The Marinara of Your Dreams...

Buongiorno Sizzlers! What a spike in the weather we've had! I was NOT expecting the Arctic freeze to hit us so soon, but I'm not gonna lie.... I like it. 

Bundling up and wearing one of my many.many.many.many pair of boots makes me happy. So does the promise of Holidays soon to come! Anywho, I was feeling a bit under the weather yesterday; so I decided to head to the new Whole Foods on San Felipe and Post Oak. WHAT a lovely new space. I almost spent my entire life savings in there!

I decided to whip up a couple things, and one of those was homemade Marinara sauce. I was inspired by a recent post in Bon Apetit and decided to try it out. I never used to care for red sauce until I went to Italy, but I've now become a red sauce snob. I can't help it. You try going to Italy and eating things so fresh and so utterly delightful and then try and come back and open a jar of Prego...not happening. 

And so it was born: Rigatoni in Homemade Marinara with Shaved Parmesano Reggiano

What you Need:

1 box Rigatoni pasta (I was going to use fresh made pasta but got lazy and couldn't find it in the vast aisle)

1 large can whole peeled tomatoes

1 dash of oregano

1 generous whoosh of good salt. Please don't use table salt. 

1 medium onion

1 piece of hard aged Parm/Reggiano for shaving

Fresh basil (not pictured)

What you DO:

In your pan/pot, use either Olive Oil or butter to sweat out your onion. let it sizzle and sautee until fragrant and clear, add your dash of Oregano to let the flavors come out and blend with the onion

Once the onion/oregano is fragrant and cooked well, add your can of tomatoes. I mashed them a bit with a fork to break the larger pieces down. 

Let this simmer and stir occasionally to let thicken. Meanwhile, heat your well salted pasta water. 

Once your water is at a rolling boil, add the Rigatoni, and cook until al dente. Set aside about 4 generous TB of pasta water to add to the sauce. 

Here's where you can decide what to do. I transferred my Marinara into a food processor and pulsed until it was semi-smooth, and the large chunks were gone. I returned the Marinara to the pot, gave it a taste and added salt/cracked black pepper to taste. 

Add your al dente Rigatoni to the Marinara pot and let them mingle and get to know one another. The pasta will continue to cook and the pasta will be infused by the sauce. 

One the co-mingling has gone until you are satisfied, serve pasta with a few sprigs of fresh basil, and shave your parm on top. Voila. Perfect to take the sting out of the cold and warm your bones. 

I'd really enjoy knowing who has tried one of my recipes! If you have, leave a comment and let me know! Have a lovely warm day, and I will be back with a cookie recipe to knock your woolly socks off! 

Bone Chilling Fun. #MusicMonday

Aloha Sizzlers! I hope your weekend was great, and I hope you're feeling rested, bright eyed and bushy tailed. I was basically a vegetable all day yesterday, but I haven't had a day to do "nothing" in a WHILE, so I think I'm fully re-fueled. 

MainSqueeze and I had a very busy couple of weeks. Lots of dinner, dancing, laughing, catching up with amigos and general pre-holiday hustling. 

So I wanted to tell you about this band that we saw Friday night. 

Every once in a while I'll catch a show that I was expecting to be good, but then I'm totally blown away. MainSqueeze and I were exhausted Friday night, but we were dressed for Halloween and I really didn't want to miss this band. 

We drove to the show bleary eyed from sleep deprivation and hustled into Fitzgerald's to catch the last 30 minutes of the show. We clambered up the stairs to the second floor and were greeted by zombies, slutty princesses and a couple Grinches who were too cool to dress up. 

We meandered into the crowd and found the perfect space. And then I was struck by the sound. Shovels & Rope is a husband/wife duo from South Carolina who have some of the most incredible sound I've seen live. Carey Ann Hearst has a voice that stays in your bones, and her talent goes beyond singing. The two together create a full, beautiful sound that tricks you into thinking there's a full band on stage. I laughed, I clapped, I even got teary eyed. It was such a pleasure to see these two rock it out. I HIGHLY recommend seeing them live. Such a treat. 

And just to start your Monday off right. Here's a pic of my Halloween costume complete with two baby pugs. My good friend and her husband had us over pre-concert to see their precious new babies "Mac & Cheese."

I had the perfect Halloween night, puppies, good friends, and an amazing show. These are the days of our lives, amigos. Stay tuned again for more recipes, #nomcity reviews and a couple Holiday treats!

May the Pax Be With You. Seriously.

Greetings Sizzlings! Happy Monday... I know right? Those 2 words just don't mesh. 

I spent a lovely weekend in the country with MainSqueeze and ate some delightful treats. 

Speaking of delightful treats, you need to know about a new treat in Houston. Pax Americana. 

We had a reservation for Thursday night, and my entire week was spent in anticipation. We were a party of 7, so they offered to serve us family style; which is one of my favorite ways to eat. 

Here's the rundown of the #nomz. Photos will be below as well. Highly recommend, the staff was super knowledgeable and accommodating, and I love the general vibe of the place. I'll definitely be back. 

(Dishes in BOLD are TheSizzles faves from the meal): 

Beverage of choice: Evening Land Blue Label Pinot Noir by the glass and the Smoked Old Fashioned. REALLY tasty cocktail with a delightful drunken cherry as a garnish. 

FAMILY STYLE DISHES:

Farm Fresh Eggs, scallion kimchi aioli, chilies, herb salad, purple barley

Grilled Honeydew Melon, hazelnut vinaigrette, thyme honey, feta

(not featured on the online menu) Baby carrots cooked in general amazing fashion with some hints of curry and candied nuts. PHENOMENAL. I could eat these with every meal. Call me Bugs Bunny. 

(Also not on the online menu) Pan seared tile fish with a magical beurre blanc sauce and root veggies. Honestly, some of the best fish I've had in Houston to date. 

(not online either) Enormously humongous ribeye, cooked medium rare. I love steak, and I love slicing my steak instead of hacking into it like a rabid wolf. The spices on the steak were on point, but I think it could use a little work on the sear. STILL  a great cut of meat. 

Brisket, nine spice, potatoes, soured cream, black garlic, sweet onions

Sanguinaccio Fritters, horchata ice cream, lemon curd, candied pecans

Chocolate Custard, bittersweet chocolate hazelnut cookie, lemon mint sherbert

***Please excuse the quality of the photos, it was super dark and I was too hungry to get technical!***

carrots. dreamy dreamy carrots.

grilled honeydew

amazing amazing tile fish

Please excuse our friend "guau's" obscene hand gesture photo bomb,...

chocolate filled thangs

And there you have it, a new "must go" in Houston. We're so lucky to have this burgeoning food scene, And now I'll be getting back to the treadmill...

NEXT UP: music, recipes, recommendations and more! 

When you have leftover Kale...

Sizzlers! Since I've been trying extra hard to be good and cook at home every night, I bring you a new recipe. I know I've been gung ho about squash, but tis the season!

After the last squash recipe, I had some leftover kale and decided to use it or lose it. 

Butternut Squash with Lacinto Kale and Almond/Walnut Parmesan

WHAT YOU NEED:

1 bunch Lacinto Kale

1/4 cup slivered or roughly chopped raw almonds

1/4 cup roughly chopped walnuts

1 TB Olive oil

2 large cloves garlic, minced finely

1/4 cup finely chopped parsley

1 Butternut squash

THIS IS HOW WE DOOOO IT:

-Preheat your oven and roast your squash at 375 for about 30-45 minutes until tender, then set it aside to cool. Some prefer to roast the squash and then peel and cube, others peel and cube raw, then roast already cubed. I'll let you make the call. 

-In a pan, saute your garlic until fragrant, add your parsley, give it a nice little toss around with the garlic 

-Mix your almonds and walnuts with olive oil and salt, toss to coat

-Add your nut blend to the garlic/parsley to give the nuts a toast

-When you're satisfied with the toastiness of the nuts, add the kale, allow it to turn bright green, then add the squash. Toss the mixture together lightly, lower the heat and you're ready to rock!

-Serve the dish with a sprinkle of Grana Padano or Parmesan. You won't be disappointed. 

And there you have it. Delightful, easy, healthy and perfect for a chilly fall night. 

Lots of restaurant reviews coming up for you! For now, take it easy and Happy Thursday!

You are what you eat. Is that chilled cucumber soup?

Good Morning my friends! I'm feeling chipper today, which is surprising considering I was up till midnight last night organizing my closet and adding to my giveaway pile. 

After work yesterday, I knew I needed a mood boost, so naturally I went to Central Market. My heaven. I could spend hours in there, and I've known the wine guy for quite some time, so that always ends in me buying way more than I need. (Is that possible with wine?)

Anywho...As I perused the aisles and practiced as much restraint as I could, I toted my spoils to the car and eagerly sped home to get to cookin'. 

I now present to you, 2 new recipes that are perfect for fall and this lovely cold snap we're having. I wore boots to work today! (It's the little things)

Recipe #1

Spaghetti Squash with Italian Sausage & Lacinto Kale.

WHAT YOU NEED:

1 Spaghetti squash

1 bunch Lacinto Kale

1 large shallot

2 cloves garlic

2 links delicious house made Italian sausage from Central Market (if you can't swing this, then try to find something that errs on the side of fresh and not from a nasty box.)

Salt & Peppa to taste

WHAT YOU DO WITH THE THINGS YOU NEED:

-Preheat your oven to 375. Cut your squash in half, scoop out the seeds, make a huge mess (or not) and then lightly coat the open side of the squash with some form of oil. I used coconut oil. Lightly salt. Poke a couple holes in the rind of the squash with your knife (or in my case pretend your stabbing it to take out some aggression you've been harboring from the work day.)  Put the squash face down on your baking sheet and roast for about 45 minutes or until soft.

- When your squash is roasted, scoop out the insides with a spoon/fork/your bare hands and set aside. 

-In a pan, saute your finely chopped shallots and garlic until fragrant and softened. Add your Italian sausage. In order to do this, you need to take the sausage out of the casing. This is not for the faint of heart. But do it anyway because the end result is so #worthit

-Once your meat is cooked through, add your Lacinto Kale, stir a bit till the Kale is a  vibrant green, then add the squash and mix to incorporate. Don't furiously beat it together, just gently mix. 

-WHAM.BAM. You're done. Throw it on a plate and sprinkle with a dash of Grana Padano Stravecchio or whatever Italian hard cheese your little heart so desires. 

#nomcity

Recipe #2

Breakfast Chia Seed Pudding

If you are weird about texture and you don't like tapioca or things that are potentially "slimy" then you will likely hate this. Which is crazy talk because it's delicious & nutritious. 

INGREDIENTS/IMPORTANT THINGS:

I use small 8 oz. mason jars and pour ingredients into each one instead of making a big batch and making a mess when I try to put it into each jar. EACH TO THEIR OWN. 

IN EACH JAR:

1/4 cup milk of your choosing. I use unsweetened almond milk, but you can use regular milk, soy, coconut, eat your heart out. 

2 chopped fresh dates

1 tsp. agave nectar

1 small handful slivered raw almonds

3 heaping tablespoons black chia seeds

WHAT YOU DO:

SHAKE IT. Literally. That's it. Shake the jar so that the ingredients are mixed, and put it in your fridge for at least 4 hours. Take it to work the next morning and annoy your coworkers by telling them how good your healthy homemade breakfast is and glance condescendingly at their Pop Tarts and other various processed foods. 

The seeds will expand and congeal to form a "pudding" over night. Feel free to check your fridge every 30 minutes like I did. It probably makes it taste better too. 

So there you have it, breakfast and lunch and dinner for you! Stay tuned because I have some Butternut and Acorn squash raring to go! Enjoy the weather!

A #Nomcity for the books.

Greetings amigos! I'm in foodie rehab right now. I honestly don't even know how I ate so much this weekend, but it was like a delicious blackout that I never want to forget. However I spent my entire Sunday groaning and sipping Peppermint tea. I felt so gluttonous that I couldn't even crack open my new issue of Bon Apetit. The mere sight of food made me die a little. 

For some reason, the vast majority of my friends have fall birthdays, so a lot of my weekend was spent celebrating. 

It all started Friday. I had a very skinny soup for lunch, and then met a friend at Uchi for Happy Hour. I know Uchi does a lot of things right, but their Happy Hour just knocks it out of the park. So that happened. I went home totally content and very stuffed. 

Saturday morning I woke up to go on a nice run, but of course it started to monsoon. I really did have the best of intentions! I had a Birthday lunch at Caracol. I LOVE Caracol. I love the space, I love the staff, I love the menu and I can't even start on the food. Eight ladies who lunch gathered around a table and we ordered the hell out of that menu. 

Tuna tacos and raw tuna with ginger/coconut magic. 

Ceviche caracol. Conch ceviche. 

Blue crab miracle soup. 

All the girls pretty much ordered 2 dishes a person, and house "Caracol Ritas" abounded. It was one of the best lunch outings I've had in a WHILE. And it only got better when we gathered afterwards to drink some ice cold bevs and watch college football. 

Later that evening, for Birthday celebration Numero Dos, Foodie Photo Blog and I headed to Tony's for a MEAL. We had originally planned on practicing restraint and splitting several things, but yeah right. Of course my phone died, so all I have are the photos she texted me later that night as I was lying in bed hoping the button on my jeans wouldn't pop off and shatter a window. 

Tony's is truly a wonderful dining experience. I picked out a delightful Italian Dolcetto D'Alba to sip, and we split the Burrata Pugliese; fresh Oregon figs, Balsamic and some 'beer nuts.'  Our pasta entree were breathtaking; Capelletti al Midolo (Bone Marrow, House Made Ricotta, Cognac) and Pansoti (Squash Filled Pasta, Parmesan Puff, Sage Essence.) 

We also had the ribbons & squares ( ribbons and Squares of Ahi Tuna, Avocado, Soy Lime Vinaigrette) and then the grand finale was Birthday Souffle. Chocolate souffle with a fresh raspberry sauce and very fresh whipped cream. Un.REAL. If you've never been to Tony's, make it a priority. Another fun fact is that they can pretty much make ANY souffle you want. Our server informed us that "the sky's the limit" when it came to flavoring. Both of us stared at each other and after a couple minutes of feeling overwhelmed, we decided chocolate/raspberry couldn't be a bad call. 

So now you can see why my Sunday was spent in a food hangover. But guess what? WORTH IT. 

I know I still haven't finished telling y'all about Hawaii, and I promise I will! I also have some fun recipes coming up and lots of Holiday cheer! Stay dry, eat well and see you soon!