Finally! French Onion Soup!

I have never been a fan of French Onion soup for as long as I can remember.

One of the earliest times I could taste the disappointment was back in about 2006 when I started working at Outback and it had always smelled so good...but did not live up to my expectations. Since then, I have been on a mission to give it a taste whenever I have the opportunity and until this weekend, I had almost given up.

On Sunday, H.M. decided to paint our kitchen wall so we ran out to get some paint. In the process our bellies began to growl and I was excited to use the Panera giftcards I had been accumulating (for giving blood - totally worth it!). We both ordered soup and a sammie, but H.M. had ordered the French Onion. Oh boy, did it smell good! Luckily, I was able to swipe a most amazing scoop o'soup...and the rest is history.

Of course he wouldn't share the rest (I wouldn't have either!) so I  had no choice but to look up this great recipe to make for dinner tonight.

Making it from scratch was easier than I thought, minus the fact that my eyes were burning for about an hour because of the whole carmelization process. What I did for love!

I did use slices of Wheaty Wheat from Avalon instead of french bread and I used Better Than Bouillon's veggie-friendly beef broth substitute...instead of beef broth. Aaaaand then I may or may not have used rosemary instead of thyme and Muenster instead of Swiss/Gruyere, but hey, I finally like it!

Now I can't wait to get cute little soup bowls that I plan on stealing from my Mother's house for the next time I make a batch!

Is there a new food you've decided to test out? Something you used to detest but now crave?

Happy Valentine's Day!

I don't know about you, but I sure love my NPR. So, if you love NPR and you know someone else who loves NPR, you should send them one of these cute valentines.

Here are a few of my favorites:

I was sure to send this one to H.M. because one day, I am going to be a contestant on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me and I will get Carl Kassell's voice on my home answering machine!

Now I'm off to finish cooking dinner and then it's time to hit the books for my Math midterm. We are more 365 Lovey-dovers so we don't do too much on Valentine's Day...besides send dorky valentines, of course!

Do you listen to NPR? What is your favorite show?

(Wait, Wait and This American Life are tied for first place, personally)

Super Sunday!

We interrupt Super Bowl XLV for a brief blog update!

Wow, this week flew by! To get in the Valentine's Day spirit, I attached paper hearts to embroidery thread and looped the ends to the antlers above the walkway into the kitchen. I can't wait to hear what H.M.'s Dad has to say about it! H.M. seemed rather impressed with my crating skills, if I do say so myself.

Also, I am totally in love with the bottle opener H.M. got for his birthday - it truly is my pleasure to open a bottle for you. Even if it is a twist-off.

With only a few more moments to go, this is a sneak peek at our Super Bowl party. Just keeping it low key with some chips and salsa from Honey Bee Market (in Mexican Town) and some Negra Modelo to wash it down. Which may or may not have been opened with the Coca-Cola opener. Loooove it!

I'm going to root for the underdogs (Steelers) because watching them get sacked by Green Bay is making my back hurt! I personally am a little disappointed with the half-time performance considering the past three years have had Sir Paul McCartney, Bruce Springsteen and The Who as the half-time entertainment. I guess I can't complain because I don't know the Black Eyed Peas very well - maybe I just gotta get that boom-boom-boom...

First to Bat

Hello, is anybody home? I finally am and oh, how I have missed you!

I had to take a few days month or so off blogging because H.M. and I were getting situated in our new digs and it took us a while to get internet in the new apartment. To be honest, it was kind of nice for a while - I read a book or two and just felt rather productive for once. But once I found out I could start working from home in February, it didn't take long for me to sign back up for service.

Plus, I don't need people in the campus library glaring at me while I'm in hysterics because I was looking at LOL cats again, H.M. already does that at home.

Besides the usual holiday shenanigans, we finally have gotten into the groove of our new neighborhood and the things it has to offer. I'll try not to bombard you with all the nifty little gems all at once, so I'll start off with Avalon Bakery. For H.M.'s birthday this weekend, instead of getting our standard loaf of Wheaty Wheat we opted for two of their scrumptious breakfast sandwiches. Of course, because it was yesterday, I can't remember the names of either, but that means you'll just have to go check it out for yourself!

Breakfast - This is the best picture I could get - H.M. almost ate his in one foul swoop!

I also went over to Curl Up and Dye and decided I wanted to get a set of sassy lashes! I know I could have done it myself at home, but I was too nervous to do it myself because I could only imagine it ending in tears...if I didn't manage to super glue my eyes closed! I am so glad I went - I feel so pretty! 

Not only is the staff there super friendly, but they have great deals, whether it's a monthly special or just for being a Wayne State Student. There was also the most adorable St. Bernard, Bandit, that I had the pleasure of meeting while I was there...too bad Adelaide is more of an "only child" cat.

pearls - Claire's | heart on a chain - Kohl's | crystals - me | shirt - Levi's

For H.M.'s birthday, we then headed out to The Levi's Store where I finally managed to score myself a denim shirt (he also got some cords, I mean, it was his birthday). I've always wanted one but some of my, umm, measurements *cough*bust*cough* do not make me the best candidate for button-ups so I was super excited that it a) fit and b) was on clearaaaaance!

hat - Target | shirt - Levi's | pants - Target | belt - Heritage 1981 | flats - F21

Now that I've brought you up to date, I should probably get back to the outline for my speech for my Communications class...it's an introduction of myself and my love for food. I can't wait to make a treat or two for some "brownie points"!

C'mon. You know you missed me.