All About Sara!

Hi, I'm Sara! I'm the orange half of the Oranges to Apples duo. Some fun facts about me?

Current Location: Orlando, FL.

What You Should Know About Me: My husband is a professional chef. He's both my biggest fan and my biggest (constructive) critic. I grew up eating southern/Italian food and the hubs grew up eating Cuban/Brazilian. The result is that I am a pretty adventurous eater who genuinely loves food and cooking, but doesn't have a ton of time for it. I believe in investing in quality ingredients and that no one will ever make better fried chicken than my Mom. Also, in real life, I'm a librarian.

Favorite Foods: Oh god, everything. From raw oysters, medium rare steak, and sweetbreads to super fresh raspberries, dark chocolate almond milk, and spicy hummus.

Least Favorite Foods: Pretty much the only two things I really loathe are salmon and Gorgonzola cheese. Even then, the only thing I would ever flat out refuse to try again is Gorgonzola. I've tried salmon numerous times and it's just not my thing, but if someone made me dinner and that was it, I could eat it with a smile on my face. Gorgonzola on the other hand... let's just say that if you served it to me, you are no friend of mine.

I'm Allergic/Sensitive To: soy, eggplant, corn and possibly wheat. Luckily, I'm not deathly allergic to any of it, but I still avoid it as much as I can, with the exception of wheat. I think I may have been misdiagnosed with a wheat allergy as a child, since that's really common. I still try to limit how much of it I eat though.

Favorite Food to Make: My favorite food that I make myself is angel hair pasta with a tablespoon of butter, a ton of pepper, grated parmesan cheese(the real stuff, not the kind that comes pre-grated) and juice from half a lemon. Ridiculously simple, but so damn good.

Least Favorite Food to Make: Anything that involves having to temper eggs because I suck at it. Also, fish is troublesome for me. I can never tell when it's done and always end up overcooking it to be on the safe side.

Biggest Mess in the Kitchen: I have thrice attempted to make the Banana Bread from 'Wichcraft and thrice it has exploded in my oven.

Biggest Success in the Kitchen: Jaque Pepin's Crusty Chicken Thighs. Mostly because I didn't really believe that I could do it. Cold non-stick pan and all. It inspired me to try other things that I didn't think I could do, too. (Like making my own caramel for these Salted Caramel Brownies.)

Favorite Food/Recipe Blog(s)/Site(s): Smitten Kitchen, Crepes of Wrath, Inside the Kaganoff Kitchen, Ezra Pound Cake. (Clearly, I'm a sucker for a literary reference.)

Favorite Health Blog(s)/Site(s): Peanut Butter Fingers, The Chalkboard, Meals and Miles.

Favorite Meal: Red wine and charcuterie. My husband and I do this at least one Sunday a month and I love how adaptable and portable it is. Some sort of bread, really good cheese, olives, and cured meats. You can make it as simple or as fancy as you want and it doesn't leave much clean up.

Favorite Workout: The Bar Method. It's consistently engaging and challenging, it will totally change your body, and I love that I leave class feeling energized.

Why I'm So Excited to Read Teddi's Adventures: Because she says things like, "A life without cheese is no life at all". In all seriousness, Teddi is one of my favorite people to dine with because she appreciates good food just as much as I do. She also consistently inspires and encourages me to try new things and I know her recipes will help me look at ingredients in a new way.

What I'm Most Looking Forward to In This Little Journey: Accountability. It's much too easy to come home after a challenging day and have a bowl of cereal for dinner. But, if Teddi (and you, dear reader) are counting on me for a new post, that's at least one day that I'll make the extra effort. I'm sure that will motivate me to try a little bit harder on my days "off" too.
 

I'm looking forward to sharing our kitchen adventures with you!