Just when you think it’s getting cold in Texas you get shocked with a jolt of 90 degree heat. BUT that won’t stop me from getting in the Fall/Holiday spirit. I love making a big pot of soup when the weather starts to cool. It’s simple, comforting, and you can eat it all week.
I decided to hold off on posting yesterday’s Song of the Day so I could make it a joint food and music post. So dig into this delicious Beef and Veggie Noodle Soup recipe and enjoy this track off Tristan Prettyman’s latest release, Cedar + Gold. Thanks to one of my girlfriends for introducing me to Miss Prettyman. Her chill vocals and lyrical style is a cross between Colbie Caillat and Sara Bareilles. Check out My Oh My!
Happy Listening!
Beef Veggie Noodle Soup
Ingredients
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1.5 pounds lean ground sirloin
1 tbsp Nature’s Seasoning*
2 tsp celery seed*
1 tsp kosher salt
cracked black pepper
2 extra large beef bouillon cubes
2 cans beef consomme (Campbell’s)
2 cans water
32oz container beef broth
1 can tomato soup (Campbell’s)
1 can sweet corn – do not drain
1 small bag mini carrots
3/4 head green cabbage, chopped
6oz bag green peas
1 bag shell pasta
**The seasonings are not exact measurements. Make sure you are tasting and adjusting along the way!
Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Saute the onions until slightly transparent. Add the ground beef, Nature’s Seasoning, celery seed, salt and pepper.
Saute until no longer pink.
Add the bouillon cubes, beef consomme, water and beef broth. Bring to a boil and simmer on medium low for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring periodically. Taste and adjust seasoning accordingly.
Stir in the tomato soup, corn and carrots. Bring to a slow boil and cook until the carrots are slightly tender.
Add the cabbage and cook for 5-10 minutes.
Add the peas and pasta and cook until the pasta is al dente. If the soup is too thick add more water and adjust seasoning.
Happy Halloween weekend everyone! Any big plans, awesome costume ideas?? Matt and I are headed to a party tonight and coordinating for the first time. I’ll post some pics later. 🙂
I am truly a lover of music. Whether it’s Indie, Blues, R&B or Pop, there’s always something I can find in each genre, especially pop music. I found out about Tori Kelly when I auditioned for American Idol in Season 9. We both auditioned in Denver but unfortunately…I didn’t get to meet her. After seeing her on the show I was instantly hooked and have been a huge fan ever since. The most compelling thing about Tori is the girl has been everywhere. From America’s Most Talented Kids, to American Idol, to a record deal at 12 years old with Geffen Records that was later dropped, she hasn’t stopped.
After she was cut from Idol at the end of Hollywood week she started to make a huge splash on YouTube covering popular songs and showcasing her amazing writing skills with her A Capella videos. She wrote, self produced and recorded her debut EP, Handmade Songs by Tori Kelly, minus the backing of a huge label. With major shout outs from Ryan Seacrest and Scooter Braun she is performing all over the country and building a fan base 100% as an independent artist. Oh and did I mention her voice is totally sick.
I streamed her show at the Roxy this week and was, again, completely captivated by her talent and adorable charm. It’s inspiring to see artists push for their dreams no matter how many times they’ve been told no and as an aspiring singer/songwriter myself, it’s motivating! So check out my favorite tune off her EP, All in My Head, and watch the video below for an incredible acoustic version of the song.
For all of my lovely foodies I owe you guys some food posts…and you will get them, soon. I made a delicious batch of Beef Veggie Soup last week that I must share with everyone and of course, my State Fair of Texas adventure was thoroughly documented.
In the meantime, I recorded a new video this weekend so check it out and let me know what you think in the comment box below.
This weekend thousands of sweaty, eager music fans will ascend on Zilker Park for the Austin City Limits music festival. Unfortunately, I won’t be able to join in on the 3 day fun but I’ll definitely be live streaming it on YouTube.
Tonight’s headliner is none other then my favorite band, The Black Keys (sad face). So for today’s Song of the Day I thought I’d share a new track from the boys.
The Keys teamed up with WuTang mastermind, RZA on a killer tune for Quentin Tarantino’s new film The Man with the Iron Fists. Listen, love it…it’s a little bit of hip-hop/blues rock heaven.
The last few weeks have been a beautiful whirlwind of amazing experiences that I wanted to share with my blog family. Last Saturday myself and 5 amazing musicians opened for Grammy Award winner and R&B singer Monica at the House of Blues Dallas. I still can’t believe how everything worked out and my biggest lesson to share is PROMOTE PROMOTE PROMOTE!
Whether you’re an aspiring musician, chef, writer, etc put yourself out there because you never know who’s paying attention. Thanks to social media I attracted the attention of Ascential Events who produced the Monica show. Great night, great crowd…I can’t wait to do it again!
Check out some pics from the show and read the review HERE!
To top off the week I found out I was nominated for a Dallas Observer Music Award in the Best Female Vocalist category. Just to be nominated is such an amazing feeling, especially when my name is listed below one of my favorite artists, Sarah Jaffe.
So I’m asking you, my dear blog friends, to help me out and vote for me for this year’s awards! I’ll be bringing the band back together on November 10th to perform during the local showcase here in Dallas. If you’re in the area stay tuned for more details.
You can vote once a day up until the awards ceremony at the House of Blues Dallas on November 13th. You don’t have to fill out the entire ballot (but feel free to check out all of the amazing artist that are nominated), just scroll down to 30 and place your vote! Thank you guys so much for your amazing support!! The adventure is just beginning.
I am a massive Interpol fan. The first time I heard Turn on the Bright Lights I felt like someone had knocked my naive music self into a different realm of sound. So of course when Paul Banks came out of his Julian Plenti shell with a 10 year anniversary celebration for TOTBL under his belt and a new solo project, I took notice!
The Base is the first single off of Bank’s second solo effort, aptly titled Banks, scheduled for an October 22nd release. Take a listen and soak in the musical yumminess that is Mr. Paul Banks!
The summer officially escaped me along with most of 2012. Heading into late September things have been moving at lightening speed. I’ve been so busy prepping for my opening gig with Monica next weekend (click HERE for tickets if you’ll be in the DFW area on September 29th) that I don’t even remember the last time I’ve cooked. So of course, I have massively failed to deliver new food posts to you guys. Hopefully in the next few weeks things will slow down a bit and I can spend some time in the kitchen.
In the meantime I think LA based duo Poolside, the self-proclaimed inventors of Daytime Disco, have delivered the perfect tune and mantra for us all to live by. Soak it in, replay a few times, then head back to your crazy lives! 🙂
Last week in place of a typical Friday Song of the Day post I featured my interview with Wind-Up Records artist Jillette Johnson. If you haven’t read it yet, check it out, she is a refreshing new talent and a killer songwriter.
For all of my long time readers you might (faintly) remember Song of the Day version 1, MyTunes!. In early 2010 I featured a young Belgian artist that immediately blew me away with one listen. Blending soul with a touch of reggae her debut album is a non-stop listen from track 1 to 13. She’s talented, she’s beautiful, she’s Selah Sue.
When Fiona Apple wrote about a Shadowboxer and feeling like a Criminal it was impossible to not become transfixed with the world she painted with her lyrics. The nineties and early aughts bred a slew of female singer songwriters that told the deepest stories through song.
Over the years popular music has become increasingly watered down, with focus on lyrical content falling in second place to house beats and campy tales of love and partying with friends. With the success of artists like Adele it’s clear that people still crave and respond to music that’s emotional and above all, honest.
Growing up in New York Jillette was born to a non-musical family with the passion to entertain and create at an early age. She started piano lessons at 6 and writing at 8 years old. With the support of her parents she started playing venues in New York City at just 12 years old. After getting her first manager at the same age Jillette used NYC as her canvas to create music that was open and honest.
That honesty caught the attention of Wind-Up Records Executive Gregg Wattenberg with the title track Cameron.
“Powder and a brush can cover any cuts / And quickly running cotton under cold water / Rinses out the blood marks / Cameron you’re a star, a light where there is dark”
tells the story of being alienated for our differences and embracing that uniqueness. After being signed to Wind-Up Jillette started writing for Whisking & Frosting.
Jillette isn’t resting on her laurels, “All of the music on the EP was written by me in my apartment over the last year. I’m having a lot of fun but it’s just the beginning. There’s a lot more work to be done.”
With her debut album set for an early 2013 release she’ll spend the next few months creating a buzz with the EP and radio in the winter. So where did Whiskey & Frosting come from?
After a horrible day Jillette and her boyfriend were headed back to her apartment where she hoped they would spend a quiet night alone. When they walked in all of her friends were there to throw her a surprise party and on the menu for dinner…whiskey and frosting, two of her favorite things.
“Whiskey and Frosting represents that twinkle in my eye and saying something real or dark with a hint of sweetness.”
Jillette doesn’t shy away from dark messages and difficult subjects. That fearlessness in her writing, the desire to create her own little world, has kept her on the creative path that has lead her up to this point. “It’s so important to be real and honest when you’re creating music.”
That realness meant turning down a prime spot on the hit show The Voice this past season. After attending an audition with a friend she turned down the opportunity to continue on the creative path she began, and to not compromise the voice she worked so hard to build throughout her career.
“It takes a lot of courage to audition for a talent show, you go through a lot. What I do is very holistic and unfortunately there’s no room for that in a show meant to entertain people. It feels like sacrilege to not be myself and for my voice to not be heard.”
This commitment to her music and bringing authenticity to what she creates also meant leaving New York University after one year to put 100% of her energy behind her career. When I asked her what would she be doing if she wasn’t creating music her response was simple,
“I never considered doing anything else. If you have a plan B then your plan A doesn’t really matter. I wanted everything I did to be about my career.”
That passion and vulnerability is evident in songs like Pauvre Coeur (poor heart).
“Dare I say I was enamored / By the stories of your pain / You were darkened in the wild fight / And I was tangled in your mane.”
The story of compromising yourself in a broken relationship that leaves you completely lost is told beautifully over Johnson’s aching vocals and rolling piano.
“I was trying to make you see me / Like the way you did before / So I took off my clothes and I opened a bottle / And told you I’d do whatever you wanted / Naked on the floor, crying I’m too beautiful / Oh my poor, poor, pauvre coeur / Beats no more.”
Jillette sings and composes with a passion that comes from such an authentic place. From her own life experiences to the streets of New York Jillette is influenced by life around her and the city that raised her.
“New York has hugely influenced me. There’s so much to draw inspiration from. I really think it’s the epicenter of the universe, so much beauty to inspire.”
Music legends Paul Simon, Prince, Carol King and Randy Newman are a few musicians that have influenced Johnson and her creativity. Newman’s simple approach to his lyrics and music that isn’t “overly flowery but to the point and eloquent” is what inspires Johnson. “They help me figure out what I want to say. I have to have a message in my music.”
Torpedo is Whiskey & Frosting’s anthem tune with Jillette’s beautifully layered vocals and poignant piano laced with hard hitting drums and of course, those lyrics.
“So come on torpedo do your worst / Get me right in the heart, blow me up ’til you see my ghost / But I will not lay down in the road / I will not make it easy / I ain’t got no saints or saviors / This is guerrilla and I will fight this war / So come on torpedo.”
Whiskey & Frosting Track Listing:
Cameron – Where it all began!
Torpedo – Most upbeat track on the EP
When the Ship Goes Down – “Probably the best song I’ve ever written”
Heathen – Friend favorite
Pauvre Coeur – “The most fun to play live”
Since this is Sarah’s Musical Kitchen I took the opportunity to ask Jillette who were some of her favorite NYC artists and of course, what are some of her favorite places to eat and drink in the city.
What’s your favorite thing to cook?“Beef Stew for my mom.” I think we need a recipe!
It was a pleasure speaking with Jillette. The eloquence and passion in her music is evident when she speaks about her musical journey and what the future holds. Her fearless approach to writing and absolute awareness of who she is as an artist is refreshing and inspiring. Whiskey & Frosting is the heart and soul of a talented artist waiting to just blow you away. Download it today and look for the debut album in early 2013.
I’m writing you from 37,856 feet on my way to the City of Angels for a fun week of gorgeous weather and networking opportunities. First things first, for the first time in years I’m actually enjoying my flight thanks to Virgin America. I’ve never flown the airline before and now I’m officially spoiled. If you get the chance, book a seat, the experience is better then any carrier I’ve ever flown on. Moving on….
Last week I posted a new video of my partner in crime, Josh Goode, and me covering ZZ Ward’s “Got it Bad”. Since she’s been a huge inspiration on the new material we decided to record another cover of her latest single, “Put the Gun Down”. So here you are, another YouTube video to tide you guys over until the new material is released. If you live in Dallas and want to check out the new music first come to the House of Blues on September 29th! I’ll be opening for Monica with Josh Goode and some other amazing musicians.
It’s been a few years since I’ve been to LA and I couldn’t be more excited. Tonight Matt and I are kicking things off with a party hosted by Yahoo! featuring one of my favorite bands, Chairlift. I won’t be reviewing the show but I’ll definitely be documenting the night’s events. Maybe I’ll even get a chance to meet Caroline Polacheck…wishful thinking.
The rest of the week I have a few meetings with some new contacts and old friends. It’s amazing what the universe delivers to you once you stop holding back and put yourself out there. Never stop dreaming!
Sarah's Musical Kitchen 