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i totally meant to post this a couple weeks into march, but, alas, here we are again at the end of the month scrabbling to deliver my monthly post. i was really hoping to post once a week, but i may be working on another post based on being a mommy - again to keep for my record and to help new mommies alike. that's under construction... anyway, back to food. in an effort to get back to my pre-baby weight, i have been diligent about how many calories i'm taking in and have been working to find healthy alternatives. if you haven't noticed, there has been serious buzz over spaghetti squash and i really wanted to give it a go. i love pasta, specifically capellini (similar to angel hair), but it's not a necessary evil of mine, in that i don't go out of my way to find it when thinking about where to eat. so, the idea that a vegetable can be used as a substitute was incredibly intriguing. it's like when people use zucchini in place of pasta in lasagna - same ment...

mr. miles everett first off, as you can see, i have not been contributing to my poor deprived blog. the last post was in april, which was when i found out i was pregnant with my first baby. a couple things were going on then: 1) i was too nauseous to even think about food (being pregnant is NOT a foodie's friend in the first trimester), then 2) when i finally got my appetite back, all i wanted was take out. i probably won't have time in the new year with a new baby, but i will try to post something at least once a month because blogging about food makes me happy and one of resolutions is to cook more. don't be surprised, however, if my next post are lactation cookies or baby food. anyway…on with my comeback... i found saw this recipe in the november issue of real simple and knew i wanted to make it. i assumed it was something that can be whipped up in a couple hours, but then quickly realized that it was a slow cooker recipe, which would take 8 hours of cooking t...

one of my favorite notes in food is sour, usually from lemons. a dish that i think really captures this flavor profile is chicken piccata. i love this and it's incredibly easy to make. the added bonus for me are the capers, which add to the sour note. it seems like there are ways to adjust this recipe by either using white wine and/or garlic, which i may experiment with, especially since i just prepared a julia child's moules a la mariniere recipe that called for these ingredients and it was super delicious (post to follow)! the other, very trendy side i wanted were lemon brussel sprouts. i've had and loved brussels with bacon, but to keep with the lemony theme, i found this extremely delicious recipe! it calls to add cheese, but i was fine without it. these combined may be too much of the same for some, but it is what i considered a perfect homemade meal. CHICKEN PICCATA posted on food on the food  on march 1, 2012 2-3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts salt ...

it's been quite awhile since i posted and if you missed me, i apologize. cute ox origami at the hostess desk for my first post of the year, i wanted to highlight a wonderful night spent at alexander's steakhouse for the husband's (aka "bear") birthday. i call him bear because he's a little hairy, cuddly, docile, and bigger than me (in the picture below, i'm wearing 4in heels and barely shoulder height). there are so many places i'd love to take him to experience food, but was inspired by a post from my friend regina when she took a friend for an expensive steak dinner. i thought this would be the perfect place to celebrate the husband - he likes steak and good food and i was intrigued by the restaurant that took the place of bacar. the service is impeccable - a little too informational at times, but outstanding nonetheless. the ambience can be romantic, intimate, cool, whatever you need it to be depending on your visit. what's also ve...

i am continuing my quest to be healthier and aside from going totally vegetarian, as the many books ( skinny bitch ) and documentaries ( food over knives ) i've watched suggest...i think incorporating healthy fats and more greens is probably an easier approach. i figured i'll take baby steps and possibly be vegetarian 4 times/week and continue to make better choices. seared ahi tuna is incredibly delicious and filling. i would typically prefer rice, but in my healthy journey, i substituted with an arugula seaweed salad. SEARED AHI TUNA 6oz sushi-grade tuna 2 T sesame seeds salt & pepper to taste olive oil pat tuna dry with paper towel. heat olive oil on medium high heat. mix sesame seeds, salt & pepper in a plate. press tuna on top of sesame seeds to coat. sear each side of tuna for about 1 minute. remove from heat and cut to about 1/4" slices. serve with choice salad greens.

happy halloween! i know i've already provided a stuffed pepper recipe, but i think i found one that is even more amazing! last year i made fun jack-o-lantern stuffed peppers that were super spicy, but i loved the idea for halloween. so, i really wanted to share this sweet little treat for your future halloween festivities. any stuffed bell pepper recipe will do, but i am really in love with the one i found tonight. not only is it super healthy, but anyone would enjoy its simplicity. also, these are supposed to be grilled, but i ended using my gas stove to char and soften the bell pepper. also, i would've chosen yellow or orange peppers, but there weren't any...maybe there were more people who had the bright idea to make these pumpkin-lookalike treats for halloween. GRILLED STUFFED JACK-O-LANTERN PEPPERS posted on shabbotts habits on june 29, 2011 4-5 large bell peppers, 1 large white onion 3 cloves of garlic, minced 1 T olive oil 16-20 ground turkey (or any ot...

in the coming weeks leading up to my birthday, i started thinking about where i wanted to celebrate. the past two years have been milestones and were welcomed with epic celebrations with friends and family (25th was my quarter-life crisis party & 26th was my lucky, golden birthday). this year felt like it should be mellow and intimate, especially since my birthday fell on a monday. so, i thought a culinary experience was the way to go. i have heard some good things about the morimoto restaurants and have enjoyed his geniusness on iron chef ( japan & america ), so i thought i'd spend the evening experiencing food according to chef morimoto! i got a tip from a friend that one of us should order the omakase (tasting menu) and the other order other things off the menu so we can try many different things. i can tell you that compared to my experience at cyrus (a two michelin star restaurant), the morimoto experience is much more casual and not as rehearsed, but that doesn...

(photo coming soon) the search for lettuce wraps began with the L-themed bridal shower i was throwing for my boss, but it was also for my personal needs. i may or may not have mentioned this before, but i have been trying to be more health-conscious and choosing to wrap meat in lettuce instead of tortillas is taking a step in the right directions. the "sweet & spicy" part of the recipe was what made me choose this one over others i was considering. and, it didn't hurt that this seemed really easy to make...which it is! the marinade was great and i'd use this for anything really, but this was simple and just what i was looking for. SWEET & SPICY BEEF LETTUCE WRAPS posted in le petit brioche by christa on july 20, 2011 1/2 c soy sauce 1 T brown sugar 1 T sesame oil 1 1/2 T sriracha chili sauce (optional or to taste) 1 c green onions, finely chopped, plus more for topping/garnish 2 t garlic powder 1 t ginger powder juice from 1 small lemon 2 lbs flank...

i love stuffed bell peppers! or, really anything you can stuff. my grandma makes this crab dish, where she reuses the top shell as the baking & serving tool. i made stuffed bell peppers this past halloween, but they were extremely spicy...which made them hard to eat, but they were fun because they looked like mini jack-o-lanterns (i'll save that for a future/follow-up post). when i was looking for something inspirational to make for dinner, i found this beautiful photo of stuffed bell peppers with melted cheese on top. i mean, it is really hard not to resist anything with melted cheese. what was fun about this recipe is that i've never cooked with ground chicken and i loved the idea of incorporating rice. there were a couple things i may try next time though: 1) add beans...i love beans & rice and 2) preheat peppers in the oven while making the stuffing to soften & roast the peppers...in this recipe, the peppers only go in the oven for 7 minutes, so when everything...