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Love and Penguins on the Cape of Good Hope

May 30, 2013 by Eva Louise 4 Comments

***This isn’t a food post, but the first of three posts from my recent trip to South Africa. I promise the other two will include food.***

Recently, Stingray and I met up in South Africa for a romantic trip before he tries his luck in the world of African entrepreneurship.  I learned that there’s a lot of pressure on these types of trips to have the perfect time, be on your best behavior (as in, not throw a tantrum if you have to choose between seeing the African penguins or going to lunch ) and see absolutely everything so you can report back to your friends  just how freaking fabulous your romantic getaway was.  This trip represented even more pressure given when it ended, I got on a plane back to our apartment in Manhattan and he, on a plane to a new life  in the bustling city of Addis Ababa.DSCN1240

So given all this, our trip definitely wasn’t something out of a Sandal’s Resort commercial (strep throat and food poisoning made sure of this) but after a week of zigzagging through South Africa, we made it to the Cape of Good Hope on a day when the sun couldn’t decide whether to stay or go, with a seascape of air and wind and waves so eerie, I almost expected a 15th century, India-bound ship to sail right by us. We took some photos and kissed at the top of a rock formation and with that, we headed back to Cape Town and the next day, we went our separate ways.

There’s something to be said about driving with the person you love, watching them in an entirely different light, under an unfamiliar constellation of  stars, shuffling through maps you can’t read, thinking, “There’s no one I’d rather be  with than you.”DSCN1228

Love you, Stingray. Thank you for a memorable adventure.

Those damn penguins that kept me from a delicious lunch....

Those damn penguins that kept me from a delicious lunch….

Filed Under: Life & Travel Tagged With: Africa, Cape of Good Hope, Cape Town, love, South Africa, travel

Moped Dinner Party in Switzerland

May 17, 2013 by Eva Louise Leave a Comment

le menuSometimes when I’m alone, eating bread rolls with packets of mayo drinking mini-bar wine  in my hotel bed watching Russian music videos, I think to myself  “business trips kind of suck.” But then I remind myself that most nights my life is fabulous and that I rule. Evidence of this is the incredible dinner party I had with some girlfriends and their beaus recently while on a business trip to Geneva.

Normally working late into the night, I committed to leaving the office  in time to hop on my friend, Cristina’s Moped and head to France to do some dinner party grocery shopping.  Holding tightly to her waist (apparently NOT necessary  which she made very clear to me), with the spring breeze blowing through my 2-piece suit, and our helmets bonking against one another with every windy turn, I knew this was exactly the 2-wheeled escape I needed.

Dinner Party

Eva’s Spring salad: rocket, shaved zucchini, cucumbers, chives, mozzarella with a lemon vinaigrette

My European friends are by default better cooks than I (because they are Europeans) , so I gladly took a step back on this meal and just offered to make a simple salad (above) while the girls  made seared duck breast with an apricot jam, mustard and soy sauce glaze, sauteed asparagus and roasted potatoes. Thank you, ladies for a truly decadent dinner escape!

Seared duck breast with roasted potatoes and asparagus

Seared duck breast with roasted potatoes and asparagus

I was excited so I made them do a group "haut cinq" with me (fake french for high five)

I was so excited by the success of the meal that I made them do a group “haut cinq” with me (my fake french for “high five”)

Filed Under: Life & Travel Tagged With: cooking, duck, food, France, friends, geneva, love, meat, recipe, salad, Switzerland, travel, vegetables

Oyster Romance

March 29, 2013 by Eva Louise 2 Comments

oysrterThis past week, Stingray and I needed a little romance in our life. Nothing says “hey there, Big Boy” like oysters and luckily we just happened to have a dozen briney Wellfleet oysters in the fridge.  I picked up a cheap proscecco and a couple of extra groceries to make it a meal: a soft cheese and crusty bread to serve with a crisp macintosh apple.  I felt like I needed to cook something, so I picked up a bunch of asparagus and steamed them, poached two eggs and made a (kind of) homemade béarnaise.

The stars must have seriously been aligned for operation romance, because right before I was about to serve dinner I remembered some shrimp I had in the freezer to help me really make this a bangin’ dinner.  I boiled and peeled them and set up all the proper shellfish fixins’: lemon, cocktail sauce, horseradish and a homemade mignonette sauce (vinegar and shallots) and we were ready for a partay. Can’t wait until we get another dozen oysters…

 "Yin and Yang"

“Ying and Yang”

Filed Under: Life & Travel Tagged With: food, love, oysters, romance, shellfish, vegetables

A Labor of Love: Chocolate Pomegranate Torte

February 14, 2013 by Eva Louise Leave a Comment

image

“I’m sweet and complicated and difficult…just like love”

Happy Valentine’s Day! Here’s an insanely good recipe from  Fine Cooking  for a chocolate pomegranate  torte to make for your loved one tonight. It’s lusciously chocolaty and combined with the tart burst of juicy flavor from the pomegranate seeds, it’s just short of being…well, orgasmic. 

Admittedly, I find this recipe to be advanced because it has three parts: a torte base, a layer of homemade pomegranate jelly, finished with a ganache glaze.  As the recipe is written now, no lover will doubt your undying love and commitment  if you make them this cake.  Granted, they might find you flustered and sobbing hovered over the saucepan of pomegranate juice mumbling, “Why hasn’t it turned to jelly yet?! Why…why?!” but surely they will appreciate your efforts once the cake is done.  Nothing says “I love you” like a crazed cook in the kitchen.

Despite my praises for this ravishing confection,  I do plan to rewrite this recipe after a few more tries because it’s just too damn complicated for me.  Expect a revised version in the future.

Filed Under: Desserts Tagged With: chocolate, dessert, food, fruit, holiday, love, recipe, valentine's day

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Welcome

I’m Eva Louise and welcome to Mind in the Butter! This is my food bloggy, showcasing my favorite dishes and recipes often inspired by and cooked for my loved ones. My goal with this blog is to eventually document every single dish I make so when I’m old and stale, I will be able to remember and celebrate memories from my favorite place…the kitchen!

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