Smoked Salt & Pepper

I spent my Sunday volunteering at the Austin Food & Wine Festival.  Since it was a weekend-long event, and I wouldn't have been able to enjoy the entire span of it if I'd bought tickets due to work, I decided to volunteer on my day off.  It was a really enjoyable experience.  I got to watch a few cooking demos and eat great food/sample yummy wines.  Here are a few pics I took while there. Roasting Pigs   Cooking demo by Marcus Samuelsson  Marcus Samuelsson Up Close I don't know why this photo keeps uploading sideways ;P Tidbits I learned: The reason unsalted butter>salted butter is because salt acts as a preservative so usually unsalted butter is fresher than salted.  (I had always used unsalted because it was easier to control salt levels myself, plus, I like having one butter in the fridge for both cooking and baking)  Save shrimp shells for making a really flavorful, layered ramen broth Gewurztraminer wines pair...

Sunday mornings deserve a great brunch.  I'd done some damage at Central Market last week.  Who can resist fresh baked rosemary bread or maple smoked bacon?  I can't.  Decided to whip this together in order to salvage the last of the rosemary bread. Baked Egg in Bread Ingredients Rosemary bread, cut in 1" thick slices 4 eggs 2 tsp butter, melted 1 tbs grated hard cheese (IE parmasan, fontina, etc) 1 tbs chopped italian parsley Salt & Pepper 1/4 lb. maple smoked bacon (optional) Directions Using a spoon or your fingers, create a crater in the center of each slice of bread to fit an egg.  Try to leave a thin layer of bread at the bottom. Note: this would've worked better with individual small rolls, but I had a delish loaf of bread on hand Brush with melted butter Crack one egg into the crater.  Top with cheese Bake at 350* 15-20 minutes or until eggs are set.  Fry up the bacon during this time Sprinkle each egg wit...

I found this recipe through Pinterest and found Sally's Baking Addiction website.  Sally's Baking Addiction   It looked so mouth-wateringly delicious I had to try it.  Plus, I'm a sucker for salted caramel.  That combo between sweet and savory is so amazing, my mouth is actually watering as I'm typing this!  I have made 2 batches now, and although they were a little work the first time around, the second time went much smoother/easier and they're so worth it.  Brought them to work to keep myself and Reid from eating alllll of them and my boss asked what the special occasion was.  They were gone in a hot minute. Salted Caramel Dark Chocolate Cookies Ingredients 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 cup dark brown sugar  1 large egg 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 cup all-purpose flour 1/2 cup + 2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder  1 teaspoon baking soda 1/8 teaspoon salt 2 Tablespo...