Moving takes its toll on you in more ways than I could have imagined. On one hand, I feel like my arms and legs have gotten stronger from all the lifting I've done. But any Gainz that may have come from that are more than wiped out from how my bank accounts are significantly lighter than they were about a month and a half ago. Now as I sit in a bare-walled but now mostly furnished apartment, I am finally getting back into stride with cooking food beyond the formula of:
Rice + Eggs (friend or scrambled) + Kale + Asian Inspired Sauce = Dinner
Palate boredom plus my boyfriend returning from a month abroad are just two main reasons I finally have an excuse to cook more complete meals. This past weekend, with dinner time looming, I resorted to something I enjoy for its simplicity and deliciousness - my version of Shrimp Scampi Pasta and a arugula side salad with bacon fat vinaigrette.
Rice + Eggs (friend or scrambled) + Kale + Asian Inspired Sauce = Dinner
Palate boredom plus my boyfriend returning from a month abroad are just two main reasons I finally have an excuse to cook more complete meals. This past weekend, with dinner time looming, I resorted to something I enjoy for its simplicity and deliciousness - my version of Shrimp Scampi Pasta and a arugula side salad with bacon fat vinaigrette.
Shrimp Scampi is one of those dishes that I like because it's easy and quick to make but still packs a good amount of flavour. The pasta itself was just because I like carbs. Usually when I make scampi, I would serve it in a large baking dish with plenty of crusty bread to soak up the garlicky butter and wine sauce.
The arugula salad was simply because I've been on an argulua kick recently. It's peppery flavour but tender leaves lends itself well to a heartier vinaigrette which I made for this salad. I had some leftover bacon fat from a frittata made for brunch a week ago which I melted down and used alongside some olive oil for the dressing. Going half and half with olive oil made sure the dressing was not too meaty or smokey but still lent a hearty meaty flavour to the dressing and cut through the balsamic vinegar. For dressings like this and for generally cooking where high-temp frying is not necesary, I love saving bacon fat to use in making ordinary foods more special and surprising.
So as I said earlier, I did recently move into a new apartment and will be cooking in a new kitchen. That combined and now that I can finally settle down and get back to writing for fun means that there is new stuff in the works for this blog. It may take some time still but surely and steadily each post's time will come.
In the meantime, I do want to share a quick recipe for sangria that I made for Independence Day this past weekend that was quite a hit. It uses a mix of citrus and berries with special attention to strawberry and blueberries because well, it was for America. Yes it uses Wine Zinfandel so it is almost as basic bitchy as you can get, but it tastes like freedom.
Recipe: 'Muricah, F*ck Yeah! Red, White, and Blue Sangria:
In a large pitcher or drink dispenser combine:
1.5 liters of Pinot Grigio, chilled
1.5 liters of White Zinfandel, chilled
1 liter of Sprite, chilled
1/2 Bottle of dry Sparkling Wine, chilled
2 limes, thinly sliced
1 large navel orange, thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 cup of strawberries, thinly sliced
1 half-pint container of blueberries
2-3 tablespoons of white sugar to taste
Serves: 6-12, depending on how rowdy you want people to be.
Slicing the fruit thinly gives it as much surface area as possible to infuse the wine with flavour. Slice the fruit and add them to your container first then pour over the chilled wine and let it sit for at least 15 minutes before serving. To keep it cold, I recommend adding a large ice block made by freezing water in a clean plastic takeout container overnight. A single large piece of ice will melt more slowly so it won't dilute your drink but it will still keep it cold.
Also, if you enjoy the cooking snaps like above and would like more, find and add me on Snapchat: Philiphorus
The arugula salad was simply because I've been on an argulua kick recently. It's peppery flavour but tender leaves lends itself well to a heartier vinaigrette which I made for this salad. I had some leftover bacon fat from a frittata made for brunch a week ago which I melted down and used alongside some olive oil for the dressing. Going half and half with olive oil made sure the dressing was not too meaty or smokey but still lent a hearty meaty flavour to the dressing and cut through the balsamic vinegar. For dressings like this and for generally cooking where high-temp frying is not necesary, I love saving bacon fat to use in making ordinary foods more special and surprising.
So as I said earlier, I did recently move into a new apartment and will be cooking in a new kitchen. That combined and now that I can finally settle down and get back to writing for fun means that there is new stuff in the works for this blog. It may take some time still but surely and steadily each post's time will come.
In the meantime, I do want to share a quick recipe for sangria that I made for Independence Day this past weekend that was quite a hit. It uses a mix of citrus and berries with special attention to strawberry and blueberries because well, it was for America. Yes it uses Wine Zinfandel so it is almost as basic bitchy as you can get, but it tastes like freedom.
Recipe: 'Muricah, F*ck Yeah! Red, White, and Blue Sangria:
In a large pitcher or drink dispenser combine:
1.5 liters of Pinot Grigio, chilled
1.5 liters of White Zinfandel, chilled
1 liter of Sprite, chilled
1/2 Bottle of dry Sparkling Wine, chilled
2 limes, thinly sliced
1 large navel orange, thinly sliced
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 cup of strawberries, thinly sliced
1 half-pint container of blueberries
2-3 tablespoons of white sugar to taste
Serves: 6-12, depending on how rowdy you want people to be.
Slicing the fruit thinly gives it as much surface area as possible to infuse the wine with flavour. Slice the fruit and add them to your container first then pour over the chilled wine and let it sit for at least 15 minutes before serving. To keep it cold, I recommend adding a large ice block made by freezing water in a clean plastic takeout container overnight. A single large piece of ice will melt more slowly so it won't dilute your drink but it will still keep it cold.
Also, if you enjoy the cooking snaps like above and would like more, find and add me on Snapchat: Philiphorus
