Brunching to Bursting at Local 149

The Drinks of Local 149

Some weekends are quiet and you do nothing, and some weekends you are forced into doing that.  I recently experienced the phenomenon of forced relaxation after significantly overeating at Local 149, in South Boston.  Between the amazing drinks and the multiple courses that they served us I arrived home barely able to stand and promptly slipped into a day-long food coma.  Please don’t misinterpret this as complaining, please.  My time at Local 149 was filled with some of the best brunch food I’ve eaten in a very long time.  And the best sangria (a white-peach and mint number) I’ve ever had the pleasure of trying.  This was a culinary journey involving the best of brunch, so now I offer you – Food Porn.  Full of decadence and over-indulgence, I assure you the trip to the Southie is definitely worth the effort.

Farmer’s Plate
Island Creek Oysters with Raspberry Migonette

When I first got to Local 149 with Renee, we were early (about 15 mins early) so we sat at the bar and both ordered  cocktails.  Renee ordered a House Mimosa (sparkling wine, OJ and pom) and I went with the Danish Bloody (a solid Bloody Mary topped with house made pickles).  We sat and chatted while the rest of the brunchers trickled in – Jess, Megan, Amanda, Audrey, and Marie – to name a few!  Local 149 set up our table and lo and behold – another drink!

Chicken and Waffles with Blueberry Rosemary Syrup
House Made Duck Sausage

This time it was the Thai Young Coconut Cocktail (and since my dining companion was pregnant that baby was all mine!).  After that the food was coming out of the kitchen faster than we could eat it and the drinks just kept coming out. Ten courses and three drinks later (among them a second bloody mary, apparently I can drink!) I was rapidly approaching food coma and desperately in need of a nap.  My photo recap is below.  My favorite thing – the breakfast pizza with quail eggs, bacon, 3 different cheeses, arugala, and a crispy seed covered crust!  My least favorite thing – the Lobster McMuffin, it was like 6 inches tall and I was so stuffed when it came out that it wasn’t even appealing to me.

Breakfast Pizza
Toast to Life and Bacon

My verdict?  Go to Local 149!!! Drink the sangria, especially if it’s warm out and I don’t care when it is – get the pizza.  It’s fantastic and great for sharing.  Also take a moment to appreciate the intended kitsch – mismatched mugs and fun flatware help the atmosphere of a place with high end food relax and become a family affair.

Yorkshire Pudding with Sausage Gravy
Chocolate Malt Shake

Local 149 on Urbanspoon

Blogger Brunch at Om

One of the perks of the Boston food blogger community is the many resources I have at my disposal for hanging out with friends and eating delicious food.  Brunch at OM was no exception to this rule.  When Renee posted the July Blogger brunch was going to be at Om in Harvard square I did a bit of a jig.  I’ve been eyeing Om for a while and desperately wanted to get in and try something there.

Fast forward to the day of the brunch.  I woke up with what can best be described as a mid-winter cold- runny nose, tight chest, coughing; the whole bit.  But I persevered.  I was going to that brunch gosh darnit.  Even if I had to take cold medicine to do it, so I searched our cabinets and found one dose of outdated cold medicine.  I took it anyway and caught a slightly earlier bus into Harvard, where I got more cold medicine at CVS and took a dose of that, all not expired and such.  At this point I was a bit foggy, apparently even if the cold medicine is outdated you should only take one dose, who knew?

Megan and I walked into Om to see a beautiful wall of cascading water and a serene interior.  We were led to an upper level and given seats directly by huge windows, a very considerate seating on the side of Om, Thanks!

As the rest of the brunchers started to trickle in a waiter came over and announced that he was going to bring us all a complimentary lychee mimosa, on hearing this I paled a bit and asked for one of the non-alcoholic drinks on the menu, figuring (I assume correctly) that my double dose of cold medicine and champagne would be a horrific combo.  He brought me a blood orange soda.  It was amazing.  I heard all around the table that the mimosa was pretty astounding too, but that soda was perfect, full of vitamin-C and so fresh I felt like I was eating a blood orange instead of drinking it.  PERFECT.

Then came the food.  Oh, the food.  Just because I was on some cold medicine does not mean I couldn’t appreciate what was basically the most perfect piece of french toast I’ve EVER eaten.  Crispy and brown on the outside and perfectly custard on the inside – I was in french toast heaven, with a chocolate and banana filling inside, I could have eaten a LOT more of that french toast.  But there was still so much more to try!  There were lemon pancakes with orange honey butter – I was on the fence about these I felt that were undercooked and not very good, but I adored that orange honey butter.

For my main meal I chose the duck confit hash with poached eggs and spicy tomato sauce.  When I am ridiculously stuffed up I love to eat spicy foods, it’s actually one of the only times you will find me seeking out things with a kick, I love the feeling of being able to breathe fully after eating something with spice and the way it stands out so clearly in terms of flavor.  This dish was phenomenal I loved the play of the slightly salty hash, the yolk of the poached egg and the heat of the sauce, it worked sooooo well together.  I nearly finished it (impressive as my appetite was pretty near nil)!

So, brunch at Om?  Yes you should probably go and if you don’t do liquor get one of the mocktails.  Mine was insanely delicious.  Also, the best part?  To get a meal and a drink (alcoholic or no) is $15.  That’s it.  An entree and a bloody mary in Harvard Sq for $15? Sign me up.

This brunch was provided free of charge to me through the Boston Brunchers, but all opinions here are my own.

Baked Eggs, Simple and Delicious

flikr4

I love breakfast foods.  All of them.  Eggs, home fries, French toast, pancakes, cinnamon buns – bring it on.  So one day when I was home sick with a cold, I wanted breakfast, and not cereal-and-milk breakfast but homemade breakfast, preferably with veggies and cheese.  But I was sick, I had a cold and just didn’t have the energy or desire to make myself an entire omelet for breakfast, so I baked an egg.

flikr1

I never realized just how simple baked eggs could be and are.  The most strenuous part of them is some light chopping to get all of the vegetables to a uniform size.  I dug around in the fridge and unearthed some cocktail tomatoes, half a red onion, some red pepper, scallions, sour cream, cheese, and half-and-half I was good to go and eggs were on the menu.  I did as much of a jig as my cold ridden self would allow and proceeded to perform some light chopping, I layered everything in an adorable bake-able mug (seriously, isn’t this Cambell’s soup mug awesome? I’ve had it since I was eight!) and baked it.  Magical.

flikr2

At this point I have made these baked eggs in many different forms but my favorite part of them is that they’re still eggs, so they’re versatile and can be made into a whole meal.  Also this is great for cleaning out those tail-ends of vegetables that have been lingering in the crisper and need to be used up.

flikr3

Kathy’s Baked Eggs
Note: The best part about this recipe is that it is so easy to make for more than one or just one person.  I make it for BF and when I just don’t want to cook, it’s easy and delicious.  I like this a lot with fresh tomatoes but it’s flexible – my recipe below is what I usually add to it, but the important part is to make sure you have a good amount of veggies in the bottom of your mug.

1 12oz bake-able mug or ramekin
1/2-3/4 cup of medium chopped vegetables or meat (I like tomatoes, red peppers, onion/scallions and some ham)
1-2 oz of grated cheese (cheddar is delicious but whatever you have on hand will work; again this is all about cleaning out leftover ingredients)
1 dallop of sour cream or greek yogurt (use whichever you already have/like better; they both work)
Cream, milk, or half and half
1-2eggs (depending on how hungry you are)

Preheat your oven to 350.  Lightly grease the inside of the ramekin or mug you plan on using.  Layer the vegetables in the bottom of the mug (I like onion, pepper, tomato).  Add the cream/milk/half and half until it meets the top edge of the vegetables (this is different depending on the vessel).  Then add the sour cream or yogurt. Gently crack the egg or eggs into the mug/ramekin; careful not to break the yolk.  Sprinkle the egg with a little salt and pepper and then add the grated cheese.  Bake for twenty minutes.  Allow the mug/ramekin to cool slightly before eating it.  Makes a perfect lazy dinner or brunch dish.  Actually I am going to make it right now!  Happy Sunday!

Blogger Brunch at Dorado Tacos and Cemitas

I know it’s been almost two weeks since we actually ate this meal, but it was so delicious that I’ve been just reading the recaps (also I didn’t have any of my own photos; all of these are borrowed from other people’s posts, with permission of course).

Photo Courtesy of Brian of http://www.thegringochapin.blogspot.com/

On a bright sunny Sunday after a night of insane thunderstorms, I hitched a ride with the lovely Renee over to Brighton for brunch at Dorado Tacos.  We parked and wandered a little bit, Renee introduced me to Kupel’s Bagels (This establishment really should be much closer to my apartment) and then we headed into Dorado.  We took our seats and then looked at the menu.  A bright little cafe filled with sunshine and energy, I was in love instantly.

Photo Courtesy of Renee of http://www.eatliveblog.com/

I ordered a coffee and doctored it up accordingly (one sugar two creams) and started to drink it.  It was perfect coffee, dark and rich without the charaacteristic bitterness that dark roasted coffees can have; this boded so well for my future meal.  As the rest of the brunchers trickled in I was excited to see Brian, Amanda, Megan, Lara, and Meesh as well as to meet Kimmy and Jacki (if only briefly). 

Photo Courtesy of Renee of http://www.eatliveblog.com/

Once the avengers had assembled, we all collaborated to fight off the bad guys (i.e. eat brunch) and it was PERFECT.  I ordered the Huevos Rancheros with Patatas Bravas and there just isn’t anything better than Patatas Bravas.  Nothing.  They are spicy, crunchy, and all-around spectacularly delicious.  I realize I talked about my love of Patatas Bravas before, but these were better.  These were spicy enough that I couldn’t finish them and needed backup (thanks Brian!), but in a responsible, I’m-sad-these-won’t-be-good-cold kind of way.  And the Huevos – I don’t think there is a better breakfast food.  Queso fresco – yes!  Perfectly fried eggs – yes!  Wonderfully spicy salsa ranchera that kept the whole thing together – absolutely!  Perfect company to chat with – you know it.  I ended up needing an agua fresca to cool down with; my boring Mainer mouth was just not prepared for that spice, but it was by far, one of the best brunches I’ve had in a while.

Now to go back for lunch… or dinner… or both.  Ah the possibilities.  Thanks to Renee, as usual, for organizing this shindig.  A huge thanks to Dorado Tacos for hosting us so well; opening an hour early to accomodate us while having huge grins and good naturedness about everything.  And to the Boston blogger community as a whole – without the awesome community we have here, the oppurtunities for sweet blogger meetups like this would be nil, and that would be very sad.  Now, I think I need a taco.

Dorado Tacos is located at 401 Harvard Street in Brookline and is accessible via Green Line or the 66 bus.

Dorado Tacos & Cemitas on Urbanspoon

Cheddar-Scallion Drop Biscuits

It’s January and I’m in full hibernate mode with soups and stews overloading my stove and palette.  I love them creamy, brothy, rich and thick; I’m there.  One thing I love even more than a good soup is bread to go with it though (see here for an example).  Last year, on an impulse, I bought the Cook’s Illustrated Soups and Stews magazine and found this recipe for drop biscuits.  Its simple, it’s delicious and I am obsessed with these biscuits.

I love biscuits and have since I was a small child. Biscuits meant that there was soup or something delicious to eat, usually slathered in butter.  Then I was obsessed with some Pillsbury ultra flaky ones that peeled apart into layers (which I may have loved simply by dint of the fact that they looked like pages stacked together and baked).  But as I (and my palette) grew up and learned more about baking I grew away from the Pillsbury biscuits in a tube and started to look for a perfect biscuit recipe.  My sister obsessively made some from The Joy of Cooking but I found them a bit dry and wasn’t a fan.  So I kept searching.

I got this issue of Cooks Illustrated for the ramen recipe (which I still haven’t tried; I really need to get some good miso) but instead found this little gem regarding perfect drop biscuits.  I tried it, thinking that at worst it would cost me some flour and buttermilk.  These were perfect, flaky and chewy without being messy or crumby.  These are flexible; I used them later to make shortcakes by adding some extra sugar and cinnamon and I almost always add a handful of good quality cheddar cheese and a few spices.  I love a recipe that is flexible like this and will move to be whatever I want.  Also there is none of that classic cutting butter in.  An ingenious method involving melted butter and really cold butter milk makes really consistent butter chunks evenly distributed into a simple flour mixture.

Cheddar-Chive Drop Biscuits
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated: Soups & Stews


2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 cup scallions, chopped finely
1/2 cup good quality cheddar cheese (I used Cabot)
1 cup buttermilk (straight from the fridge and v cold)
1 stick (8 Tbs) butter, melted and allowed to cool a little bit

Preheat the oven to 475 degrees Fahrenheit.  Add the flour, baking powder, sugar, salt, baking soda, scallions, and cheese to a large bowl and whisk them until evenly mixed (5-6) stirs.  In a separate bowl, or a 2 cup measuring cup, mix together the melted butter and buttermilk.  It will look lumpy and it will not be pretty, that’s ok.  It will taste delicious.  Add the butter/buttermilk to the dry ingredients and stir with a fork until just mixed, again 5-6 stirs.  Scoop out the biscuits onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush some additional melted butter or some milk on top of the biscuits or sprinkle some extra cheese on there.  Bake them for 10-12 mins.  They will be a light golden brown and totally delicious.  Enjoy these biscuits with whatever you want; I like mine at breakfast with an egg and some hollandaise or served with whatever soup I’ve made most recently.  Perfect.