Five Things Friday {12/26}

Happy Friday, friends! I hope everyone is able to enjoy a nice 4-day weekend!

1. We kicked off our Christmas day with our second annual dim sum brunch at Lai Hong Lounge. We figure there’s a reason Jews eat Chinese food on Christmas, but we wanted to one-up it with dim sum and it’s just so darn good! We kept a bunch of faves from last year, too.
   

   BBQ baked pork buns.. these are my fave!

   

   Dry braised green beans are SO good.

   

   Garlic pea shoots.

   

   Pan-fried mixed mushroom bun.

   

   The prettiest Christmas duck I ever did see.

   

   Duck bun all wrapped up!

2. No trip into Chinatown is complete without a stop at Rogue and a walk by the water.
   

   The Bruery – Seven Swans a Swimming Quad

   

   Such a clear, beautiful [and windy] day!

3. I’ve been powering through some sort of cold or something this week so I’ve spent a lot of time on the sofa the past couple days. I’ve also done my best to make sure I’m getting my greens and proper fuel to get better fast. I decided to whip up this smoothie on a whim and it was awesome!
   Chocolate Cherry Protein Green Smoothie
   
   Ingredients
   – 1/2 bottle Cherry Charge Mamma Chia Energy drink
   – 1 bottle Chocolate Light Core Power
   – 1 scoop Skoop A Game
   – 1/2 english cucumber
   – 1-2 handfuls spinach
   – 4-6 ice cubesBlend it all up and enjoy! It would also be awesome with some frozen cherries in there too.. next time!
4. We watched The Interview on Wednesday night. I’m not really sure what all of the craziness was about but I’d say if you’re in the mood for a silly, chuckle here and there kind of Seth Rogan movie, go for it. Pretty much what you can expect from him. On the flip side, Gone Girl. Watched that last night; you need to watch it, too. Best movie I’ve seen in a while.
5. If you are in the bay area, or know anyone in the bay area, looking for a personal trainer, I’m running a special in January. First 1-hour session is $50, normally $80, and if you purchase a package of 10 sessions, you get 10% off. If you’re not in the bay area but still want to train with me, check out my 4-week personalized training package!

Hope you enjoy your last weekend of 2014!

Food for Thought

Any fun weekend plans?

What I Ate Wednesday #111: 24 Hours in San Francisco

Have you entered my WIN Detergent giveaway yet?

If you had 24 hours [or maybe just a little more] in a city, how would you explore? Or on the other side, how would you show someone around? I mentioned the other day that my friend, Jordan, was visiting over the weekend for work. We had Friday evening as well as all day Saturday to take him out and show him the city. He’d never been to San Francisco before so Nathan and I had our work cut out for us! No problem though; we let our taste buds lead the way.

[Friday Night]

First stop was for beer at Thirsty Bear. Nathan and I had been before but it had also been a few years since. Let’s just say next time, we’ll pass.

We more than made up for that with our Moscow Mule pitcher from B Restaurant. Jordan said it might have been the best cocktail he’s ever had!

After some strong drinks, Fresh Roll was the perfect dinner. It’s like a Chipotle-style Vietnamese restaurant and it was delish!

[Saturday]
We started our day at 10 a.m. for a dim sum brunch at Yank Sing in the Financial District.

Steamed Pork Buns

Seafood Basil Siu Mai.. my fave!

Shanghai Pork Dumplings

Shanghai Pork Dumpling

Taro Cake

From there, we stopped at Tout Sweet in Union Square. That was one of Jordan’s only requests, and it just so happens the owner and winner of Top Chef Just Desserts was doing a demo and book signing that day! We made a second stop back there in the afternoon to say hi 😉

Raspberry Peanut Butter Macaron

Jordan & Yigit

They’re famous for their macarons and having been disappointed when we bought the real deal in Paris on our honeymoon, Nathan and I had our doubts. These macarons, however, were fabulous! I may have to get more if we go back again.

After sweets, we trekked over to the Mission for a beer..

.. a few relaxing minutes at Dolores Park..

.. and our final stop in the Mission, El Farolito for some amazing Mexican!

The biggest plate of al pastor and beans I’ve ever seen! And demolished 😉

We waddled out of there and hopped onto a train and then a bus and into the Fisherman’s Wharf area all to see the beautiful bridge.

We finished our night in North Beach with a proscuitto and parmesan pizza from our favorite place, Il Casaro.

Best Italian-style pizza since Italy!

It was a long, fun, and very filling day and I’m glad we were able to show Jordan so many areas of the city and our favorite spots to eat in such a short period of time. So…… who’s visiting next?! 😉

Food for Thought

What are your favorite restaurants to take visitors?

Familiar Faces and Sunset Views

Good morning, friends! Have you entered my WIN giveaway yet? It ends Thursday at 11:59 pm PST so make sure to get your entries in!

We had a really fun and totally exhausting weekend over here. My friend, Jordan, came to San Francisco for work but since he was here for a couple of extra days, we got to spend some time together. It was so great to see a familiar face [even though we will be seeing him again in just 2 short weeks!]

Nathan and I both had some work to do on Friday, but we definitely made up for that Friday night. Moscow mule anyone?

Aside from the drinks, Friday was pretty tame.. especially in comparison to Saturday! We went all over the city in an attempt to show Jordan as much as possible in such a short time. Obviously when we show people around, it’s all about the food. There was dim sum.

There was beer.

There were fabulous sunset views.

And that’s just the start! Between this past weekend and Thanksgiving next week, I will absolutely be watching my extra snacks this week haha! Yesterday, Nathan and I started the day early, went for a nice walk, hit the gym, and got our lives back together. In just 1 week, we’ll be packing our bags and heading back to Baltimore for 2 weeks and I’m psyched! But for now, gotta focus on getting through the week.

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Asian quinoa meatballs with roasted broccoli and baby bok choy
Monday – Thai chicken satay salad
Tuesday – Leftovers
Wednesday – BBQ chicken with roasted brussels and caramelized shallots
Thursday – Leftovers
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

What’s your favorite way to show someone around your city?
Did you do anything fun over the weekend?

Chinatown Hops

Bar hopping is not a new concept, especially to this corner of the interwebs. Saturday, however, we did a little different kind of hopping; we hopped around Chinatown for some dim sum! But before we get into that, I got to spend a little extra time with Nathan on Friday. He worked from home so we took a little lunch break to try a new Mexican place.

Pork al pastor salad with extra guacamole!

It’s a good thing we got out when we did because I wasn’t feeling so hot later that night. All I wanted for dinner was a big bowl of mac and cheese [you know, the kind with the powdery cheese..] and some roasted brussels. Seeing as how we had none of the above [don’t worry, that was remedied on Saturday!], Nathan made me a delicious egg, cheese, pork, and ketchup bagel sandwich. And, of course, some chocolate chip cookies on the side. What a guy 😉

I can’t remember the last time I had a bagel before this.. YUM!

Thankfully, my bagel-wich did the trick and Saturday I was up and ready to go for some dim sum Chinatown hopping. First up was the finger food.

The biggest baked pork bun I ever done seen!

Chicken & pork shumai + Shrimp & chive dumpling

That pork bun was ridiculous. We split one because they were so big! The dough was so soft and a little sweet, kind of brioche-y. Oh man, I could go for another right about now.. Anywho, then we went for some of the hot food.

Chinese BBQ chicken.. not the prettiest, but one of the tastiest!

Chinese BBQ Pork.. I loved Nathan’s enthusiasm ha!

Alright, so maybe we hopped over for some beer after our Chinatown excitement.

Pumpkin beer + stout. It’s that time of year!

And then we went for a little walk to the water where I finished a half marathon.

I WIN!!

Ha! I couldn’t believe they still had everything up from 2 weeks ago.. obviously I had to go for it.

Such a beautifully clear day.

Saturday was awesome; exciting but relaxing. I wish everyday could be like that. Yesterday was pretty darn relaxing too and after the gym I picked up a little treat that my mom sent out to me.. just a package of my favorite local Baltimore granola!

Apple quinoa granola is just that exciting.

I have a feeling that bag isn’t going to last too long. But in the meantime, I should probably do something about the rest of my meals.

Weekly Meal Plan

Sunday – Crunchy stuffed buffalo chicken with ranch roasted potatoes & broccoli
Monday – Lemon tarragon turkey burgers with baked onion rings
Tuesday – Pomegranate jalapeno chicken with bacon pomegranate brussels sprouts
Wednesday – Leftovers
Thursday – Honey balsamic chicken leg quarters with caprese stuffed portobellos
Friday – Out!
Saturday – Leftovers

Food for Thought

Have you ever tried dim sum before?
What’s your favorite comfort food?

What I Ate Wednesday #75: We Did It Right

I think in the process of running my parents all around the bay area, we ran ourselves into the ground a little too. Unfortunately, they’re heading back home today and as much as I may need a little more sleep, I don’t want them to go. It has really felt so much more like home with them here. If I had my whole family with me, I wouldn’t think twice about where I was. Anywhere. I miss ’em already but Nathan and I both made sure we did it right!

There was some healthy food…

…some home cooked meals…

…some brunching…

…a little pizza…

…more than one ice cream/gelato trip…

…LOTS of Asian food…

…a few drinks all around…

…and so many incredible memories.

I absolutely cannot wait to see them again. It’s been such a great week. Cheers!

Food for Thought

Where is your favorite place to take out-of-town visitors?

What I Ate Wednesday #70: Beer, Food, and Sunshine

Monday we took advantage of Nathan’s day off and went into San Francisco for the day. We also took advantage of sleeping in and having a nice breakfast at home.

I’ve been loving topping my oats with my homemade nut butters, honey vanilla-bourbon peanut butter, and Love Grown granola.

After we were sufficiently fueled up, we hit the road! First stop was Rogue Ale House. Nathan had been before, but I’d never had a chance to go and it was such a nice day, I was excited to get some beer and sit outside.

I tried the Beard Beer, Old Crustacean Barleywine, Menage-a-Frog, and XS Imperial Stout. Nathan’s Double Chocolate Porter was the winner.

We didn’t have a set lunch plan but after some Yelping, we landed on Lai Hong Lounge. It was that good on Christmas!

Pea shoots, garlic cabbage core, XO beef chow fun, coffee-rubbed ribs, pan-fried mushroom buns, and pork shu mai.

We ordered entirely too much and came home with leftovers of everything. The coffee-rubbed ribs were almost like dessert; they were even served with some whipped cream on the side! It was all so good.

We were in need of a post-lunch walk and what better place to go than Buena Vista Cafe? We haven’t had an Irish Coffee since we were last in San Francisco in May 2012!

Just as good as I remember.

And then we continued down to the pier. It was so nice to be out in the sunshine and enjoy the fresh air.

After a nice walk, we made our way back home for a nice, light dinner. Thank goodness because we were still stuffed from lunch! We ended up not sitting down to eat until about 8:15.. whoops!

Roasted portabello caps with spicy mango slaw and chunky guacamole.

They were supposed to be tacos, but I opted to go tortilla-less for something a little lighter. Nathan made his into a burrito.. whatever works! The slaw was SO good and even though I only made a half recipe, there was still a ton leftover. It made a great addition to my salad and Nathan’s turkey meatball sandwich yesterday for lunch. Another meal plan success!

Monday was such a fun day. We didn’t go crazy doing too much running around, but it was a nice, relaxing day doing what we love—beer, food, and sunshine.

Food for Thought

When you go to a brew pub, do you opt for a sampler or a pint?
Have you ever had a real Irish Coffee?

Our Jewish Christmas

My family has never really been the typical Jewish “let’s have Chinese and go to the movies on Christmas” kind of family. But since Nathan had the day off and we have so much to explore, we figured we might as well take advantage! I had the whole day planned.. and when I say the whole day, I mean where we were eating 😉

First stop, Chinatown! Yelp is huge in San Francisco [maybe more of California too?] so I really looked to that to figure out where we wanted to go. When we visited last year, we went to Yank Sing for dim sum. It was our first dim sum experience and we both absolutely loved it but we wanted to try a new place. Thanks to Yelp, we ended up at Lai Hong Lounge.

Not even half of the crowd that was there when we first arrived!

It was nuts! I had to fight the crowds to make my way up and get a number for a table. She told me it would be about a 2 hour wait.. good thing we weren’t hungry! I grabbed a ticket and we went for a walk; it was such a gorgeous day, we were happy to find a park.

Christmas day in sunny San Francisco!

As we explored, we grabbed a little appetizer of some coffee and a baked bbq pork puff and made our way to Washington Square Park. I have to say, the sun in California is definitely more intense than in Maryland. I actually took my jacket off and it was only in the 50s at that point.. that never happens! When we started to get antsy [and hungry], we made our way back in hopes that it was time to sit down! Only another 20 minutes or so went by before they called our number.

Time to feast!

Sauteed Garlic Pea Shoots

Baked BBQ Pork Buns

The delicious pork bun filling. YUM!

First to the table were the pea shoots and pork buns. They were both recommendations from Yelp-ers and they were fabulous! The pea shoots were crunchy with a nice, light garlic flavor and we were happy to find that they weren’t very oily. The pork buns were something special; we’ve only ever had steamed pork buns but these were baked which gave them a nice crunch on the outside. I also really enjoyed the ratio of filling to bun. I often find that there is too much bun for the amount of filling but this was perfect. Both were repeat dishes, for sure!

Pan-Fried Mixed Mushroom Buns

Next up were the pan-fried mixed mushroom buns and the pork and mushroom noodle roll. Again, having only had steamed buns before, this was a nice change. The pan-fry with the sesame seeds on the bottom gave it an awesome crunchy texture and flavor; we’d get it again just for that crunch! Unfortunately my picture of the noodle roll was too blurry to share but we enjoyed it nonetheless. Although it might have been our least favorite of the dishes, it still had lots of flavor from the brown sauce and an added crunch from the noodles.

Our Christmas [Peking] Duck

All made up and ready to devour!

The star of the meal was the peking duck. Nothing beats the crispy skin paired with a perfectly cooked duck and plum sauce all packed up with green onion in a little steamed bun. So many textures and flavors! This was another recommendation from Yelp and I’m so glad I saw it because it’s not on the menu! As soon as it came out, everyone was looking over at our table asking about ordering it.

Yelp was such a great tool to use for lunch and I’m thrilled that it worked out so well.. plus we have leftovers for dinner tonight! YES!

Post-dim sum-stuffing, we made our way back to East Bay and headed to the movie theater to see Anchorman 2. Honestly, this movie was just as ridiculous as expected. It definitely had its funny moments, but if you consider the first Anchorman movie and the cast, you should know what to expect. It was a fun way to break up the day but I could have waited until it came out on DVD to see it.

After the movie, we drove into Berkeley for another Yelp-recommended restaurant; Himalayan Flavors. I’m glad Lai Hong Lounge worked out so well or Nathan may never trust me to make a restaurant decision again! Unfortunately, dinner was a miss.

Clockwise from the top: Mixed tandoor, Buckwheat pancake w/ onion, herbs, & spices, Mushrooms & eggplant in onion tomato sauce w/ garlic & ginger, and Lentil soup

It took about 10 minutes to place our order and another 20 for me to get my glass of wine. The most flavorful dish that we had was the lentil soup and that comes complimentary with each entree. The food was cooked nicely but lacked any flavor. We also ordered the dishes medium hot and there was no heat at all. Each dish came with either basmati or brown rice so we ordered one of each but they only brought out basmati. Seeing as how it took over an hour for our food to come out, I didn’t bother asking for anything else.

Like I said, it’s a good thing lunch worked out! But the night ended on a high note when we got back and Nathan turned the TV on.

Best. Christmas song. Ever.

Mariah Carey saved the night with her duet with Michael Buble. All I Want for Christmas is You is obviously the best Christmas song out there and I made Nathan suffer through it. So maybe it ended on a high note for me 😉 Regardless, we’re going to have a fabulous dinner of dim sum leftovers tonight and I’m psyched!

I hope your holiday was just as wonderful as ours!

Food for Thought

Do you celebrate Christmas?
What was your favorite part of the day?

What I Ate Wednesday #66: Cheers!

I have to be honest, if I posted my eats from the past couple days, it would be less than interesting. So I think I’ll spare you 😉

Nathan and I do have some pretty big Christmas plans, however, and I’ll be sharing those pictures soon. Dim sum for lunch and Indian for dinner with Anchorman II in between.. it’s the Jewish way to celebrate and it’s going to be a delicious day! In the meantime, if you’re celebrating, I hope you have a wonderful Christmas!

Breaking out the honeymoon pic!

Cheers!

Food for Thought

How are you spending your Christmas day?

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?

What I Ate Wednesday #2 – San Francisco Eats

All of our vacations always revolve around food. We get ideas of what we want to do and immediately scour the surrounding areas for different food to try.

This week’s WIAW is from the 4th day of my California trip.. starting in Yosemite, we hit up the breakfast buffet. Oatmeal with banana and peanut butter, 1/2 grapefruit, turkey sausage, and coffee. All cold. No pictures, because trust me, you don’t want to see that food! To say that Yosemite isn’t the ideal place to get a good meal is an extreme understatement, but I guess you give up good food for a few days in exchange for absolutely breathtaking views!

Glacier Point

After breakfast in Yosemite, I snagged an apple and some peanut butter for snack on our 4.5 hour drive over to San Francisco. Neither of us had ever had dim sum, so we dropped our luggage at the hotel and ventured out to Yank Sing, featured on Food Network’s BBQ Episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate for theirincredibly tasty BBQ Pork Buns.

And we feasted! We were immediately bombarded by women with carts and carts of food. It was a bit overwhelming, but such a fun experience! We ended up with all of our dishes within about 5 minutes of sitting down.

Pork Potstickers

Honey Walnut Cabbage Salad

Chicken Mushroom Steamed Dumplings

Shanghai Dumplings

The Shanghai Dumplings are on their specialty menu. They were practically like bundled up bites of soup!

Minced Kurobuta Pork, scallion and ginger wrapped and steamed in its own aromatic broth.

BBQ Pork Buns

After lunch, we wandered the streets of Chinatown and stopped off in Red Blossom Tea Company. Last time Nathan was in San Francisco he got me tons of loose teas, blossoming teas, and an infuser cup, so this time I loaded up on a delicious oolong and super fragrant chai. And on vacation, everything you do is followed up by a good beer! We found ourselves a happy hour and did the local thing!

And speaking of doing the local thing, for dinner we headed over to Fort Mason for Off the Grid, a food truck gathering of 30+ food trucks from around the area.

Oh.

My.

Goodness.

This was so much fun! Not only did they have tons of different kinds of cuisine to choose from, but they also had some awesome live music. We had a blast!

Off the Grid Food Truck Gathering

I had the Korean Chili Shrimp taco and Nathan had the Kalua Pork Taco from The Taco Guys. He totally won that one.

Korean Chili Shrimp & Kalua Pork Tacos

Then we shared Sexy Fries from Curry Up Now. Sweet potato waffle fries topped with homemade chicken tikka masala and onion. This is definitely a dish I’m going to recreate at home!

Sexy Fries

And with that ends our first day in San Francisco. These were definitely some of our favorite meals and experiences that we had on the trip!

Speak Up!

These meals consisted of a bunch of little bites. Do you prefer to have one big dish or a meal of a bunch of little tastes?