{"id":541,"date":"2009-02-20T11:53:21","date_gmt":"2009-02-20T17:53:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/?p=541"},"modified":"2009-02-20T11:53:21","modified_gmt":"2009-02-20T17:53:21","slug":"hike-eat-love","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hottie-biscotti.com\/blog\/2009\/02\/20\/hike-eat-love\/","title":{"rendered":"Hike, Eat, Love"},"content":{"rendered":"

Happy Valentine’s Day! \u00a0 What better way to celebrate than with big pink plastic lollipop lips?<\/p>\n

\"the-girls\"<\/p>\n

Valentine’s weekend was great. \u00a0Our good friends from law school made the trip to Amarillo to spend the weekend. \u00a0We began Saturday with pastries from The Village Bakery. \u00a0After breakfast we headed out to Palo Duro Canyon for a hike. \u00a0We made good use of our new Texas State Parks pass by getting all 9 of us in for “Free!” instead of $4 per person.<\/p>\n

\"paloduro3\"\"paloduro2\"\"dog\"\"paloduro\"<\/p>\n

It was a beautiful day. \u00a0I had never hiked in Palo Duro before, only driven through. \u00a0We all agreed that being this close to Palo Duro makes living in the Panhandle worth it! \u00a0Our dog, Ginger, all 6 pounds and 7 weeks of her, kept up with us all 4 miles of the trip\u00a0and still had energy left over afterwards. \u00a0We were pretty impressed with her stamina. \u00a0Our goal was to see Lighthouse rock. \u00a0After about 2 miles on the trail the little girls were tired and we thought that we wouldn’t have time to go all the way to the rock. \u00a0So, we headed back to the car. \u00a0We checked out the trail map when we got to the trailhead and found out that we were almost there when we’d turned around! \u00a0So, Ben was right and I was wrong. \u00a0Next time we’ll have to hike all the way to Lighthouse. \u00a0It seems like an incredible formation. \u00a0After the hike, we headed back home to prepare Valentine’s Day dinner.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

I must say that this meal was one of the best we’ve put together. \u00a0The company was lovely, so maybe it was partly the people we ate with, but the food…it was wonderful. \u00a0The baked brie is courtesy of my Aunt Vivie. \u00a0She made a similar appetizer at Christmas. \u00a0She used almonds, cranberries and honey inside her puff pastry so the one we made was a bit different. \u00a0The thyme and cranberry with the brie was buttery and sweet. \u00a0I’m glad we served the brie with the water crackers. \u00a0Their clean flavor did not distract you from the rich flavors in the brie. \u00a0The salad dressing and spiced pecans is a recipe from Rather Sweet Bakery. \u00a0The recipe for the entree came from Fine Cooking. \u00a0I used flank steak instead of the skirt steak, and we grilled the steak. \u00a0The steak and relish<\/a> were absolutely incredible. \u00a0The flavors really complemented each other as did the textures. \u00a0The steak was delicious and tender. \u00a0The slight crunch of the vegetables in the relish was a perfect match. \u00a0The potatoes were simple. \u00a0We all agreed that a meal can be overdone if everything is complex, so the simple roasted potato was a great side. \u00a0<\/p>\n

Valentine’s Day<\/em><\/strong><\/h1>\n

Menu<\/em><\/strong><\/h1>\n

Baked Brie with Thyme and Cranberries<\/p>\n

\"brie2\"<\/p>\n

Salad with Spiced Pecans, Goat Cheese and Balsamic Vinaigrette<\/p>\n

\"table\"<\/p>\n

Smashed New Potatoes<\/p>\n

\"potatoes\"<\/p>\n

Flank Steak with Radish, Red Onion and Carrot Relish<\/p>\n

\"steak\"<\/p>\n

\"relish\"<\/p>\n

Baked Brie with Cranberries and Thyme<\/p>\n

    \n
  • 8 oz wheel of brie with top rind removed<\/li>\n
  • 1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed<\/li>\n
  • 1\/2 cup dried cranberries<\/li>\n
  • 2 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped<\/li>\n
  • 1 package plain water crackers<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
      \n
    1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 425\u00b0F.<\/li>\n
    2. On a sheet of waxed paper or parchment, roll the pastry out to a 12-inch square and cut two 6-inch rounds from it. Put one of the rounds on a small rimmed baking sheet.<\/li>\n
    3. Sprinkle with half of the dried cranberries and thyme, leaving a 1\/2-inch border around the edge, and gently press them in.<\/li>\n
    4. Set the Brie, rind side down, on top of the pastry, sprinkle with the remaining cranberries and thyme, and cover with the other pastry.\u00a0<\/li>\n
    5. Crimp the edges together to seal in the cheese.\u00a0<\/li>\n
    6. Bake until the pastry browns, about 20 minutes. Let cool for 15 to 20 minutes and then serve.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      The Lovebirds<\/em><\/strong><\/h1>\n

      Here are the dinner guests! \u00a0Jason and Carrie, Christian and Lisa, and me and Ben. \u00a0<\/p>\n

      \"jasonandcarrie\"\"chrisandlisa\"\"benandc\"<\/p>\n