Maine Lobstaaaahs

One of the greatest things about living in Boston is that really great FRESH seafood is always close by. On this lovely Memorial Day weekend, we took the hour-ish drive up to Kittery, Maine, to a little hidden family-owned place called Morrison's Lobster.

.
This is classic New England charm -- a wood structure on the water, wood deck with just a few tables, and as you can maybe see in the picture below, a tiny "kitchen" which consists of three large pots of boiling water and a large water tank with FRESHLY caught lobsters.


It started out to be a cloudy day with some raindrops, but still the scenery was nice. Here are some lobster boats and traps:


An ugly bridge, more classic New England buildings...


A boy (part of the Morrison family?) who romped around barefoot in a wetsuit, and periodically jumped off the dock and into the water...



Here's the wooden deck on which we enjoyed our lobsters...


Speaking of lobsters, here is Morrison's minimal menu... it's basic and simple. Lobster, steamers, lobster roll, chowder/bisque, and the rest is up to you! BYO everything else (beer, side dishes).


I got the half-half clam chowder/lobster bisque. It may seem strange to combine the two, but they were DELICIOUS!! Creamy, salty, seafoody... I wish I took a picture but I ate it too fast! I also got a 1-1/4 pound boiled lobster. Morrison's keeps things simple here -- a boiled lobster served in a paper dish, with a little cup of drawn butter. Really, what could be better?


And here's the "after" shot... poor lobster didn't have a chance.


The Morrison family has two adorable dogs just hanging out... I tried to get a picture with one, but that didn't work out too well...


They painted her toenails!!


I really want one of these!!


And here's the other one... I think this one is older.


Anyway, I love love love fresh lobster, in all its cholesterol-filled-butter-dipping glory. Morrison's is truly a hidden gem -- off the beaten path, family-run, no nonsense, low-key. Even though every winter I ask myself, "Why am I living in New England?," and I am reminded when summer comes around that New England has so much charm and a whole lot to offer. Let me know if you're ever in the area!

Inspired! Tandoori turkey burgers!

Oh blogging, how I've missed you!! Hello, friends.

I've found some inspiration, via our friends at Everyday Foods on PBS (woohoo public television!). If you've ever seen this show, you'll know it isn't particularly entertaining (the hosts are quite... monotonous, in my opinion), but I have frequently found their recipes inspiring and easy. I was watching a recent episode all about burgers, and with summer just around the corner, it seemed to be a good fit!!

These burgers are Tandoori-Style Turkey Burgers with Cumin Yogurt Sauce (the original uses chicken, but I used turkey). I just adore Indian spices, and this burger sounded very refreshing and tasty!

I started with a combination of ground white turkey, and ground dark turkey. I added the lemon juice, spices, ginger, and scallions, and combined with my hands. The spices included cumin, paprika, cayenne, salt, and pepper (the original calls for cardamom, but it was too expensive so I omitted it). Yuck, I hate the feeling of raw meat, especially when it gets stuck underneath my fingernails!



I used a 1/4-cup measuring cup to approximate the size of the patties, and formed them into these mini-size patties. They are so cute!


Onto the grill pan they went... smells good...


And flipped them to get lovely grill marks. These little guys cook up faster than bigger burgers, so you don't have to wait as long to eat them :)


As a cool accompaniment, the yogurt sauce consists of nonfat Greek yogurt, cumin, salt, and pepper.


I put two mini-burgers in a whole-wheat pita half, along with the yogurt sauce, thinly sliced cucumber, and fresh cilantro leaves. The spices add a deep and exotic flavor to these burgers, and the coolness of the yogurt and cucumber are a perfect compliment. Not to mention, the cilantro, which I cannot get enough of!! Overall, I am very happy with this recipe. It's simple, quick, and full of flavor and interesting depth. I think you'll love it as much as I did!!

High five for inspiration!



Tandoori-Style Turkey Burgers with Cumin Yogurt Sauce

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground white turkey meat
0.75 lb. ground dark turkey meat
4 scallions, thinly sliced
3 Tbsp chopped or grated fresh ginger
Juice from 1 lemon
1 Tbsp paprika
2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
S&P
whole-wheat pitas, halved
1 cucumber, halved and thinly sliced
1/2 cup fresh cilantro sprigs

For the yogurt sauce:
1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
S&P

Directions:
1. Combine turkey meat, scallions, ginger, lemon juice, paprika, cumin, cayenne pepper, and S&P into a large bowl. Use hands to combine thoroughly.
2. Using a 1/4-cup measuring cup, form mini-patties (I ended up with 18).
3. Heat a grill pan, or grill, to medium-high heat. You can brush/spray some vegetable oil, if you'd like.
4. Place burger patties on grill. Do not touch the patties until you are ready to turn. Cook for about 7-8 minutes on each side, or until there are nice grill marks and the meat is cooked through.
5. Make the yogurt sauce by combining the yogurt, cumin, and S&P.
6. Spread the yogurt sauce on one side of the pita.
7. Place two mini-patties into the pita pocket. Add cucumber slices and cilantro.
8. ENJOY your tasty creation!

Big Thanks

I am eternally grateful to each of you in the blogging community. Truly, I am amazed at the kind words and thoughts of support. Thank you so much!! I am back, but havn't gotten back to blogging quite yet for a few reasons...

-I can't seem to find the battery charger for my camera, so it is basically a dud right now. Bummer.
-I seem to be losing inspiration for cooking and baking! Maybe it's just laziness, or just trying to recover from a rough week. Plus, my summer semester just started. It definitely is NOT due to the lack of inspirational content out there (thanks to each of you), but probably rather due to me still feeling tired and worn out.

It was indeed a rough week, and just after I came back from NY for funeral stuff, I took a plane down to Maryland for a wedding (quite a whirlwind of emotions that week!). The wedding was beautiful, outdoors, and the food was great. This wasn't a surprise, since the bride and groom are quite the food lovers. Here's a photo of our appetizer:


Huge, plump mussels in a broth of unknown ingredients. It's irrelevant what the broth was made from, because it was DELICIOUS!!

And, being the French food lovers that they are, they decided to forgo the traditional wedding cake, and opt for a beautiful (and tasty) French macaroon tree! They also had an accompanying dessert bar, which I appreciated. Deeply appreciated.


It was a beautiful, fun, and memorable wedding. Congrats to Olivia and Mike!

Hopefully I'll find that darn camera battery charger and get some inspiration to cook and blog. I shall return!

Thanks again!

Hiatus

Hi my friends.
I'll be taking a short break, maybe a week or so. Unfortunately, there's been an unexpected death in my family, so I'll be out of town for a bit.
You are all wonderful, thank you for all your support.
Love,
Christina

Soba Noodles, a quick easy dinner

We're all affected in some way by this crappy economy. For me, I've been having a lot of difficulty finding an RN job here in Boston, because all 100040030 major academic hospitals in Boston are on hiring freezes. As a result, I am trying to make food that is cheap, quick, yet still delicious! I have been making this soba noodle dish for quite some time now, and D and I just love it. It's very simple, and comes together quickly. The ingredients are relatively inexpensive, and it makes a lot of noodles, which is perfect for lunches for several days.

I started by boiling some water, and cooking some soba (buckwheat) noodles until just al dente. You can find these noodles in an Asian food market, or Whole Foods. You will find that the more expensive versions of soba noodles have higher buckwheat content, while the cheaper ones contain a higher ratio of wheat flour. As you can see below, I got the cheaper kind! Sure, it's less nutritious, and has less fiber, but it will do.


While the noodles were cooking, I made the sauce to toss the noodles in. It consists of soy sauce, sesame oil, Korean red pepper flakes (gochu garu), fish sauce, and some furikake (Japanese seaweed/bonito flake/sesame seed seasoning).


I whisked it all in a large bowl.


Then, I added some sprouts and thawed edamame to the sauce. When the noodles were done cooking, I drained them, and added the hot noodles on top of the sprouts/edamame. This allows the sprouts to slightly cook, and the edamame to further thaw.


I used tongs to gently mix, bringing the sauce from the bottom to the top.


I sliced some scallion for garnish, and for a little bit of onion-y bite.


I served the noodles up with some pieces of light silken tofu, which I love for its smooth texture and protein content. You could use any kind of tofu you like, but I think the silken tofu has a very creamy and lovely texture. I think you'll really like this dish -- it is simple and very tasty. It has quite a bit of protein from the tofu and edamame, as well as fiber from the soba and edamame. The sauce is simple and provides a nice Asian flavor. Next time, I might add some rice wine vinegar to the sauce to shake things up a bit!



Soba Noodles with Tofu

Ingredients:
2 packages of soba noodles (8.8 oz each), cooked according to package directions
5 Tbsp soy sauce
2 Tbsp sesame oil
4-5 dashes of fish sauce
1/2 Tbsp Korean red pepper flakes
1 Tbsp furikake
1 cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed
2 cups sprouts
1 package light silken tofu
3 scallions, sliced

Directions:
1. Boil water, and cook the noodles. Drain, set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine the soy sauce, sesame oil, fish sauce, Korean red pepper flakes, and furikake. Whisk to combine.
3. Add the sprouts and edamame to the sauce.
4. Add the hot noodles on top. The heat from the noodles will slightly cook the sprouts and further thaw the edamame.
5. Using tongs, gently mix thoroughly to ensure complete coverage with the sauce.
6. Serve with some tofu slices. Garnish with sliced scallions, and more furikake.
7. Enjoy your Asian creation!