The City's Cellar

Last night my boyfriend took me to City Cellar.  It was so incredibly delicious!  I got the Crab Crusted Chilean Sea Bass with asparagus and a potato pancake.  Sadly I forgot to bring my camera, because I would have definitely taken a picture of that masterpiece of a plate.  The fish just melted in my mouth and the potato pancake was browned to perfection with a sauce that tied everything on the plate together.  I must say that entrees run between $25-$35, but if you go between 4-7pm they have 1/2 off appetizers if you sit at the bar.  It may not be somewhere that you eat at every week, but if you are looking for a nice place to sit down and have a dinner cooked to perfection-this is a place that will probably not disappoint you!

http://www.bigtimerestaurants.com/

Bushels for pennies

 Yesterday my friend Amanda took me to Don Victorio's Market-a place that another one of our friends introduced her to a few months ago.  It was fantastic!  During the months between October-April the Palm Beach Green Market is a great place to go, and this market always has one of the best stands there.  And I certainly was not disappointed when I stepped into their shop yesterday afternoon.  When I glimpsed the sign that said Limes 15 for $1 and big watermelons for $2, I knew I had come to the right place. I got so excited that I stocked up on enough fruits and vegetables for a fortnight. ok where can you get 2 tomatoes, 3 plums, 4 peaches, 6 apples, 15 limes, a grapefruit, cucumber, pineapple, watermelon, bag of spinach, green onions, ginger root and a cilantro plant for only $17.87?  It was incredible!  And they sell coffee and pastries and sandwiches as well.  They have a wide spread of good things to eat (some of them I had never even seen before) and everything seems to be very fresh.  I don't know about you, but from now on I'm going to Don Victorio's!  

Don Victorio’s Market, located at 7504 South Dixie Highway, just south of Forest Hill
you can read another person's opinion at:
http://devonshireofpalmbeach.com/blog/?p=752

How to eat good food when you're broke-Part 2

A few weeks ago Annetta, a great friend, came over to cook chili with me.  It turned out so delicious that we wrote down the recipe.  And today, I'm going to share it with you.  Chili is such a comfort food, and is great especially when it's getting cooler outside.  Of course, cornbread goes hand in hand with chili like peanut butter goes with jelly.  Below you will find one of my favorite cornbread recipes.

Chili- by Stephanie and Annetta


You will need (for 8-10 servings):

2 cans spicy chili beans (in bean section of grocery store)
1 can kidney beans
1 can tomato sauce
1 can fire roasted garlic diced tomatoes
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
1 large vidalia onion (it's a sweet yellow onion)
1 package Lawry's chili seasoning (look near spices or soups)
1 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Dice the onions. Fry up beef in a frying pan and add in the onions before the meat is done so the onions get soft and the beef is brown.  Put all of this stuff in a crock pot or a large pot with a lid on the stove on medium-low and stir well.  After it is bubbly turn it down to low for at least 2-4 hours if you can. Something that makes chili so tasty is that it sits for several hours and all of the flavors mix together better and the beans get softer. 

Serve with grated cheddar cheese or colby jack, sour cream and tortilla chips or fritos crushed on top and cornbread.  It is so delicious and all of this chili stuff only costs about $10-$12!  Chili freezes very well, so you can either fix it if you are having people over and are on a low budget, or you can split it up into Tupperware containers and freeze it for up to a month (maybe 2).

**Cornbread-  one of the problems you sometimes come across with cornbread is that it is too dry (especially a day after you make it).  With this recipe you don't have that problem!  And may I suggest eating it with honey and applesauce- it's delicious

http://www.food.com/recipe/extra-moist-cornbread-with-sour-cream-22083

How to eat good food when you're broke

There comes a time in a lot of people's life that one hits a wall.  You say to yourself, "I have no money. That is why I have been living off of pb&j's, ramen noodles and cereal.  But I am sick of eating like this and it's not really that healthy either to eat processed foods and fast food all the time."  This certainly is a dilemma.  Anyone who goes grocery shopping know that fresh fruits, vegetables and meats are more expensive than highly processed foods.  Why is this?  Because-generally-the foods (or fake things they call food)  that are highly processed are made from the cheapest ingredients possible, and they last forever because all the best nutrients have been taken out so they don't go bad.  You ever smelled rancid peanut butter?  It smells terrible.  Its because the oils in it have gone bad.  Don't try to eat rancid things because they are carcinogens (they cause cancer).  You ever noticed how white flour lasts pretty much forever?  It is because the good oils in it have been taken out.  Your body needs these oils to make healthy cells, but the grocery stores lose money if they try selling freshly ground whole wheat flour to you because it goes rancid too fast and people won't buy something thats bad.  So, sometime in the last 200 years, someone came up with the idea to take out all of the nutrients in flour and that way it will last forever.  And money came above nutrition and health.  Sadly, this is normally the case.  But does it really have to be this way?  I'm going to share with you some options of things you can make that are not so expensive but that will get your body more nutrients than ramen and pop-tarts.  (I'm not saying these are the most healthy things in the world, but it's a good start.)


Egg McMuffins- (not from McDonalds)

You will need:
English muffins- preferably the kind with extra fiber and protein- I get the Thomas HealthFull brand
Eggs
Cheese (any kind you like other than American because it's not real cheese)
Ham (if you like-try to get the kind without Nitrates in it)
Fresh basil

Beat up an egg (or 2 if you want a big sandwich) with a little salt and pepper and a splash of milk.  Pour into a small frying pan on medium/high heat (put a little butter in the pan if it's not non-stick)  and let it sit there for a minute while the bottom cooks (don't beat it around or you'll have scrambled them. Slide a spatula under the omelet around the sides of the pan so the uncooked egg on top flows under the cooked part and keeps cooking (this way you get the cooked part fat enough to be able to flip it without it breaking.)  Once there is just a little bit of uncooked egg left on top take the spatula and stick it under the omelet and flip it over.  If it breaks it's alright because it's going on your sandwich and you'll get better every time you do it.  Immediately put the cheese on the cooked egg side.  (this side should not really be brown otherwise it gets too dry)  Toast your English muffin.  (I like a little mayo and mustard on mine but you don't have to)  Cut the egg into pieces small enough to fit on your bread and stack them on top of each other. Put on the ham and the fresh basil if you have it and enjoy!  They are delicious and keep pretty well for a day in the fridge.  

*To make an omelet- do the same as above, but don't cut it up at the end.  Decide what you want in it first- cheese, ham, onions, peppers, mushrooms, spinach- these are all common things.  I prefer to sautee (fry in pan with a tiny bit of olive oil on medium heat until soft) any vegetables in the pan first and dump them out into a bowl and then make my omelet.  Then put your vegetable/meat in the middle of the omelet and fold it over the filling stuff.*

*TIP OF THE DAY*- When you are cooking-think about balance. Too much of anything isn't good, especially the unhealthy things.  Remember the food pyramid.  Do your best to add in fresh fruits and vegetables whenever you can and get low-fat proteins (fish, chicken, eggs, milk).  Don't forget about fiber too!  It helps keep your blood sugar level, keeps you fuller longer and helps you stay healthy- try to get 30grams of fiber/day. 

Whoever invented fro-yo is a genius

These pink balls are strawberry Boba balls- they explode in your mouth with deliciousness

And whoever invented the places where fro-yo comes out of the walls is an even bigger genius.  Stepping into a room with bright orange and green walls with food that comes out of the walls that you can sample to your hearts desire would make anyone as happy as a little kid hearing the ice cream truck coming down the street.  Not to mention the vast array of delicious topping that you can scoop yourself and make any type of concoction as you wish.  Am I in the chocolate mood? the fruity?  the cheesecake?  the cake batter?  the possibilities are endless.  Whether you go to Yoghut, Tutti Frutti or someplace else like this--the point is, you should go.  It will change your life. Period.  So the next time you don't know what to do, may I suggest you go get something fantastic out of the wall.

*btw-these places charge by weight, so the more you pile on, the more you pay. just so you know.  but it's worth it.*

-to read about Boba balls (they are made from tapioca) go here: http://www.lollicup.com/main.cfm?tm=boba.htm&side=products.cfm&id=boba&page=boba.cfm

Relish in the light of Paris

So... I know I've already written a little about Relish http://www.relishburger.com/  but I just had to say a few more things about it.  Now that I actually went there to get food, and not just a milkshake, I can say even more how delicious it is!  It was so funny because out of all of the choices of burgers, cheeses and relishes, I decided upon a wild boar burger with brie cheese and blackberry compote.  Upon my decision, I proceeded to the counter and asked the girl what her favorite burger was.  She said (before I even told her what I wanted) that her favorite was the exact thing that I picked!  So I got it and it was delicious.  I guess I was expecting the wild boar to taste a little more "wild" but I had never had it before, so I really didn't know what to expect.  I also ordered a side of grilled polenta and split a chocolate truffle milkshake.  It was good but my favorite so far are the salted caramel and the strawberry shortcake milkshakes. 

The morning after this, I went to Paris Cafe with a friend.  http://www.parisbakerycafe.com/  This is one of my most favorite places to go ever.  One, because they make incredible food that is always fresh and perfectly prepared.  Second, because when I sit there and enjoy my crepe I really feel like I am in Europe for an hour.  The restaurant is run by a lady from France, and just the way it is set up just feels like a little bakery cafe in the middle of some European city.  Not to mention that there is a gelato store right across the street :).