It's been entirely too long since I've posted a recipe here. Life has gotten in the way many times over the last few months, but rest assured-- I've been cooking.

And eating. A lot of eating.

That's the key to transitioning back to east coast life after a while out west. Throw on a few pounds in the way of lobster rolls, and North End Italian food, and Mei Mei Street Kitchen dumplings...and soon enough you'll long a little bit less for those tacos of yesterday.

Also, I really like soup. And eating soup when it was like eighty-seven degrees out in February last year seemed ridiculous.

While it's continued to be pleasantly surprising on the weather front out here, I've been making a lot of beef stew for myself, Matty and my parents lately. I've filled so many mason jar pints with fresh, hot soup-- yet I'm still dying for more as I type this.

Luckily, I froze some before we headed out west, and I think I know exactly what I'll be doing when I'm done here.

Happy Taco Tuesday, everybody!

I called these "breakfast tacos" because the ingredients are obviously morning fare. However, as someone with barely anything in my fridge aside from bacon right now, I can vouch that these would (and will!) make a deliciously hearty dinner as well. This recipe is super simple and could be whipped up on a Saturday morning, or a Tuesday night, or whenever you've got a craving for some crunchy bacon and salty, comforting, mashed potatoes.

Also these would obviously welcome some scrambled eggs on top, too, if you're into that sort of thing. I don't judge your taco habits.

Anyway. We were talking about bacon, right?
Let's talk about bacon.
Cooking the rest of the ingredients, especially the tender potatoes, in the bacon grease is paramount here. I don't have to explain why, right?

I didn't think so.

Hey people!
So, it's June.
When did that happen?
I guess time flies when it's always sunny and you're often drunk. Or something?

Speaking of drunk-- you should probably crack a beer and make this queso. Doesn't it look melty and gooey and cheesy and stupendous?
Do you believe it's vegan? I sure didn't. And I made it.

A while back I told you about buffalo cauliflower and the wonderful people at Follow Your Heart. Today I'm armed with two more recipes utilizing their products that would be an excellent addition to your next party.

So, I mean, full disclosure here: I'm a carnivore. That won't be changing anytime soon.
But-- I'm also completely able to eat gluten, but a vast majority of what you'll find on here is gluten free. My fiancé is allergic to wheat, so I plan around him.

If you have a vegan loved one, you should plan around them sometimes. Don't be a steak-eating-dick and offer them a side of burnt, grilled vegetables when they stop by your barbecue.

Offer them the queso you made for everyone that just happens to be vegan! I can assume they'll be quite grateful and you'll have just gone from would-be asshole to party hero. Do it.

You should also make the chipotle bean dip below, too, to further solidify that hero status. This stuff was great for dipping veggies but would also make a great addition to a sandwich, taco, et cetera.

Let's get on to the snacks, shall we?

Happy Friday everybody.

I had a weird week. And I'm currently making bacon and potato tacos for dinner, after spending an afternoon frosting cupcakes.

I didn't see my week going this way, but I'm not mad about it in the least.
Every moment in my kitchen is a pretty delicious blessing, not going to lie.

So I'll keep cooking, and eating, and telling you all about it for a while.
Cool? Cool. Thanks.

Maybe you're like me, and buy lots of produce on a Sunday with lofty goals. Maybe, also like me, you buy a dozen eggs because you think I'll eat hard boiled eggs for breakfast because PROTEIN. Or sometimes I'm going to BAKE something!

But then, sure enough, you wake up Saturday morning and you're like I have twelve eggs and yogurt and all this green shit that I thought I would eat sooner.





So that's when you make a frittata, dear people. I love me a frittata (can you tell?)

For the past year, Matt and I have been calling North Hollywood our home. Our own little corner of this sprawling metropolis we moved to, NoHo seemed to be the perfect fit: reasonably priced rent (with outdoor space!), plenty of spots to drink, and (I hoped) good places to eat as well.

Of course, my wishes came true, and shortly after moving right near an illustrious In & Out Burger (which is the only fast food I have eaten, or will eat, in decades. Seriously), we started to realize our neighborhood had a lot to offer. So much more than when Matt called it home eight years ago, and it seemed like a new place was popping up every day.



One place that had just opened its doors for the first time right around then was the District Pub. Our first venture was, I believe, two days after they opened, and we have become quite the regulars since. It's a great example of a simple concept done superbly well-- a large craft beer list, house-made sausages, and burgers. That's about it. There's also a huge, delicious, chewy pretzel if you're into that sorta thing. And really, really good French fries. But otherwise?



Go for the beer.
Stay for the meat.
Repeat.

Oh hey. It's Tuesday! And while I am certainly not limiting my taco consumption to just this one day-- it is pretty clear I have enough taco recipes to eat only my favorite non-emoji represented delicacy every day for a long time-- this blog isn't All Among Tacos, am I right?

I've made some great friends since moving to LA.
A big part of leaving Boston was knowing I wouldn't see my people on a regular basis. There was a six month or so stint there, living in Dorchester, when my BFF Courtney would just drop by on her way home from law school every night. She'd have been in traffic for hours, and just needed to get out of her car (or sometimes use my bathroom. Especially when she was pregnant.) and would stay for an hour, just shooting the shit with me while I made dinner.

While no one will ever replace my Boston friends, my social circle in Southern California has added some pretty awesome people in the past year, and it makes living here all the more enjoyable. One such friend is Oscar, a former client turned buddy who recently started working for the awesome Vegan product brand Follow Your Heart. He came by one afternoon, armed with some product samples, and we tested drove some delicious veggie-heavy recipes. Even for the most carnivorous of us (my fiancé Fazekas, obviously) we agreed the snacks were as delicious as they were satisfying.

I must admit, we have been hitting the Thai takeout pretty hard these days. When we don't feel like cooking, and aren't in the mood for tacos (which doesn't happen very often, to be honest) Matt's go-to menu item is almost always Pad Thai, his favorite gluten-free luxury in a world of hidden soy sauce. This Thai trend, for a moment, encouraged me to step out of my drunken-noodles comfort zone and discover Tom Kha Gai soup.

Good morning!

I'm currently sipping some coffee out of the most gigantic owl-shaped mug I've ever laid eyes on, and it's making me quite happy. I love weekend mornings-- the ritual of leisurely sipping your beverage (caffeinated or alcoholic. Or both?) and planning a day that is wide open.

Lately, Matt and I have been partaking in what we call "surprise Saturday." I'll share photos from our last few adventures soon but, basically, one of decides what we will do and the other gets to be blissfully ignorant until we arrive at each destination. Last week, I took Matt to a driving range in Koreatown and out for shabu. The week before, he greeted me after my shower with a mimosa, and declared it "treat yoself!" day. We went for pedicures shortly thereafter.

There's just something about not knowing what today will bring (it's his turn. All I know is we are taking the train somewhere,) that seems to have invigorated us both to step out of our comfort zone, and explore LA beyond our little 'hood. Whatever today brings, I'm sure it'll be delightful.

But before we're off, I wanted to share another weekend-friendly post. I have some more breakfast ideas for you, but I also like to use the weekends to make more labor-intensive types of dishes. Rice balls almost always turn into a huge pain in the ass, it's just the nature of the beast, but they're almost always worth it. As per usual, I had to make these gluten-free (can you imagine if I made like twenty rice balls and then just looked at Matty and said, "oh, sorry, you can't have these." That would be a real kick in the rice balls.)

Hello! Here I am, back fifteen minutes later, sticking to my breakfast-recipe guns. Since there's two days in the weekend, why not two easy ideas? This one is debatably easier than the last, especially if you have previously cooked rice. And you know how to poach eggs. Which I kind of do, now. Almost.



Anyway. This was good. Like, really good. It was also good the night before when I made something similar with bacon, pesto, leftover rice and a whole lotta cheese. The moral of the story is make a ton of brown rice every time you cook, because the opportunities are endless.
ENDLESS I SAY.

Like this. Brown rice for breakfast?

Why the fuck not? Isn't brown rice nutritious? This could be diet food. I swear.

I SWEAR.

Happy Friday, everyone!

I've told you what to make on weekends past, but never consistently. Like everything lately, I'm attempting to establish some semblance of order over here. Starting with some Friday recipes that will hopefully make their way into your kitchen some Saturday or Sunday morning. Sometimes it'll be labor-intensive stuff, or the occasional baked good, but for the most part it'll be delightful breakfast recipes like what I'm featuring today. Starting with these breakfast tacos, that are quick, easy and feed a crowd (or a hungover couple. Either way!)

Sorry I'm not sorry for being heavy on the chorizo lately. When in SoCal.

I'm currently in the middle of making a batch of these for dinner to eat over some salad, but last time I made these bad boys was for an afternoon get together and sports-watching at our place. They were gone in minutes, and I couldn't blame anyone. These highly addictive little balls of spicy goodness are exactly what you want for a party spread.

Or a Thursday night dinner, apparently.

I'll keep this short as I have about five more minutes until my latest batch of meatballs should come out of the oven, and I'm getting pretty hungry looking at these photos!

As I sort through a massive back catalog of recipes I've cooked and photographed for this here space, one thing is abundantly clear-- I eat a lot of tacos. Even before our venture out to SoCal, the land of tacos, I was on board. Perhaps it's because my dearest is gluten free and I love foods that are naturally so as well.

But it's more likely that tacos are just super fucking easy.
Like slap some tortillas over an open flame and fill with meat and put in your mouth easy.
And when the filling is made in the slow cooker, it's even easier.

These are up there with the cilantro chicken I made a few weeks ago-- the braised beef is so delightfully tender, and the combination of spicy jalapeños, smoky cumin, and tangy lime juice comes through in every delicious bite.

After averaging about a tamale or two a week since our arrival out to southern California, I decided a little while back I ought to learn how to actually create these little packets of doughy deliciousness. I was shocked that it's not really all that difficult, just a tad on the time consuming side. Regardless, these tamales came together in just a few hours one afternoon, and depending on your filling it could go even quicker. I used my bamboo steamer simply because I already had it, and found it works pretty great with these little square-ish tamales I folded. This was also the first time I used vegetarian soy chorizo as opposed to its fattier pork and beef counterparts, and it was truly great-- the same tangy spicy sausage you expect, but a lot less neon orange grease to drain. Coupled with some corn, some smoky adobo sauce and a red onion, and this filling made for highly addictive tamales.

Hello!

I'll spare you a long story about this chicken. You should just skip to the recipe and photos below and know you're going to behold some of this green glory sometime soon. If you're one of those people that think cilantro tastes like soap, this is probably not your kinda thing. However, I will say this would probably be good with basil or parsley instead.

But really? Cilantro is delicious.
The dress was gold and white.
There are some things that are just facts.

I've made this chicken a couple times, most recently when Matt's brother was in town for a visit. He kept eating it cold, right out of the fridge, with his bare hands for days to follow; mumbling "best chicken of my life," as he chewed. So, this is for Jimmy.

Don't you want to eat cold chicken with your fingers like Jimmy?
Or maybe these tacos.




You know you do.

We were in Boston last weekend.
My cousin's wedding was a great reason for a quick trip back east. The event itself was gorgeous, and seeing all our friends and family was a wonderful bonus. The only thing that wasn't wonderful, of course, was the weather.
While it didn't snow while we were in town, and even though I was all too aware of what we were in for, the amount of god damn snow on the ground was positively astounding.

Don't get me wrong. I miss you all terribly.
But I am so glad we moved.

In honor of our visit to the arctic northeast tundra, I wanted to pull out and publish a lost file, if you will. I made this, photographed it, tested it, and wrote a great recipe for it right before we left Boston for LA last year.

But then we moved. Then it was hot. And then I didn't write about anything, let alone seasonally inappropriate soup.

But while doing inventory on photos and posts and creating a calendar, I realized I didn't want to lose this guy. So I decided I wouldn't. I hope it's starting to finally get toward Spring, Boston. I'm sending you all the sunshine I can.

I promised tacos all over the Internet the other day and have yet to follow through. The thing is, this pork was still kicking around until yesterday, when I made the third thing on this glorious list of foodstuffs below. Each preparation was fantastic, but the meat itself is insanely versatile and would be well suited in a sandwich, or over rice noodles with some soy sauce.

Another hold up was that the main ingredient other than pork in this recipe is mango habanero hot sauce, which we made yesterday. Don't let this deter you-- it's worth the minimal effort to whip up a batch. But if you're pressed for time, throw in some standard hot sauce and a bit of broth or beer to thin it up. The key is a fair amount of salt and a very low and slow session in the slow cooker. This will shred apart and be delightful in whatever you cook up.

Now that this self-imposed hiatus is over, I can barely contain myself from throwing a thousand photos of food and a simple "figure it out!" up here. But I'll refrain, because you deserve better after what I'm sure has been a very long wait on your end. So we will start with what has become my latest obsession: homemade condiments. Specifically, hot sauces.

Hello, Hello!

Back again with much less intense things to talk about than last night.

Like, you know, french fries.
And homemade ketchup.
Because some sportsing is happening tomorrow, we've already addressed that you should make some snacks. I'd been itching to make my own ketchup again ever since I took a Condiment Making class at the BCAE last Spring. This recipe is pretty simple, comprised of things you may just have handy already. The fries themselves are super simple and turn out pretty perfect-- that lovely combination of crispy outside and tender potato inside. The secret is soaking them, thoroughly drying them, and frying them--twice. These stay nice and warm in a oven set to 220 or so while you wait for your game day guests to arrive. And the ketchup keeps for a week or two in the fridge--and tastes good on just about everything.

So. Whip this up tomorrow.
Because sports!

Can I say Super Bowl on here? Am I going to get sued by the NFL? I'm sure this blog is totally on their radar. If so-- I meant Superb Owl instead.

Anyway. We've already established I'm not totally into football (owls, however, are a different story), but this weekend I'll make an exception and "watch" the game-- mostly for the beer, snacks, and commercials. In that order.

In addition to the pork taquitos we talked about yesterday, these wings would make a great dish to lay out with your game day spread-- and so much more exciting than wings drenched in buffalo sauce. They're super simple and pretty hands off-- ideal for a day when you're probably trying to make multiple snacks for lots of people. These are also baked, not fried, yet still incredibly crispy and perhaps a touch more "healthy?" Maybe?

Whatever. Pretty sure Sunday isn't about eating right. Also, it's just about February, so you should have completely abandoned that whole "eat better" New Year's Resolution by now. If not-- do so on Sunday. Charge into that Super Bowl spread with complete reckless abandon. Also, get drunk.

It's the American way.