Quote of the Day 10/10/11

Today's food quote simultaneously explains why Ron Swanson it so amazing and justifies Raina's pescatarianism (pesky pescatarian).

"Fish: for sport only, not for meat. Fish meat is practically a vegetable."

-Ron Swanson, NBC's Parks and Recreation

Grapefruit Ginger Martini

It's cocktail hour here at the Hungry People Apartment!

Thomas and Sean made a variety of grapefruit juice cocktails, but the Ginger-tini was the clear winner! Raina and Christine found the recipe here.

Ginger-tini

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 oz. Pomegranate Schnapps
• 1 1/2 oz. Vodka
• 1/2 oz. Grapefruit Juice
• 1/2 oz. Sour Mix
• 1/2 oz. Ginger Syrup*

*We did not have ginger syrup, but the boys improvised by mixing brown sugar into water, then adding fresh grated ginger, and muddling.


Preparations:

1. If necessary, make your own ginger syrup.
2. Shake all ingredients well with ice and strain into a martini glass.
3. Garnish with lemon zest (suggested by recipe), or imitate The Hungry People and rim the glass with a sugar-ginger mixture.

Quote of the Day 10/8/11

"You better cut the pizza in four pieces, because I'm not hungry enough to eat six."

-Yogi Berra

Our lives are macaroni dreams.

Video.

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Autumn Sauce

aka 200 Ingredient Falltober Pasta

The boys have outdone themselves again. Tonight we decided to have some sweet potato gnocchi that we bought at World Market (Trader Joe's also has their own brand of sweet potato gnocchi, pictured).
Christine begged for an autumn meal, so Sean and Thomas raided the cabinets and fridge. The kitchen became a laboratory, and the ensuing process was very messy, though it yielded some pretty sweet results.
Below you can see the ingredients; they were basically dumped into a simmering pot together to cook. Good luck trying to recreate!


Sauce:
Butter
Olive oil
Garlic
Sundried tomato
Fresh tomato
Pecan
Dried Apricot
Dried Apple
Dried Cranberries
Curry
Pepper
Cumin
Salt
Yogurt
Milk
Vodka
Bourbon
Spiced Rum

Paired with some fish. Possibly the most delicious thing ever eaten.

Thirsty Thursday

The Hungry People have decided to institute a wonderful weekly ritual that you may know and love: Thirsty Thursdays. We stopped by Ale Yeah! to pick up a couple of growlers. Our first pick was Ode To Mercy, an imperial brown ale by Wild Heaven Craft Beers. This ale was bold and flavorful, but maybe a little acidic. Tastes of oak, coffee, and roasted malt.

Ode to Mercy
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We filled the second growler with The Reverend, a Belgian Quadrupel Ale made by Avery Brewery out of Boulder, CO. This beer is packed with imported Belgian malts and dark candy sugar. It's got "hints of dark cherries, currants, and molasses, complimented by an underlying spiciness." Thank you, Avery Brewery Website, for summarizing that so well.



Avery The Reverend
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Two growlers is clearly not enough for All the Hungry People who live in this apartment, so we also picked up a make-your-own six pack (the best kind of six pack). The two clear note-worthy beers from this pack were Crown Valley Big Bison Ale and Hitachino Red Rice Ale. Both were amazing and delicious! Big Bison tasted strongly of raisins; more dessert-like than it is refreshing. The Red Rice Ale has a sake like flavor with a little strawberry thrown in. Yum!

Stay tuned, Hungry Friends, there's more to come!

Figs with Goat Cheese and Almonds

I needed something inventive to do with some Figs that I bought at the Dekalb Farmer's Market the other day. I saw a recipe online (I can't recall where. If I remember, I'll post the link) for Figs with Goat Cheese and Almonds. Halve the figs and place goat cheese on each half, then place an almond piece on top. Stick it under the broiler to brown and VIOLA: fancy figs.

Thomas had to improve upon the recipe, naturally, by creating a beautiful balsamic reduction to drizzle on top. He followed this with some jalapeño honey (AMAZING) as a finishing touch.

All in all, very delicious. The figs got a little lost in the rest of the flavors, but I don't think anyone minded very much!
-Christine