New Favorite Sides Part I: Hasselback Potatoes

A perfect day.  Just us.  Special trips to the store for ingredients.  Lots of time to cook.  A great bottle of wine.  And getting a good night sleep.

We were given some great quality sirloin strips.  AND Chris fixed our grill!  I can't believe how long we waited to fix it.  Chris is back to his manly self. :-)  I wanted to round off the perfect steak with a few sides, but not just any sides.

Dining Out: Food Cart- Fernando's Mundo Fiesta, Portland OR

The Food Cart Revolution.  Food on wheels has been around for years, especially on the streets of major cities.  It may seem a little odd, but that's why their presence is renowned in Portland.

They are everywhere.  Hundreds of them adorn the neighborhoods here.  Food for cheap: fast, meat or meatless, on a stick or in a bowl, wrapped up, fancy, and from around the world.  It's a beautiful thing.

http://www.foodcartsportland.com/

Chicken Noodle Soup with Cheese Tortellini

All my Californian loved ones have been texting me all week.  "It's POURING here, how's the weather for you?"  "Being washed away, all the way to Oregon!"  So as we continue to receive Spring showers, our dear friends and family are getting dumped on as well.  Thought we could all use a piping hot bowl of Chicken Noodle Soup.

Scott (Chris' brother) and his wife Carrie came in last night to visit us for the weekend.  What better way to kick off a wet weekend than with a little warm comfort food.

"Chris' Surprise" a.k.a. Perfect Eggs on Toast

Our first morning back from our honeymoon back in 2007, Chris set out to make me breakfast.

"Whatcha makin' me?" I asked.

"Surprise..." he said with a boyish grin.

I trusted him with breakfast that morning, and he's been sworn in as breakfast man ever since.

Eggs on toast became known as Chris' Surprise after that first day as a married couple in our own home.  The funny thing is, it's not a surprise any longer, but we still call it that.

$999 Salsa: With Roasted Corn and Artichoke

So after all the hub-bub about my romance with tomatoes, I'm taking a turn.  A salsa WITHOUT tomatoes?! I was more curious than anything.  A family friend gave me this recipe in my "bridal shower recipe box."  I really need to go through some of those.  Everyone put their best foot forward.  A real treasure of a gift, didn't know it at the time.

The title on the card said: ARTICHOKE AND CORN SALSA (CAROL'S $1000 RECIPE).  I'm pretty sure I remember a story about prize money being involved.  But that's a lot for salsa!  ... even more curiosity brewing.