Kangaroo Burgers

Posted on December 24, 2014 by melsmosaic

Am finding more good new stuff to try. In this great local store called Sprouts, while walking through the meat department I noticed some kangaroo (easy way to get to Australia, right?), distributed by Durham Ranch.

After trying warthog and ostrich earlier this year in South Africa, I had to consider this. I picked up the package to inspect. Very lean so decided to give it a try.

Looked up some recipes that evening and most said just to add some spices, an egg and breadcrumbs. Did that and the patties are cooked rare-medium rare. With all said and done, very good! Very unique, mild flavor. Tough to give it an exact description for taste because it doesn’t taste like anything else. You can tell it’s wild game, but it doesn’t come across ‘gamey.’ I definitely recommend picking some of this up if you enjoy trying new food!

Ahh…Caesar

Posted on December 22, 2014 by melsmosaic

And the taste goes on. Love salad, love Caesar. There was apparently a recipe from the 70s or 80s in The (Washington) Post that had no dairy in it for the mouth watering, delicious Caesar Salad. It is great that I can make this recipe and enjoy it!

Ingredients:

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed (or jarred garlic, if needed)
1 tin anchovy fillets with capers, coarsely chopped, reserve oil (if you can’t find these, just remember to add capers, chopped later)
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
Juice of 1 lemon
S&P

Directions:

In a jar with tight lid (tupperware works wonders too), combine olive oil, garlic, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, anchovies, capers, anchovy oil, and lemon juice.

Screw lid tightly on jar (or snap on lid) and shake vigorously. Taste and correct seasoning to taste. Refrigerate until ready to use.

When ready to serve, tear romaine and dress salad with as much dressing as needed. Season with additional S&P to taste.

Pour me, pour me, pour me…another G&T

Posted on December 22, 2014 by melsmosaic

The name of the blog makes me thing of two songs:

“Pour me, pour me, pour me, another shot of whiskey.” –Trick Pony (yes, I’m a country fan)

or much more appropriately

“A Malibu & Coke for you, a G&T for me.” — Barenaked Ladies

So, get to where I’m staying in Ft. Collins and that evening it’s happy hour! Of course the family’s liquor cabinet is never under par (where do you think I learned to provide info about food & alcohol)?

Several members of my family love martinis, super dry. I can’t stomach them. But, I love a Gin & Tonic. Well, apparently a new gin was recently purchased that was definitely not martini material but perfect for a G&T! My new taste test — Few Standard Issue Gin.

Found out it’s a special release spirit. Ok, 114 proof (57% alcohol by volume), wow. Very unique — it’s thick/syrupy (more so than a ‘regular’ gin). Great flavor, definitely the nice juniper and some fennel notes. Perfect way to start the evening. More cheers and happy holidays.

Avery Brewing

Posted on December 22, 2014 by melsmosaic

So, Colorado for the holidays, can’t go wrong. Side note: I’m not doing my blogs in order of what I consume (it is not influenced by what I’m consuming), but more because of the bliss of the food and drink. The first place I checked out when I arrived the other day was the Avery Brewing in Boulder, CO.

Nice small place, makes you feel very welcome. And I love what some of the info on the site says (reading it now) — “We are dedicated to making beer from the inside out: we brew what we like to drink–with utter disregard for what the market demands– and search out fans with equally eccentric palates.”

Did a read-through of the menu and was of course overwhelmed. So many choices! My friend highly suggested the Winter’s Day IPA. I’m sometimes worried that the winter brews are a bit darker than I truly enjoy. He told me it’s not too dark, more of a copper color. And, based on the description it has a unique spice, beer-wise, in it — “Created with Kyle Hollingsworth of String Cheese Incident, this IPA is spiced with rosemary.” The ABV is 6.5%. WOW! Great brew. You can get a slight bit of the herb on the nose and then just enough when you drink it. Great, great beer. My other friend had the White Rascal Belgian-Style Wheat Ale. After the sip I had, very nice traditional white Belgian beer. Of course my two friends can come here any time because they live a few miles away. If you’re in Boulder, check this place out.

Horse & Dragon Brewery

Posted on December 22, 2014 by melsmosaic

I’m in Ft. Collins for Christmas and of course have to check out some of the local ‘fare’ — that mostly means good microbrews. So today that meant a new brewery by the name of Horse and Dragon Brewing Company.

Wasn’t sure what to get so opted for a sampler. Ok, sampler? Six brews of 4oz each for $8 — that is quite the nice pour of some high octane beer.

The half dozen tastes included:

Fort Kolnz Keller Kolsch-Style Ale — “A grainy sweet aroma holds well with a slight citrus note derived from the moderate hopping. Dry and clean on the palate, bitterness is present but not overpowering. Extended cellaring is evident in the clean crisp finish and despite a very pale straw color and light body our ale has great depth and complexity. Ein Prosit Der Gemütlichkeit! ABV: 5.2%”

Sage Adweisse Berliner Weisse — “A light, effervescent, slight tart wheat ale that tastes so refreshing that it mush be good for us. Dominant ingredients are evident from the first sniff; wheaty goodness mixed with traditional German yeast scents and a hint of tartness. One glass will make you wonder why anyone ever put a lime in a beer, though this beer is sometimes served with dashes of flavored syrup. Our lowest ABV brew, this is an ale you can enjoy all day. Sage Adweisse was name for our (well, really, Linsey & Titus’s) brewdog. ABV: 3.6%”

Whistle Blast Honey Brown — “A welcoming ale displaying warm mahogany earth tones accentuated by a thin veil of creamy foam head, our Honey Brown Ale is as inviting as the historic English pubs where the style originated. Slight roast malt character leads the nose to a warm sensuous balance of mild hop bitterness and sweet honey malt after notes. A clean, somewhat drying finish allows the sweetness of malt to shine through and remain as a memento for each sip. Quaffable in design, this ale will toast well in any social situation and keep you coming back for more. Cheers! ABV: 6.3%”

Picnic Rock Pale Ale — “Picnic Rock Ale aligns itself with recreation in Colorado and our noticeable desire for great craft beer. Fresh hops aromas likened to lemon, pineapple, and honeydew melon stand out in front of this golden colored ale holding a white laced head. The aroma taking center stage is then carried into the noticeable hop bitterness. Malt body is medium-light and complements the bitterness, allowing for a smooth finish with a light floral hop linger. Let’s go for a picnic! ABV: 5.4%”

L3 IPA — “The L3 IPA pours an inviting copper color topped by a strong, slightly off-white foam. Your first sniff reveals the complex balance between the citrusy, spicy pear hop aroma backed by slight caramel malt notes. Tasting the beer takes you further into a flavorful American hop experience with plenty of hop bitterness balanced perfectly with the sweet malt backbone. This flavorful combination lingers on the palate yet finishes clean and prepares you for another sip. A very drinkable IPA, L3 is hop forward yet balanced. ABV: 7.6%”

The Dark Crystal Cascadian Dark Ale — “A relatively recent style that has gained traction in the Pacific Northwest is the American Style India Black Ale, or “Cascadian Dark Ale”. Deliciously hoppy, also hugely roasty-toasty malty. Get on in here and give it a try! ABV: 6.5%” (forgot to snap a picture — it is definitely dark!)

They were all quite unique — have to love microbrews. My favorite two were the Picnic Rock and L3. We decided to leave with a growler of the latter to enjoy some of before dinner and to have on hand the balance of the week.

Fennel and Carrot Soup

Posted on December 7, 2014 by melsmosaic

Was in the soup mood last night and remember tearing a new recipe out of the recent issue of Bon Appetit. Was the perfect time to make it — Fennel and Carrot Soup. I love fennel and enjoy carrots when they are cooked (or covered in hummus). For some reason I just cannot acquire a taste for them when they are just plain and simple, perfectly orange and raw. We all have our things.

Anyway, when I saw the recipe I knew I’d have to make a couple changes/eliminations, which is common in my world since I’m the lactard, but it would be simple.

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided (I used some olive oil here because of my dairy issue)
1 large fennel bulb, thinly sliced (I used one+)
1 small onion, thinly sliced
2 carrots, peeled, chopped
1 small Yukon Gold potato, peeled, halved (I used a Russet)
2 sprigs thyme
1 bay leaf
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth (Trader Joe’s boxes are perfect for this)
¼ cup coarsely chopped roasted chestnuts from a jar (I skipped these because I couldn’t find them anywhere)
¼ cup crème fraîche (skipped this step)
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup (ditto on the above)

Directions:

Heat 4 Tbsp. butter (or some oil) in a large heavy pot over medium. Add fennel, onion, carrots, potato, thyme, and bay leaf; season with salt and pepper.

Reduce heat to medium-low, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally and reducing heat if needed, until vegetables are soft but not browned and have released their moisture, 45–60 minutes (this will give them deep flavor). ***Right here I was staring at these delicious looking veggies and questioned sanity — WHY was there no garlic in here?!?! I quickly added some.

Add broth, bring to a boil, and season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat and simmer until potato is falling apart, 8–10 minutes. Let cool slightly. Remove herbs.

Working in batches, purée in a blender until smooth. (Blender??? Immersion blender!!) Strain into a clean pot; season with salt and pepper.

(Heat remaining 2 Tbsp. butter in a small saucepan over medium. Add chestnuts and cook, stirring often, until butter is browned and chestnuts are toasted, about 4 minutes.

Mix crème fraîche and maple syrup in a small bowl. Serve soup topped with maple crème fraîche and chestnuts.

Do Ahead: Soup can be made 3 days ahead. Cover and chill.)

I can’t speak for the last few steps but I’m sure they add quite a bit. But even without them, this soup is AMAZING! Flavor, flavor, flavor! Easy to make, great on its own or with some seafood or meat. I enjoyed it with some chicken. I would highly recommend it. Can likely be frozen, as well.

Daikaya

Posted on December 7, 2014 by melsmosaic

Checked out a new restaurant in DC the other night after various suggestions and trying not to go for the tried and true that I’ve had. So, I have now check Daikaya in Gallery Place-Chinatown off my list.

I was told that it has two levels and be sure to go upstairs. I naturally picked the wrong place to go at first. Their lower level is a noodles restaurant for quick, easy meals. It’s perfect to grab before a game (this place is right next to the Verizon Center, so ideal for Caps or Wizards game night) or at lunch. So, I had to ask where to go. An obvious common question based on the quick answer. Immediately next to the bright-light was a hidden black door with the Daikaya name on it. Upstairs we go.

This non-ramen portion of the restaurant is based on how “the cuisine is freestyle and adaptive in nature and each izakaya in Japan puts its own touch to their menu items. In this spirit, we also like to put our twist on our dishes and drinks and embrace our role as an izakaya in DC, with international and American influences as we feel inspired.”

It’s very similar to a tapas restaurant. Everything on the menu was small plates and you might need 3-4 per person, if not more. They also had quite the drink menu, from beer to sake.

For the drink, I opted for a red beer, in a bottle — Echigo Red Ale. It was hilarious because they bring you a glass that is the size of a juice glass at breakfast. I guess it makes you feel like you’re drinking a lot from the 12oz bottle. Very unique and nice beer.

For food, opted for a few different tastes. There were so many choices on the menu, it was honestly hard to pick!

-fried garlic
-grilled avocado
-tuna poke
-cold steamed chicken breast

This picture doesn’t do the food any justice. The flavors were incredible! I wish I had room for more food to taste for options from the menu. Will definitely have to go back again. If you live in DC or are visiting, definitely add it to your list!

10 Reasons Wine is better than Beer

Posted on November 21, 2014 by melsmosaic

Some of these reasons are far too funny!

The Wine Wankers

Craft beer – for those that have not seen it 🙂

Over at the Wine Wanker’s head office we are very committed to promoting the virtues of wine, but we don’t often criticise the alternatives. This blog therefore corrects this glaring omission from our line-up of posts, and demonstrates the superiority of wine over it’s poorer cousin beer. Why beer? Well in Australia anyway (Downunder for our American friends), it is the most consumed alcoholic beverage, and as such some ground needs to be made up by the wine fraternity to correct this travesty.

We have a craft beer revolution going on here at present and it has been interesting watching beer swillers becoming refined craft beer nerds. Conrad and Neal recently went to a craft beer brewery that has sprung up in Enmore and it was hilarious watching this cultural shift. Deadset there were beer wankers everywhere. Good idea…

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Sushi’s a Wrap

Posted on November 20, 2014 by melsmosaic

The final night in NOLA some of us decided to head to a sushi place – Sake Café Uptown.

Huge menu. After reading and reading, I noticed some grilled squid. I love it when I can find that, because I don’t enjoy the (fried) calamari. So I opted for it. Ok, that could be a meal. It came out on a fajita-like platter and it was amazing. It might have been the simplest thing but I could eat that stuff all the time. I need to figure out where I can get that stuff in DC.

Then at the table next to us, I ask this woman what she ordered because I was just trying to get one other thing (this was before the squid came out). She told us about this edamame that’s not on the menu – garlic edamame. They do the ‘normal’ edamame then do something with some form or garlic – I don’t know if it’s roasted or something else but this stuff just makes you melt. This is another one that I need to find out who in the DC area has. Way too good.

So glad we checked this place out and it’s another place to check out if you’re in New Orleans.

Oh My Oyster

Posted on November 20, 2014 by melsmosaic

I kept hearing about grilled oysters in New Orleans. I might have grilled oysters once a year at Christmas when half my family eats raw oysters and then my brother is kind enough to threw a few on the BBQ for the rest of us who aren’t quite that intrigued by those raw guys. I normally put some lemon juice and Tabasco on my grilled one and it’s great. So, being in NOLA, with all this hype, I had to give them a try. I received several restaurant recommendations and ended up at a super local place – Felix’s in the French Quarter.

The guy behind the bar/counter, Magic, was awesome because I asked how they grilled them and I also asked if there was butter (mentioned I was lactose intolerant). In the funniest way, he said ‘these are the biggest waste of your time, you are not going to get the taste you need, it will be like water!’ They put parmesan cheese, sometimes butter and all sorts of other stuff on them. It was HILARIOUS what he was telling me. They pretty much refused to serve me any oyster (unless I was to go raw) because of my lactose issue. Props to them. They had fun, debating for several minutes, what I could eat at their super local place. They came up with some phenomenal grilled shrimp and their ‘amazing’ sweet potato fries.

While I was waiting for this to come out, I was intrigued watching the guys shuck the oysters. I even got an (oyster) pearl. Is this my good luck charm from NOLA? (Yes, this pic almost looks like a macadamia nut).

Then my dinner came out. WOW! I still vividly remember it. The shrimp were so juicy and I don’t really like fries that much and these things were to die for. I would totally recommend this diner-like place, beyond local, over the big names. Go Felix’s. Thanks for a great dinner!