Lisa Jeffries Nobling – Raleigh, NC

Tag: Food

  • “Little Luxuries Are Not Reserved for the Wealthy”

    “Little Luxuries Are Not Reserved for the Wealthy”

    I’m back after a long hiatus… hi, y’all! 👋

    My purpose with “Everyday Luxe” is to share ideas for living luxe without breaking the bank, so that’s why I love that one of my favorite women’s finance gals, Money with Katie, shared the following quick video this morning sharing research-based hacks for living well every day without busting your budget in the process. 👏

    Two of my personal faves that made the list? Replacing and investing in the textiles you use every day (I’m looking at you, towels!) and committing to cooking and cocktailing or mocktailing with fresh ingredients and enjoying prepping those indulgences with loved ones. 🥂

    Cheers, y’all! Hope to check in again soon…

    Photo by Karolina Grabowska

  • Team No Waste

    Today’s breakfast/lunch (truly brunch without the boozy drinks) combo I whipped up in my small but mighty kitchen here in Antibes inspired this post. I used leftover bread from last night’s dinner as the base; layered in leftover sauteed Brussels sprouts, a few slices of mozzarella cheese, and frozen spinach; and topped with four eggs scrambled with about a half cup of water and voila — I have brunchy goodness that’ll be easily re-heated for the next several days and not an ounce of waste in sight.

    That’s got to be one of the best habits I’ve picked up living here in the South of France: just how little food I’m throwing away on a regular basis. Back in the States, it’s pretty normal for us to hit the grocery store about every week to 10 days, spend $100+ with the best of intentions of cooking a ton of meals at home, and then inevitable, every two weeks or so… I’m cleaning out the refrigerator and throwing a solid chunk of that $100 into a trash bag.

    Here in Antibes, the refrigerator in my apartment is the size of most dorm room units, and I’m also only cooking for one. I also have the better part of six+ grocery stores and markets within walking distance and a farmers market two blocks from home that’s open every day from 6:00 a.m. until 1 p.m. So I’m buying fresh items, every two or three days, and making the most of them. I’ve thrown away so little while I’m here and hope this is a habit I can stick with when I return home in May. The only complication is that it might mean more occasional trips to the grocery store, which is not nearly convenient at home as it has been here.

    Speaking of the grocery shopping aspect: I do a pretty solid job of utilizing both Lowes Foods and Harris Teeter’s online ordering services, though… so I think I can easily maximize the return on the $4.99 convenience fee charged AND save the time of having to actually shop in the store, too. I’v also been stalking the inventory of RelayFoods.com and am constantly drooling over their selection, so I see a lot more of that in my future, too. I think the saved cost of not throwing away so much of our inventory week after week will well make up for any additional costs in my convenience shopping ways.

  • Sunday Funday in Cannes

    A week ago Sunday, Johnnie Bud and I headed to Cannes with GLM classmates Daniel, Sarah, and Stephanie. Taking the SNCF train for $12 round-trip, it was about a 30 minute ride (with stops included) and we couldn’t have asked for better weather.

    It was fairly quiet in Cannes on the day we went, missing the film festival the area is known for that takes place in May, but we walked from the busy town streets down to the beautiful waterfront and enjoyed a super fun lunch at restaurant called o’key beach that is literally situated on the sandy beach and mostly porch seating.

    Word to the wise: there’s nothing speedy about dining in France. (Or really anything speedy, except bus and train service, in the south of France.) Luckily, we were day tripping and enjoying good food and drinks with great company – with absolutely no rush needed. Many service staffers speak a good deal of English, so we haven’t had any challenges dining out… but they certainly appreciate and it usually entertains them when you try to speak French and order off the menu as its written. Also to note, tax and gratuity is included in menu prices and when you try to tip your bartender extra for speedy service, they look at you funny.

    I would love to see this place during the film festival, but I’ll be back in Raleigh by then. Put it on my bucket list to return soon, though! 2017, perhaps?

  • Recipe: Redneck Caviar

    This is one of Johnnie Bud’s absolute favorite things for us to have in the refrigerator so he can snack on it anytime, add it as a relish to burgers, or enjoy as a side item.

    The best part about this dish is that it’s really easy to modify based on what you’ve got in the freezer/cabinet and based on your personal taste.

    Redneck Caviar
    I large can of black beans, drained
    1 small can of Rotel diced tomatoes and diced green chilies
    I bag of farmer’s market fresh sweet corn
    1 bag of farmer’s market fresh black eyed peas or pink eyed peas
    2 green peppers peppers, chopped
    2 red bell peppers, chopped
    1 jalapeno, seeds removed, chopped
    1/2 purple onion, chopped
    Fresh cilantro, to taste
    Red wine vinaigrette, to taste

    Mix everything and refrigerate overnight to let it marinate well – although you can start eating anytime, the onions are raw though and have a lot of bite until they’ve marinated. Since the corn and pink eyed peas were fresh from the farmer’s market, I boiled them until soft and then cold-rinsed them before mixing everything together. If you buy canned, just drain and mix in.
    Keep an extra bag of tortilla chips handy, this stuff is popular! (And perfect for fall tailgates.)

    PS: We had green peas with dinner tonight and had some leftover, so I threw them into the big bowl of Redneck Caviar for extra color and another tasty flavor.

  • Manfriend Meals: Mini-Meatloaf, Breakfast for Dinner Pizza

    I had the chance to experiment with these two recipes the last few months and they are not just “Manfriend Approved”, they are straight up “Manfriend Loved”!

    Muffin Pan Mini-Meatloaf, Topped with Mashed Potatoes and/or Bacon
    via Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/195625177533922229/
    The original website, http://www.stockpilingmoms.com/2012/04/pinterest-pin-of-the-day-meatloaf-in-a-muffin-tin/, lists lots of meatloaf recipes and I chose to go with the Paleo one this go around. It didn’t disappoint and I felt like it was a moderately “healthy” switch to make on the manfriend… who didn’t enjoyed it regardless of fad diet title. The only changes I made were removing the minis from the muffin pan and putting on a broiler pan for the last few minutes so all of the juices that had piled up would run off and to crisp the bacon. Manfriend even revisited these for leftovers on another day, so clearly that’s a win.

    The mini-meatloaf idea made serving, cleanup and storage a breeze!

    Creamed Spinach & Egg Pizza
    Another Pinterest hit: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/195625177540005365/

    I picked up raw pizza dough from our neighborhood pizza restaurant on the way home and even though the crust got a little away from me when transferring to the baking stone, this pizza tasted so good we didn’t care what the squiggly edges looked like. This is rich, so serve it by the slice with a salad on the side… if you can resist eating the whole thing!

    Enjoy, y’all!

  • Manfriend Meals: Texas Caviar

    Texas Caviar. Redneck Caviar. Southern Caviar. Redneck Salsa.

    I’ve seen recipes of this variety called a lot of different names. No matter what you call it, or what combination of flavors you include, it’s probably going to be ridiculously addicting.

    While not a “meal”, my manfriend would gladly make a meal of this recipe: Texas Caviar

    A few cans of beans, several cut peppers, herbs, garlic, red wine vinegar, olive oil and boom. Delicious mixed up in a bowl and no cooking required. Put it in the ‘fridge for an hour and it’s ready to go or leave it overnight to really marinate. We snack on it for days and while it doesn’t last more than two days due to constant enjoyment, I’m not sure it would really even go bad for a few days long as long as you keep it chilled.

    This is a tailgate must and a quick mix for anytime in between football seasons. It’s delicious with tortilla chips, as a salsa/relish, as a side dish… practically any way.

    Cheers, y’all!

  • Manfriend Approved: Updated Shepherd’s Pie

    There was nothing meatless about Monday dinner last night, but it was the first time in many weeks that Johnnie Bud and I have been able to have a real dinner at home together, so I felt compelled to surprise him with something he had recently pointed out as looking tasty: Kraft’s Updated Shepherd’s Pie.

    Kraft Recipes Shepherd's Pie
    Image and recipe via KraftRecipes.com

    I made very little modifications to this recipe – I left the skin on the potatoes and added a bit of the beef broth to the potatoes. (The ketchup probably could have been left out entirely as the broth provides a good deal of seasoning to the meat and vegetables.)

    As a vegetarian, I obviously didn’t indulge in this comfort food dish with the manfriend, but he enjoyed it so much he’s planning on having leftovers tonight for dinner – and this is a man who rarely does leftovers.

    One of the best parts about this recipe is the ease! While the potatoes were boiling, I browned the beef and the frozen vegetables went right from bag to the saute pan before baking – and then the whole thing went right in the oven alongside carrots I had quickly cut, tossed in EVOO, salt and pepper, and put in a roasting dish.

    This dish could have easily served a whole family. Johnnie Bud’s two servings at dinner last night barely made a dent in the casserole dish we baked it in.

    Not too bad for a Monday, friends! Enjoy.

  • Meatless Monday: Fresh Spinach Tomato and Garlic Tortellini Soup

    The Manfriend and I enjoyed this for dinner last week and it’s going into our regular rotation, especially looking forward to chilly fall and winter evenings: Fresh Spinach Tomato and Garlic Tortellini Soup.

    This was a super quick fix, but because the tortellini gets soft quick, I don’t recommend it for an all day Crockpot dish.

    (Image via CookingClassy.com)
    I shared the recipe on Facebook a few days before actually making it and got a lot of great responses, including a recommendation to buy the smaller package of tortellini as the 20 oz. was enough to feed an army. Well placed, seeing as how we are a dinner for two. (I did forget to half the rest of the ingredients, including the water and stock, and everything still turned out wonderfully, so adjust as you see fit.)
    I had the staples like EVOO, salt and pepper on hand and the grocery bill for this was less than $10. Save yourself some time and buy canned tomatoes that are already peeled. I really couldn’t taste any difference and should have saved my self the effort in blanching and peeling.
    Enjoy this tasty dish and toss in some mushrooms if you’re feeling adventurous!

  • Manfriend Meals: Meatless Monday Recipes

    The manfriend requested all of these recipes separately, but I thought they’d make a great meal together:

    I made the farfalle dish as the main entree, with the balsamic carrots on the side, green beans, and wheat dinner rolls.

    The verdict?

    He loved it all!

    Especially the carrots.

    My manfriend is a great sport when it comes to occasionally dining vegetarian, but he did ask that sausage or another protein with a lot of flavor be added to the farfalle dish when we revisit it for dinner. While this vegetarian won’t be adding sausage to her portion of the dish next time around, a small amount of a mushroom cream sauce or even roasted tomatoes would be tasty!

  • Recipe: Loaded Baked Potato & Chicken Casserole

    Two of my favorite people welcomed their first child almost a month ago, so many of our friends have taken turns bringing over dinner to the new parents to help ease them into craziness of what I can only imagine parenthood to be.

    It was my turn on Tuesday, so I cruised their Pinterest accounts a few weeks before to plan and found this gem: Loaded Baked Potato & Chicken Casserole

    I’m pleased to say it was a hit. The feedback was, and I quote, “It was freaking wonderful, even good for breakfast.”

    Now, this is obviously not vegetarian approved, but I’m regularly surrounded by carnivores, so I made this one in hopes it could become a staple go to recipe. Winner, winner – literally a chicken dinner!

    A few things to note:

    • At its highest temp, my oven didn’t get to 500 degrees – so the potatoes cooked between 400 and 450 and still turned out just fine.
    • This took almost an hour and a half to prep and bake, so it’s not a quick evening dinner. Plan ahead.
    • The grocery bill for all ingredients (sans salt, pepper, EVOO, paprika, garlic powder, and hot sauce — had all those on hand) was just over $20.

    The recipe linked above made a full baking dish and a small side baking dish worth of food, so Johnnie Bud gets to try it as well tonight when he returns from business as usual in Charlotte. (He’s pretty excited to come home to bacon… it’s not often that happens in our house!)

    If you have the ability to serve it hot, this will make a great fall tailgate dish that’s sure to please. Enjoy!