ACCORDING TO ALG.
if you’re looking for me, i’m back!
but i’ve moved over to according to alg.
come read along as i tackle one new recipe a week in attempts to knock “become a better cook” off my bucket list. with the help of pinterest, i’ll also work on one diy project a month and chat about some of my favorite finds on the internet, share photos and adventures, and more.
FBD.
yep, i think it’s official… i’m going to need a french bull dog one day.
this is why:
question: how can you resist that?
answer: you can’t.
thanks to kelly for bringing this mug into my life.
BOSTON FOOD FINDS.
one day back in september, i was scrolling through my twitter feed and read a tweet from @bostonfoodfinds that i could win tickets to one of their beacon hill/back bay food tours that weekend. hey, that sounds fun – i want to win. and win i did – score! so on a saturday afternoon at 1:00pm, i met in the lobby of the liberty hotel, where audrey (the owner/founder) introduced herself to me. audrey started boston food finds at the beginning of 2011 and now offers the beacon hill/back bay tour, as well as a greenway tour and one at faneuil hall/the north end. she plans to expand to cambridge and other neighborhoods as interest grows.
once everyone was gathered, we headed downstairs to our first stop, scampo. there we were greeted by carah mclaughlin, the well-known manager of one of lydia shire’s restaurants (she also owns towne stove and spirits). we gathered around the prep area and open oven, where carah spoke about the restaurant and introduced simon restrepo, the chef, as he prepared our tasting menu.
we tasted:
1) rum soaked wild king salmon, served with house made toasted sweet brown bread and garnished with capers, diced red onions, shredded hard boiled eggs, and sliced persimmon.
2) shrimp etouffee, made from mirepoix shrimp shells, ginger, green peppers, red jalapenos, lobster, lime juice, white wine, and shrimp stock, and finished with cream and butter.
now, for someone who doesn’t love seafood and is making strides to increase her seafood knowledge and palette, this was a bit of a surprise to have a lot of fish on her plate. not wanting to be rude, knowing that everyone speaks highly of lydia shire’s food, and attempting to try something different, i tasted each of the items. salmon and shrimp rank rather low on my seafood preference list, but the rum added a lot of different tastes to the salmon and the broth of the etouffee was delicious.
we also tried their famous lobster pizza, which was named the best pizza in massachusetts by food network.
the pizza really was very good, even though it wouldn’t top my list to order normally. they even gave us the recipe! the toppings include shallots, garlic oil, ricotta salata, lobster cream sauce, scallions, and chopped lobster meat.
after a stroll through the kitchen and the private dining room, we even discovered that none of the chairs in the restaurant make noise when you move them due to noise-reducing pieces on the bottom that can be found at home depot — nice touch! next up was savenor’s market on charles street.
the original shop was opened in cambridge and was a favorite of julia child (whom i’m told i’m related to by marriage, but don’t ask me to explain the connection). the cambridge market burned down, but was later rebuilt, and the one we visited was built in 2002. best known for their prime meats, they have their own line of bacon and true bacon lovers can become members of their bacon society, with specials shipped straight to your house.
you can also find a wide variety of exotic meats. personally, i don’t feel the need to cook up any python fillets, but word on the street (or in the shop) is that people come in specifically looking for rare meats to try. the butcher suggested his favorites: bear bacon or elk patties.
before leaving, we tried another fishy dish: a crostini with salmon something-or-other. that’s probably not the technical term, huh? i was rather surprised not to try meat since that’s what they’re known for (and i would have eagerly tried some of their bacon), but i did taste one and was ready for another type of cuisine.
luckily, i was a fan of what was coming next… we soon arrived at beacon hill chocolates.
you can’t really go wrong with chocolate and they certainly packed a lot of options into that one store. i’m not complaining. one of the employees gathered us at the far end of the counter to talk about the shop, the selection, and different kinds of chocolate.
then came the best part: the taste test. they were generous with their samples and even gave us some goodies (truffles and brownie pops) to take home. i resisted the temptation to buy even more chocolate (you get a 10% discount on the day of your tour), but it would be a nice place to visit for some gifts in the future.
our crew walked through the boston gardens (with a quick bathroom break – thanks taj hotel) to continue tasting at sabatino & co. on newbury street. although i had heard of the rest of the stops on our tour, i didn’t know about this place and was pleasantly surprised to find a shop full of olive oil, balsamic, truffles, and more.
it was more of a taste-what-you-want set-up with a brief history from the event coordinator. surprisingly, the standout for me was not an olive oil, but the pistachio cream. it was a creamy spread that tasted a bit like hazelnut and will definitely need to make its way into my kitchen for a special occasion.
the next stop was turner fisheries at the westin copley place. here i expected something with fish and we were served their award winning clam chowder (and again were provided with the recipe).
at this point in the tour, i was getting a bit tired… and full, so the picture-taking and history-learning dwindled a bit.
for our final stop, we walked back to newbury street and topped off the day at sweet cupcakes. i happen to be a cupcake lover, so i was a happy girl.
they had a wide variety of fall flavors, as well as their standard favorites. it was hard to pick, but i finally went with the caramel apple.
“seasonal apple preserves fill the sweet vanilla bean cake, caramel buttercream atop and a gooey drizzle.”
the little stick was a cute touch, but more importantly, it was really good. is it sad that this was my favorite sample of the day? i don’t think so. the mojito from kickass cupcakes may need to watch out. (actually, it would be hard to knock that one out of the picture.)
and that’s the end of the tour, folks! if you an afternoon to spare, it’s a great new option for both tourists and locals alike. pros: great concept, i got to taste test at five (i’d already been to sweet) new locations, personalized service from the establishments, and boston/food history. cons: the length was a little much for someone like me who doesn’t do very well with guided tours (i’m more of a tell-me-a-little-history-and-let-me-explore kind of girl) and the seafood samples were a little too plentiful this time around. for more information on the tours, you can get more information here. meanwhile, i’m going to go drool over that photo of the pistachio cream….
i also met some fun people on this tour, including erica, who is fairly new to boston. she talks about food reviews, day trips, and more at boston rookie. take a look!
AMERICAN PROVISIONS.
last week, with an empty fridge waiting for a peapod delivery, i decided to take a walk down to american provisions in southie to find something for dinner. the store has gourmet food prices to match its selection, but the quality of the products is a welcome addition to the neighborhood in my opinion. although i didn’t need any assistance, the employees have also always been willing to help during other trips to the shop.
my dinner consisted of nuovo ravioli from their freezer section, supplemented by some french bread and tomato basil sauce from stop & shop (conveniently located a few minutes from american provisions). it was a tough decision when goat cheese ravioli sat next to this flavor, but peas, proscuitto, and provolone seemed like a more unique option. and it turns out that nuovo pasta is made in stratford, ct – my mom grew up there. i also purchased some fresh green beans to snack on while i waited for the pasta to cook.
conveniently, i also had an open bottle of wine in the refrigerator. earlier in the week, i had stopped at southie liquors, intent on purchasing a red wine to expand my palette… riesling tends to be my go-to wine. and then they had a wine tasting when i walked in the door and that all changed.
this washington hills riesling was a little on the sweet side, but it was refreshing and the price was right ($9.99).
while the pasta boiled, i brushed some olive oil on the bread and stuck it under the broiler. minutes later, i had a quick, easy, and delicious dinner. watch out goat cheese pasta, you’re next.
EVERYDAY.
STYLE.
and i’m going to admit that its arrival made me really excited.
dorky, i know.
EASING BACK INTO IT.
having taken a vacation day today (in anticipation of a relaxing day prior to an evening concert… which i realized is actually mid-week), i’ve been lucky enough to ease back into this week after a weekend of walking and eating. more on those travels to come, but for now, i’m enjoying a photo i snapped in my old hood, the south end.
CHILI: REMIX.
when you make a lot of chili and then you eat a lot of chili, things start to get a bit monotonous and you’re going to need to mix it up. reheated meat and bean and vegetable goodness with the chips and the greek yogurt just wasn’t going to hack it for too long. so i got a little more creative (see above). just boiling some pasta made this chili new again. funky pasta with nooks and crannies works well and i just so happen to think it might even taste better than normal (read: spaghetti, penne, elbow) pasta. mixing together the pasta with the chili, topping it with cheese, and melting it gave me instant chili mac. or maybe it’s a cheesy chili pasta bake (except that i cheated and microwaved it to melt the cheese). either way, shazam! … a whole new meal.
A BOWL FULL OF CHILI.
there’s pretty much nothing better, easier, and heartier to make on a brisk fall day than chili. i’m rather proud of the fact that i successfully made a killer turkey chili in the spring and proceeded to make it every other week until i grew a little overwhelmed with leftovers day after day. but it was delicious and i’ve had some time to recuperate, so with my stomach growling and a chill in the air, i headed to whole foods on my way to the t after work (armed with my handy livingsocial deal – whoever made that decision was a genius) and a short list of ingredients.
– packet of chili seasoning
– tomatoes, fresh or canned
– small onion (already in my fridge)
– red or green pepper
– can of pinto beans
– can of corn
– can of tomato sauce (8 oz.)
– tortilla chips, optional
– greek yogurt, optional
since most of my shopping is done at the sub-par stop & shop in my neck of the woods, i was a little thrown off in my search for a chili packet in the cramped and crowded whole foods. {by the way, i could spend a ridiculous amount of money at whole foods… and too often do, thanks to the prices, eyes bigger than my stomach, and going grocery shopping right before dinner. i take full responsibility for the latter two. and yet, i still continue to veer into the store despite the prices and the customers who truly seem to have never navigated a grocery store before. it gets to me every time… and actually helps me get out of there as soon as possible. at least my wallet appreciates them.} oddly, whole foods did not have any ground turkey in the refrigerated section. whomp, whomp. i picked the ground beef instead and went on my merry way. i was also seconds away from giving in to a jarred chili starter that required much fewer ingredients, but would be a lot less homemade, when i finally, finally found the golden ticket of chili spices. sa-weet! now, get me to the register and the exit.
back in my kitchen, i chopped up a bit of onion and tossed it into a pan with the ground beef.
next, i added a large pot to the stove top and dumped in the can of corn (drained), pinto beans (drained and rinsed), and can of tomato sauce.
i diced the pepper (i went with red, but later wished i had picked up a green one too) and a medium-sized tomato to add to the pot. into the pot they went. i believe the success of the inaugural batch of chili was due to a sizable helping of vegetables, so i later added another tomato.
while the meat was browning in the pan, i opened up the packet of chili seasoning and finally read the directions on the back. turns out, it called for some cumin, sugar, salt, and a little flour; together with the seasoning and a cup of water, i added them all to the pot. in the past, i have used a standard mccormick’s original chili seasoning mix and have always been pleased with the end result. this packet was a little more adventurous, but ultimately, i think i preferred the mccormick seasoning.
so then you’re left with this tasty-looking mixture:
you let it simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. it’s the perfect time to read, watch tv, clean (ha), have a glass of wine, you name it. just hope you’re not really hungry, because it will feel like a very long 30 minutes. i chose the wine and tv to see what shevonne had to say to harvey on tmz.
thirty minutes later: moment of truth. i scooped some into a bowl, adding a spoonful of greek yogurt (my favorite sour cream substitute) and some green mountain gringo tortilla chips.
yum. truth be told, a few too many pinto beans for my taste and could use the green pepper that i left in the produce department of whole foods, but all and all, a success. the best part was that i had dinner for the evening, plus four tupperware containers for leftovers to bring to work for lunch or freeze or have for dinner throughout the week. easy, delicious, and efficient.
SEIZE THE DAY.
two things i learned about yesterday:
it does not, however, feature christian bale.
2 – this video exists and i find it hilarious. to be noted, i prefer the original, but come on, is that crazy or what?
how my day just got better. 