December 31, 2007Goodbye to Billy's
On this New Year's Eve, I want to raise a glass to Billy's Ritz, which is closing after tonight. Billy's has occupied an elegant, solid corner of downtown Roanoke for about 20 years. During that time, I surprised my mother on her birthday at Billy's, had many lively discussions about journalism and celebrated the marriage of two wonderful friends, all over some very fine food. Good luck to the new owner of this beautiful space. And Happy New Year to all!
Let's get cookin' again!
December 28, 2007Oh, Sherry, where aaaare you?If Sherry doesn't respond by Monday, the free gift card to Provisions for the 1,000th person to comment on the Fridge Magnet blog will go to the 1,001st. The ins and outs of 2007
The list was much longer than I thought (and way too long to print). Surprisingly, the list of eateries that opened was about twice as long as the "closed" list. So it seems that every time a restaurant closes around here, two more open to take its place. Maybe this is why we've been lucky enough to see an increase in the diversity of cuisine around town. We have three Thai places, three Indian places, a Caribbean/Creole joint, three new barbecue eateries, a handful of sushi places and much more. I'm sure I didn't come close to thinking of every single restaurant that moved in or out of Southwest Virginia this year, and that's where you come in. Tell me what I forgot. And while you're at it, tell me which new restaurant you think is the best of the bunch! Or at least the most beautiful, or the most likely to succeed... December 27, 2007So that was Christmas......and what have I done? December 26, 2007Fridge Magnet celebrates 1,000th comment!The folks over at Slashfood or the Amateur Gourmet might accuse me of making a milestone out of a mole hill here, but I don't care. While I was away from the Fridge Magnet blog last week, someone left the 1,000th comment! December 13, 2007Breakfast casseroles: a cinch in a pinch!My plan for next week's Front Burner column was to write a little about oysters and other Christmas seafood and then move on to breakfast casseroles in the second half of the article. But that's before I sat down to write and just couldn't shut up about the oysters. That topic, along with the oyster recipes I'm also running, took up all the space I had. Thank goodness for Plan B: The Fridge Magnet blog! Breakfast casseroles are one of my favorite ways to dial back the stress when I've got a house full of company. I wanted to share a couple of casserole recipes with you guys in the hopes that you'll find them helpful within the next couple of weeks. There's nothing like the ease of waking up, walking into the kitchen, turning on the oven, pulling a pan of pre-made breakfast casserole out of the oven and popping it in. Voila-- you're back to the living room to watch the kids (or the kids at heart) opening their gifts. Continue reading "Breakfast casseroles: a cinch in a pinch!" » December 12, 2007Wrapping and shopping and cooking...Oh, my!Last night, I had my annual pre-Christmas freak out. As much as I have always adored this holiday, I couldn't help but think about all the presents I still need to buy and wrap, the foods I still need to purchase and prepare for our annual gathering with friends, the cards I need to mail, the cleaning I need to do, and the logistics of spending equal time with four sets of parents in three different cities. And I don't even have children! At the risk of sounding like Carrie Bradshaw here, I couldn't help but wonder: Am I the only one who cannot get through the holiday season without a moment of sheer panic over all of the chores I need to accomplish before the big day? Continue reading "Wrapping and shopping and cooking...Oh, my!" » December 11, 2007We all scream...
During the winter, do we really all scream for ice cream? Or do we scream because it's freezing cold outside and the thought of eating something frozen makes our hair stand on end? This is the very serious question that I pondered for tomorrow's Front Burner column. The topic might seem a little out of season, but I truly wondered how so many ice cream parlors in the Roanoke area manage to stay open all year long. As it turns out, a lot of people crave ice cream almost as much during the winter as they do during the summer. And it doesn't hurt that you can find some tantalizing and sinful holiday-themed treats this time of year. December 10, 2007Cookbook winnerAs usual, I found it almost impossible to choose one entrant over the others for the Fridge Magnet's latest cookbook giveaway. The book is "Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. December 7, 2007Dreary day sub
Wednesday's snow showers and this morning's freezing rain have got me dreaming about a nice, big snow day. Of course, since I'm in the newspaper business and the newspaper never sleeps, that would have to happen on a Saturday or a Sunday. But there's always hope. My good pal Stacy has a snow day tradition filled with play and good food. She likes to invite over a friend or two, rent movies and keep a crockpot full of meatballs and tomato sauce bubbling away in the kitchen. Periodically, the movie gets paused and everyone pulls on the boots, jacket and gloves to run outside and play in the snow, throwing snowballs and fluttering out snow angels like little children. The best part, however, is going back inside to load those meatballs on top of big, crusty sub rolls. A little mozzerella or provolone cheese melted on top and you've got a snow day treat that'll fill your belly and fuel you for some snowman construction or sledding, as well. In honor of Stacy's tradition and in the hopes that we might get a play day in the snow within the next few weeks, I'm attaching my favorite recipe for homemade meatballs. They're super easy to make and they always turn out well for me. A few sauteed peppers and onions on top would make that sub even more irresistable. And for the vegans and healthy eaters in the crowd, stay tuned for Monday's blog entry and news of our next cookbook winner! What's your favorite snow day food? December 6, 2007To tide you over...Corey, Katie, Sean, Wendy and others have all offered some pretty convincing arguments for winning this week's free cookbook, "Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook." It's going to be quite hard for me to decide. December 5, 2007(Vegan) cookbook giveaway!It's time to give away another free cookbook, boys and girls! 
A few weeks ago, I received THREE copies of "Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook" by Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero. THREE copies! They really wanted me to see this book. Moskowitz and Romero are described as "America's best-selling vegan chefs." They are the authors of two other vegan cookbooks called "Vegan with a Vengeance" and "Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World." I love the title of that last one, don't you? I am just thinking of some cheesy B-Movie where giant, pink-iced cupcakes come crashing through the skyscrapers of New York City. Okay, so I digress. "Veganomicon" is packed with almost 300 pages of recipes for appetizers, brunch items, salads, salad dressings, side dishes, bean dishes, tofu dishes, soups and stews and more. Although I'm not a vegan myself (I spent a few teenage years as a vegetarian), I believe I could totally survive off the recipes in this book. December 4, 2007Sea chefs cook, sea chefs blogI want you to check out one of the coolest corporate restaurant Web sites I've seen in quite some time. The chefs who create the dishes you order at Red Lobster have been writing their own chef's blog for several months now, and it is jam-packed with useful information about cooking seafood in your own kitchen. December 3, 2007Loco for peanut butter
Of course, I wouldn't voluntarily choose to ignore any kind of peanut butter because it's probably one of my favorite flavors, particularly when incorporated into a delicious peanut butter cookie or peanut butter pie. Mmmmmm. I just don't understand people who don't like peanut butter -- like my husband. What's the deal? The P.B. Loco Dark Chocolate Duo and a jar of Sunland Banana Peanut Butter Spread turned up in my mailbox a couple of weeks ago. But after sampling the two and sharing them with some co-workers, I shoved the jars in my desk drawer and temporarily forgot about them. But then, this weekend, I was wandering through the grocery store looking for queso dip ingredients when I passed a table and a woman offering samples of...you guessed it, chocolate and banana peanut butter. |
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