bon appetreat

Cooking Misadventure: Pumpkin Chocolate Swirl Brownies

2010-10-27T23:32:00.004-04:00

There are a lot of things that can potentially go wrong with this. Taking a look at the recipe, adapted from smitten kitchen, who adapted it from Martha Stewart, a couple of tricky hurdles off the bat: I don't know if my bowls can handle being a makeshift top part of a double boiler. I don't have a 9 x 9 pan in my apartment (I do have a 1 1/2 inch deep baking sheet that's about 8 x 11). I don't have my standing mixer with me. I first bought baking soda instead of baking powder, when I was considering making pumpkin chocolate chip cookies instead of the brownies. Bad news awaits, right?

Well, probably not. How can bad news happen when pumpkin, sugar, eggs, flour, and chocolate are combined and baked in the oven? It just can't. It's baking right now, so the ultimate verdict is still pending. But for now, here are the basics:

Ingredients:

1 stick unsalted butter, plus more for greasing the pan (yes, it has to be real butter - baking deserves it)

1 C. semi-sweet chocolate morsels (differs from the Smitten/Martha version)

2 C. all-pupose flour

1/2 tsp. salt

1 1/2 C. sugar

2 large eggs (I like fudgy brownies, and it also made sense because of my shallow pan. If you like cakey brownies, put in 4 eggs)

1 T pure vanilla extract

1 1/4 C. solid-pack pumpkin (not the pumpkin pie pumpkin)

1/4 C. vegetable oil

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg
(omitted ingredients were cayenne and chopped nuts on top)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter a baking pan or dish. I referred to my Joy of Cooking (always my default when I am starting off without everything the recipe calls for) and decided to butter and line foil on top of my baking pan.

2. Melt chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth. This was my favorite part. Almost. I was so worried that my glass bowl would not be appropriate for this make-shift double boiling, but it was just fine.

This . . .

became this . . .

which became even smoother after a bit more makeshift double boiling.

3. Whisk (I don't have a whisk, either, so I used a fork) together flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside. In another bowl, put sugar, eggs, and vanilla together and then mix under fluffy and combined, 3 to 5 minutes. This is the moment you would be taking out that fancy standing mixer if you've got one. Beat in the flour mixer. If you are using a hand electric mixer, I'd suggest only beating the egg mixture until it's well-combined because the speed of the blades are so fast. When I added the flour, I mixed by hand.

4. Pour half of the batter into a separate bowl and stir in the chocolate mixture. In the bowl with the remaining batter, stir in the pumpkin, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

This was actually my favorite part, the battle of the batters:

5. Transfer half of the chocolate batter to the pan. Smooth out the top with a spatula. Top that with half of the pumpkin batter. Top that with the rest of the chocolate batter, and then the rest of the pumpkin. You might have trouble smoothing out the batters for each layer, and that's okay. It's all going to the same place. On the smitten kitchen website, she warns that during this part you should work quickly because the batters might set. This is important because if you are like me, you might get distracted by the pumpkin batter looking and smelling amazing.

6. The swirling! Take the edge of the spatula, or use a table knife, and swirl the two batters to create a beautiful marble effect. If it's not as beautiful as you'd hope, that's okay. Again, it's all going to the same place (my belly).

7. Bake until set, 40-45 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack, and then cut into squares. Because I used a less than stellar pan along with a sub-par electric stove, I think I ended up cooking them for about 50 minutes. The brownies are still setting. They look more like chocolatey pumpkin pie bites, not that that's a bad thing.

The finished version looks pretty much the same as the pre-bake version but darker. My apartment smells delicious.
Verdict: The chocolate layers are really buttery, making the bottom layer detached from the rest. I am going to try baking it for a teeny bit longer to see what that does.

Postscript: It doesn't do anything. There's just too much butter in the chocolate dough. It tastes awesome, but it's meant to share with friends, not outsiders. Don't take this to a potluck where there will be strangers, unless you plan on serving it with ice cream.

Next day: Looks like time in the fridge has made it pretty perfect.

Restaurant Review: Mamoun's Falafel Restaurant

2010-06-13T22:09:00.001-04:00

Since I am staying in a closet with a teeny kitchen with room only for fairies to do their cooking, I am eating out a lot. Luckily I am living in a great neighborhood for just this type of situation. From what I have been reading, New Yorkers and New York tourists and posing New Yorkers rave their socks off about Mamoun's falafel. Seriously. Even Bethenny Frankel mentioned it on her show when interviewing the Napoleon Dynamite assistant. Anyway, tonight I went there for what is supposed to be the quintessential falafel sandwich.

First Impressions:

This place is not meant to be a lingering location. Stand in line, walk through the narrow "dining area," exchange awkward glances with the people in front of you when it's your turn to squeeze up to the counter to place your order, order your falafel sandwich (or lamb shawarma, which will be my next choice), pay $2.50 for said falafel sandwich, and 1.5 minutes later, your lunch/dinner/late night snack is ready.

The Food:

Yum! However much one could rave about a falafel sandwich, and even if the raving could ever be excessive, this sandwich was really good. The falafel is not overly anything, just right, and it's nestled into a pita stuffed with shredded romaine, tomatoes, and tahini sauce. Real green leafy stuff! It's pretty much worth every bit of the two dollars and fifty cents that I spent on it.

It looks messier than it is.

The Service:

Quick. Quick. Quick. I feel like this category is almost n/a for take-out this quick. What do I say? The cashier's eye contact was really meaningful? The way he took my money made me know that I was a valued customer and he really appreciated that I stood in line for five minutes?

Food mmmm

Service mmm

Decor mm

Je ne sais quoi mm (this place is not meant for je ne sais quoi, and for this place that's not necessarily bad)

Overall mmmm

119 MacDougal Street

New York, NY 10012

http://mamouns.com/

p.s. Please forgive typos. If there are ever any, I never notice them until a post is published.

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Restaurant Review: Soho Sushi

2010-06-13T17:02:00.001-04:00

First Impressions:

Even for the brief second I was in here, the place is very inviting. Mellow green walls, simple tables, not a lot of swag. I could happily dine in. They have a tv showing the World Cup.

The Food:

I just wanted a quick cheap Sunday lunch. My roomie and I decided to share one of the lunch specials, a three roll option that comes with soup or salad. She got two rolls, and I got a tuna avocado roll plus the miso soup. If you want quick food that isn't pizza or a hot dog, this place is for you. We called it in, and in five minutes, it was ready. A huge bonus of this place is that the lunch specials run on the weekends, too. It's hard to mess up a tuna avocado roll, I know. Well, this one wasn't messed up. Next time I will be more adventurous. For today, though, this was exactly what I wanted.

The Service:

Quick and friendly. They chatted us up about the World Cup a little. Not much to complain about, which makes sense because it was a take out order.

Food mmmm

Service mmmm

Decor mmmm

Je ne sais quoi mmmm

Overall mmmm

231 Sullivan Street

New York, NY 10012

http://www.sohosushinyc.com/

p.s. Please forgive typos. If there are ever any, I never notice them until a post is published.

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Food Addiction: Coffee

2010-06-13T11:12:00.004-04:00

I love La Colombe Corsica blend coffee. Food and Friends (where you can buy food stuffs while dancing to the best indie music) sells it for ten dollars a bag. That's a great deal on delicious coffee. Said ("Sayid") at La Citadelle brews La Colombe, but I am not sure what blend.

For coffee-on-the-go, I really love the medium roast from Good Karma on 22nd. It's just a nice flavor of coffee to help me actually enjoy drinking it during my morning commute.

As for corporate coffee options, I go to Starbucks or Dunkin's, depending on a number of factors: (1) proximity; (2) shortest line; (3) whether I am getting a medium iced coffee (Dunkin's is a little cheaper, or at least my brain is trained to think so based on the shape of the cup); (4) whether I have my coffee cup with me (Starbucks will knock off ten or fifteen cents I think); (5) time (Dunkin's is a little faster); and (6) whatever justice or fairness requires at the time. Nothing precludes me from balancing additional factors, should they manifest.

Now that I have been in NYC for a week, I have been having corporate coffee in the morning once I get off the subway and along the walk to work. Yesterday, since I wasn't going to work, I walked around the corner and bought a $1.50 travel-mug-sized cup of coffee plus milk from Cafe Reggio. It was delicious, with really frothy milk. But, I can't buy coffee every day, can I?

I am trying to live reasonably within my cheddar this summer, so I bought Folgers instant coffee. I am trying it out this morning. I just don't think I can do this every day. It's not good. Sorry, Folgers, you were not the best part of waking up for me today.

If you have any advice for how to make it taste better, please share your tips. Should I try Starbucks Via?

Restaurant Review: Miguel's California Mexican Cocina and Cantina

2010-06-12T15:08:00.001-04:00

A couple weekends ago I was in California, visiting family and attending services for my Grandma, who recently passed away. Although funerals are never fun, being in California allowed me to visit with a lot of family. Included in the family round abouts was a nice lunch with my sister, my brother, and his family at Miguel's in Corona. He has been asking for a California entry, so here it is, much belated. Thanks for lunch/dinner, Beebs.

Me, Shanna, Brian, Kami, Dalen, and Christina outside of Miguel's

First Impressions:

It's pretty here. The restaurant is situated in a promenade of shops where the scenery includes a reservoir, walking paths, and foothills in the distance. This must be one of the reasons why people move to California. The restaurant itself is pretty spacious and comfortably casual.

The Food:

Since I was eating there while en route to visit with more family in Costa Mesa, I kept it pretty simple and had a spinach quesadilla. Sidenote: we were staying with my grandpa, who keeps a pantry pretty well stocked for three Armageddons although with nary a fresh vegetable. Back to the quesadilla. I have to be honest and admit I wasn't expecting much except for a lot of cheese (okay by me) with a sprinkle of spinach. I was pleasantly wrong. My quesadilla was packed with spinach AND cheese and was the perfect mini-meal. I even had enough left over for the next morning (it doubled as breakfast - I should have put a fried egg on top of it but didn't).

The Service:

Kept us full and happy. They were all very nice.

Food mmmm

Service mmmm

Decor mmmm

Je ne sais quoi mmm

Overall mmmm

2715 Lakeshore Drive
Corona, CA 92883

p.s. please forgive typos!

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Food Foto Friday

2010-06-11T21:43:00.001-04:00

A Two-fer.

Today my roommate and I walked 4 miles over 4 hours, during which I consumed the following:

Magnolia Bakery's Famous Banana Pudding!

Dreamy, Creamy, and Whipped.

Papaya Dog's Papaya Drink and Turkey Dog.

At $1.50 each, my pocketbook was smiling.

Food Foto Friday

2010-06-04T22:50:00.001-04:00

Super Snack!

Restaurant Review: Mexico on the Square

2010-06-04T11:27:00.004-04:00

Okay don't get too excited because this Mexican spot is not right on the square, but it's close enough that you could order your food, and five minutes later (they make it super fast!), take it with you to a sunny or shady spot in Rittenhouse Square.

When I lived in Baltimore after Hurricane Katrina, there was this amazing place that served tacos al pastor. They had a beautiful patio with a spit where they roasted the little piggy right there (vegans, vegetarians, and weekend-atarians please forgive the imagery). But there were margaritas and a mariachi band so we hardly noticed. Those tacos al pastor, however, were more expensive and less delicious than the tacos I discovered on Pine Street, between 15th and 16th.

First Impressions:

It's a little corner shop, it used to be a little corner deli, and they have tables outside. There are no fusses or frills here, and the food is the focus. The refrigerated display shelves were empty, though, except for a few cakes that didn't look like tres leches or flan. I wanted to see some flan.

The Food:

I only had the tacos al pastor and a cup of something that was like a coconut custard (but lighter than custard). Both were really fantastic, but my stomach hurt a little afterward because maybe I ate my coconut treat too quickly. The tacos have pineapple chunks in them, which made them even more delicious. Next time I am going to get a sope so I can have some avocado. Each of my little tacos were $2.50, and they definitely filled me up.

The Service:

Very friendly and helpful.

Food mmmmm

Service mmmmm

Decor mmm (fill up the display! show me some flan!)

Je ne sais quoi mmm

Overall mmmm

1511 Pine Street

Philadelphia, PA 19102
(215) 732-1907

p.s. please forgive typos!

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Restaurant Review: Paesano's Philly Style (Italian Market)

2010-05-26T23:25:00.003-04:00

So I know I said that I was going to try and eat healthier now that exams are over. Honestly, that's not really happened. I have been eating a lot of cheese. I have been catching up with friends at restaurants. And I don't regret cheese or friends. One excursion was lunch at Paesano's, which I had never heard of, but it's always been there for the past few years, across the street from Sabrina's on Christian. It's a sandwich shop that serves what I now consider the best. sandwich. I. have. ever. tasted. Ever. Even compared to a dressed shrimp or oyster po'boy.

First Impressions:

Easy, breezy, beautifully placed on the corner of 9th and Christian, this place is simple to figure out. A big chalkboard has the sandwich menu, there are menus at every table, and the cute server greets you pretty quickly. We sat by the window, and almost all the seats are window seats here. It's nice. I like the chalkboards on the walls - we sat under two pigs having a duel! I bet they were fighting over my sandwich.

The Food:

Everything's under 10 bucks, I think. So here is another budget friendly place where you can have delicious food and not have to wash dishes afterward. Just when I start thinking I might try being vegetarian, a menu sucks me into carnivore mode. This menu had me at lamb, combined with sun-dried cherry something or other (it's called mustardo, but it doesn't taste at all like mustard - even BETTER!). Besides, the cherry stuff made me feel like this sandwich was a little healthier because antioxidants are in cherries. And for those of you who'd like sandwiches, if it weren't for all that bread, the Gustaio (the official name for the lambwich) comes in a wrap-but-better-than-a-wrap, like lamb shawarma. But this was way way better. Even though I think my sandwich was the tops, Bon Appetit Magazine selected the Arista (pulled pork with broccoli rabe sandwich) as the third best dish in America under 10 dollars. I don't know much about the Arista, but that Gustaio is really amazing. There's even cheese on it - gorgonzola! We also ordered a side of potatoes, which were tasty, but of course unnecessary. I just have trouble avoiding rosemaried potatoes and onions.

The Service:

Super friendly, super cute (cuteness does not factor into the service rating), lots of free refills on the lemonade and black cherry seltzer. And our sandwiches arrived super fast.

Food mmmmm

Service mmmmm

Decor mmmm

Je ne sais quoi mmmmm

Overall mmmmm

http://modomiorestaurant.com/paesanos_italian_market_location

901 Christian Street

Philadelphia, PA 19147

p.s. please forgive late-night typos!

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Restaurant Review: El Rey

2010-05-23T11:19:00.001-04:00

I ~~have~~ had been trying to stay away from Stephen Starr restaurants. You definitely tend to pay for the quirky ambiance, but over the past three weeks I have been to three: (1) El Vez for a margarita for a friend's birthday; (2) The Continental Mid-town to welcome that same friend back from Israel; and (3) most recently to El Rey, Starr's newest addition to his restaurant army, to visit with a dear, dear friend.

First Impressions:

Weeiiiiirrrd. Either they are using everything from the old diner I think this used to be (the Mid-Town or Mid-City Diner II? - nope - it's been confirmed by grubstreet as having been the Mid-Town IV), or they bought new old-looking/cheap stuff and decorated with that. We couldn't figure it out. I think we finally settled on the latter. We are talking wood paneling, chunky rock/stone walls, those rounded Christmas tree lights (not the cute little ones, the slightly tacky-but-I-still-love-them ones from the 70s/80s). As entrance (or parting) favors, I halfway expected them to hand out any of the following: (1) bowling shoes; (2) stuffed armadillo dolls; (3) velvet elvis bobbleheads; or (4) my own summery lumberjack button-up shirt so I could match the servers. It's like being transported to a 70s diner in the middle of the desert in El Paso, or just outside of it a few hundred miles, except the food is very, very good.

The Food:

The menu items are really reasonably priced. And, everything sounds so good, so it's really hard to decide. This all avocado-inspired combo was calling to me: Guacamole and chips, Nopales (cactus, pumpkin seed, avocado, and tomato), and Cabrito (braised goat with guacomole and some other stuff). That would have been a little too much avocado, so instead I got chips and salsa (perfect and also perfectly unnecessary - like most orders of chips and salsa), chayote (a fantastic corn salad with corn, pickled onion, AVOCADO, and a lime vinaigrette), and lamb tacos (lamb = delicious almost any way you slice it). My beverage was a mango margarita. Marvelous.

The Service:

Except for the hostesses, each member of the waitstaff has an edgy down-on-my-luck-I-understand-the-economy-sucks look about them - dark eye makeup, messy hair, plaid shirts paired with denim, raspy voices. Our server was really friendly and helpful, albeit a little busy. It took twenty minutes to bring out the chips and salsa and twenty minutes to take care of the check. This restaurant is brand spanking new, though, so once the kinks get worked out, the quality of service should improve more than a few notches.

p.s. He's reportedly opening another restaurant at 18th and Sansom, a bistro (to compete with Tria??), and I still kind of want to go to the speakeasy behind El Rey (but the entrance is on Ranstead). Oh Stephen, I really wanted to hate you!

Food mmmmm

Service mmm

Decor mmm

Je ne sais quoi mmmm

Overall mmmm

http://elreyrestaurant.com/

2013 Chestnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

May Fruit Salad

2010-05-19T14:01:00.003-04:00

Today I bought a ton of fruit. At the grocery, pre-made mixed fruit costs $4.50 per container. Mine was a fraction of that. I took one apple, one banana, a handful of blackberries, two clementines, and two strawberries. I cut up the stuff that needed cutting, squeezed the juice from half a lime over them, added a dash or two of nutmeg, a sprinkle of anise, and a splash of mango-orange-pineapple juice, and viola! Instant fruit salad to take away the dreary day.

Oh I also added a little bit of fresh mozzarella and shaved goat cheese.

For some reason, though, I kind of wish there was chocolate powder sprinkled over the top of my fruit. I guess next time.

The Darker Side of Bon Appetreat: Exam Season Eating

2010-05-18T20:52:00.004-04:00

Exams have been over for just a week, and I am still recovering from exam season eating. When exam season hits any reasonable eating regime goes out the window in exchange for eating like a latch key kid left home alone on a Saturday with a cupboard full of treats, snacks, odds, and ends. This means eat whatever you can find, and when you are not eating, watch copious amounts of television and/or sleep the entire day.

Usual regime = morning cereal and coffee, mid-morning Stonyfield yogurt, lunch from the "s" family: sandwich, soup, salad, or sushi, afternoon Naked Juice Blue Machine or Green Machine, dinner from the "s" family.

When exams come around, I wake up, eat cereal, watch terrible tv online (too embarrassed to say which terrible tv), eat pita chips and hummus, sleep, eat more pita chips and hummus, more tv, more sleep. I spent entire days sleeping, hulu-ing, and pita-chip-and-hummussing my way through days gorgeous and mundane alike.

To make amends (and because all of my pita chips and hummus was gone), I tried Bacchus Market at 23rd and Pine. Even though I got two thin slices of seared tuna, really delicious - blackened only on the edges, and a Greek salad. . . an iced coffee later I was back to watching missed episodes of 30 Rock. Nightcap road to recovery = framboise, mango sorbet, and chocolate quadratinis.

Post exam menus might include: A later-to-be-regretted cheeseburger. An entire box of chocolate donuts with a side of two antacid tablets. Roasted chicken overstuffed with cornbread-meat stuffing (this is from a student who's a chef savant). Cinnamon-raisin toast and eggs for breakfast and leftover Indian for dinner.

Exam season is now well over, and I think I gained 5-7 pounds. No joke. The next couple of weeks before New York will require a reexamination of my eating habits.

Spring 4-Course Meal: Kiwi-Blueberry Salad, Potato-Ham-Cheese Hash, Scallop Ceviche, Tilapia

2010-04-18T10:19:00.005-04:00

A tasty and easy meal for spring . . .
1. Zesty Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

-Kiwi (chopped)

-Pineapple (chopped)

-Blueberries

-Crumbled Feta

-Tiny Dash Chili Powder
-Dash Cinnamon
-Dash Nutmeg

Toss together and voila!

2. Delicious Ham Hash

Ingredients:

-Red and Yellow Fingerling Potatoes (1/4ths)

-Chopped Yellow Onion

-Minced Garlic

-Chopped Fresh Dill

-Chopped Fresh Basil

-Canned Ham (cubed)

-Butter

-Olive Oil

-Grated Organic Vegetable Farmers Cheese

-Grated Gruyere

Add all ingredients (minus gruyere) onto a baking pan and heat for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. When done sprinkle the grated gruyere on top of the dish.

Sprinkle more grated gruyere about halfway through the cooking time. Then, once the cheese is fully melted, the potatoes are ready to eat.

3. Scallop Ceviche

Ingredients:

-Scallops

-Smoked Oysters

-Quartered Radishes

-Pickled Shallots (chopped and placed in red wine vinegar for 5 min)

-Yellow Onion (diced)

-Poblano Chile (diced)

-Chopped Cilantro

-Chopped Dill

-Orange Juice (splash)

-Lime Juice (splash)

-Olive Oil

Slightly cook scallops (cut in half) in olive oil and garlic. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. Let sit for 10 min in refrigerator. Keep ceviche ready to eat with next dish.

4. Tilapia in a Light Mushroom Cheese Sauce

For the cheese sauce:

Start a pot on medium. Add butter and flour until it mixes. Add light cream. Add fresh basil, pepper, poblano chiles (chopped), salt and chile powder. Add package of mixed variety mushrooms (buy from store). Heat until almost as thick as you would like it to be and then add pepper jack cheese to finish consistency and taste.

Ingredients (Tilapia over Spanish Rice)

For this recipe I just used boxed Spanish Rice.

-Tilapia Filets

-Lime Juice

-Cilantro

-Black Pepper

Season tilapia with lime juice, cilantro and black pepper. Set aside for 15 min. Cook Spanish rice. Put spanish rice and uncooked, but seasoned tilapia in a circular baking pan so the rice spreads throughout the bottom of the whole pan and the fish rests on top. Cook on 350 for 5-10 min. This way the rice is crispy and complements the texture of the tilapia filets very nicely.

Plate the fish and rice on a plate and drizzle the cream sauce with mushrooms over it. Place the ceviche on the plate as well. Put the ceviche over a bed of spinach for garnish (see below). Enjoy.

Warm Quinoa Salad and Scallops

2010-04-17T23:53:00.004-04:00

This was dinner.

I had a version of quinoa salad from Bacchus recently, so I decided to try my own. I made 1/2 C quinoa according to the directions on the box (making quinoa is like cooking rice - one part quinoa and two parts water). I started the quinoa and removed it from heat, covered, once it was cooked.

While the quinoa began cooking, I quickly chopped a parsnip and began heating it in an oiled pan. Then I chopped half a small yellow onion and added that to the parsnips. After about three minutes, I added a splash of orange juice, a splash of apple cider vinegar, and a splash of rum. I let the parsnips simmer for a couple minutes, and then I added a chopped gala apple, raisins, and chopped apricots. I added a dash of the following: nutmeg, garlic powder, the tiniest amount of ginger powder, and tarragon. I added a splash more of the orange juice and rum. I covered and simmered until the parsnips were tender.

While that mixture was simmering, it was perfect scallops time. In a small saucepan, I heated a bit of butter. Once it melted, I added six scallops. I sauteed the scallops in the butter for about 2-3 minutes per side.

To make the warm salad complete, I mixed the parsnip stuff with the quinoa, and I sprinkled crushed roasted hazlenuts atop the salad (the hazlenuts were roasted vestiges from an earlier recipe). I placed the scallops next to the quinoa salad, snapped a few pictures, and that was that. And I even have plenty of quinoa salad and scallops for another meal.

I think my dinner lacked something green. Next time I will eat scoop the quinoa salad on top of a bed of spinach. Or maybe I will add fresh basil. Who knows. There's always tomorrow to practice with the leftovers.

Visit from Long Lost Friend Reveals Food Snobbery

2010-04-13T19:46:00.003-04:00

I wasn't feeling well today, and so I thought that having mac and cheese might make me feel better. Maybe? Annie's boxed Mac and Cheese, with the perky rabbit smiling (smirking?) from his perch, was something I had been waiting for. I bought the box a couple months ago, and it was waiting for today to be consumed. What started out as an American experience - the innocuous making of a box of mac and cheese - became something that made me slightly ashamed of what I have become. A food snob. My boxed mac and cheese needed a lot more cheese.

Here's what happened. I sauteed some onions and medallions of chicken sausage, boiled my pasta, made my cheese sauce (from the box), and once I put together the cheese and the pasta . . . I tasted . . . and nothing. No creamy, cheesy, pizazzy comfort. Not at all. Had my mac and cheese experiences from Stephen Starr restaurants and BLSA food sales really upped my expectations of mac and cheese? Apparently. I have sadly become a mac and cheese snob. I guess this was inevitable. But to turn my nose at boxed mac and cheese? I might have my citizenship revoked. My mother will be so ashamed to read this post.

So, I mixed in the onions and sausage, put it all on top of a bed of spinach, and added a final super hefty dose of grated gruyere. And it was good.

Problem solved.

And yes, the rabbit is directing me to the complaints department.

Ode to the Champagne-O-Rama

2010-04-12T12:22:00.001-04:00

The weather was gorgeous, and we were out on the rooftop bar at the Continental. It was my birthday, so I decided I wanted my favorite over-priced drink - - - the Continental's Champagne-O-Rama. The Champagne-O-Rama is raspberry vodka with champagne (or maybe champagne with a shot of raspberry vodka), and the glass is grenadine-sugar-rimmed. I planned on just having one, but I went home having had three. I think I'll start making my own at home, though, so I can save a little money while enjoying a favorite treat. But, if I had my own champagne and vodka sitting around at home, I might never leave the house.

Restaurant Review: Bobby's Burger Palace

2010-04-11T16:06:00.002-04:00

Every so often I crave a burger. A medium, still pink in the middle, juicy burger. So I went to Bobby's Burger Palace ("the BBP"), the new burger place in University City.

First Impressions:
YUM! I could not wait. Too bad I had to stand in line for over an hour to order. But, it was the BBP's first Saturday night. The line stretched outside, and then once inside there's a snake-around to the ordering counter. After the wait, the deliciousness began.

The Food:
The BBP offers lots of options. You can get Dallas Style, the Bobby Burger, and all sorts of other styles. You can get your burger with beef, ground turkey, or ground chicken. You can also get your burger Crunchified, but I opted out. If you do get a Crunchified burger, from what I understand it's adding potato chips onto your burger. Like putting Doritos onto a ham and cheese sandwich. Sort of.

My burger, the L.A. Burger, has cheddar cheese and an avocado relish on top. I also got the best sweet potato fries. I wanted a little more onion for my burger, and a little more salt for the sweet potato fries. Despite that, the sweet potato fries were the best I have had in a long time. Maybe ever. This is because I always get frustrated about eating sweet potato fries that are too soggy, and before the BBP's sweet potato fries, they were inevitably soggy. Bobby Flay's sweet potato fries are perfectly crunchy and crisp. They also come with a honey mustard and horseradish dipping sauce. Also quite tasty.

I almost forgot! The BBP has unforgettable spiked milkshakes. I had a vodka-spiked Mocha Kahlua Milkshake. The non-spiked flavors sounded good, too: pistachio, blueberry-pomegranate, plus the typical chocolate and vanilla.

The Service:
It's a combination between a diner and a fast-food restaurant. But still, everyone who helped us with anything was very nice, helpful, professional, aimed to please, and so on. It's a great place.

Food mmmm

Service mmmmm

Decor mmm

Je ne sais quoi mmm

Overall mmmm

http://www.bobbysburgerpalace.com/

3925 Walnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 19104

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Restaurant Review: Garces Trading Company

2010-04-05T14:43:00.004-04:00

Setting:

Garces Trading Company for a quick dinner.

First Impressions:

Busy, packed, crowded. Looks like a market place/cafeteria/restaurant, which I think is the look they are going for. In the store you can buy, inter alia, wines and cheeses. It's a b.y.o. that keeps in mind the tourist, who might not realize he should bring his own, or the forgetful diner.

Food:

We ordered the chef's cheese selections, and then had quick bites (we had our tax appointment to get to). The chef's cheeses were all good except for the last one, described as a "pungent" cheese and coupled with nutella. It required being caked in nutella, or else each bite of this very special selection tasted like I was eating right out of the barn. Or from the fertilized field. That, my friends, is not a desired feeling to have when eating anything. Especially not when the dollop of nutella is what takes away the pungency of the cheese. I went there last month and can still taste the cheese. After that, I had a Lyonnaise duck salad. This was pretty tasty and fun to eat. About 3/4 of the way through, I declared I could hardly finish my plate. Somehow, I found the strength. Not because it was so good but really because the fun outweighed the yumminess. This dish is made of shredded duck, a poached egg, and a salad mixture all together.

Service:

So, the team mentality is the theme of a Garces restaurant, but all hands were not on deck in this place. We sat right next to the server's station, so lots of servers walked by us, but at one point our water glasses were empty for so long that we had to ask someone at the service station to fill them up. Growing pains? Getting out the kinks of being a fairly new restaurant? Either way, there are some big shoes to fill in the service area.

Maybe you should go, but after the restaurant has had time to settle. Also, make sure you drink a glass of wine. That might help in case the chef selects pungent cheese for you to taste. And if you get thirsty while waiting for water.

Food mmm

Service mmm

Decor mmm

Je ne sais quoi mmm

Overall mmm

http://www.garcestradingcompany.com/

1111 Locust Street

Philadelphia, PA 19107

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Stuffed Acorn Squash

2010-04-04T12:45:00.001-04:00

This winter and into spring, I have made this dish a few different times. It keeps getting better and better. In The Joy of Cooking, there are two baked squash dishes that were the combined inspirations for what I end up making. At this point, I just make it up as I go and hope it tastes good.

Ingredients:

acorn squash, halved and seeded

olive oil

cinnamon

nutmeg

2 chicken sausages, chopped

3 cloves of garlic

1 small yellow onion

1 parsnip, peeled and cubed

1 apple, cubed

five leaves fresh basil, shredded

dash dried thyme

small handful raisins

small handful dried cherries

6 dried apricots, chopped

1 C beer, Woodchuck (apple or pear flavored), or apple cider

1/2 C orange juice (or orange-mango-peach)

optional: splash of rum
optional: blueberry syrup

salt and pepper to taste

First, preheat the over to 400. Then, cut the acorn squash in half with a hefty knife. Be patient. Next, scoop out the seeds.

Drizzle a little bit of oil on the acorn squash and rub it in. Then, drizzle a little bit of blueberry syrup over the acorn squash. Sprinkle the acorn squash with nutmeg and cinnamon.

Once the oven is preheated, put the squash in a baking pan, cut side up. Put about a 1/4 inch of water in the bottom of the baking pan. Bake for about an hour.

Meanwhile, heat oil in a large saucepan. Then, add the slices of chicken sausage and brown. Peel and cut the parsnip, and add it to the pan.

Add the chopped onion and garlic to the pan. Cook for about five more minutes. Then, add the liquids! This time around I added beer (an October brew of some sort) and orange-mango-peach juice. This is the point when you would add rum or apple cider if that's what you want. Add the apples, raisins, cherries, apricots, thyme, basil, and salt and pepper to taste. Turn up the heat to boil.

Once boiling, simmer it down.

Not yet - - - simmer it down a little more.

That's it. If the acorn squash is still cooking, cover the stuffing and remove from heat.

Once the squash is ready, take it out of the pan and put it in a bowl.

Scoop the stuffing into the squash. You are done!

Food Addiction: Bread

2010-04-03T23:02:00.001-04:00

I ate more than a reasonable share of bread today. Helping feed my inner bread monster was the Fitler Square farmer's market, open Saturdays from 9-2, rain, snow, sleet, or shine. Today the bread guy offered three dollar ginormous loaves. Since it was such a bargain, I got an apricot-raisin-pecan loaf and an olive-garlic loaf. I made sure to try two slices from both loaves, and both are pretty great tasting. The apricot-raisin-pecan bread I toasted and spread butter on the slices. Two slices of the olive-garlic loaf accompanied some left over pad thai.

I love good bread. Almost as much as I love cheese. The bread guy has a type of bread for everyone. Go see him next Saturday to find what he has in store for you.

Mushroom Bourguignon

2010-04-03T22:49:00.001-04:00

Note: Start at a much earlier time than 9:00 on a Sunday evening.

This recipe is so good, I have made it twice in the past two months. Perfect for winter or a cool spring evening.

Ingredients:

1 lb portabello mushrooms, thinly sliced (keeping stems is fine as is using more than a lb of mushrooms)

1 small onion, diced

1 carrot chopped (or a handful of baby carrots, chopped)

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1 C red wine (I had some malbec on hand)

2 C beef or mushroom broth

2 T tomato paste

2 T flour cut with 1T butter

salt and pepper to taste

Olive Oil

1 C peeled pearl onions

dash thyme

Topping Options: grated cheese, sour cream, or both.

In a heated saute pan, add 2 T olive oil. Sear the mushrooms for 3 minutes. Set aside.
Add another T olive oil. Then saute the onion and the garlic for 10 minutes. Then add the wine. Turn the heat to high and cook down half of the wine. Then add the broth, tomato paste, carrots and pearl onions. Return the mushrooms to the pan. Add about a tsp of dried thyme. Simmer for 20 minutes. In the last five minutes, add the flour cut with the butter.

Serve with either cooked noodles, or my preference, which is on top of toasted olive bread.

Borrowed from sk: http://smittenkitchen.com/2009/01/mushroom-bourguignon.

Restaurant Review: Tinto

2010-04-03T21:24:00.001-04:00

Setting:

Tinto for dinner.

First Impressions:

The front room is lined with wine bottles, so make no mistake that this is, yes, a wine bar. I am not quite sure what the rest of the place looks like because we were seated at the first table when you walk in. I am sure the rest of the place is lovely.

Food:

We ordered the chef's bonus tasting (chef's selections for all courses, plus a lobster dish and a special Spanish meat dish). I guess I should preface this whole section of the review by saying that I have no idea what we ate, exactly, since it was all brought out to us as the chef decided, and since I don't have a very good auditory memory when I can't see it in writing, too. Weird, I know. Anyway, it was all amazingly delicious. I can only describe the food, but my descriptions will not do it justice. You just have to go and try it yourself. We had delicious everything.

Service:

Service is very good at Tinto. There is a nice team mentality at a Garces restaurant, meaning all hands are always on deck. This is always better for your dining experience.

Definitely go.

Food mmmmm

Service mmmmm

Decor mmmm

Je ne sais quoi mmmm

Overall mmmmm

http://www.tintorestaurant.com/

114 S. 20th Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103

About the ratings:

mmmmm would eat there again tomorrow

mmmm looking forward to eating there again

mmm not in a hurry to eat there again

mm likely not going to eat there again

m would try my best never to eat there again. ever.

I reserve the right to grade on a curve for the overall score, despite the average.

Snack! Crackers, Cheese, Tomatoes, Basil

2010-03-13T23:35:00.003-05:00

Thanks to my friend Elizabeth, this has been my favorite snack this week:

Ingredients:

Wasa or other brand crackers

Laughing Cow garlic and herbs cheese

(or other cheese of choice: yesterday I made one cracker with gruyere and another with goat)

1 tomato from a cluster of tomatoes on the vine, sliced

fresh basil

Layer as pictured

(1. cracker;
2. spread or place cheese;
3. add sliced tomatoes;
4. sprinkle fresh basil atop)

Eat.

Yum.

Pasta Onion Spinach Saute

2010-02-28T20:01:00.007-05:00

I was inspired by smitten kitchen for this one, but I totally went my own direction. I didn't even think it would be blog worthy until I got to this part:

Ingredients:

1 C rotini pasta

2 T olive oil

3 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 yellow onion, diced

1/2 C spinach

ground black peppercorns, to taste

grated gruyere or other cheese or choice, to taste

First, boil water plus 1 T olive oil. Once boiling, add pasta. Heat small saute pan. Then add 1 T olive oil. Add the chopped onion. Saute 2-3 minutes. Then add the garlic. When the pasta has been boiling for about 7 minutes, places the spinach on top of the onion and garlic mixture. Stir so the spinach slightly wilts. Add fresh black peppercorn.

Drain the pasta. Place in a bowl. Pour the saute mixture on top of the pasta. It looks like the picture above. Then, grate your gruyere.

Add the cheese on top of the deliciousness.

Finally, stir it up and enjoy.

Sweet Salmon Cavacappi

2010-02-15T18:56:00.003-05:00

Ingredients: Salmon, 2 Serrano Peppers, 8 green olives, 2 Nectarines, 1 Tbsp. Cherry Pop, Half a Can of Coconut Milk, 3 Tsp. Goya Recaito, Quick Pour Light Cream, 1 Tsp. Sesame Oil, 2 Tsp. Old Bay Seasoning, 1 Tsp. Celery Seeds, Pepper (to taste), 2 Tsp. Garlic Salt, Chili Powder (to taste), Sugar (to taste) and Basil (to taste).

(Cream Sauce)

1. Mix Serrano Peppers, Olives, Light Cream, Recaito, Coconut Milk, Old Bay, Sesame Oil, and Nectarine Juice {blend of fresh nectarines, cherry pop soda, and simple syrup} into food processor and blend.

2. Add Celery Seed, Basil and Garlic Salt to sauce.

3. Put in bowl and let sit.

(Pasta)

1. Cook a cup of Cavacappi pasta.

2. Mix pasta with Cream Sauce in a pan on low heat. (stir repeatedly)

(Salmon)

1. Season Salmon with Chili Powder, Sugar and Pepper.

2. Place in oven on 350 for 5-10 minutes.

(Entire Dish)

1. Scoop out pasta onto bowl, leaving a small amount of cream sauce in pan on low heat.

2. Place cooked Salmon on top of pasta and drizzle with remaining Cream Sauce.

3. Enjoy.