Tapas

We did some serious eating over the weekend! I had my first tapas experience at Isabella's in Frederick, Maryland. They say "small plates," & they are, but I was stuffed by the time we finished lunch! Each of us made a few choices, & then we split the items.

The waitress recommended that we order 2-3 items per person to make up a full meal. We wound up getting 6 total plates to share + dessert. :-)

For our first round, we ordered soup, cheese & a portobello mushroom cap. Our second round was from the vegetable column. There were plenty of vegetarian options, which is pretty rare.

To go with the meal, we had red sangria. I'm not used to wine with lunch...it was delicious but it made us all pretty drowsy.

Still, we had plenty of energy to eat! This is the "Garlic Grilled Portobello Mushroom with Wilted Spinach, Roasted Red Pepper and Melted Cheese." It tasted way better than it looked. The Roasted Red Pepper sauce was amazing! I used it with the cheese, too.

The cheese plate was "Fried House-Breaded Cherry Glen Farms Goat Cheese and Almond Fritters with a Tangy Shallot Vinaigrette." 

The Bup wanted to try the "Fresh Andalusian-Style Gazpacho with Olive Oil-Roasted Croutons and Vegetable Brunoise." I took a few tastes, but it wasn't my favorite. I don't think cold soup is my thing.

This is the "Sauteed Baby Green Beans with Roasted Garlic,White Truffle Oil, and Grilled Ripe Tomato." I was really excited to see these on the menu! I think this was my favorite dish. The green beans were cooked just right, so they were still crisp & I loved the combination of flavors.

Most disappointing was the falafel ("Traditional Chick-Pea Fritters Lightly Fried with Tahini and Tomato Relish"). I've always wanted to try falafel & trying it as a small plate sounded perfect. It was a bit dry & didn't have a lot of flavor. I'm not sure if this is normal or this was unique to this batch.

Has anyone out there tried falafel? What are your thoughts?

Our waitress recommended that for our final option we try "Isabella’s Signature Crispy Panko Crusted Asparagus 'Fries' with Smoked Tomato Alioli." I'm not big on fried anything, especially veggies, but since she said it was great, we tried it. The asparagus taste was still apparent & I was pleasantly surprised. As for the smoked tomato alioli...Connie put it best: "You can call it aioli all you want, but it's still mayonaise." Ick.

Connie's dessert: a brownie with hazelnut ice cream & caramel sauce.

My dessert: Homemade ice cream! 1 scoop each of chocolate & oatmeal cookie. The chocolate was very dark, which I love!

The Bup's dessert: apple pie a la mode

It was fun to experience tapas style dining. Lunch was leisurely & I got to taste some items without committing to an entire meal of something new. Frederick is a really cute town with a lot of great dining & shopping options. Thanks for taking us, Connie!

Thai Dining

Just look at the size of that squash! It was about 8" across & filled to the top with curry. Yum!

We went to Maryland on Friday & the Bup's aunt took us to Bangkok Delight, a Thai restaurant in the area. They had a huge menu, but one of the specials was a stuffed butternut squash filled with red curry. I ordered mine with veggies & tofu.

I was a little surprised when it was served, since that is most definitely NOT a butternut squash (I think it's a kabocha). Still, it was delicious & I had plenty of leftovers.

We were pretty hungry when we arrived, so Connie ordered the veggie rolls as our appetizer. The sauce was interesting - it had a bit of spice to it, but not a lot of strong flavor. They were great for a starter, especially since it was just a few bites once we divided them into 3.

Before we went to dinner, we stopped at Trader Joe's! The main highlight this time was the price of raw cashews...around home they're at least $8.75/lb., but I got them for $6.98/lb! I can't wait to make more cashew butter & fresh tomato soup.

I hope you all had a great weekend! I have more weekend fun posts for later in the week, plus 2 recipes.

Avocado & Cheese Pretzel Sandwich

I realize that you don't come here to see pictures of my half-eaten food. Sometimes, though, I don't realize how good something is going to be until I'm eating it! I just had to share this sandwich with you.

This lunch was a thrown together, need to eat at my desk type lunch. We have a local company that does fundraisers through selling subs & pretzel sandwiches. Bonus - they have an "all cheese" variety. Not everyone includes that on their sale sheets, but once in awhile it pops up.

It's really a splurge...$4 for a pretzel roll w/ some cheese on it. Especially since I peel off the American cheese & just eat the provolone. I don't always have time to make my own (although those are scrumptious & totally worth the extra effort, plus I know all the ingredients in them) so sometimes I spend the money. If you've never had a pretzel roll, you need to try one right away. They're sooooo good!

Today I spread the roll with yellow mustard, sliced up half an avocado, & used the provolone cheese. It's creamy (avocado), tangy (mustard), chewy (roll) & cheesy (provolone). Every bite made me think, "mmmmmm!"

On the side I had carrot sticks with homemade roasted red pepper hummus & a pear. Tasty, healthy, & delicious!  Sometimes the spur of the moment meals are the tastiest.

I think if I had pretzel rolls every day I wouldn't appreciate them nearly as much. They're a great treat for a heartier lunch. I hope you like them, too!

Avocado & Cheese Pretzel Sandwich

Serves 1

1 pretzel roll (you can buy these by the bag in most grocery stores)

2 T yellow mustard

1/2 an avocado, sliced

2 or 3 slices provolone cheese

Open the pretzel roll & spread mustard on one of the halves. Top with avocado slices & cheese. Put the roll back together & eat.

Enjoy!