French Onion Soup

It’s winter (more or less).  It’s cold. I have to wake up extra early to scrape the frost off of my windshield.  The sun’s rising as I get into work and setting as I leave. I have to wear socks. In a word- not a fan. (Ok, so three words….)

However, this “lovely” weather does give me the perfect excuse to spend my afternoon sautéing onions in butter, letting the smell waft through my entire apartment.  It’s heavenly, trust me.   And then I get to add thyme and parsley and bay leaves. 

Added plus, it's served in a ramekin.  Have I mentioned how much I love all things that come in ramekins. Case and point? Last week's white chocolate coconut crème brulee. :)  Topped with crunchy seasoned croutons and then smothered in not one, but TWO types of cheese.  Broiled to golden brown and bubbly goodness. 

This soup almost makes winters worth it.  Almost……..

Steak and Cheese Sandwiches

Friends is one of my all-time favorite TV shows.  Even though I have seen every single episode and have probably half of them memorized, I still watch reruns of it every day after work. (Seriously, every day- welcome to my exciting life. Hehe)

One of my favorites is when Monica and Rachel bet that they know Chandler and Joey better than Chandler and Joey know them and Ross makes it into a game show.   It turns into a crazy, rapid-paced back and forth, the stakes become insanely high.  (Spoiler alert- the girls end up losing their apartment to the guys).  In one of the many rounds, Monica gets asked what Joey’s favorite food is and without blinking, yells out Sandwiches!

I can SO relate.  I love me a good sandwich.  Every day for lunch? Turkey sandwich.  When I go out to dinner? More often than not, it’s a burger or some sort of chicken sandwich or club.  Late night snack? PB&J.  I mean, what’s there not to love about sandwiches?

And this sandwich? This sandwich is awesome. 

Steak.

Onions.

Mushrooms.

Cheese.

All on crusty bread.  It’s a sandwich-lovers dream

Bobby Bread (Cheesy Garlic Bread)

So what do you do on your days off?  Sleep in? Stay in PJs all day and cozy up with your puppy?  Get lost in a book or get all caught up on your DVR?  Trust me-  I’ve spent many a lazy Saturday doing juuuuust that.

But then there are days where I do weird things.  Weird like wake up before 9am.  And immediately hit the kitchen to make pizza dough.  (Of course, I made myself an extra large vanilla latte before I got started….a girl still needs her fuel).  Why do I do this?  Because I got a wicked intense craving for Bobby Bread the night before which had to be satisfied or I would’ve gone crazy.

Ummm...Sarah- what’s Bobby Bread?  So glad you asked.  You might better know it as cheesy breadsticks. Or garlic cheese bread.  But in my world, it will always be Bobby Bread.  This fantastic bread is a staple of St. Guiseppe’s Pizza in my hometown of good ol’ Moline, Illinois.  It’s a wonderful, family owned restaurant that gave me my first job at the ripe old age of 14. 

My family had been going there for years (and still do- my dad goes literally EVERY DAY for lunch with his business buddies).   And for some reason, I always wanted to be a waitress there.  So as soon as I old enough to get a worker’s permit, the owner- none other than Bobby himself- hired me on the spot.  With absolutely no experience/training/clue whatsoever I might add…..I’m sure he regularly regretted it in the beginning. Hehehe. 

And while I worked there AND ate there every Friday night with the fam, I never got sick of the food (a true testament of its deliciousness).  And while the pizza is A.MAZ.ING, the Bobby Bread was always my favorite.  So when I got the craving, I thought ‘Hey, I worked there long enough- I bet I can whip up a pretty decent copy cat’.  And I think I came pretty close.  (P.S. This is the only pizza dough recipe you’ll ever need- it’s so perfectly soft & chewy yet it still gets all golden brown and awesome.)  Bobby- you’d be proud :)  (Fun side note- Bobby is representing the state of Illinois on Capitol Hill.  How cool is that? I can legit say I used to work for a congressman. )

Pretzel Bites

As you all know by now, I’m kinda chocolate obsessed. And by kinda, I mean I could be clinically diagnosed as a chocaholic.

I don’t even try to hide it. I have no shame.  I regularly have chocolate chip oatmeal for breakfast.  My afternoon snack? A granola bar with peanut butter and dark chocolate.  My go-to after dinner treat- a couple Dove promises or Hershey kisses.  When scanning for dessert recipe idea, the more chocolate involved the better.  A chocolate chip cookie dough brownie? Count me in.  You say it’s even better when served with chocolate ice cream? Even better.

However, today- Let’s go crazy.  Instead of making this, this, or this, let’s make little pillows of soft pretzels.  We’ll even make ‘em good and salty with a sprinkle of a bit of coarse salt.  And as a bonus, there’s a warm, velvety cheese sauce too.  Then let’s all curl up on my couch, pop in Bridesmaids (which I still have yet to see…..), and drown those little salted pillows in cheddary goodness.  Sound like a plan?  Awesome. See you at 7.  Max will be there too (insert gratuitous puppy shot here)