Delirium Tremens

My 21st birthday was a few weeks ago and I knew I had to post about the wonderful restaurant where my parents took me to celebrate. It's located in a hidden spot just above Capitol Hill, right across from the Eastern Market metro. It's called Belga Cafe -- and it is one of my family's favourite restaurants. By its name clearly a Belgian restaurant, it's known not only for its fabulous moules-frites, but also for its array of Euro-fusion offerings. My Dad swears it rivals some of the best places he's been to all over Belgium (and that's quite a statement!).

The ambiance of this place is completely relaxed. By looking around me, I can see a wide range of people -- from families coming for a special dinner or co-workers stopping off for a Belgian draft after work. It's a small place, no more than twenty tables. But the energy is young and vibrant. 

Now, let's be honest. I can wax poetic about the ambiance and the food all I want, but there's one glaringly absent detail of this story: the beer! After all, this was my 21st birthday; I had to pick a place where I knew I could have my pick of alcohol. This place had a beer list nearly 12 pages long -- overwhelming to say the least!   And nothing is more delicious that Belgian beer. To start, I had a very famous Belgian pale ale called Delirium Tremens. As with most Belgian beers, it was quite strong! 

 I had every intention of drinking heavily throughout this fabulous meal with my parents. But unfortunately, my low tolerance combined with the high alcohol content of Belgian beers meant that in truth, I could only muster having three beers. The other two was a wonderful classic dark beer, Chimay Bleue, and Kasteel rouge, a "dessert" beer rich in cherry flavour. 

Okay, now we can get to the food. In truth, every time I go to this restaurant I cannot help but order the moules-frites. They have about 10 different kinds of broth, ranging from Hoegaarden to curry. This time, I tried a new sauce that was a lobster and crab broth with a bit of cream. It was absolutely sinful. The picture speaks for itself:  

As for my parents, my mom got a delicious grilled African sea bass and my dad got a similar pot of mussels brewed in a Hoegaarden broth. Simply delicious!

And for dessert, a decadent chocolate molten lava cake with espresso ice cream and chocolate and caramel sauce. Naturally, calories don't count on your birthday, so I didn't feel bad one bit!

For anyone looking for an evening filled with fabulous food and a great beer, look no further than Belga Cafe. It is truly an experience found nowhere else in Washington DC.

Happy Eating!
Talia 

Culinary Exploits in the Hamptons

When you think of the Hamptons and food, what's your first thought? I instantly think of Ina Garten, the Barefoot Contessa herself whose culinary mastery began when she opened her store in Westhampton many years ago. Thus, when I found out I was going to spend a few days in Westhampton with my boyfriend and his family, I got more excited about the food than I did about the beach! Unfortunately, Ina's store has closed down, but she still broadcasts her show, "Barefoot Contessa" and runs her food empire from the nearby town of East Hampton.

Despite my love for the Barefoot Contessa, I was not the only one excited about food in the Hamptons. As such, this post is not about me. The real gastronomic hero of our Hamptons getaway was my boyfriend, Matt, who got quite creative with his cooking. Naturally, we wanted to grill as often as possible. But instead of making ordinary burgers and dogs, Matt took things to the next level. Burgers with gorgonzola and brie cheese, perfectly cooked steaks, garlic marinated grilled shrimp -- and the list goes on.

For a little aperitif, we created what I like to call "Matt's Wondrous Vodka-Infused Watermelon." It is just what it sounds like -- a vodka-soaked watermelon.

Very simple in procedure but lengthy in preparation time, the watermelon must sit for two days before it's ready. In our case, we bought a "personal" watermelon smaller in size than normal watermelons, meaning that we didn't have to let it saturate for quite as long. To start, cut a hole in the top of the watermelon the exact size of the vodka bottleneck. Place the vodka bottle upside-down and ensure it is quite snug. And that's it! Let it sit for two days and you've got you're self one helluva drunkin' watermelon!

Matt's culinary exploration didn't end there. For breakfast, he was delighted to make his fantastic Five-Egg Bagel Sandwich (serves two). This sandwich uses simple ingredients, but yields huge flavor and an even bigger bite! It's a combination of scrambled eggs, a layer of prosciutto (or any other ham of your choice) and sharp cheddar cheese all inside a toasted everything bagel. For two bagels this sandwich uses five eggs, so for those concerned with cholesterol, beware! Nevertheless, there's only one word for this sandwich: YUM!

That's all for the Hamptons culinary exploits. I'm sure Ina would be proud of us! 

As always, happy eating! 

-Talia 

PS - I promise Nikhil is not dead, even though he's been MIA from the blog!! Nix, you better step your game up! 

Chocoholism and a long Birthday Weekend

Apparently, the fourth weekend in july is birthday weekend in Northern Virginia. Over two days, I had three different birthday occasions to bake for. The first was for my boss at work. Okay, I realize this makes me a huge brown-noser, but hey -- if you want brownie points with your superiors, why not bake brownies?!  

The second occasion was for my friend's birthday, for whom it is a tradition that I bake each year. This year was particularly special as it was his 21st birthday. I typically do some sort of fun and colorful cake, but this year I wanted to go dark -- a rich chocolate cake with an oreo whipped cream cheese frosting.

To be honest, in previous years I took the easy way out when baking for my friend Todd and used Betty Crocker cake mix. I'm not ashamed to admit that I think Betty is fantastic -- her cake mixes have yet to fail me. However, I feel that in the past year I have become significantly more confident in my baking capabilities, and therefore more adventurous in cake-making. This year, I wanted to make a cake from scratch, but I didn't want to risk the cake coming out too dry or lackluster in flavor. As such, I turned to my favourite contessa to hand-hold me through this endeavor -- Ina Garten. I used her wonderful chocolate cake recipe.

For the frosting, instead of a traditional buttercream, I wanted something lighter that would help counteract the richness of the chocolate cake and the heavy oreos. As such, I adapted a whipped cream cheese frosting recipe from this website:

Oreo Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
8-oz cream cheese
1 cup sugar
16 oreo cookies (crushed)

Beat cream cheese and sugar on medium-high speed until well blended. In a separate bowl, whip heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Gently fold in the whipped cream into the well-blended cream cheese until well incorporated. Fold in crushed oreo cookies.

Since it was for a 21st birthday, I thought I'd use the extra oreo cookies I had to decorate the cake a bit. This may not have been the most beautiful cake I've ever made, but the taste is what matters, right?

The third occasion I baked for was a family friend's birthday who is a total chocoholic. He requested that I make a cake for his birthday, for which I was quite nervous because I had never baked for him or his family before. I knew he wanted a chocolate cake, but I also knew that he LOVES coffee. So for this cake, I once again Ina's recipe above, but for the frosting, I made an espresso buttercream frosting that was simply out of this world, if I do say so myself.

Espresso Buttercream Frosting
2 sticks butter (room temperature)
2 cups confectioner's sugar
a pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon coffee liqueur
2 tablespoons finely ground espresso beans
2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

In a small bowl, mix together extract, liqueur, cream, and espresso. Microwave for 20 seconds to allow the espresso to steep into the mixture. Refrigerate to let cool and set aside. In a standing mixer, cream butter until light and fluffy. Slowly mix in the sugar and a pinch of salt until all is well incorporated. Once the coffee/extract mixture is room temperature, add to butter mixture and beat until evenly mixed together. This buttercream may be made ahead of time and refrigerated until use.

To garnish, I added a bit of crushed Cadbury Flake on top with a few blueberries for a splash of color.

This was truly a chocolate-crazed birthday weekend for me -- I'm definitely going to need a bit of chocolate-free detox! It may have been a crazy few days of birthdays and baking, but I must admit that all of this was worth it, as this weekend had two of my favourite things in the whole world: chocolate and celebrating with friends.

Happy eating!
-Talia

Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies

Cooking for friends is always the most fun. Especially during the summertime when friends get together for outdoor barbeques by the pool, making a special dish can really add a lot. So when one of my best friends (and special contributor to this blog) Morgan invited us over to grill and hang out by the pool, I knew I wanted to do something fun for everyone. 


Morgan already had an amazing menu planned. She made a baked asparagus and zucchini pasta salad, these incredible s'mores bars loaded with chocolate and marshmallow, and the most adorable jello shots that looked like wedges of watermelon. All of this in addition to loads of burgers and hot dogs and, last but not least, beer and mixed drinks for all. 

Since I knew Morgan was making s'mores bars, I thought I'd make some chocolate chip cookies, a safe bet that everyone would like. However, I was aware of a recent trend in the online blogging community to put "surprise" oreos inside their cookies. Inspired by this, I decided to put Reese's peanut butter cups in mine! Also, as an added special touch, I changed up regular chocolate chips for M&M pieces, adding a bit of color to my cookies. 

Making these are really quite simple. You can use your favourite cookie-dough recipe - just don't put in the chocolate chips at the end. On the parchment paper, flatten out a scoop of cookie dough and place the peanut butter cup in the center. Lift up the edges around the peanut butter cup until it is completely covered on all sides. After, place however many M&M pieces on top. Baking time is the same as before, roughly 10-14 minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Now, I thought I was being so very mysterious when I told everyone that these cookies had a surprise to them. To find out, people had to "just bite into them and see!" Too bad my plan completely backfired. Of course, I didn't know everyone there very well -- so I didn't know that two people were allergic to peanuts. They both were about 10 seconds away from biting into a cookie before another guy yelled for them to stop! Could have been very bad but thankfully, a crisis was averted. I learned my lesson, though -- next time you want to surprise your friends, make sure of everyone's allergies beforehand! 


Happy eating! 
-Talia 

Not Another 4th of July Post

This is not one of those blog posts for the 4th of July telling you how special to make the event by making some classic American dishes for an outdoor barbeque. The following are not pictures of patriotic desserts. Although it may appear to be, these photos do not show how creative touches to a Strawberry-Rhubarb pie can make your 4th of July pie the centerpiece of the table. The other photos do not show how making blondies with white and dark chocolate chips, craisins, and walnuts is a great complement to a 4th of July meal.

This post is not like other posts that expound on how wonderful it is to be an American and how this holiday gives us the opportunity to do what we do every weekend during the summer months -- barbeque burgers and drink beer.


This blog post is none of the above.


But if it we're, it'd look a little something like this.


Happy eating everyone!
-Talia

Berry Banana Blast

Berry Banana Blast:

After workouts I like to make fruit smoothies. Not only are they healthy and tasty, but they are really easy to make.

Ingredients:
1 cup of blueberries
1 cup of strawberries
1 banana
1.5 cups of soy milk (skim or 2% will do as well)
1/3 cup of carrot juice
2/3 cup of ice

Throw all these ingredients into a blender and pulse/blend on low until ingredients are fully blended. This recipe should render about 3 glasses of fruit smoothie goodness. This particular smoothie is high in antioxidants, potassium, protein, and other stuff I am sure. I think it will help you live longer.  Full nutritional details here.

Post-workout fruit smoothies are great!


-Nikhil

Nik's Grilled Chik & Salad

For my second post I would like to go over a chicken recipe with a Salad and pasta side. Its easy to make and pretty good for you. I call it Nik's Grilled Chik Y ensalada.

The recipe calls for:
Chicken breast
Olive Oil
Soy Sauce
Worshtershire Sauce
Minced garlic
Tomato basil seasoning
Oregano flakes
Chili pepper flakes
Sea Salt
Ground black pepper

The amount of each ingredient really depends on the amount of chicken you are planning on grilling, usually I eyeball it. I realize this doesn’t help much if you are trying to replicate this recipe, but you can be safe by throwing a pinch of each ingredient for each chicken breast.

Begin by coating the chicken with the olive oil and then squirting on the worshteshire and soy sauce. This will create a nice bath for the seasonings to soak in. For best results, let the chicken marinate in the fridge for a day, or even overnight, before grilling.

Grilling:
If you have a gas grill, heat it up to medium temperature and wait until it is warm. If you use a charcoal grill, try to get a medium-sized flame going. Throw the chicken on the grill and close the lid. Let it cook for about 4-5 minutes without messing with it. After 5, flip the breasts over, close the lid, and wait about 3-4 minutes. At this point you will need to start “manning the grill.” You should cut open the meat at the thicker areas to see if it is ready. If you see pink in the middle close the lid and keep it going for a minute or two more. If you are using a meat thermoter, the thermometer should read at least 165 degrees F. I like to taste test on the grill because I am usually really hungry at this point.  It usually takes YEARS of experience to learn the ways of the grill...but not really.




With dinner I like to always make a hearty salad. I like to cut up veggies on Sunday and use them throughout the week to save time during the hectic workweek. The salad below is:

Arugula/spinach mix as the base with broccoli, shredded carrots, tomatoes, snow peas, and red peppers.

I throw on light balsamic vinaigrette because eating all those veggies without dressing isn’t really fun. This salad is good for you. You can just trust me or read about salads online…

I also like to serve this chicken with rice or pasta. The picture below teams up the chicken with whole wheat pasta and my homemade pasta sauce. Actually, I can’t really take credit for the sauce because my mom made it, but I do know that there are tomatoes in it. YUM.

There you have it, a nutrious, but obviously delicious meal.

-Nikhil

Bad Case of the Mondays

Hello and welcome to my first blog post! As I am now the newest member of the blogging community, more specifically the cyber-foodie community, to break the ice I thought I'd share something personal about my day and its relationship to food.


For anyone, heading back to work or school on a Monday is rarely an anticipated occasion. Especially on a Monday such as today, when the weather's overcast and rainy, all I want to do is stay at home nestled up with a nice cup of tea and a good book. Today, I found myself daydreaming about so many things other than my immediate reality. I thought about restaurants I want to try, recipes I want to make, and the people I want to share these experiences with. I fantasized about being in Paris on a sunny summer day eating and drinking my way around the city. But alas, I was not in Paris. I was here, in the sticky and humid Washington D.C. area, confined within the white walls of my office at work.


To break loose of this temporary Monday-induced solace, I decided to forgo any after-work plans I had and instead I went home to bake! Every savory dish needs its sweet counterpart, and to complement a lovely dinner of saffron shrimp and a mixed green and chickpea salad, I decided to bake two of my favourite cookies: snickerdoodle and oatmeal raisin cookies.

First, I made the oatmeal raisin cookies. I used the "Cowgirl Oatmeal Cookies" recipe found here, but altered it significantly. Ironically enough, I ran out of raisins two days prior so instead I used dried cranberries, which are a perfect substitute. Also, I found that this recipe called for a remarkably small proportion of oats given the amount of butter required. As such, I increased the amount of oats used from 1 1/3 cups to 1 2/3 cups oats. Wanting to keep things simple and (relatively) low-fat, I also omitted the coconut and chocolate chips.


I undercooked them just a tad, for extra chewiness and they came out perfectly chewy with a slight crunch around the edges. Totally delicious!


Of course, I had to pause for a cup of tea before moving on to the snickerdoodles!

Next up, snickerdoodles. I found that these cookies, because of their incredibly soft and tender texture, go perfectly with a cup of tea. The recipe I used, found here, is actually adapted from Martha Stewart's classic snickerdoodle recipe. But once again, I made an effort to reduce the amount of butter used without compromising on the moistness of the cookie. As such, I only used 1/2 cup butter and substituted Greek non-fat yogurt for the remainder. I was nervous that this would compromise the flavour of the cookie somewhat, but truthfully it came out just as tasty and chewy as any other snickerdoodle recipe I've tried. The cookies were slightly dense, in my opinion, but short of aerating the wet mixture before adding in the dry, I don't know how much this could be avoided using this recipe.

In all, these cookies were the perfect antidote to my Monday blues. Two very simple cookies to help ease the stress of the worst day of the week. On the bright side, now I have dozens of cookies to keep me going the rest of the week through Friday!

Overall, the results for both cookies were simply delicious -- just what the doctor ordered to heal a bad case of the Mondays!


Until the next adventure, on behalf of Nikhil and myself,


Happy eating!
-Talia

Ambrosia

This fine establishment will mark the beginning of our journey into the wonderful world of food. Ambrosia Restaurant is a quaint Greek restaurant with a robust menu, quick service, and a family-friendly atmosphere.  Patrons have the option to tantalize their taste buds with authentic, perhaps even exotic, Grecian cuisine or opt for tried and true dishes like burgers, spaghetti, and pizza.

Upon entering the restaurant you are instantly immersed in Greek culture. The walls are covered with hand-painted visages of Greek Gods.   I have the same paintings in my room.

The place mats provide a nice history of Greece and insight into the things for which the ancient country is most known. Interestingly enough, economic collapse is not listed… Nevertheless, it helped pass the time to read about the Culture-rich country.

Now to the important part, I ordered a Chicken Souvlaki platter. This came with two sides, I choose the Greek salad (when in Greece right…) and roasted potatoes. Alright the food came and this is what it looked like:

NOMS


Big pieces of succulent chicken… tzatziki sauce … pita bread…lettuce tomato onion. What’s not to like? Seriously what’s not to like…back down. The portions were big and now as I write this post my stomach is full.  The overstuffed Souvlaki is a fantastic lunch item that would make even Aphrodite’s toes curl. It is also a great way to introduce your palate to Grecian tastes. Would I eat here again? Yeah.


I’d say Zeus would give this place 4 out of 5 thunderbolts.

-Nikhil

That’s all for now, stay tuned for more adventures from the Savory Squad