Props to My Hubby

With our recent move to Brooklyn, I have a plethora of food stories, restaurants, and tastes to share. But, this post is dedicated to my husband.

Rob cooks dinner for us almost every night of the week and usually once over the weekend too. I am always in awe of how effortless he makes it look. He truly enjoys creating with food, and I'm his biggest fan (my favorites are his guacamole, salmon burgers and a clams with chorizo dish--this dish goes way back for us).

This week was no exception, but it was our dinner on Wednesday night that has me salivating and wanting more. I wanted something on the grill with a nice side salad (we try to use our grill as much as possible, especially in this nice weather). Rob decided to take a stab at some lamb burgers... Seasoned with salt and cumin, these burgers tasted heavenly and were cooked to perfection (medium-rare, the way lamb should be done). Topping our burgers was a garlic-yogurt sauce along with fresh feta cheese and crisp red onion. Ahhh--I'm getting hungry just describing them again! They were amazing!!

So, props to you, babe. Thanks for those burgers and all of the fabulous meals we've shared. Love you. xoxo.

Boston + Birthday

The past couple of weekends have been filled with amazing food, the best company (my hubby) and great fun.

The weekend of August 13th we spent about 24 hours in Boston... In town for a friend's wedding celebration brunch, we decided to stay for a bit and make Saturday dinner + Sunday brunch reservations. I must say, we chose well... Saturday night was Oleana (http://www.oleanarestaurant.com/). The service was outstanding the the food was solid. The nicest yet simplest touch had to be the warm olives... While I love olives and order them often, they've never arrived warm. Yum! For dessert we headed to one of Boston's best spots for ice cream... Toscanini's in Cambridge. Check it out: http://www.tosci.com/. On their menu I found the most perfect thing EVER--it was a mini sundae (can't remember the exact terminology). It was a baby scoop of ice cream in a little cup (the kind of cup you find next to a water cooler) with sundae toppings... You get the best of everything without all of the calories of a normal sundae. Verdict: genius + delicious. Love, love, love.

It's a good thing I had that mini sundae because Sunday's brunch was at one of the best in the country (according to me + Bon Appetit) at Craigie on Main (http://www.craigieonmain.com/), and I was not going to hold back. Rob and I decided to splurge and indulge; we each went for the 3 course brunch... This is the way brunch should be. Here is a quick rundown of what showed up at our table:

House-made Doughnut with Confiture du Lait

Fresh Summer Fruit Salad with Yogurt and Mint

Anson Mills Cornmeal Blueberry Pancakes

Grass-Fed and House-Brined Corned Beef and Smoked Beef Tongue Hash

Sour Milk Pannacotta

Market Fruits Crisp

This meal was beyond amazing. Everything was so fresh and well made, and incredibly rich. Each bite was heaven and adding to the experience was the open kitchen complete with views of the chefs plating orders and yelling out instructions. Love this place! The next time we're in town, we'll be visiting Craigie on Main for dinner.

The weekend after was MY BIRTHDAY! My single goal: good food with my husband. I want to keep this post from getting too lengthy, so here are the bday weekend specs:

Friday Lunch - Jean Georges: http://www.jean-georges.com/

Friday Dinner - Joe's Shanghai: http://www.joeshanghairestaurants.com/

Saturday Lunch - Le Pain Quotidien: http://www.lepainquotidien.com/

Saturday Dinner - the little owl: http://www.thelittleowlnyc.com/

Sunday Brunch - Rob's cooking: lemon-ricotta pancakes, bacon, fresh berries, coffee

Sunday Dinner - Keste Pizzeria & Vino: http://kestepizzeria.com/

I had been to Jean Georges before (when I was 12 or 13 and first visiting NYC), but this time I was better able to appreciate it... This spot, which is one of the best deals in NYC for it's prixe fix lunch, has made my list of top 5 lunches. Foie Gras Brulee, Goat Cheese Gnocchi (WAY more goat cheese than gnocchi) and House-made Marshmallows were a few of the delectable highlights. I mean, hello!! Marshmallows!!! I LOVE MARSHMALLOWS.

All in all, a couple of great, decadent weekends... Now it's time for some salads. :)

Lazy Girl Eats is Back

It's been a very busy few months... Work, holidays, traveling, more work, and of course, eating!!

Since it's been so long I'd like to recap what I've tasted and where I've been--I've had the pleasure of experiencing some amazing things. Here is my own, personal "Best Of" for the past few months. Starting with the most important... Enjoy!

Best Dessert - Babbo: Maple and Mascarpone Cheesecake

http://www.babbonyc.com/

Best Service - Perry Street

http://www.jean-georges.com/

Best New Restaurant - Cascabel

http://www.nyctacos.com/

Best Out of Town Restaurant (Tucson) - Zin Burger

http://www.foxrestaurantconcepts.com/zinburger.html

Best Winter Dining Experience - Alta

http://altarestaurant.com/

Valentine's Day/Anniversary Weekend - Tabla + Olives

http://www.tablany.com/

http://www.toddenglish.com/

Best Beer - DBGB Kitchen + Bar: Rodenbach (It's like a sour patch kid beer). Mmmm!

http://www.danielnyc.com/

Best Wine Shop - Brooklyn Wine Exchange: Lots of helpful, short descriptions plus a local section.

http://www.brooklynwineexchange.com/

Best Baked Good - Baked: Sweet + Salty Brownie

http://bakednyc.com/

Best Family Dinner - ilili

http://www.ililinyc.com/

Best Home Cooked Meal - Lobster Tails with a Red Chile Sauce. Vanilla Risotto. Milk Chocolate Covered Strawberries.

Best Outer Borough Experience - Dim Sum in Flushing!

http://jadeasiannyc.com/

Best Burger (Miami)- Burger & Beer Joint

http://www.burgernbeerjoint.com/

Fat Pig

Yesterday was the ultimate lazy day, there was no contact with the outside world until about 6pm. It was the perfect antidote to a stressful week.

My hubby had the brilliant idea of trekking into Brooklyn for dinner. To where, you might ask... well, we had no idea. We wanted to check out Williamsburg--a neighborhood we knew little about. First stop was to pick up Kate, my friend who had a similarly lazy day, as we knew she'd be down for the adventure.

The only restaurant we had heard about in W'burg was Fette Sau (fat pig in German), a BBQ joint that opened about two years ago. Fette Sau's address was entered into Maggie (the Magellan GPS) and off we went.

Fette Sau is located in an old auto-body shop, the garage door and metal fencing are still in tact. We waited approximately 15 minutes to order our meat by the pound (pastrami, pork ribs and spicy pork sausage) with baked beans, pickles and potato salad on the side... Mmmm. The communal picnic table seating was all filled up, but we managed to snag the best spot in the house--two, old metal lawn chairs and a bench to hold our dinner.

The food was amazing, definitely the best ribs I've ever had. The pastrami was flavored to perfection and very tender. The beans, clearly a homemade recipe, were sweet with a nice punch of spice. Rob, a man obsessed with barbeque, left a very happy customer. I think he may be looking for an apartment across the street. :)

Fette Sau

354 Metropolitan Ave.

Brooklyn, NY 11211

718-963-3404

http://www.fettesaubbq.com/

Mexico in Manhattan

Authentic Mexican food found.

The hole-in-the-wall Mexican deli that has a taco counter hidden in the back brought us right back to our honeymoon... cheap food, Mexican soap operas on TV, Spanish rock music blaring from the radio and very little English spoken.

We tried several tacos--Chorizo w/ Potato, Cecina, Al Pastor, Carnitas, Spicy Pork, and Rob even attempted the Pig Ear taco (he only managed two bites). The Cecina (salted beef) was definitely my favorite, very flavorful. The corn tortillas were fresh, the salsas spicy, and the counters sticky--it was perfect.

Definitely check it out, it's my new go-to spot for Tacos. Tehuitzingo. 10th Ave. b/t 47th and 48th. Sorry, no pics of the tacos, we were too busy eating. :)

Chilly Weather = Chili for Dinner

What's better than a hot bowl of chili when it's chilly outside?

Rob first made this chili in the summer (not the greatest idea) when it was too hot to be eating anything above 32 degrees.

This is one of the most flavorful chili recipes I've ever had. The first time we (and by we, I mean Rob) made it we followed the recipe exactly. It was SUPER spicy and a bit chorizo heavy, although still amazing. Tonight, I suggested we cut down the amount of chorizo a tad and cut the spice in half--amazing again. Now that it's not hot and humid, I actually think we could have kept the full amount of spice in there.

This recipe is a keeper! All you need is some cheddar and sour cream on the side, and a large tupperware for the fabulous leftovers.

Here is a link to the recipe: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sunny-anderson/interstate-chili-recipe/index.html

Oh, almost forgot, I need to plug our local meat market. I've never been, but I hear only positive reviews from the chef. Check it out... Casablanca Meat Market on 110th between Park+Lex.

Breakfast

What does everyone have for breakfast?

I start my day the same exact way every single day. One cup of very strong coffee with one of two foods: Whole grain toast with natural peanut butter or, when I'm feeling lazy, Cheerios and sliced banana.

As much as I love food, and enjoying all sorts of unique and diverse meals, I only consume one of these two foods each morning. I wonder why? Maybe it's too early for interesting cuisine, or perhaps it's the creature of habit in me. Surprisingly, I don't tire of these choices and I think I'll be eating the same exact thing for a long time to come.