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***Out of Towners***

Mon Jin Lau - Troy, MI
http://www.monjinlau.com/

Best Crab Rangoons Ever

     While home in August, one of the highlights was definitely spending some time in Royal Oak with some of the best people in the world. No joke. Add a little gormet Chinese food, and I'm in heaven. Meagan, Marc, Megan, Diane and I headed to the most beautiful Chinese restaurant I've ever seen. Deep reds and blacks floor to ceiling. However, we sat outside amongst the swaying bamboo. The crab rangoons were unlike any I've ever had. The outer breading was thin but still crisp. The inside cream cheese crab mix was so creamy and actually tasted like real crab. It was phenomenal. I ordered Moo Shoo pork for the first time and it was unbelievable. It had Tiger Lilies, Wood Ears, Scallions, Egg, Cabbage, Peppers, Mandarin Pancakes, Hoisen Sauce. Wood ears? What in the world are wood ears? I have no idea, but the combination of all these flavors and the Jesus sauce it came with, all wrapped up in warm tortillas was just fabulous. Definitely visit if you're in the area and in the mood for some Chinese. Madonna did. 

Moo Shu Pork

Pizza Pie-er - Cambridge, MA
http://www.pizzapie-er.com/

     So naturally, after attending a catered dinner, Antonia and I were still hungry. Hanging with Olympians and olympic coaches works up quite the appetite. After "An Olympic Evening" put on at Cambridge Boat Club, we headed to Pizza Pie-er for gooey goodness. We were so confused by what was going on inside this place. The furniture was really modern and kind of awkward. Every color of the rainbow was on the wall, on the floor, or on the furniture in some way. I wasn't sure if I should be relaxing in a chill modern atmosphere or having a seizure from the color over stimulation  We ordered a medium pizza with the veggie crust (that means it's healthy right?). This crust had whole wheat flour blended with celery, onions, green peppers, carrots, red peppers, parsley, and sundried tomatoes. Pretty inventive, however, we both agreed that we couldn't really taste a difference. Oh well. Worth a try. As toppings, we ordered mushrooms, green peppers, onions, and black olives. I must say, this was one of my first introductions to an all veggie pizza and it was good! I really liked that the green peppers were cut in full rings. The sauce was a little different. I don't I was such a fan of it. It seemed a little bit more sour. Not sour in a rotten way, but not as sweet as normal pizza sauce. But the pizza and big and thick and nice and cheesy. Totally hit the spot.


Petsi Pies - Somerville, MA
http://petsipies.com/

Chocolate Bourbon Pie

     I have this bad habit of going to bakeries to get cakes for coworkers' birthdays ... and picking up something for myself as well. I say to myself, "When am I going to be back here next? Never? I might as well get something." So this time I went to Petsi Pies to get a chocolate bourbon pie for Griff's birthday. This was the cutest little ma and pa bakery in Somerville (there is a location in Cambridgeport too).  I knew he liked booze and wasn't a big sweets person, so I figured I'd give this a try. The pie was phenomenal. It had the subtle taste of bourbon, and the chocolate was so rich. Just like I like it. The inside was more the consistency of, say a pecan pie. On top, they sprinkled a ton of pecans and drizzled chocolate sauce. I must say, I wish the pecans had more of a toasted taste. That would've been amazing.

Mud Bomb

     The treat I got for myself was called a Mud Bomb. It was brownie dough, mixed with chocolate ganache and walnuts and rolled into a ball. Then I think they rolled it in Oreo cookie crumbs and dusted it with powdered sugar. Oh. My. Gosh. I was blown away. I'm so glad no one walked by my car as I was inside eating it. I was in shock. It was so dense and chocolatey. I mean, this thing would satisfy anyone's chocolate craving. Anyone's. I was seriously speechless. Haha, I walked into work and my coworker Caitlin asked me how I was doing. I said I was really great. Needless to say, my reasoning wasn't what she expected.


High Rise Bread Company - Cambridge, MA
http://hi-risebread.com/

Pumpkin Muffin

     So this was kind of cheating. I didn't actually go to High Rise. They have a booth at the farmers market that I went to for a few weeks right here near my house. One week I got a multigrain roll, but I let it get hard before eating it ... shoot. The next week I got THE BEST PUMPKIN MUFFIN EVER. It was so moist and dense. The pumpkin flavor was spot on, it wasn't too sweet, and the thing was huge. I had a little moment with my magic muffin while working the Riverside booth at Cambridgport History Day. Next step: Actually go to High Rise.










Chocolate Raspberry Pancakes - Cambridge, MA

Chocolate Raspberry Pancakes

     Sometimes people ask me where I come up with some of the things I cook. Truthfully... it's safe to assume that I'm thinking about food anytime I'm either not at work or not rowing. So post Saturday 6 hour practice, Claire and I decided to bike to Haymarket for our first times. Little did we know, the bike ride home would literally be the most painful of our lives with 70 pounds of produce on our backs and handlebars. BUT.... it was worth it. I was starved when I got home, so I used my $1 package of raspberries and made chocolate raspberry pancakes. Genius. I know. These were off the charts. The combination of chocolate and raspberries is always a winning combination in my book. I also added some carob chips to some. Those were my favorite. I wish I had someone to share them with.... then again... maybe not. As far as a recipe, I just used a standard pancakes recipe from scratch and added about a quarter cup of cocoa powder. I may have added a little more milk to balance out the consistency. Then I added in a few handfuls of broken up raspberries. It's super easy. Part of the reason these were probably so good was that I used butter to grease the pan. It's been a while since I've used a decent amount of butter like that. It was fabulous :] Seriously try these out.


Breakfast Cookies - Cambridge, MA

Breakfast Cookies

The word cookie means "treat" to me. I wanted a treat, but didn't want to feel bad about it. So I searched for a breakfast cookie recipe. I found a recipe that I tweaked quite a bit, but they still turned out pretty good! Perfect Sunday morning treat complete with protein and sweetness. Try 'em out!

Banana Peanut Butter Oat & Carob Chip Breakfast Cookies

• 2 ripe bananas, mashed until smooth & creamy

• 1/3 cup peanut butter ~ creamy or chunky 

• 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 1/2 cups quick oatmeal  ~ uncooked  (or use old fashioned oats for more oatmeal texture)

• 1/4 cup chopped nuts (peanut, walnut, or your favorite)

• 1/4 cup carob or chocolate chips

1) Preheat heat oven to 350 degrees.

2) In a large bowl, mix mashed banana and peanut butter until completely combined then add in the applesauce and the extract. Mix again until all are completely combined. 

3) Add in the oatmeal, carob or chocolate chips and nuts to the banana mixture and combine. 

4) Let dough rest for 10 minutes.

5) Drop cookie dough, by spoonfuls, onto a  cookie sheet and flatten cookies into circles. If you just want the carob / chocolate chips on the top of the cookies, add now. 

6) Bake cookies approx. 20-30 minutes or until golden brown and done.  Remove from oven and let rest on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then move to cooling rack.


Broccoli, Asparagus, Green Onion & Cabbage Soup - Cambridge, MA

Broccoli, Asparagus, Green onion and cabbage soup

     Inspiration for this soup came from the simple fact that I had an entire fridge of vegetables from Haymarket to use up before they started to go bad. This soup was so good and so green. I literally threw in half a head of cabbage, an entire head of broccoli, a bunch of green onions and a huge bunch of asparagus. Done. If you're looking for a low calorie soup that's filling and great with a little parmesan cheese sprinkled on top, give this a try. 

Broccoli, Asparagus, Green Onion & Cabbgage Soup

• 1 bunch asparagus, roughly chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds broccoli, roughly chopped
• 2-3 bunches green onion, roughly chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 3 cups vegetable or chicken broth 
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• For garnish: parmesan cheese, croutons

1) Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to a hot soup pot. Sautee green onions and garlic for 1-2 minutes. 

2) Add broccoli and asparagus and cook about 10 minutes.

3) Add broth and salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and partially cover, cooking until veggies are very tender, about 20 minutes.

4) Puree veggies in batches in a food processor or blender. (I used a hand immersion blender and it worked perfectly). Return to original pot and bring back up to a simmer. 

5) Season again to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with toasted croutons and parmesan cheese. 

Roasted Carrots and Beets - Cambridge, MA

Roasted Carrots and Beets

     Ok... This may seem like a silly thing to blog about, but I recently discovered how amazing roasted vegetables are. Namely, carrots. I got an enormous bag of carrots at Haymarket, cut them up into slivers, tossed with olive oil, salt, pepper and sprinkled on some "Herbs of Province" spices that my mom gave me. Herbs of Province is basically a mix of rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil and lavendar. I think it's the lavendar that is the key flavor. Maybe it's just this spice mix that makes these vegetables amazing, but either way, roasted vegetables are totally under appreciated. 

Banana & Plantain Chips - Cambridge, MA

Banana and Plantain Chip Failure

     Big fail. Super bummed. I really wanted to make banana chips because the ones in the store are so full of oil, but I couldn't get it right (they do look pretty in the picture though). All I did was slice up some bananas and plantains and toss them in a little sesame oil (it was the only oil other than olive oil that I had.... hmm... maybe that was the problem). I put them all in a single layer on a cookie sheet and baked them for the recommended time I saw on most recipes, but they just weren't crisping up, so I baked them longer... and longer... and ended up burning some. At one point I pulled some out and realized that as they cooled, they hardened up and were actually ok. However, since I didn't want to eat them all at that very moment, I stored some in an airtight container. But the next time I went to have some, they had completely softened up again! I tried re-baking some to crisp them back up, but they just burnt again. I'm so confused. I need help. Any recommendations?

Curry Carrot Soup - Cambridge, MA

     It was pre-Head of the Charles and the weight really wasn't coming off. So the week before I made a low calorie soup without any sodium to last me all week for dinner. Fortunately, this soup just so happened to be delicious anyway (even though I felt like I was eating baby food)! With a plethora of carrots once again from Haymarket, I searched for carrot soup recipes and stumbled upon this one (I modified it for my lightweight diet, but I'm including Rachel Ray's full recipe, because it sounds more fun and little bit more delicious). 

• Carrot Curry Soup
• 
  
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 1/2 pounds packaged baby carrots, from produce section
• 6 cups chicken stock, available on soup aisle
• 1 tablespoon mild curry paste or 1 1/2 tablespoons curry powder
• 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
• Coarse salt
• 1 cup sour cream
• Plastic condiment bottle or medium plastic food storage bag
• 6 blades fresh chives, cut into 1-inch pieces

1) Preheat medium pot over medium high heat. Add olive oil, butter, onions and carrots and saute 5 minutes.

2) Add 4 cups chicken stock, curry and cayenne, and about 1 teaspoon salt to the pot. Bring to a boil, cover and cook until carrots are very tender, about 15 minutes.

3) Place pot on a trivet next to food processor. Process soup in 2 or 3 small batches until soup is smooth and carrots are fully pureed. Transfer processed soup into a large bowl as you work to make room for more soup in the food processor. Return completed soup to the soup pot and place back over low heat. If the soup is too thick, add remaining stock, up to 2 cups, to achieve desired consistency. Adjust seasonings. 

4) Place sour cream in a plastic condiment squeeze bottle or into a medium food storage bag. Cut a very small hole in the corner of the bag with scissors. Ladle soup into bowls and squirt a swirl of sour cream around the bowl from the center out to the rim. Drag a toothpick from the center of the bowls out to the edges, forming a spider web design on soup. Pile a few pieces of cut chives at the center of each bowl to resemble green spiders in their webs!

All Star Pizza Bar - Cambridge, MA
http://www.allstarpizzabar.com/

Free pizza? Yes please. 

    Meagan and Megan were here for the Head of the Charles, I had made weight, the race was over, and pizza and beer was on the menu. Before heading to the Post Head of the Charles Party, we headed to All Star Pizza Bar in Inman Square. They just so happened to be closing at the moment we walked in and had a few slices of pizza left over. Yea... that's right. We got 4 huge slices of pizza FOR FREE and they let us sit there and drink a pitcher and eat pizza as they cleaned up. We got two slices of cheese pizza with their house blend of cheeses. It may have been the best cheese pizza I've ever had. Seriously. The cheese was just so good. The other two slices were they're special of the day. I believe it had their sweet italian fennel sausage, red peppers (maybe) and fresh arugala? Truthfully, it's been a while and I forget. But OH HEAVENS... it was so good. That sausage was so different than any other sausage you'd get on pizza. It wasn't greasy at all. The combo of the sausage fresh arugala and the cheese was so refreshing. The crust was thin, the cheese was real. By real, I mean that it wasn't super greasy and wasn't overly gooey. I don't know, I feel like you can just tell when pizza places use quality cheese, and these guys do. I've had one slice from them before and it was a pizza with brussel sprouts and a million other vegetables. It blew my mind, but I'll have to go back to further investigate. Plus, the staff at this place was so friendly. Who gives away free pizza?!

The Friendly Toast - Cambridge, MA
http://www.thefriendlytoast.net/     

     I had heard this place was good, and it's been on Man vs. Food, so for third breakfast after the HOCR party, Meagan, Megan and Jimmy and I headed to the Friendly Toast for what ended up being quite the experience. This place IS AWESOME!! With a 50's theme, you are never at a loss for what to look at while at the Friendly Toast. Every piece of furniture and art is unique. This place sis full of  posters from decades ago and statues of the most random things. Everything is retro, except for the portion sizes. Those are very modern. And by that I mean, they give you more food than you could fit in three of your stomachs. Their menu was unlike anything I've ever seen. Everything was very unique. For example, they have things like coconut pancakes with cashews, gingerbread waffles and more kind of egg dishes than you could even imagine. I ordered a dish called Ole Miss. It was their homemade cayenne cheddar toast topped with a real slab of sausage, mashed chipotle sweet potatoes, two scrambled eggs and mango sour cream. Yea... you heard right. The most random mix of flavors but it was out of this world. The cayenne in the toast and the chipotle from the sweet potatoes provided some spice. The sausage was savory. The sweet potatoes and mango flavors added some sweetness. I couldn't believe it. The toast was huge. I'm talking nearly two inches thick and a 7 inch x 7 inch square. Absolutely crazy. AND this was served with their homefries, which were basically sliced potatoes that were cooked to perfection with some onions and spices. They were phenomenal. Hello carbohydrates. 

Ole Miss

     I blame Jimmy for just pushing us to the absolute limit of food consumption. He wanted to try the french toast... well I did too. So we got three pieces: Cinnamon Raisin, Oatmeal and Anadama (a New England classic made with cornmeal and molasses). That doesn't seem like much, but again, their slices of bread are gargantuan. Slathered with a little butter and syrup, the Cinnamon Raisin was my favorite. Each slice of bread  was different. The oatmeal was a little more dense, the cinnamon raisin was sweet and the anadama was a little bit more plain. There wasn't as much of a molasses flavor as I was anticipating, but it was still fun to sample. 

     This trip was unbelievable. I left in shock. The Friendly Toast is definitely one of my top finds in Boston since I've lived here. A return visit is definitely on the menu. 

Toscanini's - Cambridge, MA
http://www.tosci.com/

Browned Butter Pumpkin Sage Ice Cream

     I know I've blogged about Toscanini's before, but I just have to again. After breakfast at the Friendly Toast, Meagan, Megan, Jimmy and I headed there. I had to share the experience with them. I got two scoops. One of the same triple chocolate concoction. I don't remember what it was called, but I got it last time. It's their darkest chocolate ice cream and rich beyond all comprehension. BUT... the other I got was a browned butter pumpkin sage. I know I know... who comes up with this stuff?? It was delicious. The mix of pumpkin and sage was unlike anything I would've expected to be good. And you could really really taste the browned butter. Too bad it's a seasonal flavor. I'd go everyday for another scoop of that. I ate half of my ice cream before remembering to take a picture. 

Lamb Tagine - Cambridge, MA

Lamb Tagine with Brown Rice

     In an effort to use up some lamb in the fridge pre-hurricane Sandy, I searched for some simple, lightweight friendly recipes. I stumbled on this one and was so pleased. It was basically lamb, apricots (just for a little sweetness), honey, tomato sauce, and roasted peppers. Ok, I added the roasted peppers on my own and it was a genius idea. The softened apricots were so good and surprisingly tasty with the tomato base. Apparently Lamb Tagine is a Morrocan style lamb stew. It used all the same spices my Lebanese great grandma uses when she prepares lamb, so I was a big fan. Here was the general recipe I used to make it. I just used a little more tomato sauce instead of broth to cut the sodium, and it turned out just fine. I poured this mix on a bed of brown rice and it was just fabulous. A must-try. 

Lamb Tagine

• 1 (1-pound) boneless lamb, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
• 1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
• 1 1/2 cups chopped onion 
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 6 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/2 cup dried apricots, quartered
• 1 roasted pepper (red or orange) 

1) Heat a cast iron pan over medium-high heat. 

2) Sprinkle lamb evenly with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add lamb to pan; sauté 4 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Remove from pan. 

3) Add onion; sauté for 4 minutes, stirring frequently. 

4) Add remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, cumin, and next 3 ingredients (through garlic); sauté for 1 minute, stirring constantly. 

5) Stir in honey and tomato paste; cook 30 seconds, stirring frequently. 

6) Return lamb to pan. Add apricots and broth; bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 1 hour or until lamb is tender, stirring occasionally.

Pumpkin Leek Soup - Cambridge, MA

Pumpkin Leek Soup

     Thanks to Lauren, I've discovered the magic of making soup on the weekends to last me all week. Of course, since it's fall, I wanted to make something with pumpkin and I had a nice leek from Haymarket. So... Pumpkin Leek Soup! I cut the amount of salt and instead of stock, I used some water from blanching spinach the night before. This was fabulous. It seems like something like pumpkins and leeks wouldn't go great together, but they definitely do. You have to try it to understand. Throw a few handfuls of fiber O's on top like croutons, and you've got a delicious fiber filled low calorie meal!

Pumpkin Leek Soup

• 1 leek
• 1 large onions or 2 small onions
• 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil 
• 3 minced garlic cloves
• 2 cans mashed pumpkin
• 1 liter chicken stock (4 cups) or 1 liter vegetable stock (4 cups) 
• 2 cups water
• cracked black pepper 
• 1 pinch ground chili powder 

1) Halve leeks lengthways and wash them under cold water to remove any dirt or sand. Thinly slice them. Use the white and light green portion for addition to the soup.
2)Peel and slice onions.

3) Using a large soup/ stock pot add the olive oil the leeks, onions and salt.Cook, stirring often, for 5 minutes. Add the minced garlic and cook another 1 minute.

4) Add all remaining ingredients (except the herbs for garnish) and boil for approx 25 minutes, or until the pumpkin is tender.

5) Use a stick blender or food processor to puree the soup.

Breakfast Pizza? Zucchini Pizza? Zucchini Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms? Who Am I ...

Zucchini and Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms - White Lake, MI
http://www.pink-parsley.com/2011/07/zucchini-goat-cheese-stuffed-mushrooms.html

Zucchini and Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms

I love going home. Partially because that means I get to cook for my family and also because it means I get to raid my mom's garden in the summer. I seriously down tomatoes by the fist full with every trip to the garden. Similarly to when you go apple picking. Yea, you fill your little tote... but you eat 15 apples before you even fill up the bag. So what if you want to vomit an hour later?

In my excitement to cook something fun and healthy for my mom, I settled on zucchini and goat cheese stuffed mushrooms. We're pretty big fans of mushrooms and zucchini. These were ridiculously simple to make and my mom and Doug loved them! This recipe came from a blog I found called Pink Parsley. I liked her modifications of this recipe, so unlike I normally do, I followed this one almost exactly. The sharpness of the goat cheese isn't as pronounced as you'd think. The blends of all the cheeses are so appeasing. Look at that photo. Just look at it. Makes me wish the events from "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" could actually take place so I could shrink myself and chill in these little guys like a bean bag. Please let me share. And get ready. Your house is about to smell phenomenal.

Zucchini and Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms

• 10 large button or cremini mushrooms, wiped clean, and stems removed but reserved
• 1 cup grated zucchini (about half a medium zucchini)
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 Tbs olive oil, plus more for drizzling
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 2 oz. (1/4 cup) crumbled goat cheese
• 2 Tbs grated Parmesan or Pecorino cheese
• 3 Tbs dried breadcrumbs
• 2 Tbs minced fresh basil
• 2 Tbs snipped fresh chives
• Salt and black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

1) Finely chop the mushroom stems.  Toss the zucchini in a colander with a little salt and allow to drain 5-10 minutes, then wrap in a paper towel and squeeze to remove excess moisture.

2) Heat the oil in a small skillet over medium heat.  Add the shallot, mushroom stems, and zucchini, and saute until the vegetables have softened, 3-4 minutes.  Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

3) Remove the skillet from heat and stir in the cream cheese, goat cheese, Parmesan, bread crumbs, and herbs.  Taste and season with salt and pepper.

4) Scoop the filling into each of the mushroom caps.  Drizzle with additional olive oil.  Bake 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown and the mushrooms are cooked through.  Serve immediately. 

Breakfast Pizza - White Lake, MI
http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2010/03/breakfast-pizza/

Breakfast Pizza

I had been planning this experiment for a while. I wanted to make something delicious for my grandpa that he would never have the energy to make himself for his birthday. Smitten kitchen introduced me to the idea of a breakfast pizza. I love breakfast. I love pizza. This could only be good. No. This could only be phenomenal. One important step I believe is making your own homemade dough. Don't go the easy way. Let it rise overnight like the recipe says. You'll thank me later. Oh and get good bacon. Get the good meaty stuff. Just put down the Oscar Mayer. This recipe makes 2 pizza dough balls. I only used one for this breakfast pizza, and used the second for another amazing pizza which I'll describe in a moment. I promise, you'll make this and wonder how you ever lived before. And it's ok if your pizza is in the shape of a football.

Breakfast Pizza

• 1/2 teaspoon dry active yeast
• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons bread flour, plus more for dusting 
• Kosher salt
• 6 strips bacon
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
• 2 cups grated mozzarella
• 6 large eggs
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced flat-leaf parsley
• 2 tablespoons minced chives
• 2 scallions, thinly sliced
• 1 shallot, minced

1) The night before, prepare the dough: Place 3/4 cup lukewarm water in the bowl. Sprinkle in the yeast, stir and let sit for 5 minutes. Add the flour and 1 teaspoon of salt and mix for 1 minute. I'm guessing it's best if you use a mixer with a dough hook, but I'm sure using the good ole paws would be fine. Increase the speed to medium and mix for 2 minutes, then increase the speed to high and mix until a smooth dough forms, about 2 minutes more. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, divide into two equal pieces and form each half into a tight ball. Place on a large floured sheet pan, place the pan in a plastic garbage bag, tie the bag loosely and refrigerate overnight.
One to two hours* before baking, place the dough in a warm spot. Adjust the oven rack to the lowest position and set a pizza stone on it. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees 30 minutes before you are ready to bake the pizza.

2) Prepare the dough and toppings: Fry the bacon in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until crisp. Cool on a paper-towel-lined plate; roughly chop.

3) Dip your hands and a ball of dough into the flour. On a lightly floured counter top, pat the dough into a disc with your fingertips, then drape the dough over your fists and carefully stretch it from beneath to form a 12-inch circle. This part is super fun :]

4) Lightly oil a sheet pan/pizza stone/cookie sheet or whatever you're using and place the stretched dough on it. Sprinkle the dough with half of the Parmesan, mozzarella and bacon. Crack 3 eggs over the top and season with salt and pepper.

6) Bake the pizza: Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating after 5 minutes. When the crust is golden, the cheese is melted and the egg yolks are cooked, transfer the pizza to a cutting board. Sprinkle half of the parsley, chives, scallions and shallot on top. Let cool for 2 minutes, slice and serve immediately. 

 Zucchini Ribbons, Goat Cheese & Raisin Pizza - White Lake, MI
http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/957931/meatless-monday-zucchini-ribbons-and-raisins-pizza

Zucchini Ribbons, Goat Cheese and Raisin Pizza

Only a few hours after the breakfast pizza debut, and pizza ideas for lunch start churning in my head.  I have one ball of pizza dough. I have zucchini from my mom's garden. I have goat cheese left over from the mushrooms. Educate me google. And like magic, google teaches me of a goat cheese, zucchini and raisin pizza. Beyond excited for this. This pizza had dimensions. Mild sharpness of the goat cheese, the zucchini was lightly roasted and the raisins provided bursts of delicious sweetness. The combination of these three plus the homemade crust just blew my mind. I modified this recipe quite a bit (including omitting lemon zest and pine nuts) to just dress up the pizza as I thought it ought to be, so don't be restricted by measurements. You've just got to try this. 

Zucchini Ribbons, Goat Cheese and Raisin Pizza

• 1 ball of homemade pizza crust (see instructions within breakfast pizza)
• 1 small zucchini
• 1/2 cup soft goat cheese
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 large garlic clove minced
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1) Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.

2) Combine the olive oil and garlic in a medium bowl and set aside.
 
3) Meanwhile, use a vegetable peeler along the length of the zucchini to make thin "ribbons." Mix zucchini ribbons thoroughly with the olive oil mixture.
 
4) Spread the goat cheese evenly over the pizza crust.
 
5) Sprinkle the raisins evenly over the cheese. Add the zucchini ribbons evenly on top of the pizza, lightly folding and mounding them. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

6) Bake the pizza on a lightly oiled baking sheet for 15-18 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the crust is crispy.

THE Ultimate Grand Supreme Mega Ultra... Bars

Ultimate Pretzel Crusted Peanut Butter Cookie Reeses Brownie Bars - White Lake, MI

If there’s one thing that would be virtually impossible for me to eat during racing/weighing-in season, it would be this. And that’s why I waited until just after Henley to make it. Since I’d be spending so much time at my Grandpa’s house while visiting home in August/September. I had decided to make this with him. I was sure he’d seen nothing like it before. This was a four piece puzzle. Pretzel base + Peanut Butter Cookie Dough + Reeses Peanut Butter Cups + Brownie Batter. I know... you lost 2 years off your like just reading that. Well, I was ready for the sacrifice.

All of my loves, thrown into one big monster. Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Pretzels. This child was dense. Four inches thick at least. The combination of pretzels, peanut butter cookie, reeses, and brownies was so amazing. It was like blending all the flavors of heaven. Mmmm...





I ran into one major speed-bump while baking. After the recommended 40-45 minutes of baking time, I pulled it out to test a nice chunk (after I let it cool a little bit of course). Woah. Definitely not done. Brownie batter came spewing out (like an elementary school science fair volcano replica) of the hole I created upon removing my test piece. More like, needs another 30 minutes for that ooey gooey brownie batter to cook. So I stuck it back in... watching it like a baby with scissors. But I kept it in for a tad too long and burnt the pretzel bottom. Big bummer. I’d recommend using a larger pan, so the whole mess doesn’t get too thick and take forever to bake. I Guess I’ll have to make it one more time to perfect it.

Either way, here is the recipe:

Ultimate Pretzel Crusted Peanut Butter Cookie Reeses Brownie Bars

• 2 ½ cups crushed pretzels
• 1 cup melted butter
• 5 tbsp sugar
• Betty Crocker Peanut Butter Cookie Mix and all the ingredients the mix calls for
• Brownie Mix (13×9 family size box + all the ingredients the mix calls for)
• Snack Size Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups (2 – 10.5oz bags)

1) Crush the pretzels in a food processor or however you like to crush pretzels. Any kind of pretzels will do but I recommend using crushed butter pretzels (you find them next to the regular pretzels and they are literally called “Synder Butter Pretzels”) for the recipe. I also recommend not crushing the pretzels to dust but keep some small pieces to keep the crust crunchy. Mix the melted butter (melt in microwave), sugar and pretzel crumbs. Press into lightly greased 13×9 pan. Set aside pretzel crust and make the cookie dough. (*Note: I have a 8×8 pan in the photos because I split the recipe into two different pans. I recommend putting it all in one 13×9 pan!)

2) Make the cookie dough according to the package. Lightly press the cookie dough evenly on top of the pretzel crust.

3) Unwrap 24 snack-size Reese’s Peanut Butter cups and cover the cookie dough with the candy.

4) Whip up your brownie mix and pour evenly over the Peanut Butter Cups.

5) Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes.

6) Cool for 10 minutes and then enjoy!

"I Like the Way it Feels on My Teeth"

Shabu-Ya - Cambridge, MA

http://www.shabuyarestaurant.com/about.html



     Swish Swish. Go ahead. Say it. Fun, right? So James and I head to this Shabu Shabu restaurant called Shabu-Ya in Harvard Square. Shabu Shabu is the type of restaurant, and it means "swish swish." I'm feelin' pretty hip as we enter. Everything is very modern. Bright colors, awkwardly uncomfortable looking furniture. You know what I'm talking about. Each table has a mini electric stove on it that's used to boil the bucket of broth they bring you. We're clueless. After 20 minutes of trying to figure out the menu and avoiding the beef tongue, we narrowed down our options. It's a 3 step process. 1) Choose your meat. We chose lamb and chicken. 2) Choose your broth. We chose beef. 3) Choose rice, vermicelli, or noodles. We chose the vermicelli, but pronounced it vermicell because the menu spelled it that way. Truth be told, we decided it was actually mermaid hair. Don't know what that's like? Yes you do.
     Anyway, the waiter brings over a dish with 4 little condiments. Already I'm overwhelmed with the portion sizes. Someone's going to have to roll me out the door. There was a Japanese bbq paste (I think), scallions, garlic, and a hot pepper sauce. About a half a teaspoon of each. Our other provisions included soy sauce bowls, little strainers, some goofy spoon thing and an extra bowl for sauce creations. Next came a plate of veggies and the mermaid hair. Some sort of sprouts, bok choi, carrots, and tofu blobs. Our waiter turned on the stove and we sat confused. What now? What's going on? I'm hungry. Help me. Then our appetizer and meats came out at the same time. The appetizer was 2 mini chicken skewers covered in some sort of mildly spicy chili paste. Decent flavor. Hot but mildly sweet. I was stuffed. Phew.
     The meat arrived in very thin slices on a platter. This meal was colorful and I was pumped to eat it.... once we figured out how to cook it. We asked the waiter and he explained it all, but ... well... we were both still confused. The broth feverishly boiled and we threw in the veggies, meats and mermaid hair. Using your little strainer, we fished out the substance and dipped it in our sauce creations. No forks and knives were provided, so chopsticks were your only option (unfortunate day for James... lol). Picking up that damn mermaid hair was a pain. Try to eat it right out of the little strainer and you spill it all over yourself. No wonder asians are so skinny. It takes so long to eat anything. After developing about 3 different food cooking strategies, all of which I'm pretty sure were incorrect, we had destroyed every ounce of food that had been delivered.
     Analysis? This was super fun. The experience was different and unique. I like being out of my element like that. There was nothing superb about the food itself. Boiled meat and veggies dipped in sauce. Oh man but I did make this one brew that was off the hook. It had all of the assorted condiments in it plus soy sauce. Tasty.
     The night did provide another first for me. It was my first time trying fried ice cream. Heaven have mercy on my soul. That stuff is nuts. They took a scoop of ice cream the size of my fist, breaded and fried it. The physics blew my mind at first. On top of the magical mountain was chocolate syrup, whipped cream and a "cherry." Shoot. This was phenomenal. Sweet but fried and simple. I need more of this. Daily, please.

Anna's Taqueria - Cambridge, MA

http://www.annastaqueria.com/

     Hash run anyone? Amazing. Those people are fast geniuses. Have you ever done a hash run? Me neither, but I totally recommend it. I'm not going to explain it, but either way, you're going to want Mexican food afterwards. After the run with Mary, Antonia and Will, we all were starved. Well, we wanted food regardless of what else was in our stomachs. Since I was still full from my pre-run PB&J, Antonia and I split a veggie quesadilla. This was not your typical quesadilla. First, it was rolled up like a burrito. Odd. But there was cheese, beans, and wedges of sweet potato, zucchini and squash maybe? I don't quite remember, but it was delicious. I was thoroughly surprised. Some sort of dead animal would've made it even better, but I was happy with it. Next time. ALSO... I finally found good homemade tortilla chips in Boston! Yessssss! We got a side of chips and salsa for $1.25 or something crazy. I swear I could've eaten 4 bags. They were crisp and salty. What more can you ask for?

Newtowne Grille - Cambridge, MA

     So.... naturally, we finish eating (post hash run) and head to another restaurant, where we got a $4 cheese pizza. What a treat. Cover that bad boy in more parmesan cheese and pheeeeew-ee. That seriously hit the spot. #2 spot. #1 was the Mexican food. Maybe it's cheese that's pleasing me. Not sure. Either way. I rolled out of there happy as a clam.  We*** rolled out of there. The quote of the night goes to Mary in regards to the cheese on the pizza, "I like the way it feels on my teeth!"

Zucchini Bread Pancakes - 578 Washington St #3

     Well I'm not going in order here, but I don't care. After a 3am arrival back in Boston post-Henley, my body naturally woke up at 7am. Why? Who knows, but the anticipation of making zucchini bread pancakes that morning had been building up for weeks. Needless to say, I was too excited to sleep, so I had to get up and make them. I got this recipe off of Smitten Kitten, the blog. I was so happy with how they turned out! It's basically just like normal pancakes with a little less sugar and some shredded zucchini. So simple, but so delicious and moist. She made a good point when she said she liked the contrast between the unsweetened pancakes and the sweet syrup. It really seemed to allow me to separate the flavors of the syrup and pancakes, rather than just tasting a big sweet combo in my mouth. They're super dense but super awesome. Easy too! I made a half batch and ate every single pancake. Here's the recipe:

Zucchini Bread Pancakes

Makes 10 to 12 pancakes

2 large eggs
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons light brown, dark brown or granulated sugar
1/4 cup buttermilk or 2 tablespoons each of milk and plain yogurt, whisked until smooth
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups shredded zucchini (from about 9 ounces whole, or 1 1/2 medium zucchini), heaping cups are fine
1 cup all-purpose flour (half can seamlessly be swapped with a whole wheat flour)
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg
Butter or oil, for coating skillet

1) In a large bowl, combine eggs, olive oil, sugar, buttermilk and vanilla until smooth. Stir in zucchini shreds. In a smaller bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg. Stir dry ingredients into zucchini batter, mixing until just combined.

2) Preheat oven to 200°F and place a tray — foil-lined if you’re into doing fewer dishes later — on a middle rack.

3) Heat a large, heavy skillet (totally use cast-iron) over medium heat. Once hot, melt a pat of butter in pan and swirl it around until it sizzles. Scoop scant 1/4-cup dollops of batter in pan so the puddles do not touch. Cook until bubbles appear on the surface, about 2 to 3 minutes. Flip pancakes and cook another minute or two, until golden underneath. Transfer pancakes to prepared pan to keep warm as well as ensure that they’re all cooked through when they’re served. Repeat with remaining batter. Serve warm. Repeat next weekend.

It's Racing Season... Which Means Fewer Food Experiments :/

Petit Robert - Brighton, MA
http://petitrobertbistro.com/

Amazing Baguette

     Feed a turtle, get free food. Sounds great to me. Malcolm had a Groupon for two for a three course meal for Petit Robert. Andrew was visiting so he came along. We headed to the Brighton location, and I was beyond excited for my first experience with French food. This place was beautiful inside. The lighting was really dim (hence why my pictures are so terrible) but the room gave off a rustic vibe. I straightened my posture, just to fit in a little better. Our first baguette was gone in minutes and the waitress was bringing another. I seriously have never had such a delicious baguette. Andrew was in love. Having been in France numerous times, he knew French food, and this was the real deal. The bread was beautifully crisp on the outside and soft, warm and fluffy on the inside. Slather some butter on that baby and send me to bed.

Pate Trio

     The first course was an appetizer. I was in an adventurous mood, so I ordered the Trio of Homemade Pâtés with Condiments. It came with a horseradish mustard and a few mini sweet pickles. Cute. Obviously, there were three kinds of pate. Chicken, pork, and a chicken/pork/potato combination. Never, did I ever think that pate tasted this good. The pork pate was so smooth and rich. Then again, the chicken pate was also smooth and rich. The combo had all the delicious flavors of pork and chicken but in conjunction with potato. I went from each pate to the next, trying to determine my favorite, but it was impossible. I think I liked it so much because it was mildly salty. Spreading a little of the pate on the baguette was just amazing. 

Duck Confit, Grilled Sausae and Braised Cabbage

     For my main entree, I ordered the Duck Confit with Grilled Sausage and Braised Cabbage. OH. My. Gosh. I don't even know what hit me when I first tasted what came on my plate. This was mind blowing times a thousand. The duck fell right off the bone, wasn't greasy, and it was just so succulent. The sausage was bursting with flavor and you could tell it was homemade. However, I think my favorite part was the cabbage. This wasn't your ordinary cabbage. It was cabbage mixed with carrots, peas, bacon and magic. This mix wasn't a mush, but all the components were very soft. I'm thinking this blend was at the bottom of the roasting pan when they cook the duck. It was out of this world. One work to describe this dish is definitely savory. The combination of flavors was prime. 

Warm Apple Tarte Tatin

     For dessert, I ordered something without chocolate (different than my norm). I ordered the Warm Apple Tarte Tatin, with crème fraîche. The pastry part looked like a slice of pizza, and laid atop it were slices of sweet baked apples. It was served with a creame sauce (supposedly made with raw eggs) that I wasn't too fond of. Let me just tell you, this may have been the sweetest dessert I have ever eaten. Those apples were absolutely soaked in a sweet, cinnamony sauce. This soaked then soaked into the pastry and it was delicious. Too sweet for Andrew, but right up my lightweight alley. 

Dave's Fresh Pasta - Somerville, MA

http://www.davesfreshpasta.com

Lamb Sandwich

     I know I've blogged about Dave's before, but this experience was too fabulous to not talk about. For the first time, I decided to get a sandwich with my coworkers for lunch. It was my first time going to get lunch with them. They have no idea how excited I was. I didn't read much of the menu because I saw the Lamb Panini special and knew what I wanted. I order this sandwich on a chabata bread (I think). Absolutely delicious, thick and crisp on the outside when pressed with a panini press. This sandwich had slices of herb roasted leg of lamb, baby spinach, red onion, feta cheese, tomato, oregano and olive oil. You could taste the rosemary in the lamb and it really brought me home. The spice of the onion, the creamyness of the feta, the freshness of the tomato and spinach rounded out this sandwich so well. It was exactly was I wanted and how I had imagined it would be. If only my coworkers knew how much enjoyment I was getting out of this measly little sandwich. They'd think I was crazy. But hey! It'd been a while since I had a sandwich and I'm not sure I've ever had as satisfying as that. 

Picante - Cambridge, MA

http://www.picantemex.com/

Burrito Carnitas

     Joan and Lauren talk about Picante all the time, so I was absolutely pumped when we all decided to go with Joan's dad after Saturday practice.Picante is a little Mexican place up in Central Square that serves homemade chips and has an awesome salsa bar (first time I've ever seen that). I was feeling good regarding being at weight for racing at Henley, so I went with the Burrito Carnitas. Woah. A) I'm sure my stomach has shrunk to about half the size of this burrito. B) Oranges? The carnitas that stuffed this burrito were seared with fresh orange slices. How cool is that? You could taste just a subtle hint of citrus in the meat. This bundle of joy of stuffed with carnitas, black beans, rice, and cheese. Simple, yet amazing. So hearty and filling. My favorite part was definitely the carnitas. Sometimes when you get carnitas it's been sitting in this weird liquid in a bucket staying warm (example: Qdoba) for hours. This meat was different in that the edges of each meat shred is slightly crisp from being seared with the oranges. I can't wait to go back and try everything else. For example, Joan and Lauren both got Huevos Picante which was a deep fried tortilla shell filled with beans, cheese, poached eggs, salsa, guacamole and sour cream. Who thinks of that? That's genious! I need to try it. 

Zucchini Chips/Flowers - 578 Washington St #3, Brighton

     Cutting weight stinks because I don't get to cook as much. But, this Saturday I decided to make (what I thought would be... ) a low calorie dinner. This was my attempt at Zucchini Chips. It's simple. Slice up some zucchini, dip in a flour and milk batter, cover in breadcrumbs and cheese, bake. These are absolutely delicious. They get nice and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. A really great cheesy treat. If you're feeling adventurous, try going through the same steps but with zucchini flowers. Tastes like a flower... but it's fun!

Zucchini Chips

Zucchini Chips

1/4 cup Homemade Breadcrumbs (I just crisped up some bread. Not sure how you make breadcrumbs, but this worked)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/8 tsp black pepper

Heaping 1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 cup cold milk (I used oat milk)

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

2 1/2 cups sliced zucchini (about 2 small zucchinis)

OR zucchini flowers

1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

2) In a medium bowl combine breadcrumbs, cheese (if using) and black pepper.

3) In separate bowl add flour, milk and vinegar.  Gently stir until combined but do not over stir.

4) Dip zucchini slices in flour mixture and then dredge in breadcrumb mixture.

5) Place coated zucchini slices on a baking sheet (I line mine with non stick foil for easy clean up!) 

and bake for 30 minutes, flipping the slices over once halfway through cooking, or until browned and crisp.

***Out of Towners - NEW!***

OK... So, I'm starting a new part of my blog called "Out of Towners." This is going to be a place where I mention the restaurants I've visited outside of Boston. I won't go into great detail about them, but I think are still worth mentioning. 

Rockland Cafe - Rockland, ME

Lobster babies. Delicious actually.

My precious

Fish Cake

     While visiting my cousin Kitty in Rockland, Maine one weekend, I got to see my cousins Judy, Katy, Jess and Baby Joseph along with Dave and Ian. It was an awesome weekend. The highlight? Ian teaching us how to properly eat a lobster at Rockland Cafe.... even after Jess found out her lobster was prego. Real butter to dip the lobster in and the best fish cake I've ever eaten. Cheap, delicious, homey. 

Fare - Philadelphia, PA

http://farerestaurant.com/

Hummus and Pita

Farmhouse Flatbread

Vegetarian Flatbread

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake

     Serving mainly local and organic foods, Amanda, Mary and I headed with Judith to Fare to celebrate her birthday in Philly after a day of racing. Even though I felt underdressed, this place made me feel classy. We were served amazing homemade hummus with what I think was fire baked pita bread. For the entree, Mary and I split two flatbread pizzas (with light cheese... don't worry). One was a vegetarian with tomatoes, capers, eggplant, olives and feta and the other was called "Farmhouse" and had bacon, sharp Vermont cheddar, and Granny Smith apples. The vegetarian flatbread was savory and the tomatoes and eggplant were perfectly roasted. The Farmhouse was fabulous and really interesting because of the combination of salt from the bacon and sour apples. The flavor combos of both of these were spot on. I with I could think of things this awesome. Lastly, gluten free chocolate cake? Yes please!

Halo Pub - Princeton, NJ

Chocolate Butter Pecan and
Mint Cookies and Cream topped
with Chocolate Covered Peanuts

     Rustic on the inside, Halo Pub sits in the heart of Princeton. It was gorgeous inside. Of course, I got two flavors I've never had before. Chocolate butter pecan was phenomenal. Mint cookies and cream? How it that not the world's best selling ice cream??? Beats me. It was great. Topped it all with chocolate covered peanut chunks. Stop at Halo on your way through Princeton next time. 

Rita's Water Ice - Camden, NJ

http://www.ritasice.com/

Chocolate custard and Black Cherry Water Ice

     I couldn't have asked for a better post-race treat. Everyone always raves about Rita's Water Ice, so after our first race day, Joan, Mary and I headed to try it. I order a gelati. It's a combination of their water ice (basically the world's best icee) and their phenomenal custard. I ordered the black cherry water ice, which actually had chunks of cherry in it, and the chocolate custard. The custard was incredible and went perfectly with the black cherry. We ended up going a second time and I got strawberry water ice (complete with chunks of strawberries) and chocolate custard. This stuff is seriously amazing.