Endive and Bulgur Salad With Poached Eggs
Posted: February 16, 2012 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: balsamic vinegar, bulgur, cooking, easy, egg, endive, foodblog, garlic, mushroom, olive oil, parmesan, pepper, poach, recipe, salad, scallion 12 Comments »
Now, I’m not one to brag.
Ahem. Please, no comments from the peanut gallery.
As I was saying. I’m not one to brag. But this year I had not one. But two. Yes, two Valentines.
The first, of course, was my wonderful fiancé, Jake. He treated me to a delicious pre-Vday brunch at Norma’s at Le Parker Meridien on Sunday, and surprised me with beautiful pale pink roses on Valentine’s Day itself! I certainly am a lucky girl ;)
(Side note: anyone looking for brunch in the NYC area, I highly recommend Norma’s.)
And my second Valentine was California Vegetable Specialties!
Ok. I know that’s not a person, per se, but I still count it. After all, they did send me a Valentine! A beautiful bouquet, in fact. Of endives!
Now anyone that knows me knows that I love presents. Especially surprise ones. And especially ones related to food.
So when the box unexpectedly arrived at my office, full of beautiful, fresh endives arranged in a charming bouquet? Well, let’s just say it was love at first sight.
I knew the only way to truly honor my new Valentine was to make something delicious out of the colorful veggies.
So I searched high and low, and finally found the perfect recipe to showcase the beauties in all their glory.
Southwestern Turkey Burgers with Red Onion Marmalade
Posted: July 18, 2011 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: balsamic, balsamic vinegar, bulgur, burger, caramelized onion, chile powder, cooking, cumin, english muffin, foodblog, honey, onion, recipe, red pepper, Secret Recipe Club, turkey, wheat, wine 37 Comments »
Sometimes, Jake tells me he feels like he’s going to sprout feathers.
It concerns me.
Now, I’m no psychologist, but according to my in depth and certainly reliable internet research, I think he may have some sort of identity issue. Borderline personality disorder? Quite possibly.
Either that, or it has something to do with the amount of poultry I feed him.
I can’t be sure.
Anyway, since I’m a loving and caring fiance, I try to be sensitive to this feeling of his, and every once in a while I try to throw in some meals that don’t contain poultry. Because if it does happen to be the latter, and he does happen to think that, perhaps, we eat a lot of chicken and turkey, I wouldn’t want to exasperate the situation any further.
And if it’s not? Well… does anyone know a good shrink?
So in my quest to avoid coming home to Jake covered in feathers, I look for non-chicken-and-turkey-meals-that-still-contain-meat-but-don’t-totally-gross-me-out. (What can I say? We’re difficult.)
And then I see recipes like this one, from Rhubarb and Honey. And I know that if I just make it, and Jake just tastes it, he will love it. And all visions of feathers popping out of his skin will disappear, despite the fact that it contains turkey.
And you know what? I think I’m right. Because after Jake tasted these delicious Southwestern Turkey Burgers with Red Onion Marmalade, I didn’t hear one mention of feathers.
Double Tomato Bruschetta
Posted: February 2, 2011 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: appetizer, balsamic vinegar, basil, bread, cheese, cooking, easy, ethnic, foodblog, garlic, italian, mozzarella, olive oil, recipe, sundried tomato, tomato, vegetables 19 Comments »
I don’t get picky eaters.
I know that may sound strange, especially coming from a self proclaimed picky eater when it comes to meat. But I’m not talking about picky eaters like me.
I’m talking about the other kind.
You know the ones. The ones who call you up to make dinner plans and say that you should pick the place. They’re open to anything. They’d just like to avoid anything Indian. Or Thai. Japanese. Middle Eastern. Greek. Mexican. Or French. Ok?
So you suggest that cute little Moroccan place up the block.… And they say that on any other day they’d love it. But they’re just not in the mood for that today.
Yes, those are the kind of picky eaters I don’t get. The real picky eaters. Not people like me. I can find something to eat no matter where I go. I mean, every place has some sort of chicken dish…. right?
White Bean Bruschetta Soup with Rosemary & Olive Oil Croutons
Posted: October 24, 2010 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: balsamic vinegar, beans, bread, bruschetta, cannelli beans, challenge, chicken broth, croutons, dinner, easy, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, onion, rosemary, soup, white beans 25 Comments »
When sharing a little 600 square foot apartment, you learn how to distinguish what you really want from what you really need. You only buy what’s absolutely necessary. You hold off on getting anything that will take up a lot of space. You make do with what you have…
…in the Land of Make Believe.
In real life, you cram. You cram your sweaters and jackets into huge Tupperware containers and shove them under the bed during the summer. You cram up all of your college textbooks and old stuffed animals into boxes and store them in your storage unit parents’ basement (thanks, mom!). And you cram your boyfriend’s clothes onto one closet shelf and take the rest for yourself. (You might have to repeat that last step a few times. He may think he is entitled to more than one shelf. Don’t worry. He’ll learn.)
What you don’t do is deprive yourself. You never know when you’ll need that panini maker, or when that fifth pair of super cute boots will come in handy. Read the rest of this entry »
Tomato and Grilled Zucchini Salad
Posted: August 6, 2010 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: balsamic, balsamic vinegar, cheese, dill, dinner, feta, grill, oregano, parsley, salad, side dish, thyme, tomato, zucchini 13 Comments »
I have a confession to make: Before this week, I had never grilled anything on the barbecue by myself. I know, I know. It’s pathetic. But, in my defense, I have always been intimately involved in the grilling process. I always plan what we’re eating, get everything prepared, marinate and season the meat, cut the veggies, etc. I just don’t actually do the grilling.
Not to worry; I am also always sure to tell the person grilling the right way to grill. Raise the flame. Lower the heat. Check on the meat. Stop opening the lid. You’re letting all the heat out. Leave it on a little longer. I think it’s done. I’m like a backseat griller. It’s endearing. Just ask Jake.
Grilled Portabella Burgers with Red Pepper Relish
Posted: July 30, 2010 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: balsamic vinegar, dinner, easy, grill, mushroom, onion, pepper, portabella, roasted pepper, spicy, vegetables 4 Comments »I used to think I didn’t like mushrooms. I didn’t like the look of them, I didn’t like the smell of them, and I knew that I definitely didn’t like the taste. I was so adamantly opposed to trying them that for years my mom made two trays of stuffing on Thanksgiving… one with mushrooms, and one without. If anyone made the “mistake” of eating mushrooms around me, I would make an obnoxious face and point out the fungus on their plate. I’m sure it was a real treat to eat with me.
Then one day, I accidentally ate one of the mushrooms from my chicken marsala…. And I liked it! In fact, I loved it! I realized that I had been sadly mistaken about the little fungi. For years, my stubbornness had been preventing me from enjoying these tasty morsels.
Since then, I have surely made up for lost time. I will eat anything with cooked mushrooms, and will try them in just about any dish. I’m a mushroom-holic and I’m not ashamed to admit it.
So when I saw this recipe for Grilled Portabella Burgers with Red Pepper Relish on Cooking with Aurora, it was impossible for me to resist trying them out (with a few small changes). Of course, you don’t have to be mushroom obsessed like me to enjoy these burgers… they are so delicious that even those that are moderate in their mushroom love will enjoy them!
Strawberry, Feta, and Spinach Salad
Posted: July 27, 2010 Filed under: Food, Recipes | Tags: balsamic, balsamic vinegar, feta, salad, spinach, strawberry 4 Comments »For some reason, I have a real issue scheduling my weekends. I try to cram in so much that I don’t have time to finish everything I need/want to do. I end up forgetting how long things take to do/not taking weekend traffic into account/promising to be in two places at one time/forgetting that I’m human and need to relax every once in a while, etc.
So a few Sunday afternoons ago, when I looked at my “to do” list for that weekend, I realized that there was no way I was going to finish everything on that list. I decided to pick out two last items to conquer and just concentrate on those. I chose to exercise and to go to Costco. And then it came to me: I would walk to Costco! Two birds. One stone… Brilliant!
I laced up my sneakers, grabbed my backpack, set the playlist on my iPod, and ventured out into the wild unknown. (Ok, maybe Queens isn’t quite the wild unknown, but I’m using some poetic license. It has a nice ring to it, no?)
