Monday Night Dinner

I decided to make Paul something nice for dinner, so after watching Secrets Of A Restaurant Chef I had some idea. I ended up making Chicken Milanese with Safron Risotto and Mushrooms sauteed in Red Wine. Everything was pretty good. The chicken was wonderfully tender and very crunchy thanks to using Panko (as opposed to regular bread crumbs). For dessert, I made Panna Cotta. Also very delicious. Once again, I failed to take pictures of it all.

Wheelies

Recently my good friend Kim and I went to a new fast food place on Rt. 516 in Old Bridge called Wheelies. This place claims to have the best roast beef sandwich in New Jersey, and being a lover of roast beef I put it to the test. So, Kim and I both ordered the roast beef sandwich. I got a strawberry shake, Kim got chocolate. The shakes were great. Not too thin, not too thick, and most likely homemade. The sandwich was incredible. It was very simply served on a nice squishy white bun with a little bit of melted cheddar. The meat was incredibly tender. What makes this place stand out from other fast food places is that everything is seemingly made fresh each day. Nothing is frozen. Not bad, and certainly worth the trip.

Tower Of India

Okay so, I haven't posted anything in a while. Things have been kind of crazy with my car dying and Paul getting really sick. About a week ago, Alex and I went to a really nice Indian restaurant over in Parlin called Tower Of India. It was a tiny place in a strip mall on Ernston Road. The food was great, the service was fast and very hospitable, and the prices were really good. Alex and I both ordered the Chefs Special Thali for $17. It consisted of Lentil soup, naan, rice, dal, chicken tandoori, seekh kabab, chicken tikka, lamb curry, vegetables, raita, and kheer (warm rice pudding) for dessert. We also shared a Samosa appetizer. All of it was realllllly good and they give you so much. The naan tasted like it was right from the oven and the tandoori chicken was amazingly tender. We will definitely be going back soon.

Jalapeno Poppers

Just like the beef roll, this was another idea I got from Diners Drive Ins and Dives. Tuesday night, I made Jalapeno Poppers wrapped in bacon and stuffed with cream cheese, as well as some pan fried chicken. I didn't cook these in a smoker like I saw on the show, but I baked them first, then threw them in the frying pan for a bit. Unfortunately, I didn't take and good pictures of the peppers, just one crappy picture with my phone. I thought they were really great, had good heat, and tasted pretty damn amazing. Paul, on the other hand, couldn't take the heat and whined like a little girl for about 20 minutes. Later in the week I also made a German Black Forest cake for Paul's mom :)

Foodtography: Some Pics I've Taken

Beef Roll

Tonight for dinner I made Paul and I a beef roll. I took a flank steak, pounded it out really thin, and seasoned it with salt, pepper, and basil. Then I started to layer it. First was thin slices of garlic. After that, a layer of spinach followed by roasted red peppers. Finally, a layer of fresh mozzarella. Then it was time to roll it up, which was not as big of a pain in the ass as I thought it would be. Instead of using string to tie this thing up, I used silicone ties and they worked very well and held better than I initially thought they would. After it was all tied up and ready to go, i threw it in the pan for a little bit, just to crust up the outside of it, then put it in the oven on 375 for about 40 minutes. It came out a little higher than rare, about 180 degrees. So then we cut it up and it was, surprisingly, really good! The meat was nice and tender and the filling was really tasty. We also had creamed corn, biscuits with gravy, and mac and cheese to go with it. In all, it was a pretty good night with great food and even greater company <3

Dinner At Dads

Yesterday was a really beautiful day and Paul and I took a trip to upstate NY to visit my dad. We got there in great time and hit zero traffic. My dad was happy to see us and had a great meal planned. When we first arrived, he had some sausage, cheese, crackers, gherkins, and homemade bread and butter pickles out on the table. Dinner was great. He made a roast beef, seasoned with just salt, pepper, and garlic powder which made a nice crust on the outside. There was also peas, mushrooms sauteed in butter, biscuits, and mashed potato with peppercorn. Everything was delicious. For dessert we had my blueberry pie with some whipped cream my dad made. The pie turned out to be really good, and Paul actually had a second piece (seeing him have another piece made all the hard work seem worthwhile). When Paul and I got back to Jersey, we collapsed onto the bed watched the Oscars together. In all, it was a fantastic day :)