An Ode to Louisville: This is what I'm thankful for...

This Louisville Lady Gourmet has tons to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. While my soup is simmering on the stove (we all know it's better the next day!), I would like to take a few precious minutes to digitally express my thanks for our fair city. I think that many people have not discovered the true gem that we have made our hometown. However, those who do know her and are well acquainted with her are sure to say that she's quite a looker, intelligent, friendly as can be, a magnificent cook, and can surprise you everyday, while remaining familiar and comfortable. This is my city and I couldn't be happier to seize this exciting life on the banks of the Ohio River.

I grew up thinking that many things unique to our city and state were just natural parts of life for any other American. This city has, in fact, brought some of the most interesting people,  events, ingredients, and traditions into my life, just by existing and being a place that ignites innovation with a community that can take it to great success.

I always thought it was normal for a kid to have a Benedictine and Bacon Sandwich in their school lunch--I just learned last year, at a Derby party in Spain, that nobody outside of Louisville knows what the heck Benedictine is (it is the most delicious cucumber cream cheese spread for you deprived ones). Bourbon is celebrated around the world, and the best and most traditional bourbon whiskeys come from our region; adding complexity, sweetness, and earthy qualities due to our limestone rich geology, golden corn-based agriculture, and the reverence and celebration of quality and variety in our products. Louisville is the crossroads of all fine food in our country. We have access to an incredible diversity of produce, a long history with our beloved swine, and in our past we have had countless characters moving in, out, and through our city to create the food culture we see today. Now we have an abundance of inspired chefs and food artisans to appease even the most particular foodie's fix.

But it isn't just about food (well, it is, but there are other details too!). Louisville lit the first display of the electric lightbulb. During the Southern Exposition, Thomas Edison's lightbulb prototype lit up that glorious space in what we call Old Louisville, to show the world where we were headed. To me, this is astounding. For Louisville to have that nugget of history in its pocket is amazing, and I still see the spirit of awe and fancy in our city everyday. Take a stroll in Old Louisville and see the most beautiful Victorian homes, full of history, ghost stories, and homeowners who aren't just living in their homes, they are preserving the great history and souls of our city's residents and visitors. Perhaps you haven't noticed, but Louisville shows up in that lovely book by F. Scott Fitzgerald--you should check it out and see where Daisy, the Louisville debutante came from--harkening back to the glistening age of the 20s and all of the bootlegging glory.

And don't get me started on my home in the Highlands. I love this neighborhood, and from the Highlands through the corridor to Crescent Hill and Clifton I feel most at home. This city is alive with interesting people with a past they'd love to share with you. Shop owners start to build business relationships with you the second you walk in the door, and after maybe your third visit, you are considered family. Restaurants are, of course, where the spirit of our city shine, using local talents and resources to celebrate our hometown the best way we know how. Finally, we can wash it all down with a local craft beer or a bourbon cocktail (the Old Fashioned cocktail was invented in Louisville in the late 1800s, btw), and a spirited conversation among friends--we are all pretty much friends around here.

This Thanksgiving, I am going to be surrounded by friends and family, some I have known for ages, some are new but still welcome as family. We will go to Wild and Woolley tonight to get some rentals from our favorite local video shop (cult, classic, horror, foreign :D), hit up Old Town Liquors for our final bottle(s) of wine, record the Macy's Thanksgiving day parade, throw on our aprons and go to town on a fabulous meal. My turkey came from our local butcher Kinglsey Meats, our veggies came from our earth, and you can be sure that I'm going to splash some bourbon here and there to add that complex note of Kentucky's fine liquid amber. I will remember this Thanksgiving as I remember all I have celebrated in the past. I live in a wonderful city that I am proud to call my hometown, and I have the opportunity to share that city with people I truly love and am delighted to explore and experience life with.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours! Celebrate this holiday around a delicious table, and if you are brave enough to risk your life on Black Friday, remember to shop local. You can find a special insert from the Keep Louisville Weird people (Louisville Independent Business Assoc.) in the LEO magazine today, which has quite a few coupies and a comprehensive list of where you can get anything and everything...from your neighbor!

Bon appétit and a safe and happy holiday weekend to you!

Halloween Special: Part 1 + Great News!

Good day to you all! Man, it was a busy weekend around our house, because we threw an incredible Halloween party! I absolutely love Halloween, it is among my favorite days of the year. The feeling of fall with all those warm colors, the bite of the chill air, the warm spices and autumn harvest goods filling up the kitchen. Couple all those goodies with horror movies and ghost stories that scare me into a fit of nervous laughter, and I'm all set! My guilty pleasures of the season include some choice movies like The Halloween Tree, Hocus Pocus (which I watch about 50 times during the last two weeks of October), a sprinkling of slasher films, and whatever horror classics that Wild and Woolly Video recommends.

If you happen to be in Louisville and are planning a Halloween party, I highly encourage you to stop by our darling Wild and Woolly. I went in there the day of my party, consulted with one of the employees on some good horror films that had a decent Halloween party soundtrack and an uncomplicated plot, and I came home with an armful of incredible movies. I was recommended Carnival of Souls (a Criterion Collection choice that had a spooky organ soundtrack), The Blob, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, and Night of the Living Dead. I couldn't have asked for anything better...I really love this city, and places like Wild and Woolly make it beyond awesome to live here.

The other super important part to any party...well, any day really, is the food! My roommate and I had been planning this menu for ages, I had been decorating the house little by little every week, and we were discussing ways to divvy up the kitchen space to work well together. Can you tell that it had been a while since we threw a party together? We were kind of renowned for it back in college, and the happy days of high adrenaline and having our house full of happy, laughing, loud talking, fun guests was upon us again. What a joyful preparation! Oh, and we went to see Dracula at Actor's Theatre for the 4PM matinée showing...might not be doing that again because we were super pressed for time preparing the food and drinks and such--although it was a fun show to kick off the evening!

Allow me to show you our menu! I'll give you a couple recipes today and we'll continue on for a couple days this week. If you're throwing a Halloween party, I highly recommend these recipes...they were very fun, not too labor-intensive, and of course Halloween-themed!

Savory: Ghostly Bruschetta, Mummy Dogs, Hot as Hades Chips and Salsa, Witch's Concoction Dip and Crudités, Sausage Balls, Roasted Pumpkin Seeds, and Deviled Eggs.

Sweet: Jack's Sinfully Sweet Sandwiches (Whoopie Pies), Slasher Cupcakes, Chocolate-covered Apricots, Edible Arachnids

Drinks: Glühwein and Philadelphia Fish House Punch

Today I think I'll share the Roasted Pumpkin Seeds, Chocolate-dipped Apricots, and Mummy Dogs. Here we go:

Roasted Pumpkin Seeds

Pumpkin Seeds

Smoked Paprika

Chili powder (I use Chimayo chili)

Salt

Olive oil

Roasting pumpkin seeds is a yearly ritual during Halloween. Not to mention that eating pumpkin seeds is really healthy for you, providing quite a dose of fiber and other essential minerals that I won't bore you with--just know that they are fun to eat and not bad for your health either! You may have seen dark green pumpkin seeds for sale in the store, and these are the seeds without the hull. However, the hull, or shell of the pumpkin seed is actually edible, and that's how I eat them because I don't want to go peeling all of those already slippery suckers after I just mutilated a pumpkin to harvest them! Oh, by the way, I did a Día de los Muertos pumpkin this year :) check him out!

Try to get as much of the pulp off of the seeds as possible. It would behoove you to rinse them off as well--a step which I skipped and I was okay with. Then you make a spice mixture to taste with about 2T of olive oil. Toss the seeds in them to coat and put them in a 350º oven for about 15-20 minutes. You can toast them as golden as you want...I like mine well done, but 15 minutes is probably the least time you want to dedicate to it. Allow them to cool, and DIG IN! I would say that these pumpkin seeds are the ideal reward after creating your jack o'lantern--then just light him up and munch away.

Chocolate-Dipped Apricots

Dried apricots (as many as you want to serve)

3 Chocolate candy bars (Cadbury Royal Dark is my favorite)

Special equipment: Parchment paper and a wire rack

This is a piece of pie, but so elegant and delicious at the same time! Added bonus: the make up the Halloween colors! A gorgeous addition to any Halloween party table, and I daresay more classy than a bowl full of that fun-sized noise... I digress.

You don't need to buy fancy melting chocolate to dip your favorite food in, just use your favorite chocolate bar (I recommend using dark chocolate because milk chocolate probably won't set as well). I set up a double boiler with about an inch of water in the bottom pot. Bring it to a rolling boil, set your other pot on top with the chocolate inside. You should break the chocolate into squares to ensure even melting. At this point you can take turn the heat of or turn it to low, depending on how much steam is escaping. This method keeps the chocolate from burning and gives the chocolate all the time it needs to evenly melt. Don't stir too often because you will be punished with bubbles :( but you shouldn't be afraid to check on it and give it a few stirs to even it out. When the chocolate has melted, you are all set to dip your dried apricots in them, as far as you want to (I did mine about half way, or to the point where my finger was), and let them cool on a wire rack with parchment paper under it to catch the drips. If you want them to set and be shiny you can put them in the fridge for about a half hour.

I served this in a clear bowl to accentuate the orange and dark brown as Halloween colors. It rounded out the dessert table nicely.

Mummy Dogs

Hot dogs

Breadstick dough

Mustard (optional)

This recipe is not my typical choice for party food, but it is so adorable, I had to jump all over it! I halved the hot dogs both vertically and horizontally to have more little mummies, but you can just cut the hot dogs in two if you want something more substantial. It's finger food, so I figured I would make it go as far as I could. 

The idea is this: Cut off strips of the breadstick dough. I took both ends and did a little jumprope motion to twist it up and lengthen it, then I wrapped it around the hot dog, leaving a little spot where the eyes would go, and mummifying it. It's like a Halloween version of pigs in a blanket. You put them in a 350º oven for about 20 minutes or until they get as golden as you want them, and then you can choose to dab some mustard eyes on them or leave them eyeless, which I guess was my approach. Everyone loved them, and they were a great fit for the theme.

We will continue with this menu throughout the week so keep on the lookout!

As for the great news... Louisville Lady Gourmet is going to be writing a couple of columns for the Insider Louisville publication! I am so excited!!!!! I will keep you posted for my first published articles! I can't believe this is happening--I get to write about my favorite city, its food culture, and what's going on in my kitchen. There couldn't be anything better! 

I hope you enjoy today's Halloween treats!