Pie Five Deserves a High Five...

Pizza is an art form I am unable to master, as it would seem.  Try as I might, the doughy consistency just will not coincide with my excessively large topping requirements.  My love affair with pizza continues outside my own kitchen, in the comfort of restaurants. Novelty pizzas concern me but I make it a rule to never say I don’t like it, unless I have tried it once. A new pizza place opened up in Las Colinas recently called Pie Five. One of my pledge sisters from college and I have a standing lunch date for Thursdays and we usually end up going to the same place, but today she suggested this new pizza place which sounded amazing. The concept is much like Quizno’s or Potbelly, the product is made in front of you and passed through an oven to heat it completely before arriving at the table. I appreciate the open viewing idea; I can see my food as at is prepared so there are no surprises when it arrives at my table.

The variety of pizzas offered are all the same price, which I appreciate as cost often clouds my decision-making ability. All of the 9” personal pizzas are $7.03, including tax.  I struggled with my choice but decided upon the Spin Art pizza which included spinach, mozzarella, Roma tomatoes and roasted artichokes, layered on top of a thin crust with alfredo sauce. The pizza was delicious and oh so satisfying – I even took two slices home for lunch tomorrow (or perhaps a midnight snack tonight). Kelli ordered the Pie Five High Five which boasted pepperoni, sausage, bacon, ham, and beef covered with cheddar cheese and mozzarella.  I sampled hers as well and found it hearty but not heavy enough to leave me feeling uncomfortably full.  

For a fresh signature pizza made before my eyes, I would say that Pie Five will gain immense popularity with the business people in the area. By the time my weekly lunch buddy and I were leaving at 11:45, the line was almost out the door with patrons eager to grab a pie before racing back to the office. After our experience today, Pie Five will definitely become a new favorite place to meet.

Happy Un-Turkey Day!

As Thanksgiving fast approaches and Christmas begins to peek its head around the corner, turkey, stuffing and the traditional green bean casserole come to mind. Built into all Americans is a sense of obligation when it comes to tradition. Following traditions helps us feel safe and part of something bigger then ourselves, we feel a connection to those past and future; by continuing a tradition you are carrying something important on to the next generation. However, there are traditions to hold sacred because they mean something special and there are traditions we blindly repeat because it seems like the thing to do. Take Thanksgiving dinner for example; talk to co-workers, friends, neighbors and most of them will tell you that they plan to feast on turkey, dressing and very likely, green bean casserole. But upon closer examination, I have found that many of the people I have interviewed on this topic have admitted... they don’t even like turkey!

Why else would there be so many recipes for how to use up Thanksgiving leftovers? If people really liked turkey, there would be none to dispose of the day after.. you don’t here of leftover cheeseburger recipes or leftover fajita recipes, and that’s because people actually enjoy eating those foods. Until a few years ago, my family would buy the turkey because it was tradition and eat it for days on end, wishing for a bottom to the seemingly endless platter of turkey. That is until we had an epiphany.

What if -gasp- we didn’t make turkey just because?? What a revelation! Free from the poultry chains we flew and into enchiladas, fajitas, and cheeseburgers- as our own way of celebrating “Turkey Day”. We eat something that we actually enjoy and no longer have to figure out what to do with all of the leftovers (which are only leftover because no one wanted to eat them in the first place). So this year, I command you to take a stand against doing something just because. If you like turkey, by all means, continue your tradition of enjoying it on Thanksgiving, for the rest of you-- break free! Eat something delicious, you won’t regret it!

10 Week Challenge-A Valiant Effort to Lose 10 Pounds

Chili's Margarita Grilled Chicken
(it actually looks like this)

My personal 10 week challenge is making a decided effort to alter my eating habits for the better. Dumping the deep fried goodness I so love will be easier said than done, but I have faith that this goal remains well within my reach. Now I refuse to commit myself to some crazy fad diet that will only leave me starving, moody and ready to fall off the wagon, and into a bucket of chicken wings, at any moment. Fad diets work, when you starve yourself, your body has no choice but to begin subsiding on fat cells, but in the long run you will more end up gaining the weight back, in addition to ten more pounds.  In college I lived on nothing but raw vegetables for a month because I had to perform in a play in only a slip that showed all of my legs. The diet was a success, I looked great for the show, however after the curtain dropped for the last time I ate like a pig, which led to my ten pound weight gain. Last night I had dinner with a friend who specifically requested Chili’s. Now Chili’s isn’t my favorite restaurant to eat at but I knew that I could get an incredibly delicious low fat dinner there. No, contrary to popular belief (and the author of “Eat This, Not That”) everything at Chili’s is not covered in fat and deep fried in a vat of bubbling grease. There are several options on the menu that keep the calorie count under 600, yet still satisfy even the largest of appetites. One such dish is the margarita grilled chicken dinner; weighing in at 550 calories and 14 grams of fat the margarita grilled chicken is served on a bed of black beans and Mexican rice, topped off with fresh pico de gallo and lime. Honestly, it is the most filling, delicious low fat dish I have ever tasted. It is one of the few dishes I haven’t even felt the urge to douse in cheese... and that is a bold statement for me. I consider cheese it’s own food group. I realize that most of the clientele Chili’s attracts are not interested in improving their health, but this is one healthy option I would take over a burger there any day of the week. Let’s hope the rest of the weeks are just as easy!

Secret to a Moist Meatball

Dry breadcrumbs
that will in turn make your food dry.

Until a recent encounter with a Food Network Chef, I like many foodies, had always prescribed to the belief that adding dry breadcrumbs to dishes like meatballs, meat loaf and crab cakes would enhance flavor and keep the items from disintegrating during the cooking process. Because I have always used breadcrumbs in the typical dry fashion, it took me by complete surprise to learn that breadcrumbs actually take away moisture, leaving the dishes dry and crumbly. According to Michael Psilakis, the secret to keeping whatever you are cooking from falling apart while cooking is fairly simple. To achieve the sticky consistency, simply use the breadcrumbs recommended and mix with a lesser amount of milk, this combination will create a paste-like substance which both holds your meat mixture together and infuses it with moisture. As someone who has tasted this particular method of meatball preparation compared to a meatball which uses just dry breadcrumbs, I can say with confidence that the paste makes a difference. I was looking up recipe for black bean patties which called for dry breadcrumbs and I thought back to the delicious meatball and wondered why more recipes wouldn’t call for the paste. I will be experimenting with this hypothesis with regards to hamburger patties and reporting back to my many viewers on who follow this blog. Happy eating!