Organic Balsamic Pizza

Everyone knows that feeling when you have a certain food on your mind for so long that you just HAVE to have it. Well, in my case, I had been craving pizza. I didn't want to order a huge greasy pizza, nor did I want to buy a processed frozen one. So, to solve this issue, I decided to make my own healthier and more delicious pizza. I thought about what I would want on my "ideal" pizza, and came up with fresh basil, oregano, kale, and mushrooms, finished with a drizzle of balsamic and olive oil. I owe a huge "thank you" to the healthy super market, EarthFare, in Boone, NC, for offering me a coupon to receive organic mozzarella, organic pizza sauce, and an organic pre-made dough crust for only $3! 

Ingredients

One pre-made dough

Pizza sauce

Shredded mozzarella

Sliced mushrooms

A handful of fresh kale

Fresh basil

Fresh oregano

Balsamic vinegar

Extra virgin olive oil

This is a very easy and delicious recipe. Make note that I made a mini pizza. The ingredient quantity will greatly vary from person to person, depending on how big, saucy, cheesy, or "vegetabled" you will want your pizza. 

Before I started, I heated a baking sheet at 425 degrees to get it nice and hot. This will help your pizza to cook in the middle. Now, all you have to do is cut up your veggies, roll out your dough and start assembling! once you have made your personal pizza, you simply place it on the hot baking sheet and bake for approximately 15 minutes at 425 degrees, or until the outer crust is golden brown.

Once cooled, garnish with a drizzle of balsamic and olive oil.

My Graduation Dinner

My graduation dinner was one of the most memorable evenings I have ever had! My entire family came  up to the mountains and we all went to Rowland's! I was with the people I love the most at one of the places I love the most. Below are just a few pictures from the night.

Our view before dinner. It had been raining, but luckily the clouds started breaking up when we got there.

This is the traditional place setting of Rowland's. You can also see my made-from-scratch margarita there ;) The second picture is of the "amuse." This is just something special the restaurant does for the guests.

This was my three course meal. I started with a restaurant favorite, the "Prawn." I then had Lamb for dinner and finished the night off with a chocolate torte (if I were still working there, I probably would have made that torte). The meal was outstanding and they even put a candle on my dessert to celebrate my graduation!  

Before I left, I went back into the kitchen to see everyone and they surprised me with a bottle of wine (which they all signed), and a free (second) dessert! Oh, how I miss being there!

Lastly, here I am with my lovely family! 

New Orleans

Traveling with my family is an entirely different experience. We hit the ground running! As soon as we arrived at our hotel, we hit the street. We walked down Bourbon Street all the way to Jackson Square. on the way back, we made our first stop at La Fitte's. Lafitte's is the oldest bar in America. It has no light, except that which is from windows and candles.

We then headed up to a classic Bourbon Street balcony to have a few drinks before dinner. This was our view!

That night, we ate at Emeril Lagasse's restaurant, Nola, which I unfortunately did not get any pictures of. I was too excited to eat my plate of BBQ Shrimp and Grits! Passing on dessert, we decided to go to New Orlean's classic landmark Cafe Du Monde to indulge on beignets!

The rest of our time there, we were able to taste all of the classic New Orleans style food, such as a tradition Fried Oyster Po' Boy from Johnny's Po' Boys,

fried fish, red beans and rice, creole jambalaya, okra, and coleslaw from Steamboat Natchez,

more jambalaya and shrimp gumbo from the famous Crescent City Brewhouse,

and lastly, a tender piece of red fish caught straight out of the Pontchartrain River, from none other than the restaurant, Red Fish!

                              

Though my vacation ended, I hope to go back to New Orleans very soon! There was so much more to do than what we had time for! New Orleans is one of the leading destinations for any food lover!

Cold Weather = Chili Time!

White Bean and Chicken Chili with a Homemade Whole Wheat Garlic-Parmesan Drop Biscuit

There's nothing like a hearty soup on a cold snowy day! As soon as I found out that it was going to snow in the mountains, I immediately pondered the idea of making chili. I wanted to make something a little different than typical bean and beef chili, so I went by the local fruit and veggie stand near my apartment. As soon as I saw the new bins of raw beans and fresh bundles of kale, I knew what I wanted to make!

Ingredients for the chili:

1 cup of raw white Great Northern Beans

8 cups of chicken broth (low sodium)

1 bunch of kale

1 white onion (coarsely chopped)

2 cloves of garlic (minced)

1 serrano chili (minced)

1 tablespoon of olive oil

about 7-8 chicken tenderloins

*cumin, red pepper flakes, salt and pepper

I cooked the beans in 50/50, chicken broth /water. This was the hardest part of the entire recipe. If you have never cooked raw beans before, be sure to keep checking on them throughout the hour to hour and a half of cooking. Beans absorb water quickly, so you want to make sure they do not burn.

In the mean time, while your beans are cooking, you can chop your onion, and mince your garlic and serrano chili. Set aside your minced chili for later and saute the onion and garlic together in about a tablespoon of olive oil. Once slightly tender, rake onions into a bowl to add to the chili later. use the same pan to saute the kale. set this aside in a bowl as well.

Boil the chicken in water for about 30 minutes or until the center is no longer pink and a internal temperature of 165 degrees is met. Once cooked, let the tenderloins cool and shred (I just used my hands to shred them).

Ingredients for the Garlic-Parmesan Biscuit:

1/2 cup of all purpose flour

1/2 cup of whole wheat flour

1/2 cup or grated parmesan cheese

3/8 cup of milk (I used soy, and it worked just fine)

2 tablespoons of butter

1/8 teaspoon of garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 teaspoon of sugar

1/2 tablespoon of baking powder

1/4 teaspoon of baking soda

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Lightly spread olive oil on a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, garlic powder, baking soda, baking powder, salt and sugar. Then add the butter using your fingers until you create a crumbly dough. Stir in the parmesan until evenly combined.

Create a well in the center of the dry mixture and pour in the milk. Mix until combined.

Place the dough on a lightly floured surface. Flour your hands then knead the dough 8-10 times.

Place "handful sized" mounds of dough on the oiled baking sheet, then bake for approximately 10-12 minutes or until the tops start browning. While warm, put extra parmesan on the biscuits.

* Be sure not to over-bake or the biscuits will be too dry!

Enjoy!

(Please excuse the lack of style in this picture)

Wing Lei - Wynn: Encore

This was an outstanding dinner! It is the only Michelin Star awarded Asian restaurant in North America. It is located inside of Wynn Las Vegas & Encore Resort.

Our dinner started with this wine. he waiter said that it was Chinese tradition to have the wine before the meal.

I had never seen this kind of wine before: Bott Geyl Gerwurztraminer. It was delicious!

This was my mom's first course:

A very fruitful salad!

My brother and I had this soup to start with. It was crab and corn egg drop soup. Very good!

I bet your all wondering what this next plate even is...

Mom's dish:

*Chili Dungeness Crab                                                                                                                                                     Garlic, Sichuan Dried Chili, Scallions, Served in Shell 

She said it was really spicy and messy (as we could all tell)!

My brother had this:

*Grilled Sea Bass 38 

Lotus Root, Inoki Mushrooms, Spinach, Asparagus 

He said it was the best piece of fish he has ever had. This means a lot coming from him!

For our Dinner, my dad and I split this $88 dish.

*Imperial Peking Duck 

Carved Tableside 

Steamed Buns, Cucumber, Scallions, Hoisin Sauce 

Second Course – Diced Duck in Lettuce Cups 

This is a very special Chinese dish. First, the duck was "wheeled" to our table and carved right beside us!

Closer look at the duck!

Once most of the meat  was carved off the duck, the table side chef rolled up in these "Chinese tortillas" and served with a sweet Chinese sauce called Hoisin Sauce.

The meat that was left on the carcass was rolled back into the kitchen to me scrapped off and made into a third course of Lettuce Wraps.

Since we had to wait for this, my dad and I were nice enough to share our wraps with my mom and brother ;)

After this wonderful dinner, we left and finished up the night with fresh, hand scooped gelato, by the canals in the Venetian

Bouchon Bistro - Palazzo Las Vegas

Bouchon is a restaurant from Chef Thomas Keller. If you don't know who he is, you should! He has been named the best chef in America by the James Beard Foundation.

Our meal started with this creative way to serve bread. The waiter just came and dumped it on our table! They also served us some complimentary pistachios.

My first course appetizer was this salad. It's listed on the menu as:

Salade de Ris de Veau 

crispy sweetbreads, Bloomsdale spinach, 

braised radish & pickled cherries 

with mustard seed vinaigrette

It was quite a unique salad in my opinion. My mom ordered the same thing. 

Dad's first course:

Laitue 

bibb lettuce & garden herbs 

with house vinaigrette

Brother's first course:

Salade d’Orge 

toasted pearl barley, young artichokes, 

kale, pickled pearl onions, lemon suprêmes, 

pine nuts with currants & barigoule emulsion 

This was an interesting dish to me. Its a salad primarily composed of kale and pine nuts.

This was a special, therefore the dish wasn't listed on the menu. It was scallops over pea and basil soup with mushrooms. This is what I ordered...Very good!!

Mom's main course:

This was also a special for the night. It was veal with fresh vegetables. I wish I knew more about what was in it, but this is what my mom had.

Brother's main course:

*Steak “Bouchon” 

grilled New York steak, riz rouge with celeriac lyonnaise 

& sauce bordelaiseDijon mustard & petite baguette 

Dad's main course:

*Gigot d’Agneau 

roasted leg of lamb, crispy subric, red wine poached pears 

with rutabaga & rosemary lamb jus

After dinner we were way to full to have dessert, but I would guarantee that the dessert items would be nothing but perfect!

Everything was delicious and "pretty" in my opinion. If you find yourself in Vegas, I would definitely recommend Bouchon!

Filet Mignon

Filet mignon is probably my favorite thing to eat. I LOVE it. I always thought it would be hard to make the perfect filet, but figured I would one day just have to give it a try! I have to say; it wasn’t as hard as you would think. All you need is confidence and a good meat thermometer (unless you have that talent of “poking and knowing” haha)!

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon of butter
1 filet mignon
* salt and pepper

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees and season the filet with salt and pepper.

Heat the butter in a pan on high heat until melted. Once the butter is melted, turn the heat down to medium-high, place the filet in the pan and sear on all sides (about 3-4 minutes).

Transfer the filet to an oven proof dish and finish cooking it in the oven for about 8-10 minutes for a medium steak. For me, the best way to know if it is done is to simply use a meat thermometer. This way, you won't have to cut it open and risk losing any flavor!

Rare: 135 °F/57 °C

Medium-rare: 145 °F/63 °C

Medium: 160 °F/71 °C

Well-done: 170 °F/77 °C

Once your steak is done to your liking, take it out and “tent” it with foil for at least 10 minutes. This step is very important. Tenting your meat helps it to retain juices.

Once Meat has been tented, it is ready to eat!

*Note: You may want to consider saving the meat drippings from the baking dish to enjoy with your steak!

Personally, I enjoyed my filet with winter squash risotto (see recipe for "Winter Squash Risotto"). I think steak and creamy dishes compliment each other very nicely. I also used the meat drippings to drizzle over the top!