Italian Inspired Soup

I found this lovely recipe on Pinterest a good while ago and decided to finally try it. I had all the ingredients and it came together so quickly. I didn't have Italian sausage so I seasoned my turkey like I was making meatballs with salt, pepper, onion powder, garlic powder, and oregano. It came out great and made wonderful lunch leftovers!

Ingredients:

1 15-ounce can cannelini beans, drained
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes, garlic, oregano, & basil seasoned
1 8-ounce can of tomato sauce, garlic, oregano & basil seasoned
1 pound ground sausage or turkey
1 small onion, diced
1 medium carrot, diced
1 celery stalk
1 tablespoons olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
6 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
1 cup ditalini pasta

Instructions:

In a large pot, season and brown the ground turkey. Remove from pot. Add onion, carrot and olive oil and saute for 5 minutes until soft. Add celery and garlic, saute about a minute more. Add the tomatoes, tomato sauce, chicken broth, thyme, bay leaf, the drained beans, and the sausage and cover the pot. Cook for about 30 to 45 minutes over low heat, at a gentle simmer.

Southern Comfort: Biscuits and Gravy

Lately I have indulging in what I like to call struggle meals, Now I know what you,re thinking, biscuits and gravy is quite decadent, but I assure you it is. A struggle meal is when you create something from seemingly nothing because you haven't been able to go to the store.

For this meal the milk and flour were both past their expiration dates. I had butter from making desserts at Thanksgiving and sausage that had been in my freezer. Thus, biscuits and gravy were born and it came out delicious, especially for my first time making either. Both recipes were adapted from ones I found on foodnetwork.com. 

Biscuit Ingredients

4 cups self-rising flour, plus more for dusting
1 stick good butter, plus 3 tablespoons melted
2 to 3 cups cold buttermilk
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

Biscuit Preparation

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Add the flour to a mixing bowl. Working quickly, cut 1 stick of the butter into the flour using the pastry cutter (or your fingers).

In batches, add in the buttermilk until the dough is cohesive yet still moist. 

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and lightly press into a 1-inch-thick round. 

Using a 2 1/2-inch biscuit cutter or a dry measuring cup, cut out 10 biscuits. 

Place the dough rounds into a heated, round cake pan, right up against each other, and brush with the melted butter. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 25 minutes.

Gravy Ingredients

1/2 lb roll sausage
1 Tb flour
1 cup milk
Salt and pepper to taste

Gravy Preparation

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sausage, break it up with a wooden spoon, and cook, stirring occasionally, until well browned and cooked through, about 7 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the sausage to a bowl, leaving the rendered fat in the skillet. Whisk the flour into the fat and cook, stirring, for about 1 minute. While whisking, pour the milk into the skillet and bring the gravy to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer gently for 2 minutes. Stir in the sausage and season with pepper. Split the biscuits in half and divide them among plates. Top each biscuit with some of the gravy and serve immediately.

Holiday Ham!

Usually I make my holiday ham (I'm calling it "holiday" because I've made it for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter) with brown sugar and pineapple. I pierce it with cloves, sprinkle it with brown sugar, pour pineapple juice over it and pop a couple pineapple slices on for decorative effect. Today I only had ground cloves and brown sugar, but I had recently received an email from Food & Wine that had a recipe for bourbon glazed ham. Bourbon and whiskey not that different, right? So I used Jack Daniels Tennessee Honey I had stashed away since this time last year, mixed it with the brown sugar and cloves, poured it on the ham, and baked it for 90 minutes at 400 degrees. Delicious!

Family Favorite

Ingredients

1 lb ground turkey

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste

Prep

Season turkey with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. You can add bread crumbs to keep your patties together better. Mix and form into 8 or 9 small burger patties. Pan sear the patties until brown and cooked through. While the meat is cooking, whisk together the soup with 3/4 can of water until smooth. Pour over patties in the pan and stir. Simmer until heated through. Serve with mashed potatoes or rice. 

Dessert: Peach Cobbler

Peach cobbler is one of my favorite desserts. You can get the recipe for my other favorite, pound cake, here. Something about warm peaches seasoned with cinnamon and nutmeg, topped with vanilla bean ice cream makes me feel so at home. Its a comfort dessert! Here's mom's recipe

Ingredients

3 large cans (29oz) peaches in heavy syrup
2 boxes of pie crust (2 per box-4 total)
1-2 sticks of margarine or butter
1-cup of sugar
1-tsp nutmeg
1-tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup flour
2-3 tsp vanilla flavor

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

Crust

Pie crust needs to be at room temp. Spread a heaping tablespoon of flour on a cutting board (or wax paper on a counter). Unroll pie crust onto flour and press out with a rolling pin or glass with shape of rolling pin. Place 2 crusts in bottom of 9x13 glass pan.

Filling

Reserve about 1/3 cup of peach juice to mix with the flour for thickening. Place the peaches with juice, sugar, nutmeg and cinnamon in a large pot, heat on medium until peaches are soft. Mix juice into flour a little at a time so flour does not have lumps. Add to peach pot a little at a time stirring frequently until juices are thick (you may have to add more flour until its as thick as you like it). **Be sure to add juice into the flour or you will get lumps of dough.** Add butter or margarine after juice is thickened. Stir in vanilla flavor (taste and add additional ingredients as needed). Pour peach filling into pan. Unroll and press out 2 other pie crusts and place on top (it's ok to over lap crusts). Crimp together edges.

*Make sure you have foil in bottom of oven to catch drippings*

Bake 45-50 minutes until crust is brown, spread butter on crust and sprinkle sugar just before removing. Check to make sure pie crust has not burned.

Salads

I made this loaded potato salad for the first time on Thanksgiving; something different to go with our spare ribs. It's my own recipe just the usual ingredients for a loaded baked potato. I also made a spinach salad that I forgot to photograph, but was pretty tasty for our Thanksgiving feast. The recipes follow:

Loaded Potato Salad

Ingredients

6 red potatoes
1/2 cup mayo
3/4 sour cream
1/2 stalk celery, chopped
1/2 cheddar cheese, shredded
5-6 stalks of green onion, sliced
1-2 strips of bacon, crisp and chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

Preparation

In salted water boil the potatoes until fork tender. Poke a few holes in them before cooking so they absorb the salt. (I usually do this the night before, allow them to cool, and refrigerate.)

Chop the celery, green onion, and potatoes, add them to a bowl along with the cheese, mayo and sour cream; Salt and pepper to taste and stir to combine.

Sprinkle with bacon and serve.

Simple Spinach Salad

Combine fresh spinach, dried cranberries, and sunflower seeds or slivered almonds with your favorite vinaigrette. That's it! Enjoy!

Thanksgiving Feasting

Ahhhh! I've missed blogging so! I've been busy with school: three classes and a thesis to write (I graduate next semester) on top of two jobs, I barely found time to cook let alone blog about it. At any rate the semester  is over (straight A's) and since my day job is at a university I'm on break til 2014 so here I am. In all the madness that is/was my life I did get a chance to try a few new recipes for Thanksgiving.

My sister came to town and we decided on a non-traditional meal of ribs, mac & cheese, brussell sprouts, loaded potato salad, and spinach salad. As well as peach cobbler and pound cake for dessert. I tried a new rub for my ribs and winged it on the brussell sprouts. The rib rub was taken from Bobby Flay on the Food Network website, here. It's a dry rub but I find that mustard makes the meat extra juicy and quite tender. Next time I'm going to leave out the cumin. The mac & cheese I make pretty much every Thanksgiving, but I don't think I've ever shared the recipe.

Ribs

Ingredients
1 rack of pork ribs
1-2 Tb of mustard
Rib Rub (recipe to follow)

Prep
1. Slather the ribs in mustard (I like whole grain, but spicy brown would be great too)
2. Pack on the rub (as little or as much as you like)
3. Rest the rack for at least an hour
4. Bake (unless you live in a climate conducive to grilling outside in November or you don't mind braving the cold for grilled meats) for 90-120 minutes at 350 degrees.

Rub

Ingredients
1 tablespoon cumin
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon granulated onion
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon white pepper

Prep
1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Store in an airtight container.

Mac & Cheese

Ingredients
1 Box of elbow macaroni (I use Barilla because it has the ridges)
4-6 Cups of shredded cheese, sharp and mild cheddar, separated (The sharp cheddar is for mixing in and the mild is for on top. I've used colby jack or the Kraft triple cheddar mixture as well, but there is no substitute for the sharp)
1 Can Cream of Chicken soup ( I use Campbell's)
1 Can of milk (fill the soup can after removing the soup)
2 Tb of butter (not margarine or you can leave it out altogether)
Salt and pepper to taste

Prep
1. In a large pot, salt and bring 2-3 quarts of water to boil.
2. Empty entire box of macaroni into the pot and stir so the noodles do not stick.
3. In a smaller pot bring the can of soup and milk to a low simmer, whisking until smooth.
4. When the pasta is al dente, drain and place in a large bowl. Add the butter.
5. Pour a quarter of the soup over the noodles and add a cup of sharp cheese (here you can use up to 4 cups). Stir. Repeat until the soup and cheese are a ooey gooey mixture.
6. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
7. Pour into a 9x13 glass, baking pan and top with the remaining 2 cups of mild cheddar.
8. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly and golden brown on top, about 35 minutes.

Ngam New York

This tiny space, equipped with a tiny head chef, packs a big punch! The entry way is small bu the space opens up towards the back. They've shoved as many tables as they could in the open area so make reservations! I made the mistake of not making reservation, but the staff was SOOOO accommodating to my friends and me, who had never been. 

Everything sounded good on the menu but I must admit I ordered based on what I saw at the table next to ours. We got the Surf n' Turf for an appetizer. With grilled calamari, shrimp, beef, and the most delicious Thai sausage wrapped in bacon, we were in heaven. I mean seriously you can wrap a shoe in bacon, dip it in Thai chili sauce and I'd probably eat it lol! 

For the entree I went for the classic Pad Thai 'cause, let's face it, if a place can't handle the basics, the rest of the menu probably wouldn't be worth a try. I ordered it extra spicy and it came out perfect; not too saucy or dry and the perfect balance of spice, acidity, and sweetness. I can't wait to go back!

P.S. We got free drinks by checking in on Yelp!

The Cowfish

The concept of this place is pretty brilliant! Burger bar, sushi bar, full bar? Don't mind if I do. You can take all of your friends to this place, even the ones that say, "I don't like sushi. I'm not eating raw fish," yet they've never tried a California roll. Someone mentioned on Yelp that the menu is pretty big. I agree its kind of outrageously large and that usually means lesser quality and a slower kitchen. I appreciate a restaurant that does a small menu phenomenally.

It took about 15 minutes (3 stops by the waitress) and finally her recommendation before I placed my order. I ordered the original cowfish bento box with a Philly roll, slider, sweet potato fries, edamame, and cucumber salad. The sweet potato fries were delicious and the cucumber salad is literally (the original definition, not the new ridiculous one) the best I've had at any sushi bar. Everything else was pretty basic and the service was pretty slow. They messed up my sister's order. My friend and I were nearly done eating by the time she got her meal. The manager brought it out and comp'ed it.

We ordered dessert too! A tower of lemon pound cake, ice cream, whipped cream, and berries. It was amazing. The three of us couldn't finish it! After dessert we waited for our check. We were chatting, but after 30 minutes or more we had to ASK for our check. The atmosphere was nice and maybe I'll try going at a less busy time before I make a final ruling on the service. I'll be back.

SoCo: Jambalaya

I've been craving jambalaya for weeks (probably because I haven't eaten rice in a while). Anyway, I found a few recipes and combined them to create this one. It cam out delicious. Try it!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 large yellow onions, diced

12 ounces andouille sausage, diced

1 large green bell peppers, cored, seeded, and diced

3 medium celery stalks, diced

3 tablespoons of Cajun or creole seasoning

3 medium garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more as needed

1 (14.5-ounce) can petite diced tomatoes

2 tablespoon tomato paste

2 cups long-grain white rice

1 box (32-ounce) low-sodium chicken stock or broth

2 bay leaves

2 medium scallions, thinly sliced

Instructions:

1. Heat a quarter size amount of the oil in a heavy-bottomed pot or large Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Season the chicken with one tablespoon of the cajun or creole seasoning. Place about half of the chicken pieces in the pot and cook, stirring rarely, until browned all over, about 5 to 6 minutes. (If your pot is large enough to cook it all at once without crowding, do so). Remove to a large bowl and brown the remaining chicken in 1 more batch; set aside.

2. Add the butter and melt over medium heat. Add the onions, scrape the bottom of the pot with a wooden spoon to release any browned bits, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions just begin to brown, about 6 minutes.

3. Add the sausage and cook until the meat is browned and the onions are very tender, about 10 minutes.

4. Add the bell peppers, celery, garlic, measured salt, and remaining cajun or creole seasoning. Cook, scraping the bottom of the pot occasionally, until the bell peppers have softened, about 10 minutes.

Stir in tomato paste until fragrant. Add the reserved chicken and any accumulated juices and the tomatoes.

5. Add stock or broth, rice, and bay leaves, stir to combine, and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat. Simmer until all liquid is absorbed. Stir occasionally making sure the rice doesn't stick to the bottom of the pot. Taste the liquid and season with salt if needed; the liquid will give your rice all the flavor it needs. I added cayenne pepper here too. 

6. Remove and discard the bay leaves.  Sprinkle with the scallions and serve.

Feast Food Tour: Local Flavors of NoDa

While in Charlotte Labor Day weekend my sister and I went on a food tour. We toured the neighborhood known as North Davidson. It was a little different from the one I went on in Chicago. We covered a smaller area and had less food (I was still hungry after this tour), but more beverage and just as much history and culture. 

We met at Revolution Ale House where we had pizza and tried craft beers on tap. We were able to tour the kitchen and talk to chef. The pizza was thin crust and absolutely delicious. It is named for the neighborhood, NoDa, and has pulled pork and a balsamic sauce drizzled across the top that plays well with the pork and cheese flavors. They serve a wide selection of local and craft beers. 

Revolution Ale House

The second stop on our tour was The Bodega. This place is pretty secluded. If you don't know the neighborhood you'd probably never find it. Its a small convenient store with beer, wine, and other random goodies like yellow stone ground grits (yes I bought some). It has a deli counter and you can create your own sandwich. The owners are pretty cool people too! Look it up and stop in!

Heist Brewery

Heist Pizza

Heist Brewery seemed like a really cool place. Its a brewery turned restaurant. They make all the beer right there in the restaurant where you can also sit and enjoy artfully prepared foods. The pizza was an incredibly thin crust, crisped to perfection. We had one with duck, a veggie one with eggplant, and one with bacon, tomato, and green onion that tasted like a BLT. All were very good, even the duck which I usually don't eat because of the texture (too fatty). 

Heist is the brain child of a former scientist turned craft beer maker and his friend the chef and caterer. The owner (scientist) was very friendly and we were able to have a nice conversation. I wish we could have stayed longer. I can't wait to go back!

Salud

The next stop we met a man, his wife, and their toddler at Salud. They have a wide selection of local and craft beers. I tried a watermelon and jalapeno that they had on tap. Unfortunately, I tried the watermelon after the jalapeno so I couldn't really enjoy it, but the jalapeno was great. 

FuManChu Cupcakes

In the same space we met a tattooed older gentleman serving up cupcakes made with Guinness. All of his cupcakes are made with booze and definitely unique. You won't get a plain vanilla, chocolate, or red velvet cupcake with this guy. 

The second to last stop was Smelly Cat Cafe. I'm not a coffee drinker, but it's such a cute place. The decor is nice and there's actually plenty of small tables for lingering despite the small space. The staff is incredibly knowledgeable about the products and the beans are all roasted in house. While others in my food tour tried the Colombian coffee, I tried mango iced tea. They also had really delicious no bake treats! Stop in!

Smelly Cat Cafe

The last stop was Dolce Vita, a wine bar, where we tasted multiple wines. A few whites, a couple reds. I was also able to try a South African wine, which I can best describe as exotic. It tasted like safari. In a way that a spiced wassail tastes like the holidays. The flavor was so different from all the other wines I have tasted. I loved it!

Hatch Sandwich Bar

This was my first stop on my North Carolina foodie adventure; thanks to my fellow yelpers! The menu is not huge, but I had a hard time deciding because everything sounded so good. I finally settled on the Pastrami sub because it was all the things I'd never put on my pastrami! I like pastrami simple: tender juicy meat, mustard, pickles and hot peppers.

Hatch makes theirs with spicy mayo, cheese, and tomato; all of which are taboo in my mind. It was delicious! Not overstuffed with pastrami and kind of like a grilled cheese on crack lol. The meat was sliced to order even at the lunch time rush, the cheese was gooey and the bread was warm and crusty. I would never try to replicate it at home but I'd order it over and over again from here! Next time I'd like to try the broccoli and cheese or one of he pulled pork options.

Indian Spiced Chicken with Chickpeas and Kale

This recipe was adapted from a Bon Appetit magazine recipe. It came out a-maz-ing!!! It was so delicious! And not like, this-is-so-good-because-I-haven't-eaten-since-8AM-good, but truly delectable. I'm on a no carb kick so no side dishes for me, but I was filled. I'll probably buy some cauliflower for roasting as a side dish for the leftovers; seems fitting. If you'd like something else try rice, white or brown, or quinoa. Lentils would be an excellent substitute for chickpeas, as well. So here's the recipe:

INGREDIENTS

4-6 chicken quarter legs
Kosher salt
Coarse ground pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 large onions, thinly sliced
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons grated peeled ginger
2 teaspoons ground curry powder
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2-3 cups of kale, washed and torn
1/4 cup Greek yogurt or sour cream
1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves with tender stems

PREPARATION

Place a rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 325°. Heat oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Working in batches, sear the chicken, reducing heat as needed to prevent over-browning, until golden brown on all sides, 8-10 minutes per batch. Transfer to a plate.

Add butter and onions to drippings in pot. Cook, stirring often, until onions are soft and golden brown, 10-15 minutes.

Stir in garlic, ginger, curry powder, cumin, and cayenne. Cook, stirring constantly, until spices are fragrant, about 1 minute. Stir in chickpeas and 2 cups broth. Return chicken and any accumulated juices to pot. Bring to a simmer. Cover pot and transfer to oven. Braise chicken until fork-tender, 45-60 minutes.

Using tongs and a slotted spoon, transfer chicken to a platter and cover with foil to keep warm. Add kale to pot, cover, and remove from heat. Let stand until kale is tender.

Stir yogurt or sour cream into cooking liquid. Return chicken to pot. Simmer over low heat (do not boil).

Plate and serve with cilantro.

Hickory Square

Fried Green Tomatoes with Pimento Cheese

Steak and Eggs with Hashbrown Casserole

Josh's on the Square is a neighborhood gem! My sister and I had brunch here Sunday. They offer a 3 course meal for $13 and bottomless mimosas for $8. I chose the fried green tomatoes, steak and eggs, and wild berry cheesecake, while my sister had a Cesar salad, shrimp and grits, and banana pudding. 

The fried green tomatoes were topped with pimento cheese which I usually don't care for (forgive me southern people lol) but it was good. The tomatoes were very fresh. Unfortunately, the steak wasn't cooked the way I requested but it was so tender and well seasoned I didn't mind. The eggs were fresh, not egg substitute or cracked into a large bucket and ladled out. The entree came with hash brown casserole that was ok but I've had better. The cheesecake was phenomenal. I wanted to take home the whole thing! It was house-made not the frozen, boxed kind that most restaurants serve.

My sister was nice enough to let me try her grits. I'm pretty sure they were yellow stone ground grits (the best kind). I was pleasantly surprised with the tomato based sauce; it was a different take on a southern classic! If ever in HIckory, NC . . . 

Wild Berry Cheesecake

Sweet Frog

So I'm a Yogurtland fiend!!! I love the flavor options; I love the fact that the flavor options change and I love the selection of toppings. For a while I've been on a quest to find delicious, well priced frozen yogurt comparable to the reigning king, Yogurtland. My sister took me to Sweet Frog.

"This place is super cute!" That's the first thing I thought when I walked inside. If I had a daughter this could be her room. They have a good variety of flavors and the price is great! I tried the raspberry-pomegranate, I loved the tartness; the key lime pie, which was too sour; and the warm macadamia nut cookie, which tasted so authentic. It was swirled with country vanilla, a perfect combo. 

I found one in Baltimore too, I'm stoked!

Blueberry Cheesecake Muffins

I found this recipe on Pinterest and adapted it only slightly to make muffins. It's pretty labor intensive but the muffins came out so fluffy and delicious it's worth it. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Batter:

½ cups Butter
½ cups Sugar
¼ teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
2 whole Egg Yolks
1-½ cup All-pupose Flour
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
⅓ cups Milk
2 cups Blueberries
1 Tablespoon All-purpose Flour
2 whole Egg Whites
¼ cups White Sugar

Filling:

8 ounces, weight Cream Cheese
½ cups Sugar
1 Tablespoon Flour
1 whole Egg
1 Tablespoon Orange Zest

Preparation

Filling:

In a medium bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, 1 tablespoon flour, egg and orange zest; beat until smooth. (Be sure to use the measurements found under filling for these.) Set aside.

Batter:

Cream butter and sugar (1/2 cup) until fluffy. Add salt and vanilla. Add egg yolks (save the egg whites as you’ll need them later) to the sugar mixture; beat until creamy. Set aside.
In another bowl, combine flour (1 1/2 cups) and baking powder. Add this mixture, alternately with milk to egg yolk mixture.

Coat berries with 1 tablespoon flour and add them to the batter.

In a separate bowl, beat egg whites until soft peaks form. Add sugar (1/4 cup), 1 tablespoon at a time, and beat until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into batter.

Spoon batter into muffin tins; fill them half way. Layer the filling over the batter and then top with more batter. This will create a layer of “cheesecake” between the blueberry batter.

Bake at 350F for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

Baltimore Summer Restaurant Week 2013: Mother's Federal Hill Grille

Great restaurant week menu . . . This past Thursday was my first time at Mother's. I hear people talk about it all the time, usually burgers, beer and sports, but the food was delicious. 

I ordered calamari as a starter. It was tender on the inside and crispy on the outside. The sauce was good too. The crabcake was perfectly cooked and had the largest pieces of crab I've ever seen in a cake; I mean they barely bother with filler, I'm surprised it held together! I carb loaded with mashed potatoes topped with loaded butter and chipotle Mac n cheese. The potatoes were scratch made and the mac had a wonderful kick to it. Dessert was bread pudding; not my favorite on any day but I tried it anyway. It was just ok. City Café's is worlds better. 

Overall, surprisingly great experience and I can't wait to go back and try one of those 20 burgers and wings.

Baltimore Summer Restaurant Week 2013: Black Olive

I went to Black Olive today for lunch for restaurant week. The decor is nice and the location is quaint. I wasn't impressed with the food. I had a roasted tomato soup with feta, shrimp scorpio with orzo and feta, and baklava. Everything was just ok, middle of the road. The soup portion was huge and the entree was small. The pasta wasn't seasoned and only had two shrimp. I wouldn't recommend anyone go here, but I wouldn't discourage them form trying it either. Blah is the best description I can give.

Starters: Maryland Crab Dip

Maryland Crab Dip

Ingredients:

1 lb. backfin crabmeat

8 oz. cream cheese

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 Tbsp. Old Bay seasoning

1 Tbsp. Worcestershire

8 oz. grated sharp cheese

3 green onions, sliced very thin

Instructions: 

Clean crabmeat.

Mix together all ingredients.

Place in individual ramekins or in large glass baking dish for serving.

Bake at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes until hot and bubbly. 

Top with additional green onion and a dash of Old Bay.

Serve with crackers, sliced french bread, pita or tortilla chips.

Snacking: Garlic Kale Chips

Wash and dry a bunch of kale.

Cut into chip size pieces.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment.

Arrange kale on sheet and drizzle or spray with oil.

Sprinkle with garlic salt.

Bake for 10 minutes or until crispy but not brown.

Enjoy!

Hash House A Go Go

Hash House A Go Go is hands down my favorite place to go in Vegas. It has the remedy for hangovers and gambling busts. The food is great and the price is right. The portions are large but more importantly the food is fresh. Homemade bread for sandwiches, homemade biscuits for sopping up gravy or golden egg yolks from farm fresh eggs. 

This last time I tried the chorizo hash. Housemade chorizo piled on top of crispy fried potatoes with onions and peppers, all nestled under two eggs over easy (or any way you want them), and a biscuit snuggled into a skillet (instead of a plate). It was absolutely delicious! I've also had the biggest BLT ever (I'm pretty sure there was a pound of bacon on the bread) and the chicken and waffles. Don't go to Vegas without stopping here! Oh and now its 24 hours!!!!

P.S. I've only gone to The Quad (formerly Imperial Palace) location. 

Delicatessen

Carnegie at the Mirage

For some reason I can't find any decent delis with great pastrami in Baltimore. (Note to self: ask around). In Long Beach there's a no name, hole-in-the-wall place on every corner that serves pastrami. Anyway the pastrami was absolutely delicious here. It is rather pricey though. The sides cost extra and they charge to share.

Hot Dog!

    

Pink's did not get very good reviews on Yelp; I'm glad I read the reviews after I went. Even though I'm from Long Beach I've never been to the world famous Pink's in LA. I've been to Vegas countless times and have never been to the one in at Planet Hollywood either. A friend from Florida wanted to go so we did. I had the Brooklyn Pastrami. It was a classic hot dog with a slice of swiss (I think, I can't remember; some white cheese), pastrami and mustard. It was good. The pastrami did not compare to Carnegie, but it was tender. The hot dog was better than what I make at home and definitely not the most expensive thing I've eaten on or off the strip. I'd totally go back!

Six Feet Under

No this is not a morbid post! Six Feet Under is a seafood restaurant in Atlanta. There's two locations: the original on Memorial Drive in the Grant Park Neighborhood and the 11th Street location on the Westside just off Northside Drive. I always go to the 11th St location.

Whether you're with one person or 20, this is a great place to go. The atmosphere is energetic and the service is great. I've never had anything I didn't like. This time I tried the oyster po' boy and I sampled my friend's calamari tacos. Both delicious! Try a po' boy, some fried green tomatoes, and a Cabo Wabo margarita! Stay for a while, have some drinks, and thoroughly enjoy! One day ill get to the memorial drive location ;)

                      

Breakfast of Champions

Maybe not of champions but definitely breakfast for foodies. The Original Pancake House is a chain, which I try to avoid at all cost, especially when on vacation. However, while in Chicago it was down the street from my hostel so I decided to try it. Not to mention it had pretty good reviews. I ordered the hash with chorizo, peppers, onions, potatoes, jalapeños, and eggs over easy. It came with pancakes. I chose pecan, my favorite for pancakes or waffles. The pancakes were so delicious that I ate every bite and every nut even after eating half a pound of potatoes and eggs, ha! I don't know if the restaurant is good at every locatin and every city, but wouldn't hurt to try, right?