Domatokeftedes & Kosher Carbonara

Posted by ilana

May 7

Kirios and I embarked on another culinary adventure this past Wednesday. On this week’s edition of my big fat Greek Kosher Kitchen, we made Greek tomato patties called domatokeftedes, and an Italian recipe – pasta in carbonara sauce, with some modifications to make it kosher.

While domatokeftedes are a Greek dish, they are not from Kirios’ mother’s island, and he had never had them before. But nevertheless, he heard about them, and wanted to try, so we peeled and strained a pound of plum tomatoes, and we added scallions, mint, basil, oregano, parmesan, and breadcrumbs, and some other seasoning to form the patties. Kirios fried them up, and then we enjoyed. They were light and full of flavor. We plan to make them again in a few months when there are home-grown tomatoes from his family’s garden.

In addition to the domatokeftedes, we also made pasta with kosher carbonara sauce. The other week, I was reading a Jewish blog with a recipe for kosher carbonara, which usually includes pancetta. The recipe I read used smoke-flavored tofu instead of pancetta, which didn’t sound super appealing to me. But I did remind me that shortly after I returned from studying abroad in Rome my family friend who has previously lived (and cooked) in Italy made her own kosher version of the dish using fried (parve) bacos. I emailed her for her recipe, which she graciously shared.  In no extra time than it takes to make pasta, we were able to enjoy some with this creamy fake bacon/egg/parmesan sauce. It was so easy to make, I’m sure I’ll come back to it over and over!

Since Wednesday, I’ve been busy with lots of fun things, but unfortunately, I’ve been so busy that we haven’t had any more cooking adventures! Oh well, I’m sure there will be plenty more soon enough 🙂

0 Comments
Filed under: Food

A Perfect Picnic and other Lovely Happenings

Posted by ilana

May 3

Things are shaping up around here… Spring has sprung and my apartment building finally turned on the AC after a couple of unpleasant days reaching the 80s and even one in the 90s. Even better than that, I got some good news that one of the issues which have been stressing me out won’t be a consideration much longer. It gives me hope, and I’ve been calmer and more optimistic.

This past weekend was quite enjoyable. Kirios and I went to an interesting Shabbat dinner party on Friday where we were able to get to know some new people and enjoy my yummy challah. (I missed it so much over Passover!) Saturday we went to the Maryland Day at our alma mater and met up with some friends. It was lovely to be back on campus and remember how great school was. It’s even better now that I get to spend time on campus with Kirios too!

After Maryland Day, we had dinner with Kirios’ parents before driving out to Virginia for our friend’s *gasp* 30th birthday. That was a first. Luckily, our forever young friend planned an awesome laser tag party. We were originally thinking a moon bounce would be the best way to celebrate and heartbroken to learn that her alley just isn’t big enough for one, but it ended up being a rainy day, so laser tag was definitely the way to go! Unfortunately, my laser tag skills haven’t improved much since my middle school days at FunFest. It was also unfortunate that Kirios walked into a wall and got a booboo while playing. But rest assured, everyone had fun anyway. After laser tag, we headed into the District for drinks and 90s music. The birthday girl even played pac-man.

Following a successful Saturday, Sunday was posibbly the most relaxing and refreshing day I’ve had in months. Kirios and I slept in after our late night. He prepared yummy tropical bowls of cereal for us – with bananas, mango, kiwi, grapes, and pineapple in them! In the afternoon, we met friends and carpooled into DC to attend a young professionals’ barbeque at my synagogue to celebrate Yom Haatzmaut, Israeli Independence Day, which was earlier last week. More of our friends met us at the synagogue, and we enjoyed beer, chicken and beef souvlaki (since Kirios refuses to recognize “shish-kabobs” as an acceptable description of skewered meat), hummus, tahini, babaganoush, and Israeli salad! We sat at a table outside, where it was in the mid-60s, but sunny enough I didn’t wear my sweater.  It was the first barbeque of the season, and such a treat to take a few hours to relax and catch up with good friends. I know I don’t take enough time to relax and keep still. Being able to do that, while still being out with friends was the perfect Sunday afternoon activity!

I’ve had a busy week so far. Work meetings and doctor appointments have filled my calendar, and there’s still a lot of excitement planned for both this week and next. I’ll try my best to hold on to that calm relaxed optimism as events unfold!

0 Comments
Filed under: Birthdays, Events

Reverse Retail Therapy

Posted by ilana

Apr 23

I had a stressful day yesterday. As I recently posted, I’ve been struggling with managing stress lately and even with an evening trip to finally see Hunger Games with Kirios and a friend, yesterday was a difficult day. This morning I found myself dragging a bit more than a typical Monday morning. While it doesn’t help that I’ve cut back on my caffeine consumption at my cardiologist’s request, I know that my morning blues are a byproduct of a non-relaxing Sunday. So in an effort to change my spirits this evening, I plan to partake in some reverse retail therapy.

It just so happens that Kirios and I went on a major TJ Maxx & Ross shopping spree on Saturday. I had never actually been to a Ross’ before, and I’ll admit, I went a bit overboard. But what woman doesn’t love a new dress that compliments her curves? And at only an additional $15, how could you not buy a second one? Truth be told, I purchased a total of seven dresses, ranging from casual to professional to little black dress. I also purchased two skirts, a pair of shorts, and a handbag which came with a matching compact umbrella. I know, I know, a bit overboard.

Kirios and I returned to his house just before 10 pm. We stayed out shopping so late that we missed out on an opportunity to attend a party downtown, and we still hadn’t had dinner. We were both excited about our purchases, and the prospect of future occasions to show them off around town. I knew that Kirios’ parents would be home and eager to see what we returned with, and I was more than a little embarrassed by my Santa-sized sack of clothes. To my delight, rather than suggesting I return some of the items, they ooh-ed and ahh-ed at each item, agreeing with how nicely the dresses matched my turquoise sandals, or jewelry Kirios has given me. When I was done with show-and-tell, Kirios’ mother even reminded me that if I had gone to a department store, I could have easily spent the same amount of money on just one or two dresses.

My shopping trip moved to the back of my mind when less pleasant things filled my thoughts yesterday. So tonight, I plan to try on all of my clothes again. Of course, it’s reasonable to try them on again before I take the tags off and wash them to make sure I chose wisely. But I’ll admit it, twirling around in a new dress (or seven) seems like just what the doctor ordered to send my bad day blues away!

0 Comments
Filed under: Health, Shopping

Blogging while Mad or Sad

Posted by ilana

Apr 17

I know it’s been a while since I’ve blogged… I’ve struggled with it a bit lately. It’s easy for me to write about the nice things in life – trying a new restaurant or a new recipe in the kitchen, visiting friends and family, and celebrating life’s special occasions. But some days I’m mad, I’m frustrated, or I’m feeling somewhat deflated. And on those days, even if I have the time, I usually don’t like to blog. It’s not that I want everyone to think that my life is full of rainbows and fairy dust all of the time, but I’m afraid to say something which will hurt someone I care about; to complain when so many people have it so much worse; or for some tidbit of information to be googled and used against me at a job interview or in court or something else crazy off into the future.

I have a friend who’s living abroad while in the Peace Corps. She sends out email updates from time to time, and I am always impressed by the way she shares and communicates her experience. She talks about the trips she makes, and the beautiful sights she sees, and the relationships she’s forged. She also discussed the cultural differences she’s found, and the projects she’s hoping will help the community in which she serves, and she discusses the poverty, lack of medical care, and sex tourism which plague the area. She frequently discusses how she’s coping with the experience, giving a glimpse into the immense emotional and physical demands which plague her. Her emails show determination and optimism, frustration, and acceptance of an imperfect situation. They give me a very real sense of how she’s doing, for better or for worse, and they make me proud to be her friend.

I suppose what strikes me the most about my friend’s emails is that despite being a mass communication, they share a level of honesty most of us reserve for intimate meet-ups and phone calls. When you run into someone on the street and ask how they’re doing, how frequently do they tell you that they’re struggling? Usually, we just say things are going well. My Zaydie struggled each and every day after my Grandma, the love of his life, passed away. Every time we spoke, for almost a decade, I’d ask him how he was doing, and he always replied, “I’m doing the best I can.” He never said he wasn’t doing well, and yet, he could never say he was doing well either.

Since my last post, I have been doing well… Kirios and I have cooked revithia, chickpea stew; savory whole wheat herb crepes; and delicious soutzoukakia, Greek meatballs (with some alterations to make them kosher). We’ve gone to birthday parties, explored the National Park Seminary (a very strange and interesting place worth reading about!), and even saw a high school musical! I traveled to Portland, OR for a business trip, gorged on extra-large sushi pieces, and then flew out on the red-eye the next night so I could spend the beginning of Passover in Pittsburgh with my parents, brother and sister-in-law, and Kirios. I am lucky to have so many wonderful adventures, large and small, on a regular basis.

Also since my last post, I have I have struggled… I won’t delve into the different stressors in my life. They are mostly outside of my control and normal, albeit unpleasant things, similar to those that all people deal with at times. But mostly, I have struggled with managing that stress. It’s easy to say “stay calm and carry on,” but honestly, my mind and body seem to have the opposite idea these days. My blood pressure went up again, and I’m once again taking medication for that. This past week I learned that my platelets are also elevated, and I need to see a hematologist. (This is likely being caused by the Crohn’s Disease, and I don’t believe it’s an indication of a more serious problem, so please, don’t worry.) Between this news and my Passover diet last week, my Crohn’s wasn’t exactly cooperating with me either. It’s easy to get frustrated with life sometimes, but things definitely aren’t all that bad, and I’m doing the best I can.

Hopefully this will end my Challahbear hiatus, and I’ll start to blog more frequently again. I anticipate that I’ll continue to post about good times, good people, and good food. After all, those are my favorite things. But if I need to, I just may share when I’m having a bad day too.

0 Comments
Filed under: Health

Spring has Sprung!

Posted by ilana

Mar 21

I know this past winter was nothing to complain about… Even the parentals back home in the ‘burgh were enjoying 60 degree days. But it is official, as of yesterday, Spring has sprung. Last week was full of highs in the 80s, it’s lighter outside longer, and the flowers are blooming. Kirios and I decided to celebrate in style. I abandoned my colored tights, and donned a bright green dress to work yesterday. When I was done for the day, I walked through the garden at the Smithsonian castle, and then took out my Kindle to read on a bench at the National Mall. Kirios met me there as fast as the metro could carry him, and we picnicked on the mall. I packed a steak salad with veggies and leftover ribeye from our dinner on Saturday night, and he brought a diet cherry coke for us to share 🙂

After eating, we wondered down to the Tidal Basin for the obligatory Cherry Blossom photo shoot. Yes, the famous blossoms are in full bloom, and talked about in the tabloids more than Lindsay Lohan these days. It’s just that time of the year in DC. Kirios was a bit disappointed that the majority of the blossoms were white instead of pink, but they were nonetheless beautiful, encircling the water. We walked around and plopped down Kirios’ trusty tripod every few feet, posing for silly, serious, and romantic photos together.

After an hour of photo-taking, when my cheeks were starting to get tired, we mosy-ed our way back to the metro and travelled to Chinatown for another favorite spring tradition of mine – free Rita’s day! I must admit, the weather was a tad cold to truly appreciate my favorite ices, but such is life. The line by Rita’s reminded me of warm Saturday nights in Squirrel Hill. (It just doesn’t attract the same crowd in this neck of the woods, usually… too much competition, I suppose.) Kirios and I were disappointed to find there were only two flavors left, cherry and cotton candy. Of course, that was a no-brainer, we both got cherry. So the overall Rita’s experience was a tad of a let down, but combined with the cherry blossoms, it made for a lovely evening. Next time they better have mango!!!

Finally, a side note that must be said: Hines Ward is one talented athlete and a class act. There are many who could take a lesson from him, *coughLebroncough,* and this Pittsburgh gal is proud to have his name on my Jersey.

0 Comments
Filed under: Events

Kitchen Gadgets and a Bride

Posted by ilana

Mar 20

The highlight of my weekend was attending a bridal shower for a good college friend of mine in Waldorf, Maryland. I’m usually wary of showers – the hokey games are a bit too reminiscent of elementary school birthday parties for my taste, and I leave feeling like I’m supposed to be some modern day housewife who cooks, cleans, and bakes, all while wearing heels and a poofy dress. But I have to say, the love and effort put into planning such an affair is usually enough to waive off my reservations, at least for the afternoon, and to enjoy a little female bonding.

Waldorf is a little over an hour away from my apartment, and Kirios saw the event as an opportunity to bum a ride and visit an old friend of his who lives out there, so I was lucky to have some company for my journey into a strange place for a beltway broad like me, a city with land still waiting to be developed. Kirios’ friend only lives 2 miles from the bride’s parents’ house, and luckily my GPS decided to cooperate. Upon arriving at the shower, I was pleasantly surprised to see many familiar faces, including friends from college and the groom’s mother and sister. (He’s also a college friend, and his family lived nearby.) I was also pleasantly surprised to be handed a glass, with the couple’s name and wedding date printed on it, full of sangria within minutes of sitting down.

After the typical introductions and chatting, I helped myself to the food, which featured some ethnic treats from the Puerto Rican family, like savory green bananas, as well as a full variety of cheese, crackers, hummus, and the ever popular chocolate fountain. Our hostess, the bride’s sister, then announced our first game – she passed around a collection of around 20 kitchen gadgets, some more obscure than others, then removed the basket and made us write down all of the gadgets which we could remember if we knew their function. I did alright, tying for third place with 10 gadgets. I was the only one to correctly identify the function of the silicone ring used to prevent the edges of the pie crust from burning in the oven. (I usually do a poor job covering them with aluminum foil.) The only gadget I could identify but forgot was the cheese wire/board. But I must admit, until yesterday I was completely unfamiliar with an avocado slicer, pineapple corer, mango slicer, and cherry pitter – I was unaware that knives are only the primitive tool for such activities. The shrimp devein-er was also a mystery to me. Sigh.

Following the kitchen gadgets, we donned puffy-paint decorated aprons and gathered outside for cupcake decorating – another activity that left me a bit stumped. I can’t say my cupcakes were the prettiest of the bunch, but it was fun to mix food coloring to create frosting colors and to try out the different tip shapes for the icing bags. All the while, our bride was tested with answering Newly Wed Game-esque questions about her fiancé, and was forced to stick another piece of gum in her mouth for every response which didn’t match his. Thankfully, she did pretty well.

After turning my mouth blue with highly concentrated doses of food coloring, we returned inside for the obligatory present opening ceremony. I’m definitely not a fan of public present openings. As a child at birthday parties, it was always sad when your friend opened a bag with three Beanie Babies in it, knowing later on they would open your gift and only find one. Maybe my parents were stingy, maybe they had less, regardless, don’t judge me. Of course, you wouldn’t expect a shower without present opening, and all of the presents, including mine were much lovelier than a Beanie Babie or two. It was special to be there when the soon-to-be Mother-in-Law passed down a set of pearls that had been in the family for generations, along with a family tree showing who had had them before her.

Finally, as we said our goodbye we were treated to one last favor, in addition to the aprons, customized glasses, and special prizes for the game winners – we were all given a set of heart shaped measuring spoons. Kirios has shown me them online multiple times and said he wanted to buy them for me, so he was a tad disappointed. But I reminded him that I still don’t have the red silicone heart shaped spatula or the heart shaped tea infuser he’s been eyeing also!

All in all, it was a lovely day, and I’m sure the wedding will be even lovelier!

0 Comments
Filed under: Events, Parties

A Night in Provence

Posted by ilana

Mar 16

Kirios and I have been cutting back on eating out lately in an effort to reduce our spending and focus on healthy cooking. But Kirios decided it was time to indulge ourselves a bit, and planned a surprise dinner out this past Tuesday. I was told to wear a pretty dress, and that we had a 7pm reservation somewhere close by. There are over 200 restaurants within a mile of my apartment, so I can’t say that narrowed the field too much…

In honor of the 80 degree weather we’ve been having in the DC area this week, I broke out a simple royal blue sleeveless dress and fancied things up a bit with bright pink peep toe/sling back heels and a matching hand bag. Kirios came over a little early and we had a glass of the Lebanese wine we opened last Sunday.

At a quarter to seven, Kirios hurried me out the door and we strolled around Bethesda. A few times he started walking me into a restaurant before pulling my arm back and doing an about face – “not this one!” And once or twice he actually got confused about which direction it was in, and he pulled up GoogleMaps on his phone. 😛 Finally, we arrived at Bistro Provence, a fancy French restaurant.

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, we went on a couple of walks around town to check out menus at the many hidden restaurants in Bethesda, and I remember when we stopped into Bistro Provence. It was adorable on the inside, and the food looked delicious, but pricey. It must have been back in November when Kirios first made a note to take me there sometime!

Upon our arrival, we were asked if we wanted to sit inside our outside. There was no way I’d pass up an opportunity to sit outside when it was in the low 80s/high 70s, plus the restaurant felt like a sauna with the heat from the kitchen and no air conditioning yet. The host/lead waiter was charming, first asking if we were over 21. When we said yes, he said, “really, both of you!?!” and Kirios thanked him for the compliment. He directed me to my seat, “Right this way, Mademoiselle – or is it Madame?” Kirios was quick to reply, “She’s not Madame yet!”

We passed on pre-dinner champagne and a 3-digit bottle of wine. We took our time picking from the menu and enjoying the courtyard setting. Perfect weather, stone walls, pretty candelabras and potted plants. I was smiling a lot and Kirios couldn’t help but sneak a few pictures of me, while his camera was sitting on the table. We must have asked the waiter for more time to decide at least before focusing and making up our minds. Finally we ordered a roasted red pepper salad to share with nicoise olives, goat cheese, and a balsamic reduction to share. For our entrees I had salmon with ratatouille and Kirios ordered thice e duck breast, which came with brussel sprouts and some kind of sweet potato soufflé. Our meals were quite tasty. Though I think there was a lot more duck on Kirios’ plate than salmon on mine! (After I told him this he felt a bit guilty for taking a forkful of mine, but it wasn’t a problem!)

After we finished our entrees, neither of us could resist peaking at the dessert menu, and there was quite a selection. Kirios narrowed the pool to about five options, and I chose the Chocolate Amaretto Parfait. It was light and smooth amaretto parfait with a hard chocolate bottom (arguably the best part), an amaretto soaked cookie type thing… it wasn’t really a cookie, but I don’t know how to describe it… and some cherries and sauce which provided some nice flavor contrast. It was delicious, and we also shared a cappuccino with it. I rarely ever have coffee drinks, since it’s particularly harsh on my Crohn’s inflicted GI tract – but sipping a cappuccino in this beautiful courtyard on a warm evening and pretending we were in Southern France was the most enjoyable part of my week. It reminded me of my semester abroad (before I gave up coffee, I had quite a few cappuccinos in Italy), and my dreams of traveling Europe with Kirios sometime in the future…

Happy date night, Kirios!

0 Comments
Filed under: Food, Relationships

Greek Cooking with the Greek Boyfriend

Posted by ilana

Mar 12

Kirios and I decided to lay pretty low this weekend. While planning ahead what we’d want to eat, I found a “falafel mix” box in my pantry that I had purchased some time back. I figured it was worth trying since I had it, especially since it had a no-fry cooking option. So I asked Kirios if he’d like to have it with hummus or tahini, or even tzatziki, and what a surprise, my Greek boyfriend wanted Greek food. So we decided to make tzatziki, mostly based on his mother’s recipe, but we did check our Michael Psilakis cookbook for inspiration as well.

We did make a super necessary trip to Costco over the weekend, and in addition to the things I desperately needed on my list (cheerios, toilet paper, and a lifetime supply of lemon juice which Kirios drinks by the gallon, etc.) I picked up a 2 lb bag of brussel sprouts and 2 lbs of pre-cut butternut squash. I know, I feel silly spending the extra money on pre-cut squash, but it’s really such a pain to cut and peel it, that the Costco price didn’t seem so bad.

So come Sunday, when we started to plan our day, we decided to make butternut squash soup for a light lunch, and then cook up a Greek inspired feast for dinner. The soup was easy – we threw in just about every spice we liked the smell of with the squash, a couple of carrots I had leftover in the fridge, some orange juice, and because Kirios never cooks anything without it – a bit of lemon juice. After we blended everything, we decided it was a bit bitter (ahem, lemon juice much!?!) so we added a splash of maple syrup which rounded things out pretty well.

After lunch, Kirios went to the supermarket to pick up some non-fat Greek yogurt and a couple other groceries while I roasted up the brussel sprouts. In my attempt to recreate the extremely tasty brussels afelia served at Zaytinya (yes, I’ve blogged about them twice now), I cut the brussel sprouts in half and covered them with olive oil, salt, garlic powder, and coriander before putting them in the oven for 40 minutes at 400 degrees.

After the brussel sprouts, I got to work on the falafel, which was pretty simple… Add water, let sit, form patties, stick in the oven. Kirios took charge of the tzatziki, placing 10 cloves of garlic in the food processor with dill and lemon juice. We cut out the seeds/innards of an English cucumber and then the grated and drained what was left of it. He combined the cucumber and the garlic juice with the yogurt to make our finished product.

We enjoyed our dinner with a glass of red Lebanese wine, a cucumber-tomato salad, and pita bread. (Though sadly we decided there just weren’t enough hours in the day, or space in my tiny kitchen to make homemade pita along with everything else.) The brussel sprouts, to which I added some pomegranate seeds since Zaytinya’s uses barberries, came out exceptionally well. I probably could have eaten the whole 2 lbs myself if there wasn’t so much other food to try. And while the tzatziki didn’t complement the sprouts quite as well as Zaytinya’s garlic yogurt sauce, it was a very good substitute, and a flavorful dish on its own. The falafel patties were decent considering they came from a box and we didn’t fry them – a bit salty though. And the tzatziki helped their texture a great deal.

Kirios and I were very pleased with ourselves and our food. And I anticipate enjoying our leftovers throughout the week. But since we had spent the whole day at home cooking, Kirios treated me to dessert at Dolcezzo Gelato to take advantage of the warm weather before starting another week at work. We shared a large cup with lemon, blood orange, and nocciolladel piemonte (hazelnut).

…Is it Friday yet?!?!

Side note – wouldn’t it be great to see pictures of all of the food we cooked along with this post? Of course we took photos, and they’re all on Kirios’ spiffy dSLR… amongst other photos he has yet to sort through going back until September. Help me motivate him to go through them faster so I can show you what I’m talking about in my posts!

0 Comments
Filed under: Food, Trying New Things

Chocolate Cheese and Other Adventures of 25

Posted by ilana

Mar 7

I hit my first quarter-century mark the other week. I think it was my first birthday when I wasn’t thrilled to be a year older. But I celebrated nonetheless. Kirios and I went out for a trendy yet romantic dinner at Founding Farmers, and of course I couldn’t resist the temptation to throw yet another theme party. So in approximately 6 months when Kirios catches up uploading photos from his dSLR, you all can see what an awesome Pebbles and BamBam we make.

Last weekend Kirios and I opened the cheese he brought me on Valentines Day (well I had already broken into the smokedgouda, I admit) and I realized he sneakily broke our Vday no chocolate pact AGAIN. He purchased Trader Joe’s cheese of the month, which mixed milk chocolate with sharp white cheddar. It was… interesting. I think I actually like it more than Kirios, who was hoping for dark chocolate.  I didn’t think it was too bad upon first taste, but it actually was worse when I ate it on top of a Ritz cracker. And unlike most cheeses I’m apprehensive to try, it didn’t grow on me with consecutive bites. It definitely tasted like it should be marketed as a snack to put in your kids school lunches. It was definitely edible, but I suppose it makes me appreciate even more what Mr. Reese has known for so so long, nothing goes together quite like chocolate and peanut butter.

Other than tasting cheese, Kirios and I set out to cook some healthy meals for ourselves this weekend, so we cooked salmon, couscous, and broccoli on Saturday, and gemistas, Greek stuffed peppers on Sunday. And now that it’s Wednesday already, I’m wishing I had the time/motivation to continue the trend, but I think I may have to last on leftovers for a few more days.

Sunday afternoon my cousin Jessica visited from New York, and with Kirios we made a ton of delicious hamentaschen to get excited for Purim. We filled the triangular treats with strawberry jam, peach-mango preserves, nutella, and chocolate-peanut butter spread, and baked them on a cookie sheet that used to be our Grandma Ruth’s. And as it turns out, last Sunday was Grandma Ruth’s 12th yartzeit, the anniversary of her passing on the Hebrew calendar. I can’t think of a better way to have honored her memory on that day.

0 Comments
Filed under: Birthdays, Food, Holidays, Parties

Parental Invasion

Posted by ilana

Mar 1

For the second year in a row, my parents decided to celebrate our nation’s presidents by spending a long weekend in Maryland. Last year they stayed with family friends in Baltimore, and I drove down to spend time with everyone. This year, they were excited to stay with me in my first apartment without roommates. They drove up on Friday afternoon and conveniently arrived right at the end of my telework day.

We first went for a walk around Bethesda, enjoying the unseasonable weather until the sun fell low enough in the sky that it stopped keeping us warm. Then Kirios met us back at my apartment and we walked over to Pizzeria da Marco, a Neopolitan pizza place extremely close by. Kirios and I had been a couple of times before and enjoyed their pizza, especially during happy hour when their margherita pizza is just $5. My father has a particular fondness for pizzerias with brick ovens who take their food seriously, so I had been waiting for him to visit so I could take him there for sometime. We enjoyed arugula salads with oranges, red onion, fennel and chili flakes before feasting on a variety of pizzas, which we divided up evenly amongst ourselves. We enjoyed the certified authentic Margherita D.O.P.; Quatro Formaggi; Siciliana with eggplant confit, black olives, and capers; and the Diavola which had roasted red peppers. The Diavola also came with finocchiona, a cured ham, which Kirios ordered on the side so he could add it to his slices. Pizzeria da Marco serves a good product, with a chewy crust and flavorful toppings. It does tend to pool liquid from tomatoes and other toppings in the center, where the crust is extremely thin, which is a bit of a turn off and keeps them from topping our favorites list. But all in all, it was a very satisfying meal.

Saturday morning the parental units were feeling ambitious and prepared to take on the District. We had an early lunch and then we drove downtown with Kirios for some tourist activities. We made a spur of the moment decision to go into the Old Post Office. Kirios had taken me there during my last birthday, but due to rain storms and heavy winds, the National Park Service had shut down the tower (the main reason to visit the pavilion) rumored to have one of the best views of the city. Since it was announced only days earlier that Donald Trump will take over the historic building and convert it into a hotel, we figured we better visit while we could. The wait was longer than we had hoped, and the view was a bit anticlimactic. But at least I got to cross it off my DC bucket list.

After the Post Office, we realized we were running behind schedule and ditched our original plan to visit the Newseum. Instead we went to the nearby and free American History Smithsonian. There were a couple of closed exhibits, but we did spend some time judging the first ladies’ fashion choices, and other museum highlights.

Around four we walked over to Chinatownin order to enjoy an early meal at Zaytinya, Kirios’ favorite restaurant which I first tried on his birthday. (We were originally planning to go to Founding Farmers, but it proved difficult to get a reservation on a Saturday in Washington DC!) Kirios and I weren’t too disappointed by the tradeoff. At Zaytinya, I ordered my favorite brussel sprouts afelia and Kirios indulged in his beloved garides me anitho, sauted shrimp. We also shared a flatbread with tomato sauce, cinnamon, oregano, and halloumi cheese (Kirios’ favorite cheese, made in Cyprus); greek olives; mushroom saganaki with tomato and kefalograviera cheese; bamya (okra with crispy chickpeas); seared salmon with squash puree, maitake mushrooms, and pomegranate molasses; almond trout with preserved lemon-kalamata olive tapenade and garlic yogurt; and the kolokithokeftedes (zucchini and cheese patties) which I had ordered over Kirios’ birthday also. These dishes were all quite enjoyable, but there was one more dish which stood above all the rest (or in the case of the brussel sprouts, and the shrimp for Kirios, on par) and that was the havoc koftesi, carrot, apricot and pine nut fritters with a pistachio sauce. These balls were packed with flavor, and my mom instantly began planning a kugel version that she can serve on Passover, leaving out the pine nuts (which did provide a nice texture) and substituting flour for potato starch. We saved a bit of room for delicious desserts and Turkish coffee too.

We finished our feast at Zaytinya ahead of schedule, so we quickly jumped into the National Portrait Gallery across the street to check out the Annie Leibovitz exhibition, Pilgrimage (which uncharacteristically doesn’t include pictures of people). Following the exhibition we walked over the Ronald Reagan Building, where Kirios and I enjoyed a round of drinks before the four of us enjoyed a show by the political satire group, The Capitol Steps. I’ve enjoyed their public radio broadcasts on July 4th, and April Fools and so on throughout the years, and both Mom and Kirios have seen them perform live in the past. It was truly a treat, and the four of us spent the entire performance smiling.

We returned home a bit before 11pm, and I made sure my parents were comfortable and all set for bed before before heading out with Kirios to hear our friends’ band perform at a wing bar a couple of blocks away. I got home around 12:30am, exhausted from an extremely full day.

I woke up Sunday morning feeling extremely grateful that it was a long weekend, and then next time I woke up wouldn’t be at 5:50am. There were still adventures to be had. Kirios and our family friends from Baltimore came over at 10:30, and I showed off my big girl apartment before we walked over to Bethesda Row to have brunch at Le Pain Quotidien, a Belgian chain centered around the idea of communal tables. We were all extremely impressed with the food. Their omlettes and quiches were quite nice, as well as their breads and pastries. I had a smoked salmon omlette and we tried both their lemon tart and pistachio tart (which was more of a cake) for dessert. The only thing that didn’t impress us was their seasonal soy chai special which was too thin for our liking. (I heard the coffee was good though.) As we kvelled over the food, we flipped through their cookbooks displayed on their tables. Kirios and I scanned the barcode on the back of one for kicks, since my mother loves to collect cookbooks, and Amazon offered it starting at $146. Less than 10 minutes later, Kirios returned from a trip to the bathroom with a shrink-wrapped copy which he presented to my mother as an early birthday gift. (It was available much cheaper than what we had seen online, but was nonetheless an extremely generous and thoughtful measure. He’s a keeper!)

Following brunch, we visited some of the cute shops along Bethesda Row. I ran into a great friend of mine from college, and then we were all interviewed for a YouTube video about the red “parking meters” to donate change to the homeless in Bethesda. Although I must admit, the focus of the video was clouded by excitement over the mozzarella bar across the street. Watch for yourself, we’re famous. http://youtu.be/xrR2KCbK8Io And this of course led to a great demand for a follow up video http://youtu.be/IN8kVp_akSw. There’s been big talk about eventually visiting this place… I’ll be waiting.

By mid-afternoon we all parted ways and my parents and I enjoyed some much needed R&R back at the apartment before cooking a meal together. My parents left fairly early on Monday morning, and I was happy to have a bit of down time before returning to work on Tuesday!

0 Comments
Filed under: Food, Holidays
« Go Back — View more posts »