3 Blue Moon Pizza

The other night we decided to head to Blue Moon Pizza for dinner.  Just look at their exotic menu!

The first time we went I got a half Thai/Jerk Chicken, and it was amazing, especially the Thai Chicken.  Loved it!  (BTW, notice the marked difference between this picture and the subsequent?  First was taken during the day by my iPhone 3G, the others by my iPhone 4...at night.  Nice!)

My husband is not quite so adventurous, and he sticks with what he knows he likes - The Meteor (and I don't blame him, it's AWESOME!)

I mean, cayenne-candied bacon?  Are you kidding me??  I MUST learn how to make this, ASAP.

I wanted to try a different combo, and had a half Greek/Luna, and it was sooo good!  I'm a sucker for olives, any way I can get them.  The only thing it was missing was handfuls of that cayenne-candied bacon.  Hmm....

I love that they give kids a ball of dough to shape, and then bake it for them.  We spiced hers up a little bit and kneaded in some grated Parm and Italian  herbs.

Also, the best drink we've had in a long time by FAR is their signature margarita - it's called the Slice of Heaven.  It really is.  The other great thing about this place is that they have gluten-free pizza options, which is really nice for people who have gluten intolerances.  This is our new favorite pizza joint.  Love!

3 Surimi-Stuffed Mushroom Caps

I must write this recipe before I forget!  It was a huge hit at the reunion.  I was just using what I had on hand, because I certainly had never tried this recipe before since I just made it up as I went along.  I brought four packages of surimi, also known as imitation crab, figuring I could use it somehow (first time I've used it, however I didn't think fresh crab would travel well.)  It occurred to me to make a crab salad of sorts, and then I found that both my mom and I had brought a bunch of mushroom caps...so why not stuff them?

This makes a lot of stuffed mushrooms, enough for a party of 25, so halve the recipe for a smaller gathering.

3 pounds baby portabella or button mushrooms, cleaned and stems removed
4 10 oz packages of surimi (or use fresh lump crab!), chopped
1 medium yellow onion, minced very finely
7-9 small red, yellow and/or orange sweet peppers, minced very finely
1 bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
2/3 cup of mayonnaise (more or less)
3 tbs Dijon mustard (more or less)
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 375, and lightly oil a couple baking sheets with olive oil.  Fold all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.  With a small spoon stuff the mushroom caps with the crab mixture, and nestle on the baking sheets.  Bake for about 20 minutes, and enjoy!

Alas, I only have one picture, and that is pre-baking. Everyone started grabbing and gobbling them down before I got a chance to snap a pic of the after.  They got really nice and toasty on the bottom, and melty in the middles.

I had no bread crumbs, but I found that it really didn't matter too much, the cheese helped to hold it all together, but you could certainly throw in a handful if you wished.  If I'd had enough shredded cheese, I might have topped each one with some as well.  I'm super glad they turned out this well, good enough to make again!

11 Hello Kitty Lunch Time

It's getting to be that time of year again.  Only a few weeks left of summer vacation and then my child goes back to school.  She'll have the same schedule as last year, 3 full days a week, so there are lots of bentos in store!  Of course, being the dedicated shopper that I am, I'm always on the lookout for school items, especially lunch related.

The other day we were at the mall trying to get someone to look at my iPhone 4 at the Apple store. (Ha!  Yeah right, did you know you need an appointment at that place if you want an employee to even say hello to you?)  After we left, we passed a Sanrio store called Domkimeki Japan, and I Ella couldn't resist going in to see all the new Hello Kitty items.  I've said since last year when I picked up this lunch box from another Sanrio store that if I ever saw another (even the exact same one!) I'd snap it up, because it's the BEST lunch box/bag design ever.  Seriously.  Well, my dreams came true and I found the exact same design, except it's got a different HK motif.  It even comes with a plastic lunch container inside, like the other.  I cannot express how much I love this bag (I swear I'm not the one actually using it.)  The barrel top unzips and is the perfect size and shape for an aluminum bottle like the .3L size Sigg (and we have a Hello Kitty one, imagine that.)

The main compartment has a deep, rectangular area which is perfect for stacking bento boxes - upright, so no spillage!  It's got a zippered mesh area that's underneath the top barrel which is great for storing utensils, or even a cold pack.  Zippered side and front pouches give it plenty of storage, and lots of good insulation.  So yeah, I love it.  Like last year, I'll be removing the long strap so E can carry it with the top handle.  I think the only thing that's different besides the motif is that the side pockets have adjustable straps, which I suppose can be very useful.

These pictures are terrible, but just to show you.

6 Flea Market Treasures

While I was in Tennessee, we hit up the largest flea market in the state.  I'd never been to a flea market before, but I struck beginner's gold at the entrance!  On a low shelf I spotted the telltale orange-flame of a French oven.  I ran over, snatched it up and clutched it to my chest like Miss Haversham and her erstwhile wedding dress.  In my excitement I knocked over the glass flume of an oil lamp and it shattered all over the floor behind me. (Whoops!  I confessed immediately and offered to pay, but the proprietress waved me away.)  In the bottom of the pot there was a smaller non-fitting lid in the same flame-orange, and I turned it over and saw that it was imprinted with "Belgium."  I didn't even bother turning over the pot, I just KNEW it was Le Creuset by the gorgeous paint job, very vintage.  Both pieces together were $10!

We spent the rest of the scorching afternoon tripping around the market with my Mom and Dad, my husband and daughter, and my aunt, uncle and my cousin Sam and his wife Nari.  I picked up some really nice - and rare! - comb-in Sourwood Honey, and a loaf each of white and sourdough from a Mennonite bakery.  We packed our treasures under our arms, and headed to eat some good Tennessee BBQ at Big Boy's BBQ.  The baked beans were outrageous!  I've never had anything like them - dark, spicy and smoky-sweet, stewed with pulled pork.  My aunt claims she ate the best ribs of her life at this place.  I had a pulled pork sandwich, which was really good too.

I'm stealing this photo from their Facebook page...

After lunch, we rolled ourselves out of our chairs and headed back to their condo where I investigated my flea market finds.  My first gut-reaction was shock when I turned my pot over and found that it wasn't Le Creuset.  I was confused.  It was marked "Descoware" and "Belgium" on the stamped bottom.  But oh well, right?  It's still a heavy enameled cast iron oven, and even European.  I jumped on Google and started researching the mark.  I found that Descoware was manufactured until the mid-70's, until Le Creuset bought them out and took over their patents.  The paint-job mystery is solved!  And apparently they are quite collectible!  It really is a beautiful pot, I just need to find a matching lid for it, and a matching pot for the small lid.  For now I have two stainless lids that will do for now.  Searching eBay now....

Aren't they pretty?  It's gotta be at least a 5 qt, since my 3.5 qt fits inside with room to spare.

Here the lid sits in my contemporary 9" Le Creuset skillet in Flame.  

The story is continued here.

0 Winner!

Congratulations to Kristine Michelle, commenter #29!  Please email me at emily AT bentobloggy DOT COM to claim your $40 CSN Stores gift certificate!

To everyone else, I will be hosting a different giveaway, more chances to win something cool, so check back soon!

3 The Counter Part Deux

We had a fab lunch today! We've just been recuperating after returning home from our family reunion yesterday evening. We decided to lunch at The Counter. I hesitantly tried their Maryland crab cake, and while it wasn't my favorite (I mean come on, I'm FROM Maryland) I can easily see how people like it. Ian had a blue cheese burger with tzakziki sauce and pepperonicis, and E had a grilled ham and cheese with applesauce and a side of Silly Bandz. We also shared a chocolate malt shake, but the best thing by a long mile was their Parmesan and garlic rosemary aioli fries. OMG. To die for!!

4 Baked Macaroni & Cheese

I'm taking a quick break in the air conditioning to jump on and say hi! As I mentioned on my Facebook page, I'm at the lake for a week at our family reunion. My grandfather is 90 years old tomorrow, and I happened to turn 29 for the second time yesterday ;) It's been so fun, minus having to shop for all new toiletries after I forgot my fully-packed case at home on the bathroom counter. So, we've been doing a LOT of cooking. I mean, we have between 20-30 people to feed for dinner every night! The other night I made paella, and added some beautiful shrimp.

This post is going to be about my baked mac 'n cheese, but I also made some delicious crab-stuffed mushroom caps that everyone loved, a post which will come later.  No step-by-step this time, just before and afters. :)


The inspiration recipe comes from Patti LaBelle, via Oprah.  I just had to try it a few years ago, and it has stuck, with a few modifications, and become a family favorite.  One recipe serves 4 to 6, and I tripled it to feed all our family last night.

1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pound small shell pasta
8 tablespoons (1 stick) plus 1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded (or chopped) Muenster cheese
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded mild Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1/2 cup (2 ounces) shredded Monterey Pepper Jack (or regular, un-spicy, if you prefer)
2 cups half-and-half
1 cup (8 ounces) Velveeta , cut into small cubes
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly butter a deep 2 1/2-quart casserole.

Bring the large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the oil, then the shell pasta and cook until the macaroni is just tender, about 7 minutes. Do not overcook. Drain well and return to the cooking pot.

In a small saucepan, melt eight tablespoons of the butter. Stir into the macaroni. In a large bowl, mix the Muenster, mild and sharp Cheddar, and Monterey Jack cheeses. To the macaroni, add the half-and-half, 1 1/2 cups of the shredded cheese, the cubed Velveeta, and the eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to the buttered casserole. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/2 cup of shredded cheese and dot with the remaining one tablespoon of butter.

Bake until it's bubbling around the edges, about 35 minutes. Serve hot.

Before:

And the luscious after:

Now, I leave you with an evening view from our lake house.

6 Less Than Perfect Produce: What to Keep, What to Toss

I thought this was a valuable article.  Personally, I always err on the side of "what doesn't kill you only makes you stronger." but I'm English, so I must be genetically predisposed to survive funny food (and also have troublesome teeth!)

http://www.shespeaks.com/specialeditiondetails/52458

DivineCaroline.com

Posted July 12, 2010

I was having breakfast with a friend recently, and when I peeled my banana, I discovered that the top half was brown and bruised. I nonchalantly broke the banana in half and proceeded to eat the non-offending portion, but my friend was horrified. “How can you eat that?” she said. “Isn’t it dangerous?”  I guess if she was that scandalized by a bruised banana, I shouldn’t tell her about what I do when I find a little spot of mold growing on a block of cheese. She and her delicate sensibilities might never recover.  Fresh food is expensive, and it’s natural to try to get our money’s worth. That’s why it’s so frustrating to come across a half-eaten block of Parmesan with some mold on the edge, or an appleor pear with a soft dent on the side. It seems a shame to throw them out; as my mother used to say, there are starving people in China. Is it safe to eat these older foods?  The Truth About Ugly In America, there’s no denying that we’re obsessed with our food being perfect and beautiful. Supermarket produce managers closely monitor their shelves, throwing out bruised fruit, oddly-shaped vegetables, or other pieces of produce with minor cosmetic flaws, relegating them to the charity bin or the compost heap. Even though we deem them aesthetically inferior, the truth is that the vast majority of these fruits and vegetables are perfectly edible and safe to eat. Produce with bruises or soft spots is prone to quicker rotting and decay and should be consumed immediately, but the surface imperfections are usually minor.  Watch out, however, for bruising that’s accompanied by a broken skin, because it could indicate rotting. If fruit or vegetables have begun the rotting process (complete with a change in color, texture, or odor), it’s best to toss them out. This is most important for items with a high water content like pineapple, peaches, grapes, tomatoes, and cucumbers, because it’s easier for bacteria to infest these items. Since it’s harder for microbes to invade dense vegetables like carrots, bell peppers, or potatoes, it’s the consumer’s choice whether to cut off the offending part and use the rest of the item, or to throw the whole thing away.  Also, just because an item is past its freshness peak, that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s unusable. It’s safe to cut dry ends off cheeses, slice away the stale parts of bread, or use the rind of old citrus fruits for zest.  Molden Delicious Most people can deal with some slight bruising, but mold is an entirely different story. Mold has roots and tentacles that can reach deep into food, so if there’s significant mold growth on the surface, there’s a good chance that the rest of the food is tainted as well, even if you can’t see it.Harmful bacteria, like listeria, E. coli, and salmonella, can also accompany mold.  Foods You Can Keep: But don’t toss every moldy item out. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there are some foods that, when a small amount of mold is present, it doesn’t automatically mean disaster. Hard shelf-stable salami and dry-cured meat products Hard cheeses (Parmesan, Pecorino) Semi-hard cheese (cheddar, gruyere) Cheeses that normally include mold (Roquefort, Camembert, Stilton) Firm, dense fruits and vegetables (cabbage, carrots, peppers)  In these instances, it’s okay to cut off the affected area to one inch below the mold spot, and use the rest of the product as usual. Just make sure not to slice into the mold itself with the knife, to prevent contamination.  Foods You Should Toss: Fresh meat of any kind Soft cheeses (feta, mozzarella, chèvre) Processed dairy (yogurt, sour cream) Jellies, preserves, and jams Soft fruits (apples, peaches, plums) Bread and cooked pasta  These items have high water content, making it more likely that mold spores (along with harmful bacteria) have permeated the entire product. Also, toss out any item that’s been shredded, crumbled, or chopped, since increased surface area means increased risk of contamination.  The next time I get a battered-looking banana, I won’t think twice about cutting out the brown bits and enjoying the rest of the fruit. I’ll save the darker pieces for banana bread. Originally written by Allison Ford for DivineCaroline.com

1 Pan-Roasted Asparagus

I really count myself fortunate to be in the ranks of the seemingly few who absolutely adore veggies.  I have always loved them, even as a baby (except for cooked carrots, according to my mother.)  I'm making pan-roasted asparagus today, and this recipe happens to be 100% vegetarian.  I could literally eat the entire 2 pounds all by myself.  I almost did, but figured I'd leave some for my hubby.  In fact, he came to me later and said that they were so good he ate them straight out of the serving dish.  Who are you, and what have you done with my husband?!

Here's what you'll need:

2 lbs asparagus (for my house, anyway, you can always use less!)
2-3 large shallots, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (to taste)
2 tbs butter
drizzle of olive oil
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

First, wash and trim the asparagus to pretty even lengths.  I trimmed this batch pretty aggressively, since the bottoms seemed woodier than normal, so in actuality, I trimmed off a lot of the 2lb weight.  Set aside in a dish.

Melt the butter and drizzle of olive oil over medium-high heat in a sautee pan.

Meanwhile, mince the garlic and shallots up.

When the pan is hot, add the shallots and garlic, and start to sautee, along with a little salt and pepper.

When they get slightly brown, add some red pepper flakes (I just eyeball it and shake straight from the container.  Risky business!)

Give the shallots a good stir, and place the asparagus on top.  Yes, it looks pretty crowded, but you'll be tossing them in a few minutes.  Hit the tops with some fresh cracked salt and pepper.

Cover and roast over medium-high heat for about 3 minutes.  Then, take some tongs and toss well.  If the shallots look in danger of getting too dark, add a few tablespoons of water.  Cover again and cook until fork-tender and the shallots are caramel-y, another 3-4 minutes.

Grab your serving dish and add half the asparagus, and hit them with a little parm.

Top with the other half of the asparagus, and make sure you get ALL those lovely shallots at the bottom of the pan!

Sprinkle with a little more parm and serve.  Delicious!  Sometimes when I make this I used chopped bacon and bacon fat, which is also extra-delish, but just like this it's savory with a slight kick from the red pepper flakes.

41 *CLOSED* Another CSN Stores Giveaway - $40 Gift Certificate!

CSN Stores is sponsoring a $40 giveaway and one lucky Bentobloggy reader will win! 

CSN Stores has over 200 specialized online stores featuring a variety of home goods such as bedroom furniture sets, cookware, baby and pet products, even furniture. Have a look at some of the great items (and prices!) they have.

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Whatever you're looking for, CSN Stores has it!

HOW TO ENTER:

Mandatory Entry: You must be a follower and/or subscriber of my blog to enter this giveaway. See all those cool people in the bottom right hand side under the title "followers"? You want to be one of them. So click the little follow button, leave a comment telling me that you follow my blog, and you're automatically entered!  Tell me in your comment what you'd buy with the $40!

Want to increase your chances of winning? 
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** This giveaway is now CLOSED.**

5 Vegan is as Vegan does

I just had to share this.  My husband and I were making a stop at an ATM, and across the way we see this little restaurant called, of all things, "The Loving Hut - Healthy Cuisine"  I was intrigued.  Especially since I thought it was an, ahem, adult store before I saw the "Healthy Cuisine" bit.  I mean...not because I thought it was an adult store... allrighty then.  We just had to roll up to the drive-thru window and grab a to-go menu.

I am so confused by all the vegan meat and fish.  Maybe it's tofu?  The menu just doesn't explain!

They do have pho.  And some interesting-looking smoothies (meat/tofu-free, I assume.)  I might go back for that. ;)

5 Scrambled Eggs & Cream Cheese

I find that there are two kinds of people:  Those who love scrambled eggs with cream cheese, and those who go "huh?"  If you like scrambled eggs, and you like cream cheese, you must try them together.  Really, it's one of life's great, simple pleasures.

You'll need:

Butter
Eggs
Cream Cheese
S&P to taste

I told you it was simple!

Melt some butter in a non-stick pan over medium heat.

Meanwhile, crack your eggs into a bowl.  I use 3 for me.

Beat eggs with a a fork and a little salt and pepper.  I usually beat for about 20 seconds.

Next, add a hunk of cream cheese.  If you're like me, you'll add about 1/3 umm...a 1/4 of the package.  Or however much looks good to you.  I mean, if you wanted to add a 1/3, that's fine by me!  Cut it up into smaller chunks and add with your beaten egg.

Now, dump the bowl into your skillet.  I like to let it sit there without stirring for several seconds until the edges start to firm up.

Now, take the flat of a spatula and start smooshing the cream cheese, and of course folding and stirring occasionally.

When the scrambled eggs are creamy, but not runny, they are done.  I hate dry eggs, so I'm really careful not to overcook.  The cream cheese adds this amazing velvety texture.

Plate, sprinkle with some fresh cracked pepper and see if your kids don't come begging for a taste!

The cream cheese adds this really good tangy note, along with the aforementioned velvety, creamy texture.  I also like to add chopped up baked ham to this whenever I make one.  Good.  Eats.