Food

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The Daily Table Dorchester

January 29, 2016 in Food by traveleatlove | 2 comments

Have you heard of The Daily Table?  We’d be reading about it here and there and finally made a trip last week. It’s one of my new favorite spaces.

The Daily Table

Here’s the story:

Daily Table is a not-for-profit retail store that offers our community a variety of tasty, convenient and affordable foods that will help you feel and be your best; food that will keep you moving forward, not hold you back.  We provide both “grab-n-go” ready to eat meals, and a selection of produce, bread, dairy and grocery items all at prices that will put a smile on your face, and designed to fit within every budget.  Many of our items are prepared fresh daily in our own kitchen onsite.

We offer an upbeat, clean and friendly retail store environment that is open to everyone in the community.  We can offer these daily values by working with a large network of growers, supermarkets, manufacturers, and other suppliers who donate their excess, healthy food to us, or provide us with special buying opportunities.

In this way, we are able to keep prices affordable for all our customers.  Our meals are priced to compete with fast food options, making it easier for families to eat healthier within their means.  And all the food in our store is informed by guidelines set for us by a leading group of nutrition experts, which makes it easy for our customers to make great food choices.

hummus

We held off on going to Daily Table for so long partially because we weren’t sure if it was open to all, and we certainly didn’t want to take away from anyone who could really benefit from shopping there. Then, while at the Dorchester Winter Farmers Market (another favorite), we were encouraged to visit and learned that everyone is welcome. The more shoppers, the more support the concept receives.

The Daily Table is bright, colorful, and inviting, with a friendly staff, and it relies on volunteers to keep costs down. Every time we have visited, the selection has been different, as the food is excess food from the store’s partners. I love that the selection varies, and we’ve decided to start our shopping here each week to plan meals around what they have, then supplement at the regular grocery store. On past visits, we’ve seen amazing deals on wild tuna (two hefty steaks for $5), spicy chicken burgers (four for $2.99), and organic yogurts, which are $0.49 each. Five pound tubs of hummus for $2.99 and baby carrots for $0.49 per pound make for plenty of healthy snacks that are affordable for a family.

carrots One of the really great things about The Daily Table is their made-on-site pre-made meal program. So far I have tried the delicious curried butternut squash soup, pulled pork pizza, and my new favorite, chili lime coconut chips, and everything has been so good. You can peek into the kitchen while you shop, and just like with the grocery items, prepared foods also often change. I’ve seen curries with rice, beef stew, quesadillas, sandwiches, and more. The prices are extremely competitive with fast food, making eating healthier much easier for busy people, especially the many in our community who hold multiple jobs to make ends meet.

The Daily Table Kitchen

coconut chips Shopping at The Daily Table has allowed us to save money and discover new ingredients. It’s also made me get creative in the kitchen, and in general, it just fills my heart with happiness for our community, which is full of great people who deserve the opportunity and access to healthy food. Eliminating food waste while helping people eat better? It just makes sense.

The Daily Table is a big step in the right direction to alleviating some of the issues created by food deserts, and I am proud to support this pilot program.

Tags: community, cooking, Dorchester, Food, food blog, groceries, grocery shopping

Travel Discovery: North Plank Tavern

January 15, 2016 in Food, Restaurants, Travel by traveleatlove | 6 comments

With family all over the place, we tend to travel for just about every holiday. While I love seeing family and mixing things up, it can also be a bit of a slog to always have to hop in the car for a traffic-laden ride or to deal with airport crowds during the holiday season. Making fun little stops along the way on road trips can make them feel a little less like a chore and more like an adventure.

On our way home from Christmas in New Jersey, we found ourselves hungry just over the border in New York state, and when I say hungry, I actually mean my blood sugar dropped and I needed to EAT now or harm someone. That happens to everyone, right?

We pulled off the highway in Newburgh, New York expecting to land at a Dunkin’ Donuts or diner, something that would be quick so we could be on our way again. Instead we drove right past North Plank Tavern, a sweet old house with a bright, friendly OPEN flag flying from its doorway.

 

North Plank Tavern

The cheerful outside against the gray December sky called to us, and since we had plenty of time before dinner plans in Boston, we decided to have a sit down meal and to take our time, something I am not very good at.

We walked inside and were instantly charmed by the narrow doorways and dark wood. We popped our heads in the dining rooms first and finally settled into the empty bar, where we were soon welcomed. My photos aren’t great as I was trying to not have my phone out during a meal, something I want to get better at, but they do give an idea of this historic tavern’s look and feel.

North Plank Tavern

North Plank Tavern North Plank Tavern historic tavern

According to our host and the North Plank Tavern website:

The Tavern has a storied past.  It was  originally built as a hotel along a plank road, and became a Tavern and boarding house.  During prohibition, the Tavern continued to serve alcohol and operated as a speakeasy.

The boarding house was owned by Mrs. Sauer, whose name and photo can be seen in photos above. The space was enchanting; I love history and trying to imagine what things were like in different periods. It also felt a wee bit creepy; I am a strong believer in lingering spirits and always hope to encounter them in old houses! Except my own that is. . .

I love the above photo from the restaurant website, a trap door with Prohibition-era liquor underneath.

North Plank Tavern old fashioned doornautical decor

For an old tavern, I expected the menu to match, with classics and pub-type food. We were pleasantly surprised at the gourmet aspect of the restaurant.

Burrata Tomato Salad

The brunch menu featured an INCREDIBLE truffled Burrata salad with oven-roasted tomatoes. It was absolutely to-die-for and even better because it was NOT what I expected when we stopped for food.

My husband had the slab bacon (naturally) with eggs and home fries, all also excellent. The North Plank Tavern has a big smoker out back, where the bacon was made, it the bacon was delicious. So smoky, meaty, tender, so much better than regular old bacon.

The service was lovely, and the vibe was relaxed. We’ll be planning drives around meals here in the future. I can’t wait to check out the dinner menu,

Tags: Food, historic restaurant, history, New York, New York State, North Plank Tavern, speakeasy, tavern, Travel

Healthy Eating at Home

January 13, 2016 in Food by traveleatlove | 4 comments

It’s 13 days into the New Year, and I am chugging along with my 2016 goals. So far I have booked a trip to Puerto Rico, which I am counting as a new place, since I only had a six hour layover there the last time. I’ve added more movement into my life, including dance parties and planks when I get up to make tea. I’ve been sticking to a work schedule, saving two days a week for “off limits” for off-property meetings, which take up a ton of time to get to and from. I’ve pitched some new business and have an updated profile on the website for a PR agency I work with that works extensively with wine clients.

And I have most definitely been paying more attention to eating healthier food and sticking to a workout schedule! I have a few weeks of events and travel coming up, and while I know some weeknight dinners out will be less-than-healthy, I am just doing my best to take things one day at a time. Below you’ll find some of the healthy at home cooking I have been doing lately.

blood orange

1) I have changed up my daytime snacking to include more fruit, especially apples, blood oranges, and grapefruits. I always feel dehydrated this time of year, and delicious winter citrus and other fruits help make me feel like I am drenching my body with water and nutrients. I’ve also added in lots of decaf green tea to hold my appetite off until meals (And because I read that it helps with weight loss. . . it’s healthy so worth a try!). That said, there’s plenty of Nutella straight from the jar, along with almonds and pieces of candy. Balance!

 

 

Life Alive Goddess Bowl

2) Life Alive inspired veggie bowls. The top bowl is an actual Goddess Bowl from Life Alive, also known as a bowl of heaven. If I could eat at Life Alive every day, I would be healthy, happy, and broke. So I have been experimenting with my own bowls. The below didn’t quite look like a Life Alive bowl, but with brown rice, chickpeas, carrots, kale, and onions, topped with an incredible homemade dressing, it came close and made for a delicious dinner. The sauce was made of cashews (soaked in water for the day first), blended with warm water, sesame oil, fresh ginger, garlic, lemon juice, and miso. Really yummy.

Goddess Bowl knock off

white bean stew

beef stew recipe

3) One pot comfort food. Comfort food can be healthy. This Guinness Beef Stew recipe is versatile, and you can add even more veggies if you want. Lean beef that cooks low and slow falls apart and adds lots of nutrients and protein.

And my white bean and sausage stew is a delicious, easy mish-mosh of ingredients: white beans, chicken andouille sausage, crushed tomatoes, kale, garlic, onions, all cooked together and topped with salty feta. This is an easy dinner for any night of the week and makes for great leftovers.

tomato and pomegranate salad 

4) Choosing vibrant salads whenever possible – This one, Ottolenghi’s Tomato and Pomegranate Salad, was a beautiful start to a dinner party we attended last week, and I filled up on it before diving into the other courses. If salad can always be like this, I am in.

kale pesto

5) Kale Pesto – Winter pesto never gets old. I crave the bright green, garlicky paste on shrimp, chicken, and vegetables (pasta too, but we’re trying to avoid it. . . ). This one is a blend of kale, good olive oil, parmesan, walnuts, and ALL the garlic. Yum.

Do you have any healthy eating inspiration lately?

Tags: comfort food, Food, healthy, healthy recipes, nutrition, recipes, salads, weight loss

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