Then I was useless for the next 20 minutes as I recovered from feeling like I was going to toss my breakfast smoothie. That last hill by my office is a doozie.

The Soul of East Austin is a charitable festival featuring local gospel & jazz music and select east Austin restaurants, hosted by The Ministry of Challenge.

This high-profile event showcases the beautiful culture and talent from within the communities of east Austin.

Masters of Ceremony:
Bob Cole & Bucky Godbolt

Featured Artists:
Blue Mist
Bells of Joy
Soul Tree Collective
Kyle Turner & Michael Ward
Sister Juanita & Tabitha Johnson
Teresa Grayson

Featured Restaurants:
M.O.C. BBQ
Hoover’s
Zandunga Mexican Bistro
11th St. Station
Hat Creek Burger Co.

Tickets / Registration:
$20 online or at any RunTex location
$30 at the door
Kids under 12 are FREE

About the MINISTRY OF CHALLENGE:
The M.O.C. serves as a bridge for men struggling to make a positive transition from prison release back into society.
Located in the heart of east Austin, the M.O.C. is a free six month residential program that addresses substance abuse, self-destruction and family violence.
To date, approximately 4200 men of all ages have been given a second chance through the Ministry of Challenge.
All proceeds are directed to the life-saving programs of the Ministry of Challenge (a 501(c)(3) non-profit created in 1993.

This is what I was trying for: chocolate fudge cake

Tastes like poop.

S and I decided to DIY our own Gin and Jam.  How hard can it be, right? Not too hard once you figure out the right mixing technique*.

First – the Gin! It has a hat because it’s distinguished. This gin may be a little overwhelming for this drink.  Ask your liquor guy for one a little less intense than the Brokers.

Next, the JAM.  I’m trying to cut added sugar out of my life, so I wanted to find the most sugar-less jam I could find. Both of these added-sugar free jams were found at Specs.  We did small taste tests before committing to making a whole cocktail…

S and I think that the St. Dalfour may be the jam that 2nd Bar+Kitchen uses.  Color and taste seems awfully similar.

*As far as technique, don’t put the jam on the bottom of the glass or else it won’t ever mix up with the gin.  Instead, fill your glass almost full of ice, then put the gin in to a level a little below the ice, then put the jam on top of the ice and begin mixing with a spoon.  Drinking this drink is a bit of an active process as continual swirling keeps the gin and jam nice and mixed up. Helps to let the ice melt a little too.

Refreshing!

Speaking of moving, we moved. This is my favorite part of the apartment so far.

My grandmom painted the ballerinas in 1959.  They were hung in the guestroom where I slept when I stayed with her in the summers growing up.

S found the chest at Goodwill! Gorgeous!

I picked up the axis deer skull on a property I was doing some work on near Kyle, Texas.  S did a fine job of affixing it to the wall with a wire coat hanger.

I will post a full home tour soon.

That’s a joke. Or it is? You should probably just come over for dinner, you might get the tour sooner.

ttyl.

Apparently my shamelessly obvious plan to shout out to my friend Shannon’s husband (who is a confessed reader of aPerfectInsane) to get him to get her to make me soup worked.  They had S and I over to their lovely house for Chicken Parmesan and Potato Leek Soup on Valentines Day. Thanks guys!!!

Shannon, can you please make Leprechauns and pots of gold exist now? Baby needs new dining room chairs.

On a side note, Macaroni Grill has half-price wine night on Thursdays. (cheap, chain restaurant date night? Don’t mind if I do.)  S and I bought a large, 8-glass bottle of Macaroni Grill’s house chianti (for $15.99 – all class, all the time), didn’t finish it all, and brought it home.  And I have to say, here I am four nights later and it is still delicious! AND I drank it all weekend while S was out of town. So much wine, and so tasty! Bang for my buck! Bang for YOUR buck!

Like the rest of America, it’s New Year to a New Skinnier Me. Treadmill = I hate you.  Lame. Recently I picked up a copy of Incredibly Easy Gluten Free Recipes ($7.98) in the bargain section at Barnes and Noble.  My small intestine does not require me to eat gluten free, but I like the idea of eating fewer wheat products. I’m also big into quinoa lately, and this book has a decent number of recipes with quinoa as the bright, healthy shining star.

One of the first recipes in the book was for Crustless Ham and Spinach Tart, with only 1/4 cup of Parmesan cheese required. I had most of the ingredients; all I needed was ham and frozen spinach.  I don’t like recipes that break the bank (I’m looking at you, Rachel Ray!).  Lame. Unsatisfactory.

New Year to a New Me Resolution Number 2: Quit saying LAME so much. Jeez.

Crustless Ham and Spinach Tart

• 1 tsp. olive oil
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 2 cloves minced garlic
• 1 10 oz. package frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed dry (very dry or you’ll have a runny tart!)
• 2-2.5 cups deli ham, sliced or cubed (recipe calls for sliced, I cubed instead, depends on your desired ham ratio)
• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese, plus some for topping the final product
• 1 tbsp minced fresh basil or 2 tsp. dried
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350.  Lightly spray 9-inch glass pie dish with cooking spray.

Heat oil in medium skillet over medium high heat.  Add onion and garlic until soft, about 2 minutes.  Stir in spinach and ham.  Spread mixture evenly into pie plate.

Combine milk, eggs, 1/4 cup cheese, basil, pepper, and nutmeg in a medium bowl.  Pur over spinach mixture.  Bake 50 minutes to one hour, or until a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean.  Sprinkle with remaining cheese.

It seemed a little wiggly jiggly when I first pulled it out of the oven. I let it sit for 10 minutes to firm up. One I dug in, I discovered it to be light, fluffy, and fresh. Perfect for dinner for one, since S was at a bachelor party (must resist…urge…..LAME! Bah, I couldn’t not say it).

I reheated my tasty tart under a low broiler the next morning, and it was still perfectly edible, which is great. Day-old egg casserole can be dicey, you know.

Go team!

I’m not even going to bore you with the recipe.  I’ll just bore you with the most boring food picture ever.

This is half-way through the cooking process. See how nicely my food processor processed?

Potatoes taste like nothing. How is this soup ever good?? Bah.