by Sam Tackeff | Nov 16, 2014 | Meat
Tonight I cooked bratwurst from the freezer. I flipped through some of my cookbooks for inspiration, but ended up loosely following Olga’s recipe for bratwurst, cabbage, and sauerkraut on Sassy Radish. I always really love her writing, and her recipes are always on point. I had most of the ingredients for this late fall dinner. I used the last of my sauerkraut, and ended up drinking the little cup of brine as an aperitif. I could have put a little vodka in there, and it would have been an excellent cocktail.
bratwurst, cabbage, and sauerkraut
serves 2
bratwurst, 4 medium sized
olive oil
onion, 1 cup, chopped
paprika, 1 teaspoon
mustard seeds, 1 teaspoon
cabbage, 1/2 head of green cabbage, sliced
sauerkraut, about a cup, two if you have it
tart apple, 1, peeled, cored, and sliced
stock, beef or chicken, 2 cups
Brown the (fully cooked) bratwurst in the skillet in some olive oil. Add the chopped onion, and cook until softened, and just slightly brown. You want the onion to get a little color to help flavor the cabbage. Add the spices, cabbage, sauerkraut, and apple, and stir. Pop the sausages on top, so they are sitting on the cabbage. Pour over the stock, and cook on medium heat, partially covered, for about 45 minutes, until the cabbage is soft, stirring every so often to help wilt the cabbage down.
by Sam Tackeff | Oct 26, 2014 | Meat, Uncategorized
The second month of my Walden Local Meat share arrived on Thursday, and I find myself with a freezer full of meat of all types that need to be used. Every month Walden sends out a survey that allows you to mention your preferences and order any add ons. You can order the amount of meat that you’d like – starter packs start at $49, and I pay $129 a month for a full share with 10-11 pounds of meat, with several pounds of ground meat (lamb, pork, beef), sausages, bacon, and other charcuterie. This month I added a few extras: two dozen fresh eggs, a pound of chicken livers, and a tube of home made liverwurst. Liver and other offal are such nutrient dense foods, and I’m a firm believer in eating the best quality you can find – it’s a relief to be able to source high quality from my CSA!
Dinner tonight was with some of the leftover beef from last month that I reluctantly took out from the back of the freezer. (My first month I opted not to specify what cuts I wanted, and just hope for the best. I was 90% satisfied, and made sure to make requests this month!) I wanted this to work a little bit better than it did – I think I’m just not a fan of certain roast cuts of beef – despite cooking in the pressure cooker in a good amount of liquid, the meat always ends up a little bit dry. Alas, not every dish is a winner. Nevertheless, this was an easy dish to make, and with better beef, and a great barbecue sauce, it makes for a decent dinner.
Barbecue Beef with Sauerkraut. I started with a few pounds of beef (I had a 2 lb. thawed round roast, but this would be much better with brisket or chuck roast) which I seasoned with salt and garlic powder, and put it in my instant pot with a cup of barbecue sauce, a cup of apple cider, and a little bit of stock. I set it on high pressure for 45 minutes on the meat/stew setting.
To eat, pull the meat out of the liquid, and serve with extra barbecue sauce, sauerkraut, and pickles.
Pro-tip: eat your meat stew with pickles! (Turks do this, and it’s one of my favorite additions to stew or beans. You immediately get something salty, crunchy, and sour to help balance out what might be a lackluster stew, or take a great one to even greater heights. I like sauerkraut with pickles, because of the added fermented benefits!)
Walden Local Meat, Carlisle, Massachusetts.
Free delivery to the Greater Boston Area. If you commute into Boston, you could get the shipment delivered to work, and it’ll stay conveniently cold in the reusable freezer bag packed with your frozen meat and some dry ice.
by Sam Tackeff | Jul 22, 2014 | Fitness, Meat
A few weeks ago, I managed to snag one of the coveted (free!) spots at this month’s New Balance Girls Night Out! The last few events were sold out before I could get on the list, so as soon as this one was posted I acted quickly to get in on the action. The events, hosted by (Boston based!) New Balance are billed as a healthy alternative to a night out on the town, and I always love getting my sweat on with a group. This time around you could choose to head out for a run, take an Equinox class (on the roof!), or a hardcore Flywheel sweat session right in the middle of Copley.
When I arrived at the New Balance Experience store on Boylston, I realized there was a bit of a mix-up – the event confirmation email said 6:30, but the event actually started at 6! The Flywheel and Equinox classes were already booked up and started, but fortunately I was there for the run, which hadn’t yet gone on it’s way! (I’ve just started a half marathon training plan to work my way up to a decent – ie: non brutal – B.A.A. Half.) Tonight I skipped out on track workout to participate, but I made sure to choose the event closest to my goal workout!
The two folks leading the run were Joel (the experience store manager), and Kate*. We ended up just shy of a three mile loop down the Charles and around the Common, and interspersed were push ups, burpees, lunges, and other calisthenics that truthfully I wasn’t 100% up to after my race weekend. (This is a few miles less than I would have run with our office track workout today, but based on my fatigue after the first mile, that’s probably a-ok.)
After our run, we came back to the store where the party was happening – cocktails, hydration, mini burgers, and other delicious looking snacks. You could get custom t-shirts at a discount, and there were also cute swag bags, filled with a handy towel (which I needed, because I was sweaty!), some stickers, magnets, coupons, temporary tattoos, lip gloss, a usb stick with a running mix on it, and a little headband! I stuck around just long enough to say a very quick hello to some fellow bloggers, and then headed home to make dinner. I think the key to these events is going with friends – I’m so bad at making a game plan in advance, and then get totally overwhelmed and awkward trying to say hello to people without a wing-person! Yep, even if I know them.
On the table tonight: ground beef with cumin and garlic powder, pinto beans, and a Popeye-worthy amount of spinach. And a huge scoop of guacamole, as you do.
Which activity floats your boat? Running, an Equinox Bootcamp, or FlyWheel?
*A quick aside: tonight I was wearing my much-loved Glen Doherty Cup shirt (my kayak + running race I participated in a few weeks ago.) The event was part of the Cambridge Freedom Run, and in honor of Navy Seal Glen Doherty, who was killed in action in Benghazi. This was a particularly moving race to me, and I was truly humbled to be a part of it in his honor. It turns out that Kate, leading our run, is his sister, and it took everything in my power not to cry right there in the store. Just feeling thankful tonight for meeting her.
by Sam Tackeff | Jul 21, 2014 | Meat
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Yeesh, y’all. Another weekend passes by without a weekly meal plan. I swear, I have an excuse: my very first triathlon which took up most of my weekend! Race recap forthcoming! Fortunately, I have a list for emergency dinners that I’m always fond of here, and I’m always trying to add to it! Tonight’s dinner is filed under emergency quick and easy.
Pork chops + asparagus. Season boneless pork chops on both sides with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. You’ll likely want one or two per person. [We spilt three, just over a pound] In a large skillet, heat a few glugs of olive oil on medium high. Put the pork chops in the pan, and let them sit for 6 minutes without touching them. Resist the urge to fidget and touch them, they’ll be just fine without interference! After six minutes flip the chops, and move them to one side of the pan. Add in a large handful of cleaned asparagus (usually I trim the stalks in one fell swoop while the elastic band is still holding them together.) Cook the pork chops for another six minutes, while flipping the asparagus with tongs or a fork. Test the pork for doneness, then remove the chops from the pan to a plate. (Usually I like them just slightly under my preference, and I’ll let them rest for 5-10 minutes to reach full doneness.) While the chops rest, turn up the heat and cook the asparagus through, tossing gently. Serve as is, pure meat and veg, or round things out with a side of refried beans.
Here’s me crossing the finish line!
Recovery was a long nap yesterday afternoon, and a long walk today after work.
Here’s the best flower I encountered:
Happy Monday!
by Sam Tackeff | May 21, 2014 | Meat, Mexican, Vegetables
Let me just say, thank goodness for Trader Joe’s. When I’m running late, and haven’t meal planned, I tend to stop by Trader Joe’s to purchase protein and a vegetable, and go from there.
Tonight I did a “double” at the gym – the WOD (workout of the day), followed by the Olympic Lifting Clinic (where we practiced snatches). The main workout was AMRAP 20: Run 400 meters, then three rounds of {5 pullups, 10 pushups, 15 squats}. Feeling sluggish from a track workout yesterday, I managed through only two full rounds (two runs and two sets of three rounds) before calling it. After two hours in the gym, I went for a long walk with my friend AA to make our respective Jawbone/Fitbit step goals. I headed home feeling very accomplished, and decided to support my fitness behavior with a home cooked meal instead of takeout.
Tonight’s dinner – a twist on one of my favorite dinners: taco salad. While I’m not competing in my gym’s nutritional challenge this time around, I’ve been feeling inspiration to eat delicious home cooked meals and share ideas with friends. This dinner takes about 8 minutes to put together if you buy the salsa and guac pre-made. (I like Trader Joe’s Avocado’s Number guacamole, or sometimes if I’m feeling spend-y, the freshly made guac at Whole Foods.)
Beef and Cabbage “Taco” Salad
beef, cabbage, pico de gallo, guacamole
Sauté a pound of ground beef (I use organic, free range when possible) with a large pinch of salt and a heaping teaspoon or so of cumin. When the beef is cooked, add a few large handfuls of shredded green cabbage (about 5 ounces), and another large pinch of salt. Let the cabbage cook for about 4 minutes, until slightly softened but still toothsome. You want the cabbage to still have a little bit of crunch. Once cooked, assemble your salad – the beef and cabbage as the base, and then spoon on pico de gallo and guacamole on each plate. For some added vegetable, add a few chopped cherry tomatoes. Nice with a little squeeze of lime. Serves 2, generously.
by Sam Tackeff | May 7, 2014 | Blogging, Meat, Restaurants
For four years in college much of my world revolved around the short corridor of Route 9 outside of Boston. I spent all too much of my free time mall-hopping from Natick to the Chestnut Hill strip. The area’s heyday was really in the late 90’s and early 2000’s, when the first Cheesecake Factory opened in the Atrium mall. While my palate may be slightly more refined over the years, the opening of Cheesecake Factory was fairly momentous at the time – we were all in awe of the massive portions, hot brown bread, fresh lemonade, and their oreo cheesecake (which they have since discontinued, for shame). The last recession seemed to hit the area hard, and the Atrium (the original location of the Cheesecake Factory) is now completely boarded up – but rapid construction in the past three years has changed things dramatically. Instead of crumbling malls and shuttering retail, now we have a Shake Shack! Lululemon! Equinox! You can go for a glamorous cycling class at SoulCycle – and it’s awesome. TrueRunner and Athleta have a bunch of free fitness classes. Sweetgreen is about to open a location. And as of this week – Wegmans! While I’m generally sensitive to a dramatically changing landscape, replacing old empty stores with places that I’m actually excited to go to is pretty great.
This weekend I jumped at a blogger event in Chestnut Hill at the Del Frisco’s Grille with Blog and Tweet Boston – it’s been too long since I’ve been able to take pictures of people taking pictures of food, and I’m always craving a good steak!
To start, we sampled a selection of their appetizers: their cheesesteak eggrolls with chili sauce – which I’d never think of ordering off of a menu, but ended up being totally smitten by the rich/spicy/sweet/crunchy thing they had going on. There were ahi tacos – little hard shelled tacos filled with tuna tartare and avocado in a nice ratio (the gluten free version was in lettuce wraps) which I’d definitely order next time! Stuffed deviled eggs came with a truffle vinaigrette, but I found the flavors a little heavy handed for the eggs, plus, I’m over anything “truffle” unless you are shaving the black mushroom directly onto my food. If you want to do so, please note that they are going for $999/lb. at Wegman’s. My birthday is in two weeks.
We were at the restaurant early, but the place starts filling up quickly at dinner time and during brunch – fortunately, the empty back space gave us plenty of room to shoot to our hearts desires without bothering other patrons. Being a mix of food, fitness, and fashion bloggers, I must say that the fashion gang kicks ass at cute outfits and food poses. {That’s Chloe shooting Semirah being adorable, with cake.}
At lunch I sat with the two of them, along with Elissa (another style maven), and Kerrie – who I last shared an excellent meal with two years ago at Angela’s in East Boston, and haven’t seen since! Being the hermit that I am, it was nice to catch up. Although the blogging community in Boston is relatively small, I so rarely do blog events, that I ended up meeting a whole group of new people at lunch – some of which I’ve been Twitter stalking for a good long while, and it’s always nice to connect a real face to a handle.
The main courses were all things that I might order and eat: the seared Asian tuna salad came with a large mound of arugula and cabbage, over noodles that are hiding somewhere under there. In the background you can see one of their signature peppered steaks that has been sliced and perfectly cooked (rare, how I like it.). I managed quite a few slices and ended up taking home a whole filet to eat cold for breakfast. (My favorite way to eat steak.)
There was a beef short rib stroganoff with pappardelle noodles, piled high with crispy onion strings; and two flatbreads – the wild mushroom with fontina, caramelized onions, and baby arugula; and the shaved brussels sprout with smoked bacon, caramelized onions, and mozzarella. Second to the steak, this was one of my favorite dishes we tried, and at $13 is definitely something I’d order for an inexpensive dinner during the week. (They also happen to have takeout.)
While I found dessert, the layered lemon doberge cake, to be a little too sweet for my taste, I’ll come back to try their adult milkshake – a fabulous combination of nocello walnut liqueur, creme de cacao, and vanilla ice cream.
At the end of our meal, everyone was pleasantly stuffed – but being the glutton I am, okay, and the fact that bloggers are somewhat less restrained when it comes to meat eating than my CrossFit friends – I managed to score both a filet and the lobster and egg double cheeseburger to take home with me, getting three full meals worth out of this trip – a treat for sure.
Del Frisco’s Grille
33 Boylston Street, Chestnut Hill, MA
Design lovers note, this is right around the corner from the brand new Jonathan Adler store! Rejoice!
Disclaimer: I did not pay for this meal, all opinions are my own.
