BBQ Shrimp

The first recipe I ever created on my own was for barbecued shrimp. The killer part is the marinade. On my first day of classes at the Western Culinary Institute they taught us how to devein shrimp. I went home and wanted to practice my newfound skill. Here I was with all of these deveined shrimp and no idea how I wanted to cook them.

It was a warm summer night, so I thought grilling them on the barbeque sounded like a pretty good idea. I decided to whip up a marinade using whatever I had on hand in order to give the shrimp some extra flavor.

Last night I made this dish for the first time in years. It was just as good as the first time I had made it!

Barbecued Shrimp
1 pound shrimp (deveined and peeled)
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 teaspoon ginger (I prefer fresh, but powdered works just fine)
1 teaspoon onion powder

1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce 

2 tablespoons olive oil
enough water to cover the shrimp with the marinade

Devein and peel the shrimp. Combine all of the ingredients above. Let the shrimp marinade for 15-20 minutes. Throw them on the barbeque and remove as soon as they turn pink, about 3-5 minutes.

Movie Marathon

Since I'm basically just killing time until I move to Memphis, to start my job with Teach For America; my time at home with the family has consisted of a lot of cooking, baking, wine, Draw Something and lotsss of movie watching.

My first night back at home we watched The Social Network (2010). I'd seen it when it was in theaters, but I rather enjoyed re-watching it. I still think it deserved to have won Best Picture at the Oscars over The King's Speech (2010). Facebook is so significant to this generation, so having the film win an award like that could have really represented it well.

A couple nights later we watched The Blind Side (2009). I'd seen this already as well when I was stuck on a train or a plane a couple of years ago. This time I picked up on the fact that the film takes place in Memphis. After watching it, it made me even more excited to move there!

Now onto the classics...The first blast from the past that we watched was The Apartment (1960). I couldn't get over how young Jack Lemon and Shirley MacLaine were when they filmed this movie. It was the first movie I'd seen of either of them from back then. Definitely a hoot.


A couple nights ago we watched the Hitchcock thriller, North by Northwest (1959). I love every Hitchcock movie I've ever seen: The Birds, Psycho, Vertigo, and Rear Window, so no surprise that I loved this one too. Cary Grant sure did know how to steal a show and Eva Marie Saint did a pretty job of playing the icy blonde in this particular Hitchcock film.

Last night was another great classic: To Kill a Mockingbird (1962). I'd read the book and seen the movie back in high school, but it was nice to see it again. I swear, I could watch Gregory Peck playing Atticus Finch any day of the week. Fun little tidbit that I discovered watching this film the second go around...Boo Radley is played by Robert Duvall. It was actually his big screen debut.

You're probably wondering, what will she watch next? Well, according to the good 'ole Netflix queue I should be receiving The Awful Truth (1937), Blazing Saddles (1974), The Big Sleep (1946), Marnie (1964), and Schindler's List (1993), which by the way, I still can't believe that I haven't seen it yet.

Last few days as a Seattleite

It's hard to believe that my time in Seattle is finally coming to an end. After living here for three and a half years, I consider it to be another home like Portland, San Francisco, or New York. This post is meant to be somewhat of an homage to Seattle. I've been trying to enjoy as many Seattleish activities as possible before I leave tomorrow and this post is intended to recap some of that.

Ever since this past summer, when I knew I only had two quarters left at the University of Washington, I made a list of places to go and things that I wanted to do before I left. One of the things that has felt like a long time coming was a trip to Paseo. I had heard nothing but good things about their sandwiches and knew that I had to give it a try. I ordered the "Cuban," which was out of this world. Hands down, best sandwich ever.

Photo Courtesy of this lovely blog

The pork was slow roasted, tender and incredibly succulent. Each sandwich is served on a baguette with long slices of roasted onions, pickled jalapeños, lettuce, and their homemade aioli. The sandwiches are large, but it's entirely feasible to eat them in one sitting. We got the sandwiches to go, as there is not a lot of seating options in the Fremont location.

We needed something to wash down those delectable sandwiches, so we went a block down to Caffe Vita. I ordered an ice mocha and was surprised to find out that it wasn't actually sweet at all like mochas usually are. I'm not sure if they use a dark chocolate syrup, or if they just don't put a lot of chocolate in each serving. Either way, I actually liked that it wasn't sweet. Being able to enjoy the actual coffee flavor was quite complimentary to the smokey sandwich.

Later that night I went bowling at Kenmore Lanes. My friends and I like to bowl on occasion (usually about once a month.) I am what my friend Madeleine calls "the most inconsistent bowler ever." Last night I finally broke 100 for the first time ever. I even bowled two 99's. I guess all the practice is finally paying off? Going to Kenmore Lanes is always a hoot. It's just outside of Seattle, surrounded by strip clubs and other interesting venues (my personal favorite is the Schnitzelbank.) You never know what you're gonna get when you make the trip out there, but a fun time is always guaranteed! After 11pm you can bowl unlimited until closing time (2am) for just $10, plus another $3 for renting shoes.

Tonight I will finally experience Poquitos in Capitol Hill. I tried going there once before with some friends, but it was too crowded and the wait would have been over an hour, so we went to Via Tribunali instead. I'm excited to finally give Poquitos a try. Tomorrow morning will be my last trip to Portage Bay Cafe for my favorite brunch in this city.

Seattle, it's been real. Thanks for a great three and a half years.

banana shake

I had some bananas that were starting to turn pretty ripe and instead of making a banana bread, I decided to peel and freeze them. Earlier in the week I had made my favorite Indian Spiced Steel Cut Oats and so I had some leftover coconut milk.

After spending the day doing the Savor Seattle Chocolate Indulgence Tour I came home wanting to eat some fruits and veggies. I saw the coconut milk in the fridge and decided to experiment and make a shake out of it.

I came up with a recipe that turned out really well. Since the banana was frozen it transformed the would be smoothie into a milkshake like concoction. I added regular milk in order to thin it out a little bit as well as some ground flaxseed to make it a little healthier. 

Banana Shake

1 frozen banana

1/2 cup coconut milk

1/2 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon ground flaxseed

Add ingredients to a blender, blend away and enjoy!

classic cocktails

After trying out lots of bars in San Francisco, my favorites were the ones with the classic cocktails. I decided to make it my mission to find some bars in Seattle that could offer me the same. I enlisted my roommate Jackie to help me with this task. A couple of weeks ago we went to Tavern Law, which is constantly ranked as being one of the best bars in America. I wound up having three cocktails there, so I can personally attest to it's awesomeness. Tavern Law is hands down the best bar I have ever been to. I started out ordering an English Fizz that had earl grey infused gin. Heavenly. Next up, I ordered the Tuxedo #2 which is pretty much straight up booze (gin, vermouth, absinthe) with a little sugar mixed in. My last drink was my absolute favorite. We sat right up front at the bar, so we got to see the bartender make all of the drinks. A guy came up and ordered a drink that I couldn't hear the name of. I watched as the bartender freshly juiced a grapefruit, followed by mixing up some gin, elderflower liquor, aperol, lemon juice and lavender bitters. This drink looked right up my alley. After asking the bartender what it was that he had just made I found out that was called the Dr Girlfriend, a drink that used to be on the menu. Definitely my favorite drink of the night.

Jackie's second cocktail was also pretty good, the lusty lady. The lusty lady consists of gin, lime juice, simple syrup, cranberry juice, an egg white and some lavender bitters. While in San Francisco I saw quite a few cocktails with egg whites in them. I was skeptical. I never ordered a single drink with them in it. After trying a sip of Jackie's lusty lady, I can now say that I have been converted. Egg whites add a certain frothiness and creaminess. I can't wait to go back. Next time we're going upstairs to the Needle & Thread, the attached speakeasy.

The door to Needle & Thread from Tavern Law (speakeasy style)

Later that night we also went to Grimm's where I finally got my Fernet and Ginger Ale that I had been craving, followed by a trip to Barrio's for margaritas. It was there that I had the best salad of my entire life, a chipotle pulled chicken salad with romaine and cherry tomatoes. Unreal.

A couple of nights ago we ventured away from last weekend's Capitol Hill adventure and into Belltown, Rob Roy to be exact. They have happy hour from 4-7, so my Playmate cocktail (Pineau des Charentes, Fever Tree Tonic, Grapefruit twist) was only $6 instead of the usual $12. I enjoyed my first cocktail. Even though it was a bit on the sweet side, I loved the tart grapefruit mixed in. My second cocktail was the real winner of the night, the Ginslinger (Ransom Old Tom Gin, Fernet, Cane Sugar, Regan's Orange Bitters.) At first, I felt like I was sipping straight booze, but after awhile the ice allowed the flavors to really open up and I was left with a lovely cocktail with two of my favorites (gin and fernet.)

sipping on my Ginslinger at Rob Roy

Jackie got a couple of cocktails that she liked a lot, but I enjoyed mine more. I'm already planning future outings to Sun Liquor, Bathtub Gin & Co, Knee High Stocking Co., etc.

bar hopping in the bay

To celebrate my new job me, my sister Lauren, and her boyfriend Brad did some major bar hopping around North Beach in San Francisco. We started out with cozy drinks at Tosca. We ordered their Specialities: House Cappuccino (Ghiradelli Chocolate, Steamed Milk, Brandy) as well as the White Nun (Steamed Milk, Kahlua, Brandy). Since it was the first bar that we stopped in; it was a bit quiet, but we enjoyed our drinks nonetheless.

Tosca 

Next up we toodled next door to Specs where I ordered the San Francisco classic Fernet with a ginger back. Specs' was definitely a place worth stopping. Besides enjoying my new favorite go to drink, I also loved looking at the different nautical and hunting decor.

Fernet-Branca and Ginger Ale

After a couple of Fernet's we were starting to get hungry so we headed to Comstock Saloon, which was also ranked as one of the 50 best bars by Food and Wine Magazine. As we sipped our amazing cocktails we also shared a bunch of munchies such as the Pretzel with Mustard and Cheddar Mayo, Corn Hominy Fritters with a smoked pepper dip, the Smoked Salmon Plate as well as the Ricotta Gnocchi with Squash. Everything here was perfection. I adored the bartenders with their suspenders and handlebar mustaches. The decor was antiquely, which fit well with the classic cocktails and old-timey feel. 

Comstock Saloon

After some more cocktails and some food to coat our bellies, we were ready for more. Our finale was Vesuvio. I have been wanting to go to Vesuvio for years and was so happy to finally get the chance to do so. It's located right next to the famous City Lights Books aka where lots of Beat Generation writers would congregate. Being there felt like I was a part of history. I could picture Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady sitting down for some brewskies where they were later joined by Allen Ginsberg or William S. Burroughs. 

Fernet labels in the bathroom at Vesuvio

self portrait in the bathroom at Vesuvio

All in all, the night was pure perfection. 

jumping on the tumblr train

I caved in...I finally got a tumblr account. I've been doing lots of cooking lately, especially from Heidi Swanson's super natural every day and it has been so much easier to just post the pictures there. Check it out!

I do have one more suggestion for an easy breakfast, thanks to my sister Brooke, avocado toast.

All you have to do is cut an avocado in half and split up one side between two pieces of toast and mash up with a fork right on top of the bread. Next, slice up a tomato and use enough to cover the avocado. I like adding salt, pepper and fresh lime juice on top. My roommate, Jackie, likes to also sprinkle some garlic powder on top. So easy and so yummy!

creating the perfect butternut squash soup

We had a butternut squash sitting on the counter for a few days, so I decided it was finally time to do something with it. At first I was planning on making caramelized butternut squash but then I decided that it's winter and I should embrace the chill factor with a nice soup. After researching several different recipes I decided that none of them tickled my fancy enough, so I decided to create my own.

My recipe is for a butternut squash soup that is both sweet and spicy. I had so much fun experimenting with different spice ratios and combinations. Here's the end result:

Butternut Squash Soup

1 butternut squash

1 yellow onion, chopped

1 apple, peeled, cored, and chopped

2 tablespoons butter

3 cups vegetable broth

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1 teaspoon curry powder

½ teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon cinnamon

pinch of nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut one butternut squash in half, lengthwise and scoop out the seeds with a spoon.

Line a roasting pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil and then place the squash in the pan and roast on the middle rack in the oven for about an hour. Test the squash with a fork; when it’s soft then it is ready to be removed from the oven. Allow the squash to cool.

While the squash is roasting, cut and slowly sauté the onion and apple in a large pot over medium heat with two tablespoons of butter. Once the mixture begins to caramelize, add in spices. Cook for 2-3 minutes before adding in the vegetable broth. Turn down the heat to low if extra time is needed for the squash.

Once the squash is cool enough to touch, scoop out the flesh with a spoon and add to the pot.

Bring to a simmer for about 10 minutes.

Puree soup with an immersion blender, food processor, or regular blender until smooth.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream, yogurt, or drizzle with cream.

Enjoy! 

booze and the bay

This is my first trip to San Francisco where I am finally allowed to legally drink and let me tell you, I have definitely been taking advantage of it. Here are some of my favorites so far (in chronological order.)

Farley Bar

Bourbon & Branch

The Alembic

Magnolia Pub & Brewery

1. Farley Bar, located at Cavallo Point. This bar is housed in one of the old houses that was used by the U.S. military during the late 1800's to the early 1900's. There's a lot of history here, but besides that, the views are absolutely breathtaking and include the Golden Gate bridge, the bay itself, and downtown San Francisco. We came just a few days before Christmas so there were many wreaths, poinsettias, and other decorations which gave it a very festive feel. There was a bit of a chill in the air that day so my sister Lauren and I opted for warm drinks. She tried the Hot Buttered Rum and I had their homemade Spiced (and spiked) Hot Apple Cider. I definitely recommend what I ordered. We also shared some light things to munch on such as a salad and a hummus plate. Next time I return to Cavollo Point, I hope it's as a guest. The houses can be rented out and there is even a spa on site. 
2. Bourbon & Branch, located in the Tenderloin. As a general rule of thumb, I try to avoid the Tenderloin as much as possible when I am in San Francisco as it is not exactly the nicest part of town. Even just walking the couple of blocks from the ACT after seeing A Christmas Carol, we felt as though we were in the movie 28 Days Later surrounded by real live zombies. My coming up to this place could not have been more perfect...It used to be an old speakeasy and they definitely still play it up. You need a reservation to get in and secret code. Even the outside doesn't say their real name, instead it is a sign for an "Anti-Saloon League." Just as I was finally started to feel sketched out by the Tenderloin I saw a few ladies tipsily stumbling out of the Anti-Saloon League and I thought it looked like fun. They were all dressed up and I could hear old music playing as the door locked behind them. I didn't think this was the place since there was no sign for Bourbon & Branch, but sure enough it was! When you walk in you actually feel like you have been transported back to the 1920's during Prohibition. The hostess, waitresses and bartenders are all dressed up in dresses and suits straight from this period. The menu includes classic cocktails like the French 75, which I ordered and countless others such as an Old Fashioned, Sazerac, etc. As we sat down in our booth we could see people entering another room behind a secret door that looked like a cabinet for storing various bottles of alcohol. It turns out that there are two other smaller sections of the bar (the other includes a library behind a hidden door that looks like a bookshelf.) The whole experience made me feel as though I was a character in the Great Gatsby, which is not only one of my favorite books, written by one of my favorite authors, but it's also during my favorite time period. I was in a state of real bliss. 
3. The Alembic, on Haight. After a leisurely brunch at Zazie's in Cole Valley, Lauren and I went for a walk around the Haight and decided to pop into The Alembic for a drink. I had just been reading an article posted by Food & Wine Magazine on the 50 Best Bars in America and The Alembic happens to be the first one listed. The article raves about their Mint Juleps and even though it's the middle of Winter and Mint Juleps are much more of a summer drink, I decided to commit an act of sacrilege and order one anyway. I had never had one before and was mesmerized by the sweet and spicy bourbon mixed with the refreshing ice and mint. I even got a kick of the silver mint julep glasses that freeze up immediately upon ice entering them.