Spaghetti is love. ~ Mario Batali

Right, well, I'm a bit behind on my blogging. I'm sorry to have abandoned you all for so long, but I'm back with a vengance, I promise! For real this time.

Recently, I recieved the BEST news. I'm joining the class of 2019 at Brown University.

Yes, the Ivy League one. No, not the one named after the man that led his sons to mass murder slave owners during the antebellum period. That's JOHN BROWN University.
Anyhow, I'm super excited. It's all I can think or talk about right now. That is, except my future with food. Providence, RI is well known to be an Italian town. That's not a bad thing in the slightest for me, I'm a tad obsessed with pasta. However, it's also a college town. Meaning I can't afford anything without a couple of dorm cooked meals a week. Therefore, I present to you...my coveted Spaghetti Bolognese recipe.

This feeds 2-3 HUNGRY people. Go forth and spag bol!

Ingredients:
2-3 Sprigs of basil, roughly chopped
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon of dried oregano
ALL THE OLIVE OIL (just kidding, maybe 2-3 tbs)
1/2 a yellow onion
3 bay leaves
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 pounds ground beef (70/30 is my favorite ratio for this recipe)
1 large carrot, skinned and diced
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 cups red wine
1 cup beef broth
3-4 roughly chopped beefsteak tomatoes
2 table spoons tomato paste
1 pound of spaghetti pasta (fresh is preferred, but boxed will do just fine)
salt, so much salt (for the pasta water and seasoning to taste)

Directions:

First, you're going to want to put your mirepoix (a fancy term for diced onion, celery, and carrot) and garlic into the olive oil on a low to medium heat in a large saucepan to sweat.

Once you've achieved translucent onions, add in the ground beef, up the heat, and cook until browned and beautiful. Don't you just love that smell? mmmmmmh.
Start the sauce process by adding in tomato paste.

Ok, next you're going to want to add your chopped tomatoes, wine, beef broth, and your bay leaves to the mix, stirring until combined and lower that heat again to a low simmer

Now, add the cream in slowly, mixing with purpose and making sure you're not letting the ingredients stick to the bottom.

Add the rest of your herbs and cover.

Cook your sauce for a good 1 1/2 to 2 hours, mixing every 15 minutes until you achieve a good sauce consistency.

Once you're about 13-14 minutes out from being done with your sauce, throw your pasta into rapidly, liberally salted boiling water until the texture is al dente (or just soft on the inside, maintaining texture) No one likes overcooked pasta.

Combine and Enjoy! Honestly, this recipe may be time consuming, but it's totally worth it. You can add more vegetables or take away meat or personalize however you like. As long as you're making food you enjoy, it'll never be a chore.

Have fun with this!

~Julia

“For whatever we lose (like a you or a me), It's always our self we find in the sea.” ― E.E. Cummings

Hi Internet!
It's certainly been a while. Colleges are swimming in want of essays and applications, and I'm drowning in their want right now. So..going along with this water theme, how about some Detox water recipes? I originally had this idea with inspiration from Bloglaties (she's awesome, check her out.) Since I saw her post, I've been obsessed with putting tons and tons of different things in my water bottle. You guys can put these things in your water (perferrably in a filter or something similar, but do what you want) a few hours before drinking, and then just refill all day. I get three to four water refills out of one set of ingredients. I would recommend throwing out the fruit and veggies after a day of use, because at that point the stuff is just waterlogged and gross.

Take my (easily personalizable) ingredient lists and make some water magic!
Use ingredients and slice into thin pieces.
Place in water bottle.
Shake before consumption.
(I have a 32 oz Nalgene Bottle that I use. Customize to your liking)

Bloating Detox Water  -
1/2 small English Cucumber
1/4 lemon
1/2 cup strawberries (frozen preferred)
1 tb honey
2-3 Sprigs of Mint

Anti-Oxidant Water -
1/2 Cup Raspberries (frozen preferred)
1/2 Cup Blueberries (frozen preferred)
a squeeze of lemon juice
1 tb agave syrup

Citrus Water -
1/2 medium orange
1/2 lemon
2-3 Sprigs of Mint
1 tb stevia

My every day water! (this tastes the best, in my opinion)
1/2 Cup Strawberries (frozen preferred)
1 tb agave syrup
1/4 lemon
1-2 Sprig of mint


Best wishes!
~Julia

"Study the past if you would define the future.” ― Confucius

GUYS. When I participated in the school exchange to Nürnberg, my host family brought me to this AMAZING living museum. The Fränkisches Freilandmuseum in Windsheim was incredible! There were historical houses from all over the Franconian area that were painstakingly moved to the museum area piece by piece. Not only was the atmosphere awesome, the people who worked there were awesome too. I'm going to be honest, my German is viel schlecht. The people who were in period dress talked to me in a combination of really basic German and English, which made the whole experience so much more enjoyable.



Ok, ok. Sorry. I know this is a food blog, and trust me...this place can deliver on the food front. When we spent some time with the employees (who chill and do period appropriate things in awesome historically accurate costumes), one of the ladies taught me about Griesklöschensuppe. Unfortunately for us, I was so intrigued about the whole Franconian cooking style...I forgot to take pictures. OOPS. Regardless, Griesklöschensuppe is exactly what it says. Greis (Semolina, a grain common in Franconian cooking..remember kids, corn is american) klöschen (chen in German means little, and Klöß (or klös) means dumpling..basically, little dumpling) suppe (soup. Yeah, I'm sure you guys figured that one out.) This particular employee worked as a cook for the others, as a 'housewife'. She spent hours in a tiny, wood stove dominated kitchen that had to be at least 110 degrees Fahrenheit . BUT she got to make tons and tons of Griesklöschensuppe. And that was kinda cool.



And this is what I had to eat. I'm sososososso sorry, but I can't find the menu online...I'M OFFICIALLY THE WORST. But hey, I can try and break it down for you. Sort of. Alright. I'm almost positive that the lovely brown stew was a pork goulash. It had large portions of pork shoulder and a nice big dollop of butter in the middle. The yellow, noodley things are called Spätzle. IT WAS SUPER DELICIOUS. What I did was mix the two together, and enjoy my saucy Spätzle and pork. There was a few caveats, however. It was a bit salty (but let's be honest, what German food isn't?), and the portion was HUGE. There was no way I could finish it! The salad was a simple mixed green conglomeration with a nice ranch-esque dressing and TONS of cabbage. Just in case I forgot I was in Germany. That drink in the corner is Spezi, (also called Mezzo Mix) and orangey Coke kind of soda. I love it!
Overall, the meal was different (for me) and very satisfying. I mean, after a morning of walking around and soaking up history, what better lunch was there? NOTHING. It cemented the whole experience for me. Fully authentic, with a glob of butter on top. YUM!





Final Verdict?
I loved it. I'm convincing my biological family to take a trip to Windsheim as we speak. It'll be so cool! I'm a total history nerd and have fallen head over heels for my new country, so this is the perfect place for me to spend another day. Two thumbs up!


Thanks for reading


~Julia


BONUS PICTURES!



This pig is named Sigfried after the famed German fairy tale hero in Die Nibelungen. You guys need to look that crazy story up. It's all kind of wonderful and insane! Also, check out his curls. I couldn't help but take a picture.












This is one of the super gorgeous houses on the property. Look at those roses!











The fields were also historically accurate and absolutely gorgeous!



Ending this on an adorable note, check out these Ente! (Ducks in German. I mean, they are German ducks.)

Mug Cake Recipe

Hey internet!
Moving is hard, but hey, when all you have is a few mugs and some left over pantry ingredients, why not indulge a little bit. Let's do it.

This is for one serving, kids. Remember, one serving = one mug. Let's make it a large one. 16 oz to be safe, 8 if you're not afraid of possible overflow.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup All Purpose Flour (you can use self rising if you wish, just be aware it will rise more during the microwaving process)

3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder (or more, depending on your desired level of chocolateyness)

1/4 Teaspoon baking soda

2 Tablespoons granulated white sugar

1/8 Teaspoon salt

1/4 cup milk (be generous with this, a little bit more means all the moister)

2 Tablespoons oil (any type will do)

1 Tablespoon Vanilla Extract

(optional: a handful of chocolate chips or a tablespoon of your favorite jam or jelly)

Directions:
Mix all of your dry ingredients in a separate bowl.
Add your wet ingredients one by one. Remember, sugar is a wet ingredient!
 Make sure to get rid of all of the lumps. No one wants a mouth full of baking soda and flour.
 Pour your newly made batter into your mug.
Now would be the time to add your optional ingredients.
 Microwave that sucker for 60+ seconds.  Each and every microwave is different, just microwave until the batter has firmed up.

Go crazy with your optional ingredients and try making your own version. Best of luck with all the mug cake you can eat!

Happy Cooking~
- Julia Cahill

It's been a while...

Hey Internet. So, this is a bit of an unusual post. I just thought I should keep you guys updated as to why this blog hasn't seen much activity lately. I've been a bit more than busy. Large news, I'm moving to Germany! While this is all exciting, it requires a change of the blog, at least temporarily.

So, as this blog has been a strict food restaurant review blog, I thought I'd branch it out a tad.

I've decided to add some of my personal recipes to the blog, just to keep things interesting.

More to come soon!

~Julia Cahill

P.S. Much love to those in the states I'm leaving behind (at least for now).

Alden & Harl- Oh Yes, Alden & Harlow

Alden & Harlow

Set beneath an old theater, hidden away in Boston's historic Harvard square, the recently opened Alden & Harlow restaurant plays host to a maddening mix of varied flavors that feel fresh and inspired. The recently renovated space is decorated with a rustic theme, that keeps the place incredibly dark. It's a pity, I would have loved to be able to see the artistically crafted dishes better. The lighting also makes seeing the people you are sharing the table with extremely difficult. However, conversation is easy,  as it never gets very loud. The service was also fantastic,  my table had a cheerful server who knew the menu backwards and forwards, and went to great lengths to make our stay pleasurable. 

Now for the food.The chef changes his menu occasionally, so what I had may not be available when you go, but most of the fun here is trying all the vaguely mad scientist-esque combinations put together in the kitchen. The plates are a little pricey, at around 16 a dish (8 for appetizers) but that is far from my main complaint. Just one dish is to small to be a full meal, but they are too large to order more than three. Strange portion sizes aside, the food was as fantastic as one could have expected from the decor and service. 

The opener, which is complementary, is a plate of pickled green beans sprinkled with a light olive oil and some sesame seeds. The strange combination of flavors really gets the idea across. There is everything here. The lovely bitter crunch of the beans was cooled by the oil, and given some depth by the seeds. Great,  but not the best thing available. 

My friends, I have many strange things to visit upon you. We opened with the Heirloom eggs. After being boiled (of course) they were served with some pickled fiddleheads and some fried anchovy heads. A fantastic salty briny dish, it felt almost like a strange variation on the classic surf and turf, with the meaty eggs and the salty fish,  and the pickling bringing it all together. 

The apparent star of the appetizers was the charred broccoli, with a fantastic crunch throughout, and served over the best thing I had had all night; squash hummus. Sweet, but with some bitter/spicy nuances, I could eat that stuff out of a jar. We went in with spoons to get all we could. The mouth waters just thinking of it.

 The main courses then began to arrive,  with the Market Crudo taking the lead. Raw Crudo (though there was a substitute fish that night, but I forget) was served with some cauliflower kimchi that did nothing to balance the overwhelmingly fishy flavor of the dish. It was also extremely chewy, with my fish having the consistency of old Hubba Bubba. I would not recommend ordering it, with so many better options available.

 We then had the Smoked Moosabec Farm Mussels, my favorite entrée. It was almost like a wonderfully textured salmon on top of some fantastic toast. A bit of fennel added some depth to the dish and kept each bite interesting. I then had the Crispy Berkshire Pork Belly. Sweet and flaky, the almost-pasty was served on some nice grits with some lovely greens and some far too sweet kumquats that overpowered the rest of the plate. But the pork itself was fantastic and I savored every single bite of the 'bacon on steroids', as the host called it.

 Lastly, I ordered the Island Creek Oyster Gratin. It arrived steaming hot, with some utterly amazing melt in your mouth uni toast served on top. Sadly, the Gratin itself was little more than a glorified clam chowder, with little texture at all. I was grateful for the little bits of charred pork found in the mushy mess, as the crispy bits of love added much needed texture and flavor to the chowder.

 To finish, I had a little coffee to drink while we discussed the meal. Bad idea. That is not talking coffee. That is 'I am a detective in a noir movie searching for whoever killed my family' coffee. But I loved it, even if it felt a little like a thousand tiny Bruce Willis - es were punching me in my taste buds all at once. Their coffee is an experience. 

Final Verdict? 

All said and done, Alden & Harlow was an excellent night out, if only for the fantastic service and extremely interesting menu. If given the chance,  I would love to spend a day there, eating my way through the menu. Sadly, there is no 'taster course' which would augment the creative, curios food junkie in my soul. While there may be room for improvement,  it sets a high bar for the future of Boston cuisine.

-Liam Mazeika
(P.S. We apologize for the lack of pictures. Bad lighting does not an amateur photographer make.)

Man who invented the hamburger was smart; man who invented the cheeseburger was a genius - Matthew McConaughey, Casper's and Runyon's Nook

In the dining room adjacent to the Bowling Alley, TONS of dollar bills are tacked to the ceiling~ What an atmosphere!

Welcome to Casper's and Runyon's Nook, where the bowling alley is in the basement and your dollar bills go on the ceiling. Oh, and the cheeses are inside the burgers. The Minneapolis area is notorious for their "Juicy Lucy's", hamburgers stuffed with cheese and topped with caramelized onions.  

Caramelized onions topping off the perfection that is The Juicy Nookie

This, my friends, is the "Juicy Nookie", as featured on the food network show Diners, Drive ins and Dives. The gorgeous burger is part of  the stuffed section of Casper's and Runyon's Nook menu, which features such greats as The Spanish Fly (50% beef 50% chorizo burger stuffed with queso cheese) and the Stuffed Philly Cheeseburger (swiss cheese, mushrooms, and green bell peppers). How can one truly go wrong with a luscious burger overflowing with molten cheese? You can't. Casper's and Runyon's Nook proves this sentiment right again and again. The french fries accompanying this symphony of greasy goodness are the perfect vessels to scoop all the fallen cheese and ketchup you could possibly ask for. 

Isn't it beautiful? Look at dat cheese

Final verdict? YES. BURGERS STUFFED WITH CHEESE. AND BOWLING! I will be heading back to Casper's and Runyon's Nook during my next trip to Minneapolis. I hope you guys stop by too.

- Julia Cahill