Did I tell you I’m getting married?

If you are lovesick or not feeling marriage these days, I warn you not to read further.  I’m about to get all lovey about my man.  Consider yourself warned.

The news got a little lost in the middle of our pregnancy last year and perhaps you missed it.  Well, it’s official.  We’re gettin’ hitched in June 2013 at a beautiful farm in central Vermont. We have just started bouncing some ideas around and will take any helpful hints.  Especially if they are recommendations for awesome, flexible organic, local caterers in central VT.

Anyway, I wanted to make sure you all knew.  AND I wanted to share pictures from the big ASK.  It was a hot summer evening in 2011 and I was on my way home from yoga and little did I know Josh would be (literally) falling to his knee with a sweet proposal.  I can’t wait.

A tasty spring meal

This meal was almost perfect.  Josh might disagree.  He’d want to add pasta or something to make it bigger.  If only we’d had a baguette!  It would have been better with a baguette, actually.  I think I saw something similar on Smitten Kitchen (surprise, surprise) but I didn’t have the patience to look up the recipe so I just went for it.  And I’m glad I did.  This is an awesome, simple dish you could eat any time of day. 

Asparagus and tomato-poached egg deliciousness: Serves one Becca and Josh for lunch.  But only if Josh has had a big breakfast. 

Preheat your oven to 410F.

1. Mince 1-2 cloves of garlic and cook on medium heat in a small frying pan with some olive oil. 

2. Dice 8 of those small-ish tomatoes on the vine that you can get at Whole Foods.  Salt and pepper.

3. Add them to the garlic.

4. Snap the ends off a large handful of asparagus, arrange on a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and salt/pepper.  Throw it in the oven for 10-12 minutes.

5. By now the tomatoes will have broken down into a chunky sauce that’s a little watery.  This is perfect.  Even out so tomatoes to cover the bottom of the pan. 

6. Crack 2-3 eggs into the tomato mixture and cover.  Turn down the heat a little. 

7.  After about 5 minutes (or the time it takes you to wash the cutting board and knife and compost the asparagus ends) uncover and let cook for a couple more minutes to let some of the water evaporate.  You can keep it covered for longer to cook the eggs more but they’re better runny.

8.  To serve, scoop out some tomato mixture and an egg, top with 5-6 asparagus spears and plenty of grated Parmesan cheese.  And voila! 

Crusty baguette would have been perfect to soak up all the tomato-y/eggy mixture.

It’s almost summer.  How do I know?  Because Josh and I ate dinner on Tyler and Canaan’s porch on Saturday night.  How do I know that it’s onlyalmostsummer?  Because we had coq au vin and put our sweatshirts on.  Canaan cooks a fucking awesome coq au vin.  I wish I had a picture.  We arrived early, and I enjoyed sitting at the the sunny window in their kitchen sipping a margarita while she was cooking.  As I jabbered on, I took mental notes on what she was doing so I (one day) can cook this up myself. Speaking of margaritas.  I hate ordering these when I’m at restaurants.  The sour mix folks use is usually disgustingly syrupy and sweet.  Canaan agreed.  Which is why she’s taken to making margaritas at home without sour mix.  She used tons of fresh lime juice, a dash of cointreau and OJ, shook it up with the tequila and ice and voila…the perfect margarita.  We had egg noodles with the coq au vin, which was just perfect.  In fact, the only let-down of the meal was the desserts that Josh and I picked up from Cafe Vanille in Beacon Hill.  We got an assortment of mini tarts.  The pear tart was the best but the rest tasted a little stale - like they’d been in the refridgerator too long.  They weren’t terrible but I’m not going back. Sorry Cafe Vanille. If you are looking for a coq au vin recipe, Canaan adapted hers from one here. She left out the port, mushrooms and red wine and used white wine instead.  Brilliant!

It’s almost summer.  How do I know?  Because Josh and I ate dinner on Tyler and Canaan’s porch on Saturday night.  How do I know that it’s onlyalmostsummer?  Because we had coq au vin and put our sweatshirts on. 

Canaan cooks a fucking awesome coq au vin.  I wish I had a picture.  We arrived early, and I enjoyed sitting at the the sunny window in their kitchen sipping a margarita while she was cooking.  As I jabbered on, I took mental notes on what she was doing so I (one day) can cook this up myself.

Speaking of margaritas.  I hate ordering these when I’m at restaurants.  The sour mix folks use is usually disgustingly syrupy and sweet.  Canaan agreed.  Which is why she’s taken to making margaritas at home without sour mix.  She used tons of fresh lime juice, a dash of cointreau and OJ, shook it up with the tequila and ice and voila…the perfect margarita. 

We had egg noodles with the coq au vin, which was just perfect.  In fact, the only let-down of the meal was the desserts that Josh and I picked up from Cafe Vanille in Beacon Hill.  We got an assortment of mini tarts.  The pear tart was the best but the rest tasted a little stale - like they’d been in the refridgerator too long.  They weren’t terrible but I’m not going back. Sorry Cafe Vanille.

If you are looking for a coq au vin recipe, Canaan adapted hers from one here. She left out the port, mushrooms and red wine and used white wine instead.  Brilliant!