A Simple Hollandaise Sauce Recipe

As fancy as “hollandaise” sounds, hollandaise sauce is actually a pretty easy sauce to make. I love adding it to the usual like eggs benedict and asparagus, but it also works great on seafood and meat. I’m not a huge proponent of using salt because I believe cooking is about bringing the natural flavors out of ingredients, and besides, there’s already sodium in so many things such as soy sauce that are added to dishes.

Enough rambling, here’s the recipe (1-2 servings):

  • 2tbsp butter
  • 1/2 cup of white wine
  • lemon juice
  • 1 egg yolk
  • Salt and pepper (optional)

Unfortunately when I cook, I always eyeball things and improvise if something is lacking, so measurements may be a bit off. Use your palate and adjust to your liking!

Directions

  1. In a saucepan, melt butter
  2. Add wine to reduce
  3. Take saucepan off the stove and add a squeeze of lemon juice
  4. Add egg yolk and whisk immediately
  5. Add salt and pepper to taste!

Added hollandaise sauce to some baked scallops and asparagus last night. Very tasty and healthy!

Can one have way too much Japanese food? I didn’t think it was possible, but at Minado… it is. Minado is a special trip when you live in Boston: you have to drive 30 minutes out to get to Natick where the restaurant is located by the N…

Can one have way too much Japanese food?

I didn’t think it was possible, but at Minado… it is.

Minado is a special trip when you live in Boston: you have to drive 30 minutes out to get to Natick where the restaurant is located by the Natick mall (not IN the Natick mall). I rented a Zipcar just for the occasion and waited 35 minutes to be seated.

Honestly, I never enjoy buffets (which if I haven’t mentioned yet - Minado is a “Japanese Seafood” buffet) simply because I can never get my money’s worth and when food is mass-produced so quickly, quality tends to spin off. But I have to say, Minado was one of the more enjoyable buffets I have been to. They had good broccoli tempura, tasty side salads (seaweed salad nom!), and a really good green tea froyo machine! Unfortunately, the sushi was a complete miss, but what can you expect when you’re standing in line watching a group of Mexicans hurry back and forth trying to make a spicy dragon roll, shrugs. (Not being racist or anything…) I don’t like rolls, but if you can’t get a roll right, a nigiri might be even harder.

I expected not to have great sushi, so it wasn’t a major disappointment. With that said, Minado was actually above my expectations! Would I go back? I don’t know… I stuffed myself until I was sick… (But I still left room for dessert.) Maybe if I am feeling adventurous enough - because going to Minado requires a steel stomach and an ambitious eating mindset.

A Review for Brunch at Gaslight Brasserie

I wish I had photos to share, but by the time I realized I needed photos, I had eaten everything on my plate. Gaslight Brasserie is exactly that awesome.

In the South End, Gaslight is the Aquitaine Group’s “neighborhood Parisian brasserie” aka upscale French dining. It’s moderately priced and has a great old-meets-new vibe. A girlfriend came to Boston for a visit and suggested having brunch, and if I have never mentioned this before, brunch is my favorite meal - leaning more towards the breakfast side. One of my friends has always raved about Gaslight’s brunch offerings, but I have always been hesitant to go because of its popularity, which naturally means long lines.

I finally decided to suck it up and met my friend there. The wait wasn’t too long because we were still early (the restaurant opens at 10AM), and I was happy to find that they have a first-come-first-serve bar that has full menu service.

Some people have claimed that Gaslight serves the best coffee in Boston, and though I cannot confirm that, I definitely agree that the mocha I ordered was perfect - foamy milk, chocolaty smoothness, and the right amount of espresso. Service was also great - I originally ordered a coffee, but changed my mind, and before I could say something, the waitress brought over a coffee, then nicely changed it to a mocha for me.

The food was phenomenal. My girlfriend and I split a croque madame and a vanilla french toast stuffed with sweet fromage blanc and maple syrup. Gaslight can make a mean (and fancy) ham and cheese sandwich! The ham was sliced deli thin, and the bechamel sauce added great flavor. Although I didn’t eat the part with the egg on the croque madame, I bet it really tied the sandwich together. As for the french toast, I will never make french toast the same again! The fromage blanc (also known as fromage frais) was injected into the middle of the toast, and it was such a pleasant surprise! The toast was also topped with a vanilla bean sauce, which made the toast even sweeter and richer. Topped with maple syrup? It was the best…

The estimated wait time for brunch was 45 minutes, so I can’t imagine dinner without a reservation, but I will definitely make my way back. Gaslight has now won a special place in my heart, and may be competing with Lineage for favorite Boston restaurant.

Two Simple Tapas Dishes

Feeling adventurous, Jonathan and I improvised on some traditional Spanish tapas dishes: fried calamari and albondigas with an eggplant tomato sauce!

Fried calamari is simple - grab some fresh calamari, cut it up, dip in an egg wash, and bread with panko. Jonathan added capers and banana peppers, which gave it a nice flavor and kick. Don’t forget to add salt to taste.

The albondigas are a bit more complicated. First, for the meatballs, roll the ground beef (which I seasoned beforehand) into balls, dip into an egg wash, and bread with panko. Then place into baking dish and bake at 450 degrees. The sauce was made by browning onions and tenderizing eggplant in tomato paste. Eggplant takes a while for it to be the right consistency, so be patient! Once the meatballs and sauce are both done, the sauce goes right over the top of the meatballs.