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. 

ROSIE Got Some FLOUR from OTTO in a PERUVIAN PLACE

Flour - Cambridge, MA
http://www.flourbakery.com/

                     

        I look forward to trips out of the office quite a bit. I especially did this day because I was meeting my boss at  a bakery called Flour. Their slogan is:

 "Make life sweeter. Eat dessert first."

    I love it. And it just so happens to be the same place that I had my initial interview with Bluetrain Mobile. Naturally, I wanted to do some research on the place before I went because this time I wanted to get a tasty treat. Flour was started by an Asian woman name Joanne. Growing up, she was never exposed to sweets. Once she finally saw the light, she was hooked and has since established three Flour locations throughout Boston. The woman is a master of her craft. I also found at the Bobby Flay came and did one of his throwdowns against her sticky bun. If you don't know, how the throwdown works is that world famous chef Bobby Flay will go to restaurants and challenge chefs with their signature dish. Then three judges will test which dish they like better without knowing whose is whose.
        Either way, Joanne's sticky bun beat Bobby Flay's. So... I of course had to try it. Oh... man. At first I was surprised because I was kind of expecting a cinnamon roll type bun, but it wasn't rolled up. The dough seemed slightly dry to me, I think it might supposed to be like that becuase the pecan caramel topping more than made up for it. The  syrup she created and poured over top was sweet, rich, and nutty. The pecans were toasted just perfectly and completely covered the top of the bun. It absolutely hit the spot. Now I just have to go back because there are so many other things left to try. I found a video of Joanne making her sticky bun. She is seriously a dessert goddess. http://how2heroes.com/videos/dessert-and-baked-goods/sticky-buns

Peruvian Place - Brockton, MA
http://www.peruvianplace.com/

     My boss and I headed out to Avon to sell some furniture. As I had been hoping, the client, my boss and I all ventured out to grab some lunch midday. I was excited because I know my boss is a fan of trying new things, and I was sure we weren't going to end up at a Pizza Hut or something. We headed into downtown Brockton and found a restaurant called Peruvain Place. It was a tiny little hidden gem next to city hall that only had 3 other customers the entire time we were there. I noticed some similarities in the menu to those that I had seen while in Ecuador, but I still wanted to try something new and crazy.

     As an appetizer we got Yuca Fritas (fried yucca). The edible part of a yucca plant is its root. It's like a potato but a little different. To me, yucca roots look like dried up shrively dead slugs... but taste much better, I assume. Our fried yucca came in the shape of large steak fries. The root is a little more fibrous than a potato, so each fry was a slightly odd shape. They came piping hot and salted and were just amazing. I hadn't had fried food like this in a while. They were also served with a sour cream/herby (maybe dill) dipping sauce. It was unique and refreshing. I liked it.

     For my meal, I ordered a traditional Peruvian dish called Tiradito de Pescado. I'm not going to lie. The dish that arrived on the table was much different than the picture in the menu, but I was up for the experience. This dish consisted of a bunch of strips of partially cooked Tilapia. Yes.... partially cooked. It was white on the outside, but pinkish on the inside. The strips of fish were cold and swimming in deep pool of a thin lemony liquid sprinkled with herbs. The first bite took me by surprise because A) it was cold (and that was weird) and B) it  felt like I got hit in the face with 10,000 lemons. Each strip of fish was soaked in this lemony flavor, which was actually a bit too lemony for me. It still tasted good, but I couldn't finish all the fish because my mouth literally started to hurt. On one side of the plate was a slice of a carrot 3 inches in diameter and an inch thick (that's got to be one huge whole carrot).  On the other side of the place was a pile of true South American corn. If you've ever been to South America, you know what I'm talking about. Each kernel of corn is three times the size of a normal genetically modified kernel, and each one has a unique shape. It's awesome. And this corn was so much more delicious than normal corn. It wasn't necessarily sweeter... it was just ... better and more fresh. Overall, interesting experience. I'd definitely try Peruvian again but just maybe steer away from anything with lemon.

Rosie's Bakery - Cambridge, MA
http://www.rosiesbakery.com/

     Big oops. It was Tim's birthday and I remembered he said a while ago that carrot cake was his favorite. So I ordered him a big carrot cake from Rosie's Bakery in Cambridge. I was pumped because it was my favorite cake too. And then... the night before I was going to pick it up, I found out he is on the Atkin's diet. That means no carbs or sugar. Big fail. I had already paid for it anyway, so I had to pick it up. Plus, I wanted to eat it. So in order to do something fun for him for his birthday, I got a tub of spreadable cheese, formed it into a mound on a plate, covered it in baby carrots, surrounded it in a ring of sliced pepperoni and stuck candles in the top. Boom. Carrot cake mastered. Everyone thought it was hilarious.

     Anyway, the carrot cake from Rosie's was absolutely perfect. The best way I can describe it was that it was homemade and you could tell. The shreds of carrot were huge, the walnuts were also huge and were spread throughout the cake as well as on top. The cake part was not very dense and airy. It broke apart easily and not in a bad way. The cream cheese was also phenomenal. It was light in that I didn't feel like I was consuming a whole block of cream cheese in every bite and it wasn't overly sweet. I had to have eaten 4 pieces that day, and proceeded to eat 3 or 4 more in the next two days. It was great. Let's just say I'll be getting cakes from Rosie again.

Otto - Cambridge, MA
http://ottocambridge.com/

     I was in Harvard Square, and it was dinner time. Otto is always packed with people and they sold pizza by the slice. This was good. This was portion control for me. As I biked past Otto I contemplated my dinner plans and the looming race weigh-in in less than 2 weeks. After much deliberation, I entered Otto anyway and was overwhelmed with their options. I had narrowed it down to "white bean, sausage, herb and red pepper flake" and "butternut squash, ricotta and cranberry." What genius comes up with these? Seriously.

     I went with the butternut squash, ricotta and cranberry. The slice was huge, the crust was thin on the bottom and bubbly towards the outer edge. The bottom was covered in a dusting of cornmeal, just the way any quality slice should be. First bite blew me away. I guess I wasn't ready for the sweetness of the pizza. It. Was. Fabulous. The ricotta cheese gave this whole idea of pizza a more succulent feel. The cranberries were just bursts of flavor with a hint of bitterness. Combined with the small mounds of sweet butternut squash, the whole thing was a masterpiece. Simply a work of art. Have you ever been inspired by pizza? Try Otto. You will be.

Crunchwrap Supreme and Egg in a Onion Bowl. No explanation necessary.

Homemade Crunchwrap Supreme - 578 Washington St #3, Brighton

     I was beginning to dream of Taco Bell. Yea. It was going on week three of my mexican food cravings... when all of a sudden, I got the world's best idea. Homemade Crunchwrap Supreme. That was it. I had a date with my kitchen for Saturday, and it was going down. Now, this was kind of a Crunchwrap Supreme on steroids, but I'm ok with it. Tons of ingredients. Recipe here, description to follow. See the picture sequence at the bottom!

Homemade Crunchwrap Supreme

A few large tortillas

1/2 lb lean ground beef

Refried beans

1 or 2 tbs guacamole

A couple tortilla chips

Shredded cheese of choice or cheese sauce

1 Tbsp taco seasoning

1/2 tomato, diced

Diced onion

Diced orange pepper

Lettuce

Cilantro

1 Tbsp sour cream

1) First sautee up your ground beef. I used about a half pound and had plenty left over. I also added in some minced onions and orange peppers into the meat for a little excitement.

2) Add in 1 Tbsp of taco seasoning. Supposedly you should use 2 Tbsp of taco seasoning per 1 pound of meat. Upon beginning the cooking process, I realized I had forgotten to buy taco seasoning, so I just made my own:

        1 Tbsp chili powder

        1/4 t garlic powder

        1/4 t onion powder

        1/4 t red pepper flakes

        1/4 t oregano

        1/2 t paprika

        1/2 Tbsp cumin

        1 1/4 t salt

        1 t pepper (I used white pepper)

3) Steam your tortilla so it's easier to fold. 

4) Spread about a tablespoon or so of refried beans in the center of your tortilla. One ingredient at a time, add shredded cheese (or cheese sauce if you prefer), a scoop of your meat, tortilla chips, guacamole, cilantro, lettuce, tomato, and finally sour cream. 

5) Fold one edge of the tortilla in to cover the toppings and repeat as you work your way around the tortilla. My tortilla ended up being a little tiny, so I took a fourth of another tortilla and put it in the middle of mine to fill the whole. This way I could grill it without the toppings spilling out. 

6) Get a nice cast iron griddle or pan hot and set on medium heat. Press your beautifully wrapped gift with a heavy object to kind of press all the ingedients together and "seal" it closed. I used a bowl to press it down and then put a lid on top to keep heat it. I put the cheese side of the crunchwrap down that it could start warming up and melting as quickly as possible. Be careful not to let the tortilla burn, and flip it after about 4 minutes. 

This puppy was 10 times better than any crunchwrap supreme I've ever had at Taco Bell... which is maybe 3... but still. The cheese was gooey, the beans were warm, the chips weren't as crispy anymore (but that's ok), and the vegetables on top were still a little cool and refreshing. This was like a sushi experience, but mexican. Each bite had a ton of different flavors from all the spices, the vegetables, the meat, the cream. Oh man. And the tortilla was just barely browned and toasty on the outside and it held together just perfectly. I died and went to heaven.

Go ahead. Give it a shot! I guarantee it'll be worth it.  

                                                      

                                                 
Scrambled Eggs in an Onion Bowl - 578 Washington St #3, Brighton

     I seriously don't know how this hasn't been done before. Well, maybe it has, but I don't know why I have not seen pictures pasted all across pinterest for it... because it was the shiz. So the other day I was thinking about onions and breakfast...eggs specifically. Then... instant genius. What if I take an onion and put scrambled eggs in it? Woah. First problem: how do I cut the onion. I was thinking bloomin' onion style and pouring the eggs into all the little crevices, but that would be difficult. Then Margaret suggested just cutting an onion in half and pulling out a few layers on the inside. Perfect.
     So... here goes.

Scrambled Eggs in an Onion Bowl

1 large sweet onion
Finely diced vegetables of choice
Minced basil and cilantro
1 or 2 eggs
Splash of milk
Salt n peppa
Cheese of choice
Olive oil


1) Take an onion, cut it in half, drizzle it with a little olive oil, wrap it in aluminum foil and bake it for 30 minutes or until it's tender but still holds its form. Once out of the onion, pull out the center rings of the onion so that the rings that remain form a bowl (it's ok it there's a hole in the bottom of the onion if you cut the end off during preparation. That part remains flat on the bottom of your dish, so there shouldn't be much egg seepage out. 

2) Scramble an egg or two and add your veggies and cheese (I used orange peppers, mushrooms and freshly grated parmesan cheese). Pour the egg mixture into the onion bowl and fill it until it's almost overflowing.

3) Sprinkle some more cheese on top and bake at 375 degrees for about 25 minutes or until the egg is set. You may have to bake it longer, depending on how large your onion bowl is and how much egg there is to cook. I used a small circular Pyrex dish. But any oven safe dish should work. Top with a little sprig of basil (if you're going for that professional look). Once out of the oven, let it cool for a few minutes before eating. 

     This little gem was phenomenal. The egg puffs up while in the oven, so it looks like a big muffin with an onion base. True, it takes some time to make, but they were delicious. I even used the middle rings that I pulled out as a second mini onion bowl. Bite sized scrambled eggs!

     Next time I'm thinking of adding a little balsamic vinegar to the onion while it bakes the first time. It could give it a little bit of a sweet taste. Could be good. Thoughts?

                                                 
Porthole Restaurant - Lynn, MA
http://www.portholerestaurant.com/

     Beach day success. Kenna, Sarah, Emily and I all went to the beach for Memorial Day and were just famished when we left. Not exactly... but why not eat? After searching across the country for the Porthole Restaurant, we landed a seat outside on the deck. Never have I ever been so confused by the staff of a restaurant. There were about 5,000,000 people working and they all seemed to be bipolar. Whatever.

     Probably one of the best parts of the meal was the huge loaf of bread they delivered to our table. It was a big puffy seeded loaf and came with a thousand butters and crackers. We ate every scrap.
     Something on the appetizer menu called Rumaki caught my eye. I had never heard of it, so I asked our absent-minded waiter. Supposedly it was broiled chicken livers with water chestnuts wrapped in bacon. Go ahead... make that grossed out face. But I had to get it. These little balls of death came to the table piping hot and served with cocktail sauce. Weird. I wonder if it's normally served with that or if they didn't know what else to serve it with. It was exactly what it said in the menu. I am a fan of chicken liver, so I enjoyed it. However, I don't think I could eat more than 2 without feeling like I needed to take a trip to the doctor.

     In an attempt to be healthy, I ordered Baked Stuffed Haddock. I failed to see the "Buttery crumbs and scallops" part in the description. The fish itself was good... and so was the absolutely butter soaked mountain of crumbs and scallops that it sat on. While delicious, picking that dish was probably one of the poorer choices I've made trying to prolong the health of my arteries.