pancakes, eggs and beer for breakfast...?

Inspired by the back of a maple syrup jar from Ommegang Brewery, these pancakes made the perfect brunch for an otherwise crappy, rainy, Sunday morning.

The bottle of syrup in the fridge was (from Ommegang Brewery in Cooperstown, NY) suggested enjoying the syrup with some apple pancakes made with their Hennepin ale, which being without, I swapped out with Peace Tree's Blonde Fatale Belgian style ale. 

 

The pancakes and eggs were both fried in small amounts of coconut oil, making ever so slightly crisped edges on both, contrasting nicely with the soft custardy middles of each. Hints of fruit and just a bit of spiciness from the Belgian yeast pair nicely with the cakes & egg, without being too hoppy.

Stopping here would have sufficed. A savory breakfast and a cuppa coffee. Done.

But the lure of the sweet maple syrup couldn't be denied and soon these cakes were swimming in some of New York's finest.

This batch makes about 16 3-inch pancakes - a perfect breakfast for you and your favorite Sunday morning brunch guest.

Blonde Fatale Pancakes 

Slightly adapted, and reduced, from Ommegang's Apple Pancakes with Hennepin

Ingredients::

3/4 cup all purpose flour

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

1 egg yolk

3/4 - 1 cup Peace Tree Blonde Fatale or Ommegang Hennepin Ale

1/2 tablespoon melted coconut oil, plus more for cooking

1 egg white, beaten to soft peaks

2 fried eggs

Maple syrup

To prepare::
Mix flour, salt and sugar into a small bowl. Make a well in the center and add the egg yolk and 1/2 cup beer. Mix yolk and beer, slowing incorporating the flour. Add coconut oil and 1/4 - 1/2 cup beer until smooth. Use less beer for a thicker pancake and more for thin, custardy cakes. Gently fold in egg white. Let set for 15-30 minutes.
Place a cookie sheet in the oven and heat to 200 degree.
Heat a cast iron skillet over medium-low heat. Add a small amount of coconut oil to prevent pancakes from sticking. Pour 1/8 cup of the batter into the skillet and cook until small bubble form on the surface, flip and cook 30 seconds to 1 minute more, or until both sides are lightly browned. Remove to cookie sheet in oven and continue baking until batter is gone.
Top a short stack with a lightly fried egg and drizzle with maple syrup.

burgers & beer

Last night Nic and I headed up to Iowa City to grab dinner at Short's Burger & Shine.  Our favorite brewery in Iowa, Peace Tree, was taking over the tap to help kick-off Iowa City's Jazz Fest, which will take place all weekend.



Twas a grand time.

You can't really beat a great burger, a cold beer and a pile of fries.

The chocolate chip cookies we grabbed at New Pioneer Food Coop were the proverbial cherries on top of an already fantastic night.

We took the scenic route home (read: rural highway) and started packing up for today's camping trip immediately when walking in the door.






This morning in snuck in a quick 12.48 mile run down the Kewash nature trail.

Camping....here we come!

dinner with the dukes - celebration

Tonight I surprised Nic with an impromptu dinner date with John and Diana - a celebration was in order.

Yesterday I posted "growing roots" - a post dedicated to our renewed dedication to growing vegetables.

Today's celebratory dinner was in honor of some other roots that have begun to grow just a bit deeper.

{If you are a dear dear friend or family member that is really wanting us to move to Minnesota, I would stop reading just about now.}

Our Iowa roots grew just a little deeper over the weekend.

Nic decided to take on a new job with his company and his first day in that position is Wednesday! This is a great opportunity, a chance for him to grow and to try something new.

It also requited {sort of} a longish term commitment to the company.

Not only is this is great opportunity for him, but it also allows both of us to really live in the present. For quite a while we would dream of moving to Minnesota and make a lot of plans focused around doing just that. I feel that we would focus so intently on that "dream" future, that we were not totally living in the present. Now, I know we are going to be staying put for the foreseeable future and can really plan for and live out our awesome life in Iowa.

Because it is awesome.

So, I tricked Nic when he got home from work and surprised him with dinner with John and Diana at his favorite burger joint in Iowa City - Shorts Burgers and Shine.



I have raved about this place before, but if you are ever in the area you must stop!

They only use beef that was raised in Columbus Junction (just 10 miles from Washington) and pretty much everything is homemade.



And the beer - omg, the actually have good beer on tap! Including our favorite Iowa beer - Peace Tree.

And to top it off - they even have homemade black bean burgers for people like me. :)



Beer, burgers and fries - Nic couldn't ask for anything more.



Well, at last minute stop at Graze and a round (or two) or martinis were icing on the cake.



Congratulations on the new gig, husband!

1824 + 500 = stuff for you!

Uuugh.

Blizzards.

Wind.

Horizontal snow.

I kind of feel like I am in Minnesota right now.

Even Maia is having issues adjusting to these Minnesota like conditions.

Kind of fitting for today.

Because today's a b-i-g day in the PS household.

Today is February 1st.

Today, I can say I have lived in the great state of Iowa for 1824 days. 

That would be 5 years folks. 

Yes, five.

Five years. Four more years than I was supposed to live here.

I've lived here so long, I feel that I could wear this shirt and get away with it.

{credit}

What I really want is a shirt like this:

Yes - I will admit it - I love Iowa. I love living here. All the lame Iowa jokes I heard growing up in Minnesota (and I am sure I shared a few along the way) are wrong. Iowa is awesome.

FIVE YEARS! Crazy talk, right?

A lot of fun has been had these past five years (Hey - did you know Nic has lived in Iowa for 7 years?!)  I can't even begin to list all of the fun we've had.  Maybe you should just scroll through a few posts to see for yourself...

...all 500 of them!  That's right - I told you it was a big day!  This is our 500th post.  That's even crazier talk!

You know, I am not a popular blogger which is totally cool. But the blog has grown over these past years.  What started off as a blog to keep our families updated on our life in Iowa, has grown into a blog to keep our families + 3 more of you updated on our life and my running in Iowa.  :)

Our first post was short and sweet. Oh so sweet.  Look, we were so young back then!

In honor of me living in Iowa for 5 years (FIVE YEARS!!!) and our 500th post, we thought it would be fun to giveaway a few of our favorite things from Iowa of course!

In no particular order, these are a few of our favorite things (are you singing that line??)::

Backyard Candle Company Pumpkin Cheesecake Candle



Backyard Candle Company has grown by leaps and bounds since I have lived here. Back in the day when I worked at Family Video (don't ask!), I would order these from an employee who made them in her basement. Now they have absolutely the cutest store ever and is my first and last stop for gifts for any occasions.

The pumpkin cheesecake candle is the most delicious smelling candle out there. I promise, once you smell it you won't be able to burn anything else.  My family and friends are hooked and I can seldom go home without bringing them replacements.

My friend Becky's statement pretty much sums up how awesome it is:

I bought a soy candle yesterday at Hallmark- the last one [Backyard candle] you gave me was done a month or two ago and I couldn't wait any longer!  It is cinnamon bun- not as good as pumpkin Cheesecake, but it will do. 

Peace Tree Brewing Co. Pint Glasses and Coasters



Because I am pretty sure I cannot mail actual beer, these awesome pint glasses and coasters from our favorite craft brewer will have to do.  I just raved about Peace Tree Brewing a few weeks ago, (and then got the sweetest shout-out from the brewery itself!) but have no problem doing it again.  Peace Tree is AWESOME.  Get yourself to Iowa stat and find some Peace Tree beer!  Heck, if you come to visit us, we will buy you some Peace Tree beer.

Since we've discovered Peace Tree, we rarely stock our fridge with anything else.

Yoder's Cashew Crack Crunch  



We discovered this amazing treat at Kalona General Store, located a few towns away.  This is another item that Nic and I get requests to bring to Minnesota (Hi Mom and Roger!).  Seriously, it is like crack.  Once you take your first bit, you cannot keep your hand out of the bag.

Made from just three ingredients (butter, sugar and cashews), it is the best candy I have ever eaten. I tried to recreate it a few years ago and failed miserably.

IMT Des Moines Half Marathon



Okay, clearly I cannot give away the race itself, but I can give you ONE FREE ENTRY into the half marathon!  WHOOP!

I ran the IMT Des Moines half marathon this past Fall for the first time and fell in love (recap here).  This is an absolutely beautiful course, flat and fast with plenty of spectator support - all of which lead me to achieving a huge PR for this distance.

2011 marks the race's 10th year, so it is going to be an ever more amazing event than it already is.  I plan on running the half again this October...or who knows, maybe I'll go for the full.  Either way, you can plan on me being in Des Moines on Sunday, October 16th. (Note, this race entry is non-transferable.  Whoever wins, must use the entry or forfeit it.)

Hmmm...so what happens if you win the free entry for the half marathon, but don't live close by?

One Free Night Stay at a Des Moines Hotel

My favorite radio stations in the state of Iowa, KCII, KNIA and KRLS are generously donating a one night stay at a hotel in Des Moines for you to use race weekend.  Awesome, right?!  Details on the actual hotel will be available at a later date.

Pre-Race Dinner!

I am going to be in Des Moines for the half marathon and if you win, you are going to be in Des Moines for the half marathon...so, want to go to dinner? :)  Nic and I would love to treat you and one guest to a pre-race dinner on October 15th. Mmmmmm....pasta!

---------------------

So there you have it - a few of our favorite Iowa things.  I still can't believe I have lived in this state for 5 years.  I swore to Nic when he forced me to move here that we would only be in lame Iowa for 1 year max.  Funny how life doesn't always go according to your plans, right?!

How to enter our giveaway:

1. Leave a comment.  Tell us what you love about the state you live in.
2. Leave a comment with your favorite Iowa joke.  We've heard them all people, but this will be fun!
3. Follow us (and leave another comment letting us know, or leave a comment letting us know you already do)

We will randomly draw a winner on Sunday, February 6th.

We would like to thank our favorite companies for donating the above items for our 5 year + 500th post giveaway: Backyard Candle Company, Peace Tree Brewing Company, IMT Des Moines Marathon, and KCII, KNIA, KRLS.  Thank you for making this possible and for making years in Iowa great ones!

{Disclaimer - this post is not intended to hurt the feelings of my super close, awesome friends who have not made the relatively short trek to Iowa to visit us. I mean, it has only been 5 years - that is practically nothing in the grand scheme of things, right? 1824 days - I know they were busy each and every one of those days. No hard feelings, I swear. Only 5 years...shmmfff.}

peace tree brewing co.

Yesterday afternoon Nic and I made the relatively short trek to Knoxville, Iowa for his company's holiday party.  The party is always a good time - there is just something about working for a small family company that doesn't compare with other larger companies.  While the general managers were reflecting on the last year and introducing their staff, it was mentioned that Nic has been with the company for over 7 years now.  Crazy, right?!  He started way back when I was still in college as the lowly overnight guy barely scraping by.  After about a year and a half of that shift + evening shifts, he was given the opportunity to take a promotion and move to Washington.  I guess the rest is history!

Before the party, we made a pit stop at Peace Tree Brewing Company - our new favorite micro brew.



The tap room is amazing.  Hip, urban, industrial, yet cozy.  Nic and I each ordered a pint of something we haven't had before - an Imperial Dark IPA for him, and the best cream soda that ever touched my lips for me, of course.  We also had a few tasting samples of a few others - Lemon Grass Ale, Black River Gumbo Stout, Nitro Stout and my all time favorite, Red Rambler.







We could have sat at the bar for hours, but left shortly after we arrived for the party.



The party was fun.  Four six-packs of Peace Tree beer were the hot gift of the season and kept getting stolen.  We ended up with two of them (after having all 4 packs for a while).

And then we went back to Peace Tree.  Along with everyone else from the party.





Nic was nice and got me a t-shirt.  There are at least 4 more that I must have.



Be sure to check out Peace Tree's website.  And if you are ever in the area, make sure to swing in for a quick pint or two....or three or four.  You'll be glad you did.

impromptu dinner date

Last night Nic and I headed up to Iowa City for an impromptu dinner date with our friends, John and Diana.  Diana suggested we meet up for drinks and share photos from our trip to Europe and their trip to Aruba, but I thought we'd take that up a notch and enjoy dinner and drinks in.  Because who really doesn't love making dinner and staying in on a Friday night??  Plus, I already had big plans in my head for dinner - buffalo chicken pizza.

So after I whipped up an experimental pizza dough and headed to the Y with Nic for a killer strength training session followed by an easy, relaxed 5 mile run home (at 8:03 pace!  Seriously, relaxed, wasn't pushing myself at all AND I am sick.  Quite proud.), we loaded up the ingredients for pizza and headed north.

I am always a little hesitant to try new experimental recipes with other people and was sure to share my disclaimer, "now, this crust is an experiment, so if it is not good - Nic totally made it!"

Luckily the crust turned out pretty darn good (recipe below) and the pizza + rest of the meal was amazing.  Better than anything we could have eaten at a restaurant.  Plus the company, beer and bottle of wine that was shared among the 4 of us made for a great night in.

The conversation flowed as freely as the drinks did and we shared photos from our trip and then oohed and aahhhed over John and Diana's photos from Aruba.  Seriously, we are going there next weekend it looks so warm and beautiful.

During dinner, I shared a few of my 2011 goals with Diana and John and we decided to make a slight change to this one:

• Once a month, cook out of my comfort zone (Kier) - ie, ethnic cuisine, multiple course meals, weird ingredients, etc. and blog about it

Instead of cooking all these (hopefully) delicious meals myself, we are turning this goal into a group goal.  Each month the four of us will decide what type of cuisine to tackle and get together to prepare the meal.  How fun, right?!  At least it will be an interesting adventure and we already have a few back-up options in place in case our meals turn out to be a complete and utter failure.

I am also really excited because Diana told me that she is going to volunteer for Girls on the Run too!  We most likely won't be paired together, but it will be fun to share our experiences and get together with all of our girls in May for the final 5K!

The school I will be helping out with is only a few miles away from their house, so on Wednesdays, Diana and I have plans to get in a quick run before I head back home.

Seriously love having such good friends live close by!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza with an All Oatmeal Pizza Crust

For the toppings you'll need:

• Shredded chicken tossed with some Frank's Red Hot Sauce (we had leftovers from dinner the other night - just cooked some chicken in the crockpot with about 1/2 cup Franks sauce)
• 8oz fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
• Blue cheese - a few ounces will do, or more if you like the stinky cheese
• Green onions - chopped

For the dough you'll need:

• 3 cups oatmeal
• 1/3 cup wheatgerm
• 1t salt
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 1/4 t yeast
• 1T honey
• 2T olive oil

In a food processor add the oats, wheatgerm and salt.  Process until oats are very fine.  Meanwhile, add the yeast and honey to the warm water and let the yeast proof about 5 minutes. Stir in olive oil and then mix in the oat mixture.  Let rise 90 minutes.  Form into crust and let rise another 30 minutes.  Par bake at 425 for about 10 minutes, or until edges just begin to brown.

Top with chicken, cheeses and green onions.  Bake 425 until cheese is bubbly and begins to brown.

Result - so delicious!  I loved the bites with pieces of blue cheese (we went easy on the blue cheese since none of us are huge fans).  The crust turned out wonderfully, although the middle did not get as crispy as I would have liked.  Next time I think I would par bake it a bit longer.

 

Gotta sneak in a quick run this afternoon before we head west for Nic's company holiday party and a pint at our favorite brew house - Peace Tree Brewing Co.