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The Augusta Mural Guide
The (Un)official Guide to Augusta’s Best Walls Welcome to my double-tap inducing mural tour! This Augusta mural guide strives to be a comprehensive directory to our River Region’s most vibrant + colorful + ‘grammable walls. Many of these walls are more than just artsy-fartsy photo ops: some of them speak of Augusta’s history; some profess the affinity Augusta’s people have for her; and others proclaim the quirk + eclectic spirit of our fair city. And why not? Art-centric Augusta has lots of colorful love to share. This guide is dynamic, growing with our city’s art-explosive evolution. I invite you to check back often. WHAT YOU’LL FIND: photo(s) of the mural…
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Bourbon + Pecan Bon Bons
I am so excited to share this recipe with you. I am sure you’ll agree that when you put these earthly pleasures in your mouth, you’ll be tempted to sell your soul like Faust. Each bite explodes with bourbon-spiked pecan pie filling slathered with chocolate. Sweet, sweet magic in your mouth. And because they are so diminutive, they are practically guilt-free one-bite treats. Many of you know my mother’s family is Greek. What you may not know is my papou made chocolate confections. At any given time, there were vats upon vats of chocolate melting on the stove in his basement-turned chocolate factory workshop. Let that sink in. Imagine an…
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Frozen Key Lime Pops
Frozen Key Lime Pops—because summer isn’t over yet! I was 7 years old the first time I had Key Lime Pie. It was actually in the Keys—Marathon, to be exact—when my family + 2 other Augusta families (6 adults + 7 kids) squeezed into ONE deluxe-ish Winnebago for a vacation to Florida, fishing boat in tow. (Meanwhile the boat trailer lost a wheel somewhere around woodsy Millen, Georgia, never to be recovered). Thirteen people + Winnebago + 1,400 miles round trip. Sounds crazy, right? Yes, but it was one of the BEST vacations ever. Amidst the crowdedness and having to share one bathroom while on the road (god forbid we…
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Spicy Asian Cucumber Salad
Have you been outside lately? I am sitting indoors at the computer with the AC blowing full blast. Just looking out the window makes me glisten. How do I remedy this thermal warfare? Cucumbers. Cucumbers are magical. They have the power to cool you in the deepest of heat. But in this salad, paradoxically, they are also the source of deep heat as they are drenched in piquant oils and chiles. The vinegar + red pepper flakes provide a surprisingly potent punch of fire + tang to the cucumber ribbons, making this Spicy Asian Cucumber Salad one of our favorites. About cucumbers: The recipe calls for either 1 large cucumber…
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Tipsy Watermelon Ice Lollies
Did anyone else’s mother require that popsicles be eaten outside? It was one of those “because I said so” things we heard when we were growing up. We were so excited to have freezer pops that we didn’t even question the why. We just did what we were told. This week I had a flashback to those childhood moments of popsicle bliss, of how damn happy popsicles can make us. I was also reminded why Mom’s rules were such a good idea when on an intolerably hot day my Tipsy Watermelon Ice Lollies started dripping down my arm. I do not love July’s heat, but I do love summer, because…
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Panzanella Salad
It was bloody hot today. Too hot to hold hands with The Man. Too hot to walk barefoot in the grass (even the grass was hot). And def too hot to cook. AmIright? So here’s what we’re gonna do. Stay inside, strip down to our skivvies, pour some wine, turn on our favorite music (Justin Timberlake, Outkast, Beck, Nina Simone…whatever gets the hips swaying) and make Panzanella Salad. It’s a beautiful word, isn’t it? Panzanella. Pane (bread) + zanella (soup bowl) = panzanella. Saying it feels like a silky + floral Chianti is trickling down your throat. Pan-za-NEL-la! Calling it by its name— Panzanella Salad, a Tuscan bread salad—is much more…
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Blackened Shrimp Caesar Salad
When I walked outside this morning to fill the bird feeders, I withered like a delicate flower. Seeing as how I am not a flower (nor delicate), this is my poetic way of telling you it was already scorching hot at 8AM. So how does a withered flower combat a hot day that will only get hotter? Blackened Shrimp Caesar Salad, of course! This salad is 200% awesome. 50% because cool + creamy Caesar dressing 50% because piquant + spicy blackened shrimp 50% because crunchy + garlicky croutons 50% because rich + sapid Parmesan cheese Actually, it’s probably more like 300% awesome. (You’ll agree once you dive in.) It’s a…
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Pasta Aglio e Olio: CYOA
On its own, pasta aglio e olio is deliciously simple: pasta + garlic + olive oil. Life doesn’t get much more pure than that. But we are going to shake things up a bit, go beyond garlic and olive oil. This recipe takes that classic dish of pasta glistening with oil, loaded with caramelized garlic and swanks it up a bit with a toss of crushed red pepper + fresh parsley + (among other things) zippy lemon zest. Mediterranean confetti, if you will. We’re taking an age-old recipe for pasta aglio e olio and giving it a plot twist of our choosing. Hence Pasta Aglio e Olio: CYOA (Choose Your…
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Cool Cucumber + Basil Gimlet
Another cocktail recipe? You bet your sweet ass. So I know it looks like I am boozing it up this summer—cocktail recipe after cocktail recipe—but let me explain. The Man is an eater, not a drinker. So while he is away, I have become a self-proclaimed mixologist. Besides, I can’t possibly eat all those delicious food blog recipes by myself, right? It is out of respect for his boundaries that I am making these cocktails in his absence. (That’s what I keep telling myself.) This Cool Cucumber + Basil Gimlet recipe is so refreshingly delightful yet so easy. Simply grate + pour + shake + strain + smack + float…
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Summer Watermelon Mojito
Clear your calendar. Summer in a glass is coming your way! When I think of fruity tropical drinks, I think RUM. And when I think of summer fruits, I think WATERMELON. So when I get to thinking and concocting in my head, the basic math side of my brain tells me that RUM + WATERMELON = WATERMELON MOJITO! (Check my math on that, okay?) Whatever your plans are for today, cancel them. Run to the store. Grab some watermelon, chop it up, and stick it in the freezer. Then you can pull it out when you are ready to suck down create these dangerously delightful Summer Watermelon Mojitos! All you…