It's Time To Move On

"It's time to move on. It's time to get going. 

What lies ahead I have no way of knowing." 

-Tom Petty

Lentils With Sausage And Roasted Butternut Squash

Does anyone else think it got cold really fast this year? I don't feel like we eased into it at all. I mean, I've seen snow twice already, and it's only November! (Of course, now we're getting a few days of warm weather, which I will not complain about at all! Yesterday was gorgeous!) The colder temperatures had me developing cravings for hearty, warming dishes like soups or bowlfuls of lentils. I seriously feel like I could eat lentils all late fall and winter long.

Dining Around At The Royal Sonesta

I have such fond memories of staying at the Royal Sonesta Boston in Cambridge and dining at the restaurants there. I've enjoyed meals at ArtBar and Dante. I've had good times staying there with friends as part of a joint bachelorette party. And I had a nice stay there with my mom and sister as well. We were even motivated enough by the proximity to the Charles River to go for a morning run.

Recently, the hotel underwent a huge renovation and I was invited in to see the changes. The event was set up as a dine-around at the hotel, which was a nice opportunity to visit the old restaurants I know there and check out what's new.

Goat Cheese Tart With Pomegranate And Mâche

I love cookbooks. If you came to my house and saw my collection, you might even call it an obsession. People see the books I have downstairs in the living room and think I have a lot of books. They don't realize there are so many bins of them in the office and basement too (we're hoping to do built-in bookshelves in the living room in the not-too-distant future so I can finally unpack them all). Even though I already have so many, that doesn't stop me from adding to my collection.

Recently I attended the launch party at Island Creek Oyster Bar for The New England Kitchen: Fresh Takes on Seasonal Recipes, Jeremy Sewall and Erin Byers Murray's new cookbook.

"Butterball It" Plus A Butterball Turkey Gift Check Giveaway

We all know that Thanksgiving is coming, and we embrace it in all different ways. Some of us are excited to tackle roasting the bird and fearlessly enter the kitchen. Others are a little more trepidatious and might have questions and concerns along the way. That's where Butterball comes in with their new "Butterball It" technology. When you visit Butterball.com, you'll see a search bar where you can type in any Thanksgiving-related questions you might have.

Hosting Thanksgiving: Menu And Planning

Are you hosting Thanksgiving this year? We always go to Jeff's parents' house for dinner on Thanksgiving day, and last year we started a tradition of hosting my family on the Saturday after. I feel like we get the best of both worlds that way. I make a nice dessert for Thanksgiving day, which is easier with my work schedule (my holiday doesn't start until Wednesday afternoon). And then, along with help from my family, I put together a big dinner for Saturday, with plenty of time from Thursday evening until our early Thanksgiving dinner is served Saturday afternoon.

I've been going over last year's menu and tweaking it and tailoring it for this year. For dinner at Jeff's parents', I'm making an apple tart recipe from work that my mother-in-law requested. I tasted it often during development (it's so good!) and am excited to add it to our Thanksgiving meal. (Last year I made a cheesecake topped with cranberry curd and chocolate.)

Here's what I've got planned for the whole meal on Saturday…

Overkill, A 12-Course Dinner Benefiting No Kid Hungry

Last week, I attended Overkill, a 12-course blowout dinner hosted by Brian Mercury (pastry chef, Harvest) and Mary Dumont (chef/partner, Harvest). This year the event benefited No Kid Hungry. No Kid Hungry is Share Our Strength's national campaign to end childhood hunger. Through culinary events such as this one, plus Taste of the Nation, No Kid Hungry dinners, and a series of "Food Fight" events, Share our Strength receives the support it needs to work toward ending childhood hunger.

Mini Baked Apple Cider Doughnuts

These should really be called mini baked apple cider doughnut muffin doughnuts, because I took a doughnut muffin recipe and adapted it to make doughnuts. But that sounded like too much of a tongue twister, so mini baked apple cider doughnuts it is.

Roasted Winter Squash With Cranberry-Sage Butter

Morning Glory's Farm Food: Stories from the Fields, Recipes from the Kitchen by Gabrielle Redner, a cookbook I recently received to review, is more than just a cookbook. Sure, it has recipes, but it's also filled with information and stories about the Martha's Vineyard farm, the farmers, the crops they grow, and even other farms on the island. For someone who cares about farms and farmers' markets, as I do, the book sends a great message about getting to know your food and where it comes from. It's all about respecting vegetables and taking the time to notice how much better local food tastes.

Farrotto With Butternut Squash, Sage, And Goat Cheese

If you couldn't tell from my Farro "Risotto" with Mushrooms, Asparagus, and Goat Cheese and my Roasted Tomato Farro Bake, I love farro. I'd choose it over rice any day. Its nutty texture goes with so many different ingredients and flavors. It works well warm, as in a baked dish, or cold, as in a salad. It's even nice in soup. And if you desire a little creaminess to complement the nuttiness, you simply need to cook it risotto-style to make a farrotto. I love its versatility.

Dinner At Gibbet Hill Grill, Groton, Mass.

Jeff and I are celebrating our two-year anniversary today. We got married at The Estate at Moraine Farm. It's part of the same restaurant group as Gibbet Hill Grill, so for our one-year anniversary, my sister sent us a gift card to the restaurant (thank you, Lindsay!). Over Labor Day weekend we finally journeyed out to Groton to check it out (waiting was a little strategic on my part -- I wanted to go when tomatoes and corn were in season).

Date Night: Burgers And Brews At Del Frisco's Grille

We're pretty spoiled having The Street just a short drive down the road from us. It's given us more restaurant options, plus the ability to make regular stops into Pottery Barn and Lululemon. One of the restaurants I love over there (that I've written about before) is Del Frisco's Grille. Unlike Del Frisco's Double Eagle Steakhouse down at the Seaport, a spot I find best suited for celebrating special occasions, Del Frisco's Grille has a more casual vibe and atmosphere. It's the kind of place you can stop into just to grab a bite to eat, no advance planning or special occasion needed (well, maybe a little advance planning to get a reservation on a weekend).

After work last Wednesday, Jeff and I headed over to check out the new Burgers and Brews Combo. When you order the combo, you get your choice of any draft beer, the Grille Prime Cheeseburger, and fries for $17.50.

Pumpkin-Cranberry Yogurt Parfaits

You know how when you're playing Hearts, you have to wait until hearts have been "broken" before you can start using them? That's kind of how it went with me and pumpkin this year. I kept thinking maybe it was time to crack open my cans of pumpkin, but I was hesitant to kick off the season until one day recently when pumpkin was broken for me, in the form of a delightful pumpkin truffle from a chocolate shop near my work. The truffles were a new item, so the woman at the shop was offering samples of them. It took that one little bite (and the purchase of a second one) to throw me into pumpkin season. All bets are off now. Oh, and since pumpkin is in, naturally cranberry is too.

Grilled Chicken And Corn Salad With Feta And Jalapeño-Lime Dressing

With fall weather just creeping in, it's a perfect time for being outside and continuing to fire up the grill. I was inspired to head out to the grill by a recipe for Grilled Chicken and Corn with Jalapeño-Lime Dressing in the August issue of Food & Wine. Something about the photo kept drawing me in each time I flipped through the issue, and a quick scan of the ingredient list convinced me this was a recipe I needed to try. Of course, I couldn't just make it as written; I tweaked it a little to include my garden bounty and some other ingredients I thought would work well with the jalapeño-lime dressing.

Brussels Sprouts And Bacon Dumplings From Dumplings All Day Wong

I have a really fun cookbook to share with you guys today. It's called Dumplings All Day Wong: A Cookbook of Asian Delights from a Top Chef, and it's written by former Top Chef contestant Lee Anne Wong. As the title would suggest, the book is full of dumpling recipes.

My Go-To Summer Pasta Dish

It's been a good summer, hasn't it? As much as I like to hold on to summer forever, fall is my favorite season so I'm not upset it's coming. But before embracing the new season, I want to take a little time to reflect on this one.

Scenes From Sugar Rush 2014 At Harvest

Starting with pain perdu; continuing with a summer composition of peaches, blueberries, and cornmeal crepes; Turkish ice cream and blackberries; and a new spin on childhood cereal favorites; and ending with a rich, decadent chocolate tart, Sugar Rush is a dessert lover's dream come true.

The five-course dessert tasting was held last Wednesday evening at Harvest in Harvard Square. Harvest's pastry chef Brian Mercury organized the event and invited other local pastry chefs to participate. Everyone prepped at their own restaurants and then helped each other plate in Harvest's kitchen.

Hazelnut Pain Perdu by Brian Mercury of Harvest
with house-made ricotta fro-yo, honey mousse, and fennel jam
paired with Villa des Anges, Rose of Cinsault, Old Vines, Vin de Pays d'Oc, France

Pairing Chocolate And Wine At Chocolate Therapy, Dedham, Mass.

The other night I attended a wine and chocolate pairing at Chocolate Therapy at Legacy Place in Dedham. I've been to Chocolate Therapy several times before -- it makes a great pit stop during an afternoon of shopping, whether for a bite of chocolate or a coffee -- and was excited to see how the chocolates paired with wine (let's be honest… wine and chocolate are two of my favorite things).

Mini Profiteroles With Tomatoes And Basil

Can you guys believe it's almost Labor Day? I know we still have a few weeks of summer left, but for some reason, Labor Day always feels like a symbol of the end of summer. To keep the summer going strong, I made these mini profiteroles and filled them with a mixture of ripe, fresh-from-the-garden tomatoes and basil, plus olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and a little salt and pepper. These mini profiteroles would be perfect to serve at any Labor Day party or barbecue or just as a dinner-party hors d'oeuvre.

Classic And Creative Brioche Pastries With Joanne Chang

Those of you who have been reading this blog for a long time know that I spent a little over a year working at Flour Bakery. It was at a time in my life when I was seriously considering culinary school. I was unhappy in my editing job at the time (to the point that I was in tears pretty much every Sunday evening stressing about and dreading the week ahead), and I wanted to do something I felt passionate about. As I was searching job postings, I came across one for a baker position at Flour. I had a lightbulb moment and thought maybe I could work at the bakery and learn on the job as opposed to paying for culinary school. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made.