bubbledog blog

cutestfood.com

So, I just had to pull the plug on my computer to stop looking through cutestfood.com.  There are some really creative things on there!  I definitely want to try to replicate this rainbow layer cake (totally awesome) and these bear pancakes (crazy cute).  I don't know if I could eat these though... after putting in all of the effort to make that layer cake, I think I would want to bronze it and save it forever!  And how could I eat those cute little bear faces???

image by ppoppysmic via cutestfood.com

image by heyrainbows via cutestfood.com

pizzagaina recipe

Around this time of year, my blog starts getting tons of hits from people searching pizzagaina because of this blog post from 2008.  There's not much info in that post, but I think my pic is near the top of the google search results so it gets lots of clicks.  Anyway, since these people are most likely looking for a recipe, I asked my grandmother if she would share her recipe with me. 

There are lots of recipes for pizzagaina and they all vary slightly.  This is the recipe that has been passed down in my family from generation to generation.  Unfortunately, my grandmother (just like everyone before her) always makes several pies, so this recipe is for 10 pies!  You can try and do the math if you are not up to eating 10 pizzagainas ;) 

On a slightly comical (yet functional) side note, in order to mix all of these ingredients, my grandmother mixes the ingredients in a large 20 quart Rubbermaid storage container whose sole use is for making pizzagaina once a year. 

PIZZAGAINA RECIPE:
This recipe is for ten 10" pies. 
All pies should be baked in a preheated 350 degree oven.

1.  Make pie crusts (twelve boxes of pie crust mix will make 10 tops and bottoms) or use premade pie crusts.

2.  Cook 1 pound box of rice with no salt. 

3.  Cut into 1/4" pieces or smaller:

• 7 lbs of pre-cooked ham - butt end (par-boil the ham first to remove some salt and make it easier to cut)
• 4 lbs Genoa salami
• 4 ilbs fresh basket cheese

4.  Mix rice, meats, and cheese in a large bowl with:

• 6 dozen extra large eggs
• 1/2 lb grated Italian cheese
• pepper to taste

5.  Distribute mixed ingredients into 10 pie crust lined pans.

6.  Cover each with pie top, slit top for steam, and brush each top with an egg wash.

7.  Bake approximately 1 hour or until top is golden brown. 

Serve warm or cold.

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If you give it a try, I hope you like it.  My grandmother is getting ready to start baking this week and I know my pie will be coming to me on Easter :)

all hail caeser

A couple of weeks ago, we tried this caeser salad recipe from simplyrecipes.com.  It was so tasty that I have been ordering caser salads everywhere I've gone for the last two weeks... though, I have to say that the local restaurant salads haven't measured up.  So in planning ahead for the weekend, while everyone else was stocking up on milk and bread for the blizzard, we were making sure we had plenty of romaine lettuce and anchovies on hand.   This weekend's caeser came out even better than the first time!   If you are a fan of the caeser salad, you should definitely check out this recipe and give it a try... it's a bit heavy on the garlic, but could that ever be a problem?

hot dog johnny

Each summer, I try to have a lunch at Hot Dog Johnny's in Buttzville, NJ and today was the day for the summer of '09.  When I was a kid, my parents would take my brothers and I there as a special treat.  I always loved it because you ate outside, there were swings on the premises, and you drank birch beer out of icy mugs.  Today I enjoy it for almost all the same reasons (not so much the swings anymore) and for the added nostalgic trip down memory lane. It's one of those places that is untouched by time and, for me, it's like being 12 years old again every time I go.  The hot dogs are awesome and if you ever get to go, you need to get them "with" which means with mustard, onions, and a pickle.

things that make you go mmmmmm....

Did you ever make what seems to be the perfect dinner?  We just had some family over for dinner and everything went really well.  The dinner turned out great... it was tasty, light, and refreshing - the perfect outdoor meal.  The desserts, though not homeade, were scrumptuous and I am still thinking about eating some more.  What did we have, you ask...

Lemon Feta Pasta Salad, recipe care of Epicurious
Circassian Chicken, recipe care of Simply Recipes
Green Salad with "Fullproof Vinaigrette" care of Cook's Illustrated

I can't take credit for finding the recipes or for doing the cooking (much thanks to my better half for all of that), but I did find time to take some pictures and for doing the blogging, so I get a little credit.  Oh, and I cut the bread too :)

Recently, my friend Laura discovered Crumbs Bake Shop in Westfield, NJ.  This morning, we went and picked up some delicious and, may I add, HUGE cupcakes.  I got the Coconut, Artie Lange, Twinkie, and Hostess cupcakes.  They were really good - perfect, moist cake with icing that was sweet, but not too sweet.  Highly recommended!

sweet avenue

My friend Laura made the long drive from our home town in western NJ to the Sweet Avenue Bake Shop in northern NJ today and brought me home the above box of goodies.  Let me tell you, these are some GOOD vegan cupcakes!  I want to try and savor them and make them last, but the sexy sadie (red velvet) and the old skool have already moved from inside their pink box to inside my belly.  They were delicious - especially the old skool which was A-MAZING!  I am curious to see how long the snowball (coconut) and the jet black (chocolate on chocolate on chocolate) will last into the day tomorrow.  Check out their website and set your mouth to drool!

endulging in some tasty cuban food

Just a quick cell phone blog from sunny Florida. I'm enjoying the warm weather, the clear blue water, and the tasty food. I can never resist a good Cuban sandwich... here is a delicious example from El Siboney Restaurant. It was amazing!

martine's river house

 
I took my parents out for dinner tonight for a belated Father's Day celebration.  My father requested going to Martine's in New Hope, PA.  For anyone that hasn't been there, New Hope is a really quaint town that is part artist colony and part tourist mecca.  Over the years, it has grown in popularity and seems to attract more and more people.  Sitting right along the Delaware River, it is a nice scenic town to spend the day walking, shopping, and eating.

Martine's was really great... everyone was pleased with their meal (that's no small wonder).  My parents have lived in that area for 20 years and I can't believe I have never eaten there before.  They have a beautiful deck that sits on the river and it was the perfect place to be eating on the first nice night we have had in a couple of weeks!    What did we have, you ask...

I had the Pork Medallions (Hatfield Prime Reserve medallions marinated in ginger and sesame, topped with apricot glaze, served with sweet potato fries and wasabi aïoli), my father ordered Farfalle Pasta (Tossed with sun dried tomato flavored sausage and braised escarole in a white wine and tomato caper sauce with Pecorino-Romano), and my mother and grandmother both chose the Salmon (Pesto topped and slow roasted, served with a yellow pepper and shellfish sauce, rice pilaf and asparagus).

If you are ever in the area, I highly recommend it!

craving cupcakes

   

After spotting a mouth-watering picture of some cupcakes on my friend Laura's flickr account, I gradually became more and more obsessed with getting those very same cupcakes into my belly.  It was a kind of mind numbing compulsion that had me in my car heading to the town of Easton without remembering to take the name or address of the bakery in question... I just thought my need for cupcakes would lead me to the correct address.  Well, I was wrong and found myself lost in Easton, PA.   Thanks to my trusty cellphone, my futile search became a successful venture with a phone call to Laura (name = Easton Baking Company) and some google address seaching courtesy of my parents (address = 34 North 7th Street).  For what it lacks in ambience, the Easton Baking Company makes up for in taste and price.  It's a little place in the middle of an old residential neighborhood that looks like it could have been there since the 1950s (and without much modification).  The workers were greeting most of the customers by name and I was overwhelmed with the choices of baked goodness.  I ended up getting three cupcakes, two cannolis, a loaf of Italian bread, and some cookies for $5.65!  I am definitely going back to this place... everything was really good!

...and speaking of cupcakes, I just noticed that my friend Amy is sponsoring a contest on her blog for one of her amazing cupcake bracelets.  You should definitely go check it out because all you have to do is post a comment on the giveaway post to be entered in a contest to win one of these beauties!   

 

pizza frita

After reading a post on my friend Maria's blog about doughnut muffins, I spent the last week gradually developing an obsession: doughnut muffins - to - doughnuts - to - homeade doughnuts - to - other desserts I could deep fry - and then eventually landing on fried pizza dough (pizza frita).  Every once and a while when I was a kid, my parents would make it and I really remember loving it.  Basically, you take bits of pizza dough, deep fry it in oil, roll it around in sugar, and then eat it while it's still nice and warm.  It's pretty simple and it's pretty amazing! 

With some phoned-in help from my father, I attempted to make some pizza frita last night.  The hardest part was getting the oil to be the right temperature.  When I started, I had the oil too hot so the first few looked like a potato, had a rock hard shell, and were still raw dough on the inside (yuck).  After allowing the oil to cool a bit, things started to come together.  When you drop the dough in the oil, it puffs up a bit and starts to float at the top.  When it turns light golden brown, you remove it and let the oil drain on some paper towels.  After a minute or so, roll it around in some sugar and eat it while it is still warm. 

We mixed it up and tried some dipped in sugar, some in powdered sugar, and some in cinnamon sugar.