Guest Blogger

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Friday Foodie Feature

July 30, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 2 comments

Welcome to the new format of the Friday Foodie Feature. As a blogger it is so important to me to be able to share different perspectives from the food, wine, and travel worlds, so I wanted to keep the Friday Foodie Feature but change the format a little. Going forward, I will continue to feature a fellow blogger each Friday, but it is completely up to the individual what to include. I am seeking foodies for future Fridays, so please email me if you are interested in contributing.

Today’s feature is Jen from Twenty-Something and Starving. Jen is not only a blogger, but she is the cousin of my long time neighbors and friends back in NJ, so I have known her since she was little. It makes me feel old to see her all grown up! My mom and sister were at a christening this past spring (which I missed due to the Boston Marathon), found out about Jen’s blog, and I have been a fan ever since. She has a great writing voice and professional quality photos and recipes and is definitely someone to follow.

Well, hello! I’m Jen, and I am the mastermind behind Twenty-Something and Starving.

I started Twenty-Something and Starving in September for my Online Journalism class. My professor said we needed to choose a topic we were passionate about, and I knew instantly that I had to choose food.
I’ve always loved food. I remember growing up, I would spend weekends at my Dad’s house, and he would always plan something elaborate for our Saturday dinners and Sunday breakfasts and I loved helping and spending time in the kitchen.

I’ve always loved writing, too. My most famous piece of writing – at least according to my Mom – is one I wrote in the first grade about a penguin that lived in my freezer. Ha. Clearly I’ve always had a sense of humor, too!
When the semester ended and my Online Journalism class was over, I chose to continue blogging because I grew to love it!!

In the last 10 or so months, my life has changed so much. I graduated from college. I left my home state of New Jersey (and moved next door to Pennsylvania.). I’m attempting to plan a wedding. Sheesh. It sounds even crazier when I write it all out. Blogging has been an amazing outlet for me. It takes two things in my life that are constant and that I love and turns them into something other people can enjoy, too! And that makes me so, so happy.
If I had to pick my favorite post I would say that it’s actually a video project I did for my class about Joloff Rice, a traditional and rather tasty African dish. My favorite recipe, though, is for my Chicken and Corn Chowder. I love soup. So much. It’s hard to really pick my favorite food, but soup may actually take the cake. Heh. Cake is good, too. But in all seriousness – soup is so versatile and typically pretty healthy and tasty and yum.

Anywho, my blog is still kind of a baby, I guess. I haven’t even been blogging for a year yet. However, I do have 50 original recipes and my plan is that once I get to 100, I’m going to start compiling my recipes into a Twenty-Something and Starving cookbook! I already have a layout planned in my head, but that’s the Journalism major in me! What started out as a class assignment has really become quite an adventure for me, and it’s one I plan to continue for as long as people keep enjoying it. 🙂

Tags: Food, Guest Blogger, recipes

The Summer of Rosé

July 12, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 6 comments

Hi, all! Amie here, guest-blogging for Meghan while she’s in the glorious hills of Wine Country. I figured it would only be fitting to write about wine—or more specifically, the under-appreciated Rosé.

I took a trip to Napa this past April. Of course Napa comes highly recommended, especially if you can do a day of wine tastings at any one of the unique vineyards. I mean, why go to Napa or Sonoma if not to sample great wines, right?

I’ve recently fallen in love with the pink hue and refreshingly crisp taste of Rosé. In my experience, most people write off this style as “too sweet” or “not real wine.” And to that I say, “Have you tried a good one yet?”

Which brings me to my current, ultimate favorite—but there is good and bad news. The good news? Rutherford Hill (Napa) has an amazing 2008 Rosé. The bad news? I am not sure that they distribute locally! I shipped a few bottles home to MA, which was not cheap. You can order on their Web site, but keep in mind the shipping cost. This drier Rosé pairs very well with the lighter fare of Summertime. It’s made with Merlot and Cabernet Franc grapes, and is a light ruby color with an equally pleasing taste. It’s a fairly full-bodied Rosé, and while you can taste fruits like strawberry and plum, it is not a sweeter variety. Love it!

Next up is a 2009 Robert Oatley Rosé of Sangiovese from Australia. I picked this one up on a whim. All I knew about this wine was that I wanted a Rosé, so why not a new one! I also like Sangiovese wine, so figured I’d like this one. (It also happened to be on sale, shhhh.). While I really loved the bottle’s label, I wasn’t totally sold on its contents. (Sidenote: Yes, I do often choose wine based on its label. I blame it on being a graphic designer!) This is not a bad wine, don’t get me wrong. To me, it was just a little too crisp, with too little fruit notes. It tasted almost like cranberry in a way. However if you have an aversion to sweet wines, you may want to give this one a shot!

The third that I’ve recently been enjoying is the 2008 Mulderbosch Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé from South Africa. It’s wallet-friendly, has eye-pleasing packaging, and is simply delicious! It is so perfect for any summer meal cooked and/or eaten outdoors, and is very BBQ friendly. Again, this has the typical red hue, along with layers of strawberry, cherry, rose, and peach. It’s a tad peppery, but that keeps it refreshing and not too sweet!

rose-muld-flickr

Thanks so much, Amie, for writing about one of my favorite summer wines. If you get the chance, definitely check out Amie’s blog and portfolio website.

As you all know, my favorite Rosé is from Travessia right here in Massachusetts. I have also recently discovered another favorite, Pares Balta Ros de pacs which you can get at The Urban Grape and other great wine stores, and on this visit to Sonoma I loved Amista’s Rosé of Syrah. More to come on Amista later, but if you are visiting Sonoma anytime soon, just go there. I will be back tomorrow with my regular old posting schedule. I have missed the blogging world, but it has been nice to have a few days off from everything! 🙂

Tags: Guest Blogger, Mulderbosch, Robert Oakley, rose wine, Rutherford Hill, Summer wine, wine reviews

Flavors from Finland

July 10, 2010 in Uncategorized by traveleatlove | 3 comments

Hi!

I’m a new blogger from Finland and am proud to introduce you some flavors from my home country. Thanks Meghan for the chance to promote my tiny country and its delicious foods!

– Finland is situated between Sweden and Russia, in northern Europe- Finland has 5.4 million inhabitants

– The capital of Finland is Helsinki

– There are more than 2 million saunas in Finland

– We do not have polar bears in Finland 😉

A little background information about Finland:

(Source: http://www.d-t-n.org/site/graphics/missionandtravel/europe_map.gif)

Now you know a bit about my home country! In this post I’m going to concentrate on my favorite topic; FOOD.

Traditional Finnish cuisine is similar to Swedish, German and Russian cuisines. Finnish dishes tend to be less sweet than Swedish ones, and Finns use little or no sour cream in preparation compared to their Russian neighbors.

Traditional dishes (perinneruoka) are rarely eaten on a daily basis and saved for the real holidays, such as Christmas and Easter. The traditional dishes are often regional and more valued by the older generations or only eaten during a specific holiday; for example Mämmi during Easter. This following dish is only eaten during Easter, (almost) never on other occasions. For the recipe of Mämmi go here (link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%A4mmi)

Mämmi does not look very appealing 😀

Source (http://yle.fi/ecepic/archive/00064/mammi_jpg_64740b.jpg)

Home-made food (kotiruoka) can be also found in restaurants and we have many restaurants in Helsinki specializing in traditional Finnish food.

The most common traditional foods in Finland (which are eaten on daily basis in Finnish homes):

Leipäjuusto (direct translation is bread cheese)

Source: http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/koti/ohjelmat/makuja/uutiskuvat/575247.jpg

It’s usually eaten with jam, but I usually eat without. It doesn’t have much flavor and it feels a bit rubbery in your mouth but once you get used to it, you will love it!

Reindeer (poronkäristys)

Source: http://www.ruokala.net/static_images/view/3116/size:recipe

Reindeer is usually eaten with mashed potatoes, jam and pickles. It’s one of the most popular dishes among those foreigners I have introduced this dish to.

Cabbage rolls (kaalikääryleet)

Source: http://static.iltalehti.fi/ruoka/kaalikaaryleSP_h3.jpg

They look like spring rolls, but are not. It’s minced meat (ground beef) rolled into a cabbage leaf. They’re also served with jam, usually with cranberry.

These took me almost 20 years to like them, but now I actually like eating the rolls, I also should try making them at home. As a child this used to be my most-hated-dish-ever 😀

Pea Soup (hernekeitto)

Pea soup is one of the most popular dishes among poor students. It’s cheap, filling and even though you have tons of gas in your stomach after eating a can, sometimes you just don’t mind. Pea soup is usually eaten here every Thursday. Even my office has pea soup Thursdays! It’s eaten with mustard or, like in the picture, with ham 😉

Source: http://www.tiesydameen.fi/files/tiesydameen/recipes/0c545f_hernerokka.jpg

Finnish meatballs (lihapullat)

These are a familiar dish in my kitchen. My boyfriend loves my home made meatballs and I have also made them in Germany for a bunch of Germans who had no idea how to make them at home, they were a success!

Source: http://img.mtv3.fi/mn_kuvat/mtv3/koti/ohjelmat/taydellinen_paiva/jaksot/544831.jpg

They are also usually eaten with mashed potatoes.

Pickled herring (silli)

Source: http://www.acc.umu.se/~wschedin/midsommer/midsommarmat-06-06-23b.jpg

There are tons of different kinds of pickled herrings in Finnish grocery stores. I personally love the middle one, herring with mustard. They are a traditional summer dish and are eaten with new (small) potatoes and dill.

Viili

This is a product I tried to explain in my blog some time ago. It was difficult! I found an article in Foodista (link here: http://www.foodista.com/food/WQ244GRP/viili) about viili!

Source: http://euromarket.lahikauppa.fi/client-data/recipePictures/19806.jpg

Smoked fish (savustettu liha)

We Finns love fish, especially smoked fish! We have so many different kinds of fish and I really want to make you drool in the end of my guest post, so here are some pictures of my favorite delicacy 😉