Snow-Day

It’s the last weekend before Christmas. Original plans included a holiday party this evening, complete with friends from near and far, food, drinks, and a dessert buffet, supplied by my guests.

However, the weather has changed all this. The Northeast is expecting a Noreaster, and even though the snow isn’t coming down too hard just yet, the weatherpeople are starting we can get up to 8-10 inches. Yikes.

I’m not a snow person at all- I commute daily in my car, I hate the cold, etc. And due to the weather, our plans are a bit up in the air. We might have some guests this evening, and a small spread will be prepared.

In anticipation of anywhere from 2 to 20 guests, cleaning is in order. After a good cleaning session, don’t you want something that’ll fill you up? I’ve been craving ratatouille since the beginning of this week. Here is my easy recipe for this filling, healthy meal. Best part is that I could set it to cook while I finished up cleaning the bathroom. Multitasking!

Quick and Easy Ratatouille

1 eggplant, roughly chopped into chunks

1 half of green pepper cut into strips

1 zuchinni, sliced not too thin not to thick

1 onion chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed and minced

1 Tbsp dried parsley

1 large can of diced tomatoes, about 16oz.

1 handful of spinach

olive oil, salt & pepper

1. In a medium sized Dutch oven, heat up olive oil. Sautee onion for one minute, add garlic and sautee another 2 minutes until aromatic.

2. Add peppers and zuchinni, sautee with onions and garlic, making sure to coat all the vegetables. Add eggplant and sautee for 2-3 minutes until tender.

3. Add tomatoes, be sure to drain most of the juice as the tomatoes will create a nice broth for the stew. Add dried parsley and season with salt and pepper.

4. Let simmer covered for about 10-15 minutes. Add spinach to pot, cover and let it wilt for about 5 minutes.

I like to eat it topped with fresh mozzarella and a nice chunk of French or Italian bread slathered with butter. So very quick and easy and perfect for this snowy day.

Gobble, gobble this is what I’m thankful for.

 

Happy Thanksgiving! It’s the start of my favorite time of year (at work not so much) but I’m looking so forward to a day of seeing family. Nick and I are embarking on our first ever Thanksgiving Tour- 3 households- lunch at my extended family’s place, dinner at his family’s place, and dessert at my Aunt’s house. We’re traveling with snickerdoodles, brussel sprouts w/ pancetta, ‘Run for the Roses’ Pie, and some rosemary biscuits. Should be exciting, should be lots of food and I’m breaking my vegatarian (throughout the week) meals for a feast of turkey, ham, Lechon (holla), and an array of sides and sweets. So psyched.

Of course, everyday I thank my stars for all the good things in my life. But in the spirit of the holiday, let me break it down:

• Nick. Never has anyone ever understood me, made me laugh, made me feel at ease like this dude. Seriously. Last year when we moved in together it was a bit nerve-racking, but after soul searching and just growing up,
• My Family. I’ve grown closer to my mom and dad over the past couple of years, and after this year, since I’ve been out of their house and on my own, I’ve realized how much I love em and care for them. My brother and I are making small steps to becoming close, and he will always be Little Brudder. My extended family, cousins, everyone-so happy they’re in my lives.
• My Friends. I’ve realized that I’ve had to let some friends go, and that’s fine. I think that’s what you come to when you’re at a certain age. But hey that’s cool. And also with that,  I’ve met some rad people this year so I think it all balances out. I know I have my friends I see every week and the friends I see once a year, and I’m thankful that I have them.
• Roof over my head, my job, my health, pantry of food, etc. That’s pretty much a given.

Now for some materialistic things…

• Etsy.com
• The Get Up Kids (I’m still in that kick!)
• my iPhone (life has been slightly more awesome because of it)
• my rad hunter hat that keeps me head super warm when I’m lounging around my house

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Meatless Monday: Hello, Spaghetti Squash

For this week’s MM, I finally decided to tackle the spaghetti squash that I bought several weeks ago. I was slightly intimidated because, as you may all know when you cook a spaghetti squash, the innards cook and become long strands of squash, hence its name. Now what other vegetable does that? Creepy.

So, I decided to go the boil-to-cook method, though my pal told me about roasting it. I really ought to start posting pictures with these recipes, but I’ll continue to be lazy until probably the next year.

Spaghetti-Spaghetti Squash

1 medium spaghetti squash

1 garlic clove, crushed

1/2-3/4 cup of your favorite marinara sauce (I do love Newman’s Own)

1/2 c of baby bella mushrooms

parmesan shavings (optional)

1. Split the spaghetti squash in half, scoop out seeds. Immerse in a large saucepan filled with water. Bring water to a boil and cook for about 30 minutes, or until fork tender. When ready, remove from water and ‘probe’ (as the little sticker on the squash said) until your ’spaghetti’ strands are pulled. I put it in a tiny colander while proceeding with the rest of the meal.

2. In a medium saucepan, sautee in olive oil, your crushed garlic clove until aromatic. Toss your baby bellas in there and sautee until they appear tender. Add spaghetti squash and season with salt and pepper.

3. Pour tomato sauce and bring everything to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Top with parm.

Remind me..

…if SO and I decide to have a crazy camping weekend, to give y’all these S’mores favors as a big Thanks! for coming out and not showering for a couple of days?

Check out the idea for sweet favors at Twig and Thistle.

Meatless Monday: Curried Chickpeas and Couscous

My SO isn’t a fan of eating when meat is not the central protein. I’m working on that slowly. It’s hard because he’s not exactly meat and potatoes.

Not saying that this dish will be of any interest to him. When SO works Monday evenings, I take advantage of the empty nest and plan on vegetarian. Mondays at work usually consists of me playing plenty of catch-up, but I try to make time to look up something to make.

Today, not so much. My sinuses are indicating that I might have something else brewing below so I took the day to work at home. This didn’t excuse bossman to give me an impossible assignment, when all I really wanted to do was lay down. Eleven hours of work later (you don’t quite have the advantage of ducking out when you want to when you work at home), I want something quick and easy.

This is wholly inspired by Channa Masala, a dish that’s special to me because it was one of the first vegetarian dishes I learned to cook while in college, when I ate mostly vegetarian (not the world’s greatest but you know).

Curried Chickpeas and Couscous

1 can of chickpeas, drained

1 can of diced tomatoes

1 onion, chopped

1/4 tsp Cayenne Pepper

1/2 tsp Cumin

1-2 Tbsp Curry powder

3/4 cup Couscous

1. Heat olive oil in medium saucepan. Add onions and cook until tender. Add cumin and cayenne pepper and fry until fully incorporated.

2. Add chickpeas and season with salt and pepper. I didn’t add too much salt because I didn’t drain the chickpeas.Sprinkle curry powder on top, combine.

3. Add diced tomatoes and bring to boil. Let boil for about 2-3 minutes, then throw in couscous. Remove from heat and let stand until couscous is cooked, 5 minutes tops.

Eat with yogurt or a side of bread or on its own. My first batch I added 1 Tbsp of Curry Powder but found that I wanted more. The amount if subject to your own taste preference.

Orange you glad? I made Sweet Potato Pie?

Part II: Sweet Potato Sweet

I’m not a big pie fan. I don’t really enjoy making pies- the thought of trying to make pate brisse is exhausting, so if I do attempt to make one, I really need to put aside a date. i’m also more of a cake/crust kind of girl, so if I’m eating pie, I usually will eat most of the crust and just a nibble of whatever the filling is. Fruit pies are usually the victims, because it’s the only way I can enjoy certain fruits due to odd allergies.

The craving for pie is also a very specific craving. I will enjoy one during Thanksgiving if someone brings out a homemade pie, or a sampling of mini pies from Mr. Tods, which is conveniently located near my home. The latter being the only place really I enjoy pie; I loathe most supermarket pies.

However, I happened to have a premade pie crust in the fridge. I had made some pumpkin pie bites last week, and decided to ‘chase that feeling’. Sweet potato pie is pretty good, but I wanted to find something less starchy tasting. Warning, this recipe is very sweet (adapted from this one). Yo can omit the cardamom if you must.

1 refrigerated pie crust

1 lb sweet potatoes (about 2 large ones)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 c brown sugar

1/2 c milk

2 eggs

1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1. Set out pie crust from fridge. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Boil sweet potatoes until you can pierce them for a fork. This took about 45-50 minutes.

3. When potatoes are done and cool, rub peels off and mash thoroughly.

4. Mix mashed sweet potato with butter and both sugars. Add eggs one at a time until each combined. Mix in spice, caradmom, and vanilla.

5. Prepare pie crust in pan, pour filling.

6. Bake for about 45 minutes until top is set. Let cool on wire rack until warm. Serve with whipped cream.

I didn’t want to make a whole pie, so I made miniature ones using a regular muffin pan. I’m also a bit of a whore when it comes to my initials, so with some leftover pie dough I dotted them with ‘C’s. You know it.

Orange you glad?

I just realized that I’m making a bunch of orange foods!

Part I: Sweet Potato Savory

I’m trying to be better at cooking with what is in the house, and I realized that I had sitting on my kitchen table, where about 4 large sweet potatoes that I had bought ages ago. Well, three weeks ago. Today at work I decided that today I had to put those sweet potatoes to work for me.

But I had to make dinner! When I hear sweet potatoes I think of sweet, mushy, clumps of sweet potatoes, dripping with butter, maple syrup, brown sugar, marshmallows.Thanksgiving is right around the corner- I’ll have plenty of that business then.

You can’t make that! I said to myself. No, I cannot. Luckily there are geniuses like Mark Bittman.  I found an article of his from last year talking about how the poor, beta-carotene rich sweet potato gets unfairly pigeonholed into the ubiquitous Thanksgiving side dish.

No one puts sweet potato in a corner. Now I had to put the pieces together to make something work. The SO made some spaghetti and neglected it a couple of days ago. The gears began to crank, with the help of Mr. Bittman and some poking around on allrecipes.com.

Sweet Potato and Spinach Spaghetti

1 large sweet potato, peeled and shredded
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 lb of spaghetti cooked
2 Tbsp butter, divided
1 tsp salt
a nice handful of baby spinach
1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup of shredded parmesan
1/4 cup of diced or slivered almonds (optional)

1. Cook spaghetti. While spaghetti is cooking, prepare sweet potato, onion, garlic, and cheese if you need to grate it.
2. In a large pan, heat olive oil up over medium-high heat. Saute onions,garlic, and salt until onions are clear. Add shredded sweet potato and combine with cooked onions and garlic. Saute until tender and soft, about 5-8 minutes.
3. Add handful of baby spinach. I like to tear them up while I adding them. Saute until wilted, about 2-3 minutes.
4. Add 1 Tbsp of butter and combine until melted.
5. Add cooked spaghetti and mix until fully combined. You can add the extra tablespoon of butter here if you think your pasta needs it. Add parmesan cheese, mix. Top pasta with mozzarella and nuts if you’re using it. The nuts are a great form of added protein. Serve piping hot!

next…Sweet Potato Pie.

don’t worry I’ll catch you

Tomorow is Halloween, and yes, I’m doing the whole song and dance of dressing up. The Grandma Coat is coming out and probably some obnoxious amount of pearls and cocktail rings. Meghan and I will be heading into the City for Halloween festivities. Normally, I would avoid New York on Halloween but there is a very special event that neither of us could deny: The Get Up Kids Reunion Tour. I never stopped listening to them (ok, maybe The Guilt Show, not so much) and when I didn’t get a chance to see them on their farewell tour, I wrote it off as having to say good-bye to one of my favorite bands. But as another indicator of old age (late 20s is old age), they are reuniting. This is the band that defined so much for me and set as the soundtrack to so many things- simpler times if you must. Let’s take a stroll down memory lane:

2000ish: I’m pretty sure I had a license and I was driving towards Watsessing back in Bloomfield to drop off some friends. One of these friends was Tishon. Tishon is one of the coolest cats I have had the pleasure of knowing in me life. I don’t exactly remember how we met, obviously it was in high school, but anyway, we were in my car with another friend and he takes out of his backpage this album.

T: “Yo, have you heard of the Get Up Kids?”

Me: “Nah, who are they?”

T: “This awesome band. This album is so good. You need to listen to it. “

Me: “Allright.”

So, this kids was before the time of fancy cd-burners and  Something To Write Home About came to me via a mixed tape. My car (God bless you Dexter, may you RIP) only had a tape deck anyway so it was cool. And let me tell you- I listened to that sucker everytime I was in the car. Then I finally got around to burning it. Then a year or so later I got around to actually buying it. My music life was so oddly varied: I was really into Sugar Ray (I’m sorry, RPM and Mean Machine? those were awesome songs. Cmon.) but I did enjoy the Smashing Pumpkins and Weezer. So GUK was just one step further into the depths of Indie, Emo, etc.

PS: You can visit Tishon here. Learn of his awesomeness.

2001ish: Late bloomer here, I fell into my first relationship at the culmination of senior year. Jason. He was into me because:

1. My lack of smiling (really.)
2. My sharp wit.
3. My ‘cool’ taste in music.

OK, so my music taste wasn’t established but #3 rested on the simple fact that I listened to a band like the Get Up Kids. After high school, I wanted to get out NJ for a while, so I decided to go school in Providence, RI. It became a Long Distance Relationship and as most high school couples take the leap to college couple, we needed to mark our territories and celebrate every single tradition.

A quick thing that got established by Jay was a song. This song was Mass Pike. You know, because I lived in Rhode Island…and that was the gateway to New England. You do not take the Massachusetts Turnpike to Providence from New Jersey, but because he associated it with us it was The Best Song Ever. The dinky, almost child-like intro would always bring a smile to my face. Jay would listen to it and then tell me about it when we had a scheduled camera chat (web cams were kind of a big deal back then) or on the phone (I ran up a stupid phone bill the first month in Providence. let’s not discuss it). He was so psyched when he downloaded it illegally from somewhere. he would play it over the phone too. It became a staple in mixed CD’s he would make for me.

We broke up at the end of Freshman year. (We’re totally cool now).

2002ish: Ok, actually in between the awesome phone convos and blowing kisses over a Logitech web cam, there was some other business going on to. Looking back at it, it was almost natural to happen- being miles away from your first ‘love’ and meeting new people, that crushes develop on boys who are not your boyfriend! My relationship with Jay was somewhat deteriorating around March of 02, obviously this is more evident to us now- I had kind of established a newer identity in Providence- punk, emo, or hardcore shows, track jacket wearing, scenester night at Club Hell. I had met friends who exposed me to these cool new things, that I could dig because of my pedigree of Get Up Kids and Vagrant records show and Battle of the Bands at Birchwood Nightclub back at home.

But anyway, around that time I was hanging with my usual posse in Providence; mainly Nisha and Corianne. Then all of sudden, I started hanging out with this other dude. I don’t remember when, how he came around. Patrick. He just appeared out of nowhere, hanging out with Nisha then all of sudden hanging out with me. I remember many a night sitting in the camp chairs in his room, one floor up watching the late show by ourselves and him being with us when we were trying to find a bats+mice/Bradford Ave show deep into the Eastside.

Patrick was a NJ native, chubby in the hot kind of way, didn’t talk too much, lived on the sixth floor of McNulty Hall but we were friends. My 19th birthday was marred though when Nisha got mad that I was hanging out with Patrick and he said he wouldn’t go to Club Hell and that kind of bummed me out. I totally had a crush on him.

Anyway, the GUK connection here is that he burned me On the Wire because I loved The Get Up Kids, and couldn’t figure out how to illegally download music onto my computer. We both agreed it was ‘Ok’ but I kind of secretly cherished it because he had given it to me (along with Second Stage Turbine Blade by Coheed and Cambria)- it absolutely rules when crushes give you gifts.At the end of the year I hated JWU and was moving back to go to Rutgers/NJ and we kept in touch on and off and I saw him once when I visited Nisha and Corianne.

2006ish: I was on the verge of graduating college, and I was a frightful mess most of my senior year. I probably didn’t acknowledge it and either hung out with my then boyfriend (no GUK connections there- I think I tried getting him to listen to it and he wasn’t having it), worked, studied, or drank. I had a good life in New Brunswick with my friends.

Proceed to my 23rd birthday. Rutgersfest, crazy debaucherous festival of music and booze was taking place the Friday before my birthday. Unfortunately, I was burdened with finishing my entire college education in the time span of 2 days- 2 twenty page papers and 2 exams and lets throw in a presentation for good measure. I didn’t have the nice pad of finals study time like most other people, so I spent most of Rutgersfest in the computer lab, until I had enough and needed to drink.

I got a surprising text from Patrick. Let me explain- he had moved back to NJ after college and would try to hang out in New Brunswick with  me, but I always had something going on. Anyway, this night it happened to be the right timing  and we ended meeting up and hanging out with other friends here and there that crazy night.

He kissed me that night. I had a boyfriend. He said he was in love with me. I said he drank too much beer.Etc, etc.  I broke up with my boyfriend, started hanging out with him a lot, graduated college, went on dates with him (like actual dates) and had amazing fun the entire month of May.

Did things work out between us? No. I went to the Philippines for a month and came back to flakiness, so that was that. I still though, can’t help but think of him when I listen to this album. Overdue pretty much sums it up. I went out on a limb for him, but instead I was 23. But if anything, it got me out of a stale relationship with my ex boyfriend, boosted my confidence, and after all the crying and being bummed out- I got my groove back and a series of events led me to my current SO, who I can safely say, is the love of my life.

2004ish: I was back at home, enrolled at Rutgers,  super depressed for a lot of reasons. This GUK exerpt of life will be short and sweet. Four-Minute Mile is probably the GUK album I associate with some really rad friends.

It’s funny, but it’s not explicit because I don’t remember the connect as clearly as the others. I just remember listening to this album with a variety of people. I remember asking Megha’s super cute neighbor who was into super awesome music if he wanted to go to Eighteen Visions (yeah, bitches I was so hardcore. yeah right, I was going because my RI friends were in town for it) and he totally had this album. Some guy that Megha made out with in her dorm gave her his copy of it, and I ‘m pretty sure this is how it came into my ownership. Emily listened to a lot of awesome music and our friendship was based on mutual intimidation (it’s related to the Eighteen Visions concert) and I remember other than the Smiths, I was totally freaking out because she had this album.

God, I love the Get Up Kids and I am sooo psyched for tomorrow’s show. The last thing I will mention is the amazing music video idea I’ve had for Action & Action since forever. I’m pretty sure I drew out storyboards. It came after I saw Empire Records and That Thing You Do! and somehow the idea formed.

Basically, The Get Up Kids are this awesome early 60ish rock and roll garage band that gets signed (insert the Tom Hank figure from TTYD here) to play like the number 1 tv show in the country. They blow up and take the country by storm: there are a lot of montages of girls screaming, they are wearing matching suits, vintage microphones- it’s like the Beatles but it’s the Get Up Kids.  BUT THEN! Matt Pryor is getting too much attention and this is causing mad internal conflict and they break up. Flash to cover of Life magazine with the news.

Now, if you’re familiar with the song, the break up happens about 2:40 minutes into the song. You flash to the news etc, then at 2:50ish you see a solo drumstick beating out that riff or whatever you call it- then slowly the rest of the band comes into focus and omg…they are back together again. The rest of the video is the Get Up Kids playing their come back tour and it’s awesome because it’s in color- a big deal in the 60s, right?

The Get Up Kids, Meghan, and I (and probably some people we might not want to see because of our past muahaha) will be at the Fillmore at Irving Plaza, on Halloween, with sassy cat masks. Get at us!

How Boulder bowled my tummy over

I rewarded myself with an end of summer vacation to Boulder, CO to visit one of my old college roommates and best friends from Rutgers. It was definitely a necessary getaway, as work has gotten to be kind of annoying at times.

Boulder, CO is a pretty, healthy, crunchy, clean kind of town. Altitude issues aside, I had a blast hanging out with Beth and meeting her friends from Naropa (where she is getting her Masters in Art Therapy… GO BETH) who are all awesome souls. I can only think of a couple of things that bugged me- maybe the large number of her residents (she’s a peer mentor in the one undergrad dorm on campus) who went without shoes, the dry air, dehydration, etc.

I had lots of good eats while in Boulder and Colorado. My reviews:

Sherpa’s Adventures 825 Walnut St. Boulder, CO 80302-5034: This was my first meal after getting into Boulder. Beth came to pick me up from Denver Int’l and I was completely famished by the time we reached Boulder. She had looked up this place before hand; apparently it’s the best Indian and Nepali food in Boulder. I had requested Indian food since I don’t get to eat it very often (the irony is that I live in central NJ which has some of the best Indian food around- blame my boyfriend!). The owners apparently all mountain climb/are sherpas.I had the Lamb Korma, Beth had Saag, and we split a single serving of Naan. I was starving, but my lamb was delicious. It was the first time I had lamb in a stew as opposed to a chop/on its own. It was slightly gamey, but really succulent due to the sauce and flavors in the Korma.
The Kitchen’s Hummus

The Kitchen 1039 Pearl Street Boulder, CO 80301: While Beth was off on Thursday getting her learning on, I explored the city. Luckily she lives nearby the downtown area- the Pearl Street Mall is chock full of great stores and eateries. I had put some research into my one solo lunch, and decided on The Kitchen, which I read an article about in Food and Wine. The ambiance is airy, light, chic, and inviting. The service was excellent. I indulged and had the Kitchen’s hummus to start, served with a three thick slices of grilled bread. My main was a slow-roated pork sandwich, topped with salsa verde, served with a side of fricase, potatoes, and a light vinagrette dressing. Sublime and excellent. The Kitchen also boasts a bar, all organic/all local food attitude. The cocktails were tempting, but I decided to pass since I was still adjusting to the altitude.

Chocolate-Bacon-Maple Cupcake from Tee and Cake

Tee and Cake 1932 14th St Boulder, CO 80302: I am a cupcake fiend so of course I had to scope our Boulder’s cupcake offerings. I was not disappointed when I came across Tee and Cake. I indulged in a maple cupcake topped with chocolate ganache and….wait for it…crisp bacon. The bacon wasn’t as crisp as I would like, but it wasn’t oily or greasy. The ganache was what ganache should be- smooth, creamy, without leaving any sort of grit on the top of your mouth. The cake was airy and light, yet flavorful. Had to step away before I tried other cupcakes- they had many different varieties!

Afternoon Tea at Dushanbe

Dushanbe Tea House 1770 13th St Boulder, CO 80302: The place to go to when in Boulder! Of course, coming from the tea industry, I had to go. I made a reservation for high tea with Beth; an afternoon tea newb. The teahouse itself is a place to visit- it was built in Boulder’s sister city, Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan- the entire tea house was built in Dushanbe then sent over to Boulder and put together. Beautiful, hand painted walls and ornaments adorn the tea house. Our afternoon tea was more than delightful; tiny sandwiches and cakes, and pleasant helpings of a delicious and simple side salad (the soy vinegrette is worthy of being imitated), a potato salad with pieces of andouille sausage, and pasta salad. The scones were good, not the greatest. My biggest qualm was with our server leaving our infusers in the teapot instead of preparing the tea, and presenting us with the finished tea. I accidentally over-steeped! Alas, it was a wonderful, beautiful time. Very girly indeed!

Little India 330 E 6th Ave Denver, CO 80203: We drove through Denver after an eventful and cold day in Colordado Springs visiting Pikes Peak. Our only nourishment the entire day was a half a jar of blueberry granola, 2 donuts from the summit house (special recipe for the high altitude), hot chocolate, and fries. We were ready for real food. Thanks to yelp.com I was able to locate this place and easy directions. More Indian food! Why not? I had the house favorite, chicken tikka masala, Beth had saag with chickpeas. Deliciousness as usual; seems like Colorado can give central Jersey a run for its money.

Sunflower Organic Dining 1701 Pearl St Boulder, CO 80302: When I see ‘organic’ in a restaurant’s name, I usually think that it’s a gimmick and I’m right- the food is subpar, but HEY ITS ORGANIC. I hate that, I really do, when justice isn’t given to the best, quality ingredients. Now, of course I peronally cannot buy all my produce organic, but I try. Eating organic, when presented with good tasty options, is way easier. I wish Sunflower was local- I would have brunch every weekend there! I had the smoked salmon eggs benedict- tasty, flaky salmon, perfectly poached eggs, their version of a hollandaise sauce (made with soy mayo), all atop a large slab of cornbread. For real. They had me at cornbread. Amazing and kept me full until I got home way later that evening, my feet safe and sound on New Jersey ground.

Ribbon Candy from Hammonds Candy Factory

Other foodie activities:

Celestial Tea Factory Tour 4600 Sleepytime Dr Boulder, CO 80301: Of course this was a big to-do on my list (this and breweries,, which unfortunately we did not manage to fit into our schedule). The tour is free and accessible by public transportation. Beth and I went, along with her good friend Danica, who had not gone yet. The tour is very fun and I love seeing how other teaplaces operate, and I became insanely jealous of the herb storage. My biggest disappointment was our lively tour guides misinformation- white tea having more caffeine than green (I had to bite my lip). I could have been that person but I wasn’t. The tour ended appropriately in the Celestial Seasonings gift store where I bought two boxes of delicious smelling herbal tea (Gingerbread and Sugar Cookie- two flavors my company does not have in caffeine free).

Hammond’s Candy Tour 5735 N Washington Street Denver, CO 80216: On route to Colorado Springs, our Celestial Seasonings tour guide informed us of Hammond’s candy tour. I was pumped because MARTHA STEWART loves Hammonds. Rather, maybe Darcy Miller, editor of MS Weddings loves Hammonds because it’s one of their top suppliers of candy for the ubiquitous and ever popular candy buffet at weddings (I don’t care how non-trendy it is when I get married, it’s happening). Hammonds is known for their hard candy and ribbon candy. It was really interesting to see how the actual candy is made and pulled and molded.

Powell’s Candy Store 1200 Pearl St #110 Boulder, CO 80302: This candy store was so much fun to browse through! They also boast a gelato bar. Candy of every sort imaginable here- I would imagine children losing their shit once setting foot into this store; I nearly did. I was good and bought only a chick-o-stick and some crazy lookign Botan Rice candy from China.

Food regrets? Not trying out enough of Colorado’s local beers. I’ve been finding myself drinking more and more beer and Colorado boasts the most micro breweries than any other state. I did try Avery’s IPA and several Mountain Sun Brewery’s beers. A brewery tour is in order for the next visit.

I thought with all the walking around in Boulder, that I would be ok with all the eating. I think I gained a few pounds, can’t blame it on the altitude either.

eggplant puree/melanzana bastardized.

I had this odd craving for…eggplant. I’m not a huge fan of eggplant- its good but something I don’t really make too often. What got me thinking of eggplant was this memory of a PF Chang’s dish- eggplant and ground chicken. Then I thought of eggplant parm. The former’s dish consisted of eggplant half pureed, half intact. Eggplant parmesan, of course is pretty familiar.

I looked up recipes, and found out about this Italian preparation of eggplant, referred to as melanzana. The recipe consisted of the eggplant roasted, pureed, with the addition of onion, garlic, vinegrette, salt and pepper. That sounded great, but I in all honesty, I wanted eggplant parm without the mess of frying and something a bit more healthy.

I’ve been a strong vegetarian kick, so this proved to be very filling.

Eggplant Melanzana Parmesan

1 medium eggplant

1/2 onion chopped coarsely

1 large garlic clove

1/4 cup sour cream

1/2 cup of prepared tomato sauce

1-2 cups baby spinach/spinach

mozzerella cheese

olive oil, salt, and pepper

1. Cut eggplant lengthwise and brush with olive oil, salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 350 and place a pan in the oven to preheat it, while you’re chopping up your vegetables. When pan is warm, place eggplant flesh down. Cover skin with more olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast for 30-45 minutes until the flesh is completely cooked. You can tell if the skin pulls completely away from the eggplant.

2. Let eggplant cool. When eggplant is cool enough to handle, spoon out flesh and throw away skins. Add eggplant innards, onion, olive oil, sour cream, and 1-2 tsp of olive oil to a food processor. Puree until lumpy and combined.

3. Add eggplant to saucepan and combine with tomato sauce. Throw in some baby spinach and stir until wilted. Serve with pasta, mozzerella cheese, and fresh basil.

I also added some left over portabella mushrooms that I roasted. You can also omit the sour cream if you want a completely vegan dish. The sour cream adds some creaminess, but isn’t necessary.

om nom nom nom!