T.W.O.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Published on October 17, 2013October 15, 2013 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Don’t throw away those brown bananas you have sitting on the counter; instead make chocolate chip banana bread! And T.W.O. did that exact thing for a Sunday afternoon project. It’s a great recipe for breakfast, a snack or even a sweet tooth craving after dinner.

Ingredients

– 2 ½ cups flour
-1 cup sugar
-3 ½ teaspoons baking powder
– 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
-¾ cups milk (or almond milk)
-1 egg
-1 cup mashed bananas, ripe (~2 to 3 medium bananas)
-2-3 cups Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 350º. In a mixer (T.W.O. uses a KitchenAid), cream the oil, sugar and egg. Once mixed, add the mashed bananas and milk.

Next, slowly add the flour and the baking powder. The batter should be thick, but not sticky. After about 4 minutes, stop the mixer. Slowly fold in (or on low speed in the mixer) the chocolate chips. Depending on your love for chocolate, feel free to add more or less!

Put in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes. You know the bread is ready, when you poke the loaf with a butter knife and it comes out clean!

Happy Baking!

Creamy Polenta with Funghi & Fish

Published on October 15, 2013October 14, 2013 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Tired of mashed potatoes? Well T.W.O. has a great alternative side dish to add on your next menu…Creamy Polenta. Check out how to make this easy dish for a gourmet dinner at home.

Ingredients

For the Polenta:

-4 cups vegetable broth, low sodium
-2/3 cup polenta
-1/3 cup grated Pecorino Romano

For the Mushrooms:

-1 tablespoon olive oil
-1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
-4 ounces shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and discarded, sliced
-12 ounces crimini (Baby Bella) mushrooms, sliced
-2 cloves garlic cloves
-1/4 teaspoon ground pepper
-1/8 teaspoon Krazy salt

For the Fish:

-2 filets rock fish
-1 meyer lemon
-Salt
-Pepper
-Oregano

Polenta: In a sauce pan, bring the vegetable broth to a boil. Reduce the heat and whisk in the polenta. Mix frequently for about 15-20 minutes until the polenta is soft and thick. At this time add the Pecorino Romano. Mix well.

Mushrooms: In a frying pan, heat the olive oil for about 1 minute over medium heat. Add the diced garlic gloves and mushrooms and sauté about 3-4 minutes. Add the balsamic vinegar and the salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low/medium and cook for about 8-10 minutes. The mushrooms will shrink, so don’t get scared that you are over-cooking them.

Fish: Place the fish on a foil-lined cookie sheet. Marinate the filets with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Set aside and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Turn the oven on to 400 degrees. Put the fish in the oven for about 8 minutes. Once the fish is almost done, turn the oven to broil and cook for about 2-3 minutes. Watch carefully so you don’t burn the filets.

Presentation:

Place the cooked polenta on a plate. Add the mushrooms on top of the polenta followed by the filet of fish. Note – this dish is best when hot, so make sure your table is set and your guests are seated!

Enjoy!

San Diego County Favorites

Published on October 14, 2013October 13, 2013 by T.W.O.1 Comment

Del Mar Beach

Del Mar is one of the best beaches in San Diego County. It is a great place to bring families, friends and visitors on those hot summer days. Being in a residential area, the beach is lined with beach houses that are nice to look at while taking a mid-day stroll. T.W.O. enjoys bringing a picnic lunch, our paddleball set and a great book to Del Mar beach.

Claire’s on Cedros Bakery & Café

If you are looking for a great place to grab a coffee and pastry, a delicious sit-down breakfast or a tasty lunch…Claire’s on Cedros in Solana Beach is the place to go. Not only is the food fresh and amazing, the building is the only LEED Platinum certified building in San Diego. The atmosphere is casual and inviting for all ages.

Petco Park

Baseball has been apart of T.W.O.’s life since we were born. We have been to many baseball fields in our life, and Petco Park is in the top five favorite stadiums list. Located in the center of downtown San Diego, the stadium has spectacular views and offers many amenities for families and young adults. During the summer months after certain games, there are country concerts. T.W.O. had the chance to go see Dierks Bentley. Yee haw!

Del Mar Horse Races

Opening Day at the Del Mar Horse races is such a fun day. Sun dresses, big hats, linen suits, fedoras, jockeys and horses…who wouldn’t like this? Place your bets now because this is the only track where the surf meets the turf.

Board & Brew (Del Mar)

T.W.O. loves a good sandwich, so when we are headed to the beach we always stop by Board & Brew to pick up lunch. Turkey, avocado with shredded lettuce on squaw bread is a favorite of T.W.O. Board & Brew never disappoints!

Seagrove Park

Don’t want to go to the beach, but want to enjoy the great weather? Seagrove is a great park that has quite the view. T.W.O. enjoys bringing picnic lunches, our family and our dog Libby! It’s a great place to people watch, relax and enjoy the incredible views. If you time it right, you might even be an “uninvited guest” at a wedding!

Rimel’s Rotisserie (Del Mar)

Rimels is a favorite dinner spot for T.W.O. With fresh food that is made from scratch, T.W.O. enjoys the wok bowls and the potstickers. Rimels offers a great environment for small or large parties. There is a big farm fresh table in that back for big group celebrations. If your table isn’t ready, don’t worry because the fire-pits and the outdoor sitting area makes the wait well worth it!

Workout T.W.O. Style

Published on October 11, 2013October 10, 2013 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

(1) Nike Pro Zebra Knit Tights, (2) Nike “Legend 2.0” Low Rise Capri Leggings, (3) Nike ‘Legend 2.0 Tight Poly’ Print Capri Leggings,
(4) Nike: ‘Legend Poly 2.0’ Jacket, (5) Nike “Epic” Long Sleeve Tee

(6) Nike “Epic Run” Print Crop Leggings, (7) Nike “Cascade” Vest
(8) Nike Pro “Hyperwarm Engineered” Half-Zip, (9) Nike “Free TR Fit 3 Print” Training Shoe

Smoked Ribs

Published on October 9, 2013October 9, 2013 by T.W.O.1 Comment

T.W.O. has a love for barbeque, but recently we have enjoyed smoking meats. Last Christmas, T.W.O. purchased a smoker for their father and boy, do we have fun experimenting with it. This past weekend T.W.O. + dad smoked ribs. Check out this lip smackin’ recipe below.

Ingredients:
Beef Short Ribs
Montreal Steak Seasoning
KC Masterpiece Reserved BBQ Sauce
Apple wood chips
Optional:
Sriracha

Rub the ribs with Montreal Steak seasoning. Note – you want to limit the amount of seasoning, so you don’t overpower the natural flavor of the meat. Let the meat sit for about 20 minutes at room temperature. While the meat is sitting, start the smoker and place a handful of apple wood chips in the bottom of the smoker.

Once ready, place the ribs in the smoker.

Before

After 2.5 hours

After about 2 1/2 – 3 hours take the ribs out and place them on foil. Smother the meat in BBQ sauce and cover with foil. T.W.O. experimented and added sriracha in addition to the BBQ sauce to a couple of the ribs.

Take the covered ribs and place them back in the smoker for about 20-30 minutes. At this time the ribs are ready to eat!

Enjoy the delicious meat!!

Mmm…T.W.O. good!

Libby wanted some Ribs too!

*T.W.O. + dad are continently trying new recipes. There are many different versions that you can follow, so sit back, relax and keep an eye out for more of these smoke’n BBQ recipes! Both these recipes (sriracha/ non-sriracha) turned out great…just depends on your tastebuds!

Sevilla

Published on October 8, 2013October 7, 2013 by T.W.O.1 Comment

Sevilla is the capital and largest city of Andalusia, which is located in the southern part of Spain. The locals would describe it as a city of “passion.” With narrow, winding streets, this romantic city has heritage of art and architecture. In T.W.O.’s eyes, the traditional Spanish culture that was envisioned prior to the trip was depicted in Sevilla. During the summer months, the town is less populated because of the hot weather. 99.9% of the stores close at 2PM for the traditional siesta so they could rest and get out of the heat. The most popular time to visit this town is in March/ April when the weather is more manageable. T.W.O. enjoyed their time in Sevilla-we just wish it was a tad bit cooler!

Getting There

T.W.O. hopped on a jet plane in Barcelona and made their way to Sevilla. The flight was a little less than 2 hours…a hop, skip and a jump!

Accommodations

T.W.O. stayed at the Hotel Casa de Santa Cruz located in the Santa Cruz district. This was the “walking district” of the city. The hotel encompassed a traditional Spanish theme….textiles galore! The rooms were clean and the hotel staff was very helpful. There was a bottle of cava waiting for T.W.O.’s arrival in the room…Cheers! Highly recommended hotel!

Catedral de Santa María de la Sede (Sevilla Cathedral)

Catedral de Santa María is the largest Gothic cathedral and the 3^rdlargest church in the world. It was located near Hotel Casa de Santa Cruz, so T.W.O. was able to walk by this iconic church a couple times a day.

Plaza de España

Plaza de España is located in Parque de María Luisa and was built as an example of the Renaissance Revival style in Spanish architecture. The semi-circle building is filled with tiled fountains, brick, exploration stories and a river. While T.W.O. was exploring the historical plaza, a commercial was being filmed. They asked us to be in it, but we had to decline…

Casa de La Guitarra

Casa de La Guitarra is located in the Santa Cruz district and is a small, quant place to watch a flamenco show. It was a good thing that T.W.O.’s hotel made reservations for us because we received VIP seats….front row. Doesn’t get any better than that! The experience was amazing watching the guitarist play, while a gentleman sang and clapped and stomped his feet to create a beat. The flamenco dancer was passionate and eloquent. This is a must do while in Sevilla!

Gusto Ristobar

Located near the Cathedral, T.W.O. stumbled upon this ristobar while looking for a snack. The pizza slices in the window caught our eye! It wasn’t your traditional American slice though; it was a fluffy bready-square topped with cheese and fresh vegetables. Yum! T.W.O. made friends with the waiters who treated us like royalty. Who wouldn’t like that? The fresh salads and the ice cream bars kept calling T.W.O.’s name, so we went back a couple times! Definitely stop by and enjoy the atmosphere of Gusto!

Bar La Terraza (@ EME Hotel)

Little did T.W.O. know, but this hotel had one of the best rooftop views in town. After dinner one night, T.W.O. decided to check out this boutique hotel since there was a lot of activity outside of it and we heard music. After riding the elevator up to the roof, T.W.O. was pleasantly surprised to see that this was the place to be since it had the best views of the Cathedral. The atmosphere was lively and the music was even better. Cheers!

Night Strolls

T.W.O. enjoyed their night strolls in Sevilla. The weather was perfect, people were out and the gelato was plentiful!

Burrata Margarita Pizza

Published on October 4, 2013October 4, 2013 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

Burrata. Basil. Marinara Sauce. Balsamic.

Happy Friday Night Pizza Night!!

T.W.O. decided to cook a lighter pizza for this Friday Night Pizza Night. Burrata looks a lot like fresh buffalo mozzarella, but it much softer and has a cream-like filling. And it makes for a great cheese to use for a pizza! This Burrata Margarita pizza is easy to whip up for yourself, date or family night. Has T.W.O. convince you to make this pizza yet?

Ingredients
1 – Roll of pizza dough
-12 ounces Marinara Sauce*
-8 ounces Burrata**
-1 Small package fresh, basil leaves
-2 Cloves garlic, chopped
Balsamic Vinegar
Salt

*T.W.O. uses SF Capellino Low-Fat Tomato and Garlic Sauce from Molinaris Deli…don’t let the “low-fat” scare you- the texture and flavor is still there!
**T.W.O. suggests using Di Stefano – Burrata Alla Panna

Roll out your pizza dough on a floured/ cornmeal surface. Once evenly rolled out, place dough on a pizza stone. Spread the marinara sauce on the dough making sure you get the edges.

Next, cut the burrata into pieces and distribute evenly on the pizza dough. (See below) It’s okay that the marinara is showing; the cheese will melt. Next, place your basil leaves and chopped garlic on the pizza. Last step- drizzle balsamic vinegar over the pizza and add salt to taste.

Let the pizza rise for about 15 minutes while the BBQ is heating up. Note –you don’t want to put the stone on a cold BBQ. The temperature should reach a medium-high heat before placing the pizza on. Watch the pizza closely; you don’t want your crust to burn! It should take about 15-20 minutes, depending on your grill.

Happy Friday Night Pizza Night!!!

Sweaters of the Season

Published on October 3, 2013October 3, 2013 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

1. MinkPink: Animal Sweater, 2. Zara: Reversible Sweater
3. A Fine Link: Mona Leopard Sweater, 4. Hayden: Sparkler, rice and zest colorblock cashmere crewneck sweater
5. Madewell: Dorian Colorblock Pullover

6. Helmut Lang: Moto Cardigan, 7. Bar III Sweater: Long-Sleeved Printed Cardigan
8. Thakoon Addition: Nutmeg Striped Linen Jumper, 9. BCBGMAXAZRIA: Jaden Sweater
10. ASTRID: Leather Front Sweater

Polenta Fries

Published on September 27, 2013September 26, 2013 by T.W.O.Leave a comment

French fries, sweet potato fries, zucchini fries, steak fries, Freedom fries, steak fries, papas fritas….they are all tasty, but T.W.O. loves polenta fries these days! These polenta fries taste like they are fried, but are actually baked, using no oil! Learn how to make these delicious gluten-free fries that everyone is sure to enjoy!

Ingredients

1– roll of polenta, pre-cooked
Krazy Salt
Optional- cayenne pepper or garlic powder

Preheat oven to 425°. Using a sharp knife, cut the polenta roll in half, lengthwise. Continue to cut the polenta into strips to form the “traditional French fry” shape until the roll is all cut.

The fries should be about ½ inch thick. Next, season the fries with the Krazy Salt to your desire and toss. (Optional- Add cayenne pepper or garlic powder) Then, place the cut polenta fries on a greased cookie sheet.

Put the cookie sheet in the oven for about 30 minutes or until the polenta fries have a crispy outside and warm, fluffy inside.

T.W.O. likes to serve the polenta fries with ketchup and if they are in the mood for some spiciness, T.W.O. will add sriracha sauce to the ketchup to create a tasty side dish.