I have a fairly disgusting confession to make: This past week, I ate red meat for four consecutive days.
Between the steak at Spoleto Thursday, barbecue Friday from a place I’m hoping to review in the next few weeks, kielbasa at our friends’ Jack and Jill party Saturday and a birthday cookout Sunday, I feel like I might have eaten a cow and a pig all by myself. This is rare for someone who – at least in the past – has gravitated toward chicken and seafood. Obviously it was time for something fresh and healthy.
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Crostini trio: filet and asiago, shrimp and cannelloni, tomato mozzarella basil
Although I love Restaurant Week promotions, sometimes eateries don’t live up to expectations.
Last year, a group of friends and I made RW reservations at one of Northampton’s most vaunted restaurants, only to receive some of the worst food and service I’ve ever experienced in my lifetime. (We ordered a half-dozen oysters as an add-on, and received five weak, watery specimens – and one empty shell. Our server rolled his eyes as he took back the plate. It all went downhill from there.)
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Zen's Pyramid Roll
Restaurant Week promotions are foodie paradise. Multicourse meals for less than the cost of an entree? Sign me up, several times over.
Northampton held its annual event this past week, and when the menus came out, everything looked incredible. Several of the restaurants stepped up their game, incorporating high-end ingredients like lobster and good cuts of steak with lots of variety, like appetizer and dessert samplers. Remember, all three-course meals cost a mere $20.10.
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Diana Guay / ctnow.com
just opened in West Hartford to major fanfare. (On opening day, the line for free burritos was up to two hours long.)
When we posted notice of it on A La Carte, the response was overwhelming. It was as if no one in the area had ever eaten fast-casual burritos. Despite the fact that Moe’s Southwest Grill is about a mile away.
So, my coworker Sara came up with a brilliant plan: a blind taste test of the restaurants’ burritos.
Read the recap on A La Carte.
After a blind tasting of chicken, steak and veggie burritos from both Chipotle and Moe’s, our nine Courant tasters voted. Chipotle won 5 to 4.
As I was running the test, I stayed out of the tasting fray. But I snagged some leftover Chipotle later – and gotta say, Moe’s was the clear winner for me. Really not a fan of Chipotle’s cilantro-lime rice.
What do you think? Got a favorite?
Looking for a ridiculously easy and tasty side dish? Yes. Yes, you are.
I had “eggplant fries” at Hartford’s Taste of the Nation event May 6, courtesy of Joey Garlic’s Pizza. They were crispy, savory, cheesy sticks of heaven, especially with accompanying pomodoro sauce for dipping. But when fried, these can be heavy, as eggplant is a virtual sponge for oil.
At home, I improvised my own baked version. I peeled an eggplant, sliced it into skinny “fry” shapes, tossed the sticks in flour, dipped them in egg white and rolled them in seasoned panko crumbs. Baked at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes, these came out as crunchy and irresistible as their fryolator counterparts. I gave them a small drizzle of olive oil, a small shake of garlic powder and a shower of Parmesan.
A healthy and interesting alternative to potatoes, for sure. I love eggplant, but until now, I haven’t done anything with it beyond baked eggplant parmesan.
We made these last night to go with a pineapple-chipotle marinated pork tenderloin. To drink: Boutari Moschofilero, which I picked up at Table & Vine last week. It’s been seven-plus months since we arrived home from Santorini and I miss it Every. Single. Day.
P.S. Boutari loves Fun With Carbs. Though I’m not sure I’d call it a “healthy eating blog,” based on my multiple KFC Double Down posts alone.
(Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)
I have a fairly disgusting confession to make: This past week, I ate red meat for four consecutive days.
Leeanne Griffin is a freelance writer and food enthusiast.