#308 Spinach and Sausage Spaghetti, By: V

This is an old post from the week before Christmas, but I wanted to get it up soon.  Of course, I don't want to bypass the Christmas holiday!  Most of this week was spent at home.  N is in town from San Francisco and we all had some great quality family time, watching some new Bollywood movies, having a delicious Christmas dinner, and sharing our secret santa presents...my dad and I had each other, and I have to say he did a pretty good job!  I see living in a house full of ladies has influenced him somewhat...he gave me a box full of wonderful treats, an infinity scarf, necklace and earring set, a clutch, candles (Indonesian Sandlewood - mmmm!), and even a Chipotle gift card :) He's a smart one! 

While Thanksgiving our family sticks with the traditional main entree of a roast turkey, for Christmas our family usually mixes things up. This year we had chicken pot pie, roasted brussels sprouts and a mixed salad.  During the afternoon we snacked on buffalo chicken dip, sundried tomato cream cheese spread and southwest egg rolls --- along with some delicious sangria and apple cider.  

The table as we're getting it set for Christmas dinner....

But now, it's back to work tomorrow...but, it's a short week and we welcome 2015!! :)  

Now, here's my post for Spinach and Sausage Spaghetti.  

On Tuesday I met up with a close law school friend of mine for happy hour.  The weather was a bit cold and rainy, but we warmed ourselves up with some red wine and delicious Mexican fare.  I met my friend at Fuego Cocina in Arlington.  When we both use to work together we would frequent some of the restaurants in the Ballston neighborhood of Arlington, but Fuego Cocina was one that we missed. We decided to share the Queso Fundido, which arrived in a cast iron skillet filled with chihuahua and oaxaca cheese, blistered peppers and chorizo crumbled on top.  You simply spread this cheesy filling into one of the warm fresh corn tortillas -- such a simple and delicious cold weather treat!  Next we ordered the Suadero and Baja tacos.  The Suadero tacos are filled with beef brisket, red and white onions, and finely chopped jalapenos.  The Baja tacos are filled with crispy fried tilapia, cabbage and topped with a delicious habanero blood orange crema - sort of the perfectly balance of spicy, sweet and creamy.  It was a wonderful start to the week and a great opportunity to catch up with such a close friend and have some much needed one-on-one girl talk time.  

On Thursday, S and I went to his work holiday party.  I had never been to a holiday party that was at an actual dance club, which was interesting needless to say.  A DJ, Open Bar and some small appetizers, it was a fun evening at Opera.  A late night, turned into a slow start to Friday.  

Yesterday, I grabbed brunch with one of my closest friend's (we've been friends for 14 years!) in North Bethesda at Founding Farmers.  I had the steak and eggs, which came with a biscuit, hash browns and a roasted tomato.  I washed it all down with a Gibraltar.  The Gibraltar hails from San Francisco (shout out to N!), and came out of a need to have a drink taller than a macchiato but shorter than a latte.  It's pretty delicious! 

Now for my recipe this week: 

Sausage & Spinach Spaghetti

INGREDIENTS:

16 oz spaghetti (whole grain or regular)

6 oz of baby spinach

3 garlic cloves

1 tsp red chili flakes

1 tbsp olive oil

12 oz Italian sausage (casings off)

1 cup grated parmesan cheese

24 oz Marinara 

1 tbsp chopped fresh parsley (Italian flat leaf or curly)

DIRECTIONS:

1. In medium saucepan on low heat, place olive oil, garlic cloves and red chili flakes.  Cooking this on low heat will allow the olive oil to take on the flavors of garlic and red chili slowly.  
2. Once the garlic turns a golden brown, turn the heat to high and add in the Italian sausage, crumbling it into the pan.  Use a wooden spoon to break up the sausage pieces.  
3. Then add in the washed baby spinach.  Let the spinach cook through so that it appears wilted. 
4. Add in your cooked spaghetti (use the directions on the box to cook the spaghetti).  
5. Stir in the marinara.  I used a Bertolli brand marinara sauce, but feel free to use or make any kind of your choosing. 
6. Stir the whole mixture together and take off the heat.  
7. Stir in the chopped fresh parsley and parmesan cheese.

Serve with garlic bread and/or a green salad.  I like topping mine off with some fresh grated parmesan cheese and chili flakes. 

 

#307 - Butter makes it better! by:  N

I love this time of the year filled with guilt free eating.  Its ok to take cream, butter and bread and whip up all kinds of heavenly dishes.  Think about it!  Egg nog?  Would you have that in April just ‘cause?  A big ole’ bird stuffed with bread, sausage and butter.  You feel like eating that in July?  Don’t think so!  I even made some of the Thanksgiving dishes twice!  Yes, I’m horrible!  And I don’t even care!  I went out and bought some good ole REAL butter and let me tell ya….Barefoot Contessa was right!  Butter makes everything better!  You know that “secret” ingredient or flavor that you wonder about in most dishes...its butter people!  I barely ever have it in my “real” life so when I do get that taste for butter...I can’t get over myself.  There is no other time but now to fill up on these delectable dishes that just sound ridiculous at any other time of the year.  So get to it! There is just a couple of more weeks left to indulge ;)

Here is one of the recipes for a dish I whipped up...my favorite!

Grean Bean Casserole

1 packet mushroom gravy mix

2 tablespoon BUTTER

½ cup milk

¼ cup low sodium chicken broth (you can use any kind of broth)

1 packet frozen green beans (who buys canned vegetables anymore!!)

1 box of the fried onions (the traditional green bean casserole recipe  is on this box)
 

I substituted the cream of mushroom for a roux made with with gravy powder, milk and broth.  The gravy powder has around 200 mg sodium, the cream of mushroom has 870 mg sodium. Something to think about when you make any casserole with these creamed soups!

1. Melt butter and add the gravy mix and slowly heat for 1 minute
2. Add milk slowly, while stirring to make sure that the milk doesn’t curdle
3. Add broth slowly, stirring to create a creamlike substance without lumps
4. Add the thawed beans, with ½ cup of fried onions and cook slightly
5. Pour into a greased pan and top with ½ cup more fried onions
6. Bake at 475 degrees for 15 minutes

 

#306 Chicken Picadillo, By: V

What started as a sore throat quickly became a full blown upper respiratory infection this week.  So, I sat myself at home and became close friends with orange juice, soup, and all the other sick day usuals.  When I was finally feeling a bit better toward the end of the week, I decided to make myself avocado toast.  This quick and healthy treat has made its way around the food blog world and right onto restaurant menus.  I even saw it on a brunch menu for a new D.C. restaurant the other week, the avocado toast was served along with a variety of other toasts (gravalax is a common topper, but now we see avocado, goat cheese and hummus served on top of a crunchy toast base).  I simply took a half avocado and smushed it on top of a crunchy piece of sourdough toast.  Sprinkled with a bit of red chili flakes (or salt/pepper, olive oil, lemon), and bam!  A great side to soup or salad and a nice snack.  

Toward the end of the week I took a visit with my roommate to my favorite burrito spot in Arlington:  Pedro & Vinny's.  They grill the meat fresh to order and have a delicious array of sauces/salsas.  I've never heard of cucumber as a burrito filling, but it's delicious!  I ordered the steak burrito and my roommate ordered the chicken and of course we cut both down the middle to give one half of each to the other person.  What a treat! 

This week's recipe is Ground Chicken Picadillo.  Picadillo is a traditional dish in Spain, Latin America and the Philippines.  It is commonly made with ground beef and tomatoes, and a variety of other ingredients based on region.  This chicken version incorporates green olives, which is commonly seen in the picadillo recipes of the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico and Cuba.  Picadillo can be seen with potatoes, eggs, capers, bell peppers and other ingredients and variations.  This dish is my simpler version.  

Often recipes call for a tablespoon of tomato paste, but all that's available is a full can.  My picadillo recipe includes tomato paste, and I found a great way to use a portion of the tomato paste from a can and saving the rest for other recipes.  A great idea is to empty the can into a ziplock bag, take your finger and separate it out into smaller sections, freeze, and you can then cut off a piece of tomato paste whenever you like and keep the rest back in the freezer.  Hope this proves helpful for some of you!

Ground Chicken Picadillo

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. ground chicken 

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tbsps chopped curly leaf parsley

1/2 small tomato, diced

4 oz. tomato paste

1/4 cup green olives

1/4 tsp garlic powder

1 bay leaf

1 tsp cumin

1 cup water

salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat the olive oil in a deep pan.  Once the oil is heated add the garlic and onion.  Cook the onion until translucent.  Then add the ground chicken.  Cook the chicken through until it is no longer pink.  
2. Turn the slow cooker to high heat.  Add the chicken, onion and garlic mixture to the slow cooker.
3. Add the tomato, tomato paste, green olives, garlic powder, cumin, bay leaf and water to the pot.  
4. Cover with a lid and cook on high heat for 1 hour.
5. Turn the slow cooker off, take the lid off and add salt, pepper and curly leaf parsley to the mixture.  Stir thoroughly and serve on top of rice.

#305 Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Burgers, By: V

Earlier this week S and I went to dinner at Farmers Fishers Bakers down by the Georgetown waterfront.  It was a rare day with gorgeous weather, so we had to take advantage.  And, it was a good thing too, because two days later we'd see the first snow of the season.  S ordered the Crab Cake Sandwich and I had the Cioppino which was filled with shrimp, squid, fish and mussels.  Both were delicious!

On Friday night we went to the Washington Wizards vs. Denver Nuggets game.  The Wizards won!  I've been to two games this season, and the Wizards won both, can't say I'm not thinking I could be a good luck charm (just kidding!).

The following morning, a close college friend of mine and her husband hosted S and I for a nice brunch.  It was a great spread! She served us croissants (Trader Joe's has delicious frozen ones that you can pop in the oven) with nutella and mixed berry jam, turkey bacon, a delicious pancetta basil quiche, yogurt mixed berry parfaits, and potato latkes.  Everything was washed down with mimosas and pumpkin spiced coffees.

After brunch in Rockville we drove out to Reston for my annual work holiday party.  The catering at the holiday party was delicious.  I won't get into all of the food details, but the charred swordfish and chive creamed potatoes were my favorites.  So, after a long weekend, I made these chicken burgers for lunch this week.  

And, thennn I got really sick....

This should explain why there was no post yesterday.  I called out of work today and laid in bed nursing myself to the point where all I have is a throaty deep voice.  Hopefully I'll be back to 100% soon! 

Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Burgers - Serves 4 

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. ground chicken 

1 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 tbsp garlic powder

1/2 cup chopped yellow onion (or red onion)

1 tbsp goat cheese per patty (so, 4 tbsps total)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

1 tbsp coconut oil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place the ground chicken in a large bowl.  Add the salt, black pepper, garlic powder, parsley and onion to the bowl.  Incoporate these ingredients into the meat, but do not over work the meat (this can lead to some pretty dry and tough burgers). 
2. Form the meat into four patties.  Place on a plate.  Take 1 tbsp of goat cheese and place on the middle of a patty. Do this for all four patties.
3. Press the cheese into the burger.  You can do also re-form the patty into a ball with the cheese in the middle and press back out into a patty shape.  
4. Melt the coconut oil in a pan on high heat.  Place the patties into the pan and cook for two minutes on one side.  Flip over and cook for 2 more minutes on the other side.  Lower the cover to medium heat and cover with a lid.  Keep like this for about 4 minutes until the patties are cooked through.  

These can be placed on a whole wheat bun and topped with sliced avocado, tomato, lettuce or spinach, whatever you like.

Often burger recipes involve adding breadcrumbs, eggs, or milk soaked bread to the meat mixture to act as a binder.  I prefer to avoid any of these fillers, and I've found that the burgers will stay together fine, as long as you gently flip them over and take care to form the patties so that they are tight.

#304 Thanksgiving and a Leftover Turkey Dinner Idea, By: V

Well, we're over a week past Thanksgiving, but thought I'd still put up a Thanksgiving post and quick recipe to use your leftover turkey.  I'm guessing at this point all that turkey is over, and if it isn't you should probably toss it!  But, if you've decided to freeze some turkey or you enjoy making turkey, then here's a simple recipe you can keep on hand, Shredded Turkey Enchiladas with Red Sauce.   

This will be a brief post, and I'll be back on Sunday with another blog post. 

Here's a picture of the turkey fresh from the oven.  This year N stayed in San Francisco, and decided on an extended stay for the Christmas-New Year holidays.  But, we managed to Skype with her during the latter half of our food fest.  Since it was just our parents and me, we made a smaller turkey breast, gravy, green bean casserole (N's favorite),  baked sweet potatoes, cranberry-ginger chutney, and stuffing with a mix of roasted vegetables.  

Our dad carving the turkey...

The table all set.  Of course, we'd have some red wine too!

I was at our parents house for four days, so on one of the days our mom (Malli) and I made a load of cookies to share with our respective work colleagues.  These are sugar cookie blossoms with a caramel hershey kiss in the middle, but, this wasn't all.  We also made cranberry organge biscotti, ginger molasses cookies, mint chocolate chip cookies, toffee walnut cookies, and coconut macaroons! My friends at work loved every last one.

And noww....the enchiladas :) I shared these with S when we both got back to D.C. from visiting our parents.  He loved them just as much as I did.

Yes, they're just that creamy and gooey.

Shredded Turkey Enchiladas

INGREDIENTS:

12 flour tortillas
3 cups shredded turkey
2 8 oz. packets of Frotera Red Chile Enchilada Sauce
                                with roasted tomato + garlic
8 oz. or 2 cups of shredded Monterey Jack cheese
8 oz. sour cream

DIRECTIONS:

1. Take your turkey and shred the meat into a large bowl.  Measure out about 3 cups of turkey meat. 
2. Take one of the Frontera enchilada sauce packets and empty it over the shredded turkey.  Mix thoroughly.  
3. Warm your tortillas over a gas burner or stove top.  
4. Spread a layer of sour cream on one side of the tortilla along with a sprinkle of the shhredded cheese. 
5. Take one tablespoon of the chicken mixture and spread it evenly down the center middle of the tortilla.  Roll the tortilla and place it in a baking dish.  Keep doing this with all of the tortillas. 
6. Top the rolled tortillas with a layer of sour cream and empty the other packet of enchilada sauce over the rolled tortillas.  Top with the remaining cheese.  
7. Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes.  

Happy 1st Anniversay, My love! By: N

Happy 1st Anniversary, My love!

 

 

 

Well the Thanksgiving season has a special meaning to me this year because its also my 1 year anniversary since my move to the Bay area.  This move was special and this year has been blissful, difficult and amazing.  It had its ups and downs.  There is something to be said of a relationship thats formed where there is an amazing connection, happy highs and scary lows that allows you to really form a bond.  And its safe to say that I feel a bond with the Bay area :)  I’m probably not the first East coaster to say this but I think I’ve always strived to be a Californian but now I’m just doing it IN California.  I’ve appreciated the California mentality.  Now I don’t understand and never will understand some things (hipsters?)!  But the chill attitude along with a strong ambition is MY type!  Let me tell ya!   

# 303 Goat Cheese Filled "Five-Spice" Chicken, By: V

On Friday night, my roommate and I hosted a group of twelve of our friends for a game night. The usual rules, we provide the food and two bottles of wine, everyone else was asked to bring dessert or a beverage of their personal preference.  

We hunkered down on this incredibly cold night with a gorgeous cheese plate.  The plate included parmesan, havarti and goat cheese.  I also took a brie and covered the top with a bit of thyme and honey, baked it till it was gooey and delicious.  We made a slow cooker queso recipe, which included canned tomatoes, green chilies, Velveeta cheese and ground chicken.  You simply place the mixture in a slow cooker and let it stay on warm during the evening, so everyone can enjoy the hot queso.  It's basically like your own personal fondue.  I think this was everyone's favorite!  It was warm, gooey and delicious to scoop the sliced French bread into.  Since we bought so much French bread we though we'd pair the bread with not just the cheese, but some bruschetta topping and olive tapenade.  Of course taking some assistance from the grocery store with some premade tapenade and bruschetta topping.  After a long day of work, you can't expect homemade everything! 

A few of our friends brought games with them to share with everyone.  We spent the night playing Scene It and Cards Against Humanity, but most of the night was spent talking.  The major topic of discussion was the Serial podcast.  If you haven't heard of it, it's definitely one to check out.  It involves the question of wrongful conviction, and is full of suspense.  A nice evening in, after a long work week :)  

A quick shot as we were getting the food ready...



The delicious queso...



In last week's post I made a  Pickled Carrot and Cucumber salad.  I mentioned pairing this with a "five spice" chicken.  Five spice is a spice mixture most commonly used in Chinese and Vietnamese cooking. There are many variations of the spice powder mixture which include licorice, orange peel, ginger root or cardamom, but the most common version includes: (1) star anise; (2) cloves; (3) cinnamon; (4) szechuan pepper; and, (5) fennel seeds.  I call my version "five-spice," because it is a variation of the typical powder, including nutmeg, cinnamon, salt, pepper and paprika.  It should really be "five spice +" for that matter, because of the addition of sriracha sauce (or rooster sauce) to the mix.  

In Vietnam the rub is most commonly used in cooking broiled chicken, and so I got the idea for this "five spice" rubbed chicken.  The goat cheese addition is certainly not traditional to Vietnam, but I thought this change would give an interesting modification to the dish and a surprise when you bite in.  Hope you all enjoy!

"Five Spice" Goat Cheese Stuffed Chicken Breasts - Serves 2

INGREDIENTS:

2 chicken breasts
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
11/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tbsp coconut oil
2 tsps coconut oil
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt 
2 tbsp goat cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1. Flatten out the chicken breasts by placing on cutting board with a sheet of plastic wrap over the chicken.  "Hammer" down with a can or rolling pin, in a "hit and roll" type of motion.  Do this until each breast is about 1/4 inch thick.
2. Place 1 tbsp of goat cheese on each breast and spread to cover one side of the breast.  Fold or roll the chicken over so that none of the goat cheese is exposed, and instead it is all held in the inside of the rolled chicken breast. 
3. Melt coconut oil in a microwave safe bowl on high for 20 seconds.  Then to the melted coconut mixture add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, salt, and pepper (the "Five Spices") and also add the Sriracha or Rooster Sauce.  Mix this together with a spoon until well blended.  
4. Place each stuffed chicken into the oil and spice mixture.  Roll around so the chicken is coated in the  mixture on all sides.  
5. Place the chicken on an aluminum foil lined pan.  
6. Bake the chicken in a 400 degrees Fahrenheit oven for 20 minutes.  Turn the oven off and let sit in the heat for 5 minutes.  Then you are ready to serve.  

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!  I feel like I'm looking forward to it this year more than last, can't wait to gobble down all the turkey, sweet potatoes, mashed garlic potatoes, cornbread stuffing, and more :)  Of course, I'll have pictures for you all next week! HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

#302 Pickled Carrot and Cucumber Salad, By: V

This was quite a week for my belly!  I checked out three new restaurants, went to my first Washington Wizards game and went on my first excursion to a golf driving range.  Friday was S's birthday so I had a weekend planned which included hitting some balls at Hilltop Golf Club in Alexandria, dinner at Filomena's, and homemade NY Giants cupcakes.

It all started on Tuesday.  I had the day off from work, so I checked out two happy hour spots with my roommate and two of our friends.  Del Campo and MXDC both have delicious Mexican food and margaritas.  Here are a few pictures of our food from Del Campo.  My favorite was the Hanger Steak Crostini with Burnt Onion Jam and Blue Cheese (bottom picture).  We also tried out the delicious Peruvian Chicken Salad Sliders with Aji Amarillo Aioli, the Grilled Tomato, Anchovy and Goat Cheese Crostini, and the Wagyu Skirt Steak Empanadas.  I think both restaurants will be seeing me more often :) 

On Wednesday night I went to my first ever Wizards game with S.  He managed to get great tickets.  It's a shock that I've grown up in this area and it took me THIS long to make it out to a Wizards game. Before the game we grabbed a drink at Rocket Bar, but since the bar only provides beverages and no food, we quickly went over to Bar Louie to down some buffalo chicken flatbread and chicken quesadillas before the game started.  And maybe a martini or two to wash it all down.  

The game was great!  The Wizards beat the Detroit Pistons in a final score of 103-107 with all the Wizards fans up on their feet.  Two of my friends, who are from Michigan, joined us, so there was definitely smack talking going on, most of which got heavier toward the final minutes of the game.  

Then, Saturday I took S to a birthday dinner at Filomena Ristorante, one of my mom's favorite D.C. restaurants.  I had never been before and since S loves Italian food so much and insists he can't get the same type of Italian down here as he can back home in New Jersey, I thought I would try this one out on him.  Unfortunately I didn't get good shots of the food we ate, but we both agreed that we have never had Italian food this good outside of Italy.  S had a dish that is heralded on the dinner menu as Bono's (yes, of U2) favorite at Filomena, and he apparently asked for seconds when he first had this dish.  And, trust me, after having a bite I fully understood why.  The Penne Con Salisicce is penne pasta with a hearty Abruzzi (Abruzzo is a region of southern Italy) style tomato sauce made of roasted & ground Italian sweet sausage, sautéed mushrooms, onions, herbs and Chianti wine.  The dish is topped with three large sausage links made by the Chef himself. I had the Gnocchi Della Mama which is a dish of potato based dumplings tossed in a tomato based Bolognese meat sauce with ground beef, veal, Italian pork sausage, vegetables, Chianti wine.  Both were phenomenal and we decided this may be our go-to spot for all special occasions.  

In continuing the birthday celebrations I prepared these birthday cupcakes for him.  Let's be clear, these don't make me any less of a Washington fan! 

Definitely a busy week, and I also made Pickled Carrot and Cucumber Salad!

The Vietnamese sandwich, or Banh Mi, are absolutely delicious, and in the northern Virginia area the best place to get them are at the various Vietnamese bakeries in Eden Center. These sandwiches are most commonly made with pork placed atop a French baguette. They are then topped with cilantro and a pickled carrot and daikon salad.  This week I had a taste for those crunchy pickled vegetables, and decided to make a pickled carrot and cucumber salad.  This is likely not a traditional brine recipe, and generally when brining, you have to boil the liquid solution first, but, this was my quick and easy version.  The tartness offsets the sweet and earthy flavors of the "five-spice" chicken I prepared with it, which will be featured on next week's post.

Pickled Carrot and Cucumber Salad

INGREDIENTS:
1 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsps honey
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2 tbsp Tamari/Soy Sauce
1 tsp crushed red chili flakes
3 medium sized carrots, julienned or sliced
1 large cucmber, julienned or sliced

DIRECTIONS:

1.  In a bowl pour in fish sauce, apple cider vinegar, soy sauce and chili flakes.  Whisk together.  

2.  Pell and julienne or thinly slice the carrots and cucumbers.  

3.  In microwave safe dish place honey and microwave for 20 seconds on high. While whisking pour the melted honey into the liquids. 

4.  Add the vegetables and toss throughly to coat veggies with liquid.  

Chill in refrigerator and serve when you're ready to eat.  The longer this stays in the fridge, the better the taste.  Ovenright is best.  Next week I'll show you a goat cheese stuffed chicken breast recipe with a "five-spice" dry rub that paired perfectly with the sweet, tart and briny flavors of this dish.  

#301 Mexican Quinoa and Salmon, By: V

Two things that I thoroughly enjoy and could happily eat everyday:  mexican food and seafood.  So, any opportunity I get to incorporate tex-mex flavors and fish into my diet I'll take! Not only is this dish full of smoky spicy flavors, it's also extremely healthy. This was my first delve into spicing up my quinoa.  Generally I boil the plain stuff or buy a boxed quinoa dish with its own dry spice packet to mix in.  But this time I decided to try incorporating my own flavors to create a sort of "mexican" quinoa.  

The other healthy component of this dish is the salmon.  Now, I recently read that it's extremely beneficial to incorporate one portion of fish into your diet EVERY DAY.  This can certainly be hard to do everyday, so I try to incorporate it into my diet at least as often as I can.  I typicall grill salmon or bake it, but this time I coated the salmon in a flour, garlic and chili powder spiced mixture and pan fried it in coconut oil.  I know you're thinking, "ok V, I thought this was supposed to be HEALTHY, and now you're talking about frying?," but let me just say it was more of a two tablespoon coconut oil kind of fry.  Not, the deep fry you think of with fried chicken or fish and chips. 

But don't we all need a good dose of deep fried something ever now and again? On that note, yesterday my mom and dad surprised me by showing up at my front door with fish and chips! Eammon's Dublin Chipper in Old Town Alexandria is home to my mom's favorite fish and chips, so she brought some by for me to give it a go...and, I gotta agree with her opinion on this one.  I wish I had taken a photo for all of you, but was busy demolishing the delicious crispy fried cod and homemade french fries to come up for air and take a photo or two.    

Friday night I had dinner at Paladar Latin Kitchen & Rum Bar in Vienna.  Now, this restaurant is relatively new and I had been wanting to try it out.  The menu offered a wide variety of food options, but I have to say I thought the two dishes we shared were on the salty side, although the spicy guacamole was delicious and I love that it was served with a blend of plantain, yucca, malanga AND tortilla chips.  I had the Feijoda Stew, and the chorizo in it was probably the best I've had.  I also tried the Jalapeno Spiced Lamb Stew which was good but, my only complaint was the saltiness of the food.  Not quite sure I'll be rushing back.

Well, there's my weekend restaurant reviews, now for the recipes.

Mexican Quinoa (serves 2-3)
Ingredients:

2 tbsps coconut oil

2 chopped garlic cloves

½ cup chopped yellow onion

1 cup quinoa

1 cup chicken broth (can use vegetable or beef broth as well)

½ 15.5 oz can of black beans

1 medium red tomato, diced

¼ tsp nutmeg

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp chili powder

Optional-

½ cup chopped jalapenos

¼ cup chopped cilantro

Directions: 

1. Add the coconut oil to a pan on high heat.  Once melted lower the heat and add the garlic and onion to the pan.  Let this combination slowly cook down and become translucent.
2. Once translucent, add the uncooked quinoa.  Stir to coat the quinoa in the garlic oil and onion mixture. 
3.  Add the chicken broth, black beans, and tomato.  Add the spices:  nutmeg, paprika and chili powder.  Stir everything together and turn the heat back up to high. 
4. Bring to a boil.  Then reduce to simmer, cover and let cook for 20 minutes.  This is enough time to allow the quinoa to cook.  NOTE:  Keep an eye on the dish, if it looks like the liquid has not fully evaporated, take the lid off and let it continue  to cook until the liquid is gone.  We don’t want soupy quinoa!
5. Once the dish is cooked transfer to a dish and let it cool.  Right before serving top it with some chopped pickled or fresh jalapenos and chopped cilantro (optional). 
6. Another optional idea is to served with avocado or lime. 

Pan-Fried Mexican Salmon (Serves 2)

Ingredients:

3 salmon filets 

2 tbsps unbleached white flour

1/2 tbsp garlic powder

1/2 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp paprika

1/4 tbp salt 

1/4 tbsp thyme

2 tbsps coconut oil

Directions: 

1. Prep your salmon as you prefer - take the skin off and make sure there are no bones in the filet. 
2. Take all the dry ingredients and place them on a plate.  Be sure they are mixed together well.  
3. Heat up a pan on high heat and melt the coconut oil in it.  Once hot take the salmon filet and flip it in the dry mixture ensuring that both sides are covered, then place into the oil. 
4. Let cook on each side for 4 minutes.  Cover for one minute and then you can take off the heat and get ready to eat.  
5. Optional:  A squirt of lime over the top of the salmon before serving would be delicious!