2014 Best of the Best

Ah 2014- a year full of family, friends and of course binge eating. My favorite thing to look at every year is Boston Magazines Ranked Best Restaurants and Food. And while I never get to as many new places as I would like to (mostly because I have food loyalty like no one will ever understand), I thought I would create my own best of the best for 2014. I took a look through my old posts to remind myself of restaurants I have tried, and of course had some stand outs in my head of places I didn't get a chance to write about. Anyway- here it is- my absolute FAVS of 2014.

FOOD

Best Sub: Chicken Cutlet- Avellinos- 313 Mystic Ave, Medford, MA

Best Burger- Shack Burger-Shake Shack-chain

Best Donut: Maple with Chocolate Drizzle- Ohlin's-456 Common Street, Belmont, MA

Best Mac and Cheese: Mac and Cheese with Prosciutto and Truffle Oil- Stephanie's on Newbury- 190 Newbury Street, Boston, MA

Best Dessert- TIE -
War Banana Bread Pudding- Highland Kitchen, 150 Highland Ave, Somerville, MA  
Peanut Butter Thing- Not Your Average Joe's- chain

Best Fries- Parmesan and Rosemary Truffle Fries- COOK-825 Washington Street, Newton, MA

Best Appetizer-Fondue Special- Social Restaurant and Bar-320 Washington Street, Newton, MA

Best Roast Beef Sandwich- Large Beef with Mayo-Billy's Roast Beef-1291 Main Street, Wakefield, MA

Best Bread Basket- Not Your Average Joe's- chain

Best Chowder- Legal Seafood-chain

Best Fried Clams- Clam Box of Ipswich- 246 High Street, Ipswich, MA


RESTAURANTS

Best Steakhouse- Grill 23, 161 Berkeley Street, Boston, MA

Best Sushi: Super Fusion, 54 Mount Auburn Street, Watertown, MA

Best Bar Food: The Local-1391 Washington Street, Newton, MA

Best "All You Can Eat" Restaurant: Fogo de Chao- 200 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA

Best Comfort Food: The Biltmore Bar & Grille-1205 Chestnut Street, Newton, MA


Well that's all folks! Wishing everyone a Happy New Year and an even more delicious 2015!

Ham and Swiss Sliders with a Mustard-Poppyseed Glaze

In my many years of cooking and more importantly-eating- I have never made a dish for the first and second time in one week. That happened this past week...and it was amazing.

These sliders have been popping up on my pintrest feed for some time now, and after I got word that some of the guys were coming over to watch the PATS last week, I decided to go for it. These were such a hit that I made them again for my friends Halloween party 5 days later. They are an app if you have 1, a meal if you have 2, and a worthwhile food coma with 3.

Ingredients
1 12-pack of dinner rolls
1/2 lb deli ham
1/2 lb swiss cheese
1 1/2 sticks butter
1 1/2 tsp dried mustard
2 tbsp Worchestershire sauce
1 tsp dried minced onion
2 tbsp poppy seeds
Mayo

In a small microwave safe bowl, melt the butter. Mix in dried mustard, Worchestershire sauce, dried minced onion and poppy seeds.

 

Cut the dinner rolls horizontally, separating the top half from the bottom half. This can be done in one big cut (if you are feeling fancy), or by cutting each individual roll in half. Put all the bottoms in a 13x9 baking dish.

 

Spread a teaspoon of mayo on each roll

 

Layer the swiss cheese on top of the bread

 

Top the the cheese with a layer of ham. If the ham is sliced very thin, feel free to layer 2-3 pieces on top of eachother. Finish it off with another thin layer of swiss cheese.

 

Place the tops back on the buns and pour the butter mixture on top. Make sure to spread the poppy seeds and minced onion out appropriately. Place the rolls in the fridge for several hours or overnight.

 

 

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes

 

With a spatula, break apart the rolls and serve! I'm getting hungry just looking at these pictures. The butter mixture soaking into the bread truely makes these so addicting. It really escalates the basic ham and cheese sandwich into something your guests will be raving about!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Caramel Apple Pork Chops

Ahh fall..or should I say #fall

Everyone is busting out their sweaters and boots and participating in the classic fall activities, and I am no exception. My favorite thing to do in the fall is go apple picking. I have been going to Honeypot Hill Orchards in Stow, MA for 6 years and counting! I even had my engagement pics taken there. While ironically, I am not the biggest fan of apples on their own(too much work in my opinion), there is nothing like a caramel apple and some cider donuts from honeypot- OH- and the actual apple picking is fun too. Problem with apple picking is- you always pick wayyyy too many. So my goal this year was to actually DO something with the apples we picked, and not have them sadly rotting away in my fruit basket. So I knocked out about half the bag with a classic apple pie, but I still had a half dozen apples left. So I was searching online for a good entree that incorporated apples, but wouldn't take me hours and tons of ingredients. I came across this recipe for Caramel Apple Pork Chops, and was really happy with the result..my full and happy belly :)

Ingredients
3-4 (3/4 inch) thick pork chops
1 tsp veggie oil
2 tbsp brown sugar
salt and pepper
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
2 tbsp butter
3 apples (pref. tart), peeled, cored and sliced
1 cup pecans

Preheat oven to 175 degrees (no this isn't a typo- we are using the oven to keep the dish warm, not cook it) and place a medium size dish in the oven to warm. Heat a large skillet  over medium-high heat. Brush your chops with oil and place in the hot pan.

 

Cook until no longer pink (about 10 minutes depending on thickness) turning occasionally

 

 

Transfer the chops to the warming dish in the oven

 

 

In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, salt, pepper, cinnamon and nutmeg. Add butter to the skillet and stir in brown sugar mixture and apples.

 

 

 Cover and cook until the apples are tender

 

 

Remove apples with a slotted spoon and arrange on top of the chops. Keep warm in the oven.

 

Pour the remaining liquid from the skillet on top of the apples and pork chops. If you are looking to have more sauce on top, you can quickly whip up some more using the same steps as above (melt butter and brown sugar mixture). Once the dish is complete, top with your pecans and serve!

 

 

 

 

Avellino's- 313 Mystic Ave, Medford, MA

Hi all! I've missed you! I wish I could give you a big creepy cyber hug!

SO everyone's been asking about the food in Hawaii, and expecting me to write a post about it. BAD NEWS- I took a break from foodiness while on my honeymoon..BOO I know, I'm the worst. BUT I have to say, I would feel kind of bad writing about all the glorious fresh fish and macadamia nut encrusted everything, knowing you can't take a quick drive under 30 minutes to get it yourself. So I did it for you. Know that.

Now, on to more important things. I land in Boston on a Thursday morning red eye, after traveling for almost 12 hours. After about a 4 hour nap, I wake up- STARVING. Think about it- I've been out of my natural culinary habitat for almost 2 weeks, and have nothing in the fridge...WHAT AM I GONNA EAT? This is a big decision, and you better believe I didn't take it lightly.

We were heading over to Medford to do some errands, and I immediately knew what I wanted- a chicken cutlet sub from Avellino's.  

'merica

Avellino's is the spot for authentic Italian cuisine with an extensive menu. They offer breakfast, lunch and dinner, with dine-in, takeout or catering options. The place is super casual , and the staff isn't exactly warm and fuzzy- but honestly, that kinda makes it badass. They know- they make good food. They know.

Their chicken cutlet sub is the BEST  I've ever had. I don't know about your, but there is nothing worst than tough, dry, breaded chicken breasts on a mediocre sub roll, that would literally take a TREX to tear through. Avellino's fills their fresh, soft, giant sub rolls with 3 large, diced, tender chicken cutlets and only the freshest produce. I can put down some serious food, and I can only eat half of one of their subs. While I am a creature of habit, and typically always order the cutlet with mayo, provolone, lettuce and tomato, I sometimes get a little wild and order the Steak Bomb. It. Is. Amazeballs.

So if you're in the mood for some good old fashion, casual, Italian cookin, hit this place up this weekend- you won't be disappointed.

 

http://www.goavellino.com/index.php

Bear with me a couple more weeks

Is it pathetic that I feel guilty when I don't post for awhile? Or maybe its just depression from not cooking or eating anything new or amazing. As some of you may know, I am currently 2 weeks away from getting married, so I am doing my least favorite thing on this planet- DIETING! WOOF!

I am trying anything and everything to stay away from typical daily trips to the community candy jar at work...

and just dreaming of what life will be like eating whenever and whatever I want in Hawaii for 10 days after the wedding!

So bear with me these next few weeks, and I will be back in full force after Columbus day! Happy eating!...I'm so jealous of you right now.

One Pot Creamy Chicken Pasta

I guess I should start being a real human again. While its been nice and easy plopping some Willowtree chicken salad on a couple slices of wheat bread for the last month and a half, there's nothing like a good 'ol home cooked meal. On Monday afternoon, I spent my morning going through Pintrest for ideas and came across a few inticing recipes that I have made this week! The first was a one pot meal (the best) that actually came out really good!

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil
3/4 cup chopped carrots
3/4 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup diced onions
1 tablespoon minced garlic
2 large chicken breasts (or 5 breast tenderloins)- cut into one inch pieces
pinch of salt
pinch of pepper
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
3 tbsp flour
8 ounces dry fettuccini pasta
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Parsley

Heat olive oil in a large pot. Add your veggies and minced garlic. Saute them over medium heat until the vegetables become tender (5-7 minutes)

 

Add chicken pieces and season with salt and pepper. Continue to saute over medium heat until the chicken is no longer pink.

 

Add your milk, broth and flour. Stir to combine and add your dry pasta (yes, dry pasta). Make sure the pasta is completely covered by the mixture- you can use more broth if necessary. Bring the pot to a boil. Cover, reduce to low and cook for 20-25 minutes or until the pasta becomes tender. MAKE SURE to stir the pasta every 5 minutes so it doesn't stick together!

 

Remove the lid and cook for 5 more minutes, so the sauce can thicken. Remove from heat, stir in your shredded cheese until incorporated. Top it with parsley and serve!

 

 

 

This is an awesome dish for a weeknight din! The pasta is tender, creamy and not too cheesy, and the veggies and chicken are a great addition (and make me feel like I'm kinda healthy-here's hopin). Will definetly be making this again!

Keltic Kitchen- 415 Massachusetts 28, West Yarmouth, MA

Ahhh its been so long! I feel like the worst bloggerfriend ever.

Well, I'm happy to be back and excited to write about a place that is very close to my heart. For as long as I can remember, me and my family would spend 1-2 weeks down the Cape every summer. While we have all grown up now, our traditions still stick: Beach, Candy Store, Pirates Cove and of course some of our favorite restaurants. THE BEST one is my favorite breakfast place of all time- the Keltic Kitchen in Yarmouth, MA. We usually carve out two (sometimes even three) mornings during the week to attend this traditional Irish eatery. It was originally a small restaurant, with about 15 tables max, but because of its popularity, now has outdoor seating on a deck with 10 additional tables.

Keltic is one of those places where you will ALWAYS wait for your table. I have never gone and been seated right away. Maybe its because we are a party of 6? But probably because it has a sick breakfast.

 

Now, on to the food. As a young tike, I always beasted their omelets. And I say "beasted" because they were made wtih seven eggs...SEVEN. With a side of homefries and toast, this is guarenteed food coma central. My sister still gets it, and its impressive.

 

With my age and sophistication I have moved on to the blueberry french toast with a side of their BOMB.COM homefries. It's just so good, I can't even handle it.

I mean....

 

Keltic really makes you feel like home (even if you're not Irish). The wait staff have all worked there for years and really make you feel like you are getting a true Irish breakfast experience (and yes, most have Irish brogues). Pretty sweet.

 

Anytime anyone asks me if I have a Cape recommendation, I always tell them to hit up Keltic. Be prepared to wait, but also be prepared to be completely satisfied for hours and hours, or until your food coma takes a hike.

http://www.keltickitchen.com/