Grown Up BLT

There's nothing like a BLT. The saltiness of the bacon, the sweetness of the tomato, and the freshness of the lettuce blend in perfect harmony. Tonight I made a quick BLT for myself for dinner, and without even meaning to, I classed it up quite a bit. Behold, an open face BLT for grownups!

• 1 piece of whole grain toast (I actually used a "sandwich thin")
• Garlic thyme aioli (mayo + minced garlic + lemon thyme from my garden
• 2 pieces peppered thick cut (local!) bacon
• arugula leaves
• 1 sweet yellow tomato, thinly sliced
• sea salt (tomatoes need salt to bring out their sweetness) and black pepper

Assemble ingredients in the order they are listed and enjoy! This could obviously be a regular sandwich and not open-face, but I had enough filling for two sandwiches but only one sandwich thin.

Haircut Dinner?

Before

Last week, I cut 10 inches (or maybe more) off my hair, and donated it to Pantene's Beautiful Lengths program which makes wigs for women with cancer.This is the fourth time I have donated my hair (and probably last since it is starting to go gray), and it has been emotional every time.

After!

Eight and a half years ago, my best friend Mariah died of cancer. She was the strongest and most vibrant person I've ever met, and I still miss her every day. But, her memory lives in me, and I try to channel her passionate spirit in everything I do. While I can't bring Mariah back, and I'm not cut out to do research to prevent cancer or provide support for those suffering like some of my other amazing friends are, something I have been able to do is give my hair so women undergoing chemotherapy have one less thing to take away their dignity.

My "hair cut" meal last Wednesday night was in honor of Mariah. One of her favorite meals was Chicken Fettuccine. For her that meant fettuccine alfredo with chicken, but I took some creative freedom and made one of my specialties. While I'm sure I was not the first person to think of this, it is one of the best dishes that I have ever come up with on my own.

This meal was delicious, and meaningful and reminded me that while adjusting to my new short hair may take awhile, it is worth it to be able to honor Mariah in this way one last time.

Sort of a lame photo, but a delicious meal

Prosciutto Wrapped Chicken stuffed with Goat Cheese

• 2 chicken breasts
• 2 oz goat cheese
• fresh garlic
• fresh herbs (I used Rosemary and basil this time)
• 4 slices of prosciutto
• olive oil

Mince the garlic and chop the herbs and mix into the goat cheese. Set aside. Put chicken breasts on a cutting board and slice into them to create little pockets. Fill with goat cheese and press the pocket shut. Wrap with prosciutto, putting seams on opposite side of the goat cheese pocket. Grill on Medium heat for 20-25 minutes, turning halfway through.

Fettucine with Wine Sauce

• fettucine pasta
• 2 TBSP olive oil
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced or grated
• red pepper flakes
• 2 TBSP butter (or butter substitute)
• 2 (or so) cups dry white wine
• grated parmesan 

Heat water for pasta. When it boils, salt heavily and add pasta. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, sautee garlic in olive oil until it becomes tender. Add red pepper flakes and wine and simmer to reduce wine by about half. Reduce heat to low and add butter to sauce. When pasta is one or two minutes shy of perfection, drain and add to pan with wine sauce. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water to add in case pasta dries out. Toss pasta with parmesan (about 2 oz), season liberally with black pepper and a bit of salt, and serve.