The best GUILT FREE spaghetti

spaghetti squash 011

spaghetti squash 011

So I am not much of a pasta person. I lived in the North End, Boston (aka little Italy) for 2 years; I ate at a local Italian restaurant ONCE! People always tell me I should try Spaghetti Squash.  I finally came across this "spaghetti squash" at Trader Joes, and was excited to experiment and cook with this new found vegetable. I decided to make Spaghetti squash topped with an abundance of julienne cut vegetables, mozzarella, garlic and EVOO.

To start I cut the squash in half the long way and placed it in water and boiled it for about 20-30 minutes. I used thongs to take the squash out of the water and let it cool off a little before stringing.

spaghetti squash 002

spaghetti squash 002

While the squash was boiling I julienne cut one red pepper, one yellow zucchini and one green zucchini, all with the help from a special peeler. Next time I will add some carrots!

spaghetti squash 003

spaghetti squash 003

I warmed up a pan with EVOO and fresh crushed garlic. After the garlic simmered for a bit I added the julienne veggies and gave it a little toss. By this time the Squash was ready for the fun part... stringing!

spaghetti squash 005

spaghetti squash 005

You have to string the squash the long way. It can be hot so be careful! Don't forget about the veggies... keep mixing!

spaghetti squash 006

spaghetti squash 006

In order to spice up the veggies I added grape tomatoes cut in half, diced fresh mozzarella cheese, and a medley of ground up spices. It was such a filling dish, and I can not even begin to describe how buttery and delicious the squash tasted. I kept saying, "is there butter in this"? The best part it was ALL veggies!

Other methods to cook the squash:

Bake

 about an hour in the oven at 375 F.

Microwave

 10 to 12 minutes, then let stand for 5 minutes or so afterward to finish steaming.

Boil

 for about half an hour.

Slow Cooker/Crock Pot:

 Put it in with a cup of water and let it go on low all day (8 to 10 hours).

How do you make your spaghetti squash?

Posted on October 6, 2011 and filed under food, entree, savory.

Boston Fashion Week- Daniela Corte Runway Show

I was so excited to get invited to my first runway fashion show featuring Daniela Corte's amazing work for Boston Fashion Week.

I can only imagine the amount of time and creativity that goes into designing all of the unique pieces, not to mention the production and execution of a runway show itself. Such amazing colors and patterns.

Check out a Video of the Runway Show here:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajYpP0xVp0o&w=500&h=369]

One thing I will eventually do is invest in a better camera. I totally think the shots I took do not do justice to the pieces. I loved the top above.

My favorite part of the show was when the models would turn around and the back of the dress or shirt would be something totally unexpected. I feel that Daniela did this a lot. I was always looking forward to viewing the back of the outfit!

The swimsuit portion of the show was awesome. But please refer to Daniel Gagnon Photography on Facebook, for better pictures of the event.

THE TENT, before the show began.

Mom and I at the show! What did I wear? I had the intention of wearing the DC Voltage Dress, but changed my mind last minute and decided to wear this DC high-waisted skirt, except in faux leather. PERFECT!

The kid in front of me had an awesome camera.  He was able to get greats shots of the models, no matter how fast they moved.

Overall, I LOVED the event and everything that went along with it. I finally got me meet Kelly Dooley, Creator of Body Rock Sports Bras!! She is just as spicy as I thought she would be.

Also... SUGAR lip balm in the welcome bag, score! Be sure to follow Daniela Corte-Studio on Facebook.

Posted on October 5, 2011 and filed under events, vogue.

fruit in your ice cubes

Next time you make ice cubes add some fresh cut strawberries, or cucumbers, or add a squeeze of lemon or lime! I made two trays of ice cubes last night.  I added cut strawberries in one, and fresh lemon juice in the other! The water really gets a hint of the fruit juices. Refreshing and fun.

Posted on October 3, 2011 and filed under food.

black mission figs

This past weekend I went to Jimmy's Bar & Oven to grab a salad with a friend. I was IN LOVE with the decor and ambiance of this restaurant... high ceilings, cement and chalkboard walls, industrial lighting, an open kitchen, bar seating, and my favorite spec: a glass garage door that opens up to the outside street. I saw a man and asked if he was Jimmy. Luckily, he was. Turns out he used to own a restaurant in the South End and closed it 4 months ago to open up this new place. I did not get into too many details, but told him how much I love the look of Jimmy's (sorry I wish I had my camera on me to take a picture of the interior!)

jimmys

jimmys

Both my friend and I ordered baby arugula salad with figs, and goat cheese. I also asked for a side of beets. The Salad was fresh and delicious, we asked for more goat cheese, since we felt that both salads could have used more. They brought us more with no charge. Hey we love cheese!

The thing we enjoyed most about the salads were the figs. They were smaller and darker than what we  thought normal figs were. We asked the waitress what kind of figs they were and she said "normal figs". We thought they had to have been soaked in something because they were oozing with goodness. But turns out they were  just ordinary figs! They were oozing with their natural sugars! Totally sweet and yummy. I found them in Trader Joes today:

figs

figs

I just ate some now. I cut them up in small pieces and put them in greek yogurt with walnuts! YUM it was delish. I love the creamy texture of the yogurt mixed with the chewyness of the figs, and then the crunchy texture of the walnuts.

What do you do with your figs?

Posted on October 2, 2011 and filed under sweat, food.

GREAT recipe website!

I love Gojee recipe website! Easy to navigate, somewhat interactive, and always has a beautiful final product picture of the recipe! You can tell Gojee what you crave, what you have, what you like, and dislike and the site will narrow down their many, many recipes. Their recipes are compiled from all different and wonderful food bloggers. I want to make a new dish tonight, and was stuck with no ideas. I took a visit to Gojee and after some narrowing down of what I like I ended up with two new ideas:

   Tilapia with Olive & Roasted Red Pepper Tapenade

Recipe and Photo by Meredith Steele

OR

Steamed Wild Salmon with Mizuna, Mustard Greens, Soy Sauce and Ginger

Recipe and Photo by Joanne Goodman

What are your favorite sites for getting recipes?

Posted on September 30, 2011 and filed under food.