Old Friends

Happy Saturday, y’all!

I started off my weekend right by meeting up with some old friends for pizza. Really, really good pizza.

We met at Posto in Somerville – I’ve been hearing good things and wanted to give their brick oven pizza a try. It did not disappoint! I got the Campania, which included Brie, fior di latte, rosemary ham, rosemary roasted apples, vincotto, and arugula. I chose this pizza right away when I saw the roasted apples but they really weren’t the best part. If I were roasted apples, I would slice them much more thinly so that they could take on a crispy quality. These were fat and a bit smushy. I guess I’ll just have to make my own at home =)

The dough, though. Oohhhh, the dough. Exactly how pizza dough should be. Thin, thin bottom crust where all of the toppings rest and then a thick, chewy crust that you really have to work to eat to finish things off on the edge. And such great flavor. I hate describing bread as yeasty but, well…that’s what it was.

Embrace the yeast. It’s wonderous.

I’m not really sure why Italian restaurants in the states insist on calling mozarella “fior di latte”. Yeah, it distinguishes it from mozzarella di bufala but Americans don’t really have that issue. We assume it’s good old familiar mozz unless you tell us otherwise. Restaurants just putting on their fancy pants, I guess =)

I woke up this morning with the need for a good run rushing through my bones. The rain wasn’t going to stop me! After a very muddy 5 miles, I was famished and threw together this souped-up breakfast sammie:

A toasted whole spelt English muffin with sauteed kale, a poked over-easy egg, and a tablespoon of tomato sauce.

I sauteed the kale in a bit of Garlic Gold olive oil and a tablespoon of water and sprinkled it with a bit of kosher salt and black pepper. Once it was nice and droopy but still had some structure, I cracked the egg into the pan and gently poked the yoke with a fork. After the egg had set, I folded it into itself to get the yoke a bit more cooked. This just makes for a sandwich that holds together a bit better than one with a runny, oozy egg.

I totally dig tomato sauce on eggs. Definitely the perfect finishing touch.

Half of a Navel for dessert =)

I’m heading to cupcake heaven with a friend to pick up treats for my little bro’s birthday lunch tomorrow. I promise to share when I get back!

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House o’ Pampakes

Morning! The sun is out! And the snow is melting! Now if only we can get those temps outta the 40s….

I’ve been wanting to post my Dad’s pancake recipe since I first started happyaspie but I haven’t had the hankering for them until today! Oh, and the title? My little brother (who ain’t so little any more) was crazy for pancakes when he was younger – really more of a maple syrup thing than a pancake thing, I think. He would come down the stairs, sucking on his finger, his beloved blanket in hand, and asked for “pampakes”. The name just kind of stuck! I won’t sicken you by always writing our family’s name for this breakfast but know that I’m thinking it =)

My dad’s pancakes are a thing of beauty. They’re nothing like the stick-in-your-gut, buttermilk bad boys that you can get at a diner. Not that there’s anything wrong with those – I just don’t like them! I like my breakfast to leave me feeling refreshed and energized, ready to take on the day; walking around with a food baby in my belly and heart burn for the rest of the morning is just a little less than appealing to say the least.

My dad’s pancakes are light and thin, which means you can eat a whole stack without keeling over at the end, and are incredibly adaptable to whatever strikes your fancy that morning. Today? I wanted orange. Orange juice, orange zest, orange scent. I was mighty thirsty from last night’s spinning class, I think! Presenting: Orange-Scented Pancakes!

Dad’s Pancakes

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon sugar (I used raw turbinado)

2 tablespoons ground flax seed

pinch salt

1 egg

1/2 tablespoon oil (I used grapeseed – safflower, canola, whatever will get the job done!)

1.5 cups milk (I used Lactaid)

Emily’s addition: zest of 1 small orange!

Preheat your pan on medium-high heat while you get the batter ready. Mix together your dry ingredients, add the wet (and the zest) and whisk really well. Feel free to add more milk if you want the batter to be thinner (although I doubt this will happen) – add less if you want thicker pancakes! Lower the flame to medium and pour the batter into hot pan to form pancakes. They will cook very quickly and get very dark – flip as soon as the edges have started to look more solid and bubbles are forming all around the perimeter.

Did you really think I would leave out the toppings? Have you seen my oatmeal? On top of my batch today: Apricot fruit spread (I like Polaner’s because there is no added sugar, just sweetened with fruit), 1 tablespoon TJ’s sunflower butter drizzled over top, sprinkle of unsweetened coconut flakes, and sprinkle of Whofie’s Save the Rainforest granola. (I’ll tell you a secret about this granola. I bought it because it had huge, chewy chunks throughout the mix….but then I ate out all the chunks and tossed out the boring, space-hogging Brazil nuts and now I just have dried cinnamony oat flakes…bummer.)

Dad’s pancakes are not too sweet (really not sweet at all, in fact) which means adding fruit and toppings really enhances the pancakes without leaving you feeling buzzed from all of the sugar. Verdict on the orange zest? PERFECTION. It smelled fantastic and tasted even better. You know those Frank’s Red Hot ads? “I put that s!#% on everything!”? That’s how I feel about zest. You can never go wrong with a little (lotta) zest.

These pancakes are fantastic with a mashed banana included in the mix or any other fruit you like. Adding cottage cheese and less milk makes for really creamy, cloud-like cakes that are to.die.for. Whatever you can dream up!

1/2 of a Navel on the side!

I cooked up the whole batch of batter even though I only ate 4 of the pancakes today. Pancakes freeze really well if you place pieces of wax paper in between. Just throw them in the toaster for a really fast and delicious weekday breakfast.

Enough sitting around! Time for outdoor adventures. Trying a new Mexican restaurant tonight….details to come.