Saturday, March 26, 2011

Dinner at Rocha's

Movie and dinner out with my husband last night was so awesome!! We went to Rocha's to eat dinner. My overall experience was really good. We got there at 9:30 and they closed at 10, so I felt terrible going so late. The waiter was so nice and treated us as we were there at opening time. We had the whole restarant to ourselves which was nice. I ordered the chicken on the tile because i was told it was awesome!! It was very delicious! My husband ordered the shrimp on a tile and it was also very delicious. I have only 5 months left here and just discovered this place. I feel like I probably would've gone there more frequently. My overall experience was awesome and do plan on going back before i leave.


Sunday, March 20, 2011

Penne Ala Vodka Chicken

4 servings
Cook Time: 25 min
Ingredients
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 medium red onion, cut into 1/4 inch dices
1/2 cup vodka
2 cups basic tomato sauce
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 pound Barilla Penne
1 cup Parmigiano Reggiano cheese, grated, plus a piece to grate fresh
Directions
1. Bring about 6 quarts of water to a boil and add about 2 tablespoons salt
2. In a large sauté pan, heat oil over medium heat until just smoking. Add onions and cook until light golden brown, about 6 to 7 minutes. Add the vodka and cook until liquid is reduced by half, about 4 to 5 minutes. Add the tomato sauce and the cream and cook until the sauce has reduced by a third, about 10 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, cook the Barilla Penne in the boiling water for 1 minute less than the package directions indicate. Drain the pasta and add it to the saucepan. Stir together over very high heat for 1 minutes, until thoroughly coated. Remove pan fro heat, add grated Parmigiano cheese and toss for 20 seconds to mix well. Divide the pasta among four bowls, grate Parmigiano Reggiano cheese over each bowl and serve immediately.

Saturday, March 19, 2011

RUNNING

Well I'm training for this 1/2 marathon that's taking place on May 1st. Today I ran 7 miles and my legs really hurt. It's times like this that I wonder if I've gone crazy. Then I sit to think about it to realize that I'm not crazy at all. This is a huge challenge for me. Running does not come to me so easy. I run anywhere from 10 to 17 miles a week, and that's something to be proud of. When I cross the finish line on May 1st, I will have accomplished something that I thought could not be done by me. So, my legs are killing me tonight, but my head is held high because I accomplished the 7 miles.