Sounds funny, right? I mean.. ugly sounds like such a mean thing, but it could mean something good for once.
I was stalking the pages of Allrecipes.com and came across a rather interesting recipe... it's called "Uglies". After reading the ingredients, I figured, "Hey, I'll give it a shot"....looks like I'm now required to make these more often since Eric and John were tackling each other for the last one.
Here's the recipe:
Ingredients
1 pound ground beef chuck
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 1/2 cups barbeque sauce
1 (10 ounce) package refrigerated biscuit dough
2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease 8 muffin cups (If you have Pampered Chef's metal muffin pan, you don't need to grease it).
In a large skillet or frying pan, cook ground chuck with onion and garlic powder until evenly brown; drain off the grease. Stir in the barbeque sauce and simmer for another 3 minutes.
Roll out each biscuit on a floured surface so that each biscuit is 6 inches across. Put the biscuit in the muffin tin and fold up sides to create a cup shape.
Fill each biscuit fill almost to the top with the meat mixture; top with cheddar cheese.
Bake in preheated oven until biscuits are baked, cheese is melted and tops are golden brown, about 15 minutes.
Tah-Dah!!
Overall, it only took about 40 minutes total to make these...and they're SO easy to make and delicious!
Although, I really wanna take a trip back over to Poland considering I need to get some more chili pepper stuff (plates, bowls, platters).
Anyway, one of the "local" bases had a Polish Pottery event today, so John and I went over there (he had the day off from school). They had one of these events a few months ago..landed some cool stuff, but they didn't really have much of a selection considering it's only from the Andy company (very floraly stuff). This time around, the Andy company brought more stuff since they didn't realize last time how high in demand their stuff was (they sold out of everything).
(Pictures provided by John)
(Pictures provided by John)
(Pictures provided by John)
SO! The event started at 10a.....John and I got there at 9:40a, lol. I learned my lesson cause last time, that place was bulldozed by tons of women clammering for their beloved pottery. Since we got there so early, it was pretty much me, him, and four other women (aside from the Polish workers). Did a quick run through and picked up the stuff we liked and what we were looking for and cashed out. Then we took a lil more time to go through again and see if there was anything else that we wanted. Ya see...last time, I waited too long to check out and we had to wait in line for about 30-40 minutes cause they didn't have enough people to bubble wrap the pottery that women were buying in bulk. I reaaaaally didn't wanna wait in like that long since we had other things we wanted to do today. Good thing we did one more sweep since I found an oil bottle that I've been wanting for my kitchen. Anyway, here's the goodies I got:
My little honey jar! It's pretty cool...I love the bee on top :) If you look close enough, you can see a honey comb pattern that's pressed into the actual piece (you can feel it). Loves it!
I told John to go ahead and pick out a large mug for himself since it's the season to make fatty hot chocolates. Not only that, but we all have our own specific bowls and such for snacks..you know how it is..someone has a favorite cup or something. So, might as well make it very obvious as to who's is who's, lol.
I pretty much picked this cause it made me think of Christmas in a way.. ya know..Poinsettia's :)
This one is my absolute favorite. Why? I told John to go ahead and pick out a mug for me ...and this is the one he came back with. His reason for it? It's cause it shows how much he loves me with all the different little hearts. Such a suck up, but it worked. LOL. I guess it was the only one in the bunch that was like this, so it's definitely a unique lil mug (I love how chubby it is!)...but it makes it even more special cause he picked it out for me :)
A nice olive oil holder, I love how the top even has something on it!
Last but not least...I got this:
It's pretty much the most amazing vodka on the planet. It's honey flavored and it's epic. As in, life changing. Last time I went to the pottery thing..there was a guy there sellin' this stuff. I honestly had no desire to buy any, but the only reason I did was because the bottle it came in was pretty nice (VERY thick glass). Well, I took it to several different parties and this stuff is SO good... smooth, but potent. LOL. I figured I might as well get another bottle of it since my other one is almost gone and it was only 40 Euros for it! Woot!
While I was out running some errands yesterday, I stopped off at a cute little shop in Bree called, " De Zoetenijen ". I've gone there before with a friend of mine (a few months ago) and scoped it out, picked up some cute goodies for my porch, then haven't been back since. Work kinda takes a chunk out of my day since it's right in the afternoon, which is when a lot of people wanna hang out or venture out and about. So, I haven't really had a chance to go back there.
Well, I ended up finding some time with another friend of mine and we stole a few minutes to check the place out to see if there were any new things. Boy oh boy... I left several euros' lighter....
They had an adorable tea set the last time I was there, but I didn't get it considering the teapot was fairly small as well as the cups. I mean, if the teapot itself was larger, I would've totally bought it. Well, this time, the store had restocked with larger mugs. They even came with their own little tea saucer! I fell inlove with it all over again considering it's totally "me" with the ornate design, plus they're large for those nights where you wanna cuddle up on the couch with a large cup of hot chocolate or tea :)
I snatched one up as well as my friend...the gal who owns the place told us that we could put our goodies on the counter till we were ready to check out. Secretly, I think that's a little ploy on her part so our hands are free to buy more junk. It worked.
I found this cool Tea jar! One side says "Tea" while the other has the fancy way "The' ". It looks like it's just decorative, but it actually has a sealed lid so your tea doesn't dry out...EXCELLENT!
Since I've been on a real honey kick lately, I was looking throughout the "treats" section of the store to see what they had. They have all sorts of jams, marmalade's, sauces, seasonings.. the lady of the store really reccomended this particular jar since it's thinner and perfect for tea. When I got home with it, I took a lil nip of it and ...wowsa, it's awesome! I went back for a second hit and Eric said, "Whoa there, Pooh-Bear!" , LOL. I guess I'll have to watch myself with this stuff since it's pretty epic.
Since my shopping wing man was still shopping around after I picked out my honey, I figured I'd do one last walk through before we left. No harm, right?
Ugh.
They had a cookbook holder I've been hunting for!! SERIOUSLY!? I've been searching for one for quite some time, but the ones I find are either really flimsy, way too heavy (iron) or bamboo material, which is not what I wanted. This one actually has page weights (yesssss!) and is sturdy enough to hold heavy cookbooks! I'm in love!
* * PS: The cookie cookbook I have pictured on the stand is UH-Mazing and highly recommend it. So, here's the link to it on Amazon if you're interested. * *
Once I pulled it off the shelf, gave it good thorough hug and a giddy squeal, it was time to cash out and get the hell out of there..otherwise, I'd have A LOT of explaining to do once I got home. While the gal was ringing me up, I was looking over her chocolate bar cause everything, frankly, looked quite awesome and so not diet friendly... I noticed a jar of chocolate hedgehogs. They were freaking adorable! So, I snagged a few of 'em..they looked so pitiful in the jar. They needed a good home!
Well...when I say, "They need a good home"... I actually meant that they belong in my belly.
Eric and I had an official Date Day in our favorite city: Aachen. I seriously can't get enough of that place..but at least we make it up there once in a while, ya know, as a treat :)
We did our usual routine: Crazy Sushi, Oil & Vinegar, Lush and Starbucks.
As of late, we've really been getting into Tea. Big time. We usually pick up different flavors of stuff when we're out and about and I realized that there was a store specifically for tea in Aachen. It's called, "Tee Gschwendner" and it's a pretty cool lil shop! When you talk in, a wall of all different tea scents hit you in the face, plus they have unique little teapots available!
Several years ago, Eric was stationed over in Turkey and has ALWAYS talked about Turkish Apple Tea and how amazing it is. After staring at the great wall of tea tins, I spotted one that said, " Türkische Apfeltee ".. When I pointed it out to him, he instantly got excited cause there was a chance it was the authentic stuff he's been looking for. The gal opened up the tea tin for us to get a whiff.. and I swear, Eric's eyes dilated and he looked like a kid in a candy store! This is exactly what he's been hunting for! We ended up getting a 250 gram bag in addition to some tea strainers for our mugs:
The tea is actually pretty interesting.. it's dried pieces of apple with different spices tossed into the mix. In a sense, it almost smells like Apple Pie (seriously).
We're now on a mission to find a Turkish teapot set..at least that's what Eric said since he wants to have his official Turkish tea the proper way. Instead of using a standard teapot to boil water in, you use this:
How to use a Turkish Teapot:
* Put 2 heaping spoonfuls of black tea in the top double boiler per glass along with enough water to cover - about a quarter of a cup per glass should be sufficient.
* Fill the bottom tea kettle with half a cup of water per glass. If you are only making a few glasses, make sure to add extra liquid so it doesn't boil away. Minimally, the bottom teapot should be at least a quarter of the way full.
* Place the top kettle on the bottom kettle, put the whole thing on the stove, and bring the water to boil. Because it is a double boiler, the top should become very hot, but should not boil, and the tea will end up being very strong. This process will take longer than just boiling water, but will be worth the wait!
* When the water in the top boiler is fragrant and very hot, pour the tea into a cup, using a tea strainer if you do not want leaves at the bottom of your glass. The end ratio should be about 1/3 to 1/4 of a cup of tea to hot water.
* Add sugar to taste, or, if desired, milk. For a traditional Turkish tea experience, use only sugar, and serve in a tulip shaped cup.
One of our friends is currently over in Turkey for the next week, so hopefully he can keep an eye out for one of these for us. Poor guy, he's already searching for a rug for us..might as well add a teapot set to the mix, lol.
HA! An actual post from traveling! WHEEEE!!! Let's do this!
It's been quite some time since Eric and I had taken a trip over to Ramstein, Germany. What's so special about that place? Well, aside from a completely bitchin' BX (think in terms of Costco size), we have several friends over there that we haven't seen in forever! I think the last time we were there and actually had time to visit was in January or February of this year...eesssshhh..
So, Eric and I hit the road early on Saturday morning since we were wanting to check out Trier considering it's on the way. I had picked out some places there I had wanted to check out since it's one of Germany's oldest cities. Since we were going to be in that area, one of Eric's co-workers asked us if we could stop off at a winery shop she was rather fond of and pick up a case of her favorite wine. Sure thing! No problem since Eric was wanting me to see this lil wine shop anyway since they had some German pottery.
On our way to Trier, we stopped off in Bernkastel, Germany.. which is apparently famous for their wineries. Since I'm not a wine person, I wouldn't know about such a place...other than it's really pretty. This was the place we needed to head to in order to pick up the co-workers wine case and our pottery :) We managed to find a parking spot after 30 minutes of stalking spaces.. the area is surrounded by wine fields and it's next to the Moselle River...gorgeous!
The path we had to use from where we parked.. it was right along the side of the river:
We finally found the little shop that had the coveted wine! Very cute little place! The German gal that was working..kinda friendly, kinda not. LOL.. I mean, she tried to speak English to us, but she seemed rather annoyed despite the fact we were dropping some serious money in there.
The outside of the shop:
Inside of the shop:
This set up reminds me of a place in Aachen.. there's a oil & vinegar shop that I'm inlove with and they use these containers to hold all the different types of oils and such. This place was using 'em to hold the different specialty wines that they offer :)
While Eric was poking around and trying to find the specific wine we were sent for, I ventured off to the part of the store that had the pottery :)
I know you're probably thinking," What's so special about German pottery?". Well.. Polish Pottery is made very well, lots of different patterns and can be used in all types of ways. Same thing with German pottery, except theirs is very thick, heavy, and pretty indestructible. I remember my Grandma having several nice pieces when I was growing up.. and they're from when she was younger than me! After flip flopping back and forth, I ended up getting a Garlic Keeper and a Butter Bell.
See what I mean about their pottery being heavy? The Butter Bell without anything in it weighs a lil over 2lbs :)
Holds a little over 2 sticks of butter! (I only put in 1/2 a stick for the picture)
Here's something that will really blow your mind as to how this thing is used. Seems odd at first, but it works REALLY well! I had to borrow this video from VAT19.com since it pretty much explained how this thing works...
Here's my spiffy Garlic Keeper! Eric made me laugh cause when the German lady asked us if we knew what it meant (I knew what it said and said it correctly), Eric pronounced "Knoblauch" like "Ka-Know-Blocken"...the lady pretty much looked at him like, "Stupid American." and shook her head, LOL
From there, we made our way out of the country side and headed on over to Trier. I was amazed to see all the different vineyards that went all up and down the steep hillsides! I mean, GEEZE! I felt sorry for whoever actually had to walk up and down to harvest that stuff in the olden days! I think now a days, they use small tractors that have enough torque to deal with the incline...
Once we got over to Trier, finding a parking spot turned out to be "Mission Impossible". It was quite frustrating considering we were wanting to check out the "Dome of Trier" which is a gorgeous cathedral. We literally spent 40 minutes trying to find some sort of parking area...all of them were full.. people who parked on the street parked VERY stupid and made it hard for others to fit into other spots. We eventually gave up and tried to make our way over to Porta Nigra (click on the link for some historical information). Go figure.. we had the same problem there as we did as the Dome of Trier. NO PARKING!!! Very irritating!! Eric and I got to the point where we threw in the towel.. I managed to get some pics as we drove past Porta Nigra (ha).. we'll try to make it back there again, someday... only took a year and a half to make it there this time!!
An obvious last chance shot I attempted, lol. The camera was hanging out the window as I was trying to get a decent pic!
From there, we finally made our way over to Ramstein and got checked into our hotel (Hotel Rosenhof). It's in a very convenient area near the actual air force base, and the staff was awesome! Really nice and the rooms were sound proof (as funny as that sounds), because it's located right near the autobahn.
When we went to check in, we were greeted by "Oscar", the hotel boxer. He was SUCH a big baby! Total cutie pie and the owner of the hotel got a kick out of how much he wanted to play with Eric as I was checking in:
The walkway area to our hotel room:
Eric modeling our room, lol
Most European hotels have two mattresses pushed together (if you're opting for a double room), and you get two separate duvets. Their logic with the two duvets.. instead of the couple struggling and playing tug of war with 1 duvet, each person can have their own. Nice, hunh?
All in all, our trip was a blast. Sorry I don't have any picture of hanging out with our friends..but it's for the best. We ended up partying later that night and got rather drunk off of Mojito's. Tell ya what... Turkish Baklava is the bomb-diggity, especially when you have the drunk hungrys :)
