Well Dined – Page 15

19
May
2014

Homemade Mozzarella

categories: Recipes

What if I told you that you could make delicious, fresh mozzarella in 30 minutes at home. No, I’m not kidding and yes, it is awesome. You already know how much I love homemade ricotta; now I have another cheese to add to my repertoire!

My friend Melissa and I have been talking about doing this for a while, and I am so glad that we went for it! All you need is a gallon of whole milk, rennet, citric acid, salt, a cheese thermometer (shows lower temp range than a candy thermometer), and cheese cloth. Everything except the milk is available in an awesome kit from New England Cheesemaking Supply Company ($25 and makes 30 batches!). You can also just buy those things individually. The kit comes with a very handy instruction and recipe booklet, but the instructions are also available on the website.

On the subject of milk – butterfat is necessary to make cheese, so please use whole milk. Also, ultra-pasteurized will NOT work (pasteurized is fine). There are instructions on the website for pasteurizing raw milk, if you want to go super fresh. The main ingredient and flavoring comes from the milk, so use the highest quality you can find. I recommend milk from local, grass-fed cows for the best quality (more info on Melissa’s post).

We have made mozzarella twice. The first time we were still getting the hang of it and overstretched the mozzarella. It was still yummy, but more like the texture of string cheese. So the second time we handled it much less and it came out beautifully (we used it to make delicious margherita pizza). So don’t freak out if it doesn’t turn out exactly the way you want it the first time. You may need to do it a few times to get the feel of it. And make sure that you have read through all the instructions a few times first. It’s not difficult, but it is a lot of steps. (more…)

16
May
2014

Sweetgreen

categories: Reviews

I have an obsession… with a salad shop. This must be what being an adult feels like. I never used to like salads AT ALL, and then I tried Sweetgreen and now a salad is my treat to myself after working out. Not like, “oh don’t wanna ruin that workout, so here’s a salad;” but like “good job, now you GET to eat this salad.” Weiiiiiiiiird. Who am I?

Anywho, Sweetgreen is awesome. It’s like any fast food joint (Chipotle, Subway, etc…) where you travel down the line and build your meal, in this case – a yummy salad made with local ingredients (check the blackboard to see which vendors they use).

They have a number of pre-designed salads (my favorite is the District Cobb) and one seasonal salad per month (above photo is the May 2014 salad), or you can go custom. You can also customize a menu salad. For example, I like to get the District Cobb but swap sweet potatoes in for tomatoes and change the dressing to balsamic vinaigrette (which is super good). You get to choose how much dressing you want (light, medium, heavy) and also if you want bread (the bread is really good, but I try to resist).

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14
May
2014

Rhubarb Sour Cream Pie

categories: Recipes

As promised in my last post, today we are talking about Rhubarb Sour Cream Pie. Oh yeah, baby. I have a bonafide obsession with fruit and sour cream pies. That tang to balance out sweetness, and the creaminess – yum.

Just a few ingredients are all that is required – flour, sugar, sour cream, and an egg for the custard; and chopped rhubarb.

We already talked about crust this week, so you know that is going to be good. I like the idea of a crumble topping with this, especially to add sweetness since rhubarb is so tart. (more…)

12
May
2014

Rendering Lard

categories: Recipes

Just look at that beautiful pie! Jewel like pieces of rhubarb in a pink tinged custard with golden streusel. Gorgeous. But before we get into that, we need to talk about crust. Perfectly tender and flaky crust. And for that, we need lard.

I first discovered the wonders of using lard for baking in this recipe. It makes the flavor and texture of pie crust amazing, plus it’s so easy to roll out! It also has the benefit of being made from animal fat, which is not toxic like the vegetable oil used to make shortening. Unfortunately, the lard you can buy at the store is partially-hydrogenated, and that is nasty and bad for you. So, what to do? Render your own lard at home! It takes a while, but most of that time is hands off – just letting a slow cooker do it’s thing. (more…)

07
May
2014

2941 as of 4/25

categories: Reviews

Seasonal restaurants like 2941 change their menu all the time as new products become available (for example, here is a post from last Summer), so I like to try to keep stopping in and see what is new. Here is a look at the menu as it was at the end of April.

Beef Tartare with baby kale, cornichon, Dijon mustard, fried potatoes. Those potatoes were pretty killer.

Tart with mangalica ham, creme fraiche, and onion. Good, but not great – I probably wouldn’t order it again.

“Lobster Roll” with tomato gelee and avocado. Very light and refreshing. (more…)

05
May
2014

Pea and Ricotta Tart

categories: Recipes

Hello, Spring! I am so glad that you have finally come to stay! I’d like to welcome you with this lovely little tart made with fresh peas, creamy homemade ricotta, scallions, herbs, and lemon. Please stick around for a bit.

Well, Spring, I know that fresh English peas are kind of your thing, so I used them two ways just for you! I pureed some peas and ricotta together with lemon juice, mint, and basil to make a creamy spread. Then I mixed some whole peas with scallions, more mint and basil, and lemon zest.

I baked some puff pastry until golden, puffed, and crispy; then I spread the creamy ricotta mixture over the top; and sprinkled the whole pea mixture over that. Look at all that green! (more…)

01
May
2014

Brioche French Toast with Bruleed Bananas, Vanilla Cream, and Salted Caramel

categories: Recipes

Oh. My. Goodness. This is the most deliciously decadent thing ever. I don’t even know whether to call it brunch or dessert, or both. Buttery brioche french toast, sweet pastry cream made with vanilla bean, and crunchy brûléed bananas topped with a drizzle of salted caramel. Total epic ridiculousness.

Step one is to make the vanilla pastry cream. Bring cream to a simmer with a vanilla bean and then let steep before adding to a mixture of egg yolks, sugar, and flour and cooking until thick and creamy. It needs to cool completely and then chill, which is why we make it first.

The next step is to make the salted caramel sauce, which is a bit tricky if you have never made one before (I hadn’t). You have to leave the sugar alone while it melts and colors, and watch carefully for the right moment. Then you add butter and cream. The caramel with pop and splutter like crazy, and ball up on the end of your whisk. You just have to keep whisking over low heat until it all comes together. Then add in your sea salt and let it cool.

While that is cooling, make your French toast using big, thick slices of brioche (a little stale is better).

BLOW TORCH TIME. This is seriously so much fun. Sprinkle banana slices with sugar and brown with a blow torch. Easy. If you don’t have a blow torch, I’m pretty sure that you can use a broiler.

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28
Apr
2014

Spanikopita Strudels

categories: Recipes

As per usual, I went to have lunch with Melissa of Smells Like Brownies. We had actually planned on going out to eat that day, but Melissa said she was planning on making these spanikopita at some point that day and I thought that sounded waaaaaaaaaay better than eating out. And then it turned out that she was looking at the exact same recipe I had been eyeing for awhile. Great! So we whipped them up pretty quickly, and while they were in the oven there was a knock at the door. Her Greek neighbor came by to drop off some homemade baklava – serendipity! Sometimes being spontaneous or changing your plans leads to some pretty great stuff.

Anyway, you will not believe how easy it is to make these. First step – filling. Whiz a whole bunch of fresh spinach around in a food processor until chopped but not pureed (we don’t want soup here) – I suggest doing it in 3 batches. Then add some well beaten eggs, feta (you know my favorite brand), and cottage cheese. The cottage cheese threw me for a bit of a loop, I wasn’t expecting that. Some recipes use ricotta, but what I ended up liking was the creaminess of the cottage cheese. I think ricotta dries out quite a bit when it is baked.

The next part can seem daunting, but I promise it’s not really that fussy. When working with pyllo dough, you need to move quickly or it will dry out. The box will usually have tips, like keeping the bulk of it covered with a cloth while you work, but I find that I don’t really need that. In order for it to bake into crispy layers, you need to get fat in between the sheets of phyllo. Most people brush butter over the sheets, which is time consuming and actually doesn’t work as well as other methods because it saturates the dough too much and weighs it down. I recommend drizzling the butter, or if you are really in a rush – spraying with cooking spray. You will need to use the brush on the top of the strudel, though, to make sure it is covered.

Now I didn’t get any pictures of the rolling up process, so please check out Smells Like Brownies for a more detailed tutorial. What I love about these is that they are large and self contained (versus baking in a big sheet like a casserole and cutting into triangles). So one strudel is a serving and you have a good visual reminder of that (not that that will prevent you from eating two, or three…).

These are really very easy to make, and they come out so perfectly. The phyllo is buttery and crispy, while the filling is silky and creamy. I’m pretty sure this will be my go-to recipe for homemade spanikopita.

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25
Apr
2014

Broccoli Cheese Quinoa Casserole

categories: Recipes

You know that cheesy broccoli and rice casserole that makes it’s way to every potluck ever? That is so bad for you, but so yummy, that you eat heaps of it and you tell yourself that it’s got broccoli so it’s okay? Well here’s your chance to pig out, because this version (made with quinoa instead of rice) is a lot better for you.

Of course, to convince my husband to eat it (and because I wanted more protein without having to make a separate dish), I threw some shredded rotisserie chicken in there. You can see in the photo that I just threw big florets of steamed broccoli in there. I ended up wishing that the broccoli was more evenly spread throughout, so I will recommend chopping it first.

This is hearty, and creamy, and just plain awesome. Kids (and big kids) will gobble it up.

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23
Apr
2014

Vinifera Wine Bar & Bistro

categories: Reviews

I actually ate here a while ago, but the experience was so bad that I have been putting off writing about it for a long time. Vinifera is located inside a Westin hotel near Reston. I decided to head out there for some wine and tapas before picking my husband up at the airport, and it ended up being a huge mistake.

I sat out on the patio, which was totally gorgeous, but it took 20 minutes before I could flag down a waiter to take my order. I put in an order for a whole bunch of tapas at once, and also some wine. The wine arrived pretty quickly, but the food didn’t even start arriving until 40 minutes later. 40 minutes!!! And then it was only the little one bite skewers; the rest of the food took even longer. That is totally unacceptable. And the food wasn’t even that good. Less than average, I would say, and I tried a whole range of things. I won’t even break down for you what I ordered, because it was all so forgettable. The $1-2 “pintxos” seemed like a great bargain, but they are literally tiny toothpick bites like you would find passed around at a party. Tiny, not that good, not worth $1-2 each, and definitely not worth a 40 minute wait. The rest of the food (and wine) was also overpriced.

I would maybe, MAYBE, say that it would be a nice place to grab a glass of wine on the patio, but not if you are on any kind of a timeline and watch out for a steeper than average mark-up.