Jalapeno Poppers with Pork Choppers

DJ mentioned craving some intense spice to ease an upset stomach.  (Counterintuitive - yes, we know.  Just go with it.)  To surprise him, Mel scoured the web and found a recipe for some tasty baked jalapeno poppers.  Chef Emeril Lagasse (loved seeing him judge on this season of Top Chef!) couldn't have made the recipe easier to follow - the poppers were prepped in a snap!  They roasted up nicely, and made a great pairing with our pork chops that were baked after sitting overnight in a simple brine (1 bottle of beer and 1 teaspoon of salt for 4 chops).

Hooray for a pop of spice!

Holy Guaca-MOLE!

We had been to Mole - a local Mexican restaurant - for their great Happy Hour drink specials, but found the drinks to be very acidic from all the citrus.  However, we appreciated that they were using fresh fruit and not some syrupy mix.  We thought it was a good indicator that they pay attention to quality.  So we vowed to return eventually to check out their food, just so that we wouldn't write them off solely based on cocktails.  Janna came uptown to hang out for a bit, so we headed there to give them a second chance.  Verdict?  So glad we went back!

Apparently the first time around we fell subject to a bad bartender because we loved the cocktails we got when seated for dinner!  And the food was delicious.  We started out with an order of guacamole for the table (great smokey spices)...

and then we were bowled over by their huge entree portions of the salad (for Janna), the mole chicken (for Mel), and the fish tacos (for DJ).

Needless to say, we had plenty left over to bring home and enjoy for lunch over the next few days.  :)  

Overall, we think Mole wins out over Cilantro for local Mexican cuisine.  Their ingredients seem fresher, and their flavors pack a more powerful punch.  But for an abundance of cheap drinks when you just want to focus on partying with some margaritas, Cilantro is definitely a good option.

Our First Wedding Anniverary!

One year ago today we started an amazing part of our journey together: marriage!  :)  This year truly went by in the blink of an eye; it feels like we were just in Punta Cana yesterday.

Mel was lucky enough to have off from school today, and then DJ surprised her by coming home early to kick off our celebration.  We saved the bottle of champagne that the Melia staff left in our room on the day of our wedding so we could pop it on our 1st Anniversary.  It was so exciting to break out the same flutes we used at our reception, open the bottle that has been waiting in our fridge all this time (and survived a move!), and toast to a great year.

Then, Grill Master DJ shared his gourmet skills to treat us to a wonderful meal of filet mignon. 

 rocking the "groom" shirt while prepping the meat

 discovering whether the crepe pan we received as a wedding gift can also handle meat

 FOOD HAPPY DANCE!!  :)

Cheers to a wonderful year of being newlyweds!

Rachel and Mark Get Married!

Rachel and Mark tied the knot in a lovely sunset ceremony at Steiner Studios - NYC's first Hollywood-style production spot with gorgeous views of the Manhattan skyline.  So many famous people have walked the halls of this place, which left starstruck Mel in a constant state of excitement.  But the biggest stars of the day were Mark and Rachel of course!  :) 

The cocktail hour was perfectly timed so that we could enjoy the twinkling lights of the city while chowing down on some fabulous food.  

There was a table dedicated to American comfort food (sliders, mac and cheese, sweet potato fries, shrimp cakes), 

 

another dedicated to Asian fare (pork buns, dumplings), 

and staff walking around with trays of fabulous miniature bites of delight (sushi, chicken parm, roast beef, pigs in a blanket, mushroom poppers, etc.).  Though we knew there was still dinner ahead, the cocktail treats were just too good to resist!

 

When we got to the reception hall, the d.j. had everyone dancing non-stop!  But even his skillful spinning could not distract us from the fantastic 3-course meal.  Caterer Abigail Kirsch had already knocked it out of the park with the cocktail hour, and the dinner itself confirmed why she has such a stellar reputation in NYC. 

We started off with a savory pairing of crab cake over roasted corn and spicy shrimp over avocado salad.  

That was followed by a delicious salad with blue cheese and crisp cheese bread.

For the main course, DJ opted for the red snapper and Mel tried the beef (so tender!).

For dessert, we were offered a very unique tart topped with roasted marshmallows.

And after Mark and Rachel cut the cake (Mazel Tov!), guests were also offered a piece of the delicious layers of yellow cake with chocolate filling.  Yum!

We loved every minute of celebrating with Rachel and Mark on their big day!  As Liz said, they hit the trifecta of great food/drinks/dancing.  :)

Congratulations to the happy newlyweds!

Baked Ziti Courtesy of The Crying Cook

We are huge fans of our friend who has recently joined the blogosphere as "The Crying Cook."  She posts all about her adventures in the kitchen, and offers very clear step-by-step directions for all the recipes - including photographs!  Her latest post on baked ziti looked so delicious, we just had to try it when the Haile-Mariam family came by for lunch on a chilly afternoon.

We followed The Crying Cook's recipe pretty closely, but made a few changes based on personal preference:  ground chicken instead of turkey, kale instead of spinach, and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on top.

The end result: quite the crowd-pleaser!  Our visitors went back for seconds, and we had just enough left to pack for a few of DJ's lunches.  Cheers to The Crying Cook!

Valentine Pie

We totally love holidays and totally love LOVE!  But we also love the comfort of home when all the restaurants in the city decide to go crazy on Valentine's Day.  So this year we decided to splurge on pizza (which we hardly ever eat) from one of the local pizza places we've been wanting to try for months:  San Matteo.  

San Matteo's pizza has been eluding us because they only accept cash for deliveries, and they only make personal pan pies so it seemed like a big commitment.  But for Cupid Day, we planned ahead - DJ picked up our order on the way home.  Woo!

First thing we realized:  the "personal" pies are actually very big!  We both had plenty left over and decided next time we'll just order one to share.

Second thing we realized:  this place ROCKS!  The toppings were so fresh and the crust so delicious.  We love these guys!

On the left: Cacio e Pepe
(dry cured pancetta, Caciocavallo cheese, fresh cracked pepper)

On the right: Diavola
(tomato sauce, fresh basil, homemade mozzarella, spicy soppressata, Parmigiano Reggiano)

So glad we made San Matteo our Valentine treat.   

And Happy Heart Day to all!

Michele's Birthday at Parlor Steakhouse

Michele came in from Philly to spend a little time in NYC for her birthday.  We had heard good things about Parlor Steakhouse, so we decided to try their prix fixe brunch.

The service was very prompt and friendly, and they aren't joking when they say you can get 5 brunch cocktails with your meal.  Anytime one of our glasses looked close to empty, they quickly put a full glass in front of us!  And we were amazed when even after we had finished our food, they let us sit and keep drinking without bothering us for the table.  We think they really would have let us sit there until all 3 of us had our full 5 drinks.  But none of us made it quite that far.  :)

As for the food, Michele and DJ tried the steak and eggs...

and Mel got the brunch salad with steak.

The meat was nicely prepared, but we did notice each other reaching for the salt shaker a few times.  While the atmosphere at Parlor is lovely, when we're in the mood for great steak we'll probably sooner return to Libertador or Zebu.

After that, the Birthday Gal was in the mood for a delightfully decadent celebratory dessert.  So we popped into Le Pain Quotidien for some sweets before she headed back to Philly.

Cheers to Belgian hot chocolate and cheesecake.  YUM!

 

And Happy Birthday, Michele!  Can't wait to see you again soon!