When I moved my website over to substack in August I spent a few hours going through old recipes, photos, and posts. Mostly to make a list of recipes to re-test, re-shoot, or simply delete but I found myself overcome with nostalgia. I got to see so many younger versions of myself and relive memories of creating recipes in different kitchens with varying levels of confidence.
I revamped an old chipotle refried beans recipe and used them for bean and cheese burritos that reminded me of the excitement I felt for taco bell when I was 6. My sausage & corn chowder is a fall favorite that I return to every year and this year I made it even better with a few small tweaks. I never thought I’d mess with my Mexican Caesar Dressing, which was by far the most popular recipe on my old website, but I did!! Two small changes, a little extra effort, totally worth it.
As we grow, so do the things we love!
I’m continuing to work my way through that list and trying to balance bringing back old favorites with my excitement for creating new ones. If there’s a recipe you miss, please let me know and I’ll bump it up my list and send you a PDF of the recipe in the meantime. A few people have already done this unprompted and just the fact that one of my recipes has earned a spot in your rotation makes me giddy!!
Here are a few more that I’ve revisited lately:
Now for something new - Dirty Martini Pasta
I probably should have led with this but honeys we went viral!!! Dirty Martini Pasta was an absolute hit.
I made Dirty Martini Pasta for several reasons:
I finally started loving dirty martinis this year - huge thanks to all my friends who have let me try sips of theirs over the years
I have a surplus of olives (more on that when my video gets approved)
I knew the girls would love it, and that’s enough for me
But I didn’t know just how much the girls would love it!! Having a recipe go viral is fun but usually comes with a slew of grumpy comments. That didn’t happen this time - by some miracle the video reached 1.6 MILLION views with a completely positive comment section.
People shared their excitement, ideas for adding to it (clams was a wildly popular suggestion), questions about swapping out blue cheese, friends they want to make this with, dirty martini preferences, and so much more. A few people have already made it!!
While I hoped this recipe would reach a ton of people, watching it happen still came as a shock. And in the aftermath I was left wondering.
What now? Do I double down on the pasta? Continue as planned with other recipes? Move to LA?? It didn’t help that I was out of town and away from my kitchen.
I’m going to make the pasta again, many many times I’m sure! This week I’m thinking I’ll follow up with a chicken piccata on top of the pasta. The top suggestion was clams but unfortunately, Kris and I just don’t love clams. A pot of mussels would be more fitting, perhaps a lobster tail even.
Oh and if you’re still wondering - I order mine extra dirty, grey goose, regular olives. My friend Baylee ultimately converted me with her order but I’ll give credit also to Mackenzie who let me try her filthy gin martini several years ago that made me believe this was all possible.
And finally for some random thoughts
We have a handyman at our house right now fixing a few things and I’m so thankful for comparative advantage because god knows I don’t need to spend time learning how to re-caulk a shower.
I bought pumpkins for our front porch, the squirrels are eating them. WTF??
These are my favorite wine glasses currently - I use them for white, red, rose, and even bubbles. The stem is wispy and I have to be careful washing them (we’ve already lost one to a broken stem) but they’re a dream!
Technically this is a coupe not a martini glass but I think it’s so much cuter and less prone to spillage. I have several of them and they make a great hostess gift.
My weekly sandwich shop series has been a lot of fun - if you have requests please send them my way!! This week’s sandwich comes with a side, and that’s all I’ll say for now.
I’m on the hunt for a jacket, something chic I can throw over a dress for nights when it’s too cold for short sleeves but not cold enough for a full on coat. I want it to be part of the outfit but not take over, and I need it to go with many things. I’ve never been successful in finding this staple but I’m determined that this will be the year.
In closing…
200 people subscribe to this newsletter!!! And if this landed in your inbox, you’re one of them.
My question to you is - what do you want in your inbox? I’ve been sending this newsletter on a less-than-weekly basis. I use it as a round up for recent recipes and a place to share thoughts. I don’t send all of my recipes out individually, but I could! Let me know your thoughts, I’d give you a penny for them if I could.
With love,
Anna
My friend is famous!! And so glad you’re on the dirty martini train now and I helped you on this journey