12 days of Eating….

and eating.. and gorging… and drinking…

For the past 2 weeks, I’ve attended numerous social gatherings with friends that included lots of cheese, creamy dips, and many bottles of wine.  I’ve gone out to multi-course luncheons with customers and indulged in our awesome office holiday party and even participated in a  work cookie swap (which I won, “Most Creative Cookie!” for my “Mrs. Claus Whoop Ass Whoopie”)

Cook Swap Samplings

From succulent lamb lollipops and baked stuffed two pounds lobster at the Beacon Grille, the absolute best gnocchi at Strega Waterfront to    PF Chang’s “Great Wall of Chocolate “ cake, my dress pants are definitely getting a bit tighter. Tis’ the season to gain a few holiday pounds… after all I still have a few more days until New Years to get on those resolutions.

Beacon Grille’s Sirloin

Beacon Grille’s Lamp Lollipop

Salvatore’s Arancini Fiorentina

Salvatore’s Margarita Pizza

Fried Calamari

Salvatore’s Mussels Napolitano

 Having the next 4 days off work gives me the time to go grocery shopping at a variety of stores (not just Market Basket) and prepare some labor intensive or time consuming meals.  Most importantly, it also gives me time to BLOG!

For the next few days, I will post food pictures of the many meals I plan to make or indulge in over our short time off.

Cambodian Noodle Soup “Ka Thiew” Courtesy of Mo’s Aunt

We began our long weekend of great eating with the Mo’s aunt noodle soup.  This is a staple in most Southeast Asian countries where noodles and beef or chicken or pork broth makes a hearty meal and satisfies almost every tummy.  Having a mother that is also a great cook, it’s sometimes difficult for me to eat other people’s cooking and enjoy it or not be biased.

This is NOT the case with Mo’s aunt noodle soup broth. She simmers the beef bones for hours to maximize the beef broth flavor just as my mom does.  It’s absolutely delicious and I know we will be back at least one more time for a 2nd round of noodle soup.

When I went food shopping at Market Basket, Delmonico steak was on sale.  I got 2 decent size portions for under $ 10.00, which is quite a steal!  The Mo loves steak so I wanted to surprise him and serve it for dinner.  Although steak doesn’t necessarily need to be marinated, I went ahead and used this recipe found on allrecipes.com.

Onions, Rosemary, Steak Sauce, Worcestershire Sauce, Garlic, Salt, Pepper and olive oil in a mini food processor

Delmonico Steak

Adding the marinade to the steaks

With already chapped skin and a super dry face, it was probably not the best interest for me to be outside grilling in 30 degrees weather so I decided to cook the steak indoors using a combination of pan searing and baking in the oven.  For sides, I made oven roasted Yukon potatoes and a zucchini and summer squash casserole.

Potatoes tossed with garlic, Italian herbs, salt, pepper, crushed red peppers and olive oil

Zucchini and summer squashed pan fried with butter, Italian herbs and fried garlic

Crush croutons for a crispy topping for the vegetable casserole

Layer casserole with shredded cheese, crushed croutons and fried crispy onions

Bake at 400 for 10 mins

To cook the rib-eye steak (aka Delmonico), I used Alton Brown’s Pan-Seared Rib-Eye recipe. Since my meat was already marinated, I did not add the extra salt or pepper. Also, I left the steaks in the oven for 5 minutes on each side for a perfect medium well” done-ness.” It was great paired with Merlot.

It was my perfect steak yet, I’m not sure if it was the marinade or the cooking method, but I will sure make this recipe again!  Not only did the Mo finish his steak but he ate half of mine! 🙂

Happy Holiday and cheers to good eating! 

Spike’s All Beef Hotdogs and More!

“Gary Dog”

In addition to my love for fried chicken wings and eggroll, my next favorite thing is hotdogs.  With hotdogs, I’m not picky.  I love all types of hotdogs, ranging from the cheap processed meat store brand hotdogs to the pricey Pearl ¼ pound hotdogs from the deli section.   

Although I prefer them grilled, I can eat them boiled, pan fried, steamed and even MICROWAVED! So easy to make yet so satisfying!  As a quick and cheap lunch, I like to get the ¼ Pearl hotdogs at Burlington Cold Cut Center for  $2.00 or one from Roche Brothers in Woburn for $1.50 with all the fixings. 

I was definitely excited when I saw that they had opened up a Spike’s Junkyard Dogs at the Burlington Mall in mid November.   

The menu offer a variety of burgers with your options of single, double, triple or more patties, and hotdogs with endless toppings of cheese, chili, bacon, vegetables and sauces.  If beef or pork Is not what you are craving, the menu boasts chicken sandwiches, both grilled or fried and chicken tenders.  Sides includes curly fries, also available with cheese, chili and bacon among other toppings and onions rings.

 

I got the hotdog special of the day which was the “Gary” hotdog with swiss and cheddar cheese and bacon.  I was persuaded into upgrading to a combo that came with a small drink and regular curly fries. Total was about $7.50.  I added additional condiments at no extra charge, Onions, scallions, and lettuce.  Ketchup, mustard, and another red condiment that looked like sweet relish was self-serve at the pickup station.   The hotdog was huge and tasty!  The fries were a bit soggy and could have been more crispy. 

Great Drinks, Great Tapas and Great Vibe at Masa’s Southwest Grill

With our office being located in Burlington, there isn’t much of a selection when it comes to “After work” lounges compared to Boston, which has a plethora to choose from.  There are the usual chain restaurants like Chili’s or Uno’s where one can get good appetizers and cheap draft beers or the higher end restaurants like Legal Sea foods which caters to the older businessmen-type group.

Usually, we head over to the Scoreboard in Woburn for drinks and wings but since we were celebrating a birthday, we headed to Masa’s Southwest Bar and Grill where we celebrated the last two birthdays of people in our office, including mine.

We left right after work and got there early around 5:30 PM and got our usual seating at tables by the entrance.  It was still quiet and we were among the first ones there.

Habenero Watermelon Margarita

Since we have been there before, we already had drink preferences.  The Habernero Watermelon Margarita was at the top of the list.  Although its usually best served on a warm sunny day on their outdoors patio, its still is delicious in October! The drink has a nice authentic watermelon flavor without the fake syrup crap and just the right amount of spice from the habanerno that makes your lips tingle. 

Jalapeno Margarita and Special Margarita with Vanilla

This time, I wanted to try something different so I got the drink special of the night which was a Reposado tequila margurita with a hint of vanilla liqueur.  At first, I was a bit hesitant, who mixes lime, salt and vanilla together? The waitress assured me it would be a great drink, so I decided to try it.  The drink was delicious! All the flavors balanced each other out and it was a smooth margarita.

For food, we shared the “House Chips” with salsa and guacamole.  When we first starting going to Masa’s, we mistakenly assumed that the “House chips” were free and “on the house” so we kept them coming. Little did we know, those tasty chips costs $8.75 each.  

Most of us each got a combo tapas platter which offer 10 heavenly bites of food which ranges.  

$5.00 Tapas Combo Platter

Tonight’s platter included:

•  Grilled chourizo with cranberry chutney
• Poached Shrimp on Tostones 
• Cucumber with Dill Cottage Cheese 
• Vegetables with Poblano Ranch Dressing
• Chicken Taquito (x2)
• Jalapeno Empanada
• BBQ Pork Spring Roll
• “Bruschetta” like Toast with cheese and tomatoes

The combo platter usually comes with a delicious bacon wrapped stuffed date, but they didn’t have any tonight.

On Thursday nights, they offer the combo tapas platter for $5.00 all night long and between 5-7PM on the other nights.

Shipyard Pumkin ale with Cinnamon/Sugar Rim

Around 7:30PM, the restaurant picked up.  The lounge area was crowded and the dining area had groups sampling the same tapas and chips as we were.  The popular choice for dinner here is the 3 course specials for a set price that changes seasonally.

One can sign up for their mailing list and receive emails on the new menus and specials.

Currently they are offering an “Octoberfest” special that features 3 courses paired with local beers for $35.00.

Mojito

Breakfast Fridays

Every Friday, the office orders breakfast from a nearby diner, Jimmy’s Family Restaurant, or as my coworker refers to as, “The Russians, which is funny because ..I don’t think they are Russian at all, I think they are Greek.

The diner has been family owned and operated for many years and serves your typical breakfast foods featuring 38 omelettes on their menu and that is not including the “Build your own Omeltte” choice. They also offer a variety of lunch options ranging from sandwiches to seafood entrees.

The Great Chef

I’m not proud to admit that I usually get a bacon, egg and cheese on a toasted bagel to cure my hangover from “Thirsty Thursday.” Not only do I eat my own sandwich, but I also freeload off my boss’s Home Fries and toast that comes with his usual order of Tomato and Feta Cheese Omlette.

I guess you can say, this weekly regime has definitely added to my waistline, but who can resist bacon?

Once in a while, I get the Homemade Blueberry Muffin that is grilled lightly to a perfect crisp on the outside and warm and soft on the inside. It truly does melt in your mouth.

Prices are slightly higher than your typical diner fare, a bacon, egg and cheese on a bagel will cost you about  $ 4.60 not including tax. Considering the quality, consistency and service, it’s all worth it!  Next time you are craving a good homemade breakfast, stop by Jimmy’s in Burlington, It’s definitely worth a try!

Western Sandwich on Toasted Wheat Bread