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Even though it was a smaller share last week (as confirmed by the farm), I didn’t do so well. Things that took me away from veggie maintenance included a spontaneous trip to NYC over the weekend and starting a new class. I’m giving myself a C+ for the week:

• Blueberries: 100%
• Carrots: 67%
• Cucumbers: 50%
• Broccoli: 25%
• Summer squash: 0%
• Swiss chard: 0%
• Fresh garlic: 0%
• Garlic scapes: 0%
• Dill: 0%

Week 7

My half

I still don’t have a lot of words to describe my experiences at this year’s Boston Marathon on April 15, 2013, so I thought I’d share some of my photos. 

Happy moments at mile 16.8, by Newton-Wellesley Hospital…

Elite women

Elite men

Jerel!

Dave!

What became the finish line for many runners…

Comm Ave

Copley Square after we were “released” from being in lockdown at the Westin…

View toward Boylston Street

Ambulances lined up on Columbus Ave

Walking home on the deserted Mass Ave bridge, a beautiful sunset despite the horrific events of the day.

Honoring and remembering the victims: Lu Lingzhi, Krystle Campbell, Martin Richard, and Officer Sean Collier.

Outside Boston University

Boston Common

Boylston Street

Boston Strong on the MBTA. Words I never thought I’d say: “I’m so happy to be able to ride the T!”

Yay MBTA

I posted this to Facebook on April 16:

I am…
Grateful that I and my friends are ok, and grateful for all of the calls, texts and posts. Heartbroken for the victims and their families whose lives will never be the same, and the families of Newtown who witnessed yet another senseless tragedy. Also remembering the anniversary of the VT tragedy.
Saddened for the runners and spectators whose marathon experience is forever tarnished. Humbled by the emergency personnel, hospital staff, and heroes who emerged yesterday.
Hopeful that Boston will triumph over tragedy.
Proud to be part of both the running and Boston communities.

My first Boston marathon (as a runner) three years ago was an inspiring and amazing experience. I’ve been contemplating my next one, and perhaps it will have to be Boston again, because we cannot let them win.

Well so far this fall we’ve had Sandy, a nor’easter, and temperatures in the mid-60s…sounds like chili weather to me! This recipe was passed along to me earlier this year. I haven’t tried it yet, but it’s been Claire-tested, so it must be legit.

Some notes from the person who actually made this recipe:
The original recipe called for 1 cup of shredded cheddar-jack mixed in with the soup as the last step, but that seemed like a hot mess to me.  My result is a bit more like a soup than a chili but it’s still awesome. Just the right amount of smoky heat. If you prefer smoke to heat, leave out the jalapeno. The green chile itself is pretty mild.

White bean chicken chili
Source: Claire Blais (adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
3 roasted green chiles, chopped (I’m told they sell these canned,and the equivalent would be ~4oz)
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp cayenne pepper
4 cups chicken broth
2 cooked chicken breasts, shredded
10 oz frozen corn
2 cans (14oz each) white beans
1 can (14oz) black beans
3 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 lime

Directions
1. Saute onion in oil just until softened.
2. Add garlic, jalapeno, and green chiles and cook about 3 minutes.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients (except lime) and cook for about 15 minutes.
4. Top with a squeeze of fresh lime juice and enjoy! Also great topped with crushed tortilla chips, shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, etc.

How is it November already? I know I probably say that every time a new month rolls around, but it really is hard to believe. But this month, my favorite issue of Boston magazine is out which has their list of the 50 best restaurants in and around Boston. Every year (I’m not sure if it’s always the November issue), I like to look at the list and figure out my “number”. This year it’s 26, as in I’ve been to 26 of their top 50. What’s your number?

November 2012 issue

You can see their full list through the link at the bottom of this post. The 26 I’ve been to are:

• 80 Thoreau
• Area Four
• Bergamot
• The Butcher Shop
• Catalyst
• Craigie on Main
• East by Northeast
• Eastern Standard
• Hamersley’s Bistro
• Harvest
• Helmand
• Hungry Mother
• Il Casale
• Island Creek Oyster Bar
• Journeyman
• Oishii
• Oleana
• Rialto
• Russell House Tavern
• Scampo
• Sorellina
• Ten Tables J.P.
• Toro
• Trade
• Tres Gatos
• T.W. Food

I also like looking at the list because I can reminisce about some great food and great company (birthday celebrations, RC, out-of-town guests, or “just because” occasions), and think about where I want to go next. Cambridge had a pretty good showing this year, and I’ve been to 11 of the 13 restaurants. This will soon be 12 as I have an upcoming reservation at Bondir. I also heard a rumor that we may be going to Strip-T’s for November RC, so my number might get up to 28 before the end of the year.

But there is still “work” to do. I apparently need to make an effort to go to some of the old standards, like Bistro du Midi, Blue Ginger, Clio, No. 9 Park, Via Matta, and Salts (the last Cambridge restaurant to try). They have all been on the top 50 list for as long as I can remember. Hopefully I can make some more progress before next year’s issue!

The rundown:
Top 50 restaurants in Boston
Boston magazine, November 2012

My friend Claire hosted a sliders-themed potluck, which was such a fun idea. She provided the slider rolls and the grill and everyone brought sliders to share (or side dishes to go with the sliders). Without much prior knowledge of what other people were bringing, we put together a great meal. Somehow that always seems to happen.

The menu included:

• Green chile cheeseburger sliders
• Buffalo chicken sliders
• Codfish cake sliders (with cod from a fish CSA)
• Lamb sliders
• Fresh mozzarella, pesto, tomato, and eggplant sliders
• Green salad
• Rice, bean, and feta salad
• Ambrosia
• Watermelon
• Cookies

Beef, lamb, and Buffalo chicken sliders on the grill

Codfish cakes on the stove

I made the vegetarian ones, but I think the Buffalo chicken was my favorite…and Claire was nice enough to share her “recipe”.

Buffalo chicken sliders
Source: Claire Blais
Makes: ~8 sliders

Ingredients
1 pound uncooked chicken breast, cut into pieces
1/3 packet ranch dressing mix
2 Tbsp Frank’s hot sauce
2-3 Tbsp crumbled blue cheese
4 scallions, chopped
2 Tbsp panko bread crumbs

Directions
1. Put all ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined.
2. Transfer to bowl and add scallions and bread crumbs.
3. Chill in refrigerator for ~1 hour, then form into 8 patties.
4. Grill until chicken cooked all the way through.

Buffalo chicken sliders ready to eat!

I didn’t think I was that excited about the Olympics, but once they started I was hooked and I decided to host an Olympics-themed potluck. The challenge to my fellow potluckers was to make a dish that represented a country participating in the Olympics…easy, right?

We had a pretty good representation of countries, though apparently we strongly favor European flavors:

• Italy: pizza, Creamy chicken Italiano
• Belgium: stoverij, Belgian fruit tart
• China: Chinese chicken salad
• Portugal: Presunto, olives, Gouda
• Greece: Orzo feta salad
• United States: peach crisp
  

  A perfect potluck plate

I made the orzo feta salad, which allowed me to use some of my CSA goods. I found a recipe on epicurious and heavily adapted it, as below. I also made part of it without olives for my olive-hating friends. Unfortunately I forgot to add the pine nuts!

Orzo salad
Source: Bon Appetit, October 1997
Serves: 8-10

Ingredients
16 ounces orzo, cooked
3 Tbsp olive oil, divided
6 ounces feta cheese, crumbled
2 ears corn
3 pickling cucumbers, sliced
1 large tomato, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 Tbsp fresh oregano (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1 Tbsp fresh dill (or 1 teaspoon dried)
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (juice from 1 lemon)
1 Tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
3 Tbsp pine nuts, toasted

A few of my friends went up to the Maine Lobster Festival in Rockland last year. I was bummed that I couldn’t go, so this year I was not going to miss it! My parents happened to be planning a visit to Boston the same weekend, so we all went on a little field trip to Maine.

I had also never been to Portland so we stayed there for a night on the way up to Rockland. In Portland we went to Blue Spoon for dinner, a tiny restaurant in Munjoy Hill, which was a remarkably non-touristy area of the city. We tried some Maine beer (Geary’s, Maine Beer Company) and I had the Casco Bay mussels. After dinner we toured around a bit and we got to see the stages being set up for the Mumford and Sons concert that was happening on the East Promenade the next day. Now we understood why it was so hard to get a hotel reservation in Portland for that weekend!

We missed Wine Time…

Saturday morning we drove up to Rockland to experience the Lobster Festival. This is listed in the book “1,000 Things to Do Before You Die”…great, only 999 things left to do! Well I haven’t actually read the book, so hopefully I’ve unknowingly knocked some other things off the list already.

We arrived in town just in time for the parade, but we decided to skip it and head into the festival, which was great timing because the lobster tent opened shortly after we got there. We had our first lobster probably around 11 AM. I went for the twin lobster dinner, which was a better deal at $17 than the single lobster dinner that cost $12. These were soft shell lobsters so no crackers required. Delicious.

Twin lobster dinner

After our lobster dinner, we walked around a bit and got to observe the lobster cooking process. They have a lobster cooker that can cook 1,300 pounds of lobster at a time. Each “container” holds about 80 pounds and takes 13 minutes. That’s a whole lot of lobster!

Lobster assembly line

We also walked around the town of Rockland for a little while, then finished up with a lobster roll before hitting the road back to Boston.

No work required to eat

The rundown:
Blue Spoon
89 Congress Street, Portland

Maine Lobster Festival
Rockland

After my Belgian adventure, I also spent a week in Switzerland, specifically Basel, Luzern, and Geneva. Eating in Switzerland was a bit more difficult than it was in Belgium for several reasons:

1. I didn’t have an interpretor with me (and many menus were not in English).
2. Eating out was expensive, much more expensive than in Belgium. Entrees alone were usually > 20 CHF (Swiss francs).
3. When I first arrived in Switzerland I was suffering from a little post-Gentse Feesten GI distress (my last day in Belgium included a trip to the apothecary)
4. Eating dinner solo is not as fun as dining with friends.

My hotels in Basel and Luzern included breakfast, which was a huge buffet that catered to both American and European tastes and included eggs (omelets, scrambled and hard-boiled), meats, cheeses, breads, muesli, yogurt, and fruit. In these cities I usually ate a huge breakfast and was set until dinner.

Filet de perches
This was recommended to me as a “summer” food by someone I met on a plane earlier this year who had lived in Geneva for many years. I had it once in Basel with mushrooms and butter and once in Geneva with tomatoes and sauteed vegetables.

Filet de perche at Cafe Spitz

Pretzel
I stopped in at the Rathaus Brauerei and really enjoyed the spot. It was in the old part of Luzern, and right on the Reuss river with a great view of the Kapellbrücke (Chapel Bridge). I also really enjoyed the wheat beer and the pretzel with cheese (which apparently is the same as a pretzel with butter and cheese). I wonder if they have pretzel slicers like we have bagel slicers.

Pretzel mit kas at Rathaus Brauerei

Sirloin with frites
I happened upon Café de Paris in Geneva and was intrigued because it was usually pretty crowded and there was only one thing on the menu: sirloin steak with salad and fries…all you had to order was the temperature at which you wanted the meat cooked. I figured, if a restaurant is bold enough to only serve one thing, they probably do it pretty darn well. The steak arrived sizzling, and swimming in butter. Delicious. Unfortunately the meat kept cooking on the table-side sterno and became a little more well done than I would have liked.

Sirloin steak at Café de Paris

Chocolat chaud
Another highlight was the chocolate chaud (hot chocolate) I had at Phillipe Pascoët for a chocolate chaud (hot chocolate). It was so decadent, a perfect afternoon pick-me-up!

Chocolate chaud at Phillipe Pascoët

Unfortunately I did not get to try fondue or raclette. They seem to be more “winter” foods, and the few places I did find that were serving fondue either seemed very touristy or only served “fondue for two”.

The rundown (or at least some highlights):
Rathaus Brauerei
Unter der Egg 2, 6004 Luzern

Brasserie Bagatelle
20 Boulevard James Fazy, 1201 Genève

Café de Paris
Rue du Mont-Blanc 26, 1201 Genève

Phillipe Pascoët
34 rue du Marché, 1204 Genève

Mosselens at De Witte Leeuw

Stoverij at Aba-jour

Street stoverij in Brugge

Delicious frietjes

Green and cream sauce

• Croque Monsieur at A la Mort Subite in Bruxelles
• Tomaat garnaal (tomato filled with shrimp) at ‘T Braboke in Antwerpen
• Garnaalkroketten, kaaskroketten (fried potato croquettes with shrimp/cheese) at ‘T Braboke in Antwerpen
• Stoemp with sausage (basically sausage over mashed potatoes) at Fin de Siecle in Bruxelles
• Vol-au-vent (chicken in a puff pastry) at K. Zeppos in Antwerpen
• Spit burger at the Gentse Feesten (a fancy ham sandwich)

A bientot, Belgium, until we meet again!

I hope you enjoyed the post on my Belgian beer experiences. In case you were worried that all we did was drink, here is a tour of how I satisfied my sweet tooth. While I usually crave salty foods, it’s hard not to have a sweet tooth there.

First and foremost, the Belgian waffle (waffel)…yum. No syrup required. No fork required (unless you get it with whipped cream, which I did try once). There were little waffle shops all over, making it a perfect mid-morning or mid-afternoon snack. I tried to eat a waffle every day, but there was just not enough room in my stomach for all of the things I wanted to eat and drink every day.

First waffel of the trip

We passed many many chocolate shops and I loved looking in the windows at the very elaborate decorations, made out of chocolate, of course. We tried pralines from Neuhaus in Brugge and The Chocolate Line in Antwerpen…there were so many options, it was hard to make a decision. At the Neuhaus in Brugge, I tried a “Figaro” praline with hazelnuts and one with dark chocolate and butter cream and both were delicious. I bought most of my Belgian chocolate souvenirs at Neuhaus. At The Chocolate Line in Antwerpen we decided to try some unconventional pralines…we all had a bacon one and I also tried a lemongrass one. The bacon one was a little confusing to my taste buds and I’m not sure if I liked it. The lemongrass was too overpowering and I was not a big fan of that one.


Bacon praline

I don’t mind kissing frogs that are made out of chocolate… The Chocolate Line

In Bruxelles we stopped by Pierre Macrolini and tried some French macaroons. Once again, there were so many options that it was hard to decide what to try. I settled on a pistachio and a chocolate/praline ganache and that was a great decision.

French macaroons

During our day in Bruxelles I also tried a skewer of strawberries dipped in dark chocolate (in lieu of a waffle) and we happened upon a candy shop that was doing a candy-making demonstration.

Consider my sweet tooth absolutely delighted!

The rundown (or at least some highlights):
Neuhaus (multiple locations)
Steenstraat 66, 8000 Brugge

The Chocolate Line (multiple locations)
Meir 50, 2000 Antwerpen

Pierre Marcolini
Rue du Bassin Collecteur 4/Spaarbekkenstraat 4
1130 Haren, Bruxelles