Recipe Quickie: Cheese & Onion Pasties

We lived in the UK for about a year after I graduated college (C is British), and while I had never heard many glowing reviews of British food, I did find that I was VERY fond of their "takeaways" while living there. One of my favorite items from our local Fish & Chip shop was the cheese and onion pasty. Pasties are basically savory hand pies filled with a variety of delicious combinations of meat, cheese, and veggies.

Here is a quick dinner I whipped up a couple of nights ago for C and I. They are incredibly easy, do not need any sort of real recipe, and can easily be frozen to keep on hand for even quicker meals.

Ingredients:

yellow onion
cheese (I use pre-shredded colby or cheddar jack, usually)
frozen puff pastry

Directions:

I preheat the oven at 375, then set the puff pastry out to defrost. While it defrosts I slice the onions and put them in a saute pan with a pat of butter and some olive oil. On medium-low to medium heat I saute the onions until they are soft and slightly brown and then transfer them to a mixing bowl. I let the onions cool a bit while I put parchment paper onto a cookie sheet and spray it with cooking spray. I then unfold the puff pastry and let it continue defrosting. Once that is done, I add the cheese (usually a full bag of shredded cheese) to the mixing bowl along with some salt and pepper and whatever other seasonings strike my fancy at that moment. After mixing everything together, I cut each sheet of defrosted puff pastry into four pieces, then spoon a generous amount of filling onto half of each piece. Then the pastry gets folded over and sealed with a fork before being moved onto the cookie sheet. Once they are all laid out on the cookie sheet, I spray them lightly with cooking spray and cut slits in each little package. They look like this:

Then I pop them in the oven for 35-40 minutes, and they come out all golden, delicious, and oozing with cheesy oniony flavor. Like I said, these little packets of amazingness can be made with pretty much any filling. Try shepherd's pie, with ground beef, veggies, and chunks of potato! Or chicken pot pie filling! The possibilities are endless, really.

Key Lime Cupcakes

When the key lime tree growing in a pot in front of our house is bursting with fruit like it is right now, it means only one thing to me: time to make key lime cupcakes! This year I’ve got all sorts of other key lime ideas (key lime tiramisu, key lime cookies, key lime pie, key lime ice cream, the possibilities are endless!), but I had to start with my classic favorite cupcakes. These cupcakes aren’t difficult to make, but they are definitely a bit time-consuming. I’ve had some health issues this year that have kept me from baking as often as I like due to mobility problems, so now that I am feeling better most days I have been itching to get back in there. This recipe is great for that because of the different steps; they took me two days to finish this time, but I got to rest in between. Plus, they are totally worth waiting for, if I do say so myself (and I do).

I made this recipe up because the key lime cupcakes I had had from various bakeries and found in various cookbooks just weren’t…key-lime-y…enough for me. I like a seriously tart dessert with tons of delicious citrus flavor, so I was intent on infusing every part of this treat with some lime component. I started with my favorite yellow cake recipe, taken from Cupcakes! and adapted it slightly by using a bit less sugar and adding a generous amount of key lime zest to the batter. Elinor’s recipe is so great in part because it uses only oil as the fat, no butter, so it can be used last minute instead of having to wait for butter to soften. The first time I made it I worried it would have an effect on the cake but they always, always come out moist and delicious. So, I start by making regular sized cupcakes, adding the key lime zest to the batter at the very end. Using an ice cream scoop sprayed with cooking spray, I divvy the batter up in the cupcake pans and pop them in the oven.

Disney Series #1 – Paradiso 37, Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory, and Riverside Mill Foodcourt

I am a self-professed Disney freak and have been so for pretty much my entire life. I spent my childhood visiting WDW every spring break, and then when my family moved to Celebration in my teens, I didn’t even wait a week after my sixteenth birthday before walking into the Disney Casting Center and getting my first job. I left the company (much to my dismay – that job was the best I’ve ever had but just couldn’t pay my bills) a few years ago but have continued to visit the parks time and time again, whether it be for day trips or for weekend getaways.

Even after working for “the mouse” for eight years and visiting as often as I have, I have barely scratched the surface of the amazing and varied dining experiences that Walt Disney World has to offer. Due to that, I bring to you the first of my Disney Series of restaurant blog posts. Ideally, I’d like to eventually visit, photograph, and write-up each of the full-service (and some of the counter-service) restaurants on property.

We stayed at the Port Orleans Resort – French Quarter this past weekend for a short break from reality. We had originally planned to spend one of the days in the parks but opted to just hang out at the resort for the most part instead. I had stayed there for a week when I was nine (back when it was just Port Orleans Resort), and my memory of the resort was fairly accurate, although it was clear the rooms had been renovated in the past 18 years at some point. The rooms were gorgeous, and the property equally so; the huge trees and cobbled walkways make it a great place to walk around, Sassagoula River runs the length of the property, and a boat dock is right by the pool area with a ferry to and from Downtown Disney running every ten to twenty minutes throughout the day. Speaking of the pool area, there were plenty of comfortable lounge chairs scattered about the twisty pool, and the dragon’s body that weaves its way around said pool is adorable. Port Orleans French Quarter was the very first Disney resort to get its own water slide, so I should have taken that to mind when I was recalling the slide for C. I described it somewhat as “this AWESOME AMAZING DRAGON HEAD where you slide down his INSANELY LONG TONGUE.” Needless to say, my adult brain was remembering it as it had seemed to my nine-year-old self. The slide was still pretty cool, and it IS a dragon’s tongue, but it is very short and very tame. Still fun, though.

Anyway, while at the resort for the weekend we mainly noshed at the local food courts, with a trip to Downtown Disney for a mid-afternoon sit-down lunch/dinner (linner? Dunch?) at Paradiso 37, a restaurant I’d wanted to try since it first opened (after they tore down my beloved Pleasure Island sobsob). For dinner the first night we ate at Sassagoula Floatworks & Food Factory, the French Quarter’s food court and pizza shop. It was standard Disney quick-service fare: expensive with above average flavors. C had an angus bacon cheeseburger with French fries and I had cheese steak sandwich with pasta salad. Both of the sandwiches were made to order, and the cheese steak was very tasty, even if the ratio of meat to bread was a little low. The French fries were well-seasoned but my pasta salad was pretty terrible, frankly. It was elbow macaroni, chopped celery, and chick peas with seemingly no dressing at all. No seasoning, even. It was extremely bland, and I didn’t eat more than two bites.  That night after dinner we went to the Scat Cat’s Lounge, which boasted live jazz and delicious libations. How could we turn that down? Our new friend Elliott did entertain for a few hours, although his music was not limited to just jazz. The man is talented, playing the saxophone, the clarinet, and the steel drums as well as singing during his set, and almost all of the songs were great, even if they weren’t all the jazz we’d been hoping for. Once he broke out Kool & the Gang, though, I was sort of ready to go. My Pina Colava (pina colada mixed with raspberry puree. So. Good. Especially when made with vodka instead of rum) couldn’t even get me through that one.

Orlando Restaurant Week: McCormick & Schmick's

I have wanted to go to McCormick & Schmick's for AGES now, so when I saw it on the list for Orlando Restaurant Week this year, I knew it was a must-do for me. We went over for the $25 dinner (it is right down the street, how did I resist for all this time???) on Saturday and enjoyed it so much we went back for the $10 lunch the next day!

The service was fantastic, although I think our server on Sunday for lunch was a bit disappointed that we were sticking to the Restaurant Week menu with just a soda for C and an iced tea for me as beverages. He tried to upsell us several times, suggesting alcoholic beverages, additional side items, and dessert. I did feel a bit bad for him as service was a bit slow, but the two courses provided as part of the menu were more than enough food.

The decor was classy and understated, with dark wood furnishings and accents, a faux stained-glass ceiling, and booths along one wall that were set back with forest green curtains separating them from the rest of the dining room. I half expected to peer into one and see a New York style "family man" eating with his henchmen. Too many movies, I know.

We were seated immediately on Saturday night; I had made a reservation but it didn't seem absolutely necessary. Our server was incredibly friendly and knowledgeable and was able to make recommendations and suggestions based on the questions we asked of her. For our starters, I ordered the Kobe Beef Carpaccio and C ordered the Coconut Shrimp. I was not sure what to expect from the carpaccio only having had it once before several years ago (the tuna carpaccio at Timpano's Chophouse, also awesome if my memory serves me correctly), but I was blown away by the flavors that hit my tongue with the very first bite. The meat was tender and super flavorful, and the texture mixed incredibly with the flavors of the garlic aioli and capers that graced the top of the plate. The crostini that came with the plate had a glaze drizzled over it (balsamic?), but they became merely a vehicle on which I could pile the thinly sliced beef and carry it (somewhat) gracefully to my mouth. I may or may not have completely cleaned my plate, and would go back to the restaurant just for this dish. The fact that the rest of the meal was also good is just a plus. C's coconut shrimp was also tasty. Nice and crisp, with a sweet chili sauce with a great tang and heat at the back of your tongue.

Food Truck Bazaar #2

I feel silly titling this post "#2," as I didn't get to go to Food Truck Bazaar #1, but well...that's what it was called, so there you go. I arrived at the parking lot behind Dillard's at Fashion Square Mall around 8:00pm and was surprised and excited by the huge crowds that had already formed. Groups with chairs were scattered throughout the parking lot and around the trucks themselves, everyone enjoying their finds. The weather was perfect, nice and cool compared to the heat we'd had all day.

I started out at the Firehouse BBQ truck, determined to try as many of the "non-regular" trucks as possible. The line was long, but moving steadily. One of the things I noticed last night was that no one seemed to MIND the lines. Having worked at Disney for eight years, seeing people happily wait in line amazed me. Apparently food is a better motivator/end-goal than a five minute ride. Firehouse BBQ had a good system going, where people waited in one line to place their order and pay for their food and then moved to the back of the second (much shorter!) line to wait for their food to be prepared. I am not much for barbecue, but decided to try out the brisket sandwich. The meat was well cooked and super flavorful, but I'll be honest: I don't have a lot to compare it to. Would I order it again? Absolutely. So good. The potato salad had great flavors in it, but was a little too rich for me.

Brisket-y goodness, baked beans, and potato salad

An Impromptu Food Truck Outing

I was hungry when I left work on Friday night, so decided to make my way down to South Orange Blossom Trail to see what food trucks were out already. It was already 10pm by the time I made it to the area, so of course there were at least four or five trucks out and about. I couldn't get the thought of a previous arepas experience out of my head, so decided to stop off at the Saman Arepas Bistro food truck located in the parking lot of All Transmission World just north of Central Florida Parkway. The parking lot was packed, with two more trucks located at the other end and a live band going. The atmosphere was festive and the weather was fantastic. After parking, I got in line, trying to eavesdrop on what those in front of me were ordering. My spanish is poor at best, so I just tried to match up the few utterances of meat types that were listed on the side of the truck with the three different types of cheese offered.

This truck is great. They have at least six different types of meat options (including beef, pork, ham, chicken, shrimp, and chicken salad) and three cheese options (queso blanco, queso guayanese, and yellow cheese (I can't remember the spanish for that one! Darn it!)), and for $5 you get a corn arepas that is deliciously crisp and soft all at once stuffed FULL of your own custom combination of meat and cheese. They also have several bottles of sauces (all appear to be mayonnaise based, but were not labeled) and a bowl of salsa verde up on the counter.

My eyes were bigger than my stomach (as always; I need to start bringing a team of 8 with me to these things just so I can try EVERYTHING), so I ordered a beef, a shrimp, and a pork, all with queso blanco. I ordered them to go, and they pop out of the window steaming hot and packaged all neatly in paper. I put some of the salsa verde on the beef, but kept the other two plain, leaving the pork one all wrapped up to bring home.

In my opinion, the beef arepa was the best by far. The meat is seasoned and shredded perfectly and packed into the amazing bread along with crumbled queso blanco. With the salsa verde added in, it makes this amazingly filling little bundle of tasty goodness.

The photo is a bit blurry, I know, but trust me. AMAZING, people. Amazing.