The thing I miss most about traveling and moving happens to be the lack of time and often space to cook. When I returned from Ireland, I couldn't wait to get all floury again and I made Challah. With the some leftovers and the "starting to go stale" challah, I made a really good brie and balsamic onion sandwich that I chowed down as I packed. Now for the rest of Ireland...
Off I went to Galway, a fun, university town on the Western Coast. I spent my days roaming around the town, falling asleep by the river and doing a bit of shopping. I had two fabulous meals...One day for lunch, I stumbled into Anton's Cafe, a cute and artsy cafe. Craving avocado, I decided on the Smoked Bacon, Avocado & Beef Tomato with Red Onion Marmalade sandwich. It was very good. A few days later, I had a lovely dinner at Ard Bia. This cute restaurant sits on the river near the Spanish Arch. It is like walking into the dinning room of your favorite artsy, bohemian and eclectic friend. Nothing traditionally matched but all the tables and decoration created a welcoming and comforting atmosphere. I had to wait for a moment as the servers finished writing down the menu on the blackboard, which was then placed in a chair next to me so I could decide what to order. I chose a seared white fish fillet with lentils and a fresh summer salad. It was a wonderful meal. They even had fennel and pomegranate seeds in the salad...yummy!
During one of my days in Galway, I took a day trip around the Connemera...a beautiful part of Ireland with mountains, hills and ponies. We went to this Franciscan Abbey and the Kylemore Abbey (below). The countryside was gorgeous!
After Galway, I went back to Dublin for a few days. I went shopping, got my haircut and saw a great art exhibit at Chester Beatty Library and Gallery of Oriental Art. I saw this cake in the window of the cafe, Leon, and like every good foodie...I stopped in for a slice. Although the picture is quite blurry, I think it speaks for itself. Yum!
That kind of sums up the highlights of my trip...The best part of my trip though, which I can not show you in pictures, was the many different people I met. I stayed in hostels and every night I would meet a new crew of people from Germany, France, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Switzerland...and the list goes on. Often, we would go sit at the pub together, meet the locals and listen to the music. These people made my trip very fun and interesting. I have many memories and new friends that I will not forget.
Brie and Balsamic Onion Challah Sandwich
2 slices of Challah
Balsamic Caramelized Onions (Jennifer's recipe)
1/2 Vidalia Onion
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
2 slices of brie
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1. Peel the Onion and cut in half. Slice the onions into strips.
2. In a frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat and sautéed the onions moving the onions around with a spatula until they soften and brown.
3. Drizzle the onions with the balsamic vinegar and mix with a spatula.
4. Cover the pan and stir occasionally until the onions have caramelized. Season with salt and pepper. Move to a dish.
5. In the same pan, toast the bread and melt the brie on both sides. Sprinkle with the Italian Seasonings.
6. Top with the onions and eat.
P.S. For more photos from Ireland, check out my flickr.
Monday, August 11, 2008
IRELAND: PART II and a recipe
Thursday, May 15, 2008
Confessions of a Food Blogger...
My boyfriend jokingly commented that I've been eating like a five year old lately. So what if I have been making Kraft mac and cheese, ordering pizza and having peanut butter sandwiches? I am an adult and I can do what I want...Ginny whines, stomping her foot.
Yes, I know, I just wrote a post about trying to be more healthy but then I hit a few stressful days and found myself reaching for some quick comfort food. I had no inspiration to cook so I relied on some old favorites.
Before this short diet derailment, I had challenged myself by trying to make dinner without the use of olive oil or butter...yes, maybe, I should get a life but culinary games are so much fun. Recently, I made Allen of Eating Out Loud's Citrus Quinoa with Roasted Vegetables served with seared scallops and some roasted salmon. It was absolutely fabulous! I highly recommend making it! This left me with some leftover red onion and asparagus. I decided to caramelize them with some balsamic and put it over my latest favorite find, Trader Joe's Harvest Grains Blend with Israeli Style Couscous, Orzo, Baby Garbanzo Beans, and Red Quinoa. I am sending this over to Ruth's Presto Pasta Night. Check it out for more great pasta ideas!
And please do not stop reading my blog because I eat Kraft mac and cheese occasionally. With the Spiderman shapes, how can you resist? We all have our secret anti-foodie pleasure. Actually, what is yours?
Balsamic Asparagus and Red Onion Pasta
1/2 bunch Asparagus (chopped into small 1 in pieces)
1/2 red onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/2 pound of pasta
1. Spray frying pan with Pam and throw in the crushed red pepper.
2. Saute asparagus and red onion in the frying pan.
3. Mix in balsamic vinegar and cover with a lid to steam the vegetables. When they are tender and carmalized, remove from heat and mix with pasta.
P.S. I sprinkled some shredded mozzarella over it because I wanted something a little gooey. I wish I had some goat cheese instead as it would have added a good flavor to it. Michelle over at Tarheel Table just made a Pasta with grilled chicken and vegetables with a goat cheese sauce that would be great with something like this.
Thursday, April 17, 2008
An Ode to Joy!
Growing up, our kitchen held two main reference cookbooks: the Betty Crocker Cookbook and the Joy of Cooking. My mother's Betty Crocker is falling apart. The cover is completely ripped off but it still precariously rests on top of the tattered and food stained pages struggling to keep the book together. My mother has inserted many other recipes through the years among the pages. I love this book because it represents the history of my mother's cooking. One year for Christmas, my mother gave me a copy in order to begin my own cookbook collection. It is an excellent cookbook for a budding chef. It has good recipes, great tips and beautiful pictures!!! 
On the other hand, I never liked the Joy of Cooking when I was younger. It was long, boring and had no pictures! Often, I would ask my mother a cooking question and she would point me in the direction of the Joy of Cooking. I would scowl looking at the distasteful book. I just never understood the point of having a cookbook without pictures. But the Joy of Cooking almost always had the answer to my cooking questions. Slowly, this book grew on me until it has become my favorite cookbook. If you have never picked it up, I highly recommend it. It is written in a way that really helps you learn how to cook. The recipes show you how the ingredients fit together to create the dish and thus, at least for me, help me go off the recipe fairly easily. My quiches are often like this. I make up a new one every time depending on what we have in the fridge. With the Joy of Cooking by my side, I often pull off a very inventive and delicious dish. Tonight, I created a Goat Cheese-Balsamic Caramelized Onions- Artichoke Hearts Quiche. It turned out really well and both of my roommates gave their stamp of approval.
Goat Cheese-Balsamic Caramelized Onions-Artichoke Hearts Quiche
(adapted from the Joy of Cooking)
1 prepared crust (I often cheat on weekdays and buy a store bought crust...saves me time!)
1 6 oz. log of goat cheese
1 7 oz. (or close to it) marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
Balsamic Caramelized Onions (see my previous post)
4 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup whipped cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Crumble the goat cheese on the bottom of the crust.
3. Whisk the eggs, milk and whipped cream together until well mixed.
4. Stir in onions and artichoke hearts.
5. Mix in salt and pepper.
6. Pour in prepared crust.
7. Bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.
P.S. Do not forget to enter my Dollar Dish Duel!!!! More details here.
