St. Patrick's Day

I never thought you had to be Irish to really celebrate all the glory that is Ireland. This year I decided to go for the gold (at the end of the rainbow) and make the ultimate St. Patrick's Day dish. Corned Beef and Cabbage!
First you have to make this thing.... It's called a bouquet garni. That is just fancy talk for a nest of garlic, peppercorns, thyme and bay leaves tied together.

Then you take your corned beef and put it in the pot (make it a big pot!) with the bouquet garni.

Looking good right?! Now comes the fun part, add a Stout beer like Guinness or I used Sam Adam's Black Lager. Also add a cup of beef broth and water until the meat is covered. Boil it and then let it simmer for 4 hours or so.

Then add 4 onions, 2 carrots & 2 1/2 parsnips, let cook for a half hour.

Then add in 6 small red potatoes and a head of cabbage cut into wedges, cover and let cook until the cabbage is tender but not limp. Let the meat and the rest of the veggies continue to cook.

When the cabbage is done cooking take it out and chop it small. Take a pan and melt 4 tablespoons of butter, add one onion and saute until brown. Then add the cabbage and toss, saute that until brown.

Take out your corned beef and all the other veggies and serve up!

Lastly, poor yourself a tall pint of a good Irish beer and tuck in!

3 out of 5 forks! Only because the cabbage makes you gassy- you have been warned. Just drink your beer, you will be fine.
Happy St. Patrick's day everyone!
Recipe courtesy of Food Network's Melissa d'Arabian
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/corned-beef-and-cabbage-recipe/index.html

Super Bowl

As much as I wanted to create a snackadium for the Super Bowl I just didn't have it in me.. However feast your eyes upon the astonishing job done by my buddy, Yvelisse! She is truly MVP material. Bravo!

The main challenge I wanted to tackle for this Super Bowl (Get it?) was to try to make a bread. Just a simple, no kneed bread.  My brother in law's girlfriend Molly had made this recipe over the holidays and shared it with me. I have to say it was really easy and fun. OH yes and Delicious! No bread maker required, just your hands, flower, corn meal, salt, yest and a bunch of time for the dough to sit.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/081mrex.html

Pretty, right? We cut that baby up and dipped it in some good old fashioned spinach artichoke dip.

 http://allrecipes.com/recipe/hot-artichoke-spinach-dip/
And we ended it with Nachos, YUM!

What a fulfilling night! To top it all off, THE GIANTS WON THE SUPER BOWL! You just can't beat that!
5 out of 5 forks!
GO GIANTS!

Louis Lunch - Birthplace of the Hamburger Sandwich

Louis Lunch is one of those famous little restaurants that is always on the Food Network and Travel Channel. It is the birthplace of the Hamburger Sandwich, for real! This was my first time going to the local favorite and I have to say it will NOT be my last.When you open the door, you are hit with the smell of beef cooking slowly.

Established in 1895 in New Haven Connecticut, Louis Lunch doesn't mess around with their burgers. It is the same burger now as it was back then, right down to the grill used to cook it. They can cook up to 27 patties at a time in these sideways flame grills. They are made fresh to order so it can take a little while to prepare but trust me, its worth it.

 Louis Lunch is also extremely particular about how you enjoy their burger, they want to be sure the meat is not tainted by the evils of condiments like ketchup or mustard. So they are forbidden, sorry but you know something that has lasted this long is worth a try without those comforts. Toppings are only cheese, sauteed onions and tomatoes. On the side, your choice of potato chips or potato salad. We went potato salad all the way Baby, it was creamy good and got us pumped for the burgers. Louis Lunch is very small and can only seat maybe 18 people so finding a place to stand or sit is a challenge however we got lucky by coming at an odd time, 3:00pm. We managed to find a seat in one of the little cubicles in the corner while we ate our potato salad and waited for our burger to cook to perfection. Looking around we noticed everywhere there was exposed wood there were layers upon layers of names carved. Apparently Louis Lunch encourages their patrons to leave their mark, so of course we did. 

 Finally our burgers were ready! Served on a small paper plate on white toast, here came our first taste of America's first Hamburger Sandwich! Bite and.... WOW! Tasted like pure charcoal and beef! Good thing I didn't put any condiments on, It would have robed my taste buds of that perfectly grilled American original flavor.

 Oh and here comes the cheese!

Everyone should try this burger at least once in their lifetime. And do yourself a favor, listen to the experts and leave the ketchup packets home.
4 out of 5 forks
http://www.louislunch.com/

Disney World

"When you wish upon a star, makes no difference who you are, anything your heart desires will come to you" - Disney's Pinocchio
At Disney World in Florida anything your heart and tummy desires will come to you! We just returned from an amazing mini (ha Minnie) vacation to the HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH! In the short time we were there we enjoyed all the park had to offer from the rides to the atmosphere to the food. We wanted to be sure we didn't overspend on food but still enjoy ourselves, I think we did just that.

Lets start with breakfast, the most important meal of the day, especially when the day consists of staying up and active from 7am- 11pm! The Disney All Star Movie Resort is on the plainer side as far as resorts go but they do not skimp on the food buffet! Check out Matthew's spilling over plate of eggs, hash browns, biscuit bacon and sausage. I wanted to go a little healthier and went with the oatmeal, it was so thick you could probably layer the bricks of Cinderella's castle with it. No that's a power meal!

Then it was off to the parks! What says Disney Park more then Mickey Mouse shaped chocolate dipped vanilla ice cream on a stick?! Nothin better, a classic and for a good reason. Reasonably priced, cooling and fun!

Then for lunch we had reservations at the Sci Fi Dine-In at Hollywood Studios. At first we thought that the highlight would be watching black and white B movie trailers for "Plan 9 from Outer Space" and "Son of the Blob". Or sitting in tables styled after old 50's cars and doing a little passionate necking during the intermission song. We were happily surprised to find that the drive in food was actually really good! The fun really started when the waiter brought us two colorful, fruity drinks with glow in the dark ice cubes, Cool! I ordered an All American Picnic Burger with Cheese and it was gigantic. Not only was it a burger but it was topped with two grilled hot dogs! It also came with a pickle and french fries, oh nostalgia. It was so much food I had to give half of my burger to Matt who managed to finish not just my leftovers but also his whole pastrami on rye sandwich! That's MY Man!

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/sci-fi-dine-in-theater

Later that night we found ourselves wondering the many countries represented at Epcot. We drank beer (or bier) in Germany and hot oily fish and chips in England. WOW! That was so insainly good! If Germany and England knew how well their food and drink got along, there would have been no reason to fight that blasted 2nd World War. Well maybe not, but still, the power of good food can perform magic!

The next day we were on a hunt for the famous Magic Kingdom Turkey Leg! We finally found it in Adventure Land and DANG THAT IS ONE BIG TURKEY LEG!!!! Really juicy and delicious and did I say BIG?! It's BIG!!!

Since I did a hamburger the day before this time I tried a hot dog and again it was HUGE! I couldn't do it, the all American goodness was too much for me. I looked up onto Main Street in The Magic Kingdom, were everything around me resembled small town American in 1912 and just smiled and handed the dog off to Matt. He is such a good foodie helper.

On the last night we took the Monorail over to the Polynesian Resort and stumbled onto the Kona Cafe and Sushi bar. We managed to grab a seat at the bar with out a reservation (sweet!) and had our last meal at Disney. Of course Japanese was on the menu and you know that is a favorite of mine. It was nice to get away from the fried foods and heavy beef meals.

Pot stickers with a ginger glaze sauce. WOW amazing!

 Matthew had a noddle shrimp bowl, very tasty and it smelled great.

 I had the sashimi- tuna, whitefish and salmon. It was so fresh and clean, it really hit the spot!

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/kona-cafe/

Disney was a fulfilling and filling vacation and we can't wait to go back. Even eating on the cheap you can really experience all the diversity and classic food that Disney has to indulge in. I miss it!

4 out of 5 forks!
Have a Magical Day!

Christmas in Washington DC

Every Christmas we start the holiday off early by visiting Matt's Mom Shari and brother Alex in Washington DC.
This year Shari took us to this fantastic little pub on Capital Hill called Argonaut. I don't know if it was the long drive down that made me really hungry or if this is, in fact the most delicious comfort food in the world.

 We drank thick dark beer!

Crab was all over the menu. The crab dip appetizer was so creamy and warm,  the crab soup was thick and sweet. 

As my main course I had the most delicious fish tacos! The guacamole was rich with lime juice, refreshing.
Matt had the Cuban sandwich and he devoured it! We couldn't stop talking about how good everything was.

 The best was the side of fries that Matt's mother ordered, just your basic hot skinny fries but they had sauteed leeks sprinkled over them. I never knew leeks and french fries could be such good friends! And is that garlic dipping sauce?  LOVES IT!

http://www.argonautdc.com/

The next day we wondered around the Eastern Market and gazed  upon mountains of fresh vegetables and fruit. It was like Willy Wonka and the healthy factory. Everything was so pretty, Washington DC really made this Foodie very happy for the Holidays!

http://www.easternmarket-dc.org/
5 out of 5 forks!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! Keep Tasting!

one word....VIRGIL'S!

My poor belly hurts so good! Just Look at the glory of it all!
Virgil's Real Barbecue in Time Square!
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you Biscuits and Gravy, Hush Puppies and Train Wreck Fries!

Also Peanutbutter Pie and Banana Pudding!

WOW! Stick 5 Folks in me, Im done!
Thank you so much to Yvelisse and Jim! So Fancy! ;) So Full! So good!
http://www.virgilsbbq.com/

Halloween MeatPies!

Matthew says I make a Meat pie that would put Mrs. Lovett's pie to shame. Given, I don't use the bodies of wondering street merchants but I think its pretty darn tasty and maybe worth reading about.
The meat pies are very easy, filling and perfect for a Halloween night where you have to fill up fast and thick before Trick Or Treating starts!
1st- chop up an onion and saute it in some olive oil, add 2 Garlic cloves chopped small. Then grab half a pound of ground beef and half a pound of ground pork. OR if your grocery store has a "meatloaf mix" that is great because it has both already in it (Thank You Stop and Shop!)  Saute until it is browned. add one cup of beef broth and 1 cup of beer then add a splash of Worcestershire sauce and a table spoon of tomato paste and let it simmer together low for an hour or until it thickens a bit.

Mix two tablespoons of flour and one tablespoon of water together and then add to the meaty sauteed dish. Mix well on low heat until it blends and thickens some more. Let cool for a few.
Grab your good old store brand (Stop and Shop) pre made roll out pie crust. Lay one down over pie pan and then scoop in the meaty mixture. Brush the edges with a beaten egg and then lay the top pie crust on. Pinch the ends and over lap them if needed and paint the whole top with more beaten egg. Poke 3 slits in the top so the meat can vent.
Then just pop it in the oven at 400 for about 25mins and BANG! I mean, BOO! Halloween Meat Pie!

Good enough for Ghouls!
HAPPY HALLOWEEN EVERYONE!

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/french-meat-pie/detail.aspx
or
http://australianfood.about.com/od/beeflamb/r/AussieMeatPie.htm
4 out of 5 scary pitchforks!