St. James Art Fair 2011

Oh beautiful for spacious St. James, for delightful waves of kettlecorn smells! For white tented, peaked majesties, above the sewage drains! St. James, St. James, God shed His grace on thee!!! (I hope no one was offended by that, I love America more than most)

This weekend is the one and only St. James Art Fair!! Holla! Grab a dolla and get down there! (Not that you can buy anything with a dollar at the fair, but maybe you can find a cheap cookie or something, who is 2Bit to limit your bargaining skills??)

In case you don't know how to do the St. James Art Fair, say you are a first timer or just have forgotten how, check out one of 2Bit's first posts- 2Bit Does St. James. It may help.

This lovely art fair takes place in Old Louisville, and if you don't feel like fall after attending, there is NO hope for you. None. JK, there is always hope. But for reals, get your booties down there. I think it should be lovely weather, so grab your favorite guy or girl, or guys and girls, and have some fun!

P.S. If you want to see the most talented artist in the entire world, head down to Belgravia Court and take a look see at Satian Leksrisawat's booth. 

Love you so. 

2Bit

Spalding's Donuts

Donuts hold a special place in my heart. They remind me of my Dad. He used to bring home donuts many Saturday mornings after coming back from the race track. (He was a jockey) I always loved the glazed as well as both the choc. and blueberry cake ones. 

Located on 760 Winchester Rd, Lexington, Ky 40505

Now, Spalding's is one of the only bakeries that I would go to for donuts. 

{http://mobile.sweets.seriouseats.com/2011/06/national-doughnut-honor-roll.html}

The glazed donuts are so delicious. They are handmade every morning, Wed-Sun. If  you go Sat or Sun morning, be prepared to wait in line for a little bit. But it is totes worth it!!!

~~~

And best yet, it is family owned and there are the sweetest lil old women working there.

{http://spaldingsbakery.com/}

A Happy 1 Bit Year!

One year ago, 2Bit decided to kick-off the blog with a visit to the Farmer's Market.

So, it would only make sense that we go again this year. It was a lovely morning to ride our bikes.

2Bit wants every one of these bouquets to adorn her home. Nothing accents like fresh flowers!

And nothing melts 2Bit's heart like a puppy...

An English Bulldog puppy at that! We wanted that soft, wrinkly pup for ourselves.

We had to settle for veggies instead.

~~~

Stay tuned for the yummy pasta dish we make from all the veggies we bought.

And Happy 1 year to 2Bit

It's been fun!

Farewell with "Watermelon" Jello Shots

Many of you know 2Bit's dear friend Botto.... He likes jello shots.

2Bit saw this fun way of making the shots look like mini watermelon slices. Now this is something fun you could even do with your kiddos, minus the vodka, of course.

We had a watermelon toast to bid Botto farewell. He has moved back to Cinncinnati to begin his job at Deloit, since he is a big time accountant now. 

10 limes, one box of red color jello,  1 cup vodka, 1 cup boiling water
- 10 limes makes 40 jello shots - 

1. Prepare limes by cutting them in halves and hollowing out the peel. This may sound easier than it is. The trick is to take a paring knife and score around the insides carefully to loosen the citrus. Then spoon it out saving the fruit. (I tried making a limeade, but it was a tad bitter)

2. Boil one cup of water and add it to jello mix in a large bowl, stirring until it dissolves. 
3. Slowly add one cup of vodka and stir.

4. Pour mixture into a cup with a spout (for an even pour). I use a measuring cup. Line up limes in a pyrex dish (or something with edges) so they are secure and upright and so that if they do spill, it won't run off the edge. Pour in jello mixture. Refrigerated over night.

5. Carefully quarter the halves with a sharp knife.

Recipe adapted from: {http://thatssomichelle.blogspot.com/2011/02/fancy-watermelon-jello-shooters.html}

Homemade Greek Pimento

How was your Labor Day? 

Mine was everything it should be...

~Screaming, laughing kids

~Those same kids painting toenails, fingernails, anywhere you would allow

~Cooking
~Catching up with family

~Grilling out in the rain

~Homemade ice cream

~Black Magic Cake

~Birthday Songs-(Auntie Jane's bday is Wed!!)

~L.L.Bean duck boots
(Aren't they the greatest duck boots ever?? )
A very early bday gift from my mommy b/c we can't wait on surprises...

~Attic diving

~Chicken coop building

~Playing "paper telephone"

~Laughing 'til we cry 

~~~
~Truly a day to be remembered~
Now how about some homemade Greek pimento?

This is what you need...

plus cayanne...

Combine 2 tbsp minced garlic,  2 c. mild and 3 c. sharp shredded cheddar cheese; a small jar of pimentos, drained; 1/2 c. non-fat greek yogurt; 1 tbsp mayonnaise; salt & pepper...(Adjust according to your taste. If it seems too wet, add more cheese.)

Stir in a generous dose of cayenne pepper. Stir, stir, stir and maybe mash a little...

Delicious with strawberry salad and... 

have you ever had these?...

...favorite cracker, hands down!

Also...

Pimento is delish on a piece of toast with a slice of a garden fresh tomato!

May Your Labor Day Weekend Be...

Full of joy and newly made memories...

~~~

Ideas of what you can do to say farewell to summer?

Go fishing...

Sleep in and make a big brunchfast.. 

Perhaps a veggie-refried bean frittata (recipe at bottom) or blueberry pancakes or bacon-choc-chip waffles or biscuits & gravy, or baked summer tomatoes?... the sky's the limit!

While you're at it, enjoy it on the porch...

Basically do as much as you can outside!

Hug and smooch on da chillins...

If you don't have any, find a few to love on...

Bake  a key lime pie...

or any kind of pie for that matter!

Spoil your pooch...

Or just stop to appreciate her cuteness...

and how she melts your heart!

Make some garden fresh pico de gallo!

Share some laughs & fun times with your  Bestie-Bit...

Actually Joy is going to the lake for Labor Day weekend without me, so I will just have to wait for her to get back for some BIT QT.

~~~

BUT... all my family will be together this weekend, which is quite exciting.. Savor the moments you have with your loved ones!

Veggie-Bean Frittata
-Half onion
-1 clove garlic
-4 eggs
-1/4 c milk
-1/2 c baby bello mushrooms, sliced
-1/2 c sauteed kale/spinach
-1/4 can of fat-free refried beans
-1 or 2 fresh tomatoes, diced
-turkey sausage
-cheddar cheese

-Preheat oven to 400.

-Saute chopped onions and minced garlic in a lil olive oil in an oven safe skillet. Once the onions become translucent, add the kale, tomatoes and mushrooms. (You can swap out whatever veggie or bean you want-peppers, spinach, squash, black beans, etc)

-Add a little extra oil to the pan before adding refried beans as they will tend to stick. 

-If you are wanting to add turkey sausage or bacon, you can cook that alongside the veggies or in another skillet. Then chop it up and add it to the egg mixture.

-Meanwhile wisk eggs and milk and cheese together and add to skillet. 

-Don't stir and let egg mixture cook for a few more minutes.

-Once it starts to set on the stove, add it to the oven for 8-10 minutes.

*AJ does not love mushrooms so I took out most of what I could after sauteing them and added it to one half  of the final product before adding it to the oven. So if you're sharing it, you could tote customize it to preference.
*IF you do use refried beans, you really don't need to add salt, in my opinion...

Internet Love and Baked Summer Tomatoes

Although 2Bit may have failed in posting over the summer, we have not failed to appreciate some other great websites out there. I have been addicted to blogs, especially after creating 2Bit. But I have been particularly addicted to two non-blog websites lately: 1) Pinterest.com and 2) Gojee.com. 2Bit is normally crazy jealous and doesn't want to share the 2 people that view our blog with any other website. However, these are the bomb, and the fact that we are telling you about them is a testament to their explosive bombastic nature.

1) Pinterest. If you haven't heard of pinterest yet, you may need to check yourself because you are out of the loop. Just kidding, 2Bit just discovered it a few months ago. It is a website that essentially allows you to organize your favorite webpages. It is like the bookmarking tool in your browser, only wayyyy better. You can create boards to manage your favorites- like recipes, style, home, whatever you want! If you have three kids, and a husband and a job like some or simply your lonseome self to take care of like 2Bit Joy, any little thing to help you stay (or become) organized is welcome And you get to view the pictures from your websites and you can view everyone else's boards; so it is visually stimulating. I can sit on my bum and waste hours away on pinterest....

2) Gojee. I just discovered this webiste but it is basically a compilation of different recipes from all over the web. However, what makes this site awesome is that you can search for a recipe based on what ingredients you have, what ingredients you are craving. There are tons of beautiful recipes tailored for your needs. In fact, this is where I found the recipe for this Baked Summer Tomatoes... Yumm tumm tumbler.

*Baked Summer Tomatoes 
serves 2

The perfect recipe to use up your summer produce. Recipe adapted from fresh365online.com and found on Gojee.com.

2 c cubed ciabatta bread (1/2" cubes)
1 c packed arugula
6 eggs, beaten together
salt and pepper, to taste
1 large tomato, sliced
small handful basil leaves, sliced thin
1 c crumbled feta cheese
2 T olive oil
3 medium shallots, sliced thin

Preheat oven to 400F. Separate bread cubes in two small 3"-6" baking dishes. Top each with 1/2 c arugula and half the beaten eggs. Season with a few pinches of salt and pepper. Top each dish with half the tomato slices, basil, and 1/2 c feta cheese. Transfer dishes to oven and cook 15-18 minutes, until eggs are set and cheese begins to brown.

While casserole is baking, make the fried shallots. Heat 2 T olive oil over medium heat. Add shallots, and cook 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and crispy.

Remove dishes from oven, and top with crispy shallots. Season to taste with salt, pepper and additional basil, if desired.

This may look putrid but it's NOT.

*This is the original recipe but it is great because you can change it up however you need to. I baked it in one big dish instead of two smaller. I almost didn't use arugula but it was on manager's special at Kroger; so of course I didn't pass that up. But spinach would work too. Also, any crusty type of bread will work great; I used a garlic italian loaf. I used 4 eggs and egg whites equivalent to 2 eggs. I will definitely use wayyyy more tomatoes next time I do this. I used 2 tomatoes, which is more than the recipe called for, but I would still use more than that. I also used gorgonzola and feta cheese, but I love gorgonzola cheese. And I used onions because I didn't want to buy shallots. They were delish. They didn't get crispy but were close to a caramelized onion state. I would also use more onions next time I do it. More more more, it's the American way!!

I ate it for dinner, but it would be a perfect breakfast / brunch dish. Either way, i think it would also be great with some bacon sprinkled on top.