One-Year Seattle Anniversary

Wow, I can’t believe that today marks our one-year anniversary in Seattle! Exactly a year ago, Stuart and I were driving a packed U-Haul truck from Menlo Park, California to Seattle. I was really impressed with our ability to fit everything we owned into the smallest U-Haul, as a result of hours of careful stacking and reconfiguring. 850 miles later, we were starting our new adventure in the Pacific Northwest. Little did I know that it would turn into a culinary adventure as well, in the form of this blog!

So much has happened in just one year….

1.     We moved to a new state

2.     I started graduate school at the University of Washington

3.     I was hired as a Teaching Assistant for my first college class

4.     I made the decision to work towards an MA instead of a PhD

5.     I made some great new friends

6.     Stuart and I traveled to Canada for the first time

7.     I got my first Le Cruset dutch oven (a gift from Stuart’s parents)

8.     My little sister graduated from college

9.     Stuart and I got married!

10.  I changed my name

11.  I passed an important French exam

12.  I started a food blog ;)

13.  Two of my good friends got engaged

14.  My sister and her boyfriend got their first apartment together

15.  My mom registered for her second Ironman event

16.  Stuart and I planned a honeymoon in Hawaii (we leave on September 8^th!)

 

A photo I took of the University of Washington campus

 

Stuart at Mount Rainier 

 

View of the city from Gasworks Park 

 

First comes the wedding, next comes the honeymoon!

 

Fetish-ini (Fettuccini Primavera)

You know those dishes you tend to return to over and over, because they are fairly easy yet delicious and satisfying? This is a dish that my mom would make all the time when I was growing up. I remember it well because I thought the title of the cookbook this recipe is adapted from was so scandalous and embarrassing – Cooking in the Nude. I also remember it because it tasted sooo good!

Fetish-ini is just a play on the name Fettuccine Primavera. This is a great pasta dish because it has loads of fresh veggies, but is also creamy because of the whipping cream or half-and-half that you add at the end. Plus the bacon. Did I mention the bacon?

Ingredients

10 slices bacon

½ lb. fettuccini (fresh if possible instead of dry)

¼ cup butter

3-5 mushrooms, sliced

1 large carrot, sliced

½ cup cauliflower, sliced

1 medium zucchini, sliced

4 green onions, sliced

½ cup frozen peas

1 clove garlic, minced

¼  cup whipping cream (can use half-and-half for a lighter sauce)

1 cup Parmesan cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

1. Fry bacon until crisp. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels. Reserve pan and drippings.

2. Cook fettuccini al dente. Drain and toss with butter in a large serving bowl. Set aside and keep warm.

3. Add vegetables to the bacon drippings in frying pan and sauté over medium-high until crisp and tender. (I discarded half of the bacon drippings first to make the dish less rich).

4. Add vegetables and crumbled bacon to cooked fettuccini. Add cream, parmesan, and salt and pepper and mix to combine. Enjoy warm.

Cupcakes in Disguise

I have been noticing a strange trend recently of food being disguised as other food. Things like banana “hot dogs” and cakes in the shape of tacos. Personally I think it’s a little odd, and could never bring myself to eat something sweet that looks like something savory! The trend seems most popular with cupcakes, and I’ve shared a few pictures below so you can see what I mean. What do you think? Cute, creative, or just plain bizarre?? 

  Corn on the cob cupcakes

 Pizza cupcakes

  Sushi cupcakes

 Hamburger cupcakes

 Popcorn cupcakes

Maybe we should stick with things like Christmas tree cupcakes and Dog cupcakes!

Molly Moon’s Ice Cream

So…I have a weakness for ice cream. Ok, ok, I actually have a weakness for all foods containing sugar, as this blog so often demonstrates. But ice cream is high up on the list, and something I want to enjoy while Seattle is still in the midst of a sunny, beautiful dry spell. It’s been 37 days without rain so far, which is verging on a record! Molly Moon’s is an awesome ice cream chain local to Seattle (the founder’s name is literally Molly Moon!). There are several shops throughout Seattle that dish up unique and creamy flavors. When we went recently I ordered two scoops in a waffle cone, which was WAY too much ice cream. My eyes were definitely bigger than my stomach, which does not happen often. 

Tip: apparently you can do two “half scoops,” which means you get to try 2 flavors while paying the one-scoop price. That’s what I plan to do next time we go :) 

  They also have a book, if you'd like to have your mouth water even more...

“Fancy” Rack of Lamb

Last night I went on a culinary adventure and cooked my first rack of lamb. Rack of lamb always sounded so fancy to me, and was so pricy in restaurants – I naturally assumed that it would be both difficult and expensive to make. Wrong.

I bought the lamb at Costco for $14. It weighed 1.2 pounds and turned out to be more than enough to feed two people. Compare $7 per person here to about $30 per person that you would pay for this dish in a restaurant…what a steal. I whipped up some garlic mashed potatoes and broccolini to go with it, which were equally delicious. 

 The Lamb:

1 frenched rack of lamb, weighing 1-2 lbs
3 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons fresh chopped rosemary

Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Ideally you should let lamb come to room temperature before cooking (about 1 hour on the counter).

2. Preheat oven to 350.

3. Coat the lamb in olive oil, garlic, rosemary, and salt & pepper.

4. Cook for 30-35 minutes or until done. Let rest for 10 minutes before cutting.

The Garlic Mashed Potatoes:

2 lbs or 3 large potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and diced large

6 cups water (to boil the potatoes)

1 teaspoon salt (to add in boiling water to cook the potatoes)

4 cloves peeled garlic (leave whole)

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup whipping cream

1/3 cup grated Romano cheese (or can use Parmesan cheese)

2 tablespoons chopped chives (optional)

Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. In a medium size saucepan, put diced potatoes, peeled garlic cloves and water and bring to a boil. Once the water boils, add the salt and cook potatoes until tender (usually 15-20 minutes).

2. Drain the water from the saucepan of cooked potatoes and garlic. While still piping hot, mash the potatoes and garlic until they reach desired consistency (I used a Kitchen Aid mixer).

3. Add the extra virgin olive oil and whipping cream and continue to mash/mix.

4. Mix in the grated cheese.

5. Season with salt & pepper and fold-in the chopped chives (optional).

Serves 3-4, adapted from this recipe.

The Broccolini:

1 bunch broccolini

Coarse salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 to 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped

Directions:

1. Trim broccolini ends.

2. Place the stalks into a skillet and cover with water. Cover and bring to a boil.

3. Add salt and reduce heat. Simmer broccolini 6 to 7 minutes, until tender and bright green.

4. Drain the broccolini and return skillet to stove over medium heat.

5. Add olive oil to pan, then garlic. Cook garlic 2 to 3 minutes.

6. Add broccolini to pan and coat in garlic and oil then serve.

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

I think that I may have found the holy grail of cupcakes in the form of this Snickerdoodle cupcake recipe. Are you ready for this?? These babies taste exactly like snickerdoodle cookies in cupcake form, with an amazing cinnamon flavor in both the cake and frosting. I was in the mood for something different from the usual chocolate and funfetti flavor standbys, and these really hit the spot. The cinnamon buttercream that goes on top is the perfect accompaniment. 

I also tried my hand at "piping" frosting for the very first time! Usually I just slap some frosting on my cupcakes with a butter knife, but these look so much prettier. I just scooped the frosting into a small ziplock bag, cut a tiny hole in one corner, and piped it out in a swirly pattern as shown below. 

Cupcake Ingredients:
1 1/2 c	flour
1 1/2 c	cake flour, sifted (I used regular flour)
1 Tbsp	baking powder
1/2 tsp	salt
2 tsp	ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp	ground cinnamon for dusting
2 stk	butter, unsalted, softened
1 3/4 c	sugar
2 Tbsp	sugar for dusting
4 lg	eggs, room temperature
2 tsp	vanilla extract
1 1/4 c	Milk
Frosting:
1 c	butter, room temperature
3 3/4 c	powdered sugar, sifted
3 to 4 Tbsp	milk
2 tsp	vanilla extract
1 tsp	cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prep 2 - 12-cupcake pans with cupcake liners.

Sift together in a large bowl, flours, baking powder, salt and 2 tsp. cinnamon.

Cream together butter and sugar till pale and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, blend after each egg added, then add the vanilla extract.

Add the flour mixture in 3 increments, alternate with 2 additions of the milk. Blend well, do not over mix. Divide the batter evenly into the cupcake tins, fill 3/4 full. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotate the cupcake pan halfway through the baking process. Do a toothpick test and if it comes out clean, it's done.

Remove the cupcakes from the oven onto a wire rack, let cool for 20 minutes before removing cupcakes from the pan. With the remaining cinnamon and sugar, mix together and sprinkle over the tops of the cupcakes.

Frosting:

With mixer on low speed, blend butter till fluffy, about 30 seconds. Add sugar, 3 Tbsp. milk and vanilla extract, blend lightly. Add cinnamon and continue mixing until sugar is well incorporated. Increase speed and beat till fluffy, if the frosting is stiff, add the remaining 1 Tbsp. of milk. Blend well. Be sure that the cupcakes are completely cooled. Then frost or pipe your cupcakes.

Beecher’s Cheese

Beecher’s Handmade Cheese is a culinary hallmark of Seattle. When Stuart and I first moved here a year ago, I would see their name everywhere on restaurant menus and in grocery stores. But it was not until today that I sampled Beecher’s for the first time! 

If you are at Pike’s Market, you can’t miss their flagship store – it’s the one where you can watch them making enormous vats of cheese through the windows on Pike Street. The line is always out the door, as people wait to snack on their famous mac & cheese or grilled cheese sandwiches.  I started by sampling about 5 different cheeses that were out for grabs (my favorite was the Flagship Cheddar) and then got a small Mariachi mac & cheese for $5. It was delicious and creamy, with just a hint of spice.

 The vat where they make the cheese. Doesn't look appetizing now, but it tastes great later!

 Cute little cheese goodies you can buy

 Not sure who the "daytime divas" are, but I sure enjoyed mine!

At-Home Smoothies

As part of my California detox, yesterday my lunch consisted of a delicious smoothie. I’ve never really understood the Jamba Juice craze or smoothies from food chains – those drinks have so much sugar in them, which pretty much defeats the purpose of a smoothie. It is SO easy to make your own smoothies at home, and honestly they taste just like a milkshake, minus the ice cream! See my favorite combination below.

¼ cup orange juice

1 cup yogurt (any flavor)

1 banana

7-8 frozen strawberries

I just pop everything in a blender, add a little more orange juice or frozen strawberries to reach the desired consistency, and finish it off with a dollop of whipped cream!

California Dreamin'

My posts have been suspended for the past few days while I was visiting the San Francisco Bay Area and catching up with some good friends. I left Seattle on Friday morning and just returned late last night; my visit included the cities of Santa Clara, San Jose, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Redwood City, San Francisco, Menlo Park, and Belmont. While traveling and socializing I got to eat some delicious food, and I tried to take pictures of (almost) everything I ate! Take a look and let your mouth water, I know mine did...

Homemade raspberry cake at my friend Hannah's birthday barbeque

 The pink color of the cake was 100% natural!

 I am obsessed with her home's beautiful backyard

 Breakfast at The Prolific Oven in Santa Clara

 Indulging with Sprinkle's Cupcakes in Palo Alto (my favorite cupcake chain)

 My first Turkish meal at Tuba Restaurant in San Francisco

 My beautiful (and newly engaged!) friend Michelle enjoying our Turkish wine

 Brunch at The Grove Cafe in San Francisco's Marina neighborhood

An amazing breakfast burrito, and the orange juice was fresh squeezed!!

 My favorite frozen yogurt is Fraiche in Palo Alto (pronounced "fresh")

 Home made pizza using Santa Cruz Pasta Factory pesto, the BEST pesto I have ever had

 

My friend Jessica/amazing hostess in Menlo Park

 My first coconut juice, sampled straight from a coconut purchased at Whole Foods

Breakfast at the chain Hobee's - almost everything comes with a MASSIVE piece of coffee cake

Ok...time to hit the gym??!!!