Food

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Clean Up Time

December 6, 2011 in Food, recipe by traveleatlove | 5 comments

The holiday season probably isn’t the best time to start cleaning up one’s diet, but I am certainly in need of it. It’s not just because we just spent 10 days traveling and celebrating, the past year of craziness has truly caught up with me. Travel, blogger events, the desire to always cook and bake new things, a bunch of illnesses, my nana’s death, topped with truly poor eating habits during my work day have made me pack on the pounds and feel pretty tired. Where cheese and crackers were once snacks or treats, and bacon, egg, and cheese sandwiches were for weekends (Who am I kidding, I NEVER used to eat bacon!), they have replaced the veggie-filled meals of my past. Instead of eating normal meals, I have been going much of the day without eating, then chowing down on snack foods like chips, then end up too full to eat dinner, then eat more snacks later in the evening. It’s not a good scene, not at all.

On the plane back from Ireland and our first night home, I spent a ton of time planning meals to get back on track. I’m not cutting treats out (just got eight bottles of wine to sample!), I am just adding in more vegetables, fruits, whole grains, and fish into my diet.

I had a major craving for grilled zucchini when we were doing a huge Market Basket haul on Sunday, and a dish Cara made for Elina’s party a few months ago had been on my mind ever since. The zucchini roll-ups, filled with goat cheese, raisins, and pine nuts, were one of my favorite dishes of the night, and for Sunday lunch, I decided to turn the flavors into a warm salad.

zucchini

I started with two large zucchinis, cutting them into thick strips and coating them with olive oil. A hot grill pan did the trick; I just cooked until they were softened, with nice grill marks on both sides.

grilled zucchini

While the zucchini cooked, I rinsed some salted almonds (an accidental purchase) and roughly chopped them, breaking each almond into about three pieces.

almonds

I mixed the almonds with some golden raisins, and topped my cooked zucchini with the mix.

raisins

The finishing touch? A handful of crumbled goat cheese that nicely softened with the heat of the zucchini. All of the flavors in this dish worked together perfectly, and it was delicious, satisfying, and filled that salad void without leaving me cold! One of my problems in the colder weather is finding interesting ways to eat veggies in the winter, and I think using the grill pan will definitely come in handy this year.

zucchini salad

I have a ton more Ireland posts to come, but there will also be lots of home-cooking so that I can be sure to fit in the nutrition I need. After all, I start Boston Marathon training this week!

Tags: Food, goat cheese, recipe, salad, Vegetarian, zucchini

Ard Bia at Nimmo’s

December 5, 2011 in Food, Travel, wine by traveleatlove | 9 comments

The food and wine scene in Ireland has grown in leaps and bounds over the past couple of decades. Once known for a culture of overly-boiled vegetables and meats, Irish restaurants have garnered quite a bit of buzz for their creative fare made with local, seasonal ingredients, and inspired by the many cultural influences that have shaped the country.

Ard Bia

One restaurant in Galway that truly speaks to the city’s bohemian leanings, artistic cooking, and access to farms and fishermen, while maintaining some historical and cultural significance is Ard Bia at Nimmo’s, proud winners of many Bridgestone and other awards and is part of Slow Food Ireland.

Ard Bia

To access Ard Bia, one must pass through the Spanish Arch, an extension of the city walls, built in 1584.

Spanish Arch

Ard Bia is located along the Long Walk, which follows along the River Corrib where it meets the sea. The restaurant is literally feet from the mouth of the rushing river. If you are lucky enough to get a river-facing seat, you will be looking straight down into the water and across at The Claddagh, the village in which the famed ring originates.

River Corrib

Ard Bia is in a stone building with thick walls, narrow windows, its slightly menacing appearance brightened with splashes of red and colorful glass.

Nimmo's

Nimmo's

Inside is quite the reverse from the stone exterior. A café and bakery area exude warmth, while a friendly staff makes you feel right at home. Mismatched wooden tables, dripping candelabras, and beams of natural light make Ard Bia the perfect place for a leisurely lunch and a glass of wine. At night time, candlelit dinners create a cozy escape from the often tumultuous outside weather. This is the most romantic place to dine in a storm! And if you are lucky to catch good weather, an ideal place to watch the famous Galway Bay sunset.

Ard Bia

soda bread

Ard Bia

Ard Bia

On this particular day, we were sort of between lunch and breakfast, and we decided to go with both. My husband had a giant, fresh scone with homemade Ard Bia jam, a strong coffee. . . and a glass of Rosé from Catalunya. Quite the pairing! He said that the Rosé did pair well with the fruity jam on the scone, and who I am to judge. If you like it, it’s good!

scone

I opted to start with one of Ard Bia’s freshly made juices, ginger, carrot, and apple. Still feeling tired from the flight and sluggish from a day of Thanksgiving eating, it was nice to get a burst of juicy nutrients. I chased my juice with a glass of Nero d’Avola, a beautiful Sicilian wine that warmed me up nicely on the brisk day.

Nero d'avola

My lunch was simple perfection, a bowl of roasted red pepper and tomato soup served with hearty brown bread and butter. For me, one slice for breaking up and tossing into the soup and one slice for eating slathered with Irish butter. Vegetable soups are featured on nearly every menu in Ireland, and they usually tend to be delicious and to hit the spot. Ireland’s weather, while it tends not to get as cold as the Northeast, is raw and makes it impossible to warm up. Hot soup, tea, whiskey, and wine all help.

soup

Ard Bia translates to fine food in English, and while we didn’t experience some of their more creative dishes on this visit, we have eaten dinner here in the past. Local dishes, especially anything seafood based, are sure to please, and draw in tourists and locals alike.

Tags: Food, Galway, Ireland, Lunch, Restaurants, scones, wine

Happy Graduation!

December 2, 2011 in Travel by traveleatlove | 12 comments

Good news! I am extending the Tapeña Wines giveaway until Monday! If you haven’t entered, you can do so here.

http://traveleatlove.me/2011/11/celebrate-the-holidays-with-tapena-wines/

It’s our last day in Ireland. We head home tomorrow, and while I am sad to leave, I am looking forward to seeing my cats, sleeping in my own bed, and hopefully seeing some sun. The weather here has been absolutely abysmal, the worst I have ever seen it. Cold, blustery, raining, hailing, flooding, you name it.

Since it is our last day, I have to give a shout out to my husband, the very reason for our trip to Ireland this November. You probably already know if you read my blog, but he received two Master’s degrees last Wednesday, one in Software and Information Systems and one in Software Engineering and Database Technologies from a joint program between the National University of Ireland Galway and Regis College. The three years of his double Masters program were tough. He worked full time, often spending 80 hours in his real job, followed by studying and papers until sometimes 3 am. Holidays and weekends always meant assignments. And he still managed to remain cheerful and fun and my favorite person to be around. . . most of the time!

When I was a senior in college, my friends and I decided to start toasting “Happy Graduation!” every time we went out, starting in September. Sometimes we still toast the same thing, 10 years later (eek!), so I am wishing Eric a Happy Graduation today with more than good reason!

graduation

There were two ceremonies, one for each degree. The first ceremony was conducted in Irish, English, and Latin, and seemed a bit long. But I teared up when all of the graduates stood up to clap for their families who had supported them over the course of the degree. The second ceremony had food and wine and was for the smaller program, so was much quicker, and was definitely my preferred way of watching a graduation.

Galway

National University of Ireland

I spent a semester and part of a summer at the National University of Ireland, Galway. Here is just one of the impressive buildings on the campus.

image

We celebrated after at McSwiggan’s, one of my favorite restaurants in Galway. I had the same thing I always have, a massive portion of vegetable curry with naan, rice, and minted yogurt. It is amazing.

After dinner with the family, we did some pub hopping and ended up at The Quay’s for their after midnight live band. Somehow, even though we were up all night flying the night before, we got a second wind to stay out until 3 am!

The Quays

We toasted Happy Graduation with pints of Guinness in one of Galway’s oldest pubs. Many pints of Guinness. It’s got iron in it though, making it more of a supplement than a beer.

Guinness

The Quays

Every nook and cranny of this pub has something cool, whether it be a sculpture, a stained glass window, or wall that is hundreds of years old.

The Quays

As we often do, we ended the night here.

Supermacs

For a bit of this. If you haven’t had garlic and cheese chips, you need to seek them out in your lifetime, even if just once. While I rarely feel well after eating them, they are worth every garlicky, cheesy bite! After our crazy transatlantic trip, graduation, dinner, meeting our baby nephew for the first time, and partying like rockstars, it was time for bed.

image

 

I love an excuse for a celebration, and this graduation certainly was a big one!

Have you celebrated anything lately, big or small?

Tags: Food, Guinness, Ireland, Travel

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