When you read Portland what do you think of? Is it the big city in Oregon? Probably. But when I think of Portland, I think of the delicious restaurants that line the cobble stone streets in the waterfront city of Portland, Maine.
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Last year for #friendsgiving I made chicken cutlets and macaroni and cheese. This year for Friendsgiving I followed a more traditional menu, and was rather impressed with the results.
My cooking style can be defined as all of the following: experimental, untrained, and in the moment. I don’t follow recipes often, and when I do, I take liberty with measurements and instructions. When it’s time to cook, I don’t make lists or plans ahead of time, and instead walk the aisles of the grocery store searching for inspiration. Lately I’ve been on a mission to cook at home more and eat out less, and last week I threw together a little bit of this and a little bit of that to make what I’m calling pumpkin alfredo pasta.
October is informally known as pumpkin spice season which, in conjunction with an Instagram post by @rachlmansfield, and the pumpkin filled aisles of Trader Joe’s, sparked the inspiration for a weeknight cooking spree.
Like I mentioned earlier, I take a lot of liberty when it comes to recipes aka I glance at them once and then do whatever I so please. This often gets me into trouble, but I like the challenge so I continue to wing it. After I posted videos of my creation on Instagram Stories, I received a number of messages asking for the recipe, but since I didn’t really follow one, this is the closest I can get:
Ingredients
Step 1: Remove sausage casing to create crumbles. Brown sausage and mushrooms in a pan
Step 2: Boil water and cook pasta until slightly underdone. Save about 2 cups of pasta water for your pumpkin sauce.
Step 3: Add underdone pasta, sausage and mushrooms to the same pot. Add pumpkin puree, pasta water, and about a cup of coconut cream (yes I know, exact measurements would be nice, but like I said, I was winging it)
Step 4: Turn on the burner to medium heat and bring your sauce to a simmer. This will help it thicken and finish the cook on your pasta. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Pro tip: If you find that your sauce is coming out a bit too thin, stir in a bit of flour to help thicken it.
Step 5: Serve on a bed of arugula and enjoy!
If you take a stab at this Fall dish, let me know! I’d love to hear what variations you tried as well, and as always, don’t forget to follow along on Instagram!
Weeks before I touched down in Nashville, Tennessee, I had already prepared an itinerary the was largely composed of restaurants and bars. When I walked off the plane I had four days, an empty stomach, and a lot of ground to cover.
Today is the 31st, and as springtime starts to fill the air, I finally have a moment to reflect on the craziness that has been the month of March. A lot happened this month. I found myself in a different city for 3 consecutive weekends, never really catching my breath as a I rushed into busy work week after busy work week. March also stayed true to the in like a lion, out like a lamb mantra as the early weeks brought massive blizzards back to back here in Upstate New York. In the recent weeks, March brought a jury duty summons and the passing of my beloved and crazy grandmother, Grandma Rose. In short, this month has been a roller coaster.
Continue reading “Making It Through March”
The past few months have been busy. The weeks fly by and the weekends go by even faster. I suppose that means I’m doing something right. I make it a goal to make the most of my time, and although that sometimes means binge watching Shameless on the couch for hours on end, it can also mean going out for a delicious meal.
Always being on the go means that the blog gets a little neglected (which is a great reason to follow along on Instagram to stay up to date with all of my adventures) but I’m finally taking a few minutes to recap a few of my winter favorites so far.
In the last year I’ve done quite a bit. I went to Maine, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Texas, and Canada. I explored Albany, Schenectady, Troy, Saratoga, the Adirondacks, and Western New York. With every adventure I tried something new and as the year comes to an end I decided to take a look at the tastiest, and most liked meals of 2017.
Continue reading “A Food Filled Year In Review”
We’re more than halfway to Christmas and blogmas is in full swing. Have you been keeping up? Here’s a quick recap of all the posts so far.
Day 1: Current Coffee Roasters bringing real coffee for real causes to the Capital Region.
Day 2: New Albany restaurant The Cuckoo’s Nest serves up the best southern comfort downtown.
Day 3: There’s a never ending supply of good eats in Troy, New York.
Day 4: Upstate is great, but there’s a lot to see (and eat) out east in Boston.
Day 5: Winter restaurant week was in full swing, and I went fishin’ for the best deals.
Day 6: Chocolate frosting is a gift to this earth, and sweet treats with sprinkles on top are pretty good too.
Day 7: Pizza.
Day 8: The calories are worth it when the doughnut tastes this good.
Day 9: Ice cold, but heart warming, ice cream is always a good idea.
Day 10: Name a better time to indulge on a whole bunch of chili than a snowy Saturday in Schenectady.
Day 11: Noodles come in all shapes and sizes. Every one of them delicious.
Day 12: Mex-i-can I have more?
Day 13: If you ever find yourself a little hungry, Albany has got it all.
Happy Blogmas everyone! Make sure you’re following along on Instagram.
There is nothing more pleasing than a large bowl of carbs. Red sauce, white sauce, or even soy sauce, give me some noodles and we are all set. Lets take a look at some of my favorite pastas in the Capital Region.
Continue reading “Everyday I'm Noodlin'”
They come in sugar or glazed or chocolate sprinkle, freshly made with a side of apple cider, or even with a scoop of ice cream in between. Technically, it’s spelled doughnut, and it’s one of the most popular pastries out there right now.
Continue reading “But Is It Doughnut or Donut?”
