 Big Guy usually leaves the cooking to me, but every now and then, he will surprise me with a special meal. We were having a lazy morning when he declared he was going to make breakfast.
He opted to make a simple egg, bacon and cheese scramble. He added a side of bread and a fresh pot of coffee. Now that is the way to a girl’s heart even if I ended up doing the dishes. HA!
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 Big Guy and I usually make marinara for the season thanks to learning the art of canning with our darling friend and past neighbor, @nataliejhiggins. We prefer to use our own produce from @carondeletgarden, but it seems the weather and squirrels have had other ideas last year, so our annual supply has run out. Regardless, I can still take store bought and make magic. I stopped by @legrandsmarket for Italian salsiccia to add to marinara sauce. I also pulled any vegetables I had in the refrigerator along with the garden to make a primavera version of pasta for our weekly meal. It came together quickly and made so much that I had leftovers for another meal. Winner!   Big Guy and I were day tripping when we remembered our niece-in-law, @marisamrealtor, mentioned her family was opening another place in Herculaneum, Missouri. The text simply said, “the next time you are in Herculaneum, stop by and check out the family business!” The business in question is Joe’s Pizza and Pasta. They started the business over 47 years ago and currently have 21 locations in Illinois. The store in Herculaneum, the first in the State of Missouri, is more of a carry out and delivery place, but they did have a table inside along with a couple of tables outside. We ordered Joe’s special pizza with sausage, pepperoni, mushroom, onion, and green pepper made along with their original secret Trupiano family recipe! It was served hot and so delicious. The visit was made sweeter when we met Sanna, the owner and family connection back to our niece. It was the perfect visit!  Big Guy decided to simplify @carondeletgarden this year, but I insisted we try to grow banana peppers. I wanted one new vegetable on hand to cook @carondeletkitchen. As I was leaving the house, I noticed our first crop of peppers had grown to the point of needing to be harvested, so I sought out recipes using banana peppers. I got inspiration from several recipes and opted to put my CK spin on this dish. I baked the chicken breast with @motastespices smothered herb rub. While it was baking, I showed my multi-tasking skills by toasting panko with olive oil along with putting a pot of couscous on to boil. When I got to the last ten minutes, I put the crescent rolls into the oven and made a simple cheese sauce with half and half, and parmesan cheese, and the banana peppers. Once the components were all cooked, I plated the chicken with the cheese sauce sprinkled with the toasted panko. The addition of the couscous and bread made for a complete, and delicious, meal. I cannot wait for the next round of peppers to come in so I can experiment in the kitchen again!   Big Guy and I decided to take a walk down memory lane. When I was a student at SLU, I spent many hours @humphreysmidtown studying for class and later for my oral and written exams. It was also the place Big Guy would hang out on the occasions when I had a night class. And, of course, a great place to have lunch or dinner before a Billiken game. I know that the pub was reestablished in 2022, but I wondered if my memory of the great food would be the same as the reality of my meal. We were both delighted to see our meals arrive at the table and were impressed with how well it looked and tasted. I had to go for the Billiken special which is an inclusive meal of a smash burger with cheese, fries, and a soda. Big Guy opted for the double smashburger. The best surprise was how reasonable the meal was, especially knowing the cost of everything had gone up. I am glad we went back to this great restaurant, and we look forward to a return trip.  Big Guy and I have been enjoying my attempts at making bagels, but we decided to check out experts in the field by visiting @bakedboiled. I loved reading about the inspiration for this shop being out of frustration in the search for a true bagel in St. Louis. This women-owned shop did not disappoint. The storefront is inviting and the moment you walk into the shop, the aromas make you want to order one of each type of bagels. We showed restraint by only purchasing four bagels, but we also decided to make our stop a meal by ordering their egg and bacon bagel sandwiches. They arrived toasted to perfection with fresh ingredients that popped with flavor! We are looking forward to a return soon. I have already been thinking about ways to incorporate them into a future meal!  I have been obsessed with recipes featuring lemons now that we are entering long Summer days. It seems so has @nytcooking as they have been featuring a plethora of suggestions this month. The most recent suggestion was for lemony orzo with asparagus and garlic bread crumbs. It sounded rather cumbersome at first glance, but the steps were simple and the meal came together quickly. I boiled the orzo then added the asparagus for the final minutes. While that was boiling, I put together the “sauce” of oil, lemon zest and lemon juice. I put the sauce aside and toasted up the panko until golden brown. The magic was at the end when I drained the orzo and asparagus, added it to the sauce along with parmesan cheese, dill, salt, and pepper. The final touch was to serve the dish with the panko and additional parmesan cheese as a topping. It was the perfect meal on a hot day!  I can tell we survived the recent outage of our air conditioning in our little cottage when I felt motivated to bake some shortbread. I usually make it from scratch, but thanks to @kingarthurbaking, I was able to grab a box so I could bake right away.
I love using my shortbread pan as it makes beautiful patterns on the shortbread giving it an extra special look when serving them with tea or coffee. I find this is another one of life’s pleasures as I lean into my “granny” summer!  Big Guy and I stopped by @thesummitallseasonsmarket to pick up vegetables for a special meal. You can tell the produce is starting to come in from local farmers as I wanted to buy all of it. It was vibrant, fresh, and inspired me to think of other recipes too. I immediately leaned into a favorite meal I like to make when it gets hot outside. There is nothing more “summery” than fresh roasted red pepper hummus with vegetables and naan. I have used a recipe from @inagarten and it never disappoints. The mix of garbanzo beans, lemon, tahini, hot sauce, garlic, roasted red peppers, and seasonings is always a hit! I usually make the hummus the day before serving to give it time to meld into a delicious dip. The bonus is I loaded up my cooking in one day so I could enjoy easy meals for the rest of the week! REED'S RELICS
With over 13,000 square feet of Antiques, primitives, furniture, vintage clothing, LPs, books and so much more! They even have an in-store Ice Cream shop with hand-dipped Ice Cream. This place is incredible with new items added every single day. This is a must visit for the antique and vintage lover! |
AuthorJust a super cool old couple who love to cook and eat and drink in their Carondelet Kitchen in South Saint Louis, Missouri! Archives
July 2026
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