BEST Hamburger!

Do you ever crave a big, juicy burger? I was just thinking how much I miss a certain restaurant in Bellevue, Nebraska. It's called Stella's (located on Galvin Rd. South).
Stella's has THE best hamburgers I have ever tasted.
It's a tiny restaurant and bar close to Offutt AFB and gets a lot of regulars. When my husband and I were living in Bellevue we tried to eat there at least once a month. And it's always packed!
They serve your delectable burger on a napkin because "good food doesn't need to be fancy" and the hand-cut fries are in bowls on the side. Be sure you have plenty of napkins because this thing is juicy and will most certainly run down your hands!!! Yum!
The burgers are grilled on the same grill that Stella herself used to grill on back in the 50's when the place opened! While you're waiting for your food - check out the walls to see old photos of the place and read the history of Stella's from a laminated paper found where the menu's are located on your table.
I can't wait till we see Nebraska again and get to go to Stella's. It's a feel-good atmosphere, great prices, and excellent food. I recommend it!

Magic of Mornings

"I love eggs! From my head down to my legs!" Remember that commercial from the 80's/90's?

I really do love eggs... I know 'they' all say they're bad for you...but there can't be much truth to that! I mean, something that tastes so good can't be that horrible for you!

My husband and I got up early for once today, and being that it's a Sunday there was no pressure for him to hustle off to work.
So I made apple smoked bacon and he made eggs!
I happen to have baby bella mushrooms in the fridge, so I cut a few of those up as well as some black olives (another one of my addictions). We mixed those with some diced tomatoes & cheddar cheese with a couple of eggs in the pan and I had a VERY tasty egg-licious breakfast!
Three pieces of apple bacon on the side along with a buttery piece of toast and a searing hot cup of coffee. Mmmm!

It was one of those mornings that you savor. Everywhere you looked from our house there was fog encasing the trees and vines. It was just beautiful.

Maybe I should get up and enjoy the magic of mornings more often. :)

Maryland Wine

My husband and I have become small time wine connoisseurs. We love touring vineyards - especially the little known one's that are privately owned. Someday, we hope to own our own!
We started going to vineyards when we first met and he even proposed to me in a vineyard in Texas! So far, we've hit Texas, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Illinois & West Virginia wineries.

We moved here to Maryland last November. The weather was chilly, traffic was hairy and we were trying to get used to our new state. Then the holiday's showed up and we were even more busy!
Now that it's March and spring has sprung (YAY!) we decided to try out some Maryland vineyards.

Last Sunday we headed out to the Frederick Wine Trail. The sun was blazing and it was a balmy 50 degrees! Our GPS - we've named "Phil" - monotonously directed us toward our first of four vineyards in the adorable little town of Mt. Airy.
The drive was scenic (as the 'scenic byway' sign had advertised) and as our truck climbed and twisted up the next hill we saw our first Maryland vineyard.

Linganore Winecellars! I was immediately attracted to their tasting room which looks like an old barn. Once inside we looked up and saw huge black walnut beams on the ceiling. Truly magnificent. The wine was very tasty. I am a semi-sweet wine lover and enjoyed their fruity wines the most. I was impressed/surprised to find they had a dandelion wine, as my grandparents used to make it and I was curious as to how it actually tasted (quite good)! They had a huge wine-list and we tried just about all of them!

Next, we went just down the road to Black Ankle Vineyards. This was my husbands favorite of the day! He is a cabernet, merlot man (dry wines) and he adored their wine list! The atmosphere at this place was my favorite - the walls are baled hay plastered over, they have a beautiful custom-rounded brick fireplace, a living roof (SO cool) and the bar top is made from their vines (you've got to see it to appreciate it)! Construction fit for a nature-lover.

Our third stop was at Loew Vineyards. This is an adorable place! We got to meet one of the owners who happily answered all of our how-to-grow-vine questions. My favorite wine here was the 'Country Classic'- even my husband liked it!!!

Lastly we stopped at Elk Run Vineyards.. We got there about 15 minutes before they closed and figured we could sneak in a few tastes before they kicked us out...The staff was very friendly and didn't seem to mind that we were there so close to closing time. The wine was truly fantastic. My husband found a port he really liked while I savored their Riesling. On our way out I stopped to take a photo of their vines - they looked bigger/older/fatter than any of the others we'd seen that day. I can't wait till all the snow is gone and they start to grow again! It will be a beautiful sight.



We had such a great time on our little Maryland wine trip now all we can think about is going back...