his travels for work have often taken him to former soviet areas, and he's developed a taste for some of the cuisine. tonight i pulled a recipe that tony has always been a fan of: borscht. this bright purple soup an be a little unsettling for someone who is unfamiliar with it. beets stewed in a broth full of root vegetables and herbs, topped with a dollop of sour cream. it's often made with beef broth, but this recipe uses vegetable broth. so it's a candidate for meatless monday! as a side i thawed some of the potato and onion pierogis we had stashed in the freezer from thanksgiving. they made for a perfect accompaniment!
04/12 tonight was a healthy, and wonderfully simple meal. shrimp sautéed with onions and garlic, served on a bed of wilted kale with cannelini beans, sun dried tomatoes and feta cheese. i was feeling the need for a light and healthy meal. i did a similar version of this dish earlier in the year with scallops and bacon. this particular version had a more mediterranean flavor to it. a drizzle of balsamic married well with the feta and sun dried tomatoes. a surprisingly filing low car meal!
04/13 tonights meal had a somewhat autumnal feel to it. mustard herbed chicken breast served with sides of brussels sprouts and cranberry farro. the chicken was tenderized and rubbed with a combination of dijon, sage and thyme. then coated with a thin layer of panko and parmesan. the combination made for a juicy bird with wonderful flavors! if you've never had farro, i highly recommend it. it's a type whole grain wheat berry that is prepared in a similar way to rice. it has a wonderful nutty flavor. i boiled it with a combination of vegetable broth and orange juice to add a nice citrus tone that mixed well with the dried cranberries i threw in. and of course roasted brussels sprouts are a great addition to any meal!
04/14 being raised only a few miles from the chesapeake bay in maryland, it is part of my birth right that i know how to make a proper crab cake. a few rules that are non-negotiable. 1) always broil, never fry. 2) use old bay. and lots of it. and 3) use the cheapest white bread you can find (not bread crumbs). i use a combination of lump and backfin crab. add a little mustard, a little mayo, a little fresh parsley, two pieces of the afore mentioned white bread and the generous old bay, one beaten egg and a shake or two of worcestershire sauce. broil for 6 minutes a side. and that's it! a classic for a reason! i usually serve with a slice of lemon to be squeezed on the cakes just before consuming. and if you'd like, a little tartar sauce on the side. to complete the meal i roasted some baby potatoes with fresh garlic, rosemary and olive oil. and steamed a few green beans. makes me proud to be born in maryland!
04/15 i did a little variation of spaghetti and meatballs tonight. turkey meatballs with sundried tomatoes and feta cheese served on a bed of spaghetti squash with a light alfredo sauce. i was dubious when spaghetti squash became the popular low carb substitute for pasta. but i have to say, it's grown on me! it has a certain sweetness to it that i find very enjoyable. and these meatballs have the most amazing flavors. they're fried up in a skillet, so they get a nice crisp outside. i came across them on this website while looking for low carb recipes:
http://www.ibreatheimhungry.com/2013/04/sun-dried-tomato-feta-meatballs-low-carb-gluten-free.html
i had an avocado that needed to be used, so i threw it together with a few tomatoes, some mozzarella, a few pieces of fresh basil, and a drizzle of balsamic. such a great addition to the standard caprese salad! is there anything that isn't made better by an avocado??
04/16 tonight begins my extended vacation!! i am on my way to new york for a long overdue visit to see some of my very favorite people in the world. and my absolute favorite city. i'll be taking a train out of my home town early in the am, so i'm spending the night up at the family compound.
i had dinner tonight with my parents and my sister amy. we went to a nearby italian restaurant: giovanni's. i haven't been here since i was in high school! apparently i had never been on a saturday night, because i have no recollection of the amazing people watching! tonight there was "live entertainment". and by "entertainment" i mean two guys singing along with karaoke tracks and occasionally playing some incredibly 80's style sax. the dance floor was full of elderly locals who were showing off their mad dancing skills. one particularly entertaining octogenarian was "shaking his groove thing" to the level that i was concerned i was witnessing a stroke. i could've sat all night watching the couples "bump and grind" to loungy covers of barry white and elvis presley while drinking their martinis and chiantis.
we actually did have dinner with the show. i had their "chicken joanna". a breaded chicken breast in a white wine reduction sauce served along sautéed onions and peppers. for my starters i had the house salad and seafood bisque. all of the food was good. but no food could have compared to the people watching!!!!
04/17 tonight i dined back in my precious wonderful brooklyn and with my dear friend julia. since i'm in brooklyn that means.........PIZZA!!!!!! i refuse to engage in the "chicago vs new york" "thick vs thin crust" pizza debates. they are two different animals and cannot be debated because they cannot be compared. that being said, i have a deep and abiding love for that wonderful crisp joy that is....new york style pizza. julia took me to "saraghina's". a quaint little bakery and restaurant near her home. beautiful exposed brick interior, small intimate tables, dim lighting that forces you to squint to read your menu, chalk board writing on the walls with the specials, waiters that are unnaturally good looking. how i have missed the understated pretentiousness of brooklyn!!!!
they had many intriguing specials on the menu, but i had my heart set on their neapolitan style pizza. brick oven baked crust so thin you could almost see through it. tomato sauce that was bright and fresh. buffalo mozzarella that was bubbly and creamy. spicy cappicola that was salty and crisp. basil that brought everything else together. tears....tears of joy and bliss. i don't know how i stopped myself from eating the entire thing. it was so wonderful!!!
*sigh* this was worth the train ride up
No comments:
Post a Comment