Nature's Grill Smoothie

Mobile bogging! How cool is this?

I am running errands around the neighborhood today and stopped into Nature's Grill on Court and Pacific Streets and got a hole punch on my smoothie card, buy five get one free!

This is the perfect afternoon snack. What do you like in your smoothies?

No Boys Allowed

On Saturday night I kicked my darling husband out of the apartment and hosted a "No Boys Allowed" girls' night  and invited lots of girlfriends over! There was lots of food, drinks, and good times. Jill brought tomato and lemon pastry (yum!), Tammy made AMAZING shoe cupcakes, Ashley brought delicious brownies, Sarah brought cheese and bread, and the rest of the lovely ladies all brought bottles. I myself made entirely too much food, but no worries, Mike devoured most of the leftovers! 

On the Menu:

Endive and Ricotta Bites

Cantaloupe wrapped in Prosciutto di Parma

Honey Goat Cheese, Brie, and Olive Tapenade with French Baguette slices

Red Grapes

Spinach and Artichoke dip with Pita Chips

Caprese Salad Bites

Pastry with Tomato and Lemon

I didn't get a picture of the signature cocktail I made, buy you can sort of see it in the below picture in the upper left hand corner next to the pita chips.

No Boys Allowed Cocktail

2oz. Raspberry Vodka

3oz. Pineapple Juice (not from concentrate)

1oz. Club Soda

Poured over Ice

Add a raspberry and/or pineapple slice for garnish!

Spinach and Artichoke Dip was a huge hit!

Endive and Ricotta bites with Almonds, Golden Raisins, and Scallions is always a party pleaser!

Caprese Salad Bites are so easy to make and so delicious to eat!

Jill's appetizer was yummy!

Tammy's chocolate with cream cheese frosting cupcakes were a smash hit! How cute are they?!

Thankfully a neighbor lent me folding chairs so there was seating for the eight of us! I love a good girls' night! 

What I learned about girls' night:

1. Girls don't eat as much as boys (duh, right?)

2. Girls love cheese

3. Girls love chocolate (unless they're allergic)

4. Girls are very helpful in the kitchen with food and drinks!

How do you like to spent time with your friends? Are you pining for recipes and how to's for the food?

Dine In Brooklyn - Hibino

Where We Went: Hibino for Dine in Brooklyn with my best friend Jill and her husband

What We Ate: The Dine In Brooklyn price fix menu was really great here. Between the four of us we ordered a variety of appetizers including Seaweed Salad, Tuna Tataki, and Agadeshi Tofu, all which were great. The Seaweed Salad was a mixture of six different kinds of seaweed, most of which I'd never had before. The Agadeshi Tofu was phenomenal. The tofu was perfectly cooked and the broth it was served in was so tasty. We all ordered the same entree option which was Kyoto Style Futomaki with six pieces assorted sushi. Having the assorted sushi picked for me meant I had to try pieces I'd never had before such as mackerel, squid, and red snapper which I have fallen in love with.

What We Saw: Like most sushi joints, this place didn't have much by way of decor, but we did get seated at a lovely table right by the window.

What We Thought: The fish was very fresh and delicious, though definitely more expensive than other sushi joints in the neighborhood. The Agadeshi Tofu is enough to make me return, though. Unfortunately this place does not take reservations so there was a long wait and no where to wait so we simply went next door to Henry Public for a pre-dinner drink.

Dine In Brooklyn - Lunetta

Where We Went: Lunetta on Smith Street in Boerum Hill

What We Ate: We ended up not ordering off the Dine In Brooklyn price fix menu as nothing really appealed to us except the fried calamari entree, which we ordered a la carte and enjoyed though I would have preferred the sauce on the side to dip in rather than on the bottom of the plate. We ordered the chicory tricolore salad which I found much too bitter, and usually tricolore salad is one of my favorites. For our entrees M ordered the grass fed steak which he found to be just average though it was cooked very well. I ordered the orechiette with broccoli rabe and Lunetta made sausage which I thought was delightful. This is one of my favorite dishes and have a difficult time not ordering it when it's available on the menu. I found their version to be one of the best I'd ever had. Overall it was good but not impressive, though I don't think we ordered right. Next time I want to order off the bruschetta menu and more off the antipasti menu.

What We Saw: Lunetta takes advantage of their small space by having seating at the bar which extends to overlook the open kitchen. Our banquette seating in the front of the dining room was perfect. I thought the red banquettes with the mirrored walls and sconce lighting gave a nice intimate vibe.

What We Thought: Like I said, I think Lunetta is better than we experienced probably because of our inexperience with their menu. Their array of bruschettas and antipastis make it seem like a good place for a small group of friends. The cocktail menu had some interesting concoctions which are begging to be tried. We will return, hopefully with more people in tow, and try other dishes from the menu.

Dine In Brooklyn - Bevacco

Dine In Brooklyn kicked off yesterday. 

Where We Went: Bevacco in Brooklyn Heights for their participating price fix dinner menu. 

What We Ate: M ordered the Arugula Salad, Short Rib, and Tortino al Cioccolato (chocolate cate) while I ordered the Mista Salad, Lasagna, and Il Bombolone (cream filled Italian doughnut) and a Smoked Salmon Carpaccio from the a la carte menu to share. The food was good but nothing special in my opinion. The salads were big, which is always nice, I love my greens. The Smoked Salmon Carpaccio had too much sauce and could have used some bruschetta toasts. The lasagna was very meaty and not very cheesy (some like lasagna like this, I prefer more cheese), but the noddles were perfect. The short rib was tasty, not tender enough in my opinion but flavored nicely, while the polenta that it was served on was creamy and delicious. The raspberry chocolate cake was probably the best thing we ate while the doughnut was tasty but had too much filling for me. 

What We Saw: The space is decorated with mirrors and Thomas Edison lights. Bistro tables with banquette seating line the perimeter of the dining room and there is a large bar on one side of the restaurant. We didn't dine until 9:30 so the place was not very busy for a Monday night, and for the last half hour we were the only people left in the dining room.

What We Thought: Reviews for the fairly new restaurant have been good. Unfortunately, as a self proclaimed Italian food snob, I do not feel the same way. The Dine In Brooklyn price fix was a great deal, though I won't be returning to Bevacco anytime soon. The quest for the best Italian restaurant in walking distance is still on! (Cafe Rosa is currently in the lead.)

How do you feel about "restaurant weeks"? Do you have a favorite Italian restaurant or meal?

Perfect Italian Dinner

Unlike your everyday Brooklyn dweller, I love to cook! When my husband and I were apartment hunting I had three requirements for our future apartment: 

1) Laundry in the building,

2) Close to transportation and 

3) A kitchen I can cook in.

Luckily for me, I got all three and am happy as a clam (yum!). Our kitchen is put to good use. We cook dinner usually five times a week. For our wedding, my cousin's wife gave us a Giada de Laurentiis cookbook and the other day I decided to try one of her recipes. Of course I changed it a bit by using whole wheat pasta, turkey sausage, and changing some of the measurements. It was SO GOOD. In fact, I am still thinking about it days later! 

My recipe adaptation and picture below.

I usually take more than one photo, but I couldn't wait to eat this!

Tools:

One large stainless steel pan

One pasta pot

Wooden spatula

Pasta Fork

Cutting board and knife

Colander

Ingredients:

3/4 Cup drained oil-packed sun dried tomatoes, sliced (I bought mine fresh from the deli)

2 Tablespoons of oil reserved

3/4 to 1lb spicy turkey sausage, casings removed (I used Shadybrook farms - you will want to get a kind that is not precooked)

1 9oz. package frozen artichoke hearts, defrosted by placing in colander and running under cold water (it is very important that you use frozen and not fresh or marinated)

4 cloves garlic, chopped

1.5 Cups chicken broth

3/4 Cups dry white wine (I used a lovely Chardonnay)

8oz. whole wheat pasta (I like De Cecco)

1/2 Cup shredded Parmesean

1/3 Cup chopped fresh Basil leaves

1/4 Cup chopped fresh Italian Parsely leaves

8oz. fresh mozzarella cubed

Salt and Pepper

Directions:

Put salted water on to boil for pasta

Heat oil in a large stainless steel skillet on med-hi heat

Add sausages and break up with a wooden spatula into small pieces while cooking until brown

Transfer sausages to a covered bowl

Add artichokes and garlic to the same pan on medium heat until garlic is tender

Add broth, wine, and sun dried tomatoes

Reduce over med-hi heat for about 8 minutes, stirring occasionally

Add pasta to water and cook al dente according to package directions

Drain pasta and add pasta, sausage, and herbs to the pan and toss until sauce is absorbed by pasta

Add mozzarella cubes if desired, season with S+P to taste

Serve and enjoy!

I found this made about three servings (two of which my husband ate)

The original recipe can be found here.

Pacifico on Pacific and Smith Streets in Boerum Hill

Mike and I love to eat. We cook a lot at home but we like to make time to go out to dinner twice a week as well. One time is "date night" and the other is "Tamara just got back from night class and Mike just got back from work at 8:30pm and we're both too tired and hungry to cook" night. This week we decided to visit an old favorite, Pacifico in BoCoCa for some delicious Mexican food.

We were pleasantly surprised when we saw a new* dinner specials menu announcing that Monday nights are $3 taco nights! AWESOME. An order of two tacos is usually $9.50. I'm pretty consistent in my ordering at Pacifico which is strange for me because I enjoy trying new foods. However, when I find something that's great, I will order it over and over again. My usual go-to here is the steak quesedilla, but I could not turn down $3 tacos. I ordered two, a steak and a yardbird, while Mike ordered four (fatty), yardbird, steak, chicken, and pork. I decided the steak was the best because it tasted a lot like the quesedilla that I love only without the cheese, while Mike preferred the pork.

Some of our other favorite Pacifico menu items are the homemade tortilla chips, fish tacos, chicken enchilladas, and the traditional house margaritas! Pacifico is a great place for a casual date or to meet up with a group of friends. 

What's your favorite Mexican dish?

*New to us because we haven't been in a while and thus aren't sure how long this new dinner special has been happening.