Mar
31
2009
Last night M and I were in a comfort mood. He has been putting in the hours at work and so have I. We went to the gym late and when we came home we just wanted to relax with some good comfort food in front of the tube, or in M’s case get back to work. I decided I was in the mood for breakfast, pancakes to be exact. What is more comforting than fluffy pancakes covered in maple syrup? But as we all know regular pancakes are not the healthiest option especially after putting in all that time at the gym. So I decided to make a healthier version and from now on will make no other! It was awesome, so awesome that I had it for breakfast this morning too!
Whole Wheat Low-Fat Buttermilk Pancakes
Recipe:
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 cup low-fat buttermilk
1 beaten egg
2 Tbsp. Honey
Whisk together all the dry ingredients and set aside. In another bowl whisk together all the wet ingredients. Add the wet to the dry while whisking to combine. DO NOT over mix, if it is a little lumpy that is ok. Just make sure you have no dry spots and you should be good. Let the batter stand for a few minutes, I waited about 15 or so. When ready heat a skillet and either spray with cooking spray or coat with butter. To keep the fat and calories in check I used butter flavor cooking spray. Drop 1/4 cup spoonfuls onto the hot griddle. Cook until you see bubbles and flip for another 1-2 minutes. These cook pretty quick and brown fast because of the wheat so be careful, no washing the dishes while these cook.
We enjoyed them with maple bacon and homemade pomegranate molasses and a fruit salad along side. Beautiful and yummy dinner/breakfast!
The pomegranate molasses is so easy to make you should make your own.
Recipe:
4 cups pomegranate juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup lemon juice.
Combine all ingredients and bring to boil. Once at a boil lower the heat and simmer gentely for about 1 hour. Let cool completely and refridgerate for later use. YUM!
5 comments | tags: breakfast, pancakes, pomegranate molasses, whole wheat, whole wheat pancakes | posted in Food, Recipe
Mar
30
2009
Over the weekend I was not much in the mood for cooking; allergies! So we ate out of course.
M never turns down the chance for pizza; in our house it is a rare treat unless I make 1 from scratch. But for M nothing beats take out so we decided to try a fairly local pizza joint that we had not tried yet; Green Peppers. We had heard pretty good things about it so why not. M of course got a a large 4 cheese pepperoni pizza and an order of hot wings; what he’s a growing a boy! I ordered their eggplant parm on whole wheat. I was asked if I wanted peppers, onions and mushrooms on that but thought that was odd for a parm sandwich so I declined.
When we got our food I was shocked at the size. Lets just say we still have pizza in our fridge. The pizza was very good. Not at all what I think of when I think pizza however. It had a thick crust but not like a deep dish and it was not overly heavy which surprised me for the thickness of the crust. The cheese was abundant but not oozing off your pizza and they did not skimp on the pepperoni but it was not greasy. Over all we liked it! This is the type of pizza I would try non traditional toppings with to mix it up and have fun.
Next up the wings. Now both M and I enjoy our hot wings. As evidence in this post where I tried Alton Brown’s version. So we got an order of 10 HOT. Being that we are pretty picky when it comes to wings I have to confess these were pretty good. Not as crispy as we would like but then again we got take out so they sat in a plastic container steaming themselves and they were still good. Also, their hot sauce is not very hot but definitely tasty.
And lastly I got myself an eggplant parm “grinder”. Up here they call most heroes, grinders even cold ones. I remember when we lived in PA grinders were only hot sandwiches but not cheesesteaks or parmesans. Funny how different regions label things. Anyway back to my sandwich. It was good! The eggplant was thick cut lightly breaded but not deep fried and there was quite a bit of it. The cheese was a good amount but not over whelming and the same with the sauce. I decided on the mild sauce this time around but next time I think I am going to go for the spicy. Over all it had a good taste and not fussy at all.
She may not have been the prettiest girl at the dance but she was the one you wanted to take home if you know what I mean!
So if you ever fine yourself in the Middlebury VT region and want to try something differant you should stop by Green Peppers on Washington St.
1 comment | tags: chicken wings, eggplant parm, grinders, hot wings, pizza | posted in Food, Reviews
Mar
27
2009
Last night I came home and was feeling under the weather. This year has been kicking my but I tell ya! I was feeling in the need of some comfort food. For me that means starch, preferably with cheese! Well considering I have been trying to be healthier this was no easy task.
Usually when I make pasta even though it is only M and I, I make the entire box so that we have it on hand for quick meals throughout the week. Last night we had some nice multi-grain penne just sitting waiting to be dressed in sauce. I asked M whether he felt like red or white sauce and he couldn’t make up his mind so I decided to make both! In under 15 minutes I whipped up restaurant quality Penne ala Vodka.
Recipe:
1 pat butter
drizzle olive oil
2 strips bacon or panchetta cut in small dice
2 cloves garlic chopped fine
1/3 cup vodka
3/4 cup crushed tomatoes
1/2 cream
handful parmigiana cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Melt butter and olive oil in pan and add chopped panchetta or bacon. Saute for a few minutes until you see the meat beginning to brown then add garlic. Saute another 30 seconds. I then drained some of the fat and added the vodka. Let the vodka reduce for another 30 seconds or so and add the tomatoes and cream. Stir to combined and reduce. At the end add the cheese , salt and a good pinch of freshly ground pepper to taste.
Top penne with sauce and enjoy. For M I added a little chicken we had leftover as well. You could also make this a vegitarian meal by not using the panchetta/bacon, it will be just as good. I kw this is not the healthiest version but i cut out some of the fat and used more tomatoe than cream. I this really it is about moderation. A little of this sauce goes a long way. I was able to sucomb to my comfort food craving while still not going completly over bored.
5 comments | tags: ala vodka sauce, multi grain pasta, pasta, penne, vodka sauce | posted in Recipe
Mar
25
2009
Well it has been awhile since I posted a recipe. I have been so busy lately all you have been getting from me are travel posts, restaurant reviews and a wonderful guest post from my buddy with great taste in wine!
So the other morning I was making lunch for M and looked down at the cap of the peanut butter and there was this recipe for Peanut Butter BBQ Grilled Chicken. It sounded very interesting to me. It had a Thai feel to it and I was in the mood to try something a little different. Plus peanut butter lasts so long in my house I was looking for a way to use it up! It was a really easy recipe and didn’t need much tweaking. For us we like things spicy so I punched up the heat a bit. It was a hit.
Recipe
2 lbs Chicken Breast
1/2 Cup Peanut Butter
1/4 Cup Rice Wine Vinegar
1/4 Cup Lemon Juice
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce
6 Cloves Minced Garlic
2 (or more) Tsp. Minced Ginger
1-2 Tsp. Chilli Flakes (or more to taste)
Whisk together everything except the chicken; if too thick add a little water, but you want it to be pretty thick so that it sticks to the chicken. Marinate the chicken for 2 hours or more. It’s still a little chilly up here in VT so grilling outside was not an option so I placed my grill pan in the oven and preheated to 500 degrees. Once nice and hot lay chicken breasts on the grill and cook for about 6-8 minutes per side. A nice trick when using a grill pan is to fill in the grills with some kosher salt, that way it makes it very easy to clean!
With it I served steamed white and brown rice and a great Asian Slaw.
You get a 2 for 1 today. I made up this Asian Slaw to go with the chicken with just stuff I had on hand and to be honest I think it came out better than the chicken! I even had it the next day for lunch and it was even better.
Recipe
1/2 Head Red Cabbage Sliced
2 Med. – Lg. Carrots Grated
3/4 Cup Green Onions Sliced on the Diagonal
1/2 Cup Pea Pods Sliced on the Diagonal
1/2 Cup White Onion Sliced Very Thin
Dressing
1/2 cup Rice Wine Vinegar
3 Tbsp. Olive Oil
1 Green Chili Minced
2 Tbsp. Agave Nectar or Honey
2 Tsp. Minced Ginger
1 Clove Garlic Minced
Whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing and let sit while you prep your veggies. To make my life easier I used a mandolin to make quick and easy work of the cabbage and onion. Mix everything together making sure to coat all the veggies with the dressing. You can eat right away or let sit. I let it hang out in the fridge for about 2 or so hours and the dressing melded great with the veggies while still holding crispness. But the next day was amazing as well and the veggies didn’t loose their crispness too much! I will definately be making this recipe again, next time I am going to try topping it with seared tuna!
ENJOY!
no comments | tags: Asian Red Cabbage Slaw, Asian Slaw, Peanut Butter BBQ Chicken, Peanut Butter Marinade | posted in Food, Recipe
Mar
24
2009
For anyone who likes wine I have a treat today. An old friend of mine who is a chef in NYC and a wine connoisseur has volunteered to guest blog today. He has written a great post exploring the complexities of a mid range Chianti. After reading it if you don’t want a glass your a nun!
So without further ado…
A Beautiful Chianti in an Ocean of Mediocrity
One of the first Italian wines that most Americans reach for is Chianti. However, choosing from this category can be tricky as many estates depend solely on the brand name, Chianti, to sell the product instead of what they put in the bottle. This leaves a minefield of choices for the average consumer in search of an easy drinking Italian red. But fear not, because among those hundreds of bottles of cheap swill, there are a number of gems to be found.
Tonight I write about and drink, Querciabella, a company that continues to strive for excellence in both traditional Italian wine from Tuscany as well as a number of new world styled wines. This is a Chianti from the classico zone (classico meaning the zone in which Chianti was originally created and cultivated) as well as from a producer that prides themselves in that all of their vineyards are now fully organic. Put this together with the 2006 vintage, that was exceptional in Tuscany, and you have a beautiful entry-level bottle that blows away the competition.
Querciabella
Chianti Classico 2006
My Notes
A dark ruby red color. Initially the nose is like a basket of berries in a florist shop but with a little time raspberry fruit comes to the top with hints of fall leaves. Blackberry fruit and orange rind on the initial sip with an earthy, cherry finish and fresh acidity that glides across your palette and leaves you wanting more. This is the epitome of Italian food wine, adding wonderful earth and mushroom notes to a plate of pasta with red sauce, and is balanced enough to reward mid-term cellaring.
Add to all of that the $25 price tag, wide distribution and you have a quality-price-ratio that can’t be beat. Give it a try and if you agree, grab a case and watch this beauty evolve over the years to come.
~Eric G.
1 comment | tags: chianti, querciabella, red wine, Wine | posted in Random, Wine
Mar
16
2009
As promised another Montreal post. Saturday we slept in but awoke to a beautiful but cold day. 
We headed out to discover Old Montreal around noon. On the agenda was the Basilica and lunch! Other than that we figured we would just see where the day took us. To start it was frigid and the sidewalks were covered in ice. A logical person would take a taxi but us we wanted to walk, so walk we did, alot! But to be honest walking really was the best and any excuse to cozy up to M works for me. Fist stop was the Basilica d’ Notre Dame. A miniture version of the 1 in Paris. It did not disapoint. It was majestic and awe inspirering. It had me thinking the whole time that this was only a minature of the original! 
After that we were famished! After wondering down a small cross street we found a nice cafe with a wonderful brunch menu of crepes, eggs benedict, and the like. Across the street we saw a dive hole in the wall advertising pizza and puotine. We walked right in! This place tiny. We were immediately sat at small (small really doesn’t describe it, more like miniture) table in what seemed to be an old alley that had been converted into a room. M ordered the pizza with a side of poutine with bacon and I ordered a grilled four cheese sandwich with a side of puotine. For those not in the know, puotine is this wonderfully heart attach inducing dish made with french fries, a veal or chicken gravy and fresh cheese curds. It is sinful and it took the chill right out of us real quick!
(Sorry cell phone pic)
After that we walked around down to the river and stumbled upon a festival; The Festival of Lights! They had actually built an ice slide in the heart of Old Montreal and people were lined up to take the plunge! I didn’t grab any pictures because honestly my hands were just too cold.
We made our way back to the hotel and relaxed and warmed up till dinner. We took a cab this time back to Old Montreal to an old women’s prison. Yes you read that right, a women’s prison. The restaurant’s name was Da Emma; a quant and qwerky Italian restaurant. As soon as we walked it we were welcomed and seated at a table for 2 in what felt like our own person spot in an other wise busy dinning room. The decor was dark wood beams and stone and cement walls and a mesh of contempary and traditional styles. It actually came together quite nice and had a very warm feel despite once being a penatenchery. We were quickly served an amuse of fresh tomato bruschetta and our drink order (Chinati) was taken as well as the menu presented to us. The menu is hand written on a chalk board entirely in Italian. I was surprised I was able to make my way through the menu ok but the assistance of the waiter was much appreciated!
I am going to forwarn you, the dinning room was very very dark (just the way I like it) but I have this thing about not using my flash at restaurants so the pictures barely came out. I did the best I could but what ever you see imagine 10x more vibriant!
To start we enjoyed an appetizer of smoked salmon carpaccio. This generous portion of salmon concealed a bed of pickled onions and dressed with a healthy drizzle of fruity olive oil and finally topped with fresh baby arugula for a nice peppery bite at the end. I have to say when I first saw this on the menu I was not compelled to order it but M wanted to try it and it was well worth it. However, I was still hankering for sliced prosciutto and fresh buffula mozzerella. Again nothing extra ordinary but so delicious. It was like I had never had either, it was so simple and fresh; it was perfect.
After appetizers we shared 2 entrees. 1 a fresh fettuccine with wild mushrooms and grilled sword fish with cherry tomatoes and cured black olives in a spicy tomato broth topped with fresh baby arugula. The freshness of both were paramount in their success and they were unbelievably successful. The sword fish dish was surprising. I was not expecting the spiciness and the oil cured black olives added that pop that really made the dish stand out. The pasta could not have been better; freshly made and simply dressed with a little garlic and olive oil. The mushrooms were tender and flavorful. Again it was like I was experiencing pasta for the first time. These dishes made me really appreciate the simplicity of fresh ingredients and how wonderful these flavors can be without all the fuss you often find at say some of those chain “I”talian restaurants you find everywhere these days. Along side these dishes was again another simple dish of room temperature grilled eggplant and zucchini dressed with just salt, pepper, garlic and olive oil.
The major disappointment of the night was dessert. I had been looking forward to the Tirimsu all day. I had heard it was the best tirimsu ever and I was going to find out! However it was not to be. They were sold out so I had to settle for a cup of esspresso and an apertif of amoreto.
All was not lost on the dessert front. When we arrived back at the hotel the lounge was still open so we enjoyed a traditional creme brulee and 3 more amorettos! Over all a great night!
no comments | tags: Da Emma, Montreal, Old Montreal, Puotine | posted in Food, Travel
Mar
16
2009
After about a week of having a less than harty appitite I am feeling better. Thanks guys for caring 
Anyhow I am finally going to wrap up Montreal. Brace yourself boys and girls its gonna be a long one so if you need to grab a snack go ahead I’ll wait…. Ok we good? Then lets get on with it!
First I want to say this will definitely not be our last trip to Montreal. It is a beautiful and friendly city and the food; oh the food! So where di we leave off? I believe I left you hangin on my birthday night dinner. On my way home from walking in the rain all day I spotted a very cozy bistro just about 4 blocks from the hotel. Considering my day I figured that would be a perfect little spot to enjoy a nice relaxed dinner. So around 9pm we headed out, it had stopped raining so we figured we would walk. We got about 1/3 of the way there and all of a sudden the sky opened up and pummeled us with ice. M quickly grabbed my hand and pulled us into a bus stop to let it blow over. After a while it hadn’t stopped so we just braved it! We arrived at l’Aromate and were quickly seated in a nice cozy table in the back. The atmosphere was very comfortable, though not overtly a “date” spot it was romantic and casual. We promptly ordered a bottle of wine to take the chill off, a nice Bordeaux; you just can’t go wrong! We also ordered an appetizer to share while we mulled over our dinner options. Roasted baby pears stuffed with goat cheese and wrapped with duck prosciutto with a roasted red pepper coulis. YUM! Sweet, salty, creamy, everything together in 1 bite. So perfect in fact that right now I have baby pears in the refrigerator just waiting for my interpretation!
(Sorry about the quality of the pictures they were very dark)
Next we ordered our main courses. M ordered Chicken Breast stuffed with Portobellos wrapped in prosciutto and topped with a buttery oregano sauce. I know it does not sound extremely interesting but it was extremely tasty. The chicken was cooked perfect, still juicy with a nice touch of fat from the prosciutto. The sauce was not too heavy and went great with the grilled polenta it was served with.
Considering it was my birthday I decided to go for it and I ordered Grilled Sirloin topped with Foie Gras and a Red Wine reduction. Oh Yeahy! My only complaint with this dish was my own fault. I like my meat rare, always have. As a child I used to sneak raw meat from the cutting board. My mother used to say I must have been switched with Rosemary’s Baby at the birth. However, my love of rare meat does not include rare fat, it fact its quite the opposite; I like my fat crispy! Though the meat was cooked perfect to my order given with the cut I could have gone a medium rare. That being said it was still luscious! Just look at that big hunk of fioe gras just sitting on top!
After a wonderful dinner we both ordered dessert! M has this trick he plays, see I prefer to share a dessert but sometimes he just wants it all to himself. To insure that, given my dislike of chocolate he orders the most chocolately thing on the menu and that he did. Warm brownie topped with a tiramasu mouse. From what he says it was to die for! I did try the tiramisu mouse and yes it was yummy.
I decided to finish my dinner with light Vanilla Pot D’ Creme with a raspberry coulis. Very nice and perfect after such a heavy dinner!
Thankfully by the time we had finished, the weather cleared up and though brisk was a much needed and delightfully gratifying walk back to the hotel.
Ok Maybe I won’t be wrapping up Montreal today. But I am very close. Tomorrow I will try again. At least I have given you something to chew on on for now!
2 comments | tags: fioe gras, french bistro, l'Aromate, Montreal | posted in Food, Travel
Mar
12
2009
Hi there! I just wanted to pop in and say hi. And no I have not forgotten about the post I promised to finished up my Montreal trip. You see I came down with the crud and to be honest the last thing I want to think about is food if you get my drift and I think you do. It must have been all that walking in teh rain, sleet, ice and COLD!
Again sorry to keep you waiting and I will be back hopefully shortly to finish up with Montreal.
2 comments | posted in Random, Travel
Mar
5
2009
I have been so busy since getting back. I took alot of pictures but I will spare you some of the more mundane/unrecognizable photos. So where do I begin? I really enjoyed my trip to Montreal. It is a great city, very inviting and really has a European feel to it except its in North America and for me only 2.5 hours away! Given that alone I believe we will be making this trip quite abit.
We stayed right in downtown and only about 4 blocks from Old Montreal. We arrived on Thursday night around 8pm and quickly checked in and unpacked! Since we both had a long day we decided to dine in and ordered room service. Sorry I did not take any photos, to be honest I was hungry and tired and when M reminded me to get the camera I had already taken a bite of my salmon. Later that night I turned off the lights curled up with a glass of wine in front of the huge bay window and looked out on this view and began to settle into vacation mode.
Friday was my actual birthday and I had the day to myself. M had to be at a conferance at 9am so he was up and out while I was still in my robe. I got to relax and enjoy a good cup of coffee as I read the paper then I was off to the spa, it was my birthday after all! After enjoying (yes I said enjoying) a vigarous workout I laid about in the whirlpool before starting my day. I know, oh poor me.
Ok so now on to the good stuff… the food! I decided that nothing would be better than wandering the city on foot, enjoying a nice brunch at a cafe and finishing off by roaming around an art museum. I had this picture in my head and NOTHING was going to change it. So as I headed out for the day not even the rain was going to stop me.
By the time I walked into the cafe I was completely drenched and rather cold. The cafe I found looked so perfect. When you first walk in all you see is a row of delectable pastries. Chocolates, tarts, eclairs, everything you can imagine. They looked too good to eat; like they had all been photoshopped into perfection! Then as you worked your way to the back the savory cases took over. Now I know most people have a real sweet tooth but me I am all about the savory and salty and as soon as I laid eyes on the charcuterie case I was completely in love. They had all sorts of home cured meats from french dried salamies to proscuitto. And oh the cheese all the lovely cheeses. Then there was the gourmet salads and of course the bread; all the wonderous bread! So as was standing there just gawking my number got called and I had to order fast. Being that everything was in french and there was many people waiting I looked at the board and ordered the first thing that I understood; Croque Madame, Soup de Jour and to warm me up a cup of hot chocolate. When they handed me my food they also gave me the dessert of the day; a chocolate filled eclair.
A lot of food right! Yes, though I tried valienty I could not eat it all. I was not quite prepared for the hot chocolate however. I am not a huge chocolate fan, actually I really don’t like it but I do enjoy a cup of hot coco on a rainy day. Well what I think of as hot chocolate apparently is not what they were thinking. I was served a cup of molten melted chocolate and a side of steamed milk. I know for almost everyone is the world that would be heaven but me not so much. I drank almost 1/2 before given up, just way too rich and too chocolately for me. Being that I am not a chocoholic I was not so keen on the eclair either. I had that wrapped up to go for M who has an unbelievable sweet tooth.
This is what I presented M as he returned from his long day of Microsoft ramblings.
This is what I got in return!
Well like I said alot of photos! Tomorrow I will fill you in on how we braved an ice storm to have a fabulous dinner at a classic french bistro. Au revoir!
4 comments | tags: cafe, chocolate eclair, croque madame, Montreal | posted in Food, Travel
Mar
3
2009
Well yes I am home but honestly I am not to thrilled about it. We had a great time and ate very well! I promise I will update you all with lots of photos and fill you in on everything.
Bon Voyage (for now!)
2 comments | posted in Random, Travel
