St. Patricks

St. Patrick's Day has never been one of my favorite holidays (taunts of erin-go-braless and all), and since we didn't have any family or friends coming over, I was just going to let it slip past. I was content with my decision, and Dan said he didn't mind. Yet, something came over me while driving home, and I picked up a corned beef.

And potatoes.

And cabbage.

And sent Dan out for Guinness.

And then I figured I may as well make the Irish Soda Bread too.

And suddenly, it was St. Paddy's day.

With enough left over to make corned beef hash for breakfast!

Federichi's

I'm not a picky eater, right? I really don't think I am. I like everything. Well, everything except for mushrooms, olives or pork. Three foods out of like a bazillion is pretty good in my eyes.

Except of course when you're invited out for pizza.

"Hey Erin, what kind of toppings do you like?"

"Oh, anything...well, anything except for mushrooms or olives"

*awkward silence denoting that everyone else at the table's favorite toppings are mushrooms and olives

"That's okay, how about sausage"

"Suuuuure, sausage sounds good"

*trying desperately not to sound picky, even though dammit I should have said sausage first

Which is how I ended up with my own pizza.

"How about an appetizer, the stuffed mushrooms look good"

*headdesk

Spinach and Cheese Unstuffed Shells

Did you know there are different sized pasta shells?


I did not.


So of course I purchased the oddly inconvenient middle sized shells.


I decided to go more of a baked ziti route, and layered the boiled shells with sauce, cheese, and garlicky sauteed spinach.


I popped it into the oven and they actually stuffed themselves!

Harold's New York Deli

Predictably, I'm pretty addicted to food shows. They make me irrationally confident in things I clearly have no experience with. Sure I can use a liquid nitrogen tank to make ice cream without freezing my face off.

One of my favorites is Man vs. Food because of course I believe I would be able to hold my own against Adam. Eighteen pounds of sushi? Bring it on. 300 Ghost Chilies? Give me a challenge.

But I digress...While staying in a hotel, Dan ran out one morning to get us breakfast from a nearby deli, this nearby deli.

Featured in Man vs. Food



Yeah. Not knowing this ahead of time, Dan orders us two breakfast sandwiches.

The Jersey staple, Taylor Ham and Egg on a Hard Roll. (This is my flog, so it is Taylor Ham. It will never be pork roll. Ham is classy, Taylor Ham, Taylor Ham, Taylor Ham.)

I couldn't really capture how big the thing was, but trust me, it was a bowling ball, a delicious, greasy, bowling ball. If a sandwich usually comes with one slice of meat, this had eight, most of which I had to pluck off to be able to eat it because, you know, I'm healthy like that.

Spinach Lasagna

I may be alone in considering Lasagna to be a quick weeknight dinner, but since I have never learned to make it the old-fashioned way, my no-recipe, slap-dash way is easy as all get out!

This may have been my tastiest lasagna yet, unfortunately, it's a little sad looking, because I scrimped on the layers.



No Recipe Spinach Lasagna

1. Spread jarred tomato sauce in the bottom of your baking pan.

2. Mix together ricotta and cottage cheese (about 1 cup of each), one package of thawed spinach, a good sprinkle of Parm. cheese, salt, pepper, nutmeg and garlic powder.

3. Layer no boil lasagna noodles on the sauce-covered pan, then top with a layer of the cheese mixture, noodles, sauce, and keep going until you run out. Top the the whole thing off with more sauce, and mozzarella cheese.

4. Bake until hot and bubbly.

Just a little thin, it's still good.

Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Walnuts

I am a recent convert to Brussels Sprouts; I remember as a kid the thought of them used to make me cringe. (I'm forcing myself to write "Brussels" because that's the correct way, but it looks so wonky.)

Then one night at a fancy restaurant, Dan's dinner came with a side of the tiny cabbages, and they were incredible!

Turns out Brussels are only disgusting when prepared how everything was prepared in the 80's. Frozen and microwaved.

I typically roast them, but I was looking for something a little fancier for a New Years side dish (to go with this pork). Dan suggested we just do the recipe that was linked with the pork, and voila:

Shredded Brussels Sprouts with Bacon and Walnuts

2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon walnut oil (I used Olive Oil)
4 slices thick cut bacon (I used turkey bacon)
1 pound Brussels sprouts, trimmed and shredded
1/2 cup toasted chopped walnuts
kosher salt, to taste
fresh ground black pepper, to taste


Directions:
In a small bowl, whisk together vinegar, sugar, and oil; set aside.


In a large skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Remove bacon, cut or crumble into pieces, and set aside. Pour off all but 2 tablespoons of drippings in pan (if there aren’t enough drippings to equal 2 tbsp, add a little butter or oil).


Heat drippings over medium-high then add shredded Brussels sprouts. Cook, stirring constantly, for 3 to 5 minutes, or until just tender. Remove from heat and stir in bacon, walnuts, and dressing. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve warm.


We all loved them. I chopped all the Brussels by hand because I thought it would be easier than cleaning the food processor. Do not make this mistake. My fingers actually went numb from holding the knife so long.

FYI: I made this again a week later, just halving the Brussels, and it was just as good.

Party!

Now that our house is done, almost done, acceptable, it was finally time to have our housewarming party! Because we know that having a house full of people you’re trying to impress is the perfect time to try brand new recipes, right?

Our new chalkboard wall serving as menu!

So, I'm sorry I didn't get a better picture of them, but in the very front you can see my Drunken Gummies! These babies were a huge hit. They take a bit of time (a little over a week to come together), but are definitely worth it! High Schoolers have all the best ideas!

Drunken Gummies at the booze table, and a fridge full of beer.

Chips and Dips in the Living Room

Cheddar Bacon Dip (Crack). Dayum.

This tasted exactly how it sounds. Cheesy, salty, bacon-ey (why not). It made a ton, and I through the rest into mashed potatoes the next night.

Hummus (store bought) and Veggies

Caprese Skewers

Sliders

Which tasted freakishly like White Castle's sliders!

And Veggie Sliders

There was also Mini Spanakopita which I failed to take a picture of--they were good, but IMO not worth the effort... just buy the things from Costco--and the Satan's Blood Chili from my previous post.

For dessert Dan made a Hot Chocolate Ice Cream, and a Cranberry Pomegranate "Sweet Tart" Ice Cream, which didn't survive for pictures.

I *think* everyone enjoyed everything. There was a ton of leftovers, but I chose to think everyone ate beforehand. I know the booze was a success =)

And a huge thank you to Dan, for cleaning everything up after I fell asleep the minute the last guest left.