Trip 2010-Last NIght!

When on Route 90 crossing New York State, I can recommend Hoak's Restaurant on Lakeshore Drive in Hamburg NY. Order the fish fry with half fries and half homemade potato salad--yep-It's good!!

Road Trip Day 2

Leaving Vermont and riding down route 7 south here is a major tip:  If ever in the vicinity of Vergennes, VT--run (no not walk) to 3 Squares Cafe! Brunch delights included a bacon egg, spinach, cheddar cheese panino for dear husband and absolutely the BEST and, somewhat unconventional, Huevos Rancheros for moi. My dish was incredible--the picture does not do it justice but, suffice it to say, if in Vermont DO NOT miss this spot! The vibe in this little place: the decor, the staff, and the customers--- the "gestalt" of the place really works--bravo to them!

The Panino

The Huevos

Dinner found us in Bennington, Vermont at a very cool pub on Main Street, Madison Brewery. We split the Eggplant Provencal Sandwich and if you happen upon this place be sure someone in your party orders this!

Vermont!

Who would have guessed that on a road trip into a Vermont that you would find great, and I mean GREAT Mexican food for lunch and great, I mean GREAT, Asian food for dinner?? I guess a person just needs to do a little homework (thanks to Mrs. Cookcat:-)

Lunch in Stowe Vermont at Frida's Taqueria where dear husband ordered a brisket burrito and I had the crisp cod burrito with black beans, cabbage and tomatillo sauce. SOOOOOOOOO good!

Foe dinner, in Burlington at A Single Pebble (Asian fusion) you'll see the best dry fried Green Beans I've ever tasted , Tangerine Peel Chicken, Ants on a Tree noodle dish, and some dim sum delicacies.

Road Trip Resumes!

If you are EVER in Skowhegan Maine (and why would you be??) I can recommend the Old Mill Pub for a mighty fine lunch. Below you'll see the Greek Chicken Wrap and the Pub Club and Hand Cut Fries! Sit on the deck and watch the waterfall---on a sunny, glorious August afternoon--no worries :-)

 Sometimes you find a restaurant or a bistro that is a destination unto itself. If you are EVER in driving distance of Gorham, New Hampshire, be sure to take a meal at Libby's Bistro or Salt pub (which is in Libby's basement). Fantastic food, great atmosphere--See Antipasto Platter below:  unbelievably tasty!

Mainely Meat!

Tonight we had a very tasty dinner at the Atlantic Brewing Company/Mainely Meats. The pulled pork dinner and pulled pork sandwich were SOOOOOOOO good!

Tapas in Maine?

In the very small town of Ellsworth, Maine there's the coolest little tapas place. The four of us had a delicious lunch of small plates which included roasted beets with Gorgonzola, smoked bluefish, whipped spicy feta, and chicken wings. In addition to that we also feasted on lamb burger pitas and fish stew! If ever in this area, do not miss Cleonice--it's a great little spot!

More Maine Eats!

Wonderful crab roll at Jordan's Snack Bar

Last night the four of us dined at a terrific little restaurant, Town Hill Bistro,  on Mt Desert Island and had a change of pace from lobster, lobster, lobster.

Dinner entrees included Porterhouse Pork Chop, Sirloin with Sweet Potato Hash, Fresh Vegetables over Polenta and House-Made Gnocchi.

Trenton Bridge Pound

There's a great lobster pound up the road from our rental home and we can bring the lobsters back and eat in the comfort of home :-)

Lobstah Time!

Fresh whole Maine Lobster and lobster roll at Thurston's Lobster Pound on Mt. Desert Island, Maine

For Mary!

A lunch stop in Bucksport on Route 1 North to Bar Harbor and I ordered for this for my BFF, Mary...........Lobster Roll magnifique and I have to say hubby's Tuna Salad was not too shabby either!

Bath Maine!

A person can't come to Bath without a trip to the Beale Street Barbecue. What a feast! One platter was Balsamic Bourbon Ribs and the other was Spicy Sausages. Sides were fantastic mac and cheese and perfectly cooked greens. Both dinners were served with jalapeno corn bread. Not a diet dinner! Needless to say, we couldn't eat all this and had no home to take it to :-(

Joe's Diner

This one's for you, Joe! The food is good and the waitresses are sassy!

Salmon Run Fish House

We are in Lee Massachusetts and need I say more? The salmon had a bourbon glaze---SOOOOO good!

Lunch in a great little town, Oneonta, New York? Who knew? Great little main street and there are some Greeks living here putting out some amazingly good gyros! Yum!

New York Beef!

Beef on Kimmelwek or is it wick?

This blog post is a tribute to my good friend, Linda K, who taught me about this Western New York sandwich experience! We're staying over night here on the way to Maine and I knew if I landed in the vicinity of a kimmelwek roll I had to have it! I have only heard stories of this sandwich but now I know why she feels the need to import these rolls back to Ann Arbor on occasion. The roast beef was perfectly rare and the roll had just the right consistency and was topped with salt and caraway--oh my gosh, this was SOOOOOOO good! Thinking of you my friend and knowing this entry would make you smile :-)

Burger Time!

Tonight's Burger was:

Grilled Burger
Bacon
Sharp cheddar cheese
Jalapenos
Toasted Kaiser roll
Special sauce (Hellman's mayo mixed with Melinda's Habanero Ketchup)

Served with Salt & Pepper Kettle chips and blue cheese cole slaw

Pizza Time!

Sometimes it's fun to try a really different kind of pizza combo. Tonight it's Chicken, Cheese and Sun-dried Tomato!

Pizza ingredients:
Store-bought whole wheat crust
A cup of broccoli heads
Some olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
1/2 lb chicken tenders
1 cup part skin ricotta cheese
10 sun-dried tomatoes in oil, drained and sliced
1 cup shredded mozzarella
Red Pepper flakes (optional)
Thinly sliced fresh basil would be nice but I was too lazy

Directions

Steam broccoli and chop
Sauté chicken in olive oil--add garlic toward the end-season with salt and pepper
Chop chicken into bite size pieces

To assemble pizza: dot crust with broccoli and chicken and garlic. Dot crust with spoonfuls of ricotta and spread gently with back of spoon. Scatter sun-dried tomatoes and top with mozzarella and red pepper. Bake 12 minutes or so at 450

Top with basil (if you have it)

Yogurt Dill Sauce

Having salmon tonight  and wanted to do something a bit different so I decided to rely on an old faithful recipe which I made up.  It's a variation/combo of the Greek Taziki Sauce and Indian Raita Sauce. It's pretty tasty on salmon and the husband says it's not a bad dip for potato chips either!

Menu

Broiled Salmon with Sara's Sauce
Smashed redskins with leftover chimichurri (will I ever use this up???)
Green beans tossed with a little soy sauce and toasted sesame seeds (yum!)

Sara's Sauce

1 small container Greek non-fat plain yogurt
1 t minced garlic
some red pepper flakes
1/3 of a cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped small
A couple slices of onion chopped small  (also good if you have scallions-I didn't)
1 T dill ( I didn't have fresh but good anyway)
salt and pepper
juice of half a lemon
1/4 cup olive oil
a couple T of apple cider vinegar
Mix all that together and put in fridge. Good to make several hours ahead.

Delicious Side Dish!

Menu:

Tenderloin Steaks with Chimichurri Sauce
Roasted Cauliflower
Laura's Syrian Green Beans

Steaks

I just pan sautéed two small fillets and garnished with leftover chimichurri sauce (see earlier post for recipe) that I had in the fridge.

Roasted Cauliflower

1 head cauliflower broken into pieces. Toss with juice of a lemon, some olive oil, garlic salt and pepper. Spread on baking sheet and roast at 450 for 20 minutes, then turn the cauliflower pieces for another 15 minutes. Throw some Parmesan cheese on before serving.

Laura's Syrian Green Beans

The following recipe is from a fantastic local cook and you can find her very cool cooking blog at:

http://allfoodallthetime.blogspot.com/

Recipe......and directions are in her words from her blog:

Laura's Syrian Green Beans

1 lb green beans
1/2 onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, sliced
1 can petite diced tomatoes
1/2 cup olive oil (don't skimp here)
couple fat pinches sugar
salt and pepper to taste
half a lemon

Ok, it looks like a lot of olive oil, but trust me. Heat the olive oil in a big pan. Add the onions an cook for a few minutes until softened. Add the green beans, cook a few more minute, then the garlic, and cook yet a few more minutes. Now add the tomatoes, juice and all, and the sugar. Cook over fairly low heat for about 35 minutes, or until the green beans are soft, and almost starting to fall apart. You are not looking for crunch here. It should all be melded together, stewing in delicious olive oil. Mmmmm. Trust me and make it, it is like crack. You'll keep going back to fridge to sneak more bites, and it is even better the next day.

She is SO right—these beans are addictive!!

Roasted Lemon Chicken

We eat a lot of chicken at our house and I'm always on the look out for a new taste. After perusing a few cookbooks and a few blogs I decided to give this a try and wow was it good! This dish is pretty rich so I just did a simple grilled vegetable mélange of squash and peppers to round out the meal.

Roasted Lemon Chicken

12 thin lemon slices, cut from 2 lemons
olive oil
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
about 1/2 cup flour
2 tsp. poultry seasoning
fresh ground black pepper to taste
2-3 T olive oil
1/2 cup sliced pitted green olives (I used garlic stuffed ones!)
2 T drained capers, rinsed
1 1/2 cups low sodium chicken stock
2 T butter, cut into small pieces
3 T chopped fresh parsley-this would look nice—I didn't have any tonight

Preheat oven to 325 F. Cut two lemons into thin slices Brush lemon slices lightly with olive oil and arrange on baking sheet with parchment paper or foil. Roast until lemons are slightly dry and barely beginning to brown, about 25 minutes.

Trim all visible fat and tendons from chicken breasts. Combine flour and poultry seasoning and add desired amount of black pepper. Lightly coat chicken with flour. Heat oil in heavy pan just large enough to hold the chicken in a single layer. Add chicken and cook until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes per side. Add olives and capers and pour in chicken stock. Bring to boil, scraping off any browned bits from bottom of pan. Boil until liquid is reduced and slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Add butter, roasted lemon slices, and 2 T of the chopped parsley. Simmer until butter is melted and chicken is cooked through, 2-3 minutes more. Transfer chicken to serving platter, pour sauce over, and sprinkle remaining 1 T parsley. Serve hot.

Grilled Vegetables

Slice squash in thick lengthwise slices. Cut red and green pepper in large wedges. Marinate the veggies in Italian salad dressing in a ziplock bag for a couple of hours.

Preheat grill to high. Once I put the veggies on the grates I turn the heat down. Grill five minutes and then turn. Grill another five or so.