CASTING RESTAURANTS FOR A PILOT!

Hi All - I'm sure you're thinking "really? She hasn't posted in months and this is what she's giving us". Well, in short, yes. I need some help readers!

I'm working on a new project for a national Cable channel. We're searching for some restaurants that could use a pick me up, restaurants that are in danger of closing and are willing to throw some of their old menu, decor and theme out the window and start fresh in hopes of getting back on the path to success. The more willing to change, the better!

The restaurant owners and staff will be taking the advice of a celebrity chef and his or her team. Mom and Pop, family run restaurants would be best but at this point I'll look at anything! The owners and management team have to have big personalities.

Know any restaurants that might fit the bill somewhere between Boston and DC? Email me at casting.restaurants (at) gmail (dot) com. Fellow bloggers feel free to repost!

I'll post food soon! I got a new laptop so I'm back up and running. My only excuse now is that I have that whole wedding thing happening in (gulp) less than 6 weeks!

Balsamic Braised Chicken Thighs

This may not be pretty but it's sooo good and so easy. A while back Ron and I went out to dinner with my mom and Ron ordered...chicken. Gasp! We're not chicken orderers because we make it at home and it's easy and it's good and, well, it's just chicken. But this chicken was different...Mr. Martino's had a chicken special that was just about as far from a crappy boneless skinless chicken breast as you could get. This was a chicken leg slowly braised in balsamic and it fell right off the bone - I'm sure that whatever was on the side was great but I can't remember anything other than the chicken. I've been meaning to make a homemade version of this forever but was reminded of it when a friends told me about a vinegar braised chicken entree she had at Supper.





I seared boneless skinless chicken thighs that I'd seasoned with salt and pepper in olive oil, pulled the chicken out and sauteed some sliced onions and chopped garlic in the fat that was left in the pan. Once the onions were soft I added about 1/4-1/3 cup of balsamic to deglaze the pan. Once all of the brown bits were up from the bottom I added the chicken back in the pan along with a cup or so of chicken stock - I covered the pan and let the chicken simmer on low for 20 minutes on each side. Meanwhile I cooked gigante beans in some of the liquid that the chicken was simmering in, when the bean were heated through I added some chopped kale just until it was wilted. When the chicken was finished I pulled it out and reduced the sauce, it was sweet and syrupy and the chicken pulled apart - no knife required. This dish also made for awesome leftovers.

Brooklyn BBQ

Ron and I have been taking advantage of the short time he's living in NYC by spending about every other weekend there - I still make him come home to Philly the other weekends! A couple of weeks ago we wanted to get out of Manhattan and do a Brooklyn bar crawl. One of Ron's coworkers gave him a list of places for us to check and at the top of that list was Fette Sau (that's German for fat pig). We got to Brooklyn a bit before they opened so we had a beer and a pickle plate at Spuyten Duyvil, an awesome little bar right across the street.

So back to Fette Sau - this is serious BBQ, beer, and whisky. The menu is a constantly rotating array of smoked meat and awesome sides. Ron went to the bar to order a couple of beers while I waiting on line to order our meat by the pound. We went for 1/2lb brisket, 1/2lb pork shoulder, brussels, broccoli salad and baked beans. You pay for everything then find a seat, we were there early so we didn't have any problems but soon after we sat down the line was out the door.

There are a few different options for BBQ sauce - some sweet, some hot, some mustardy...all good. The meat was a little bit sweet, just smokey enough and perfectly fall apart-y (that's a word, right?). Mmm.

We washed it all down with a couple of Blue Point Oatmeal Stouts and had a hearty base to continue on our bar crawl!

We have to stop meeting this way...

You know - this awkward "Oh hey, long time no see" thing. I make lame excuses why I haven't been around and you obviously don't buy them. Well sorry about that, I'll try not to be such a bad blogger!

I could keep make excuses...the holidays or wedding planning but really I just haven't been cooking all that much. Ron's been working in New York during the weeks and when it's just me I'm sticking with the basics. I'm also on the I-just-stuffed-my-face-for-an-entire-holiday-season-and-I-have-to-wear-a-wedding-dress-soon diet (you know the one!) which doesn't really lead to drool worthy meals. I've been eating well, don't get me wrong, just not a lot of new recipes. I currently have a Whole Foods rotisserie chicken addiction. I eat the dark meat for dinner the first couple of nights then turn the white meat into salads, soups or stews that I take for lunch all week. I even make stock out of the carcass - lots of bang for my buck!

Stick with me people...life's about to slow down a bit and I'll post some healthy recipes soon! But to hold you over how about a crappy picture of not healthy spicy caramel popcorn?

Another fantastic recipe from smitten kitchen. I used the entire amount of popcorn kernels but only made half the caramel, I also went heavy on the salt and light on the cayenne, I though it was perfect. This is really easy and super delicious, we made for our New Years Eve party and it went quick!

Why France is Awesome

Overall I had a better time in Barcelona than I did in France - the atmosphere and the people were more my speed in Spain BUT what's great about France? This:

The French are not afraid of butter, cream, foie gras, confit, or, well, pretty much any kind of fat. Indulging is acceptable and maybe even expected - but all in moderation. (Can I put indulge and moderation in the same sentence? Hmm...)

We stumbled upon a great little restaurant, it wasn't quite dinner time so we went for something light. By "light" I mean not a full meal NOT low fat! Ron got an awesome charcuterie plate with butter, cornichon, pearl onions and baguette and I got a salad. Yes, just a salad. A salad of perfectly blanched haricot vert, steamed fresh artichokes a lemony vinaigrette and topped with um, foie gras. I know, I know...it hardly counts as a salad - but that's what the menu said so I'm sticking to it.

*Sorry about the blurry photo!

We wanted to come back for dinner but every time we walked by it was far too packed. Everything we saw coming out of the kitchen looked really good and very French.

I've been holding out...

I haven't told you anything about the Paris half of our Europe trip...well, except for this little piece of information. The trip seems like forever ago but that doesn't mean I should just keep all the deliciousness to myself!

I'll admit that while in Paris I overdosed on foie gras, pâté, and the ingredient that perfumes the streets of Paris, BUTTER. Thanks to Dave Lebovitz and his blog we had a great list of Paris restaurants we wanted to visit - we were able to get to a couple of them and they were both delicious.

First up? Buckwheat crepes from Breizh Cafe - Ron had ham, mushrooms, over easy eggs and cheese and I went with ham, artichokes, eggs and cheese.

The eggs could have been a bit runnier but other than that these crepes were pretty perfect - the folded over corners were crispy and buttery. Brunch was completed with a bottle of sparkling hard cider, not a bad way to start our stay in Paris.

PS - want some delicious crepes in Philly? If you haven't been to Beau Monde you're missing out. These crepes are seriously delicious - please go and order the savory crepe with smoked trout.

Nourishing Neighbors

I love food and very often eat far more than my share. But, I know that I'm lucky and that not everyone living in my hood has the same privilege. Approximately 333,000 households in our area cut or skipped meals in the past year because they do not have enough money to buy groceries. Food kitchens and pantries in our areas are having to turn people away or reduce the amount given to each family.

In celebration of World Food Day (10/16), Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger launched “Nourishing Neighbors”.

Here's the gist - The Nourishing Neighbors program is a food drive that's happening right now through November 7 sponsored by Stroehmann, Giant Food stores, and Acme Markets. The goal is to raise and donate over $100,000 to the Hunger Coalition through Hunger Relief drives, Food Stamp enrollment events, and a purchase program. For every loaf of Stroehmann’s Dutch Country or Stroehmann’s King bread sold at Acme and Giant, 10 cents will be donated to the effort.

I mean come on guys, the Phils are doing awesome and what goes better with baseball than hot dogs? And hot dogs require hot dog rolls, right? Preferably potato rolls. You know who makes potato rolls? Stroehmann's. Go buy some hot dog holders and boom - done, you just donated to Nourishing Neighbors. Now you can feel a little bit less guilty about that hot dog and all the beer you washed it down with.

So...buy some bread or attend a local food drive and help nourish your neighbors! Check out the hunger coalition's website for more info on the program, foods drive dates and locations.