m

You don't scare me, 29

Okay, maybe a little bit...

For my second annual birthday in New York, my good friends Lindsay and Ansley bussed over and flew up, respectively, and the three of us galavanted about New York city for the weekend. We shopped a lot, saw a show (I saw two), met some interesting characters, and of course, ate some good food.

we scored some majorly discounted theater tickets in TS

The concierge recommended a restaurant near the theater that wasn't too tourist-y, had a great atmosphere and delicious drinks, so we decided to check it out. As far as drinks and decor went, it was spot-on. Unfortunately, we went before the show instead of after (we were exhausted and starved from a full day of galavanting), that there were maybe two other tables seated. We are grannies. Oh well.

But the place was very cool. In case you can't tell from this picture, those are hundreds of white antlers on the ceiling...

...trees in the walls...

... and a "fire" in the bar.

Ansley got the salmon.

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Lindsay and I had steak. Steak is birthday food. Growing up, I would always request steak and bakes potato for my birthday dinner. Always. Plus my mom's legendary chocolate cake, obvs.

light fixture outside the loo

 There was this cool corridor with private tables behind curtains.

After dinner, we saw Avenue Q. SO hilarious! And after the show we walked down to Magnolia for some cupcakes and sat by the fountain outside Radio City Music Hall. It was the season premiere of SNL, so all weekend I was hoping to have a comedian celeb siting. No dice. (However, a couple years ago I saw Amy Poehler and Will Arnett in Greenwich Village, so I guess I'm all set.)

God I love those cupcakes.

new shoes all around.

Amazingly enough, we didn't see any cabs, so Lindsay hailed a rickshaw, which was pretty hilarious. Until he took us to the wrong hotel.

When we finally got back to the hotel, we went to the bar and had cocktails, compliments of our friend the concierge. While we were there, we got into an awkward conversation with a man who turned out to be a movie producer and he kidnapped and murdered us invited us to a rooftop bar around the corner. We somehow lost him once we got there, but it turned out to be a hoppin' place with an amazing view of the city. So we had some champagne. It was one of those movie moments. BTW, the next day we googled Mr. Producer, and he's legit. He worked on Slingblade and a recent movie with Clive Owen and Helen Mirren (which I'm blanking on the name), among others. 

And that's how I spent my birthday in New York. The end.

I'm going back this weekend with Madaline and her family, any suggestions? What are your favorite (non-tourist-y) things to do in the city?

m

what rainy days are made for

A weeks ago, it was gross and rainy and I started getting grilled cheese and tomato soup on my mind. Then, the sky cleared and the temperatures rose and I was over it. This weekend, however, the bad weather is back! So Sanne and I planned on having a gourmet grilled cheese party! Unfortunately, we slacked on inviting people. But two's a party, right?

I did some hunting this week and found a few winners on bon appetit and soule mama, and were inspired by our fresh picked apples we got from Tougas Farm. We also met this guy:

So, that's pretty good I guess.

We started with the soup. Sanne put the tomatoes (4lbs, about 5 large tomatoes) in boiling water, just long enough for them to loosen up and take their skins off. 

Meanwhile, I chopped 5 carrots, most of a medium yellow onion and 2 celery stalks. The Holy Soupfecta.

The tomatoes were then stripped down to their skivvies, drizzled with olive oil, s+p and roasted for 30 minutes in a 400 degree oven. 

About halfway through, I heated 2T butter, 3 cloves chopped garlic in a large pot, and cooked the onions, carrots and celery until tender, about 15-20 minutes.

Then, add the tomatoes and stock, and simmer for another 15 minutes. 

Puree the soup. This is my favorite part!

Then stir in 1/3c chopped (ribboned) basil and 3/4c heavy cream.

We tasted the soup at this point and both agreed that it was missing something. I thought it was a little too vegetable-y and needed more dairy, so Sanne added some salt and a couple tablespoons of butter. After a little simmer time we tasted it again and it was much better. Time is an important factor with soup as well. The longer it sits, the more the flavors come together and the better it tastes.

Sanne and I each chose a grilled cheese and a matching beer. My sandwich was pecorino and fontina with sage butter on borodinsky rye.  I found the recipe on bonappetit.com. I feel like I don't really need to give you recipes for these. But you should know that for the sage butter, melt 3/4 a stick of butter in a saucepan. Pour half of it into a bowl. To the other half, stir in 2 1/2t chopped sage. This you will brush onto the top of each sandwich before you grill them. I poured the rest of the butter in the grill pan to cook the sandwich in.

Sanne made apple, brown sugar ham and vermont cheddar on honey wheat with dijon mustard. Our sandwiches were very different and balanced each other nicely. 

I don't know that I could choose a favorite, they were both so good. The sage butter sandwich was very different, which was nice. And it was really tasty dipped in soup.

fall-tastic

I don't think I could ever go back to kraft singles and white bread. I'm totally spoiled now. Do you have any grilled cheese preferences?

m&a

weekend update

Happy October! Can you believe it? As sad as we are that summer is over, we have lots and lots to look forward to this season! And guess what else is coming up? Our One Year Blogiversary!!!! Crazy!

Here's what else has been happening this week:

-Yesterday, my other mom took me out for a birthday lunch to our favorite place to escape from work, Seiyo. Their sushi is so amazing. I was going there every Friday for a while...

spicy tuna and volcano

 

-We finally had our kitchen floor re-done. It took a couple of days, and Sanne and I ate our dinner standing in the dinning room wedged between the refridgerator and a wall, but it's finished! I spent a couple hours last night wiping up the dust that covered literally every surface of every object in our kitchen. But it looks amazing! Now you guys won't have to look at that heinous linoleum anymore, and I can walk through the kitchen barefoot without feeling scuzzed out! Now if our landlord would replace those countertops and hardware, we'd be all set!

-Sanne got a promotion! She will be running her very own Starbucks beginning Monday! Wish her luck!

I'm very excited about our dinner tonight. We're doing something Autumn-inspired and very fun. Stay tuned!

What are you most looking forward to about Fall?

m

soups, roots and a busted headlight

It's my birthday weekend! I'm going for my second annual Birthday Celebration in New York, and I'm super excited! After fixing a busted headlight, we are finally on our way. I was planning on catching up on season premieres during my long bus ride. But, unfortunately, video streaming sites are blocked. *sigh* So Parks & Rec and Grey's will have to wait...

Instead, I'm surfing the food blogs and cooking sites, dreaming of all of the autumnal-y things I'm going to cook in the coming months. Even though this summer went by in a flash, I am really looking forward to seeing fall foliage, visiting pick-your-own farms, and the feel of my warm and spicy. Here are a few ideas I'm playing with...



roasted tomato soup with broiled cheddar

smittenkitchen.com

If I were to choose a last meal, it would most likely be grilled cheese and tomato soup. This one from smitten kitchen looks like the perfect kick-off for fall. This year, Sanne has a food processor, which makes soup-making much easier. I'm planning on throwing a little grilled cheese & tomato soup party, and I this recipe will definitely make the line-up.




lisahubbard.com

lisahubbard.com 

This one isn't a recipe, but a beautiful collection of mouth-watering food photography. This photo of a roasted cauliflower in cheese sauce was especially inspiring. I've never been much of a cauliflower fan, but this photo is too pretty for me not to try my hand at.

jalapeno poppers

gourmet.com

These guys are so much prettier (and healthier) than their freezer-section relatives. Baked instead of fried, unprocessed cheese, these would be great for a party. And how cute are those little stems?

pumpkin lentil and goat cheese salad

bonapetit.com

Okay, I'm about to say something controversial. I think pumpkin is a little over-rated and over-done. It's the "put a bird on it" of the food world. However, I would happily add roasted pumpkin to a goat cheese and lentil salad. That sounds good.

barley stew with leeks mushrooms and greens

bonapetit.com

I'm starting to notice a pattern here: "I'm not much of a ___ person" It must be that growing up in Florida, I didn't really eat seasonally. At least, not in the way that New Englanders do. Since living in Boston, I've really come to appreciate those hearty stews and soups when our window sills are half-convered with snow. Adding barley or quinoa, and a leafy green takes our soups to that next level, making them a meal and warming us to the bone.

caramelized shallots with walnuts

fedish.blogspot.com

Even though it was January and we were in California, thinking about fall makes me think about these caramelized shallots that we made with Kelli and Phil last year. I think I'm going to make these again soon.

What are you wanting to cook this fall?

m

Oh, Hello Fall.

I am trying to reconcile with Fall's early arrival. I wasn't ready yet. Today, I am still not. I had a full and eventful summer. Some of you may have wondered where I disappeared to... I've taken somewhat of a sabbatical from Fedish this summer because I had so much on my plate (pun intended). As summer kicked off, I was promoted at work. My new position brought a new level of time and energy consumption for me. I was also fortunate enough to have saved, scrimped, and planned thoroughly (and still had to said a few Hail Marys) to get to take the first vacation I've had in quite a while. I was able to go to see a dear friend get married and spend two glorious weeks traveling around Italy. I full intend to share all about that sometime soon.

I have had tons of culinary experiences I have wanted to share this summer. However, I needed to adjust and to fully enjoy every drop of sunshine and fun I could (because we have so precious little of it in New England) and to share later. Mandi has graciously been holding down the Fedish fort and sharing her summer food adventures with you. As I make my peace with fall calling a week early, I am extremely excited for all the fall activities, food, cooking and sharing to commence. I am attempting to dwell fully in autumn for it's brief but amazing offerings and ignore the impending frost of winter racing up behind it.

Hope summer was warm and fun for all of you as well. 

-a

My lunch is evidence I am not ready to let go of summer yet.