I am, for obvious reasons, a huge advocate for international travel. Sure it's expensive, the flights are long and uncomfortable, and the cluster-f***k that is the world we live in has made getting through airport security less like a mildly annoying, yet necessary evil, to more like an aggravated assault and invasion of privacy with a dash of sexual harassment thrown in for good measure. The logistics of travel undoubtedly suck, but these minor inconveniences--well minor being a relative term depending on the strength of the U.S. dollar--are by and large worth the rewards received for purposely experiencing a piece of the world outside of home. There's only one aspect of travel that I find to be almost unbearable, and that is of course, the return home.
Hola Guapos!! Y'all didn't think I would flee the country for nine days and leave you with nothing to read, did you? I couldn't do that a second time you guys, I love y'all too much for that. So let's get right to it, shall we?
Chicken and Waffles is one of those dishes that sounds kind of wrong, but tastes so right. Whether it's dinner or breakfast is debatable, but what I do know is that it's crispy, and salty, and sweet, and savory, and freakin' awesome! What I don't know, is why after months of having "borrowed" my sister's waffle iron and having made countless waffles for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, it took me so long to make this dish. Sometimes, I'm really slow on the uptake...I have to start reading more and watching less Housewives, because I think I'm literally becoming dumber.
How many different ways can you eat jamon? Just ask the Spanish, the possibilities, apparently, are endless! I've never eaten so much pork in my life, let alone in a two week span of time! Obviously, the Spaniards are into ham. and sausage. and eggs. and cheese. and potatoes. and bread. and more jamòn. and NOT vegetables. How they don't drop dead at age 50 is beyond me, but I'm going to chuck it up to all the olive oil, red wine, walking, and LIVING life rather than working it. Quite frankly, jamòn was a recurring theme on most restaurant menus, became a the running joke of our entire trip, and will now forever hold a special place in my heart. Thank You, Spain!
In general, the food was good. Not great, not life changing, [for life changing food, go to Italy, as I plan to to do again in the next three years!] but good. The food lacked variety, for obvious reasons, and they Spanish just didn't seem as passionate about fresh, quality ingredients as some of their other European neighbors. With that said, I'll share some of my favorite dishes with you.
Paella de Arroz Negro
I didn't eat as much seafood as I thought I would, especially in Barcelona, mostly because the Spanish are really into octopus, and I'm really NOT. But the this paella was amazing. Shrimp with the heads still on and mussels really freak me out. But this dish was so good, I just detached the heads and got over my fear of mussels and kept it moving. I even ate around the octopus pieces. It was THAT good.
Chorizo
I can't put my finger on what makes it so great. Maybe it's the light saltiness, or the smokiness, or the fact that it oozes bright orange oil. I dunno, but this chorizo and tomato bocadillo with olive oil from a small bar in Madrid was the tastiest sandwich I had in all of Spain. It was so simple, yet really really good. I even bought some chorizo here and recreated this sandwich, which I of course followed with some vegetables. It wasn't as good as the original, but darn close.
Patatas Bravas
This was the house specialty at the Argumosa restaurant in Madrid. They don't look like much, but that sauce was effin delicious. And, when the potatoes where all gone, we sopped up the rest of the sauce with bread. Yeah, son. It's like that.
¡Sobrasada!
hands down, my favorite dish in Spain.
Served on bread with melted manchego at some restaurant in El Puerto de Santa Maria. It was LIFE. CHANGING. It was SLAP YO' MAMA GOOD! I almost creamed my pants eating this dish. Seriously. I wanted to live in this sauce! I tried to buy some to bring home, but sadly, what they had at the market required refrigeration. But I think I may have found it on a website in a jar. But if that doesn't work out, I'm sure I can work my Spain connections if I get desperate. Right primo?
Ribs
I think this pictures pretty much says it all. Dinner at Parrilla in El Puerto de Santa Maria. It took me three days to finish them. 3 glorious days! And if you didn't know already, hear me know, the Spanish [and all other Spanish speaking people] KNOW how to work a pig. Keep that in mind when eating Latin food.
Vegetables!
The Moroccans understood the importance of vegetables, God bless them for it! I was so hard up for some plant based food, I ate vegetables that I typically hate, like beets and pumpkin, and loved them!
The pumpkin and beets were sweet, and chilled, and scrumptious. why can't they taste like that here?!
Lamb Tangine
Where do I start on this one. First, there were more vegetables, generously seasoned and deliciously cooked. And the lamb, it was so tender, I could cut it with my fork. This was an expensive dinner for our first night in Marrakech, but totally worth it.
Honey Pastries
These sweet treats were delicious! I don't know what they are called, the green one was filled with pistachio, the other was some sort of deep fried dough and tasted of and cinnamon and with a hint of cloves, both were drenched in honey! There were so many different types pastries in the market, I wish I had tried more! And I must mention the Moroccan honey. It had a distinct flowery flavor, it was a dark amber color, and tasted far better than any honey I've ever had here. I really wish I had made more of an effort to buy some, but that's what my next trip to Marrakech is for.
All in all, I enjoyed the food enough. And guess what, I've been craving jamòn for days, lol! I now present to you a slide show of the collective eatings of España and Morocco.
::side bar:: I'm well aware that salsa music is a Cuban original, not a Spanish one. But I love this song :)
I should preface this by saying I love breakfast food, LOVE it. I think pancakes are literally the best thing since sliced bread [or before sliced bread, I wonder which came first...no matter, pancakes are awesome] and I think I've already established that I literally believe that bacon makes the world a better place. So when I came upon a recipe that combined the two greatest American breakfast foods EVER into one, I realized that God really does love me, and that his was my consolation prize for STILL not having my prayers of a new job answered.
You first need to understand, that not all pancakes are created equal. I've long outgrown the "just add water" mix pancakes, discovered that Bisquick pancakes are too heavy, and realized that it was high time I found the perfect pancake recipe and perfected my pancake making technique in order to be satisfied. I mean how can I continue to subject my friends and family with unsolicited food snobbery, if I can't make a decent batch of pancakes?? So I scoured the world wide web, browsed scores of cookbooks, and traveled across land and sea on an international food quest to find the perfect pancake recipe. OK, obviously, that's not true [but now that I mention it, an international food quest sounds like something I should do before I die] I simply went to one of my favorite food blogs, foodgawker[not the best website to visit when you're hungry] and came across this amazing yet simple recipe from the Cozy Kitchen blog. Not only do I love the recipe, but I immediately fell in love with the blog, because as a preface to the recipe, the author told a hilarious story of how she has dream that she has a pet pig, and in her dream, the pig glares at her with contempt as she makes these pancakes. It very much reminded me of the first watched the movie Babe, and was eating sausage and damn near crying when Babe's mother was sent to the slaughter house. I mean, it was really really sad, but that sausage was really really good. Obviously, this is a woman after my own heart, and bacon lust, and pancake perfection. But as usual, I digress...
Ingredients
2 cup of all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
2 egg, lightly beaten
2 3/4 cup buttermilk
3 tbsp pure maple syrup (not that Aunt Jemima crap)
butter
6 slices of bacon, sliced horizontally and then diced
In a medium pan, cook the bacon, over medium heat, stirring frequently, until cooked. About 6-8minutes. Remove the bacon to a paper towel, to remove excess fat.
In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Add the lightly beaten eggs and buttermilk, and syrup in two batches, don’t over mix, or you will end up with tough pancakes. There will be some small to medium lumps in the batter. Let the batter sit for 10 minutes to thicken a bit.
While the batter is resting, heat up your griddle, cast iron skillet, or heavy frying pan, (Cast iron is best, but if you're like me and don't own one, use your heaviest skillet w/o a nonstick surface) and slowly melt enough butter to evenly coat the pan on medium heat. Once the batter is done resting, lightly fold the bacon in the batter. Pour batter into your skillet, cook until bubbles form along the sides. Flip, then cook until browned. Be sure to add more butter between each pancake. *If your pan gets to hot, turn heat off briefly before adding butter, otherwise your butter will burn, your pancakes will suck, and your house will be filled with smoke*
I know traditionally, most people add a dollop of butter to their pancakes. But if you just cooked your pancakes in butter, you don't need to add more. Butter may be love, but there's a not so thin line between love and fat. Serve with pure maple syrup, and enjoy. Lord knows I did. For 3 days--that was a lot of pancake batter.
see all that butter? that's what love looks like
*note the crisp edges and browned center*
my first batch, I know these pictures a sucky, but I was hungry
My second batch. again, I was hungry, and wasn't about to switch plates for pretty pictures. Sorry y'all
Just in case you were wondering, they were bacony, and buttery, and fluffy, and GLORIOUS!
best pancakes EVER!
So this morning, I committed a gastronomical sin. Epicurean blasphemy. Politician level hypocrisy.
I went to McDonald's and order a sausage, egg, and cheese McGriddle.
And it was DELICIOUS.
And now I'm hungry again, craving another, and completely ashamed. [Wow, when I fall of the wagon, I fall HARD]
You see, I haven't actually eaten at McDonald's for almost two solid years[with the exception of this past February, but I was driving back from Georgia and that's where my mom stopped so it was eat there or wait another 8 hours for a meal--and yes I had a McGriddle]. I've also been working on a post that chronicles the evils of the fast food industry and how they target minority and/or low income communities. And McDonald's is at the top of my list of evil "establishments". oh the hypocrisy. [Actually it doesn't feel that bad, maybe I'll try my hand at politics one day (as soon as control my urges to throw things at lying, arrogant, gas bags)]
But see right what had happened was...I did laundry at my sister's house last night. I didn't get there till almost 9pm.[its the poodle's fault!] Didn't stop running up and down the basement steps with bags full of clothing till 3 am. And didn't leave her house till after 8am. So after spending the night on her couch, all while trying to stop the poodle from crying incessantly outside of her bedroom door, I was TIRED and HUNGRY and WEAK with lustful desire for that sweet salty concoction of chemicals and by-products in a sandwich. And knowing that I still had to drag my 341 pounds of laundry, the poodle, and my un-showered self home to get ready for work by 10am, I gave in to my deepest darkest desire.
But after it all I didn't die. and I think that if I want a McGriddle every now and then, then dammit I'm going to have one! [I'm still a little bit sad that the addiction to greasy McDonald's breakfast food still courses through my veins]
And yes I'm still going to post in whenever I'm done with.
Because, even though that damn sandwich was tasty enough to get a "scrumptious sandwiches" label, I still loathe the institution as a whole, and No, I'm Not Lovin' It.
After yet another fabulous Saturday night at my all time favorite watering hole in DC, Marvin, the next day I was in much need of good food and coffee. Thanks to my dear friend Alihah, who all too happily enables my food snobbery, I experienced this little slice of Paris on a beautiful, first Sunday of Spring. Don't get me wrong, NOTHING compares to the real deal--NOTHING. But the last (and first) time I was in Paris, it was January and constantly overcast. So imagine my delight on a glorious Sunday morning afternoon, to discover this organic, authentic Parisian jewel in the middle of Arlington, Va, aka the most suburban town in America.
Seriously one of the best cups of coffee I've ever had. Starbucks, you need to get your life together!
Alihah's Café au lait.
Basil Pesto & Parmesan Omelette.
I almost got the goat cheese and asparagus omelette, but since I always get "the one with goat cheese" I decided to expand my horizons. Well consider my horizons expound, this omelette was "Slap Yo' Mamma" good! The pesto was rich with fresh basil and light garlicy flavor, the parmesan was nutty and salty, and the eggs were fluffy*perfection. It was an orgasmic experience. Really. The organic mesclun salad had the perfect amount of vinegarette, which was light and acidic, but not overpowering.
This, my friends, is what a real** baguette should look like. A thick and crunchy, hearth baked crust, with a deliciously porous and chewy inside. The spread options included a hazelnut praline "Brunette" spread (pictured) a 4-redberry jam, and apricot jam. All were delicious, but c'mon does anything stand a chance to hazelnut praline?
[in case you were wondering, the answer is "hellz naw"]
Rather than wait the twenty minutes for an outdoor table, we decided to dine inside and were seated next to the pantry which was full of a variety of tasty (and pricey) spreads. I'm convinced that this was no accident, and that the hostess knew that I cannot resist the allure of gourmet spreads. I was strong enough to resist on Sunday [mostly because I'm low on spending money], but one day soon, I'm going back there to spend $10 on that brunette spread. And probably more stuff too, because let's be real, I'm not just going to buy 1 jar of spread.
*The fluffiness of organic eggs cannot be denied, they were like little clouds of joy. Next pay raise, I'm making that switch!
**Once you have an authentic baguette, you'll be pissed at those sticks of white bread they call baguettes in the grocery store, which are utter trash and why I shamelessly drench them in butter and olive oil . its the only way to make them edible.
...I mean "Quiche is a great way to get some vegetables and calcium in your diet"...but really, I want some friggin' bacon! When the #$%& is Easter anyways??
But I digress. As you know, wednesday is a busy day for me, and usually dinner suffers for it. But I've decided its high time I start eating like a big girl, and thus limit cereal for dinner to only one night a week. So after yoga stretch and a brief trip to the mall, I found myself making a quiche after 9pm.
Originally, I was going to make it with spinach and asparagus. But the asparagus in the grocery store last night was rubbery and gross looking--um, no thank you! I'm starting to wonder if that's how they decide to put produce on sale, "this shit has been here for a while, time for a clear out sale." So after deciding to use broccoli instead, then wading through a bunch of gross, rubbery broccoli crowns, I finally found some suitable mini trees, and was on my way. [Actually, I wasn't. I spent over an hour in the damn supermarket, half of which was standing in the effin' line! All this on a tuesday evening. #$%%^$!!!]
But patience is a virtue...that I famously don't posses...which is irrelevant when I'm making quiche:
2 cups Fresh Spinach
2 large Broccoli crowns, chopped
1.5 cups* Gruyere Cheese, shredded
some of Fresh Parmigiano Reggianno** shredded
6 eggs
1.5 cups milk (usually, quiche calls for heavy cream, but i forgot to add it to my grocery list--and really who needs heavy cream on top of all that cheese and eggs)
1 deep dish pie crust frozen pie crust (you have to get the deep dish!)
Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Black Pepper
*measurements are approximations. when in doubt, add more cheese. I certainly did. **fresh parm, never canned! quiche recipes usually call for gruyere or swiss cheese alone, but fresh parm adds a nutty flavor to the mix. It's damn good, believe dat!
Chop the broccoli, add salt, pepper and olive oil, and roast in a 350 degree oven for about 20 minutes.
Mix eggs, milk, salt and pepper with a whisk or fork, try to incorporate as much air as possible into the mixture.
Layer broccoli, spinach, and cheese alternately in pie crust
Pour egg mixture over filled pie crust
I added a dollop of butter here & there within the mixture...in loving memory of the heavy cream...
Bake quiche in a 375 degree oven for about 45 minutes, or until top of pie is a golden brown and quiche is set firm
Eat. There is nothing better than freshly made, warm, cheesy quiche.
....except maybe a small aperitif of Goldschlager, ice water, and fresh blackberries. yes, I'm serious. mmm...
