Thursday, May 17, 2012

Wok Wednesdays!

While surfing around the other day I found a blog that I would like to share with you all.  Matt from GreenEatsBlog was encouraging other bloggers to participate in Wok Wednesdays.  If you would like to participate, please go to Wok Wednesdays blog and sign up!

On selected Wednesdays  a recipe will be featured out of Grace Young's cookebook, Stir-Frying to the Sky's Edge.

Yesterday was our first Wok Wednesday, with a very simple Stir- Fried Garlic Spinach! This was very fast and yummy. It took me longer to clean the spinach than it took to cook it.

I purchased 3 bundles of fresh spinach thinking that would probably give me the 16 cups of spinach that the recipe was calling for.  I've forgotten what a pain in the a$$ it is to clean fresh spinach. I've gotten very used to the triple washed, cleaned and trimmed spinach that you can purchase these days! haha!




I cut off the bottom of each bundle of spinach.
I filled the sink with the spinach and then ran cold water over the spinach and let the spinach sit. I removed the spinach from the water, cleaned out the sink, there was plenty of sand and dirt on the bottom and repeated the cleaning process. I think I did this 3 times to make sure there was no dirt left anywhere! There is nothing worse than chewing on sand! So when you think it's clean, clean it again!

The Woking part was easy! I heated the oil and waited until it was hot enough, added the garlic and worked quickly so the garlic didn't burn. The spinach was added and tossed and then sprinkled with a little salt and tossed again.
Out of the wok, and into a serving plate, right to the table.
Enjoyed by all!
I'm looking forward to woking again. We'll be making a chicken dish. Check back soon!
Buon Appetito
祝您好胃口
xoxoxo
Lorraine

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Caracara Mexican Grill


My sister, Marlene and I had the pleasure of dining at Caracara Mexican Grill on Monday night.  For those of you who live in the vicinity you are very lucky to have this gem located in your backyard!  This is not your typical Mexican restaurant. This is dinning!

For those of you who know me, know that I talk to everyone. This occasion was not an exception to the rule.  I think it's important to get to know the people who are around me, especially while sitting at the bar snapping photos.  Sometimes I get so caught up in the moment I forget to ask if it's alright. I'm so glad I started talking!

Julie our bartender made the most delicious Margarita for me. Give me a silver tequilla with fresh squeezed lime juice over ice, lightly salted  with a  touch of Agave Nectar and I am transported back to Mexico. We are talking good times!
Marlene, my sister, who never drinks ordered the Sangria, which she sucked down like nobody's business!  Before I was half way through with my drink, she was ordering another, sucking up the very last drop.  She's working on her New Year's resolution to "drink more"!

We ordered an appetizer of Calamares Fritos, which were Blue Corn crusted and served with Chipotle Honey Aioli and  Ranchero dipping sauces. The Calamres were delicious, crispy and very fresh!

To our surprise, Tony the owner, sent out another appetizer for us to try! Tamales Camarones. This was not your average Tamale. We couldn't stop eating this dish. The tamale was rich and creamy, mixed with corn and a Chipotle cream. The texture was creamy and had intense flavors from the smokey Habanero salsa.  This appetizer was amazing. I can't wait to go back and try the chicken tamale!

Marlene ordered Costillas A La Parrilla. If you like short ribs you have to order this dish! The short ribs were slow cooked with Dos Equis Beer and served with a three chile salsa.  This is another winning dish!
I ordered the Carne Asado. Out  came a perfectly prepared medium rare Skirt Steak.  The steak was so tender and juicy that I ate every single piece and left nothing on my dish!
Our only mistake was not saving any room for deserts!  I won't make that mistake again.
Executive Chef Nestor Hernandez has a magic touch. Our meal was so delicious it rivaled the best meal I had recently eaten in Mexico!

Cinco de Mayo is this weekend and Tony is offering some specials for the occasion and the party will last all weekend long!  I strongly suggest you make reservations!

Tell them, Lorraine from The Food Crawl sent you!

Caracara Mexican Grill

354 Main Street
Farmingdale, New York
516 .777.2272

Like them on Facebook!  Check out the specials! On Meatless Monday's, in addition to the regular menu there are many delicious specials offered!

Buen Apetito
xoxoxo
Lorraine