Home At Last! with Patty Gironda

Atlanta enjoyed a glorious Easter weekend! We hit the road and set out to discover some new things close to home. First on our list, Auburn Curb Market, right off the interstate in downtown Atlanta! We were pleased to discover a variety of vendors offering fresh, fresh veggies along with meats, eggs, seafood and baked goods. I loved the friendly atmosphere and settled on some huge chicken wings, oxtail and smoked bacon! We celebrated Easter dinner with chicken and waffles-the wings coated with some very good organic Kansas unbleached flour-mixed with semolina for extra crunch! I soaked the large wings in seasoned buttermilk for about six hours before dredging them in the wonderful flour mixture! We broke out a deep fat fryer that had been sitting in my gadget pantry for over six months and were delighted with the results! The waffles were a delicious malt powder we purchase online-enhanced with an extra teaspoon of vanilla and pinch of salt! Hippity, hoppity, y'all!...

By now I know many of my friends and associates understand my great passion for fine food, good wine and adventurous travel but there's another side to my personality that many don't know. . . I'm a "technology" junkie and love learning about new technologies that stretch the imagination and widen the audience for the love of storytelling! While I don't expect many of you will ever have the need to understand the technology behind Home At Last! I do hope you will appreciate the potential to reach a new audience through streaming video that has "come of age"! Our new streaming channel will feature community and entertainment at one simple location! Just like you already enjoy on your newly purchased ATSC-equipped TV's. No longer bound by cable restrictions and contracts WestGAtv.com will feature many of our popular programs-which can be enjoyed on your computer or better yet! on your newly-acquired ATSC TV with internet features! More later ...

Finally, the sun has returned . . .along with all our Newnan Market Days vendors! The tantelizing smell of the seared Applewood Bacon Burger produced by Pine Street Market was reason alone to hang out on their pretty corner of the square! Samples are generous and the owners, friendly! Pine Street Market's picnic salami rivals any cured sausages I've enjoyed in Tuscany. Understandably, the salami was sold out by the time I arrived at the square! But there's always next month. I have big plans for my precious pound of Applewood Bacon Burger. I'm anxious to give it a whirl as a spectacular dressed burger, BUT my initial plans are to add it to the list of ingredients featured on this weeks episode of Home At Last! Tuscan flatbread with spinach and tomatoes!

I adore semolina bread and it amazes me that I am able to get so many delicious meals from one easy recipe. I have worked diligently on perfecting this recipe for over two years! I love that I now have the perfect toasting loaf as well as a tasty flatbread or cracker dough. Last night I tried my recipe on a flatbread with no sauce. The flavorful flatbread derived it's salty goodness from freshly-grated Asiago cheese, garlic oil, cracked black pepper and kosher salt on top of my hand-stretched dough. The spinach was tossed lightly in olive oil and added to the dough along with black olives! The final topping was a few handfuls of romano cheese and a generous sprinkle of cayenne pepper. The results-FABULOUS! Thinly-sliced toasted semolina bread with strawberry preserves provided breakfast "afterglow"!