Hoboken Mutz Fest!

Yes, that's Italy made out of mozzarella in the bottom left-hand corner

This morning I woke up in a food coma to end all food comas.

Why, might you ask?

Well, Hoboken has began this amazingly ridiculous New Jersey-like tradition of having an annual 'Mutz Fest' each winter. Believe it or not, the little city (fun fact: Hoboken is only one square mile) has a handful of Italian delis and restaurants that each boast that they make the best mozzarella in town.

Hoboken's solution? A competition for the public and a panel of judges to decide exactly who should claim to have the 'best mutz.'

To sum it all up, the event was absurd. There were six participants:

Perfect Paisley

Paisley has been very into joining me for runs lately which I LOVE. Anthony gets pretty busy at work this time of year, so she's been a great substitute running buddy!

Not only is Paisley great company, she's also absolutely hysterical. We'll make it a few blocks and then all of the sudden she'll see a squirrel, or a flock of birds, or a pile of snow, or someone's empty food container on the ground, and she'll abruptly yank me in a million directions. It's giving me quite the arm workout as well as some ugly leash-burn around my hands!

We were out on a jog the other day and passed this awesome graffiti art on a brick wall which was the 'perfect' photo opp for Miss Paisley. I made her stop, asked her to sit (which she actually did!) and snapped this shot...

It's so appropriate... Even though she's a distracted nutcase half the time, she truly is our perfect Paisley!

P.S. about two seconds after I snapped this shot she spotted another dog across the street and was gone. Typical.

Eggplant "Meatballs"

I know what you're thinking: "Eggplant meatballs?! Really?! And you have the audacity to call yourself an Italian?!"

By no means will these replace your beloved mother's meatballs (if you need a good recipe, try Dom's Mom's meatballs which can be found here... My family swears by them!), but they're pretty damn delicious if I do say so myself. Served over a little fettuccine with extra marinara... they're perfect!

This recipe is the result of years scowering the internet for a good vegetarian meatball recipe and constantly being disappointing with the results. Too bland... too mushy... too GROSS... you get the point.

These meatballs are flavorful, crispy, easy to make, and a much lighter than your meaty meatballs!

Getting Healthy in the New Year

You know how I know that it's the first week of the New Year? It's when you go to the grocery store and all the veggies are gone because everyone has resolved to 'eat healthy' in 2014.

I, too, am ridiculously guilty of using the holidays as an excuse to have a few (hundred) extra calories per day, and now - as a result - I'm wearing leggings a little too often because I'm scared of trying to pull up my skinny jeans!

All this being said, today I'm kicking it back into high-gear and making it a goal to get back in shape by the spring. I've got some fun weddings, parties and trips coming up (including a a bachelorette in fabulous Las Vegas) and we all know that leggings aren't proper attire for any of these occasions.

I figured that I'd share some of my favorite (easy) ways to start to get healthy in the New Year. Obviously I'm no health expert, but these are things that work for me - an average, realistic person - and perhaps they'll inspire you too!

Feel free to share your favorite secrets to get fit in the comments section... I'd love to hear them!

It's Christmas Time in the City!

Guess what day it is?

Yes, it's New Year's Eve... BUT it's also Anthony's birthday!

Yesterday we took a birthday trip into NYC to have a special little lunch date at PJ Clarke's and do all the holiday touristy things that we normally poke fun at on a regular basis. Thought I'd share some of my favorite shots of the day...

Radio City Music Hall

The largest holiday ornaments in all the land.

Chipotle Corn Chowder

Chowder always reminds me of the summers I spent in Maine as a kid, going to the beach during the day and eating warm clam chowder and chicken fingers (I wasn't enough of a foodie as a child to appreciate lobster, hah) during the cool nights. 

After having had so many bowls of clam chowder in Maine, there's absolutely no way I could ever create a recipe that would come even slightly close... So I took a step down and concocted this recipe for corn chowder.

To add a little kick, I mixed in a bit of chipotle which is... if I must say... a-m-a-z-i-n-g. Anthony even ate three bowls of it!

Hope you enjoy!

Chipotle Corn & Potato Chowder

INGREDIENTS

Serves 5-7

• 4 tablespoons salted butter
• 4 slices of bacon, chopped into bits
• 1 medium yellow onion, minced
• 2 chipotle peppers in adobo, minced
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 8 cups chicken stock
• 2 large russet potatoes, peeled and diced
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 2 15 oz. cans corn kernels, drained and rinsed
• 2.5 cups heavy cream
• Salt & pepper
• Shredded cheddar (optional topping)
• Scallions, thinly sliced (optional topping)

DIRECTIONS

1. Melt the butter in a large stock pot over medium heat. Add your bacon to the butter and cook until crisp. Then add the onion and chipotle peppers to the mixture and saute until the onions are cooked and translucent (5-7 minutes). 
2. Sprinkle the all-purpose flour over your onion mixture and stir well until combined. Add the chicken stock and potatoes to the pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, and allow potatoes to cook through (about 15 minutes or so). 
3. After potatoes are cooked, add in your diced bell pepper, corn kernals, and heavy cream. Simmer  on low for another 5-10 minutes, or until bell peppers begin to soften. 
4. Pour into bowls to serve and garnish with cheddar and scallions if desired

Goodbye 2013!

2013 has been quite the year and, I gotta say, I'm pretty sad to see it go. Many amazing things happened in 2013... Anthony and I got married, went on an amazing trip to Hawaii, got a dog and, of course, Beta's Bites got off the ground!

Anthony and I in Kaui, Hawaii

Here's a little recap of the recipes that have been posted on Beta's Bites since it kicked-off in July 2013...

1. French Onion Soup Grilled Cheese