An afternoon in Vienna

As many of you know, we recently had an addition to our family -- a new baby boy, Roman. Having a new baby brother can be stressful for a little kid, so I decided to take big brother Noah out for a hot dog at Vienna Inn.  Where else can you get a hot dog, BBQ pulled pork sandwich, ice cold beer and quality time with your son for just over $10?  As you can see below, he definitely enjoyed his hot dog and most of my BBQ pulled pork sandwich.  After we left lunch, Noah spotted a train which was part of the W&OD Railroad Regional Park...

...little did we know this would turn out into a mini photoshoot.  Good thing I carry my 35mm everywhere I go.

This was a great spot to practice my photography.

Zinfandel Braised Short Ribs

Happy New Year!!!  Here's my first food entry to bring in the new year!

Below is last night's attempt at Zinfandel Braised Short Ribs from a recipe I found on Foodtv.com.  I figure I start a pot before the Brambleton Ring in the Hope 10K race that I decided to run with my sister.  By the time the race would be finished this dish would be done.  And no it didn't take me two and half hours to finish the race. The short ribs turned out fork tender, however I probably should have reduced the zinfandel reduction a tad longer.  The only change I made to the recipe was some added brown sugar to the sauce for some sweetness.

Hot chocolate anyone?

Made some Starbucks hot chocolate that I received as a Christmas present.  I made it with whole milk and boy was it good.  Anyway, here's a basic photo of the mug I used. The photo was a good opportunity to practice focusing and metering. In the background you can see my arsenal of cooking oils and seasonings which are out of focus. I also placed a cutting board under the mug to break up the granite pattern which I thought was too busy for the photo.  As you can tell it's a slow night, I promise I'll get more interesting stuff out there.