Weekend Splurge: Crispy Roast Pork Belly (Thịt Heo Quay)

 

When you've been a good girl all week, I think you're entitled to a bit of a weekend 'splurge' don't you?   If you love roasted pork and crispy crackling like I do, you have to try this (trust me)!  Backstory: I happened to find this recipe out of frustration.  Every now and then I'd treat myself to a bit of crispy roast pork on the weekends.  About a year ago I had a (rare) bad experience at a local Chinese BBQ establishment that I won't name.  I ended up throwing the roast pork I'd purchased away-it was that bad.  Feeling completely unsatisfied I decided to try my luck making it at home.  After searching online I finally found what I feel is the perfect recipe.  All credit to the wonderful Helen Le of danangcuisine.com for her version of Vietnamese Crispy Roast Pork Belly (Thịt Heo Quay).  When I find something this good I have to share.  More info on Helen and this great recipe follows after the jump...

Meatless Mondays: Cannellini Bean Salad With Lemon-Thyme Dressing

 

As I make an effort to adopt 'cleaner' eating habits I'm really trying to stay faithful to Meatless Mondays.   So far so good:  I've lost about seven pounds over the past four weeks.  Needless to say I'm very happy and pleasantly surprised!  Today I was in the mood for something quick, easy and fitting for the warmer weather we're experiencing.  This is my variation of a simple cannellini bean salad with roasted red bell pepper and a zesty lemon-thyme dressing.  The leftovers ought to taste even better for lunch tomorrow.  Recipe follows after the jump...

Quick Bites: Mississippi Gulf Coast & NOLA

A few weeks ago I took a (very) brief weekend trip down to the Mississippi Gulf Coast area.  One of my planned stops was a side trip to New Orleans (my first visit in well over seven years). I had originally planned a trip down to N.O. back in January but I decided to postpone it.  At the time I was going 'meatless' for the month of January (something I do at the beginning of every new year). There was no way I was going to New Orleans under any dietary restrictions!  My plan was to eat whatever I wanted without a care about sugar, carbs, fat, or calories before buckling down and staying focused on my diet.

 

Bits And Pieces And Odds And Ends...

This is a sort of long overdue "catch all" post.  The job that barely pays the bills has been kickin' my butt lately, so I haven't been devoting as much time to blogging as I would like.  I definitely haven't been devoting as much time to cooking as I would like, but I plan to remedy that now that I have my first Saturday off in weeks!  I did have a couple of fun "foodie" outings before I was knee-deep in mandatory overtime, so I thought I'd do a bit of a "rewind".

Let's "rewind" back to late June, when I finally had the opportunity to attend one of The Broke Socialite's popular foodie events.  The overwhelming success of her Sugar Coma tours spawned two offshoots, Freeze (a tour of ice cream, froyo and other frozen treats) and Graze (a tour featuring small bites).  I opted for the Graze tour.   While I do love a good cupcake or two, the whole idea of Graze was more my speed.

The Graze tour was loads of fun.  We were chauffeured to each tour stop in nice rides provided by Zipcar.  The car I was riding in was chauffeured by none other than the hubby of our tour hostess, Mr. TBS himself (who was fantastic-great guy)!  I also had the pleasure of hangin' with "Auntie" TBS for most of the tour.  Our first stop was the Sweet Auburn Curb Market, where we visited Grindhouse Killer Burgers and sampled a variety of tasty sliders and chocolate peanut butter shakes.

We also visited a new little Italian restaurant in the market that's right around the corner from Grindhouse, Ciao Bocca.  Ciao Bocca set out a great spread of light, delicious Italian fare (including a delicious hearts of palm salad that was to die for).

Quick Bites: Quinoa Tabouli

Needing a quick, light veggie dish that I could throw together after a long workday, I made this easy tabouli recipe using quinoa instead of bulghur.   Refreshing and full of flavor, this gluten-free version tastes even better the following day.  I didn't use quite as much parsley as most recipes call for, but that's just my personal preference.

Quinoa Tabouli
1 cup quinoa
2 cups vegetable stock
1 cup cucumber, seeded and diced
1 cup tomato, seeded and diced (about 2 small or 1 ½ medium)
½ large red onion, diced (about ½ cup)
½ cup fresh mint, chopped
1 cup fresh parsley, chopped
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup diced roasted red pepper (optional)
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced (optional)

3 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

In a large heavy saucepan, combine 1 cup of quinoa with 2 cups of vegetable stock.  I like to "toast" my quinoa first by adding it to a medium-hot pan with about a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.  Stir the quinoa to coat in the olive oil and cook just until light brown before adding the veggie stock.  Bring quinoa/stock to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes (or until quinoa has fluffed up and all the stock has been absorbed).  Set aside (while the quinoa cooks, dice the veggies and chop your herbs).

In a large bowl, add the cooked quinoa and stir in the veggies and herbs.  In a separate bowl, whisk together the lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil.  Pour dressing over quinoa/veggie/herb mixture and stir to combine.  Taste and adjust for seasoning before serving.   I prefer to allow the tabouli to chill in the fridge overnight before serving the next day.

Foodie Events: April 30-May 7

• The Urban Picnic returns to the Sweet Auburn Curb Market tomorrow April 30 between 11 AM and 2 PM.  Presented by the Atlanta Street Food Coalition, the event brings together over a dozen aspiring street food vendors offering delicious treats for you to sample during the lunch hour.   Artichoke Bliss, Good Food Truck, Hankook Taqueria, Souper Jenny and Black Tie Barbecue are just a few of the vendors who'll be on hand for The Urban Picnic.  If you're looking for some great street grub and happen to be near the area, why not swing by on your lunch break?  This is one of those instances when I really wish I worked intown!  For more details and a list of the participating vendors, click here to visit The Urban Picnic's Facebook page.

• Speaking of Black Tie Barbecue, they're back with another edition of their Secret Supper in celebration of Cinco De Mayo.  Why go to some lame bar for tired Tex-Mex and tortilla chips when you can celebrate in style with a delicious multicourse meal complete with margaritas and cerveza!   I've heard nothing but raves about Black Tie's Secret Supper events-everything is top notch and you are sure to be treated to a fantastic evening.   The event will be held next Wednesday from 6-10PM: all of the other deets will be revealed a couple of days prior to the event.  Tickets are available at $36 per person, but you'll want to purchase yours ASAP because their Secret Supper events usually sell out quickly.  I purchased my ticket this evening; I'm really looking forward to finally being able to attend one of these!  To purchase your tickets and for more info on Black Tie Barbecue, click here.

• The folks from Food Network will be in town this weekend to hold a casting call for the upcoming second season of Worst Cooks In America.  The casting call will be held this Saturday, May 1 from 10 AM-3 PM at the W Atlanta-Midtown.  They are in search of candidates who are genuine disasters in the kitchen and are willing to go through a "culinary boot camp" to improve their cooking skills.  If you know of someone who fits the bill and would be interested in participating, email the casting team at worstcooksatlanta@gmail.com.   In the email, explain why you (or your nominee) is the most pitiful home cook in the country and should be selected for the new season.  In your email, include the nominee's name, age, occupation, hometown, contact number and a recent photo of the potential candidate.   For additional information, visit their website at www.worstcookscasting.com

Snow Day @ Maison Robert

What is that phrase, the best laid plans often go astray?  Well, something like that.  It was my first "free" Saturday morning in a while, so I'd planned to check out a couple of new (to me) spots that I've been wanting to try.  However, thanks to the Great Atlanta Snowstorm of 2010, those planned had to be scrapped.  Just as I was planning to whip up a little somethin' at home, I get a tweet from Maison Robert Fine Chocolates:

Snow, schmo! We are open!

Say no more!   I had been wanting to stop by ever since viewing Broderick (Savory Exposure) & Chloe's (Chow Down Atlanta) food porn-tastic photos.  It was Valentine's Day weekend, why not splurge on some sweet treats? 

Quick Bites: The Red Hen Cafe

I love breakfast/brunch yet I really don't go out to eat it that often.  That will likely change this year as there are so many new (well, new to me) breakfast & brunch spots out there that I really want to try.  A couple of weekends ago I was feeling a bit "brunchy" (is "brunchy" a word? well, it is now!) so I decided to check out one of those new (to me) spots.  An internet search led me to Mr.Breakfast.com, a nifty little site that features breakfast recipes and reviews of breakfast/brunch restaurants nationwide.  A search of Duluth/Alpharetta restaurants eventually led me to The Red Hen Cafe in Alpharetta.