Caprese Sandwich and Soup combo ....Grilled Cheese!

I am a huuuge fan of the grilled cheese and tomato soup combination. With spring blossoming here in the ATL, I wanted a way to freshen up one of my favorite combos. How? you ask. Give it a caprese twist! Toss a bit of basil on a grilled cheese and serve it alongside a simple tomato soup. The ultimate comfort food.

For the Tomato Soup:
Melt 1 Tablespoon of unsalted butter in a saucepan. Add 1 Tablespoon of flour and stir together until combined. Let the flour cook in the butter for just a couple of minutes or so. Toss in two crushed cloves of garlic. Add 1 cup of your choice of milk or cream (you could use whole, skim, 2%, unflavored Almond, unflavored Soy, etc). Add 1/2 teaspoon Better than Boullion vegetable base or a half a cube of vegetable boullion. Toss in a 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Season with salt and pepper to taste and cook until hot and bubbly. Makes more than enough to satisfy two hungry folks.

For the Mozzarella Basil Grilled Cheese:
Spread softened butter lightly on one side of four pieces of bread. Place two of the slices butter side down on a frying pan or griddle on medium heat. Heap a little pile of mozzarella cheese on top of each slice. Let melt slightly. Put two fresh basil leaves on each sandwich. Top each sammy with the last pieces of bread butter side up. Press down a bit. Flip them over and cook the other side until golden. Makes two sandwiches - to share or eat all by one super hungry person.

Dip your delicious little sandwich into the soup for a caprese combo...enjoy!

SO good I couldn't wait to devour this...

RIP Elizabeth Taylor

In memory of the passing of Elizabeth Taylor...I have added few clips as a tribute to an amazing actress and humanitarian...

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf


Cat on A Hot Tin Roof


Trailer from Cleopatra..

Keep on Runnin'.....

Hello, folks...sorry I've been on hiatus. My day job has me swamped with tasks; I've started training for a 10K; and wedding planning has appeared to swallow most of the available time I have on a day to day basis.

Wait...you're training for a 10K? Why?!! Well, for the past five years, I had been watching the Peachtree Road Race speed by the front steps of the apartment building I had been living in. Every year I had said to myself that I needed to sign up, train, and run. Has it been difficult? a little bit. Mostly, my motivation to continue on suffers a bit,and I have to push through. My goal - to push through and finish. Not only finish, but finish with a time to be proud of.

How to get training? Well, I printed out the following; a beginner's 5K training program, a program that trains you from a 5K to a 10K, and then parts of a program that help you with your time.

Here are a few helpful links if you are interested in getting yourself into 10K shape:

To get from a beginner to a 5K-er
Fitness Magazine's 5K program

Runner's World 5K program

Running Times' 5K training

To bump up from a 5K to a 10K

Novice 10K training

To bump up your 10K

Running Planet.com

Now, there are hundreds of training programs out there, all geared towards different levels of fitness and amount of time to train. Find a program that works for you and...Good Luck!

Book Sculptures

With the advent of the popularity of e-book readers, many are wondering what will become of those wonderful physical books that populate shelves. As convenient as the Nook or Kindle are; there are many who would argue that there is nothing akin to cracking the cover of a well-loved book.
One artist seeks to put unused books into a good use. Check out a these sculptures by Brian Dettmer....

Dettmer, also known as the "Book Surgeon", does not place anything new on these books. He only subtracts.

To check out an interview with Brian Dettmer click here.
Or.... to check out his website click here.

Privacy Optional

It's been quite a while since my last post here. My day job has been a trifle bit insanely busy.

Since it's been such a while, I thought I would share a fun little find!

It's called a Bubble tree tent. Pierre Stephane Dumas created these fabulously, privacy-free little ports to the imagination. The downside (other than clear walls and lack of privacy of course) is that they are only in Europe right now, around seven to nine thousand bucks each, you can't fit it into a hiking pack, and during the summer? total greenhouse. However, they come in all different sizes and configurations.

There are a few companies in France who rent them out for a bit cheaper (about 400 Euros a night) and they are kind of like really awesome, portable hotel rooms. Watch the stars come out at night and the sun rise in the morning, all from the comfort of an inflatable tent? Ummm...yes, please!!

The next time I have extra money for one heck of a vacation...I'm totally going to spring for this! But I just might have to bring some curtains...