Not that kind of “biker” joint.

I don’t know what it is about this week, but I am tired! And it’s not even Friday evening yet. I’m looking forward to the weekend, which I wish was another 3-day one, because everyone seems to be throwing plans into the open, left and right. There’s a big food truck gathering tonight that looks tempting (though I’m weary about massive crowds after 5pm). I’m also running a 5k tomorrow and am hoping to try a new restaurant at some point during the weekend.

I did get a chance to try DC’s new (and only as far as I know) ramen joint, Toki Underground. I had some time to kill before a late gathering with friends in the Atlas district, so I decided to hit up Toki for a solo dinner. Toki is small, with very limited seating, but the food was very affordable and absolutely delicious. I’m hoping to come back and take some legit photos at some point but here’s a look (via my iPhone) at the Miso ramen I had last night:

That ain’t your typical dorm-approved, microwaveable ramen, folks.

I know this is jumping my timeline backwards, but I did want to tell you guys about Bikes, Beans and Bordeaux in Orlando, FL. I had wanted to take The Bf to The Ravenous Pig, which has been lauded by many a blogger and Yelper alike, but lunchtime was pushed into the 1pm hour and with the 30-minute drive to downtown, we wouldn’t have gotten there in time. So I opted for another highly-rated spot in Winter Park, Bikes, Beans and Bordeaux. Upon reading the name of the place, though, I assumed that this was some sort of fancified biker bar. Turns out the “Bikes” part of their name refers to bicycles. Much less intimidating.

Yet again, another cute spot in Winter Park. I guess you could say Winter Park is the Brooklyn of Orlando: more local & mom-and-pop cafes with unique concepts and really great food occupy space here than do Olive Gardens and McDonald’s. Obviously I like this area a bit more then my own neighborhood.

B3 does lunchtime foods well. I can’t vouch for their salads because I didn’t have one, but I really enjoyed my soup and sandwich combo:  The Messenger sandwich, plus a bowl of corn bisque. The Messenger has red apple, red onion, Swiss cheese, and honey mustard, and I added sliced turkey for a little extra, all on wheat and hot-pressed. Sure it’s a super simple, but I wouldn’t have thought of apple and onion and cheese as a delicious combo. It was. Dipped into the bisque, which was creamy yet chunky and had a distinct curry tang in it, the sandwich tasted even better.

And yes, you get a little bag of jelly beans on the side! Plus chips and a pickle or carrot sticks (I went with chips & a pickle – I looove pickles).

I liked the concept of this cafe. I didn’t really experience any of the Beans or Bordeaux part, as it was too late for coffee and too early for wine. But including both along with a wide variety of food choices is a cool idea, as well as tying it all together with the cycling theme. They played video of past cycling races on a flatscreen tv and the staff wears those caps that cyclists often wear (I have no idea what the actual term for those are). Plus, all the dishes are named with some sort of connection to bicycles and cycling. Never mind that I haven’t sat on a bike in probably over a year. I’d come back to B3.

Now if someone would just open up a restaurant with a running+coffee+baked goods concept…

My bakery obsession followed me to Orlando.

Hi again…:)

Yes, I know how long it’s been since I last posted, even though I’ve been back from Orlando for a week. Having a full-time job, plus side projects, plus family visiting, tends to shrink my free time. These Orlando posts have been a long time coming, so I apologize for that.

First off, Happy Running Day! I know it’s pretty late in the day (at least on the East Coast), but I consider myself a novice runner as well as a novice nosher/cook, so it’s only fitting that I wish everyone a happy running day.

Second, I give you one reason, of many, why I run: so I can eat baked goods like this without feeling (too) guilty after:

Oh yeah. This is Blue Bird Bakeshop‘s “Tuxedo” cupcake: a rich, chocolate cake with thick cream cheese frosting and mini chocolate chips. This was a good, solid cupcake. Not the best cupcake I ever had (that honor still goes to Baked & Wired), but this was well made.

One of my BFF’s Faye, whom I went to high school with in Orlando and have stayed friends with since then, introduced me to this place. We had stopped by this small strip mall in the Winter Park neighborhood to eat at Bikes, Beans and Bordeaux (which I’ll tell you about in my next post). Turns out, the cutest little bakery in Orlando, which she had discovered recently, was in the same strip mall.

Seriously, this place is tiny, but it’s adorable. They use all kinds of different, vintage-looking places and cups and they have a small table of obscure candy and gum you can buy.

This was The Bf’s “Sweet cake,” with vanilla buttercream and white sprinkles. Again, a good, solid cupcake with a fluffy cake and creamy, sweet-but-not-too-sweet frosting.

That thing to the left of the photo, which I unfortunately failed to snap a better photo of, is one of Blue Bird’s salted caramel brownies. That, my friends, took the cake (pun intended). The brownie was big – a relatively large disc of a brownie – with gooey caramel baked inside and I’m pretty sure that’s Fleur de Sel or some kind of fancy salt on top. It was just a really wonderful brownie, perfectly fudgy and thick and all.

It’s probably a good thing Blue Bird wasn’t around when I was growing up in Orlando because I would’ve made this a daily stop, and I would’ve been chubbier than I already was back in the day. But it’s great to see and hear about new small businesses popping up lately in a land that’s inundated with chains. Even the food truck trend has reached Orlando – while looking up lunch options, quite a few highly rated trucks popped up in my search. This is the hidden face of Orlando that I wanted to at least get a taste of, because I know there are a lot of very new but promising local restaurants, bakeries, and cafes. Blue Bird is one I’ll definitely come back to on my next visit.

Not all “hospital food” is bad

Squeee! I’m going home! My hometown, I mean.

I’m looking forward to both homemade meals from Mom as well as food from local or Southern chains, like Sonic and Steak n’ Shake or Publix subs and Tijuana Flats’ burritos. Yes, I realize how unhealthy all of that sounds. I DON’T CARE.

I have good memories of Sonic and Steak n’ Shake, by the way. My friend Lan and I used to have Sonic dates when were UF students in Gainesville. We’d hop in one of our cars and make the 15-minute-or-so drive to the only Sonic I knew about in the area. Bonding over burgers. Loved it. Steak n’ Shake was a common after-school hangout in Orlando because it was close to my high school. And it was one of the default spots for post-clubbing grub in college (that is if we didn’t get the cheapo $5 pizzas that pizza guys would sell right outside the clubs). To this day, those are two of the select few chains that I purposely make time to visit when I’m back home.

Greasy chains won’t be the only places I’ll be noshing at though, there are a few spots I have in mind that I haven’t visited before, so hopefully I’ll have enough time to visit at least 1 or 2. And of course, I’ll be sure to tell you all about them.

Funny enough I have a recipe for you guys that’s not so much on the greasy side.  Turkey burgers! And guess where I learned how to make a turkey burger.

The Mayo Clinic! Yes, a non-profit chain of hospitals and medical researchers  taught me how to make a turkey burger. Well, actually, what happened is that I had a package of ground turkey thawed in the fridge and the intent of making turkey burgers. Through a short Google search I came across this recipe, which ended up including a perfectly short list of ingredients, all of which I had on hand. It was healthy, easy, and quick, exactly what I look for and need on a weeknight. I didn’t even know the Mayo Clinic develops recipes, but it suppose it makes sense. If you’re going to tell people to eat right, you might as well show them how.

Funny though, when I told The Bf where I got the recipe from, he thought I was talking about the Betty Ford Clinic. Recipes from a drug rehab center. I suppose if you’re going to get addicts to eat something instead of shoot up, these burgers would be a good start because they were damn good.

And juicy, if you can believe that! Turkey burgers are notorious for being on the dry side, since it’s such a lean meat. I think the Worcestershire sauce helped with the juiciness. And although this includes Tabasco, I could barely taste it. So for a spicier burger, I’ll add more next time. Because of what I had on hand, and because I wasn’t concerned with sticking to 244-calories-per-complete-burger, I tweaked things a bit. But if you’re trying to be more health-conscious, I would definitely recommend checking out the recipe on Mayo Clinic’s site, as it was a very good base for basic turkey burgers. Just don’t tell them I indulged myself a little.

Turkey Burgers (from the Mayo Clinic)

Ingredients

• 1 pound ground turkey breast
• 1/4 cup dried Italian bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1 teaspoon Tabasco (hot) sauce
• whole-grain buns
• tomato slices
• red onion slices
• Fresh spinach
• Provolone cheese
• salt and pepper
• Condiments: ketchup, light mayo, or whatever you like

Directions

Combine the ground turkey breast, bread crumbs, chopped onion, parsley, Worcestershire sauce and hot sauce in a large bowl. Mix well and season with salt and pepper. Divide turkey mixture into equal-sized patties (I managed to get 5 thick ones out of this).

Using a skillet or a grill pan (I used a grill pan – you can also do this on a charcoal grill/gas grill/broiler). Lightly coat the pan with cooking spray.

Grill burgers until nicely browned on both sides and heated through, about 7 minutes a side. If adding cheese, I like to melt it by putting it on top of the patties at the last 30 seconds of grilling the second side. Place on buns and top with spinach, tomato, red onion and condiments of choice.

Are there any restaurants or even restaurants chains that bring back special memories to you? 

Somethings new

I had a few changes in my morning routine today. I usually wake up at 6 a.m. to work out or run, otherwise I take rest days and sleep in until 7:45. Today, however, instead of sleeping in I actually got out of bed at 6:45 and got started on the day. I actually managed to fit in laundry and finishing a design project, in addition to my usual routine of making coffee, debating outfit choices, showering, changing, eating breakfast and getting my lunch ready. Who knew you could get so much done when you decide not to sleep in?!?

I even had time to read! I downloaded and scrolled through the latest digital issue of Elle. And for something else different, I popped open a new treat that I received in my May Foodzie tasting box – almond biscotti, from the Bari company in California.

The biscotti turned out to be a delicious addition to my breakfast; I loved the strong almond flavor and the bits of almond nut embedded in the cookie. Combined with my coffee from The Coffee Bean (gifted from my friend Lindsey after her recent Cali trip), it all made for a very pleasant and California-laid back morning. Which was just what I needed: a break from the usual hectic routine, and a reason to convince me to ignore my will to sleep in and make 6a.m. wake-ups a daily thing.

I realize I’m actually posting the day after another post. I’m trying to also make this a routine.

**My thoughts on Bari’s biscotti are totally my own, and not solicited.

Brownie bits to bulgogi

I had a chance to try a few new things and places recently, as well as returning to a favorite. I was literally stuffed to the core by Sunday night, I had a full-on gut going on. Oh well. It meant a happy belly. Here’s where I ate, and what:

1. Pinkberry – DC got its first Pinkberry recently and despite having passed by Pinkberrys plenty of times in NYC, I never actually bothered to go into one until I had some downtime on Saturday in Dupont Circle. The district has been inundated with frozen yogurt spots within the past year, and the pool is only getting deeper with options. Frozen yogurt isn’t my go-to dessert (I like baked goods a bit more if you haven’t noticed), but this definitely hit the sweet spot. I like that that they have a small selection of flavors, not just the standard tart/original flavor. I had coconut fro-yo with strawberries, pumpkin granola, and brownie bits. Loved it! I’d never seen pumpkin granola at a fro-yo place before so I was happy to be able to try something really original.

2. The Karen Mary Co.’s Marshmallows – The Bf picked up some of this local confectionery’s marshmallows at the West End Cinema one day and gave them to me as a treat. Again – and I suppose I’m more particular about dessert than I realized – I don’t normally go for straight up eating marshmallows for dessert. But these were damn good marshmallows! We shared a bag of coconut marshmallows – soft marshmallows covered in toasted coconut – and strawberry marshmallows covered in dark chocolate sprinkled with sea salt. They turned out to be way more delicious than your standard marshmallow, plus I could snack on one or two and feel satisfied without risking a sugar overload. If you’re in the DC area, check them out.

3. The Chesapeake Room – I hate to admit it, having lived here for 3.5 years already, but I haven’t ventured far enough or often enough into Eastern Market and Barracks Row. It’s really a nice area, especially on a breezy, post-rainstorm, Sunday evening. The Bf and I decided to come here while walking around looking for a place for dinner. The menu is kind of small, but there is something for everyone – buffalo burgers, fish, roasted chicken, entree salads. We enjoyed this appetizer to start off, the Fried Green Tomato Crab Stack: two fried green tomatoes sandwiching a mound of Maryland crab salad, with fresh basil and a tomato jam. The combination of textures was my favorite part of this dish. There was crunch from the fried tomato and a nice creaminess from the crab, with a little bit of spice from the jam.

4. Honeypig – This is pretty much a staple among my friends and I whenever we’re way out in Virgina, whether that is Annandale (a.k.a. K-town) or Centreville (a.k.a. K-Town Jr.), which is where I was Saturday night. After spending a few hours at Spa World, we had worked up an appetite, and oh, how convenient! There’s a Honeypig here. There’s also a Bonchon Chicken here but we actually held ourselves back and deferred to Korean BBQ. Who doesn’t love beef and pig wonderfully marinated in the tears of angels? I mean, marinated in whatever they marinate the meat in. I have no idea. But it’s delicious. I’m particularly a fan of their Bulgogi and their Galbee, especially wrapped up in a huge lettuce leaf with some kimchee and dipped in the salty-gingery sauce they give you. When it comes to detoxing in a sauna and then eating back all that weight you sweat off, I’m convinced Koreans know how to do it best. I’ll happily follow in those footsteps.

Any great local restaurants that you’ve recently enjoyed?

Venturing south of the border

My experience with cooking Mexican food reaches as far as opening a packet of taco seasoning and dumping it on ground beef with some water, then putting the taco meat in a tortilla with lettuce and cheese. That “recipe” definitely works for busy nights when I want a taco fix, but I realized recently I ought to try branching out. I’ve managed to get away from the semi-homemade realm of cooking for other cuisines, but not yet Mexican.

I don’t feel ready to venture into the more authentic Mexican dishes, like mole, but I feel that starting with dishes like enchiladas are a good stepping stone. This recipe seemingly has more ingredients and steps than I’d normally bother with on a weeknight, but it turned out delicious and we did manage to eat by around 9pm, not too late. In hindsight, it might’ve helped to have cooked and shredded the chicken the night before, or just bought a rotisserie chicken and shredded it. Cooking chicken breasts and then shredding them myself was way more laborious than I thought it would be and it added a considerable amount to my cooking time. At least I got a bit of muscle out of it.

Huge upside to this dish: it’s healthy. I’m not on Weight Watchers, but I love that Gina’s Skinny Recipes includes nutritional info (along with WW points). I knew to just have 2 enchiladas at most per meal, which was still filling and not nearly as caloric as what you’d probably find at Chevy’s.  And it was so tasty. The cumin and oregano really combined well with the tomato flavor, and I was happy with the spice level using just 2 chipotle chiles. Also, this dish was easy to just pair with whatever vegetables I had on hand to balance out my plate. I just sauteed some asparagus and diced shallot in olive oil and sprinkled artisan pepper salt toward the end of cooking. (I would definitely recommend this Didi Davis Artisan Food Sumac Pepper Salt - I received a sample of it in a Foodzie tasting box and now I sprinkle it every time I sauteé or roast vegetables now.)

I think these were worthy of being called restaurant-quality. Granted, it’s slim pickins’ here in DC so if I can manage to make a delicious Mexican dish at home instead of wasting $15 on it at a restaurant, I’m all for that. The Bf and I were both really happy with how this turned out, so I know I’ll make it again, whether that’s for a few days’ of meals or for a gathering (this would’ve been great for a Cinco de Mayo party but we just went out drinking instead…).

Chicken Enchiladas (from Gina’s Skinny Recipes)

For the sauce:

• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1-2 tbsp chipotle chilis in adobo sauce (my Safeway has an Hispanic foods section, so I imagine most supermarkets have the same or at least an international section. I think brand I used was Goya.)
• 1-1/2 cups tomato sauce
• 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1/2 tsp ground cumin
• 3/4 cup fat free chicken broth
• kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste

For the chicken: 

• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• 8.5 oz (2 breast halves) cooked shredded chicken breast
• 1 cup diced onion
• 2 large clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 cup cilantro
• kosher salt
• 1 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp chipotle chili powder
• 1/3 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup tomato sauce
• 8 (6-inch) reduced carb whole wheat flour tortillas
• 1 cup shredded low fat Mexican cheese
• Nonstick cooking spray

In a medium saucepan, spray oil and sauté garlic. Add chipotle chiles, chili powder, cumin, chicken broth, tomato sauce, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes. Set aside until ready to use. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onions and garlic on low until soft, about 2 minutes. Add chicken, salt, cilantro, cumin, oregano, chili powder, tomato sauce, chicken broth, and cook 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Spray a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish with non-stick spray. Put 1/3 cup chicken mixture into each tortilla and roll it. Place on baking dish seam side down. Top with sauce and cheese. Cover with aluminum foil and bake in the oven on the middle rack for 20-25 minutes.

Let cool for a few minutes before serving – Gina suggest sour cream and/or scallions – I ate it with sour cream and it helped offset the spiciness nicely.

Do you have a favorite Mexican dish?

Mmm. Carbs and cream.

Hey friends.

I know, I know – it’s been awhile. Last Saturday was my last day of Illustrator class (I take design classes at a small art & design school here in DC). With a week to complete a final project, and only evenings after work to actually do so, I inadvertently pushed the blog aside to focus. But the project is turned in and class is over (for this semester at least).

So to catch you guys up on things, I did run that 8k I mentioned awhile back. And I ran the whole thing, never had to stop and walk! That was my main goal, to run the entire race, pace myself and get used to running in crowds. I’ll tell you, it felt really great. Really, though, I’m one of those crazies who actually enjoys running. I felt so fulfilled having ran a longer distance than the 5k I did last year, and it affirmed my desire to race and reach even farther distances.

My friend Ed (in the green outfit) and I, about to cross the finish line. Please disregard my mismatched outfit, my good black pants were in the laundry.

So I apologize now if I start talking a lot more about running and fitness. I mean, if I’m going to post photos and recipes of cookies and brownies, I might as well help motivate you guys to burn it all off, right?

Speaking of foods that are not-so-good-for-you-but-are-delicious-and-somehow-I-justify-eating-because-I-ran-4-miles-today…

Cream. I love creamy desserts like pudding and mousse. I like the creamy whatever-it-is inside Cadbury Creme Eggs. I love topping scones with Devonshire cream. And I love cream sauces on pasta. I know this is not a healthy love affair so I try to only take it in doses. Which is hard, though, when throwing together a tasty pasta dish with cream sauce is almost as easy as tossing a salad.

This is another one of my super simple recipes that started off as one recipe and then turned into an idea for an easy dinner solution. I’ve never made a proper alfredo or any other sort of cream sauce, so I wouldn’t exactly say this is anything close to a real Italian dish. But I love that pasta is easy to prepare and works great with all kinds of meats, vegetables and sauces. So it’s my fallback on when I want something that I can experiment with and will still want to eat once completed.

This started when I came across a recipe for creamed mushrooms on toast by the Amateur Gourmet. I admit, I wasn’t really turned on by the idea of mushrooms and cream on a piece of bread, so I opted instead to put the creamed mushrooms on pasta. Slowly, as I made this more and more, I’d take away or add some ingredients, and it has since become a weird fusion of creamed mushrooms and an alfredo sauce.

Yes, I realize how rich that sounds.  It pretty much is, which is why I’ve delegated this recipe to solo nights when I want pasta, don’t have fresh tomatoes or canned tomatoes, and just want to indulge. A lot. After eating this, I’m usually in a happy food coma and I don’t even crave dessert after (shocking!). I also love that ingredients can easily be omitted or replaced – I’ve used macaroni pasta instead of spaghetti with this and it was like a fancified version of macaroni & cheese. I’ve also made this totally vegetarian, without sausage. And I actually don’t miss the sausage at all, because it’s such a filling dish. I’ve also added spinach to the sauce before, making this an even lovelier combo of creamed mushrooms, creamed spinach, and an alfredo sauce. You’l definitely have leftover heavy cream after making it since you don’t need a whole carton. But it probably won’t go to waste. Heavy cream lasts surprisingly long. And if you’re like me, you’ll crave this again soon enough.

Pasta with Mushroom Cream Sauce (and Sausage)

Ingredients

• 1 serving of pasta (I prefer whole-grain spaghetti or macaroni, it’s actually the only pasta I’ll use at home!)
• 1 link sausage (I used spicy Italian chicken sausage, you know, to make me feel like I’m being a little more healthy.)
• 1/4 sliced medium yellow onion
• a handful of cremini mushrooms
• oil or butter (EVOO to be on the healthy side, butter if you want a richer taste.)
• chopped, fresh thyme (Dried works just as well here.)
• 1/3 cup heavy cream, possibly a little more
• white cooking wine
• salt and pepper
• A 3-fingered pinch of flour
• 1/2-cup to 3/4-cup of grated cheese (I’ve used Parmesan, Gruyere, and an Italian cheese mix. Any one of these or a combo will work.)
• Optional: about 1/4 cup of reserved pasta water, spinach

Directions

Cook the pasta according to package directions. Slice the sausage and brown the pieces in a small skillet. Meanwhile, in a large skillet over medium heat, heat about 1-2 tablespoons of oil or butter. Add the sliced onions and allow to cook until fragrant and a little soft. Toss in the mushrooms and sprinkle with a little bit of salt and pepper. Allow the mushrooms to get slightly brown. If you want to add spinach, add it here, otherwise add a splash of white wine. When the wine has evaporated, sprinkle with thyme and toss the mixture. Add the browned sausage and toss together. Add about 1/4 cup of the heavy cream and combine well. This will cook down a bit, so if you want more of an even sauce-to-pasta ratio, add another splash or two of cream. Add the pinch of flour to thicken the sauce and stir. If it’s too thick to your liking, add a little bit of pasta water to thin it out. Depending on how cheesy you want your sauce, add a 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of cheese. Add the pasta (I usually don’t dump the whole serving, I like a lot of sauce to pasta). Toss to coat the pasta with sauce and if desired, top with even more cheese.

So do you have a favorite type of pasta? Tomato-based sauce, or cream-based, what’s your preference?

And if I start writing more about running are you going to stop reading? (I hope not!)

Moroccan made easy

I love, love, love Moroccan food.  Well, at least the Moroccan food that I can get here in the states. I’ve never been to Morocco, and the farthest I’ve gone to actually eating the cuisine in the actual country was when I stumbled upon a great Moroccan restaurant in Paris a few years ago while vacationing with my family.

I just love how richly flavored the food is, and how it relies on combining all kinds of spices and adds fruits to savory dishes. My knowledge of Moroccan food is very, very limited, so I won’t say much on that. But I always imaged it that cooking Moroccan cuisine is difficult and very time-consuming. I’m sure it’s more of an undertaking than what cooking this recipe was like, which I actually found by clicking on a Campbell’s ad in a Tasting Table email. Don’t ask me why I actually clicked an ad on anything. I’m pretty sure the words “Moroccan chicken” caught my eye. And then when I saw how relatively easy the recipe is, I was determined to try it.

I will say this – the recipe needs tweaking. Moroccan food is supposed to be very flavorful, and yes, this is a very simple and Americanized take on it, but the taste left me wanting more. It was actually a bit better the following days when I ate it as leftovers, because some of the flavor of the chicken and the golden raisins seeped through the stew as a whole. I think next I try this, I’ll add more spices – maybe turmeric, cumin or coriander (or all three)? Or I could stop being a lazy American and just learn how to make an authentic Moroccan dish.

Moroccan Chicken Stew (via Campbell’s Kitchen)

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 8 skinless, bone-in chicken thighs (about 2 pounds)
• 2 medium red onions, sliced (about 2 cups)
• 1 large green pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 1⁄2 cups)
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon curry powder
• 1 can (10 3⁄4 ounces) Campbell’s® Condensed Tomato Soup
• 1⁄3 cup golden raisins
• 1 can (about 15 ounces) chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed and drained
• 1⁄3 cup slivered almonds, toasted

Directions

Heat the oil in a 5-quart saucepot over medium-high heat. Add the chicken in batches and cook until well browned on both sides. Remove the chicken from the saucepot.

Reduce the heat to medium. Add the onions, pepper and garlic and cook for 5 minutes or until they’re tender-crisp. Add the cinnamon and curry, (here I would add other spices, maybe some salt and pepper too) and cook and stir for 1 minute. Stir in the soup and heat to a boil. Return the chicken to the saucepot. Reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 15 minutes.

Stir the raisins and chickpeas in the saucepot. Cook for 10 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the almonds.

So are there any certain dishes or cuisines that seem really intimidating but you’re itchin’ to try?

Waste not, want not

I’m a total leftovers kind of person. As a matter of fact, I have boxes and tupperware filling up my fridge right now. Other than breakfast, I haven’t had to cook since Friday! I’m also keeping my fingers crossed that everything is still edible…

The Bf and I are at odds over this constantly because he can’t stand eating leftovers. To him, nothing ever tastes the same the next day. He has no qualms about tossing extra food, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing because he never pushes himself to overeat for the sake of not being wasteful. I however, grew up in a household where I had to eat everything off my plate, and we believed that it was bad to waste any food because there are millions out there who go hungry every day. So what do you do? Be healthy and only eat the amount necessary but risk wasting food? Or eat everything and inevitably get a stomachache (or extra poundage, which I had for years growing up).

That’s why I don’t mind saving the extras and eating them for lunch and/or dinner the next day. And I do notice differences in taste or texture when it’s, you know, not so fresh. But I guess I’m so used to expecting a bit of a difference after reheating that I just overlook it. Besides, some things are actually just as delicious the next day – if not better. Chili, for starters. Indian food. Or, in the top photo above, a simplified version of Moroccan chicken, a recipe I tried last Thursday. It wasn’t so flavorful right after I cooked it but was much better the next day (and day after). On Sunday I accumulated even more leftovers after a trip to Bonchon for Easter lunch with some friends. The chicken wasn’t as crisp the next day after I reheated it in the oven, but it was still very tasty. It was also a great accompaniment to healthier parts of my dinner, sauteed broccoli & onions and a salad. Sometimes it’s good to balance those leftovers out with something fresh.

I’ll post the Moroccan chicken recipe soon! 

Are you a leftovers kind of person or is it just not good enough the next day? Did you grow up being told you had to finish everything off your plate?

Ain’t no thing but a chicken wing.

Do you guys ever get hit with completely odd cravings? Or cravings for foods that no one else likes? Part of me is thinking, “It’s pretty sad I’m going to write a blog post about this place.” The other part of me is saying, “But this was pretty awesome.”

This, my friends, is a blog post about Hooters.

Just kidding! OK, not really. Here’s the story: on Wednesday my colleague Lindsey mentioned she had been craving fried pickles for days. Lo and behold, I’m practically her only friend who actually likes them as well, and much to her surprise and delight, agreed to get some, somewhere in DC. (No, we are not preggers or anything like that, we just want odd foods at odd times). Thanks to a little bit of tweeting, some quick research, and randomly asking around, we found out that Hooters has fried pickles.  Linds was also craving lobster with melted butter and well, whadaya know. Ok, no, Hooters does not have lobster. But they have crab legs and that was close enough for her!

And so, after work, Linsday and I walked into the nearby Hooters in Chinatown (yes I realize how weird that sounds, but this is DC). We were still in our work attire, and we were probably 2 of about 6 women in there, not including the Hooters girls. I’ll be honest, I actually am not ashamed to eat at Hooters nor do I care that the waitresses have to wear the shortest shorts ever. There are tons of Hooters in Orlando and I’d been to them a few times, just to have wings and beers during a game. I kind of feel like other Floridians wouldn’t really care about eating at Hooters either, but maybe that’s just me. It’s just so dang hot down in Florida, everyone has to wear next-to-nothing in order to avoid sweating, so we’re not that far off from Hooters work attire. Lindsey, on the other hand, has never been to Hooters but did find the whole experience amusing. And she did want to hug each girl and tell them “It’ll be ok.”

Takes real women to eat like this.

So how were the pickles? They definitely hit the spot. Granted, I like my fried pickles sliced thicker (these were like fried sandwich pickles). But I enjoyed them nonetheless. Lindsey was practically writing poetry about the pickles and crab legs, she was so happy to have satisfied her 3-day long craving. I also splurged on wings, because it happened to be Wing Wednesday and wings were $5.99. The wings aren’t bad at Hooters so I knew I wouldn’t be disappointed, but after eating 2 fried foods for dinner I felt a bit icky afterwards. But sometimes, indulging a craving is totally worth it in the moment.

I realize that bloggers only show a portion of what they eat or cook on their blogs. I often eat leftovers or I just throw something kind of lame together like macaroni and cheese with broccoli. And sometimes I get my food from chains like Papa John’s (it’s actually my favorite pizza delivery), or in this case, Hooters. I think it’s interesting to see the stuff that people eat that’s not so pretty to photograph, or glamorous to talk about. Sometimes, all you want is some ugly, greasy, fried food. Not that plan on going back to Hooters anytime soon.

The greasier the food, the sleepier I look. I guess that actually makes sense.

How does she manage to make cracking claws look lovely?!?

Some folks on Twitter did let me know about other spots that offer fried pickles – we had decided to go with Hooters because they had crab and because it’s close to my home and the metro. But I’m definitely up for trying some of the other fried pickles spots: DC-3, Chidog-Os, Continential, Scion, Hard Times Cafe…anyone up for a fried pickle tour of DC?

Do you guys ever get odd or totally random cravings? Is there a restaurant you’re ashamed to admit you actually like?