Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Ridiculous Salsa

Need something amazing and light to serve at your Super Bowl party next to the wings and chips? Ever sneak past the sample tray at Whole Foods three or four times in a visit because the pineapple salsa is too good to stop eating? Did you have a minor coronary when you saw the $8 price tag on that tiny sliver of a plastic tub? Then this post is for you...


I can barely call it a recipe, but I can tell you it's worth the chopping.

Take one ripe pineapple (as yellow as possible without smelling sickly sweet or feeling mushy), two ripe mangoes, a red onion, two or three limes, and a handful of cilantro.

Separate the fruit from skin and core, then dice the onion, pineapple, and mangoes.

Chop the cilantro as finely as you can and mix it with the fruit and onion.

If you are one of those poor dears who are genetically predisposed to think cilantro tastes like soap, I think this would be amazing with fresh mint or fresh basil.

Squeeze two limes over the mix and shake in some salt.

Taste and add more salt and lime juice as needed. You'll probably need more salt than you think!

For the best guacamole ever, mash three or four ripe avocados and add as much of the salsa as you'd like!

This amount will feed an army but it also keeps really well in the fridge (and if it doesn't get devoured on the first night, you'll find plenty of excuses to cook something complementary with Latin American or Caribbean flavors during the week)!


Monday, January 30, 2012

Resident Touristing

My favorite New York view: the last thing I would see before getting on the Bolt Bus to come back to Boston, and the first thing I'd see when I arrived in New York.

I lived in Manhattan for three years, and I had a love-hate relationship with the island. On the one hand, I had amazing experiences in New York and made some of the best friends I've ever known. On the other hand, I was four hours from the city where my heart lived. Looking back now, I appreciate all that New York gave me and I'm glad I took the plunge to leave New England in 2008.

As a student, I know I had a bit of a weird New York life; while most New Yorkers travel long distances on the subway every day, my world was largely confined to a 10 block radius. This meant that when friends and family came to visit, I got to be both travel guide and tourist.

Photographing landmarks in a city like New York is a great communal experience; for every amazing shot and angle you can sense the thousands of people who had taken the exact same photograph in the past.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Photos from my runs Vol. II

Continuing on a theme, here are my favorite views from my running route in NYC!

Friday, January 27, 2012

Photos from my runs

Living in Cambridge means I get to run along the Charles River whenever I want. This may be the biggest perk of living here (perhaps aside from being walking distance from Trader Joe's). Over the last few years I've continually been blown away by the beauty of the area along Memorial Drive during all of the seasons. I run with my iPhone which makes it very easy to get some great shots (like the one above, taken this morning!) but even BiP (before iPhone) I was often inspired to bring my camera with me to capture the landscape. Here are some of my favorites:

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Brussels sprouts, bacon, and caramelized onions

Christening my new cast iron! I really wanted to cook it all in the pan the first time but next time I'm doing the bacon in the oven. Had to take down the smoke alarm...