Happy Thanksgiving!

This is not my turkey!

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday! I love everything about it! M and I are cooking a feast for ourselves and then going to the movies.

After nearly a decade of asking my mom finally shared with me her famous cornbread dressing recipe. It is amazingly delicious! We were on the phone for what seemed like an eternity hashing this out, but I think I finally got it down, and I thought I'd share it with you all. You may have to adjust the spice measurements though. At first, my mom told me to add 1 Tbs. of pepper. I thought that sounded kind of high so I decreased it to 1 tsp. Maybe she was right...I guess I'll find out later! ha ha

M went to Connecticut for a business trip last week, and ate at some great local places. Keep an eye out, because he'll be guest blogging all about them next week about his adventures! Thanks Baby!

Be safe, and stay warm tomorrow. Enjoy!

My Mama’s Delicious Traditional Corn Bread Dressing

by Maria McCarty

Ingredients

Cornbread (2 boxes or packets)

3 Medium sized Carrots

3 Celery Stalks

2 Gala Apples

1 Green Bell Pepper

1 Medium Onion

1 tsp. Poultry Seasoning

1 tsp. Basil

1 tsp. Pepper

1 tsp. Salt

1 Tbs. Vegetable Oil

½ stick of Salted Butter

2 Eggs

1 Can of Chicken Stock

 Directions 

1. Preheat oven to 375ºF

2.       Bake cornbread as directed on package. Once cool, add to large bowl and finely crumble.
3.       Dice carrots, celery, bell pepper, apples, and onion into small cubes.
4.       Beat eggs in small bowl and set aside.
5.       On medium heat, melt butter with oil in a large saucepan.
6.       Once butter is melted, combine diced vegetables with poultry seasoning, basil, and pepper.
7.       Saute vegetables until they are soft and onion is clear.
8.       Combine sauteed vegetables and beaten eggs into large bowl of crumbled corn bread. Mix thoroughly.
9.       Once combined add 1 can of Chicken Stock and mix thoroughly until moist; add more broth if needed.
10.   Use appropriate sized ungreased pan and cover with foil.
11.   Bake for 1 hr. or until browned.

Review: Hi-D-Ho Drive In - Alamogordo, New Mexico

If you are an avid reader of this site, you can probably tell that M and I are huge burger fans. So, it's no surprise that we hit up Hi-D-Ho Drive In on my recent visit.

When planning a visit, the trick the locals use is to call ahead - (575) 437 6400. I suggest that you use it too. We waited a good 30 min or so for our food AFTER we ordered. We skipped breakfast and headed to White Sands National Monument, so I can say we were a bit famished and the wait was pure torture, especially when we watched person after person walking in to get their call in orders. Hi-D-Ho has been around since the 50's, it's one of those old fashioned drive in's where you pull into a spot and turn on your lights to get a waitress over to order,

Green Chile Bacon Cheeseburger

Tiger Burger

I ordered my usual Green Chile Bacon Cheeseburger and M got the Tiger Burger. We wanted fries, but surprise...they were out. Instead we ordered onion rings, and I got a limeade. Burger joints without fries? Does it surprise you that I was majorly disappointed? The burgers though were fantastic. It was gigantic, too. The chile was flavorful and spicy, and the bacon was crispy. M's tiger burger was double the size of mine, with two patties and the toppings were plentiful.The onion rings were hearty, and crispy. They were good, but I really wanted fries.

I'd go back to this joint, but I'll definitely call ahead!

We were starving, so we dug in before the pictures were taken.

Here are a couple of pics from White Sands. If you haven't been there you really should check it out!

Review: Lorenzo's Ristorante Italiano - Las Cruces, New Mexico

I went down to visit M in Alamogordo last weekend. If you haven't ever been here there are a couple of hot spots to check out, but there's not a whole lot of restaurants. So, M and I went to Las Cruces for dinner on Saturday night. We found this great Italian Restaurant in the Old Mesilla area called Lorenzo's. According to the sign out front they are not to be confused with any other restaurants with the Lorenzo name that may be in or open in the Las Cruces area. Well, then...

We were greeted and seated very promptly by a very nice hostess. Immediately we noticed that the ceiling was littered with hundreds of one dollar bills that seemed to have floated up on their own. We asked our waitress about it, and she said that they did indeed float up there by a magic trick that Lorenzo performs for guests. Of course, I HAD to see this but Lorenzo declined our request for a show; he had to get home to tend to his newborn baby. Whatever! I'm joking...There was also a guitarist on hand playing great musical hits like YMCA.

Before I go any further, I have to apologize for my horrible pictures. My one complaint about the restaurant was that the lighting was terribly dim. It was so dark that we could hardly read the menu. I hate it when restaurants do that. I appreciate great ambiance, but I like to see what I'm eating and not to mention the person I'm dining with. SO with horrible lighting comes horrible pictures. My camera would just not focus on our meals no matter what setting it was on. One day I'll have a fantastic camera, but for now I don't.

Blurry Calamari

Anyway, we ordered the calamari to start (I think that we will try calamari from every restaurant in the world). It was great; fresh, crispy. It came with a spicy mayonnaise-y sauce that I didn't particularly care for. I would prefer a nice marinara.

 

The menu boasts several traditional Southern Italian dishes like lasagna, spaghetti, ravioli, etc. It also boasts several traditional dishes with New Mexico flare; of course, I'm talking about green chile! As soon I spotted it on the menu, I immediately knew that I was getting the Grilled Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo with green chile. I thought M would get this too, but he opted for the Green Chile and Meat Lasagna. Once the entree was served he had buyers remorse, and we ended up switching plates. I got a taste first, and man was the fettuccine delicious. It tasted like the pasta was made fresh made that day, and the green chile was flavorful and had just the right kick. There was a ton of chicken too! The lasagna was excellent also; the tomato sauce was plentiful and very tasty; there were lots of layers, and plenty of cheese.

We practically cleaned our plates, so there was no room for dessert (this time). I definitely want to make another trip to Lorenzo's. People all around us were having pizza and it looked and smelled delicious. I'd like to try that!