sure five year old me would not approve.

Breakfast Salad

Half a bag of baby spinach

2 slices bacon, chopped

A couple slices of onion, chopped finely

Sprinkle of Parmesan cheese

1 egg

Tear up the spinach leaves and get them ready on a plate. Fry up the bacon and onion together. Throw them on spinach. In the leftover bacon grease (there won't be much, it was only two slices!), fry up your egg. I like mine over medium. Sprinkle some parm on top of your salad. Place the egg on top. I don't use any salad dressing, because the hot bacon and onion kind of wilt the spinach and the runny egg gives it a little moisture. But I bet a little balsamic vinegar and olive oil would be good. This is super yummy!

Happy Wednesday friends!

(And happy seven year dating anniversary to my love, can you believe we still celebrate the anniversary of that late night phone call? We've come a long way baby!)

Oh, life. Some lessons are learned the hard way.

The past couple weeks have been full of ups and downs. I want to be all cool and bloggy and show you all the nifty DIYs and recipes that I do all the time. (Oh wait, DIY...that must be someone else.) But this is just life. Baker style.

Our up and down list. Accompanied with photos where appropriate. (I love Instagram, don't you?)

1. Down: my sweet Grandma Frank spent a week in the hospital. She's home now, my mom is there taking care of her. And she is recovering, but there are still some worries about her health. Send up a prayer for her if you think about it!

2. Up: We paid off ALL of our student loans! This felt so amazing. Champagne necessary.

3. Down: The Civic died and we had to tow it. It wouldn't start, even with a jump.

4. Up: The Civic lives on! It just had a super dead battery. 

5. Up: Awesome Friday flowers. Maybe the best ones yet.

6. Up: The discovery of the Green Monster Smoothie. I've seen this on Pinterest and everywhere on the intraweb and decided to make my own version. So so so good! I love getting a serving of fruit and veggies first thing in the morning. 

Green Monster Smoothie

1/2 cup plain fat free Greek yogurt

1 frozen banana, chopped

1 spoonful of creamy peanut butter

Half a bag of spinach (or as much as you want)

1/2-1 cup skim milk (depends how thick you want your smoothie)

A couple ice cubes

Blend on puree setting and then on liquefy to get a nice smooth texture. Serves one.

7. Up: Getting cool points with all my coworkers for wearing blue Chucks with my scrubs. 

8. Down: Chemistry lesson learned the hard way.

So on Wednesday night, I planned to make chicken and dumplings, a Southern delicacy. I made a batch over the weekend but it didn't turn out well. So I went at it again, hoping for some better and blog-worthy results. 

I had a big stockpot full of the boiling chicken broth that needed straining. I decided that a great idea would be to pour it into a glass pitcher and then easily strain it from that. I picked a nice big thick pitcher. I poured my just boiled chicken broth in it. I was almost finished when I heard a loud cracking noise as a the pitcher broke and a gallon of almost boiling water spilled onto me. I said a few choice words, ripped off my pants, and got some cool clothes to put over the burns, which were already blistering. 

Caleb insisted I go to the ER. Note: a pain rating of 10/10 and some juicy red skin gets you in super fast. I got hooked up with some pain pills, silvadene cream, and ice packs. In and out in 45 minutes, impressive. 

Taco Bell and a Smirnoff later, I was feeling much better.

Basically, where the ice packs cover in the pic is where the burns are. Yes, I did take pictures of the burns. No, I will not show them on here. Because that's gross and no one wants to see them.

Bottom line: Do not put boiling water into room temperature glass. I feel like I should have already known this. But I didn't. And now I do.

9. Up: My sweet husband took the day off yesterday to take care of me. He brought me things, dressed my wounds, and did the laundry and dishes. And we spent most of the day watching movies and playing video games. Time well spent.

10: Down: It was my Grandma Voth's vintage glass pitcher. And I loved it.

So today I'm taking my first sick day of my life because I can't really put pants on. Which is kinda lame, but true. Don't worry, I plan on being a real woman tomorrow and going in. 

Oh pants-less life. I bet I'll never forget this one! Happy Friday!

(PS follow me on Instagram, @lorrib)

The French Market: A Creperie

So over the weekend we took a little tiny trip to Knoxville which is about 2 hours away. Sometimes you just have to not be at home, ya know? My friend Paige and I went down Saturday morning and then our men met us after they got off work. We ate some tasty Mexican food, saw a movie (Underworld=boring and dumb), and stayed overnight. But the best part was this amazing crepe place we ate brunch at on Sunday morning.

Totally adorable with a zillion different crepes and the sweetest people.

We got three crepes. The hub got a crepe with potatoes, bacon, peppers, and onions. I got one with eggs, cheese, tomatoes, and spinach. And then we got a nutella and strawberry crepe to share. Ah-mazing.

Super excited for his crepe. And looking super French right? Ha. I think he called this his rock star outfit. Since he uses the word "outfit" and stuff. Oh wait...

The best crepe ever.

Friends, if you are ever in Knoxville, get yourself to the French Market. Thank me later.

Oh, here is my outfit for Saturday. It was raining and I thought I was being super cute and clever. Then it stopped raining and I looking a little silly. Oh well.

Yay for weekends and crepes and rain boots!