What I Ate Wednesday #56: Date Night

On Friday, Nathan and I decided on a bit of an impromptu date night and made our way over to Ten Ten for a little something new. We had been there for lunch once before but never for dinner and had only heard great things. Especially about the brussels sprouts.

We made it there just in time to end happy hour so we ordered up a couple drinks and an order of the famous baby cabbages. It’s definitely out of the ordinary for me to suggest a fried appetizer, but at least it was a veggie, right? 😉

Fried brussels sprouts with chili vinaigrette dipping sauce

Holy moly did they live up to their reputation! The brussels are served with a sweet chili vinaigrette dipping sauce which only enhances the flavor. They were perfectly crisp and not greasy. I would say, however, that they were a bit salty but it was entirely too easy to polish off the bowl! Love the little brussel chips!

And what goes better with fried brussels sprouts than a nice citrus-y cocktail? I ordered the Hoop La—a brandy cocktail with combier, lillet blanc, and lemon. It was nice and light but full of flavor. It definitely hit the spot.

Hoop La! – brandy, combier, lillet blanc, lemon

For dinner, Nathan went with his new favorite—a ragout with homemade pasta. Ever since the honeymoon, if we see homemade pasta on the menu, he’s all over it!

Pork ragout with housemade tagliatelle, cunningham farms heirloom tomatoes, parmesan

Nathan describes this dish as “a hug from your mama in a bowl.” At least his descriptions are better than his pictures 😉 The pasta was tender with a little bit of bite.. pretty darn close to what we had in Italy! The ragout was hearty and rich, accented nicely by the parmesan cheese. The portion was just the right size.

I was a between a few seafood dishes so I asked for the server’s recommendation. I was told I couldn’t go wrong with any of them, so I guess we’ll have to go back soon, but this time I ended up with the pan-seared rockfish. Rockfish is one fish that is local to Maryland and the server said that they had been getting some great catch recently.

Local pan-seared rockfish with stewed red peppers, fingerling potatoes, olive tapanade

The potatoes were nice and crisp around the edges and the sauce from the stewed peppers was nice and light. I’m not a huge olive fan, but the small dollop of tapande on top gave the perfect amount of saltiness to the fish. And the fish was incredibly meaty but flaked apart nicely. I needed my knife to cut through the crispiness of the skin which, if you ask me, is the perfect preparation.

All in all, we were very pleased with our meal. There are definitely more than a few other items on the menu that we’d like to try [roasted mushroom toast, anyone?] and would love to head back soon for another date night.

Food for Thought

Do you prefer to hit up happy hour first or just sit down to dinner?

Do you have a favorite date night restaurant or do you try to go somewhere new?

A Valentine’s Date

Every year for Valentine’s Day, Nathan and I try to figure out something special that we can do for dinner. Years ago, that entailed dressing up and going out to a nice restaurant. We’ve since learned that everyone and their mom goes out to a nice restaurant for Valentine’s Day making for crowded restaurants and a long wait for food. Sounds extra special, right? 😉

Nowadays you’ll find us scouring the grocery store for a fun protein to play with. Typically Nathan is in charge of preparing the majority of dinner and I handle dessert. One year we had filet mignon in a mushroom green pepper sauce with roasted fingerlings followed by blackberry cobbler and chocolate raspberry truffles. Another year we did a pan-seared whole duck with a cherry glaze, duck-fat pan-fried potatoes, and asparagus.. you get the idea.

As I was brainstorming for this years menu, I thought it would be really fun to experiment with homemade dim sum. Not only is it delicious, but it would be a great activity to do together! So, of course, I ran on over to Pinterest and found a bunch of recipes we can try.. for when we’re feeling brave 🙂

Dim Sum Valentine’s Date

Sweet and Spicy Soy-Glazed Edamame – Shared Appetite

This is a quick and easy recipe and you can munch on these bad boys while you’re making everything else!

Wonton Soup – Martha Stewart

Wonton soup. It’s just a staple.

Mango, Avocado, and Cucumber Spring Rolls – Cupcakes and Kale

A fun twist on a typical app. The mango will give it a slightly sweet flavor and the avocado will make it nice and creamy.

Asian Shrimp Dumplings – Dashing Dish

Dumplings or pot stickers are such an easy thing to do when you have wonton wrappers. Not to mention, I love this low cal option!

Pork, Ginger & Mushroom Shumai – What’s Cookin, Chicago?

A little bit more time consuming than the pot stickers above, but well worth the effort. These steamed dumplings are always full of flavor and this recipe looks to be on point!

Char Siu Bao (Barbecue Pork Steamed Buns) – Mike and Molly’s House

This would be the ultimate. If we’re feeling brave enough, I’d love to make everything from start to finish. The barbecue pork, the yeast dough.. homemade pork buns would take the cake.

Mango Pudding – Eating Well

You can’t skip dessert on Valentine’s Day. This mango pudding would be the perfect way to end the meal.

And, of course, don’t forget to pick up your favorite sake, some Tsingtao and have a wonderful date night! Happy Valentine’s Day!

Food for Thought

What are your plans for Valentine’s Day? Are you going out to dinner or staying in?

Bootcamp: The Midway Point

When I hit week 2 I thought 8 weeks might feel like a long time. Now that I’m at week 5, I can’t believe we’re already half way through!

If you recall from week 1, I took the fitness challenge which is to be repeated at the half way point as well as the end.

Week 1

Week 4

Overall, I’m pleased with my challenge results. My wall sit time increased by over 30 seconds [holy shaky legs!], I did 10 more push ups, and I cut 14 seconds off of my fastest mile! As far as my plank goes, I can definitely go longer, so I’ll be revisiting that soon. And burpees? Well.. they’re burpees. And they suck. But I’m hoping for at least 1 more by the end of bootcamp!

Week 4 Thoughts

I can’t lie, week 4 was tough. I don’t know if the workouts are catching up to my and my body was just more tired, or if it was just an off week. I definitely pushed myself and kept up the intensity and it’s showing. Not only did I improve on almost all pieces of the fitness challenge, I also was able to go through more sets in my timed workouts and I’ve also lost a total of 4″! It’s nice to see all of the hard work that I’m putting actually paying off. It is absolutely encouraging me to keep pushing through the next 4 weeks!

Favorite Meal of the Week

Last Thursday was the 1 year anniversary of Nathan proposing to me so of course, we had to go out to dinner! This is just a sneak peak as I’ll be recapping the whole dinner on Wednesday, but I had the seared mahi mahi with capers & raisins, cauliflower puree, and almond bubbles for my entree. It was light, a little buttery, and the fish had the perfect crust. It was definitely a winner!

Previous Reviews

Best Butt-Kicking Bootcamp [Week 1]
Bootcamp – Take 2 [Week 2]
Beat Up Bootcamp [Week 3]

Food for Thought

How do you measure progress? Do you use methods similar to a fitness test?

Beat Up Bootcamp

Have you entered my Peanut Butter & Co. giveaway yet?

As week 3 of bootcamp comes to a close, I’m pleased to say I have fully taken a beating over the course of the week.

We really turned up the heat with some new workouts and push (and pulled!) our muscles in new ways. Focusing on strength training with super sets is how I am most accustomed so while I enjoyed the layout of the workouts, my muscles were screaming!

This week of workouts, between bootcamp and the Love Your Body Challenge, really kicked my butt. I finished the week with an almost 3,900 calorie deficit. HOLY COW!

Like I said, I loved the super sets, but we also focused on timed workouts which are relatively new to me. I found myself pushing myself a bit harder through some of the timed circuits because I knew that I could do just a little bit more! As I noticed after week 2, I could crank through the workouts a bit faster since I already knew what was coming. I’m looking forward to cranking through the same workouts again with a bit more speed.

Favorite [At Home] Meal of the Week

As featured in my What I Ate Wednesday post, I fully took advantage of Nathan having the day off on Monday. He made mongolian beef with stir-fry veggies and it was fabulous!

Previous Reviews

Best Butt-Kicking Bootcamp [Week 1]
Bootcamp – Take 2 [Week 2]

Food for Thought

When you workout, do you prefer super sets, timed workouts, or something totally different? Are you a gym rat or do you prefer to be outside?

Taking a Deep Breath

It has been a crazy two weeks and I’ve been a terrible blogger because of it. Between work and wedding planning, I haven’t had time to breathe, let alone blog! Meetings were lined up for every night last week after work and I didn’t get home before 9:30 pm. But there is definite progress that has been made and I have, however, had time to eat. Lots and lots of delicious food!

As the week winds down and I gear up for another weekend of wedding crashing (otherwise known as band shopping), I am finally catching a moment, albeit a brief moment, to take a deep breath. And to share one of my wonderful dining experiences from last week!

As an engagement gift from a few of Nathan’s friends, we received a gift certificate to Annabel Lee Tavern, a cute little local tavern celebrating the legen(wait for it)dary poet, Edgar Allen Poe. We’d never been there before so we were psyched to try it!

I started out with the Morella.

Hendrick’s Gin, St Germain Liqueur, Muddled Cucumber and a dash of Simple Syrup

I’m a sucker for any cucumber drink so I knew I had to try this and I’m so glad I did. It’s a dangerously delicious drink that goes down far too easily!

We always ask for recommendations on the menu and as appetizers go, the nachos were hugely recommended. And when I say huge, I mean oh-my-gosh-we’ll-never-finish-that huge!

Nachos with House-Made Pico de Gallo, Cheddar, Black Olives, Jalapenos, and Sour Cream

Not only was every chip covered with cheddar cheese, there was another creamy cheese underneath all of that goodness that gave it an extra kick of something special.

After devouring a good portion of the nachos, we moved onto entrees. Once again, sticking to recommendations, I went with the Crab Cake Platter. Ladies and gents, I have found my new favorite crab cake. And as a native Marylander, that is hugely successful!

Crab Cake Platter with Blackened Asparagus

It was all lump crab meat with very little filler just to hold it together. Cooked perfectly so that the outside had just the right amount of crispness and the inside was tender and creamy. And it was seasoned absolutely wonderfully. Served with blackened asparagus (I skipped on the mashed potatoes), it was nice and light and the perfect amount of food.

I immediately texted my mom to let her know that I’ve found the new crab cake place. It’s clearly very important in our lives.

And because we just weren’t quite full enough, Nathan made me get dessert. Alright, so all he had to do was say chocolate and I was sold. But you should be sold, too, for the Edgar Allen Pate.

Tri-chocolate Pate served with Madeira Raspberry Sauce and Whipped Cream

Our final course, once again, recommended, and for good reason! The perfect sharing size and a wonderfully decadent way to end a great meal.

And with that, I prepare myself to eat my way through the weekend and will bring you more fantastic bites soon! 🙂 And don’t forget to breathe!

Speak Up!

Any big plans for the weekend? Maybe hitting up your favorite local tavern?