I heart Philly.

I used to live in Philadelphia and while I absolutely adore Boston, I often times find myself missing Philly and the life that I had there. Because the life that I had there consisted of me constantly wining and dining myself. I spent more money than I’m willing to admit on the incredible restaurant scene. I finally had to grow up, face the music and realize I did NOT have this type of disposable income - which is one of the many reasons I cook more now!

One of the chefs that I loved in Philadelphia was Marc Vetri. While I couldn’t even entertain the idea of dining at his signature restaurant “Vetri” (one of the most expensive in the city), I did spend my 25^th birthday at one of this other restaurants called Amis. I still think about the meal that I had that night to this day. So I was delighted when I stumbled across one of his pasta recipes in Food & Wine Magazine. The dish is Bucatini with Cauliflower and Brussels Sprouts and it has become a staple in our house. I recently served it to my sister and brother-in-law and although my brother-in-law doesn’t typically eat brussels sprouts (there are few people in this world that do), he seemed to really enjoy this one!  As I do with all of my recipes, I tweaked this to my liking. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
12 ounces bucatini
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 pound cauliflower florets, cut in 1-inch piece
1/2 pound brussels sprouts, halved or quartered if large
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus more for serving

Serves 4.

Directions:
1. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta until al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water.

2. Meanwhile, in a large, deep skillet, heat 1/4 cup of the oil. Add the cauliflower and brussels sprouts and season with salt and black pepper; cover and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly charred and crisp-tender, about 5 minutes.

3. Add 1/4 cup of oil to the skillet along with the onion, garlic, crushed red pepper; cook, stirring, until the onion is slightly softened, about 3 minutes. Cover and cook over low heat until the cauliflower and sprouts are tender.

4. In a small skillet, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add the bread crumbs and cook over moderately high heat, stirring constantly or they will burn, until golden and crisp, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and transfer to a bowl.

5. Add the pasta and reserved cooking water to the vegetables and cook over moderate heat, tossing, until the water is nearly absorbed. Remove from the heat and stir in the 1/2 cup of grated cheese. Top with bread crumbs!

Hot damn, the man can cook!

I’ve learned so many things from my mom and my Grams throughout my life. One thing I’ve learned for certain is that cooking is a way of showing people how much you love them. I love cooking for this reason. Even if I’m just cooking for myself, it’s my way of saying, “Hey, you worked hard today. Here’s a fabulous meal.”

However, sometimes it’s nice when someone else does the cooking and I’m lucky that my roommate, aka my fiancé, has the culinary skills to be able to do this. A while back we found this recipe in Fitness Magazine (see, I really do like recipes I find in magazines) and last night he whipped it up for us. I realize my last post was also a stir-fry; apparently I just can’t get enough. This meal takes less than 20 minutes, is packed with protein and has great flavors. If you click on the link there’s an option to make an avocado salad alongside, however we find the stir-fry to be sufficient enough. Enjoy!

Beef Stir-Fry

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:
12 ounces beef tenderloin, cut into thin strips
2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lime juice
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 medium sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 poblano, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Directions:
1. In a bowl, combine beef, 2 tablespoons lime juice, and 1 tablespoon chili powder; set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet. Add onion, bell pepper, and poblano and saute 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add beef and marinade to vegetables and cook 3 to 4 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper.

Shrimp Stir Fry + Wedding Wednesday

When my fiancé and I first got engaged, we were given the greatest gift of all time and no, it did not come in a Cuisinart box. It came in the form of a piece of advice. My friend advised us to designate just one day a week to plan our wedding in order to prevent us (aka me) from talking about it around the clock. We realize as the wedding gets closer this won’t be as feasible, but we’re still one year away. So, we instituted “Wedding Wednesdays”. Once a week we sit down together and do all things wedding. We  cook our favorite meals, sit at the dinner table together, and really just make a night out of it. This has made us both enjoy the engagement process (always good to correlate memories with delicious food) and alleviate some stress. I can honestly say we’re having a blast planning our wedding together.

Last night, Wedding Wednesday was in full force as we’ve been putting off many “to do” items for quite some time. We’ve both been traveling fools and haven’t been eating very well so we knew we needed a meal that inspired us and was healthy and light. To say we love this dish as much as we love each other would be a stretch, but not too much of one. It’s quick, easy and healthy! Hope you enjoy as much as we do.

South Beach Diet’s Shrimp Stir Fry:

Ingredients

      4 teaspoons canola oil, divided
      2 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce, divided
      3 garlic cloves, minced
      1 1/2 pounds medium peeled and deveined fresh or thawed frozen shrimp
      2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
      8 ounces white mushrooms, quartered (we usually omit these)
      4 scallions, cut into 1" pieces
      1 large bell pepper, any color, cut into thin strips
      8 ounces snow peas, strings removed
      1/4 teapsoon red pepper flakes

Directions

Whisk together 2 teaspoons of the oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons of the soy sauce, and garlic in a large bowl; add shrimp and toss to coat.

Coat a large skillet or wok with cooking spray and heat over high heat. Add shrimp and cook until pink, 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Heat remaining oil in the same skillet over high heat; add ginger and cook 30 seconds.

Add mushrooms, scallions, bell pepper, snow peas, and red pepper flakes and cook until vegetables are crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Stir in shrimp and remaining soy sauce and toss to combine. Serve hot.

Number of Servings: 4

Birthday Feast Roundup

Birthdays are a fabulous excuse to get your favorite people in one place and eat delicious food. That is what I look forward to most when it comes to my birthday – spending time with my loved ones and indulging in something wonderful. I turned 27 on Friday and indulge I certainly did!

The big day started off with my coworker delivering a giant vanilla with chocolate frosting and sprinkles cupcake from Crumbs bakery to my desk. She knows me so well. This was my first experience with a Crumbs cupcake and it certainly won’t be my last. My two coworkers and I devoured the poor thing, and did it so quickly I didn’t get a chance to take a picture of it in all of its glory.

Overall I thought the cupcake was delicious, it was very moist (apologies if this word offends you) and the frosting didn’t overpower the whole thing as sometimes it can do. It’s a great little gift for someone’s birthday!

Friday night, my friends, coworkers, sister and I went to Trattoria Il Panino, one of my favorite Italian restaurants in the North End. While the heat made for an interesting outdoor dining experience, the food was delicious. I feasted on pesto pasta which was light and fluffy – homemade pasta at its finest.

The next night, my very generous brother in law took my sister and I to Oishii in the South End for both of our birthdays (my sister and I are 3 years and 364 days apart to be exact). I’ve been to Oishii before and while it really deserves its own blog, this will have to do. Oishii is such a unique restaurant – it has mastered the art of being a fine dining establishment without any pretentiousness. Everyone is very friendly, service is stellar and the food is certainly something to write home about. It is expensive though, so a perfect place for a special occasion!

We began our meal with three appetizers:

-Salmon tempura with arugula salad in lemon dressing
-Kobe beef carpaccio with micro greens, fried Shallots, soy and pickled cherry blossom tempura on top
-Miso soup or “shiru”

All were delicious, especially the Salmon Tempura. It had a great crunch to it, and the lemon dressing was sublime.

For the rest of the meal we got:
-The Maki covered with Toro which has spicy mayo, asparagus, cucumber, bonito flakes and toro torched on top with a gingery Sauce and jalapeño
-Oishii Spicy Tuna Tempura Maki which has bluefin tuna sashimi, fleur de sel and chives
-Crispy Salmon Maki which has crispy tempura flakes, spicy mayo, tobiko and avocado maki with raw salmon and menegi on top
-Rock Shrimp Explosion Maki which has tempura rock shrimp and avocado rolled in white seaweed with brown rice chips and ting's wasabi flavored lemony sauce on top
-Toro Truffle Maki which has shrimp tempura, spicy mayo, cucumber, covered with seared toro, white truffle and sturgeon caviar on top

And lastly for dessert we feasted on a green tea layered cake with mascarpone and chocolate. A very satisfying dessert that wasn’t so rich you felt nauseous after you ate it.

Everyone had their own favorites of the night; I would certainly recommend the Crispy Salmon Maki and the Rock Shrimp Explosion Maki. Top notch sushi restaurants such as this make all the difference in the world – the ingredients are fresh and the fish practically melts in your mouth. And when it comes to eating sushi, I have a “go big or go home” mentality. I rarely eat rolls that only have one or two ingredients in them. While rolls with 5+ ingredients may seem intimidating to people, about 99.9% of the time the ingredients come together so harmoniously and it’s worth taking the risk.

Overall, a heavenly birthday that satisfied both my heart and stomach.

Sunday Funday at SoWa

Like most people, I cling to my weekends with a kung fu grip because my work weeks are often pretty stressful. Friday nights, Saturdays and Sundays are meant for one thing and one thing only: having a good time. Some weekends that means traveling to see friends and family, others it means crashing on the couch and neglecting to get out of my pajamas for 48 hours straight. Weekends can also provide a great opportunity to explore new corners of the city and of course, eat.  

A few weeks ago, my fiancé and I did just that. He brought me to SoWa (stands for South of Washington Street), an open market in the South End. The market has everything from art to clothing and most importantly, food. It brings in amazing gourmet food trucks, baked goods and local farmer’s produce.  So naturally, I was in heaven and had luckily arrived with an empty stomach.

There are over 20 food trucks that come to SoWa, all offering something really unique. From BBQ to mexican to cupcakes, there is something for everyone. After surveying my options, I landed on the LOBSTA LOVE truck and am oh so happy that I did. I ordered the Lobster Mac & Cheese, which is made with Annie’s Organic Shells & White Cheddar Mac & Cheese, fresh lobster and lobster bisque. Each bite oozed with flavor and although it was rich I happily finished the whole thing. Sometimes you eat meals that are so satisfying you feel full the rest of the day and that’s exactly what happened to me on that day. I was truly elated from the food that I consumed.

The experience of SoWa is something I hope all Bostonians undergo at some point. It’s simply about a love for food and the arts, without any pretentiousness. If you don’t live in Boston, make a date with a food truck in your city the next time you have a free weekend. You certainly won’t regret it.

love me some Lobsta Love

Here's to my sister.

As we all know, food can conjure up great memories and the dish that I cooked Sunday night does just that for me. I moved to Boston in March of 2011 and although I was excited to move to the city that I was born in and always loved, being so far away from my parents was a huge adjustment. Yes, I went to college away from home, but never really felt the distance as I was only two hours away and was too busy partying. Did I say partying? I meant going to class and studying.

Anyhow, one of the main reasons I wanted to move to Boston was to be closer to my sister and brother-in law. I never lived in the same city as my sister after school as she is four years older than me and moved to Boston soon after graduating college. I love being only a 15 minute walk from them, it's really amazing. Also, being with my sister takes the edge off of being away from my parents and she takes care of me. 

One night, over the summer, I went over to her Charlestown condo and she prepared the dish below from the South Beach Diet cookbook. Side note: Although I don't live carb free (did I mention I was Italian?) I do try to lay off them for at least one meal a day which is very easy to do. This cookbook has great recipes that are healthy, low in carbs and easy to make. The dish below is one of my favorites. 

I'll never forget the night she made it for me because A. it was absolutely delicious and B. we sat up on her beautiful roof deck drinking wine and it was just one of those nights that I remember thinking, "This is where I am supposed to be." So, here's to my sister, memories and food.

Seared Salmon with a Creamy Dill Sauce:
Ingredients:
1/4 cup low fat mayonnaise
1/4 cup nonfat plain yogurt
2 scallions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets, with skin
Salt and pepper
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 ounces alfalfa sprouts (2 cups)

Instructions
1. Combine mayonnaise, yogurt, scallions, lemon juice, and dill.

2. Season salmon with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon, flesh-side down, and sear 3 minutes, until brown. Flip and sear another 3 minutes, until salmon is just cooked through.

3. Place a dollop of sauce on serving plate; top with salmon and a small mound of sprouts.

I like to serve with asparagus or something green on the side. Enjoy!

It doesn't get much better than pizza, wine and friends.

One of the many reasons I love food is because it has the ability to bring people together whether it’s for a celebration or just a casual night in. Recently, one of my best friends, who we will call Williala, moved to Boston. She actually dates my fiancé’s best friend so them moving here was really incredible for us.  They also love food just as much as we do so our time together typically includes a feast of some sort… and tons of wine. I can usually expect a slight headache and food hangover the morning after being with them and I love every minute of it. 

Williala was recently given a pizza stone for her birthday so Thursday night we headed over to their South End apartment to try it out.  By the time we got there, she had already prepared the dough using a Joy of Cooking cookbook recipe:

Ingredients (makes 2  12” crusts)
2 1/4 t. dry yeast
1 1/3 c, warm water
3 1/2-3 3/4 c. flour
2 T. olive oil
1 T. salt
1 T. sugar (optional)

Directions:
Combine water and yeast in large bowl and let stand 5 minutes, until yeast is dissolved. Add flour, olive oil, and salt. Mix on low speed about 1 minute. Knead for 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl coated with olive oil and turn once. Cover with plastic wrap and a towel and let rise 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Get the pizza stone prepped. It’s important to note the pizza stone has to be preheated to a certain temperature to work and that often means leaving the oven on for quite a while before you begin to cook. It’s best to place your stone in a cold oven and then turn the oven on (475 degrees). The purpose of this is to allow the stone to absorb the heat evenly (usually takes around 45 minutes).



Heating up!



If you aren’t working with a pizza stone, just take a cooking sheet and grease and dust with cornmeal.

Once the dough is done rising, dust a second baking sheet with cornmeal and punch dough down and divide in half.

Dough perfection

Roll each piece into a ball and let rest, covered with plastic wrap, 10 to 15 minutes. Pull the pizza stone out of the oven and dust with cornmeal. Flatten each ball of dough on a lightly floured work surface and then transfer to the pizza stone/baking sheet. If you want to get fancy with it and you have a pizza peel, do all of this on that and then transfer to the pizza stone/baking sheet. Brush crust with olive oil, put on a layer of sauce and then add desired toppings.

We made two pizzas: one with mozzarella, spinach and Proscuitto and the other with mozzarella, sausage and pepperoni.

After about 15 minutes of being in the oven each, the pizzas came out smoking hot and ready to be consumed.

Yum a lum

I give Williala all the credit in the world for making pizza that even the Italians in the North End of Boston would have been impressed by! Pizza is also a great meal to make with friends because choosing the toppings is a group activity (the email banter the day before this was quite amusing) and can be customized to everyone’s likings. Enjoy!  

Anyone can cook....Shrimp Ratatouille

About five years ago, I saw the Pixar animated film “Ratatouille” about a rat that loves food, winds up in Paris, and cooks for a five star restaurant by befriending the garbage boy.  A rat cooking for a Parisian restaurant is about as far-fetched as you can get. However, as the restaurant's deceased head chef that comes back as a ghost to mentor the rat (compelling stuff) says, “Anyone can cook!” One of the dishes the rat serves to a highly regarded food critic and villain of the film is ratatouille. The meal is a big hit, and essentially everyone lives happily ever after. The animation of this movie is incredible so the ratatouille looks absolutely delicious…like heaven on a plate.

I often look through health magazines to find recipes because I find them to be easy to make and not incredibly complicated.  I came across this ratatouille recipe by Liza Schoenfein in Fitness Magazine and was thrilled because I adored the movie and was excited to bring a part of it into our home. This dish is healthy, filling, and unquestionably delightful.  It’s also a great  dish to make a huge batch of, serve to a big group (was a big hit with my girlfriends who came into town a few months ago) or bring to lunch with you the next day. I’ve tweaked the recipe to my liking (I omit the mint, thyme, almonds and olives). Here it goes:

Ingredients:
Red pepper flakes
Salt
Black pepper
Olive oil
1 red onion, roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves
1 medium eggplant, cut into 1-inch cubes
2 zucchini, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 28-ounce can chopped/diced tomatoes
1 pound shrimp, shelled and cleaned

1. In a large pot, coat the bottom with olive oil and cook the red onion in it for about 5 minutes. Use medium heat so nothing burns.
2. Mince the garlic and add it to the onion, stirring for about 2 minutes. Add the eggplant, zucchini, and bell peppers and cook for 5 minutes. Add the canned tomatoes, red pepper flakes, salt and black pepper. Allow to simmer for about 20 minutes.  
3. Within the last 2 minutes of the 20 minute simmer, spray a large skillet with cooking spray and cook the shrimp on each side. Once cooked, add into the ratatouille.
4. Sprinkle parmesan cheese to serve and voila! Makes about 4 servings.

Also, this is a great dish to toss with whole wheat penne if you’re feeling in need of carbs!

Ok, I'm not the best food photographer. Be patient with me. But look at those colors! Beautiful.