dinner

You are currently browsing articles tagged dinner.

Patio Season!

May 22, 2012 in Restaurants by traveleatlove | 10 comments

It is patio dining time in Boston, and we kicked it off Friday night on one of our favorite patios in the Boston area, Ashmont Grill. From the smells of wood burning to the lingering daylight to the always delicious cocktails and food, Ashmont Grill made yet another date night memorable.

Ashmont Grill

The patio features a fire pit, stone walls, overhead covers to make it a little les sunny, and even fleece blankets for chilly nights. Before dinner, I enjoyed a delicious sour cherry cocktail. Ashmont Grill always has fun and creative cocktails on the menu. It’s definitely a good place to go if you are looking for a drink.

Ashmont Grill

To start, we shared a plate of the messy Trainwreck Fries. They’re basically smothered in cheese, bacon, sour cream, and jalapenos.

My husband ordered a wedge salad, which we ended up also sharing because it was amazing. Oven roasted tomatoes and lardons really make this salad special. The flavor in the tomatoes was incredible.

wedge salad

I had the Truffled English Pea Arancini, hearty balls of risotto with mushrooms and a tomato dipping sauce. Alongside that I had a bowl of lobster chowder which was delicious, but I was stuffed at this point.

photo

We spent a good deal of time just relaxing after our meal and enjoying the cool evening. It was a perfect night for patio dining and a great way to kick off a fun weekend.

Other favorite Boston patios? Interestingly, Dorchester has a few. dbar has a gorgeous outdoor oasis, and The Ledge does as well. Sam’s at Louis one of my favorites in all of Boston. And of course, the roof deck at Legal’s Harborside is a great place for cocktails and bar bites, and I like the Legal Seafoods outdoor space in Harvard Square too.

Do you have a favorite restaurant patio in Boston or another city?

Tags: Ashmont Grill, Boston, cocktails, dinner, Dorchester, Food

Convenient, Local, and So Good

May 17, 2012 in Food by traveleatlove | 5 comments

Anytime I go away for the weekend and get back late on Sunday, my week ends up being a little more hectic. Suddenly there’s all of those weekend things that need to be done on top of long work days, and they just don’t always get done.

I’ve been doing my best cooking up meals with the ingredients we had in the house, but nothing has been very exciting. I had cheese and crackers for lunch yesterday and counted pickles as a vegetable on Tuesday. Yeah, it’s one of those weeks.

As a result, I was doubly, maybe triply delighted when I checked the mail on the way to my afternoon office and found a coupon for a free Willow Tree Poultry Farm chicken pie.

Willow Tree contacted me last week asking if I would be interested in trying a pie, and since I love chicken pot pie, I gladly accepted.

Willow Tree is based in Attleboro, MA and has been around for 60 years. Their products are prepared by hand, and as a local business, they are great in supporting the local community. It was fun to read up on the company’s story.

I literally thought about the chicken pie all day long. I could not wait to run to Shaw’s on my way home to pick one up and to have dinner made for us.

image

I popped the chicken pie in the oven and got back to work, eventually having to stop because the aromas of the baking crust and bubbling gravy were filling the house. We eagerly cut into the pie about 10 minutes before it was meant to be done, and it was piping hot.

Look at those chunks of chicken! They  and the veggies were integrated nicely throughout the pie and made it a filling, hearty meal. The gravy is homemade, and you can definitely taste the care and quality ingredients. It was rich and just salty enough, as gravy should be.

image

I was most looking forward to the crust, and it did not disappoint. Golden, flaky, and buttery, it made for the comfort food I was craving during the rainy, dreary weather.

My nana made an amazing chicken pot pie when I was younger, and there was definitely a resemblance. This is the stuff of childhood memories and modern day meals all at once.

With zero trans fats and lots of homemade flavor, Willow Tree’s chicken pies are a great option for dinner on a busy weeknight. The 26 ounce pie said that it serves three, but we paired ours with a quick kale salad and got four servings out of the pie, enough for lunch the next day, which made me very happy.

Thank you to Willow Tree for sending me the coupon and allowing me to experience the chicken pie. I will definitely be trying the other varieties on busy work days to come.

Do you have any favorite convenience foods?

Tags: chicken, chicken pot pie, dinner, easy meals, local food

Peanut Tofu Quinoa

May 10, 2012 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 5 comments

Things are very busy around this household, and to cut back on prep time everyday, I have been trying to make extra large dinners that will last for at least two or three lunches. Plus we’re both trying to get a little more fit, so the focus has been on healthy, generally vegetarian meals with lots of protein.

Sunday night I pulled together a bunch of random ingredients to make a delicious quinoa dish with crumbled tofu and peanut sauce.

lime and ginger

This dish was super simple and ended up being delicious. Here’s the scoop:

Ingredients

3 cups quinoa, cooked according to package instructions

1 package extra firm tofu, thoroughly drained and crumbled into small pieces

1 cup natural peanut butter

1 cup coconut milk

1/2 medium purple cabbage, chopped finely

8 large carrots, chopped finely

1 tsp red curry paste

4 tsp grated ginger

juice of one lime

peanut butter

carrots and cabbage

While the quinoa cooked, I prepared the vegetables, chopping them to tiny bits together in my Cuisinart.

image

Once the carrots and cabbage were ready, I mixed them and the tofu in with the quinoa. I thinned out the peanut butter by adding some warm water and poured that in as well.  I then added the coconut milk.

Once all of the vegetables, quinoa, tofu, and peanut butter were mixed, I added in the curry paste and ginger, stirred some more, and let it simmer until heated all the way through. Right before serving, I added a squeeze of lime to each bowl.

peanut tofu quinoa

This no-fuss meal was a perfect dinner and an even better lunch with a little extra coconut milk and some leftover sweet potato added to it. The quinoa and tofu gave it a hefty protein kick, and the veggies added some extra nutrients.

It was definitely not a fancy meal, but the flavors and the little prep worked involved made it a new favorite. We’ve been making chilis, curries, and other big batches of food to get us through the week.

What are some of your favorites?

Tags: dinner, Lunch, quinoa, recipe, tofu, vegan, vegetables, Vegetarian

« Older entries § Newer entries »

new restaurant
WordPress SEO fine-tune by Meta SEO Pack from Poradnik Webmastera