The rains ruined a perfectly good proposed Saturday outing out to Shenandoah. The compromise? A quick Sunday morning hike to the Potomac at Red Rock Wilderness Overlook Park, a part of NOVA Parks. Judging from the NOVA Parks cover photo, I need to go back because I don’t have to be on the river’s edge. Continue reading “Red Rock Wilderness Overlook Park”
Author Archives: Benjamin Smith
Bake the Bag – Wk. 1: Banana Bread
King Arthur Flour started a new baking challenge called Bake the Bag. The concept is that you finish a 5 lb bag of their White Whole Wheat flour by the end of the series of nine challenges. This week’s was banana bread, subbing the 50/50 flour mix to 100% white whole wheat. The bread tastesContinue reading “Bake the Bag – Wk. 1: Banana Bread”
Spaghetti Carbonara
This week was spaghetti carbonara because it’s simple, easy, and I already had leftover parm from cacio e pepe over the weekend. And Bon Appetit did a great video and we all know I get my food ideas from Youtube. ISO 1600 | f/2.8 | 1/50 | 24mm I am a firm believer in carbonara notContinue reading “Spaghetti Carbonara”
Pizza!
This week saw pizza for dinner. I made a batch of the Serious Eats Basic Neapolitan Pizza Dough, separated it into four dough balls, and pulled one out every day. Toppings and sauce were nothing special, this week was about the dough. There’s a few lessons learned. The main one? My oven doesn’t get hotContinue reading “Pizza!”
Chicken Enchiladas
This week’s dinner is a ready to assemble batch of chicken enchiladas. The chicken is from Gimme Some Oven’s crispy chicken carnitas. The sauce has red bell, anaheim, poblano, and jalapeno peppers, yellow onion, garlic, and some tomato sauce. Sides are guac, sour cream, mexican rice, and pico de gallo also from Gimme Some Oven.Continue reading “Chicken Enchiladas”
Mason Neck State Park
State park visit number one of Virginia is in the books. Mason Neck State Park is east, on Belmont Bay off the Potomic River near Lorton. According to their website, it the entire region is known for birds, in particular bald eagles. I didn’t think I saw any, but reviewing my photos today showed oneContinue reading “Mason Neck State Park”
Mango Chipotle Blackened Shrimp Tacos
I made shrimp tacos tonight, based off Gimme Some Oven’s Mango Chipotle Fish Tacos. I’m not a fan of white fish, and since the Washington DC suburbs do not sell fresh seafood, I picked up some frozen shrimp and blackened them. The tacos have a smear of guacamole, then the shrimp, then some salsa, thenContinue reading “Mango Chipotle Blackened Shrimp Tacos”
Rainbows and Butterflies
A post thunderstorm rainbow combined with living close to the landing approach for Dulles? ISO 400 | f/8 | 1/320 | 200mm ISO 100 | f/11 | 1/50 | 35mm
Fiesta Lime Chicken
I made a copycat of the fiesta lime chicken from Applebees for dinner tonight. Chicken breast marinated in garlic, teriyaki sauce, and liquid smoke. A creamy sauce based on sour cream, mayo, and blackening spices, and a topping of shredded jack cheese. The chicken breast can be pounded into a uniform thickness to make cookingContinue reading “Fiesta Lime Chicken”
Pain Au Chocolat
I have wanted to make laminated dough for the longest time. Over the long weekend I made the King Arthur Flour recipe for Pain au Chocolat. I let the dough rise in the fridge overnight, per their recommendation, and laminated it today. It taste amazing, and I cannot wait to make the other half ofContinue reading “Pain Au Chocolat”
Ben There Shot That 