Then you can go visit them!

Betsy and I have two really good friends that recently moved to Steamboat Springs, also known as the most stereotypical ski town in the entire world. This weekend they are having this strange thing called Winter Carnival. As far as I can tell it involves people skiing through rings of fire and lots of horses and cowboys.

You’d be crazy to miss it! Of course, it helps to have a couch to surf on for such events. I don’t even want to know what a hotel room in Steamboat runs in the dead of winter.

The Poll

Instead of posting a real poll this week, I’ll just open it up. If there’s a dish that you want me to try or some sort of cuisine, just leave a comment! I’ll pick something from the comments and cook that.

If you don’t have a specific dish in mind, you can also request a kind of dish… something Mexican… something vegetarian… etc.

The Links

America’s Best New Sandwiches - A quick list of some of the awesome sandwiches hitting the streets this year. I think I will be swinging by the Ink Sack for sure the next time I’m in LA… (@ Endless Simmer)

Braised Short Rib Sandwiches - Some might say that this is a lot of work for a simple sandwich, but I’ll take any chance I can get to braise some short ribs! (@ Pinch My Salt)

Nettle Pasta - Only had nettles once or twice and haven’t found them in Colorado at all, but in general I love green pastas so this caught my eye. (@ Hunter Angler)

Crab and Brie Omelet - I’m always looking for a good omelet recipe and I very rarely consider seafood for an omelet. This looks just delicious though. (@ Sugar Laws)

Vegetarian Chili - This recipe is good, but what I’m more impressed by is the photographs. Chili is almost impossible to photograph and make it look as good as it actually is. Not a problem for Todd and Diane. (@ White on Rice Couple)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Me to a Google+ circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Cool photo by Moe.

To be completely honest, I usually find the game to be a bit of a letdown just because it’s been hyped SOOO much. All you can really hope for is a decently close game and some funny commercials. Both teams are really good this year so I think it should be a good one.

With that in mind, I’m going to say GO GIANTS just because they are the underdogs. I like Eli Manning slightly more than Tom Brady. He seems less put together and somehow more frazzled and human.

Tom Brady is a bit too squeaky clean. I bet he blames his farts on others.

My main goal for Sunday is to make sure I get in a long run before the game so I can eat my face off.

 The Poll

The Links

There were lots of great recipes floating around the Internet this week. Here’s a sampling.

Mushroom and Black Bean Breakfast Tacos - I’m a sucker for a good breakfast taco and this looks right up my alley. I like the vegetarian twist on it. The mushrooms and beans look plenty filling for me. (@ Crepes of Wrath)

Spicy Grilled Hummus - This was a new one for me. Basically you lightly grill the chickpeas and stuff and then blend them up! I can see how that could give the hummus some interesting flavor. (@ Patio Daddy BBQ)

Meatball Sliders - These would be absolutely perfect for a Super Bowl party. In fact, they just might make my short list of things to make this weekend. (@ Ezra Pound Cake)

East Carolina BBQ - Talk about a good way to feed a crowd! This is actually very similar to the kind of pulled pork I made for the wedding I catered a few months ago. (@ Ruhlman)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Me to a Google+ circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Photo by ElvertBarnes.

The funny thing was her expression which very clearly said, “What? Don’t judge me!”

This is maybe my favorite photo of Tipsy that I’ve ever taken so I had to share it even though I also tweeted it during the week.

The Poll

It’s Superbowl time and so let’s make something that goes well with football. You pick!

The Links

A few links from around the Internet this week:

How to Peel Hazelnuts – I’ve often thought about trying something with raw hazelnuts, but never have. Mainly because they seem like a pain to peel… maybe not so bad though! (@ My Baking Addiction)

Cheddar and Ale Soup – This would be an amazing soup to make if you are hosting a Superbowl party. Actually, it would be good anytime, but definitely a good football soup. (@ Brown Eyed Baker)

Buckwheat Kumquat Loaf – Even if you never bake, check this recipe out. The loaf is an amazing color. I’ve never seen anything like it! (@ Not Derby Pie)

Parmesan Sour Cream Cupcakes – Savory cupcakes are all the rage these days and these sound right up my alley! (@ Cupcake Project)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Me to a Google+ circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!

There was just one catch to this plan: I’m horrible at basketball.

Just to give you a flavor of how horrible I am, every game we choose teams based on free throws. This is because free throws are supposedly easy and therefore we can start playing soon.

I think I’m shooting right around 10% for the easiest jump shot in the game. Larry Bird I am not.

Of course, the nice thing about being horrible at a sport is there’s absolutely no pressure. I suck. If I make even one basket during a game, I get carried out of the gym on people’s shoulders -Rudy style.

Meanwhile, if I were to be actually talented, there would be some sort of crazy expectation of me actually contributing to the game on a regular basis.

It’s very fun though and a great workout due to all the running and flailing involved.

The Poll

I had a lot of fun making the gin pasta this week, so I want to do some more cooking with booze. You pick!

The Links

Raw Brownies – I can’t say I’ve ever seen anything like this before but it looks really good. Even if you aren’t into the raw thing, you have to check out the chocolate avocado frosting! You could put that on pretty much anything as far as I can tell. (@ Food Loves Writing)

Mexican Brownies - Ok. I guess I was on a brownie kick as I was reading the vast Internets this week. These were another interesting brownie recipe that I’ve never seen but look very tasty. (@ Crepes of Wrath)

Cauliflower Pizza Crust - You might be aware that you can put almost anything on a pizza, but apparently you can make a pizza crust out of tons of stuff also. Like cauliflower! (@ Recipe Girl)

Savory Winter Greens Beignets - I haven’t made beignets in a while, but I always imagine them as a sweet thing for some reason. These guys would be great for a warm appetizer! (@ Love and Olive Oil)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Me to a Google+ circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Photo by minimalistphotography101.

While I’m SO not a car guy, I did actually have a lot of fun researching and negotiating the car. We knew that we wanted a car that we could take into the mountains without getting stuck and also one that would do well on snow and after looking at a few different makes/models, we went with the Subaru Forester.

The angle in the photo makes it look a bit mini-vanish, but it’s actually a pretty slick ride… kind of like a sporty SUV.

We chose to go new for two reasons. First, Subarus don’t really depreciate in value like some other models. In the used markets, we were finding cars with 50-60K miles on them that were only a few thousand less than a new model! Second, Subaru had a very low interest rate on new vehicles (.9%) and there’s no way we could get a rate that low on a used vehicle.

The car is sitting in my driveway now and has literally 25 miles on it.

I think I need to dirty it up a bit and go off-road or something. It’s too clean! Don’t tell Betsy.

I feel like I haven’t made any bread in a while so let’s bake some. You pick!

And a few links!

Sticky Toffee Pudding - It was somebody’s royal birthday this week… which I don’t really care about. But it inspired one of my favorite bloggers to make this great dessert which looks pretty out of this world. (@ Erin Cooks)

How to Make Vegetable Stock - This was a very timely post after my post on Tuesday discussing “From scratch” cooking. A great intro to making your own veggie stock for those interested. (@ Simply Recipes)

Real Men Eat Watercress (soup) - I know I love watercress so I guess that makes me a real man. I’ll take it. (@ Sippity Sup)

Polenta Mini Pizzas - Polenta is big right now in the food blog world for some reason. This is one of the cooler recipes I’ve seen with it. (@ The Perfect Pantry)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Me to a Google+ circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!

So the plan is to trade the older one in for a gently used vehicle that will be a bit safer for us to drive in the winter and also allow us to easily camp, ski, and do all things Colorado. Plus, we need a vehicle that makes it easier to haul around Porter.

I’ve spent the last week or two completely obsessing over various makes and models and have completely geeked out on some Excel spreadsheets that calculate the completely optimal financing situation accounting for price, interest rate, term of the loan, and age of the car. And people say math is useless!

This weekend I’ll be hitting the streets to actually test drive some things. I’m 90% sure that we are going to land on a Subaru. They fit our needs nicely and seem to be the official car of Colorado. I’m open to other options though.

For the poll this weekend, I wanted to circle back to one of my favorite cookbooks, The Zuni Cafe. There are hundreds of recipes in it that span from super-simple to very complex. I picked a few that looked good to me. You pick!

A few links as always!

New Year’s Health Recalibration - A plan to push the reset button from one of my favorite health writers. Will I be following this? No. But I’ll have it in mind! You might have more willpower than me though… (@ Summer Tomato)

The Green Smoothie – I’ve tried to make a bunch of green smoothies over the years. Most make me seriously gag. What I like about this one is the high level of fruit in it so you know it’ll probably have a good taste. (@ Brown Eyed Baker)

Candied Cucumber - Obviously pickles come from cucumbers, but I’ve never imagined you could candy the stuff. I can think of one amazing application for these candied things: cocktails! (@ Cupcake Project)

Chicken Fried Pork Pelly Caesar - It’s recipes like this that will break my above-mentioned weak willpower. I mean… come on! This is just amazing. (@ Ruhlman)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Me to a Google+ circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Photo by IShutterToThink.

Betsy and I are mostly chilling around the house, but we are planning two fun outdoor snow-related activities – our first of this winter.

We’re planning on going snowshoeing at some point and bringing the dog with us to frolic in the snow. I imagine that this will be much more fun for him than for us.

Then we will probably ditch the dog for a day and hit up our local ski slope for my first adventure in pain of this ski season. I’m not a great skier, but I imagine myself as a great skier. I’m sure you see how that leads to lots of problems.

Anyway, at some point during the weekend I’ll be cooking and it might as well be something from the new Cook’s Illustrated. You pick!

And a few links! These are all great dishes to make for the New Year’s weekend. I’m also posting a good New Year’s brunch dish tomorrow so be sure to check back for that.

Tex-Mex Black Eyed Pea Casserole - My mom is always very insistant that I eat black eyed peas on New Year’s day. It’s supposed to provide insane amounts of good luck. I figure it can’t hurt. (@ Recipe Girl)

New Year’s Gin - A good cocktail is a must for me on New Years. This one looks pretty much perfect. Anything with St. Germains in it is worth trying. (@ Endless Simmer)

Mulled Wine - I love having a good batch of mulled wine in the crockpot during New Years. I would maybe up the booze content of this recipe a bit with some brandy or something, but I love all the fruit in it and the photos are awesome. (@ Kitchen Confidante)

Shrimp Toast - Never seen anything like it. Never heard of anything like it. Never eaten anything like it. Want it immediately. (@ No Recipes)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Macheesmo to a Google + Circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Photo by Shanubi.

Here’s the rundown on how to use the new features!

For every recipe on Macheesmo (and a bunch of other great sites like My Baking Addiction, Two Peas and Their Pods, and Love and Olive Oil), there’s now an icon next to the print icon that will allow you to “Save” that recipe to your Ziplist Account.

The first time you press this “Save” button on a recipe, you’ll be prompted to create a Ziplist account. You can either create a new account or use a login from a social media account like Facebook. I just logged in with my facebook login and it took maybe 5 seconds.

Once your logged in, the fun starts.

Recipe Box

All of the recipes you save from any site will be placed in your “Recipe Box”. The recipe box section is really clean and easy to use. It’s the best version of this kind of software that I’ve seen by far. I also love that it allows you to save recipes from a bunch of different great sites. Here’s a screenshot of my recipe box!

Shopping List

If you’re going shopping, you can click on the recipes that you want to try out for the week and “Add them to your shopping List.” The software will comb through the ingredients and spit out an easy ingredient list for you to use while you shop!

If you ever want to check your saved recipes or ingredient lists, you can easily do so from the “Recipes” menu in the top navigation.

So, if you’re looking for a way to save recipes for later, I think this is about as easy as it gets!

Ok. Back to cooking!

The Poll and Links

For the poll this week, let’s pick something from the new Bon Appetit which looks really great.

No links this week because this post is long enough already…

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Macheesmo to a Google + Circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

It finally started to drop below freezing during the day. We still haven’t gotten any snow, but I can tell that it’s right around the corner.

Of course, the mountains are getting pelted with snow, but our desert area is dry and relatively warm!

Winter is coming though. I have to wear a heavy coat now when I walk Porter the Wonderdoodle.

Let’s do something warming for the poll this week!

And a few links!

How to Host a Cookie Exchange - I just participated in an intense cookie exchange with around 700 food bloggers in it. It went off without a hitch (as far as I can tell) because the planners were amazing. Here’s some good tips on how to host your own cookie exchange! (@ My Baking Addiction)

China Trip Recap - Two of my favorite food bloggers just took a spin over to China. Here’s some of the cool stuff they ate. Very jealous. (@ The Bitten Word)

Fish and Chips Tots - I’ve made homemade tater tots enough to know that these might be a bit of work, but man do they look good! Combining fish and chips in one bite-sized morsel is pretty much the best idea I’ve seen in a while. (@ The Food in my Beard)

Taro Fries - I think I’ve only had taro once in my life and I’m pretty sure it wasn’t cooked correctly. For some reason though, these snagged my eye this week. Especially the duck fat version because, well, duck fat. (@ Tiny Urban Kitchen)

Lofthouse Style Frosted Cookies - These remind me of the soft cookies in the grocery store that I used to eat by the bucket-full when I was a kid. Those things were so addictive! These look equally dangerous. (@ Brown Eyed Baker)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Macheesmo to a Google + Circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Photo by carfull.

All week long, cookies for you for the holiday season!

There will be a variety of shapes, sizes, and temperatures, but most importantly there will be butter.

LOTS OF BUTTER.

I’ve left one spot blank on Thursday so you guys can vote for a cookie of your choosing.

And a few links!

Broccoli Soup - This is a delicious looking soup for a cold December day. More importantly though, this is one of my new favorite food blogs out there (or at least new to me). The pair good recipes and photos with music. I find it hard to cook without music so this is right up my alley. (@ Turntable Kitchen)

How to Cook Perfect Rice - A fantastic walkthrough on how to make and store really good rice without a rice cooker. I’ve never thought to make ahead and freeze rice. I’m going to have to make some room in my freezer I think… (@ Summer Tomato)

Holiday Sriracha Chex Mix - I can imagine have a huge tub of this stuff sitting around over the holidays. I can also imagine eating the whole thing by myself. (@ Tablespoon)

Deep Fried Spinach - One of my favorite Indian restaurants when I used to live in DC was this place called Rasika. They made this wonderful dish called crispy spinach. Sounds weird, but it was my favorite. I imagine that this has a similar texture. (@ Sugar Laws)

Connect with me!

Throughout the week I love chatting with people and sharing fun and interesting stuff around the web. I’m fairly active on a few different places:

- Follow @macheesmo on Twitter.
- Like Macheesmo on Facebook.
- Add Macheesmo to a Google + Circle.

And, of course, you can always subscribe to Macheesmo via the feed or via email!

Have a great weekend everyone!