Shundeez Closes: Saddness Envelopes World

Shundeez, my favorite Iranian restaurant, has sadly closed its doors in Chestnut Hill. Maurice is fantastic, and I look forward to seeing him back in the market behind the Chestnut Hill Hotel.

Spaghetti (squash) and (fish) Balls

I like spaghetti and meatballs, but the meal is too heavy for the the thick soup that defines a Philadelphia summer. Here's a lighter, more summer-y version.

I made fish balls. Now, I generally buy higher quality fish, but I used basa here since it is being used with other ingredients. I chopped and ground the fish and added chopped shallot, basil, homemade bread crumbs, milk, and an egg with salt and pepper.

Form into balls and fry in a cast iron skillet.

I also roasted  half of a spaghetti squash, and spaghetti-fied it with a fork.

Lastly, I made a quick rustic tomato sauce with home grown tomatoes, basil, onion, olive oil and a touch of sugar.

This is a lesson in altering your food expectations given the season, but also a lesson in cooking seasonally and inexpensively given the food at hand. The only thing I needed to buy was the fish. The tomatoes, basil and onion came from the garden, and the squash and shallot had to be used from our CSA.

Summertime spaghetti and meatballs: only in Mt Airy.

Craig LeBan Visits Mt Airy

Avenida gets reviewed by the Philadelphia Inquirer here.

They encourage you to Meat Mt Airy.

iMake: Seared Scallopes with Homegrown Balsamic Beans and Grilled Corn Salad

iMake: Roasted Herbed Haddock with Swiss Chard and Stewed Tomatoes

Garlic Scape Pasta with Seared Sea Bass

Garlic scapes are one of those foodie items - we love them and no one else has even  heard of them. These tops of the garlic bulbs need to be cut by the farmer to improve the size of their garlic, and are oftentimes thrown in the compose bin. Ah, but when they arrive for that short period of time they are available at the farmers market by those who know they can make a few bucks from people like me, you just have to try them. They are perfect raw or simply stir fried. They need to be fresh and younger - the older, larger ones are a bit too woody.

Add some fresh sea bass from Groben's . . .

I then made some whole wheat penne, and quickly sauted the scapes with fresh tomato. I seared the sea bass and served with fresh, local, organic goat cheese feta.

Meet Garlic Scape Pasta with Seared Sea Bass. Meat Mt Airy.

iMake: Roasted Pheasant with Fennel and Wild Rice