Roasted Brocollini with Leeks and Cranberries

Greetings from a lovely little studio apartment on west 14^th street in lower Manhattan. This week’s home away from home.

I’m eight days into sixteen days on the road. SIXTEEN DAYS. WHO AM I?

Let me stop you before you go on your internal rant on how lucky I am to travel for work. How can I be complaining while I’m seeing the country on someone else’s dime?

I am VERY lucky. I’m also very tired. Work travel is fun and exciting and stimulating. But its can also be lonely. There is a reason I do not live alone people!

It’s not all bad though. I get to see good friends and family and eat tasty food and pseudo live in places like New York and Colorado.

But in in the down moments, my mind always wanders to what Lish and her daughter Brielle are doing on this pretty California Saturday. Or to my spot on Wesley’s couch watching football between him and Junior. Or what Mom and Dad will have for Sunday dinner with out me. And now I’m tearing.

In these moments when I’m missing my life back home, I focus my thoughts back to what is really important after I get home.

ALL THE FOOD.

Of course the people are more important than the food, but the food is pretty damn important.

Thanksgiving this year will be at my aunt and uncle’s new San Clemente abode (they recently moved down south from northern California) and I’ve already gotten this dish approved to bring.

This is an easy twist on a festive Turkey Day side dish to take to a Thanksgiving dinner where you may not be able to do much in the kitchen. If you are making it at home it is perfect to pop in while the turkey is resting.

You will need…

1 lb broccolini, chopped into bite (you could sub broccoli if you can't find broccolini)

1 leek, white and light green parts julienned

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup dried cranberries

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, toss together the broccolini, leek, garlic, cranberries and olive oil.

Toss till everything is lightly coated with olive oil.

Spread the veggies out on a rimmed baking sheet and season well with salt and pepper.

Roast in the oven till the leeks are starting to brown. About 10 to 20 minutes, stirring once.

Remove from the oven and serve hot.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Roasted Brocollini with Leeks and Cranberries

1 lb broccolini, chopped into bite sized pieces (you could sub broccoli if you can't find broccolini)

1 leek, white and light green parts julienned

2 garlic cloves, minced

3 tablespoons olive oil

½ cup dried cranberries

Salt and pepper to taste

Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees F.

In a large bowl, toss together the broccolini, leek, garlic, cranberries and olive oil.

Toss till everything is lightly coated with olive oil.

Spread the veggies out on a rimmed baking sheet and season well with salt and pepper.

Roast in the oven till the leeks are starting to brown. About 10 to 20 minutes, stirring once.

Remove from the oven and serve hot. 

Butter Lettuce Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

Writers block. Writers block. Writers block. Writers block.

If I say it enough, do you think something will just magically come to me?

I love my job. I love the people I work with and the company I work for.

My job challenges and fulfills me.

But good lord. When a billion dollar company changes systems, it is a bitch.

I’ve been working over time for weeks and while I am very happy to do it, it is wearing this no longer in my early twenties body down.

Hence why I feel like I have nothing of substance to tell you. 

The only silver lining is that I just edited five delicious meals. The photos look delectable and they are flooding me with tasty memories of how good every one of them was.

This is the perfect update to a dinner salad. It’s simple and easy to throw together, but the colors are amazing and the flavors are even better.

Key word simple. I’m so brain dead I had to pick something simple to tell you about.

You will need…

1 head of butter lettuce, cut into bit sized pieces

2 tomatoes, diced

3 celery stalks, chopped

¼ cup pecans, roughly chopped

¼ cup blue cheese

¼ cup dried cranberries

½ cup Green Goddess dressing

Start by combining the lettuce, tomato, celery, pecans, blue cheese and cranberries in a large salad bowl.

Drizzle the dressing over the salad.

Toss and serve.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Butter Lettuce Salad with Green Goddess Dressing

1 head of butter lettuce, cut into bit sized pieces

2 tomatoes, diced

3 celery stalks, chopped

¼ cup pecans, roughly chopped

¼ cup blue cheese

¼ cup dried cranberries

½ cup Green Goddess dressing

Start by combining the lettuce, tomato, celery, pecans, blue cheese and cranberries in a large salad bowl.

Drizzle the dressing over the salad.

Toss and serve. 

Avocado, Cranberry and Spiced Almond Salad with Sesame Vinaigrette

It’s funny how the weirdest things can bring out feelings in you.

For the last year, so many monumental things have been happening to those I love.

There have been engagements, and marriages and cohabitating and babies.

All around me.

You would think that with all that going on I would start to feel like more of an adult.

Fail.

In my mind I’m twenty-five going on sixteen.

Until Sunday.

Last week I agreed to go on a “hike” with my very outdoorsy boyfriend.

I say “hike” because I would hardly call what we did hiking.

Two thirds of our trek was a nice hike and the last third was more like a boulder hopping scramble.

Boulders Anyone?

More than once I could have tumbled and broken something if not killed myself.

And for some reason this was the time my weirdo brain decided I felt like an adult.

Real Life Adults 

I guess it’s because instead of drinking, or recovering from drinking on a Sunday, I was hiking with my significant other.

Not that I’m past drinking on a Saturday, but long gone are the days when I desire to dance the night away in a dark bar with my girlfriends looking for men.

I’ve moved on to nights at friends houses with our men, good food, games and conversation.

And I’m happy about it. I’m an adult and proud!

An adult except for that part where I live with my parents. It’s a frame of mind right? RIGHT???

So in keeping with our body healthy hike on Sunday, I wanted to share a nice healthy salad.

And while I strongly recommend the salad, I only recommend the Black Star Canyon waterfall hike if you are prepared for five hours of intense physical activity and you go with someone who knows what they are doing.

You will need…

For the Salad:

6 ounces baby spinach

6 ounces arugula

Or you can use 12 ounces of whatever your favorite greens are

2 medium avocados cut into cubes

¾ cup dried cranberries

¾ cup Sugar and spice almonds

3 celery stalks chopped

2 tomatoes, diced

For the Dressing:

¼ cup rice wine vinegar

½ cup sesame oil

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon pepper

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

To assemble the salad, combine all of the salad ingredient in a large bowl.

Make the dressing by combining the vinegar, oil, salt, pepper and seeds in a jar or bowl.

Shake the dressing or whisk until it is completely combined.

Drizzle the salad with dressing, toss and serve.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Roasted Butternut Squash Salad and Happy Halloween!

Halloween and Valentine’s Day are my two favorite holidays. My love for Valentine’s Day is really simple. I love to love. But, my love for Halloween is slightly more complex.

The couple weeks of prep leading up to October 31's really signifies the change of the season. Everything starts smelling of pumpkin and cinnamon and it reminds us that the string of holidays are coming our way. I love that on Halloween, perfectly self respecting adults, who are never EVER silly dress up in absolutely ridiculous get ups. What other day can people dress up like a sexy pirate, their favorite pop star or a Chilean miner and be praised for it? I also love that kids have a yearlong obsession with this holiday. If you mention Halloween to a child in June, their face lights up with the prospect of a bag full of candy. But most of all, I love that at Halloween I get to play dress up. And boy oh boy to I take that and run with it.

Happy Halloween Everyone!!!

Here is a great Halloween salad to eat while handing out candy to the little ghosts and goblins.

Love and Beer Floats

Angela

Ingredients

1 (1 1/2-pound) butternut squash, peeled and 3/4-inch) diced

Good olive oil

1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

3 tablespoons dried cranberries

3/4 cup apple cider or apple juice

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

2 tablespoons minced shallots

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

4 ounces baby arugula, washed and spun dry

1/2 cup walnuts halves, toasted

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the butternut squash on a sheet pan. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil, the maple syrup, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper and toss. Roast the squash for 15 to 20 minutes, turning once, until tender. Add the cranberries to the pan for the last 5 minutes.

While the squash is roasting, combine the apple cider, vinegar, and shallots in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook for 6 to 8 minutes, until the cider is reduced to about 1/4 cup. Off the heat, whisk in the mustard, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of pepper.

Place the arugula in a large salad bowl and add the roasted squash mixture, the walnuts, and the grated Parmesan. Spoon just enough vinaigrette over the salad to moisten and toss well. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and serve immediately.